My father used to tell me, “You reap what you sow.” I didn’t know he was telling me a biblical principle. I thought maybe it was an African proverb or something he made up. He would explain that when a farmer plants corn, he doesn’t grow a crop of strawberries—he grows corn. He told me that when I sowed stupidity or a lack of common sense, I would grow a harvest of calamity. It made sense to him, but it didn’t make any sense to me.
Read More choice, consequences
Sometimes Jesus’ recruitment strategies seem counter intuitive. Designed to dwindle the ranks, not swell them. Devised to chase potential donors and followers away, not attract them.
Read More choice, discouragementOne of life’s greatest pleasures is to enjoy the thrill of having our dreams come true. Achieving satisfaction fuels a fire in us and empowers us to pursue even grander possibilities. But be aware of the pitfalls of chasing after quick get-rich schemes.
Fulfilled hopes and dreams are not just for the privileged few.
Read More life, death, choice
Moses wraps up his speech and his ministry with a passionate call to the people of God to choose life. The answer to life is not removed from us or hidden away. The Word has been given to us and we hold it. God has made clear “life and good, death and evil.” What remains is for us to choose between the options.
If we walk with the Lord we will be nourished and find life.
Read More life, death, choiceOne last time, Moses urges the people to follow God, and then it is finished. After 40 years of pleading with and for these people, Moses is now finished. The conclusion is bittersweet.
Moses has seen God do remarkable things, he has walked with remarkable patience and humility, and yet he too fell short of the mark and lost his patience. Moses broke faith with God and God’s righteousness would need to prevail. With God, there are not favourites, not even Moses. We all must bear the consequence of sin.
Read More choice, consequences, scarsSometimes Jesus’ recruitment strategies seem counter intuitive. Designed to dwindle the ranks, not swell them. Devised to chase potential donors and followers away, not attract them. There’s the Rich Young Ruler, for instance, whose resources might have been a tremendous boon to Jesus’ ministry had he finessed the conversation just a wee bit.
Read More choice, discouragementIt is impossible to rest upon the fine edge of a sword and remain intact. The very purpose of a sword is to separate.
The claim that Christ came as the Son of God, was sentenced to death and rose to life by the power of God’s hand creates a point of division on which we must fall to one side or the other. We either acknowledge this or reject it.
Read More pruning, challenge, choice, loyalty
I sat in my car and cried out to God. I was about to walk into a grade four classroom and was supposed to teach them about Jesus, but my heart wasn’t in it. In fact my heart was very far from being able to do it. I had just spent a sleepless night worrying about a situation in our family. The circumstances were dire and I saw no solution in sight.
Read More trust, choice, worryPaul and Barnabas travelled into the Roman province of Galatia. The church that they start in Iconium is likely among the churches Paul would later address in his letter to the Galatians. They speak so effectively here that significant numbers of people believe their message about Jesus.
Read More rejection, memory, opposition, choice
James knows that the greatest temptations we face are often not those trials on the outside; they are actually the inward enticement we feel to do wrong. If we are not wise outer trials quickly lead to temptations on the inside. We entertain the possibility of satisfying a good thing in a bad way.
Read More sin, death, obedience, choice, bait