Transformed Mind

“Everywhere things are troubling and uneasy - wars and rumours of war: perhaps not the final hour but certainly times most evil. Nevertheless, the Apostle again and again bids us "Rejoice." Nature herself bids us to do so, the very face of the earth being now renewed, after its own manner, at the start of Spring. I believe the men of this age think too much about the state of nations and the situation of the world…We are not kings, we are not senators. Let us beware lest, while we torture ourselves in vain about the state of Europe, we neglect either Verona or Oxford. In the poor man who knocks at my door, in my ailing mother, in the young man who seeks my advice, the Lord Himself is present: therefore let us wash His feet." This was a quote from famed author of The Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce, Mere Christianity, and of course the Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis. Though in this quote he was reflecting about the state of the world in 1947, Lewis had also fough...

Introduction Who do you serve? Seriously think about it, what do you think about when you get up in the morning? Is it how to make a quick buck, so you can feel financially secure, or to get dressed up in order to impress others? Do you ever wake up and dwell on how awesome God is, how majestic, beautiful, and holy He is? Or is He primarily a means to an end, a kind of wish fulfiller that is at our beck and call? What kind of God do you serve, or does He simply serve you? Many of us grew up hearing the story of the Tower of Babel. Of how God came down and scattered humanity by confusing their once unified language. But what is the lesson within this historical narrative? What can we glean from this short passage? Original Meaning Before extracting what the passage means to us today, let me first unpack some of the historical-cultural meaning to shed some light on what was going on here. This episode in history occurred after the cataclysmic flood that destroyed every living thing ...

Kaiser Söze from The Usual Suspects (yup, I’m quoting Kevin Spacey’s character from this awesome movie) once said, “The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” [1] The Apostle Paul and his contemporaries knew better though, and so, taught and fought against this otherworldly entity from the power of God, through Christ, and by the Holy Spirit. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians as a whole speaks of salvation as the grace of God (2:4-5) and expounds greatly on the unifying work of Jesus Christ (2:13, 16; 4:3-6). God is sovereign and loving, bringing new life to those who know and accept His Son. What of the last chapter of the letter to the Ephesians then? Although believers are saved by faith and not through works (2:8) faith is an active obedience to God’s Word, so that one cannot simply sit idly by, but must strive to become more Christ-like. The spiritual battle then, Paul asserts, occurs because if true believers walk in a way worthy of our ca...

Hope.  This simple yet powerful word has come up quite a bit these past few days in my circle of friends and colleagues.  Struggles with relationships either ending or being strained, not knowing what the future holds for sick loved ones, and for a military acquaintance, the fear of death in a foreign land. All of these real life worries yearn and deeply cry for hope. If you’ve read my other posts this may seem redundant, but hope, true unadulterated, ever-present, and lasting hope can ONLY be found in Jesus, in his steadfast love and promise to shepherd and protect us, leading us to everlasting life with him. Psalm 23 paints a poignant picture of this hope in times of fear and uncertainty. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2         He makes me lie down in green pastures.        He leads me beside still waters. 3         He restores my soul. ...