April 13, 2016
Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found. Psalm 32:6
The Psalmist implies that there comes a time when God cannot be found. A time when God hides Himself. A time that I believe may have begun in America.
Our nation is in a mess. Why? Could it be because America is losing God’s blessing? His favor. Could our sin be provoking His judgment? Judgment that is not necessarily in the form of a nuclear dirty bomb, or another ISIS attack, or an economic collapse. But a Romans 1 judgment as God backs out of our national life and turns us over to ourselves.
March 8, 2016
…For I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed… 2 Timothy 1:12
Today, March 8th, is International Women’s Day. I’m using it as an opportunity to think about what it means to be an evangelical woman in today’s world.
An evangelical woman is one who believes in the evangel—the Gospel—the Good News that God so loves the world that He gave His only Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross to make atonement for sin. And that anyone and everyone, anywhere and everywhere, who trusts Jesus Christ to be their Savior will not perish in an empty, meaningless existence, then go to hell when they die, but will be forgiven of their sin, be reconciled to God, and have eternal life—which is a personal relationship with God now, and a heavenly Home when they die.
During America’s presidential elections, the theme of “change” echoes in one form or another, from one campaign to another. The idea of change strikes a chord that resonates with young and old, rich and poor, men and women, black and white and brown. Thinking of this recurring need for change, I began to wonder: Is the change that people long for, the change politicians promise, a change that can truly be delivered? Or are people who are seeking change confusing the political and the spiritual? Are they looking for something that only God can give?
The older I get, the more I want things to be familiar. I find myself choosing the same restaurants to frequent, the same clothing styles to wear, even the same place to sit in church. Change requires energy that taxes my strength and mental reserves. So I don’t want change just for the sake of change. I want change that is worthwhile, change I can really believe in.
The good news is that we can believe in the change God brings about in us through our faith in Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul said, “We live by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). Praise God! Change is not only desirable . . . real change is possible!
