An Invitation to Freedom

 

Readings 070426 

My friends, on this 4th of July,

Independence Day—

A day set aside

To remember earthly freedom—

The Lord invites us to remember

A deeper, eternal liberty:

The freedom that only Christ can give.

Because too many hearts today

Are still not free.

Too many souls have become dominated,

Subservient, even enslaved by sin.

It is not that the battle ever ends,

But some have stopped fighting.

Some have stopped hoping,

And stopped believing

That grace still breaks chains.

And into that heaviness,

The Gospel speaks of new wine and new wineskins:

A heart made open,

A heart made supple,

Ready for grace.

A heart willing to let God rebuild

What we have allowed to remain in ruins.

A heart expecting abundance, not scarcity—

For the Bridegroom is near,

And His mercy is never small.

Scripture promises us

A people planted securely in God’s promise—

The freedom Christ offers:

Not escape,

But restoration.

Not avoidance,

But renewal.

So today, let this be

Independence Day for the soul.

The day we run—not walk—

To the protection and freedom

Found only in Jesus Christ.

The day we let Him stretch our hearts

Into new wineskins,

And pour His new wine

Into every place that has grown dry.

Prayer

Lord Jesus,

Make us free in You.

Lord Jesus,

Make us new in You.

Lord Jesus,

Make us Yours again today.

Amen

Doubting the Wrong Person

Readings 070326 

Some of you may remember Mr. T—

the gold chains, 

the tough‑guy persona, 

a wrestler,

an actor, "The A-Team"

The "Rocky" movie

and his famous line: “I pity the fool.”

But Mr. T is alo a devout Christian. 

A preacher. 

And he once gave a message on Thomas’ situation

that still makes me stop and think.

He said Thomas didn’t doubt Jesus. 

Thomas doubted the other apostles. 

He doubted their testimony. 

He doubted their excitement. 

He doubted their ability to tell the truth 

about something so unbelievable.

And maybe that’s closer to our hearts 

than we want to admit.

Because sometimes we don’t doubt Christ— 

we doubt His people. 

We doubt the Church. 

We doubt the witness 

standing right in front of us. 

We doubt the ones who say,

 “I have seen the Lord.”

But Jesus doesn’t shame Thomas. 

He meets him. 

He invites him. 

He lets Thomas touch the wounds 

that saved the world.

And then Jesus blesses us— 

those who have not seen, 

yet still believe.

So today, when doubt rises, 

don’t pity the fool. 

Pity the distance. 

And let Christ close it. 

Just like He did for Thomas.

Amen.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, 

Meet me in my doubts 

with Your gentle mercy. 

Let my heart trust Your wounds 

more than my fears. 

Strengthen my faith, 

Draw me close 

when I struggle to believe.

Bless me with the courage 

to reach toward Your truth. 

Keep me steady in your grace. 

Amen

St Thomas, pray for us.