Worth the Greatest Price

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1 Corinthians 6:20 – For God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. 

John’s dad had a favorite phrase. He told him often as he could.

“You aren’t worth one thin dime.”

He said it enough times that eventually John believed it. That phrase stuck with him and echoed in his brain. As John grew older, he couldn’t escape those words, and he became an angry, angry person.

By the time he was grown, the impact of his father’s words crept its way into John’s marriage. He couldn’t take it any longer, so he left. He did not believe he could ever be enough for them, so John took a passive role in his wife and son’s life.

In the separation, His estranged wife lent him the family van. The only problem was the radio. It was jammed, stuck on the Christian station. He slammed buttons and twisted knobs trying to make it stop playing.

Weeks went by. Months. Eventually, he quit fighting it and started listening.

Little by little, John’s heart softened. He came back home to his family and asked if they could start going to church. John stood in the water and was baptized.

For the first time in a long time, he felt like maybe his life could be worth something after all.

One day, John decided to clean underneath that car’s radio.

He pulled it out, and discovered why his radio was stuck. There, wedged beneath the preset button, was a single dime.

John just stared at it for a long time.

That same symbol that once represented worthlessness as a boy now told him something entirely different. The coin his earthly father used to define him had been used by his Heavenly Father to redeem him.

In that moment, John realized his worth was never up for debate. He life had been bought at the highest price—the life of God’s only Son.

He still carries that dime in his pocket as a reminder of the God who never stopped believing in him.

It makes me wonder — do you know you’re worth it, too?

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Are there words from your past that still shape the way you see yourself?
  • How does knowing that you were “bought at a price” change the way you see your worth?
  • What’s one way you can remind yourself this week that your value comes from God—not anyone else’s opinion?
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Moments That Carry Faith

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2 Corinthians 5:7 – For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Seventeen years ago, I liked to pretend I had life mostly figured out as I danced through the chaos. Truthfully, I was lost and searching.

Back then, I worked in a New York City bar, wrapped up in a world that felt exciting and reckless but hollow underneath. Nights were for partying, Sundays for dragging myself to a church pew. Somehow, I convinced myself the two worlds could live side by side. Deep down, though, I was unraveling.

But God didn’t give up on me. He never does.

There were breadcrumbs along the way—little hints that He was near. One afternoon, a church service played on my television. The preacher said something so ordinary, yet it stopped me in my tracks: “Walk by faith, not by sight.”

I can’t explain why, but those words lit up my insides like a flare.

I grabbed a marker and scrawled them across my whiteboard. For the first time in a long while, I felt steady. Those words helped me shift my eyes away from the chaos and toward God.

Even in my mess, I began to believe He was still watching over me. Looking back now, I see how those breadcrumbs led me to finally say, “I’m done” with the party life—and to go all in with Jesus.

These days, I sit on the other side of that story, working in Christian radio. And I watch the same kind of thing happen every day.

A driver leaving the hospital. A weary commuter stuck in traffic. A mom sitting in the carpool line. Then a song comes on. Suddenly, it feels like God Himself has slid into the passenger seat. Listeners call us through tears to say it was exactly what they needed in that moment.

And you know what amazes me? Those moments aren’t magic. They are generosity. They happen because someone gave—someone believed it mattered to keep the music playing.

Never underestimate the ripple of giving. You may never see the full reach of your faith gift, but it matters.

Once, I needed a phrase on a whiteboard to survive my storm. Today, someone else might need the lyric of a song. And maybe—just maybe—that song is playing because of you.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • What does it look like in your own life to “walk by faith, not by sight”?
  • Can you think of a “breadcrumb moment” when God showed you He was near, even in your mess?
  • How has someone else’s generosity or obedience impacted your faith journey?
  • Is there a step of faith God might be inviting you to take today—something that requires trust before the evidence appears?

 

LYRICS:

Would I believe you when you would say
Your hand will guide my every way?
Will I receive the words you say
Every moment of every day?

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Well because this broken road
Prepares your will for me

Help me to win my endless fears
You’ve been so faithful for all my years
With one breath you make me new
Your grace covers all I do, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah yeah

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Well because this broken road
Prepares your will for me

Well I’m broken, but I still see your face
Well you’ve spoken, pouring your words of grace

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Well, because this broken road
Prepares your will for me

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Oh well, because this broken road
Prepares your will for me

(Well hallelujah, hallelu)
(Well hallelujah) I will walk by faith, I will walk by faith
(Hallelu) I will walk by faith, I will walk by
(Well hallelujah, hallelu) yeah, yeah
(Well hallelujah, hallelu) yeah, yeah
(Well hallelujah, hallelu) yeah, I will walk, I will walk, whoa, I will walk by faith
(Well hallelujah, hallelu) I will, oh yeah, I will, well I will walk by faith
(Well hallelujah)

Music video by Jeremy Camp performing Walk By Faith (2020 Version).

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God’s Gift In Saying Yes

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Psalms 68:5 — Father of the fatherless, defender of widows — this is God, whose dwelling is holy.

Michael did not set out to be a foster parent. He did not even see himself as a man of strong faith. His days were steady and comfortable, and he thought that was enough.

Then a friend suggested he get involved in a mentorship program through a church. Michael agreed. He figured a few Saturdays a month were easy to give.

Those Saturdays quickly became more than games and fast food. Two boys began showing up at his table – and in his thoughts – again and again.

They were loud and funny, but they were also vulnerable in ways Michael could not ignore. Their questions made him stop and think. Their trust, though fragile, felt weighty. Slowly, the boys began to matter more to him than he had ever expected.

When he learned the boys needed a permanent home, Michael did not hesitate. He opened his door, and in doing so, opened his life. Suddenly his once-quiet house was filled with life. Backpacks could be seen tossed in corners, video games could be heard in the hallways, and laughter could be felt rattling the walls.

It was in that chaos that Michael discovered something missing from his life: faith.

Through the boys’ presence, their need, and their love, Michael came to see what had been right in front of him all along—that God is truly a father to the fatherless, and He was drawing Michael back to Himself.

Michael liked to say he thought he was saving the boys, but in the end, they saved him.

And is that not just like God—to take what you thought you were giving away and to then give you back more of Himself? Thats the funny thing about saying yes. You think you are doing it for someone else, but then you realize it was exactly what you needed all along.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • When have you said “yes” to something that stretched your comfort zone—and found God met you there?
  • How has God used relationships in your life to reveal more of His character to you?
  • Psalm 68:5 reminds us that God is a “father to the fatherless.” What does that truth show you about His heart for people—and for you?
  • Is there a place in your life where God might be inviting you to say “yes,” even if it feels small or inconvenient?
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Finding Strength for Hard Days

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2 Corinthians 12:9 – But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

I sat down at the radio mic, staring at the same buttons and wires I see every day, but today they looked like a mountain I could not climb.

Just before walking in the studio, something happened that knocked the wind out of me. Honestly, that day I did not know how I was going to do the show.

I always try to pray before I go on air. It is a ritual that grounds me, a breath of connection with God before I speak into someone else’s morning. I’m a hot mess, and I know I can’t do anything without the Holy Spirit.

But even prayer felt out of reach. All I managed was one long breath and a half-broken whisper: “God, I need You to take over. I cant even pray. Holy Spirit, I am just so weak. Please come. I need you to take over.”

By the time I lifted my head, nothing about the situation had changed. The hard thing was still hard. But I knew Jesus was there. And His words in 2 Corinthians 12:9 came to life: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

We forget that sometimes, don’t we? We forget that it’s not our polished prayers or strength that move the heart of God. It’s our weakness, offered up as-is. He meets us there. He always has, and He always will.

So, if today feels heavy for you too, don’t dress it up. Don’t put on your “fake fine,” either. Just be honest. Whisper “Lord, take over.” And He will.

Because He’s just that good.

 

A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Where in your life right now do you feel weak—and how might God’s grace be enough in that place?
  • What would it look like to stop trying to fix everything and instead simply whisper, “Lord, take over”?
  • How does 2 Corinthians 12:9 change the way you see your struggles?
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A Simple Place To Pray

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Psalms 145:18 – The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.

That kitchen table had lived a thousand lives. It held cereal bowls on rushed mornings, piles of homework, Sunday dinners that stretched into the evening, and more than a few hard conversations. The wood was scarred, the legs uneven. It was ordinary in every way.

But what happened there in the mornings was not ordinary. Before anyone else stirred, Mom sat at that table. A mug of coffee in her hands. A Bible spread in front of her. Quiet prayers whispered into the stillness. Some days she read. Other days she simply waited. But every day, she met God there.

Her children carried that picture with them, even if they did not know its weight at the time. Years later, one of those kids would find out.

She became a single mother herself, raising three children, juggling bills that outnumbered the dollars in her account. She felt worn down before the day even began.

She did not know what to do, so she did the only thing she remembered: she sat at her own kitchen table.

Coffee steaming. Scripture open. Her prayer was barely more than a sigh. And there, in the middle of her thin strength, she discovered what her mother had found.

“The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.” — Psalm 145:18

God’s mercy is new each morning. It’s available, and whether or not you feel strong enough or good enough, you can still find it.

So friends, remember the church is not the only place revival happens. Sometimes it happens at the kitchen table where bills are scattered and cereal spills. God wants to meet with us in the ordinary, everyday.

The truth is, every one of us has a table. The only question is, will we sit down and meet Him there?

 

 A MOMENT TO REFLECT

  • Where is your “kitchen table” — the ordinary place where you can pause and meet with God?
  • What small rhythms could you begin (coffee, prayer, Scripture) to invite Him into your everyday moments?
  • How does knowing God is near to all who call on Him change the way you see your ordinary life?
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Let The Gardener Work

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John 15:1-2 — I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and He prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more.

It’s just after sunrise, and I’m sitting on the balcony of my apartment with a blanket over my knees and a mug of coffee in my hands. The air is crisp enough to make me pull the blanket tighter.

Everything is still except for the gardener below, tending to the landscaping.

It’s the perfect time for honesty. I close my eyes and whisper the same prayer I’ve been bringing to God for what feels like forever.

“God, can you please just put me back together?”

I want to be whole. I wanted to be the way I remember being before life started chipping away at me.

I take a deep breath and open a book I love. On the pages, a quote from Jon Rodel catches my eye:

“What if, instead of breaking down, you are actually breaking through?”

Oh my goodness. That is so good. It makes me want to run around.

But it doesn’t stop there. It goes on to say, “God is peeling back the parts of us that we do not need anymore. The fear. The pride. The toxic relationships. The toxic actions that we have inside of us. The brokenness. The things that once held us together, but now hold us back. And in their place, God is building something new. You’re not changing. God says you’re becoming, becoming who I created you to be full of light, full of love, full of courage and grace.”

As I read, I thought about the gardener below pruning a rosebush.

From the outside, it looks cruel—cutting back healthy branches, stripping leaves away. But the gardener knows the blooms will come back brighter and stronger for it.

That’s how this feels. It’s like He’s peeling away the things that once held me together but now hold me back.

Now, I know that when my life feels like it is falling apart, God is still working on me. Some days, I still reach for the glue to try to put the petals back on the leaves. But more and more, I’m learning to leave my hands open. To let the Gardener work without rushing Him.

The coffee is cold by the time I finish thinking about these things. But you know what? I can’t help but smile.

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The Bible That Prayed

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Isaiah 55:11 — It is the same with My word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

She almost didn’t find it.

There was no spotlight on it. No labeled box. As she searched through the closet, she pulled a stack of old blankets down, one by one, until something hard and flat slid forward and landed in her lap.

It was her grandmother’s Bible.

The leather was the color of coffee left in the pot too long. It was cracked at the edges, soft in the middle. The spine sagged under strips of tape that had yellowed after decades.

She carried it to the kitchen table and sat there for a moment, just running her fingers over the cover. Then she opened it.

It was beautiful in the way only old things can be. The pages were soft as tissue. Corners were bent from years of folding.

And then the names.

There were dozens. Scrawled in the margins. Squeezed into the white space between verses. A cousin she hadn’t thought of in years. A neighbor who passed away before she was born. A church friend from decades ago.

Every name was written by a verse. A promise. It was like her grandmother had gone through the whole Bible and decided that no one she loved was going to leave this earth without being prayed for according to God’s Word.

She felt tears come before she even realized it. She took it home for safekeeping, and that night, she opened her own Bible.

It had clean pages and plenty of white space.

So, she started writing names and started praying.

And here’s the part that gets me—some Bibles are read through, while others are prayed through. If you believe prayer is powerful, imagine just how much more powerful it is to pray for people according to God’s word.

Because God’s word will not come back empty-handed.

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The Simple Secret of Prayer

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Psalms 145:18 — The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.

I’ve got a story to tell you. It’s about an old man who kept an empty chair next to his bed.

He didn’t have many visitors, except for the nurse and a young pastor who stopped by once a week. On one visit, the pastor noticed the chair and asked gently, “Were you expecting company?”

The old man smiled. “That chair is for Jesus,” he said. “Years ago, a friend told me that prayer isn’t complicated. It’s just talking to Jesus like He’s sitting right next to you. So, every day, I pull up a chair and talk out loud.”

He chuckled and added, “It might sound a little silly, but I’ve never once felt alone since I started doing it.”

The pastor was quiet for a moment, moved by the man’s honesty. Over the next few visits, they would pray together that way—like Jesus was right there in the room. And somehow, it changed the way the pastor prayed, too.

Then one morning, the man passed peacefully in his sleep. The nurse said he was found with his hand resting on that empty chair.

Now we don’t know much else, but maybe we don’t need to, because that is the kind of friendship Jesus invites us into. Real, near, and present.

So, friend, if today feels heavy or quiet or lonely…pull up a chair.

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Rock Bottom Redemption

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Romans 1:16 — “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

The doctors said I would not wake up. My brother stood by my hospital bedside preparing for the worst, and still—somehow—I opened my eyes.

No one expected me to make it. I had overdosed in New Jersey, far from my family in Florida. My mom had died not long before, and my godmother was the one trying to hold my life together. She had promised my mom she would tell me about Jesus.

I thought it was sweet—maybe a little pushy—but I never took it seriously.

The truth is, I never knew Him. I had heard the stories. I saw a few videos, but I had no relationship with Him. Instead, I was pursuing what I wanted—modeling, acting, and partying in the city.

That world swallows you fast, and I let it.

Until it almost killed me.

In that coma, something happened that I still cannot fully explain. I saw Him. I saw Jesus. He came close and wrapped His arm around me like a friend and said, “Are you done?”

I knew what He meant because I was. I was done with the running, the pretending, and the pain.

And when I said yes, everything changed.

Jesus brought me back—body and soul. I woke up, confused and stunned, with hospital socks on my feet and my brother’s jaw on the floor. Since then, every day has been part of the comeback. I still mess up, still grow, but now I walk with the One who rescued me.

No, my life is not perfect, but it is His. He took the talents I once used for shallow things and turned them into tools for His story. I speak up because I cannot stay silent. I live for Him, not out of duty, but joy.

We get to live for Him. That is the honor of it all, and I will never be ashamed of that.

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Chain Breaking Honesty

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James 5:16 — “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”

I kept checking the boxes.

Read my Bible? Check.

Said my prayers? Check.

And still I felt weighed down. I’d lie in bed at night and wonder, “What is wrong with me?”

I didn’t want to admit it, not even to myself, but the truth was, I was struggling with a sin pattern. It was one that kept cycling back up in my life, and it came with this private shame I could not shake.

And I had gotten good at covering it with “good Christian things.” I thought if I could stay busy enough with God’s stuff maybe it would go away.

But the guilt only grew heavier.

One Thursday, I went to my weekly Celebrate Recovery group really discouraged.

That night, someone read this verse out loud:

James 5:16 “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.”

I had heard that verse before, but I never noticed that last part.

Not just forgiven. Healed.

I knew how to ask God for forgiveness. I believed grace covered me when I failed.

But healing? Until that night, I did not realized that confessing my sin out loud to another human being could bring healing.

After the meeting, I pulled someone aside—someone I trust—and I told her the truth. The real, honest, ugly version of it. I confessed what I had kept buried and asked if they would pray with me.

She didn’t flinch at what I said. She just listened and then prayed.

I can’t explain it in any logical way, but the heaviness lifted. Something unknotted deep inside. I didn’t feel exposed—I felt safe. And free. It was like God used her voice and her prayer to reach a part of my heart that had stayed locked for years.

That’s the power of confession. It’s not a religious ritual. It’s not about earning grace or checking off a spiritual box. It’s about real, biblical healing.

James wasn’t writing theory—he was giving us a map out of the stuck places. Confess to each other. Pray for each other. Be healed.

If you’re exhausted from trying to fix yourself, maybe it’s time to stop hiding and start healing. Tell the truth to someone safe. Invite Jesus into the places you’ve been managing on your own.

You’re already forgiven, but you were made for more than that. You were made to be healed.

And it starts in the light.

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