Author of Life: Raised from the Dead

This powerful message takes us into Acts chapter 3, where we witness Peter and John standing in Solomon's Colonnade after healing a disabled man at the Beautiful Gate. What makes this moment so compelling is Peter's radical honesty: he refuses to take credit for the miracle, pointing instead to the explosive power of Jesus. The Greek word used here is 'dunamis'—the same root that gives us 'dynamite'—reminding us that true transformation comes from divine power, not human effort. We're challenged to examine our own lives and ask: what are we gripping so tightly that we believe will bring us security, happiness, or fulfillment? The message confronts our cultural obsession with control, our if-then thinking that says 'if I just do this, then I'll finally be happy.' But life rarely follows our carefully plotted graphs. The Jewish people had created their own narrative about who the Messiah would be—a powerful military figure who would overthrow Rome. Instead, God sent a servant who would die on a cross. Sometimes God's plan looks nothing like what we expected, and that's precisely the point. We're invited to repent, which simply means to reorient our thinking, to let go of our white-knuckled grip on control, and to breathe again in the refreshing presence of God.