pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!


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Taking Notice

Sin can be a lot like bad food you ate at a restaurant.  When you partook, you certainly enjoyed it!  Yet later, as much as you try to keep it down, it just gurgles away and makes you take notice.  In a fit of kindness, you may even think it is not the restaurant’s fault.  As we gaze in the mirror of our souls, we may even think it is the other driver’s fault they didn’t sense we wanted to change lanes or that our spouse didn’t know we were upset with something that happened at work or maybe it was the overly sensitive person at the meeting that should’ve known you were only joking.  But when we lean in and take a closer look…

The sin in our lives doesn’t go away either if we just try and pretend it is not there.  It festers away and begins to sap our strength and energy.  It wedges the guilt right in there – between us and God or between you and a friend, co-worker, or spouse.  As with bad food, it is often only later that we realize, “Uh-oh…”

Yet there is great news!!  When we confess our sins before God we can find love, and mercy, and forgiveness.  He draws us back to Himself and teaches us a better way.  He wants to guide us to a new and better way – His way of love.  God desires for us to love others as He loves us.  And when we go to our friend, co-worker, or spouse and humbly confess our sin and seek their forgiveness, they too will welcome us back into relationship with them.  And then we rejoice, for the lost has been found, the broken has been fixed.  We rejoice in our mighty savior as He pours out His love upon us each and every day.  Thanks be to God!


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The Reality of God’s Love

As Christians, is it even possible to be God’s light to everyone we encounter? Can we really extend the love of God to everyone we meet? I know the theortical answer is ‘yes’ but… I even know what the answer SHOULD be, but I also know my reality.

Jesus surely set the example for us and Mother Theresa did an excellent job of loving everyone. Pope Francis probably loves almost everyone he meets too. I am sure there are others close to the ‘perfection’ end of this continuum.

We are all God’s children. We are all loved equally by the Father. Yet to begin this walk toward loving all we encounter, we must first acknowledge our role as a child of God. For all are called, but not all answer. As a Christian we begin this journey first by claiming a personal relationship with Jesus and then cultivating that relationship. As we come to know Him more, we come to love Him more. As we come to love Him more, we come to serve Him more.

And soon we are on that road to loving all we encounter. In my reality, and maybe in yours, there are bumps on the road. There are times when I don’t feel like loving the person God has placed in front of me. There are times when I would rather not be around ‘that’ person. In those times I need to lean more into Christ so that the love of Christ may be shared with another.

We are all children of God. Some people just don’t know it yet. It is our call to bring them to the way, the truth, and the life. To end, a favorite quote: “Share the gospel always; use words when necessary.”