We begin angry. We experience hurt and we hold someone responsible. We hold them accountable and make them pay. When asked, "Are you okay, are you angry?" We reply, "No, I'm fine." But we're not ok. The relationship remains shallow, and inside we are in turmoil and our thoughts and desires deceive us. Bitterness has found a place to roost. Bitterness is the result of ange...

Coming July 10th-13th is the Christ Church Vacation Bible School. There will be a two hour class 6:30-8:00 for adults each of the four nights entitled, How Sanctification Works. In preparation I hope this letter from Dr. David Powlison will be helpful. An Open Letter to Someone Struggling with Sanctification Dear friend, We all love it when life leaps into forward gear ...

Coming July 10th-13th is the Christ Church Vacation Bible School. There will be a two hour class 6:30-8:00 for adults each of the four nights entitled, How Sanctification Works. Sanctification is a word that we find in the Bible. It literally means "to set apart" for special use or purpose, to make holy or sacred. Therefore, sanctification can refer to the state or proce...

Why Do I Care What You Think of Me? Wednesdays, June 7th - July 26th 6:30 - 7:30 pm - Supper at 5:30 We will begin a 7 week summer series on Wednesday June 7th tackling the topic, Why Do I Care What You Think of Me? The common problem men and women of all ages face is a fear of man. Most everyone cares about what others think of them. We either want to fit in to the larg...

Jack knew that he must forgive Jill. Jack knew that he could forgive Jill. He knew the offense but she didn't. He knew her attitude had not changed but she didn't. He knew she needed to recognize her wrongs and confess, but she didn't. Jack knew his forgiveness of Jill did not depend on any of these circumstances. Why? All of Jack's sins were forgiven by God when he put h...

There is one certainty about human relationships, they can be painful. Forgiveness, absorbing the pain in hurtful relationships, is necessary for those relationships to function as God designed. We forgive, it's costly, as we have been forgiven in Christ, it was more costly. Anger is a necessary and costly emotion we experience when we are hurt by another. Trying to avoid...

Giving forgiveness requires getting forgiveness. God gives forgiveness freely at the cost of the death of his own Son. All mankind has nothing but need. We cannot make up for our sins. We are completely dependent upon God's mercies, and God demonstrates his love for us while we were sinners Christ died for us (Rom.5:8). God accepted this sacrifice of himself and verified t...

When I think of my unworthiness in light of what I did or did not do, said or did not say, thought or did not think, then I must think upon the worth and value of Christ's death. When I think of someone else's unworthiness in light of what they did or did not do, what they said or did not say, or I am sure they thought or worse yet, what they did not think, then I must th...

We all experience hurt in relationships. Hurt in relationships complicates life. Complicated relationships complicate our lives- the way we think about ourselves, others, our relationship to God, and the way we live our lives. We all deal with these complications in various ways. We like to find diversions or distractions. I saw a boat last week named, "Sane Asylum". We m...

The following is an excerpt from Concise Theology by J.I.Packer. This is a book I recommend for every Christian library. Dr. Packer writes, "Jesus's resurrection, which was a divine act involving all three Persons of the Godhead (Jn.10:17-18; Acts 13:30-35; Rom.1:4), was not just a resuscitation of the ruined physical frame that was taken down from the cross for burial. I...