Author: Pastor Bailey

“For by grace you have been saved by faith. Nothing you did could ever earn this salvation, for it was the love gift from God that brought us to Christ! So no one will ever be able to boast, for salvation is never a reward for good works or human striving.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) When you watch television…

“Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see” (Hebrews 11:1). Sometimes, when we say, “I have faith,” what we really mean is, “I wish [something] would happen.” We’re trying to think positively about the things to come. This is when faith starts to feel like…

“… as you hold out the word of life — in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing.” (Philippians 2:16) You must give up short-term gratification for long-term fulfilment. Paul bottom-lines his life and ministry in this verse: “That I have not run in…

“Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 6:27-28) I received a phone call that caught me by surprise. It was a blistering, angry, message that burned my ears and bruised my heart. “Most disgusting service I ever attended”, the voice said. I…

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Hebrews 12:1) Here are two more things you need to know: People will hurt you. There are…

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) As I entered the long hall of the nursing floor, I saw a special friend, her small frame dwarfed by her wheelchair. She had lost some of her stature, but her…

“You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?” (Galatians 5:7) You must take responsibility for your life instead of blaming others. In the Garden of Eden when God asked Adam why he had eaten from the tree, he blamed his wife: “The woman whom You gave…

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:7) Not everyone who starts the race finishes it. Paul writes: “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain…

“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.” (Hebrews 11:8) The Bible tells us, “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an…