It seems that no matter where I turn to this week or no matter what I read it comes with this message: Apply your faith! So I pass it on to you: Apply your faith! Don’t just believe on Sundays but also every single day of the week. Also, don’t just call yourself Christian but act like it! Don’t just say ‘Lord, Lord’ but obey him! “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and don’t do what I say? I’ll…
After all the Mother’s Day hype I was happy to read this on Monday morning: While Jesus was saying these things, a certain woman in the crowd spoke up: “Happy is the mother who gave birth to you and who nursed you.” But he said, “Happy rather are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.” (Luke 11: 27-28, CEB) or like the Message version says it: “Even more blessed are those who hear God’s Word and guard it…
Did you know that “Living God” is mentioned fourteen times both in the Old and New testament? 28 times we are reminded that God is not a sentimental idea or a lofty philosophy. God is a living person who wants to lovingly interact with us. We are children of the Living God! How awesome is that? The same way that the women at the grave of Jesus on the Easter morning were reminded “Why do you look for the living…
Time spent alone with God is not wasted. It changes us; it changes our surroundings; and every Christian who would live the life that counts, and who would have power for service must take time to pray.~ M.E. Andross There is no other activity in life so important as that of prayer. Every other activity depends upon prayer for its best efficiency. ~ M.E. Andross It is not enough to begin to pray, nor to pray aright; nor is it…
I’ve never felt comfortable writing a Mother’s Day post. Actually, I’ve never written one before. And even this is mostly an unlikely one. I have a wonderful mom (love you!) and I love being a mom. But my heart goes out for anyone who would (have) like(d) to be a mom and isn’t. I don’t feel comfortable boasting about my blessings. (But we are certainly encouraged to count our blessings). The only thing I want to boast about is God’s…
Life is hectic and demanding. We might feel there is no time to spend with God. But the truth is there is always time for things we value. And there are ways to listen to God in the middle of everyday chaos. There are ways to blend God’s love in everything we do and everywhere we go. God has made it pretty clear to us what he wants from us: “Obey me so that I may become your God and…
Yesterday we talked about Solomon who chose wisdom over wealth and how he was richly blessed. So inspiring! But this is unfortunately not how his life ended. But before his wisdom waned his reputation as a sage was widely known. Even the queen of Sheba came to test him with hard questions and she found all the reports of Solomon’s wisdom true. What happened to Solomon? His success was too much for him. He felt entitled to break the law…
I love how God comes to us. It’s always God coming to us. Just think of what happened after Adam & Eve had eaten the apple. The Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9, CEB) God is always looking for us. And when nothing else worked, he sent his only son to us. It’s always God first. Always God coming to us. Always God loving us first. Pouring out his grace enabling…
Our enemy is pretty good in selling lies to us. Unfortunately, we buy them. We are especially weak when the lie informs us that ‘we rule’. We want to believe it. We buy the lie because it makes us feel good, confident and powerful. I was reading this morning the last words of David in 1 Kings 2. David is instructing his successor Solomon. He is first giving very sage advice. Just like you’re expecting him to do. But then…
Prayer should not be regarded “as a duty which must be performed, but rather as a privilege to be enjoyed, a rare delight that is always revealing some new beauty.” E.M. Bounds Our prayer must not be self-centered. It must arise not only because we feel our own need as a burden we must lay upon God, but also because we are so bound up in love for our fellow men that we feel their need as acutely as our…
