Set An Example

February 28, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. ¹⁸For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. ²⁰But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”

Philippians 3:17-21 NIV

A younger generation watches the older generation…they observe the words, actions and behaviors of those who came before them. Every generation has made a contribution to where the world is today…good, bad and otherwise, no one group deserves only praise or only blame. We are all accountable for how we act and behave. Choose to do good things…seek to do the good things that God asks you to do according to His Word. Amen.

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“Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. ⁷Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, ⁸and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.“

Titus 2:6-8 NIV

(This photo was taken in July of 2016 at a field in North Dakota)

Worry And Anxiety

February 21, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

Through all of our lives Jesus offers to walk with us…if we are willing to believe and trust in Him. It is right there in Scripture…

Regarding our past failures:

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all^[a] sin.”

1 John 1:7 NIV

For our current worries:

“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Deuteronomy 31:8 NIV

For our anxiety about the future:

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

Matthew 6:33-34 NIV

These are just a few of the assurances and promises the Lord has made…the Bible is filled with the very words of Jesus Christ telling us how much He cares for us and how far He is willing to go to show us His love. Trust in the Lord, read God’s Word and pray to our heavenly Father. Amen.

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“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. ⁷Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

1 Peter 5:6-7 NIV

(This photo was taken in July of 2016 in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming)

His Love For You

February 14, 2023February 13, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹²My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

John 15:9-13 NIV

God loves you. No matter where you are, no matter what you have done or left undone…He loves you. There is no love in this world as great as God’s love for you. We don’t earn His love and we don’t deserve it…we can’t get more of it because we are good and He doesn’t withhold it when we sin. He knows everything about you and your life and guess what…He loves you all the same. The proof is found at the Cross. Invite Jesus Christ into your heart and give Him thanks for His love for you.

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“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 5:6-8 NIV

(This photo was taken in March of 2013 at the Botanical Garden in the Bellagio in Las Vegas, Nevada)

To Know Him…

February 12, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— ¹⁵just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.”

John 10:14-16 NIV

From the very beginning God created us out of his love. As we try to find satisfaction and happiness in worldly things we will come to find that only by God’s grace will we find true joy and peace in life. Wisdom is found in spending time with God and reading His Word. There is a big difference between knowing Jesus vs knowing about Him. The more we know Him in a personal relationship rather than just know about Him…the more our eyes are opened and the better we begin to understand that we are broken, sinful people in need of a Savior and Jesus Christ is our good shepherd and our redeemer. Amen.

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“For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, ¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

Colossians 1:13-14 NIV

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

Our Source Of Hope

February 11, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who^[i] have been called according to his purpose.”

Romans 8:28 NIV

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Romans 15:13 NIV

Where does hope come from? It comes from the Creator of everything and everyone…only God who can take on all our sins and overcome this world. Only God can defeat death and evil that is so prevalent in this world. Put your hope in God for He is the only true source of Hope each day.

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“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we^[a] have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ²through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we^[b] boast in the hope of the glory of God. ³Not only so, but we^[c] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

Romans 5:1-5 NIV

(This photo was taken in May of 2020 along the North Shore of Lake Superior)

Worship And Praise

February 9, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord;

let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
²Let us come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and song.

³For the Lord is the great God,
    the great King above all gods.
⁴In his hand are the depths of the earth,
    and the mountain peaks belong to him.
⁵The sea is his, for he made it,
    and his hands formed the dry land.

⁶Come, let us bow down in worship,
    let us kneel before the Lord our Maker;
⁷for he is our God
    and we are the people of his pasture,
    the flock under his care.”

Psalm 95:1-7 NIV

The only thing in all the earth that brings about true unity among all people from all over the world is Jesus Christ…His birth, His life, His death, His resurrection and His never-ending love. May God’s peace be with you. Amen.

Shout To The Lord by Darlene Zschech

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“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth,
    burst into jubilant song with music;
⁵make music to the Lord with the harp,
    with the harp and the sound of singing,
⁶with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn—
    shout for joy before the Lord, the King.“

Psalm 98:4-6 NIV

(This photo was taken in July of 2019 at a lake near Plymouth, Minnesota)

With God…

February 8, 2023 / mcalcagno / 2 Comments

“Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Matthew 19:26 NIV

“Commit to the Lord whatever you do,
and he will establish your plans.”

Proverbs 16:3 NIV

All things are possible with God. There is hope, because of Jesus Christ, so don’t give up. Anything is possible…any change in us, any change in others, any healing of sickness, restoration of a relationship…anything…all things are possible when we put our trust in God. Amen.

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“I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

Philippians 4:13 NIV

(This photo was taken in June of 2020 at a lake in northwestern Wisconsin)

Overcome Trouble And Sorrow

February 6, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“Our days may come to seventy years,
or eighty, if our strength endures;
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.”

Psalm 90:10 NIV

The bible tells us in this life we will have trouble and sorrow…it states very clearly that life is hard. Yet we still have hope and can be encouraged because Jesus Christ came into this world and sacrificed Himself to assure that we can have a relationship with God. Do not be overcome by trouble and sorrow…overcome these things with faith. Amen.

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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 September of 2016 at a lake in central Minnesota)

Believe

February 4, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

Romans 15:13 ESV

We Believe by Newsboys

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“So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Isaiah 41:10 NIV

(This photo was taken in October of 2018 at a park near Winterset, Iowa)

One Hope

January 31, 2023 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. ²Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. ³Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. ⁴There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; ⁵one Lord, one faith, one baptism; ⁶one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”

Ephesians 4:1-6 NIV

Even when you feel surrounded by darkness and evil…we can find hope when we turn towards God and His Son and His Word. We can find hope when we remember that after the brutal and tragic death of Jesus…God raised Him to life. We can have hope because of what God has done and is doing in our lives. It is up to us to seek Him.

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