So many of our days are made up of ordinary moments. Clean the kitchen. Write an email. Do the laundry. Buy our groceries. We live in a series of ordinary, necessary patterns and somehow lose track of this truth of the incarnation:

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

AS FOLLOWERS OF JESUS, WE HAVE SEEN GLORY.

That glory is Jesus Christ, fully God, fully man, all that God has to say to us (the Word) choosing human flesh to live and walk among us. And yet it is easy for us to forget that glory is unveiled, in our midst, resurrected within the mundane routine of our days. I have seen the glory of God in a handful of ordinary moments this past month:

My panic attacks first started at the beginning of the summer of 2017, before I embarked on my study of theology. After 33 years of life and ministry, I had experienced mild depression, periods of distraction, weeping and grief, but never anything that deeply challenged my own mental health. The catalyst was hearing of yet another spiritual leader who had entered into moral failure. It was not the first time I had...

My last article traced an introduction to my experience with panic attacks and this second part closes with further reflections on why I am (unexpectedly) thankful for them. In January of this past year, I took time for my first personal retreat weekend in Cornwall at a stately manor home, with a weekend set aside for reading and reflection in solitude. I have been discovering the richness and joy of the gift of solitude. Continue Reading...

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…” (John 1:14).  Christmas is a celebration of God in His humanity. Our faith is unique among world religions for this simple belief: Our God chose to stoop, to lower Himself, to become one of us. All of God’s Word to man became flesh and lived with us.  We read inGenesis 1:2of a time when “the earth was without form and void.” From that formlessness, th...

When was the last time you were overwhelmed? Last month? Last year? Earlier today? At this very moment?I have been reading in2 Samuel 21:15-22:7, and the idea of giants in our land. In these chapters, David is king of Israel. The chapters before held the story of the rebellion of a “worthless man,” a three-year famine, and at the beginning of the reading above, it says in the ESV that “David grew weary.”

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Which would be worse... to stay and watch your country torn apart by war or to travel days on end through bitter cold to escape the suffering? Winter is a terrible, beautiful thing. We speak of the winter of our souls, the icy seasons where we cannot see or feel the voice of God.Scripture dances around this idea of cold, speaking of the God who hurls down ice crystals like crumbs (Psalms 147:17), the one wh...

It is always easier to focus on the cracks and the controversy than to seek and proclaim the good. I remember spending hours discussing what would happen to Calvary Chapel when Pastor Chuck passed away. It was at the time a foreign and fascinating concept that he might someday not be the leader of our church family. Much has been written of his legacy and recorded of his preaching.If Pastor Chuck Smith was...

I sat next to a beautiful woman I have met only twice, and she told me about her divorce and liturgical background, her ex-husband's remarriage and her newly discovered growth as a single mother. Then she said to me, "I like the idea of following God. But I don't really understand Jesus."When you grow up as a Christian kid, you hear many analogies of the Trinity, the egg, the apple (complete with illustrate...

For many years I have loved Jesus. I cannot remember a time when I did not (my parents and pastors and lifelong friends are a testimony of how I knew that love). I grew up, deeply rooted in the Word of God at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and deeply received the love of God through His people.As I grow in years and hopefully in maturity, I find more and more why I love Jesus.Today I write from Kyrgyzst...

As soon as the average person in the United Kingdom finds out I am a Christian, I battle their instant suspicion. Eyes narrow, voices change pitch, occasionally silence ensues. I immediately identify myself as being on some sort of team, and not one they are very comfortable knowing. I've been asked all sorts of questions:"What kind of Christian?""Do you really believe the Bible is true?""Are yo...

In the Christian life, there is a tenuous balance between confident faith and foolish promises. At times we are called to live with expectant hope that God does more, far more than our wildest dreams, as Ephesians so beautifully explains. “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and i...

I've been thinking, reading and studying quite a bit around the topic of idolatry lately. I know. Idolatry. It's not necessarily the word on the tip of our tongues. Most recently, I was reading this verse: “Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do good." T...

The Word of God is very precious to us. Within the Calvary Chapel movement, we have learned it from Genesis to Revelation, verse-by-verse, book-by-book. Throughout my years of ministry, I am increasingly passionate about the power of the Word of God for our lives.Over the past two years, as I live in England, I am also increasingly convinced of the truth of these words:“All word and no spir...

I grew up as a Calvary kid. My first memories are losing my first tooth in the Tape Lending Library, rolling under the pews in the Costa Mesa sanctuary, going to church on Sunday morning, Sunday night, Thursday night and one or two days in-between.I am one of thousands who grew up in Calvary Chapel churches and schools. I learned many things, but this is my list of the top ten things every Calvary kid knows...

Two and a half years ago, I was sitting in a church service at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa. It was an ordinary Wednesday night, and as I sat listening to the message, I heard the word, “Myanmar.”I vaguely knew that Myanmar was a country, that it was located in Asia and that it had been through some hard times. Several weeks later, I was sitting with friends in another service, and they mentioned that they wer...

I heard a story last week about a preacher who stepped into the pulpit. As he spoke, the congregation instantly recognized the hand and presence of God on his life. He spoke with gentle authority about Jesus, and it was evident that he spoke from experience. Immediately after he finished his message, a younger man stepped into the same pulpit. He was full of exaggerated hand gestures and flashy inflections but lac...

I live a very public life. I post on three social media networks regularly (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram). I share what I am thinking, what daily life looks like for someone loving Jesus in another country, stories of people that I meet, stories of what God is speaking to my own heart.I grew up in a family of nine with two wonderful parents and six siblings. Our lives were always shared together. We shared ...

I love change, but I also love stability. I love new adventures, but I love the depth of long-term relationships. I love travel, but I always love coming home again.Because I love all of these things, I find the "end of an era" to be bittersweet. Like most in ministry, I have lived through the end of many eras. These have included personal ends, as I transition from one calling or country to another. There ...

When I was growing up, I read missionary biographies often.I read about Hudson Taylor, shocking the other missionaries in his eastern costumes. I discovered Gladys Aylward and dreamed about unbinding crippled feet and sleeping in mountain villages. I admired Amy Carmichael and her fierce devotion to Christ and India. When I read the stories of how God led them and provided for them, it seemed extraordinar...

Our world sits in turmoil.Living in another country (England) has given me a fresh perspective on the unrest, debates and hardships around the globe, but we see them clearly from any country. I recently heard an excellent speaker named Brad Jersak, who shared this arresting quote, “We are called to be prophets to our world, not chaplains to it.” He was not disparaging the chaplains...

Every generation, we think truth is new to us. There is a beauty in that and a danger as well. There is a beauty to discovering grace, finding ourselves surprised by the way God loves us and how utterly undeserving we are. There is a joy to encountering the presence of His Holy Spirit and of the first time He speaks radically and personally in our lives. There is a peace that genuinely passe...

Over and over again, I discover how easy it is to say the right things, yet how often I must be reminded to live them. Over and over again, I am reminded how necessary it is that I preach the Gospel to myself. I know that I am a sinner saved by grace. I have memorized the Scriptures, including whole books of the Bible in my teen years. I have sung the songs and read the stories, and the truths that h...

I love the way Jesus used questions: But who do you say that I am? (Luke 9:20)Do you believe this? (John 11:26)Do you not yet understand? (Mark 8:21) When I was young, I'm certain I asked many questions. Children simply do. We are innately born seekers, longing to grasp what we do not yet understand. Somewhere along the way, I stopped asking some of the good and necessary questions...

My first job was at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa. I filed invoices, filled paper in copy machines, and learned the ins and outs of data entry at Calvary Distribution. When you grow up working in the ministry, there’s an interesting process of discovery. You discover that people might fail, but Jesus never does. You discover that Christians have good days and bad days, and there are many ways to approach the bu...

Years ago, I heard a pastor named Dave Rolph speak at a memorial service. He spoke about life and death, and he said something like this: “The reason we hate death so much is that God created a world where death didn’t exist. Our hearts rebel against the pain of separation, because it was never God’s original intent that death and sin would enter the world.” I can almost hear him speaking those words over a decade...

Sarah Yardley, ministering in England, speaks at Creation Fest 2015. Creation Fest is a Christian Music Festival and Bible Week held at The Royal Cornwall Events Centre (Royal Cornwall Showground), in Wadebridge...

Unity is a concept often discussed but rarely accomplished. Recently, I've seen it modeled well. Earlier this month, I sat in a gathering with the leaders of Christian festivals from around the UK. They represent events with between 3,000 and 30,0000 in attendance. Our backgrounds are diverse: Pentecostal, Anglican, New Frontiers, Methodist, Calvary Chapel (that's me, in case you were wondering), and more. ...

Name: Sarah YardleyFamily: I am the oldest of 7, and adore my siblings. My parents came to know Christ before I was born and raised me in faith.Years Born-again: 32 years Years in Ministry: 16 years Ministry Experience: Servant, women's ministry, children's ministry, missions/outreach, events coordination, ...

Most of the medical community, and those of us who are trained in even the basics, know that the Hippocratic Oath begins with the phrase, "First, do no harm." It's the stepping stone of medicine, both ancient and modern. Our opening line is the simple instruction to do good, not evil. I recently sat with a friend of mine who is far from God. She believes He probably exists, but openly states...

I realized this week a startling fact: I am an immigrant. (Technically, still in progress, with a long road ahead unless I can convince a British man who loves Jesus and makes more than 18,500 pounds a year to fall in love with me. But that's another story.) Growing up in California, immigration was always fiercely debated. Border control wasn't a far-off political issue but a very present concern. On a hig...

On paper I don't have much in common with teenage skater boys. There's the age gap, the coordination gap, the culture gap...the list goes on. During my time in England, I inherited a legacy of skate and Christian outreach. Unexpectedly (like so many other parts of my journey), I found that God gave me a great love for these young men. Last week, I sat on a panel to answer these questions for twenty mostly a...

We wonder at the mystery of a God who became man in many ways. This past week, I had three separate encounters with wonder and worship. As we enter the Advent season, I captured three snapshots worth sharing. First, a refugee camp, standing at the doorway of an orthodox Eritrean church. My friends and I arrived in the driving rain, removed our muddy boots, lingered in the back, partly present and partly obs...

I was driving with my sister the other day and made an offhand comment about a situation that was frustrating to me."Man," she said, "at least admit you're bitter about that!"I hadn't realized I was bitter, to be honest. I had couched my feelings in nice Christian phrases, “It's just a little frustrating.” “I'm praying God convicts them.” “I'm ok with it, but....”And God used her words to remi...

I grew up at Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa under the teaching of Pastor Chuck Smith. I didn’t realize at the time how fortunate I was to have him as my pastor, my teacher and my friend. I started sitting in the main services from age thirteen, and went “through the Bible” with Pastor Chuck four separate times.One year and a bit ago, I moved to England. Slowly it dawned on me how rare and almost encyclopedic ...

I jumped into youth ministry with a full heart, grand ideals, high hopes, and - limited experience. Eight years later, I look back at the unbelievable ways God worked and the many, many lessons learned, and wholeheartedly realize that anything good was a work of God’s grace. Here are a few of the life lessons that I would share with any youth or ministry leader:1.Look to JesusIf this seems overly o...

I have discovered that very often, life in the United Kingdom is anything but united. We see throughout Scripture the call to biblical, grace-filled,Spirit-led unity. In Christ's final prayer, we find these words: I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. ...

Rethinking DiscipleshipAs a thirty-year-old woman who grew up in a Christian home, I had many, many people who spoke into my life. Some did it with purpose, some by default, and some out of the overflow of what Christ had done in their lives. If you had asked me, three or four years ago: what is discipleship? My answer would have been some vague mix of theology and an allusion to the disciples being calle...