"Worrying is carrying tomorrow's load with today's strength--carrying two days at once. It is moving into tomorrow ahead of time. Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow--it empties today of its strength. . . . Jesus is stronger than all of our problems." Corrie ten Boom, He Cares, He Comforts: In Sickness and In … Continue reading Quote of Note #99: Worry and God’s Strength for the Day
Quote of Note #98: In Life and in Death We Belong to God
Question #1: What is your only comfort in life and in death? Answer: That I am not my own, but belong--body and soul, in life and in death--to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the … Continue reading Quote of Note #98: In Life and in Death We Belong to God
Quote of Note #97: Comfort in All Times of Need
Question 26: What do you believe when you say, "I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth"? Answer: That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who out of nothing created heaven and earth and everything in them, who still upholds and rules them by his eternal counsel and providence, … Continue reading Quote of Note #97: Comfort in All Times of Need
Quote of Note #96: Patience with the Failings of Others
"Endeavour to be patient in bearing with the defects and infirmities of others, of what sort soever they be; for that thyself also hast many failings which must be borne with by others. If thou canst not make thyself such an one as thou wouldest, how canst thou expect to have another in all things … Continue reading Quote of Note #96: Patience with the Failings of Others
Pastor Note #94: Safety and Love of Neighbor — Risk and Following Jesus
Safety is a high priority for Americans. And you might well be asking me right now, “What’s wrong with that?” Well, I would say, “Nothing . . . . And everything.” It depends on what sort of safety we’re insisting on. The right view of safety aims to avoid needless harm. The wrong view of … Continue reading Pastor Note #94: Safety and Love of Neighbor — Risk and Following Jesus
Quote of Note #95: The Cross-Shaped Life
"Jesus's cross-shaped life and death modeled the cruciform life that is our calling. Like Him, we do not overcome imperial powers through earthly means. Instead, we embody His 'revolutionary way of being revolutionary.' Whether the world receives or rejects us will hold little weight if we are incarnating his way of being and doing, for … Continue reading Quote of Note #95: The Cross-Shaped Life
Pastor Note #93: Religious Liberty, Privileged Christianity, and the Art of the Deal
Religious liberty, if it is pure and principled, is a beautiful and precious thing. It can also become a desperately dangerous concept if allowed to become conditional, qualified, or contingent in any way. And that’s where this gets very tricky right away. Everybody who wants to live in a humane and civilized society agrees that … Continue reading Pastor Note #93: Religious Liberty, Privileged Christianity, and the Art of the Deal
Quote of Note #94: Churches and Pastors
"The biblical fact is that there are no successful churches. There are, instead, communities of sinners, gathered before God week after week in towns and villages all over the world. The Holy Spirit gathers them and does his work in them. In these communities of sinners, one of the sinners is called pastor and given … Continue reading Quote of Note #94: Churches and Pastors
Pastor Note #92: Living Out Love
There are many factors that help a church to be healthy and effective—biblical and theological faithfulness, creativity and boldness in outreach, members who are diligent and committed to growing in their faith. But few things can wreck a church faster than bad relational ethics. Relational ethics in a church are one of the most important … Continue reading Pastor Note #92: Living Out Love
Pastor Note #91: Loving our Enemies and Gospel Faithfulness
The command to love one’s enemies is the heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and an attack on that Christian imperative is an attack on the gospel itself. There can be a tendency common to most Christians to distinguish between doctrine and ethics/morality. We can tend to think of the doctrines of the gospel … Continue reading Pastor Note #91: Loving our Enemies and Gospel Faithfulness
