The Faith Well (formerly, From the Pastor's Study)

The betrayal of Judas reveals something deep within the human heart.

Therapy can help us cope with life, but it cannot create a new life.

When does bad religion actually reflect the urge to freedom?

Does celebrity culture provide real identity?

Atheism advocates freedom from religion. But it actually doubles down on religion's heaviest burden.

Does music actually create real unity?

Compromise among differing groups is the only way to move forward meaningfully.

What fills the vacuum of meaning when a culture loses confidence in itself?

Do we discover freedom by building fences or tearing them down? Listen to Pastor Mark discuss how neither way is the answer.

No one likes to be judged. But the cost of retreating from judgement is high.

ASMR is good as far as it goes.

Human efforts to redeem the self and the world always fail. The is only one source of salvation.

Self has its benefits...and some serious limits.

How do we go from being 'takers' to 'thankers'?

What we do with the gift of life matters. The necessity of being judged is intertwined with the unique human, God-given attributes of responsibility, morality, and social interconnectedness.

Disrupting and tearing down society is not the Christian way.

Is the Christian life about growing in holiness and proving my faith?

This week we consider multiple factors when looking for a church home.

This week we look at several issues to consider when looking for a church home.

One, simple question can help you find a church.

The move from adolescence to adulthood is not fatal but a step into reality.

The free will demands that the law solve everything. But the law cannot change the lawbreaking human heart.

There is only one cure for the injustice in every human heart.

Does looking inward create assurance or doubt?

We love what we value. Is that how God loves?

Human love looks for value, something worth loving. Is that how the love of God works?

The shadow of Good Friday falls over the manger.

Justice in the law is not reconciliation.

The music of the Church is next level. Giving expression to what God has done for us in Jesus Christ.

From ancient times, spirituality has been used in efforts to understand the cosmos,gain divine blessing, or achieve personal happiness and fulfillment. But is this what Christian spirituality is all about?

There is a true peace which the world neither knows nor gives.

Two words get at the fundamental difference between Islam and the Christian faith.

The lack of confidence in Western civilization is fertile soil for the spread of Islam.

The lack of confidence in the Western world is fertile soil for the advance of Islam.

Nothing will overcome the light who is Jesus Christ.

Life today can leave people feeling isolated and alone, questioning who they are and why they are. But there is a place where those questions find a hopeful answer.

Where do the Christian and the Christian community stand in relation to culture?Listen to Pastor Mark's podcast where he suggests three ways Christians have responded to culture and society.

Where can I go to find authentic life and community in the midst of the mass estrangement all around?

Life takes on a wholly different perspective from the vantage point of grace.

There was a time when almost everyone I knew could recite part, if not all of Psalm 23. My late friend and pastoral internship advisor, Carl Lee, called it the "The most-believed Psalm of all."

Justice may bring legal resolution but it will not bring reconciliation.

Is there something about us, some quality that makes God want to love us? A young man's description of his love for his beloved provides insight.

Through His boundless mercy and grace, God extends His loving embrace to us, inviting us to release the heavy load of our past transgressions. His forgiveness is all-encompassing, wiping away our sins and allowing us to start afresh.