Would you like to dance in grace? Or is that too wild? Would you rather sit out? Or is that too tame? “To what will I compare this generation? It is like a child sitting in the marketplaces calling out to others, ‘We played the flute for you and you didn’t dance. We sang a funeral song and you didn’t mourn.’ For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ Yet the Human One came…
How do you define a full life? Is it about success, happiness, wealth? Or something different all together? A full life in Jesus gives us a few surprises. God’s blessings are not material ones or self-centered happiness in general. God wants to give us a full life even in parched places. But it doesn’t happen without change. When we come to Jesus, the old life needs to go. Because God desires holiness. God desires justice. God desires love. Just as…
Getting to know God takes a lifetime. But the journey is wonderful. How to go about it? By knocking, asking, and seeking. They are ways to get to know God. How do we then knock, ask, and seek? Let’s find out. The important thing to know is that we all do fail in our pursuit of God once in a while. But the secret is persistence. When we consistently keep on knocking (entering into the presence of God), seeking (cultivating…
Our pilgrimage to God is a marathon. Hence it’s not about speed but about endurance. It’s as much about taking care of our faith along the way as learning to praise God in the midst of anything and everything. Our marathon will be finished the same way it was started: By taking steps of faith in hope. We were saved in hope. If we see what we hope for, that isn’t hope. Who hopes for what they already see? But…
Grace is an amazing gift from God. We can’t save ourselves or make us worthy of God. But God. He arranged everything so that we can just receive his grace by faith in Jesus and be made right with him. Grace truly is God’s unmerited favor for all who are ready to receive it. You are saved by God’s grace because of your faith. This salvation is God’s gift. It’s not something you possessed. It’s not something you did that…
What do you do when you doubt? What do you do when you are overwhelmed? What do you do when a disaster strikes? What do you do when the future is unclear? What do you do when God feels distant? Your response is critical for your spiritual well-being. Your response defines your future. How come? You let the distress bring you to God, not drive you from him. The result was all gain, no loss. Distress that drives us to God…
Do you believe that Jesus was risen on the third day? If yes, how do you practice resurrection? How is your life different because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ? Because resurrection life should not be business as usual. Just see what the apostles did: The apostles continued to bear powerful witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and an abundance of grace was at work among them all. (Acts 4:33, CEB) How are you bearing powerful witness to…
How are you practicing resurrection in your life? Or are you denying resurrection by your actions? Is Easter joy evident in your life? Or was Easter only a passing holiday in your life? It’s time to put the Good News of Jesus Christ in practice. It’s time to live life on God’s terms. But if God himself has taken up residence in your life, you can hardly be thinking more of yourself than of him. Anyone, of course, who has…
Have you experienced Jesus firsthand? Or have you settled with second hand Jesus? Do you personally know Jesus? Or do you trust other people’s opinion on Jesus? Please, don’t be satisfied with second hand Jesus. Many talk about Jesus as a great teacher or a sage prophet. Some even pass on the saving knowledge of Jesus as Messiah. But they miss the amazing opportunity to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Knowing Jesus firsthand is what’s eternal life is all…
God called Jeremiah to be his prophet. Right afterwards God gave him on the job training: The LORD asked me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” I said, “A branch of an almond tree.” The LORD then said, “You are right, for I’m watching overmy word until it is fulfilled.” (Jeremiah 1: 11-12, CEB) There’s a word play going here in Hebrew. The Message translation catches the humorous zest between Jeremiah and God so well: God’s Message came to me: “What…
