Bart's Blog

by Bart Denny Read: Philippians 4:4–9 Most of us know what it feels like when life doesn’t suddenly explode—but slowly gets heavier. Not dramatic. Not loud. Just… weighty. You’re still functioning. Still showing up. Still doing what needs to be done. But inside, it feels like the walls are closing in, and the pressure keeps building. That experience is more common than we're comfortable admitting in church. And it’s exactly the place where the Apostle Paul speaks in Philippians 4. Paul’s words in Philippians 4 matter because they weren't written from comfort. They were written from confinement; Paul was in prison as he wrote this letter to a church under pressure from the threat of persecution. Faithful People Still Feel the Weight One of the quiet lies many Christians believe is this: If my faith were stronger, I wouldn’t feel this anxious. But Scripture doesn’t support that assumption. Even faithful Christians can feel overwhelmed. Even prayerful people can lie awake at night...

by Bart Denny There are moments in life when failure isn’t the hardest thing. Sometimes, the hardest thing is the exhaustion that comes after doing the right thing. After you showed up. After you prayed. After you stayed faithful longer than anyone ever noticed. You didn’t quit. You didn’t walk away from God. You just ran out of strength. That experience can be deeply confusing for people of faith. We know what to do when we sin. Scripture is clear about confession, repentance, and renewed obedience (1 John 1:7–9). But what do we do when we’ve obeyed God, and yet we find ourselves worn down, discouraged, and empty? That question sits at the heart of 1 Kings 19, and it’s why this passage matters so much. Elijah’s Collapse Comes After Victory The story of 1 Kings 19 only makes sense when we remember what has just happened in 1 Kings 18. On Mount Carmel, Elijah stands alone against 450 prophets of Baal. God answers Elijah’s prayer with fire from heaven (1 Kings 18:36–38). The people fall ...

by Bart Denny In Psalm 13 (NIV), we read: 1 How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?     How long will you hide your face from me? 2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts     and day after day have sorrow in my heart?     How long will my enemy triumph over me? 3 Look on me and answer, Lord my God.     Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, 4 and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”     and my foes will rejoice when I fall. 5 But I trust in your unfailing love;     my heart rejoices in your salvation. 6 I will sing the Lord’s praise,     for he has been good to me. There are seasons when life goes dark—and we don’t always know why. Sometimes the darkness comes from suffering we didn’t choose. A loss we didn’t see coming. Confusion we can’t explain. And if we’re honest, those seasons don’t just test our circumstances; they expose how we respond when God feels quiet. I know they do for me. How We Re...

  by Bart Denny What follows is the sermon I intended to preach at Pathway - A Wesleyan Church on November 30, 2025, the first Sunday of Advent, when we would have lit the "Hope" candle on the Advent wreath if heavy snowfall had not preempted our service. This is the first message in a series titled He Came Down: The Wonder of God's Nearness. He Came Down... to Deliver Exodus 3:1-15 Introduction Have you ever walked through a season when you felt… unseen? When you wondered, “Does anyone know what I’m carrying? Does anyone understand? Is anyone even listening when I pray?” As we step into Advent, we need this reminder: Advent tells us we are not forgotten. Advent isn’t about people climbing their way to God. It’s the story of a God who comes down into the very places where we are — the ordinary, the unnoticed, the overlooked. And that’s why we’re not beginning this Advent series where you might expect. Instead of Bethlehem or Nazareth, we’re starting in the wilderness of ...