An Eye for Redemption

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Kumar
2008-02-15 00:42:00
Brant Hansen tells a story about a man In the Cubicle Next Door. Here is an excerpt:A few years later, he went back to India. Kumar took his vacation from Sun, and headed over with no plan. He just went door-to-door, and told people about Jesus.The first day, 45 people decided to become Jesus-followers. How'd THAT happen?"I don't know. I just went door to door, and neighbors would introduce me to others, and I was amazed."-------------Kumar still takes his vacations, two weeks a year, and heads to India. But things have grown. From those first 45, and from his trips over the past seven years...More than 100,000 conversions. 139 communities. More than 100 pastors. Model orphanages for children suffering from AIDS Schools for Dalit children, the lowest-of-the-low in India. Shelters for little girls, now rescued from prostitution. Food. Medicine. Jesus.You simply must read this amazing and heartbreaking story. It will blow you away! Hattip to crownring for the link to ...

Facing Down Fear
2008-02-10 15:28:00
When my son volunteered to go back for a second tour of frontline battle in Iraq he requested that I not pray against him going.. it was hard for me not to pray that way. Over the next few months as he prepared to go back God did something in my heart.. he turned worry inside out in me.. I don't think that I ever worried after he touched my heart and gave me a peace knowing that Matt was right where he needed to be. Matt has been home for a month now (he gets out of the Army in April after four and a half years of service) and I recognize how much he has changed. He needed that second tour of battlefield duty to recover from his first tour. I think that God is amazing in the way that he uses a wounded man's courage to heal him when he returns to the battlefield and faces down his fear.This speaks to me this morning about facing down my own fears. Using my son's experience I think that these are the factors in facing down fear:Faith: The first step is to trust God as you choose to...
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Purpose and Pleasure
2008-02-06 15:06:00
Every time I look at this picture from Chariots of Fire I am reminded of this line from the movie: I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.I think that passion can be defined using two words from this line: purpose and pleasure. When Eric Liddel, missionary to China, ran in the 1924 Olympics he ran as a man filled with passion.. passion for God.. if you remember the movie.. he would not run in a Sunday race because of his conviction about the Sabbath. He also seemed to have a passion for life.. it seemed that whatever he did with all he had. It reminds me of this passage of scripture: Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (1 Corinthians 10:31)Here is a passage from another scene in the movie where Eric is addressing a crowd that watched him race: You came to see a race today. To see someone win. It happened to be me. But I want you to do more than just watch a race. I want you to take...
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Live From Your Heart
2008-02-04 23:52:00
Excerpts from this blog post of the same name written by Preston Gillham:The Scriptures are clear, we Believers are given a new heart when we are transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light, from irretrievable uselessness to God to being His sought after treasure. No longer do we have hearts that are rebellious and desperately wicked as Jeremiah preached to his generation. Rather, as Ezekiel prophesied would be the case when Christ came, the laws of God are now written on our hearts; they are no longer hardened to God but are soft and pliable (ref. Ezek. 36:26-27).It is a crying shame that teachers teach and Believers believe that the heart of the child of God is a wicked beast torn between two loves: obedience and sin, God and the devil, darkness and light. This is a mishandling of Scripture, and I think sometimes it is deliberate in order to motivate folks toward outward godliness in lieu of true spiritual formation, which begins inside and works its way out...
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Spiritual Balance
2008-01-25 18:44:00
On Tuesday night I had a chance to be with some inmates at our city jail. I spoke to them about the ideas presented in my last post. During the last 15 minutes of my talk I invited feedback and one of the guys said something like this: I read the bible for a long time and it helped me very little.. but when I began to experience God everything changed.One of the other guys responded by talking about how spiritual experiences are often trivialized by both fundamentalists and liberals alike. It got me to thinking about how the bible can be very dry if you don't have accompanying experience. I guess the challenge we face is to keep a healthy balance of spiritual knowledge and experience.. if it is all about knowledge then things tend to become merely intellectual.. if it is all about experience then things can be become merely emotional. That is about all I had on this. I would be interested in your thoughts on the topic.In the seemingly most tragic events of history, and in particula...
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The Knowing Heart
2008-01-20 13:34:00
I woke up this morning thinking about what it is to live out of my heart. This scripture immediately came to me: Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin. (James 4:17)The word that stood out to me is "knows". I think that when we live from our heart we live out a deep knowing.. a knowing that doesn't rely on our fleshly senses but one that comes from our heart. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus seemed to get down to this level. He said things like: "You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY'; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:27-28)It was like Jesus was saying, yes I know that you are not sinning with your flesh but don't you understand that the real issue is not your flesh but your heart. Your heart is the place where sin is conceived.. it is the place where you know that it is wrong.. it is not simply because th...
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No Limits
2008-01-13 21:13:00
As we worshipped this morning, singing this song, an awesome picture/vision flooded my mind.. here it is as I remember it:The first image was of a soccer field as seen from the clouds.. as I looked at the field all of the lines began to disappear into the green turf.. I countinued to look and I saw the bleacher-like stands on either side of the field seamlessly descend like an elevator into the grass.. the next scene took my breath away as I saw everyone rush onto the field.Here is what the vision communicated to me:There are no boundaries in Heaven.. no artificial human limits.. limits created by others or by we ourselves are no obstacle to God.. He will qualify those who He calls.Christ has leveled the playing field.. no man-made delineation between professional and amateur ministry.. He can use anyone.Everyone can play.. and we all want to play.. no one really enjoys watching.. we are all needed.. there are no bench warmers on God's team.I shared a bit of this with our church th...
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The Mouth of the Wise
2008-01-06 01:44:00
In the seemingly most tragic events of history, and in particular our lives, God sees with an eye for redemption and works to bring beauty from ashes.
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The Journey of the Spiritual Heart
2007-12-28 17:58:00
The word "journey" is probably one of the most overused words that I have heard used (and have personally used ad nauseum) in religious circles. It is something that we often wear as a badge of honor.. don't you dare criticize my journey. With 2008 knocking on our doors I was thinking about this idea of journey and thought of these verses out of Proverbs: "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel." (12:15)"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." (14:12)"All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight, But the LORD weighs the motives." (16:2)"Every man's way is right in his own eyes, But the LORD weighs the hearts." (21:2)There is a word that is used in each of these verses.. it is the word "way" and is translated from this Hebrew word:derek (deh'-rek): From darak; way, road, distance, journey, manner, road, way, path, journey, direction, manner, habit, way, of course of life (fig.), of moral char...
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The Longest Night
2007-12-22 18:24:00
In preparation for my talk at last night's Longest Night Service I jotted down a few thoughts on our church blog. I got the inspiration for this post as I recapped 2007 in my previous post. The service was pretty well attended. We spent some time singing a few worship songs, my wife Ann read Diane Hendricks' Longest Night Meditation and my friend and co-worker Jason sang this inspiring song:I followed with a brief sharing of my heart around my year of the longest nights. We ended our time with a time of candle lighting and prayer. It was a very sweet time and a fitting way to prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus.In the seemingly most tragic events of history, and in particular our lives, God sees with an eye for redemption and works to bring beauty from ashes.

2007 in Review
2007-12-14 22:32:00
At the end of the year I like to take a look at the posts I have written.. I see some common themes and a few new ones. Here are some excerpts from my favorite posts by month:January: Flowing with WeaknessI think that this kind weakness is something that often looks like desperation. It is the kind of thing that really brings you to the end of yourself and to the beginning of faith. I have to admit that I do not feel strong spiritually right now. I am forced to trust the Lord in a way that I have had to do on several other occasions. I am again reminded that I can only flow with the Spirit at a heart level ... I can only be at peace when I give up control of this situation.February: Which Reality?I often find myself going through the day subconsciously talking to God. On one such day a few weeks ago I heard myself thinking "I am a realist". What I heard back surprised me. This thought instantly came back to me: "Which reality?" Over the past few weeks I have thought a lot about this...
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Chain Breaking Praise
2007-12-11 16:08:00
Codepoke reminded me of this song when he wrote about voluntary chains at his place. If you are having a rough day or rough season.. I'm sorry that things are difficult.. as you listen to the song turn your heart to Him in praise. It is true that praise can break those chains.Praise the LordWhen you're up against a struggleThat's shattered all your dreamsAnd your hopes been cruely crushedBy Satan's manifested schemes.And you feel the urge within youTo submit to earthly fearsDon't let the faith your standing inSeem to disappearCHORUS:Praise the Lord.He will work for those who praise himPraise the Lord. For our God inhabits praisee.Praise the Lord.And those chains that seem to bind youServe only to remind you.As they fall powerless behind you.When you praise him.Satan is a liar and he wants to make us thinkThat we are paupers, when we know ourselvesWe're children of the king.So lift up the mighty shield of faithFor the battle must be wonRemember Jesus Christ has risenSo the work...
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O Holy Night
2007-12-07 22:10:00
"O Holy Night " ("Cantique de Noël") is a well-known Christmas carol composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847 to the French poem "Minuit, chrétiens" by Placide Cappeau (1808-1877), an accomplished amateur. Cappeau was asked to write a Christmas poem by a parish priest. I have included two ensemble versions of it below. Let me know which one you liked best. For fun you can play them in unison.Celtic WomanIl Divo Which rendition moved you the most?In the seemingly most tragic events of history, and in particular our lives, God sees with an eye for redemption and works to bring beauty from ashes.
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The Trustable Heart
2007-12-03 12:48:00
Jim over at Coming Out of the Prayer Closet asks the question:Does Christianity Make Us Better People?Here is the way I responded:The problem you describe Jim.. I think.. is the whole problem that many evangelicals.. especially fundamentalists.. have when they describe the heart as desperately wicked. When I woke up to the fact that my heart was good and trustable everything began to change for me.I have told people that if your heart is wicked then you'd better not try to walk out Proverbs 3:5.. better to lean on your own understanding than to trust a wicked heart. So the question is:When does your heart become good?I think that it is a part of the born again experience.. the problem for some Christians is that:The born again experience is too narrowly and exclusively defined by religious leaders. As a result many people who trust Jesus are discredited because they "didn't do it right".. it is a pitiful example of how insecure religious leaders bully sincere believers in Jesus in...
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Unexpected Blessings
2007-12-01 17:04:00
Back in March US Presidential Press Secretary Tony Snow, 51, a husband and father of three, announced that cancer had returned, with tumors found in his abdomen.. this led to surgery in April, followed by chemotherapy. Today a friend sent me an email pointing me to an article that Tony wrote in July for Christianity Today titled Cancer's Unexpected Blessings . Here are a few excerpts from the article with my comments interspersed: Blessings arrive in unexpected packages?in my case, cancer.Those of us with potentially fatal diseases?and there are millions in America today?find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence What It All Means, Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the why questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such...
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The Power of God?s Pleasure
2007-11-26 23:44:00
Following is an excerpt from an article of the same title by Steve Sjogren as posted on his blog.All of us have gifts, whether we know Christ or not.I have found that one of the most powerful ways to lead people toward Christ is to give them a chance to use their gifts in serving others. In using their gifts they will experience, to borrow a famous idea from the film Chariots of Fire, ?the pleasure of God.?We would generally agree that leading people away from strange views and perspectives to a scriptural view of Jesus is extremely difficult. Once people have given themselves to a ?cultic? view of Jesus, it is difficult to find their way back to a clear-cut biblical view of him.Yet I have seen a number of Mormons and Jehovah?s Witnesses, both of those groups believe in the Arian view of Christ that he was only man and not God, come to a saving relationship with Christ through using their gifts to serve others.Early on in my stint as a leader there was no way that I would have allo...
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An Emerging Perspective
2007-11-24 20:05:00
A friend wrote asking me for input to questions around The Emerging Church.. what it is.. where it started.. what sets them apart.. and other questions. I am certainly no authority on this topic.. in a sense no one is or can be.. but I responded anyway.. I always seem to J ..I don't think that I have ever posted on this topic.. anywho, here is what I wrote: Each generation seems to want to have their own movement.. their own flavor of Christianity.. to be emerging is to identify with that sentiment.. it is to say that I am not happy with the way things have been in church and in Christianity. As a result an Us vs. Them mentality sometimes surfaces.Emerging theology tends to be a bit more accepting and less exclusive. I think that this is somewhat of a reaction to fundamentalism and some sects of evangelicalism.Like Protestantism, emerging churches tend to be different yet the same in some ways.The emerging movement seems to have it?s rock stars like Brian McLaren, Rob Bell and Mark...
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Grateful For What Really Matters
2007-11-22 16:41:00
Susan Estrich begins her article titled Thanksgiving: A Holiday at War With Our Culture bemoaning the reality of what Thanksgiving has become and how challenging the holiday can be.. making a moist Turkey.. getting past the thoughtlessness of relatives and friends.. the demands of cultural thinness.. the success of nasty people.. aaahh.. enough to make a body depressed.. but Susan ends the article this way:The challenge of Thanksgiving is not to make a better turkey, not to lose 10 pounds, not to get there first or faster or cheaper, or with the most money in your pocket or the most gold stars on your forehead. It's to remember that those things don't really matter, and to be grateful for what does.We all know in our hearts what really matters.. we are all thankful for the tangible and intangibles of life that we hold so dear.. but sometimes the events of our lives can overshadow those things that we are thankful for.. pain can breed an inward foocus and cause us to forget what re...
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Suffering, yet not Ashamed
2007-11-17 17:35:00
Today's Verse of the Day seems so appropriate for recent events. The passage reads:I am suffering ... Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day. (2 Timothy 1:12/NIV)Yesterday, our dear friend Ann Glotzbach passed away.. you can read about her here. Her passing is painful yet bittersweet because of her prolonged suffering and pain these past years. Here is what the Verse of the Day website had to say about Paul: As Paul faced very difficult circumstances near the end of his life, many of those he had led to the Lord abandoned him. But he was confident that the Lord would not abandon him! He had committed his life to Jesus as Lord. That Lord would ensure that the investment Paul had made would not be wasted. His life, his future, and his eternal destiny were entrusted to the Lord. He was confident that they were also secure in the Lord. He believed with every fiber of his being that o...
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We Shall Behold Him
2007-11-11 22:39:00
I have been thinking a lot about hope these days. This Dottie Rambo song sung by Sandi Patty encapsulates our blessed hope like no other I know. It captures the hope that we have in our hearts at the thought of seeing Jesus.For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)In the seemingly most tragic events of history, and in particular our lives, God sees with an eye for redemption and works to bring beauty from ashes.
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He's Been Faithful
2007-11-11 02:11:00
In 1994 I was grieving the loss of my first wife when I first heard this beautiful song sung by the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir.. it helped get me through a difficult time in my life. My friend and co-worker Jeanne bought the cassette tape for me.. I think I played it three times a day. He's been so faithful to me.. He still is.If you find yourself in a somewhat difficult season and are hurting so much.. or if you just want to express your gratitude for His faithfulness to you.. I suggest that you sing along.. the words are below the video pane.. and lose yourself in His faithful presence.In My Moments Of FearThrough Every Pain Every TearThere's A God Who's Been Faithful To MeWhen My Strength Was All GoneWhen My Heart Had No SongStill In Love He's Proved Faithful To MeEvery Word He's Promised Is TrueWhat I Thought Was ImpossibleI've Seen My God DoHe's Been FaithfulFaithful To MeLooking Back He's Love And Mercy I SeeThough In My Heart I Have QuestionedAnd Failed To BelieveHe's...

Faith and Fatalism
2007-11-04 04:46:00
I was recently reminded of this post.. something I wrote almost three years ago.. as I have been living and praying through Ann's month long hospitalization. Here are a few heavenly thoughts that have encouraged me these past few weeks:If God didn?t cause it then it can be changed.. I don?t have to have a fatalistic view of the future.The past is Satan?s playground, the future is the Lord?s.. the invitation is to play in God?s playground.. it is an invitation to hope!I think that life is all about perspective.. so often pain causes us to stop hoping.. stop believing.. stop believing that things can get better. The challenge is to let pain change us for the better.. to let God cause it to work together for good.January 24, 2005: My pastor recently mentioned fatalism in a Sunday morning message. It caused me to look the word up ... here is a definition:Acceptance of the belief that all events are predetermined and inevitable.This definition really challenges me because it too closely...
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The Words of Jesus
2007-10-28 21:03:00
In response to Stan Guthrie's Christianity Today article Tony Campolo said: While we, like you, have a very high view of the inspiration of Scripture and believe the Bible was divinely inspired, you are correct in accusing Red Letter Christians of giving the words of Jesus priority over all other passages of Scripture. What is more, we believe that you really cannot rightly interpret the rest of the Bible without first understanding who Jesus is, what he did, and what he said.Likewise, we believe the morality in the red letters of Jesus transcends that found in the black letters set down in the Pentateuch, and I'm surprised you don't agree. After all, Stan, didn't Jesus himself make this same point in the Sermon on the Mount, when he said his teachings about marriage and divorce were to replace what Moses taught? Don't you think his red-letter words about loving our enemies and doing good to those who hurt us represent a higher morality than the "eye for an eye and a tooth for ...
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Heavenly Recognition
2007-10-27 18:40:00
Until We Meet Again'Does the Bible teach that we will recognize our loved ones in heaven?'Daniel R. Lockwood, Christianity TodayAs the years pass, this question looms larger in my thinking. Last year, I attended three funeral services of godly saints who'd passed away. One was my 85-year-old father-in-law, whose exemplary life and witness is now just a cherished memory. For my wife, who loved her father dearly, this question is thus no idle theological speculation. Fortunately, the Bible speaks clearly to it.The simple answer?yes?rests on two pillars of Christian belief. One is the blessed hope that we will see Jesus again (Titus 2:13). The other is the assurance that our present bodies will be raised from the dead, immortal (1 Cor. 15:12-57). Together, these pillars provide a basis for believing we will recognize our loved ones in heaven. After all, if we can recognize the Lord Jesus, possessing the perfectly restored and glorified bodies to do so, it follows that we will recogn...
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Under Fathered, Over Mothered Worship
2007-10-22 14:22:00
This short video deals with the topic I previously discussed in my Feminine Worship post. In the video popular song writer and worship leader Matt Redman discusses why some worship songs aren't for the blokes. In the video Matt is very transparent about some of his lyrics and thinks that today he might have used some different words.In the seemingly most tragic events of history, and in particular our lives, God sees with an eye for redemption and works to bring beauty from ashes.
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Moses: Rescued Rescuer
2007-10-22 08:51:00
But the harder the Egyptians worked them the more children the Israelites had--children everywhere! The Egyptians got so they couldn't stand the Israelites and treated them worse than ever, crushing them with slave labor. They made them miserable with hard labor--making bricks and mortar and back-breaking work in the fields. They piled on the work, crushing them under the cruel workload. (Exodus 1:12-14)Pharaoh issued a general order to all his people: "Every boy that is born, drown him in the Nile. But let the girls live." (Exodus 1:22)A man from the family of Levi married a Levite woman. The woman became pregnant and had a son. She saw there was something special about him and hid him. She hid him for three months. When she couldn't hide him any longer she got a little basket-boat made of papyrus, waterproofed it with tar and pitch, and placed the child in it. Then she set it afloat in the reeds at the edge of the Nile. The baby's older sister found herself a vantage point a li...
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Where you do not wish to go
2007-10-17 15:46:00
In a comment on my 10-20-30 post Therese made this comment about my accounting of what I was doing 10, 20 and 30 years ago: "And you were following Jesus on all of those parts of your journey."I don't think that I had considered that yesterday when I penned my memories about my life and my family. In some strange brain connection Therese's thoughts reminded me of what Jesus told Peter: "Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go." Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, "Follow Me!" Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them; the one who also had leaned back on His bosom at the supper and said, "Lord, who is the one who betrays You?" So Peter seeing him said to Jesus, "Lord, and what ab...

Perfected Jews?
2007-10-12 17:15:00
Ultra controversial conservative celebrity book writer Ann Coulter appeared on the a CNBC show (video here) and said that Christians are perfected Jews .. which was interpreted by the Jewish host as "Jews need to be perfected".. hence it did not go over well with him. Ahem, well Ann is probably not the best spokesperson for the faith.. not sure that I am either.. so I thought that I would ask the question: What is a perfected or completed Jew?I think that the question somewhat betrays an inner belief that somehow Christians embrace Judaism as a legitimate alternate approach to God or that Christianity is just an extension of Judaism.. I think that some Messianic congregations arise around the idea that Christianity is a mere extension of Judaism. This idea often leads to a misunderstanding of grace and a return to the law and traditions of the Old Testament. Am I in trouble yet?In the 9th chapter of Romans the apostle Paul makes a few astute observations about his Jewish roots and Ab...

Eternal Family
2007-10-07 15:30:00
A recent ad for the Mormon church features a young man who lost his mother when he was young.. in reflecting on his loss the young man makes this closing statement: Families should be eternal.That statement hit me funny ... what do you think of it? Here is something that Jesus says about family: While He was still speaking to the crowds, behold, His mother and brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak to Him. Someone said to Him, "Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside seeking to speak to You." But Jesus answered the one who was telling Him and said, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?" And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, "Behold My mother and My brothers! "For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother." (Matthew 12:46-50)This is quite an amazing statement from Jesus. In it He gives us a whole new perspective on family.. He seems to be saying that there are two different kinds ...
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The Great Invitation
2007-10-06 16:43:00
My blog friend Janna wrote a great post with the same title as this post - I encourage you to visit and read the whole post. Here is the way she begins:Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)My pastor calls this passage the "Great Invitation ". I had never heard of that concept before but find it very interesting and applicable. This passage has been described as the "how" to the Great Commandment (Mt 22:37-39) and the Great Commission (Mt 28:18-20). This makes total sense to me. The premise being that in order to be able to fulfill those other two "Great's" (loving others, God & making disciples) we need to first learn from the Master, Jesus, by walking alongside Him in His yoke.In the seemingly most tragic events of history, and in particular our lives, God sees with...
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