The Beatitude of Hard Work

Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don’t turn up at all. ~Sam Ewin. We all recognise the importance of working hard, at least at the level of theory.

Sowing and Reaping – Giving and Giving the Best Gift

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ~2 Corinthians 9:6 (NIV). Are there many ‘tithing’ sermons where this verse isn’t used?

A Catechising Conversation With Jesus

Repentance is always incomplete without the ability to actually implement what we desire to do. Jesus was not only seeking to restore Peter, he was charging him with the most important job ever – to construct, in God’s name, an order for the Christianising of the entire world.

From Riches to Rags – But Always Rich

What crazy times these must have been for Paul, Barnabas and the other apostles; the messengers and servants of God. In this short passage they’d been elevated to god status one moment, before some influential Jews arrived on the scene to turn the recently-ecstatic crowd on them, the next. Their heads must have been spinning.

Going Onto the NEXT Revelation

We’re forgiven for our weariness, but we’re ever more blessed for keeping on going, though rest is an imperative we stop for – even better, from it, to launch again from. It seems a double-edged sword. Working onto the next revelation that God’s taking us to, or bringing us to, requires wisdom from us, so far as diligence and tenacity, as well as Sabbath, are concerned.

More ‘Could,’ Less ‘Should’

“Why do so many of us speak about grace but actually live by law? We push freedom in Christ but live oppressed by the duties (and our failures) of the faith. Real grace and liberation will result in (and may be the result of) a new language.

Regenerative Capacities of the Holy Kind

There comes many times of growth and renewal; fatigue is a necessary and chastening by-product. The person harnessing regeneration in their fatigue will travel farthest in life.

Hope Never Disappoints

It seems to me, from my reflections on life, that so much rides on hope. Hope is a construct made and predestined for humanity by a wholly-loving God. Building the human unit with the capacity for thought and emotion has necessitated the need for a backdrop of safety. This is hope.

Psalm 61 – A Pilgrim’s Vow to God

Desperate? I guess we’ve all been there. This is one reason the Bible is a glowing encouragement to us always; it never ceases to give voice to our more haranguing questions, especially the lament psalms.

Good Stewardship – Have Responsibility, Will Be Accountable

Good stewardship means to be a good manager of someone else’s property. God is the Maker and Creator of the universe and has given mankind dominion over everything. As children of God, we know that our very being and everything that we have is owned by God.

Labor Not in Self-Righteousness, Neither Be Laden With Sin For Both Condemn

Chose Grace Above Law And The Truth Shall Set You Free. There are none more to be pitied than a Christian who remains in bondage. It matters not which type of bondage, be it to sin or be it to a labor of self-righteousness. Either will waste the precious gift of grace and freedom for which our Savior Jesus Christ died.

Jewish Cookbooks Contain a Spiritual Treasure That You Never Imagined

If you have ever looked at Jewish cookbooks before, you know they are not the traditional Betty Crocker types. Don’t get me wrong – I have found Betty Crocker to be very helpful in the past.