“He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus…”
Not through religious routines.
Not through my effort.
Not through right doctrine.
Not through daily disciplines.
All these have their place, but none of them will or can earn me a restored relationship with God. Only Jesus.
If you think Christmas is complicated, imagine the first Christmas. What was complicated to Joseph, Mary and rest was actually simple to God. It was the unfolding of His plan to rescue us in Jesus. A "simple" Christmas starts with us trusting Him and His plan.
Advent is a season to cultivate holy discontentment.
To lean into the joys and magic of the season and then to taste the “lack” between the “now” and the not “yet.”
The tension between the long today of Christ’s Kingdom and the coming tomorrow.
Haste the day, Lord Jesus.
"Does our sacred music merely move us in the moment or form us for a lifetime of faithfulness? To presume to write, select, or lead our sacred music is to presume to teach. It is not a question of if our songs teach, but what."
Words set to music have a profoundly formative effect. Any lyric we hear or sing can yield us either well-formed or malformed. My latest at @CTmagazine https://t.co/ZIxLArVqU2
During periods of waiting that stretch our much longer than we’d prefer, our confidence should not be permanently shaken. Instead like the psalmist, our declaration should be “I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord”@PriscillaShirer
In the first student trip since 2019, God has truly been using @JFStudentMusic in Birmingham! Our students have been serving partner ministries w/ concerts, sorting clothes, packing food boxes, decorating VBS rooms, & yard work! Pray for block party/concert tonight @JohnsonFerry