Our Brokenness - through which the love of God can best manifest itself:Henri Nouwen

'What moves me most in reflecting

on these opportunities

is that they lead us

to the heart of

ministry and

mission.

The more I think about

the meaning of living and

acting in the name of Christ,

the more I realize

that what I have

to offer to others

is not my

intelligence,

skill,

power,

influence, or

connections,

but

my own human

brokenness

through which the

love of God

can manifest itself."

Henri J. M. Nouwen

THREE GIFTS JESUS GAVE HIS DISCIPLES AFTER HIS RESURRECTION.

Jesus got three gifts when he was born - gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Before he left the earth, after his death and resurrection, he also gave his disciples three wonderful gifts.

First of all, he gave his disciples peace- A priceless gift. He said to his disciples: ' Peace be with you'.Through faith in Christ and in his death and resurrection, we have peace with God. We are 'good' with God. He is not angry with us, in fact, we have, through Christ, become the apple of his eye! We can, therefore, go out and serve God with a peaceful mind, not with a stressed or anxious one worrying whether we are pleasing to him. We are at peace with him- the fear has gone! Wonderful indeed.

Secondly, he also commissioned the disciples to do the most significant vocation possible: 'As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.' Wow, what a calling, what a charge, what a commission! He wants us to be his representatives- little Christs, little anointed ones. In fact, this commission is so wonderful it is impossible to do without his third gift to us!

The third gift is the empowerment to fulfill the commission- the Holy Spirit- God dwelling within us. Now if we had half a million pounds in our wallet we would feel special and blessed. But being indwelt by the maker of the universe? Could we be more blessed? Of course not, never in a million years.

What great gifts- it's like Christmas every day. Receive them today.

'Again Jesus said, “PEACE BE WITH YOU! AS THE FATHER HAS SENT ME, I AM SENDING YOU' And with that he breathed on them and said, “RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT.'

The Marks of a true Apostle- Private Jet or Crowded Prison Cell?

The Marks of a true Apostle- Private Jet or Crowded Prison Cell?

'It seems to me that God has put us

who bear his Message

on stage in a theater

in which no one wants to

buy a ticket.

We’re something everyone

stands around and stares at,

like an accident in the street.

We’re the Messiah’s misfits.

You might be sure of yourselves,

but we live in the midst of frailties and uncertainties.

You might be well-thought-of by others, but we’re mostly kicked around.

Much of the time

we don’t have enough to eat,

we wear patched

and threadbare clothes,

we get doors slammed in our faces,

and we pick up odd jobs anywhere we can to eke out a living.

When they call us names, we say,

“God bless you.”

When they spread rumors about us,

we put in a good word for them.

We’re treated like garbage,

potato peelings from the culture’s kitchen.

And it’s not

getting any better.'

Paul to the Corinthians