Devotionals and reflections from Pastor Jason — updated automatically as new posts publish.
In recent years, neuroscience has opened some previously locked doors into our understanding of the brain. As a Christian, I love to learn what…
Read →This last week, I preached a message at Grace Point on the end times, a subject formally known as eschatology. I’m pretty sure it’s…
Read →My wife, Whitney, and I recently celebrated 13 years of marriage. Over those 13 years, God has been so very gracious, and I cannot…
Read →In the musical The Greatest Showman, P. T. Barnum (Hugh Jackman) assembles a group of social misfits and turns them into a team of…
Read →Our Father in Heaven, We, Your Church, come before You in humility, gratitude, and hope. Lord, without question You have blessed the United States…
Read →Why do we get anxious? What’s the root cause? A recent report said in the United States, “anxiety disorders are the most common mental…
Read →“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12, NIV) Every day you make a choice that…
Read →The gospel is the story that Christians have to tell the world. It’s the message of salvation for a world that is spiritually adrift.…
Read →So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own…
Read →“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” (Philippians 3:8, ESV) The Apostle Paul had…
Read →Nearly every Christian I’ve talked to would like to grow in their prayer life. And who better to learn from than Jesus of Nazareth?…
Read →“Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.” (Proverbs 3:7, ESV) As long as we are still…
Read →It’s become popular for intellectual types to say things like “the resurrection of Jesus is a symbol of hope.” The problem for many is…
Read →One of the most familiar metaphors in Scripture is walking with God. From the earliest pages, we learn that Adam and Eve would walk…
Read →Americans are reportedly lacking in joy. A recent survey found that young Americans (under 30) have especially seen a decline in happiness. While nearly…
Read →It’s hard to trust every promise you hear these days. Most of us have had the experience of someone breaking a promise they made…
Read →“The sheep follow the shepherd, for they know his voice.” (John 10:4) One of my spiritual mentors who has discipled me while I was…
Read →Modern Americans aren’t as fascinated with genealogies as ancient Jewish people. It’s true that many have done ancestry research. My Grammy Smith did some…
Read →In our busy, technology-saturated, and fast-paced 21st century world, we need clarity on what to prioritize in life. Sometimes, we have to say “No”…
Read →This is the question lurking just below the surface in every human heart. Have I done enough? Do people accept me for who I…
Read →Many Christians are disheartened when they look around at how our American culture has become more secular and, in many ways, anti-Christian in everything…
Read →I love being a dad. Hardly anything in life gives me more joy than spending time with my kids, whether it be wrestling with…
Read →Before Jonas Salk discovered the vaccine for polio, he had to fail 200 times. When he was asked how he felt about those 200…
Read →In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be My disciples. (Luke 14:33, ESV) In the…
Read →Recently, I was reading a Bible storybook to my 5-year-old son, Ryan, that was filled with realistic pictures of Jesus in various scenes from…
Read →One of the most common objections to Christianity I hear is the problem of evil. How could a good God allow so much evil…
Read →“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.…
Read →So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every…
Read →In the last couple months, I have been preaching from the Book of Joshua. Joshua is a book full of epic battles and miraculous…
Read →“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be…
Read →The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. (Genesis 2:15, ESV) In…
Read →This last Friday (the 4th of July), flash flooding devastated central Texas. As of this writing, there are 104 confirmed deaths, including 27 campers…
Read →Some of my favorite books to read are memoirs of people who have come to faith in Jesus Christ. There is something powerful about…
Read →The more I get to know Jesus the more I see His laserlike ability to see past externals and appearances to each person’s heart.…
Read →This last Sunday my father retired after 40 years of pastoral ministry. As a young pastor myself, I was reminded of how blessed I…
Read →Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.” (John 11:25, BSB)…
Read →The Bible is a massive book. Actually, it’s a library of 66 different books of various genres, written by around 40 different authors from…
Read →If there is one truth that Christians have always believed about Christmas it is that Jesus was conceived not by natural human means, but…
Read →“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” (Romans 12:12, ESV) For many people, the only prayer they practice is a…
Read →With the 2024 U. S. presidential election fast approaching, many people are feeling anxious about our nation’s uncertain future. Who will lead our country…
Read →“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly…
Read →What we prioritize determines the course of our lives. There’s a simple law of reality that says, “If you don’t set your priorities, someone…
Read →“And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works…
Read →“In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind” (John 1:4). Recently, I heard someone use a phrase I often…
Read →“Note then the kindness and the severity of God.” (Romans 11:22, ESV) Not long ago, my friend Matt and I were on Oregon State’s…
Read →One of the biggest ways our enemy, the devil, will try to sabotage our walk with Jesus is through painting God as uncaring or…
Read →“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…
Read →One of the best ways to get to know someone is to go hiking together. I mean, really, what better way to bond than…
Read →“For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, ‘Move from here to…
Read →Picture the scene. A seasoned fisherman has labored all night, but he and his team have come up empty. Out of the blue, an…
Read →Sin is always selfish. We may find ways to justify it, rationalize it, and make excuses for it. But in the end, sin is…
Read →“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” (John 15:11, ESV)…
Read →Throughout my life, I can think of several dates when the plans for my day were totally upended. The death of a relative. An…
Read →“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.…
Read →Marriage is central to the storyline of the Bible. From its earliest chapters, we see that God created the man and the woman for…
Read →“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that…
Read →I always want to encourage my fellow Christians that theology is not a stuffy subject reserved for uptight scholars to study in their ivory…
Read →Santa Claus is coming to town. He’s back in the shopping malls and showing up at various holiday events. The jolly old, white-bearded guy…
Read →As a pastor, I know I need regular reminders to stay faithful to the Lord, to not compromise my convictions, and to love those…
Read →A couple weeks ago, I experienced the joy of reunion. I spent the previous week hunting deer in Wyoming and was glad to be…
Read →Many Christians today are concerned about the direction our culture has been going for some time now. Some are agitated, some anxious. I’ve spoken…
Read →“You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a…
Read →“And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” (James 3:18, ESV) Our world is full of conflict. Employees…
Read →David Wilkerson was an evangelist who followed God’s call to preach the gospel to the inner-city gangs of New York City. When Wilkerson first…
Read →We sometimes hope we can run away from past failure instead of facing up to it so that we can move forward. Failure in…
Read →In his book, Christian Living in the Home, Christian psychologist Jay Adams describes a time a marriage counselor sat down with a couple. Throughout…
Read →A cartoon depicts Moses standing on top of God’s mountain, holding the two tablets of the Ten Commandments. With a big grin spread across…
Read →“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:18, ESV) Every major company in the world today has a mission statement. Mission statements…
Read →It is remarkable to consider the numerous testimonies of skeptical scholars who set out to disprove the whole story of Jesus and His resurrection,…
Read →The Bible’s message could be boiled down to this: Live every day in light of the end. Everyone dies, but most people live in…
Read →“For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his…
Read →Our world tends to think of prayer as the last resort. We go to prayer when we are desperate. It’s amazing how tragedies drive…
Read →Many are familiar with Jesus’ famous words: “First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to…
Read →“What about homosexuality? What is your church’s stance on it? Is it a sin or not?” This is the question that Becket Cook, a…
Read →A Muslim friend of mind recently recommended I read the 2019 book Apostate: From Christianity to Islam in times of secularization and terror, written…
Read →“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3, ESV) Recently, I was talking with…
Read →“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put…
Read →In October 2019, the Pew Research Center released a major new report called “In U.S., Decline of Christianity Continues at Rapid Pace.” The research…
Read →“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that…
Read →“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of…
Read →“The end of all things is near.” (1 Peter 4:7, NIV) Many Christians today are asking the question: “Are we living in the end…
Read →Recently, my family and I stopped to feast our eyes on an exquisite sunset, complete with a bright glowing blend of red, orange, and…
Read →Those immersed in the modern world of dating are often encouraged to look for the ideal man or woman of their dreams. Online dating…
Read →As a society, we tend to revere the wealthy even while denying that fact, don’t we? Sure, some may say, “Down with the rich!”…
Read →“You have captured my heart, my treasure, my bride. You hold it hostage with one glance of your eyes, with a single jewel of…
Read →From the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, He went around healing, teaching, and calling people to follow Him. When people followed Jesus, they began a…
Read →“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver. Like a gold ring or an ornament of gold is…
Read →From its beginning, the Christian movement has been rooted in the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. No other religion or faith tradition so powerfully…
Read →“Amazing grace! How sweet the soundThat saved a wretch like me!I once was lost, but now am found;Was blind, but now I see.” Thus…
Read →For most people in the world, the grave is a terrifying prospect. Not many like to even think about it, but we all know…
Read →Micah Wilder is a former Mormon missionary who was powerfully transformed by Christ during his two-year mission trip in Florida. While a Mormon missionary,…
Read →At the end of Jim Carrey’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the Grinch recognizes that despite taking all the presents of Whoville, he hadn’t…
Read →Parents love to see their children eagerly expecting the arrival of Christmas. They get Advent calendars with the countdown to Christmas and share in…
Read →One of the sure signs that the Christmas season is upon us is all the twinkling lights that suddenly adorn nearby homes and businesses.…
Read →Here’s a fun thought experiment. Think through all the things in your life that had to occur just so in order for you to…
Read →One might expect that when a nation is deeply divided, few blessings can emerge. Strongly held conflicting views spill over on social media and…
Read →You cannot change the past. This is a hard truth for many who can still feel the sting from past blunders, embarrassments, and betrayals.…
Read →Have you heard of Moto-X freestyle motocross? It’s the sport where guys jump motorcycles over buildings and hang from the handlebars with their feet…
Read →Politics can be a tough subject to broach. Many of us know what it’s like to sit down for a nice family Thanksgiving or…
Read →With the sun beating down on his head, a bronze-skinned man steps out onto the river bank. His lower half is still drenched and…
Read →Uh-oh. There’s that feeling again. It’s like a deep tremor welling up inside. A volcano with growing subterranean pressure. We all know what it’s…
Read →Charles Colson was once known as President Richard Nixon’s “hatchet man.” He earned that moniker through his relentless, no-nonsense way of executing the president’s…
Read →If someone was to ask you what the main theme of Jesus Christ’s teaching was during His earthly ministry, how would you respond? Would…
Read →How exactly do good works fit in with the life of a Christian? Many have wrestled with this concept, oftentimes setting faith and works…
Read →There are some pretty funny TV commercials out there. I’m sometimes amazed by the creativity of those marketing gurus. In one Kia car commercial…
Read →God clearly cares about our hearts. Throughout the Bible, we read about the significance of the heart. The heart is the seat of all…
Read →“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” (Exodus 20:2, ESV)…
Read →Modern scholars often assume the massive migration of Hebrew slaves out of Egypt recorded in the biblical book of Exodus never happened. The Exodus…
Read →Perhaps one of the saddest things to witness is when one spouse says to another, “I just don’t love you anymore.” It’s especially heartbreaking…
Read →“Great are the works of the LORD; they are pondered by all who delight in them.” (Psalm 111:2) Many today take it for granted…
Read →The Bible describes Christians as citizens of Heaven who are called to live as exiles in the world. To belong to Jesus is to…
Read →“To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.” (Proverbs 8:13, NIV) Pride. It never…
Read →The family is the basic unit of society. Our family background and experiences inevitably shape the way we view the world, for good or…
Read →By Jason Smith One of the most common questions Christians have is: “How can I be sure that I’m really saved? How can I…
Read →By Jason Smith Life is filled with distractions that pull us away from what matters most. We all know this. Most likely, there have…
Read →Identity is a crucial term in the gender debate going on today. The core question being asked is: “How does someone identify?” One lesson…
Read →By Jason Smith From Christianity’s inception, critics have wondered why believers put so much focus on the cross. It’s easy to see why this…
Read →By Jason Smith Some might ask, “Why bring up the Bible when we talk about abortion? Isn’t that a political debate?” Many people would…
Read →By Jason Smith If you’re a Christian, it is in you to want to do what pleases God. You don’t want to oppose His…
Read →By Jason Smith From the very birth of Christianity, the church has always believed in the virgin conception of Jesus Christ. It is part…
Read →By Jason Smith During the Christmas season, our schedule is often crammed with all the festivities to attend, gifts to deliver, and shopping to…
Read →By Jason Smith One of the hardest Christian doctrines to swallow is that of original sin. To many, it sounds old-fashioned, pessimistic, and puritanical.…
Read →By Jason Smith “What gives you the right to judge?” If you’ve lived in the United States for almost any amount of time, there’s…
Read →By Jason Smith As our team walked across the dirt path, mounds of trash stood high on either side of us. A putrid smell…
Read →By Jason Smith We live in an age of “anything goes” when it comes to religion or spirituality. If it warms your heart or…
Read →By Jason Smith With great emotion, intensity in his eyes, and a distinct southern drawl, the preacher on television vividly described the scene. “Now…
Read →By Jason Smith I have had several conversations recently with other Christians who have considered the question: “Is it ever right for a Christian…
Read →By Jason Smith “But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret.…
Read →By Jason Smith “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house…
Read →By Jason Smith Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate. (Proverbs…
Read →By Jason Smith “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:3) Several years ago, a…
Read →“But what about you?” Jesus asked. “Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:15, BSB) When Jesus was on earth, He warned His followers…
Read →From the moment we emerge from our mother’s womb, we crave closeness and connection. New mothers are encouraged to practice skin-to-skin contact to bond…
Read →In the past several months, there has been an outside investigation into sexual misconduct allegations of Ravi Zacharias, who was a well-known and sought…
Read →During the Christmas season, my wife, Whitney, and I like to sit down and enjoy a good holiday movie together. Frequently, we turn to…
Read →“You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.” (Luke 1:31, NIV) In the ancient world, human…
Read →“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” (Psalm 118:1, NIV) We are entering the season of gratitude, but,…
Read →You are on a quest for happiness. From the moment you entered this world, you’ve had this impulse. Deep within your soul, you have…
Read →As an evangelical Christian in 21st century America, the constant challenge I find myself in is learning to balance grace and truth. As followers…
Read →“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13, KJV) It is impossible to…
Read →By Jason Smith Perseverance is a powerful thing. It can make or break an individual. And it can make or break your trust in…
Read →By Jason Smith “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”…
Read →By Derek L. Jackson and Jason Smith Our hope in this article is to set the stage for how to think about racism in…
Read →By Jason Smith “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.” (James 1:19) Right now our world is…
Read →By Jason Smith While growing up, you likely heard someone say, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”…
Read →By Jason Smith Sometimes people assume that the stories found in the Bible are always otherworldly, with every page being filled with outlandish miracles,…
Read →By Jason Smith Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. (Proverbs 31:30) Last…
Read →By Jason Smith It’s an intriguing question, isn’t it? Just what did the carpenter from Nazareth think of the writings that Christians today call…
Read →By Jason Smith Then Jesus said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at My hands. Reach out your hand and put it…
Read →By Jason Smith “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, whom…
Read →By Jason Smith “The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” (Psalm 34:18) These are tumultuous times. Many are…
Read →By Jason Smith For many of us, the Coronavirus has become a source for fear and anxiety. In addition to the countless large events…
Read →By Jason Smith Fear is a poison that paralyzes us. It locks us in a prison of our own making. It holds us back…
Read →By Jason Smith There are numerous cases in the New Testament of two or more individuals sharing the same name. That can be confusing,…
Read →By Jason Smith I remember like it was yesterday the drive back from the coast with two of my long-time buddies, Andy and Daniel.…
Read →By Jason Smith “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.”…
Read →By Jason Smith “Be careful not to forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he made with you; do not make for…
Read →“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in…
Read →By Jason Smith C. S. Lewis was born 121 years ago this Friday, November 29, 2019. I am one of many who can say…
Read →By Jason Smith “Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was…
Read →By Jason Smith “A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed.” (Job…
Read →By Jason Smith “Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on…
Read →By Jason Smith “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all…
Read →By Jason Smith “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” (Ephesians…
Read →By Jason Smith “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,…
Read →By Jason Smith Many atheist philosophers and scientists will declare reason and faith are forever locked in a battle for the minds of men.…
Read →By Jason Smith “If God created the universe, then who created God?” I have lost count of the number of times I have been…
Read →By Jason Smith “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not…
Read →By Jason Smith “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head,…
Read →By Jason Smith “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.” (James 4:10) My family recently returned from a trip to Fresno,…
Read →By Jason Smith “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled…
Read →By Jason Smith “I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the LORD, who does all these things.”…
Read →By Jason Smith But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him…
Read →By Jason Smith “He made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in…
Read →By Jason Smith “‘To whom then will you liken Me that I would be his equal?’ says the Holy One” (Isaiah 40:25). Theologian A.…
Read →By Jason Smith “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist…
Read →By Jason Smith “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good” (Romans 12:9). “In my experience, the church…
Read →By Jason Smith “Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him” (Proverbs 14:31). We’ve…
Read →By Jason Smith “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). This last weekend, I stood…
Read →Thanks for joining me! Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton
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