Daily Faith with Philip Cameron: Special Guest Pastor Thomas McDaniels
About this episode
Thomas McDaniels, founder of Thomas McDaniels Ministries in Longview, Texas, joins Philip Cameron for a rich conversation on what it truly means to encounter Jesus in the ordinary rhythms of daily life. Drawing from Acts 9, McDaniels unpacks the rooftop vision of the Apostle Peter — a moment born not from fasting or spiritual heroics, but from simple, hungry obedience. "The Spirit will lead us into simple devotion that brings profound encounters," McDaniels observes, revealing how Peter's willingness to pray while waiting for dinner became one of the most pivotal moments in all of Scripture — the divine declaration that opened the gospel to the Gentiles. The conversation moves through a gallery of biblical defining moments: Moses at the burning bush, David facing Goliath, the woman at the well in Samaria, and the disciples casting nets on the other side of the boat. Each encounter, McDaniels argues, was rooted in ordinary obedience before the supernatural broke through. Philip adds a vivid real-life illustration — a woman who found a Bible in a remote lighthouse, read it cover to cover with no church background, and came to saving faith entirely alone. McDaniels challenges both charismatics and evangelicals to stop dismissing experience and recognize that every major biblical calling came through a personal encounter with God. For more from Thomas McDaniels, visit thomasmcdaniels.com.
Part of our Devotion collection of conversations.
Quotes worth sharing
“Sometimes we look for the supernatural rather than look in the ordinary for the supernatural to come. Moses is out looking after a bunch of sheep — how mundane. It's the worst job in the world. There's no shade, there's no shelter. They're not even his own sheep, they're someone else's sheep. And he's failing back from Pharaoh's palace. And suddenly a bush burns.”
“The Spirit will lead us into simple devotion that brings profound encounters.”
“Whatever you are just now, never ever exclude the divine moment when he can show up and transform your life for all eternity. And that's called the moments of your life.”
What's Discussed
Pastor Thomas McDaniels of Thomas McDaniels Ministries (Longview, Texas) explores how life-changing encounters with Jesus emerge from ordinary, daily obedience rather than dramatic spiritual effort. Anchoring the discussion in Acts 9, he examines Peter's rooftop prayer — a routine act that produced the defining moment when God declared the Gentiles clean and opened the gospel to the world. McDaniels traces the same pattern through Moses at the burning bush, David and Goliath, the woman at the well, and the disciples' miraculous catch of fish. Philip Cameron adds a powerful testimony of a woman who found saving faith alone in a lighthouse, reading a Bible for the first time. McDaniels concludes that every significant biblical calling came through a personal encounter — an experience — with God.
- Need for Encounters with Jesus Today
- Peter's Rooftop Prayer in Acts 9
- Ordinary Obedience Births the Supernatural
- Moses, David, and Biblical Defining Moments
- Charismatic Experience vs. Evangelical Pushback
- Daniel's Encounter Through Scripture Reading
- Lighthouse Woman's Conversion Story
Scripture in this episode
Episode Transcript
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Intro
Philip:Hey, welcome to Daily Faith. Oh, I wish you could be here before we begin. I'm telling you now, it's like bedlam. Everyone's running around and you're thinking there's no way that everyone's gonna come together and we'll all be calm and still to start the program. Well, we've done it again.
Philip:We've shocked ourselves. My name is Philip Cameron, and you have tuned into the pre-show of Daily Faith. We have a program that comes on every day. It began during the pandemic and COVID, and the pastors would be calling us and asking what I was looking at as I traveled across the country in churches. And out of that, it came to this place. Daily Faith is our daily show, and we love being with you. We bring some of the most anointed men and women in the country and the world to talk about what's hot on their minds.
Philip:Our guest today is a dear friend and a great man — a great man with a tremendous ministry, Thomas McDaniels. I told him, this is when I know you guys are coming on, it's like having a day off, because I know I can trust your anointing and what God's showing you. And so I want these men to speak life into your life. I know that you're going through something and you're thinking there's no way I can ever get out beyond the storm. I have good news for you.
Philip:I come from a wee town in the northeast corner of Scotland called Peterhead, and we are literally out on the furthest out point. We're closest to Norway. Above us is the North Sea. Below us is the North Sea. To the east of us is the North Sea. So anytime a storm comes in any of those three directions, we get the brunt of it. Waves like you've never seen — monstrous waves. Fishing boats in our town will disappear off the face of the earth just by the weight of a rogue wave.
Philip:But for all the things I've lived through and all the storms I've watched, I've learned something over my life. A storm never lasts forever. It never lasts forever. And whatever you are going through just now, and whoever's broken your heart, whatever disappointment you've gone through, and you're thinking, my God, no one knows and no one understands, and God's forgot about me — no, he has not. He has sent me today to tell you that the storm will pass, that he has got you in the hollow of his hand, and nothing can separate you from his love. Nothing.
Philip:So why don't you take a seat, take a little off your feet, give yourself a breather, and just say, be still and know that I am God. And let yourself know that he loves you with a love that is unquenchable. We've got a new baby in our family. Her name is Annabel. And I'm telling you now, I am getting more embarrassed at myself all the time, because the more interesting she becomes and she sees me and lights up and laughs — oh my gracious me — she's on my mind all the time. Well, if I, as a human, a mere mortal, can be capable of such love, how much does your heavenly Father love you today?
Philip:He waits for you to wake up in the morning because he just can't wait to watch you and see how you live and how brave you are against your circumstance. And I just wanna tell you, he loves you today. You can rest in that. You can rest assured that he loves you today. And so we've got a great show. I've got some things on my mind that I wanna talk to you about before we talk to our guest. And I'm just thrilled you're here with us today. Welcome to Daily Faith.
Philip:Hey, my friends, welcome to Daily Faith. My name is Philip Cameron, and I am absolutely delighted to see you with us today. God has a plan for you. Let me tell you something — God's got bigger stuff in store for you than you can ever imagine. I often think how God must look at us and think, if only they knew how much I love them, if only they knew what my plans are for them. I wonder how many plans that God has had for me in my life that my fear and my doubts have stopped, because God can only use you and I to the amount that we are yielded over to him.
Philip:And so many times I think of especially our mission work — I think, Lord, if I were bigger in my mind, in my spirit, if I could have more faith and trust in you, how much more could I do for the kingdom of God? And I believe that God's got bigger plans for you than you know. And the devil comes along to try to breed fear inside you, because fear is the antidote to faith. Fear will make you pull back and give up. And when Job said — the fear of Job came upon him — so the devil's always trying to throw scenarios on you. He's had a lump in my brain. Is my heart okay? You know, whatever it is — my son, my granddaughter, whatever. The devil throws up these scenarios of doubt to you.
Philip:And if you fear what you are thinking, then you allow the devil to come and apply it on your life. And that's why the Bible says perfect love casts out fear. I have a heavenly Father that is watching. He never sleeps. He never sleeps. And he has me written, and you, on the palm of his hands. Ever mark your hand with ink? Every time you move, it catches your attention — the ink. And I'll say, I've gotta wash that, I'm trying to get rid of this ink. Well, I'm here to tell you, you are on the palm of God's hand, and nothing can take you away from him in the name of Jesus.
Philip:So be relaxed. We've got a testimony. For those that don't know, we've got a great mission work going on in Ukraine and Moldova. You should see what the Lord has allowed our little family to do in that part of the world, in that country. When kids turn 16, they're put on the street. Every girl you see in our videos — if the trafficker were to get them, she would earn $300,000 a year for the trafficker.
Philip:So three kids make a million bucks a year, and all they eat is a hamburger once in a while, and a beating and some drugs. And they keep them so stupefied and so scared that they just serve 30 to 50 men a day. And we've built this amazing village. You should see this place. In fact, my son was just there recently and he says, Dad, those houses — I wish I could stay in a house that nice. And I believe that's how you ought to treat orphans, to treat them like they were the children of God, because they are. He's the Father of the fatherless, as the Bible says.
Philip:And so one of our boys is there with us. And in this village called Vater Village — six houses, right on the biggest lake. It was built for rich people to have a dacha on the biggest lake in the whole country. And there you see the cluster of houses around the village green. And they come to us, they're back in school, we share the gospel. And Andrew was showing me a video from one of the praise and worship services while he was there. And our kids sitting there playing the guitar and playing the violin and playing the piano — everyone else thought they were garbage, everyone else thought they were worth nothing. But I'll tell you what, to God they're priceless. And we just love what God is doing with us. Here's a young man called Victor. Watch his testimony.
Victor:My name is Victor. My family was split in half after my parents got divorced. I stayed with my father until he got sick. Then I was sent to a children's home. I was only 10 years old when he passed away. I felt so lost and unwanted.
Victor:But two years ago, my life changed when Orphan's Hands gave me a family, a home, and the chance to get an education. I love being part of this big family here. We get to grow together, heal, and learn about God's love. I am safe and I'm loved. I get to give back to people in need. And this transformation wouldn't have been possible without Orphan's Hands. Thank you.
Philip:And Victor has two sisters — twins, identical twins. You can't tell them apart. In fact, I've had a running joke with them for years as I've been in our houses. If I guess who they are, then they owe me a dollar. And if I guess the wrong name, then I owe them a dollar. And at the moment I'm behind quite a bit. They never get the dollar, but the tab is running all the time. And he and his sisters Anna and Al have been at Orphan's Hands, and he just graduated. He's one of our most recent graduates. And he learned how to become a mechanic. He builds engines, and he comes back constantly to Vater Village because he really did find a family there.
Philip:These young folk are at risk now. He's a young man. Most of the girls are the ones that are at the highest risk. Young men are used for slave labor. But we've just had 25 new kids come in, and we're growing. Our ministry is growing. And the only thing that stops us from growing and reaching further is the lack of funds. And the 25 kids that just came in — they'll be worth seven and a half million dollars to a trafficker every year if they could get them.
Philip:And I think if they're worth that kind of money to a demonic trafficker, how much more are they worth to the kingdom of God and Jesus? And what we do is we ask someone just like you to join with us, be part of our Orphan's Hands family, and give a dollar a day. A dollar a day won't change your world. But I'll promise you, it changed Victor's world. It changed Anna's world and Al's world. The whole family of kids rescued and redeemed and now standing. He's on his own feet. I think Anna is still with us and out working, but they're still very much our kids. And a dollar a day can change their lives. How would you pray about helping us?
Philip:We have some tremendous challenges coming up, with opportunities and also challenges. A whole new part of the country, a whole new area where we can reach little kids, smaller kids — 5-year-old boys and girls. And it's the biggest challenge we've had so far. And we just need someone like you to come alongside us and say, Philip, count me in, a dollar a day. You can help us. Our address is real simple. It's PO Box 25, Clinton, Tennessee, 37716. And you can also go to Daily Faith — 833 Daily Faith. Just dial 833 Daily Faith and someone will take your number. But the quickest way is www.dailyfaith.tv, and there's a giving page there, and you can fill that out and let us know that you are helping others.
Philip:Don't curse the darkness. Don't stand and say, well, America's falling apart, the world's falling apart. Be a part of the answer in the name of Jesus. And as you do, and as you help us, you're changing lives there. But when you cast your bread upon the water, the Bible says it's going to return back to you after many days. And when you care for a widow and an orphan — that's what the Bible says, pure religion, undefiled — it's where you care for a widow and the orphan. And there are businessmen and businesswomen watching this now that could include Orphan's Hands in your business — $500 a month, or a thousand dollars a month, or a hundred dollars a month — and make such an eternal impact. When people come to see us in Moldova, we just had Pastor Barry back on again with us, and he went over and said to us, I've heard you talk about this for years and I had no idea. It's just so much better. We're turning orphans into sons and daughters in the ministry. So please help us make a miracle happen.
Philip:I'm delighted today to have with me Thomas McDaniels. He's a great friend. You meet folks and we've actually never met physically, but we've met over television, back and forth, and done a number of programs together. And you just get to know them. You feel them out inside and you know the Jesus person that they are. And he is that. He and his wife Charlotte have a unique ministry — Thomas McDaniels Ministry from Longview, Texas. And I'm gonna let him share what he's doing. But also I believe God has put something on his heart. Tom, I'm so glad you're with me today, my brother. How are you doing?
Thomas McDaniels:Hey, Philip. I'm fantastic. And so are you listening? Your stories always — I try to give consistently to Daily Faith, and I gave my gift last week. Thank you. And I wanna encourage those, if anybody's watching because I'm on here — come on, family, let's give to Daily Faith and make a difference. Because what they're doing is on the front line of the world, on the front line of what God's doing. So absolutely, let's get involved. And I just encourage that. And even if I don't know you, come on, let's take care of Daily Faith the way that they're taking care of these kids, because they're doing an amazing work. And Philip, I just commend you for the work that you and Andrew and your team do. It's amazing.
Philip:Well, Andrew just came back last week from there. He took his friend, his lifelong friend, his best friend in the world, who has been part of our family. He calls me dad and I call him a son. And he's been with us, he's traveled with us when we traveled to churches, he's met some of the kids, and he's never been to Moldova. And he went with Andrew this last — wow — two weeks. And he came back and he says, I've watched all the videos, I've met the kids, I've had you talking a hundred times. He says, nothing compares to being there. And we are just delighted. In fact, I was thinking of you as that video was playing. I'd like you to go over there for a week — a whole week of teaching and stuff to these kids.
Thomas McDaniels:Hey, I'd love to go. I would go, I would go there. I'll get Andrew to get back with you, because I think that would be a very positive thing.
Philip:We are living — go ahead.
Thomas McDaniels:No, you go ahead, sir. I was gonna change — there's something else. Just the fact that we are living —
Philip:Yeah, in the most unbelievable days. What used to be a three-month news cycle is now a three-hour news cycle. So you get a presidential assassination attempt, then you get this and the next thing. And then there's a hurricane that has devastated North Carolina. And I've got a nephew down in Florida just now as this monster — it's the worst, it is the most intense hurricane they've ever seen. And it just seems that we're living in the most unbelievable days. What are you sensing in your spirit, Tom?
Need for Encounters with Jesus Today
Thomas McDaniels:Well, you know, I really agree with you. I preached Sunday at a church here in the Longview area, and we talked about tumultuous times. And I just believe that we need more encounters with Jesus than we've ever had in our life — all around the world, no matter where we live, no matter where we are. And of course, if we're in Iran and China and other places, it's far worse than here. But we all need encounters with Jesus. And that's one of the things I wanted to talk about today — one of the things on my heart for your audience is that we will never outgrow our willingness to encounter Jesus in our daily walk. I heard someone say, you'll never outgrow your devotion. And when that hit me, I thought, you know how true that is.
Peter's Rooftop Prayer in Acts 9
Thomas McDaniels:And I was studying in Acts 9, where Peter was just — the Bible says he was hungry and he went up, but he was waiting for them to make dinner. And he went up on the rooftop to pray. And I thought about it in his life and thought, you know, it's just another day for Peter. He probably just out of obedience was saying, I need to go pray. And while he was on the rooftop, while they were making his dinner — it's funny because the Bible says he was hungry and he wanted to eat. So he wasn't fasting, it was just an ordinary life, an ordinary day for him.
Thomas McDaniels:He goes up on the rooftop and has an encounter with Jesus. But that encounter came because of his obedience to just go pray. And I'm thinking that sometimes we miss the simple encounters that we could have just out of our daily devotion if we would give God the time that he wants, and just simply obey. Or maybe he was led and said, you know what, I need to go pray, the Spirit's drawing me. That's great too. But sometimes I meander into prayer in the mornings, not even thinking that anything major's gonna happen. And all of a sudden I find myself in the presence of God, hearing his voice, receiving instruction, telling me where to go and what to do. And out of that obedience, something major happens.
Thomas McDaniels:And so I just think sometimes we look for the supernatural rather than look in the ordinary for the supernatural to come. And as you know, as preachers, we've got all these sayings that we say — first the natural, then the supernatural, or we say he can add super to our natural. But he really can add super to our natural. Moses is out looking after a bunch of sheep. I mean, how mundane. It's the worst job in the world. There's no shade, there's no shelter. They're not even his own sheep, they're someone else's sheep. And he's failing back from Pharaoh's palace. And suddenly a bush burns.
Philip:Yep. And he turns and sees.
Thomas McDaniels:Absolutely. I love it. And that's exactly — you know, in this, I love the fact the Bible says that the heavens opened. He didn't probably expect that. He just went to pray and the heavens opened. And then here's the big picture — the heavens opened, he falls into a vision. The Bible says a trance, but obviously an open vision. The heavens are opened, he's in a vision. And now this encounter, which was birthed from just the willingness to go pray, is gonna change the entire gospel. This is the moment that God said, the Gentiles aren't unclean. There's nothing common that I wanna put my hand on. And it's simply out of this ordinary obedience that a fresh encounter from heaven falls on Peter — an encounter that literally changes the entire wineskin of the gospel.
Ordinary Obedience Births the Supernatural
Thomas McDaniels:Unbelievable. And so what I wanna say to us is, wow, that can happen to us. That's a New Testament scripture. It's Peter the Apostle. It's after the cross, the Holy Spirit's been given. And now he's there to minister to us in that same simple way. The Spirit will lead us into simple devotion that brings profound encounters.
Philip:I never saw that before until you just — that was one of the most momentous moments in the history of God's dealing with mankind. Don't you call what I've cleansed common. And it opened the door to the Gentile. What a thought.
Thomas McDaniels:Yeah. And you know, we think that moment — when Paul fell off a horse, he fell to the ground — we think that moment's huge. But this moment is the moment where God says, I'm going to the world. And it's coming through the Jewish people. And you have to believe beyond yourself. Now everyone is chosen by me. So it is one of the biggest moments in all of scripture.
Philip:As you're talking — the woman at the well of Samaria. She's out there for water. And she's there during lunchtime. They usually go at nighttime, but she's there at lunchtime because she wants to avoid the hatred and criticism of the village, because she has a problem. And the problem is that she is not trusted by any woman in the village because she messes with men. And she's there avoiding the town. And there's a guy sitting there all by himself, and he says, hey, give me some water. And that moment changes everything. Look at the fields that are white unto harvest — those miracle moments are what we need more of in our lives.
Moses, David, and Biblical Defining Moments
Thomas McDaniels:What a thought, Philip. My goodness. And that moment came because of a simple obedience to go up and pray. And I think that we sometimes miss — I call those moments defining moments. And they will define your life. And you already mentioned David this morning. That was a defining moment for David when he took out Goliath. It was a moment just like his father was sending him with some bread and cheese, and all of a sudden he finds himself in a defining moment that changes his life forever and changes the nation of Israel forever.
Thomas McDaniels:And even when we go to certain church services — I was sitting in a church service in Dallas one time under a bishop there, I'm not gonna say his name. And God touched my life that night in such a way, it was almost like I was there alone. I ministered from that moment in my life for several years. That moment imparted something to me that has never been removed. And I ministered from that moment — three hours in the presence of the Lord, just in a worship experience and a message that was just so impacting to me that changed my life forever. And these moments are so real. And I think that sometimes we miss these encounters.
Thomas McDaniels:And I'll say one more thing. I know we don't have much time, but Philip, here's another reality I came to — and that is, you know, as charismatics we are rather passionate in church more than some of the other denominations. But at the same time, we have limited the thought of an experience. And we — the evangelicals especially pushed back on an experience. But let's think about it for a minute. God used Abraham's experience with his son. God used Moses at that bush as an experience that changed his life forever. And we always go, oh, don't make it about experience. But I think we missed the fact that everybody in the scripture that had a significant moment in calling from God had an encounter, which is an experience — a moment with God that changed their life.
Charismatic Experience vs. Evangelical Pushback
Philip:Oh my goodness. And I think — cast the net on the other side of the boat, and they caught a great draught of fishes. The nets were going to break. It either breaks or it doesn't. Boats don't begin to sink — they either do or they don't. And they go through this amazing — fishermen have just had their minds blown away by the biggest catch of fish they've ever had in their life. And Jesus says, leave the boats, leave them there, leave the fish, follow me. It takes those moments.
Thomas McDaniels:And then they say yes right in that moment. And then certain camps will say, oh, don't focus on the boat, don't focus on the fish, just focus on Jesus. That's true. But Jesus created the experience. He's the artist of it. He created the moment, he ordered our steps. A good man's steps are ordered by the Lord.
Philip:Absolutely. So all I can say is, when me and you get together, we have a lot to say. But what I've never — especially Peter up on the roof — I've gone over that, and most of what we get out of that moment is, well, you can eat pork, God's clean. And that was nothing to do with what was actually happening on the roof. What God was saying was, I am gonna take that which had no way to get to me, and through the blood of Jesus I am cleansing them. And we have been grafted in to the vine. And truly one of the great moments of the church. And most people have read that story and have brushed over it, and you have just brought it out. And I'm thinking, oh my goodness, I can't wait to get to a church to preach on that message.
Thomas McDaniels:Hey, you can do it. But please pass it on. I just called it encounters of the Jesus kind. And then — we don't have time to even go there, but I'm gonna say it anyway — we can encounter a fascination for Jesus in those defining moments like that, just through simple prayer. We can also encounter a fascination with Jesus through the encounter of a simple promise from his word. Because Daniel had an encounter because he was reading the word. The same thing happened — the heavens opened to him. He understood what was happening when Israel was gonna go back home, all of that, and tied it into the last days. That was just an encounter where all Daniel was doing was reading the scripture, reading a scroll, and all of a sudden everything changed.
Daniel's Encounter Through Scripture Reading
Philip:And so just like you said — Moses at the bush, Abraham on the mountain, me and you in prayer — and we can have our encounters. A lady came to our church in Scotland years ago. She went to school with my dad. She left with this guy who actually ran lighthouses, and they were stuck in this lighthouse. There was no TV and stuff. She just read, and there was a bad storm, a season of bad storms. And they had no relief to come to the lighthouse. And she read every book in the lighthouse. And she finally was down in the basement of this lighthouse — literally out in the middle of the sea, surrounded by the North Sea — and she found a Bible. She'd never heard the gospel, never been in church. She just got this great big book and she began to read it from Genesis. And she read it like a book.
Lighthouse Woman's Conversion Story
Philip:And one night she came to the part where Jesus was crucified, and she began to weep, because she'd never heard of it. And she's calling out to her husband, they've killed Jesus, they've killed Jesus, oh they've killed Jesus. And she couldn't read it anymore. And it took two or three weeks before she went back to try to find out what happened to Jesus. I mean, she was living it as if it was real. And then she started screaming, he rose again, he rose again. And she came back to our little town and came to our church and told me, she says, I want you to know that I gave my heart to Jesus in a lighthouse, reading a Bible, without a preacher, without ever having had any contact.
Philip:Because the moment — yes, God uses the mundane. Bored to death in a lighthouse. Whatever you are just now, never ever exclude the divine moment when he can show up and transform your life for all eternity. And that's called the moments of your life.
Thomas McDaniels:Oh yes. You got me. So good, Philip. So good. You got me the same way. My heart beats back. Your altar call just touched me. I'm just like — listen, so let's just take it. If you're watching right now and you need Jesus, just ask him into your life. Because he's there for you. Confess the Lord and just fall on your knees and invite him into your life. Amen. Because you're no different from Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, or this lady who found the Bible. God has his hand on you and he's calling you. And if you've been away, come back to him today. Because this moment is a defining moment — a defining moment for you — to come back to Jesus the way you know in your heart that he's calling you.
Philip:Now listen, if you are a pastor, Tom has an amazing ministry and he's ministering to pastors. You need to get in contact with him. It's really simple — thomasmcdaniels.com. He has got answers for someone watching this program today. Get in contact with him. Thank you, Tom, for being with us. We always look forward to seeing you. We'll see you again, my friend.
Thomas McDaniels:I love being with you. Thanks for watching Daily Faith. We'll see you, my brother. Bye-bye.
For over 25 years, the Cameron family has been changing the lives of orphans in Romania and Moldova — from providing running water, flushing toilets, and clean wells, to coal for heat, new windows, as well as food and clothing. They champion the physical needs of the orphans in these broken and desolate countries. Many of Moldova's orphans are saved from the horrors of trafficking through homes founded by the Camerons. And in the process, orphans become daughters and sons.
They come to know their heavenly Father and are forever changed by the love of Jesus. God helped the Camerons lift these amazing young men and women out of darkness, now no longer orphans. They wanna return and invade that very same darkness with the light of Jesus Christ. Orphan's Hands equips these daughters and sons to become missionaries. Your monthly gift of $31 will allow us to rescue and take in more girls and boys, saving them from the hell of human trafficking.
Your monthly partnership will allow us to care for those in the Orphan's Hands homes in Moldova and Ukraine. If you want to join Philip and Chrissy in taking care of these precious young people, please contact us today by calling 833 Daily Faith. You can also give by going online to www.dailyfaith.tv, or by writing to PO Box 25, Clinton, Tennessee, 37716. So many lives depend on what we do. Thank you for loving the lost.
Common questions
What was Thomas McDaniels' main message about encountering God?
McDaniels emphasized that profound encounters with God often come out of ordinary, daily obedience — not from chasing the supernatural. He pointed to Peter going up on the rooftop simply to pray, with no expectation of anything dramatic, and yet that routine act of devotion led to one of the most pivotal moments in all of scripture.
Why does McDaniels think Peter's rooftop vision in Acts 9 is such a big deal?
McDaniels argues it's one of the biggest moments in all of scripture because it's the moment God declared that the Gentiles are not unclean — effectively opening the entire gospel to the world beyond the Jewish people. He noted that this world-changing encounter was born from nothing more than Peter's simple, obedient decision to go pray while waiting for dinner.
What does McDaniels say about the role of 'experience' in the Christian faith?
McDaniels pushed back on the tendency — especially in evangelical circles — to dismiss personal experience as unimportant. He pointed out that virtually every major biblical figure (Abraham, Moses, Peter, Daniel) had a defining experiential encounter with God that changed their life and calling, arguing that experience and encounter are woven throughout scripture, not something to be avoided.
How does McDaniels say we can have our own defining encounters with Jesus?
He said encounters can come through two simple pathways: consistent, daily prayer — even when you don't expect anything to happen — and reading God's word. He cited Daniel, who was simply reading a scroll when the heavens opened to him, as proof that a life-changing encounter can come through something as ordinary as sitting with scripture.
What did McDaniels call these life-changing moments, and what does he say they do?
McDaniels called them 'defining moments' and said they will literally define your life. He gave examples like David facing Goliath — sent by his father with bread and cheese — and his own three-hour worship experience at a church in Dallas that imparted something to him he says has never left, and that he ministered from for years afterward.
Topics
thomas mcdanielspeter's vision acts 9defining momentsdaily devotionbiblical encountersordinary obediencegentiles gospel