Do you know how to be generous? Or are you stingy with time, money or possessions? We are naturally selfish; being generous is foreign to us. We think we will ensure our well-being if we store money or keep stuff. But that’s not how it works. We are not in control of future. We are not in control of happiness. We are not in control of well-being. But blessedly that’s not the end of the story. We are not doomed….
The Bible says that eternal life lies in knowing God. There must be something really special about knowing God. How can we do that? We can’t do it without Jesus. But Jesus died for us so we could know God. If we receive this gift of grace, we are free to get to know God. Other religions teach that we need to first become good to approach God. But Christianity boldly proclaims that all we need is Jesus. Jesus looked…
You hear so many stories of how people turn away from God when they have experienced some heart-breaking difficulties. Somehow they’ve learned to think that if you believed in God there would be no hardships anymore. But that’s not what Jesus promised for his followers. He promised something much more amazing and important. All this can be found in this one Bible verse with the words of Jesus: I have told you these things, so that in Me you may…
What’s the big deal of the Holy Spirit? Why do we need the Holy Ghost? Why should we be excited about the Spirit of God? I’ve collected here my big five reasons why the Holy Spirit is an essential part of spiritual life. 1) The Holy Spirit is a person. For real. The Holy Spirit is not just an abstract thought or impersonal wind. The Holy Spirit is a person who hears, speaks, feels and thinks. The Holy Spirit loves,…
What’s the point of Ascension Day? (Other than getting a day off in Europe?) Why would we be excited about following the cloud? Why would be excited about Jesus leaving us? Let’s find out. He [Jesus] told them, “You don’t get to know the time. Timing is the Father’s business. What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit. And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria,…
Do you (sometimes) feel inadequate? Do you wish you could have managed things differently? Do you struggle with your shortcomings? Do you start your sentences with “if only…if only…if only”? We desire to be but we are not perfect. We fail. We are weak. Most often we can somehow deal with our inadequacies and shortcomings when they don’t affect our loved ones. But when we feel that we have failed as parents or spouses or children it is incredibly hard….
Past few days I have had an image of God shining upon his people persistently popping in my head. So I started to explore what this image could mean. Our efforts to understand God will always fall short but we need to keep trying…because if we just get a glimpse of God’s awesomeness, we are truly blessed. God wants to shine on us. God wants to bless us. God wants to dwell in us. We are called to become children…
This message will be short and sweet but extremely important: Don’t let anything keep you away from God. Don’t let anything keep you from receiving the gift of faith. Don’t let anything keep you from embracing grace day by day. There’s nothing in your past that could make God love you less. Don’t give in to shame. There’s no mess that big that would keep God granting you grace. Don’t give in to shame. There’s nothing that makes you unqualified…
It’s Good Friday, the day we commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus. Why did Jesus have to die on the cross? What’s the meaning of Good Friday anyway? Here it is in a nutshell: Just as one person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it. But more than just getting us out of trouble, he got us into life! One man said no…
Have you ever experienced the sweetness of God? Because that is the essence of God. We only get little glimpses of it at this side of eternity but it’s real. It’s real, sweet, and wonderful. Knowing God is to know his sweetness. Being loved by God means being enveloped in his sweetness. Living in the Spirit is about enjoying the sweetness of God. The sweetness of God is readily available for all his children. It’s not magic but too often…
