What do you do when the opportunity to impact a life is right in front of your face, but it’s going to cost you something? The disciples knew that their testifying of Jesus Christ meant painful pushback from the culture they were living in at the time. The name Jesus was a polarizing name that was not well accepted among the religious elite and Roman authorities. It didn’t matter to these brave me...  Read More

John 14:1-5In the spring of 2008, sweet 95-year-old grandma came to live with our full frenzied four-teenager family. Grandma Cece, or GG as the kids called her, had always been very active. Even in her 90’s she was taking daily walks, volunteering in the gift shop at the local hospital, serving at church, teaching women’s Bible study, but macular degeneration was a thief of her eyesight and life ...  Read More

Acts 2:37-47Every now and then, I love pulling up videos of the old Billy Graham Crusades. Although old, they are timeless. The passion with which he speaks is mesmerizing. He was a gifted speaker with the matchless message of the Gospel. It wasn’t until after I got saved that I began to appreciate his crusades and the impact they truly had…and still have to this day. But as great as the messenger...  Read More

Acts 2:14-36 We all know someone who is very blunt; they say what needs to be said, and they keep on their way. It’s often viewed as a bad thing to be called a blunt person, but that doesn't always have to be the case.  As we talk about often at Emmanuel, we must be willing to stand up for truth, but not by cutting people down and bashing them, but rather by sharing the truth in love. However, the...  Read More

Acts 2:1-12Have you ever felt that nudge to say something to someone about Jesus? Have you felt that same nudge telling you to stop doing something that you shouldn’t be doing? How about the unusual peace you’ve had during a hard time? The strange sense of comfort you’ve experienced when all seemed lost? That’s the Holy Spirit within you! In Acts 2:1-12, we read about the arrival of the Holy Spiri...  Read More

Acts 1:12-14 What is your first response when you are in fear? What about when something doesn’t go the way that you wanted it to go or how you thought it should? I think we can all admit that when fear arises, we often do not go to prayer as our initial response. We often get consumed with our fear and everything that could possibly go wrong. Sometimes we let our fear grow to an extreme and allow...  Read More