Ever since the Fall, people have found it much easier to identify and focus on what makes us different rather than on what makes us the same. Nationality, race, age, gender, ethnicity, experience – these are standard inclusions on most job applications, surveys and tax returns. Although these classifications do tell a small bit of …
Author Archives: joslund1
God Cares About Our Bodies Too
This probably doesn’t make the list for the top ten most profound statements you’ve ever heard, but God cares about your body too. It seems as though we in the Church today have allowed the culture around us to influence us into a compartmentalized mode of thinking wherein we not only allow, but even seek …
Thrive as You
One of the most famous and familiar of Jesus’ parables is The Sower and the Seeds. Popular for good reason, this parable offers significant insights regarding the nature of God, His Word, and our own selves. Parables were a common teaching tool for Rabbi’s, but the settings often revolved around palaces, making Jesus’ often agrarian …
Signs and Wonders
“An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign.” (Matt. 12:39a) In the Old Testament the hallmark of the supernatural was signs and wonders, but in the New Testament the hallmark of the supernatural is a Holy Spirit-filled life. Since the creation of humanity it’s clear that God’s desire has always been for intimacy with …
Even You.
Isn’t it interesting how even a good thing, when lacking its balance, can become a bad thing. A piece of chocolate cake can make a happy statement after a satisfying meal, but eating the entire cake in place of the meal can make us feel like we’re dying. I suppose that’s what they meant when …
Description vs Prescription
Much of our Biblical confusion comes from a lack of contextual understanding. As a result, we can find ourselves confusing God’s descriptive voice as prescription. Description provides an account of the way a thing is, while prescription provides an account of the way a thing should be. “Then He (Jesus) began to denounce the …
How to Thrive in the Storm
“The righteous will thrive in uncertain times.” – unknown We were in prayer last Sunday and this line kept coming back to me. In Jeremiah 33:3, God says, “Call unto Me, and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know.” I’ll never forget the conviction with …
How to Weather the Storm
The year 2020 has been marked by unprecedented changes and uncharted waters that few could have anticipated. Global pandemic, social injustice and economic uncertainty have had an impact across the planet, and we will likely be feeling the ripples for the foreseeable future. And beyond these global and local concerns, life goes on presenting …
Proper Fasting
Nearly dead-center in the middle of Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount, we pick up an interesting motif. “When you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, …
The Danger of Easy Answers
A lot of our axioms and canned answers are really quite awful. Someone loses their job, and we say “God has a plan.” Someone loses their house, and we say “God moves in mysterious ways.” Someone loses their family, and we say “God is in control”. Perhaps we aren’t all to blame. Perhaps we’re …
Just for a Closer Walk 