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Christian Unity

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I’ve been hearing a repeated plea for unity within the Church, and I agree there is a real need for this. But what does that look like? The apostle Paul wrote “There is one Body” ( Ephesians 4:4 ), and in John’s gospel we see how Jesus prayed for Christian Unity, asking that we be one just as He and the Father are one. ( John 17:20-23 ) And even if Scripture didn’t discuss unity we could still embrace the practice. After all, practically speaking, there’s strength in numbers. For example: a healthy herd chases away predators, demonstrating how this plays out in nature. Likewise, we can observe that political parties push their agenda through when all party members vote in unity around an issue. But understand this: Christian Unity is only possible when we are knit together through the Spirit of God. When Jesus said that He and the Father were one or that He abided in the Father, it defined unity as reflecting the likeness of God. When Philip asked Jesus to show him the Father, Jesus ex

People are not Projects

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I would never dispute that Jesus said: “make disciples of all nations: Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Teach them to do everything I have commanded you.” ( Matthew 28:19-20 God’s Word). It’s come to be known as the Great Commission, and its pretty clear what Jesus wants us to do, but what does that look like?  Let me start by saying what it’s not: It’s not to treat people as a means to an end, even if it’s arguably a good end. The philosopher Immanuel Kant described it as this:  Every man is to be respected as an absolute end in himself; and it is a crime against the dignity that belongs to him as a human being, to use him as a mere means for some external purpose. Just going back to the book of Genesis, we see that God created men and women in His image. We are His Image-Bearers, and as such everyone is invaluable. Every person regardless of background or decisions has that in common. We are worthy of love if for no other reason than th

New Years Day 2024

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  "So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away - look, what is new has come!"  2 Corinthians 5:17 Is our Christian walk a single “one and done sinners prayer“, or is it a journey? I believe acknowledging our sinful nature is a part of that journey, and it happens on a daily basis. Sure, we need to accept the free gift of God‘s grace, and there is no salvation that we can work out on our own independent from Him. But it doesn’t end with a single acknowledgment, and we can look at how the original Christians were labeled as the pattern to follow. They were called: “followers of the Way.“ Our life as a new creation begins as we hand the keys of our life over daily to the God of creation. So I have no resolution this year other than this: to hand over my life’s goals to Him daily and trust Him to lead me to green pastures.  With His help, I will follow well and lead others well, using whatever influence I have to represent His Kingdom well.

The Shepherd’s Letter

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Published in paperback on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Shepherds-Letter-Mitchell-Malloy/dp/1973415933/ Copyright © 2007 Mitchell Malloy All rights reserved. ISBN: 9781973415930 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS All our talents come as a gift from above, and all we do is to imitate the Great Giver with gifts of our own. Soli Deo Gloria!

What is Alpha?

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I want to tell you about the Alpha Course.  Around 30 years ago, I had the privilege of attending an Alpha course at Truro Church in Northern Virginia. I was already a believer in Christ, but I've always struggled connecting with others. Some people may be surprised by that fact because I've been blessed with so many wonderful relationships, but the Alpha Course was special in that it opened the door to lifelong, family relationships. The people in our Alpha group kept meeting until we were pulled to different parts of the country. Yet even after that, we've had reunions, attended the weddings of our daughters and even met remotely during the COVID lockdown. I can't say that every Alpha group is as special as ours. The reunions and remote gatherings were in large part due to one lovely lady in particular who has continued to pull us back again and again, and it was my privilege to see her enter into a relationship with Jesus 3 decades ago, a relationship that has poure

The Bible and Pride Month

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Then we will no longer be little children, tossed and carried about by all kinds of teachings that change like the wind. We will no longer be influenced by people who use cunning and clever strategies to lead us astray. Instead, as we lovingly speak the truth, we will grow up completely in our relationship to Christ, who is the head. ~ Ephesians 4:14-15   Speaking the truth in love sounds easy, but in practice it can be really hard. It can be hard to speak truth, fearful of how it will be received, and it can be hard to speak in a loving fashion when the truth can seem so obvious or when it’s being casually disregarded. But God made us to live in truth and love, to speak truth to others with love in our hearts. As I wrote this, I felt concern that my words could hurt people I care about: friends, colleagues and relatives. I don’t want to bludgeon anyone with the truth, but I don’t want to be unclear about the whole truth, explained if you read through to the end . There are many modern

Challenges of a Father

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I haven’t written in a while because I’ve been trying to form my thoughts for a topic that I’ll post later this month, and like our society in general have considered Father’s Day only as an afterthought. Our society celebrates Mothers pretty easily, and that’s a good thing. But it seems harder to celebrate fathers. Why is that? The message at our church today was a really good one but reflecting upon the content I realized that it was mostly describing fatherhood wounds, the impact of a bad father figure and how God brings restoration. So I could choose to write about the qualities of a good father, and that would also be a good thing to share, but instead I thought it might be better to share my challenges as a father. Assuming that others may be challenged in similar ways, maybe someone would benefit from knowing that we’re not alone. As the father of five children, I know I’ve made mistakes and that I’ve also done the right thing. No one is perfect as a parent, and that shouldn’t