Tag: salvation

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Leaning Into Hope

Dear sister,

Have you noticed that when we talk about suffering we often talk about when a family member gets cancer, we ourselves get sick, or a loved one passes away? I’m not discounting the pain and struggle that comes in these difficult times but what sticks out to me is that these things are outside of our control.

What about the disappointments and shattered dreams we bring on ourselves? I don’t hear anyone talking about those. When I look at my own life and look at the lives of those around me, I feel alienated and alone. Does it ever seem to you, dear sister, like everyone else has life figured out? Do you ever feel like you’re the only one struggling?

I do. That’s why I want to take a moment to shine a light on our depravity. I want to consider Eve, who was the first person to disobey God; David, who committed adultery with his best friend’s wife and then had him killed in battle to cover it up; and Peter, who willfully denied the Lord Jesus in His hour of greatest need. I want to hear their stories. I want to know that I’m not alone. Don’t you?

Some time ago I was in a relationship with a really great guy. He really liked me and wanted to be with me. I liked him as well but was experiencing some doubt and fear. Long story short, a little bit of doubt and fear turned into a lot of doubt and fear and I ended up going down a destructive path and breaking things off with him.

Months later, it suddenly clicked; our future together was as clear as if it had already happened. Shattered, broken, and empty, I ran to God in my distress, giving him the pieces of my broken heart and there he revealed the sins, idols, and wrong beliefs that had been guiding my decisions for a long time.

I was angry with myself for messing up and angry with God for letting it happen. Yet I heard him calling: “Are you willing to go with me? Come, follow me.” I could see where he was taking me; it was dark, scary, and far away from the things I wanted. I did NOT want to go with Him. But after some kicking and screaming I finally surrendered to the work God was doing in my heart.

Let’s fast forward to where God and I, through counseling, mentorship, reading the Word, and prayer, began to identify my idolatry and my enslavement to the approval of others. Then God the Holy Spirit unraveled the lies that had caused me to break my own heart. He also revealed deep hurts that had never healed, and brought reconciliation to broken relationships. Finally, with this new knowledge of the truth, I was able to discard the lies I had been believing.

Even though I still have moments of regret, I am learning to lean into the hope and healing the Lord has brought about through my brokenness, that God is the Always Good Father and that this hardship was necessary for my own salvation and the situation that ultimately will bring Jesus the greatest glory.

Sis, if you have fallen into a snare, please know that you are not alone. It may look like everyone else has it all together, but they don’t. We are all sinners and we all have struggles. Remember that God holds your life and in Christ there is no condemnation but only forgiveness, mercy and grace. Take courage, dear sister, and be strong in the Lord. Whatever you’ve done, it is not beyond redeeming. Whatever you’ve done, it is not the end. God is an expert in redemption and making old things new. You can trust Him.

Fighting with you,

Kayla

And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground.  These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.

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Not-So-Elusive Joy

Dear Sisters,

Joy, for me, is one of the more elusive passions of life.  I struggled with finding much to write about joy (a good indication I needed to wrestle and write about this).  My favorite place to start is the dictionary.  I love to get to the true root of a word or thought.  One of Webster’s 1828 definitions for joy is;  “n. A glorious and triumphant state–, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross.  Hebrews 12:2″

I often march through the house, grim and determined to get the cleaning finished and kids through their schoolwork.  I will the laundry to be done and dinner to be delicious (that’s after I figure out what it is going to be).  All while giving a passing thought to perhaps not being quite so tight-lipped and quick to order the kids about.  They probably think I hate my job at times, while I most definitely do not.  I have had other careers and I love my stay-at-home, run-my-own-shop job!  I cannot even imagine another job I would rather have.  That being said, I thrive on challenges and perfection.  I will gladly deny myself relaxation and other treats until after all the work is done.  I look askew at my husband when he sits down with a movie and a treat while dishes are piled in the sink.  HOW can he enjoy himself when the dishes need-to-be-done?!

I like the above definition of joy.  Muscles clenched, sweat dripping, suffering, accomplishing much.  Yes!  Digging deeper, ironically, this definition is a noun.  As Christ hung on the cross, he didn’t have this joy; He saw it in the distance and accepted He would endure to receive it.

Another definition: “v. to rejoice; to be glad; to exult –I will joy in the God of my salvation. Habakkuk  3:18 ” A verb this time, an action!!  Getting excited about God and His salvation—I can do that!  Yet, take a look at the tiny book of Habakkuk, this definition’s reference.  The prophet saw destruction and distress coming, famine and want.  This book certainly does not have a party theme to it, yet even in his tears, Habakkuk found himself rejoicing in God’s salvation.  “The Lord God is my strength, and He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, and makes me walk on my high places.”  Hab. 3:19

Perhaps joy is not as elusive as I previously thought.  It is not circumstantial.  It is, however, reliant on our immutable, unchangeable, wholly good God.  How glad I am that He is the root of my joy—my circumstances may change, my life may utterly disintegrate, but He has, is, and always will be the end;  The most perfect, glorious end.  As C.S. Lewis put it at the end of The Last Battle, “And as He [Aslan] spoke He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things that began to happen after those were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them.  And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after.  But for them it was only the beginning of the real story.  All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page:  now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story, which no one on earth has read:  which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.”

Running with You,

Rebecca

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Mercy Received, Mercy Given

 
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”​
​~ 1 Peter 1:3-5
My dear sister,
 
I love this verse because it wonderfully demonstrates the extent of God’s mercy through explaining what He has done for us. However, even though we have this verse I find that I don’t meditate on God’s mercy quite enough. So let’s meditate on it together. Let’s first consider what mercy is. Easton’s Bible Dictionary describes mercy as “compassion for the miserable.” You read correctly. Mercy is having compassion for those who are miserable, or of a pitiable state. This reveals a hard truth about what we are like before salvation and is confirmed everywhere you look in society. It means that without God, without His saving love in our lives, we would be utterly miserable. So God saw us in our miserable and sinful state and though our sin justly deserved death, He made a way for us to have life. God showed us His great mercy by sending His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. And when Christ had accomplished that work God raised Him from the dead, conquering sin and death forever. Those who are in Christ abandon their miserable selves and receive new life in Christ, in whom there is joy that abides forever. And if that wasn’t enough to blow your mind, read the next part of the verse. Not only did God give us life by causing us to be born again but He has also prepared for us “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.” But wait! There’s even more! God, even now, is guarding you “through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” How great is this mercy that God has shown us? He owed us nothing, and we deserved nothing but death and yet He gave us everything!
 
So now that we have received this mercy, how should we respond to it? In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says, “Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy” (Matt. 5:7). In Matthew 9:13 Christ says, “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Because we have received mercy it is now required of us that we practice mercy. This is certainly a hard thing for me. Walking around campus at FSU it is all too easy to judge others based on their wardrobe, hairstyle, or colorful vocabulary. In my anger and offense, I selfishly forget that I’m supposed to show mercy to those who don’t know Christ and are therefore in that miserable state that we talked about earlier. This week I hope to find ways to decrease my judgmental thoughts and replace them with acts of mercy. For it is mercy that triumphs over judgment (Jas. 2:13). I hope you too, dear sister, will find ways to show the same kind of mercy to others that Christ has showed to us.
 
In Christ,
 
Kayla