Posts with the tag “fellowship”

Thirteen years ago, a 100-foot tree in East Texas fell on Pastor Sam Storms' father, causing catastrophic injuries—broken ribs, exploded vertebrae, punctured lungs. But in the hospital room, despite excruciating pain, his father overflowed with unexplainable joy. "Jesus didn't even have pain medication," he kept saying, quoting Scripture through tears. In that moment, Sam witnessed a profound truth: the deepest connection with God often happens in our darkest valleys. The Apostle Paul discovered this same paradox, writing from prison that knowing Christ is worth more than any worldly achievement. His radical equation still holds true today: every gain without Christ equals loss, but every loss with Christ equals gain. This isn't about loving suffering—it's about loving the One we meet there.  Read More

Most people work out to look good—to show off their gains at the gym or the beach. But spiritual growth has a completely different purpose. You're not called to showcase your own righteousness or impress others with how holy you've become. Instead, you're invited to shine Christ's light into a dark world. When people see you dealing with mistakes honestly, growing in character, and loving sacrificially, they're not seeing your greatness—they're catching a glimpse of Jesus working in you. The question isn't whether you're spiritually strong enough to impress others. It's whether you're willing to let God's light shine through you to point others to Him.  Read More

What if everything you've been told about achieving happiness is backwards? Baylor's championship-winning basketball coach Scott Drew built his program on a simple acronym: JOY—Jesus, Others, You. It sounds counterintuitive in a world that tells us to put ourselves first, but this 2,000-year-old principle might be the key to the fulfillment we're all searching for. Discover why stepping down to lift others up creates a paradox that actually works—and how one small shift in your thinking this week could change everything.  Read More