After a heinous beating with whips, an unfathomable march up a mountain, and a gruesome crucifixion, the Savior of the world was officially declared dead. As His final breath expired from His lungs, the hope of His disciples and the hopes of the world expired as well.
Read MoreJesus was crucified on a stony mountain called Golgotha. He was raised up on a cross for a public spectacle and humiliation. Hammered above Him were the mocking albeit ironically true words, “King of the Jews.” Christ, though King of the entire universe, willingly stepped into this infamous death for us.
Read MoreShame. Guilt. Accusation.
These are all things that an angry mob threw at a broken and humiliated woman. They were desirous to crush her with words and with literal stones. Thankfully Jesus put Himself between her and the crowd and essentially told them that they would have to come through Him to get to her.
Read MoreMost of us are familiar with the story of David and Goliath. There is something enchanting about the story of the small boy defeating the mighty giant.
Read MorePictures, trophies, framed degrees, and art are all things we place in our homes and offices to celebrate memories, our accomplishments, or the people we love. We are good at archiving what is most important to us. For curious visitors, we love to recount the stories behind the different memorabilia that we have staged around the places where we live and work. Some of these things encourage or inspire us and we hope that they might do the same for someone else.
Read MoreWhen we get impatient, we can act irrationally and irresponsibly.
Read MoreWhen the Jews were in the wilderness, they often had to wait anxiously at the feet of Mount Sinai for weeks before Moses descended to bring them a message and the ordinances of God. At that time, Moses was their primary connection to God. The people benefited from Moses’s friendship with God even though they did not have face to face contact with God the way that he did.
Read MoreStones are everywhere. They come in millions of sizes, shapes, and colors. Some are beautiful and others are plain. There are some that are too big to lift and others that you can kick mindlessly with your shoe. No matter their differences, all stones have one thing in common.
Read MoreNumber Six. The sixth state in a 14 state journey with the girls. As we creep upon the halfway mark in this experience, it’s amazing to look back on the six trips we’ve taken (three of which have been on the actual Appalachian Trail) with our little group of sojourners.
Read MoreMost of us are aware of how downturns in the economy have affected people’s mental and emotional health. Crashes in the stock market have created crashes in people’s psyche and overall sense of security. We have witnessed how the fallout of one’s bank account can lead to a fallout in one’s overall well-being. Those who are able to invest the stock market outsource much of their revenue and their future to a mercurial and ever-fluctuating financial machine. This outsourcing can be very risky, particularly if we tether our joy to the fruits or the failures of the market.
Read MoreWe have been entrusted to live out and proclaim “good news” to a world in desperate need of it. It stands to reason that news becomes better and better in contrast to the bad news that it is addressing.
Read MoreWitnesses are important to major events. If you have ever attended an impressive concert or an incredible sporting event it’s always refreshing to get various perspectives on what people saw and heard. Before visiting a new restaurant, many of us turn to Yelp to get the opinions of various people and to hear about their experiences. Their vantage point informs are own decisions. A myriad of positive reviews typically encourages us to give the new eatery a try.
Read MoreThe Martin Luther King Jr. holiday provides each of us with an opportunity to reflect. MLK’s life and death are a testimony to someone who was willing to stand on behalf of justice to a point where it literally cost him everything.
Read MoreRestoration Academy was honored to be featured on WBRC Fox 6 this week! The What’s Right in Our Schools segment focuses on the positive news of the day…especially from Fairfield, where not much positive is being reported.
Read MoreThe new year often feels like a reset button. As the calendar makes a big shift we often feel motivated to make big shifts in our lives. With the rollover from 2018 to 2019 there is a belief that we can leave the pounds, the mistakes, and the bad habits from last year behind us. The new year is rife with promise.
Read MoreThe story of Jesus’s birth through the eyes of our students. “I’ve got to ride on this thing for four days… this is how it’s going to go down like this…”
Read MoreOur students have lots of thoughts about where Jesus was born… it sounds like Birmingham… did someone say Ham?
Read MoreIn this season of giving… what would our students give baby Jesus on his birthday?
Read MoreAs we continue to celebrate Advent we recount the amazing words of the angels that were shared with shepherds in a lonely field one night. A marginalized group of men, doing a dirty and thankless job, were surrounded by heavenly emissaries. The words of the angels were part of a long awaited announcement that the Savior of the world had finally arrived.
Read MoreMost children in this country grow up with the joy and wonder of Santa Claus. His mysterious and magical delivery of gifts each Christmas is contagious for kids.
The story of Santa Claus is a beautiful tradition started with a real person who has risen to mythical proportions.
