Posts Tagged ‘Gospel of Matthew’
Man of Your Word
Integrity is ‘everything’ today. If people cannot trust that we will do what we say we will do, things begin to collapse. We see this to be true, especially in politics. Politicians rarely do what they say. Instead, they say what they think we want to hear, then do what they want to do. It…
Read MoreI Prefer Christ
Drive through any American city and read the signs in front of Churches. You will find that many of the signs focus on the benefit of being a Christian. Want a better life? Join a Church. Want to find peace after suffering trauma? Join a Church. Want to have healing from your addiction? Join a…
Read MoreEpisode 401 – The Light of Christ
On the Feast of Transfiguration, the Church celebrates the Light of Christ. On Mount Tabor Christ appeared as bright as the sun, but the disciples were not harmed because God protected them. God allows us to see His Light as much as we can bear. The world is competing with God by showing us images…
Read MoreNow Serving
Continuing where we left off yesterday with accusations against the Church about ritual, today I want to discuss what I sense is a growing conflict between being in Church for Divine Liturgy and being outside the Church service others. There appears even among leaders of the Church that serving others is more important than attending…
Read MoreSerpents and Doves
This year I was blessed to return to my home in Colorado for a family vacation. We visited all the ‘normal’ places I wanted to share with my family. The mountains of Colorado are wild, yet tame. Around every corner you risk being buried under a rockslide or in the presence of any number of…
Read MoreAvoid Temptation
Every day we pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Sit back and ponder over this verse of the Lord’s Prayer. We are asking God the Father, not just to keep us free from temptation, but to lead us away from temptation. God knows how much temptation we can handle. He…
Read MoreHealing is about Mercy
We live in a society torn apart by anger and division. We listen to the words of politicians as if they are enemies. We doubt the ability of anyone, except ourselves naturally, to repent. We call vengeance by another name, pretending it to be justice. We admit the world is sick, but they are the…
Read MoreShare the Secret
There is a saying that really disturbs me. People say, “The Orthodox Church is the best kept secret.” If this is true, it is quite unfortunate. A secret is something that should be kept private. The Church is the Body of Christ and has come for all. It is time to share the secret. The…
Read MoreIn Front of Your Eyes
Many times, we are faced with facts we just do not want to believe. Sometimes the facts make us sad. Sometimes the facts make us want to crawl under a rock and hide. The only way, we think, to survive is to deny the facts in front of our eyes. At that time, the Pharisees…
Read MoreSpiritual Fasting
I hear it so often I can’t count. “It’s not what goes into the mouth, but what comes out!” Every time I talk about the importance of fasting, this argument is taken like an arrow from its quiver. I wonder if people understood that Christ used this comment in reference to the hypocrites, if they…
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