Happy Friday! 

The majority of my day was spent in putting together a paper for Supervised Ministry which addresses the different doctrines of the church and ministry as well as diversity.  I hope to have this completed by the end of this weekend.  I am one of two interns who will be commissioned this Sunday at both services at Rush Creek Christian.

Prayer:  Lord, I love you.   Thank You for loving me. I pray that today my faith would be evident. Help me to be Your hands and feet.   I pray I would be the light of the world, visible for all to see. And I pray that my obedience and loyalty to You would cause others to glorify Your name.  In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

“What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?”

James 2: 14

Has this verse ever bothered you?  I must admit it has always bothered me. Having a strong Lutheran heritage of “we are saved by grace and not our works” usually makes for a great theological discussion.  I am not much into wordy theological discussions. I think that is why I like the book of James.  James is kind of a “where the rubber meets the road” kind of guy and speaks pretty plain - tough sometimes, but plain.  I have come to discover that I am a more practical theologian who greatly desires to take God’s Word and apply it to my everyday life and, if called upon, to help others do the same.

Faith is an invisible part of our lives. It is really hard to describe and sometimes equally hard to defend.  James, the writer of this text, is not making the argument for salvation by works, but makes a case of faith that is visible.  People may not be able to see the essence of our faith, but they can assuredly see the presence of our faith when our faith is real and placed in Jesus.  The invisible faith we carry with us should be visible in our daily life. 

The powerful transformation of new life through the gift of the saving grace of Jesus in each of us is so powerful that new ways of acting, thinking and living should be visible to all we encounter.  We were rescued from the depths of sin, brought to life by the grace of God through Jesus, given salvation and were thereby given a changed life.  The change in each one of us is personal, but not invisible.  So my friends, honor God this day by making your gift of faith visible to those around you in the way you live so that Jesus is glorified and knows how much we love Him.

Take joy in the journey!  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep.  Count your blessings and say your prayers. Love you all, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com     

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am only moved by what I believe and I believe God.