Episodes

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues the story of Paul and Silas in Acts chapter 16, verse 24, where they are placed in the inner cell of the prison with their feet fastened in stocks. Pastor John describes how hard it is to comprehend this physical suffering, and then invites listeners to identify the prison they are in right now. It may be chronic illness, cancer, divorce, aging, emotional pain, or the prison of depression. He then leads a prayer asking God for the kind of...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues the story of Paul and Silas in Acts chapter 16, verse 23. After being falsely accused and severely flogged, Paul and Silas are thrown into a prison that is nothing like a modern one. It is a dark, dripping stone dungeon, and the jailer is told to guard them carefully. Their wounds are not cleaned or treated. Pastor John asks listeners to imagine themselves in that position. He admits that, even with faith that God is in control, he would ...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues the series on the opposition we will face as we pursue revival, which is reviving our own heart love for God. He explains that Satan's primary weapon is distraction. If that fails, he may try temptation, and if that fails because we live in ongoing repentance, he will come with opposition. In Acts 16, the crowd joins the attack, and Paul and Silas are stripped and beaten with rods for the work they are doing for Jesus. Pastor John says th...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson asks a question: what if you could have hope and joy in the middle of suffering and adversity? He follows Paul and Silas in Acts 16 as they are singled out, dragged before the magistrates, and falsely accused. That is real suffering, and yet they will be full of hope and joy because they are full of the Holy Spirit. Pastor John says this is not just for them. It is an example for us today. He shares how revival leaders like George Whitefield, Charl...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson looks at the moment in Acts 16 when Paul and Silas are physically seized and dragged into the marketplace to face the authorities. Pastor John shares his prayer that his faith would be strong enough, and his connection to the Holy Spirit close enough, to stay at peace if he ever faced something like that. Jesus told His followers that if they hated Him, they will hate us, and that when we are dragged before rulers, the Holy Spirit will tell us what...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues the revival journey in Acts 16, in the Roman colony of Philippi. After Paul casts the demon out of the slave girl, her owners realize their hope of making money is gone, and they seize Paul and Silas and drag them before the authorities. Pastor John names three kinds of opposition to expect when we seek first the kingdom of God: demonic opposition, human opposition from unbelievers, and human opposition from believers, whose own pride or ...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues the revival journey in Acts 16, in the Roman colony of Philippi, where a demon-possessed slave girl follows Paul and his companions for many days. Paul finally turns and says, in the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to come out of her. Pastor John explains that when we face spiritual warfare, we never obsess over the enemy. We keep our eyes on Jesus, our commander in chief, and we go to Scripture, not tradition, for how to respond. He ...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues in Acts 16, where Paul, Silas, Luke, and Timothy meet a demon-possessed slave girl in Philippi. Paul faced whippings, prisons, and mobs, so Pastor John reminds us that opposition should not surprise us when we pursue revival. Pastor John shares a personal story of receiving threats from a man who seemed to be under demonic influence, of praying for him, and of the peace the Holy Spirit gave him through it. He reminds listeners that the sa...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson reminds us that real, lasting revival has never happened in a single emotional moment. Every great awakening in history, along with the revival under Nehemiah and the revival in the book of Acts, unfolded over decades of daily, unremarkable faithfulness, not one dramatic event. The exciting moments are the fruit of revival, not the root. The root is reviving your heart love for God, day after day. Pastor Dickerson then turns to Acts 16, introducing...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson unpacks John 21, right after the charcoal fire breakfast, where Jesus asks Peter three times, do you love me? Pastor Dickerson explains that Jesus isn't asking if Peter loves Him more than the other disciples do, He's asking if Peter loves Him more than he loves being liked, more than he fears what people think of him. Each time Peter says yes, Jesus gives him the same assignment: feed my sheep. Pastor Dickerson points out something convicting: tho...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson returns to a small detail from John 21. When Peter first met Jesus, a miracle catch of fish tore his nets. Three years later, after failure and restoration, Peter hauls in an even bigger catch, 153 large fish, and this time the net holds. Pastor Dickerson shares honestly from his own life how conversations and opportunities that would have taken him months of anxiety to prepare for, and weeks to recover from, three years ago, he can now walk throug...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson unpacks a small but fascinating detail from John chapter 21. Peter, Andrew, James, and John grew up fishing the Sea of Galilee their entire lives, so they knew exactly how much weight their nets could hold. When they haul in 153 unusually large fish after the resurrection, and the net holds without tearing, these seasoned fishermen would have noticed immediately that something was different this time. Pastor Dickerson points back to Luke 5, when a ...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues the story of Peter from John 21. After a fruitless night of fishing, Peter jumps into the water the moment he realizes it's Jesus waiting on the shore. He's soaking wet, cold, hungry, and still carrying the shame of denying Jesus three times. But Jesus has already built a fire and already cooked him breakfast. Everything Peter had been working for out on the water was sitting there waiting for him in Jesus the whole time. Pastor Dickerson...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson reads John 21, where Jesus appears to His discouraged disciples after the resurrection. Peter and the others go fishing and catch nothing all night, echoing the same failed night from when Jesus first called Peter years earlier. Then Jesus calls out from the shore, tells them where to cast their net, and the catch is so large they can barely haul it in. The moment Peter realizes it's Jesus, he doesn't hide in shame, he rushes to get to Him. Pastor ...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson invites you to think of Peter as a model for yourself. Looking back on Peter's story, from the day Jesus calls him to the day he is named the rock on which the church will be built, Pastor John reminds us that Peter's walk had ups and downs. Some moments were wonderful, and some felt weird and confusing. Some listeners may be right where Peter was later: you have journeyed with Jesus, but you have given up on yourself, and Jesus is recalling you to...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson skips ahead from Luke 5 to the end of the gospels, to the moment Jesus restores Peter after Peter denied him three times. On a seashore, Jesus asks Peter three times, do you love me? It echoes the day Jesus first called Peter from his fishing boat, a poetic set of bookends. Peter, repenting, admits that Jesus knows everything, including how imperfect his love is. Jesus is not choosing Peter because of the quality of his love or faithfulness, but be...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson begins with a confession. Before he was a pastor, he was a journalist. His coworkers were his friends, they came from many different beliefs and backgrounds, and they all knew he was a devoted follower of Jesus. He misses those friendships and the dinners at their homes. Now, with a full ministry and kids he is trying to disciple, it takes real intentionality and discipline to build friendships with people who do not know Jesus. Pastor John returns...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson walks through one of the most socially explosive moments in Luke chapter 5. After Jesus calls Levi the tax collector to be His disciple, Levi throws a huge banquet in his own home with Jesus as the guest of honor, surrounded by fellow tax collectors and people everyone considered "sinners." The religious leaders are appalled and confront Jesus's disciples: "Why do you eat and drink with such scum?" Jesus's answer captures the heart of the Gospel: "...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson unpacks Jesus's words: "Whoever would come after me must deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow me." Some Christian traditions turn this into a checklist of suffering, as if joy and following Jesus can't coexist. Pastor John reminds listeners that the fruit of the Spirit includes love, joy, and peace—following God is a joyful adventure, even in the moments He calls us to die to our pride, our ego, or our own agenda. Here's the lie to watc...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson explains who Levi the tax collector really was: not a generic sinner, but a man who extorted his own Jewish neighbors, backed by violent Roman soldiers, and got wealthy off their suffering while families went hungry. His tax booth was likely the single most emotionally triggering location in the whole village. And that is exactly where Jesus walks, straight up to Levi, and says "follow me and be my disciple." Pastor John points out that if you keep...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson gets personal about his own revival journey, admitting his highs have been higher than ever and his lows lower than ever. He shares that when things start to feel stagnant, boring, or stale, it's almost always a sign of what he calls an "obedience barrier," something God has clearly asked of you, whether it's praying for someone on your list, having a hard conversation, or walking away from a sin you keep excusing, that you know about but keep avoi...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson asks a hard question: who is the most impossible person on your salvation prayer list, the one you're almost sure will never come to faith? Pastor John shares his own answer, a former coworker and editor, one of the smartest people he knows, who has been agnostic as long as he's known her. He still prays for her by name every day. He connects that question to Levi, the tax collector in Luke chapter 5, a Jewish man who worked for the occupying Roman...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson continues through Luke chapter 5 with the story of Levi, a tax collector who was despised by everyone in his town. When Jesus walked up to Levi's tax booth and said "Follow me," Levi didn't hesitate. He got up, left behind a small fortune, and followed Jesus on the spot. Pastor John explains that this instant response wasn't random. God had already been preparing Levi's heart long before Jesus ever spoke a word to him. That same truth applies to th...

In today's Daily Hope, Pastor John S. Dickerson wraps up the story of Jesus healing the paralyzed man, and unpacks a caution every believer in the middle of revival needs to hear: don't let emotion be your guide. Revival is real, and it does stir real feeling, sometimes higher highs than you've experienced before, and sometimes real opposition. But feelings rise and fall. What stays steady is God's Word. That's why perseverance in faith often looks less like a mountaintop moment and more like qu...