As we enter this fall season I invite you to do little self-examination: How is your relationship with God? Hopefully not on the rocks! Where is God in your life in this season? Hopefully not in the margins or in the back of your mind! (But even then remember God is only a whisper away. A fresh start is always possible!) I’ve come to understand that if we approach God only when we need something from him our relationship with…
Grace invites us to try on a new kind of wardrobe. One that God has chosen for us: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Did you just audibly sigh? Don’t worry, I know. The godly wardrobe doesn’t quite fit! But I know a Master Taylor who can help us: The Holy Spirit. When we invite Jesus to live in our heart the Holy Spirit starts working on our new kind of wardrobe. Gently he keeps on working on us and…
What would happen if you took your faith seriously? What if you embraced the fact that you were created for his glory and to do his will and work in this world? Martin Luther has said “Faith is a living, daring confidence in God’s grace.” We are called to put our confidence in God’s grace. We are called to boldly seek God’s will for our lives. We are called to daringly embrace his plan for our lives. We are called…
Do you have regrets? Or are you carrying bitterness or hurt around? Do you keep your real feelings from God? Do you only bring the good in you before God and deal with the bad on your own? Many of us do just that. We might forget the regrets for the most of the time but they are there. We might hold ourselves accountable and don’t forgive ourselves our own wrong doings. We might have been badly hurt and we…
Prayer is as important as breathing to Christians. We all know -no matter how busy our lives are- we need to find time for prayer. Or maybe especially because our lives are hectic we need more and more prayer. Like Martin Luther has said “the less I pray, the harder it gets. The more I pray, the better it goes”. Well prayed is indeed half done. Without God’s guidance and blessing there is no point to do anything. But when…
You have heard the good news of Easter: Jesus is risen. And you have heard of the general resurrection of the dead in the future. What’s going on between the resurrection of Jesus and the promised resurrection of all? This is no time of zero activity! God is active and at work in us. Christ is resurrecting his children every single day. My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received…
“Remove Christ from the Scriptures and there is nothing left”, states Martin Luther. That is so true. Without Christ there would not be a way back to God. Without Christ there would not be life and more life to come. Without Christ we would be lost. That’s why I agree wholeheartedly with Paul writing: For my part, I am going to boast about nothing but the Cross of our Master, Jesus Christ. Because of that Cross, I have been crucified…
What is the name of the ruler of your heart? Shame? Fame? Game? Or a significant other? Sometimes shame keeps us from coming to Christ with the mess we’ve made. We think we are not worthy of God. So we keep away from Christian gatherings and God himself. But here’s the news flash: no one is worthy of grace! Just listen to Jesus: “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? I’m here inviting the sin-sick, not the spiritually-fit.”…
Are you flirting with the world? Are you cheating on God? Sounds like the questions are getting even tougher today. But this is not just about motivation any more. First unthinkable becomes thinkable, then suddenly it’s doable. Slowly worldly things creep up on us. Are you all for God? Or do you still play the field? Do you suppose God doesn’t care? This is a spiritual form of adultery we are talking about here! You wouldn’t think of just asking…
Yesterday we talked about being saved by grace through faith. I felt a couple of things needed some clarification: 1) It’s God’s gift from start to finish! We don’t save ourselves. God does. All we do is trust him to let him do it. But God does not force salvation upon us, either. He respects us that much. Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and…
