Grace for New Life

It is easy for us to become so preoccupied that we live as if God has nothing to do with our lives. We may say that we believe in God, but we rely entirely on natural forces to make our way in this world. And with a "head down" perspective, we miss out on better knowing God and what he is doing in and around us. Thankfully, God does come into our ordinary lives and he enables us to live...

We tend to measure success by results, but when we chase results, we can miss what is truly important. The place to start is by finding our purpose, a purpose that fits with who we are and which we can fulfill regardless of whether our circumstances go up or down. Through the life of Joseph, we can see that God wants to give us a purpose that will lead us into an abundant life with him both now an...

Sometimes we get to choose the path we are on and sometimes we don't. But what about those times when God calls us onto a path that's different from what we would have chosen? We remember God's faithfulness and the many ways he blesses those who follow him down through the generations. (Based on Gen. 12:1-9).

Untethered from God and the roots he gives us in creation, we can feel formless and empty with darkness enveloping our soul. But the same Holy Spirit that was present at creation is freely available to us through Jesus, and the Spirit can recreate our inner being so that we see God and our life in a new and better way. (Based on Gen. 1:1-5, 1:24-2:3.)

A courtroom, a hospital and a graveyard are all places that confront us with human corruption, brokenness and mortality. These things are easy for us to recognize in others, but it can be terrifying when we see them in ourselves. Thankfully, Jesus came into the world to be our Savior! With the forgiveness and new life as a child of God that he gives us, we can look forward, even in the midst of da...

In times of suffering, sorrow, loss, or regret, it can seem like there is no possibility of joy in the future. But Jesus came into the world to change everything for us. Instead of despair, shame and death, we have life, forgiveness and salvation in Jesus. And the future looks bright for Jesus will come again one day to make us and all things right. Therefore, even in our deepest valleys of darkne...

It is difficult to listen to the news these days. There are so many reports that cause us to be worried, sad, discouraged and even frightened. Today, the children of our church want to share the best news ever. They will tell us the story of Jesus' birth, when the Saviour of the world came to save us. This is the true meaning of Christmas that gives hope in a challenging world.

When conflict is personal, establishing peace is easier said than done. That’s because peace always comes at a cost and we are not usually willing to lose in a conflict so that others can gain. Thankfully, Jesus came and paid the cost for us to have peace with God. With that peace at the center of our lives, we then seek to live in peace with those around us. Love is what brings peace. (Based on 1...

When things are bad and getting worse, we can wonder why God is taking so long to straighten things out, especially when others say we are foolish for having any hope in God. God views time differently than we do, yet he is at work in all time, even now, orchestrating events according to his divine plan which will lead to the glorious new heaven and earth. We know how the story will end. Therefore...

Go to any major sporting event and you will see people that identify with their team. They cheer, shout encouragement and perhaps even wear their team’s jersey. All with the hope of being on the winning side. But what does it look like to be on the winning side of life? Though rejected by people 2,000 years ago and today, Jesus won the victory for humanity that changes everything. With him as the...

Faith is often thought of as believing that what we want to happen will happen. But the “Hall of Fame of Faith” in Hebrews chapter 11 paints a far different picture of faith. Faith is believing in God’s promises for the future and aligning our actions with those promises, even if those promises are not fulfilled in our own lifetime. How do we know we can trust God’s promises? Because God is faithf...

A builder is known by the greatness of the buildings they create. As profound as a beautiful bricks and mortar building can be, gathering and giving life to a redeemed and restored community of humans is infinitely better. That’s what Jesus is doing. Therefore, we can bring our broken hearts and lives to him and know that he will make us part of the great human “building” he is creating. (Based on...

The idea that we have to earn the good things of life is hard wired into human nature. But it won’t save us from the destiny of destruction our sin sick soul is leading us toward. Any attempts at repairing our life are insufficient. We need a totally new life, and that’s exactly what Jesus has given us as a completely free gift. Therefore, we live for what is good because we already have been give...

Insecurity makes us tentative. It is hard to be strong when our weakness is so evident. But Jesus has joined his life to our and, in our weakness, we have his strength. Faith is what connects us to Jesus and helps us to live in his strength. Therefore, with God’s help, we fan the flames of the faith that has been given to us. (Based on 2 Timothy 1:1-14.)

When the hope we have for a better life is being ground down to nothing by persecution or life-stealing circumstances, it’s time to re-examine our foundation for hope. A hope foundation built on the things of this world will never last. But a foundation built on Jesus’ promise to return and restore us and all things will give us the hope we need to endure until those better days come. (Based on 1...

We tend to become what we focus on. Broken as we are, we humans tend to focus on the baser aspects of life in this world thinking that they will satisfy the appetites of our heart, but they never do. Thankfully, Jesus came into this world to redeem us lost and broken souls and give us a greater life with him that will last forever. Therefore, we direct our focus toward heavenly things, the things...

One of the important ways to grow into becoming the kind of person we want to be is by choosing a mentor and patterning our life after theirs. We are making such choices whenever we click on “Like,” “Follow,” or “Subscribe.” But are we being thoughtful and intentional about who we allow to influence us and the depth of influence that we give to them? Will following them lead us into the life that...

There is a lot of emphasis on rule-based living these days. While having some basic rules for our life can be helpful, for we all need some structure in our lives, it is important for us to remember that the rules are not our life, and neither is living without any rules. What we really need for fruitful living is to be enlivened, empowered and directed by the Holy Spirit. Our best life is lived w...

God is on the move.  He is always on the move!  Can you see what He is doing around you?  Did you know that the Holy Spirit is working all the time as He continues to work in your life and mine.   He is working on all those people in your sphere of influence.  Can you see Him working and how He equips you to be His mentor to others as He is working in their lives?  Are you ready?  God is on the Mo...

The standard human operating system is to live life in this world guided by what we see and for our own personal enrichment. The hollowness of this OS is revealed when we come to the end of life in this world and end up with nothing. But Jesus paid the full cost of our forgiveness so that we could be reconciled to God and have life with him. Therefore, we live differently in this world. We are gui...

We usually think of freedom as the ability to do whatever we want, but that kind of freedom can lead us to harm others and ourselves. With Jesus, we have been freed from feeding our sinful, self-centered desires. In the freedom we have from Jesus, we mold ourselves to connect with others so they might know him and the freedom he gives. (Based on 1 Cor. 9:19-27, 10:23-11:2.)

A lot of the challenging issues in our society these days, such as sexuality, gender, and abortion, pertain to the human body and who controls what we do with our bodies. Is it the government or the individual? A common response is to say, “It’s my body and I can do whatever I want with it!” As we look at Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, we will see that this isn’t even the right question t...

With all the challenges we face, it is easy for us to become discouraged and cynical about life. Our hearts are empty, and we have no use for other people, unless they can give us what we need. But Jesus gives us the endurance and encouragement we need to keep moving forward in this challenging world. He makes sure that all our needs are met and his love fills our hearts to over-flowing. Fully lov...

Central to the Christian journey is the faithful reading of Scripture and fellowship with Jesus and his followers. This is vividly illustrated in the dramatic encounter between two disciples and the risen Jesus on the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35). The disciples recognize who Jesus is, and are able to proclaim the gospel, only after he explains Scripture in relation to himself and...

We humans inherently try to justify ourselves on the basis of what we do, who we are, or what we have. But none of those human-centered approaches work. Thankfully, because of his own goodness and love, God has reconciled himself to us by sending Jesus to pay the full cost of humanity's forgiveness for our sins and give us his righteousness in return. Therefore, we abandon our efforts to just...