Courage to Labor and Love Like Jesus

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Our youngest daughter was born the Thursday before Easter two years ago. Even though our family has never been especially serious about observing all the significant days of the Lenten season, I was mindful that the day she was born is known as Maundy Thursday. Among other things the Church considers on this day, it’s historically recognized as the day Jesus washed his disciples’ feet. We get the word “Maundy” from the word Mandatum, found in the Latin translation of John 13:34-35: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved … [Read more...]

He Gives More Grace Because You Need it from Him

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It’s everywhere. It seems like lately, it’s most commonly found on the mommy blogs and vlogs, but it’s also a message heard from well-meaning Christians. I’m talking about the phrase, “give yourself grace”. It usually is found hanging out with sentiments like, “You’re doing a great job. Don’t feel guilty.” And those sentiments may be okay in the right context. More often than not though, the phrase “give yourself grace” is cushioned in much less than what we are actually offered in Christ. Grace is a word that should mean everything to us as Christians, but … [Read more...]

Satisfied by the Bread of Life

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Most of the time, when we feel hunger pangs, we know we need to go to the pantry or the fridge to feed ourselves. Often, though, in the busyness of life it’s not difficult to forget to meet one of our own basic needs, either because we don’t feel hungry or we’re busy ignoring the hunger and accomplishing other things. But this just results in us trying to deal with life physically unequipped. Sometimes Bible reading is a habit, but like eating, sometimes life circumstances overwhelm us and we need to be reminded of our need to fill up and fuel ourselves for … [Read more...]

Rest

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When it comes to the process of moving from a new beginning, and going forward in life, whether it’s simply through everyday challenges, or difficult seasons, or the sorrows brought by loneliness, loss, and pain, we move forward with the confidence that we don’t go it alone.   We hold onto the promise that the God we serve isn’t far and distant. God is with us, not in a faraway place, or abstractly. He’s with us now. Jesus came to His people and promised never to leave. So even though He ascended to heaven, He is present with us because He has given us His … [Read more...]

You Have a Great Christ

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“And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.” (1 Thessalonians 2:13 ESV)   One of the most beautiful assurances of the Gospel is that through Jesus Christ, God takes us exactly as we are, but He doesn’t leave us as we are.   God our Father is constantly at work in us, and as Philippians 2 tells us, we are called to work out our salvation with fear and trembling because … [Read more...]