Chris MacKinnon's Blog, page 7

Learning to See Our Community through Heaven’s Prescription

Today is April 1, and we still have a few feet of snow in our yard. March brought storm after storm, and Spring is late in our part of the world.We might think it’s bad, but our exchange student fromSouth America feels much worse.

He arrived on the 14th, just after one storm and in time for another the following day. We try to convince him this is not normal, and it will all be different, hopefully soon. It’s a challenge trying to describe to him what our communitywill look when all of the sn...

10 Broken Pieces God Used to Make Us Whole Again

Just four months ago, we celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ. Regardless of whether it is the right day of the year or how it is misused, Christmas is a time of celebration and joy.

Good Friday is different. Those who know Easter is coming recognize the darkness of today will turn to eternal light on Sunday. Grief will turn to wonder. Jesus’ victory overshadows Satan’s temporary victory.We tend to treat Good Friday as a hiccup. It appearsand then it’s gone, a blip on the radar.

Maybe it’s be...

Does Repentance Have a Regular Place in Your Prayer Time?

Repentance is a word church folks prefer to avoid. While it’s true we want to be reminded of grace, love, mercy, forgiveness, spiritual cleansing, and wholeness, we tend to rush toward the words that feel good and forget about the difficult, but necessary word which opens the door to the rest.

The act of repentance is most often discussed when we are inviting people to believe in Jesus Christ. He will forgive every fault, wipe away every failure, and wash away the stains of our selfish living...

How to Keep from Burning the Bridges of Reconciliation

Reconciliation is a buzz word in our day. As we reflect on history and the errors of those who came before us, we feel an obligation to build the bridges they burned, whether unintentionally or with violent purpose. The list of injuries is long, and the task is large.

One place reconciliation is strangely missing is the local church. We seem to forget how it is essential to the Gospel’s message. Each one of us is eternally estranged from God because of sin within us. Yet Jesus was born to sac...

Six Tips to Remember Before You Speak the Hard Truth

Life isn’t perfect and rosy. It’d be nice, but it’s alright to be honest. Stuff happens. Sometimes there are a lot of pieces to pick up and put back together, or to scrap in favor of something new.

But fixing troubles isn’t easy, either. It gets worse depending upon the number ofpeople involved in the situation, and how long the trouble has gone on. Eventually someone has to step up and tell the hard truth, to tell it like it is so the group can move on to what is possible.

Enter the leader....

The Guiding Glory (Podcast)

Part 3. On the night of Jesus’ birth, God’s glory didn’t only appear in the stable or on the hillside near Bethlehem. It tore a hole in the fabric of the universe. When it was seen by those who noticed such things, it shook their world and drew them to Someone greater than anyone or anything they had ever known.

Their guide to this glorious King was a shining star. It revealed a uniqueness about this King, and they had to find Him. But when the stopped allowing the glory to lead them, not onl...

What Would You Ask For This Christmas?

My good friend, Kevin Senapatiratne, travels around North America encouraging Christians in prayer through his ministry Christ Connection and books likeEnjoying Prayer and his revised edition of Charles Finney’sLectures on Revival. I shared this guest post on his blogthis week.

Christmas is a season filled with every kind of emotion. It contains some of the greatest highlights of the year, while there are those who find it bothersome, a lot of work, and even discouraging.

Jesus came to s...

Encouragement When God Feels Far Away

Christmas is a special time of year. There are all of the “regular” things we do at Christmas. We bake cookies, decorate trees and homes, visit with family, and have huge dinners. Alongside those are the “churchy” things we use to celebrate the season. We sing Carols, light candles, put on Christmas pageants and plan Christmas Eve services. Chances are there are still more dinners to attend.

We take this season to celebrate, not all of the things, but Jesus. It’s one of two big days every yea...