BIG IDEA Growing up, I always faced consequences when I disobeyed my parents. The most common consequence I received was being sent to my room. My parents did not punish me for the sake of punishing me. They wanted me to become a good person who honors God in everything I do. The same is true...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA Have you ever found yourself asking, "Why, God?" Have you ever found yourself in the middle of a monsoon wondering what God is doing in your life? Have you wondered why your circumstance is happening the way it is happening? Maybe you are feeling all of these things right now. We will...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA While we all prefer perfect weather with no storms in our lives, monsoons of suffering are going to happen. This world is broken. This becomes most obvious to us when we face our own times of suffering. When this happens, the question is: how do we respond? How do we suffer well? We...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA When I was on a class trip in high school, two of my friends were very bored. To entertain themselves, they decided to see how many rocks they could put in people's backpacks. I watched very carefully to make sure they did not put any rocks in my backpack, but when I was not looking...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA This week, as Stages of The Cross comes to an end, we are talking about the whole reason why we celebrate Easter, Jesus' resurrection from the dead. As we study about the resurrection of Jesus, we are going to see that because Jesus rose from the dead, we have hope. We have hope...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA As Jesus was dying on the cross, He said the words, "My God, My God, why have You abandoned me?" (Matthew 25:46). In this moment, Jesus expressed feeling a sense of loneliness that came with feeling distant from God the Father because He was taking on the sins of the world. Despite the...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA As Jesus was dying a criminal's death on the cross, He looked at his mother, Mary. "Dear woman," He said, "here is your son," referring to the disciple John (John 19:26). Next, He looked at John and said: "Here is your mother" (John 19:27). From that moment, John took Mary in as His...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA When Jesus was crucified, He was nailed on a cross between two criminals. One of these criminals, observing what was happening, expressed faith in Jesus as the Son of God. As Jesus was dying, this criminal said to Him, "remember me" (Luke 23:42). Jesus responded by saying, "Today you...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA As Jesus was dying an agonizing death on a cross, the Bible records seven statements He made before He died. One of these statements is found in Luke 23:34, where Jesus prayed for the people who had just nailed Him to the cross. "Father forgive them," He prayed, "for they don't know...
Continue ReadingBIG IDEA Do you believe that God is able? Do you believe that He is able to work in powerful ways in the lives of people? Better yet, do you believe that He is able to work in your own life? In our study this week, we are going to be reminded that God is, indeed, able. He is able to work in our...
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