Category: Faith

6/22/2026 0 Comments

When Following Jesus Can Cost You Everything

Blog by Jerry Anze

Meditation
2 Timothy 3:12--In fact, all those who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

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6/15/2026 1 Comment

God Sees, Hears, and Knows

My name is Joseph Adrian Shikokoti, the founding pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Eldoret, Kenya. I have served the church for more than 32 years now. I'm married to Rose Adrian, and together we have raised many children both biologically and spiritually. We started a home in 2007, but we don’t actually call it a home because we want every kid to have a sense of belonging. We already had biological kids, and God used Rose to ask me if we could help one boy (Hudson) who didn't have a father and needed a place to live and food to eat. As a pastor, I felt compelled to offer some kind of help to this boy who has a paralyzed right hand and leg. I accepted, knowing that I would not be able to meet all this boy's needs because, for so long, we had food but no fire to cook with, and we could send our bigger boys to pick polythene papers and broken plastics to start a fire and use as firewood to cook. Now God led Rose to take care of this young man.

1 Comment

6/9/2026 3 Comments

Faith in the Dust: A Devotional for Those who Feel Forgotten

I asked Pastor Daniel Mugeni, one of our First Cause international leaders, to share with you what it is like to minister in a poor rural community in Uganda. Daniel pastors Grace Harvest House of Worship in Iganga, Uganda, a town 33km from the source of the Nile in Jinja. This is critical because it is so easy to be complacent and selfish in a prosperous nation and forget what it means to suffer and struggle not just in faith but in surviving.

Meditation
2 Corinthians 1:6,7--If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation. If we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is experienced in your endurance of the same sufferings that we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that as you share in the sufferings, so you will share in the comfort.

3 Comments

4/30/2026 0 Comments

Double Portion

What is the biggest thing you have ever asked from God?

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4/8/2026 1 Comment

"We're Going to See a Miracle in the Next 24 Hours."

Nate Holding Sushi

Last week, my brother Nate received a cash offer from his neighbor across the street for his 20-acre farm, which he and my parents purchased over a decade ago. Both Dad and Mom died on that property, and it is a place that holds a lot of family memories. The house will close in a few weeks, leaving Nate, Missy, and their great friend Roger without a place to live. They had hoped to purchase a lodge in Alaska, but that fell through. So, faced with enormous uncertainty regarding their future and where they would live, Nate declared, “We’re going to see a miracle in the next 24 hours.”

1 Comment

2/17/2026 2 Comments

Game Over!

Mighty Joe

Jesus chomped on the Pharisees for their love of money (Luke 16:14). He could have done the same with athletes for their love of sports, or politicians for their love of power, or models for their love of beauty. What we are consumed with or most devoted to reveals much about us, but also about our destiny. And Jesus knew that.

2 Comments

1/22/2026 0 Comments

I Have Observed

I remember, as an eighteen-year-old, living with my aunt and uncle in Coeur ‘d Alene, Idaho, who graciously took me into their home while I awaited my move to New York to attend West Point. Norm let me drive his Ford Ranchero and paid me to move pipes and water his crops. Whenever I got in a bind, he would flash his trademark Norwegian grin, which could be translated as “You are such an idiot.” I felt like a little kid in his presence. Given my mechanical stupidity, I’m sure he wondered how I would ever make it in an engineering school. Had it not been for God’s help and classmates like Kevin Stewart, who spent hours tutoring me, I would never have survived the Academy, and I wonder what would have become of my life. Wondering can be a healthy exercise in appreciating God’s sovereignty. This surely must have been the case for one of the world’s greatest leaders.

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1/16/2026 2 Comments

Tragedy

Delta Maddogs--40th Gander Reunion

When I walked into the American Legion on December 11, 2025, I was entering a gathering of those connected to the fatal crash of Arrow Airlines on December 12, 1985, that killed 256 people in Gander, Newfoundland. We had assembled in Kentucky for the 40th anniversary of that horrific tragedy. But my first thought was that I was in the wrong place. The people looked too old and mostly unfamiliar as I initially scanned the faces. But then, as my eyes adjusted to the bright light so dissimilar from the dark parking lot, I recognized soldiers from my company and my West Point classmate, Mark Armstrong. I was in the right place, yet wow, how much forty years has changed our appearance and bearing.

2 Comments

12/9/2025 1 Comment

What Matters II

Pastor Daniel Mugeni

Each year, First Cause sends a Christmas gift to someone on our international team. This year, our gift went to Daniel and Aidda in Iganga, Uganda. Daniel wrote, “You have served my entire family of 30 members with Christmas. I have 26 needy orphans living with me, plus my four kids.” We did not realize that Daniel and Aidda were caring for 26 kids. Like our brother, Joseph, who pastors in Eldoret, Kenya, they do not just pastor needy families; they live by a daily faith that is stretched often beyond what seems possible.

1 Comment

11/30/2025 1 Comment

Great Grandpa York

Caswell and Margaret York, parents of Henry Clay York

Meditation
Romans 12:12--Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer.

1 Comment

10/26/2025 4 Comments

Praying God's Will

Barbie with Ron

Recently, I traveled to central Florida with my sister, Barbie, to spend time with Dad, who was not doing well and, according to our brother, Nate, might not live much longer. Once again, Dad surprised us. He snapped out of his comatose state, recognized us, and was able to briefly converse and display the joy that permeates his life. While Dad slept most of the time, the three of us siblings were able to catch up and share meaningful conversations. During one of those discussions, Nate shared something that challenged my thinking, and I want to share it with you, hoping it might encourage you as it did me.

4 Comments

8/18/2025 1 Comment

Ignorance on Fire

Pastor Brett Williams

Pastor Brett Williams made a statement that caught my attention while teaching at Agape Church on Sunday morning. “Ignorance on fire is better than knowledge on ice.” Now that is an arresting statement that deserves scrutiny.

1 Comment

7/1/2025 0 Comments

What Matters

Angel serves as an elder at Waymaker, a church that began thirty years ago. He is one of the most faithful donors. If there is a men’s breakfast, count on him to be there. If the church needs workers for onsite repairs, he helps. Often, the pastor calls on him to pray over the offering. He leads the security team at the church, but his team has a high turnover rate.

0 Comments

6/24/2025 1 Comment

As Good as Dead

October 7, 2023 Survivor

In Genesis 18:11, it states that Abraham’s wife, Sarah, had passed the age of childbearing. Yet the Lord told them that she would give birth to a son. Sarah laughed at the absurdity, but the Lord said to her, “Is anything impossible for the LORD?” (vs. 14). Years before, God promised Abraham “Look at the sky and count the stars, if you are able to count them. Your offspring will be that numerous” (15:5). Despite his age, Abraham believed God and it was “credited to him as righteousness” (15:6). He was 100 years old, and Sarah was 90 when Isaac was born (17:7, 21:5). Through Isaac and his descendants came the nation of Israel, the very country whose survival is threatened by those who would annihilate them.

1 Comment

6/5/2025 0 Comments

Understanding Protection

In the war of the colonists against Great Britain, Benjamin Franklin wrote:
In the beginning of the contest with Britain, when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayers in this room for Divine protection. Our prayers, sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a superintending Providence in our favor . . . And have we now forgotten this powerful friend? Or do we imagine we no longer need His assistance?

0 Comments

5/28/2025 1 Comment

Empty Speculations

Here are five of the most common myths about Christianity:
1. Christianity is anti-science and anti-intellectual.
2. The Bible is full of errors and contradictions.
3. A good person can get into heaven.
4. Christianity is merely a set of rules and regulations.
5. All Christians are hypocrites and the same.

1 Comment

5/20/2025 0 Comments

Wounded Tiger

T. Martin Bennett writes a remarkable nonfiction book, Wounded Tiger.[1] It narrates the true story of Mitsuo Fuchida, Jake DeShazer, and the Covell family, showcasing the intersection of their lives during World War II and its aftermath. I highly recommend this book for its profound depiction of God’s redemptive hand at work.

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5/16/2025 1 Comment

To Be Entrusted

Padel Code

Beth* walked off the court before our game started, sat down by the chain-link fence, and sobbed. Then she grabbed her gear and left the pickleball courts. Candace caught up with her and tried to comfort her. While that was going on, Jimmy (who was going to be her partner) came over and explained what had transpired. He commented to her that he did not enjoy playing with her in a previous game because she was too loud and excitable. Beth was already aware that her behavior might be too much for people, so Jimmy’s words increased her insecurity and hurt her feelings.

1 Comment

4/8/2025 0 Comments

Self-Righteous

Meditation
Deuteronomy 9:5,6--You are not going to take possession of their land because of your righteousness or your integrity. Instead, the Lord your God will drive out these nations before you because of their wickedness, in order to keep the promise He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Understand that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stiff-necked people.

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3/19/2025 2 Comments

Overflowing Hope

L-R: Bill Wadley, Dan York, Laura Wadley

He had a pretty rough upbringing with three different mothers and two different fathers.[1] His dad was an alcoholic and gambling addict. His 16-year-old birth mom was a drug and alcohol abuser. At the age of five, he had to take care of three half-siblings in the apartment, and if anything was broken or went wrong, he was beaten. He was seventeen before he found out his stepdad was not his real father.

2 Comments

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YOUR CART

When Following Jesus Can Cost You Everything

God Sees, Hears, and Knows

Faith in the Dust: A Devotional for Those who Feel Forgotten

Double Portion

"We're Going to See a Miracle in the Next 24 Hours."

Game Over!

I Have Observed

Tragedy

What Matters II

Great Grandpa York

Praying God's Will

Ignorance on Fire

What Matters

As Good as Dead

Understanding Protection

Empty Speculations

Wounded Tiger

To Be Entrusted

Self-Righteous

Overflowing Hope

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