Common Questions

We want to preface this response by stating that we never want to minimize or over-simplify what others go through. Our family has been through difficult health and spiritual issues and we know first-hand how hard it is to understand why things happen; often to wonderful people of God. Sadly even our most vulnerable are not immune.

Suffering, hardships, and illnesses entered the world the same time sin did. God’s original creation was a perfect world, free of suffering, in which people had a direct relationship with God. In this world, God allowed people to make their own choices. The choices that were ultimately made, started the ruin of this originally perfect world.

The Bible describes the rebellion against God's ways starting in the third chapter of Genesis. When God created Adam and Eve, they started out in a perfect relationship. Adam and Eve had a beautiful garden where they had everything they needed and they could have it all with one exception - they couldn't eat fruit from a specific tree. “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden — except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die” (Genesis 2:16-17).

The devil, in the form of a serpent, convinced Eve to eat from the tree by persuading her that God was holding out on her. He said, “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil” (Genesis 3:5). Basically, the devil tempted her with the power to be like God, which would enable her to go her own way without trusting God. Adam also chose to eat the fruit, knowing that it was against God’s one command.

As the above illustrates, disobedience to God (something we've all been guilty of in our lives), started very early and has had a profound impact on the world and on humanity (Romans 5:12). Trials and distress are not something unusual in life; they are part of what it means to be human in a fallen world. 

However, it's important to remember that the Bible teaches that God is loving and good, and that he is able to use even the most difficult circumstances of our lives for his purposes and for our good (Romans 8:28). Even the sufferings we endure, as terrible as they can be, “are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). Take comfort in Jesus' words to the disciples in John 16:33 - "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

It's also important to note that God understands our struggle in the hardships. When God sent Jesus into the world, His 33 years on this earth were marked with hardships and suffering. Jesus is described in the Bible as, "… a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering" (Isaiah 53:3). When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, He didn't just suffer LIKE us, He suffered FOR us (Matthew 27 - 28).

If we bring our suffering to Him today – we don’t come to a God who is aloof or indifferent or distant. So, if you are struggling with this topic in your life, start searching the bible for help, ask guidance from other believers, seek a relationship with God and just talk to Him like He's your best friend - because He is! That's our best advice, just honestly and humbly seek Him.

The Bible contains 66 books written by over 40 different authors inspired, by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21; 2 Timothy 3:16) in 3 different languages over the course of 1,500 years, and together they paint a picture of one story that revolves around God creating men and women, us sinning against God, and God making a way for the restoration of all things by His grace through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They all paint a consistent and clear picture of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Bible also contains thousands of prophecies fulfilled with uncanny precision, including 351 specific prophecies in the Old Testament written over hundreds of years that are fulfilled in detail in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The odds of that happening by chance are less than one in 2000 zeros!
351 Old Testament Prophecies Fulfilled »

Prayer is a conversation. It takes talking and listening. And the listening part is arguably the most important. Because when you listen to God, you learn His will, and when you know His will, you can pray in His will. The Bible tells us to “Pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 ). Does that mean, you're constantly somewhere quiet with your eyes closed and your hands clasped? - no. This can simply look like you going throughout your day at home or work keeping an internal dialog going with God.

There are real benefits to praying, even if our prayers go unanswered. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” When we share our anxieties, worries, and fears with God, he takes the weight of those things off our shoulders and gives us peace in return. 

Prayer is not creating a wish list and getting God to do you some favors. Jesus taught people how to pray and demonstrated it in Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46): When you pray, pray that God's will be done, and not yours. Jesus walked the walk, so to speak, instead of just preaching it. When you walk with God through Jesus Christ, you grow closer to God, and praying for his will above your own (and meaning it) is a sign that you are on the right track.

Pray and ask God to reveal to you the purpose to your life, and even before you fully grasp it, learn to pray for God's will for you to be done.

God is the creator of the universe, the father that sent the son Jesus to live flesh and blood on the earth to die for our sins. God is eternally existent as three persons in one being - The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Son became man in the person of Jesus Christ in what we call the Incarnation. In the Incarnation Jesus subordinates himself to the will of the Father. That's why Jesus prays to the Father and says the Father sent him, etc.

Jesus said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). And later, Jesus said, “Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves” (John 14:10-11).

The difference in titles and names can sometimes be hard to grasp when you begin studying. Just know: there is one God - the Great I Am (Exodus 3:14). He is three in one, and His way is perfect and true.

When Christians talk about God coming to live in their hearts, it’s the Holy Spirit they are describing. The Bible describes the Spirit as the “breath” of God. In John 20:21-22, Jesus said "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you." And with that He breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit."

The Holy Spirit becomes the source of new life God places within you. You no longer just relate to God as a higher power outside of yourself. God transforms you from within so that you become more like Jesus. Throughout the Bible, the Holy Spirit equips people for ministry, gives people specific insight and wisdom, teaches people how to interpret God’s Word, communicates with the Father on people’s behalf, and more. The Holy Spirit produces a certain type of boldness and a lasting change in our character. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23).

The Holy Spirit helps us learn about the ways of Jesus and brings it to our remembrance. In John 14:26, Jesus said “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you”.

In the Bible, the Hebrew word for sin is khata. It means to fail or miss the mark. Sin is anything you say, do, or think that goes against what God wants. Sin dominates and devastates people and relationships. Worst, it separates us from God.

For something to be sinful, we must be aware that it violates what God desires us to do. We have two gauges in our lives to help us define and know what sin is. The first gauge is the word of God (The Bible), and the second is the Spirit of God (the Holy Spirit). The Holy Spirit will let you know quickly if you've done or said something outside of the will of God. If that happens, don't beat yourself up - God corrects those He loves (Proverbs 3:12). Just be conscious of it, confess, and repent.

In the original Greek, metanoia is the term that is most commonly translated as “repentance” in English. This word literally means “change of mind”. Repentance means we are truly sorry for something we have done (not just its consequences) and want to change our behavior. A repentant life is a changed life, not in that perfection is ever attained but in that the fruit of repentance — a change in action and attitudes — becomes discernible in a person’s character.

Repentance requires the acknowledgment that God’s ways are higher than yours (Isaiah 55:8-9). There are things that seem right to you that do not line up with God’s will (Proverbs 14:12). When you recognize and begin to live by this, you are on the right track. 

Repentance is as easy as confessing your failure and making a plan to change. If your need for repentance has anything to do with someone you’ve wronged, then part of the repentance process must involve reconciling with them as well, if possible. 

After you repent, don't let the devil continuously bring your shortcomings up and make you feel bad. You just keep moving forward, growing with God knowing that you're forgiven. Lean on God's provision for forgiveness, peace, assurance, and strength.

Being saved is a free gift of God by way of Jesus Christ's death on the cross for our sins(John 3:16-18). It is not obtained by any good works we do (Titus 3:5, Ephesians 2:8-9).

To be saved, believe with all your heart that God sent his one and only son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for all of our sins, was resurrected, and is alive in us to this day.

Pray for your salvation either just you and God or alongside other believers. It could be something in your own words similar to: "“Father, I need You. I acknowledge that I have been directing my own life and that, as a result, I have sinned against You. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sin. I believe and am thankful that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. God, I invite you to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.”

Water baptism is an act of faith and obedience to the commands of Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:19–20.) It is an expression of faith for believers symbolizing Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection by being immersed in water in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit who is the Lord Jesus Christ. The word baptize in Greek, translates to “dip” or “immerse.” Every baptism in the Bible was by immersion under water. The book of Acts shows us that this was the norm for every believer.

Baptism is a public confession of your faith in, and commitment to, Jesus Christ. It is the next step after salvation through repentance and faith. As soon as a person believes in and dedicates their life to Jesus Christ, that person can be, and is encouraged to be baptized. (Acts 2:41, Acts 8:35-39).