Category: conflict

• God Responds

  Click here to read 1 Samuel 8. Samuel is an interesting character. He is a mild-mannered prophet who has no problem removing the head of enemy kings. He is someone you can go to in order to hear from God, and also someone who will make sure the job gets done. (Stay with me this […]

  Ryan Stratton

  06/08/2021

  bible, Bible, calling, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, confrontation, devotionals, disciples, Emotions, faith, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, holy, holy life, holy living, Jesus, Jesus Christ, leadership, Life, methodism, methodist, ministry, praise, Prayer, prayer life, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  1 Samuel 8, God hears prayers, god is not caught off guard, God knows, God loves you, God seeks us, God’s response, Israel asks for a king, rejecting God

• God Calls

  Click Here to Read 1 Samuel 3:1-10 I don’t know about you, but I LOVE the Old Testament. Yeah, there are many things I still don’t understand, but I do know this, what we call the Old Testament takes up 66% of our Bible, so taking the time to understand the storyline is vital for […]

  Ryan Stratton

  06/01/2021

  belief, bible study, Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, conversion, devotionals, disciples, freedom, freedom in Christ, glory of God, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, holy, holy life, holy living, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, John Wesley, methodism, methodist, ministry, mission, preach, preaching, speech, Spirit, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  1 Samuel 3:1-10, bible study, Christian life, God calls, hearing God’s voice, knowing God’s voice, knowing Jesus, live differently, love the Old Testament, new life in Christ, responding to God, sermon on 1 Samuel 3, trusting God

• People Like Us: Adam

  In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, but the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. Right here we get a picture of God who seeks to be intimately connected with his creation by remaining close. For God it was, and still is, all about […]

  Ryan Stratton

  07/14/2020

  belief, Bible, bible stories, bible study, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, confrontation, disciples, Failure, faith, faithful, glory, glory of Christ, glory of God, glory to God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, holy life, Holy Spirit, hope, humble, Jesus, Jesus Christ, judgement, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, proclaiming Christ, Relationships, revival, transformation, trials, trust, Truth, Uncategorized, worship, writing, youth ministry

  becoming more, blaming others, Christ changes everything, Christ is victorious, Christian blog post, I am not a failure, is it my fault, it’s all about Christ, People like us, sermon on Adam, taking responsibility

• 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

• Discovering God through the book of Jonah (Part 2)

  

  The Book of Jonah teaches us A LOT about who God is. Chapter 2 forces us to focus and evaluate what we pray and believing God answers prayers.

  Ryan Stratton

  10/18/2019

  belief, believe, belonging, bible, Bible, bible stories, bible study, calling, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, devotionals, disciples, eternal life, faith, faithful, family of God, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, gospel, grace, Image of God, John Wesley, journaling, journey, joy, judgement, Life, mercy, methodism, methodist, power, praise, pray, Prayer, prayer life, preaching, priorities, priority, proclaiming Christ, renewal, repent, revival, transformation, trust, Truth, uncategoried, witnessing, worldview, worship, writing, youth ministry

  believing God, bible study on Jonah, God answers prayers, hear our prayer, how to pray, Jonah 2, Lord, power of prayer, power of the Holy Spirit, Who is God, who is Jesus?

• Victory Over Goliath

  

  We all have “giants” in our life that attempt to hold us back from the life God has designed for us. Some of our giants include fear, anger, rejection, comfort, addiction. Join us for this 7-week sermon series as we understand some of the “giants” in our lives and how they can be overcome because […]

  Ryan Stratton

  03/05/2019

  anxiety, arrogance, attitudes, belief, believe, belonging, bible, bible stories, bible study, Challenges, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, confrontation, control, disciples, faith, faithful, faithfulness, family of God, Forgiveness, freedom, freedom in Christ, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, holy life, holy living, Holy Spirit, humanity, judgement, leadership, Life, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, miracles, mission, power, praise, pray, preach, preaching, proclaiming Christ, redeemed, relationships, sin, Sinners, struggles, success, suffering, Truth, uncategoried, worship, writing, youth ministry

  all powerful God, apple podcast sermons, Christus Victor, David & Goliath, David & Goliath sermons, David and Goliath, facing giants, facing opposition, Jesus has won, living in freedom, preaching freedom, preaching grace, preaching the gospel, United Methodist Church, victory over Goliath, victory over sin

• More To Your Story

  

  There is an interesting line in Genesis 37 that says, “This is the account of Jacob’s family line.” (Genesis 37:2 NIV) This is actually a pretty significant line. Have we paid attention to it before? We can think it is talking about the people that descended from Jacob, and it does; but there is more […]

  Ryan Stratton

  06/27/2018

  Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, controversy, conversion, devotionals, disciples, eternal life, evangelism, example, facing challenges, Failure, faith, faithful, forgiven, Forgiveness, freedom, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, healing, Identity, Jesus, limitations, mercy, methodism, methodist, miracles, mission, possibilities, power, spiritual transformation, Spirituality, storms, transformation, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  bright future, Genesis 37, God defines who we are, God loves the world, God loves you, God works in your life, God’s promises, Jacob in Genesis, Jeremiah 29:11, Jesus is with you, our identity, our past does not define us, there is always hope

• Convincing Arguments

  

  Click here to read Acts 26. When was the last time you tried to convince another person (not family or friend) about coming around to your way of thinking? How did it go? I love talking with sales people. They really know their stuff, and you can tell the ones who are passionate about their […]

  Ryan Stratton

  12/12/2017

  ambition, Apostle Paul, belief, bible, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, confession, conflict, controversy, devotionals, disciples, evangelism, example, faith, God, God’s grace, good news, gospel, grace, Holy Spirit, humanity, invitation, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life, Lord, Love, memory, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, mission, pastor, preach, preaching, proclaiming Christ, revival, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  Acts 26, Apostle Paul, book of Acts, closing arguments, convincing arguments, giving your testimony, God’s grace is incredible, new chances through grace, passion for Christ, perception of reality, sharing our faith

• Keeping Calm in Turmoil

  

  Click here to read Acts 24. After reading the scripture for today, do you relate to Paul in any way? After all, he had people rise up, spreading gossip, and telling the truth in a twisted way. My guess is we all would like opportunities for the complete truth to be told. We all may […]

  Ryan Stratton

  12/05/2017

  Apostle Paul, belief, believe, bible, Challenges, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, confrontation, controversy, devotionals, disciples, example, facing challenges, Failure, faith, faithful, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, holy living, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, maturity, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, mission, patience, prayer life, Spirit, spiritual transformation, transformation, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  Acts 24, Apostle Paul, book of Acts, calm in the storm, fruit of the spirit, Jesus changes everything, rely on the Holy Spirit, sharing and showing grace, speaking truth, transformed by grace, transformed life

• It’s About Kingdom Building

  

  Click here to read Acts 23. Paul is in a heap of trouble here. It seems the message of the gospel has touched a raw nerve with everyone he comes in contact with. Everyone, that is, except the Roman centurions watching set to watch over the apostle in chains. In one of his letters to […]

  Ryan Stratton

  12/01/2017

  Apostle Paul, bible, calling, Challenges, character, Christian Life, Christianity, church, conflict, controversy, devotionals, disciples, Ephesians, example, facing challenges, glory of Christ, glory of God, glory to God, God, God’s grace, God’s promises, good news, gospel, grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life, Love, mercy, methodism, methodist, ministry, mission, pastor, patience, preaching, proclaiming Christ, testimony, transformation, trials, trust, Truth, uncategoried, Worship, writing, youth ministry

  Acts 23, become all things to all people, book of Acts, building people up, building the kingdom, Ephesians 4:29, Holy Spirit, how to win friends and influence people, Jesus changes everything, Paul gives his defense, Paul is in trouble, transformed by grace, transforming the world