His Sacrifice For You

March 18, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“But he was pierced for our rebellion,
    crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
    He was whipped so we could be healed.
⁶All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
    We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him
    the sins of us all.”

Isaiah 53:5-6 NLT

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 5:8 NIV

He came down from heaven and was born as a baby. He lived and taught…He was beaten, spit on and made to carry the Cross He would die on. He comitted no sin and took the punishment for all of our sins. He suffered, He was crucified, died and was buried and He did it all for you. Then God raised Him from the dead and He is alive! Thanks be to God for the sacrifice Jesus made for you and me so that we can be reconciled to God. Amen.

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“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.“

John 3:16-18 NIV

(This photo was taken in June of 2016 at a lake near Plymouth, Minnesota)

Surrender

March 16, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? ²You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. ³When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”

James 4:1-3 NIV

When we pursue goals to satisfy the self, we will become frustrated and disappointed…wondering why things don’t go our way. We must learn to surrender our desires for what God has planned. He can see everything; we can only see a small part of our lives. This doesn’t mean do nothing…our job is to learn from God’s Word and keep doing good things as best we can with what we have been given. Submit whatever you do to the Lord and you will find peace. Amen.

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“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.”

James 4:7-10 NIV

(This photo was taken in July of 2019 at a lake in northwestern Wisconsin)

Believe

March 14, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Romans 10:9 NIV

Believe. Believe in God and His Son. Believe that Jesus came down from heaven, was crucified, died and was buried…believe that He has risen and that He did it all for you. It will change your life forever. Believe it!

We Believe by Newsboys

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“For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”

Romans 10:10 NIV

(This photo was taken in September of 2022 in Bighorn National Forest in Wyoming)

God’s Word

March 11, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

God’s Word is the source of truth and our guide for living in this world. There are so many ways it will help you and support you and it never changes. People will come and go; people will try to twist it and use it for their benefit…stay close in your relationship with Jesus Christ and He will tell you the truth. Pickup God’s Word every day and you will see the many ways God speaks to us…a few examples from my life below…there are so many more. Pray with God’s Word.

When I am focused on worry and fear…

“The Lord is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?”

Psalm 27:1 NIV

When I have doubt or confusion…

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.”^[a]

Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

When I am led astray by temptations…

“Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
¹¹Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
¹²Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”

Psalm 51:10-12 NIV

If you want to know where is God in all this, open up His Word, seek Him and you will find. Peace be with you.

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“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

John 3:16 NIV

(This photo was taken in April of 2016 at sunrise on a lake in central Minnesota)

Do Your Best, Wherever You Are

March 9, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

Colossians 3:12-14 NIV

Live out your day today…what is the next right thing to do? Live in the present day, right where you are. God is with you there…if we are always looking towards the past or the future or to when this or that happens we may miss what God is presenting to us right in front of us, right now. Do your best for God today, wherever you are.

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“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. ¹⁷And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.“

Colossians 3:15-17 NIV

(This photo was taken in August of 2016 near Glacier National Park in Montana)

The Truth Will Set You Free

March 8, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. ³²Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

John 8:31-32 NIV

Faith in God means believing the truth. The truth that God sent His only Son to save us from our sins. If we allow temptation and sin to rule our lives…it will keep us away from God we will be inviting trouble into everything we do. If we follow the truth and put Jesus in the center of our lives, we will be free from sin.

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“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

John 16:33 NIV

(This photo was taken in July of 2022 at a lake in northwestern Wisconsin)

The Way Of Faith

March 5, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

^{5 “}Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.”^[a]

Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

The Way of faith is found in wisdom from God. A way to live that is found following a narrow path for life. Simple yet not easy. Commit your way to God, trust in Him and you will find the Way of faith. Amen.

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“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. ¹⁴But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Matthew 7:13-14 NIV

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 while traveling in southern Colorado)

Be Transformed

March 3, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. ¹⁷Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:^[a] The old has gone, the new is here!”

2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NIV

Changed…renewed…remade…to make new again. How we live, the decisions we make, our purpose and perspective are continually influenced by our life in this world. If we fail to spend time feeding our minds and spiritual lives with the Word of God and if we don’t spend time in prayer in relationship and communication with God, we will become like the world. Only God can make us new again, with forgiveness, wisdom, courage, knowledge, trust and faith. There are people in the world striving for the Fruits of the Spirit in their life…you may have to look for them with new eyes and a new perspective and those are available to all of us because of Jesus. I pray we feed our faith and strive towards God and His will and away from the sinful nature. 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 NIV

(This photo was taken in October of 2018 at City Park in Winterset, Iowa)

Pray

March 2, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“For this reason I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵from whom every family^[a] in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

Ephesians 3:14-19 NIV

Prayer…it is our way to interact with God. It is how we can build our relationship with Him. Communication is the foundation of any relationship. Anyone can do it…it is not about using the right words or being in a certain position…it is all about speaking sincerely and from the heart. We can pray about everything in our lives and the best part? God is waiting to hear for you…He will listen…He will respond…that doesn’t mean you should expect everything to go the way you desire…that’s not how it works. But God promises no matter what you are going through He will be with you…it is up to you to do your part. God’s peace be with you.

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“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

Philippians 4:6 NIV

(This photo was taken in September of 2016 at a lake in central Minnesota)

Holy Living

March 1, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

Colossians 3:12-14 NIV

Holy living, it is a simple concept yet very different from worldly values. It is about living a balanced life with Christ at the center. It is not about judgement or comparing yourself to others…it is about the Fruits of the Spirit shining through your thoughts, words and actions because in your heart you truly believe. You confess your sins and have an on-going personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is not perfect and we never will be…it means you will still face difficulties and suffering in life but you will be better prepared to go through them with God as your guide. It is the only way to find true peace. Amen.

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