How has the new year treated you so far? Do you have particular plans? Do you know the makings of a great year? If you do, then it’s easier to make it happen, don’t you think? So let’s see what are the makings of a good year. It shouldn’t be that complicated, should it? And it’s not, believe me. But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being…
Do you honor Jesus? If yes, how do you honor him? I am asking these questions because today we are celebrating the twelfth day of Christmas. Epiphany means ‘to make known’, ‘to show’, or ‘to reveal’. The kings revealed Jesus as the Lord and King to the world. But they also showed us how to approach him. Let’s find out what we can learn from the wise men. After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the territory of Judea during…
Have you asked God to show what this year is all about? How has God responded to you? Or have you asked yourself how you should change this year? How have you responded to that? Too often we try to run our lives without consulting God. We try to decide ourselves what needs to be done and then we proceed to change ourselves according to our plans. And we forget God out of the equation. When God is not part…
Happy New Year, dear friends of Flowing Faith! What’s your word for 2016? I’ve been praying for mine for weeks. (If you’re interested in finding out yours and don’t know how to go about it, my blogging friend Lisa has a great post about the process.) Eventually, I was lead to word ‘boldness’. It is a bit scary word. But after my year of ‘readiness’ it is a very logical one. Without readiness there could not be boldness. And all…
My word for 2015 has been readiness. I had no clue what to to expect of this year or what I would learn along the way. But the word intrigued me from the very beginning. It did bring some nice surprises along the way. For example, our family was lead to a huge trip to the other side of the world with a week’s notice. But mainly this study on readiness has taught me about what it means to be…
Some people wish that God were like Santa. He’d give us what we want. But the problem is: we don’t know what is best for us. Some people do think God is like Santa. And when they don’t get what they want, they throw God over board. But God is not like Santa. Or a cosmic bellboy. With the words of Harry Emerson Fosdick “God is not a cosmic bellboy for whom we can press a button to get things”….
Merry Christmas, dear friend of flowing faith! This is the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus. How blessed we are that God became a man to save us and form personal relationships with each of us. Lots of reasons to celebrate! Lots of reasons to have a merry Christmas. Lots of reasons to be thankful for. In those days Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists. 2 This first enrollment occurred when…
What do you think? Does Christmas matter? Does it really matter that Jesus was born? Let’s see. It’s true that whenever a baby is born, it changes the lives of the parents. But one baby changed the whole history and the future of the humankind. That’s why Christmas matters, Jesus changed everything. The miracle of Christmas is earth-chattering. The wonder of Christmas is life-changing. The Holy Night indeed changed the course of history. Before Jesus we did not have any…
Celebrating Christmas is great. And easy. For real. It does not require long shopping lists or empty wallets. There’s absolutely no stress involved because everything is already done for us. Don’t you believe me? Let me explain. You teach me the way of life. In your presence is total celebration. Beautiful things are always in your right hand. (Psalm 16:11, CEB) The perfect Christmas and total celebration is only found in God’s presence. No where else. God’s arms are wide…
Do you know the deep secret of joy? It has nothing to do with the entertainment industry but it has everything to do with Jesus. Because, you know, nothing but Jesus can give us freedom from all the ugliness in our lives. And that’s not even all. Jesus can save us from eternal separation from the ultimate goodness. Martin Luther explains the deep secret of joy very well: The heart overflows with gladness, and leaps and dances for the joy…
