Lately, I’ve grieved over friends (and everyone) who have once known the joy of salvation and then chosen to forsake Christ for the world. In some ways, they’ve forgotten the good God has done for them. They’ve forgotten how good God really is and how much we need him. They’ve forgotten how to stay firm in the faith. When I was younger, it was great to fellowship with other young Christians. But the ranks have thinned out considerably. I used…
Are you feeling right now that God is way too silent or, at least, the connection is static at its best? Don’t worry. Help is near. God is near. Even when God feels distant. As Frederich Buechner has said “There is no event so commonplace but that God is present within it, always hiddenly, always leaving you room to recognize Him or not recognize Him, but all the more fascinatingly because of that, all the more compellingly and hauntingly.” There…
These past few days I’ve been fascinated by three words (grow – flow- glow) and how they relate to Christian faith. And they do, quite beautifully too. They form a positive cycle of spiritual growth. Let me explain. The Bible tells us to grow in grace, right? You must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18, NLT). Faith is not to be static but energetic and lively. How do we manage…
I love grace. Undeserved love towards us cleansing us from all unrighteousness….what’s not to like, right? But here are three reasons why I love grace on the top of its saving quality. Because there’s no way around it: God’s grace saves sinners. There’s nothing better in my book. But there are, at least, three other qualities of grace that needs to be mentioned. Grace is so amazingly wonderful that we can’t figure it out. It is beyond reason. How can…
Sometimes you hear someone mention they’ll return to God when they get their act together. That makes me sad because they’ve misunderstood the process so badly. It’s not our job to put our act together on our own. We need Jesus for that. But Jesus is more than happy to help us out. Anytime. Anywhere. With the words of Oswald Chambers “If the Spirit of God detects anything in you that is wrong, He does not ask you to put…
Are you striving to perfect your faith? I have news for you. That’s not your job. That’s the job for Jesus. He is the author and perfecter of faith, not you. Sure, there are still things for you to do: You are called to run with endurance and active persistence. Your task is to abide fully in Jesus, not to strive to perfect your faith on your own. You are called to focus on Jesus and let him deal with…
Mercy will make your day. Nothing else will do. But mercy delivers, day after day. And so does this fresh, upcoming singer Ida Elina. She has a totally unique way to play her kantele, inspired by the gospel music and the slap-guitar players. And when you mix it with her amazing voice and most compelling words, you get a wow experience. Don’t miss it. It will make your day. And it will remind you of mercy, that five-letter word that…
This Advent season I hope you’re not running around like crazy. You know, abundant life is not found in shopping extravaganzas or perfect decorations. Spending money will not bring your peace or happiness. You get bankruptcy and hollowness instead. Because you become what you embrace. If you go after false idols, you become false. They despised his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and the warnings which he gave them. They went after false idols, and…
As I was doing a Biblegateway search for verses that include both faith and power, I found out today that the Amplified Bible explains faith as “trust and confidence in the power of God”. That’s what it is, isn’t it? If we don’t trust God and the power of God, our faith is more of a theory than a way of life. If we truly believe, we put our whole lives on the hands of Jesus. Because we trust God…
Did you know that the Lord’s Prayer is dangerous? This week the Church of England’s cinema add featuring the Lord’s prayer was banned. I was curious to see this add and I absolutely loved it. How about you? Even the web site for prayer they’re advertising for is worth of visiting. But let’s discover the beauty of the Lord’s Prayer. Why is it so powerful, even dangerous? Bishop Steven Croft gives us seven reasons in his blog post: First, this…
