Archive | Bright Spot Journal

The Paradoxical Kingdom

Clearing Snowstorm in the Mohave Desert, Nevada

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” The “Serenity Prayer”   Very well said, isn’t it? It looks and sounds so good on a plaque because it appears to be so simple, so “black […]

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Seeds

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“To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted.. For whoever has, to him shall more be given, and he shall have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.” Matthew 13:11-12 […]

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The Great Exchange

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“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Jim Elliot A friend was talking about the decline of his parents, whom I had worked for a number of years prior. His mother’s mind was nearly gone – lost to dementia, and his father’s health was failing as […]

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Blessed by Trials

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“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4 How in the world could anyone “consider it all joy” to go through trials? Are we […]

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Not Being or Doing Enough?

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“I awake …to the wrestle to get it done, the relentless anxiety that I am failing. …I live tired. Afraid. Anxious. Weary. Years I feel it in the veins, the pulsing of ruptured hopes.   Would I ever be enough, find enough, do enough?” One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp, (pg 17) For me, Ann (in […]

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Walking by Faith

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“But My righteous one shall live by faith; And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.” Hebrews 10:38 Everyone wants to know that their life matters – to certain people we love and respect, to the world as a whole, and ultimately to God. We may think that a life of […]

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The Purpose of Life

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“The glory of God is man fully alive. “ Saint Irenaeus Lately I have been pondering the significance of death. Or more positively, the significance of life. What I have grown up with in my Christian heritage is the mindset that eternity – life after death – is all that really matters. That each person […]

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Transformation

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“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ” Galations 5:22-23 If these qualities characterized every person, the world would be a much better place, would it not? This was God’s original intent for mankind. The indwelling of the Holy […]

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Truth

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“you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:32 What is ultimate truth, and how do we know it? This is a question that deserves our full attention. Relevant because you and I are (willing or not) participants in a cosmic clash between truth and lies. The mind of man […]

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