“What is it that you want? Do you want an easy life? Or do you want what’s best for you? Do you want to fit in with the crowd? Or do you want to abide in Me?” Can you hear God challenging us this morning? “So, Jeremiah [insert your own name here], if you’re worn out in this footrace with men, what makes you think you can race against horses? And if you can’t keep your wits during times of…
If you don’t pray often, you won’t gain a love for praying. Prayer is work, and therefore it is not very appealing to our natural sensibilities. But the simple rule for prayer is this: Begin praying and your taste for prayer will increase. The more you pray, the more you will acquire the desire for prayer, the energy for prayer, and the sense of purpose in prayer.~ Leslie Ludy The goal of prayer is to live all of my life…
Spiritual disciplines are nothing more than ways to connect with God in such ways that increase spiritual growth. They are ways that help us to get to know God deeper and deeper. They are ways that get us refocused on God. They are also ways that prepare us for service and mission. The deeper we abide in Christ, the more God can use us in his service. That’s why Christians have used spiritual disciplines from the beginning. Just like Jesus….
What is true Christian living? What is true worship? Martin Luther once said “true worship is the tenth leper turning back”. His remarks were based on Luke 17:11-19 (MSG): It happened that as he made his way toward Jerusalem, he crossed over the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten men, all lepers, met him. They kept their distance but raised their voices, calling out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” Taking a good look at…
I once posted this Eugene H. Peterson quote on the Flowing Faith Facebook page and have not been able to forget it ever since: “What a waste it would be to take these short, precious, eternity-charged years that we are given and squander them in cocktail chatter when we can be, like Jeremiah, vehemently human and passionate with God.” I think all human beings are afraid of wasting their lives. We crave for meaning and purpose in our lives. It’d…
The prayer power has never been tried to its full capacity. If we want to see mighty wonders of divine power and grace wrought in the place of weakness, failure and disappointment, let us answer God’s standing challenge, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not!’ ~ J. Hudson Taylor It is time to pray together. It’s time to pray for each other. It’s time to seek God’s presence….
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…
We are called to have an intimate and organic relationship with Jesus. We are called to abide in the tree of life. How can we do that? Only by faith. Only by grace. We can read about the Tree of Life throughout the Bible. We are first introduced to the tree of life at the Paradise (Genesis 2:9). But the most fascinating vision is found in the book of Revelation: The Tree of Life was planted on each side of…
As nights are getting longer and darker I am reminded of the battle of darkness and light. Thankfully we know that God has won the battle on the cross. Gratefully we realize that darkness has no say over us. Blessedly we acknowledge that in Jesus there will always be light.
