God's Will Archives - Tristany Corgan

In Blog, Prosperity Gospel, Theology on

November 28, 2022

If I Name It, Can I Claim It?

A couple of years ago, I was told to watch a certain video at work to see if would make an appropriate workshop for our family support program. The title of the video said it was about forecasting your life with a vision board. At first, I thought that the short workshop would simply be about making and visualizing your goals so that you can achieve them. But as I worked my way through it, I realized that I was greatly mistaken.

Throughout the video, the speaker described her very positive experiences using a vision board. Basically, she would get a corkboard and fill it with dozens of pictures of things that she wanted in her life. Then, she talked about how all of these things happened or fell into her lap without really having to do anything for them. Knowing that I worked with low-income families and that it was highly improbable that they could receive a luxury vehicle or European vacation by pasting a couple pictures on the wall, I swiftly advised my supervisor that we should not utilize the video.

The idea of making a vision board may sound ridiculous. You may wonder how anyone could believe that cutting out a couple pictures of nice things will lead to actually receiving them. But this kind of belief is actually more common than you might think, even in Christian circles. This belief, which has been dubbed “name it and claim it,” is quite popular in many megachurches across the country, and it is an extremely dangerous view of the Christian faith.

Tristany

In Blog, Salvation, Theology on

September 11, 2022

The Transformation of Sanctification

I am a Christian, and I still struggle with sin.

Daily.

Like the Apostle Paul, I do sinful things that I don’t want to do, and I don’t do the things I know I ought to do (Romans 7:18-20). Such is the life of a Christian. Through the work of Christ, we’ve been made righteous in the eyes of the Father and we’ve been filled with the Holy Spirit, who gives us the desire and ability to obey God’s Word and do what is right. But all of us, even the godliest of saints, are still sinners. We still mess up and make mistakes. We hurt and offend people, and we disobey what’s written in the Scriptures. We say and do the wrong things, even if we have the best of intentions.

Thankfully, God doesn’t leave us this way. He doesn’t just save us and say sayonara, leaving us to fend for ourselves and figure out how to behave on our own until Jesus returns. No, God actively works in and through us every single day to make us more and more like Him through a process called sanctification.

Tristany

In Acts, Bible Study, Blog on

August 8, 2022

Full of Faith

Twenty-three years ago, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold entered Columbine High School armed with guns and explosives, killing thirteen people and injuring over twenty others. The Columbine massacre was a tragedy that affected the entire nation, and people today still grieve the lives that were lost that fateful April day. The first victim to be shot and killed was a seventeen-year-old Christian girl named Rachel Joy Scott. A fellow student who survived the attack claimed that Rachel was asked a question moments before her death— “Do you still believe in your God?”

In 2016, I went to the movie theater with some other girls in my youth group and watched I’m Not Ashamed, a movie based on Rachel’s life and death. When the movie ended, I came to the realization that we live in a world where one day someone could put a gun to my head and tell me to deny God or die. I resolved that day that if I ever were threatened harm or death because of my faith, I would never deny my Savior.

It’s hard for us to imagine that this could ever happen to us, but Rachel Joy Scott is neither the first nor the last Christian to die because of her belief in Jesus. As followers of Christ, it should be expected that we face hardship and persecution (John 16:33). The world hates us because it hated Jesus first, but we shouldn’t let that stop us from proclaiming the truth of the gospel (Matthew 10:32-33). There’s no better example of this than Stephen in the book of Acts.

Tristany

In Blog, Prayer, Theology on

April 17, 2022

Prayer Basics

Without communication, a relationship will never survive. I’ve had many friendships fade away because I just lost contact with them. And the same is true with other kinds of relationships, too. Marriages that lack communication often end in divorce. Miscommunication between bosses and employees tend to result in missed deadlines and uncompleted tasks. Parents who never communicate or cultivate relationships with their children are often estranged from them later in life.

Our relationship with God is no different. While a lack of communion with God won’t end in divorce or loss of relationship, forsaking practices like prayer and Bible reading can hinder one’s fellowship with God, making them feel like God is far away from them. Bible reading is a fairly straightforward discipline, and it’s rather easy to recognize how God speaks to us through His Word. But many Christians struggle with prayer. Who do we pray to? When should we pray? What should we pray for? Even people who have been believers for years are asking these questions, and all of them and more will be answered in this Prayer Basics post!

Tristany

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In Attributes of God, Blog, Theology on

October 25, 2021

He is Wise

The philosopher Aristotle once said, “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”^[1] Our self-absorbed, truth-is-relative culture loves sayings like this! We love taking personality type quizzes and learning more about our Enneagram numbers. We think by knowing more about ourselves we’ll be able to better understand ourselves, take care of ourselves, and make better decisions for ourselves. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with personality quizzes, they do have us focusing solely on ourselves to become better people, and the Bible completely disagrees with this-