Mission Faithwalk

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love   he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— (Ephesians 1:4-5)           Let’s go back to some basics. If you want someone to do something, does the fact that they don’t chose to do it mean that you don’t want them to? If you want someone to come visit, and expect them to arrive in a car, and instead they show up riding a bicycle, is your will for them to visit not still fulfilled? Some people seem to think that something being God’s will means that it has to happen in a way that supersedes the will of the person. That does happen sometimes, but something being predestined doesn’t require God to use a baseball bat to accomplish His desires. He might use flowers instead. Sometimes, we seem to get so twisted up about God’s will and predestination, thinking we have it al...

Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90:12)           Has anyone had the same problem as I have over the past week or so? The day after Christmas was Monday. Tuesday was the second of January. Wednesday was Monday again. I write the day and date on Dad’s white board every morning, but the holidays have really messed with my internal calendar. Dad being up at least once during the night isn’t doing much for my internal clock either. I feel like singing the old Chicago song, “Does anybody really know what time it is? Does anybody really care?”           When my next to the last job was eliminated, I found that I wasted too much time. What was the rush? I could always ______ tomorrow. That was part of why I applied for a job where I ended up working for 13 years, because having a job, any job, would force me to be more organized and purposeful. Now that I’m “unemployed” again, I h...

For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, (Titus 2:11-12)           Grace is among the many abstract concepts that I don’t think we understand. I know I don’t. One of the best illustrations I can come up with is the donation of blood. An injured person’s blood supply is drained. Several other people’s blood is put in its place, filling him back up and keeping him alive. That’s grace – making up for what we lack. Jesus’ death was grace in that it supplies us with salvation if we accept it.           The next sentence in today’s passage begins with an ambiguous pronoun, “it.” According to English convention, “it” should refer to the closest preceding noun, which would be people, but “it” can’t refer to people because people is plural. Therefore, ...

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble . But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)           My chapter in Larry Christensen’s The Renewed Mind today deals with trouble. I have read somewhere (it might not be correct) that swords generally fall into two categories. There is the sort with which you stab (e.g. rapier) and there is the sort with which you slice (e.g. saber.) Of course, in the heat of battle, one doesn’t generally take time to think, “Oh, I can’t run this saber through his guts, it’s not a rapier.”            Mr. Christensen discusses a different sort of weapon that has both a cutting edge and what he calls an “etching point.” The cutting edge is used to reveal weakness, sickness, and damage, and remove it. The etching point is used a little like a tattoo needle, to inscribe on us the image of Christ.     ...

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,  To God’s holy people in Ephesus, ] the faithful in Christ Jesus:                  Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 1:1-2) To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:7) To the churches in Galatia:                 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 1:2-3) Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons:            Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:1-2)             It at least used to be that when we wrote friend...

This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. (Isaiah 43:16, 18-19)  Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day. (Deuteronomy 5:15)           Forget the former things…remember that you were slaves in Egypt…. Wait, we can’t do both…at the same time, to the same memories. I have a good memory, particularly for two things: trivia (the unimportant) and failure, especially my own. Oh wait, my own failures and the failures of others – shouldn’t that be considered trivia, too? That’s food for thought that I don’t have time to chew at the ...

  Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’   This is the first and greatest commandment.   And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ (Matthew 22:37-39)                 Two days ago, I wrote about knowing God’s will, based on Romans 12:1-2. One of the keys of God’s will is self-sacrifice, becoming a living sacrifice. Today, we’re looking at another key passage on God’s will. God’s will is to love. We are to love God… first, foremost, and totally. That means He comes before anyone else, including self, family, and friends.   What He says, goes, period.   This doesn’t mean that one can’t or shouldn’t argue with God. We have plenty of Scripture in which people do argue with God, and He is known to give in on some things. My favorite story about this is the story of the Syrophoenician woman with the possessed daughter, who ignores Jesus’ v...