GracePoint Church

I often ask myself (and God) this question: Am I getting it? Once I place my faith and trust in Christ alone, now what? How do I apply it? How do I know if I'm doing life the right way? Let me give you two thoughts as you fight this good fight: 1. Satan is real. He doesn't follow any rules. His only goal is to keep you away from Jesus. He knows the rest will take care of itself. 2. God is real. Th...

As I've gotten older (I know, I've been talking about that a lot lately), the one thing that seems increasingly difficult to find and hold onto is "peace". In a world that seems so filled with stress and chaos, how can I find peace?  We all long for it--that sense that all is well. The Hebrews had a word for it--Shalom. The way “shalom” is used does not mean to feel calm nor the absence of conflic...

I have a recurring nightmare. No, it's not about standing in front of the congregation and forgetting to prepare my sermon. My recurring nightmare is showing up for a race and getting lost after the start. I wake up in a cold sweat wondering what went wrong. In I Corinthians 9:24-27 Paul compares our walk with Jesus to a race in which we ALL run. There are two ways to run...to WIN...or to NOT LOSE...

Questions. When I became a Christian I had a lot of "questions." Why do I need to go to church? How should I dress? Do I have to love people who hurt me? How does forgiveness work? Are there places that I should not go to? Are there people I should or shouldn't hang out with? How do I know the Bible is "the" truth? Why is Jesus the only way? As I got older the questions got more complex and confus...

I still think far too much about what other people think of me. The good news is I think about it far less. The more I sit in the presence of Jesus, the more I become indifferent to the thoughts of others. I think I might be maturing. For too many years, I have made my faith about what I'm getting out of it--how my church does things that I like, how I chase the comfort of God's blessings, how I c...

My mom had six children. She worked a full time job to ensure that we were well fed and clothed. I never saw the inside of a Daycare Center. She cooked every meal for us. She made sure we got to all of our activities. She could knit incredibly fast. I recall, as a little child, needing a pair of mittens to play outside in the snow. Sure enough...literally within 20 minutes or so, I was donning my...

I was washing my wife's car a couple of weeks ago when I twisted and felt a sharp pain in my back. I was fine having pain for a few hours...but two weeks later the pain is as bad as when it first happened. Life is hard. Jesus said it would be. That's why He gave us Himself. After he ascended into heaven, He gave us His Spirit. We also have the Bible. How fortunate that we have the answer to life's...

"Two paths diverged into the yellow wood..." And so goes the famous Robert Frost poem. When I think of the current state of our culture and the way of Jesus, those words seem to ring true. One path described in Frost's poem is "well-traveled"... the other "less so."   The well-worn path results in a story as old as time. Jesus referred to it as the "broad road" that many go down. The Bible is fill...

If you grew up in church you know what that's all about. Christians around the world will celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus this weekend. But is it just a nice religious moment we observe, or is there something deeper that Jesus' death and resurrection accomplished for us? I want to encourage you to take some time to pause, and think about the implications of the Resurrection of Jesus on our liv...

I'm a newcomer to the South...and I love it here. As a newby, I'm way behind on my cultural orientation. A few years ago I asked a gal from the south how churches celebrate Easter. Without hesitation she smiled and said, "You mean church prom?" Easter is a big deal for followers of Jesus. Arguably, it's much bigger than a prom, but my friend was on to something. Easter is the season we reflect on...

Do you ever look in the mirror in a moment of honest reflection and think, “who's this clown?” I can't see myself as loved by God because of the way I act. Just me? No? Maybe you are like me–you meant to stay calm with your kids, show kindness to your spouse, or be patient with a coworker—but instead, the fleshly came out. Again. Good or bad, you’re not alone. And believe it or not, this doesn't d...

Have you ever gotten into it with someone you love? Maybe it was with a spouse, best friend, or your parents. Fights happen for a reason, right? You're looking to win the argument. Let's suppose we've all been there... have you ever later wondered, "Was that even worth it?" And what's more, if you fought to win, that person you love (and argued with) must be a loser. Ouch! Too often, Christians ar...

In John 18, after trying to figure out who Jesus was, Pontius Pilate famously asked, "What is truth?" People have been seeking the answer to that question since the beginning of time. People desire to know the truth until it treads upon their truth (translation: comfort). Our tendency or preference is to "shape truth"... or adjust it to fit the way I am living. So, we create phrases like "your tru...

I was born in Canada. So, I grew up playing hockey. Isn't that what all Canadians do? (insert smiley face emoji here). The teams that did poorly in the standings all had one thing in common--they didn't play together. Many of those teams had really great players, but they all tried to be the hero. The result: they would fall into and over each other and end up losing most of their games.   Convers...

"Watch this!" "Can I show you something?" "Dad, look at me!" I still remember the first time I rode my bike on only two wheels. I ran inside and made my parents come out and watch me. The first time I swam without sinking...I begged my parents to watch me. Oh how my parents must've been exhausted each time one of their kids pleaded to be seen, approved, and loved. I still long to be seen and to be...

I've always battled insecurity. I don't know if it was my bright red hair, my freckles or my short stature, but I've struggled my whole life to matter, to be seen.  I'll never forget a day in second grade when I talked my friend Steven into pretending to speak a different language with me. For an entire recess we just talked gibberish to one another and acted like we were having a completely norma...

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." - Matthew 13:44 As I think about my relationship to God I sometimes wonder if I grasp just how valuable it is? There is nothing that we could possibly think of that comes close to the value of being adopted into God's family.  Now that...

My first day "on the job" as a Pastor was exciting. I couldn't wait to link arms with the people of God and be a light in our community. Then I experienced my first church business meeting. Rather than talk about how we can love our neighbors and serve the less fortunate in our community, we argued. We argued about service times, paint colors, what the Pastor wore on the platform, what hung on the...

Think about something that gives you the warm and fuzzies... for me, it'd be the warm hearth of a roaring fireplace on a chilly day. If we've talked over the last month and a half, there's a good chance that I've mentioned firewood and all of the joy it brings me. We're a little like a fire; together we burn bright, and alone, we smolder. These past few weeks, we've been learning about the practic...

Prayer is so much more than a religious thing we do to be a good Christian. It's a fundamental way in which we grow in our intimacy with the Triune God. In prayer we listen to God, not simply talking to God. We've spent the last few weeks focusing on the practice of PRAYER. I hope you are coming to see that prayer is a powerful discipline when it comes to walking with Jesus. It was Jesus' go-to al...

Our week began with the inauguration of our 47th President and the observation of Martin Luther King Day. Both events are of vital importance to us in America. It is fitting that we are in a series exploring the power of prayer in our relationship to the Father. I hope we pray for our President. I hope that we pray for unity in our country amongst all people. Prayer is powerful. There continues to...

I've been thinking a lot about prayer lately. Of course, part of that is because we are in a series about prayer. As I "practice" the discipline of pausing, focusing and directing my thoughts and words to God I wonder... Do my prayers make a difference? If God doesn't answer my prayer in the way I desire, what went wrong? Does He even hear when I pray for the fires to subside in California, or for...

My 5 year old son was with me one moment and the next he was gone. We were in a mall and I immediately panicked. I ran up to a security guard and bellowed, "YOU HAVE TO LOCK THE MALL DOWN!" My eyes darted in every direction...and I prayed. Do you pray? What motivates you to pray? Most of us pray when some sort of trouble comes into our lives. We rightly ask God to help us in those moments. Do you...

I want more of God. I long for the peace described in the pages of scripture. I desire to live a life that has so much less stress. Why does it seem so out of reach?  I'd like to suggest it's because of what we are investing in. You become what you feed yourself. I don't need to remind any of you of that. But, why is it so hard? I'd like to offer another suggestion--maybe because we want it now or...