89 results for tag: Letters to My Friends

Pioneers and Illuminators – by Greg Albrecht

Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind... – lyrics from “Windmills of Your Mind,” the theme song from the 1968 movie, “The Thomas Crown Affair.”  In the era when European ships were too slow and too heavy to travel very far, Prince Henry of Portugal started to explore the African coast, a world largely unknown to Europeans at the time. Following his vision of discovering new vistas and opportunities Henry became a pioneer in the construction of the caravel – a new and lighter sailing ship able to travel farther and faster.     Now known as Henry the Navigator, the patron of Portuguese ...

Don’t Underestimate the Peace of God! – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from January 2024 As this New Year of 2024 begins, North America (as well as Europe, the Middle East and Ukraine, not to mention the entire world), is tired and weary of war, conflict, poverty. epidemics, pandemics and crises of one kind or another. It is an understatement on a grand scale to realize this second decade of the 21st century has introduced colossal upheaval in individual lives, mentally and physically. So much that what once seemed settled and secure is and in a state of agitation, stress and even conflict. We are sick and tired of being sick and tired!   Of course, many now realize the ...

The Real Story of Christmas – by Greg Albrecht

Many customs and traditions that surround Christmas are flights of fancy promising unrealistic escape from the here-and-now into a never-Neverland of endless fun, frivolity and feasting.  But the real story of Christmas is far from an idyllic fantasy filled with “stuff and fluff.” The real Christmas story is about the pits, foxholes and dark places of our lives – to which our Savior comes, to be with us and one of us. The real story of Christmas is that Jesus comes to us – he joins us where we are. Jesus does not rapture us away to “somewhere over the rainbow.”  Matthew 2:13-23 tells us the story of a murderous despot ...

The Beginning of the End – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from December 2023: Every year we celebrate Christmas in the last week of the last month of the year.  Is December 25 the end or the beginning? Are we celebrating the end of a passing year or the beginning of a New Year… or are we celebrating the beginning of the end?   For the past three years we have battled deadly foes, unseen like COVID and visible like the tyrannical Putin of Russia and the unspeakable brutality of war, most particularly in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Dare we hope that December 2023 is the end of some really difficult years, and that relative peace and prosperity is on the way for ...

Standing On Others’ Shoulders – by Greg Albrecht

 If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants. – Isaac Newton, 1676 -  Hearing or observing someone giving credit to those who helped him/her in the past (or even the present!) is an incredibly beautiful and gratifying experience.  I am forever thankful for the sacrifices made on my behalf, starting with parents and grandparents, who gave so much. Simply being able to know I stand on the shoulders of many, in so many ways, is one of my enormous blessings for which I give thanks. As Christ-followers, the Cross of Christ represents the ultimate sense in which we stand on anyone’s shoulders. On ...

Thanking God for the Riches of His Grace – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter for November 2023: Teddy, only eight years old, was dying in the hospital of a rare blood disease. He was admitted two weeks before in critical condition, and his health had steadily gone downhill since then. One or both of his parents had been at his bedside for these two weeks, and then yesterday his doctors told them it seemed like Teddy’s condition had stabilized and he might have 4-6 weeks to live.  Teddy’s mother and father felt they could both go home for a day and take care of some pressing matters, and then return the next day. But during the day when his parents were gone, Teddy’s health ...

Wins and Losses Don’t Matter – by Greg Albrecht

Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. – Matthew 10:39 The purpose of a Christ-centered life is not to gratify or satisfy the self, but to lose ourselves in the cause of something bigger and more important. When we lose ourselves in the service of Jesus, we find life – he gives us his life, and he lives his life in us now and forever. The primary purpose of life that motivates Christ-followers is far beyond merely consuming, acquiring and possessing. The purpose of life for those who walk with Jesus is to lose ourselves in the service of those who are hungry, thirsty, strangers, ...

News or Good News? – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from October 2023 “If some great catastrophe is not announced every morning, we feel a certain void. ‘Nothing in the paper today,’ we sigh.”  Paul Valery, French poet, 1871-1945 Long before the advent of cable news, with its 24-hour news cycle – long before our frantic and frenzied culture where “news” is immediately reported (never mind the factual details, because networks and “news” sources want to say “you heard it here first”) Paul Valery commented on the oh-so-human tendency to love hearing and reading the horrifying and the sensational.  “If it bleeds, it leads” was ...

Worries and Fears – by Greg Albrecht

Worry is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained. – Arthur Somers Roche A study conducted about why people worry revealed: 40% of the things people worry about never happen. 30% of the things people worry about already happened.  12% of the things people worry about concern their health. 10% of the topics that people worry about are somewhat trivial. 8% of the worries that people have are legitimate.  One man summed up his philosophy of worry like this: “I only worry about two things. The two worries I have right now are ...

Nothing Happens Until Everything Happens – by Ed Dunn

Friend and Partner Letter from September 2023 “…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6, NIV). To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often – Winston Churchill Does it ever feel to you like life just seems to stay the same, day-after-day, with little-to-no change in the events and circumstances we face? We can tend to settle into the natural rhythms of our daily lives, prayerfully, and live to the best of our ability one day at a time. Often, however, that one day at a time can come and go with such predictable ...

Working Hard to Be In Control – by Greg Albrecht

I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. – Isaiah 46:4 A rich young ruler came to Jesus asking him, “…what good thing MUST I DO TO GET eternal life?” – Matthew 19:16 It’s Christ-less religion in a nutshell: What do I have to do to make God happy so he will give me what I want? This rich young man was used to getting what he wanted. He was used to being a success and making a profit. He was a winner. Author Robert Farrar Capon says the rich young ruler was a successful liver of a lawful life.  The rich young ruler was addicted to his own abilities to control life – he assumed that ...

Forbearing, Bearing and Pouring Oneself Out – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from August 2023 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love (Ephesians 4:2, KJV) Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love (Ephesians 4:2, NIV) … pouring yourselves out for each other in acts of love, alert at noticing difference and quick at mending fences (Ephesians 4:2, The Message, by Eugene Peterson) When we “forbear” or “bear with” or pour ourselves out” for others, among other things it means we do not act or react against someone, or say something negative about them, when we have the right (or think we have the ...

Religious Fanaticism – by Greg Albrecht

  Justine Gubar, a producer at ESPN (the television sports channel), researched and studied the reasons behind violent celebrations and protests by fans whose teams either win or lose a sporting event. While reading a summary of her book “Fanaticus,” I could not help but see the many parallels that exist between the rioting generated by sports fans and the death and mayhem inflicted by fans of religion on those who are on the opposing “team.”       Celebrations of victories and protests of defeats resulting in violence are often instigated by fans whose identity and purpose in life is almost entirely ...

Who We Are in Christ – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from July 2023: In 1921, Albert Einstein presented his unproven Theory of Relativity at the Sorbonne, the prestigious French university in Paris. He said, “If my theory of relativity is proven successful, Germany will claim me as a German and France will declare I am a citizen of the world.  Should my theory prove untrue, France will say I am a German and Germany will declare that I am a Jew.” Who are we?  Do others “claim us” only as and when we are successful? Who and what dictates the essence of who and what we are and how others describe and recognize us? You may have heard the old joke ...

Who Said Grace is Fair? – by Greg Albrecht

The inscription on John Newton’s granite tombstone in the small cemetery of the parish church of St. Peter and St. Paul in the town of Olney (population about 6,500), Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England, reads:  John Newton, clerk [pastor], once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slavers in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ preserved, restored, pardoned and appointed to preach the Faith he had long labored to destroy.  Newton, who wrote the hymn “Amazing Grace,” once shared these thoughts about the wonders of God’s grace: “If I ever reach heaven I expect to find three wonders ...

Realities – Old and New – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from June 2023 Two friends had been drinking at their local bar most of the night, and now they were finishing their evening by watching the 11:00 news. The lead story was about a despondent man standing on the side of a bridge threatening to jump.  As viewers watched footage of the main poised to jump, the newscaster promised to get back to the story after a short commercial break.   Don, thinking that his friend Gary had not seen the 6:00 news which showed footage of the man eventually jumping off the bridge, said to Gary “I’ll bet you $20 that he is going to jump!” Gary enthusiastically replied, ...

Ground Zero of Our Faith – by Greg Albrecht

These first century A.D. Christ-followers lived in a port city, surrounded by promiscuity and permissiveness. They seemed anything but one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28) as they debated and endlessly argued some rather minor, inconsequential issues while losing sight of the BIG PICTURE altogether. Some appeared proud of tolerating incestuous sexual sin within their fellowship.  The Apostle Paul wrote two letters to this “wild bunch” of Christians in Corinth, addressing many specific problems and issues while relentlessly insisting on the BIG PICTURE of the cross of Christ. At the beginning of his first letter to the Corinthians, ...

The Mother Side of God – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from May 2023 We all have an intimate relationship with mothers – we are sons and daughters of mothers and grandchildren of grandmothers. We are husbands whose wives were/are mothers. We are parents of daughters and even granddaughters some of whom are themselves mothers. Breaking news! Remember, you heard it here first!! It’s obvious, I know, but for the record, let’s remember we all had a mother. Some are blessed to still have a living mother… if you do, take advantage of the time you have with her. Many of you are mothers, may you hear and know that you are cherished and loved by your children. Mothers are ...

Worrying, Wondering and Wandering – by Greg Albrecht

Not all those who wander are lost. – J.R.R. Tolkien (of  “Lord of the Rings” fame)  There’s a scene in Stephen Spielberg’s movie Saving Private Ryan that I’ll never forget. During World War 2, a squadron of soldiers was sent to find and “save” Private Ryan. Their efforts were successful, but only at great cost. Some of the soldiers gave their lives to “save” Private Ryan. In fact, the best efforts of the Captain resulted in his fatal wound during a skirmish. As the Captain died in Private Ryan’s arms he whispered in Ryan’s ear, “earn this.”  The end of the movie fast forwards many years beyond ...

It’s Not Over Until It’s Over – by Greg Albrecht

Friend and Partner Letter from April 2023 Christmas, at least in its popular celebrations, centers on the birth of a baby. Who doesn’t love and adore babies? What’s not to like about feasting, music, decorations and presents? But Easter? In large part Easter is celebrated with eggs, chocolates, bunnies, flowers and Easter bonnets because that’s the way the secular world has dolled it up. But by contrast with the warm, fuzzy and heartwarming story of Christmas, the deeper meaning behind Easter involves the haunting specter of a cross, with agonizing suffering, eventually death… and then there’s that dead body in a tomb.  Birth ...