What does help you to stay strong and steady on your Christian walk? Are you aware of the enemy’s sneaky ways to steal your joy and peace? How do you deal with joy-stealers, doubt-raisers and hope-snatchers? I’ve found that I need to turn to God as soon as I wake up in the morning. Like John Piper says in his recent sermon “every morning there is a war in the Piper household”. Well said. I think there is a battle…
Outer motivation does not work in the long run. We need inner motivation to get things done. This psychological principle is surprisingly true also in faith matters. If we are told (outer motivation) to behave or believe in certain ways, we are unlikely to meet those expectations. But if we have personally encountered Jesus (inner motivation), we follow his guidance with gladness. That’s why we should not force rules and regulations on others. We should let Jesus change people according…
The Bible is very clear that we are all called to be holy like God is holy. It does not happen without effort but by God’s grace it is possible. To be holy is to be transformed into the image of Christ. What bothers me is the fact that people think that holy people are boring, repressed, stiff-necked,and self-righteous. But Jesus was not at all that kind of person! What’s gone wrong here? We are called to be like Jesus,…
Is life worth living? Is there purpose for your life? The writer of Ecclesiastes seeks answers for these existential questions. And most of us ask them at some point in our lives. Why on earth are we here for? What’s there to show for a lifetime of work, a lifetime of working your fingers to the bone? One generation goes its way, the next one arrives, but nothing changes—it’s business as usual for old planet earth. The sun comes up…
Did you know that “Living God” is mentioned fourteen times both in the Old and New testament? 28 times we are reminded that God is not a sentimental idea or a lofty philosophy. God is a living person who wants to lovingly interact with us. We are children of the Living God! How awesome is that? The same way that the women at the grave of Jesus on the Easter morning were reminded “Why do you look for the living…
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…
Are you feeling down? Is your soul singing unexpected blues? Are you weary, burned-out, at the end of your rope? Don’t worry. There are loads of fresh hope reserved just for you. You might not believe it right now. But bare with me. Do you remember how Jesus, in his sermon on the mount, calls people happy or blessed who are hopeless? Why on earth would he do that? Read it yourself: “Happy are people who are hopeless, because the…
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…
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…
The whole world is hunting for peace, wholeness, and hope. But these things can only be found in a very unlikely place: the empty tomb of Jesus Christ. Because of the resurrection of Jesus who was crucified for our sins we can be made right with God. And when we are through faith right with God we receive peace upon peace. It’s not outwardly peace but inner peace right where we are. And when we have first peace with God,…
