http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Loving-our-enemies&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

Whether we're engaged in commerce or politics or diplomacy or even meaningful debate, it is we---the ambassadors of Christ---who must refuse to be seen as the faces and forces of hate, or to be heard as the voices of anger and envy.

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Still-havent-found-what-youre-looking-for&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

When Bono acknowledged Jesus in the lyrics he wrote for their hit song, he was (perhaps inadvertently) giving voice to a puzzling post-salvation angst that dogs many followers of Jesus. Salvation comes when we know Jesus as Savior, but to find the meaning, fulfillment and contentment our souls long for requires one more step...

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Resisting-Performancebased-Faith&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

"...non-Christians make the same mistake most of us as believers make at some point in our faith journey: We expect Christians to be different than non-Christians."

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Against-the-Wind&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

No one comes away from a meeting with Jesus unchanged...and that's good, because no one comes to God unless they're first changed by Jesus.

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Out-of-Control&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

Our faith isn't measured by the absence of sin or mistakes in our lives; but rather by our desire to get back up, look back to Jesus, and continue the trek in this two-steps forward, one-step back journey to eternity.

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=The-Parable-of-the-Impatient-Traveler&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

Lately, I've found myself more eager to see the Lord return to usher in His Kingdom. The terror and tragedies around us; the suffering of people we know and love; and even the stresses of daily life, all seem bigger than the fixes on the horizon. As the work I do begins to feel like spooning out the ocean, I grow especially impatient with those around me, and even sometimes with God. "What can He be waiting on?" I wonder.

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Christmas-by-the-Mississippi&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

As barges plied the river this December night, blinking their Christmas lights in hopes residents of the retirement home would appreciate the gesture, one man doubted God could love him more than the sum of his sins. I watched in wonder as God's own words accomplished what my words never could...and one more soul found "peace on earth."

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Is-this-the-best-given-youve-never-given&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

It's the Christmas season, just after your child's Christmas pageant, when all you want to do is get home with your family....and then you see this big guy crying in the back of the church. What would you do? Here's what one man did...

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Reviving-Weary-Hearts&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

Hearts are turned, not by the angry voices of the convinced shouting their convictions, but by the surprising sweep of the awe-inspiring, bigger-than-us realization that "Jesus loves me"; and the heartbreakingly simple message He asks us to pass on that.....

http://madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=Useful-Today&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0

What makes our labor holy, what makes it eternal, is not just the work but the state of our hearts while performing that work. When we comprehend that truth, then we realize washing dishes is as significant to the Kingdom as operating on a patient; driving a truck is as eternally triumphant as leading a company. Then, even in the zig-zags of our careers, when life seems more random than ordered, when it feels like we're running in thick mud with heavy boots, we can rest in the knowledge we're serving God as we labor faithfully and diligently.