We have only three weeks left until Easter. Let’s spend this time intentionally. We don’t want to skip through this season and show up at Easter; rather we want to pace ourselves and make our way there. 

Each day leading up to Easter, may we move a step closer to Jesus, allow some of the clutter of life to fade away, and allow Him to mold us more into who He wants us to be. Perhaps that looks like spending a few more minutes in prayer, reading the Bible with expectant hearts, or showing grace when we don’t feel particularly graceful. Sanctification is a gradual process. 

Let Easter be a time of drawing closer to Jesus each day so that by Good Friday, we feel closer to Him when we stand at the empty tomb.

In Christ’s love,
James

In our society, we value comfort, predictability, and a soft landing in every difficult circumstance.
The model of Christ is exactly the opposite. As we move toward the humiliation of the path to
Calvary, we are faced with the reality of the cross. Crucifixion was meant to be a slow, public,
and excruciating death.

Jesus’ wrists and feet were nailed through the most tender parts of His body, where large
nerves are closest to the skin and bone. Every breath caused Him to press up from those fresh
wounds just to expand His lungs enough to breathe. His back, shredded from the Roman
scourging, made contact with the wooden beams with every step He labored to take. The weight
of His body, hanging by nails, caused agony to pulse through His arms and shoulders as
weakness, dehydration, and blood loss took over.

This was not immediate death. This was hours of asphyxiation, pain, and humiliation carried out
in front of an audience. And yet Christians worship a Savior who endured all of this torture
voluntarily for our sake.

Jesus’ suffering was not caused by needless violence. It was love in its most costly form.
Through those hours, He carried the weight of the world’s violence, sin, and decay and did not
shy away from one more stripe of that reality. The cross reveals God’s heart for His children and
just how far He was willing to go to stand in our place.

The pain was real. The cost was great. And the love behind it all is immeasurable.

When we gaze upon the crucified Christ, we cannot help but see love displayed on a cross for
the life of the world. As we get closer to Holy Week, sit with this a bit each day. There is no life
without suffering, no freedom without bondage, and no resurrection without death.

In Christ,
James

Rev. James A. Williams
Senior Pastor
Grace Resurrection Methodist Church

One of the quiet realities of the Christian life is that temptation does not disappear with time. It does not matter whether you have walked with the Lord for five months or fifty years. The enemy still knows how to place shiny distractions in front of us. He offers new opportunities, new environments, and new promises that seem cleaner and easier than the path God has already set before us. And if we are honest, our hearts often respond by trying to control things. We start adjusting our circumstances, protecting what we think we have earned, and maneuvering situations so that we feel secure.

Yet the truth is that much of what we hold onto so tightly was never ours to control in the first place. Life has a way of shaking what we think is solid, and those moments reveal whether our trust is really in our own strength or in God’s faithful hands. The invitation of faith is simple but difficult: let go. Surrender. Trust that the God who brought you this far is able to carry you further still.

Scripture gives us a powerful picture of this kind of trust in the life of the prophet Jeremiah. By every earthly measure, Jeremiah had reason to give up. He had been mocked, beaten, and humiliated for speaking God’s truth. Yet in the middle of that hardship, God asked him to do something that seemed almost absurd—to invest, to buy land, and to believe that God still had a future for His people.

Jeremiah had a choice. He could run from the calling, or he could trust the Lord’s plan, even when it made little sense. In that moment he declared, “Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.”

That kind of surrender has marked the lives of many faithful believers throughout history. When William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, was once asked the secret of his influence, he simply said that God had all there was of him. That is the heart of the Christian life. When we stop striving to control everything and instead place our lives fully in God’s hands, our vision becomes clearer and our purpose steadier. We were made for that kind of surrender, and through it God can lead us further than we ever imagined.

In Christ,
James

Rev. James A. Williams
Senior Pastor
Grace Resurrection Methodist Church

“I fear we are graduating preachers with too many beliefs and not enough convictions.”

—Dr. Daniel Walbert to the 1963 graduates of Dallas Theological Seminary

I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about this very thing over the past ten years. Now, let me just say, I will never be accused of being an academic! 😀 The joke among my buddies and me in seminary was always, “C equals M.Div.” But I did OK in spite of my laziness in studying. Though I’m thankful that I have Greek and Hebrew under my belt, I’ve told my congregations over the years that I passed Greek by the grace of God and Dr. Chris Stratton.

It’s amazing to me that the above quote is from about 55 years ago. I think it hit a bull’s-eye, but the problem is that nothing changed through the years—this only got worse on our seminary campuses. Most likely, in the 50s and 60s, you would never have had professors hired by seminaries who didn’t even believe in God, but that is often the case nowadays, and it shows in the church. We entrusted young, called people to professors who had issues with Scripture and their own agendas. And we wonder why so many people still stay away from the church.

Between theological malpractice and the power plays that happen in congregations, I wasn’t much good as a pastor on some days. I was second career and was doing pretty well in life, but God called me—and He called me hard. So Natalie and I entrusted every part of our being to God’s will and way, and we were blessed because of that.

But as I made my way through a sick system and the ridiculous organizational dynamics of the church, I often felt like I was doing ministry with one hand tied behind my back. Young people and the unchurched see absolutely no need to add that extra stress to their lives.

About three years ago, I had a revelation. It didn’t cause me to pep up like Popeye after eating a can of spinach. Instead, it led me through deep and rocky times in my soul and spirit. But what came out of that murky season was this: I emerged on the other side with much stronger convictions.

I don’t want to be dogmatic, judgmental, or unkind. My prayer is that I will always speak the truth in love. But the quote above haunts me. I wrote it in the front of my journal today so I’ll see it day after day and remember that, though we have a world full of seminary-educated graduates, we still have much to do to become the true people of God—and we’re behind the eight ball.

Yes, I understand the cultural differences of Israel in the first century. But a good preacher’s goal will always be to lead a church into the ways of the early church described in the Book of Acts.

The formula for winning the world to Jesus is conviction combined with radical grace. That’s a picture of Jesus. How we ever forgot that in the church, I don’t know. But I’m committed to seeing people’s lives transformed by that great, great power.

How about you?

In Christ,
James

A woman in Florida had a malignant tumor in her face. Her physician told her the only available treatments would cause much pain and some disfigurement. The treatments did not offer a cure, but they would probably buy her more time. She listened and then said, “No thanks, Doctor, I’m not going to take the treatments.” Somewhat alarmed, he said, “Look, if you don’t take the treatments, you are going to die.” With an angelic smile and a steady faith, she replied, “Doctor, I didn’t come here to stay.”

All of us are transients on this earth—some here for 90 years, some for 50, and some for less than a year. This life is just a prelude to the main event. That does not mean this life is unimportant; it just means the most important thing one can do on earth is to make reservations for eternity.

There is something quietly powerful about the words, “Doctor, I didn’t come here to stay.” They are not words of despair, but of deep assurance. They remind us that while we work, build, love, and labor here, we were never meant to cling to this world as our permanent address. Scripture calls us sojourners and pilgrims, and this story puts flesh on that truth. Life is precious—every conversation, every prayer, every act of kindness matters—but it is not ultimate. When we remember that this life is a prelude to the main event, we begin to live differently. We loosen our grip on temporary things and tighten our hold on eternal ones.

Yet this perspective does not make us passive; it makes us purposeful. If our days here are preparation, then every moment becomes sacred ground. We forgive more quickly. We love more generously. We serve more boldly. We walk through suffering with a steadier faith because we know the story does not end here. To “make reservations for eternity” is not merely about a future hope; it is about a present transformation. It is about trusting Christ fully, living faithfully, and remembering that our true home is secure in Him. And that assurance gives us both courage for today and confidence for forever.

In Christ,
James

I’ve been dreaming of planting a new congregation for over 30 years. In my early days of ministry I tried to shake it off and be content with serving existing churches. I’m glad I did. Not only did it prepare me for God’s gracious answer to my prayer but I met some of the most wonderful people along the way.

A pastor is in one of the most privileged positions. It affords opportunities to love and be loved by gracious people who’ve been assigned to help you grow spiritually and to see the Lord in clear, beautiful ways. But there’s nothing like being a part of God doing a new thing. Church planting is not a new tactic we’ve cooked up. In fact, it’s part of God’s story from the beginning. Scripture tells us that God has always been gathering a people for Himself, and sending them out into the world for others to know Him.

Think about Jesus’ words to His disciples in Matthew 28:19–20. “Go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Jesus never intended for that command to stay localized. In fact, the book of Acts is essentially a church planting narrative. Read through it and you’ll see church after church being sent out by the Spirit into new cities all over the map.  Planting a church is simply obedience to that same command today.

The Apostle Paul had this command in mind as he traveled. He planted churches all over the known world. In fact, look at what Paul says in Romans 15:20. He says that from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, he preached Christ, and he ONLY preached the finished work of Christ where Christ had been named. Paul set out with a heart to reach the places where Christ had not yet been given a name. That should be every mission’s heart. That should be every church planter’s heart.

We pray that no one in your community would perish without knowing Christ. We believe that God wants churches to spring up all over the place, churches that reach their community and speak to their neighbors in ways that civic organizations simply cannot. Planting a church is an act of faith. It’s trusting that the Spirit still calls, saves, and builds His Church today just as it was in the day of the apostles. Jesus promised in Matthew 16: 18 that He will continue to build His church, and that the gates of hell would not prevail against it. When we plant a new church, we’re not building something. We’re joining into what Christ is already doing.

I’m excited about the future and I’m asking you to pray for me and the congregation of Grace Resurrection. The pioneer spirit is building daily and the Holy Spirit is moving in a way I’ve never experienced. Scripture is clear that God will do the growing. He just asked that we plant and water. That’s the Great Commission. That’s life.

In Christ,
James

I was asked about Queen Jezebel last week and it got me thinking that as sad as the story is it’s a good lesson in how not to go against the plan of God. When we hear the name Jezebel, most of us immediately think of manipulation, pride, and open rebellion against God. Scripture does not soften her story, and while it is unsettling, it offers important lessons for those who desire to walk closely with the Lord.

Jezebel appears as the wife of King Ahab, a Phoenician princess who worshiped Baal. When she entered Israel, she did not simply bring her beliefs with her. She forcefully introduced Baal worship and worked to replace devotion to the one true God. She ruled through intimidation, silenced God’s prophets, and used her influence for her own agenda rather than God’s purposes.

One of the most tragic moments in her story is the account of Naboth’s vineyard. When Ahab wanted land that did not belong to him, Jezebel orchestrated lies, false accusations, and ultimately Naboth’s death so Ahab could take what he desired. It is a powerful example of how unchecked pride and manipulation can lead to devastating consequences.

God saw every action. Through the prophet Elijah, judgment was declared, and in time it came to pass exactly as God said it would. Jezebel’s story reminds us that God is patient, but He is also just. No one is beyond His sight or accountability.

Her name appears again in Revelation, where Jesus warns a church about tolerating the same kind of influence. This tells us that Jezebel represents more than a person. She symbolizes a heart that resists truth and uses influence selfishly. As a pastor, denominational leader and mentor to many young pastors, I’ve never seen a church go against a leader God puts into place, and any good come from it. Though God is gracious and good, God is also righteous and anytime I’ve seen humans try to thwart divine plans, difficult times always follow. Jezebel thought she was right but she was sincerely wrong.

Her life challenges us to examine our own hearts. We are called to guard against pride, remain sensitive to God’s correction, and steward our influence with humility and truth. Jezebel is remembered for all the wrong reasons, but her story points us toward a better legacy. One marked by faithfulness, humility, and deep love for the Lord. We can learn from her mistakes! And we must.

In Christ,
James

Jeremiah 29:11 is one of those verses many of us can quote by heart. “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord—plans for welfare, not harm; a future; a hope. It sounds like a promise made for moments when life is steady and clear. But the original words were spoken to people who felt displaced, disappointed, and unsure if they had missed their chance at the life they imagined.

That context matters. God was not speaking to people who had everything figured out. He was speaking to people who were tempted to fix things on their own, to rush ahead, to grab control wherever they could. In other words, He was speaking to people like us.

Most of us struggle with waiting more than we struggle with trusting. We say we believe God has a plan, but when the timeline stretches or the outcome feels uncertain, we start reaching for the reins. We begin to rely on our own ideas, our own strategies, our own sense of what should happen next. Sometimes that comes from fear. Sometimes it comes from impatience. Often it comes from a deep desire to avoid disappointment.

Jeremiah 29:11 gently calls us back to a deeper kind of trust—not a passive trust that shrugs its shoulders, but a settled trust that rests in who God is. God does not promise immediate relief or easy answers. He promises presence, purpose, and a future shaped by His wisdom rather than our anxiety.

Trusting God with the future means loosening our grip on outcomes. It means praying honestly while resisting the urge to manipulate the result. It means taking faithful steps without demanding certainty. It also means remembering that God sees more than we do and loves us more than we can imagine.

If you are in a season where you feel tempted to take control, pause and breathe. God is not threatened by your questions or your fear. He is patient, steady, and faithful. The same God who spoke hope to exiles speaks hope to you. The future is not something you have to force. It is something you are invited to entrust, one day at a time, into the hands of a God who already knows the way forward.

Remember that you’re loved, and God sees you.

James