photo by GAC So much of the time, Lord, I am utterly absurd and ridiculous in my own eyes. I don’t see myself as other people see me. I see what is unseen by others. I see what goes on in my mind. I see what I do when no one else is watching. I … Continue reading Prayer Note #63: Only in Jesus
Tag: Christian life
Prayer Note #62/Quote of Note #156: Made for God
"Almighty God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you. Teach us to offer ourselves to your service, that here we may have your peace, and in the world to come may see you face to face; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." The Alternative … Continue reading Prayer Note #62/Quote of Note #156: Made for God
Quote of Note #155: Loving Jesus & Serving the Common Good
photo by GAC "When we take on the mindset of Christ, we do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit and refrain from exploiting our status or position for selfish gain. We also, in humility, empty ourselves for the sake of the kingdom and our neighbors. This entails standing in solidarity with our neighbors when … Continue reading Quote of Note #155: Loving Jesus & Serving the Common Good
Quote of Note #154: The Inclusiveness of Loving my Neighbor
Photo by GAC "It is intriguing to me that when Jesus points to the centrality of love, he also invokes a metaphor which is not familial (e.g.. 'brother' or 'friend') or ethnic (e.g. 'your people'), but almost geographical: we are to love the neighbor -- the one next to us, who happens (by providence) to … Continue reading Quote of Note #154: The Inclusiveness of Loving my Neighbor
Pastor Note #122: Pastoring in the Face of Death
Jennifer, Betty’s daughter, called me on Monday in the mid-afternoon. I didn’t get to the phone until it was about to go to voice mail. I didn’t recognize the number, and, I suppose, the steady stream of spam calls – and also my general dislike of talking on the phone – have trained me to … Continue reading Pastor Note #122: Pastoring in the Face of Death
Quote of Note #151: The Universal Need for Salvation and Healing
"Beloved, all of us--and I do mean all of us--desperately need healing. All of us are fragmented. All of us are broken. All of us have been diminished by what took place in the beginning in the Garden of Paradise. All of us need deliverance. All of us need to be loved. All of us … Continue reading Quote of Note #151: The Universal Need for Salvation and Healing
Bible Note #53: Colossians 3 Series–Raised with Christ
There is richness and deep truth to be found everywhere in the Bible, often in passages that might seem mundane and unremarkable at first glance. In fact, that sounds like an interesting challenge. So, maybe someday I’ll do a series of studies on some of those seemingly uninspiring passages of the Bible. But for now, … Continue reading Bible Note #53: Colossians 3 Series–Raised with Christ
Quote of Note #137: Bearing the Cross
photo by GAC "Honesty impels me to admit that transformed nonconformity, which is always costly and never altogether comfortable, may mean walking through the valley of the shadow of suffering, losing a job, or having a six-year-old daughter ask, 'Daddy, why do you have to go to jail so much?' But we are gravely mistaken … Continue reading Quote of Note #137: Bearing the Cross
Bible Note #52: James 2:5-7 & the Problem of Wealth
Photo by GAC I think I can safely say that James has a very low opinion of money and the accumulation of wealth. Along with Paul, James gets his ideas about money and wealth from Jesus. Jesus and all the New Testament writers are concerned about money and the accumulation of wealth because they believed … Continue reading Bible Note #52: James 2:5-7 & the Problem of Wealth
Bible Note #51: James 2:1-4 & Valuing What Jesus Values
I enjoy fishing. I’m not very good at it, but I do enjoy going out to the water and trying to catch fish. As I share this with you, we are a day away from the opening of trout season in Pennsylvania. Opening day can be a pretty crowded time on the water around here. … Continue reading Bible Note #51: James 2:1-4 & Valuing What Jesus Values
Gary Chorpenning's Notebooks 