Anticipating Resurrection Day

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“In Christ alone, who took on flesh,
Fulness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones he came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied –
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave he rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine –
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.”

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His Sufficient Grace is More than Enough

Mornings have often been a source of stress in our home. I can remember trying to sneak down the stairs early in the morning, eager to get at least 5 minutes of quiet time before the troops descended upon me in mass chaos. This silence which comes as our senses are waking with the morning was a coveted time for me, a pause before the storm in the day, which I considered necessary.

The waiting moments, hanging in the twilight of day’s transition, often seemed just enough to let me arm myself for the day ahead. Unfortunately, there were many days that ‘just enough’ didn’t make it.

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Finding Peace This Palm Sunday

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As we near Palm Sunday our focus will be on Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem.

We’ll wave palm branches at church and sing Hosanna.

We’ll read about how the needed donkey was handed over simply because the answer was, “The Lord needs it.”

We’ll feel the crowd’s excitement as Matthew, Mark, Luke and John recount the jubilation of that day.

But we might miss a part of the account that only Luke records:

He approached Jerusalem. When he saw the city, he began to sob. He said, “I wish you had known today what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden from your eyes.”

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Salty or Salt-Free?

“Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? Luke 14:34

Most health conscious adults today acknowledge that excessive salt in the diet is not optimal for good health. As a matter of fact too much salt in the diet increases health related risks and in the extreme can be associated with life threatening conditions. Some health conditions require minimal salt intake with the aim of a “salt-free” diet.

How completely contrary to the Christian’s call to be Salty. As far as your spiritual life goes, you can consider saltiness to be an excellent measure of your effectiveness in the Kingdom.

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My Failure and God’s Faithfulness

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I’ve been spending time in the Gospel of Mark lately, keeping pace with Jesus’ march to the cross as our days press on toward Easter. One of the things that has stood out to me on this reading is the disciples’ failure. We see it throughout the gospels, but Mark accentuates the disciples’ shortcomings.

In Mark, the disciples consistently fail to grasp Jesus’ mission as the one who will suffer for our sins. They have moments of insight, but the recurrent theme is of their failure.

  • The disciples see the hungry people and overlook the Bread of Life—twice (Mark 6:37; 8:4).

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Truths to Fill Your Soul With Strength

Soul, do you feel far way from God?

Susie

  • Do you know the comfort of God’s presence when days are hard or do feel He has left you on your own?
  • Do you know the healing of His touch or do you feel brittle with a thousand cracks from wounds that never seem to heal?

What we think about God

has everything to do with how we relate to Him.

For the child of God, He is always constant within. We often forget this, relying on feelings rather than faith. Strong emotions can reveal what we are really believing in the moment.

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There is Strength for Your Hard

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You. Yes you. The one who’s had a hard week.

The one whose body aches. Whose heart hurts. Whose emotions bubble over.

There is hope. There is strength.

Stop for just a moment and breathe in words of hope from the One who is your strength.

There is Strength for Your Hard

“God’s strength in your weakness is His presence in your life. ~Andy Stanley

The name of the Lord is a strong fortress; the godly run to Him and are safe. Proverbs 18:10

“Nothing on earth compares to the strength God is willing to interject into lives caught in the act of believing.”

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It Feels Like Freedom

I have my Bible, my journal and a bottle of water. I step into the pitch-black sanctuary and stand still for a few seconds waiting for my eyes to adjust. I am alone in the spacious room and as the door closes quietly behind me, I take a deep breath and let my shoulders fall and relax.

Sometimes I find a seat near the back. Other times I walk through the darkness and sit cross-legged on the floor right in front of the church platform. The darkness envelopes me and I tell myself to leave all concerns and worries outside. I remind myself that this is my special moment to be alone with my God and not to clutter it up with problems, at least not just yet.

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