All in Discipleship

A Bit Prickly

My mind holds vivid memories of being dragged to go shopping as a child, often and with various members of my family. Clothes and malls weren’t my thing back then, but I did enjoy plant nurseries—perusing through aisles of God’s creations, seeing the variety in shapes and colors, brushing my fingers along the—ouch! Cacti.

Kingdom Living

In the understanding of many, we enter the Kingdom of God only when we enter Heaven.

However, the Bible teaches Christ followers that Jesus sent us out to proclaim the kingdom of God in the world NOW.

Called to Love

This is not the first time Jesus filled the nets of the fishermen. On the first occasion Simon Peter was so astounded he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8). It had dawned on him who Jesus really was. Then he, Andrew, James, and John promptly left their nets to fish for men.

Run, Jonah. Run

Ah, January—I love Januarys. Januarys beckon me to step back and consider the old year. I transpose my Canadian memories of crisp snowfalls to cover the muddy paths I’ve been over. I cry to the Lord: wash me, and I will be whiter than snow (Psalm 51:7). But then Januarys urge me on to chase the new with vigor: Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).  

The Mind of Christ

The human brain fascinates me. I observed its development as my babies learned to talk, walk and eventually drive away. Oswald Chambers' quote recently challenged me to consider the brain from a new perspective:

God does not give us the mind of Christ. He gives us the Spirit of Christ, and we have to see that the Spirit of Christ in us works through our brains in contact with actual life and that we form His mind.” *

When the LORD Passes By

Yes, Elijah’s greatest fear may have been of being the only one of God’s prophets left, alone and without help. However, God had a much more penetrating question of His prophet. Not once but twice He asked: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (19:9,13). Incredible, isn’t it, that the LORD‘s charge to Elijah should occur on that very same mountain where He had spoken to Moses in the burning bush and given him the Law (Exodus 3:1-3;19:9,16)?

How Then Can We Live…imitate the faithful

Fixing our thoughts on Jesus (3:1), asking WWJD, seeing that HWLF (He would love first), we are moved forward in our thinking by the writer of Hebrews: keep on loving others as long as life lasts. Living a life of love till the end makes sense. It appears though that these Judean believers were losing hope because of all the false teaching and persecution of the time. We too could throw up our hands at the messy theology around us and lose hope of ever seeing our family and friends come to know Jesus.

How Then Can We Live…fix your thoughts on Jesus

Holy brothers—oh my goodness! Yet that is what we are. We, you and I and those Judean believers, are holy—sacred, pure, blameless by Christ’s atonement (2:17). We are set apart to live as holy, separated from sin, since we confess Jesus as our apostle and high priest. And we share in the heavenly calling: to confess Jesus as apostle and high priest to all who will listen, so they too may be holy.

An Empty Suitcase

My bags are packed. I’m ready to go! How fun it is to go on journeys to other cities, states, or countries. Before each journey, I carefully plan what to take and then strategically work to get it all in my suitcase. I am one of those who takes extra “just in case.”

The Shepherds: Go and See

God interrupted the commonplace. The glory of God shattered darkness. A message from an angel broke the silence. The Savior, Christ the Lord, had been born! As shepherds in the field beheld the angel, their initial response was fear. But with the announcement of the birth of the awaited One, fear turned to determination. The shepherds said, Let’s go…and see...(Luke 2:15). They hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the heralded baby lying in a manger.

Leaving your Legacy . . . Be Patient

Correct, rebuke, encourage; challenge, warn, urge (MSG). Paul ends his passionate charge to Timothy by drilling down on teaching what God has to say, not on what man wants to hear—correcting/challenging false impressions, rebuking/warning against wrong actions, encouraging/coming alongside to urge others on to do all things for the glory of God. Man has such a tendency to twist the truth of the Word.

Leaving your Legacy . . . Be Purposeful

Last page, last letter—the time has come. Paul gives his protégé, Timothy, a stirring charge. At the beginning of this letter he told him that he, Paul, was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher of the gospel (2 Timothy 1:11). Now he places his ministry of the gospel in Timothy’s hands. In effect, he endows his son in the faith with his legacy. He solemnly offers to Timothy, before God, what is tantamount to a binding oath. The Message translation is pretty onerous: I can’t impress this on you too strongly. God is looking over your shoulder.

Passing the Torch . . . guard the truth entrusted to you

Have you ever ice-skated ladies? Could you now? I had a rude awakening a couple of years ago when my grandsons persuaded me to join the family free-skate time the winter they played hockey. Confident I could glide around the rink with grace, I laced up my boots and stepped onto the ice. After all, I was on skates at the age of three; but neither glide nor grace were to be. Luckily I did get around the rink, hugging the boards.