“the Whole Story” Series

“Where we find our confidence” – 1 Samuel 2:1-10

1 Samuel 2:1-10

“And Hannah prayed and said,

“My heart exults in the Lord;
my horn is exalted in the Lord.
My mouth derides my enemies,
because I rejoice in your salvation.

“There is none holy like the Lord:
for there is none besides you;
there is no rock like our God.
Talk no more so very proudly,
let not arrogance come from your mouth;
for the Lord is a God of knowledge,
and by him actions are weighed.
The bows of the mighty are broken,
but the feeble bind on strength.
Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread,
but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger.
The barren has borne seven,
but she who has many children is forlorn.
The Lord kills and brings to life;
he brings down to Sheol and raises up.
The Lord makes poor and makes rich;
he brings low and he exalts.
He raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the ash heap
to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
and on them he has set the world.

“He will guard the feet of his faithful ones,
but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness,
for not by might shall a man prevail.
The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces;
against them he will thunder in heaven.
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth;
he will give strength to his king
and exalt the horn of his anointed.”


The world we live in is always changing, which leaves us feeling out of control. This causes us to seek answers from many different sources and areas in our life. A lot of times people look for answers in places that will leave them confused, hopeless, and helpless. No one likes to feel like they are powerless. Many believe that knowledge is power, which brings them comfort. The beautiful thing is that we have complete access to all the wisdom in the world if we will seek after the right answers from the only true God.

Hannah had a deep desire to pursue knowledge and wisdom, so she could find comfort, hope, and peace. She had direct access to all the wisdom in the world and heaven from her Heavenly Father. All she had to do was cry out to Him in prayer and He would answer. Hannah thanked God for His salvation and praised Him for who He was. As we see in the scripture, Hannah was able to be honest with God because He desires to hear our hearts. Hannah cried out the character of God and continued to focus on His goodness and mercy. She was able to find confidence in God because He is always faithful. He never turns away from His people or leaves them. God is present, always, so we must be present, always.

My brothers and sisters in the faith, please cry out to our Heavenly when you are hurting, feeling confused, and ready to give up. Please cry out to Him when He has blessed you and comforted you. He will speak to you, calm you, and give you confidence like He did for Hannah. 


God wants to use YOU for His glory. Please remember that statement in the highs and especially the lows. My friends that don’t know Jesus just yet, I am praying that Jesus will continue to work on your soul, so you can find divine rest, comfort, and wisdom. If you have any questions about wisdom, hope, rest, or Jesus, we would love to help.

Use the HEAR method as you spend time on today’s passage. 
Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you? 
Explain – what does the passage mean? 
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today? 
Respond – how is God leading you to respond?

Macon Jones, Pastor to Students and Young Adults 

“Where we find our confidence” – 1 Samuel 2:1-10 Read More »

“How Should We Respond to Sin in Our Life?” – Psalm 51

Psalm 51

“Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!

“For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgment.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

“Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.

“Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.
Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

“Do good to Zion in your good pleasure;
build up the walls of Jerusalem;
then will you delight in right sacrifices,
in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;
then bulls will be offered on your altar.”

This deeply personal prayer is a glimpse into the heart of a broken man. David wrote this psalm after his sin with Bathsheeba and the fallout from his poor decisions. Psalm 51 holds some powerful lessons in how we are to face our sin in the presence of a Holy God.
  1. We are to remember and rely on God’s character – “according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy”
  2. We are to own our actions and acknowledge who our sins are against – “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned”
  3. God has chosen to use those who will repeatedly stumble and continually need His mercy and grace “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.”
  4. Only God can cleanse us and restore us – Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.
  5. In the aftermath of God’s restoring mercy, we are able to counsel others in their struggle and testify of the hope found only in Him. “Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.” 
  6. Our sin constantly reminds us of our need for a savior – “Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.”
While using the HEAR method (see below) consider the following questions: 
  • How does David’s response to his sin in Psalm 51 challenge you? 
  • Has shame over sin sidelined you from being restored and reused in God’s ministry? Go through the points above and pray them in light of your own situation. 
Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you? 
Explain – what does the passage mean? 
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today? 
Respond – how is God leading you to respond?
Jon Price, Associate Pastor

“How Should We Respond to Sin in Our Life?” – Psalm 51 Read More »

“Is God Your Genie in a Bottle?” – Matthew 7:7-11

Matthew 7:7-11

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

The prospect of a genie in a bottle to grant three wishes always draws an audience. Who would pass up the opportunity? Maybe the philosophical intellect that argues the peril of three dangerous wishes, but, even with the danger, I’m game.

If you think about this text, it seems that Jesus is our genie offering unlimited wishes. Yet, from experience, we know that is not the case. In verse 11, Jesus says He gives us good things. Some things I ask for may bring me pleasure, but may not be good. He also says to ask anything in His name or according to His will, so we cannot assume God gives everything we desire.

The emphasis of this text is less on what we request and more on the fact that we have an open invitation to ask. We have access to God. Christ is calling us to close communion with our divine Father. He wants us to know that He loves us, He is listening to us, and He is ready to answer us with His goodness.

Is there something that you need to ask from God? God will give a response and it will be an appropriate, holy response.

While using the HEAR method (see below) consider the following questions: 
  • Have you ever asked for something from your parent(s) and didn’t receive it because they knew better?  
  • What is something that you desire, but might not be the best thing for you? Why? 
  • Has there been a time when you asked God for something, but what He gave you was different, and better? 
Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you? 
Explain – what does the passage mean? 
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today? 
Respond – how is God leading you to respond?
Pastor Stephen Williams

“Is God Your Genie in a Bottle?” – Matthew 7:7-11 Read More »

“A Prayer of Desperation” – 1 Samuel 1:1-20

1 Samuel 1:1-20

“There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephrathite. He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other, Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

“Now this man used to go up year by year from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the Lord. On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb. And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. And Elkanah, her husband, said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?”

“After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. And she vowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”

“As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman. And Eli said to her, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.” But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” Then Eli answered, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.” And she said, “Let your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.

“They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord; then they went back to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, “I have asked for him from the Lord.”


While using the HEAR method (see below) consider the following questions:

  • When you are overwhelmed with great anxiety, How does Hannah’s prayer compare with your prayers? 
  • Does a passionate prayer guarantee the desired outcome? 

Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you?
Explain – what does the passage mean?
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today?
Respond – how is God leading you to respond?

“A Prayer of Desperation” – 1 Samuel 1:1-20 Read More »

“Restorer and Sustainer” – Ruth 4

Ruth 4 

“Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, “Turn aside, friend; sit down here.” And he turned aside and sat down. And he took ten men of the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. Then he said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our relative Elimelech. So I thought I would tell you of it and say, ‘Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people.’ If you will redeem it, redeem it. But if you will not, tell me, that I may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you.” And he said, “I will redeem it.” Then Boaz said, “The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the widow of the dead, in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance.” Then the redeemer said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”

“Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one drew off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was the manner of attesting in Israel. So when the redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” he drew off his sandal. Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and to Mahlon. Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. You are witnesses this day.” Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you act worthily in Ephrathah and be renowned in Bethlehem, and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the Lord will give you by this young woman.”

“So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.” Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.”

“Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.”

Boaz orchestrated a meeting with the man first in line to have the opportunity to redeem Ruth. He caught him as he passed the city gate and in front of the city elders, presented the proposition. The relative was interested at first when he only thought the responsibility would be the acquisition of some land. There might be an opportunity for a profit to be made. But when he learned about the obligation toward Ruth, he wasn’t interested. His responsibility there would be to provide her a child so her husband’s family line could continue. However that would have complicated matters for his own children’s inheritance, so he passed. 

Boaz was not only willing to incur any debt that was attached to Ruth, but provide her with a child that would be credited to her former husband’s line. His act of love not only rescued Ruth, but Naomi as well. The women who had greeted Naomi upon her devastated return home, now recognized the turn of events as a blessing from God. They recognized Boaz as a restorer and sustainer. 

While using the HEAR method (see below) consider the following questions: 

  • How does the story of Ruth and Boaz parallel or point to Christ? 
  • What consequences resulted beyond the immediate resolution of Boaz redeeming Ruth?  
  • What might this imply when we are about God’s business of restoring and sustaining? 

Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you? 

Explain – what does the passage mean? 
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today? 
Respond – how is God leading you to respond?
Jon Price, Associate Pastor

“Restorer and Sustainer” – Ruth 4 Read More »

“Fiduciary” – Ruth 3

Ruth 3


“Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek rest for you, that it may be well with you? Is not Boaz our relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor, but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do.” And she replied, “All that you say I will do.”

“So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had commanded her. And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down. At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer.” And he said, “May you be blessed by the Lord, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman. And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the Lord lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.


”So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could recognize another. And he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” And he said, “Bring the garment you are wearing and hold it out.” So she held it, and he measured out six measures of barley and put it on her. Then she went into the city. And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you fare, my daughter?” Then she told her all that the man had done for her, saying, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said to me, ‘You must not go back empty-handed to your mother-in-law.’”She replied, “Wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest but will settle the matter today.”

Some traditions, actions and accounts in the Old Testament leave us scratching our heads. I mean what’s all this about Naomi telling Ruth to lay down at Boaz’s feet while he slept? Ok, feigned nativity aside, I believe Naomi was encouraging Ruth to, as the kids say, “lock it down.” But I think this next chapter in the story is just one more glimpse into Boaz’s character. 

He had already displayed care and generosity for Ruth by allowing her to glean wheat from his field. But sometimes we do good for ulterior motives. We give a little to get a little. And Ruth didn’t have many options left. Boaz certainly could have taken advantage of the situation, but he showed integrity and true concern for Ruth, even her reputation. He made it clear to her that he wasn’t about to cut any corners in taking care of her. 
There’s a term in the investment world relating to this – “fiduciary.” Some financial advisors get kickbacks and perks from certain products that they sell, even if it’s not the best option for their client. But a fiduciary is legally bound to have their client’s best interest in mind, even if it doesn’t benefit the advisor as much. It’s the attitude of ‘client first.’  
Boaz was acting in a fiduciary capacity. Look at his words above. He was saying in effect, “look, Ruth, I’m going to make sure that you’re taken care of. And we’re going to go about it the right way.”
In God’s economy, the ends don’t justify the means. And when we act with integrity and as a fiduciary towards others, God will honor that and our actions will glorify Him. God’s blessings will outweigh any perks we might be tempted to finagle by cutting corners or helping ourselves as we “help” others. 
While using the HEAR method (see below) consider the following questions:
  • Have there been times when your charity has been a mask for what you might benefit from the action?
  • Do you even think this is an issue? Why or why not?
Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you? 
Explain – what does the passage mean? 
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today? 
Respond – how is God leading you to respond?
Jon Price, Associate Pastor

“Fiduciary” – Ruth 3 Read More »