Does grace fill your heart with joy? I hope so. We can already live the life of the Spirit here on earth. Do not settle for anything less. Because joy is a gift from God and it has nothing to do with circumstances. But it has everything to do with Jesus. Lord, you alone are my inheritance, my cup of blessing. You guard all that is mine.The land you have given me is a pleasant land. What a wonderful inheritance!(Ps.16:5-6, NLT) The…
Pruning seems to have very negative connotations so we tend to avoid it, right? Maybe occasional pruning is tolerable but as a way of life? No way. Yet I have started to change my mind about pruning. It has to do with reading John 15 again and again. Only dead branches are removed, the rest are cleansed. So pruning isn’t a punishment after all. Instead, pruning is grace. It’s a blessing. How come? “I am the true Vine, and My…
Is it hard for you to ask for advice? Do you rather wander aimlessly around than humble yourself and ask for help? Why is it so hard to admit that we are lost? It must be pride. We want to pretend at all cost that we know what we are doing. But the sooner we admit we are clueless, the sooner we are en route in the right direction. This is also true in our spiritual life. We don’t need…
It’s fun to break free from routines during holidays, isn’t it? Freedom from routines sure is a blessing. Time to wind down, rest and relax. But routines also bless us, they keep us on the right track. Also in our spiritual lives. Here are two questions to check your spiritual life in order to know if it’s time to re-embrace some of your spiritual routines. Are you getting easily irritated? Do your relatives, family members, friends drive you increasingly, uncharacteristicly crazy?…
Are you dreaming of carefree existence? Are you hoping to have a life filled with peace, trust, and quiet strength? Would you like to be safe, confident and fully alive? Don’t we all? Just too often our life resembles more a desert than an oasis though. Life without God is like living in a desert. When we are living in a desert the elements of a good life are limited. But when we allow the Spirit of God rain on…
Sometimes we think we need to be perfect before God can use us. We try to hide our imperfections or paint over our brokenness. We think if our lives were flawless, we would attract people to God. But that’s not how it works. It’s not about us. It’s about the light in us. And that’s what attracts people to God. The fact that we don’t have to be perfect in order to be accepted by Christ. The fact that the…
I know the title gives a tall order for this post. But that know-how is necessary for spiritual growth. In order to bear fruit we need to be pruned. But we don’t like it. We don’t like to get hurt. So we resist it. But that leaves us in spiritual limbo. And that is not a desired state of being. Not from our point of view and not from God’s point of you. What to do then? Any branch in…
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,…
I am utterly thankful that the Bible includes Lamentations. Just as life in general spiritual life is not always sunshine and smooth sailing. When life is heavy and hard to take, you don’t need to hide from God. Actually, that is exactly when you most need Christ. With the words of Jesus: “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? I’m here inviting the sin-sick, not the spiritually-fit.” (Mark 2:17, MSG) God sent his only son to the world…
You might ask what money and spiritual fruitfulness have in common. I used to question that myself. I’ve always thought that giving is good and we need to take care of each other. But I did not see what it had to do with spiritual fruitfulness. Martin Luther has said “There are three conversions necessary: the conversion of the heart, mind, and the purse.” For a long time I did not particularly like this quote. But now I see its…
