Good morning!

 
I am modifying a message I have shared several times over the last several years as I think it is just as meaningful for each of us today especially in light of current events here in Minnesota.
 
I sit here writing this devotional as a follower of Jesus, as a volunteer, as a friend, as a weekly intrusion in your life on Fridays, as a husband, as a grandfather, as a father and as a father-in-law, as a son and as a son-in-law.

Most important to me is that I sit here writing this as a child of God the Father.
 
This is important for me, because God the Father provides us with deep and unconditional love. Love we should aspire to and in fact are called to in Luke 10:27 – “He (Jesus) answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
 
So I sit here writing – as someone who cares and in some cases a friend – brimming over in love – for each of you, who are such a treasure to me. For many of you bring life and light into my life.
 
Here is my message for today for each of you – my prayer is that you hear this well and find value in this message.
 
One of my favorite pieces of the Gospel is where Jesus washes the feet of the disciples – you can find this in John 13:1-17.
 
Before the Last Supper, Jesus pours water in a basin and goes around the table washing each disciple’s feet. This washing of feet was an enormous act of humility, service and love.
 
In His ministry Jesus showed us how to love many times, but this may have been one of the more tangible demonstrations of love you might find. Jesus loved and respected His disciples so much that he was willing to kneel in service to them, putting them ahead of Himself.
 
So, I would give this advice to you as you navigate this world (while in anticipation of eternity with Christ) – demonstrate your love often, hopefully every day, by “washing each other’s feet”, which means living in service and respect towards others. Be humble enough to kneel in service to the others. (See Philippians 2:1-8)
 
Doing this will be a true expression of your love and respect for others – here at home in America or anywhere else in the world.
 
I leave you with this prayer - an expression of the love I have for you each of you:
 
The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace. Amen.
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we go into this weekend is that we remember to “wash the feet of others” in service to those around us, sharing the gift of grace through faith in Christ Jesus that we received and shining that light of Christ’s love into the world. Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

As I write this, I find myself reflecting on how swiftly a week can pass -  it flew by and how I was challenged by some unique and rare issues. It is easy in these circumstances to be drawn away from our relationship in Jesus Christ.
 
As I prayed about it this distraction this morning, this question popped into my head:

What does it mean to glorify God?
​
We often pray, closing our prayers with “through Jesus Christ for God’s glory…”. I know I do this and I have heard others use it this way and often have heard others in ministry state something like  – "...we will do this always giving God the glory…"
 
You likely have heard sermons or read reflections or devotionals on glorifying God or living your life to glorify God. But what does that mean? Have you ever wondered?
 
John Piper, who is known to many for his ministry DesiringGod.org, defines it this way:

• “Glorifying” means feeling and thinking and acting in ways that reflect his greatness, that make much of God, that give evidence of the supreme greatness of all his attributes and the all-satisfying beauty of his manifold perfections.

 
I think that is an awesome definition. Some things to consider, if we embrace them in our hearts and remember them as we live our faith, these thoughts would help us glorify God:

• Remembering God knit us together in the womb, knew us before our birth and savoring the depth of what that means (Psalm 139:13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. Job 10:11 You clothed me with skin and flesh, and knit me together with bones and sinews. Isaiah 64:8 But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.)
• He made us in His image – and in doing so have the opportunity in Christ to reflect that image back to the world (Genesis 1:27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.)
• God gave us all a purpose (His purpose for each of us) and the gifts and talents we have, it is because of Him we are able to contribute to this world in little and big ways (gifts of the spirit - 1 Corinthians 12:4-27; Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.)
• He loves us so much He wants to be reconciled with us and to spend eternity with us (Romans 5:11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.)

 
Obstacles to glorifying God might include for example – 1) letting daily work and personal distraction take our eyes off of Jesus Christ; or 2) that we do not spend time thinking about His greatness; his perfection.

​Do you ever think you make God too small or let the worries of the world distract you from Him? For me the answer is yes and I have to remind myself of all the things listed above and more importantly that God (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) spoke creation into existence – not just earth but the entire universe – you can find a video on YouTube (here is a video that might stir your understanding of how big God’s creation is - How Great Is Our God - Louie Giglio).
 
So why should we glorify God? Because without Him we are nothing, we would not exist. So going back to John Piper’s definition – “means feeling and thinking and acting in ways that reflect His greatness” – using this definition are we glorifying God?
 
I think you can make the case each of us does glorify God:

• In choosing to set our lives (surrendering) down for Christ;
• In picking up our cross daily, trusting in the strength our of Savior Christ Jesus to live in Him each day;
• In choosing to embrace His calling on our life;
• By praying daily knowing He is the ultimate source of all goodness, love, compassion, righteousness, and justice;
• In being thankful and grateful to Him regardless of our circumstances…

 
These things reflect the fact that we are indeed His children, conceived, purposed, gifted, imaged in and by Him.
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that we remember that our purpose as God’s children, is to glorifying Him in how we live in this world and that we make a choice to act out the purpose in something we do this weekend that gives Him the glory – in service to another; in prayer; somehow! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick



​

Good morning!

I saw this several years ago. It resonated with me deeply. Personally, I need more than 5 minutes with Jesus to get my day started, but that is not the point…spending time first thing with Jesus is the point – how can I walk with Him during the day if I don’t invite Him to be with me? Every day? Towards the end of this reflection you will find some scripture that strongly supports the idea of praying first thing in the morning – even Jesus Christ prayed to God, the Father, early in the morning…if we need an example that is a good one.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Start Your Day With the Lord by Sheila Walsh
(from 5 Minutes with Jesus-A Good Way to Start a Day)
I don’t trust hotel wake-up calls. Whether you will actually receive one when you ask seems to depend on the state of mind of the person entering your request. If he’s just broken up with his girlfriend, for example, and her name happens to be Sheila, I’m either getting a call in the middle of the night or none at all. So I set my own alarm on my phone. I actually set two. The first is when it would be good to get up, and the second is when I’d jolly well better get up.

I’m just not a morning person, so I like to ease into a day slowly. I used to crawl out of bed, check that our son was up and in the shower, turn on the television to the morning news, and make myself a cup of coffee. It’s not a bad way to start the day, but I’ve found a much better way.

I realized that if the first thing I pay attention to is what’s happening in our world, those images and words impact my view of the rest of the day. But if the Word of God is the first thing I give my heart and mind to, I see everything as under the control of my all-good, all-powerful, and all-loving heavenly Father. It’s hardly surprising that this new start to my day has had a huge impact on my life.

The moment I awake, I say Psalm 143:8 (NIV) to myself. I repeat the verse several times. It’s become a great way to start a day: Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, My love will fall and fail, but God’s love never will.

The psalmist is very intentional here: trusting God is an act of the will. Show me the way I should go, I pray, “Show me, Father, which way I should go today.” for to you I entrust my life. I say, “My life is Yours, Lord, and I trust You with everything.” Then I pray these simple words: “Good morning, Lord! I don’t know where You are going today, but wherever You’re going, I’m comin’ with You!” A good way to start the day every single day is to declare the Word of God and thank Him for it.

Five Minutes in the Word
What does the Bible say about beginning your morning with prayer and with the Lord? Read these key scriptures:

• Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. – Psalm 143:8 NIV
• The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. – Lamentations 3:22–23 ESV
• Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning. – Psalm 30:5
• It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your faithfulness in the evening. – Psalm 92:2
• Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. – Mark 1:35 NIV

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we go into this weekend, is that going forward this year, each of us remembers daily to put You, Jesus Christ, front and center by spending time early in the day in prayer, letting the Holy Spirit help us share in our human ways what is on our hearts, with God the Father. Amen.

Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick
​

Good morning!

You are aware that for many, this is one of the most stressful times of the year – first world stressful, manmade stressful, Satan’s hand in it stressful. When I look back, I can see so much brokenness in my past. I am not suggesting you will see the same thing. But in all this rambling about stress, meltdowns and brokenness there is so much hope, so much good news. New birth, new life, transformation…

This quote comes from a devotional I have lost track of but is pulling from John 12:24 :
 
“Never be afraid of being a broken thing … Unless a seed breaks, there is no life. – No new life, no rebirth, no transformation happens without being broken first. When you’re in over your head stressed, you can touch the depths of God.” 

​

• John 12:23-25 - 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 
• 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
• Ephesians 4:24 “… and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” 
• John 3:3 ‘Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”’ 
• 1 Peter 1:3-5 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.”

​
Coming up to Christmas, I spend a lot of time thinking about the amazing birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ – what sweet thoughts these can be. This year was no exception. However, we know the story does not stop here. AND that is really good news for each of us. For Jesus Christ in His incarnate birth as a man, came so that each of us could have rebirth, bringing us into His loving presence, made possible through His death and resurrection – and for us this makes possible, out of our brokenness, God’s transformation of us and our brokenness for His good purposes (see Romans 8:28 referenced below).
 
The birth of Jesus Christ reminds all of us that we have a Savior, we have Hope, we have Good News. Additionally, in that belief, choosing the path to follow Christ, allows God to take our broken lives, our weariness, using it as a tool to create beauty that shines the Light into the world.
 
We are promised by God that we are reborn, a new creation. Without our brokenness as used through Christ there is no newness.
 
So as the quote above suggests (and as Jesus spoke in John 12:24), let’s remember God is in all things, allowing our lives to glorify him – in our lives trials it is possible to get a sense of God’s depth – His amazing love for us. This thought points me to remember Romans 8:28 – “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
 
As we transition from Christmas into the new year it seems perfect to reflect on the miracle of rebirth, new life, transformation at the hands of God through the Holy Spirit…not our work but God’s work if we let Him…
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us this weekend and as the new year starts is that we remember that as the calendar page is turned, we, each of us, remember the truth of God’s hand in our rebirth, that we are new creations in You, Christ Jesus…! Amen!
 
Happy New Year! Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

I know today is a day off for most of you (and for those retired always a day off) – an important day – Christmas Eve. The day most of us spend some time with our faith families celebrating the birth of Jesus. What consumes your thoughts on this day?
 
Are you anxious about whether you are ready? Whether you got everything done – all gifts bought, all activities done? Are you worrying whether you are ready? Kathy and I heard a sermon this last Sunday that resonated with both of us. Regardless of the answers to any of these questions, Christmas is coming (came…) – ready or not. God’s Son is born incarnate, and has brought salvation – ready or not.
 
So ready or not here is a mix of thoughts I want to share with you to prepare your heart::…
 
My favorite Christmas song is O Holy Night. You will find the lyrics below. Read them, ponder the meaning as it relates to your celebration of Christmas (one more time… #realreasonforchristmasjoy).
 
What is your favorite Christmas song? Why?
 
For me, this favorite song evokes so much emotion and stirring in my heart, moving me to be in awe of what God did for us…a little commentary alongside some of the lyrics:
 
Lyrics to O Holy Night (listen here)!
The stars are brightly shining (On clear nights, with stars sparkling and lighting up the heavens, I am left with an amazing peace knowing this is a part of God’s spectacular creation.)
It is the night of the dear Savior's birth! (thank you Jesus for coming not to condemn but to save…)
Long lay the world in sin and error pining (reminds me of where I was at one point in my life…)
Till he appear'd and the soul felt its worth. (yes, a heart bursting with joy at the knowing of my Savior, Jesus Christ)
A thrill of hope the weary soul rejoices (yes, going from living a life that was wearing me down, making me hopeless to a life of hope and purpose in Christ)
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn! (truly, the day is new…I have been made new in Christ)
 
Fall on your knees (when I hear this song and feel my heart bursting with joy, this in fact is how I feel – a need to drop to my knees before God at His awesomeness)
Oh hear the angel voices (music, heavenly and beautiful, beyond belief)
Oh night divine (truly divine)
Oh night when Christ was born (yes and moved by the knowledge that this is the beginning of Christ’s walk to the Cross for me and you)
Oh night divine
Oh night divine
 
Led by the light of Faith serenely beaming (Faith being capitalized reminds me that God is the author our faith…and birth we celebrate is one way God draws us back to Him)
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand (did I say my heart fills with joy when hearing this – seems to me joy is an expression or emanation of Light…)
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming (God’s light shining in the darkness)
Here come the wise men from Orient land
The King of Kings lay thus in lowly manger (kings, wise men, shepherds, us as we are, come to adore Him…next line – Christ, the King eternal)
In all our trials born to be our friend (yes, we become brothers and sisters, children of God and fiends, yes friends of Jesus Christ, especially as we slog through troubles in this life)
 
Truly He taught us to love one another (consider God first loved us by sending His Son…)
His law is love and His gospel is peace (love includes truth, peace is not peace without love and truth together; when I give up my rebellion to love, it means I first love God and His Holiness and desire transformation to my holiness that allows me to love as God loves)
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother (although we lay down our rebellion against God and now serve His will, we are freed from our sin and are made new in Christ)
And in His name all oppression shall cease (freedom is ours in our rebirth and renewal…we walk with Him and in Him through the Holy Spirit)
Sweet songs of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy name (yes, yes, yes let us praise Jesus Christ singing HOLY, HOLY, HOLY…as we celebrate the start of the Son of God’s journey as a man – going to the Cross, so we can go Home…)
 
Consider reading the following – Luke 1-2; John 1:1-18; and Matthew 1-2
 
This is the eve of the day we actually celebrate Christ’s birth. We should be bursting with anticipation! We should be singing God’s praises. Glorifying God for His ultimate gift of Love.
 
I have to be honest here. I have wanted to dig in my heals and stop the clock as Christmas has been hurtling closer, faster than I ever remember…it is just arriving way too fast!
 
But wait, shouldn’t I want Jesus Christ to arrive, sooner versus later? Isn’t that what I am waiting for – reunion with my Savior? Isn’t maybe my perspective on this wrong?
 
I bring this up more for me to ponder. These feelings of wanting to stop the clock are uncomfortable. Excitement – that is the feeling I want to have about Christmas not anxiety over how fast it is coming.
 
And when I step back, I realize I do not want to stop the clock. I want to hold His Truth in more moments of my life.
 
Every day, every hour, every second, until the time arrives when I go home to Him.
 
I want to hold that excitement of Jesus though the Holy Spirit walking with me on this journey back to Him in eternity.
 
And this moment by moment feeling of excitement can start on Saturday as we celebrate His birth, the Son of Man. It can even start today.
 
To capture this idea of the excitement that this birthday celebration ought to stir within us everyday view this 4 minute video: Who Is This King of glory?
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us on Christmas day and for the weekend, during this time off to celebrate Your birth, is that our hearts break open to the full understanding of you, Lord Jesus Christ, coming for our salvation in a way that allows you to shine Your light brightly into those who cross Your path now and in the new year! Let this Christmas celebration lead to daily excitement to know you - God’s Son, Emmanuel - who is infused into our lives as we live to do Your work on our journey home. God’s blessing to each of you and your family at this most Holy celebration of Christmas! Amen!
 
Merry Christmas all! Have a Christmas and weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

Yesterday I was anxious over what I might share in this blog. It has been a busy week – not enough time, too much to do. Sound familiar? How will I get this blog written and about what? In that moment what follows came to mind – this season is about God sending His Son to redeem us, about light coming into our lives, a time worthy for us to think about…
 
The Star…
 
Matthew 2:1-2; 2:9-11
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
 
After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
 
John 8:12
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
 
Are you following the Star – our Savior, Jesus Christ this Advent season?
 
Is the Star – the light of Christ shining through you this Christmas season, this advent?
 
Are others seeing the light of Christ through you?
 
Do you fully appreciate the enormity of the gift we have received? The reason we have so much hoopla (always wanted to use that word…J)!
 
Does your life feel brighter when you think about the real purpose of celebrating Christmas?

Do you find joy in knowing that we see the glory of God in and through Jesus?
 
Hopefully, each of you will ponder and answer these questions. I know for myself, this is my struggle every year – remembering the light, the Star, the true meaning of Christmas – helping my family know this truth! That light that leads us to Him on the cross and our salvation.
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that each us sees the Star, sees You Lord Jesus, that the light of the Star fills our life, Your light and our families’ life especially as we near Christmas day. Let us know that You are our Savior Jesus Christ and that you are that Star, that Light! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

I wrote this blog several years ago before I retired and want to share it again today. It speaks to what can happen to us when we let worldly things, activities of the season to deflect us (just as satan would like us to be distracted) from the real focus of this season - celebrating the birth of our Savior, our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Here it is:
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Warning – today’s blog may seem to you to have lost the Advent focus. But, this sharing today seems to be the Holy Spirit moving within me (and maybe more for me than for you). Let me explain.
 
Yesterday was a really good day. Until I forgot who I am in Christ…. I was getting all wrapped up at the office about 4:30 pm knowing I was taking a vacation day today. Cleaning up my in-box and just wrapping up lose ends. And then it started to happen – my neat organization of my late afternoon and evening started to come unraveled…a phone call with a to-do attached, last minute emails detailing with follow-ups needed. I started to feel tension build…. I finally got out of the office around 5:30 pm. Not bad but feeling my plans for the evening start to fray. Anxiety is starting to grow. Even this email is weighing on me – I do not have anything to share at this point, with nothing in sight to inspire me…
 
I get home as it is nearing 6 pm knowing that Kathy and I are going to see each other this evening for maybe 15 minutes in a week that has had us missing each other a lot. I grab the mail, a huge pile, a package on the front porch, feeling the pressure of having to sort through all of this to get it off our plate. My anxiety starts to irrationally build. Feeling overwhelmed going into a vacation day, how is that even possible, right?
 
Then Kathy arrived home for our quick 15 minutes together awake and with each other - for the entire day. She is so good and thoughtful, yet she had something for me to add to my list for my day off – maybe I could think about how we go about remodeling the laundry room…along with thinking about the 2nd full bathroom project. Not intending me to feel the need to think about these at all…but if I wanted something to do…I could choose to think about those projects…
 
Now, satan has me on overload, as I add to the list all the Christmas activity that has not happened- cards for family…and of course wife…gifts, concerts, volunteering…now I am truly breaking under the mental strain of thinking about all of this…
 
Have you ever had this happen to you?
 
I literally apologized to Kathy for being overwhelmed as she left for her commitment and then cried out to God, to Jesus, literally Yeshua…
 
At this point, I need to have you read the story of the prodigal son (click Luke 15:11-32). A few of you know, I see my past self (prior to Christ crashing into my life) as the young son, so wayward.
 
Not all that long ago, in my car through the Holy Spirit I had an encounter with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I was at a point of hopelessness, where addictions and other sins dominated my life – a life gone amok. I was ready to collapse and give up.
 
I still have a complete memory of those moments in the car. Vivid, able to feel remember the thoughts and smells and location and awe and amazement. The Holy Presence of God. My personal miracle involved forgiveness beyond my imagination, removal of addictions and a new birth in Christ…a peace washing over me leaving me with a peace that is beyond understanding…God did this. God alone.
 
In that experience, I knew the depth and breadth of God’s love – John 3:16 kind of love (I recommend you read further beyond just 3:16 because the following verses are almost as amazing.). God, as the Father in the prodigal son is running to welcome me home, embracing me – this experience still leaves me without the true words to describe how that changed my life.
 
Even as I write this I become aware that God, through the Holy Spirit, is using this writing, to bring back to me that experience of His love from that moment in the car, for me to remember who I am in Christ, a child of God, a son that he will always run to, and embrace, if I turn to back to Him. And God does not wait for me or you to get all the way back – he races out to meet us.
 
How does that relate to last night? In my cry to God through His Son and the Holy Spirit, God chose that moment of overwhelming to help me overcome Satan’s piling on, to refresh my memory, to know the truth of His love for me and the peace we will find in Him.
 
In the minutes after that crying out, peace washed over me, as I remembered, I belong to God through Jesus Christ. Last night before bed I continued reading a short book by Henri Nouwen called the “Return of the Prodigal Son, A Story of Homecoming”. In a section titled Searching Where It Cannot Be Found, Henri poses the questions – “To whom do I belong? To God or the world?” God reminded me, I belong to Him, not the world.
 
In what experience have you had God open your eyes and heart to know the fullness of His love?
 
So, maybe this blog indeed is about Christmas? For the hope that has saved me came incarnate as a baby human name Yeshua, our Christ Jesus. I have that hope and salvation every day, in every circumstance because of Lord Jesus.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

​My prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that as we continue in this Advent season, preparing ourselves, our hearts for celebrating the birth of Jesus, that in the stress our culture puts into our daily lives, that we remember the love God so richly blesses and shares with us with at Christmas! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

We are officially into Advent…are you preparing your heart as you anticipate our Christmas celebration of our Savior’s birth? How are you preparing?
 
By now most of you are thinking about the upcoming holiday of Christmas. In our home decorations are up but pruned down as we get older. Odd but in some other ways, this season is coming alive without all the extra trappings - we are not missing what has been left out and put aside.
 
For me, Christmas and Easter are seasons of pondering, pondering the life of our Savior Jesus Christ – birth, death and resurrection.
 
Our culture jumps on the gift aspect of the Christmas season, as it feeds our economic engine. The Hallmark Channels and now other channels pump the airwaves with endless Christmas movies trading the birth of Christ for some other mystical goodness. And yes, I watch these movies too – as do most everyone.
 
This often gives me pause. Stepping back, I believe it is clear that culture misses the most important parts of this season.
 
--- Which I strongly suggest is tied to understanding the depth and significance of the gift of the Son of God, Jesus Christ becoming man and then His death and resurrection for us.
 
What is important to you as we enter this season of Advent leading up to the celebration of the birth of our Savior?
 
I have a thought or word that I treasure as we near Advent. That word or thought for me this advent – humbleness.
 

• Luke 2:11–12 “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord. Here is how you will know I am telling you the truth. You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger.”

 

• Philippians 2:6–8: “Though he was in the form of God, he did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant [note here added from a Desiring God article - starting his life lower than servants — in a feeding trough] . . . he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

 

• 2 Corinthians 8:9 “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.”

 

• 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 “ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

 
Even from the beginning of the New Testament with the arrival of our Savior, humility was a part of the circumstances of that arrival. We think of the manger as a building structure – and it is a structure – but actually a manger is the feeding trough for the animals. If you have spent time on a farm and in the barn you might have seen a feeding trough.
 
A humble entrance into this world.
 
And here are some reminders of the specialness of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ…these are truths about our humble Lord -
 

• Revelations 5:11-13 “Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”

 

• 1 John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.”

 

• Romans 5:8 “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

 
For many of us our story isn’t necessarily one so humble. However, for many of us who are reading this, our work, retirement or even personal experiences have led us to meet people who either are living or have lived a humble life.
 
This time of year reminds me to ask myself “how humbly am I living?”.
 
In service to others; in pouring myself out for others; allowing God to use my weakness so His glory shines; remembering how Jesus came into this world in the most humble way and then carried that humility through His life to the cross for me – and you – and the rest of the world.
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that as we walk from Christmas to Easter we pause to consider the enormity of those two bookends that encompass Your story of rescue and what you did for us and use that knowledge to live humbly with those around us! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

I think the last several years which have at times seemed surreal, dreamlike at times and even nightmarish at other times, have driven me deeper into my faith. My desire to know my Savior, Lord Jesus, to walk with him, has been a constant drum beat in my life, getting more intense as each day passes. Maybe, just maybe, it is the ticking of the clock, my getting older…LOL, but I don’t think so.

God has placed on my heart the consuming desire to know Him, to know Him through His Son, Jesus. Part of the process of knowing Jesus is allowing His sanctifying work in our lives to transform us more and more into His likeness.
 
So with that as a back drop, here are some past thoughts on what it means to be a Christ follower:

• “A Christian is: a mind through which Christ thinks, a heart through which Christ loves, a voice through which Christ speaks, and a hand through which Christ helps.”

                 Saint Augustine
 
I saw this quote as I was writing down these thoughts and it just resonated with me. It seems to speak to the idea that living as a Christian is being a person that produces fruit in living, fruit that flows out of faith founded in God’s gift of mercy and grace, leading us to surrender our lives to Christ, laying our lives down, picking up our cross to follow Jesus, living for Him and His glory, not for ourselves.
 

• A mind through which Christ thinks – see Philippians 2:5-8 – “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

 
Other related verses - 1 Corinthians 2:16; Luke 19:10; Luke 5:16; Matthew 9:36. A commentary from one person about what the mind of Christ means – “Having the mind of Christ means we understand God’s plan in the world—to bring glory to Himself, restore creation to its original splendor, and provide salvation for sinners.”
 

• A heart through which Christ loves – see Matthew 11:29 – “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” In just reading this verse , I can almost sense the gentleness of Jesus and His deep and abiding love.

 

• A voice through which Christ speaks – as we study the Word (see John 1:1-5 – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” ), we become equipped by Christ to actively share the Good News – both that we are all sinners, not one of us has our own righteousness (Romans 3:9-11), and then that indeed, through Christ’s perfect sacrifice we can be saved (John 3:16-18). We are a voice that Christ can use.

 

• A hand through which Christ helps – see Matthew 25:34-36 – “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’” Our hearts ought to be so full of Christ’s presence through the Holy Spirit, that we bear this kind of fruit of service to others, putting ourselves aside to see to the needs of others. In this we do need to remember that our motive in this work is not earning salvation, but rather an outpouring of the love, grace and mercy we received when we became children of God (see Ephesians 2:8–9). Other related scripture references include: James 1:27; Mark 1:40-41;

 
The St. Augustine quote evokes the idea of transformation and sanctification – the change that happens when we are reborn and become children of God. We are dependent on Christ through the Holy Spirit to live transformed lives, lives that reflect the light of Christ. We become a tool, servant of Christ when we surrender our lives to him. The more we trust and are fully surrendered the more our lives look like that of Christ.
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we go into this weekend is that we each can open up ourselves to know Jesus more deeply and then to let Him, through the Holy Spirit, to fully use us – mind, heart, voice and hands – to share Him with the world, to shine His light! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

​

Good morning!

I continue working through issues with a pinched nerve in my neck - I am making progress but much slower than I would like. This causes me to feel stress and anxiety. Now in times of high stress and life challenges I more frequently am sent to my knees to pray or seek quiet time in His presence. So I am pondering the heart, specifically my heart today.
 
Where is your heart today? We know ultimately, we will be judged by what is in our hearts. There is so much in scripture around our hearts (over 800 references).
 
Here is just a little bit of the scripture around the heart:
Matthew 5:7-9, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
Matthew 6:19-23, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
Matthew 12:34, “You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”
Proverbs 4:23, “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.”
 
Reading these verse, leaves me asking myself where is my heart at? Often, sitting in reflection, more often than not after some interaction where I am questioning my side of the interaction, the focus is on what is going on in my heart.

Do you ever look inside and ask that question?
 
Are there specific circumstances that cause you to pause and take inventory of your heart?

I believe I need to do this more frequently than I do although as noted above circumstances are driving me to this activity more – maybe this should be a daily check-point.
 
For me, it seems that when my heart is in the right place, centered in the love of Christ, there is more peace in both physical and spiritual challenges, more productivity and more positive interactions, even in the most difficult of situations.
 
These scripture versus speak directly to this idea –

• Seeing God, our Creator, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, becomes possible with a pure heart. (A pure heart might be defined like this - Philippians 4:8 - "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things."). Our knowledge of and relationship with God is made deeper.
• Our hearts are seen in what we value, hold close and treasure. It is so worth stepping back and reflecting on what things or people mean the most to us. We might find we hold something or someone in this life in a higher position than Jesus Christ our Lord.
• When our hearts are right in Christ, “abundance” comes from our mouth – abundance of appreciation, abundance of support for others, abundance of wisdom through the Holy Spirit, abundance of love as shown to us through Christ…and…if we are conscious and intentional (vigilant) in keeping our hearts focused on and in Christ.
• Proverbs says that the springs of life will flow from our heart…springs – I am not sure about the word springs but would suggest two meanings are worth consideration – spring as in the time of year – time for new birth, new growth, new relationships, new gifts, new generosity, new love or… springs of water – as Christ promised the eternal water of life, again the abundance of growth, gifts and generous acts..

 
Our hearts then it seems are part of or the source of Christ’s life in our lives, the light that others might see. For each of us, does your daily reflection allow you to see the light of your heart focused in Christ  - reaching out to those around you?
 
Where is your heart today? Is your heart emanating Christ’s Light?
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer is that we each go into this weekend taking time to ask God to recharge, refill and ready our hearts for His work, in whatever work or activities that we do – so from abundant hearts God has given us through You, Lord Jesus, that we are shining Your light glorifying God to those around us. Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick