Abundant Life… Is Not In Possessions

A man’s life doesn’t consist of the abundance of his possessions. There’s no limit to what we want. It’s an endless pursuit.

Relationships on the other hand bring fulfilment and there’s definitely a Godly pattern to fulfilling relationships.

What is there more abundant for a man, in this life, than being at peace with your wife?
Toes touching… no gulf between you.

The only bridge across the gulf is the grace of God… and often how we experience that grace is unexpected.
The bridge of grace always leads to repentance… which always leads to forgiveness… without which “toe touching” relationships are impossible.

We’re all imperfect and need to keep crossing that bridge of grace.

  • Mark Saunders

Forgiveness Is Unequal

For the one who’s forgiven it’s free… undeserved. Grace.

For the one forgiving, it comes at a price. Believing in the opportunity for redemption.

By grace, through faith we’re saved.

Recipients of God’s grace… a product of the faith of Christ… in turn a result of obedience to God’s will.

It’s not “our faith first” that saved us. It’s Christ’s faith. At Calvary we had no faith… but we were included in redemption by God’s grace and Christ’s faith.

Does our faith have a part? Most definitely. How can we receive and take hold of the gift of salvation we don’t believe?

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Gal 2:20… I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Gal 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

  • Mark Saunders

Disagreeing Is Easy

Letting go of grudges is hard

We reap what we sow. Grudges breed more grudges… a dark and lonely tunnel.

Forgiveness is perhaps the most powerful privilege we have… to give and to receive.

Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

  • Mark Saunders

Things Can Change Quickly

Joseph went from prisoner to prime minister perhaps within an hour?

The Lord had prepared him though through all he went through over the years since the pit.

The point being what? The Lord has ways of working things out we might never understand. Things can take years to be worked out, but at the right moment, change can come in an instant.

Joseph’s brothers throwing him into that pit was not their initial plan… it was God’s intervention for Joseph and in the end, for them too.

The point being? Even things that seem bleak and hopeless, no… even things that are bleak and hopeless… because sometimes that’s the reality… think of Jacob’s reaction when the brothers told him what had happened to Joseph… the Lord is able to miraculously turn around for good in the end.

The lesson? Two of them for me… enjoy the good moments “in the moment”… things can change at any time… don’t lose hope in bad moments…. things can change at any time.

Such a big part of life is truly not in our hands.
Change happens whether we like it or not… it’s only unquestioning trust in a faithful God that can see us through. Help me Lord to trust without question!!

  • Mark Saunders

Zeal Or Our Own Strength?

The word of the Lord desires us to be “hot, cold, but not lukewarm.”

Having zeal is good… but it doesn’t mean we act in our own strength.

Our own strength often makes zero difference in the kingdom of God… except to make problems.

Zeal needs to be tempered with patience. Everything has its time.

Keeping our lives on the altar means waiting for the Lord to open doors… the irony of which is that we often learn this by getting the timing of things wrong… in our zeal, doing the right thing at the wrong time and in our own strength.

Personally I’ve done that many times… it often means making a mess.

But the Lord is faithful and gracious… especially with our sincere intentions.

Take heart, the Lord is above our mistakes… He teaches us a lot through mistakes.

  • Mark Saunders