deCONstruction: Does it Always Lead to Destruction?

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deCONstruction: Does it Always Lead to Destruction?

Deconstruction. I hesitate even using the word, because it is definitely a term widely used by many people on both sides of the conversations that surround it. And because it’s so widely used, it’s honestly also widely confused because it’s often misused.


Which is why in this post, I pick apart the word itself as it may reveal more about the process.


So, what is it, and is it harmful or helpful? Before we dive into the topic, would you agree with me in this simple prayer…


Father, we ask for wisdom as we seek to understand you and your great love for us. We humbly approach this topic as we humbly approach your throne, asking you for grace in the space of seeking you, knowing that apart from Christ, we will never reach you. We seek you and you alone for discernment and wisdom to know when we are removing you from your throne and placing our trust in men or religion or our own moral relativism. We trust you to help us in the conversations we’re having by drawing us closer to your heart, taking us deeper in your Word, and making us stronger in our faith. In Jesus’ Name, Amen


I have friends on both sides of this deconstruction conversation — friends who have deconstructed because they were hurt by the church and friends who have been hurt by loved ones who have deconstructed and not only walked away from their faith, but also their family.


Some feel it’s a freeing process, others say it’s a fleeing process. Are deconstructionists running to God as they run away from the church and those who’ve hurt them or are they running away from God as they run straight into the arms of the world and a culture that will embrace them?


You may still have no idea what “deconstruction” even is (as it relates to faith). You may know quite well what it is because you’ve walked through it yourself or with someone. Or you may be wondering what the big deal is and why people on both sides need to keep talking about it.


It’s definitely been defined in different ways by different people, and because of that, can breed confusion, which is exactly why I believe the enemy is using it to breed confusion.


The term dates back to the 1960’s and the work of philosopher, Jacques Derrida. It can be applied to a vast number of areas, but as it relates to faith and theology, it is a process that begins with doubting, questioning, and examining (which isn’t wrong or bad and can many times, deepen our faith); however, if done in a way that walks away from the firm foundation of scripture and Biblical truth, the end result is the literal deconstruction of one’s faith — picking apart and dismantling God’s Word and His Authority.


This article is a great description of deconstruction, and in my opinion, it is a non bias and thorough definition of the process.


Got Questions Article on Deconstruction


So, in an effort to apply the principles of deconstruction to the word itself, even picking apart the word De-CON-struc-tion, reveals a three letter word in the center of the word that in my opinion, represents the enemy who loves to weasel his way smack dab into the middle of process. Satan is the original CON artist (a person who cheats or tricks others by persuading them to believe something that is not true). He is the father of lies, and his con artistry started in the garden when he said to Eve, “Did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1) He’s been planting seeds of doubt ever since.


Upon further scrutiny of the word DE-con-STRUCTION, we see, WHEN the enemy is at the core of it, what’s left is DESTRUCTION. WHEN we know his master plan is to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10), we can recognize his tactics and combat them with the Word of God and the Good News of the Gospel as we claim victory over our enemy through Jesus Christ who sets us free!


I just heard this quote from Pastor Riggins of New Life Church on Sunday, “Satan tempts us to destroy our faith, but God tests us to deepen our faith.” We must recognize the difference. Are we believing lies or standing on truth?

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When My Heart is Shattered and My Thoughts are Scattered, Your Word is All that Matters

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When My Heart is Shattered and My Thoughts are Scattered, Your Word is All that Matters

When my heart is shattered and my thoughts are scattered, your Word is all that matters.

When my heart is shattered...

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” ~ Psalm 34:18

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” ~ Psalm 147:3

When my heart is shattered and broken by the things of this world, I can remember, the Lord is not only near, He hears and He heals.

When my mind is scattered...

“do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” ~ Philippians 4:6-7

“for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” ~ 2 Timothy 1:7

When my mind is scattered and overwhelmed by the things of this world, I can remember He is my source of peace and when I focus on Him, I watch my stress decrease.

C’mon Church, we should recognize the enemy’s tactics by now. He’s not creative or innovative. He keeps doing the same thing. If he can distract us, he can divide us.

Shatter and scatter. That’s his plan. Deter our hearts and minds away from the hope we have in Jesus Christ, question the standard God has already set, and taint the Good News of the life giving Gospel with bad news of the death and destruction running rampant in this fallen world.

But try as he might to tempt our hearts and minds to live in fear and doubt and remain shattered and scattered, we know the Truth. We have direct access to that Truth for a reminder when we need it.

It is a Truth and not only reminds us, it defines us. We are more than conquerors in Christ. (Romans 8:37) Our only offensive weapon is the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, and we must wield it well in this battle against the enemy.

Eyes off Jesus, we sink. Eyes on Jesus, we soar.

Keep God’s Word in our hearts and in our minds to guard against the enemy’s tactic to shatter and scatter.

Know his game. Defeat him by the truth you proclaim.

So, when my heart is shattered and my thoughts are scattered, your Word is all that matters.

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God's Standard is Set. We Must Never Forget...

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God's Standard is Set. We Must Never Forget...

God’s standard is set

We must never forget

Our words may fail

His Word will always prevail

I’ve been a little MIA on the blog lately, 3 weeks to be exact, which is the longest breath I’ve taken since I’ve been verbally processing on this platform for nearly a year now. But please don’t mistake my mute for lack of having something to say. Actually, I’ve had far too much to say. I’ve just been processing a little more privately than publicly lately.

Processing all that is going on in the world through the lens of a Biblical worldview, with God’s Word as our standard and His love as our guide, we can never go wrong and never lose our way, because He will never lead us astray.

So, if this world is a little too much for you, too, might I encourage you to pull away. Spend more time reading His Word than you spend reading others’ words. Spend more time measuring your motives to His standard than you do trying to please others, fit in, or not offend.

Honestly, I’m worn out by all the words — especially the vile words being spewed because of the evil being pursued. Did you know the words evil and vile are made up of the same letters, just placed in a different order? And what this spells out to me is that evil is evil no matter how you try to twist or spin it, hide or disguise it.

I’m worn out by the lack of common sense and the disregard for Biblical Truth that’s actually perpetuating the evil (all under the guise of “the right thing” or “the loving thing”). Let me tell you — lying to someone is never right, and it definitely is not loving.

I’m worn out by Christians falling prey to this evil by buying into its lies, all in the name of “love,” when really, loving the world is actually hating God (James 4:4).

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In the War of Words, It's {Still} Time for a Better Word

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In the War of Words, It's {Still} Time for a Better Word

I love words, but I am so tired of them. Seriously, the twisting and manipulating, the demeaning and degrading, it all has me completely worn out.

I wrote a blog post last year entitled In the War of Words, It’s Time for a Better Word, and I guess you could consider this post a part 2, because ironically, I have a few more words to say about these wars our words are waging. The emotional ammunition with which we keep firing back keeps us all raging. It’s a vicious cycle. Ya wanna know why?

Because we keep opening our mouths before we open God’s Word, or rather, we may be opening It, but we certainly aren’t doing what It says.

And since this battle we find ourselves in “is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12), we must “put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, we may be able to stand our ground, and after we’ve have done everything, to stand.” (Ephesians 6:13)

Why are we fighting with our words when God has called us STAND on His Word and SPEAK His Word? It is the only offensive weapon in our armor. We must wield well the Sword of the Spirit if we are to defeat the enemy, the god of this world, the author of lies, the deceiver of souls by taking down his strongholds, dividing his lies from God’s truth, and setting his captives free to experience true victory in Jesus.

Yes, indeed, the very Word of God is sharper than any double edge sword, and It is the only weapon we need to defeat the enemy. Our words are merely weapons against each other and do nothing to defeat the real enemy.

We must stop using OUR words (our explanations and definitions) because they are skewed ever so slightly to fit into OUR point of view, and they will always fall short of the target of the enemy.

Nuance and semantics allow us to say a whole lot while really saying nothing at all. Because without the power of God behind them, words will always fall short. They will always be misunderstood. They will always be used to confuse. They will always be manipulated to elevate one group/person while putting down the next. It is simply the way of the world, and our words will always go that way apart from God’s Word and His Way.

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Sometimes People Wear me Out, but All the Time God Fills me Up

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Sometimes People Wear me Out, but All the Time God Fills me Up

Sometimes people wear me out, but all the time God fills me up.

I know that is such a flippant thing to say, snarky in a way, so let me provide some context to help keep the sarcasm at bay.

From what I observe (primarily from online interactions), people might be wearing you out, too, with all their different points of view, and if that’s true, might I encourage you to simply go to the source of all truth.

The Word of God.

It is a well that never runs dry. It alone can satisfy. So, when you’re weary and you’re wondering why, look closely at your supply.

Are you trusting the word of others before going to the Word of the One who is above all others?

Are you allowing people’s opinions and convictions to inform what you do or don’t do, who you follow or listen to, or what you believe about a God you thought you knew?

Hear me out. It is ok to learn from others, in fact, we should be learning and growing in community alongside other believers, but just because someone strongly believes something (doctrinally or otherwise) does not make it true. Only God’s Word can define Truth if you are looking through the lens of a Biblical worldview.

He gave us His Word. He left us His Holy Spirit to help us rightly divide and apply His Word as we live in this world. Others’ words can help or hurt our understanding of His Word. They can support or distort His Word. They can bring clarity or discrepancy to God’s Word, our ultimate authority. But no matter how good or not so good others’ words are, they will always fall short. His Word will never return void.

So, when people wear you out, let God fill you up.

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Woke vs. Awake: The Gap is Great

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Woke vs. Awake: The Gap is Great

The gap between the woke and the awake is getting greater and greater while the cost to stay awake is getting higher and higher. The more aware of the difference between the Word and the world I become, the more evident the distance between those who are woke and those who are awake becomes. The gap is growing greater because the two are going in opposite directions.

Let me take a moment to define the two terms I’m using (as I understand their meaning and as I am using them in this post):

Woke — those who are aware of and actively attentive to important facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice). They typically advocate for reconciliation by extra-Biblical and anti-Biblical means using the framework of ideologies such as Critical Theory and Critical Race Theory, and in my opinion, defeat the purpose of reconciliation by further dividing people by intersectionality (or the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage).

Two quotes I recently read that sum up wokeness pretty well:

Wokeness is today’s religion. Cancel culture is it’s sacrament. — David Benham

Wokeness is a graceless religion. It never forgives past missteps. Its mission is to kill, steal, and destroy. It wants destruction and not restoration. As you stand for Biblical truth, wokeness will criticize you, demonize you, terrorize you, and someday soon, criminalize you. But love... Love keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not dishonor others. Choose love, not hate. Reject cancel culture. — Brian J. Dixon

And now, my take on being awake…

Awake — those who are aware of the enemy’s deception and use of these worldly ideologies to try to confuse Biblical Truth. Those who hold fast to sound doctrinal theology and see things through the lens of a Biblical Worldview realizing God does not show partiality, nor does He want His people to show partiality. (James 2:1, Acts 10:34-35, Romans 2:11, Galatians 3:28, 1 Timothy 5:21, Proverbs 28:21) Those who are awake, in my opinion, are wide awake and well aware of the deception and want to stand up for the Truth they know is the only way to true reconciliation.

The woke want to right the wrongs of the world by their own means and with their own terms and conditions while the awake know only God can right the wrongs, in fact, He already did, and it has NOTHING to do with us and what we do or don’t do and EVERYTHING to do with Him and what He has already done on our behalf.

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Only Then & All for Him!

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Only Then & All for Him!

ONLY THEN...

“Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. ONLY THEN will you prosper and succeed in all you do.” ~ Joshua‬ ‭1:8‬

We can’t obey everything in it if we aren’t in it everyday — Continually and consistently in the Word, not casually and conveniently to receive a word. God wants to speak to us every single day in an ongoing and active way — not just to tickle our ears but to transform our lives.

Two little words in this verse positioned perfectly to perfectly position us in complete submission and total surrender. ONLY THEN.

What comes before those two little words? study, meditate, continually, night and day, obey. That’s what we are called to do — not out of duty or obligation, but out of love for the very One who gave His life for you and me.

“ONLY THEN will you prosper and succeed in all you do.” Success without surrender is superficial, and prosperity without proper priorities will end in spiritual poverty.

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An Ode to Sundays

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An Ode to Sundays

I love Sundays. Time for church days. Family meeting days to hear the Word preached days. Time to worship together in spirit and truth days. Take authority against the enemy days as we come together and pray with power days. Time for the family of God to gather days, so the enemies of God can scatter days. Oh how I love Sundays.

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” ~ Hebrews 10:19-25 ESV

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” ~ Ephesians 6:12 ESV

It’s time to go to church, so we can be the Church because without church, the world can not see the Church.

C’mon Church. Now is not the time to idly sit by, withdraw, or retreat. Now is the time to rise, come alive, and remind the enemy of his defeat. We have work to do, and although it may not all be done in a church pew, I’m convinced that the beauty of the bride of Christ grows deeper and fuller, and her call becomes clearer and louder as she comes together and gathers.

We gather for our marching orders — straight from the uncompromising Truth of the very Word of God. We gather to prepare for battle — fully equipped and armored up so God can send us out to take back what the god of this world has run amok.

We don’t gather to hear a word just to scratch our itching ears. We don’t gather to receive a pat on the back and then walk away still gripped by fear. Sundays aren’t some social club to puff us up as we pay our dues. Sundays can build us up, yes, but Sundays need to rebuke us, too.

God’s Truth transforms us beyond societal norms. It disrupts the evils allowed by cultural reforms. When we stand up for God’s Truth, we must not yield. And when that Truth seems a little rough around the edges, It’s merely the sharpness of the Sword we wield.

“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” ~ Hebrews 4:12

As Pastor Joe Green of St. Paul’s Missionary Baptist Church in Harrisburg, PA said on Sunday, “The more dangerous the situation, the sharper the Sword,” and I completely agree, the more evil our iniquity, the sharper the Sword must be!

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Social Media is not the boss of me. God‘s Word alone is my authority.

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Social Media is not the boss of me. God‘s Word alone is my authority.

Social media is not the boss of me. God‘s Word alone is my authority.

So much easier to type than to live out among the hype. We live in a world inundated by online connection and frustrated by real life disconnection. It’s a vicious cycle. Apart from putting social media in its proper place, it will keep us running this crazy rat race. Keep us comparing. Keep us competing. Keep us captive to counterfeit connection. We are longing for so much more, and yet we are settling for so much less than Christ alone, and He alone is the very best.

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Deep Calls to Deep

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Deep Calls to Deep

“Deep is calling out to deep, and it’s calling out to those who want to go deep.”

I recently heard this quote, and like a few others I’ve heard from Pastor Joe Green, it resonated deeply. Now y’all know, I love a good quote. The catchier, the better, right? But more than tickle my ears, this one touched my spirit. It stuck in a way I can’t quite explain. I promise I’ll try for the sake of this post, but more than my feeble attempt to dive deeper into the meaning of Pastor Green’s words with my words, I’m praying for us all to have a passion and desire to dive deeper into God’s Word.It is only in His Word we will find the only truth in which to trust, the only depth in which to delve, and the only hope in which to hope. Nothing else will satisfy. This is not something new, it is an age old truth, and it is truly calling out to me and you...

“Deep is calling out to deep, and it’s calling out to those who want to go deep.”

“Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your waves have gone over me.” ~ Psalm‬ ‭42:7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

God’s desire for His people is not that we would pick and choose the truths that are easy to use. In fact, when we do that, we often misuse and abuse God’s truth and its original intent to not only inform us, but transform us.

We cheapen grace every time we justify sin.

Sin was evil then, and it’s evil now. Yes, those in Christ are covered by His blood, and His grace is powerful and sufficient enough to cover our sin and make us right with Him. But Paul says in the New Testament,

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” ~ Romans‬ ‭6:1-2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

What was evil then, is evil now. Just because God loved us so much to make a way through His son, Jesus, to save us from sin, does not mean He suddenly changed His mind in regard to how He feels about sin or what He defines as sin.

If it was an abomination to the God of all creation, then who are we to think just because He set us free from the bondage of that sin, we are free to continue in that sin? The perpetuation of any abomination grieves the heart of the Father who sent His son for our sanctification. Like Paul said, “By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” ~ Romans 6:2

“Deep is calling out to deep, and it’s calling out to those who want to go deep.”

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Conversations > Cancellations

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Conversations > Cancellations

We must have conversations about objective truth because they are so much greater and far more effective than cancellations over subjective truth.

TRUTH, God’s Truth, to a believer of that truth, is verifiable, undeniable, indisputable, non-negotiable, actual, factual TRUTH.

It is objective, not subjective. The object of that truth is Jesus Christ Himself, and that truth is not subject to change based on opinions or feelings. If the Gospel is not objective truth to the believer, then what’s the point in believing it? Its veracity gives it authority, and its authority commands our bravery — bravery to have the hard conversation and not succumb to cancellation.

Now more than ever, our conversations about truth have been sabotaged by our dissenting definitions of truth. In order for truth to be defendable, it must be objective, based on facts and logic, free of individual subjectivity or relativism.

Obviously, I’m approaching this conversation from a Biblical Worldview, with the Bible, the very Word of God, being the ultimate authority on truth when viewing the world and all that is going on in it. I have wrestled with and reconciled this for myself, as I have trusted Jesus Christ, the son of God, as my Lord and Savior.

As a child of God, my highest calling is to know Him and make Him known, and I believe all who have trusted Him, all Christians, should view the world with that same objective, authoritative Biblical Truth as their lens lest we get confused and cower to the ways of this world that are contrary, crafty, and cunning — so much so they threaten to lead us further and further away from that objective truth that urges us to stay.

Whether you’re a great theologian or a great big skeptic, one of the world’s smartest academics or struggle to make sense of common logic, whether you are a conspiracy theorist, right or left wing activist, a BLM supporter or CRT purporter, whether you are an MD with a PhD or you have no degree and would rather agree to disagree, if you have placed your trust and hope in Christ, you have been called to stand up for Truth. Standing up for Biblical Truth requires releasing “lesser truths” that are subject to change and receiving “the only truth” that leads to life change.

We all want to know what’s right and what’s wrong, and guess what? The Bible has defined that all along. And if we claim to believe it, we must show we believe it, by the way we receive it, apply it and no longer deny it in our conversations about truth.

We’re all called to be apologists — not to apologize for our faith, but to defend our faith, and all the more against the opposition we face.

We must practice standing up and speaking up or our default will be to sit down and shut up. It’s like playing an instrument or sport, the more your practice it, the better you’ll get at it. Start in safe spaces, but have the conversations. They will become more challenging, but you’ll be better equipped to have them the less you shy away from them.

In an age of silencing and censoring dissenting views, our voices must be louder and stronger when speaking the truth.

We must have conversations about objective truth because they are so much greater and far more effective than cancellations over subjective truth.

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In the War of Words, it's Time for A Better Word

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In the War of Words, it's Time for A Better Word

Are you weary from the war of words in today’s world? Are you confused by the chaos in the words you read and hear (and maybe even repeat and share) from so many news sources and popular opinions? Are you saddened (and sometimes sickened) by the downward spiral these words start in your heart and the vicious cycle they perpetuate in your mind?

Me, too. So, ya know what? I’m at war against them. I’d love to have you join me in battle.

The war that’s waging in our heads and hearts (and in the world at large) is not a war we can fight with weak words, because it’s not a battle against flesh and blood...

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12

And in order to battle this “war of words” and defeat the ones that twist & turn the truth and confuse & confound the confident, we must use different words, better words. We must wield THE ONLY WORD, because other words must yield to God’s Word.

God’s Word speaks A BETTER WORD.

DO YOU KNOW THAT BETTER WORD?

Does it ring true in your heart among ideologies that try to influence it?

Does it hold steady in spite of the opinions that try to confuse it?

Does it stand defiant against the condemnation that tries to persuade it?

Does it speak confidently over the lies that try to silence it?

God’s Word is the BETTER WORD. “The precious blood of Christ speaks a BETTER WORD.” The Gospel Truth is the BEST WORD, and praise God, it’s THE FINAL WORD.

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In a Year of Curve Balls, Free Falls, and Duty Calls, We need to Align with the True Plumb Line

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In a Year of Curve Balls, Free Falls, and Duty Calls, We need to Align with the True Plumb Line

Oh 2020, you’ve been full of curve balls, free falls, and duty calls.

Curve balls that have consisted of cancelations, closures, and the craziness covid invited into our daily lives.

Free falls that have felt a bit out of control and left us not knowing how to pull the cord, when to open the chute, or where we should land.

Duty calls. We’ve voted so our voice could be heard. We’ve prayed so His voice would be the final word.

We’ve questioned our sanity. But even that doesn’t change reality. 2 + 2 = 4. Always and forever. When things in our world aren’t quite adding up, it’s time to get back to the basics (because it’s highly probable someone’s been skewing the equations)...

Gospel Truth through the lens of a Biblical Worldview. He died once. For all. Sin divides us. Jesus unites us.

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Just because the woke have spoke doesn’t mean we have to obey everything they say.

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Just because the woke have spoke doesn’t mean we have to obey everything they say.

Since when has a social movement based on a new ideology been more enlightened or had more to offer than a Biblical way of life based on timeless truths?

The Bible. The very Word of God — breathed by Him, penned by men, given to us as promises to trust.

It’s foundational.

It’s relational.

It’s alive and active.

It will shake us and wake us until it completely remakes us.

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