At the heart of the historical Jesus story is the provocative, compelling, subversive, beautiful insistence that nothing can ever be the same again, not after resurrection.
What we do with our lives matters…
Do you believe this?
May the our lives be living proof that Jesus is alive.
Today we wait in anxiousness…
Love has been buried.
Tomorrow we celebrate…
Love resurrected!
Death in his grave…
And proof that Love — that became flesh — Wins!
On Friday a thief
On Sunday a King
Laid down in grief
But awoke with keys
Of Hell on that day
The first born of the slain
The Man Jesus Christ
Laid death in his grave
Resurrection announces that God has not given up on the world.
He’s only just begun!
over at the podcast, we’ve just released a FREE e-book, redemption stories.
(I say “we” but Stewart did most of the hard work in bringing it all together and doing the layout.)
The e-book includes stories, pictures and verse, but all of them tell a story — a redemption story.
We received great input from Adele Sakler, Ben & Joy Thomas, Laura Bridge, Jason Duke, Adam Howie, Christine McIntosh, Trent Yaconelli, Emma Boyd, Angus S. Mathie, Paula Spur, Avril Cutler, Emma Boyd and Rob Griggs-Taylor.
Every submission was wonderful but these few paragraphs from Ben Thomas really grab me…
John Wesley said, “catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn”. This reminds me of Jim and Patty. Ten years ago, their neighbors wanted their boat. Today, they are a inspiration to hundreds of others in our community of what God can do when you allow Him unrestricted access to your life and resources. Our lives may become less predictable, but as our desires slowly start melting away and blending into God’s desires, our hearts become oddly comforted by the uncomfortable.
I think being a fixer means being okay with these messy, imperfect situations. Doctors mustn’t be squeamish, mechanics mustn’t be afraid to get oil on their pants. Being fixers with Jesus means we’ll encounter questions we can’t fully answer and pain that can’t be explained away by pat answers and bumper stickers. Often, the fix is simply our presence, reassuring the broken world around us that “no, God has not forgotten about you”.
Its hard-wired in us all to fix something. If you want a neat and tidy situation to fix, you should probably stick to fixing up your kitchen. If you’re up for something a bit more adventurous and long lasting, consider following this Jesus character, who invites us into a Fixers’ Collective called the Kingdom of God, where we’re invited to enter into the broken mess and tell a story about a God who loves the unloveable, reassuring them that “it’s okay” because “you’ll get better soon”.
I hope you’ll take some time to download the book, read it, chew on it and then share it with friends.
Thanks again to everyone who took part!