The Pace Of Life

August 28, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

We are made to be able to meet the challenge of stress and tension when it is necessary and then to step away to rest and recovery. The problem is we choose to stay in the stress and tension continuously and leave little time for the rest and recovery. Rest is about more than physical rest, it is about clearing our mind of the clutter, the plans, the worries and the should haves and could haves…focus on the Lord, wait for Him, trust in Him…this will help to put burdens in perspective and give us strength each day. May the peace of the Lord be with you. Amen.

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“This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.”

Isaiah 30:15

(This photo was taken in July of 2018 on the shore of Lake Superior near Ashland, Wisconsin)

Past, Present And Future

August 22, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

The Lord redeems us from our sinful past, He washes away the guilt and the shame and makes us new again…The Lord walks with us in the present, He encourages us to engage in the current moments and experiences, with every interaction and event in life…The Lord will take care of tomorrow. His ways are greater than our ways and His plans are higher than our plans. Trust in the Lord…He forgives us, He is with us and His plans will take care of us in the future. Amen.

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“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

1 Peter 5:7

(This photo was taken in July of 2016 while traveling through North Dakota)

Finding The Way

August 15, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

We have choices…this way or that way…try this and say no thanks to that. We will make mistakes, sometimes we will have the opportunity to go back and do it differently, more often we will need to do our best with where we are and what we have with us. It can be overwhelming and deciding to not chose is also a path that many decide upon. How do we know what is right? How can we find out where we fit in best? Put a relationship with Jesus Christ first in your life, every day. Why? Read Isaiah 55:8-9. God knows best, He has a plan specifically for you and spending time with Him is the best way to learn about Him and His plan for life. May the peace of the Lord be with you. 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. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Matthew 7:13-14

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 near Garden of the Gods Park in southern Colorado)

Attitude

April 24, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

A way of thinking…a point of view…outlook…perspective…belief. How would you define your attitude toward God? What is His role? How much time during a typical week are we thinking about God? The Bible has many of examples of different people and their attitude towards God, it describes their beliefs and actions. There is a lot for us to learn from those people. From Genesis to Revelation, we read about those who put God at the center of their lives and those who did not. The best example of an appropriate attitude towards God is that of Jesus Christ…He took time daily to walk with God and this is what He seeks from us as well. Spend time with Jesus every day and define your attitude towards God. Amen.

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“He has showed you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Micah 6:8

(This photo was taken in July of 2012 on a walk in northwestern Wisconsin)

Wisdom From Above

March 26, 2019 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

What is wisdom? The dictionary definition is…’the quality of having experience, knowledge and good judgement; the quality of being wise.’ So in order to have wisdom we must have time invested in having experiences, time spent learning to get knowledge and have made decisions regarding an area of life in order to grow our experiences and knowledge. Now if we reflect on our own lives and how we spend our time, what are our experiences, where do we get our knowledge from…what things do we make decisions about that help foster our growth? How do our experiences, knowledge and good judgement align with faith and our spiritual life? If we truly want to learn about where God is in our lives and what He is asking us to do…we need to spend more time gaining wisdom about heavenly things and spend less time on earthly wisdom. Amen.

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“But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”

James 3:17

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

Judging Others

November 6, 2018 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

We are all broken…we are all fighting a battle of some kind…we all need the saving grace of Jesus Christ. None of us is in position to be in judgement of another. Jesus spoke very clearly about this in the Gospels. A summary statement would be, you will get whatever you give. How we choose to act is what we will get back from others. I struggle with snap judgments and emotion filled responses at times as much as anyone and I am reminded of humility, goodness and kindness when I spend time reading God’s Word and in prayer. May we continually seek growth in our spiritual life and our relationship with Jesus Christ to guide us to living life with the Fruits of the Spirit. Amen.

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“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”

Luke 6:37

(This photo was taken in July of 2016 at Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota)

Wait For The Lord

September 24, 2018 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

Our lives are usual so busy moving from one thing to the next, that planning and preparing become dominant activities…the thing is if we are always planning and preparing for what’s next when are we living in the present moment? A difficult part of surrender for all of us is not always trying to control what’s next. A life of faith doesn’t mean we always go and do what we want…Jesus said in Luke 9:23 “…If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” We all have a cross to bear in life, it is different for everyone…and bearing a cross is doing what we should be doing, doing what needs to be done. It means being obedient to God and we do these things because of love. Be in prayer and talk with the Lord about what He needs you to do then wait and listen. May you be surrounded by the love of God each day.

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“The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord,”

Lamentations 3:25-26

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 in Badlands National Park in South Dakota)

Wait For The Lord

August 6, 2018 / mcalcagno / Leave a comment

I find sometimes that there are periods of time when God seems distant in my faith journey. A sense that things that were once clear and focused seem less clear and jumbled up. It would be easy to fret and wonder why, what happened, what changed and of course, is it me, did I do something wrong? These are not times to invite worries and anxieties into your life. This is a moment to know and to trust that God is still on the throne in heaven and He will be with you. Think of Job in the bible…he had everything and I mean everything taken from him in life, plus he had these great “friends” telling him he must have done something wrong for all this to happen. Job did not give in and stop believing…he persisted in faith and the Lord restored him. There are and will be times when the Lord seems far off, be patient, stand in faith and wait for Him. May God’s love and comfort be with you.

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“I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”

Psalm 27:13-14

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