The Splinter of Sin

I’m always stunned by how much pain is inflicted from something so microscopic. This splinter must have embedded in the arch of my foot days ago, but I only became aware of it yesterday morning when I had unknowingly bumped against it sending a throbbing pain throughout. I got our designated “splinter” tweezers down from the shelf and removed it, knowing from experience that the pain would subside as soon as it was removed. So right there on the floor without a second’s delay, I removed it. And for the rest of the night, the sting of healing from the wound reminded me of the foreign object that once was there.

Isn’t that just like the sin that so easily slides in and embeds in our hearts? We think it’s small enough that no real damage will be done; that it couldn’t possibly cause infection or pain or permanent damage; that there would be no real lasting effects of keeping sin hidden under the layers of skin. (1 Corinthians 10:12, Hebrews 12:1)

But oh, when something rubs against it—exposing the infection that has gone unattended—oh the pain. Sin always destroys, causes pain, and if left untreated, death. And while it’s annoying when something comes along and fans the flame of discomfort by grazing the splinter, the “something” that reveals our sin is truly the grace of God. A person. An embarrassing moment. A verse. A song. A confrontation. A guilty conscience. A child’s rebuke. A caught red handed. A sermon. All of it is God’s grace. All of it. (2 Corinthians 7:20)

And there are lasting scars with sin. I forever wear the scars of some of those bothersome splinters—like the one on my hand I got from a wooden bunk bed at Heather’s 10th birthday party. Oh, I remember the pain, the blood, and now the scar. But though my spiritual splinters won’t now cause me death because Jesus died in my place, the scars of my past decisions are a constant reminder of the propensity and ease with which these sins will try to pierce my flesh again. So while I don’t need to fear walking barefoot—the callouses from walking daily in God’s word provide a source of security—there are areas of my life I must constantly inspect for any splinters, any sin that might have unknowingly lodged in my soul. (Psalm 32:3-5, 1 John 1:9)

Though seemingly tiny, the damage is great. And though exposure is uncomfortable for a moment, the grace of God’s tweezer in Christ Jesus is even greater than what sin left lodged could accomplish. The sting of an ignored splinter brings death, but the pain of removal brings life.  (Romans 5:20, James 4:6, 1 John 3:20, John 3:16).

So if there is a sin you’re ashamed of, a sin that has been exposed, a sin that is growing and the infection is starting to impact other ares of your life—run to Jesus, even if it’s a hobble or a limp. There you will find the balm your soul needs from the Savior who forever bears the scars of your sin on his hands. (John 20:27)

God Delights in Me

I remember where I was when he rebuked me. We remember things like that—the place where you were changed. So I remember when the kind, pastoral rebuke with gentleness and unwavering commitment to God’s word came at me. I was going off (read “the highly unattractive quality of arrogantly complaining no matter how true said topic may be”) on the abundance of weak and fluffy material that is spoon-fed to women and how utterly stupid it was (because I was somehow sooo above it??) that women get high on being told they are the apple of God’s eye and “you are enough” and blah blah blah. That’s a conversation for another day because at that point in time, when I desperately clutched to my hot-headed knowledge, I had not yet experienced the darkened course of paranoia and anxiety—but sure is funny how the Lord humbles the proud isn’t it?

But when the steam subsided from my nostrils and the fire ceased spewing from my mouth, that’s when the arrow pierced this dragon’s scales. After he patiently endured my painful soliloquy and agreed with me far less than I had hoped, he started reciting verses that were engraved on his heart. Verses he has recounted to himself in times of his own deepest need, I’m quite sure of it.

Isaiah 62:4
Proverbs 8:30-31
Zephaniah 3:17

He pushed back hard and said that if anyone is in Christ, God does delight in them, because he delights in Christ (Isaiah 42). “God delights in himself and in all that reflects his character” (Systematic Theology, Grudem, 218).

I felt smaller and smaller the longer he talked. The painful reality of my own blinding ignorance.

So maybe it wasn’t the ‘delight’ in the way so many women’s curriculum denote—where sinfulness can be diminished and personal value apart from Christ tends to reign supreme—but nonetheless there remains the biblical truth I was blatantly ignoring—God does delight in me. Make no mistake believer, God delights in you and rejoices over you not because you are somehow deserving or have anything to offer, but because Christ is worth delighting in. God the Father delights in believers because He delights in His Son. When our faith alone rests in the person and completed work of Jesus, Christ imputes His own righteousness to us and now when God looks at us, He sees the perfect righteousness of His Son. “When we reflect his character, he delights in us and finds us beautiful in his sight,” (Grudem, 220) but God doesn’t just delight in us primarily because we now reflect all things excellent in Christ, but because He sees us as perfectly righteous (2 Cor 5:21, 1 John 3:1). We delight in God for he delights in the Son and we delight in Christ for saving helpless, hell-bent sinners which makes us aware of God’s delight in us as we are in Christ (Romans 5). And the delighting never ends as we behold His glory with unveiled faces (2 Cor 3:18).

It was a moment I will never forget, and I forget most things within a week. It’s where my pride was revealed and a softer heart was produced. I really don’t know a lot; certainly not as much as I thought I did. And I have (had?? by God’s grace) a tendency to “always be up on arms about something” (Mel, Parks and Rec). But this isn’t the way of Christ. This isn’t what the Lord delights in. This is not a reflection of God’s beauty.

And so I can rightly mourn the fluff I see, but more productively, I can spotlight the truth of God’s delight in those he has called and justified, and will one day glorify. I can be a marquee pointing to the gospel to help the hurting, wobbling women off their crutch of the man-centered, sin-minimizing perspective.

So when my sin condemns me (like the nasty sins of complaining, pride, and ungenteel speech I like to conveniently minimize in my own zealous way) I remember: in Christ there is no condemnation (Romans 8:1); I repent for God is rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:8); I am a new creation in Christ(2 Cor 5:17); and “when God rejoices in his creation, or even when he rejoices in us, it is really the reflection of his own excellent qualities in which he is rejoicing” (Grudem, 219) that dead, unholy, unworthy sinners are now completely righteous, pure, and justified in the blood of Christ Jesus our Lord.

There really is no better place to be than in Christ, and oh, how good it is to delight in and be delighted in by the Father (Psalm 84).

Jesus, Our Empathetic High Priest

The other day, I walked into my son’s room to see him holding his bloody hand in his blanket.  I panicked because I had absolutely no idea what had happened.  He plainly told me that he cut his hand on a broken piece of glass, but then (probably because I was freaking) he immediately started crying. But I mean the cut was significant, I thought we might have to go to the ER.  (Anyway, why there was even broken glass is a completely different story)

As I tried to help, Ezra fought me tooth and nail.  He didn’t want me to look at it, or touch it, or help him at all.  He didn’t even want a band-aid.  But I knew that cleaning it, wiping away the blood, applying pressure for a good long while, and putting a band-aid on it would really be the best thing for him, even though initially it would hurt.

He continued to fight me, and eventually I had to use a very stern voice and finagle my way around his squirming body.  Toddlers are strong y'all.  I asked him if he knew that mommy loved him.  I asked him if he trusted mommy.  Finally he relinquished control and let me help him. He looked at me, sighed, and  said “ahh, much better mommy”.

If me and you are Ezra, this is a picture of our relationship with God a lot of times. 

After a few minutes of having a paper towel and 3 bandaids (which were probably wrapped too tight) I asked him if he was okay & he said that he was.  He also said, “I am sorry I got cut.”  It wasn’t his fault that he got cut; it was just an accident.  But I was still there to help him with his cut, his injury, his boo-boo.

About 20 minutes after getting bandaged and back to playing with his trains, he looked at me and said “Jesus got cut too.”  Ezra wasn’t asking a question, it was just a statement that, in fact, Jesus had gotten cut before.  So right there, I thought of how Jesus probably did get cuts, and scraps, and boo-boos as a child, and his mom probably bandaged him a few times (except Jesus was super compliant and perfect and all, but still, in his humanity he felt all the physical pain of a boo-boo).

So I told Ezra that Jesus is our empathetic high priest. I know, I know, he has no idea what the words “empathetic” and “high priest” even mean, but it was a wonderful reminder to me that Jesus understands every thing we go through. From boo-boos to loneliness, and broken relationships and loss, Jesus understands.

Jesus, who was God in the flesh, became a human and lived a perfectly obedient life that we were meant to, but couldn’t because of our sin.  Any hardship or struggle we find ourself in in this broken world, Jesus can empathize because he suffered in the ultimate way—bearing the wrath of God on the cross, on our behalf because of our sin, our disobedience against a holy God.  

Jesus even understands the successes and victories, because he conquered death.  

When I told Ezra that Jesus understands the pain that he feels in his finger, I really meant it, Jesus does understand the pain that Ezra is experiencing right now because what could be more painful than absorbing all the wrath of God for all of mankind from past, to present and future.

So this is good news as we enter into this holiday season, or maybe for you tonight.  Because whatever hardship, frustration, pain you are facing, Jesus understands.  And I totally get that things might be smooth sailing and nothing is wrong, but something might happen soon, and you need to know that even then, Jesus understands.

Hebrews 4:14-16 says: 

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

So Jesus, our high priest who has suffered on our behalf, can understand all our hurts and weaknesses and pains and struggles and temptations.  We can be confident when we call upon our God we will receive exactly what we need in these trying times.  

I don’t know what is going on in your life.  Things might be all around great, but they might not.  Chances are there are things through out the week that just don’t seem to work out the way you thought they would. 

So if you are in the midst of any type of physical pain, Isaiah 53 says that Jesus’s physical body was actually pierced for our transgressions and completely crushed for our iniquities. 

If you’re hurting from the loss of someone your love, remember in John 11 how that Jesus grieved and wept because his friend Lazarus had died.  

In 2 Corinthians 8,  Paul reminds us that though Jesus was rich, he became poor for your sake.  He became poor so you might be rich in him. So this is incredibly good news if you are feeling the weight of finances and struggling to see how ends will meet.

As I go through this list of real life situations, I am sure you can think of times in Jesus’ life that he would have experienced them: loneliness, abandoned by friends, betrayal, humiliation, physically violated, cheated, physical stress, excluded from things.

As Jesus experienced the greatest broken relationship in the world — being separated from the Father on the cross “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me” we can rest in the truth that because Jesus endured the separation and brokenness from the Father, we now can have a restored and whole relationship with God himself.

Jesus understands.  

Jesus is our great, empathetic high priest.  

Whatever strain in your life there may be—even a little boo-boo like Ezra—Jesus calls us to draw near to his throne, cast our cares on him because he cares for us, and he will give us his real grace in our time of need.  That is demonstrated by the cross.  Thank you for the cross.

I Sacrificed Myself So Now I Sacrifice My Phone: May Link-Up

When I think of the word "SACRIFICE" I think of letting go, surrendering, a payment, giving up so others benefit.  If you thought on the word, you likely would come up with the same set of words, or similar.

We all sacrifice a lot to accomplish the things which we care most deeply. However, sacrifices are not always positive, easy, and/or beautiful thing. 

I want to talk to you about something that has been near and dear to my heart lately, and that is the iPhone.  Me writing about this may be somewhat comical, for if you are like 90% of people you are probably reading this on some sort of mobile device; and the remaining 10% of you dinosaurs may read this on a computer.  Sure, tons of blogs have been written about the iPhone, numerous books depict the challenges of using advanced technology, and everyone has their own opinion, but after reading Tony Reinke's new book "12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You," I am even more aware of the control I allow my iPhone to play in my every day life. This awareness, and attempt to reign in my usage, has been going on for nearly two years now.  I think I am aware because I am annoyed with other peoples' iPhone habits.  Isn't it true we always notice what we hate in ourselves in others first?

The phone, and more specifically the iPhone, is an essential part of our every day.  Instant updates and news at our finger tips, and yes, this is beneficial to some degree.  However, in regards to sacrifice, we willingly lay on the iPhone altar every single day, spilling our most prized and glamorous details of the day.  We allow social media outlets to control us.  We allow the iPhone, or the things that are accessed on it, to dictate our attitudes and feelings.  We allow it to tell us how we should think.  We allow it to tell us where to go.  We allow it to control us.

Now don't get me wrong, I am appreciative of technology as much as the next person.  I have depended on technology and all its advances to improve my quality of life and my day to day activities.  I want you, reader, to know that I am writing this post because I am primarily writing TO and FOR myself.  I need this reminder, because I know it's true; and I know I need to change.  Technology like the iPhone is wonderful; however, there has to be a line when using it.  There just has to.

SACRIFICE.

We sacrifice gazing into a newborns eyes while nursing because we are scrolling through feeds of other moms' babies.

We sacrifice experiencing the moment at a concert because we are too busy snapping and sharing a song, nearly watching the entire concert through our own mobile device.

We sacrifice intimacy with our spouse because we troll the "perfect, beautiful, never-fight" couples online.

We sacrifice our safety, our kids' safety, and the safety of the drivers sharing the road because we text and drive as if we are in complete control.

We sacrifice quality time with friends and family because we can FaceTime much easier and faster, allowing ourself a quick hang-up if something "more important" comes up.

We sacrifice the ability to seek information on our own because we ask Siri the answers, get frustrated because we all know she's useless, and then spend more screen-time because we forgot what we were "looking up" in the first place.

We sacrifice reading deeply because we skim articles and stories quickly (probably this one included).

We sacrifice genuine friendships because we reduce them to likes and shares on social media.

We sacrifice the "here and now" at an event because we are concerned so much about other peoples' "there and then."

We sacrifice our family time as we all sit on the couch in the same room, doing nothing other than scrolling social media.

We sacrifice nurturing our athletic talents because we are holed up comparing our body to a paid social media star's body.

The list is endless.  But if anything is important. If anything is worth highlighting in this small part of the internet. It's this:

We sacrifice a personal relationship with Christ because we would rather be on our iPhones.

Now, I know this is where some of you stop reading because apparently I am full of garbage because your relationship with Christ is awesome.  Good for you, but you're really missing the point. Your iPhone has a battery, and the battery keeps track of what apps you spend the most time on.  Look at yours.   Our batteries have convicted us and rendered us all guilty.   If your prayer life, your bible, your face-to-face fellowship groups had a battery tracker, would it be more than these apps?

Mine neither.

SACRIFCE.

If none of the scenarios caused you to nod your head, look around, you'll notice how much others are missing out on because their eyes are buried in their phones.  When you notice it of others, you'll notice it about yourself.  It's scary, but don't be too hard on people, because we are all one click from being what you see, we could all become (or we are already are) these pictures. Tony Reinke reminds us that no demographic is immune from this addiction.  

But what should concern us the most is the eternal.  Jesus.  Our relationship with the Almighty One.  What could our life look like if we spent more time with the Lord?  What could other peoples' lives look like as we seriously invested in them?  How could our homes and workplace and neighborhoods and churches and cities because eternally changed because we decided to invest as much effort in our relationship with Christ as we do making the perfect Instagram photo, catching up on a day's worth of Facebook material, or refreshing our Twitter to see if we finally got a RT?  What if we really got serious about things that mattered eternally, and not waste so much time on the temporal?

(Remember, I am writing this for me even more so than I am you.)

So what can we do?

SACRFICE.

We can sacrifice our iPhones on the altar of Jesus Christ.  A "giving up so others benefit" kind of thing.  Everyone, including the iPhone owner, benefits when we deny ourselves the excessive pleasure of social media.

We sacrifice the iPhone so we can gaze into a newborns baby blue eyes.

We sacrifice the iPhone so we can experience the smells and sounds and people at the concert.

We sacrifice the iPhone to reignite intimacy with our spouse.

We sacrifice the iPhone because our safety is more important.

We sacrifice the iPhone to make memories with friends and family because time is fleeting.

We sacrifice the iPhone to spend time seeking valid information on our own.

We sacrifice the iPhone to read deeply with passion and grow in solid knowledge.

We sacrifice the iPhone to form genuine, lasting, meaningful friendships.

We sacrifice the iPhone so we can make the most of the "here and now."

We sacrifice the iPhone so we grow closer as a family unit.

We sacrifice the iPhone so we can nurture our athletic talents.

And ultimately, if for no other reason than this, we sacrifice the iPhone so we can have a richer, deeper, closer, more passionate, eternal personal relationship with Christ.

Can our phones be used for good?  Absolutely.
Can our phones be used for the eternal? Again, yes.

But in my life and I am guessing yours, we are a slave to refreshes and retweets, likes and shares, snaps and snap streaks.  We aren't using it for eternal impact for the Kingdom of Heaven.  We are using it to glorify our own personal kingdom on earth, and that is vanity and a sin against our Holy God.(Ecclesiastes 1)

We need to ask ourselves this, are we more willing to sacrifice our phone habits now or are we more comfortable with sacrificing our limited time, precious relationships, and our only Savior and Risen King Jesus Christ?

Jesus didn't sacrifice himself so that we could walk around to be mindless, self-absorbed, phone addicts.  Remember his sacrifice for you, and the phone is rendered ridiculous.

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Photos above are taken by Eric Pinkersgill and are a part of his series "Removed." For more of his work, click HERE.

I am currently on chapter 11 in Reinke's book, but hope to finish before publishing this post.

Click HERE to purchase Tony Reinke's "12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You" (This is not an affiliate link.  I just genuinely want you to buy the book because it provides SO much more insight, encouragement, and detail of how our phones are changing us.  It's a must read for all.)

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An InLinkz Link-up

What I Mean When I Say I am "Pro-Life"

When I say I am "pro-life," I literally mean I value life, ALL life, made in the image of God.  A life He fashioned for a purpose.  He desires ALL persons to turn to him. All, not just the persons that look similar to your reflection.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
- 1 Peter 3:9

And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
- Acts 4:12

I am pro-human; pro-unborn; pro-unsure pregnant mom; pro-poor; pro-wealthy; pro-refugee; pro-woman; pro-man; pro-LGBT; pro-enemy; pro-leaders; pro-police; pro-black; pro-white; pro-muslim; pro-christian. pro-LIFE. I am pro-PERSON.  I am "pro-life" because life is valuable in the eyes of our Maker.  We have value because of who created us.  Just like Starry Night is valuable because van Gogh painted it.  We are valuable because of who made us; and who made us is the great I AM.  From before the foundation of the world, he knew us and had us in mind.  As Jesus died on the cross, he had us in mind.  We are valuable because God says we are.  So from conception to resurrection, we are valuable and valued, all of us.  He created us in His likeness with dignity and purpose.

But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.
- Isaiah 64:8

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained; What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him? Yet You have made him a little lower than God, And You crown him with glory and majesty!
- Psalm 8:3-8

Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness...God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
- Genesis 1:26-27

Whether we agree with decisions made by such persons or even support the lifestyles choices of those persons is contrary to whether or not we re able to extend love in a Christ-like way.  Others' sins are not to hinder our ability to demonstrate Christ's love; for if this was the case, we would still be separated from the great love of Christ.  He sought us in our sin, loved us, pulled us out of that sin, and walks with us in the path of righteousness.   Agreeing or disagreeing with someone's life choices is separate from our ability to care and value their lives.  It is unrelated to our responsibility and ability to share the redeeming love and salvation message of Christ.  Disagreeing with someone's choices should not cause us to see them as less than human or unworthy of Christ's love.  Whether they run this country, are growing inside the womb, have broken relationships, are fleeing from an oppressive government, or practice a different religion; if we shut out those who differ from us, how can we possibly demonstrate biblical Love to our neighbors.

my friend Sepideh and her parents: all are Iranian refugees

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.
- Mark 12:30-31

'For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me. “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.
- Matthew 25:35-46

But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.  So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.  But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion.  He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.  And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’  Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.
- Luke 10:29-37 

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
- Philippians 4:19

So when I say I am "pro-life," that is what I mean.





(updated from my original Facebook post)

We are not Self-Sufficient

Why do we treat dependence as such a negative thing, and celebrate every aspect of independence?  I am reading the book "None Like Him" by Jen Wilkin, and she talks about the unique self-sufficiency of God among other unparalleled attributes of our God.

When I think of self-sufficiency in my own life, I automatically think of that as a good thing, a celebrated thing by society, and something on which I can instantly pride myself.  However, God is truly the only self-sufficient One.  We are finite, created beings, and severely limited by our needs.  Our needs drive us to action, sometimes that's a good thing and many times that can be a bad thing.

For me, I get a kick on being able to do it all.  I selfishly love that people might think, "Wow, she's got it going on."  But the truth is, I don't; and I'm not sure I have really ever fooled anyone except myself.  Certainly I have never fooled God.  I often times pride myself on being able to do most things without asking for help, but it leaves me drained and overwhelmed.  That festers into an unpleasant demeanor and a bitter spirit.  I definitely do not have it going on.

"God created us needy, that in our need we might turn to the Source of all that is needful, acknowledge our need, and worship." #NoneLikeHim

— Renee Young (@noodlenay42) January 18, 2017

I simply can't do everything by myself, and neither were you.  We weren't created to be.

"We are not needy because of sin, we are needy by divine design."
None Like Him, page 63

And finally, I am okay with that reality.  Are you?

We were created to be dependent on the One who created us and on other believers.  Only God, the uncreated One; the One who has always been, is incapable of being dependent on anything he creates.

It would be like me saying because I painted a picture, I need it to complete me or help me survive in some fashion.  It would be like me saying that the picture is free to do what it pleases: it can hang itself on the wall, it can choose the frame it wants to be put in to, it can copy itself, it can choose its own value.  That's insane, or is it?  Of course that picture would need me to do those things for it.

Same is true for God. We need Him, but he certainly needs us not.  He created us for his good pleasure, but not to sustain him or fill some need.  He is already self-sustaining, self-sufficient.  It is who he has always been, and will always be.

God created us.  We are God's picture.

Maybe a hard and challenging pill to swallow for a finite, created being like us to try and understand the creation of the infinite, uncreated Father.  But let that cause you to fall into a deeper worship of God, the one who created you for his pleasure, who delights in you.

"The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him.
Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for 'In him we live and move and have our being;' as even some of your own poets have said,  'For we are indeed his offspring'."
Acts 17:24-28

we humans must confess "i am because he is." only God can say "i am who I AM." @jenniferwilkin #nonelikehim

— Renee Young (@noodlenay42) January 17, 2017

Jen provides a self-evaluation if you think you may be attempting a self-sufficient life without dependence on Christ or fellow believers:

• Prayerlessness
• Forgetfulness
• Anger in trial
• Lack of conviction of personal sin
• Avoidance of Christian community
• Concealment
• Lack of accountability
• Lack of humility
• Exhaustion

So basically if I check myself with this list, I've been living in self-sufficient sin.  Time to repent and seek the Lord.  This is causing me to worship my self-sufficient, self-sustaining, all-knowing Creator even more.

To combat some of these areas, I have created a 28-day prayer guide that I will be walking through in February.  If you are interested in downloading it, you will be able to do that on Saturday right here on the blog.

Where are you at in the battle of self-sufficiency?

pic.twitter.com/sm9zWDDxJ8

— Jen Wilkin (@jenniferwilkin) May 11, 2016

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Day 6 Serve + Day 7 Prayer and Journaling

Serving is the definition of humility; however, if we are not careful we can get in the habit of serving for the wrong reasons or to solely make ourselves feel better.  Christ, God in flesh and eternal king, came to serve others.  This is completely opposite of what you would expect of a king (and what we see in culture).  He is a holy God, if anything we should be the ones serving him; yet, he came not to be serve, but to humble himself and serve others.  As Christ-followers, we are called to reflect his glory.  One surefire way of doing this is to serve others with a heart made righteous by Christ.

Humbling ourselves doesn't come naturally, or even comfortably.  Maybe it does to you, but having teeth pulled feels easier some days.

Today's passages:

Philippians 2:1-11
Ephesians 5:15-21
Galatians 5:16-26
Romans 12:9-21
Matthew 20:26-28

If I am honest with myself and honest before the King of kings, I would have to say my lifestyle tend to disagree more than agree with the following:

• I go out of my way to serve others
• I want to know Jesus more
• I submit to authority/others easily
• I believe others are worth my time
• I have the mind of Jesus
• Spiritually, I use my time wisely
• I demonstrate great self-control

And my heart tends more to agree with the following:

• I have a prideful spirit
• I get jealous easily

Now I don't know what number you gave yourself in the self-evaluation, but humbling ourselves starts with a right picture of who were without Christ and who we have been made to be in Christ.

Ephesians 2 tells us that without Christ we were dead and considered children of Wrath.  To quote Landon Dowden from a BSU sermon at Mississippi State, "When you're dead, you can't get deader than dead. "  Without Christ, we are dead.  A dead person can't do anything, but be dead.  There is no life within.  We were children of wrath, completely isolated from the great redeeming love of Christ.  As children, our father was not Christ, it was Satan.

But because of God's great mercy and incredible love, he rescued us out of darkness and became our Father.  We are now children of the Light.  If you are in Christ, you have no reason to boast because there is absolutely nothing that you did to deserve Christ's love.  You didn't jump high enough or have a good enough voice. You didn't give enough money or say enough kind words.  You didn't serve enough or make good enough grade on every test.  You can't do anything enough.  If you have submitted to the Lordship of Christ, it is because Christ so graciously opened your eyes to his majesty.  You did nothing to win his grace.  He bestowed that grace on you freely.  And because of his great redeeming work in your life, we are to demonstrate Christ's love to others by serving them.

I don't want to disagree with the points above.  I don't want to agree with the points above.  I have done an awful job at serving others and reflecting the salvation that Christ provides.

Tomorrow is Day 7 of the New Bloom devotional.  It is designed for you to have a quality prayer and journaling time.  If any specific thing resonanted with you and the season you may be in right now, I encourage you to go back to that scripture and write it down.  Commit it to memory. Mediate on it. Use it as a guide to pray.  Whatever you use Day 7 to do, the Lord is patiently waiting for you to call on him.  He has so much to say to you.


Love,

Will you join me in committing to serving others with a right heart?

How did you evaluate yourself?

How did these scriptures challenge you today?


Here is Sovereign Grace's "Behold Our God."  Find more great songs on your suggested song list in the New Bloom devotional.



For a recap of New Bloom week 1:

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5

Day 4 The Word

Today's passages are:

Psalm 139:23-24
Psalm 119

There are only two passages to read today; however, Psalm 119 is the longest book in the entire bible.  It is longer than some books in the bible.  Take time to really read through all 176 verses in Psalm 119 and let it transform your thinking today.

Psalm 119 "reflects the view that the Lord, who abounds in steadfast love and faithfulness and who therefore freely and fully forgives his people when they confess their sins, loves his people without limits, and therefore also guides the faithful in the way of life that is genuinely good and beautiful." 
(from ESV study bible notes)

Psalm 119 illustrates that if you meditate and walk steadfastly in obedience to the Lord's commandments, you will not easily forget them or go astray.


Did you know that you can listen to the bible being read out loud?  I encourage you to listen to Psalm 119 as someone else reads it and you follow along.  It's incredibly powerful to just listen to scripture.

Take a minute to listen to Bethel's "I Will Exalt."  You can find more encouraging songs at the end of the New Bloom devotional in the suggested song list.



What is the one word or phrase you are taking from Psalm 119 and meditating on today?

For me, it is "steady my steps" in verse 133.  I pray that as I meditate on the Lord steadying my steps, that I would be able to resist temptations and sin that it would have no dominion over me as I walk in the statues of the Lord.


Love,

If you have not had the chance to download the New Bloom devotional, you can download it by clicking on the logo.

Day 3 Freedom + Video Introduction

Romans is my favorite chapter in the entire bible.  Reading it through this time, I found so many more things that spoke to me at this season in my life.  That is what I love about God's word: it is active and living and able to speak to you wherever you might be.  I hope as you complete Day 3 that you are able to hear from the Lord and apply his Word to your life.  

Take a minute to watch the short video below for additional scripture and a defining question to think about while you meditate on Christ's Word.



Romans 6
Matthew 6:24
John 8:31-38 

Additional verses:

2 Corinthians 5:17
Ephesians 4:1
Ephesians 2:1-5
Ephesians 4:22-24
Colossians 2:6-7
Colossians 3:12-13


Take a minute to listen to "No Longer Slaves" by I Am They from the suggested song list from the back of your New Bloom devotional. 




Don't forget to ask the Lord to reveal any sin in your life that might be hindering your relationship with him.  He knows we will struggle with sin for as long as we are on this earth, and Jesus still willingly laid down his life for you so that you would walk in the newness of life, forgetting the old.  Thanks be to God that he gave us a way to be forgiven and free from our sin through a relationship with Jesus.


Love,

Day 2 High Priestly Prayer

If you have not downloaded your FREE copy of New Bloom, I encourage you to do that by clicking the New Bloom logo on the sidebar.

This is supplement to DAY 2: THE HIGH PRIESTLY PRAYER.  I have walked through the questions relating to the passage John 17.

Take a moment to listen to Phil Wickham's version of the "Doxology."  You can find more great songs from the suggested song list at the back of your New Bloom devotional.

John 17 is known as the high priestly prayer.  These verses make it clear that the only way to know God is to to know Jesus.  Jesus prays for himself, his followers, and also those who will believe in him in the future (us).

After reading John 17, I went back and looked for everywhere the words "give" or "given" where written.

God has given Jesus:

• authority on earth. (verse 2)
• the power to give eternal life 
• the people who will believe in him (verse 2)
• Everything is given to Jesus (verse 7)
• the name of God because he is God himself (verse 11)
• the glory of God (verse 24)

Jesus gives us:

• eternal life (verse 2) 
• the words from the Lord (verse 8, 14)
• the glory of God when we surrender our lives to him (verse 22)
• himself in the name of God (verse 26)  

"I am praying for them.  I am not praying for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.  All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them." John 17:9-10

Jesus is praying for those that already trust him with their life.  He isn't praying for the world, those that won't repent and follow him.  While Jesus desires that everyone would follow him, he knows that there will be some people who still refuse to bow their knees to him on this earth.  If you are a Christ-follower, Jesus is praying for you!  You are Jesus's and therefore you are God's.  The end of verse 10 makes me think, "Does my life glorify the Lord?  Does what I say, how I act, the way I treat others, and the way I repent of sin glorify Jesus?"

I am glad that Jesus is praying for us, he intercedes on our behalf.  

Intercede means to intervene on another's behalf.  It means to act or interpose in behalf of someone in difficulty or trouble.  It means to plead or petition.  It means to act as a mediator.  It means to reconcile differences.  It means to interpose a veto.

That means that Jesus is going before the God of the universe on our behalf!  Jesus is praying-to God-for us.  He is making our prayers eloquent, what they should be in the first place.  He reconciles us with God.  He is praying that his will, whatever is best, be done in our lives.  He vetoes our request and does his will as he sees fit.

While hard to swallow at times, how incredibility comforting it is to know that Jesus, the one who loved us so much he died in our place, is going before the Great I AM on our behalf!  If that doesn't blow you away, are you even breathing?

Jesus asks the Father to:

• keep believers, to preserve them in their salvation until Christ's return (verse 11)
• specifically protect from the enemy (verse 15)
• sanctify Christ-followers in truth (verse 17), this means that Jesus is praying that our walk with him would grow closer to him each day, and that we would walk and live in his Word daily
• unite believers so that other people would surrender their lives to Christ (verse 21), we are to be one just as Jesus and the Father are united

If I am honest, verse 14-16 stirs a variety of emotions.  It really makes me anxious because it is not fun to be hated by other people, but it is comforting because if Jesus was hated for standing on God's Word and biblical principles and abhorring sin, then I am in good company.  I am not of this world and that makes me happy because all I see in this world is division and corruption and hatred.  It is so good to know that my home is not this earth.

As a Christ-follower, I am sent into the world.  Meaning I am to go and share the incredible, most wonderful news of Christ to those around me.  What am I doing about that?  Most days.....I am not.  There are two people in my life that God has specifically shown me to with whom I must share the gospel, and each chance I get in person, I do commit to that.  I can't say that it is easy, or comfortable, or even fun.  But every time I walk away with an invigorating sense of awe and wonder at the Lord.  My faith is grown out of my obedience. And it allows me to marvel at the Lord even more.

I am so glad we have a mighty Savior who is constantly intervening on our behalf.

How did today's High Priestly Prayer devotion go for you? Let me know in the comments below.  I can't wait to grow more with you over these next 2-weeks.


Love,

Day 1 Tough Times

Habakkuk 3:17-19
Psalm 9
Luke 1:46-55
Psalm 35

As you might know, I am a mom of a one-year old son and will be welcoming a daughter into our family sometime in January.  There is so much chaos that just happens once you become a mom, that I never before understood, respected, or appreciated.  Moms have a tough job.  My difficult time right now is that I don't know how to be a mom and a wife and a friend and do it all well. I am consumed by my selfishness and ever so aware of my lack of sleep.  It sounds incredibly horrific to type this out, but I need to, for accountability.  I hit a wall.  A mental break down.  I was "done" mom-ing. I feel like a failure.  A lot of the times nothing I try to fix a situation helps, and if it does help, well I go about it in the wrong way with the wrong attitude.  I am really bitter about "losing" my old life in Starkville, or not getting to "do" the things I wanted to do before having kids.  Of course I know I have a wonderful life here in Virginia and my son is one of the most special gifts I could ever have; but, I lost it.  I worked myself into a mental break down.  That is my tough time. And I'm not handling it in a very Christ-centered way.

After reading these verses of people going through difficult times (exile, oppression, slander, unknown future, people hating you), it is clear that I am not responding to this situation how I should.  Mary rejoices and gives thanks. The psalmist rejoices in the God of his salvation and continues to seek the Lord.  Habakkuk trusts that God will make him surefooted even though circumstances are crumbling around him.

They aren't like me.  Whiney, bitter, faithless me.  Scripture is a good mirror, but sometimes your reflection isn't beautiful.

I really like Psalm 9:10.  It says,

"And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you."  

Seeking the Lord allows us to rejoice in our trials.  Even though I struggle to find the silver lining at a 2AM baby scream-fest, I can know that through it Christ is shaping me to be more like him.  And like Habakkuk, I can rest in knowing that the Lord is my strength, he is my salvation, and my worth or goodness or ability to be a mom or any other thing is not rooted in my circumstances.

God is the provider of salvation. The rescuer of those who trust in him. He is strength. He is the deliverer.  He is great. He is righteous.  He acts in his own timing.  He is a listener.  He sees us.  He is holy. He is merciful to those who fear him.  He is mighty. He is the exalter of the humble.  He is the preserver of life.

The way I am choosing to handle my current situation (albeit might seem small in comparison to others' struggles), doesn't reflect I trust Christ.  I am not giving God the glory through my trial, though he doesn't need me to give it to be glorified.  He is glory.  I am not relying on Christ to be my strength, plain and simple.

There are plenty of examples in my life where a situation or circumstance has resulted in God's glory and it was definitely for my good (even if it was painful or not initially satisfying).

• Breaking up with a boyfriend
• Being injured in college athletics six times
• Following my parents advice
• Removing myself from a friend group

All of them, though uncomfortable or heart-breaking, resulted in God drawing me closer to himself.  It just took lots of hoops, bells, and whistles to get me there.  For that, I wouldn't change any of those circumstances, because nothing is more important than being drawn closer to the feet of Jesus.  So likewise, in the mess of my current circumstances, I need to stop and thank the Lord, because however exhausting and draining and frustrating and seemingly impossible it is, I know Jesus is desiring to draw me to him and teach me to be more like him.

Take a minute to listen to the song from Shane and Shane "Though You Slay Me" and marvel at the sovereignty of our Lord through tough times.  You can find more great songs from the suggested song list in the back of your New Bloom devotional.

How did these verses speak to you today?

Follow along with the New Bloom 2-week devotional by clicking the logo on the sidebar or the one to your left and get access to your FREE copy today!