The light was looking pretty good. That's what I was thinking as we cruised along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park the other night looking for a sunset. The weather had been promising a couple of days prior. But I hesitated and opted to wait for another day. So, it would be the last opportunity to venture into the park before my upcoming trip to Montana. I wanted to make it count. A particular location I know of seemed a good option. I had scouted a couple of shots i

"Praise the LORD!" - Psalm 147:1a That is how this Psalm begins, and it is one of the last Psalms in the book. In fact, the last five each begin and end with that declaration of praise. If only each of us began and ended our days in that way. I recently read this Psalm and, while studying some footnotes, realized it can be broken into three sections. Possibly written as the Jews were returning from exile (vss. 2-3), it recounts God's care for His people through a series of ex

Recently, I heard some influencers (I’m not a fan of that term) mention a study. It showed that the most successful people share three traits. They had superiority complexes, high levels of insecurity, and strong impulse control. I'm not sure how scientific this finding is, but I suspect there is some truth to it. Think of some of the most worldly-successful people. A lot of them come across as egotistical, yet consistent in their work. But I got thinking about this in my own

I'm not a fan of goodbyes. Then again, who is? Yet, the older we get, the more "goodbyes" there are to say. Some are easier than others. The death of a loved one is drastically more grievous than when a friend moves away. But in both cases, and all in between, we can feel the pull of eternity on our hearts; we begin to yearn for the day when there are no more goodbyes to be said. In my day job lately, I've had to say goodbye to several coworkers. When you develop good connect

Imagine being in a situation where you had to be told constantly to be brave and strong. A high-pressure moment where you needed a constant reminder that you weren't alone. An extra boost when you might be facing discouragement. That was the case for Joshua. Shortly before Moses died, and even after, God consistently told Joshua, commanded him in fact, to be strong and courageous. But God also reminded Joshua that He would be with him through it all (Joshua 1:9). Wouldn't it

I love when a short, something not even 30 seconds long, packs a powerful punch. That's what we have here in today's content share. If you follow Keith Foskey at all on YouTube, you know he is largely known for being more on the comedic side. But when you hear his preaching, you see that he takes the word of God very seriously. In this short, he briefly addresses the place of works in our salvation. Short answer? They have none. But Christ's work is everything. I hope you fin

Depression is an unpleasant companion. If you've ever experienced it in any form, then you know what I mean. It likes to stand on your shoulder, shouting in your ear. It often tells you the truth, though many times it is half-truth, truth without context. As many times as I've gone through that valley, I wish I could say I've learned a lot of things, things that would be positive. But it's always an arduous season. It's always hard. It gives rise to questions, even the same q

Happy 250th birthday to the United States. It's amazing to think that, on one hand, this nation has survived for so long, yet in the grand scheme of things, it is still so young.

Have you ever asked someone why they think God created us or why we're here, why we exist? Have you ever wondered about it yourself? And what is the answer? Do you think that it's because God was lonely? Maybe you've heard that it's so that God could express His love towards something or someone. But is that what we see in Scripture? Are we left to wonder about the "why" of our existence, and, frankly, the "why" of everything? At the risk of breaking it to you too quickly, th

Today I want to share another video that I recently worked on. I know I had posted one earlier in the year, and it is still my official first video. As such, it will be posted to YouTube in the near future, Lord willing. But I also recently finished this one, and it will be titled "episode 1". This one summarizes much of what I discussed in the recent articles on the events surrounding Lazarus' death and resuscitation. I hope that you'll find it encouraging and consider likin

In the passage surrounding the raising of Lazarus, we can learn a lot of different things. But undergirding it all is the fact that Jesus is the Messiah, that He is God, and this story proves it. John sought to prove that Jesus was who He said He was by writing this gospel. Throughout this book, he shows much evidence that proves Jesus is the God-Man. As we wrap up this series on Lazarus, I want to hone in on the central element to this story: Jesus as Messiah, and briefly wh

Martha and Mary show incredible insight in this chapter of John, don't they? Despite whatever doubt they may have shown (vss. 33, 40), they still understood that Jesus could save from death. When first speaking to Jesus, both sisters exclaim, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died" (vss. 21, 32), showing their understanding of who He was and what He could do. As we continue to draw application from the story of Lazarus, I wanted to look at our future hope

Wednesday's share is an article from Ligonier about daily devotionals. Do we need them? Are they legalistic? Honestly, I would prefer not to say much about the post, but instead to ask you to read it prayerfully. I hope it will be a help to you!

In the account of Lazarus, we see many different stories come together. We see the disciples both questioning and coming alongside Jesus, both on His decision to wait and His journey to see Mary and Martha. We see the plight of Lazarus' sisters as they grieve the death of their brother. We even see the watching Jews and their leaders, some who would believe, and others who would never believe no matter what (John 11:45-46). In the midst of it all, however, we see Jesus, both

Over the past few months, our church's youth group has been studying the book of John. Recently, as we wrap up the school year, we have been going through the story of Lazarus. It's a fascinating story, showing us so much of the human condition; even more, it shows us the heart of Jesus. There are too many application points for just one blog post, or even several. But, there are a few I want to hone in on in this short series on Lazarus. And the first one is that Jesus loved

As a kid, one of my favorite TV shows was Star Trek: The Next Generation. If you're familiar with the show, one of the main characters (and one of my favorites) was an android named Data. As the show progressed, Data strove to become more human-like, kind of like Pinocchio. Data eventually even acquired a special chip that gave human emotions. One particular episode that I recall involved a case where Data was on trial to defend the right to autonomy as an android. From a sci

Today's share comes from Got Questions; it's an article dealing with an interesting topic: the fear of man. It's a sin or struggle that, maybe, we have a harder time admitting we have a problem with. But, it's a problem for many of us just the same. Instead of spending time trying to explain it myself, instead I'll defer to the post, and hope that you find it a help and encouragement.

A common practice among photographers is applying something called a vignette to a finished image. If you're unfamiliar with that, the idea is simple: darken the edges of the frame. This helps keep the viewer's eyes focused on the center of the photograph. You can take it a step further by using a technique called dodging and burning, where you lighten or darken parts of the image to help direct the eye. It sounds like cheating, but it's pretty common and helps to tell the st