May 10 - Titus 3:4-5

But when the goodness and loving kindness

of God our Savior appeared, he saved us,

not because of any works of righteousness that we had done,
but according to his mercy.

Titus 3:4-5

We are justified by faith.

We are saved by grace.

Say that a hundred times.

This is the plain and repeated truth of the Gospel. See Romans 3:22 and following:

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

Why do I say, “Say that a hundred times”? Because too many people who’ve heard it a hundred times …

·         still doubt that God loves them …

·         still look at works to save them …

·         still judge others on the basis of their actions …

·         still wonder why God is inflicting them with hardship (What did I do to deserve this?”) …

·         still fear the final judgment.

Read today’s verse again. Now then look its main words: Goodness, Loving Kindness, and Mercy. Which is your favorite (and true) description of God?

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who is saying …

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

Are we to a hundred times yet?!!!

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

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prescribed through the law.

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By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

We are justified.

By God’s grace.

Effective through faith.

Apart from the works

prescribed through the law.

May 9 - Hosea 4:1

Hear the word of the Lord,

because the Lord has a charge

to bring against you who live in the land:

"There is no faithfulness, no love,

no acknowledgment of God in the land."

Hosea 4:1

As I write this, I can look down and see my “I voted today” sticker.

Did you?

·         Based on today’s lesson, I’m impelled to ask: in our land how would you rate our nation’s faithfulness?

·         How would you rate our love?

·         Seriously, on a scale of one to one hundred, how would you rate our acknowledgment of God in this land?

Now – the bigger question – what are you doing about it?

Many of us feel overwhelmed. Don’t! A million “little people” can make a big, big difference right where they are!

So who can you serve? Who do you know who needs love? (Hint: It’s probably an less-popular person.) Who do you need to forgive? Who can you tell a piece of the Gospel to? Who can you encourage? Who can you sit by when they’re experiencing illness and grief?

Do you remember that you-plus-God are an overwhelming majority? What’s the one big thing you can do today to kick-start any measure of your apathy?  

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s tired of

faithlessness, apathy

and a sense of powerlessness

in this land

a guy who wants to take it back!

You're Invited: Deeper Life Conference

May 20-22, 2012 – 6:30pm

Spirit of Joy Lutheran Church

8 6 0 0   P o t t e r   R d ,   W e d d I n g t o n ,  N C

at the traffic circle at the intersection of Potter and Indian Trail-Waxhaw Roads

Have you ever wanted to hear from God? Literally hear from God

and discern his voice? Join Pastor David Chotka for a three day

seminar. His book Power Praying is fast becoming a resource for

national ministries and is being translated into 21 languages.

Let these simple, profound truths be translated into your own heart.

www.spiritofjoy.us      8600 Potter Rd, Weddington, NC      704-821-8494

May 8 - 1 Peter 1:6

In this you greatly rejoice,

though now for a little while

you may have had to suffer grief

in all kinds of trials.

1 Peter 1:6

Grief and trials.

Have you had them?

Have they made you stronger?

The answer to both of those question is probably yes. Trials inevitably come. Indeed, they eventually come for all people. And trials tend to do one of two things: They either cripple us … or they make us stronger.

Often we get a little of both. They cripple us for a while … and then afterward, we realize that in spite of the toil and turmoil we’ve become a little stronger.

With this in mind, I can understand why Peter invites us to rejoice in the face of trials. We’re usually concerned with the immediate. But God is concerned with the final, eventual and eternal. Therefore …

·         He’ll allow a few trials, believing that they can lead to trust.

·         He’ll allow a bit of darkness, trusting that you’ll yearn for a little more light.

·         He’ll allow a little adversity, trusting that suffering will produce a little more endurance, and endurance will produce a little more character, and character will produce a little more hope (see Romans 5:3-5).

We’re concerned with the immediate. God is concerned with the eternal.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s not quite rejoicing over trials

but is trusting God in spite of them

May 7 - Psalm 75:1

O God … we give thanks;

your name is near.

Psalm 75:1

Why do you give thanks?

If you’re like me, you usually give thanks for tangible blessings: a safe home, a good job, a child’s graduation, a handful of loved ones, a victory over addiction.

You probably give thanks also for emotional, spiritual, and psychological blessings. Things like peace, hope, joy, forgiveness.

You may even give thanks for God. “Thank God for God!”

But do you give thanks for his name?

What does that even mean?

It’s not the word itself – Jesus or Yahweh (translated LORD) – that has power. Rather, when someone shares with us their name, it’s an invitation relationship.

Think of the story Exodus 3 story between God and Moses. When God revealed his name, the Lord himself opened a door to greater intimacy. Therefore, when the Psalmist says that “your name is near,” it celebrates that “God’s intimacy is near.”

Furthermore, saying that “when two or three are gathered in the name of Jesus,” it does not mean that his vague presence is swirling a little closer by; it means that a channel has opened for an intimate connection between heaven and earth. And there is “power in that name.” Which means what? There is power precisely when and whenever we connect to God intimately.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who needs to reintroduce him Yahweh

whenever I’m feeling powerless or far

May 3 - Acts 20:32

I commend you to God

and to the message of his grace,

a message that is able to build you up

Acts 20:32

Do you know someone who’s facing a trial? Paul, in his Acts 20 address to the Ephesians, gives us a model for encouragement.

Commend them to God: Assure them that you’re praying for them and let them know that you yourself trust ultimately in God’s care, not solely in human solutions.

Point them to “the message of God’s grace”: Does your friend know the message of God’s grace? If they’re in a relational struggle, do they know that God forgives. If it’s an issue of illness do they know that heaven awaits those who believe? Here’s the problem … even good Christians “know” this. But under stress, people too often “forget.” They know of forgiveness, grace, and eternal healing in their heads (and on the surface), but not their hearts (and deep, deep down). Remind them of the message of God’s grace.

Remind them how and why grace can “build [them] up”: If most people “forget” grace under stress, you’ll probably want to keep reminding them. Reminder-by-reminder, this will build them up.

Pray … teach … and remind. It’s a recipe for hope.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s job is basically

pray, teach, and remind

May 2 - Psalm 81:7

In distress you called,

and I rescued you.

Psalm 81:7

You probably guessed, but this is God speaking: “In distress you called, and I rescued you.”

Reflecting on God’s saving grace while Israel was Egypt, the Psalmist records God’s compassionate message to them. Because God is consistent, this is God’s persistent message to each of us too: “In distress you called, and I rescued you.”

But … does God always rescue when we’re in distress?

How many of us have ceased to really pray boldly and confidently because once we put everything into a prayer, and God (apparently) didn’t come through. We couch our expectations with clichés like, “Well, sometimes he says ‘wait’ and sometimes he says ‘no.’” But doesn’t the lack of our desired response on our desired timetable leave us doubting God – sometimes and at least a little?  

Other times, doesn’t the lack of our desired response leave us doubting ourselves? “What’s wrong with me that God doesn’t answer me?”

The key word in this passage is distress. The problem is that sometimes we use it too casually. “I’m distressed when my favorite team loses a game.” “I’m distressed when my car is overdue for an oil change, and I don’t have time to do it.” We over-use it … and thus deflate it.

The distress that scripture talks about it is true distress. It’s coming completely to the end of ourselves – the end of our capabilities – and turning the situation totally, totally, totally over to God.

When I pray for most problems, I’m still totally seeking my own solutions. But when we turn everything totally over to God, we’re admitting our ultimate helplessness. We’re humbling ourselves. We’re totally submitting. We’re totally trusting. We’re totally getting out of the way. And we’re totally prepared to look and listen for him.

Totally getting out of the way and totally tuning into his will begins to align our prayers with his purposes. And suddenly our requests align with his desires. And when our desires align with his desires, the rescue – while occasionally defined differently – begins to happen. We’re rescued, not because we’re getting our desire, we’re rescued because we’re embracing God’s plan, purposes, and providence.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s distressed about

being too easily distressed

May 1 - Mark 10:38

James and John said to Jesus,

"Grant us to sit

one at your right hand and

one at your left hand when

you come into your glory."

Mark 10:38

James and John were important. Even among the disciples, they were were in the inner-inner-circle. They viewed it as a permanent position. "Grant us to sit one at your right hand and one at your left hand when you come into your kingdom."

Perhaps you are important in this world. Maybe it's because of the job you have. Maybe it's because of some position or responsibility that you hold. Maybe it's because of how you think of yourself.

It's good to be valued. But here's the question: Is this a permanent position?

Most of the titles we bear in this world we pass away. Indeed, they'll pass away even before we do. It's not wise, therefore, to focus our lives on passing titles and temporary positions.

And yet each of us do have a permanent position. It is through Jesus Christ. It is a role that's higher than we deserve. And it's eternal.

Our importance is not through self-importance. It is simply because we know the king.

In Christ's Love,

a guy with a permanent job

and a permanent joy