Author name: Pastor Burns

Zephaniah 3:1–2 “Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city! She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the Lord; she drew not near to her God.” There is something deeply tragic about someone who refuses to listen when the voice calling out is one of…

2 Timothy 4:6 “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.” Those are not the words of a man filled with fear. They’re the words of someone at peace, ready to meet his Saviour. Paul uses the imagery of an offering—his life being poured out like

2 Timothy 4:8 “Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” Paul wasn’t looking at a Roman executioner—he was looking past him, to the face of

2 Timothy 4:7 “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” Paul’s words carry the weight of a life poured out. “I have kept the faith” isn’t a casual statement—it’s a declaration of endurance. He had been shipwrecked, beaten, imprisoned, betrayed, and abandoned. Yet through it all,

2 Timothy 4:7 “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” Paul didn’t see his life as a string of achievements but as a battlefield of faithfulness. He wasn’t bragging—he was testifying. The Christian life isn’t easy. It’s a fight to keep going when your body is

2 Timothy 4:6 “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.” There’s something beautiful about readiness—not for a trip or an exam, but for eternity. Paul sat in a Roman prison, his execution near, yet he didn’t write in panic or fear. Instead, he said, “I

Mark 6:48 “And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them…” Sometimes it feels like life is all uphill. You’re giving it everything you’ve got—rowing, straining, pressing forward—but the wind just won’t cooperate. That’s where the disciples were. They were right where Jesus had told them to be—out on the

Mark 6:50 “For they all saw him, and were troubled. And immediately he talked with them, and saith unto them, Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid.” They thought He was a ghost. They cried out in fear. But then, through the crashing waves and their pounding hearts, they heard His voice: “Be

Mark 6:48 “And about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.” It’s a strange moment—Jesus, walking on the sea toward His disciples, looks as if He might pass right by. He’s not ignoring them, and He’s not abandoning them. But He waits.

Mark 6:45–48 “And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship… and he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them…” The storm wasn’t a surprise—it was scheduled. Jesus constrained the disciples to get into the boat. He knew the wind would be contrary. And still, He sent them. Why? Because sometimes storms