Forgiveness

It’s LOVE Day!

Christian lifestyle

“for God so LOVED the world, that He gave His one and only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16

It’s Valentines Day! This day, I feel, has a mixed response from many. Some are over joyed to spend the day with their significant other. Some simply go about the day just as any other. Some celebrate with their family or friends. And some grieve as they remember their lost loved ones.

I realize the sensitivity of this day is the same as many other holidays dedicated to celebrating certain people. But as I contemplated the way in which one could be happy on this day regardless of their circumstance, I had a thought.

What if we disciplined ourselves to express TRUE love to absolutely everyone we encounter this day?

The kind of love that is patient, forgiving, selfless, encouraging, comforting, etc. What kind of transformation would the lives of those around you have if you showed them a glimpse of the most real love?

I am sure you have heard people say “you should treat your significant other like its Valentine’s Day everyday” or “you should show Gods love everyday”. But the reality is, we are not perfect. There are days where expressing the kind of patient and unconditional love we are commanded to share is the LAST thing we want to do. Not to say that as an excuse, I am simply pointing out the flaw of being human.

So what if instead, we challenged ourselves REALLY hard to do it today?

I believe the impact that the Holy Spirit on our heart always results in change. When a person truly acknowledges the love of Christ, there is no reason they should remain just as they were before. With that being true, if we express that same love that Christ showed us, even for just one day, should it not lead to change and a renewal of the heart?

My dear friend, whether you are excited, sad, or neutral about Valentine’s Day, the love God has for you remains consistent. The comfort and wholeness that He gives you does not change based on your circumstances.

The greatest expression of love is revealed in the verse above. So when you wake up today and think about the heart posture you will have as you pass everyone celebrating this beautiful thing called love, think about the impact you could have if you let yourself be powered by the same love God revealed on the cross.

The result of God’s love brought life. I pray you not only feel that today but work your hardest to share it with others. You never know how much it could mean to the strangers you encounter today.

Realign me, oh Lord

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Living in a society that pushes us to “follow whatever your heart desires” can be exciting but oh so very dangerous. As followers of Jesus, we claim to have made the decision to give up the world and follow the God who gave up His son. But often times, we only truly follow that claim to an extent…

With a heart longing for excitement, we let our spiritual boundaries get stepped on, tip toed next to, and even sometimes crossed behind the excuse of “it wasn’t that bad”. But that is not how God called us to live. He didn’t design safety rails in life so that we could hang off the edges. As He is the literal embodiment of all things good, joyful, loving, kind, forgiving, compassionate, etc. We can bet on His boundaries having something to do with His desire for us to stay close to Him and away from everything evil, manipulative, vengeful, and so on.

Though sometimes intriguing and easy to fall into, the “harmless sins” in life are honestly anything but harmless. The one command He emphasized in the new testament was to love God and love people. A life spent loving God cannot be truly lived while intentionally flirting with sin.

So in this new year, may this be our prayer. May we long for a heart so hungry for God that we feel uneasy at just the thought of splitting our attention between Him and the world. May we humbly ask the Holy Spirit to rid our hearts of anything and everything that does not glorify God as we desperately thirst for Him to fill us up. May we look at every part of scripture for what it is; the living, breathing word of God and may it enrich our souls so much so that we feel weak after just a day spent away from it. The enemy may be no match for our Lord, but on our own, we stand no chance against the things he throws at us. We need revival. We need redemption. We need a spirit made new. So my dear friend, please never forget amidst the pleasure of life…we NEED Jesus. And I mean ALL of Him, not just on Sundays, but in every second of every day. Consistently live for a soul that prays this over every step, breath, and thought throughout your life.

I belong to You… – My commitment to Jesus & New Tattoo

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“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.”
‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭2:9-12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

The moment that girls began stressing about the brand of their jeans, the smoothness of their hair, and how much attention they could get from the guys around them, was the same moment I felt as though I lost all sense of belonging.

Growing up, I was content with who I was. I didn’t know Christ but my young thoughts never ran deep enough to see how unstable the foundation of my identity was. That was until I began hearing the whispers and the giggles of the boys and girls around me as I would walk through the halls of my school.

Belonging. What a simple word yet so complicated to find in one’s personal life.

For years after I gave my life to Christ, the struggle of never feeling like I “fit in” loomed over me like a heavy cloud, blocking any vision of hope. I lived every day surrounded by people, but feeling so uncomfortable and lonely inside. In my head, if I could just buy the right clothes, get my hair to be straight enough, or know when to talk and when to stay silent, I could maybe, just maybe, find a sense of community. A group of people who loved me and thought I was cool. But that group never came.

I am not saying my friends were not good friends or my family lacked in comforting me. I’m saying that regardless of who I met, I was never fulfilled in the way I longed to be. I never felt like I could be myself without carrying the massive weight of my fear of judgement.

During my years of attending church and youth group, I heard over and over again of how personal and authentic our relationship with God should be, but it wasn’t until I hit a deep low in the summer of 2019 that my eyes were opened to what it meant to be a CHILD of God. A chosen, beloved, and redeemed child of the most genuine and compassionate Father.

For the first time in my life, as I fell to my knees during worship, I realized who I was and what I was made for BECAUSE of WHOSE was. It was as though God sat directly beside me, giving me a big hug while I balled my eyes out in front of all of the other students at church camp that summer.

“I belong to you” was now the joyous statement I could proclaim without an ounce of doubt. And the deeper I thought about my identity, the more I found truth in that surrendering.

Iron bell Music has a song with that very title. And by the mercy of God, I am reminded of the walls that crumbled, the chains that broke, and my heart that was lifted into the perfect hands of the Father on that random day at church camp when I broke down in a way I never had before. It was no longer tears of pain, emptiness, anger, and confusion that would flood my eyes every night. It was tears of fulfillment, humility, peace, comfort…and belonging.

After experiencing so many days of joyful belonging in Christ, I realized that this is a statement of surrendering that I NEVER want to let slip my mind for even a minute. My loving Father has done a miracle in my heart. He brought a healing I never thought was possible. And so I am delighted to share with you, the beauty of His grace in my life and cant wait to testify it to every open heart I meet as everything I do, from my heart to my hands, flows from remembering His goodness.

I am not of this world. I was never made to be filled by the brokenness it brings. And even though I may struggle in finding genuine community, I don’t have to feel empty or lonely because I can rest assured that I will always fully belong to my beautiful Heavenly Father.

Cultivating Change – Our God is a God of New Beginnings

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“Time grows the seeds that are planted, watered, and fertilized. Plant beauty, grow beauty. Plant thorns, grow thorns. Time will allow for either.”

I have been reading this book for the last few weeks and I came across this incredible quote. Recently, the topic of change and its necessity in our lives as Christians has been discussed a lot. When the rug is swiped out from under your feet and all you knew has become far from being the norm again, what is the seed of change you begin to plant?

Is it bitterness towards those who hurt you? Is it emptiness from the loss? Is it denial and ignorance towards difficulties?

OR…is it compassion towards your enemies? Hope in God’s ability to turn grief into glory? Or confidence in the victories God has already claimed He won?

When that moment of inevitable change in our life comes, we cannot allow ourselves to sulk or grow angry in the difference, rather rejoice in our God of new beginnings.

Before I evaluate the circumstance I just experienced, I try to remind myself of the circumstance between me and God. I sinned. A LOT. Meaning, I straight up disobeyed God a billion times over, each time basically stabbing Him in the heart. Yet what did God do? Well based on my alive and healthy body sipping a matcha latte as I write this, He sure didn’t give up and smote me. Rather, He allowed me to be made knew. He gave me a restart. And He allowed me live the rest of my life free from the bondage of my past. He planted a seed of freedom in my heart and every day since, He has not failed to cultivate it kindly so that the harvest I produce is the fruit of a free and beloved child of God.

Once I force myself to remember my compassionate God’s reaction to me doing everything He DIDN’T want me to do, I then look back and think about my circumstance with the people or life that did everything I DIDN’T want them to do. And that heavy feeling from the bitterness I initially had has turned into conviction.

My friend, I know genuinely wanting a desire for change that is biblical is not easy nor appealing in most cases. It feels so much better to take the judgement of others into your own hand and justify yourself in the process because our heart longs for instant gratification. But what happens after you tell off the person who hurt you? Or you seclude yourself in your room for months, sulking about the past? Or you have grown a mixture of numbness and fear towards difficult circumstances to the point where you are constantly running from things or kicking them under the rug in hopes of their disappearance? From someone who has done all three of these and so much more…the good feeling never lasts.

God designed our hearts to not only be loved, but to express love. We were crafted so that we may connect with others and build a community of respect and care towards one another. But too often, we lose track of who we were made to be and how we were made to act.

Ephesians 6:12 states, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Our enemy is not really other humans. And for those who have a habit of collecting all the blame…your enemy is not really yourself either. Hurt may be inflicted on us by people or even ourselves and our mistakes, but we cannot allow our emotions in the heat of the moment be what guides us. God seeks for us to do one thing; honor Him in all circumstances.

The book I have been referring to states:

“We must speak with honor in the midst of being dishonored. We must speak with peace in the midst of being threatened. We must speak of good things in the midst of a bad situation. We must be obedient to, trust, and believe God and let Him boss around our contrary feelings.”

If there is one thing I encourage you to pursue with all your heart (in light of your full pursuit towards God of course), it is to learn how to say no to your heart and flesh. The world will tell you, “do what your heart desires”, but scripture tells us to deny ourselves because any foundation besides Christ is as unstable as shifting sands.

So when situations arise that seem to flip your world upside down, remind yourself of the One you live for. Dive so deep into God’s truth and guidance that your feelings of bitterness and such have no chance of growth because they are so overwhelmed by the compassion, grace, and forgiveness you allow God to fill you with.

There is a perfect Gardener who wants to give you free seeds that will produce the absolute best for your future. He offers them to you daily, but it is up to you to accept His seeds and take the time to cultivate them. As you do, He remains there alongside you so that in your times of weakness, you can rely on Him to keep you steady. That Gardener’s name is Jehovah Shammah; the Lord is present. (Ezekiel 48:35)

What a beautiful gift it is to live with the opportunity to start fresh. Today can be Day 1 of a new beginning, one that God promises to be present during if you allow Him.

But much like the process of cultivating a seed, cultivating change will take watering, waiting, tilling, and consistent attention. And that means any seed. Love or bitterness.

So, which gardener will you get your next seed from…the enemy, filling your heart with anger and pride or Jehovah Shammah, wanting only the best for you?

Praise Will Be My Song

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For the past month or so, the story of Joseph has been popping up in conversation, sermons, devotionals, books, etc. I mean, we even taught it to the kids at Vacation Bible School last week. With that, I figured God must have had some clever role to play in all of this.

I have heard the story a billion times before. Often, when we hear the name Joseph in the Bible, a story of great forgiveness tends to be tied with it. However, recently, I have acquired another perspective. Don’t get me wrong, I believe it is one of the greatest stories of how we ought to forgive others, but what I find equally intriguing is the massive heart of praise this boy has.

Quick Recap in case you never heard it or you don’t remember it:

Joseph is the 2nd youngest son of 12 (Abraham’s GREAT grandsons). The brothers got jealous because he was the favorite, so they sold him into slavery in Egypt. This dude named Potiphar became his slave master. Potiphar’s wife tried to sleep with Joseph but he refused to do so. So the wife said he started it all and sent people out to find and arrest him. He ended up in prison next to the Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker. One day they had weird dreams and were seeking interpretation. God blessed Joseph with the ability to understand them and he told them the meanings of the dreams. Three days later, the baker was killed but the cupbearer was freed. Joseph told the cupbearer to please remember to mention him to the Pharaoh so he could potentially be freed too, but the guy completely forgot about Joseph after he was released. So Joseph sat in the prison for 2 more years. Then randomly, the Pharaoh had weird dreams too. He was looking for someone to interpret them and FINALLY, the cupbearer remembered Joseph and because he could interpret the dreams, the Pharaoh put him in charge as 2nd in command. His duty was to store food for the coming famine the Pharaoh had dreamed about. When the famine hit, low and behold, Josephs’ brothers came searching for food from Egypt because they had so much stored up. And to know what happens next, you are going to need to read Genesis 42 and on because I am only going to really cover the beginning and middle section in this blog.

So as you saw in the recap, Joseph endured some crazy circumstances. Being sold into slavery by your own family is wild enough, but to then be sent to prison for something you didn’t do, and forgotten about after your friend found their own freedom…insane.

It is not uncommon we find ourselves in seasons of our lives we never could’ve imagined we’d be in. But time and time again, we enter a new chapter that seems confusing and hopeless.

For me, if you read any of my past blogs, you could tell that the last year has not been easy in the slightest. And to add a cherry on top of all of that, I most recently lost my best friend.

My first reaction to this, and most things that don’t go my way, was to give up hope in all things. And I mean it in every sense. My coping mechanism is to seclude myself to my room and not speak to anyone unless absolutely necessary. But that is not what God intended me to do with this new season He called me in. Let’s just say, He made that very clear through the conviction I got during any sermon or devotional I thought would tell me “it’s okay to stay that way”.

After realizing I had to actually do something besides sulk, I figured I would do what everyone on social media says; “focus on your personal growth and healing”. That lasted about a week. It honestly caused more confusion than I ever remember experiencing in my life.

For a while, I thought that this failed pursuit of healing meant it would never come. So I simply numbed it out and decided to proceed with the plans I made a few months ago in order to make my summer feel productive. Yet not even that was the right move.

It wasn’t until I recognized the need to truly lay it all down before God and wait on His guidance that some form of growth actually began. (Hence the inspiration of last week’s blog).

I am not going to lie though, I felt stuck. Not feeling any more healed than before. Not finding any more clarity in my next step. The only difference was simply submitting to what I “knew” instead of what I “felt” was the right thing to do.

I am sure Joseph had his times of despair. Verses like Genesis 39:2, where scripture says God was with Joseph so he prospered in his slave master’s house is proof of the hardships life throws at us, but also God’s faithfulness. He never promised us an easy life, but He does promise to be there with us through it all. So as Joseph endured a season of slavery and a season of imprisonment, we can be sure it was no easy task. Considering his desire for the cupbearer to remember him when he is released goes to show that it was not a place in which he enjoyed being.

Yet not once did his circumstance determine his praise.

I want to clear the air that praising God is not strictly singing songs to Him. We praise God through our obedience to Him. And as God commanded us to respect the authority in which we have over us, Joseph obeyed by serving his master well. He also obeyed by refusing to sleep with Potiphar’s wife. And again he obeyed as God called him to interpret the dreams of his fellow prisoners, even if it meant they would no longer be locked up, but he would for another 2 years. Again and again, Joseph chose faith over feelings. He chose to let praise be his song in the suffering, heartache, and hopelessness.

We as humans were designed to bring praise to God. It is through this that we find fulfillment. Whether we get drowned by fear, anxiety, depression, or just a straight up bad year (I am sure we have all had one of those), quit pursuing healing. Rather, passionately pursue the Healer Himself.

It has not been an easy decision for me to let go of the mindset that immediate healing is a right. It has not been easy for me to trust that as I focus on God, His desires for greater things will become what I too long for. And my golly, it has definitely not been easy to sing to Him when all I can manage to get out is the cry of a hurting heart. But praise MUST be our song.

Until we realize that life is not about us, rather, how much we can glorify God, we will never experience the fullness of all He is as our maker, healer, savior, unshakable joy, eternal hope, and so much more.

Please do not let the darkness of your prison prevent you from finding the purpose God has set out for you. There is a reason for every season. Sometimes, we will never know what exactly that is until a few chapter’s in the future, but regardless of your placement on the mountain or in the valley, remember that our hope cannot be crushed or stolen.

I say this often, but I believe it is a good reminder; our heart will endure many pains and trials in life but where better to let it rest than in the hands of it’s maker? The fact that He willingly offered His Son so that we may be able to build a relationship with Him after our own sin condemned us apart makes Him completely worthy of our praise. I thank God that our hope stands victorious over death’s grave. I do not know where you are at in life…but what will be your song?

“The LORD is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.”

Exodus 15:2