Ventures for Christ

06/10/2026

𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗠𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘆 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻

Martin Luther's most famous hymn has been sung for five centuries: "A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing." But what exactly is a fortress — and what does it mean that God is one?

This week's 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 takes Luther's great hymn and Psalm 46 together to explore what God as fortress actually provides: protection from attack, yes — but also justice, security, and the display of the Sovereign's power. And then it shows this important truth: 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦. 𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘢 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯. And prayer is how we arm ourselves to leave it and enter the battle.

"𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘴." — Ephesians 6:18

Read "Our Mighty Fortress is a Person" — 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 #23 here:.
👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-23

06/04/2026

𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗴𝗲

You've probably seen it on a coffee mug or a wall print: 𝘉𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘎𝘰𝘥. It sounds like an invitation to a quiet morning. But Psalm 46 wasn't written for quiet mornings. It was written for the day when the mountains are falling into the sea.

This week's 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 takes a close look at one of the most quoted — and most misread — verses in the Psalms. The "be still" God commands isn't about achieving inner calm. It's addressed to nations and powers striving against Him: release your grip. Know who actually rules. For those of us who pray in the middle of chaos, that reframing changes everything.

"𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳-𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘳, 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺." — Psalm 46:1–2

Read "God Our Refuge" — 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 #𝟤𝟤 here:
👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-22

A Year of Reflections 2026: Reflection #22 by vfcadmin | Jun 4, 2026 | Blog Home, Year of Reflection | 0 comments God Our Refuge (Psalm 46) Michael Floyd, Editor God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains f...

06/01/2026

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙏𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙈𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙖𝙝 𝙅𝙚𝙨𝙪𝙨 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲!

In this issue:

👉 Pastor McCarty continues his series on The Lordship Cross, walking through the ten defining postures of Christ's own mind — from loving and serving to dying and exalting — and pressing disciples to "take hold" of Jesus through the daily practice of Cross Discipleship.

👉With June bringing the year's longest days, we explore what Jesus meant when He declared Himself the Light of the World — why that claim goes far deeper than inspiration, and what it looks like to walk in His light when the darkness the calendar can't fix is the kind that matters most.

👉 Plus, an encouragement to engage with Ventures' growing library of digital content — from Pastor McCarty's newspaper articles to our weekly Year of Reflections blog.
.. and more!

Read the full newsletter here: https://venturesforchrist.com/newsletter/june-2026

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05/27/2026

𝗔 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁

What do you actually delight in? It's a more revealing question than it sounds.

Psalm 37:4 makes a promise most of us know: "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." But what does it really mean to delight in God — not as a spiritual technique for getting what you want, but as the genuine orientation of a life?

This week's 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 explores that question through a remarkable real-life story: a man who had very specific ideas about what he wanted his life to look like — and found, years later, that delighting in God had given him everything he'd hoped for, just not the way he'd imagined it.

Prayer, it turns out, is one of the primary places where duty and delight meet — where what we owe God and what we love about God begin to feel like the same thing.

"𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘬: 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦." — Psalm 27:4

Read "A Delightful Prospect" — 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 #𝟤𝟣 here:.
👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-21

05/20/2026

𝗕𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗥𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗯

Most of us know the walls of Jericho came tumbling down. Fewer stop to notice that one section of those walls didn't fall — because a woman named Rahab lived there. A Canaanite. A pr******te. Someone with every reason to stay silent and every reason not to be trusted. And yet she is in the genealogy of Jesus.

This week's 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 looks at Rahab's story as a study in bold faith — the kind that acts on what it believes, takes real risks, and discovers that God honors it. And it asks us what bold, confident faith looks like when we come before God in prayer.

"𝘓𝘦𝘵 𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘎𝘰𝘥'𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥." — Hebrews 4:16

Read 𝘉𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘙𝘢𝘩𝘢𝘣 — A Year of Reflections #20 here:
👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-20

A Year of Reflections 2026: Reflection #20 by vfcadmin | May 20, 2026 | Blog Home, Year of Reflection | 0 comments Bold Rahab Ruth Ann Stites, Staff Writer Do you remember the song, “Joshuah Fought the Battle of Jericho”? I think this spiritual, with vivid words and upbeat music, is memorable. T...

05/14/2026

𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿'𝘀 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗭𝗼𝗻𝗲

There's a stretch of road in Rogers where, if you know what to look for, you can still see a small remnant of the original Arkansas prairie — a transition zone between forest and open grassland. It's an unlikely place for a spiritual insight. But transition zones have a way of teaching things that settled landscapes can't.

This week's *A Year of Reflections* makes the case that prayer itself is a transition zone — the place where the business of heaven and the concerns of earth meet. Worship and petition. The transcendent and the ordinary. And both of them belong there.

"𝘔𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶, '𝘚𝘦𝘦𝘬 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦!' 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦, 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥, 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘬." — Psalm 27:8

What would it look like to bring both your highest praise and your smallest worries into the same prayer?

Read 𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳'𝘴 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘡𝘰𝘯𝘦", AYOR #19:
👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-19

A Year of Reflections 2026: Reflection #19 by vfcadmin | May 13, 2026 | Blog Home, Year of Reflection | 0 comments Living in Prayer’s Transition Zone Ruth Ann Stites, Staff Writer Growing up in Benton County, Arkansas in a family interested in nature introduced me to many aspects of the natural wo...

05/06/2026

"𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗱, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗼 𝗜 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗸: 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗱𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲."

David wrote Psalm 27 from inside a real threat — enemies advancing, false witnesses, abandonment pressing in from every side. His confidence wasn't a feeling. It was a decision, rooted in a single conviction: The LORD is my light and my salvation.

And then he narrowed everything to one request. Not safety. Not victory. Just God.

This week's 𝘈 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 explores what it means to make God Himself our "one thing" — and why that choice is the very ground of bold, confident prayer.

"𝘞𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋; 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋." — Psalm 27:14

Read "Seeking the Face of God" — A Year of Reflections #18 here:
👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-18

05/01/2026

𝗧𝗵𝗲 May 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙏𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙈𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙖𝙝 𝙅𝙚𝙨𝙪𝙨 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲!

In this issue:

👉 Pastor McCarty unpacks twelve transformative characteristics from Philippians 2:5-11, showing how the Mind of Christ moves us from being a God Thinker and Self Denier all the way to sharing in His exaltation as we learn to think, feel, and act like Jesus did.

👉 We discover what it means to belong to the Good Shepherd who doesn't just recognize us from a distance but knows each of us by name—our particular stories, our hidden fears, our nearly-abandoned hopes—and who chose to lay down His life for His sheep.

👉 Plus, reminders that following the Shepherd means learning to recognize His voice above all the competing voices, trusting His leading even through dark valleys, and resting in the truth that He is more than enough.
.. and more!

Read the full newsletter here: https://venturesforchrist.com/newsletter/may-2026

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04/29/2026

Every 92 minutes, Old Faithful erupts—right on schedule, year after year, just as it has for centuries. It's one of the great natural wonders of the world. But as impressive as that kind of consistency is, there's a faithfulness that puts it to shame.

"𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘧𝘶𝘭, 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘚𝘰𝘯, 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥." — 1 Corinthians 1:9

This week's A Year of Reflections explores what it means that the God we bring our prayers to is utterly, unchangingly faithful—and why that truth should make us bold every time we approach His throne.

Read "Being Faithful" — A Year of Reflections #17 at the link below.
👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-17

04/22/2026

"𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘥; 𝘐 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵." Most of us have known those words since childhood. But familiarity can make us move too fast—skimming the surface of language that was written to stop us in our tracks.

This week's A Year of Reflections slows down and looks closely at the stunning imagery of the Psalms—particularly Psalm 25—and invites us to let these ancient poems do what they were always meant to do: draw us deeper into prayer, and deeper into God.

When's the last time a psalm made you pause and really see something?
Read "Words of Beauty, Power, and Promise" — A Year of Reflections #16 at the link below.

👉 http://venturesforchrist.com/year-of-reflection/2026-reflection-16