It is Shrove Tuesday? Or Pancake Tuesday? Let me answer that question with another. Is Christmas about the birth of Christ, or about Santa? Of course, it’s about the birth of Christ. But the headliner tends to get sidelined in an increasingly secular culture. Now, before I sound ornery, it’s not like Shrove Tuesday is a … Continue reading Pancake vs Shrove Tuesday
forgiveness
Forgiven people love people
In Luke 7:41-42, Jesus told a story about two people who had their debts forgiven. One of them had a particularly big debt erased. As a result, they reeeeeeaaaally loved the person who forgave them. No kidding! In verse 47, Jesus summarized his point like this: “whoever has been forgiven little loves little.” Or, put … Continue reading Forgiven people love people
The baggage of bitterness
“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31-32). There’s a medieval story about two monks. They came to a choppy river that was very fast moving, but … Continue reading The baggage of bitterness
Shrove Tuesday explained
Today is Shrove Tuesday. But what is it all about? Lent is the time of spiritual preparation leading up to the main event in the Christian faith: Easter. Shrove Tuesday is the day before Lent begins. The name comes from a practice in England to “shrive” on this day: seeking and receiving forgiveness from God … Continue reading Shrove Tuesday explained
God’s grip on you—kind of like a sleepwalking rope
No matter how often we’re told otherwise, it’s easy to slip back into the thinking that God only loves us if we do a really, really good job of loving him back. All the time. ‘If we’re really bad,’ we think, ‘he won’t forgive us.’ ‘If we miss the mark, have an off day (or … Continue reading God’s grip on you—kind of like a sleepwalking rope
You’ve ALREADY forgiven them, right?
Many of us have memorized the Lord’s Prayer, including this line: “And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” The original Greek word for “trespasses” is epheilemata which could also be translated as debt, or sin. But what I want to emphasize today is how the entire sentence should actually … Continue reading You’ve ALREADY forgiven them, right?
Liberated to serve
Forgiveness. It’s a big deal. But have you ever thought about WHY God offers forgiveness? Yes, it’s because of his incredible and unceasing love for you, and because of his desire for you to have peace and joy with him in the great ever-after. But there is also an implication for THIS life. Psalm 130:4 … Continue reading Liberated to serve
Feeling gross and dense
At some point or another, all of us struggle with guilt. We do something wrong, we act poorly toward another person, we disobey one (or many) of God’s commands, we make a bad decision that results in many negative consequences. And that weighs heavily on us. Have you ever fell into the water with all … Continue reading Feeling gross and dense
A necessary step in forgiveness
Forgiving people is hard. Especially if you think they’ve done something really bad to you. I’m sure all of us can think of some way we’ve been wronged. Even though you know that Jesus values forgiveness, you’re human, so you still struggle with it. A part of the reason some of us struggle is because we … Continue reading A necessary step in forgiveness
The poisonous root of bitterness
Yesterday I said that there can be unaddressed wrongs in our past which continue to exert an influence on us. Just because something is in the past that doesn’t mean it has passed. [If you missed it, click here.] That’s why forgiveness is so important. Usually when we think about forgiveness we think about giving … Continue reading The poisonous root of bitterness
