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Author Archives: Jin Liu

When?

Posted on March 9, 2025

When?

It’s a one-word question, usually containing some degree of emotion—when?

The word implies anticipation, expectation, and hope. It can also communicate frustration, resignation, and despair.

“When will I get ____________ ?” Or “When will this prayer be answered?” Or “When will my circumstances change?” Or “When will the breakthrough happen?” When, when, when?

The Bible addresses the deep pain associated with our “when” questions:

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. —Proverbs 13:12 (NLT)

At times our hopes are deferred. They’re put off. They remain unfulfilled. What we desired and excitedly looked forward to is delayed. Something we long for doesn’t happen WHEN we thought it would or should happen. In these situations, we feel the sickening feeling of disappointment in our souls. We ache on the inside. We question whether the thing we hope for will ever become a reality. When, when, when?

We all have “when’s.” I’m slowly learning a lesson about these question marks in my life.

Perhaps the key to surviving and even thriving through deferred hopes is to change the question. Instead of asking “when,” it’s far more productive to ask “what?” It’s more healthy to ask, “who?”

The right question is—“What do I need to do while I am waiting?” The right question is, “Who will I trust with my future?”

These questions not only mitigate the sadness of our disappointments, but they often alleviate the pain completely. They move us away from something we can’t control to what we can control—what we’re doing in the meantime and who we trust to take care of us.

This truth is clear in Scripture:

But those who wait for the LORD [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] will gain new strength and renew their power; they will lift up their wings [and rise up close to God] like eagles [rising toward the sun]; they will run and not become weary, they will walk and not grow tired.—Isaiah 40:31 (AMP)

Are you waiting on something? Is your hope running low or completely exhausted? Change your “when” to a “what” and a “who!”

Pastor Dale

The Wise Way to Live

Posted on March 9, 2025

The Wise Way To Live

We occasionally hear people speak of things in short supply. This means there’s not enough of some needed resource to meet the demand.

There’s no doubt about the short supply of wisdom in our world. Common sense is quite uncommon, it seems.

God is the all-wise God, and He delights in His children growing in wisdom. Solomon reminded us of this many times in the book of Proverbs. Here’s one example:

Don’t turn away from wisdom, and she will protect you. Love her, and she will keep you safe. “The first step to becoming wise is to look for wisdom, so use everything you have to get understanding. Love wisdom, and she will make you great. Hold on to wisdom, and she will bring you honor. Wisdom will reward you with a crown of honor and glory.” — Proverbs 4:6-9 (ERV)

Here are a few thoughts about wisdom:

  • There’s a wise way to live and a foolish way to live.
  • Left to ourselves, we always choose foolish ways.
  • We must be educated out of our foolishness.
  • Wise people are not born wise; they become wise. They purposely gain wisdom.
  • We can gain wisdom from our mistakes and failures, from our victories and successes, and from the mistakes, failures, victories, and successes of others.
  • We can gain wisdom through attention to teaching, instruction, and discipline.
  • We start life as fools but should finish as wise—or at least much wiser.
  • A wise life is a life lived by enduring principles and self-discipline rather than impulse and emotion.
  • The quality of your life will be determined by the degree of your wisdom.
  • Wisdom isn’t knowledge; it’s practically applied knowledge. There are many “educated fools.”
  • Wisdom fills life with good things. Foolishness robs life of its best.
  • Wisdom begs for listening ears but is often ignored.
  • Wisdom must be pursued. It’s not automatically acquired.
  • Wisdom isn’t a place you arrive; it’s a state that must be gained and maintained. The foolish can become wise, and the wise can become foolish.
  • Wise or unwise decisions often happen in milliseconds! Preparation for these milliseconds happens over a lifetime. Prep time is long. Test time is short.

Let’s seek to be wise people in a foolish world!

Pastor Dale

It’s Your Time

Posted on March 9, 2025

It’s Your Time

It’s here—2024! Can you believe it? How quickly time passes. Before we know it, this new year will be in record books, too!

Time is an interesting thing. It is our most significant, non-renewal resource. It’s a gift that can’t be replenished. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. That’s why it’s so important to use it well.

This is what Paul, the apostle, was talking about when he wrote these words:

Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. —Ephesians 5:15-16 (NIV)

The Amplified Bible reads this way:

Therefore see that you walk carefully [living life with honor, purpose, and courage; shunning those who tolerate and enable evil], not as the unwise, but as wise [sensible, intelligent, discerning people], making the very most of your time [on earth, recognizing and taking advantage of each opportunity and using it with wisdom and diligence], because the days are [filled with] evil. —Ephesians 5:15-16 (AMP)

Note the phrases “making the most of every opportunity” and “making the very most of your time.”

One of the keywords in both of these versions is “making.” Something “made” is created, fashioned, or produced by someone. It is the result of intentional decisions and actions.

Here, we’re instructed to “make the most” of our “opportunities” or “time.” There are two Greek words often translated as time—chronos and kairos.

“Chronos” is the minutes, days, weeks, and years marked by a clock or calendar. We’re referring to it when we ask, “What time is it?” Or “What’s today’s date?” This is “chronos,” from which we get our word “chronology.”

However, Paul chose another word to describe time. He told us to “make the most of our kairos.” “Kairos” refers to the content or opportunities wrapped in any moment. We speak of it when we say, “I had a good time.” It is about your experience in a moment.

What’s the point? Paul reminds us that time is a gift and a resource that can be wasted or invested. In each of our seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, and years are opportunities waiting to be mined, needing to be carefully harvested. What we do with our time determines what happens with our lives!

In this new year, you’re given a gift called time. It’s yours to do with as you wish. But what you do with it matters. Don’t let time slip away from you. Make the most of it in 2024!

Pastor Dale

House or Home?

Posted on March 9, 2025

House or Home? 

Do you live in a house or a home?

While we often use the terms interchangeably, there is a meaningful difference between the two. One is a structure consisting of basic materials; the other is an environment created by the occupants of the structure. A house isn’t necessarily a home.

A home is far more than physical real estate. It’s the atmosphere purposely cultivated and maintained within walls. It established by conversation and connection with the people living there. A true home is a place of safety, refuge, security, and acceptance. A home is about relationships, not the size or architecture of buildings. A one room apartment can be more of a home than a massive mansion.

There’s a familiar Christmas song first made popular by Bing Crosby in 1943 titled “I’ll Be Home For Christmas.” The song describes in letter form the emotions and wishes of a World War II soldier as the Christmas season approached:

“I’ll be home for Christmas

You can plan on me

Please have snow and mistletoe

And presents on the tree

Christmas Eve will find me

Where the love light gleams

I’ll be home for Christmas

If only in my dreams” — Kim Gannon, Walter Kent

What’s the person in this song longing for at Christmas? Not a house, but a home!

What makes a home? In one word, the answer is LOVE. Real love isn’t a feeling; it’s something we demonstrate to others through kindness, grace, forgiveness, and compassion. It’s demonstrated through listening, giving, caring, helping, embracing, and extending. When we do these things, we turn a house into a home!

Let’s make every house a home this Christmas season, and in every season of life! Remember, “Love never fails … “ —1 Corinthians 13:8.

Merry Christmas!

Pastor Dale

Time To Take Off

Posted on March 9, 2025

Time To Take Off

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. — Philippians 3:12 (NIV)

If you’ve traveled much, you’ve likely experienced a few airline delays or flight cancellations. It’s especially disappointing when you’ve boarded your flight, and your plane has made its way onto the tarmac, only to return to the gate where you’re asked to deplane. When you’re hoping to go somewhere, if you’re like me, you want to go! Airports aren’t great hangout places.

Sadly, when it comes to personal goals, many people spend much of their lives at the proverbial “airport.” They want to go somewhere with their lives but never make it off the ground. Their goals never become a reality.

It’s important to remember a few things when it comes to accomplishing life goals:

  • Desires are only the beginning point for accomplishing a life dream or goal. Desires are good, but they’re not uncommon. Practically everyone has a desire for their life to be better. While a desire to grow, change, or improve some part of your life is admirable, it’s not sufficient. It’s only the starting point.
  • Life goals need to be filtered through God’s Word and prayer. What we want for our lives isn’t always what God has planned for us. We must be willing to submit our plans to God for His guidance. Actually, it’s better to start the process by asking God to show us His plans for our lives.
  • Once we sense God’s guidance, we need to engage our hearts and minds in practical planning.
  • For a desire to become a reality, it must become a clear plan. Too often, our life goals are foggy and ambiguous. We can’t clearly state them. For example, simply saying, “I want my life to be better,” will never make it better. The real questions are, “How do I want my life to be better?” Or “What do I need to do to make my life better?”
  • Plans are far more likely to become actions when they are written down. Put your goals and plans on paper. Make clear what you will change, do, become, pursue, or seek to accomplish based on God’s guidance and help. Describe your action steps in writing. Make sure your action steps are simple, doable, and consistent with your goals.
  • Get started. Do something. Take the steps. Even if you have to start small—START MOVING FORWARD TOWARD YOUR GOALS! Remember, the greatest amount of energy is required at the beginning of any pursuit. Impetus is always harder to get going than momentum. But momentum will soon kick in if you invest in the impetus.
  • Celebrate little victories. Make sure your joy isn’t tied to one big goal “at the end.” Mark and appreciate your progress along the way.
  • Stay with it! Long action in the same direction creates progress. No one reaches a goal without perseverance and persistence. Remember, if it were easy, everyone would be doing it. By sticking with your goals, you’re showing you’re different!

Don’t spend your life at the proverbial “airport” of life. Get onboard with God’s goals for your life and go. It’s time to take off!

Pastor Dale

Restart Time

Posted on March 9, 2025

Restart Time

From the world of IT we’ve all learned the value of restarts. When something isn’t working correctly on your computer, it’s the first step to a cure. By restarting your  hardware and software, something (mysterious to me) happens. Quite often, things “magically” begin to function properly. Some experts suggest that up to half of all computer or smart device operating issues can be fixed with a reboot!

What’s true in the tech world is also true in many other areas of life. Often the fix we need to get back on the right track in our relationship with God and others is a restart.

In our spiritual lives, a restart involves reviewing and renewing the right way of thinking and acting. It’s reminding ourselves of God’s operating system — of how He works in our world, in our lives, and through us.


 

Here’s some simple reminders to help us get a fresh spiritual restart.

With God:

  • The small thingsare the big things.

God measures our capacity for bigger things by testing us with small things.

Luke 16:10 (NIV)

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much … “

  • The low places are the high places.

Jesus taught us that the way up is down. Humility brings honor. Pride brings a fall!

Matthew 23:12 (NIV)

“For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

  • “Towels” are more important than titles.

Many people base their identity on their title. Jesus never did. He taught us to care less about titles, and to care more about “towels” — serving others!

John 13:3-5 (NIV)

“Jesus knew that the Father had given Him authority over everything and that He had come from God and would return to God. So He got up from the table, took off His robe, wrapped a towel around His waist, and poured water into a basin. Then He began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel He had around Him.”

  • Attitudes determine altitudes.

Up or down — it’s all about our attitudes. Attitudes always determine the altitudes of life!

Ephesians 4:23 (NLT)

“ … let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.”

  • Connectedness is a key to fruitfulness.

Connection involves alignment. It’s about harmony, unity and dependency. It’s about active engagement. Connection to God and others is a key to a fruitful and successful life.

John 15:4, 5 (NIV)

“Remain in Me, as I remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me… apart from Me you can do nothing.”

1 Corinthians 1:10 (NIV)

“I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgement.”

  • Admitting weakness is the pathway to greater strength.

Acknowledging our weaknesses demonstrates humility, and allows us to willingly lean and depend on God and others for strength.

2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)

“But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”

James 4:6 (NKJV)

“ … God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

  • Availability is more important that ability.

God isn’t looking for people with phenomenal abilities. He’s looking for people who are simply available to be used by Him, irregardless of their abilities!

Isaiah 6:8 (NIV)

“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’”

Take some time and review these restart principles. Let them refresh your spiritual operating system!

Pastor Dale

Growing Fruit On Others’ Trees

Posted on March 9, 2025

Growing Fruit On Others’ Trees

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. —1 Peter 4:10 (NIV)

What is success?

Success is a constant life theme. Entrepreneurs seek to build successful businesses. Investors are looking for successful investments. Coaches and athletes long to be a part of a successful team. Politicians want to run successful campaigns. Academic institutions work to turn out successful graduates. In many ways, the world is occupied with a driving pursuit for success.

Sadly, people often define success in very personal and even self-centered terms. We measure it by our own experiences compared to others. We think that success is about us ending up on top. We’re successful if we’re the winner. For lots of folks, life choices are determined by answers to questions like, “What’s in this for me? Will this advance my position or agenda? Will this help me achieve my goals and dreams? Will this make me more successful?”

Let’s pause for a moment and think about another kind of success. What if the highest level of success wasn’t about us at all? What if our greatest successes were measured not by what we achieved, acquired, or accomplished but by what we helped others achieve, acquire and accomplish?

A number of years ago, I heard a powerful statement from the head of a particular national ministry. I haven’t forgotten it. When asked about the mission of his organization, he replied, “Our mission is to grow fruit on other people’s trees.”

Initially, I was a bit baffled by the statement. However, the longer I thought about it, the more deeply the statement impacted me. The mission of the organization was about making other people fruitful. The measurement of their success was in how many others they could help succeed in their calling and assignments. They grew fruit on others’ trees!

What a great way to think and live! What if we measured success similarly? What if we awakened each morning with the objective of making someone else’s day better—or life better? What if we spent our time and energy finding ways to “water and fertilize” the gifts, talents, and callings of others? What if we were more concerned about nurturing, encouraging, helping, blessing, strengthening, upholding, and supporting others than being nurtured, encouraged, helped, blessed, strengthened, upheld, or supported by them?

In short, what if all of us decided that, in addition to growing spiritual fruit on our own trees, our mission in life is now to grow fruit on the trees of others also?

Let’s do it!

Pastor Dale

Who Are You?

Posted on March 2, 2025
purpose

Who Are You?

In my senior year of High School, one of my teachers gave us an interesting assignment. We were instructed to write an essay answering the following questions:

Who am I?
Why am I here? (What’s my life purpose?)

There may have been a few other questions we were to answer, but these stuck in my mind. I would love to read what I wrote those many years ago. I’m sure my reflections as an eighteen-year-old would be quite entertaining to review today.

This teacher understood something important. Identity matters! How we view ourselves and our life purpose makes a big difference.

Who are you? Why are you here on planet Earth?

We can’t truly answer these questions on our own. Why? Because identity and purpose aren’t self-defined. They are God-defined. God tells us who we are. He has determined a purpose for our lives.

When you understand your God-given identity and purpose, you live differently. For example, someone born into royalty enters life with a royal perspective. Knowing you are a prince or princess shapes and fashions how one thinks and what someone does with their life. It’s true for us also. Knowing who we are, changes us.

So who are you? What does God say about you?

As a follower of Jesus, here are a few things to remember about your identity.

You are a new creation.

You are God’s beloved child.

You are more than a conqueror.

You are an ambassador of Jesus Christ.

You are a witness of God’s gospel and grace.

You are a vessel of God’s love.

You are a friend of God.

You are a co-worker with God.

You are the temple of the Holy Spirit.

You are a gifted servant.

You are a part of Jesus’ body, His church.

You have an eternal inheritance.

Are you looking for an interesting and helpful devotional project? Take time to research what the Bible says about each of these statements. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll discover about your identity!

Knowing who you are in Christ—really knowing it—changes the way you think and live. It’s one of the keys to a transformed life!

This is part of what Paul the apostle referred to when he penned these Holy Spirit inspired words:

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. — Romans 12:2 (NLT)

Lift your head high with humble gratitude for who God has made you to be in Jesus. Think differently. Accept who you are in Christ, and you’ll live differently for the rest of your life!

Pastor Dale

Keep Up With The Upkeep

Posted on March 2, 2025

Keep Up With The Upkeep

Maintenance. Have you thought about all the time you spend on the basic upkeep of life?

maintain

Life seems to be a perpetual process of maintaining. Because of the persistent law of entropy, life continually

moves from order to disorder, from fixed to broken.

We see this in our homes, our cars, our health, and our relationships. Practically everything requi

res maintenance. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, to “maintain” is “to keep in an existing state of repair, efficiency, or validity: to preserve from failure or decline.”

Maintenance is work. It takes energy. It takes time. It requires attention and vigilance. But it’s

worth it. If we ignore maintenance, we usually regret it. If we maintain well, most things tend to go well.

That’s why certain purchases come with maintenance manuals and suggest maintenance schedules. When we keep up with the upkeep, life’s a lot better. When we don’t, we pay the price.

Maintenance is an important part of our personal lives too. It starts with our relationship with God. When we put off spiritual upkeep, it eventually catches up with us. Staying in good spiritual shape is one of the wisest things we can do.

Our relationships also need maintenance. Getting the best from our marriages, families, and friendship

s requires upkeep. Intentionally investing time, attention, and effort are all part of keeping our relationships fresh and in good repair. When we give ourselves to regular relationship maintenance, there’s less tension, fewer misunderstandings, and less wear, tear, and strain on one another.

The Bible reminds us to give ourselves to things that really matter:

Give your complete attention to these matters. Throw yourself into your tasks so that everyone will see your progress. — 1 Timothy 4:15 (NLT)

When it comes to relationships, it’s easy to take them for granted. We sadly put very little into their upkeep. When things turn sour, we’re surprised. When a marriage begins unraveling or friendships start suffering, we’re shocked. We don’t realize the situation is the result of weeks, months, or years of neglect. We run relationships down, more often than not, simply by lack of maintenance.

What relationship in your life needs some attention? Do you have a maintenance schedule for your marriage? Your family? Your friendships? Do the important people in your world have a place on your calendar?

Wise people keep up with the upkeep!

Pastor Dale

Here and Now

Posted on March 2, 2025


Living In The Here And Now

Everyone who’s taken a child on a road trip is familiar with one question, “Are we there yet?” This frequent juvenile inquiry usually results in increasing parental irritation, and ultimately in a frustrated response, “I’ll tell you when we get there!”

The “are we there yet” question is actually reflective of a common adult mindset. It’s the “destination versus the journey” approach to living. Far too many of us are focused on “getting there,” wherever there may be, rather than paying attention to the scenery along the way. We live life from one “there” to the next “there,” and miss a lot of beautiful things and important growth in the process.

It’s sobering to think about all the life blessings we’ve potentially missed because of our impatience to arrive at some goal, achievement, or status. We speed past people, seasons, and opportunities looking for the golden moment of arrival, thinking the destination will bring us fulfillment. We trade the joys of the “here and now” for the anticipated excitement of the “when and then!” We fail to remember this fact: our “when’s and then’s” become “here and now’s” as soon as we get there! The moments of arrival are never quite as fulfilling in reality as they are in our imaginations.

How do we cure ourselves of the “when and then” syndrome? It only happens when we exalt and celebrate our life journey over life destinations. As the old adage states, “the joy is in the journey!” Not only should we look for joy in the journey, but it’s smart to find purpose in the journey.

Life isn’t about getting somewhere, it’s about daily appreciating and learning from your current “where.” You’re somewhere today! And today is what really matters. What you do today makes your tomorrows!

Moses gave us a wonderful prayer we should remember and pray ourselves:

Teach us to number our days and recognize how few they are; help us to spend them as we should. — Psalms 90:12 (TLB)

Moses draws attention to our “days,” not our weeks, months, years, or decades. Each day plays an important part in what we become in life, and in what we meaningfully do with our lives. Wise people prayerfully invest themselves in today.

When we speed past the opportunities today offers, we’re forfeiting the fertilizer for improving our days to come. Every day is important. Every day has its lessons, and also its rewards. Each day is worth living wisely and to its fullest.

Are you living in the “when and then” or in the “here and now?” Wise people live every day as though it might be their last one!

Pastor Dale

Get Smart

Posted on February 22, 2025

Get Smart

His television screen name was “Maxwell Smart,” also known as Agent 86. His female sidekick was Agent 99. They comedically portrayed spies working for the government agency “CONTROL” fighting the evil, enemy forces of “KAOS.” The bumbling agent “Smart” employed a variety of unusual espionage devices in his efforts, most famously, a phone in his shoe he regularly used to answer calls from his boss, “The Chief.” The show aired for 5 seasons (1965-1970). The title—“Get Smart,”—is obviously a play on words.

“Smart” is an interesting word. We use it in a lot of ways. We describe people as smart thinkers, smart students, smart shoppers, smart investors, and yes, even smart-alecks!

The Bible actually talks about “smarts.” It uses terms such as “wisdom, knowledge, good judgment, and understanding” to describe smart people. Over and over again, we’re encouraged to get these qualities.

Here’s one example:

“Getting wisdom is the wisest thing you can do! And whatever else you do, develop good judgment. If you prize wisdom, she will make you great. Embrace her, and she will honor you.” —Proverbs 4:7-8 (NLT)

Biblical “smartness” is something we have to learn. There are a variety of ways to get smarter, but perhaps the most common path to greater wisdom is by learning from our mistakes.

We all make mistakes. While failure is common, learning from one’s mistakes isn’t. Lots of people get stuck in the shame of failure and succumb to haunting condemnation, guilt, and defeat. Many of us allow our worst moments to become our life-defining moments. When this happens, the devil seizes the opportunity to insert his hateful, debasing, discouraging lies of hopelessness and despair into our minds. Instead of acknowledging our foolishness and moving forward in God’s grace and forgiveness, we allow the enemy of our souls to label us as “fools.” We become disabled by our mistakes rather than smarter through them.

Here’s a reminder for you. Never let your worst life moments define the rest of your life. When you make a mistake, run to God, not away from Him. Learn the lessons you need to learn, get forgiven, get smart, get up, and get going again!

Never forget these words from God:

“But if we confess our sins to him, he can be depended on to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. And it is perfectly proper for God to do this for us because Christ died to wash away our sins.” —1 John 1:9 (TLB)

“So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” —Romans 8:1 (NLT)

It’s time to Get Smart!

Pastor Dale

How to Stay Out of the Way

Posted on February 22, 2025

How To Stay Out of the Way

“You’re in the way!” It’s a phrase we sometimes hear, occasionally speak, and often think! It describes someone obstructing progress, being where they shouldn’t be,  or engaging in activities causing more harm than good.

The problem with “being in the way” is, we don’t always (or usually) know when we’re guilty of it. We frequently think we’re helping when our presence or actions are actually hurting. We’re oblivious to the fact we’re stirring up unnecessary trouble or creating more problems than we’re solving.

This tendency to “get in the way” affects our relationships. When we step into someone’s life, concerns, or business either uninvited, over-stepping our boundaries, or simply assuming we’re invited when we’re not, we become the problem. We start giving our opinions, forming our judgments, exerting control, making subtle (or not so subtle) demands, engaging in “behind the scenes” conversations and manipulations, trying to fix what we’re not called to or capable of fixing. None of this ends well. Many friendships have been destroyed because someone failed to “mind their own business.” They “got in the way.”

We can also “get in the way” of ourselves. Through negative thinking and destructive self-talk, we sabotage our personal progress. Our fears, defeated mindsets, helpless attitudes, and counter-productive habits become persistent obstacles keeping us from the victory, success, and fulfillment we long for. It’s true; we’re often our own worst enemy!

There’s another “in the way” we need to consider. We can “get in the way” of God. It seems strange to say, but yes, we can indeed become an obstacle to the work God seeks to do in others.

What does this look like? It happens when we see things we think need to be “fixed” or changed in someone’s life. We believe we “know” what the problems are, and we’re convinced we understand how to make things better. We’ve got the solution! So we interject ourselves. We may believe we’re “helping God” in the process. We step in by making semi-vague statements, cryptically suggesting things, exerting pressure in areas, or giving little hints to the person, seeking to convict them of some wrong, convince them of our notions, and get them to be or do what we believe is best.

The problem is. We often don’t know what’s best for someone else. We don’t know what God’s doing in another’s life. It’s arrogant to think we do. Our intrusions usually get in the way. They frequently create confusion, defensiveness, and resistance in the person. We end up making things worse instead of better. As the author Alexander Pope said, “fools rush in where angels fear to tread!” Many times this describes us—foolishly rushing into someone’s life attempting to “fix” things only God can fix.

Getting out of the way is important, whether with our family, friends, ourselves, or some person or situation we’re determined to “fix.” God knows what He’s doing. Trust Him. We all do better when we “get out of the way!”

Pastor Dale

How to Pray

Posted on February 22, 2025

How To Pray

“Please pray for me.” I can’t count the number of times I’ve heard this request from people over the years. I’ve asked the same of others many times.

It’s comforting to seek prayer support in times of personal difficulty or need. And praying for others is an important part of our spiritual privilege and responsibility.

Prayer is a key part of being a follower of Jesus. Jesus prayed, and He taught us to pray. God’s people are to be known as prayer people!

While we understand the importance of prayer, we often feel we’re not doing enough of it or not doing it well. We sometimes wonder if our prayers are actually making a difference or whether we’re praying the right way.

Our prayer struggles can be largely resolved by a better understanding of prayer and by simplifying the prayer process. Prayer isn’t a complicated thing. It doesn’t require great spiritual maturity or experience. It’s something a child can do. You can do it too!

Jesus gave us a clear and simple prayer process. Look at His instructions:

But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. This, then, is how you should pray: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” — Matthew 6:6-13 (NIV)

Jesus taught us how to pray. Here are a few thoughts about prayer from Jesus’ teaching:

  • Be confident when you pray. Prayer is always rewarded. No prayers are wasted or insignificant.
  • Set a regular time to pray. Jesus said, “when you pray.” It’s extremely helpful to set a consistent schedule for prayer. Have a time “when you pray” each day.
  • Have a personal place of prayer. Choose a consistent, designated “prayer place” that’s private and free from distractions. You’re able to focus better on your time with God when you have “your place.” This place may be your car or a “prayer closet” in your home. It’s very helpful to find a consistent, personal place of prayer.
  • Don’t worry about having the right words when you pray; just have the right heart. The Pharisees of Jesus’ day tried to impress God and others with their religious words and lengthy prayers. Jesus encouraged us to be ourselves in the presence of our Heavenly Father. Talk to Him from your heart.
  • Follow a simple prayer pattern. Don’t overcomplicate prayer.
  • Begin with thanksgiving and praise to God.
  • Pray for your life actions, attitudes, and decisions to align with God’s will fully. Give the control of your life to God. Ask the Lord to lovingly rule your life and the lives of others you love.
  • Tell God about the things you’re worried about, have need of, or request from Him. Bring the needs of others to God in prayer as well.
  • Spend a few minutes of quiet reflection, asking God to reveal any sin in your life that needs to be confessed and forgiven. Ask Him to show you any resentments, grudges, or unforgiveness you carry that need to be released. Confess your sins to God, accept His forgiveness, and quickly forgive anyone you need to forgive.
  • Pray for yourself and others close to you to see and overcome temptations and stand strong in times of testing and trouble.
  • Pray in ever-enlarging concentric circles of connections, starting with yourself, your family, your friends, and any others you have promised to pray for or know are in need of prayer.
  • Pray for an annulment and desisting of any and all devilish and demonic activity in your life and the lives of those you’re praying for.
  • Conclude by giving God thanks and praise for listening and answering your prayers in His timing and way.

Here’s another helpful reminder. You don’t have to pray long prayers or for a long time to pray effectively. There certainly are seasons when we experience and enjoy spending extended, unhurried time with God. However, never underestimate the power of short prayers. Many of the great prayers in the Bible are short but powerful prayers.

In addition to your daily prayer time, keep an ongoing prayer dialogue with God during your day. He’s with you and is available to listen anytime!

Expect God to work in fresh, amazing, and miraculous ways in your life and the lives of others through your prayers!

Pastor Dale

Are You Moving

Posted on February 22, 2025

Are You Moving?

Over the last several years, there’s been quite a bit of movement around the world. People picked up their possessions and headed to new places, hoping to find a new home and experience new things. With the advances in technology and the adaptable requirements of certain professions, remote working has become more prevalent than ever. People sometimes live hundreds or thousands of miles from their employment’s physical offices. We’re becoming a semi-nomadic society. We might say we’re people on the move.

There’s another kind of movement worthy of our attention. It’s the movement of our souls. Soul movement is an internal drive prompting investment, commitment, and engagement with people and projects. It’s what causes people to learn, grow, give, serve, and develop. It’s what stimulates action.

We sometimes speak of things that move our souls. It could be a movie, a book, a story, a song, or a play. It might be a speech, a sermon, an article, or a conversation. Sadly, these moments are too often short-lived. Our inspirational emotions never actually “move” us. When the feelings dissipate, the motivation quickly disappears. And nothing changes.

The Bible is a book about true soul movement. It’s about God actively doing amazing things in the lives of ordinary people. It’s also about ordinary people actively doing amazing things for God. From the very start of this divinely-inspired book, we see God’s movement.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. — Genesis 1:1-2 (KJV)

Not only did God actively move in creation, but the Creator designed His creation to be on the move—growing, reproducing, and bearing fruit. When He created Adam and Eve, they were commanded to get moving too.

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. — Genesis 1:27-28 (KJV)

You were designed by God to be “on the move.” You’re uniquely created to fulfill a one-of-a-kind purpose and to add special value during your generation. You’re called to live an inspired, motivated life!

You’ll never discover your best life and fulfill your real purpose as long as:

  • Your life is about you only.
  • You’re dominated by fear, guilt, and shame.
  • You’re primarily focusing on material things.
  • You’re living your life without a relationship with God and His people.

    are you moving
    Are you moving

We move forward in life and make a positive difference with our lives when we realize the following:

  • The highest form of living is found in giving and serving.
  • Jesus gave His life to free us from fear, guilt, and shame so we can love and serve God and others with a clear conscience.
  • Life fulfillment isn’t found in the abundance of external possessions but through an internal abundance of God’s love, grace and peace.
  • We live on earth to honor and serve our loving, personal, eternal Heavenly Father, who has shown Himself to us through His Son, Jesus Christ.

When we truly believe these truths, our souls are moved! We’re inspired to invest, commit, engage and act. We resist the urge to live as a spiritual “couch potato.” We get up and get moving, allowing God to work in us and through us to fulfill His purposes in our world!

Let’s be “people on the move!”

Pastor Dale

God Never Forgets

Posted on February 22, 2025

God Never Forgets

Forgetfulness is part of the human plight. It comes at the most inopportune times. We’re face to face with a person, and their name immediately disappears from our memory. We’re late for an appointment, and can’t find our car keys. We’re taking an important exam, and the information we were so sure of the night before suddenly vanishes from our consciousness. It seems the harder we try to recollect the right mental data in these moments, the deeper the information buries itself in our brains.

Then there’s the other side of this coin. It’s the problem of painful memories showing up at all the wrong times. In our most vulnerable moments, we sometimes remember a terrible mistake we made or a failure we experienced, some thoughtless past words we spoke, awkward interactions we had, or embarrassing actions we would prefer to forget. These memories trigger dark, depressive emotions. They paralyze us, distract us, and rob us of effectively handling situations we currently find ourselves in. Just the thoughts of these things send blood rushing to our faces in shame, anxiety, and fear.

Memories are like this—they flee us when we need them and flood us when we don’t! Everybody has “memory issues.”

Sometimes we project our memory issues onto God. Because we forget things we should remember and remember things we actually should forget, we assume God does the same. While God has memory (obviously), we fail to understand His incredible control over His memories.

There are things God chooses to remember. There are also things God chooses to forget. When He chooses to remember something, it’s remembered forever. When He chooses to forget something, it’s forgotten forever.

Let’s start with the forgetfulness of God. When we honestly and humbly come to God in confession and repentance for our sins, accepting by faith the gracious covering of the blood of Jesus Christ for forgiveness, God not only forgives our sins, He chooses to forget them—forever!

“I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.” —Isaiah 43:25 NIV

“For I will demonstrate my mercy to them and will forgive their evil deeds, and never remember again their sins.” — Hebrews 8:12 TPT

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” — 1 John 1:9 NIV

It’s extremely important to believe in God’s forgetfulness of our sins. His forgiveness—and forgetfulness—of our sin means this: there is no record of it, anywhere! Not in some heavenly archive and not in the mind of God. Therefore, we shouldn’t keep a record of it either. When sin is forgiven, it’s forgotten!

While God is good at forgetting, He’s also good at remembering. What God remembers, He never forgets!

What does He remember? He remembers His children! He remembers you! When you placed your faith in Jesus Christ as Messiah, crucified for your sins and risen from the tomb, you were added to His family. And God never ever forgets His kids!

The prophet Isaiah records a time when God’s people were deeply concerned about their relationship with God. They were afraid He had forgotten them. The Spirit of God moved Isaiah to speak the following incredible words of comfort to the Lord’s worried kids:

“Yet Jerusalem says, ‘The LORD has deserted us; the Lord has forgotten us.’ ‘Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you! See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands…’” — Isaiah 49:14-16 NLT

If you’re in Jesus, you’re in the family of God. God never forgets any of His kids! Never! Ever! While He’s willing to forget your sins, He’ll never forget you!

Pastor Dale

How’s Your Posture

Posted on February 21, 2025

“I will remain patient, completely trusting God’s promises, faithfulness, and timing!”

Adjust your spiritual posture today. You’ll be stronger and better as you do!

Pastor Dale

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