The Perfect Bed

Luke 2:6-7

“6 While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”

Have you ever traveled a long distance and arrived at your hotel tired and worn out only to find out that they had not held your reservation or that there was some mix-up and you received a smoking room with no view or balcony? Now, imagine that you had walked or ridden a camel for 90 miles, 20 miles a day for four and a half days and you were pregnant, and this happened.

When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, they were probably very tired and in need of a room.  Yet, because of the influx of crowds of people who were in Bethlehem for the census, there were no rooms to be had. So they were relegated to staying either in a stable or a room where animals were kept. 

When Mary gave birth, she laid the savior of the world in a manger.  

The manger bed, normally the symbol of Mary and Joseph’s poverty, actually symbolizes God’s plan for the redemption of all of humanity.  Christ was not born in a palace.  He was not laid in a bed of gold.  He did not have servants attending His every need.  

Christ was born into the world so that all could be saved.  The manger represents the plan of salvation for all humankind.

And there was never a more perfect bed for such a savior.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Caught in the Wind of God’s Will

Luke 2:1-5

“1 In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 All went to their own towns to be registered. 4 Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. 5 He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.”

Emperor Augustus was Julius Caesar’s great nephew.   He  was also Rome’s first, and some say, greatest Emperor.  His reign was marked by great expansion of the Roman Empire and the building of great buildings and monuments in the city of Rome.

In order to support all of this, the Romans needed to know how many people were available who could pay the taxes that they would use to supply their armies, build new cities, etc.  Each person in the Roman Empire was required to travel back to the town of their birth to be registered (so that they could be taxed).  

Joseph and Mary had to travel approximately 90 miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem.  If they were able to travel 20 miles per day by foot or by camel, it would have taken them four and a half days of constant travel.   This would have been a difficult journey for anyone.  It would have been especially difficult for Mary.

Is it any wonder that Mary gave birth in Bethlehem?

God’s plan was that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem.   He used the needs and worldly ambitions of Rome, the ego of Augustus, the willingness of the Palestinian officials to comply with the edicts of Rome, and the strength and endurance of two very ordinary people (Joseph and Mary) to accomplish His will.

On the surface, Joseph and Mary appear to be helpless feathers caught in the winds of worldly powers.  But in reality, it was God that was working, it was God that was acting, it was God that was the moving force…

and it was Rome and the rulers of Palestine that were the feathers caught in the winds of God’s will.

“for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.” (Psalm 22:28)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

God With Us

John 6:38

“For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent me.”

Christ was born into the world to do the will of God.  It was God’s will that Christ be born; God’s will that Christ live among us; and God’s will that Christ be crucified.  This was God’s perfect plan for the redemption of the world.

Christ came so that others might have eternal life.  It was God’s will that all of humanity be saved through the sacrifice of Christ.  But before that sacrifice, Christ had to be born, and come into this world as a child, live in the world, and come to know, first hand, the sufferings and temptations of humanity.

Christ knows our hearts.  He was born as we are born, lived as we live, suffer as we suffer.

And that is why we call Him Emanuel.

God with us.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Son of God

John 1: 18

“18 No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.”

Christ is the Son.  We, the children of God, know God through the Son; through the life of Christ on earth we know the creator of the universe.

Not only can we know Him, we can have a living relationship with Him.  God will speak to us, guide us, and lead us through His Holy Spirit that dwells in every believer.

God has been made known through His Son, who was born into this world to bring the light of God.

Know Christ.  Know the Son.

And you will know God.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Love of God

John 3:16

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”

Christ was born into this world because of love.  

First, there was the love of God for the world.  God’s love for His creation was so great that he sent His son into the world.  

Then there was the love and trust of Joseph and Mary for God.  The news of Mary’s pregnancy must have been shocking to both of them, yet they trusted God’s message to them to be the truth because of their love of God.

Mary and Joseph allowed themselves to be led by this truth, despite their doubts or the hardships that they knew they would face.

God’s love is born into the world because of ordinary people.  People like you and me. 

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Children of God

John 1:9-14

“9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.  14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness.”

The light of God came into the world.  Most people who saw the light rejected it.  Some, such as Herod, tried to put out the light, but the light shone through the darkness.  

Those who saw the light and believed became children of God, born of God through faith and the Holy Spirit.

It is the children of God who now shine the light of Christ into the world.  It is through our example of love that this light shines forth.  

“For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.” (2 Cor. 4:6)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Light

John. 1:4-5

“4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

The light of heavenly bodies and of angels served to guide people to the Christ child and when they saw Him, they saw the light of God in Him.

The light of God is life. The light of God shone in the life of Christ on earth, and this light was offered to all of humankind.

This light shone a light into the darkness of the human heart.  Many people came to faith,  others plotted to kill the light.

But the light shone forth.

And it shines even today.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Word Was Love

John 1:1-3

“1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”

Christ is the word who is and always has been God, the creator of all things.  And the Word became flesh and lived among us, the only Son of God.  

On earth, Jesus was God’s visible word.  He healed the sick.  He raised the dead.  He made the blind to see.

He was the example of kindness and forgiveness.

The word was born into this world.

And the word was love.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Wait with Assurance

Micah7:7

“But as for me, I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me.”

At some point in our lives, we make the decision to follow the Lord.  This involves embracing the life to which we are called, and listening to the voice and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Many times during our spiritual journeys we come to a standstill, to the valley of dry bones.  During these times, we must wait and pray, with the assurance that the God of all creation is present, that God’s love and mercy is never ending, and that God hears our prayers.

During our times of waiting, let us look to the Lord.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Waiting in Faith

Hosea 12:6

6 But as for you, return to your God, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for your God.

An integral part of our relationship with God is waiting.  Not just waiting when we feel like it, but continually waiting.  

Waiting on God helps us to focus on God.  Being still before Him is an act of humility and submission.  When we wait, we submit ourselves to God’s will, God’s time, God’s plan and God’s purpose.

When we wait, we recognize our dependence on God and acknowledge that it is not our will or our strength, but God’s.  

Waiting on God speaks of our love for God.

And in that love we dwell continually.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Wait on the Lord

Psalm 27:13-14

“13 I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. 14 Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!”

As a child, it seemed that Christmas would never come.  Between the time that we decorated the tree and Christmas Eve seemed like an eternity.  Of course we were waiting and yearning for material things; for the gifts that Santa would bring.

Now, as an adult, it seems that the season of Christmas passes too quickly.  Before I know it, it has come and gone.  Something in the speed of Christmas seems wrong.  We are no longer waiting, but struggling to keep pace.

Dallas Willard, a professor known for his writings on spiritual formation, once wrote that you cannot be in a hurry and develop spiritually.  “We should take as our aim to live our lives entirely without hurry. The peace and joy and strength which God intended for human life, the well-being and health of mind and body, is inconsistent with living in a hurry.”

As Christians, we are to wait on the Lord.  In all things, we are to wait. In this waiting, we will find God’s goodness. And in this goodness will be strengthened.  

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

A New Song

Psalm 40:1-3a

“1 I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. 2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. 3 He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.”

Advent is a time of waiting.  We wait in great anticipation and joy for the day that we celebrate the birth of the Messiah.  Before Christ’s birth, the Jews cried out to God for help.  God’s answer was to promise them a Messiah; a Messiah who would offer them a faith that would be their source of inner peace and stability; a Messiah who would sing a new song.

Christ was rejected by the Jewish people.  They rejected the song of faith that he offered.

We now wait for the second coming of Christ.  How hungry are we for His return?  Do we cry out for Him?  Are we living our lives according to His teachings?  

Are we singing His song?

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Suffering Servant

Isaiah 53:5-7

“5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.

6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth,like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.”

God told Isaiah that the long yearned for, long awaited Messiah would be rejected and would suffer.  He would be led as a sheep to the slaughter but he would say nothing in his defense.

God told Isaiah that this was all part of his plan for the redemption of humankind.  He would lay all of humankind’s sins on Him,  so that His suffering would be for us all.

The Messiah did not come to this earth for fame, or to be crowned King and live in luxury in a palace.  He came to serve, to be rejected, to suffer, to die, and to rise again.

For us.   For our sins.

For our salvation.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Freedom

Isaiah 61:1-2

“1The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,because the Lord has anointed me

to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,

2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God,

to comfort all who mourn”

That Jewish people waited for the Messiah who would free them from the darkness.  For the captives in Babylon freedom meant a return to their homeland.   For God, freedom meant faith and a transformation of the heart, and the freedom from sin and death that that kind of  faith would give to the world.

The Jews did, eventually, return to Jerusalem, but they did not find spiritual freedom in that return.  Their faith was rooted in laws, regulations, and rules, not in the heart.

Christ came to redeem us, to change our hearts, to transform us…

to release us from the darkness.

“I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in the darkness.” John 12:46

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The New Covenant

Jeremiah 31:31-34

31 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.”

Jeremiah prophesied that with the coming of Christ will come a new covenant.  The old covenant will no longer exist.  Unlike the old covenant which was written on stone, the new covenant will be written on the hearts of all who believe.  

And when they believe, all their sins will be forgiven.  God will dwell in them.

The lives of believers will be different than those who remain under the law.  Within the new covenant, believers live by faith. It is through this faith that we know Christ.  It is through this faith that we know God.  It is through this faith that we know God’s love, God’s mercy, and God’s forgiveness.

It is not the law that saves us.

It is our faith.

“But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law.” (Galatians 5:18)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

A Light in the Darkness

Isaiah 9:2-6

“2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;

those who lived in a land of deep darkness- on them light has shined.

3 You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you

 as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder. 4 For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. 5 For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire. 6 For a child has been born for us, a son given to us, authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Isaiah’s prophecy of Christ is that of the light that shines and beckons all who live and walk in darkness to come to Him.  Christ will lift all burdens, all sins that have been oppressing His people. Christ will be born as a child, and this child will be God’s son and He will have God’s authority.

And He will be wonderful, mighty, and everlasting.  He will be the Prince of Peace.

Christ’s birth is a time of great joy and great hope.

The light shines in the darkness.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Born of a Woman

Isaiah 7:14 

“14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.”

Immanuel means God with us. No one expected the messiah to be God incarnate, walking among them, talking to them, serving them, healing them.  

The Jewish authorities thought they had God all figured out.  They thought God existed in all the many rules and regulations they issued and enforced.  They thought God lived in their temple and no one had access except only the most high priest.

They thought only they knew God.

God was about to surprise them.  An unknown, lowly, young woman was going to have a child, a son, God’s son.  And His name would be Immanuel.

And God would dwell with them.  He would walk among them.

Just when we think we have God figured out…He surprises us.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

A Savior Born in Bethlehem

Micah 5:2-5

“2 But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah,

from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days. 3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has brought forth; then the rest of his kindred shall return to the people of Israel. 4 And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall live securely, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth; 5 and he shall be the one of peace.”

On November 22, 1963, I was ten years old and sitting in a fifth grade classroom when we heard the news over the intercom that President Kennedy had been shot.  Then moments later, the school Principal came to our classroom door and whispered into the ear of our teacher.  With tears in her eyes, our teacher told us that the President was dead.  

For several weeks it seemed that the whole world was dark.  We saw Lee Harvey Oswald killed before our very eyes on TV.  We saw the riderless horse with boots turned backward in the stirrups.  We saw the First Lady in black with her children.  We saw two year old John John saluting his father’s casket as it passed by.  We saw the lighting of the eternal flame on the President's grave.

And we wondered, where is God?  Where is our hope?

The Jews during the time of Micah wondered the same thing.  Everywhere they looked, evil seemed to prosper.  Where was God?  Where was their hope?

Through the prophet Micah, God gave the people hope.  A savior was to be born in Bethlehem and the people of Israel would be his flock, he would feed them God’s words, and he would be the one of peace.

In a dark world, Christ is our hope.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Spiritual Health

2 Corinthians 13:5

“5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are living in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless, indeed, you fail to meet the test!”

In Paul’s visits and letters to the Corinthian church, Paul’s primary concern was for the spiritual health of the Christians in Corinth. If they were truly in the faith, then they would know that Jesus Christ lived inside them. The Holy Spirit would be at work within them, transforming them, giving them a thirst for righteousness, and they would be exhibiting the fruits of the Spirit. But if their lives showed no evidence of the Spirit’s activity, then Jesus Christ was not indwelling them. 

Paul asked the Corinthian Christians to examine themselves for the fruits of the spirit.  To ask themselves if they were living lives characterized by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

This is something all Christians should do even today, each year; examine yourself by taking a deep inventory of your spiritual life; 

Start by reading the teachings of Jesus; 

ask yourself if you live a life that is a reflection of those teachings; 

do you live a life that is characterized by the fruits of the spirit; 

are you a reflection of God’s love on earth; 

are you the light that shines in the darkness for others?

Is Christ in you?

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Weakness into Strength

2 Corinthians 12: 7b-10

“7b Therefore, to keep me from being too elated, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. 8 Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, 9 but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.”

Paul had a thorn in his flesh.  Scholars have debated for years about what this was. There have been those who thought that Paul had some constant temptation that he fought to overcome.  

Others have suggested that he had a physical ailment, possibly with his eyes, since he suffered blindness on the Damascus Road.  Still others suggest that the thorn referred to Paul’s opponents who always seemed to surround him.

Paul gained strength whenever the thorn bothered him or made him weak.  Whatever this thorn was, Paul used it to remind him of Christ’s suffering; to remind him of God’s presence; and to remind him of his God-given mission and purpose.  

We all suffer hardships, weaknesses, injustices, and calamities (as Paul wrote).  Do we let them defeat us and tear us down or ,with God’s grace and the power of Christ, do we turn our suffering into strength, and weakness into power made perfect?

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Joy of Giving

2 Corinthians 9:6-7

“6 The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

Giving, a spiritual discipline in which the Holy Spirit can move us to a closer, deeper relationship with God, is a responsibility for all Christians.  We are to give faithfully, generously, sacrificially, and with a glad heart.  

We are to give of our time, our talents, our money,  our presence, and our witness, all with a glad and grateful heart.  The joy that we find in giving is given to us by God and it is truly a blessing, for those who receive and for those who give. 

Giving done in faith is accompanied by the joy of heaven. 

“For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 14:17)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

A Glad Heart

2 Corinthians 8:1-5

“1 We want you to know, brothers and sisters, about the grace of God that has been granted to the churches of Macedonia; 2 for during a severe ordeal of affliction, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For, as I can testify, they voluntarily gave according to their means, and even beyond their means, 4 begging us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry to the saints— 5 and this, not merely as we expected; they gave themselves first to the Lord and, by the will of God, to us,”

The ministry to the saints that Paul referred to in this scripture was money that he was collecting for the church in Jerusalem.  Apparently, the churches of Macedonia, despite their severe poverty, participated in this collection and gave “beyond their means” with “abundant joy”.  Paul held these churches up as examples of generosity.

Money is often used as the modern yardstick for measuring the generosity of churches.  But Paul used an additional metric.  The Macedonian churches gave with “abundant joy”.   

Giving means nothing if it is not done with a glad heart.  And this is true in every aspect of giving, whether we give of our money, our time, our talents, our presence or our witness, they all mean nothing if not done with gladness.  

Christian gladness is the result of  our deep and abiding awareness of the presence of God in all aspects of our involvement with the church.  When we serve and give with this awareness, it changes our attitude to one of  “abundant joy”.

“And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work.” (2 Cor. 9:8)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Godly Grief

2 Corinthians 7:9-10

“9 Now I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to repentance; for you felt a godly grief, so that you were not harmed in any way by us. 10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief produces death.”

Has someone ever spoken a hard truth to you, not out of anger or judgement but because they cared for you and wanted the best for you?  Our parents did this all the time.  Our spouses probably do this.  We do, or did, this with our children as they matured and grew up.

Paul viewed the people of the churches he founded as his flock, maybe even as his children.  He was concerned for their spiritual well being and wanted the best for them, which was salvation. So, Paul’s letter to the Corinthians was a hard letter; a letter that spoke of their sins and shortcomings. He wrote of these things in the hope that they would become better Christians, not to hurt them or cause them pain.

Paul was informed by one of his assistants, Titus, that the letter had resulted in godly grief and repentance, which was the exact reaction Paul desired.  Godly grief  is rooted in love for God, and would produce true repentance and change in the Corinthians.  Worldly grief is rooted in anger and resentment and would cause division and rebellion.

The Holy Spirit confronts believers each day with their sins.  Will we react with worldly grief that will quench the Holy Spirit…or with the grief that will change us and move us closer to the image of Christ?

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Journey

2 Corinthians 6:2

“For he says, “At an acceptable time I have listened to you, and on a day of salvation I have helped you.” See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!”

Paul, referring to Isaiah 49:8, wrote that now is the time for the Corinthians to follow Christ.  There may not be a tomorrow.  If they were waiting for the right time, Paul wrote that now is the right time, now is the day to be saved, now, at this moment, before the Lord returns.

Everyone has an urgent need for salvation, but for most people, salvation is not an instantaneous event as it was for Paul.  Salvation is dependent on faith, and faith is not a quick, instantaneous decision.  It is a slow series of revelations that reveal Christ to us as the Son of God and the savior of the world.  

We cannot just decide one day to be saved.  True faith cannot be rushed.  

Now, however, is the time to begin to seek, to dig, to study, to ask questions, to begin to walk the path that leads to salvation.  

And at the end of that path is Christ.  

Once you find Him, the real journey begins.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Made New

2 Corinthians 5:16-17

“16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view;even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view,we know him no longer in that way. 17 So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!”

Once Christians come to faith, we are indwelled by God’s Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit begins to recreate us into the image of Christ.  This is known as the process of sanctification.  This process is never complete and occurs over the course of our lifetime.  

If we allow the Holy Spirit to work within us Christians are always in the process of becoming new.  As a result, we are not the same Christian today as we were twenty years ago, and we will not be the same Christian that we are today twenty years from now.

Because of this transformation, our lives change, the way we view other people changes, even the way we know Christ changes.

In God everything old has passed away. 

And we are made new.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Glory Beyond All Measure

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

“16 So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. 17 For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, 18 because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.”

Christians, despite our faith, are still affected by the material world.  We grow old, we catch viruses, we suffer hardships and sadness.  We grieve and we cry.  Our faith does not protect us against these things.  

But, because we believe, the Holy Spirit of God is with us in our affliction.  The Holy Spirit comforts us when we pray, and gives us the promise of the eternal life ahead.

We may live in the material world, but our hope is in the things we cannot see; the eternal, everlasting glory beyond all measure.

 May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Let Light Shine Out of Darkness

2 Corinthians 4:5-9

“5 For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake. 6 For it is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;”

The love, mercy and forgiveness of God is a gift given to us by God.   We carry this gift in our hearts so that we can shine it out into the dark world for all to see and to guide others to Christ.

God’s gift of salvation to the world is contained in us, clay jars as Paul called us.  Even though we have been given this great gift, we are still subject to the temptations, circumstances, whims, evils, and sufferings of the world.  Faith does not make us immune from these things.

But because we have God’s eternal gift, the world cannot destroy us.  We may be persecuted, afflicted, struck down and driven to despair… 

but we can never be separated from God’s love.

“Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.” (Romans 8:38)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)