In last month’s Good News article, It Is Time for a Tasting, I reflected on Psalm 34:8, where David invites us to “taste and see that the Lord is good.” This verse is both an invitation and a challenge. It calls us to experience God’s goodness personally and then share that goodness with others. But what does God’s goodness actually look like? For many people, God’s goodness is easiest to recognize during seasons of abundance. We see it in answered prayers, restored relationships, new opportunities and unexpected blessings. Yet Scripture often reveals God’s goodness most clearly during times of struggle. […]

I met Anthony about 7 years ago, and from the moment I met him, I said, “I love this guy.” He’s a big guy with a huge heart. I have yet to meet anyone who doesn’t love Anthony. But the Anthony people meet today is not the Anthony people met years ago. His story is incredible, and I knew months ago that it needed to be shared. Again, his story is a reminder that addiction doesn’t discriminate and that no body is beyond the reach of God’s grace and redemption. Anthony Acampora grew up in a traditional middle-class family in […]

Dr. Jon Elswick, senior pastor

How could I not love my grandparents’ house? Located within the Central Park perimeter of our small town, it served as the only residence surrounding the plaza. Nestled next to the fire station on one side and a grocery store on the other, this was the portion of town “where everybody knows your name.” I would spend afternoons as a young boy talking to the firemen, pretending to drive the truck and climbing the ladders. Or “helping” at the grocery store by weighing beans and coffee while helping the ladies with their umbrellas. Or maybe hanging out with the help […]

For years now, we’ve heard the call to make America great again. But few stop to ask what made America great in the first place. Was it military strength? Economic power? Political genius? History suggests something far less impressive to the modern ear, yet far truer to the work of God. In March of 1863, with the nation tearing itself apart in civil war, Abraham Lincoln called the country to a day of fasting and prayer. In his proclamation, he reached for a truth he believed older and steadier than any battlefield outcome: “Those nations only are blessed whose God […]