Living Word Only

 The world today can only be described as 'uncertain'. Nothing seems to rest on any unshakeable foundation, not the economy, not the political leaders, not the peace, not even the assurance of natural resources. It seems like everyone is always on edge as though waiting and trying to be ready for the worst case scenario occurring. Trying to imagine all the worst things possible in order to numb themselves into not crashing out, into remaining cool and passive as though nothing no longer scares them. So what can give us certainty in the uncertain times? Who God is God is the Creator and Maker of the world and everything in it, Genesis 1. He is Sovereign and in control of all situations whether local, global, regional, family or personal. He is able to intervene and bring order to chaos. He has the power and might to overcome any challenge or obstacle. He gives us His peace in times of turmoil. The peace the world cannot understand. He promises us He will never leave us nor forsa...

 There is freedom that you have now gained. You are no longer in the elementary institutions that would check your attendance, where you would be beaten for any wrong doing or punished, you have grown taller, your voice has changed and yet within lies a little boy who doesn't know what to do. You see the men around you behave in certain ways and you may or may not have seen the outcome. You may be impressed by the outspoken and challenged by the daring. Yet here you are at the crossroads not sure what sort of man you should become. You show up for your sisters and mother, you see your dad and you never want to be like him or he is your biggest idol. Whoever you choose to  be from this day onward is dependent on a lot of things but I will share with you three in this article.   I will start with the foundational, are you saved? Do you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Do you spend each day getting to read His Word and meditate on it or have you started compromising in on...

I am sure you have experienced forgiveness at least once in your life. Perhaps you can recall a time where you erred and the only way out was to seek forgiveness. The greatest forgiveness we can experience comes from Jesus. The kind of forgiveness where you were absolutely sure you deserved the judgement that was coming as a result of your actions and then instead of punishment, you get complete absolution from your sins. Imagine a stain on a shirt, you try to clean it and the stain gets bigger and bigger, you resolve to take off the shirt and fix it, then someone hands you a crisp clean shirt and tells you, 'You can keep it.'  That is exactly how Jesus meets us, wrecked, stained, unpardonable and He forgives us and makes us new, in instances where we had a mile long rap sheet, He gives us a new and clean slate. Maybe that's why I love redemption stories. I love how Jesus takes people who were deemed unworthy, judged, hopeless, irredeemable and turns them around with His fo...

 I chose that particular background to illustrate just like a home is in constant need of repairs, we too are in need of repair. We find though we have come to salvation there are those habits that linger a little longer than we would like. A word spoken in anger, a harsh response, a sharp look or any illustration of anything other than the love that Jesus offered us to our fellow kind. Now home repairs or renovation are changes we undertake ourselves. There are projects we start and leave half way, others are not really able to be continued to the very end and others it seems require an expert to come and guide us. In our walk of faith, our attempts to become more and more like Christ on our own, through brutal punishment of self or extreme denial of pleasures that land us into sin, always fall flat on our faces. As a matter of fact the discipline we choose to practice without a Savior usually ends up with the temptation coming harder than ever before to the point where if we cros...