Walk With Darrell

Recently, two of my friends had burial services for their mothers. There are many of us that have had to walk in those shoes. Even when we know our mother is a believer in Jesus it can be an emotional time. It brought back memories of when we said goodbye to my mother. It hurts to say goodbye because we will miss them. At the same time, it is a celebration of our mother’s life here on earth and is now in heaven with Jesus and loved ones that have previously died. We also have

As I turn another year older, I was asked by my family what do I want for my birthday. That is always a tough question. I had a friend send me a prayer for guidance. I wish I had come up with this on my own, but I can’t take credit for this prayer. Holy Spirit, You know my heart . You understand my deepest wants and needs , and You know my every intention . You know me better than I know myself. There is nowhere I could run to escape Your presence , and nothing I could hide f

Do events seem crazy and spiraling out of control? God is still in control. God is bigger than any nation, any ruler, any political view. If you find yourself getting worried about the future, remember who holds the future in His hands. Jeremiah 31:35 35 This is what the Lord says, he who appoints the sun to shine by day, who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar— the Lord Almighty is his name: It pains me to see the divisio

There have been a couple of storms so far this Hurricane season. Have you ever been out on the ocean when the seas were rough? As I have shared before, I served on a Navy Aircraft Carrier and even though it is a large ship I have witnessed waves splashing on the flight deck. The seas were too rough for us to go into port, and we had to head out to sea. In Mark 4:35-41 it tells of Jesus and His disciples in-the-midst of a storm. Part of the story reads. 38 Jesus was in the s

The road to Emmaus is a story of two men who were walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Jesus has just been crucified and resurrected. For many followers of Jesus this was a confusing time. Many had this preconceived idea that Jesus was the Messiah who was here to free the Jews from Roman rule. Now Jesus had been killed and they hear His body is missing how could He be the Messiah to free them from Roman rule. They had a lot of questions and were discussing the things of the past

Matthew 7: 7 – 8 7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What are you dealing with in your life right now? Do you need strength to make it through the day? Are you in trouble? Are you discouraged? Are you lonely? Do you have an illness? Do you feel trapped in an unhappy life? You get the drift; we all have

We all want to live a successful life. As Christians it can be confusing as we live in a world that views success in such a different way than God defines success. We can easily get caught up in the trap of following the world’s idea of what success is. The world values prestige, money, position, power, pride, materialism, egotism, and your looks have to meet a certain standard. In the world’s eyes if you have these things then you must be successful. If these are important w

Jesus’ resurrection is a hope to all Christians that death is not the end. Paul’s letter to the early Christians of Thessalonica talked about rapture. In 1 Thessalonians 4 Paul talks to early Christians that just like Jesus who is risen those Christians who have died will rise again. Note Paul used the words fallen asleep, this is because it is temporary. This gives me great comfort to know I will see my loved ones again that have died and that I will spend eternity in heaven

Proverbs 1:7 (NIV) 7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. What does it mean to live a life that pleases God? In Psalm 128 vs 2-6 says, “All you who fear God, how blessed you are……. Enjoy the blessing! Revel in His goodness. Stand in awe of God. Fearing God is standing in awe of God and His Holiness. Knowing that we are flawed and in need of a savior. God offered every single one of us the same life-changing, grace. When

Thursday of Holy week referred to as Maundy Thursday. As I write this the sun is sinking in the west. I was wondering what Jesus and His Disciples were doing at this time. Had they made it to the Upper Room yet? We know that after sunset, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples as they prepared to share the Passover. I am sure we all have seen the picture of the Passover. My first bible I received as a child had the famous picture of the Passover. The disciples did not realize

John 4:9 (NIV) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” The Samaritan women at the well was asked by Jesus to draw Him some water from Jacob’s well to drink. She questioned Jesus why He would ask a Samaritan woman to give Him water. The Samaritans and Jews did not associate with each other. Jesus answered the Samaritan woman that He had water and that His water was living water. John 4:10 (NIV) 10 Jesus an

It is easy to get caught in the trap that if we act the right way or look the right way, then we will be more acceptable to God. Likewise, many people in the Old Testament and even today think that being religious is a way of winning favor with God. Jesus spoke against this. Religion and good deeds can’t earn our way to heaven. We read this in Isaiah 64 verse 6. Isaiah 64:6 All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all

This upcoming week is going to have its ups and downs. You will have some moments that are going to challenge your faith. However, with God these challenges that you will face will be opportunities to exercise your faith. As a Christian, it’s important to not let your obstacles in life tear you away from your faith. Instead, these are the moments where you need faith the most. With God, you can move from being a victim to being a victor. David was one of my favorite people in

John 8:11 “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” This is what Jesus said to the women who had been caught in adultery. There is no condemnation in Christ. So, you might ask, what exactly does this mean? To have “no condemnation” declared means to be found innocent of the accusation, to have no sentence inflicted and no guilty verdict found. By the grace of God, believers in Jesus Christ will not face the

As a follower of Jesus Christ, we should have a goal of making a difference in people’s lives. When Jesus was on earth, He was not a member of a church, not in a Sunday School class, not in a church choir, but He made a difference in people’s lives. Jesus met people where they were at and showed them love. One of the things I use to say when teaching a Sunday School class is that we need to take Christ’s love outside of our Sunday School class. Do you want to make a impact on

I have heard some people say that they can’t live the Christian life. You know, they are correct. This may surprise you, but it is impossible for us to live the Christian life in our own power. We can’t do it on our own. The Christian life isn’t something we can do. The Christian life is “Christ in us, the hope of glory” (Col 1:27) If the Christian life for you is acting like Jesus that is just religion. Performing and trying to be a Christian gets stale, ritualistic, and

Matthew 5:14-16 Jesus told His Disciples that they are the light of the world. 14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. As a small child one of the first songs, we learned in Sunda

One of the promises God gives us is to help carry our burdens. Whether emotional, financial, or relational, our burdens can weigh us down. When burdens come into our life, how do we handle them? Do we deal with them according to God's Word? Or do we find ourselves fretting over them and trying to run from them? God knows what we are capable of handling, and God would not give us a burden without also supporting us with His strength and wisdom. God is more than capable of car

Our trials can come in many forms such as sickness and disease. Sickness and disease are a part of our imperfect world and affect both righteous and unrighteous people. However, God wants to use suffering of all kinds, including sickness, to mature us spiritually and draw us closer to Him. And He can use sickness in our lives to refine us and strengthen our relationship with Him. We must remember that while the Father cares about our physical bodies, His primary concern is ou

Jesus is not only our Lord and Savior, but our friend. Friendship is something that should be valued. When you pray to Jesus you are praying to a friend who gave his life on the cross for us. John 15: 13-15 3 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I