How are the matters of your heart? Spiritually speaking, that is. When was the last time you let God examine your heart and cut away the thick calluses of your heart? This Bible verse got me examining my own heart this morning: God, your God, will cut away the thick calluses on your heart and your children’s hearts, freeing you to love God, your God, with your whole heart and soul and live, really live. (Deut. 30:6, MSG) Again we…
Whose side are you on? You know, there’s no middle ground. Even if we’d like it to be so. Jesus said: “Whoever isn’t with me is against me, and whoever doesn’t gather with me scatters.” (Matthew 12:30, CEB) This verse stopped me this morning. I’m either with Jesus or I am against him. I either gather with Jesus or I scatter. No other alternatives. Jesus or no Jesus. Whose side are you on? God wants it all. God wants obedience….
The Bible is full of stories of obedient and faithful men and women of God. I truly appreciate that we have these saints gone before us. We can learn from them what it is to live out our faith in the midst of challenging life events. Today I want to talk about Joseph, a central character in the Christmas story. This is how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. When Mary his mother was engaged to Joseph, before they…
Salvation is readily available for everyone. We don’t need to wait until heaven to experience the presence of God. We are all called to a God-filled life right here, right now. How do we do that? By repenting and asking God into our hearts. By getting back on the altar. Day after day.God’s readiness to give and forgive is now public. Salvation’s available for everyone! We’re being shown how to turn our backs on a godless, indulgent life, and how…
It’s great that we trust God. But we are also called to follow Christ. We can’t omit the cross and Christ. Dietrich Bonhoeffer states “Christianity without discipleship is Christianity without Christ.” As followers of Jesus we can’t dictate our own terms or decide what we are willing to do. We can’t write our own program to suit our whims and wants. We can’t limit our following to our comprehension. In the Cost of Discipleship Dietrich Bonhoeffer shares the timeless advice…
When something odd and new comes around we are suspicious. When something unexpected happens in our lives we tend to cling to the old and familiar. Even if we are unhappy with the old. Because it is, at least, something we know. Too often we pass by good things because we don’t dare to taste, touch or try something new out. That almost happened to the people of Israel when God sent them bread from heaven, manna (Exodus 16). In…
The amazing message of Christianity is that God has prepared a way in Jesus for all the people to be made right with him. There’s nothing we can do to earn salvation or anything we can do to put us out of reach of God’s grace. But we are to accept the gift of grace in order to be saved. Faith receives and embraces grace. Unbelief sends the gift right back to the Giver. Our choice. Our decision. Our…
Are you tired, weary, exhausted? Are you asking what’s the point of all this? Are you feeling just terrible? The psalmist is right with you. Here’s a scripture prayer – a mighty energy drink – for all the weary pilgrims: I’m feeling terrible—I couldn’t feel worse! Get me on my feet again. You promised, remember? When I told my story, you responded; train me well in your deep wisdom. Help me understand these things inside and out so I…
The secret of starting your day right is not about getting the right hot drink just as you prefer it. The secret of starting your day right is in practicing surrender in slippers. What? The most important act in the morning is to surrender your whole life to God. If we try to carry all the burdens on our own shoulders, the day will not get the right start and will not get any better either. But if we lay…
This Hannah Whitall Smith quote from The Christian’s Secret for Happy Life has always inspired me to truly live out my faith: “Most Christians understand the principle when it comes to salvation but lose sight of it in living Christian life. Then He was our Redeemer; now He is to be our Life” What does it take to live out Christian faith? We need and we want salvation. But how Christ can be our Life? First of all, we need…
