Empire vs. Love

By Bill Guerrant

In the 4th century, the Roman emperor Julian was concerned about the spread of Christianity in his empire, and was determined to revive the traditional Roman pagan religions.

Here's how he expressed his frustration at his seeming inability to stop the growth of Christian faith:

"Nothing has contributed to the progress of the superstition of these Christians as their charity to strangers. The impious Galileans provide not only for their own poor, but for ours as well.”

No empire can stop humble servants empowered by GOD's love

Julian failed. Christianity was irresistible. Why? Because no matter what charge could be made against the Christians, their charity to strangers and their provision for the poor, Christian and non-Christian alike, was evident for all to see. Love won. It still can.

Stepping into a new life

By Jon Walker

'Come!' answered Jesus. So Peter got out of the boat and started walking on the water to Jesus.
Matthew 14:29 (TEV)

When Peter stepped out of the storm-tossed boat and onto the water, where was the safest place to be? In the boat or in the arms of Jesus?

The answer, of course, is to be with Jesus, and for a brief time, Peter saw that. Right then he got a glimpse of what it is like to TRUST in Jesus and what it is like to operate within the realm of costly grace as a citizen of the kingdom of heaven.

And we get a glimpse of that too. We see that following Jesus requires us to step into apparent insecurity in order to find true security.

It's a paradox of faith: Our first step of faith places us in a position where faith becomes possible. By our obedience, we learn to be faithful. If we refuse to follow, we never learn how to believe. We stay stuck in the shallow end of faith, trusting in ourselves, living by sight and not by faith.

The essence of discipleship is Jesus constantly pushing us into new situations where it is possible for us to trust him even more. He pushes us toward "the impossible situation in which everything is staked solely on the word of Jesus," says the German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

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Jon Walker is the author of Costly Grace: A Contemporary View of Bonhoeffer's 'The Cost of Discipleship', from which this has been excerpted.

Influential thoughts

While this is long-standing biblical wisdom, many secular sources now agree on the huge influence our thinking has on our lives. The following is adapted from a recent Daily Hope reflection posted by Rick Warren.

"Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts." (Prov. 4:23)

My interpretation influences my situation. It's not what happens to me that matters as much as how I choose to see it. The way I react will determine whether the circumstance makes me better or bitter. I can view everything as an obstacle or an opportunity for growth — a stumbling block or a stepping stone.

My beliefs influence my behavior. We always act according to our beliefs, even when those ideas are false. For instance, as a child, if you believed a shadow in your bedroom at night was a monster, your body reacted in fear (adrenaline and jitters) even though it wasn't true. That's why it's so important to make sure you are operating on true information! Your convictions about yourself, about life, and about God influence your conduct.

My self-talk influences my self-esteem. We constantly talk to ourselves. Do you run yourself down with your self-talk? Stop doing that: "As you think in your heart, so are you" (Prov. 23:7).

Don't be reluctant to show mercy

by Rick Warren

We all need mercy, because we all stumble and fall and require help getting back on track. We need to offer mercy to each other and be willing to receive it from each other.

You can’t have fellowship without forgiveness because bitterness and resentment always destroy fellowship. Sometimes we hurt each other intentionally and sometimes unintentionally, but either way, it takes massive amounts of mercy and grace to create and maintain fellowship.

The Bible says, “You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others” (Colossians 3:13 NLT).

The mercy God shows to us is the motivation for us to show mercy to others. Whenever you’re hurt by someone, you have a choice to make: Will I use my energy and emotions for retaliation or for resolution? You can’t do both.

Many people are reluctant to show mercy because they don’t understand the difference between trust and forgiveness. Forgiveness is letting go of the past. Trust has to do with future behavior.

Forgiveness must be immediate, whether or not a person asks for it. Trust must be rebuilt over time.

Trust requires a track record. If someone hurts you repeatedly, you are commanded by God to forgive them instantly, but you are not expected to trust them immediately, and you are not expected to continue allowing them to hurt you. They must prove they have changed over time.

The best place to restore trust is within the supportive context of a small group that offers both encouragement and accountability.

(from Rick Warren's Purpose Driven daily devotional site, Daily Hope)

Cease striving and know that I am God

By Francis Frangipane

Among the many complex and sublime faculties of the human soul, one attribute functions as a servant to all: the nature of the soul is porous. This means that in addition to latent strengths and talents, the soul is also shaped and developed by external stimuli: we learn customs and language, habits, virtues and vices largely by importing reality as it surrounds us. Indeed, the marrow of life itself, as we subjectively know it, is created by the inward flow of these outward realities.

Thus, the soul, while it is born with innate powers, it is also the product of its times and circumstances. Because we live in unprecedented, prophetic times, individuals born during the last five or six decades are impacted, not only by the common struggles and joys of life, but also by the unspeakable disasters as they occur around the world. As a result of live media coverage, we vicariously experience repeated participation with human suffering. We see the actual faces of those traumatized by earthquakes and tsunamis, famines and wars. Again, because of the porous nature of the soul, when we view life’s terrors, we are repeatedly absorbing these fearful realities into our consciousness. We cannot help but be affected.

How do we erase from our minds the faces of earthquake and tsunami victims? How is it possible to forget the horrific memory of people leaping to their deaths from flaming windows high on the Twin Towers on 9/11? What happens to our souls when we view news reports of Iraqis and Israelis being blown apart by terrorists’ bombs?

If you are an intercessor, or even one who possesses just basic, human compassion, the flood of sorrow and terror rising from terrible disasters cannot be stopped by a levee of human intellect. Life’s pains, even when they aren’t our own, are still absorbed at some level into our soul, and more so if we know the one suffering.

To cope with our vulnerabilities, we have created some positive remedies: hospitals, relief agencies, first responders and charitable giving all are relatively new means of dealing with human sorrow. We are compelled, not only to help the victims, but to help ourselves digest and respond to the emotional overload of our times.

(Read this insightful article in its entirety at the Ministries of Francis Frangipane)