Suffering
May 22, 2012
“What I learned is that perhaps the greatest good that suffering can work for a believer is to increase his or her capacity for God. The greater one’s need, the greater will be his capacity. And the greater the capacity, the greater will be one’s experience of the Savior. … No more intimate, sweeter fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ can ever be realized than through suffering.” ~ Joni Eareckson Tada
“Jesus Christ, the Man of Sorrows, saves and sanctifies through suffering.” ~ Joni Eareckson Tada
“Biblically speaking, believers should expect hardships, sufferings, and even disability in this life.” ~ Daniel R. Thomson
“Physical healing is not the norm today. After all, physical healing is temporary. Spiritual healing, however, is available in abundance and is eternal.” ~ Daniel R. Thomson
“If no one in a church has disabilities, this should be cause for concern because disabilities are in every community.” ~ Jessica James Baldridge
“Church members need to learn how to act around persons with disabilities and how to make them feel welcome and a part of the church. Equip believers to authentically greet and welcome all.” ~ Jessica James Baldridge
“Ministry to exceptional individuals means being like Jesus—loving unconditionally as he would love, seeing what he would see, responding as he would respond. His love is all-encompassing and includes everyone.” ~ Jessica James Baldridge
“God ministers to and through individuals affected by disabilities. This is apparent in both the Old and New Testaments.” ~ Michael A. Justice
“Sufferers desperately need people with compassionate hearts that comfort them rather than preach to them.” ~ Michael A. Justice
“Jesus is the ultimate example of how to endure suffering.” ~ Mark L. Bailey
“God declines to explain himself to us. But he nonetheless manifests his presence to us in the midst of our suffering.” ~ Douglas K. Blount
“Though we may never understand how our sufferings work together for our good, we know that they ultimately will do so.” ~ Douglas K. Blount
“Instead of providing us with explanations and timetables, God calls us to trust him.”~ Douglas K. Blount
“God is in control of everything from paralyzing accidents to autism, and he permits what he hates in order to accomplish what he loves. He loves showcasing his power from the platform of a person’s weakness.”~ Joni Eareckson Tada
All above quotes are from Why, O God? Suffering and Disability in the Bible and the Churc.
Obedience, the Cross, and the American Dream
May 16, 2012
“Everything in all creation responds in obedience to the Creator … until we get to you and me. We have the audacity to look God in the face and say, ‘No.’”
“What happened at the Cross was not primarily about nails being thrust into Jesus’ hands and feet but about the wrath due your sin and my sin being thrust upon his soul.”
“While the goal of the American dream is to make much of us, the goal of the gospel is to make much of God.”
“We were created for a purpose much greater than ourselves, the kind of purpose that can only be accomplished in the power of his Spirit.”
~ Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream, David Platt
Healing
May 8, 2012
“God addresses our fundamental disease—mortality—in every case when a person asks Christ into his heart. The healing of the soul and the restoration of the person to eternal life with God is the healing He will always work for anyone who believes.” ~ Raising the Dead: A Doctor Encounters the Miraculous, Chauncey W. Crandall
Betrayal by Tracy Kowald
May 5, 2012
People have betrayed each other since Cain slew his brother Abel. I guess you don’t expect your brother to kill you just because your crop was more fruitful, but Cain put his pride before the love of his brother.
Betrayal goes beyond offense because it involves a trust that has been broken. Sometimes it involves an element of shock and surprise; sometimes we might see it coming and wonder why? I have always said to be betrayed is worse than anything because of the trust issue; being betrayed by someone we trusted is a deep hurt, and it always invokes a deep feeling of loss in the end.
For quite a while I have dealt with forgiveness of a betrayal. There are days it is easy to forgive and days when I ask God to give me the love to forgive because my will is not up to the task. Or I ask him to change my will. I do believe I have forgiven completely. I have asked many times that the pain be taken away and a realization came upon me, an epiphany of sorts. Maybe there is to be a residual of pain in order to remind me of the sting. But why? Perhaps the pain will give me the ability to empathize with those betrayed and remind me to never betray anyone and cause them even a sliver of the same pain.
What gave me great comfort recently was a revelation God showed me about betrayal and how to endure. Our Lord Jesus Christ was betrayed by someone he loved and trusted, and that friend sold him out for 30 units of silver for that matter. But what is worse is that his friend, Judas, came to him and gave him the kiss of friendship. Since Jesus was fully human he felt all our pain and disappointment, and in this case the betrayal of a friend. Knowing Christ had endured that very pain and still went on to die for his friend and all those who would betray him in the future gives me purpose for my experience and a desire to love regardless.
Listening to God
May 1, 2012
“When God speaks, He is speaking to you. Everything in the Bible applies to your life in some way. … This is not to say that God has an exclusive word for a person. God doesn’t deal in secrets. He won’t reveal truth to one person and deny it to another.”
“God means what He says, and He will do what He says. God is serious about His relationship with you. He doesn’t speak to you in idle terms. He expects you to respond to His voice, heed His Word, and act on it.”
“Always, however, God’s Word is for your transformation. It is intended to change you in some way.”
“The truth about ourselves is twofold. First, the Holy Spirit convicts us that we are sinners. … Second, once we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, the Holy Spirit becomes our Comforter and Counselor.”
“God’s holy presence burns out everything that is not like Jesus in our lives, and then He causes us to burn and to shine brightly with a zeal for the life that Jesus would live if He were walking in our shoes.”
“We aren’t called to a relationship with God in isolation. Rather, He desires that we become a family of God here on earth, with a sense of belonging, identify, unconditional love, and great value as individuals.”
“Direct revelation may be what many people today regard as an audible voice of God. It can also be thought of as a very strong impression, one that comes unexpectedly, is absolutely clear, and is very specific.”
“God continues to speak through proclaimers today: through preachers, teachers, evangelists, Bible study leaders, Sunday School teachers, and other people who proclaim the full story of God’s truth.”
“If you have any doubt about what God wants you to do in a particular situation, look to the life of Jesus. Do what He did. … Jesus is the Word of God made flesh.”
“There are three main ways God speaks to us today: through His Word, through His Holy Spirit, and through other believers in Christ Jesus. The person who desires to hear from God and wants to put himself into the best position to hear from God will pursue His message through these three methods.”
Prayer
April 21, 2012
“Prayer is the act of seeing reality from God’s point of view.” ~ Prayer, Does It Make Any Difference?, Philip Yancey
Love and Justice
April 6, 2012
“God’s love does not cancel out his justice and righteousness.” ~ What Is the Gospel?, Greg Gilbert and D.A. Carson
Who Am I?
April 4, 2012
Freedom in Christ by Tracy Kowald
February 28, 2012
Fr. Chip is about to lead us in a study called “Freedom in Christ” in our Wednesday evening study time. Many thoughts are going through my head as I anticipate what the Lord will show to us as a group and individually. As I work, cleaning my house, the thought came to me about what grace really is and what it isn’t. A term I have heard a lot lately is “sloppy grace,” which I think is synonymous with cheap grace. Both terms leave a bad taste, meaning God did not die for us to live in a sloppy or cheap way. What really is this grace that our Lord Jesus Christ offers us? I know I need it more every day. But again. I ask what is true grace? I don’t want it cheap or sloppy. What I really want–no, what I really need–is God’s true grace. Are we truly free in Christ? Yes. But what does that freedom really look like and how does it work out in my life, in the life of my church, and in the life of the Church? I know it is not license to sin. At the same time, it gives a sense of freedom that could be dangerous. St. Paul knew we need to understand grace or he would not have warned us about it not giving us license to sin so that grace may be abundant. True freedom leaves one to wonder what boundaries must exist to keep from abounding in sin. The sixth chapter of Romans is evident of that teaching. So I eagerly anticipate how God answers my questions and shows me this life of true Freedom in Christ.
Standing With Our Catholic Brothers and Sisters for Religious Freedom by Bishop Orji
February 27, 2012
Many of us in the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA/ACNA) are profoundly disappointed in the direction the President of the United States and some of our elected officials have taken with respect to mandating the provision of health care benefits regarding birth control. This is in direct and blatant disregard to the American freedoms of religion, specifically to certain churches and religious beliefs.
The matter before us is not about any particular stand on the issue of birth control methods. Rather, it is about the Government’s decision to penalize those Americans who exercise their religious freedoms in the United States. The President’s decision in this matter is a serious breach of our freedom, specifically, our freedom to lead our congregations and manage our religious institutions in accordance with our understanding of our Scriptures. That is our freedom and right guaranteed by the Constitution.
The Roman Catholic teaching on birth control does not violate anyone’s fundamental human rights, and the Church’s position on this issue is not harmful in any way. Thus, it is of very serious concern to us that this Administration is forcing the Roman Catholic Church to operate their institutions in a manner that is offensive to their conscience and spiritual teachings. We stand with our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters to decry this decision of the Government.
Once again, I need to reiterate the fact that Anglicans in North America, including CANA, are disturbed that this Administration is inserting itself into the religious life of the United States. This Administration is violating a Constitutional right and voiding a long-standing freedom. We believe the President has made a serious mistake in this matter, and we ask that he completely rescind his decision. We pray for God’s blessings and wisdom for President Obama, trusting that he will seriously consider the beliefs of Christians in this country on this matter and on other issues as well.
May God bless America and renew us to a deeper life of obedience to God through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.
The Right Reverend Dr. Felix Orji, OSB
Bishop, CANA WEST DISTRICT
