I have a desire to be smart, or maybe just to look smart to others. When God sees fit to humble me, I catch a glimpse of true, Gospel-wisdom. It’s in these moments that it ceases to matter how much I know and becomes imperative that I know Jesus. That I understand His love and His grace and His power to make me more like Him.
Category: Spiritual Fitness
Illuminating the Imagination with a Hopeful Inheritance
I often find myself getting caught up in the distractions of this world, forgetting that my treasure is laid up in heaven and His name is Jesus, as well as forgetting that I am His treasure, which He is in the process of preparing, making me holy and glorious for the day I will see His face. Car troubles, gas prices, utility bills, doctor visits, and what to fix for dinner often crowd out any illuminating thoughts of God or the heavenly treasures He has in store for me. It’s no wonder my hope fades as my mind is dulled.
Hope has a Down Payment
When you or a friend received an engagement ring, did your confidence in that relationship increase? Of course it did! You knew the fiancé and fiancée were serious about their commitments—so serious that he put his money where his mouth was and “put a ring on it.”
When Hope Gets Lost
I once read a story about a young woman named Maya from the brothels of India’s Red Light District whose mother had been trafficked since the age of eleven. Maya’s own mother was forced to turn her daughter into the madam also when she came of age, and Maya had been abused and raped as a child in the hostel where her mother sent her to live, thinking it would be safer than the brothel. Maya was trafficked for sex until she could take no more and escaped from her captors and abusers.
That Kingdom-Come Hope
There is no country on earth, not even America, that would constitute as the Kingdom of God. And also, the Kingdom of God has come, according to Jesus in the Gospels. But where is it? Where do we see it among our neighborhoods and communities? Who can give me directions?
How Hope is Born
I live in a beautiful and free country, but I’m a citizen of heaven, and I’d like to start living there as soon as possible. When life gets painful or complicated or difficult, my hope for being with Jesus face to face forever carries me through to an unfathomable peace.
Where is My Hope?
Have you ever felt that way? Like your life was an endless cycle of trying and failing, and like everyone around you was trapped in the same endless cycle too?
Unearthed
He is a gentle gardener, and His loving kindness makes any correction, rebuke, or confrontation like a tender kiss.
Consume God’s Word
Many people find the Bible boring at first. Or occasionally. However, no one I know who has ever really given it a healthy, hearty attempt has ever stayed with that opinion over time.
Things I’m Afraid to Say
I’m scared to say these things for a variety of reasons. Some of them are confessions, and confession is always scary. Some of them are fears of people’s reactions if they knew. And some of them stem from a fear I have to be known.