rebelling against low expectations
“I promise I’m yours… I promise I’ll love you forever and ever and always… to the end of time, I won’t change my mind…” (“Forever and Ever and Always” by Ryan Mack) Staring out the window of the airplane, the words of the love song stabbed me. No one can truly promise me “forever.” Tears springing into my eyes, I remembered the exception to that statement. Jesus… People will leave you...
I was in my church class on Sunday, and it was almost over. We were about to pray and then be dismissed. One of the girls was praying about our relationship with God. After asking Him to help us love Him more, she added, “And help us to love ourselves too. Because it’s important to do that.” A flood of questions filled my brain. Is that right? Should we love ourselves? And above...
There are many things in life that can get us down. Daily struggles and difficult situations try to steal our joy all the time. This is something I personally have experienced in my life. But God doesn’t want us to live in constant sorrow. In fact, He came so that we might experience His joy even in the middle of our struggles and hard seasons. Here are three reasons we can rejoice in the Lord...
I was depressed and scared. A list of my sins ran through my head, and I couldn’t let go of them. Condemnation gripped me as I thought of all the ways I had done wrong. I was covered by a cloud of gloom and sadness. My joy was gone. But God’s forgiveness is more than all my sins. His divine plan was forgiveness, to free His dear children from condemnation. All I had to do was embrace His grace...
I used to think that my testimony was pretty pathetic. I remember one Sunday when my pastor gave his salvation testimony during my church’s morning service. Despite its intended encouragement, I was left feeling a little empty inside. My testimony was not even close to being that interesting. My pastor spoke, “Through God’s saving grace, I left the wild life that was influenced by drugs and was...
The word “love” appears 684 times in the Bible, therefore, it must be an important topic! God apparently had much to say about love—from how much He loves us, to how we can love Him in return, to how we can love other people. While we can’t explore every passage on love, I have picked just a few to observe from the Old and New Testaments. These passages teach us what it means to truly love in...
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith…” Hebrews 12:2 (KJV, emphasis is my own). As a writer and aspiring author, the analogy that God is the Author of our stories has always resonated with me deeply. When I write, I dedicate hours upon hours of time to my story. Developing the plot, working on the setting, and fleshing out all the little details are necessary to...
When we were younger, my sister would copy various poems and quotes and pin them on a cork board in our room. I remember one quote in particular that read, “love is a choice, not a feeling”. Those words stuck with me and left me wondering if love really could be a choice. At the time I didn’t think so. The love I knew was very emotional and very conditional. It was always, “I love you if__.” In...
My younger brother is successful in almost everything he does. His lawn mowing business as a pre-teen. His filmmaking career as a teenager. Finding an amazing wife, he married when he was 19. His track college scholarship. The guy faces challenges and excels. He’s intelligent, athletic, and charismatic. It’s incredible. I’m proud. But also, sometimes I’m jealous. Everyone wants to hear what...
My child, there is a gift beyond worth. A gift that is given and renewed each day. It’s a gift to mend heart and heal hurt. A gift far deeper than the mere word we say. My child, there is a gift that helps us bare Anything that brings weeping and grief. It’s a gift to bind people and hold off despair, A gift far deeper than the mere word we speak. Like a healing balm and a bonding rope, Causing...
rebelling against low expectations
