Stephen De La Vega

  A new day is coming. Just like with Noah aboard the Ark who knew he would someday step onto dry land, everyday life will change. The sun will rise. Jesus will come again. The truth of God’s promise will ring clearly in the hearts of all people. All people!   This post is the final episode of an 8-episode series about boarding and deboarding Noah’s Ark. If you’re visiting this series for the first time, you should start at Episode 1: The Story of Our Lives and set aside time to read all 8 episodes. Otherwise, sit back and experience the final episode.   Episode 8: Jesus’ Return Do we believe Jesus will come again? His return is not good news for everybody. He will come to bring home those who trust Him as Savior and Lord, but He will also later judge and punish those who do not. This isn’t an arbitrary topic in this series. Noah and the Flood are mentioned in 3 of the Bible passages about Jesus’ return ( Matth...

  When I was 8 years old, I knew enough to know that someday I would “get saved.” At the time, I didn’t know how to get saved, but I knew it involved Jesus and sacrifice. Sacrifice of time, at least. But getting saved was for later, because it was summer time and I had better things to do. 3 rd grade was coming fast. Of course, 3 rd grade came and left. Then 4 th grade. Then 5 th . And, before I knew it, I found myself in high school with no intention to learn about Jesus. It wasn’t a priority and it would’ve never happened if God hadn't worked out the situations in my life so that I landed square in the face of the gospel and the decision to “get saved.”   This post offers a deeper look at Life Pursuit 4 in The Most Important Life Pursuits . Life Pursuit 4 is: Don’t delay to trust Jesus as Savior . We’ve detailed the other 3 life pursuits already. This is the final post in this series, and I write it to those who don’t yet know Jesus, and to those who do, because we...

We are fearful. Our hearts are heavy. We face real issues. There are legitimate threats – perhaps monumental threats. This is the current reality worldwide. The threat is pandemic. The fear is pandemic. We tremble at the face of genuine risk. How do we go on? Goliath was an obviously formidable opponent. One look. One listen. That’s all it took to accept defeat. That’s how it was for Israel’s army because they couldn’t see past the giant to see their God ( 1 Samuel17:4-11 ). We stand before Goliath Do we shrink in defeat         or do we rise with confidence in the LORD of hosts? David called God the “LORD of hosts” ( 1 Samuel17:45 ). This is like calling Him the God of armies. Israel was often defeated and they were ready for a victory. They were held captive as slave laborers for over 400 years. They wandered their way to the promised land for 40 years – 40 years longer than it should’ve taken! They ...