Have you turned to God today? Or are you going on your own way? These questions right here defines your faith. Do you have a sunflower faith? A heart that follows God’s light all the time? Or are you focused on yourself and your problems? And then wonder why God feels so distant? There really is no other way to live abundantly than starting each and every day by turning to God. When we are focused on God, everything else…
We are told to be generous, right? How do you feel about it? How would you feel if someone told you to not to try to be more generous than God? I was puzzled for sure. Especially when it was Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 – August 20, 1153). Read it yourself! What could it mean? “The man who is wise, therefore, will see his life as more like a reservoir than a canal. The canal simultaneously pours out what it…
Do you dare to hope when there’s no reason to hope? Do you dare to hope when your life as you’ve known it has been taken over by a razing storm? Do you dare to hope when life has become bitterness and poison? I hope so. I’ve been there. Everything but God was taken from me. But God was more than enough. I can testify that God is faithful. That’s why I can assure you: God will also see you…
As you probably have noticed, I like to end my posts with a prayer. I do that because I believe that all change begins in prayer. I believe that all the good things start with God. My calling is to bring others to Jesus. And in prayer people can meet Jesus firsthand. Today I wrote the prayer before writing the post itself. And I pray God will answer that prayer in this post. (Maybe this is too random but we…
Do you know how wide, how long, how high, and how deep God’s love is? I hope you, at least, have had a glimpse of it. Even a glimpse of God’s love will knock your socks off. There’s nothing like it. And there’s nothing better. Don’t take my word for it. Read what David wrote in one of his psalms: 3 Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! 4 I will praise you as long as I…
Do you know how to live carefree? Would you like to live carefree? I think we all do. Stress-free living would be lovely, don’t you think? But most often we think carefree living is meant for children only. That’s not true. At least, if we think of childhood as a stage of life. But it is true for God’s children who learn to trust God’s care. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you. (1 Peter 5:7, MSG,*) Trusting…
Last week I read an online article about how we should not do things we love every day. Like if you love ice cream, you should not eat it every day if you don’t want it to become just an emotionless habit. But there’s one exception to this rule, I think. The rule does not apply to Bible-reading. Because ….the more we read the Bible, the more we desire to read it. The more we digest the Word of God,…
When I was a child, there was a TV ad for oat meal declaring “truth is found in oatmeal”. Since then I have been on the quest for truth. I’ve learned that truth is not found in oatmeal after all. No matter how much more nutritious it is compared to corn flakes. But I’ve learned pursuing truth is in itself valuable. Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life and honor. (Proverbs 21:21, NRSV,*) In the process of pursuing truth…
Are you tired of the news lately? Or are you avoiding them all together? Because they are so depressing and devastating? Or do you have a powerful urge to run to the other direction and pretend the bad things don’t exist? Denial does not work. But there is another option. Because of Christ we have a change to be part of transforming the world. Because of Christ we are able to do something to make things better. Because of Christ…
Do you keep God at arm’s length? Is your relationship with God a long-distance one? Or do you have an intimate and close relationship with God? Is knowing God really possible? Yes, because of Jesus it is. Because of Jesus we can be made right with God. But the adventure of faith does not end there, it’s just a beginning. The real adventure is in getting to know God. Yada is a Hebrew word that means “to know” but it…
