Christian

A Heavenly Peace

Highlighting Hope

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, and all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

We sing this song at Christmas time to worship our King. Our King who left His throne to come and abolish the great wall of separation that exists between God and man because of sin. Jesus came to abolish this great abyss that would have otherwise remained. Jesus came, despite our unworthiness, to bestow His grace, upon grace on and in our lives. We sing in worship of this holy birth!

For those who have been redeemed by Christ, this song has a very profound meaning. There are no amount of penned words that can fully articulate the majesty of Jesus and His holy birth, but bestowed to His children are significant blessings that can readily be identified and these significant blessings are markings of a stark contrast in our lives- before and after His entrance.

Before Christ coming into your life, do you recall a restlessness, a deep longing within your heart, always left unmet? Take a moment to recall the moment when Jesus became your Savior and consider these differences.

Silent night. I’m not sure how silent that night literally was, but this significant birth now silences the voice of our accuser. John 3:17, 18 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned” Revelation 12:10 says, “Now have come the salvation of and the power of and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” Do you hear the constant sound of accusations in your heart and mind? Look unto this Savior who has been born for you and allow Him to give you your first, true silent night.

Holy Night. No day is as sacred as that first moment God captured your heart and stamped you as ‘His’. The moment that you first began your life in Christ, was certainly a holy moment, and was certainly your first true holy night. This is a holiness that we could not produce on our own, but rather it is one that had to be done for us and on our behalf. Paul addresses the believers in Corinth, as those sanctified in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 1:2). The word sanctified is a past tense verb, which means to be set apart or declared as holy. This clearly indicates an action needing to be taken on our behalf. We in ourselves, are not holy, but Jesus is holy and in Him, we can be declared holy, and thus allowing us to experience our first, true holy night.

All is Calm, All is Bright. Your once restless heart, your life once lived in darkness, is now filled with a calm, and a light that you had never known or had ever seen before. This new calm is unlike any other calm you’ve ever experienced, because Christ is a new peace on Earth to all people that ultimately brings us peace with God. As Jesus once rebuked a storm when He and His disciples were out at sea by saying, “Peace, be still!” Scripture then tells us that the winds ceased and there was a great calm. A life once filled with chaos can come to a complete halt by Jesus’ resounding call of, “Peace, be still.” That’s what His birth was. His very birth commands a peace over our lives that results in a great calm for our souls to experience daily. A life once full of darkness is now bursting with Christ’s light and therefore, we experience new life. Where there is Light, there is life. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Without light, there is no life” John 1:4, 5 The birth of our Savior ushered in a marvelous light this world so desperately needs.

Heavenly Peace. All of this is a result of a Holy Infant, the Christ child, coming for us. Therefore, we can sleep in a new found peace, a heavenly peace.

Are you experiencing a silent night, a holy night, in Christ? Have you experienced this great calm over your heart and soul? Is there new light shining in your life this day? If not, you can experience these things by looking to the Christ Child, by looking to the Savior of the world, and for the very first time, experience a Heavenly peace here on Earth.

Christian

Geraniums… The Forgiving Plant

Highlighting Hope

When asked by my husband what kind of flowers that I wanted to buy for the house, I immediately said without any hesitation, “Geraniums! They are a forgiving plant!” Of course my husband looked at me with complete confusion, because the two of us, in all of our years of marriage, we had never owned a geranium. Naturally he asked, “What are you talking about a “forgiving plant? And how do you know about geraniums?”

When I was sixteen years old, I was on the work study program at my high school. I worked half of the school day for a stock broker who had an office on our little town square in Covington, GA. Outside of the store front, sat two rectangular, cement flower pots, each positioned below a window. As you might have already guessed, planted inside those cement flower pots were bright, red geraniums. Part of my job was to help keep those flowers watered and looking good! Much to my shame, I overlooked that part of my job description frequently. It was so easy for me to walk past those potted plants as I entered the office each day, becoming preoccupied with other things, and not giving those little flowers another thought.

But their neglect always began to show, and my boss would kindly ask me from time to time, “Tiffany, have you watered the flowers out front lately?” Of course, he knew the answer to his question, but that was always his kind way of making me aware that I had neglected them, once again.

The cool thing about those flowers is that, every time they looked like they were closer to dying instead of surviving, the moment I began watering them and supplying them with what they needed, they always bounced back! They always forgave my neglect, and they always began to quickly flourish once again. New bright, red blooms would begin to form and their leaves returned to being lush and green. This plant was always so quick to forgive me that I could even see a difference in them just over night. These plants always bore the evidence of forgiveness, which allowed their health and beauty to return.

Over the years, I have had more experience with other plants, some also being forgiving, but others not being forgiving at all. There have been plants that I have loved and I have stood in awe of their beauty, but when the slightest overlook occurred, bitterness seemed to set in, and its beauty began to fade quickly. No matter how hard I consistently worked to bring these unforgiving plants back, they remained resistant to the above and beyond care they were being given. They remained in their shriveled up condition and their beauty was lost forever. This lack of forgiveness, this poison of bitterness that had gotten to its’ roots, became evident to all, and only served to cut off the life of the plant.

A heart that realizes that God has forgiven them of much will forgive much, and the evidence will always produce new, healthy growth that is evident to all.    

Forgiveness has not always been easy for me, but God has opened my heart and eyes to see the bottomless supply of undeserved forgiveness that He has graciously lavished on me. In light of this truth, how could I not strive to extend this kind of forgiveness to another?

Withholding forgiveness does not produce any power or exemplify a righteous stand that we may be seeking, but rather it robs you of freedom, healing, growth, and the beauty that God desires to see produced in our lives.

In the heart and life of those who forgive, flows abundant life and continuous growth because it reflects a heart that has received true and lasting forgiveness that only Jesus can provide. A heart that forgives reveals a heart that realizes that it has been forgiven of so much, and so it too must forgive.

Just as the geranium bears the evidence of forgiveness, may those of us who are in Christ bear evident blooms of forgiveness- simply reflecting humble lives that have been forgiven of much.

Colossians 3:13, 14

“Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

Christian

An Extended Hand

Highlighting Hope

One of my all-time favorite movies is Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves with Kevin Costner. In one part of the movie, Robin Hood attempts to cross this river, but in doing so, he invades the territory of a group of outlaws. Midway into crossing the river, he engages in a fight with “Little John”, who is really not so little, while still standing in the river. At the end of their scuffle, Little John gets knocked off his feet, falling to his back in the water. He immediately begins to panic, shouting over and over again, “I can’t swim! I can’t swim!” His apparent awareness of not being able to swim ransacked his mind, and fear took over. Robin Hood then comes over to him, grabbing his arm to help him up, telling him to stand to his feet. It’s a pretty comical moment in the movie when you see this big, burly, tough man screaming for help in knee deep water, and all he had to do was stand, with no swimming necessary.

As I think about this scene in the movie, I couldn’t help but wonder how often do I look like Little John, flailing around unnecessarily? How often does the thought of what I know I can’t do paralyze me, and all I really need to do is just stand upon the strength of the Lord?

Although it was apparent to another that all Little John had to do was stand, he needed to be made aware of just how close the firm foundation was beneath his feet. As life moves on, we might find ourselves in the position either of standing or flapping around frantically in shallow water. In either position that we may find ourselves, it is important that we always have a hand that is extended; a hand that is continuously extended to either to be a caring pull to lift up another, or one that is extended in humility in order to be pulled back up again.

When struggles arise, when our circumstances become overwhelming, or our hearts are filled with discouragement, it is so easy become aware of our limitations and forget about the character of God and what He CAN do!

It’s important that we always have a hand that is extended to either provided a caring pull or one that is extended in humility in order to be pulled back up again.

What a great encouragement today to know that God has given us a firm foundation that is sure, and all we have to do is stand upon Him and the truth of His word! As we seek to set our minds on Him, may His word serve as the gentle reminder of the firm foundation that we have readily available, helping us to stand once again!

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness.”                                                2 Peter 1:3

Christian

Geraniums… The Forgiving Plant

Highlighting Hope

When asked by my husband what kind of flowers that I wanted to buy for the house, I immediately said without any hesitation, “Geraniums! They are a forgiving plant!” Of course my husband looked at me with complete confusion, because the two of us, in all of our years of marriage, we had never owned a geranium. Naturally he asked, “What are you talking about a “forgiving plant? And how do you know about geraniums?”

When I was sixteen years old, I was on the work study program at my high school. I worked half of the school day for a stock broker who had an office on our little town square in Covington, GA. Outside of the store front, sat two rectangular, cement flower pots, each positioned below a window. As you might have already guessed, planted inside those cement flower pots were bright, red geraniums. Part of my job was to help keep those flowers watered and looking good! Much to my shame, I overlooked that part of my job description frequently. It was so easy for me to walk past those potted plants as I entered the office each day, becoming preoccupied with other things, and not giving those little flowers another thought.

But their neglect always began to show, and my boss would kindly ask me from time to time, “Tiffany, have you watered the flowers out front lately?” Of course, he knew the answer to his question, but that was always his kind way of making me aware that I had neglected them, once again.

The cool thing about those flowers is that, every time they looked like they were closer to dying instead of surviving, the moment I began watering them and supplying them with what they needed, they always bounced back! They always forgave my neglect, and they always began to quickly flourish once again. New bright, red blooms would begin to form and their leaves returned to being lush and green. This plant was always so quick to forgive me that I could even see a difference in them just over night. These plants always bore the evidence of forgiveness, which allowed their health and beauty to return.

Over the years, I have had more experience with other plants, some also being forgiving, but others not being forgiving at all. There have been plants that I have loved and I have stood in awe of their beauty, but when the slightest overlook occurred, bitterness seemed to set in, and its beauty began to fade quickly. No matter how hard I consistently worked to bring these unforgiving plants back, they remained resistant to the above and beyond care they were being given. They remained in their shriveled up condition and their beauty was lost forever. This lack of forgiveness, this poison of bitterness that had gotten to its’ roots, became evident to all, and only served to cut off the life of the plant.

A heart that realizes that God has forgiven them of much will forgive much, and the evidence will always produce new, healthy growth that is evident to all.    

Forgiveness has not always been easy for me, but God has opened my heart and eyes to see the bottomless supply of undeserved forgiveness that He has graciously lavished on me. In light of this truth, how could I not strive to extend this kind of forgiveness to another?

Withholding forgiveness does not produce any power or exemplify a righteous stand that we may be seeking, but rather it robs you of freedom, healing, growth, and the beauty that God desires to see produced in our lives.

In the heart and life of those who forgive, flows abundant life and continuous growth because it reflects a heart that has received true and lasting forgiveness that only Jesus can provide. A heart that forgives reveals a heart that realizes that it has been forgiven of so much, and so it too must forgive.

Just as the geranium bears the evidence of forgiveness, may those of us who are in Christ bear evident blooms of forgiveness- simply reflecting humble lives that have been forgiven of much.

Colossians 3:13, 14

“Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

Christian

Look for the Rain

Highlighting Hope

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12

God kindly informs us that will face battles, we will endure storms in life and they are rooted in spiritual wickedness! Although, I know this to be true and I have thought on and read over this verse many times, I still find myself struggling with the “surprise factor” when battles or storms actually arise. Maybe you do too.

In 1 Peter 4:12-19, Peter tells us that when trouble and hardship come, we should not be caught off guard.
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.”

So, while storms and trouble may brew around you, rest assured that while you weather your storm, God will send the rain! The storm may be present, but God will rain down on you everything you need to bring glory to His name, and keep you fruitful! God, Himself will faithfully rain down on you all that you need to sustain you, and provide you with a holy vibrancy that is only due to a Heavenly Father nourishing the souls of His children!

Do you find yourself weathering a storm? If so, join me in the practice of looking for the spiritual rain pouring down from the heart of our Heavenly Father and bask fully in His love and provision!

Christian

Don’t Let the Rocks Cry Out!

Highlighting Hope

Are the rocks crying out in your stead? Jesus said that if it’s not our voices ushering out praise to Him, that the rocks will certainly do it. We are told in Luke 19 that as Jesus was entering Jerusalem, the whole multitudes of His disciples began to rejoice and praise God with loud, joy- fulfilled voices as He triumphantly entered that town. Even there, in a glorious moment of being in the physical presence of our Savior, there were those who did not understand the praise of the people. Instead of joining in on the praise, these critics sought to shame and silence God’s worshippers. And what was Jesus’ response to these Pharisees? He told them “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

The triumphant entry of the Lord Jesus Christ into the life of a believer will undoubtedly result in praise and worship. This new song that you have been given, that results in praise upon praise, is due to a triumphant, grand entrance of Jesus Christ into your life! Many around you may not understand your new song, this song of praise, as well as your desire to sing this new song loudly. Sing it anyway! Sing unto the Lord anyway, and then, kindly tell them why you have a new song that is crying out from you. Jesus is most deserving of our praise, and if it is not us, the rocks will certainly cry out. But were the rocks created to sing? What rock has a soul in need of saving and a voice fashioned by our creator to usher up praise? Not one! But you and I, we were created for praise (Psalm 102:18, Colossians 3:16).  In fact, let us see to it that there is never a need for the rocks to cry out and worship our God in our place.

There will be praise given up to God, but let it be our voices that are singing in bold adoration to the One who has seen us in our worst condition, who took on our sin upon Himself, and defeated sin and death for an underserving people. We serve a God who came to us in order to restore what sin sought to destroy! In spite of our great limitations “to be perfect as He is perfect”, He has made away for us to take on the righteousness of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21), to become His very own, and then He allows us to call Him, Abba, Father! Yes, this God is worthy our praise!  The triumphant entrance of Jesus will inevitably result in praise! Therefore brother and sister in Christ, lift your voice and let no rock cry out in your stead!

Christian, Encouragement, Inspiration

Choose Joy!

Highlighting Hope

Dear Fellow Believer, do you find yourself presently struggling with a particular sin? Are you tired of having skinned knees from your continuous falling? Walk in God’s grace today and allow Him to help you stand! The joy of the Lord is your strength! Let Him cleanse your wounds and bandage them so that you may be healed!

Nehemiah 8:10 says, “And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Nehemiah was speaking words of comfort to God’s people, who had just heard the Law (the 10 Commandments) being read to them and it left them feeling grieved.  The people were faced with God’s perfect standard for living, and as each line of this law that they were to keep and live by was being read aloud them, the heaviness steadily increased. I imagine those hearing the law being read must have been repeatedly thinking to themselves “broken, broken, broken” and their final thought being, “I’m guilty.”

The hearers of the Law knew they all stood condemned before God.  The Law, God’s standard, revealed this to their hearts and, therefore, they were grieved. In a moment of understandable hopeless, they are then met with words of comfort and an answer! The people were told, “but do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” God told them, despite your condition, your guilt, you can be supplied with joy, but this joy will come from the LORD, YHWH, and it will be your strength.  A despairing moment is now beaming brightly with an unwavering hope that comes from of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

In John 1:17 it says, “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus.” This is why we do not have to give way to despair! Friends, the joy of the LORD, Jesus Christ, is our strength!

What is this joy and how does this joy of the LORD become our strength? Joy is not contingent on our circumstances, but rather, it is the constant supplying of a spiritual peace that is completely dependent on the LORD, Jesus Christ and it is a happiness that we can have in Him. The truth is, we experience physical death because of sin, as Romans 6: 23 reminds us, “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” If we were left with the Law being our only means of justification, it would cause us to be distraught, heavy and living without hope. But praise God, this is not where the story ends! Paul tells us in Romans 3:21, “BUT NOW the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and Prophets bear witness to it- the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for ALL who believe.”  

In Romans 3:20 Paul says, “for no one will be justified in His sight by the works of the law, because the knowledge of sin comes through the law.” God’s law only reveals to us our sin and how we are separated from Him because of our sin. If we read through God’s law this very day, this very hour, we would find ourselves to be much like the people standing before Nehemiah as he read the law to them. In our minds, we too would be saying “broken, broken, broken.” And after hearing every law read, we too would come to the conclusion of “I stand guilty.” However, this very day, we are met with the very same words of comfort and an answer to our problem. Whatever you are wrestling with today in your striving for holiness, let God fight for you! God longs to look at us as well and say, “and do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!”

Have you recently experienced the joy of the Lord being your strength? If so, share in the comment section below!

Christian, Encouragement, Inspiration

Choose Joy!

Highlighting Hope

Dear Fellow Believer, do you find yourself presently struggling with a particular sin? Are you tired of having skinned knees from your continuous falling? Walk in God’s grace today and allow Him to help you stand! The joy of the Lord is your strength! Let Him cleanse your wounds and bandage them so that you may be healed!

Nehemiah 8:10 says, “And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Nehemiah was speaking words of comfort to God’s people, who had just heard the Law (the 10 Commandments) being read to them and it left them feeling grieved.  The people were faced with God’s perfect standard for living, and as each line of this law that they were to keep and live by was being read aloud them, the heaviness steadily increased. I imagine those hearing the law being read must have been repeatedly thinking to themselves “broken, broken, broken” and their final thought being, “I’m guilty.”

The hearers of the Law knew they all stood condemned before God.  The Law, God’s standard, revealed this to their hearts and, therefore, they were grieved. In a moment of understandable hopeless, they are then met with words of comfort and an answer! The people were told, “but do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” God told them, despite your condition, your guilt, you can be supplied with joy, but this joy will come from the LORD, YEWH, and it will be your strength.  A despairing moment is now beaming brightly with an unwavering hope that comes from of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

In John 1:17 it says, “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus.” This is why we do not have to give way to despair! Friends, the joy of the LORD, Jesus Christ, is our strength!

What is this joy and how does this joy of the LORD become our strength? Joy is not contingent on our circumstances, but rather, it is the constant supplying of a spiritual peace that is completely dependent on the LORD, Jesus Christ and it is a happiness that we can have in Him. The truth is, we experience physical death because of sin, as Romans 6: 23 reminds us, “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” If we were left here to gather as the Law being our only means of justification, it would cause us to gather today distraught, heavy and without hope. But praise God, this is not where the story ends! Paul tells us in Romans 3:21, “BUT NOW the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and Prophets bear witness to it- the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for ALL who believe.”  

In Romans 3:20 Paul says, “for no one will be justified in His sight by the works of the law, because the knowledge of sin comes through the law.” God’s law only reveals to us our sin and how we are separated from Him because of our sin. If we read through God’s law this very day, this very hour, we would find ourselves to be much like the people standing before Nehemiah as he read the law to them. In our minds, we too would be saying “broken, broken, broken.” And after hearing every law read, we too would come to the conclusion of “I stand guilty.” However, this very day, we are met with the very same words of comfort and an answer to our problem. Whatever you are wrestling with today in your striving for holiness, let God fight for you! God longs to look at us as well and say, “and do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!”

Have you recently experienced the joy of the Lord being your strength? If so, share in the comment section below!

Christian

A Heavenly Peace

Highlighting Hope

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, and all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

We sing this song at Christmas time to worship our King, our King who left His throne to come and abolish the great wall of separation between God and man. Jesus came to abolish this great abyss that would have otherwise remained. Jesus came, despite our unworthiness, to bestow His grace, upon grace on and in our lives. We sing in worship of this holy birth!

For those who have been redeemed by Christ, this song has a very profound meaning. There are no amount of penned words that can fully articulate the majesty of Jesus and His holy birth, but bestowed to His children are significant blessings that can readily be identified and these significant blessings are markings of a stark contrast in our lives- before and after His entrance.

Before Christ coming into your life, do you recall a restlessness, a deep longing within your heart, always left unmet? Take a moment to recall the moment when Jesus became your Savior and consider these differences.

Silent night. I’m not sure how silent that night literally was, but this significant birth now silences the voice of our accuser. John 3:17, 18 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned” Revelation 12:10 says, “Now have come the salvation of and the power of and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” Do you hear the constant sound of accusations in your heart and mind? Look unto this Savior who has been born for you and allow Him to give you your first, true silent night.

Holy Night. No day is as sacred as that first moment God captured your heart and stamped you as ‘His’. The moment that you first began your life in Christ, was certainly a holy moment, and your first true holy night. This is a holiness that we could not produce on our own, but rather it is one that had to be done for us and on our behalf. Paul addresses the believers in Corinth, as those sanctified in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 1:2). The word sanctified is a past tense verb, which means to be set apart or declared as holy. This clearly indicates an action needing to be taken on our behalf. We in ourselves, are not holy, but Jesus is holy and in Christ Jesus, we can be declared holy, and thus allowing us to experience our first, true holy night.

All is Calm, All is Bright. Your once restless heart, your life once lived in darkness, is now filled with a calm, and a light that you had never known or had ever seen before. This new calm is unlike any other calm you’ve ever experienced, because Christ is a new peace on Earth to all people that ultimately brings us peace with God. As Jesus once rebuked a storm when He and His disciples were out at sea by saying, “Peace, be still!” Scripture then tells us that the winds ceased and there was a great calm. A life once filled with chaos can come to a complete halt by Jesus’ resounding call of, “Peace, be still.” That’s what His birth was. His very birth commands a peace over our lives that results in a great calm for our souls to experience daily. A life once full of darkness is now bursting with Christ’s light and therefore, we experience new life. Where there is Light, there is life. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Without light, there is no life” John 1:4, 5 The birth of our Savior ushered in a marvelous light this world so desperately needs.

Heavenly Peace. All of this is a result of a Holy Infant, the Christ child, coming for us. Therefore, we can sleep in a new found peace, a heavenly peace.

Are you experiencing a silent night, a holy night in Christ? Have you experienced this great calm over your heart and soul? Is there new light shining in your life this day? If not, you can experience these things by looking to the Christ Child, by looking to the Savior of the world, and for the very first time, experience a Heavenly peace here on Earth.