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Showing posts from August, 2016

Yoked to Jesus

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“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” †  Mathew 11: 28-30  What is the labour and burden that Jesus is asking me to deal with? Perhaps I have to let go of the compulsive burden (or is it a sort of entitlement?) that my spouse and children should choose a spiritual path that I know to be right. Jesus accompanied Judas Iscariot to the very end but never deprived him of his freedom to choose his own destiny. Jesus on the other hand, uninterrupted by Judas's choice to reject him, continues to accomplish his mission. He does become a victim of Judas's betrayal but he seldom takes on the victim's identity. In divine wisdom, Jesus chooses to die in our place (and that of Judas) in a redeeming act of love. Rather than being compelled to fix those whom God has entrusted to my headship by m

Resisting Sin

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Sin destroys joy and freedom. It leaves us in fear and loneliness. Slowly but surely, we loose our self worth. The questions is how can we safeguard ourselves from the devastating consequences of sin and live joyfully and victoriously? Merely asking God to protect us from sin would not be enough because it requires our participation. It would be like asking a doctor to heal us and waiting to be healed doing nothing. In our daily struggle against sin, God expects us 'to do' a few things so that effort becomes effective and fruitful. And only in doing these things we cooperate with God's glorious plan for our redemption and eternal life. Our situations may be unique and our vulnerabilities different. Yet it may be possible to draw out few guidelines that are applicable to all. Resisting sin effectively requires the following: 1) Great desire and will Most of the time we fall into sin because we do not really want to avoid sin. If you are taking