I have been very fortunate to grow up in a healthy home with loving and supportive parents who raised me well. The importance of being obedient to my parents and respecting their decisions was instilled within me at a young age. My parents were stricter than most and at times I felt like I was missing out. I even recall being ridiculed by some of my peers for supposedly living too sheltered of a life. Admittedly, there were occasions where I was inclined to agree, particularly with the severe forms of discipline I faced when I made poor decisions. In retrospect, I am very grateful for the way in which my parents raised me because of the person that I am today.
Christlikeness
Biblical WorldView
What Sets Christianity Apart
Christianity is not merely another world religion where one needs to follow a prescribed set of rules, regulations, and steps in order to be made right with God. Conversely, Christianity is about placing our trust in the One Who has lovingly reached down to us, accomplishing that which is humanly impossible by living the perfect life of obedience through Jesus. Christ lived the life none of us could have lived. Therefore, rather than us hopelessly climbing a ladder of good works to somehow bridge the gap between us and God, all we need to do is trust in Jesus Who has already finished the work on the Cross.
Continue readingHumanity Has A Preference Problem
Since the Fall of the human race in Genesis 3, accepting accountability for our actions has always been a real area of weakness for us. Arguably, one of the central reasons for why people would rather deny the existence of God is so that this very form of accountability is somehow removed. This is freedom after all, isn’t it? Being able to live however you please without having to answer to a higher power sounds both appealing and liberating at the same time. However, this type of freedom is not freedom at all. Don’t let the world’s way of thinking confuse and entrap you. In contrast to what real freedom in Christ provides, this is actually slavery which happens to be under the guise of freedom. Slavery to what you may be wondering? Simply put, it is slavery to your fleshly desires and impulses. The precise thing that you think is liberating you is in fact doing the exact opposite, that is, enslaving you.
Continue readingHe Orchestrates Your Life
Great post!
It’s very encouraging, and so incredibly true!
Good things certainly come to those who prayerfully and faithfully wait upon the Lord!
I have definitely learnt the importance of always trusting in God by leaning on His strength and relying on His wisdom from His Word particularly throughout life’s valleys!
The precision of His timing for those who obediently submit to Him is unparalleled and it is infinitely greater than we could ever accomplish alone.
Thanks for sharing!
Original Blog Entry below:
https://witnessministries.wordpress.com/2015/06/01/he-orchestrates-your-life/
Pushing Through
Great post and well-worth the read!
I can certainly relate to the importance of always maintaining a persevering, trusting, and grateful attitude towards the Lord. God is so incredibly faithful and He will always provide regardless of how bleak things may seem at the time. Therefore, He alone is infinitely worthy of our full, unblemished submission and reliance with whatever comes our way in life!
Have a great weekend!
Photo Credit: Ricardo Camacho via CC Flickr
“But I trust in Your unfailing love. My heart rejoices in Your deliverance. I will sing the LORD’s praise, for He has been good to me.” Psalm 13:6
Psalm 13 shows us what to do when we find ourselves asking tough questions like this:
* How long will You forget me? (v1)
* How long will You hide from me? (v1)
* How long must I wrestle with my thoughts? (v2)
* How long must my heart sorrow? (v2)
* How long will my enemies triumph over me? (v2)
All these questions make me think that maybe Psalm 13 was written by an athlete or coach going through a tough season, rough injury, personal performance slump, real loneliness, broken relationship, or a long losing streak. And it’s written to an audience that will likely feel the very same way.
BUT Psalm 13 ends…
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Pride will Destroy
Has anyone ever stopped and pondered on what the root of every sin is? Fundamentally, I would contend that the root of every sin is pride. As innately sin-prone humans, we do not merely sin for the sake of sinning. Rather, the allure of sin is derived from the deception that we are autonomous beings who foolishly think that we do not need to be accountable to any higher being. We sin out of our own selfish-thinking which postulates that we know what is best for us and that we have somehow evolved past needing God. When we sin, we blatantly transgress and disobey God, essentially telling Him that we are sovereign over our lives. In doing so, we push God away and decide to live selfishly.
The need for Compassion (Comparison Cure #4)
Beautiful message!
Maintaining Christ-like Compassion is so crucial yet so easily forgotten about nowadays!
Thank-you for this well-timed blog post!
This is the fifth post in the series on Comparison Cures. To read the previous post, click here.
Jenny steeled herself and walked purposefully through the familiar front door. The cozy little house was already buzzing with the chatter of women. Jenny plastered a smile on her face, determined not to be the dark cloud on her friend’s special day.
After exchanging pleasantries with the hostess and a few other ladies, she found her dear friend, Julia, standing near a pile of blue presents and bright balloons. Her protruding belly announced to the world that a new life would soon be making its debut. Jenny wrapped her arms around her friend in a warm embrace.
“How are you feeling?” Jenny asked.
“I’m ok. My back is killing me, but that’s to be expected,” replied Julia. “Are you doing ok?”
Julia knew this wasn’t the best time to ask, but…
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Becoming What You Worship
One thing which believers and non-believers alike share in common is that we all worship something. There is always one particular thing which we dedicate and devote our lives towards. Whatever this thing may be, it will almost always form the identity and the very fabric of who we are as individuals. I would even postulate that in some sense we actually become what we worship and it is my contention that this view is also supported within the Scriptures.
Continue reading
Biblical Teaching on Wealth and Poverty
Interestingly, there is a high degree of scarcity of biblical teaching related to issues on wealth and poverty. This poses serious danger towards the Church as evidenced within the preponderance of the prosperity gospel.
Three insights concerning economic themes may be gleaned from surveying the Scriptures in its entirety. Continue reading
Our Best Hope for Peace
As calamities, atrocities and disasters of all kinds continually emerge throughout different parts of the world, the need for peace becomes progressively amplified. The inescapable truth is that the same peace which humanity has sought repeatedly throughout the last two millennia is still not found in anything under the sun. In fact, as mere mortal beings we are utterly incapable of ever attaining this life-transforming peace because we ourselves are spiritually-depraved. Like Romans 3:10 tells us,
There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.
Theological Reflections 