Rinse and Repeat with Carol Eskaros

Beloved, are you suffering in some way now or have you recently? Has a friend left you? Is a job gone? Has a life change created turmoil, and you just don't see a way through? Join us as we continue our study in Romans chapter 8 today, as this passage in Romans 8:18 offers us GREAT hope: For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which...

There is a HUGE difference between living as an enslaved person of a household, and living as a son or a daughter of that household. An enslaved person has the will of the master FORCED upon him. He has no rights, is often mistreated, and is required to do what is commanded of him. Whereas a son or a daughter is at home in that same household, is part of that family, has a vested interest in how t...

While doing a brief cardio workout with weight may make sense, in order to build strength, it certainly would NOT make sense to run a marathon with weights on our hands and legs.  In fact, long-distance runners need to run as unencumbered as possible. And the same is true for us as believers.  We need to set aside EVERY single weight that might hinder us in our race with Christ. Hebrews 12:1-3: Th...

Jesus did something we often overlook when He came to earth. He emptied Himself. He emptied Himself of all the rights and privileges of being the Son of God, seated at the right hand of Majesty in Heaven. He remained fully God and fully man, but emptied Himself of the glory of BEING God as He walked the earth. Philippians 2:7-11 tells us that He “made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a...

"You can take him at his word." "You have my word for it." These idioms teach us that a person's word MATTERS, and tells us so much about who they actually are, about their integrity. John 1:14 tells us that, "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Jesus Christ is the very Word of God, and reveals to us God's heart, His character, nature, and great love fo...

Did you know that the very same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you and in me? It's true. Romans 8:11 tells us that because of the the Holy Spirit, who raised Jesus from the dead, we have great resurrection power in THIS life, and the one to come. Join me today as we continue our exploration of Romans 8, and in particular the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. And a special a...

This week I learned the horrific news that my cousin, Jack Fanous, went home to be with the Lord suddenly and unexpectedly. Jack tirelessly fought for the rights of U.S. Armed Forces Veterans, raising awareness and support for their housing, employment, and mental health needs through his organization, the G.I. Go Fund (gigofund.org). Amazingly, over the past two years, Jack was also on a quest fo...

Do you know the Bible says that you are what you think? It’s true. “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he (Proverbs 23:7a)." Our thoughts are so important that they are even a matter of life and death. Today we continue our series on Romans 8, picking up in this remarkable segment: “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live acco...

Imagine being set free, TRULY free, from condemnation? Imagine being set free from all sin - sin in our past, in our present, in our future? We don't have to imagine it, because that is PRECISELY the truth of a believer's life in Christ. We are set free from guilt and shame, set free to "go and sin no more" (John 8:11). Today, I begin a brand new series in the most significant pa...

There is power in confession. James 5:16 tells us, “ Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭ tells us “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one be...

It is the single greatest statement of faith in the entire Bible, in my humble opinion. Daniel 3:17-18, "If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Three young...

The judge, priest, and prophet Samuel said some unforgettable words. In 1 Samuel 3:9, he said in response to the Lord's call: Speak, Lord, for Your servant hears. This response represented the posture of Samuel's heart for his entire life. He wanted to listen and to obey the words of the Lord, and Samuel was a great man of faith, willing to have difficult conversations, willing to do hard...

If God is all-powerful (omnipotent), all-knowing (omniscient), and all-reigning (sovereign), then why should human beings pray? What is the ultimate point of prayer, if God will do His will in the end? Today on Rinse and Repeat, we address these critical questions about prayer, taking a look especially at what prayer does in the lives of believers. In addition to exploring WHY we pray, I also addr...

So far, we may have been surprised by some of the inclusions in Hebrews 11 - complicated men like Samson, Jacob, and Gideon - and men we may not know a lot about, like Jephthah. But today's man of God, David, comes as NO surprise. Here is a man after God's own heart, a man who sought to honor God and from whom Jesus Himself would one day come! And yet, David is himself a man of many shortcomings a...

You probably have never heard of this guy, but don't turn the program off yet! Jephthah! Try to say THAT name three times fast! Jephthah is the next "hall of faither" whom God mentions in Hebrews 11:32, and is called a "mighty man of valor" in Judges 11. And yet, his childhood is fraught with bullying, sorrow, and rejection. Despite Jephthah's bumpy start, God had great plans for Jephthah, proving...

We may have grown up learning that Samson's story was one of heroic strength, strength that was tied to his long hair. Sadly, Samson's story is far more tragic. His strength came as a result of his consecration to God, part of his Nazirite vow, and that strength left him with the Spirit of God's departure in the scene with Delilah. Samson's story offers us SO MANY critical warnings...

I have been thinking a lot bout the last two weeks, and I felt it was time to revisit a lesson I taught called "Love One Another." I wanted to take a few minutes to talk about some things that God's Word has to say about things that have made recent headlines, and perhaps nothing more important than HOW MANY TIMES God's Word commands His people specifically to LOVE ONE ANOTHER. B...

Today, we explore the faith of a man many have never even heard of - Barak. The military commander during the time of Deborah the judge and prophetess, Barak's faith was imperfect, as was every person's faith we have studied so far in Hebrews 11. In Barak's case, we get to see an example of faith that moves forward, even when afraid. Fear and cowardice are two very different things, as...

As our series in Hebrews 11 continues, we explore the faith of Gideon, a man with great fear but with an even Greater God.

Today we explore one of the most surprising stories in Hebrews 11, the story of a Canaanite prostitute named Rahab, who comes to believe FULLY in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. How does she come to faith? Based on what she hears about God's faithfulness to His people! Turn in your Bibles to Hebrews 11:31 and Joshua 2 as we explore this incredible story and as we learn how this woman not...

In A Grief Observed, the book he wrote after his wife died of cancer, C.S. Lewis said: “Grief and pain are the price humans have to pay for the love and total commitment we have for another person. The more we love, the more we hurt when we lose the object of our love. But if we are honest with ourselves, would we have it any other way?”

What walls can we tend to construct for ourselves? Can we build walls with other people, keeping them out to protect ourselves from hurt somehow? Perhaps we try to isolate, staying away from people where it is safe. Or perhaps, we have walls in the form of numbing substances and distractions, so that we don't have to feel anything. Still yet, we can maintain walls by being endlessly busy, so w...

Imagine leaving power, money, fame, and comfort, and willingly choosing to live among slaves? That was precisely what Moses did, when "he became of age, refus(ing) to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin" (Hebrews 11:23b-24). Moses's choice to suffer instead of pursuing pleasure...

When you get bad news, maybe you do what I do, and immediately start running through worst-case scenarios - what you will do when this happens, or that happens... But the beautiful thing about our faith in Christ is that we do not have to live with this doomsday mentality. We do not always have to be striving to figure out how to handle life, because God has promised to be our refuge, our fortress...

The Hall of Faith includes a few surprising characters and some unexpected stories from the lives of some Bible characters. In particular, today we look at the lives of Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, and particular events from their lives that we might not have considered most notable. And yet, there is SO MUCH to learn about genuine faith in studying the lives of these remaining patriarchs. Tune in to...