I can’t write too much yet about what I’ve been experiencing and learning the past few weeks. It has been earth-shaking to the max. I have been drinking in God’s grace so deeply that years of weariness, caused by trying to walk Christianity out […]
Category: Spiritual Growth
Thoughts on love
Ah, St. Valentine’s Day. Candy kisses and pink greeting cards. Nothing wrong with that, per se, but instead of making singles feel more lonely, divorcees more heartbroken, husbands more pressured and wives more miffed, how about we return the holiday to its original meaning, […]
Amazing Watchman Nee anecdote
Watchman Nee, the Chinese church leader, had only six hours. He must lead the guard in front of his prison cell to Christ so that his letter of encouragement to Christians outside the prison could be delivered.
Authority
According to the Great Commission, our task is to take God's sovereign authority into all creation, reclaiming it for Him. God has delegated all authority to Christ, who in turn has delegated it to us. Thus, when we are praying and working within God's will, that infinite authority fully backs us up. That is why the gates of hell cannot prevail against the obedient church. The key to the victory is that the church must in fact be obedient to the word.
What does it mean to live for Jesus?
Jesus warned us that the world would hate true followers, just as it hated Him. If we are willing to walk close to Jesus, sensitive to the leading of His Spirit, we are going to be placed in situations where we confront world systems. These are the "elemental things of this world" that keep people in darkness and bondage, and we will find that there are vested interests in these systems that do not want to see them exposed and dismantled.
Brokenness
The experience was painful at one level ("a sword shall pierce your heart"), but there was no evil in it. This was a point of repentance and consecration, in the context of worship. There was no price not worth paying for the incomparable riches of union with God.
The high call
Sometimes the real issue is not the pressing issue. Sometimes a more basic principle is at play that we dare not violate. Especially when we think we can handle a tricky situation ourselves, we can choose an expedient solution, only to find that we've made the situation far worse. The devil's most effective time of getting us to stumble can be when we least expect it.
Reflections on the change of year
I think the New Year holiday is a good time to reflect back on where we've been, where we are and where we're going. Jesus often exhorted the first disciples to "come apart to a desert place". We need to periodically change our mental scenery so that we can get a fresh perspective on ourselves.
Made like us, so we could be like Him
Had Jesus come merely to repopulate the earth with godly seed, none of the issues the devil had raised in his rebellion would have been resolved. And the new race could have fallen just as easily as had the first. But Jesus didn’t come to replace, He came to redeem. The Incarnation is only half the story, the other half being the Cross.
Learning to trust
The question is, how does one trust God? Failing in that will keep one in a holding pattern. We need to trust God, for if we trust God, we will be open to Him. And if we are open to Him, we are going to hear from Him. And if we hear from Him, we are going to be empowered.
Overcoming Faith
Whatever your challenge, you can overcome it. Whatever is in God's will, you can achieve. I know this is true, because achieving God's will serves His purposes by extending His character, reign and glory into Creation.
Forgiveness v. reconcilliation II
Via HotAir.com, here’s an update on the Jenny Sanford story. She just announced she is divorcing her adulterous husband. In Forgiveness vs. Reconciliation, I used her example to illustrate the critical Biblical difference between these two concepts. While we must forgive, reconciliation depends on […]
Jeremiah’s complaint
Woe is me, my mother, that you have borne me, a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have not loaned, nor have men loaned to me; yet every one curses me. – Jer 15:10 The time has […]
Waiting patiently
I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a […]
