Personal thoughts from Pastor Jeff on a(n almost) daily basis.
Moses met Him at a burning bush when he no longer had confidence that God could use him. Hagar encountered Him when her husband had cast her and her son out, so he could be with another woman. Isaiah had a personal revelation of Him when he went to the temple and saw Him in His stunning glory. Mary Magdalene’s intersected …
In seventh grade I was assigned a project, for which I had little interest, by my science teacher. She gave me two pages of instructions detailing how I was to complete a project on soil erosion. Equipped with a Polaroid instant camera I trekked about a half-mile deep into the woods behind our neighborhood, and walked along the banks of …
Sometimes God changes things up on you when you were not looking for anything to change. Our of nowhere comes an intrusive ripple in your normally manageable pond. He did not announce it was coming beforehand. He did not dialogue with you to see if it was convenient for you. Also, God did not ask your permission. He just initiated …
Today you awoke and immediately, whether consciously or subconsciously, began to look for something in which to place your confidence. We get up each morning trusting in something for our sense of stability, meaningfulness and peace. We pick a particular harbor in which to drop anchor for a while. My guess is that most people awaken each day and subconsciously …
I’m a firm believer that every human has a purpose from the heart of God. While my thoughts in this post will center upon Christians and their assignments from the Father, I also believe that every non-believer also has a purpose that is centered in the wisdom of a sovereign God. He makes all vessels for His glory. No human …
Today my mind rests on how we Christians regard those who do not know Christ. The newly endorsed approach by many evangelicals makes a priority out of removing all uncomfortable confrontation concerning human sin and the righteousness of God. It’s molasses evangelism and it’s sweet going down but unhealthy when it settles. Much of modern Christianity intentionally removes any and …
Sometimes it lodges in pretty deep before we are even aware of it. Somewhat like a blemish that appears on the face overnight while we sleep – we wake up and discover something is gnawing at us. Often the result is irritability, or perhaps a heaviness of heart that attaches itself to us like undesirable emotional lint – we can’t …
On this 4th of July I submit to you that American politics has now become the fastest growing religion in the Republic. It has two denominations, Church of the Left and Church of the Right. There are 100 Bishops (better known as Senators) and 435 Priests (located in the House of Representatives). Countless citizen-evangelists in both denominations dot the landscape …
One of the treasures of my adulthood, particularly since my conversion in 1994, is the friendship and brotherhood that I share with my earthly father. Doug Lyle spent decades in the banking industry and then left it to commit himself to the kingdom work of developing men. Dad prefers face-to-face connecting above writing but has graciously agreed to serve as …
After God saved me in the Summer of 1994, I immediately began to proclaim everything that I knew (which was not much!) about Jesus to anyone who would listen. I testified about how He had delivered me from a life of misery. I shared in homeless shelters and prisons about how the King had broken the power of my decade-long …
A recent change for me in ministry has turned out to be a source of blessing and fulfillment. When New Bridge Church merged with the Atlanta International House of Prayer, we added a Sunday evening service to accommodate the increased numbers of weekly attendees. On those Sundays when I preach, the Lord guided me to do an entirely different message …
“The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; He knows those who take refuge in Him.” – Nahum 1:7 What a constant encouragement this verse proves to be. Tell me a day when some one of us, in some place under some particular gloom, hasn’t needed to hear this encouragement. I love the fact that my Bible …
The more I read Scripture, and the older I get, there is a growing awareness in my mind that I linger over the questions in the Bible far more than I used to. I once preferred the decrees, the commands, the prohibitions and the promises. I’m naturally wired to take satisfaction in dogmatic declarations…but in recent years I find myself …
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” – Romans 15:13 What an incredible prayer that Paul offers for us here. His desire is that we would experience a filling, a stilling and a spilling through believing the Gospel, …
We have all heard this quaint saying which is actually rooted in solid truth: God loves you and has a great plan for your life. While this is a true statement, it is not sufficient in the way it is communicated, specifically because we have been trained to associate the concept of God’s love with pleasure and ease. Also, when …
It is the lifelong need for all of us to embrace what John the Baptizer declared of his own life 2,000 years ago. As his own ministry was fading in popularity and preeminence, John responded to those asking him why this diminishing of his work was happening to him by saying, “Jesus must increase. I must decrease.” This same release must …
That long-awaited time of the year has arrived for my family. We will be doing a little traveling over the next couple of weeks, enjoying some time together celebrating Alicia’s graduation from high-school and Landon becoming a teenager. Time is flying at a faster clip than I can ever remember and, for a couple of months, I have found myself …
Sometimes people miss God’s best for them because it is being offered in a package that does not fit with their preconceptions. Most of us would affirm that we desire God’s richest and best for our lives. We trust Him, we know that He is good, we believe that the plans that He has for us will result in something …
Recently, the Holy Spirit and I hunkered down in Psalm 63 together (you may wish to pause right now and read it yourself so you will understand more of what I am about to share). Trekking through those familiar verses, a familiar stirring began to move again in my heart. This stirring within is a physical and emotional response to …
Not everyone in the Kingdom is completely sold out to the King. How many new converts have reeled when they uncovered this disheartening reality? I remember, after I was brought into the Kingdom via a radical conversion and deliverance, soon discovering that many of the Christians with whom I began doing life were not as enthused about King Jesus as …
It never occurred to me that the busiest season I have ever had in my life would occur as I approach the age of fifty. Years ago, I must have adopted the presumption that I would be able to slow down and ease my way through the back end of life and ministry. I knew I would have a steady …
“I made My vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord GOD, and you became mine. Then I bathed you with water and washed off your blood from you, and anointed you with oil.” – Ezekiel 16:8-9 These obscure verses from the prophet Ezekiel’s book have me thinking today about how good the Father is …
Nobody wants to suffer. Truthfully, nobody really even wants to struggle. There is something of a default pattern of thinking when it comes to human beings finding themselves in circumstances that constrain, challenge or cripple us. That pattern of thought is generally the same for young and old, people of all races and nationalities, those of no faith or those …
When I was in the fourth grade I made up my mind that I was going to be a disk jockey when I grew up. I had a dream of working by myself in a radio station with fat headphones on my ears and a big silver microphone in front of my mouth. I wanted to talk and make people …
”And David danced before the Lord with all his might…So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the horn.” – 2 Samuel 6:14-15 Father, thank You for a reason to celebrate. Thank You that all of Your people arose this morning in a state of spiritual victory, even if some cannot …
