There were so many outstanding women in scripture that were leaders. And, you know, the organized church sometimes puts boundaries on us that the Bible doesn't.

One misconception is that if we follow God in the life of faith, and that means obedience - that we read His Word, we're obedient, we pray, we go to church, we do the right things - that somehow His blessing means we're going to be okay.

God cannot be less than Himself. And God is good. And active. And faithful. And He cares.

Prayer offered without faith by a person that doesn't truly believe God exists will not be effective. Sin in our lives that we refuse to confess will also render our prayers ineffective.

Abraham is such a fascinating figure. Three world religions - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam - all claim him as a patriarch. He was raised in a religious home. And yet he rejected religion in order to pursue a personal relationship with God.

Faith is like a tender plant, rooted in Christ alone, watered by the Spirit and the Word, strengthened by the winds of adversity and the sunshine of blessing.

When I was a teenager, I was trying to please people. I kept changing who I was to please the people I was with. And so once I just decided I wasn't going to do that anymore. I was going to live my life to please God. And so from that day to this, that's been my aim. Some people don't understand, but you can't please everybody anyway.