What’s Different?

January 14, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

How has your faith shown up in your daily life? When you reflect on your attitude, your perspective and your daily living and compare it to a previous point in time, what do you notice has changed? Some of our old ways have faded, some are taking longer to adjust…this is the process of spiritual growth. Not everyone will encounter a burning shrub in the desert like Moses or directly encounter Christ on the road like Saul who became Paul. Our journey will be different, yet our God who is with all of us is the same. Be aware of who you are, the people in your life and what you can offer someone in need right where you are and pray. Pray for wisdom and courage, pay attention to what God is up to in your daily life. That alone will be different than the way we were before. Amen.

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“For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.”

1 Thessalonians 4:7-8

(This photo was taken in July of 2016 along Beartooth Pass in Montana)

Devotion

January 10, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

Loyalty…faithfulness…commitment…dedication. As we learn and grow in our spiritual lives we begin to see more clearly the differences between worldly goals and spiritual goals. Eventually we all get caught in the middle of these differences for different reasons. This is a battle that rages on for everyone. The only answer I have experienced is trust in God. We will not always be able to see the what or the why and that is incredibly frustrating…don’t let that hold you down. Continue in faithfulness and not in worry, do your best in your situation and pray. Talk with the Lord, not in memorized lines from childhood but with sincerity and true feeling because He is with you and He has shown His level of devotion to you by the sacrifice of His Son. Amen.

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“And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”

2 Corinthians 5:15

(This photo was taken in July of 2018 on Lake Superior near the Apostle Islands)

We Are In His Hands

January 8, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

No matter where we are, no matter what our circumstances, we are held in God’s hands. He is our Creator, our Savior and our Guide for this life. Things will go wrong, people will make mistakes and darkness will try to overcome all. What we need to remember is God knows us, God loves us and He is working for the good in our lives today and everyday. He can renew us, restore us and strengthen us…when we invite Jesus into our hearts and minds and trust in Him. Let go of the things that are not for you to control and know God has you in the palm of His hand. Amen.

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“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

Psalm 139:23-24

(This photo was taken in August of 2016 near Dillon, Colorado)

The Gift

January 7, 2019 / mcalcagno / 1 Comment

We have been given the greatest gift ever…the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Nothing compares to it. He sacrificed His life in heaven to come down to earth and to be like one of us, He was beaten, tortured, spit on and crucified…then God did what only God can do…out of the worst of tragedies He brought about the most incredible joy. Jesus Christ is alive and He lives today. Don’t put off your relationship with Jesus, spend time with Him everyday, the Gift of Him is one that keeps on giving to you forever. Amen.

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“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John 1:14

(This photo was taken in May of 2014 at a lake place in central Minnesota)

How We Connect

January 6, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

People and relationships, these are two important elements in seeking and finding peace and joy in life. The world says that money and comfort/convenience is what you need to be happy. Focusing on others feeds our spiritual life and focusing on the self only feeds the self. As with everything in life it is our choice. God is pretty clear about the value of free will. He is not interested in having a people that just do things at His command. We are responsible for our behavior and the way we treat each other. The best place to start is with our relationship with Jesus Christ…begin, continue or renew your relationship with our Lord and Savior and will find peace. Amen.

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“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

Colossians 3:12-13

(This photo was taken in December of 2018 on Paradise Island, Bahamas)

Transformation

January 5, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

What does it look like? How should it feel? What is different? I certainly can’t answer these questions for others as this is a process of spiritual growth and the cornerstone of the spiritual life is our personal relationship with Jesus Christ. For me it is still going on, as I have mentioned in the past, I am a slow learner. This process is about the change of perspective…when the bible talks about the dying of self and the rising of my focus on Christ, it is 100% in contrast with what I see and experience in the world. I have spent a significant amount of time talking about the Fruits of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22 because for me these behaviors are the keys to transforming my life. There are plenty of days and moments when I get derailed and the desires of the self bully there way into life…hey I’m only human…it is not about that we will make mistakes, what is more important is how we respond when the mistakes happen. That is one way things can be different in transformation. Have a talk with Jesus about it for yourself and look and listen for ways to change and to be transformed. Amen.

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“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Romans 12:2

(This photo was taken in September of 2014 in a neighborhood near Plymouth, Minnesota)

His Sacrifice = Grace

January 4, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

We can have a personal relationship with our Creator. We are redeemed. We have been saved from wrath. The punishment we all deserve has been delivered onto Jesus Christ. We are forgiven. All of this has been completed because of the grace of God and His love for us. Jesus gave up everything and suffered the worst things this world can deliver…to save us. Let us give thanks to Jesus for His incredible sacrifice and let us live our lives in pursuit of the Fruits of the Spirit in our thoughts, our words and our actions. Amen.

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“For is is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is a gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”

Ephesians 2:8-9

(This photo was taken in October of 2018 at a lake near Plymouth, Minnesota)

Perseverance

January 3, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

Don’t quit…don’t give up…get up…keep going…keep seeking…keep trying…believe. Here we are back to talking about attitude and perspective. Attitude is formed over a period of time by experience and observation. The things we chose to take in with our senses have significant impact on the formation of our attitudes. Things we chose to read, what we chose to listen to, etc. What is interesting here are the words…we chose, what we decide to spend our time on plays into our attitude. We can develop the courage to persevere in difficulties and tough times or we can be stagnant and let those times defeat us. To be clear none of this occurs in 140 characters or less…it takes time! My personal definition of perseverance is be patient and be persistent and believe good things will come. If you are unsure what to do about this, may I suggest a book? Start with the bible and a sincere prayer to God and as the song says, let Jesus take the wheel. Amen.

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“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.”

James 1:2

(This photo was taken in August of 2016 near Arches National Park in Utah)

Humility

January 2, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

I don’t know how it works…I don’t understand…I don’t have the answers…accepting things even when we don’t fully understand them. This can be a hard thing. Even just reading the first three statements above can feel uncomfortable. To know the basic understanding of something is the first step. C.S. Lewis in his writings has spoken about it in this way…when we are tired and hungry, eating a meal will do you good. This is the basic understanding. Understanding how food nourishes the body using vitamins and proteins within the food is not necessary knowledge to know that when you are hungry a meal will do you good. Similarly, he continues, knowing and accepting what Christ has done to save us is the basic knowledge of faith. Understanding how it fully works is not required to know that Jesus Christ loves you and died to save you. When we can accept that we will not fully understand everything all the time, we can still go and do the right things for the right reasons. I pray we are humble and faithful in our every day lives. Amen.

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“When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”

Proverbs 11:2

(This photo was taken in July of 2016 along Beartooth Pass in Montana)

God’s Time

January 1, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

God is always working for our good. Even when life seems hopeless and we feel the darkness of evil surround us…God is with us. Reach out to Him in prayer…true, honest, sincere prayer that is delivered with belief that He is there listening to you. If your heart doesn’t truly believe in God and that Jesus Christ is the Son of God than your words are just sound. We get frustrated because God does not respond the way we want or the way we think He should…that is not trust in God. God does answer our prayers and He does provide us guidance. The only reason we miss it is because the self is powerful and stubborn and won’t get out of the way. God created you, He knows all about you and what you are going through in this world…He loves you, surrender your situation to Him and listen…He is caring for you in a far better way than you can do yourself. I pray we all do a better job of giving ourselves to God’s time in the New Year. Amen.

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“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

2 Peter 3:9

(This photo was taken in December of 2018 on Paradise Island, Bahamas)