Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for God has visited us and redeemed us.
God has raised up for us
a mighty savior from the family of David.
This is as God promised through the mouth
of the holy prophets from of old,
to save us from every power
that would ruin our lives.
God has shown mercy to our ancestors,
and has remembered the holy covenant,
the oath that God swore
to our ancestors Abraham and Sarah:
to set us free from the power of evil,
free to serve God without fear,
holy and righteous in God’s sight,
all the days of our lives.
— Luke 1. 68-75
This is the plan. It’s God’s will. It’s not just a hope; it’s an accomplished fact. This is a way to see reality. This is the Real World. God saves us from what would destroy us (most of which is within us) and sets us free, puts us in harmony with God, makes us holy. Our lives are all we need. We are free to serve God without fear. Nothing can stop us from loving perfectly.
The world in which you have to earn your keep, please God, justify yourself or prove your worth is an imaginary world. The God who wants to judge you, critique your performance, or demand your improvement is a false God. This is the real God: the one who promises, who comes, who saves, who sets us free, who makes us holy, who gives us love.
It may seem like chaos rules the world, and terror is in charge. But the God of Blessing is actually the absolute Sovereign. Let others live in ignorance and fear. We live in gratitude, hope and compassion. For “the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our God and of God’s Christ, who will reign forever and ever” (Rev. 11.15). Hallelujah.
Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve
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Copyright © Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net