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“Jesus replied, ‘What is impossible with man is possible with God.'” (Luke 18: 27, NIV)

Make no mistake about it, there are impossibilities in this life. To act or to say otherwise is to risk doing ourselves, and those who get their cues from us, a great deal of harm.

Each day presents its own challenges, and we do well to weigh whether we have the time, the strength, the wisdom, the funds, or the alliances and allegiances to prevail. Doing so brings us to the point where we know, without a doubt, that if we are to succeed in the task before us, it must be “with God.”

Jesus reminds us today (as He did the disciples 2,000 years ago) that where we will utterly fail by ourselves; with God, we can achieve, succeed, and prevail.

The child of God is never — never — in the realm of impossibility when mindful of his/her heavenly Father. – Luther

Tagged limitations, possibilities, the book of Luke

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Ascension Day

“And he led them out as far as Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.” (Luke 24:50-53, NIV)

For the disciples of Jesus, Jerusalem had been the site of many tragic events over the previous days. In fact, with the death of Jesus, it seemed that all of their dreams had been dashed; and that all of their plans had been trashed.

In the light of the Resurrection, however, they “returned to Jerusalem with great joy.” We can only imagine what the outsiders must have thought about the disciples of Jesus as they saw them in the temple; joyful and praising and blessing God. Perhaps they thought: “Aren’t these the disciples of the man who was crucified on Friday? Why is it that they are now so bright and optimistic?”

The answer, then as now, is this: He lives!

The Resurrection of our Lord trumps every sorrow and redeems every failure. The Resurrection enables us to return to the scene of our greatest humiliation with great joy and confidence. To live in the light of the Resurrection is to truly live! – Luther

Tagged the book of Luke, the Resurrection

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“The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return home and tell how much God has done for you.’ So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.” (Luke 8:38-39, NIV)

“You can’t go home again,” is the title of a famous book written by Thomas Wolfe (1940). Returning home is not always a pleasant option. It certainly was not a cheerful thought for the man in today’s scripture, for whom Jesus had liberated from the tyranny of demon-possession.

Perhaps he feared the taunts of those who remembered him in his former state. Perhaps he thought that his new life warranted a fresh start in a new place. Perhaps he thought that he could do more for the reputation of Jesus as a part of the Master’s entourage than he could by returning to the skeptical folks at home.

However, Jesus had other ideas. “Return home and tell how much God has done for you,” Jesus told the man. He is telling you and me the same thing today.

Our task is a simple one: Tell what God has done for you.

Be bold. Give God the glory. No one can tell your story better than you. Be faithful in this simple task. – Luther

Tagged gratitude, personal testimony, the book of Luke, Thomas Wolfe