Fasting that is Pleasing to God (6:16-18)

Cornelius Plantinga once said, “Self-indulgence is the enemy of gratitude and self-discipline is usually its friend and generator.”1 This is because the more you indulge in something, the more likely you are to take it for granted; but, the more you discipline yourself with something, the more likely you are to appreciate it. This bringsContinue reading "Fasting that is Pleasing to God (6:16-18)"

New Year’s Resolutions

I usually do not make New Year’s Resolutions. It seemed to me that I would resolve to do good things (lose weight/spend less) only to quickly devolve back into my old habits. But, I discovered that the problem was not with the resolutions, but with my resolve. Marina Milyavskaya, a psychologist at Carleton University, explainsContinue reading "New Year’s Resolutions"

Advent: The Shepherds (Luke 2:8-20)

Written within a year of his conversion, Charles Wesley penned my favorite Christmas Hymn "Hark the Herald Angels Sing". The song begins with the story of the angels proclaiming Christ’s birth to the shepherds in Luke 2, then Wesley filled the song with the reasons the angels sang out in joy. One of my favoriteContinue reading "Advent: The Shepherds (Luke 2:8-20)"

Advent: The Announcement (Matt 1 & Luke 1)

Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year “with those kids jingle-belling and everyone telling you be of good cheer”. Its music is joyful and triumphant! It’s a time for adding events to your calendar and for checking your Christmas gift list. As you are preparing your calendar and wallet/purse for Christmas, make sureContinue reading "Advent: The Announcement (Matt 1 & Luke 1)"

Prayers of Confession (Matthew 6:12,14-15)

In this section of Jesus’ prayer, He tells His disciples to pray “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” In this prayer Jesus teaches them about Prayers of Confession: the need to be forgiven and to forgive. Forgive Us Our Sins When we become a Christian, God forgives all ourContinue reading "Prayers of Confession (Matthew 6:12,14-15)"

Prayers of Dependence (Matthew 6:10-11 Luke 11:2-3)

After instructing His disciples to pray “Father, hallowed be Your name”, He tells them to pray “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread.” In this section we shall learn about Prayers of Dependence. Let’s take a closer look at this prayer. YourContinue reading "Prayers of Dependence (Matthew 6:10-11 Luke 11:2-3)"

Prayers of Praise (Matthew 6:9 & Luke 11:2)

After providing examples of how His disciples ought not to pray, Jesus provides an example of how they should pray. What follows is often called “The Lord’s Prayer” or “The Model Prayer”. This prayer is not meant to be recited word for word (though it is a great prayer), rather it is an example ofContinue reading "Prayers of Praise (Matthew 6:9 & Luke 11:2)"

Charity that is Pleasing to God (Matthew 6:1-4)

Have you heard about the recipe for misery? Chas Kingsley once said, “If you wish to be miserable, think about yourself; about what you want, what you like; what respect people ought to pay you; and then to you nothing will be pure. You will spoil everything you touch; you will make misery for yourselfContinue reading "Charity that is Pleasing to God (Matthew 6:1-4)"

The Purifying Pursuit of Perfection (Matthew 5:48)

Max Lucado once shared a story about the dangers of comparison. His mother would tell him and his brother to clean their rooms. One time, when Max’s mother told him that his room was not clean, he took her to his brother’s room (which was much messier) and said, “See, my room is clean; justContinue reading "The Purifying Pursuit of Perfection (Matthew 5:48)"