All people go through life aware that they are not all they could be and should be.
Each of us tries to fix that lack by our own efforts, only to fall short of being what we sense we should be.
That awareness of our shortcomings and our attempts to fix our lives by our own efforts comes from the sin that is part of our nature.
Sin is deeper than an occasional lapse of judgment or loss of self-control.
Sin is an inborn corruption of our nature that leads us to seek our own advantage, our own safety, our own pleasure, without considering or caring how our actions affect others.
Sin is the source of everything that damages our relationships with those around us; it separates us from a holy and righteous God, and nothing we do can fix that.
So God did an amazing thing: rather than discard us, God chose to rescue us.
He did this not because he had to, but because he wanted to.
He did this not to gain anything that he lacked, but because he wanted to give us of everything that he has and is.
He did this not because we deserved his love, but because he has love beyond measure.
And he did so at unimaginable cost to himself.
God the Father sent his only Son, Jesus—true God himself—to become one of us and live the sinless life we had failed to live.
God the Father sent his only Son, Jesus—true God himself—to suffer in our place the full punishment, the full suffering, the full abandonment that our sin had earned us.
God the Father send his only Son, Jesus—true God himself—to triumph over sin and death and then give that victory to us as an unconditional gift.
God did the exact opposite of what we by our sinful nature do: instead of seeking his own safety and advantage, he gave up everything so that we might be saved and enriched.
Jesus, God the Son, freed us from sin's power over us.
Jesus, God the Son, freed us from the fear and neediness that leads us to try to control life on our own terms.
Jesus, God the Son, freed us to become God's dwelling place, no longer alone, but in intimate contact with him.
He empowers us through the Holy Spirit to trust in him.
God the Holy Spirit assures us that God loves and accepts us no matter what our shortcomings may be.
God the Holy Spirit nourishes us through God's Word and Sacraments, enabling us to be united with God and with others in love and trust instead of isolated in fear and uncertainty.
God the Holy Spirit comforts us that whatever difficulties we face in life are merely part of God's loving plan to grow us into all he created us to be.
Even death no longer can harm us, because God stands on the other side of it to welcome us into never-ending closeness with him who gave his all out of love for us.
We invite you to visit us, or contact us by phone or email below to learn more of this amazing God who has given his all for you.
