03/05/2020
Many people set a goal for the New Year for positive change in their lives. Christians, on Ash Wednesday, set a goal to change our lives. Not to randomly change our lives, but to transform our lives so that we may become more like Christ and so we may glorify God. From Ash Wednesday we march into the season of Lent, focusing 40 days on a practice which will then become a positive discipline in our lives.
The Apostle Paul was very concerned about the church in Corinth when he wrote letters to them which we have in our Bible. He was disturbed by the reports he was receiving and he loved them enough to fight for them--to call them out for their wayward ways and call them back to Christ.
“Do you not know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? Clean out the old yeast so that you may be a new batch, as you really are unleavened. For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore, let us celebrate the festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” I Corinthians 5:6-8
Just as a pinch of salt can add great flavor to a recipe, a bit of old yeast will leaven the entire batch. The ingredients of our lives affect the direction of our lives. During this 40 day journey, may each of us put the best, the most flavorful and the most effective flavor in our lives as persons of faith.
Archived Posts
Such A Rich Passage (Luke 19:1-10)
I reflected a lot on the passage about Zacchaeus because it has been written off as “been there, read that, little guy in a tree.” But it is so rich in getting to the heart of what it means to be saved by grace through faith—to live our lives out of gratitude rather than obligation.
The Power of Presence
This last Sunday I had so much more to share than time to share it. The last Emotional Management Technique was to stay present in the process. Just as Jesus stayed with the woman who was judged and found guilty by the angry crowd, we stay by our children and our friends, especially when they need us the most. Here a couple of examples...
What’s In A Benediction?
Last Sunday I used one of my favorite benedictions.
It was inspired by a saying from about ten years ago:
A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words
There are several powerful and evocative artworks that depict the scene from Mark 9:14–29, where Jesus heals a boy possessed by an unclean spirit... Some of the following have internet links, the others are worth googling. Enjoy!
The Gift of Ourselves As A Gift of Love
The more the giving of myself costs me something, the greater the power of the gift. You know I love quotes, so after a little research, let me share a few of my favorites on this very subject:
The Loss of a Great Christian Leader
The death today of Pope Francis was particularly poignant, falling as it did on the day after Easter. As Protestant Christians we have a once removed interest in the leader of the Roman Catholic church. Yet the pope is the authoritative leader of 1.4 billion women and men around the world. It is worth our time to pause and consider what kind of man and what kind of legacy Pope Francis left behind.
Everything You Wanted To Know About Judas Iscariot
(Drawn from online sources)