The Love Offering Guest Blog Series Archives

Blessed Are Those Who Mourn by Dr. Shane Stanford

Jul 25, 2024

Jesus encourages us to love with real openness and honesty, but such love also brings great vulnerability. By loving and living in a way that we mourn deeply, we open ourselves up to incredible heartache, trouble, and hurt. But! We also draw closer to Jesus, and, with Him, there is potential for great joy because Jesus has overcome the world. (See John 16:33.) In other words, the risk of grief or mourning can be overwhelming. It is not easy to love people to a point where we mourn over hardship and loss. But, through it, God promises life-changing joy if we are willing to take the chance.

Overflowing: Living Abundantly in a Broken Culture with Carol McLeod

Jul 23, 2024

I want to live an abundant life. Do you? If you long to live a life overflowing with hope, peace, and joy, perhaps what your life needs is an intentional center. We all have one―that nucleus upon which we obtain our energy and discern our purpose. Perhaps until now, your center has been based on shopping, entertainment, or sports. Or maybe you are like many others and have centered your very existence upon your children, family, or career. What if those things you’ve placed at the center of your life will not bring you the abundance you desire? What if you need a true center?

The Gifts Hidden in Broken Dreams by Hadassah Treu

Jul 18, 2024

I sat in the ashes with the broken pieces of what I thought would bring me happiness and fulfillment. By shattering my greatest dream in this period of my life, God shattered my heart, but not with the intent to destroy it. He aimed to mend it and re-direct it. Every shattered piece, every debris, needed to be cleaned, re-shaped, and then put together again by the God of restoration.

As Christians, Our Bodies Are Not Our Own by Stacy Reaoch

Jul 11, 2024

Over the years I’ve enjoyed various exercise classes at our local gym, but the barrage of self-focused motivations makes me cringe. Is this really what it’s all about? Working out in order to have a beach-ready body? In order to feel good about ourselves in a bikini? No: we need to remember that as believers, it’s not about us. And this is hugely liberating!

Jesus Never Loses Sight of Us by Lysa TerKeurst

Jul 4, 2024

When life gets messy, at times it can feel like our Messiah has gone missing. That’s exactly the kind of situation we find the disciples in as we read Mark 6. Right after the feeding of the five thousand, they got in a boat, and strong winds caused the water to get very rough. The disciples were straining at the oars as the realities of life beat against them.