A prayer for today

"Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, I commit all my ways unto Thee. I make over my soul to Thy keeping. I pledge my life to Thy service. May this day be for me a day of obedience and of charity, a day of happiness and of peace. May all my walk and conversation be such as becometh the gospel of Christ. Amen."
--John Baillie in A Diary of Private Prayer

True Perfection

"This is true perfection: not to avoid a wicked life because like slaves we servilely fear punishment, nor to do good because we hope for rewards, as if cashing in on the virtuous life by some business-like arrangement. On the contrary disregarding all those things for which we hope and which have been reserved by promise, we regard falling from God's friendship as the only thing dreadful and we consider becoming God's friend the only thing worthy of honor and desire. This, as I have said, is the perfection of life."
Gregory of Nyssa in The Life of Moses

Salute to Southern Rock

Living A Life of Worship

Eternal Father of my soul, let my first thought today be of You, let my first impulse be to worship You, let my first speech be Your name, let my first action be to kneel before You in prayer.

For your perfect wisdom and perfect goodness,
For the love with which You love mankind,
For the love with which You love me,
For the great and mysterious opportunity of my life,
For the indwelling of Your Spirit in my heart,
For the sevenfold gifts of Your Spirit,
I praise and worship You, O Lord.

Yet let me not, when this morning prayer is said, think my worship ended and spend the day in forgetfulness of You. Rather from these moments of quietness let light go forth, and joy, and power, that will remain with me through all the hours of the day....

Keeping me honorable and generous in all my dealings with others,
Keeping me loyal to every hallowed memory of the past,
Keeping me mindful of my eternal destiny as a child of Yours.
Through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.

--John Baillie

Together with God

"God's life and our lives are bound together, as a vine with branches, as a body with members. So corporate are we that no one can give a cup of cold water to the least person in the world without giving it to God!"
--Rufus Jones in The Double Search

Mystery Train

Where are the leaders?

"Where are the gentle spirits and the prayerful souls among our leaders? When will we trust the qualifications of credible lifestyle and courageous witness as much as articulation of programmes and financial expertise? When will we die to the styles of government and authority that characterize our secular society and choose the style of the gospel? So that what is most evident in those who direct and encourage us is their pilgrim status, their ability to listen and to learn and to change, and their global sensitivity. Persons who can share their own spiritual adventure and who release and affirm others to do the same."
--Joan Puls in Every Bush is Burning

Public and Private Worship

"For many people, private worship is more attractive than public worship. Envisioning faith as a private affair reflects the individualism of our culture. Many ask why corporate worship should be so important when they can meditate on God in nature with far less distraction, or why they should bother to get dressed up and go to church when they can listen to an inspiring message on radio or TV.

"The reasons for gathering are many and important. Whether we are alone or with others, we need to experience our Christian life as rooted in the larger community of Faith. Even our most personal disciplines need to be supported, broadened, clarified, and sometimes corrected in the light of corporate theology and practice. Otherwise we become susceptible to privatized visions of spiritual truth. Moreover, we need the prayers of others as they need our prayers. The way God provides for our deepest hopes is usually through the hands and hearts of others."

-- Marjorie J. Thompson in Soul Feast: An Invitation to the Christian Spiritual Life, p. 60.

Hosea: God's Crazy Love!

Several have asked about The Wounded Bride, the video I showed during my sermon on Hosea last Sunday. Here's a link to allow you to watch it through YouTube. If you are interested in purchasing the video, go to BeamerFilms.com for more information.

A Word about Ministers

"The very first thing which needs to be said about Christian ministers of all kinds is that they are 'under' people (as their servants) rather than 'over' them (as their leaders, let alone their lords). Jesus made this absolutely plain. The chief characteristic of Christian leaders, he insisted, is humility not authority, and gentleness not power."
--John Stott in The Message of Thessalonians, p. 120.