Going Deeper

Have you ever found yourself wishing you were somewhere else? Maybe you've complained about your neighborhood, your town, your workplace, or even the state you live in. It's easy to believe that life would be better if God would simply move us somewhere new. But what if God has a purpose for placing you exactly where you are? When we read Jeremiah 29:11, most of us immediately think about God's promise: "For I know the plans I have for you." It's one of the most quoted verses

I recently came across the story of a young man named Ray Anthony Jackson. When he was born, his fifteen-year-old mother was unable to pay the hospital bill. Desperate for help, she called a family friend who happened to be a military veteran. He agreed to sign the paperwork as the child's father so the bill could be covered. After that day, he disappeared from their lives. Years later, when Ray was in high school, he finally met the man whose last name he carried. He thanked

About sixty years after the apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians, another church leader found himself facing persecution. His name was Polycarp. At eighty-six years old, Roman soldiers finally found him after years of searching. Instead of resisting arrest, he invited them inside, prepared them a meal, and asked for one hour to pray before they took him away. They agreed. History tells us he prayed for two hours. Even more remarkable, several of the very soldiers

There’s something about home that resonates deeply within all of us. After a long vacation, we find ourselves saying, “There’s no place like home.” After spending time with extended family over the holidays, sitting through a week of work travel, or simply enduring a long day, we long for the comfort of familiar surroundings. Home represents rest, belonging, safety, and peace. But have you ever stopped to wonder where that longing comes from? I don’t think it’s random. I don’

by Pastor Jacob Pull a slingshot's bands back. The pouch moves in exactly the opposite direction it's meant to go. Stretched tight. Moving backward. Then it's released. And the backward movement turns out to be the very thing that gives it momentum. Most of us know what that feels like. A job ends sooner than you expected. A relationship gets harder instead of easier. A plan you built real hope around starts to unravel. It can feel like you're losing ground. Like life is movi

If you've ever flown over a city, you know how different everything looks from 30,000 feet. The streets form neat little grids. The people disappear. The details fade away, and all you see is the big picture. Then you land, get into a car, and drive through the city. Suddenly, you notice things you couldn't see from above. The people become visible. The neighborhoods take shape. The details begin to emerge. But then something changes again when you get out of the car and star

A few years ago, my wife and I were sitting near the bay in Tampa, Florida, watching dozens of people learn how to sail. Some were moving smoothly across the water. Others were struggling to keep their boats upright. The difference wasn't the wind—it was whether they knew how to position their sails. As I reflected on that moment, I couldn't help but think about the Holy Spirit. One of the most common biblical pictures of the Holy Spirit is wind. Throughout Scripture, God is

Summer is almost here in Champaign-Urbana, which means there are pools going up in backyards across the area. Especially if you grew up here, you know there's a trick to those above-ground pools. You get a few people walking the same direction around the perimeter, and at first it's slow — you're pushing against still water, making your own current from nothing. But then someone else jumps in behind you. Then another. And before long you're not really swimming at all. The wa

We live in a world full of blinking lights. Everywhere we turn, there are things competing for our focus—notifications, opinions, temptations, fears, distractions, comparisons, and endless noise. If we’re not careful, the things that grab our attention can slowly begin shaping the direction of our lives. In Hebrews 12, the writer gives us a picture of faith as a race. And in the middle of that picture, he gives us this instruction: “Fix your eyes on Jesus.” Not casually glanc

Carl Bushby made a bet in a pub in 1998. He was 29, at the southern tip of South America, and someone asked whether it was still possible to walk around the world — no planes, no motors, no shortcuts. Carl said yes. So he flew home, then flew back to that same spot, and started walking north. They estimated it would take 12 to 13 years. He's been walking for 27. Here's what stops you when you dig into the story. Of those 27 years, Carl has spent 13 of them actually walking. T