Hardwired with Jeff Wickwire

How hard have you had to persevere for things in life? Everyone has had to endure a tough season at one time or another, and the only way they made it through is by holding on and persevering. Pastor Jeff reminds you today to stay persistent when asking the Lord for the things you need. God is a loving Father, but He also wants to build you up and strengthen you. By persistently seeking the Lord, your faith will grow stronger, and with His help, you will be able to handle life’s challenges.

Sin is a disease that has infected all of mankind, but it’s easy to point out the sin in other people’s lives without addressing what is going on in our own hearts. Pastor Jeff reminds us today that while it is important to be able to call out sinful behavior in those around us, we need to reflect on the sin in our own lives and confess it to the Lord so that we can begin to remove it from our eyes and see more clearly around us. This makes you better equipped to help your friends and neighbors with their own sin.

It is extremely difficult to go through life without judging. It is basic human instinct to want to compare yourself to someone else, to find ways where you are living your life better than they are. However, Pastor Jeff teaches today that God has called you to use those instincts for the good of mankind. Instead of just judging people in order to make you feel better about yourself, use your judgment and discernment to call out sinful behavior, and become an example of righteousness for those around you.

Worry is a tricky thing to deal with. It really is another word for fear, because, in the end, you worry about something because you fear the outcome that it may have in your life. You worry about finances because you fear poverty, you worry about your relationships because you fear loneliness. But Pastor Jeff reminds you today to not worry about the things of this world because God has you in the palm of His hand. He will provide for all of your needs, all you have to do is trust in Him.

The heart is kind of like a compass, it points you in the direction you most desire to go in. That’s why Pastor Jeff teaches that it is important to set your heart on the treasures of Heaven because your feet will follow where your heart wants to go. Your actions will always be a reflection of your priorities. Even if you are able to act against your own wishes for a short time, you will inevitably turn back to your true desires. Take the time to pray and ask God to help you set your heart on His will.

Have you ever been conflicted with the direction of your life? Have you ever thought that you had it all figured out, only for God to throw a wrench in your plans? Today in his message, Pastor Jeff reassures you of the blessings that come with choosing God’s plan. Even if it seems reckless and doesn’t make sense, God’s way will always be the best way. Turn your life around and discover your divine purpose. It’s not enough to simply be a Christian. Remain active for God’s kingdom and experience progress. 

Are you disillusioned by your past? Are you living a life full of shame and regret because you can’t seem to get the monkey off your back? In today’s message, Pastor Jeff wants you to know that if you want to blossom into the best version of yourself, you need to let God take your hand. When you put Him behind the wheel, He’ll do nothing but alleviate your burdens and give you the freedom you’ve always wanted. Step into a life full of renewed power by remaining steadfast in God’s grace. 

There are many philanthropists in the world who give large amounts of money to good causes, but many of them attach their names to their efforts to gain attention from it. Pastor Jeff teaches you today that you shouldn’t do good works just to gain earthly glory from them because that glory is only temporary. Instead, you should seek to bring glory to your Father in Heaven with your actions. He is pleased with those who don’t need to be recognized by men, but are instead satisfied by His favor.

When you do good things, who are you seeking to please? Pastor Jeff points out how the Pharisees used to make grand gestures with their prayer, fasting, and giving in order to look good in front of people, but Jesus warned that their reward wouldn’t matter in Heaven. Rather, do what you do to bring glory and honor to God, and see how He can reward you for your efforts. Do you want to build up brownie points here on Earth, or do you want to earn favor with your eternal Father in Heaven?

Have you ever wished your enemies would just drop dead? Wouldn’t it be better if they just ceased to give you trouble, and went away forever? Well, Pastor Jeff reminds you today that you are called to have mercy on those who wish to harm you. After all, they are also God’s children, who need to hear the message of the Gospel and be reconciled with Him. So instead of fighting back against your enemies, find ways that you can seek reconciliation with them, and how you can lead them to Jesus.

Do you know someone who knows exactly what buttons to press to make you angry? It can be someone close to you, or someone you barely know, but either way, they have this inexplicable power to ruin your day. Well, Pastor Jeff shows you today how Jesus has called you to resist the urge to get mad when someone insults you. It may take all of the strength in your heart not to fight back or get defensive when you feel insulted, but the best way to show Christ’s love is to turn the other cheek.

Divorce is a terrible thing for anyone to go through, regardless of who was or wasn’t at fault. Pastor Jeff shares his own testimony regarding divorce in today’s message but also shares that there is hope for those who have gone through the painful process. God loves you unconditionally, and as His child, there is nothing you can do to make Him love you less. He sent his only Son to die for you, and He would do it again if that’s what it took to be reunited with you. His grace covers a multitude of sin.

Life is a race. Whether you want to admit it or not, life is simply a matter of getting to the finish line. When we get to this finish, what’s the point of putting in the work? If we simply pass away and get buried in the ground, what’s the point? Today in his message, Pastor Jeff wants you to know that you need to remain steadfast in finishing the race of life strong. There’s nothing more important than crossing that finish line and hearing God congratulate you on your work. Be on fire for the mission of God’s kingdom.  

In your faith journey, how do you approach God’s Word? Is it just an old book that you pick wisdom from? Or is it a blueprint for how you approach the trials of this world? In today’s message, Pastor Jeff wants you to know that if you want to blossom into the person that you know you can be through Jesus, you need to start the Bible. The lies of the world will always try to bring you down and the truth of God’s Word is your only defense. Stay diligent in fighting for God’s Kingdom. 

If you go to a garden supply store, you’ll see aisles and aisles of products meant to provide better soil for your plants. That’s because you can’t grow healthy and strong plants without the nutrients they need to grow. In today’s message, Pastor Jeff reveals how the Sermon on the Mount is meant to put good soil in your heart so that as you grow in your walk with Christ, the fruit that you produce will reflect the good soil that was placed in you and not the bad soil that you were born with.

Exchanging one thing for another is the backbone of human society. You usually need to offer something of equal value to purchase something from someone else. But salvation is something that you cannot hope to buy on your own, you need someone else to buy it for you. Pastor Jeff reminds you today that God did that exact thing by sending Jesus to be the sacrifice for your sins. Jesus’ blood paid for your salvation, and the good works you do in life can’t repay Him for that gift.

Everything around you is turning to dust. The laws of physics say that things can’t go from disorder to order, instead, they go from order to disorder, and that’s exactly what happens with the human race as well. The longer you go without God, the more disordered your life becomes. Well, Pastor Jeff teaches today that Jesus has empowered you to be the salt of the world, to stop people from decaying by restoring them to His presence. He is the cure that the world needs and you are His messenger.

If you have ever competed in sports at a high level, you know the amount of dedication and discipline it takes to win. Athletes will spend years practicing the fundamentals of their sport, often with strict workout and eating regimens implemented by their coaches. Well, Pastor Jeff teaches you today that God is the ultimate spiritual coach. He is teaching you how to exercise your spiritual muscles, and how to rely on His presence to be your strength rather than your own imperfect mind and body.

All believers will go through difficult challenges as part of their walk with Christ. You were never promised an easy path through life, but you were promised eternal life at the end of it! Pastor Jeff reminds you today that the Christian walk isn’t about avoiding difficult trials, it’s about how you respond to them. You have the option to complain and groan about your struggles, or you can choose to find joy in the trials and rejoice in the tribulations. Scripture says that endurance produces strength.

When you’re tempted, what is your defense? When Satan attacks you, how do you stand firm in God’s promises? Today in his message, Pastor Jeff reminds you that when you’re facing difficult trials and feel like giving up, never forget who will never leave your side—Jesus. You should never feel alone in your mistakes. Everyone has issues that resurface and the key is to keep Jesus at the center of it all. Even He faced difficult temptations from the devil and how did He prevail? By knowing the Bible. 

In your faith journey, have you ever been impatient with God? Have you ever had an idea for the plans for your life and tried to take matters into your own hands? Today in his message, Pastor Jeff wants you to know that you’ll never be able to beat God’s timing. No matter how well you think you have it all figured out, God will always have the best in store. Change your life trajectory and transform your circumstances. The more you discover humility in your life, the closer to the heart of Jesus you’ll be. 

Have you ever watched how Olympic sprinters run their races? They keep their eyes laser-focused on the finish line. They don’t look to their left or right, because those distractions will hold them back from their peak performance. Pastor Jeff teaches you today that the only way you can endure the trials of the world is if you keep your spiritual eyes focused on Heaven, on the reward that is awaiting you in the next life. The enemy can’t distract you away from God’s path if you are focused on His presence alone.

Have you ever tried to walk the wrong way on an escalator? Or tried to paddle a kayak upstream? It takes so much extra work to make progress, that it’s tempting to just give up and go where the stairs or the current is taking you. This is a lot like life, where Pastor Jeff shows you today that following God isn’t always going to be an easy journey. In fact, there will be many times that it feels like you’re trying to fight against the entire world. But yet, God’s path is the only one that leads to eternal life.

Isn’t it hard to let go of something that God has blessed you with? Even if you know there’s something better around the corner, it’s easy to hold on to the security of what you already have instead of reaching for what’s new. But Pastor Jeff teaches that Moses had to do this exact thing to follow after God: he had to let go of his earthly position in the royal household of Egypt, and instead embrace the role that God was making for him, to be used by God in the liberation of the nation of Israel from slavery.

God’s providence is an invisible force that is always working behind the scenes in your life. You can’t always see, hear, or feel it working, but God is working nonetheless. Pastor Jeff teaches you today about how God was working in Moses’ favor even as an infant, guiding the basket containing baby Moses down the Nile river until it was encountered by Pharaoh's daughter. Moses’ parents had faith that God would take care of their son, and the Lord used him to free the people of Israel.

Because of the fallen nature of humanity, all of us have been corrupted by sin and deserve death. The only way to avert God’s wrath is for someone else to bear it in our place. But Pastor Jeff reminds you that just like when God made a way for Abraham to sacrifice a ram in the place of his son, Isaac, He has also made a way for a sacrifice to be made in our place, and the one who was sacrificed for us is Jesus Christ. We don’t have to endure the eternal consequences of sin because of the blood of Jesus.

It’s easy to think that it was easy for Jesus on the cross. Whether you believe He truly is the Son of God or whether He’s just another holy man, the importance of the cross easily gets diminished. Today, Pastor Jeff reminds you to never forget the importance of Jesus’ sacrifice. When He freely gave His life, it wasn’t easy. When Jesus sweat blood before His sacrifice, it wasn’t just a stunt. He was so concerned about this decision that He felt the weight of it. Rejoice in the freedom you have through Jesus. 

Do you ever take matters into your own hands? Even when you know God’s plans, do you ever try to move things along by your own might? Today, Pastor Jeff reminds you that no matter how well you think you have it all together, God’s plan will always serve to bless you the most. The more you exercise patience and let God do his thing, the closer you’ll be to the person you want to become. Experience your full purpose by taking God’s hand and letting Him lead. He has plans for your life that you could never fathom.  

What happens when you stop watering a plant? For most plants, they will start to wither and die without a source of water in their soil. And just like a plant, your faith can wither or die if it’s not fed by an external source. But Abraham learned to feed his faith not through material blessings, but instead through the presence of God. Pastor Jeff wants you to be able to withstand seasons of waiting because God’s promises don’t come with a short wait time. It can take years to see His promises come to fruition.

Are you good at walking backward? Very few people are able to walk as quickly backward as they are forwards, and there is more danger of tripping and falling since you don’t have eyes in the back of your head. But Pastor Jeff teaches you today that there are many people who follow God while walking backward, they are just focused on what they have left behind. If you want to have the faith of Abraham, you need to let go of the things you have left behind and fix your eyes on the better things to come.

Abraham is one of the best examples of faith in God that you could hope to follow. In today’s message, you’ll learn from Pastor Jeff about how Abraham gave up his life of comfort in his homeland to follow the new promises that God had given him. Although he didn’t know what the next several steps would entail, he trusted in the Lord to lead him to green pastures and springs of clean water. When God calls you to go somewhere new and unknown, will you follow His lead, or will you stay back in fear?