Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will draw our hearts out to God and keep us engaged with Him; it will take our attention from ourselves and give the Spirit room in our hearts.~ Andrew Murray Do not strive in your own strength; cast yourself at the feet of the Lord Jesus, and wait upon Him in the sure confidence that He is…
According to the relativity theory light travels from the sun to the earth in about eight (8) minutes (measured by human beings). But I find it extremely interesting and intriguing that from the light’s point of view there is no time used for the travel/light is all the time there. This means the speed of light from lights’ perspective is zero (0) seconds from the sun to the world .This is the message that we have heard from him and…
What’s your goal in life? Mine is to become a woman after God’s own heart. I can’t do it. But God can. In order to become a woman after God’s own heart I need to seek God’s heart. I need to abide in God’s presence and let the Holy Spirit mold me. The Bible tells tells us that David was a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 13:14, CEB). David was not perfect by all means but his heart…
I have always wondered why people insist that Christianity is about being good. That all decent, good people are going heaven. Hence our salvation would be based on works or our behavior. But the Bible is telling us the polar opposite: 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 you can be proud of. Instead, we are God’s accomplishment, created in Christ Jesus…
Lent is a perfect time to get an annual spiritual check-up. How is your hearing? How is your vision? How is your spiritual heart-beat? Are you doing OK? “Look! I’m standing at the door and knocking. If any hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to be with them, and will have dinner with them, and they will have dinner with me. ” (Rev. 3:20 CEB) Jesus is knocking. Can you hear him? Or is your…
Even though the world around us is full of marks of death and dying we try to deny our own mortality. We like to live in La-La Land and pretend we are not aging and our life will go on forever. But the sooner we face the reality: we are dust and we will return to dust, the better we can embrace living fully. Like a parent feels compassion for their children— that’s how the LORD feels compassion for those…
“The New Testament word for repentance means changing one’s mind so that one’s views, values, goals, and ways are changed and one’s whole life is lived differently”, J.I. Packer states. “The change is radical, both inwardly and outwardly; mind and judgment, will and affections, behavior and lifestyle, motives and purposes, are all involved. Repenting means starting a new life.” Lent is a blessed time: we can slow down and actively reflect on our spiritual journey. We can chance the course…
Do you believe in the forgiveness of sins? Do you have hard time believing that you are truly forgiven? We proclaim -often without thinking- in the Apostolic Creed “I believe in the forgiveness of sins”. But do we really, really believe? Do we live in the joy of forgiveness? Because being free is what Christian living is all about. If we are still carrying the burdens ourselves, we are not truly trusting God’s grace to do its job. We have…
Compassion makes life beautiful. Compassion makes life worth living. Compassion gives us a glimpse of heaven here on earth. Because God is is the epitome of compassion. If we want to be compassionate we need to become more like him. The fifth spiritual fruit discribed in Galatians 5:22 has traditionally been translated kindness (NIV/NRSV/CEB) or gentleness (KJV). The Message describes it as “a sense of compassion in the heart”. I think it is more thought-provoking than kindness or gentleness. It…
Whose side are you on? You know, there’s no middle ground. Even if we’d like it to be so. Jesus said: “Whoever isn’t with me is against me, and whoever doesn’t gather with me scatters.” (Matthew 12:30, CEB) This verse stopped me this morning. I’m either with Jesus or I am against him. I either gather with Jesus or I scatter. No other alternatives. Jesus or no Jesus. Whose side are you on? God wants it all. God wants obedience….
