Pentecost and the New Normal
How does God want us to live our lives under this new normal? Read More …
Author: Emmanuel N. Ilagan
COVID-19 Statistics Are Needed and Useful, But….
14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you Read More …
When Life Is Placed on Hold
When Life Is Placed on Hold 20 And behold, a woman who had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, 21 for she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, Read More …
Blessed Are the Peacemakers
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. (Mt 5:9) How can we have peace, much less be peacemakers when there is so much unpeace in our lives? Each day we face situations that make personal peace so elusive: the stress Read More …
The Beatitudes
– A Devotional From Pastor Ilagan (Matt. 5:1-12; Luke 6:20-23) I have a pastor-friend who tells me that whenever someone greets him with the usual “How are you?” his response is: “I am blessed! Thank you!” The response sounds “too religious” to me. I would not Read More …
For Thine is the Kingdom
“For Thine is the Kingdom, and the power and the glory forever. Amen!” Matthew 6:13 I am often moved by these words of praise that conclude the Lord’s Prayer. This is not to say that the petitions in the Prayer are less moving or less Read More …
And Deliver Us From Evil
AND DELIVER US FROM EVIL (Mt. 6:13b) by Emmanuel N. ILAGAN Another translation of the verse is “Deliver us from the Evil One”, namely the devil. The apostle Peter attests to the reality of the devil as he advises the believers who were exiled in Read More …
And Lead Us Not Into Temptation
Lead Us Not into Temptation (Sixth Petition of the Lord’s Prayer – Matt. 6:13) This familiar wording of the sixth petition can be misleading. It seems to imply that God may actually lead us into temptation and therefore we have to plead that God Read More …
A Second Look at ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’
“Forgive Us Our Trespasses” Matt. 6:12a –A Second Look– “It is easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” I heard this slogan for the first time early in my career from a young office mate who attended an expensive, boys-only Read More …
Forgive Us Our Trespasses
“Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” (Matt. 6:12) “Do I forgive someone who has sinned (trespassed) against me but who has not asked for my forgiveness?” Some of us have probably struggled with this question, especially if Read More …