Author: Joe MarquezA God Who SendsMost Christians understand the first half of the gospel pretty well:Jesus came for me | Jesus died for me | Jesus forgave me | Jesus saved me.And every bit of that is true. But sometimes our understanding of Christianity stops there.We begin to think the goal of Christianity is Jesus saves me | Jesus helps my marriage | Jesus helps me raise my kids | Jesus gives m...

Author: Joe MarquezThe Wise LifeWisdom Is Found in a Person to FollowThroughout this series, Proverbs has taught us how to live wisely:Make wise decisions.Develop healthy relationships.Work hard without worshiping work.Handle money generously.Welcome correction.Guard your heart.Trust God instead of yourself.These are good and necessary teachings. But as we come toward the end of this series, we ne...

Author: Joe MarquezDiscipline, Correction, and GrowthWise People Welcome CorrectionEveryone wants to grow, but few people enjoy being corrected.We want stronger marriages, deeper friendships, healthier churches, wiser decisions, and greater spiritual maturity. But we often resist the very thing God uses to produce that growth: correction.Suburban culture trains us to avoid discomfort. We arrange o...

We Were Not Meant to Walk AloneFriendships matter more than we realize.The Bible says in Genesis 2:18“It is not good that the man should be alone.”Yes, that passage is speaking directly about marriage. But I don’t think it’s limited to marriage. It reveals something deeper about human design.We were not created to live alone.And yet, loneliness is quietly becoming one of the great struggles of our...

Jesus Trusted the FatherI’ve been fascinated lately with one particular aspect of the gospel of Jesus.It’s almost all I’ve been thinking about these past few weeks.It’s this idea that Jesus trusted the Father — even in wrath.That’s a wild thing to sit with.Jesus knew there was a price to be paid.He knew there had to be death in order for life to come.He knew there had to be suffering for hope to r...

Pain is interesting.It can push you forward…or keep you stuck.It can lead you toward healing…or quietly make things worse.It can bring you into reality…or tempt you to escape into fantasy.But one thing pain never does is allow you to do nothing.There is always a response to pain.Jesus came to rescue, redeem, and ultimately relieve us from the sting of death. And yet, we’re not in heaven yet. We li...