Part 1 | Part 2 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation…” So how did we become new? Continuing from my last post, I want to explain what it means to be “In-Christed”–which is a biblical idea referring to the fact that we have been engrafted into Christ. Paul said in Romans 11:17-18, “Some ...
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me… I have my own definitions of what a wretch is (how I used to see myself), but the dictionary describes it as a deplorably unfortunate or unhappy person, a person of despicable or base character. We could add the words beggar, bum, lowlife, outcast, scum, worm, and loser ...
I was recently standing in the yard visiting with a good friend after a walk through the neighborhood when my daughter and one of her friends drove up. They joined us and as we laughed and talked about our need to exercise (which my daughter knows is not on my high priority list), and I had a moment of silliness. ...
Have you ever been looking for something diligently, only to discover it was right before your eyes all the time? Maybe it was your car keys, your reading glasses, or your child at the mall. Well, I want you to know your right-standing with God is lot like that… The Bible says, “[God] has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the ...
I enjoy playing games, and I certainly prefer to win over losing, but it’s important in life for us to always see ourselves as winners. The Bible says we have been given every spiritual gift in the heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3). But we didn’t receive this promise because of our good looks… no, we’ve been showered with gifts from heaven because we ...
Perfection. That thing we are all silently striving for. Have you ever thought why? What is it about perfection that drives us as humans? We want to be the perfect parent, perfect spouse, perfect at our craft, with the perfect body, perfect teeth, perfect home, etc, etc, etc. It’s exhausting to think about, yet perfection remains this thing we all ...
When I think back to my teenage years, I cringe a little at how silly my teenage problems felt at the time. I was 16 my sophomore year of high school and hadn’t yet had my first real boyfriend but I had a lot of “guy” friends in my group. And most of my “girl” friends were girlfriends to someone. ...
You’ve got to love the Apostle Paul. He walked in divine humility and confidence–at the same time. In his letter to the Galatians, he opened with this greeting: “Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from their present evil age, according to the ...
Jesus was the ultimate game changer. In His message to the multitude, he repeatedly gave them one train of thought and then countered it with: “But I say to you…” For example, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said of those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ BUT I SAY ...
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 When I look at certain faces in a crowd, I want to ask them, “Who told you you were naked?” This is the same question God asked Adam and Eve when they hid from Him in the garden after committing the first sin (Genesis 3:11). Shame made them withdraw from God–but shame is ...
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 It’s hard to explain to someone that has believed the lie that their sins are too great, or the person who has consistently fallen in and out of natural love, that there is a love FOR THEM that goes beyond anything they’ve ever known. I was the first person. I came from ...
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 I think it’s good to put ourselves in remembrance of why we do what we do. And at the end of the day, I don’t want my reasons to be a paycheck or applause. There has to be a greater cause to our mission that fuels us to keep on keepin’ on (if you know ...