The Apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians, “So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.”
In this world we are like Jesus. – 1 John 4:17 As in the U.S., Thailand has no shortage of nail salons. In the U.S., I have a tolerate-hate relationship with those places. For many people, it is a treat to have someone else paint your fingernails and toenails, massage your feet and give you an hour in a gyrating chair. For me,
Recently I read a quote that has stuck with me: “looking at our culture, you’d think self-expression, not self-control, is a virtue.” I’ve thought a lot about that: there is a lot there. Today’s reading from 1 Corinthians 8: 9-13 brought it back to my mind: But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the
I am a proud Methodist and I believe in all of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and I believe that we must go back to our roots of Methodism and reunite the revival movement and recapture our passion of proclaiming the gospel with an anointed zeal.
The interesting thing about praying for needs that aren’t our own is that many times God’s response is not as much directly about those needs as it is directly about us.
If I agree that the gifts described in Ephesians 4:11 emphasize living outside of the church’s internal life, I must accept responsibility for my gifting. What does this text say? “The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body
Peace is not simply the absence of threat, danger, or conflict. It is also the abundant presence of well-being, in which we breathe flourishing.
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. I have an old dog, so take my word for it. She wasn’t very good at learning new tricks when she was a younger dog. I was elated that we passed obedience class since her “sits” were hesitant and forced most of the time, and her “down stays” were almost non-existent. You see, she was a
Leadership is a critical key to the success of an organization. John Maxwell explains, “Everything rises and falls on leadership…leadership determines the success of the organization.” If leadership is a key for an organization to thrive, Christian leadership is essential for the works of Christ being accomplished in the church and world. Thus, the essence of Christian leadership is its focus on what God is doing in
The Wesleyan Methodist tradition is one that puts actions with intentions.
I contend that when people come together without anger and with love and “life together” as the end goal, churches will be healthier and people will find that they have more in common.
The apostles don’t see themselves as CEOs or slaves to the church. They see themselves as fulfilling a specific duty for the church: the ministry of the word of God and prayer. Everything else was dropped from their plate. And not only did the church not look down on them or call them lazy for a desire to emphasize these
Through Christ, we have been set free. Think about what it means not just to be free but also to live in freedom. It is possible to be free but to still live as if you aren’t…
As this man did, you will discover that God’s Word will be fulfilled. Regardless of what others may offer, stay in tune to the words of Jesus. There may be delays, some disappointments, but the promises of God will come to pass. The key is, whose voice are you listening to?
What does it take to be a nimble follower of Jesus Christ? Describing yourself as “nimble” (“quick,” “light,” “quick to comprehend”) may not be a trendy way to phrase a quality – I doubt I’ll see it on any t-shirts soon, unless it becomes a merchandised quote from a quirky show – but followers of Jesus Christ are called to be
Christ comes to free us; he comes to fit us for Kingdom living, and he comes to fill us, to fill us with his Holy Spirit. And that’s our need, friends, the power of the Holy Spirit.
Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Happy are those to whom the LORD imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. While I kept silence, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by
There’s an operative logic of redemption running so deep in Western storytelling that, given enough time, we should expect that all villains will eventually become heroes. Origen may have been wrong to state that even the devil will eventually be saved, but a certain kind of “narrative universalism” is true in Hollywood.
And so we come to see that living in simplicity goes hand in hand with a life in pursuit of holiness, or sanctifying grace. For if you do a word search of “simplicity” through Wesley’s works, you will quite often find that he speaks of it in relation to Mary’s action of sitting by Jesus feet, drawing deeply from the
Many emotions welled up within me as I heard the news of the recent tragedy break. But the one that unexpectedly stood out was awe. Awe? How can you feel a sense of awe after hearing the news of such a heinous and horrendous act of racial dehumanization? Because my brothers and sisters at Emmanuel AME loved their neighbor. Furthermore,
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