Author: Phil Rehberg

searching God distant sky night telescope

Does God Seem More Distant? It’s An Opportunity!

Posted on by

God is very big on faith. It is the way we connect with Him and it is even the way we are saved. In  human relationships faith, or trust, is a precious commodity as well. We might love someone with all our heart but still not trust them because we deem them untrustworthy. A mother may be willing to die for her wayward adult son, but not trust him enough to let him live with her because of his destructiveness. But God is not destructive, just mysterious and challenging, and trusting Him takes time. This is why He goes to great lengths to develop faith in us. After we have been following Jesus for several years God will typically take away our sense of His presence in order that we might learn deeper faith. He does this because He loves us and wants to be more united with us. And Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

The Spirit In Us Overpowers The World – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

Posted on by

“For he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. ” I Jn 4:4b (ESV)  This verse is one of our bulwarks against all that would tear us down! God is all powerful and his Spirit lives in us. We have his spiritual power that keeps us focused on love and truth and no spirit, no person, no institution, and no destructive desire inside our outside of us can cause us to stumble when we stay centered on God’s Spirit who has made us his temple and lighthouse for the world. Try putting your name in this verse and repeating it ten times. Then repeat throughout the day and see how this strengthens you. God Will Reward The Pure – Weekly Words Of EncouragementNovember 17, 2025Our Future Perfect CommunityNovember 14, 2025God Will Show Us Mercy – Weekly Words Of EncouragementNovember 10, 2025

holy spirit dove stained glass

10 Temptations of Spiritual Renewals In Your Life – Part 2

Posted on by

Do you ever face these temptations when you are trying to let the Spirit guide you? Keeping ourselves open to the Spirit is essential to a complete Christian life but it comes with temptations that can gradually derail us. This continues a list of temptations that individuals and churches experience which we began last week. Bad principles of discernment. When the Holy Spirit moves people are happy and everyone wants to encourage and trust each other in what they do and say. But this causes problems especially in the area of prophecy, (i.e., speaking words from God.) The temptation is to encourage people that if they are focused on God and asking for words from God then if something comes to them then it is probably from God. I’ve been in more than one gathering where this was clearly taught. But Hebrews 5:14 states “But solid food is for the Continue Reading →

Weekly words of encouragement

Whatever We Ask We Receive – Weekly Words Of Encouragement

Posted on by

“Whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.” I Jn 3:22 (ESV). This promise appears in the middle of a discussion about loving one another, which John says is the main commandment. So the promise and encouragement in this verse is that our commitment to actually loving others and to pleasing God leads to answered prayer. God blesses those who follow him in Christ by giving the good things they ask for. We know that sometimes devout Christians don’t receive what they pray for; John partly explains this later in Jn. 5:14 where he says that we should pray according to God’s will. But when an obedient Christians prays for what God promises they can be confident that God will say yes. God Will Reward The Pure – Weekly Words Of EncouragementNovember 17, 2025Our Future Perfect CommunityNovember 14, 2025God Will Show Continue Reading →

holy spirit dove stained glass

10 Temptations of Spiritual Renewals In Your Life – Part 1

Posted on by

The Holy Spirit has brought many renewals to individuals and to his church over the centuries, bringing needed refreshment and invigoration to the people of God. Usually there is a strong sense of his presence and believers find themselves experiencing God in ways they never had before. This continues today. If we want to preserve the benefits God gives in renewal we will be wise to watch out for common temptations and faults that often accompany renewals, whether it is individual renewal or community renewal. Here are 10 temptations of renewal we need to watch out for today: A spiritual sweet tooth. This means putting a high priority on sweet spiritual feelings or blessings. This becomes a huge distraction from God’s work in renewal. He definitely wants to give good spiritual feelings but the problem is that we become attached to and focused on them. We seek God’s hand instead Continue Reading →