People treat the Church today like a drive-thru, and it is quietly damaging both their souls and the body of Christ.

Imagine walking into Wendy’s, ordering your meal, sitting down, eating, then pulling out your wallet and sending your payment to McDonald’s. It makes no sense. The place that prepared the food, served you, and met your needs is not the place being supported. Over time, that kind of system collapses. The one doing the work is strained, and the one receiving the payment is disconnected from the responsibility.

That is exactly what happens when believers attend one church but split their time elsewhere.

The Church was never designed to be something you casually rotate through. It was designed to be a spiritual family that you plant yourself in. Scripture speaks clearly about this kind of rootedness. In Acts, believers were devoted. In Hebrews, we are told not to forsake assembling together. In 1 Corinthians, the Church is described as a body, not a crowd. A body only functions when every part is connected and committed.

When someone attends one church but stays loosely attached, never fully committing, it creates strain. The church they attend is pouring into them, feeding them the Word, investing in their family, and creating space for them to grow, but they are not contributing to the life of that body. At the same time, the place they may be supporting or claiming connection to is not actually shepherding them. That disconnect weakens both sides.

But even deeper than that, it weakens the person. Because growth does not happen in spectatorship, it happens in commitment.

You cannot truly grow if you are always halfway in. You cannot be discipled if no one has real spiritual authority in your life. You cannot walk in accountability if you are constantly moving or dividing your loyalty. Spiritual maturity requires roots. It requires being known, being challenged, being corrected, and being equipped in a consistent community.

There is also a deeper heart issue underneath this pattern. Many people keep one foot in multiple places because they want the benefits of church without the responsibility of belonging. They want to receive without being accountable. They want to attend without being sent. They want to consume without contributing.

But that is not biblical Christianity. The Church is not a place you attend. It is a people you belong to.

When you settle into a local church, something shifts. You stop asking, “What can I get?” and start asking, “How can I serve?” You stop drifting and start building. You stop being a consumer and become a contributor to God's mission in that place. And when that happens, both you and the church become stronger.

If you are bouncing between churches or dividing your commitment, it is worth asking yourself a hard but honest question. Where has God called me to plant? Not where is most convenient. Not where feels best in the moment. But where am I being fed, shepherded, and called to serve? If it's Ignite, great! Let's talk! If it's somewhere else, great, go where God leads you.

Find that place. Commit to it. Give there. Serve there. Build there.

Because the Kingdom of God does not advance through scattered, disconnected believers, it advances through rooted, committed ones who are fully invested in the body God has placed them in.

Stop paying McDonald’s for a meal you ate at Wendy’s.

Plant yourself, and grow.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody

I’m walking through the church today, getting ready for Easter. Moving chairs. Cleaning corners that most people will never notice. Thinking through the flow of the service. Praying over empty seats that I believe will be filled.

And while I’m doing all of that, there is something stirring in my heart that I cannot shake. We don’t have enough help to grow. That tension sits heavy. Because at the same time, we are still commanded to make disciples.

Jesus did not say, “Make disciples when you have enough volunteers.”
He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19, LSB).

So here I am, standing in the middle of preparation and pressure. Believing God for growth. Praying for souls to be saved. But also feeling the weight of a simple reality.

We need more than people in seats. We need people in the fight.

The modern church has made attendance the goal. If people show up, we call it success. But biblically, attendance was never the mission. Transformation was. Multiplication was. Discipleship was.

The early church did not gather to consume. They gathered to be equipped and then sent out. Acts 2 shows us a church that was devoted, engaged, and active. Not passive.

“And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayers” (Acts 2:42, LSB).

Devotion is not attendance. Devotion is participation.

That is where the tension in my soul comes from. Because I know what God wants to do. I can see it. I can feel it. I believe He wants to save people, restore families, call men and women to lead/ obey, and raise up disciples who actually live this thing out.

But that kind of movement does not happen with spectators. It happens with servants.

Paul makes it clear in Ephesians 4 that the church grows when every part is working properly.

“…from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies… causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:16, LSB).

Every joint supplies. Not just a few. Not just the leaders. Not just the “committed ones.”

Every believer has a role. Every believer has a calling. Every believer has something to give.

If we only attend, the body limps. If we serve, the body grows.

That is the conflict I feel as a pastor right now. I am preparing for a harvest, but we don't have enough laborers ready.

Jesus said it plainly:

“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest” (Luke 10:2, LSB).

The problem has never been the harvest.
The problem has always been the workers.

And I am asking the question that every church has to wrestle with.

• Will we be a church that gathers, or a church that goes?
• Will we be a church that watches, or a church that works?
• Will we be a church that fills seats, or fills roles?

Because here is the truth.

You can attend every week and still never be part of what God is building.

Attendance costs you an hour or two. Service costs a little more, but service is where transformation happens, not attendance.

When you serve, you step into purpose.
When you serve, you begin to carry the burden for others.
When you serve, your faith moves from theory to action.

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45, LSB).

If Jesus came to serve, how can we justify sitting on the sidelines?

This is not about guilt. It is about calling.

There are people who will walk through the doors this Easter who are hurting, broken, and searching. Some of them will be one invitation away from salvation. Some of them will be one conversation away from hope.

And whether they experience that or not will depend on more than just a sermon.

It will depend on whether there are people ready to serve.

• People ready to greet.
• People ready to pray.
• People ready to disciple.
• People ready to step into the gap.

We are not just building services. We are building people. And we cannot do that with attendance alone.

So here is the honest cry of my heart: Do not just come. Be part of it. Do not just sit. Step in. Do not just consume. Contribute.

Because the mission has not changed. The command has not changed. The need has not changed.

We are still called to make disciples. And making disciples will naturally cause our church to grow!

And that will require more than a crowd. It will require a church that is willing to serve.

Places to pray about serving: Children's ministry (Sunday and Wednesday), Youth Ministry, Compassion Ministry, Outreach, Worship, Tech, Creative Team (Photos, videos, Social Media content), Security, and so much more!!! WE NEED YOU!!!

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody    

There is a golden calf sitting in your pocket. Not made of gold. Not formed in fire. But just as powerful. It buzzes. It lights up. It demands your attention. And most of us bow to it without even thinking.

In Exodus 32, the people of Israel grew impatient waiting on Moses. God had just delivered them from slavery, split the sea, provided food, and shown His power in undeniable ways. Yet the moment they felt silence, the moment they had to wait, they turned to something they could control. They took their gold, melted it down, and created something visible, something immediate, something that would respond on their terms.

They didn’t reject worship. They redirected it. That is exactly what we are doing today.

We carry our golden calf everywhere we go. It is our phone. We wake up and reach for it before we speak to God. We sit in silence and fill it with noise. We feel discomfort and immediately escape into distraction. We crave affirmation, so we scroll. We feel empty, so we consume. We feel anxious, so we numb out.

I am not accusing, I am confessing. My phone has stats, and they're revealing! I pick up my phone on average 77 times a day. That means I pick it up, open it, and start scrolling, texting, or calling. And slowly, subtly, my/ our hearts are being trained.

This is not about technology being evil. It is about what has captured your affection. Idolatry has never been about statues. It has always been about the heart. Anything that replaces God as your source of comfort, identity, peace, or satisfaction becomes a functional god in your life.

The Israelites said, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” That is shocking. They gave credit to the idol for what God had done.

We do the same thing when we look to a screen for what only God can provide.

• We look for peace in scrolling instead of prayer.
• We look for identity in likes instead of Christ.
• We look for comfort in distraction instead of His presence.

And the problem is not just that we use it. The problem is that we depend on it.

Paul writes in Galatians 5:22 to 23 about the fruit of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. That last one hits hard.

Self-control is not about behavior modification. It is about Spirit-led mastery over your desires. If you cannot put your phone down, that is not just a habit issue. That is a heart issue.

We have lost the ability to sit in silence. We have lost the discipline to be present. We have lost the hunger to seek God without distraction. And we wonder why we feel spiritually dry.

Because idols always overpromise and underdeliver.

The golden calf gave Israel a moment of emotional excitement, but it led to spiritual destruction. Your phone will give you a moment of distraction, but it cannot give you life. It cannot give you peace. It cannot give you purpose. It cannot give you God.

So what do we do?

We repent.

Not in a vague, general way. In a specific, intentional way. You have to call it what it is. If your phone has become your source, your escape, your comfort, your constant, then it has taken a place in your life that belongs to God alone.

Then you fight.

You do not drift into self-control. You choose it. You set boundaries. You create space. You put the phone down and open the Word. You turn off the noise and learn to sit in His presence again. You retrain your heart to seek Him first.

• You do not need less technology. You need more discipline.
• You do not need better apps. You need deeper surrender.

The Spirit of God produces self-control in the life of a believer, but you have to walk in the Spirit. You have to choose obedience when your flesh wants distraction.

There is a golden calf in this generation. It just fits in your pocket. The question is not whether you have one. The question is whether you are bowing to it.

Put it down. Lift your eyes. And return to the God who never needed a screen to speak.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody

Churches love structure. We plan everything. We schedule every minute. We rehearse songs, prepare slides, organize transitions, and build services that run like a well-designed program.

None of that is wrong. Preparation matters. Leadership matters. Order matters. Scripture even tells us in 1 Corinthians 14:40 (LSB), “But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.”

But there is a danger that can quietly creep into church life. Sometimes we become so committed to the program that we unintentionally push the Holy Spirit into the corner.

I was reminded of this yesterday.

We had to cancel an in-person gathering, but we still posted the sermon online. No packed room. No normal Sunday flow. Just acoustic worship and the Word of God shared digitally.

Later, I received an email from someone who does not even attend our church. He watched the message online and told me the sermon spoke directly to the struggles he and his wife are facing in their marriage. It hit him right where he needed it. To my knowledge, he has never watched a series before, but because of all the social media posts about cancelling and being online, he watched. 

That moment reminded me of something pastors/ leaders need to remember.

The Holy Spirit is not limited to our schedule.

He does not need our stage, our building, or our perfect order of service to work in someone’s life. God can take a message, send it across the internet, and land it in the heart of someone who needed to hear it that exact day.

Jesus said in John 3:8 (LSB), “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear its sound, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who has been born of the Spirit.”

The Spirit moves where He wants.

Yet sometimes churches become so program-driven that we forget this. We get focused on finishing the order of service instead of paying attention to what God may be doing in the room.

• Sometimes someone needs prayer right then.
• Sometimes someone needs a moment to repent.
• Sometimes God is working in ways that do not fit neatly into the timeline we created earlier that week.

And if we are not careful, we can be so rigid that we move right past those moments.

I am not arguing for chaos. The church should not be disorderly. Leadership requires preparation and clarity. But we should never become so committed to the schedule that we lose sensitivity to the Spirit.

The early church did not gather around a polished program. They gathered around Scripture, fellowship, prayer, and the Holy Spirit's active work among them. Acts 2:42 (LSB) says, “And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

They were devoted to the Word, but they were also dependent on the Spirit.

Sometimes the best thing we can do as leaders is hold our plans loosely enough that God can interrupt them.

Because the truth is this.

God is always working beyond what we see.

He is reaching people who are not even in the room. He is speaking to hearts we did not know were listening. He is using moments we did not plan.

That email about a struggling marriage reminded me that the goal of the church is not to run a flawless program.

The goal is to faithfully preach the Word and create space for God to work in people’s lives.

So plan well. Prepare well. Lead well.

Just do not become so rigid that the Holy Spirit has to sit quietly in the corner while we run the meeting.

Sometimes a little flexibility is exactly what allows God to do the work we could never plan.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody 

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody

Church family,

Every time tensions rise in the Middle East, the same question begins to circulate. Is this it? Are we watching the end unfold?

With conflict involving Iran and instability across the region, many believers begin to wonder whether these events are signs that the final chapter of history has begun. Social media fuels speculation and debate. Headlines are plugged into prophecy charts. Teachers begin drawing connections between modern nations and biblical texts.

The current Iran conflict is not proof that we are living in the final moments of human history. And more importantly, Scripture calls us to approach these matters with humility and discernment.

A Reminder About End Times Theology

Much of what modern evangelicals assume about the end times comes from a particular theological framework known as dispensationalism. This system was largely shaped in the nineteenth century by John Nelson Darby. Darby proposed a detailed prophetic structure that separated Israel and the Church into distinct programs of God and introduced ideas such as a pre-tribulation rapture and a very specific prophetic timeline connected to world events.

Before the nineteenth century, the Church, for nearly 1,800 years, did not interpret prophecy in this way. The early church fathers, the Reformers, and much of historic Christianity read prophetic books like Daniel and Revelation differently. They understood the imagery as deeply symbolic, centered on Christ’s ultimate victory, and not primarily as a map of modern geopolitical events.

Many faithful Christians hold that perspective. But it is important to recognize that the detailed prophetic timelines many people assume today are not the only historic Christian interpretation.

What the Church Has Always Agreed On

Across two thousand years of church history, there has been broad agreement on several core truths:

• Christ will return bodily and visibly.
• There will be a resurrection of the dead.
• There will be a final judgment.
• God will establish a new heaven and a new earth.

These truths appear in the earliest Christian creeds and have united believers across denominations and centuries.

What has differed among Christians are the details surrounding how the final events unfold. Some hold a premillennial view. Others hold an amillennial or postmillennial view. In modern times, dispensational premillennialism has become influential in many evangelical circles.

These differences exist, but they should never divide the body of Christ. The exact sequence of end-time events is not a primary doctrine of the Christian faith. It is not part of the gospel itself. Faithful believers have disagreed on these matters for centuries while still standing shoulder to shoulder in Christ's mission. You and I can disagree on how Jesus will come back and still fellowship together.

What Jesus Actually Told Us

Jesus addressed speculation about the end very directly.

“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” Matthew 24:36 (LSB)

Wars and rumors of wars are not new. They have existed in every century since the ascension of Christ. Empires have risen and fallen. Nations have fought. Every generation of Christians has experienced moments where world events seemed apocalyptic.

Jesus also said:

“It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set by His own authority.”
Acts 1:7 (LSB)

Our responsibility is not to decode the headlines. Our responsibility is to remain faithful.

Guarding Our Hearts

When believers become overly focused on matching modern events with prophetic charts, several problems can arise.

Fear begins to replace faith. Anxiety replaces assurance. The sovereignty of God becomes overshadowed by the chaos of the news cycle.

Mission also gets sidelined. Instead of focusing on making disciples, loving neighbors, and proclaiming the gospel, people become consumed with interpreting global events.

But Scripture reminds us that Christ is reigning now. Psalm 2 tells us the nations rage, but the Lord sits enthroned in heaven. He is not surprised by the world's turmoil. He is not reacting. He is sovereign over all of it.

How We Should Respond

As believers, we do not ignore global conflict. We pray for peace. We pray for wisdom for leaders. We pray for the protection of innocent people. We pray for the spread of the gospel even in the midst of turmoil.

At the same time, we examine our own lives.

• Are we walking in holiness?
• Are we loving our families well?
• Are we sharing the gospel?
• Are we growing in Christ?

If Christ returned tonight, the question would not be whether we correctly identified Iran in a prophetic chart. The question would be whether we were faithful servants.

Peter reminds us:

“The end of all things is at hand; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.”- 1 Peter 4:7 (LSB)

Please take a look at the focus of this verse. Sound judgment. Sobriety. Prayer.

Christ Is Our Hope

Christ will return. That promise is certain. Evil will be judged. The dead will be raised. God will make all things new.

But the timing of that moment rests in the hands of the Father alone. It will not come because we successfully mapped modern headlines to prophetic symbols. It will come when God has determined the hour.

Until then, the Church continues its mission. The gospel advances. The Spirit works. Christ reigns.

And church family, that truth gives us peace.

“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.”- John 14:27 (LSB)

The Iran conflict is serious and worthy of prayer. But it is not a flashing sign that the end is tomorrow.

Our hope is not in geopolitical stability. Our hope is in the risen Christ who already conquered sin and death.

So lift your eyes higher than the headlines. Stay faithful in the mission God has given you. And remember that the blessed hope of the Church is not a timeline or a chart.

The blessed hope is Christ Himself.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody

Every year, the same season comes around, and people start giving things up.

Sugar.
Coffee.
social media.
Fast food.

For forty days, people modify their behavior, hoping it draws them closer to God. Some even feel proud that they endured it. They made it. They proved discipline.

But Scripture never calls sinners to temporarily modify habits. Scripture calls sinners to repent. Those are not the same thing.

Lent can become a religious exercise that comforts the conscience while leaving the heart untouched. Repentance is a spiritual death that creates a new life. One changes routine. The other changes nature.

Jesus never preached, “Give something up for a season.”
He preached, “Repent.”

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15, LSB)

Repentance is not spiritual dieting. It is surrender. It is not removing chocolate while keeping pride, lust, bitterness, and self-rule alive. It is laying down the throne of your life and admitting God has rightful authority over every part of you.

A man can give up soda and still love sin.
A woman can give up social media and still worship self.
A church can practice tradition and still resist Christ.

You can deny the flesh outwardly while feeding it inwardly. That is why repentance always begins in the heart. King David did not promise God he would fast longer or try harder. He asked for something far deeper.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10, LSB)

Repentance is not behavior management. It is a heart transformation. It is agreeing with God about your sin instead of redefining it, softening it, or comparing it. It is no longer about defending yourself, but about confessing honestly. No excuses. No spiritual bargaining.

I was reminded of this in a vivid way in New Orleans at Mardi Gras. What I saw was not hidden rebellion but planned rebellion. People openly indulging, not even pretending it was right, because they knew Ash Wednesday was coming. Sin now, confess later. Live how you want, then reset the conscience with a ritual.

That mindset exposes the danger of replacing repentance with religious scheduling. If sin can be planned because forgiveness is scheduled, the heart has not turned to God. It has only learned how to manage guilt.

God never designed confession as a license to sin in advance.

“The one who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain compassion.” (Proverbs 28:13, LSB)

Notice both words. Confesses and forsakes. Not confesses and repeats. Confessing means acknowledgment of your sin, and forsaking means not returning to it!

The danger of religious seasons is this: They can make us feel like we moved toward God when we only moved around Him.

Temporary sacrifice can soothe guilt without killing sin.

The Pharisees fasted often. They prayed publicly. They practiced visible devotion. Yet Jesus said their hearts were far from Him. Their problem was not a lack of religious activity. Their problem was a lack of repentance.

Repentance is personal.
Repentance is specific.
Repentance costs something.

It kills pride. It abandons secret sin. It turns from self-rule to Christ’s rule. It does not ask, “What can I remove for forty days?” It asks, “What must die today?”

Jesus described salvation this way:
“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.” (Luke 9:23, LSB)

The cross is not a symbolic inconvenience. It is execution. God is not asking for a seasonal inconvenience. He commands a decisive turning from sin to Him.

So, the real question during this season is not what you gave up.
It is whether you turned.

Did you confess what you have been protecting?
Did you forsake what you have been excusing?
Did you submit to Christ where you have been resisting Him?

Because God does not want a short-term adjustment.
He wants a new heart.

Repentance leads to life. Religious routine leads to comfort. Only one reconciles you to God.
Do not settle for a season of denial while keeping a lifetime of rebellion.

Repent, and live.

Soli Deo Glori,
Pastor Jody

This week, I stood in a place louder than any stadium, more crowded than any conference, and more spiritually revealing than many sanctuaries.

Mardi Gras is not something you observe. You collide with it.

The noise never stops. Music fighting music on both sides of the street. Shouting, chanting, arguments, sirens, performers, intoxication, and chaos layered on top of chaos. The air carries the smell of decades of bad decisions. People gather to feel alive, yet there is a strange heaviness behind the laughter. Bright lights, but tired eyes. Celebration, but emptiness.

And right there, we preached Jesus.

Some mocked.
Some ignored.
Some cursed inches from our faces.
But others slowed down. A question whispered. A tear was wiped away quickly so friends would not see. Reality kept breaking into the party and it was the Holy Spirit bringing conviction.

Over 30 people surrendered their lives to Christ in the middle of the street this week. Not in a building. Not during a service. On pavement sticky with alcohol and distraction. Heaven celebrated while the music kept playing.

God showed me something else, too.

One day, I dressed as a clown for a children’s skit. I almost refused. Fear told me it was pointless. Pride told me a pastor should not look foolish. I wanted visible results before obedience.

Then two teenage girls walked out of the crowd and asked to receive Christ. No invitation music. No altar call. Just the gospel and open hearts. The very thing I resisted became the door God used.

The power was never in the method. It was in the gospel.

I also saw spiritual warfare in ways that Scripture suddenly felt less theoretical. Prayer was not a ritual that night. It was a battle. And the name of Jesus was not symbolic. Darkness reacted to it.

But most of the battle was ordinary. Temptation. Confusion. People claiming to love God while refusing to obey Him. A comfortable kind of brokenness. Living in blatant sin without realizing Hell was right behind them.

I also saw the comfort in myself. Ministry can become familiar. Faith can become routine. Being surrounded by Christians can slowly make you religious instead of surrendered. God corrected me before He used me.

The biggest lesson was this: Bourbon Street did not overpower the gospel. It exposed the need for it.

People are not as far from God as they appear. Many are running from Him while He keeps pursuing them. We were not bringing Jesus there. He was already there. We just spoke His name.

We ended with a silent prayer walk. After preaching all week, there was nothing left to say. The power of 250 plus men, walking with a cross, silently through the biggest night of Mardi Gras, spoke for itself. The symbolic, "dust your feet off, as we leave the city". We have to have faith that we planted, we watered, and God gives the growth.

Now the assignment changes.

The mission field is not only a distant city. It is home.
We are coming back convinced of this: the church must stop waiting for perfect conditions and start speaking with conviction.

God is preparing us to sow faithfully and expect a harvest. Now it's time to start preparing the soil!

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody

We are living in a time when disagreement is quickly labeled as hatred. If you take a firm stand on a moral issue, someone will assume you are attacking a person. If you speak clearly about sin, someone will say you are unloving. But that is not how Scripture frames truth.
When I stand against the sins of the world, I am not standing against the person committing them. I do not hate them. I do not see them as disposable. I do not treat them as beyond hope. I stand against what is destroying them.

Sin is the enemy. People are the mission.

The Bible is clear that all of us have fallen short. Romans 3:23 tells us, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (LSB). That levels the field. There is no moral high ground for any of us. When I call something sin, I am not pointing down at someone else. I am acknowledging the same disease that once owned me.

Jesus never blurred the line between loving sinners and confronting sin. In John 8, He did not condemn the woman caught in adultery, but He also did not affirm her sin. He told her, “Go. From now on sin no more” (John 8:11, LSB). Grace and truth were present at the same time.
That is the tension our culture struggles with. The world says love means affirmation. Scripture says love sometimes means warning.

If a man is walking toward a cliff, love does not cheer him on. Love calls him back.
Standing against sin is not hatred. It is a conviction rooted in God’s holiness. Proverbs 8:13 says, “The fear of Yahweh is to hate evil” (LSB). Notice it does not say to hate people. It says to hate evil. There is a difference.

When believers speak clearly about biblical sexuality, greed, pride, injustice, abortion, racism, corruption, or any other sin, it is not because we despise people. It is because we understand the cost of rebellion against a holy God. Sin destroys marriages. It destroys families. It destroys communities. Ultimately, it separates people from God.

Love refuses to stay silent about that.

But here is where we must also examine our own hearts. The same grace that rescued us is available to anyone. There is no category of unforgivable sin for the repentant heart. If God could redeem Saul the persecutor and turn him into Paul the apostle, He can redeem anyone. None of us deserved mercy. We received it.

That posture should shape how we engage not only moral issues but also political differences and personal opinions.

We have lost the ability to disagree without demonizing. If someone votes differently, holds a different policy position, or interprets a cultural issue differently, they are often treated as enemies. They are labeled, mocked, unfriended, or cast out. That's immaturity!

That spirit is not from Christ. It's from the Devil, and it's divisive.

You can stand firmly in your convictions without vilifying the person across from you. You can believe someone is wrong without believing they are worthless. You can debate ideas without attacking identity.

In fact, as believers, we must.
Ephesians 4:15 calls us to speak the truth in love. Truth without love becomes harsh. Love without truth becomes hollow. The Christian life requires both.

This also means we must refuse the temptation to treat people as permanently defined by their worst moment, worst vote, or worst opinion. The gospel does not operate that way. The cross declares that people can change. The Spirit transforms hearts. God is still in the business of redemption.

So when I stand against sin, I am standing for something greater. I am standing for holiness. I am standing for repentance. I am standing for freedom from bondage. I am standing for the dignity of people made in the image of God who are worth loving enough to tell the truth.
And when it comes to politics or differences of opinion, the same principle applies. Conviction is not hatred. Disagreement is not dehumanization. Strong beliefs do not require a hardened heart.

If we as Christians cannot model that, the world will never understand the difference between biblical conviction and cultural hostility.
We are called to be different.

Stand firm in truth. Refuse to compromise what God has clearly spoken. But never forget that every person you disagree with is someone Christ died to save.

You can hate sin and still love the sinner. You can reject false ideas and still respect the person holding them. You can engage in politics without turning it into personal warfare.

That is not a weakness. That is Christlike strength.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody 

You may have seen the phrase, “The only thing more powerful than hate is love,” trending after the Super Bowl halftime show. It sounds good. It feels uplifting. But as Christians, we must test every statement against Scripture, not culture.

First, the Bible never sets love and hate up as two competing cosmic forces where love wins just by being nicer. Scripture presents God as supreme, holy, and just. God is love, yes, but He is also righteous, holy, and just. The gospel is not just about warm feelings. It is about divine confrontation with sin and the salvation of sinners through Christ.

The real enemy is not hate. The real enemy is sin. Hate, in the human sense, is a symptom of a world broken by sin. Sin is the disease. When we excuse sin in the name of “love,” we are not loving people in a biblical way. We are affirming the very thing that destroys them. Biblical love never embraces sin or refuses to call it what it is. Scripture commands us to “hate evil” because evil destroys what God loves. (Proverbs 8:13, LSB).

If love alone could overcome sin, then the cross would not have been necessary. But Scripture tells us that God’s wrath is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness. (Romans 1:18, LSB). God’s justice is not a contradiction of His love. His justice is what made the cross necessary and what gives the cross its saving power.

This is why Paul calls believers to speak the truth in love, not to replace truth with feelings. (Ephesians 4:15). Biblical love confronts, corrects, calls to repentance, and points sinners to Jesus. Jesus Himself loved sinners deeply, yet He never affirmed sin. He called people to repentance and warned of judgment. In Matthew 5, Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies…” (Matthew 5:43–44, LSB). This shows believers how to love others, but it does not dismiss the holy truth about sin or misunderstanding the nature of God’s righteousness.

The Bible also teaches that God’s wrath is real and righteous. God’s hatred for sin and rebellion is part of His holy character. His judgment is not arbitrary. It is directed against what destroys His creation and condemns His image-bearers. God’s love does not ignore this; rather, His love provided a way to satisfy justice and redeem sinners through Christ.

So yes, love is powerful, but not if love is divorced from God’s truth and holiness. Secular slogans may reduce love to acceptance or affirmation without repentance, but the gospel calls people to turn from sin and embrace Christ. God’s love is not helpless. It conquered sin, death, and the devil at the cross, and it calls sinners to new life with Him.

Let us embrace the full picture of biblical love: love that is rooted in truth, grounded in holiness, and oriented toward the salvation of souls. That is the message the world truly needs, not just another feel-good slogan.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody

“Love your neighbor” is one of the most quoted phrases in our culture today. I hear it in political conversations, see it all over social media, and watch it used as a moral weapon as often as it is a moral ideal. Everyone seems to agree we should love our neighbor. The problem is that we rarely agree on what love actually means.

From the world’s perspective, loving your neighbor usually means tolerance and affirmation. It sounds good on the surface. Let people live how they want. Do not challenge beliefs or behaviors. Keep the peace at all costs. Love, in this view, is avoiding offense and protecting personal comfort. As long as someone does not inconvenience me, cross my values too sharply, or challenge my way of life, I can say I love them.

But that kind of love is shallow. It asks very little and gives even less. It avoids hard conversations and walks away when things get uncomfortable. It is conditional, emotional, and often rooted in self-preservation. The moment love requires sacrifice, truth, or courage, the world’s version usually disappears.

Jesus meant something entirely different.

When Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment, He said, “You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind… You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37–39, LSB). Notice the order. Love for neighbor flows out of love for God. It is not shaped by culture, feelings, or convenience. It is shaped by obedience.

Biblical love is not passive. It acts. It serves. It speaks the truth. It stays when it would be easier to leave. Scripture tells us, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Proverbs 27:6, LSB). Real love does not stay silent when silence would lead someone toward harm. It does not affirm sin. It points people toward life.

Jesus also redefined who our neighbor is. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, love crosses racial, cultural, and religious boundaries. The neighbor is not just the person who agrees with you or lives like you. The neighbor is the one in need, even when helping them costs time, money, or reputation. Biblical love moves toward mercy, not away from inconvenience.

The clearest picture of biblical love is the cross. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8, LSB). God did not wait for us to clean ourselves up. He loved us when we were broken, rebellious, and undeserving. That is the standard Jesus calls us to follow.

Loving your neighbor biblically does not mean being harsh or unkind. It means being honest and compassionate at the same time. It means forgiving when it hurts. It means serving without expecting recognition. It means loving people enough to walk with them toward truth, not just agreeing with them to keep things comfortable.

The world wants a version of love that costs nothing. Jesus calls us to a love that costs everything. And that kind of love, rooted in truth and grace, is the love that actually changes lives.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody 

I love the church. I have given my life to serve her, shepherd her, and protect her. That is why this conversation matters so much to me.

There have been moments in history when the church drifted so far from Scripture that what God called sin was defended as righteousness. We do not ignore those moments. We do not excuse them. We do not pretend they did not happen. We learn from them.

We are living in a moment when we have a choice. We can repeat the pattern or stop it.

History reminds us that parts of the visible church have, at times, defended corruption, injustice, and even evil while calling it faithfulness. From the excesses that sparked the Protestant Reformation to churches that once used the Bible to defend slavery, to the compromise of the German Christian movement in the 1930s, the lesson is painfully clear.

The church is capable of drifting when culture becomes louder than Scripture.

We should never look back at those seasons with arrogance. We should look back with humility and ask, “How did they not see it?” Then we should ask an even harder question: “Are we seeing clearly now?”

This Is Not About Anger. This Is About Love

What we are seeing in some parts of the church today is the public affirmation of what Scripture calls sin, particularly in the area of sexual ethics. This is being presented as compassion. As inclusion. As progress.

But real love never asks God to change His Word so we can feel more comfortable. Real love tells the truth and walks patiently with people toward the freedom found in Christ.

As a pastor, my calling is not to make people comfortable in sin. My calling is to help people find freedom from sin through Jesus.

That applies to every one of us. Pride. Greed. Lust. Gossip. Sexual immorality. None of us gets to rename our sin so it feels more acceptable. We bring it into the light and let God transform us.

Learning from the Past So We Do Not Repeat It

When we study history, we see the same pattern. The church slowly adopts the culture's language. Scripture becomes something to reinterpret rather than obey. Sin becomes something to affirm rather than repent of.

Then faithful believers have to stand up and say, “We must return to the Word of God.”

That is the moment we are in.

Not to attack people. Not to shame anyone. Not to elevate ourselves. But to lovingly, clearly, and courageously say that God’s design is still good, His Word is still true, and His grace is still powerful enough to transform any life.

The Church Must Be Different

The church was never meant to mirror the culture. It was meant to shine in the culture.

If we lose our willingness to call sin what God calls sin, we also lose our ability to offer the hope of the gospel. Because the gospel only makes sense when we understand our need for rescue.

If there is nothing to repent of, there is nothing to be saved from.

Our Moment to Choose

We cannot change the mistakes of the past, but we can refuse to repeat them.

We can be the generation of believers who say:

• We will love people deeply.
• We will welcome everyone sincerely.
• We will speak the truth clearly.
• We will hold to Scripture faithfully.

We can be the church that learns from history rather than becoming another chapter in it.

A Quiet Reformation Begins in the Heart

Another reformation will not start with protests or platforms. It will start in hearts that are fully surrendered to God. In pastors who refuse to soften the truth. In believers who refuse to trade biblical conviction for cultural approval.

It will begin when we decide that faithfulness matters more than popularity.

I believe we are standing in a defining moment for the church. Not a moment for fear, but a moment for courage. Not a moment for pride, but for humility. Not a moment for silence, but for clarity spoken in love.

May we be the church that our grandchildren look back on and say, “They did not repeat the mistakes of the past. They stood on the Word of God with grace and truth.”

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody

At first glance, the image in the thumbnail is unsettling. Two men stand facing one another. Both look similar. Both appear well dressed. Both are human. Yet they could not be more different.

One man is charred and smoking. His body looks burned out, as if life has slowly consumed him. He is staring down at his phone, absorbed, disconnected, unaware of anything beyond what sits in his hand. Smoke rises from his head, a quiet picture of exhaustion, distraction, and decay.

The other man stands illuminated. A flame burns brightly above him, not destroying him but giving light. He is holding an open Bible, reading with intention and focus. His posture is steady. His face is calm. He is not smoking. He is burning with purpose.

This image captures a truth many of us feel but rarely stop to name. Everyone is burning for something. The question is not whether you will burn, but what will fuel the fire.

One life is slowly consumed by distraction. The other is steadily refined by truth.

Scripture reminds us that God’s Word is not passive. Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword.” What we give our attention to shapes us. What we consume eventually consumes us.

The phone in the image is not evil in itself. Technology is a tool. But when it becomes the primary source of comfort, identity, information, or validation, it begins to drain rather than give life. Endless scrolling promises connection but often produces isolation. It fills our minds while emptying our souls. It's obvious the enemy uses this to distract. 

The Bible, on the other hand, does not merely inform us. It forms us. Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Notice the difference. One man is lit from above by truth. The other is darkened from within by distraction.

Both men are standing. Both are alive. But one is being burned up, while the other is being lit up.

This is not about legalism or guilt. It is about direction. Romans 12:2 tells us, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Renewal does not happen accidentally. It happens through daily, intentional exposure to truth.

What you give the first moments of your day to matters. What you run to when life is heavy matters. What you allow to shape your thoughts matters.

One flame destroys. The other refines.

One leaves you empty. The other leads you to life.

So the question this image asks is simple but piercing. What are you feeding your fire?
Because in the end, we will all be shaped by what we give our attention to. And only one source leads to light that lasts. PS- I saw this thumbnail while I was scrolling. It made me put my phone down and grab my Bible.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody 

I have been thinking a lot about the direction of the church in our culture today. Not just politically, but spiritually. The rise of what is often called a “woke” version of Christianity did not come out of nowhere. It did not begin with politics. It began with doctrine.

That may sound uncomfortable to some, but history and Scripture both support it.
The church has always reflected what it believes about God, authority, truth, and obedience. When those beliefs shift, culture does not just knock on the door. It walks right in.

Throughout Scripture, drift never starts with behavior. It starts with belief. When Israel compromised God’s commands, they did not wake up one day worshiping false gods. They slowly reinterpreted obedience until it fit their desires. Paul warned Timothy that a time would come when people would not endure sound doctrine but would gather teachers who told them what they wanted to hear. That warning was not hypothetical. It was prophetic.

One of the clearest places we see this doctrinal erosion today is around leadership and authority in the church.

The Bible is clear that pastors and elders are called to be qualified men who shepherd the flock of God (1 Timothy 3, Titus). This is not rooted in cultural patriarchy or male superiority. It is rooted in creation order, covenant responsibility, and the picture of Christ as the Shepherd and Bridegroom of His church. Leadership in the church is not about power. It is about accountability before God.

When the church abandons male eldership, it is not simply changing structure. It is changing how authority is understood. Authority becomes something to be negotiated rather than submitted to. Scripture becomes something to be filtered through personal experience rather than obeyed as revealed truth.

This is where feminist ideology often enters the church quietly. Not every woman in leadership is driven by feminism, but feminist assumptions reshape how Scripture is interpreted. Hierarchy is viewed with suspicion. Authority is framed as oppression. Submission is treated as harm rather than design.

Once interpretation shifts from “What does God say?” to “Who might be hurt by this?” doctrine becomes fluid. And when doctrine becomes fluid, culture takes the lead.
The result is not strength. It is softness.

Weak churches avoid offense at all costs. They confuse compassion with silence and love with affirmation. They are afraid of being labeled, canceled, or rejected. Strong churches are not harsh or cruel, but they are courageous. They believe obedience matters more than acceptance.

This is why so many churches that abandoned biblical leadership also abandoned biblical sexuality, biblical sin, and biblical repentance. This pattern is not theoretical. It has repeated itself across denominations for decades. Once authority is redefined, truth soon follows.
The real issue is not feminism. The real issue is biblical authority.

Does God have the right to order His church according to His Word, even when it clashes with modern values? If the answer is yes, then faithfulness must take precedence over comfort. If the answer is no, then the church will always chase the approval of the age it lives in.
The woke church is not usually driven by malice. It is driven by fear. Fear of losing people. Fear of criticism. Fear of cultural rejection. But Scripture tells us that the fear of man brings a snare.

The church does not need better branding. It needs recovered conviction. It does not need softer doctrine. It needs clearer shepherds. Christ did not call His church to blend in. He called us to stand firm, speak truth, and shepherd faithfully.

Wokeness is not the disease. It is a symptom. The cure is not political resistance, but theological repentance. A return to Scripture as final authority. A return to shepherding that is courageous, sacrificial, and accountable to God.

That is how the church regains strength. Not by bowing to culture, but by standing on the Word.

If we lose that, we lose far more than relevance. We lose faithfulness.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody

I want to speak plainly to our church and to fellow Christians who may read this. We are living in a moment where political conversations are no longer just conversations. They are lines drawn in the sand. Too often, we speak in absolutes when it comes to political parties, and those absolutes are dividing us in ways that should deeply concern the Church.

When we reduce people to a party affiliation, we stop seeing them as people Christ died for. When we say things like, “If you vote this way, you are not a real Christian,” or “Anyone who supports that party is the enemy,” we have already lost something far more valuable than an argument. We have lost our witness.

Absolutes shut down humility. They leave no room for listening, learning, or loving well. Political parties are not gospels. They are imperfect systems made up of flawed people. When we elevate them to ultimate status, we ask them to do what only Christ can do. That is a burden no political ideology can carry.

The truth is, division has become one of the greatest tools used to control and manipulate people. When believers allow themselves to be defined first by politics rather than by Christ, we become easy to divide and easy to distract. Fear, outrage, and anger thrive in that environment. The Church was never meant to be discipled by the government, the media, or social platforms.

Scripture reminds us that our citizenship is in heaven, as Philippians 3:20 teaches. That does not mean we ignore civic responsibility. It means our ultimate allegiance is not to a party, platform, or politician. Our allegiance is to Christ alone. When that order is reversed, unity suffers.

I am not calling for political silence or agreement. I am calling for proper alignment. We can hold convictions and still walk in humility. We can vote differently and still worship together. We can disagree strongly and still love deeply. Unity in Christ does not require us to think the same about everything, but it does require us to remember who holds us together.

As a matter of fact, I will always speak out on biblical issues that are bastardized  by the government to further separate us.Such as abortion, gay marriage, gender, freedom of religion etc. and you should to.

If we learn to unify in Christ, we will not be easily divided by the government or anyone else. We will be rooted in truth, guided by Scripture, and marked by love. The world does not need a Church that mirrors its outrage. It needs a Church that reflects Christ.

My prayer is that we would be known first and foremost as people who belong to Jesus. When Christ is central, division loses its power, and our witness grows stronger.

Soli Deo Gloria, 
Pastor Jody

I remember the first time I heard the phrase, “If you preach, don’t fear. And if you fear, don’t preach.” It was and still is a heavy phrase. Not because it was clever, but because it was painfully honest. It put words to something I have seen, and at times felt, in ministry.

The longer I have been in the pulpit, the more I understand how real the temptation toward fear can be. Fear of people. Fear of culture. Fear of saying the wrong thing and losing approval. Fear of backlash, attendance dropping, or being misunderstood. None of that is theoretical. It is real. And that is exactly why that saying matters so much.

When fear starts shaping the message, something sacred is lost. I have learned that the pulpit was never meant to be a place where truth is filtered through what is safe or comfortable. It was meant to be a place where God’s Word is opened, declared, and trusted. Once fear gets a vote, the message slowly gets trimmed. Certain passages get avoided. Certain truths get softened. Before long, preaching becomes more about managing reactions than proclaiming truth.

Scripture does not give us a picture of safe preaching. The prophets were rejected. The apostles were beaten and imprisoned. Jesus Himself was crucified. Faithful proclamation has always come at a cost. Somewhere along the way, we started believing that obedience should be painless. That belief does not come from Scripture.

Paul’s words to Timothy confront me every time I read them. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7, LSB). That verse reminds me that fear is not a badge of wisdom or maturity. It is not discernment. It is a signal that something is out of alignment. God gives power to speak. Love to shepherd hearts. Discipline to stay faithful when it would be easier to stay quiet.

This does not mean preaching without love or humility. I never want to weaponize truth. But love does not cancel conviction. Truth spoken in love is still truth. If I truly love people, I cannot withhold what God has said simply because it might be uncomfortable. Silence can feel compassionate in the moment, but it is rarely faithful in the long run.

The Church does not need more careful voices. It needs faithful ones. The gospel does not need to be protected from culture. It needs to be proclaimed to it. God’s Word is sufficient. It is authoritative. It is powerful.

That saying still echoes in my heart. If I am going to preach, I cannot let fear have the microphone. And if fear ever begins to shape the message, my first response should not be to adjust the truth, but to get before God until obedience is restored. God’s people deserve truth, not fear dressed up as wisdom.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody 

We live in a time where people are being judged, dismissed, and even hated because of their political party. It has become normal for someone to say, “I can’t stand those people,” simply because they check a different box on a ballot.

But let me put that in terms we can all understand.

As I was putting on my shoes this morning, I had a choice. Nikes or Uggs. And for a split second, I caught myself thinking, “What would people think?” Would they make fun of the Uggs even though I'm warm? 

That is how ridiculous this has become.

Hating someone for their political party is like hating someone for their shoe brand.

It is shallow. It is childish. And it completely misses what actually matters.

A shoe brand does not make you faster. It does not make you stronger. It does not determine your character, your integrity, or your worth. It is simply something you wear.

In the same way, a political party does not define a person’s heart. It does not tell you how they love their family. It does not tell you whether they are generous, humble, loyal, or honest. It is simply a label they associate with.

Yet today, we are acting like shoe brands are the measure of a man.

We have reduced people to slogans and colors. Red or blue. Left or right. And in doing so, we have lost the ability to see the human being standing in front of us.

We have forgotten that people are not their party. They are souls. They are fathers, mothers, sons, daughters. They are men and women made in the image of God. and actually having an intelligent conversation would make all the difference in the world.

When you look at someone and only see their political affiliation, you are not seeing them at all. You are seeing a stereotype you have created in your own mind. A stereotype that social media, new media, government, and the enemy inflates to keep us from actually seeing what realy going on. A spiritual battle of epic proportions. 

That is not wisdom. That is not maturity. And that is not Christlike.

Jesus never commanded us to love only the people who vote like we do. He commanded us to love our neighbor. He commanded us to show compassion. He commanded us to treat people with dignity and grace.

If we can sit next to someone in church who wears a different brand of shoes and still worship the same Savior, then we can sit next to someone with a different political view and still treat them like a brother or sister.

Disagreement is not the enemy. Division is. When we draw a line that divides half the population, we are now divided!

The moment we allow politics to determine who deserves our love, we have stopped being the Church and started being a tribe. A tribe is built on shared opinions, loyalties, and identity markers. If you do not agree, you do not belong.

The Church is built on shared surrender to Christ. We belong not because we think the same, but because we are redeemed by the same Savior. A tribe divides over differences. The Church unites under truth, grace, and the gospel.

The Church is not called to be a tribe. It is called to be a family.

And in a family, we do not throw people away over labels.

So the next time you feel tempted to judge someone because of their political party, remember this.

A shoe brand does not make you faster.

And a political party does not make someone your enemy.

They are a person. They are a soul. And they are someone Jesus died for.

Let’s start treating people that way again. Oh, by the way, I chose the Nikes.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody 

There is something deeply right about a room where people can say, “My name is ___, and I am broken, I am an alcoholic, I am, you fill in the blank” and be met with understanding instead of suspicion. That is why ministries like Alcoholics Anonymous and Celebrate Recovery have helped millions of people take their first honest step toward healing. They create an environment where truth is spoken without fear, where confession is met with compassion, and where accountability flows from love, not shame.

This morning I had a highschool buddy of mine who has dealt with and conquered alcoholism (with Jesus and his recovery group), say this to me "Honestly....that's why I think Celebrate Recovery is really growing at our church and others. You come in knowing you are broken....to feel safe and grow in Christ with others who are broken too". He was relating the real growth of this program with the "artificial" growth of the church.

In many ways, what he said is what the church was meant to be.

The early church was not built on polished appearances or spiritual posturing. It was built on shared weakness and shared grace. Scripture tells us, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed” (James 5:16, LSB). Confession was never meant to be a public shaming. It was meant to be a pathway to healing. Yet somewhere along the way, many churches exchanged honesty for image management. We learned how to look strong, sound spiritual, and hide our wounds behind Sunday smiles.

AA and Celebrate Recovery understand something the church sometimes forgets. People do not change because they are judged. They change because they are loved enough to tell the truth. In those rooms, no one pretends to have it all together. Everyone enters on equal ground. No one leads with their victories. They lead with their need. That posture dismantles pride and invites humility. It removes the pressure to perform and replaces it with permission to heal. The foot of the cross is the equal ground the church needs.

When the church becomes a sterile place, where brokenness is whispered about but never addressed, we lose the heart of the gospel. Jesus did not gather the morally impressive. He gathered sinners, doubters, addicts, failures, and the overlooked. He did not sanitize the mess. He stepped into it. He touched lepers. He ate with tax collectors. He restored people others had written off. A church that reflects Christ will not be afraid of messy stories or uncomfortable confessions.

This does not mean the church lowers its biblical standards. Grace is not permission to stay broken. AA and Celebrate Recovery are not spaces where sin is celebrated. They are spaces where sin is named honestly so that freedom can begin. In the same way, the church must hold truth and love together. Truth without love becomes condemnation. Love without truth becomes compromise. But when truth is spoken in love, healing becomes possible.

Paul reminds us, “Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2, LSB). Burdens cannot be borne if they are never shared. Fear cannot be healed if it is never voiced. Failure cannot be redeemed if it is always hidden. A church that looks more like a recovery room than a courtroom will be a place where real transformation happens.

If someone can walk into a recovery meeting and say, “I relapsed,” and still be welcomed, prayed for, and encouraged to keep going, likewise, the church should be the safest place on earth to admit spiritual struggle. Imagine a church where people can say, “My marriage is falling apart,” “I am battling addiction,” or “I am angry at God,” and be met with prayer instead of gossip, guidance instead of shame, and love instead of distance.

When the church recovers its role as a place of grace-filled honesty, it becomes what it was always meant to be. A family of redeemed sinners walking together toward wholeness. Not perfect people pretending. But broken people healing, growing, and being transformed by the mercy of Jesus.

That kind of church does not repel the hurting. It draws them in. And in a world desperate for hope, that may be one of the most powerful witnesses we have left. Is Ignite this kind of church?

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody

Forgiveness is one of the most difficult commands Jesus gives us, not because it is unclear, but because it cuts directly against our natural instincts. When we are wronged, our flesh wants justice, distance, or payback. Yet Jesus calls His followers to something far deeper and far more costly.

In Matthew 18:21–22, Peter comes to Jesus with what seems like a generous question. “Then Peter came and said to Him, ‘Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you, up to seven times,  but up to seventy times seven’” (LSB)

Peter likely thought he was being gracious. The common Jewish teaching of the day suggested forgiving someone three times. Peter doubles that and adds one more for good measure. But Jesus responds by removing the calculator altogether. He is not increasing the limit. He is eliminating it.

Jesus is not saying we keep a literal tally up to seventy times seven. He is teaching that forgiveness in the kingdom of God is not measured. It flows from a heart that understands grace.

Forgiveness is not based on the offender’s repentance first. It is based on the believer’s understanding of what they have already received from God. In the verses that follow, Jesus tells the parable of the unforgiving slave, a man forgiven an unpayable debt who then refuses to forgive a small one. The warning is clear. Those who truly grasp God’s mercy will reflect it.

This does not mean forgiveness is easy. It does not mean the pain was insignificant. Forgiveness does not deny the wound. It releases the right to hold the debt over someone else. It is a decision before it is a feeling. Often the feelings follow later.

Forgiveness also does not always mean reconciliation. Trust may need to be rebuilt. Boundaries may be necessary. Forgiveness means we refuse to let bitterness take root. Hebrews warns that bitterness defiles many. Unforgiveness always spreads. It poisons our prayers, our worship, and our witness.

At the heart of Jesus’ command is this truth. We forgive because we have been forgiven far more than we will ever be asked to forgive. Every sin against us, no matter how painful, is still smaller than our sin against a holy God. Yet through Christ, our debt was fully canceled.

Forgiveness keeps us free. When we refuse to forgive, we remain chained to the offense. When we forgive, we place the matter in God’s hands and trust Him to be the just Judge.

Jesus calls His people to live marked by mercy. Not because others deserve it, but because we live under grace. Forgiveness is not weakness. It is gospel strength on display.

If there is someone you are holding at arm’s length today, bring that before the Lord. Ask Him for the grace to forgive as you have been forgiven. The same power that saved you is the power that enables you to release others.

Forgiveness has no limit because grace has no end.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody 

When we think about becoming more like Christ, our minds often go first to knowledge. We think about Bible study, theology, doctrine, and spiritual disciplines. Those things matter deeply, and they shape us. But if we strip it down to the life Jesus actually lived, one truth becomes unmistakably clear. When we serve, give, and live selflessly, we reflect Christ more than anything else we do.

Jesus did not come to be served. He came to serve.

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45, LSB).

That statement alone reframes the entire Christian life. The Son of God did not measure faithfulness by comfort, recognition, or personal gain. He measured it by obedience, sacrifice, and love expressed through action. His life was a continual pouring out of Himself for others.

Serving strips away our pride. Giving loosens our grip on control. Selflessness confronts the natural bent of our flesh to be selfish. None of those things come easily, which is exactly why they form us. When we serve others without needing credit, when we give without expecting return, when we choose inconvenience for the sake of love, something in us begins to look more like Jesus.

The apostle Paul captures this clearly when he writes, “Have this way of thinking in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave” (Philippians 2:5–7, LSB).

Christlikeness is not found in elevation. It is found in descent. Jesus moved toward people, not away from them. He touched lepers, welcomed children, ate with sinners, and washed the feet of His disciples. Even on the night of His betrayal, He chose a towel instead of a throne.

Serving does something theology alone cannot do. It puts flesh on belief. It forces our faith out of abstraction and into obedience. Anyone can say they love God. Serving proves whether that love has taken root.

“If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and yet hates his brother, he is a liar” (1 John 4:20, LSB).

Giving works the same way. God so loved that He gave. Giving reflects the heart of the gospel itself. It is not just about money. It is time, energy, forgiveness, patience, and presence. Every act of generous sacrifice echoes the cross.

Selflessness may never draw applause, but it draws us closer to Christ. It quiets the ego. It trains the heart. It aligns our desires with His.

In a culture obsessed with self promotion and personal comfort, a selfless life stands out. It looks different because it is different. It looks like Jesus.

If we want to grow in Christlikeness, we do not need more spotlight. We need more servanthood. We do not need bigger platforms. We need bigger hearts. The path to looking like Jesus still runs through giving ourselves away.

And in losing our lives for His sake, we find them. Ask yourself this question, where can or are you serving at Ignite? We need you, the kingdom needs you! 

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody 

One of the greatest struggles Christians face is understanding holiness. We tend to think of holiness as something fragile, something we lose every time we fail. When we sin, we assume holiness disappears. When we obey, we believe holiness returns. But that is not how Scripture describes holiness for the believer.

Let me explain it this way.

I am a Burkeen. That is not something I earned. It is something I was born into. No matter how badly I disobeyed my parents growing up, my last name never changed. When I made foolish decisions, when I rebelled, when I failed to live up to the values of my family, I was still a Burkeen. My behavior did not redefine my identity.

In the same way, when you are in Christ, holiness is not something you perform. It is something you receive.

The Bible says, “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30, LSB). Sanctification, holiness, is not something you add to yourself. It is something Jesus became for you.

When you placed your faith in Christ, you were set apart once and for all. Hebrews says, “By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10, LSB). That is positional holiness. It is settled. It is secure. It is not fragile.

That does not mean sin does not matter. Sin always matters. Sin damages fellowship, clouds our joy, and brings discipline from a loving Father. But sin does not undo what Jesus has already accomplished. Just as my disobedience never removed me from my family, my sin does not remove me from Christ.

This is where many believers live confused and exhausted. They are trying to earn a holiness they already have. They are trying to become something God says they already are. Scripture tells us, “As obedient children, not being conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your conduct” (1 Peter 1:14–15, LSB). Notice the order. You are called holy, therefore live holy.

We do not obey to become holy. We obey because we are holy.

When you understand this, everything changes. Obedience stops being driven by fear and starts being shaped by love. Repentance becomes a return to who you truly are, not a desperate attempt to regain God’s acceptance. Discipline becomes formative, not condemning.

Paul captures this beautifully when he says, “Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11, LSB). He does not say, “Try to become dead to sin.” He says, “Consider yourselves.” Live from the reality God has already declared.

If you are in Christ, holiness is your last name now. You may stumble. You may struggle. You may fail. But your identity does not change. Jesus does not unclaim you. The cross does not lose its power. Grace does not expire.

Holiness is not something you chase in order to be accepted. It is something you grow into because you already are accepted.

Live like who you are.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody

As I step into 2026, one word has settled deep in my spirit: consecrated.

• Not busier.
• Not louder.
• Not more impressive.

Consecrated.

Consecration is not about perfection. It is about position. It is the deliberate act of setting myself apart for God’s purposes, surrendering what I want so He can form what He desires. It is choosing to live yielded, available, and obedient. It is saying, “Lord, this year is Yours. Do what You want in me.”

The apostle Paul captures the heart of consecration clearly in Romans 12:1 (LSB):
“Therefore I urge you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”

A living sacrifice means I climb onto the altar daily. I do not visit it once a year with good intentions. I live there. Consecration is not a moment; it is a posture.

More Like Jesus, Less Like Me

If I am honest, the greatest obstacle to God’s work in my life is not the culture, the enemy, or the chaos around me. It is me.

• My pride.
• My preferences.
• My pace.
• My need to control outcomes.

To be consecrated in 2026 means allowing God to lovingly strip away the parts of me that look nothing like Jesus. It means embracing the slow, often uncomfortable work of sanctification. Paul writes in Galatians 2:20 (LSB):
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.”

Less of me does not mean losing my identity. It means discovering who I was always meant to be in Christ. The more I die to self, the more His life becomes visible through me.

What Consecration Looks Like Practically

Consecration is deeply spiritual, but it is never abstract. It touches everyday life.

• It reshapes how I begin my mornings, choosing the Word and prayer before the noise of the world.
• It governs my decisions, asking not “Is this allowed?” but “Does this honor Christ?”
• It disciplines my body, my mind, and my habits, recognizing that my life belongs to God.
• It softens my heart toward conviction instead of resisting it.

Jesus prayed in John 17:17 (LSB), “Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth.”
If I want to be consecrated, I must stay close to the truth. God uses His Word to cleanse, correct, and conform me into the image of His Son.

A Prayer for 2026

My prayer for this year is simple, but costly.

• Lord, remove whatever does not belong.
• Refine what You want to use.
• Strengthen what is weak.
• Crucify what is fleshly.
• Produce what is Christlike.

I do not want to arrive at the end of 2026 having merely accomplished more. I want to arrive having become more like Jesus.

Consecration is not flashy. It rarely gets applause. But it gets heaven’s attention.

May 2026 be a year where we stop asking God to bless our plans and start offering Him our lives. Fully. Freely. Faithfully.

Here I am, Lord.
Set apart.
Send me.
Consecrated.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Jody 

We live in a generation that has never been more connected and yet never more distracted. The phone is always within reach. Notifications buzz. Screens glow. Feeds refresh endlessly. And without realizing it, our eyes drift downward far more often than they lift upward.
The real question is not whether technology is evil. The question is this: where are your eyes fixed? I had a buddy they other day say "Are my eyes on the throne or the phone?" and it inspired this blog. 

Scripture constantly calls God’s people to lift their gaze. Psalm 123:1 says, “To You I lift up my eyes, O You who are enthroned in the heavens” (LSB). That is not poetic filler. That is spiritual direction. Where your eyes go, your heart follows. Where your attention rests, your devotion slowly forms.

The throne represents authority, sovereignty, and rule. God reigns whether we acknowledge Him or not. He is not competing for power, but He does call for allegiance. When our eyes are on the throne, our lives are shaped by reverence, obedience, and trust. We remember who is in control, and we are freed from the anxiety of trying to be in control ourselves.

The phone, on the other hand, is not neutral when it becomes our primary focus. It disciples us more than we realize. It trains our minds to crave constant stimulation. It shortens our attention span for prayer, Scripture, and silence. It keeps us informed, but often spiritually unfed. Many believers know what is trending but struggle to recall what God has spoken.
Romans 12:2 warns us not to be conformed to this world but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind (LSB). Renewal does not happen by accident. It requires intentional focus. If the majority of our waking attention is shaped by screens, we should not be surprised when our spiritual sensitivity dulls.

This is not a call to throw away your phone. It is a call to put it in its proper place. Tools make terrible masters. When the phone becomes the first thing we reach for in the morning and the last thing we release at night, it reveals something about our trust, our comfort, and our hunger.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:21, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (LSB). What captures your attention captures your affection. What captures your affection shapes your worship.

Eyes on the throne change how we live. We respond rather than react. We pray before we post. We listen before we scroll. We sit with God long enough for conviction, comfort, and clarity to form. We remember that the King is not loud, frantic, or panicked. He is seated. Reigning. Faithful.

The phone will always demand your eyes. The throne invites them.
One leads to restlessness. The other leads to reverence.
One keeps you informed. The other keeps you transformed.

So pause today. Lift your head. Still your hands. Ask yourself honestly: where have my eyes been fixed?

Because in the end, it is not about technology. It is about worship.
Eyes on the throne will always lead to a life rightly ordered under the reign of God.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody

If you strip life down to its essentials, there are very few things we truly possess. We do not own our breath. We did not create our minds. We did not earn the mercy that keeps us alive another day. Everything we have has been received.

That truth leads to a sobering realization. There is almost nothing we can give God that He does not already own.

Scripture reminds us of this clearly.
“The earth is Yahweh’s, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it” (Psalm 24:1, LSB).

God does not need our resources, our talent, or our strength. He spoke the universe into existence. He sustains every atom by His power. So what, then, can we give Him?
The Bible gives us the answer. We can give God our praise, our fear, and our obedience.

Our Praise
Praise is not something God lacks. It is something we owe.
Praise is the rightful response of a redeemed heart. When we praise God, we are not adding to His glory. We are acknowledging it. Praise is alignment. It is the soul saying, “You are who You say You are, and I will live like it is true.”

God could command the rocks to cry out, but He invites His people to praise Him instead. That invitation is grace. We give Him praise not because He is desperate for it, but because our hearts are desperate for Him.

Our Fear
Biblical fear is not terror. It is reverence. It is awe. It is the recognition that God is holy, powerful, and not to be treated casually.
“The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10, LSB).

To fear God is to take Him seriously. It is to stop reshaping Him into our image and allow Him to shape us into His. When we fear God rightly, everything else falls into its proper place. Lesser fears lose their grip when the fear of the Lord governs our hearts.

Our Obedience
Obedience is where faith becomes visible.
Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (John 14:15, LSB).
Obedience does not earn God’s love. It responds to it. We obey not to be saved, but because we have been saved. True obedience flows from trust. It says, “God, You know better than I do, and I will follow You even when I do not understand.”

Grace Makes It Possible
Here is the most beautiful part of all of this. God does not demand praise, fear, and obedience without first providing what we need to give them.

• Grace comes first.
• Grace opens our eyes so we can see His worth.
• Grace humbles our hearts so we can fear Him rightly.
• Grace changes our desires so obedience becomes possible.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8, LSB).

Even what we give to God has been enabled by God.

That is the gospel. God gives us everything we need to give Him the only things He asks for. Praise. Fear. Obedience.

And all of it flows from grace.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody 

Every few days another headline appears. Another pastor has fallen. Another leader has destroyed his ministry, wounded his church, and broken his family. Some of these stories are heartbreaking. Some of them are shocking. And some of them are not surprises at all. The reason is simple. What we do in the dark will always come to the light.

Pastors are not immune. In fact, pastors are targets.

The enemy would love nothing more than to take down shepherds. If he can wound the shepherd, the sheep scatter. If he can embarrass the pastor, the church loses credibility. If he can tempt the leader into secret sin, the name of Christ becomes mocked.

The world is watching. Social media exposes. Screenshots never disappear. Temptation is just one click away. The culture is looking for one false move. The enemy is hunting for a weak moment.

And pastors are often alone when it happens.

The Dark is Where Character is Tested

It is easy to preach holiness from the pulpit. It is much harder to walk holiness when nobody is around.

It is easy to stand on the platform with the Bible in hand. It is much harder to stand before God alone when nobody sees.

Jesus said in Luke 12:2 to 3, “But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light.” There are no secrets with God. What we hide will be exposed. What we justify will be judged.

Pastors must understand this. Ministry doors open and close on character. Anointing does not cover compromise. Talent does not erase sin. Reputation cannot hide corruption forever. What is done in secret has a way of showing itself.

The World is Setting Traps

I do not believe every fall is from demons alone. The world itself is filled with traps.

Scam emails now target pastors. Women online target pastors. Political groups target pastors. There are people who want to use a pastor to promote their agenda or destroy their testimony. A single message, a private conversation, a small compromise can lead to a disaster.

The world is watching for weakness. A ministry leader does not get to live careless. We do not have the luxury of flirting with sin. We cannot play with temptation and pretend we are strong.

The Heart is Never Safe Alone

David fell. Solomon fell. Samson fell. Judas fell.

Not because they were weak men. They fell because they were alone with their thoughts and desires.

The enemy only needs a quiet moment. Peter warned us, “Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” 1 Peter 5:8.

A lion does not attack a herd. A lion waits for one to drift away.

• Pastors drift when they are tired.
• Pastors drift when they are discouraged.
• Pastors drift when they feel unappreciated.
• Pastors drift when they are isolated.

Nobody wakes up one morning and decides to ruin their ministry. The fall begins slowly. In the dark. Out of sight.

I Guard Myself to Protect More Than Me

This is not theory for me. I feel the weight of this every day. I try to guard myself because my fall would not just affect me.

• I have a wife who trusts me.
• I have children who look up to me.
• I have a church that follows my leadership.
• I have a men’s ministry that impacts thousands.

If I fall, I potentially could take down a lot of people who have put their trust in what God is doing through me. That is a humbling and terrifying thought. The enemy would love to ruin marriages, churches, and ministries with one man’s secret sin.

This is why I take my private life seriously. This is why I guard my heart, my eyes, and my habits. Not because I am afraid of losing a platform, but because I do not want to destroy the people who would be caught in the fallout. If I walk in darkness, others will stumble.

Paul told the elders of Ephesus, “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock” Acts 20:28. The first responsibility is to guard yourself. If the shepherd is not careful, the flock will suffer.

So I ask you to pray for me. Pray that I would finish well. Pray that my heart would stay soft before God. Pray that I would love my wife more than the ministry, love Christ more than the applause, and love holiness more than comfort.

Three Safeguards Every Pastor Needs

1. Guard Your Private Life Closely

• Your phone.
• Your inbox.
• Your hotel room.
• Your late night scrolling.

One moment of weakness can undo years of faithfulness. Honor God when nobody is watching. Pray when nobody knows. Close doors that do not honor Christ.

2. Invite Accountability Courageously

You are not bulletproof. You need brothers who can ask hard questions and poke you in the proverbial chest.

• How is your marriage?
• How is your purity?
• How is your pride?
• How is your anger?

A pastor without accountability is a pastor waiting for a fall.

3. Stay Close to Jesus Daily

Pastors feed others. Sometimes we forget to eat ourselves.

The ministry does not give you intimacy with God. It can actually rob you of it. Jesus said, “Abide in Me” John 15:4. Not visit. Not occasionally pray. Abide. Live there.

Your private walk will shape your public strength.

The Greatest Protection is the Fear of God

A pastor who fears the Lord will hate sin. Proverbs 8:13 says, “The fear of Yahweh is to hate evil.” When the fear of God is strong, temptation loses its appeal. When the fear of God is real, secret sin becomes unthinkable.

The fall of one pastor damages the witness of many. The enemy knows this. The world knows this.

So, pastor, watch what you do in the dark. Your life, your family, your church, your ministry, and the name of Christ are worth guarding.

Live in the light.
Walk in the truth.
Stay humble.
Stay accountable.
Stay close to Jesus.

The world is watching. So is heaven.

Soli Deo Gloria,

Pastor Jody