Category: challenge

• Revival Can Come

  “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” ~2 Chronicles 7:14 NRSV I see this Bible verse posted on yard signs, in windows, I hear it from […]

  Ryan Stratton

  11/13/2020

  belief, belonging, Bible, bible study, born again, challenge, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, faith, faithful, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, holy life, holy living, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, journaling, judgement, leadership, learning, legacy, Life, live stream, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, new creation, new life, passion, pastor, Prayer, preaching, preparation, renewal, repentance, resurrection, revival, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, witness, witnessing, Wonder, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  2 Chronicles 7:14, Christian life, God, Good News of Jesus Christ, gospel of Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, it begins with me, Jesus Christ, life transformation, new life in Christ, praying for revival, revival, Trust God, trusting Jesus, what is revival

• Asking the Right Question

  We have all been at crossroads and have to figure out which path to take that will be the best for your life. Some of the questions we ask are, “Which way does God want me to go?”, “How do I know if I make the right choice?”, “What is the best option for me […]

  Ryan Stratton

  11/06/2020

  ambition, anxiety, beauty, belief, believe, belonging, Bible, challenge, Challenges, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, disciples, faith, faithful, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, Holy Spirit, journaling, journey, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, motivations, pain, passion, patience, peace, possibilities, Prayer, prayer life, questions, repentance, resurrection, revival, temptations, testimony, thankful, transformation, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worry, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  Asking the right questions, Christian life, Christian living, faith in Christ, God has a plan, God is already there. trust God, God is with us, God is with you, God loves you, Jesus changes everything, journey of life, know God, live by faith, power of the Holy Spirit, way of life

• FREE BOOK!

  FREE book to help you study the Old Testament book of Jonah.

  Ryan Stratton

  05/26/2020

  belief, believe, belonging, bible, challenge, Challenges, Christian Life, Christianity, church, Communication, compassion, conflict, confrontation, conversion, devotionals, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, faith, faithful, glory of God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, holy living, Holy Spirit, Identity, invitation, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, judgement, judging, kindness, leadership, Life, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, mindset, ministry, miracles, mission, motivations, peace, people, Relationships, repentance, respect, revival, Savior, serve, service, sharing our faith, Sin, Spirit, Spirituality, struggles, transformation, travel, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, worldview, Worry, worship, writing, youth ministry

  bible study, book of Jonah, Christian life, faith in Christ, glory of God, God, God is with us, Good News of Jesus Christ, gospel of Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, mission, new life in Christ, praying for revival, revival, talking with God, transform the world, Trust God, Trust Jesus, Who is God

• The Problem of Evil

  A perfectly good God exists, and evil exists. This is a challenging enigma to contemplate and understand. After all, a good God would stop all evil and suffering from happening, so we would not have to experience it, right? This is where we need to pause and consider some of the characteristics of God and […]

  Ryan Stratton

  01/24/2020

  beauty, belief, believe, bible, challenge, Christian Life, Christianity, church, devotionals, disciples, Failure, failures, faith, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, holy living, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, learn, Life, pastor, power, Prayer, preaching, purpose, reconciliation, Relationships, religion, Sin, sin, Sinners, trust, Truth, worldview, Worry, worship, writing, youth ministry

  children of God, Christian life, evil in the world, freedom in Christ, God, God is with us, God with us, Good News of Jesus Christ, Gospel changes us, gospel of Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ, Kingdom of God, live differently, new life, transform the world, Trust God, Trust Jesus

• A Whole New World

  If this was only as good as it will get, then we are missing out on something greater than ourselves. Part of the issue is that we tend to focus on the viewpoint of our own perspective (which is clouded by our upbringing, our own culture, our race, our position in society, etc.).

  Ryan Stratton

  08/09/2019

  beauty, belief, bible, Bible, challenge, Christian Life, Christianity, church, disciples, eternal life, faithful, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, holy living, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, pastor, Prayer, prayer life, redeemed, relationships, religion, revival, service, serving, transformation, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  a whole new world, Christian living, giving 10%, glass half full or half empty, god is working in the world, hope in the world, kingdom of heaven is here now, rules of money, the generous life, watch god work, what is generosity

• Leaders Are Learners

  We are well into the new year. How’s it going for you? Are you feeling productive, or do you feel as if you are in the same routine, the same way of thinking, feeling like nothing as changed except the numbers on the calendar? I would like to offer this question, “If, for you, everything […]

  Ryan Stratton

  02/15/2019

  ambition, believe, challenge, Christian Life, church, example, facing challenges, faith, God, God’s grace, gospel, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, learn, learning, legacy, Life, methodism, methodist, mindset, priorities, renewal, transformation, Truth, writing, youth ministry

  change comes from God, improving ourselves, Leaders are learners, leaders are readers, making lasting change, new year resolutions, spiritual transformation, what to learn first

• Making An Eternal Impact

  

  READ SCRIPTURE: Luke 12:13-21 13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of […]

  Ryan Stratton

  09/07/2018

  awakening, belief, believe, bible, bible stories, bible study, challenge, character, charity, Christian Life, Christianity, church, devotionals, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, example, facing challenges, Failure, faith, faithful, giving thanks, glory, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, heaven, holy life, holy living, Holy Spirit, influence, inheritance, investigative, invitation, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, judgement, judging, kindness, leadership, Life, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, motivations, Motives, pastor, Prayer, prayer life, preach, preaching, priorities, proclaiming Christ, relationships, Savior, spiritual disciplines, thankful, transformation, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worry, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  assurance of eternal life, eternal life, is tithing important, Jesus changes everything, John Wesley On the Use of Money, living a generous life, Luke 12:13-21, relationship with Christ, relationship with God, relationship with stuff, stewardship sermon series, storage unit industry, storing up too much, the generous life, tithing and Christian life, Wesley’s rules for use of money

• What’s Holding You Back?

  

  “Why do people get uncomfortable talking about stewardship?” This was a question we talked about last week. Last week we started a 3-week series on stewardship. We talked about not worrying about what we don’t have, or controlling our resources because everything we have is because of God and really is God’s anyway. Here is […]

  Ryan Stratton

  08/31/2018

  anxiety, belief, believe, bible, Blessings, body of Christ, challenge, character, charity, Christian Life, Christianity, church, compassion, control, conversion, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, example, Failure, faith, faithful, fear, gift, gifts, glory to God, God, God’s grace, good news, gospel, grace, holy life, holy living, Holy Spirit, influence, invitation, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, leadership, Life, lifestyle, live, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, new life, pastor, poor, possibilities, power, praise, Prayer, prayer life, preach, preaching, relationships, religion, renewal, repent, revival, serving, sharing our faith, Spirit, Spirit led, transformation, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, works, Worry, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  control in our lives, getting eternal life, getting into heaven, giving to the church, Jesus changes everything, kingdom of God is here, Mark 10:17-31; Gospel of mark, rich man and Jesus, Stewardship, stewardship sermon series

• Loving to Life Pt 5

  

  SHOW GOD’S LOVE DAILY As we continue in loving people and organizations to life, we remember we have been praying and seeking God’s direction, we have been allowing the people to be their real selves without judgement, we have been meeting with people in small groups, and we have begun a visioning process for the […]

  Ryan Stratton

  07/27/2018

  awakening, beauty, belief, believe, bible, calling, challenge, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, compassion, conversion, Creation, Creativity, devotionals, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, example, faith, fruit of the spirit, gifts, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, kindness, leadership, Life, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, mission, people, pray, relationships, renewal, trust, Truth, uncategoried, value, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  finding life in Christ, following Jesus Christ, ideas to love people, know how much you care, loving God, loving people, loving to life, people have value, people have worth, pray for people, praying with others, show God’s love through you, showing God’s love, writing notes to people

• Loving to Life Pt 4

  

  VISIONING This is one of my favorite things to do – visioning for the possibilities of the future. I have said before that I do much better in bigger picture planning and thinking than I do when it comes to the minor details. The details are important. Visioning is not just about long term planning […]

  Ryan Stratton

  07/20/2018

  belief, believe, belonging, calling, challenge, Christian Life, church, Communication, disciples, faith, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, learn, learning, legacy, Life, live, memory, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, mission, pastor, plan, possibilities, prepare, questions, revival, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  blog series, building relationships, daydreaming for the future, getting a new church, getting a new job, God’s plan, listening to God, looking at the big picture, looking to the future, moving to a new area, setting future goals, visioning for the future