9388 Village Highway Concord, VA

Sometimes God closes one door so that we will walk through another, and today was one of those days.

I showed up to a church in person, only to find the doors closed.

But God had already written my steps, and He led me instead to the online service of Calvary Baptist Church. And oh, how I know I was meant to be there.

The service opened with the choir lifting their voices in “My Living Hope”. As they sang, my heart broke open.

Tears streamed down my face as I whispered that truth back to Jesus, He is my living hope. He is the reason I am still breathing, the reason I am still here.

Then Pastor Chad Harris delivered a sermon that shook me deep, preaching from 1 Timothy 4:1-7. He warned us of false doctrine, of teachings that look harmless but carry a deadly sting.

He gave the image of the ocean’s creatures, some beautiful, some terrifying. But it is not always the most frightening that we must watch for. The jellyfish, spineless, brainless, seemingly harmless can deliver a sting that burns with venom.

He said the devil’s doctrine is just like that, deceptive, attractive, but with a sting that leads to death.

And my heart trembled, because I know how often I have overlooked the subtle distractions of the enemy.

Pastor Chad reminded us: the devil’s doctrine distracts, deceives, and derails. He doesn’t just want us to chase sin, he wants us to lose focus, to drift away, to exchange the eternal for the temporary.

He asked us hard questions…

Are we mature believers, or are we simply older in years without depth in the Word?

Are we studying? Praying? Training ourselves in godliness so that we cannot be tossed about by false teaching?

Or have we allowed our faith to collapse like the jellyfish outside the water, lifeless, hollow, without a backbone?

I felt the Holy Spirit press this on my heart: What am I meditating on? Am I guarding my doctrine, or have I grown careless? Do I know the Word enough to discern the counterfeit from the truth?

Pastor Chad reminded us that God desires His people to enjoy His blessings, but the enemy works overtime to keep us from them.

The devil would rather see us distracted by what glitters than focused on what’s holy. He longs to poison our worship with lies.

But God calls us to be inspectors of the Word, to anchor ourselves in His truth, to cling to His promises, and to keep pressing deeper.

This message pierced me, because I have lived through deception.

I have felt the sting of the enemy’s lies.

And yet, here I stand, still alive only by the mercy of God.

I should not be here.

I should not have survived the things I walked through.

But I am still breathing, because my God was faithful when I was faithless.

He raised the dead and I am living proof.

To the beautiful family of Calvary Baptist Church, thank you for being a light, for being faithful to the truth of God’s Word.

I cannot wait to worship with you in person one day, but until then, I will carry this message in my heart.

And to my Lord, thank You for the breath in my lungs, for the mercy in my life, for the grace that keeps me even when I didn’t want to be kept.

You are my Living Hope, my Rock, and my Deliverer.

This was Church #120, and I cannot wait to see where God leads me next on this humbling, healing walk of faith.