What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? – Romans 8:31 (ESV)

Paul poses it as if it were a question: if God is for us – if He is on our side (or, more accurately, we on His), who could possibly stand up against us? Because to get to us, God’s children, you have to go through Him first!

This does not mean that, as Christians, we will never suffer pain or loss or sorrow or hardship ever again. We hurt just the same as non-believers. But remember this:

15 As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; 16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. 17 But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, 18 to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. 19 The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all. – Psalm 103:15-19 (ESV)

We have a promise that extends far beyond this earthly life, with all it’s sin and sadness, terror and worry, troubles and trials and disease and famine and spite and hatred…

Whatever you are facing, it won’t last forever. God is with you always. He will either pull you out of your troubles or see you through them. Whatever you are facing, seek The Lord through it and learn what He wants you to learn, change what He wants you to change, and help others in the same situation do likewise.

There really is no question of whether God is for us. He is. So face tomorrow, face tonight, face your hardships and difficulties head on, resting in faith in God’s love and cars and strength and provision. Have faith and do not doubt. Love God. Love one another. Be bold in Christ.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. – Matthew 5:5 (ESV)

Meek rhymes with weak.  But that is where the comparisons between the two end.   For meekness, much like being poor in spirit, requires humility.  In fact, meekness is humbleness.

Being meek is not the same as being mousy or milquetoast.  The fact is that being truly humble requires great strength.  We humans are sinfully wired to think of ourselves first.  True humility enables us to measure ourselves honestly – no more, no less.  Humility shows us that we are who we are and where we are in life not because of ourselves, but by the grace and love of God.

Indeed, God gives us humility and gentleness to open our hearts to truly love others – which, after all, is what we are truly called to do.  When we focus solely on ourselves, worrying about passing muster or meeting some artificial standard or, on the opposite end of the spectrum, thinking we are “all that and a big ol’ bag of chips”, how can we possibly love another?

I love Matthew Henry’s take on Matthew 5:5:

The meek are happy. The meek are those who quietly submit to God; who can bear insult; are silent, or return a soft answer; who, in their patience, keep possession of their own souls, when they can scarcely keep possession of anything else. These meek ones are happy, even in this world. Meekness promotes wealth, comfort, and safety, even in this world.

As Jesus asked, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36, ESV)  None whatsoever.  Today’s earthly stuff is tomorrow’s kindling.  When Jesus talks about inheriting the world, He must be talking about what is important: love, true relationships, trust… the things an inflated ego steals from us.  Being meek is a key to living an honest, loving life in Christ to the fullest and, most importantly, being able to honestly reach others with the love of Jesus.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. – Matthew 5:4 (ESV)

There is no sorrow so deep as mourning. It is pain so deep that, in 1969, psychologist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross identified five basic stages that grieving people generally experience: denial / isolation, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Clearly, grief is a complex, difficult, agonizing process.

There are many things we can mourn: the death of a loved one, the end of a relationship, the loss of a job, moving away from home… Anyone who has faced an unfaceable situation; wished the world would just leave them alone; dealt with anger at their pain or the people around them or even God; wanted to make a deal to get passed the pain; felt like your world was crumbling around you (and maybe even gave up the urge to care)… you know how painful it is to mourn. Sometimes it feels like grief might press the breath right out of you.

Whatever your sorrow, whatever your pain, whatever you are mourning or grieving, know this: you are blessed in Christ. It most likely doesn’t feel like it. Indeed, you may feel a God has abandoned you.

You are blessed because, while mourning and grief and all the junk that go along with them are part and parcel of living in this fallen, sinful world, your pain will not last forever. For those who trust in Jesus Christ, there is always hope. God will see you through.

Trust in The Lord, for He is good. Don’t trust your feelings. Don’t bank on your emotions. Don’t believe the temptation to think God has abandoned you, or is mad at you, or is out to get you, or doesn’t exist or is anything less than the loving Father He says He is.

Does it mean your pain will completely go away? That you’ll never experience loss of this magnitude again? Maybe. Maybe not. What you can rest in is the love of God. He will pull you out, or He will lead you through. Either way, you are blessed, for you will find great comfort in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He loves you. He will never leave you or abandon you. Even when you can’t sense His presence, He is there. Rest in that.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. – Matthew 5:3 (ESV)

” You can be happy! You can find your success! You deserve it because you are the best you that you can be, and you you you you etc…”

For those who truly seek joy in their lives, it will never be found peering deep into one’s navel. When we put our trust in self, in our own ability, we set ourselves up for failure and pain.

True happiness comes from spiritual poverty – knowing that we are nothing without God, that He is our sufficiency. When people are physically hungry, they seek food. When we are spiritually hungry, we seek The Lord. And a soul that hungers and thirsts for Christ will be satisfied.

Blessed are the truly humble, those who are not fooled by the cult of self and recognize their need for Jesus. We all need God, and it is only in Him – our Creator and Sustainer, our Lord and Savior, our Heavenly Father, Son and Holy Spirit – that we find true, eternal contentment. The stuff of this earth is chaff, kindling for the fire. Find your blessings and joy in the zone a Who loves you, Who watches over you, Who knew you before you were… well… you.

There is nothing impossible with God.

Nothing.

Nada.

Nichts.

Rien.

什麼.

שום דבר.

Niets.

Ekkert.

Niente.

ничего.

Ingenting.

nič.

Kahore.

아무것도.

Aon rud.

無.

Aliquid.

ບໍ່​ມີ​ຫຍັງ.

нічого.

Chochote.

ఏమీ.

Dim byd.

không có gì.

Lutho.

Gʼárnyşt.

hiçbir şey.

Pa gen anyen.

asgjë.

কিছুই.

ništa.

Intet.

walang anuman.

არაფერი.

कुछ भी नहीं.

tsis muaj dab tsi.

ei mitään.

Semmi.

ihe ọ bụla.

Apa-apa.

юу ч биш.

Nimic.

هیچ چیز.

Waxba.

کچھ بھی نہیں.

Did I miss anyone?

Nothing is impossible for God. That includes your situation. Whatever you are facing, you are where you are for a reason. God has a purpose for you now. Right now.

Not just in the future. Now.

Now.

Ahora.

сейчас.

Jetzt.

現在.

You get the picture…

Tonight, don’t worry. Don’t begrudge where you are in life. Don’t wish you were somewhere / sometime / somehow / someone else. Don’t dread tomorrow. Don’t fear tonight.

God is with you. Always. Even in the darkest times. Even when you hurt the most. Even when you cannot sense His presence. God us with you. He lives within you. Embrace Him. Trust Him. Pray. Find your joy in God. Count your blessings with gratitude to God. Rest in His peace. Be secure in His love.

Sleep well, dear friends.

I have a friend who was raised on a dairy farm. He knows what real milk is. And he will tell you that, the white liquid in the cardboard cartons and plastic jugs at the supermarket – even the variety labeled “whole milk” – isn’t really milk. It is a watered down, mass produced product that, to him, is closer to cloudy water than true, honest-to-goodness, straight from Elsie’s udder, milk.

I was not raised on a dairy farm. All I’ve ever known is store bought milk. (I once mistook buttermilk for 2%. I’ll never make that mistake again!). I couldn’t tell you what it’s like to grow up drinking the real thing. Only the same old, store bought stuff almost every American pours on his / her morning cereal.

Just like everyone else.

The milk we drink is homogenized. The natural tendency for milk is for the cream and liquid to separate. Homogenization takes these unique properties and blends them together as one. The cream no longer rises to the top.

Why is it that so many Christians expect believers do be subjected to a process of homogenization? True, we are not called to look like this world we currently live in. We are in this world, but not of it. Strangers in a strange land.

But that doesn’t mean we are called to all look the same, sound the same, act the same. My heart aches for those who feel marginalized and us accepted by the church because they don’t fit some imaginary social mold.

Jesus hung out with the outcasts, dined with the downcast. He wasn’t part of the religious elite (indeed He stood squarely against what they stood for: legalism, exclusivity, etc…). Jesus loved (loves) people for who they are, not what they have to bring to the table. We are called to be obedient, but obedience does not equal homogenous.

One of the great reflections of God is that we – His children – are each made in His image and yet each of us is created individually unique. Of the trillions of humans who exist, or ever have, or ever will, no two are, have been, or will ever be, exactly the same. Why do you think it is such a shock when you run into someone’s doppelgänger? “They were your splitting image! You could be twins!” We don’t expect it because we realize how different and individual every person is.

A true community is a group of people who come together with a common goal, a shared running thread that knits them together. For Christians that thread must be Christ. It must be love. It must be agape love! care and support! for one another. It goes beyond being merely social to something deeper – a shared goal to be God’s hands and feet, to reach out and never ever ever be exclusive or walled off. A community should be tightly knit, but not so knotted that new strings cannot be added.

Likewise, a community should be people who are individuals. It is okay to not fit “the norm”. Where is the freedom when one is expected to look and act and sound just like everyone else? We are not Stepford Christians. We are individuals, created by our Father God, saved by the blood of His Son Jesus, indwelled by the same Holy Spirit. We are all different parts of the same body, called to work together in our individual capacities as a whole. A car will never run if it is built from NLT carburetors. A body will not function if it is only muscles. Someone has to be the spleen.

Homogenization is fine for mass produced dairy products. We are not mass produced. We are not product. We are individuals who need a savior, who need Jesus. And, frankly, who need one another.

No wonder so many non-believers think church people are fake. Be yourself. Be who God, in a his far more infinite wisdom, created you to be. Be humble. Be vulnerable. Be loving and kind. And do not accept the critics who do not like your refusal to homogenize.

Pray. Go. Do. Follow Christ and please Him only.

The opportunities to lose the peace God gives us are many and frequent. So are the chances to grasp His peace and rest in it. Which are you choosing today?

The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. – 1 Timothy 1:5 (ESV)

In the days of the first church, there were wrong-headed teachings aplenty.  Many were rooted in knowing the law, and others taught that one must gain “special knowledge” from God to be saved.  (This growing heresy was called Gnosticism, and it was a problem for several hundred years.  However, an example of God using a bad situation for good: we have the canon of Scripture we have today in large part because of the church’s response to Gnosticism.)

People like tangible stuff.  We like to be able to see, feel, hear, taste… sense what is real.  That’s understandable.  We live in a fallen world.  We have to sort through a lot of dishonest junk to get to the truth.  We don’t just want to feel something is right.  We want to know.  We want things to be provable in order to trust the end result is as advertised.

That can make faith in God a challenge.  Faith and knowledge run on two totally different tracks.  They work together, to inspire, to inform, to solidify understanding.  But to truly know God requires far more than learning about Him.  It requires trust.

Trusting God can be tough.  When life’s challenges keep piling up, it’s easy to wonder where God is in all of this.  And no amount of “knowledge” will help anyone without faith.  Even just a little faith – as small as a mustard seed, Jesus said – will do wondrous things.

I am a strong proponent of Christian education.  But knowledge won’t save you.  The trick to knowing God is that there is no trick. You just have to trust Jesus, believe He is right and follow Him in faith.  He did all He did on this earth and gave up His life in a most profoundly painful and humiliating manner without one ounce of self aggrandizement.  How much more proof do you need?

Jesus said we are to judge not. The other side of that is that the judgements others make against us have no bearing. No human being defines who you are. Only God does that. And He says you are His. You are loved. You are forgiven. You are blessed to be a blessing to others for God’s glory. You are so worthwhile that Jesus Christ died for you. You have a hope. You gave joy. You have Christ. Sleep well dear friends.

I’ve been thinking lately. (When my wife reads those words, she’ll probably go hide under the bed because usually what comes next is something like, “Let’s move to Saskatchewan!”). I’ve been thinking a lot about being the hands and feet of Christ, about taking the next hold step to be a blessing to others, and about the number 1,000.

Yes. 1,000.

As in, do you realize that if 1,000 people came together and gave $30, they could fully fund an adoption? If they did this once a month, they could cover at least a dozen adoptions a year.

If 1,000 people each went out and bought one bag of groceries, how many people in need would be fed?

If 1,000 families cleared out their old winter clothing, or bought coats, hats, gloves, boots… how many homeless people would be warmer this winter?

If 1,000 folks each gave an hour a month, how much loneliness could we ease?

1,000 sounds like a big number. But, consider this: I live in a town of around 24,000 people. That’s one in every 24 people. But, if you expand your reach out to the entire Twin Cities metro area, we’re talking about 3.6 million people – or one of every 3,600 people. If you live in a small town or rural area, think smaller. But think big for your population!

Where am I going with this? I’m not 100% sure quite yet. Right now I just pray God works through me to inspire people, to give folks a vision, an idea, an enthusiasm that won’t let go. Personally I need to break out of my comfort zone.

How about it? Will you pray with me about asking God to work through us to do great things in a His Name, with no glory in it for us? 1,000 may look like a big number. But, think about it… I know people who house a thousand “friends” (although I have no idea how…). I’ve seen videos of cats vacuuming or changing the oil in a VW or doing the tenth grade kid’s geometry homework, and they get over 1,000 likes or hits or retweets…

Please pray with me and let’s see what God will do through our lives. We know nothing is impossible for Him. And we know He equips His people.

Blessings to you!

Chris

chrisandjennie91@gmail.com