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The GT Weekend! ~ Kaleidoscope Week 1

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) Not only is the Lord’s love individually set upon us, uniquely drawing us towards His good, Father heart, God’s love is also patient, waiting for us to come to Him. As you consider the Lord’s patience towards you in your faith journey, where would you place yourself? Are you exploring the faith as He waits for you to accept His invitation into real life? Is He waiting for you to trust Him in deeper ways? Perhaps you waiver between leaning on your understanding while knowing you should trust His ways. His love allows Him to patiently keep on waiting for you, wherever you are. Think through areas in your life the Lord has waited or is waiting for you. Praise Him for never being exasperated, but lovingly extending patience!

2) Kindness is one definition of love that we rather lose in the shuffle of seemingly brighter and bolder definitions, but when we search Scripture, we see God’s loving kindness over and over, never playing second fiddle. How often do you consider the Lord as genuinely kind towards you? Angry at you? That isn’t kind. Annoyed with you? That isn’t kind. Seeking your good? Loving you intentionally? Giving you good gifts? This is the kindness of the Lord! Reflect on even just the last few days and write down the ways the Lord has shown His loving kindness to you and praise Him for that! Want to go a little deeper? Look up a few of the verses describing God as kindhearted in the book of Psalms and let truth wash over you. (follow this link and click “Psalms” under “NAS”)

3) Jealousy tends to sneak up on us in small ways, but before long, it snowballs and consumes us in ways we never considered. In David’s story, he had several opportunities to step away from the pull of jealousy, but he tragically didn’t. The end result was death of relationships, and even people. How much better it would have been for David to walk away from the sin of jealousy and choose to love generously and confidently instead. David’s story is recorded for all of us. Take a hard look at when and why jealousy surges in your life. Take these to the Lord and ask Him to renew your heart, giving you love in place of blinding jealousy.

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from Romans 12:21 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.

Prayer Journal
How grateful I am for your conquering love, Lord! By Your gift of righteousness to me, You broke my chains to sin and freed me to walk safe and free in love. Though I’m free to love because of You, I don’t always choose it, still I grab for those ugly weapons of anger, impatience, discontentment, pride, and jealousy. Clearly show me, Spirit, when I am tempted to choose these over love. Remind me how You have freed and equipped me to walk in love with every choice. Take off the blinders I have over my own sin, and fill my hands with Your love!

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

Build community, be transparent, and encourage others:
Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

Dwell Day 8 Come Away

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Psalm 46  
Isaiah 6:1-8 
Exodus 34:29-35 

Dwell, Day 8

The chaos screamed louder with every shrill screech of my 3-year-old.  
He flung his body violently backwards despite my attempts to hold him.  
My water cup flew as his foot knocked it from the counter, its crash adding to the epic disaster of my kitchen.  
I was exhausted, frustrated, and knew I was quickly losing it.  
I was too far behind, in too many things, the hurricane wave-like pressure to be more than I was, crashed down on me fast.  
 
“Come away with me.” 
The whisper in my heart offered an oasis, cool water in the tornadic fury of my hot emotions.  
No, it wasn’t an audible voice, but it was one I had been learning ever more steadily to listen to. It was the voice of One who loved me, who delighted over me, and in that moment of supreme chaos that bordered on insanity, He called me away.  
 
Not to more stuff.  
Not to remind me of the important things I hadn’t done yet.  
Not to chastise me for being angry.  
He called me to come away.  
With Him.  
 
With water dripping from the counter, the dog eating scraps on the floor, a dirty dish tower threatening to topple, smelly laundry spilling from the washer, crackers crunching under my feet, and 4 other children continuing to play in their shocking oblivion,  
I obeyed the voice of my Savior.  
 
Gathering my still shrieking preschooler, I turned a blind eye to it all, and with laser focus on the face of my Jesus, I ran upstairs, not caring in the slightest who called out after me for more snacks. I knew exactly where I was going.  
 
As I hurried through my still messy bedroom, I grabbed my “pretty candle”, the one no one is supposed to touch, and a hidden matchbox. By the time I shoved my closet door closed behind me and the darkness quickly enveloped us, my little boy was still mad, but intrigued.  
I struck the match, breathing in the acrid scent, my soul already quieting. 
I knew Who was waiting for me and Whose presence I was entering.  
 
“Look! Look!” I whispered to my dry-sobbing boy.  
His eyes wide, tears gone, I held him as I began praying simple phrases.  
I had learned that here, in the silence and solitude of this meeting place, short phrases packed with truth kept my heart and soul in the moment rather than wandering.  
Truth anchored me in His presence.  
 
“You are good. You are good. You are good.” 
“You are for me. You are for me. You are for me.” 
“You are glorious, Yahweh. You are glorious. Glorious.”  
“Oh Majesty, Majesty, how breathtaking You are.” 
“Majesty. Beauty. Grace.”  
“Grace. Grace. Grace.” 
“Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.” 
“Lord Jesus. My Lord Jesus.” 
 
Sometimes my words whispered, sometimes they flowed quickly as the Spirit moved, sometimes my tongue was still as I drank in the exquisite beauty of His presence.  
Silent and still, holding my son, watching the light,  
my soul was swept away by the Supreme Lover of my heart. 
 
There was no magic in the candle, no extra-ordinary spiritual experience of my closet location, there was simply an invitation to sit in silence and behold Majesty.  
 
Time seemed to stand still for both me and my son.  
Eventually, like every mama-story, a knock beckoned from the other side of my closet door.  
But my spirit didn’t sag in response, peace pervaded. Joy swept in.  
Truth anchored my soul as my eyes had re-focused on the Glorious One.  
 
The idea of Silence and Solitude as an actual discipline of the Christian walk had never ever occurred to me.  
Quiet time where you sit and read Scripture, yes.  
Journaling your prayers and thoughts during quiet time, yes.  
But no one had ever taught me to practice Silence & Solitude.  
 
The discovery literally revolutionized my entire walk with Jesus, taking me from the playful shores of Christianity into the deep-sea dive of intimacy with the Love of my Soul.  
Practicing regular silence and solitude changed the entire trajectory of my life.  
I can absolutely guarantee you that where I am today, how I see people, the ministries I’m involved in, and the way I commune with Jesus is a direct result of silence and solitude.  
Yes, it’s that critical!  
 
After reading selections from Ruth Barton’s book, “Invitation to Solitude & Silence”, I was flabbergasted that I had never heard of this aspect of Christianity and began adopting it immediately.  
It wasn’t always my closet, it wasn’t always using a candle, but those became my favorites.  
I’ve shared intentional silence with the Savior, glorying in His presence, in my car before driving to “next”, in my “God Time Chair” as my pen has stilled and all else fades as I simply sit with Him, listening and responding to His Spirit, or in bed before I fall asleep. This isn’t just being quiet and restful, it’s intentional prayer-focused intimacy as we are drawn in to deep worship! 
 
In words on paper, it’s utterly indescribable.  
Astoundingly, the invitation comes again and again as He invites me to know Him deeper, delight in Him more intimately, to call Him Abba Father, to sit with tears streaming at His all-surpassing glory, and to live in light of that glorious encounter. 
 
Here’s the sweetest thing, Jesus longs for all of this with each of us!  
It doesn’t matter what your doubts are, how long or how short you’ve believed in Him as Savior, or whether you’ve ever crossed the line of faith in the first place, His invitation beckons right now, right here, in the middle of your crazy, busy, messy everyday life.  

Will you go to Him?! 

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Dwell Week Two! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Dwell!

Roads Day 15 The Road Home

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Read His Words Before Ours!

John 14:1-7
Matthew 7:13-14
Jeremiah 14:14-16
2 Timothy 4:3-4 

Roads, Day 15

“God, HELP me! Why can’t I HEAR You?!” 
Angry tears filled my eyes and I swallowed hard, slamming towels into the washing machine so quickly they tangled into a big wad. Shrieks reached my ears as I wrestled with the laundry, and in my frustration, I slammed my little toe into the dryer as I turned to shush my two oldest so they wouldn’t wake their sleeping little brother. 

I’d be lying if I said an unpleasant word didn’t hiss across my lips. (Sorry, but it’s truth…and I’ll bet if you are being honest, you might be able to relate.) 

“You aren’t listening, Love. Your attention is divided.” 
His gentle nudge in my spirit sparked fresh tears. He was right. 

It had been a long day week year. The temperature outside was frigid, and with three little ones under four, I could count on one hand the number of days when every person in our little tribe had been healthy… in over two months.
I loved being a wife and mama, but between those two most important roles, the demands of my growing business, various ministry commitments, a part time job, and maintaining family relationships, I found myself incapable of focusing on a single task (or person) for even a few minutes. I couldn’t give 100% to anyone or anything.

I was tapped out. Emotionally. Mentally. Spiritually.  

And truth? I was pretty angry with myself…and maybe at God a little, too.
I couldn’t understand why He seemed so silent through everything.
I was reading my Bible.
I spent time in prayer and worship.
But, for a while now, He had seemed… uncharacteristically quiet.

Having experienced the loss of our first daughter and His supernatural peace and comfort through that time a few years prior, I was frustrated that such seemingly trivial issues affected me like this. …and that He wasn’t showing up as I expected. 

His soft correction was on point.
I had been so busy juggling ALL OF THE THINGS,
that nothing and no one was getting the best, or even most, of me.  

Have you been there, Sister? Are you there? 
So overwhelmed that you just… can’t?  

And here’s the million dollar question, Love.
Looking past all of that, are you still 100% committed to following Christ?
Through the mundane as well as the mountains?  

A while back, a friend and I were somewhat casually discussing faith and eternity.
As our discourse turned to another religious perspective that was outside biblical salvation by grace through faith, my friend asserted,
“Well, whatever makes them happy. 
As long as it isn’t hurting anyone, what’s the harm, right?”  

Stunned, I said nothing, and as she changed topics, the moment was lost. 

What’s the harm, right? 
Her words still echo in my mind.
How I wish I had spoken truth in love to her at that moment. 

I wish I’d told her the harm has eternal ramifications.
I wish I’d  told her the harm is that, as Christ followers, we know there is only one road which assures salvation for eternity.
There is only one road holding the hope of a future which far outshines our sin-stained past. There is only one road offering us healing and forgiveness, righteousness, and adoption into God’s family. 

One narrow road, and His name is Jesus. 

Not our own righteousness,
nor how we think we should act or be,
nor any other thing, but JESUS. 

Are we willing to receive some challenge today, Loves? 

This is not a popular truth to tell in this day and age. 
We live in a world where “live and let live,” and “do whatever makes you happy” rules.
Comfort is king.
While we are encouraged to “speak our truth,” those who shout this mantra the loudest,
are often the first to hush us when THE Truth is what we speak.  

Just like my own failure to speak truth in the moment Holy Spirit provided with my friend, many of us fail to give 100% to the people He has placed in our circles.  

Look, I get it.
Living our beliefs out there for the world to see in real life is HARD.
It’s much, much easier to stay in our little Sunday bubble and post faith-influenced social media status updates once or twice a week and never actually get in the dirt to love the people He has tasked us to love. 

But…what about that mimics the Christ we profess to believe in, love and follow? 

As followers of Christ and daughters of God…
We know we are heirs to the Kingdom of Heaven.
We know this world is not our home.
But we also know we are tasked to bring His Kingdom here… which includes sharing the truth in love with whomever God places in our path.
These opportunities to share are the most important part 
of our journey as we travel the road Home. (read: Heaven) 

No, not preaching on every corner or issuing condemnation and judgement.
It isn’t a “one and done” kind of deal.
Rather, we are challenged to actively love others, continually and invitationally.   

Invite them into our lives and homes and hearts. 
Invite them into our community and demonstrate Christ’s love in word, action and deed. 
Build real relationships so when Holy Spirit prompts us to speak the truth in love,
we can do it with grace. 

When we commit to giving our whole attention and focus to whatever He hands us, we free ourselves to be obedient and experience His fullness.
Even in the mountains and the mundane.
THIS is our purpose, our calling, and our joy!
To live out this Gospel as we travel the road Home! 

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Roads Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!
Click the above image for today’s Digging Deeper!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Roads!

The GT Weekend! Character Week 1

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) James 1:19-21 shows what our human anger brings to our lives. Read through this passage and reflect on its words. Mark the places that show the results of our anger. Look for what James’ solution to our mess looks like. See the reality of Scripture come alive as you see we are not destined to hopelessness and despair. The Lord has provided a means to reconciliation!

2) It is an amazing privilege and Biblical invitation, to worship together corporately with other believers. It’s equally amazing to choose to worship in the ordinary parts of our lives. Where could you be intentional with choosing to give back praise for God’s faithfulness? Set aside specific time in your calendar to sing/write/draw in praise to the Lord. Share with us your day-to-day means of praise on Instagram #GTpraise.

3) God knew His created people would walk away from Him and choose substitutes for His glory. He gave the Old Testament law to show His children the extent of their brokenness. He sent Jesus to fulfill the need of a blood sacrifice to speak to God directly. God orchestrated every piece so He could redeem you, dear sister, back to Himself. He’s calling you, drawing you; are you ready to answer? What’s holding you back?

Journaling your prayers is simply another way to talk to the Lord. Slow down, pull out pen and paper, read the following Scripture passage and prayer, then let your own words flow to the Almighty One who loves you so deeply!

Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his one and only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God. If we love one another, God remains in us and his love is made complete in us.
– 1 John 4:7-12

Lord when I get bogged down by the law and spending so much energy on not being ruled by it but following in obedience, my heart still misses the point. I still miss Your desire; relationship with me, for Your glory. Forgive me for the times I make it about me and what I can do for You.

As I fold the laundry, wash countless dishes, and interact with every crazy driver on the road, let me choose praise. Because of Jesus, I have the access to sing Your praise every moment of the day. And yet I so often grumble, or even ignore Your work in my life while I mindlessly scroll Facebook. Help me “take every thought captive to obey Christ” this week!

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

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Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

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Worship Through Music

Character Day 5 Righteous Anger

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Read His Words Before Ours!

James 1:19-21
Ephesians 4:26
Galatians 5:16-24
Psalm 37:7-8

Character, Day 5

I stood there holding the severed kitchen faucet handle, adrenaline still pumping. My then five-year-old son had been helping me rinse dishes. Our stubborn hearts were at odds. He was ignoring my instruction. I was being controlling. In anger, I slammed my hand down on the faucet breaking it beyond repair. Shame, sadness, and despair rushed over me.

I never considered myself an angry person, but suddenly, in the trench years of very small children, flares came easily. Anything from obnoxious noises, toothpaste on towels, and spilled milk (I know, I know…), to sibling spats, sassing, and willful disobedience were moments I could erupt.

I knew that fits of anger were a work of my flesh (Galatians 5:19-20), and I began crying out for God to help me. I knew I needed the Word of God to save me from myself (James 1:21). The Spirit began showing me the connection between my anger and whose kingdom I’m bowing to – mine or God’s.

The question isn’t simply, ‘Is anger sinful?’.
Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:26 that to be angry and not sin is possible.
Yet a few verses later he also admonishes the church to
“let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away..”.
Psalm 145:8 explains, “The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love”.
Yet, Psalm 78:49-51 paints a picture of God’s unleashed anger.
So how are we to discern this visceral emotion?

Unrighteous Anger of Man
In their book The Cry of the Soul, Dan Allender and Tremper Longmann bring clarity stating, “the core of unrighteous anger is a hatred of vulnerability and a love of control”.

When we feel pain, offense or exposure, unrighteous anger attempts to secure for ourselves satisfaction right now. It might be triggered by a legitimate wrong, but the defining point is how that anger is directed.

James 1:20 says, “For the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”

This pricked my heart early on in my battle with anger. In my attempt to correct and discipline my children, I had allowed my own satisfaction to be a driving force. Instead of submitting to the Spirit’s control, I was tossed around by my natural reactions to things that jarred my comfort, peace, and control. My own desires were the things I was seeking to satisfy my heart.
Unrighteous anger is a hungry search for satisfaction in our own timing,
and with our own methods.
Ultimately, it is a display of discontent with God. 

Righteous Anger of God
Is righteous anger, then, shoving our desire under a rug or ignoring injustice?
Is it playing nice and downplaying an offense?
Not at all.
It is critical for our souls to acknowledge that all is not right in this world. The Psalms are full of laments and questions directed toward God. A re-orienting of the direction of our anger, however, is needed. To be righteous in our anger is to reflect God, whose anger is always directed at sin and darkness.

Looking to God in our anger, we also wait on His timing to show His character.
Psalm 37:7-8 begs, “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.”

We must acknowledge our anger honestly before God, acknowledging our inability to make things right. Psalm 4:4 tells us to “Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.”
This is counterintuitive and uncomfortable.
It can also feel incapacitating.
Yet this is exactly where God wants us:
running to Him in our anger and crying out for His action.

Allender and Longmann explain,
“Righteous anger warns, invites, and wounds for the greater work of redemption.
It is full of strength that is neither defensive nor vindictive, and it is
permeated by a sadness that is rich in desire and hope…..
righteous anger allows the offense to be seen as an issue between the offender and God.” 

Is your anger permeated by sadness over sin and rich in desire for God’s holiness?
Or is it a short fuse connected to the hope of your own desires?

When I slammed my hand down in exasperation on my kitchen faucet, I wasn’t thinking about the greater redemption of my son, nor was I full of hope. I was mad and wanted to end the struggle.
But God has more for our anger.
He desires to use us to bring about His greater work of redemption.
As we submit to His Spirit, He will do this through us!

Lastly, consider God’s example.
We deserve His full wrath because of our sin,
but instead received mercy and grace.
God poured out His fury upon His perfect Son, who paid the punishment for you and me.
God’s wrath was satisfied, His holy standard maintained.

Father thank you for your grace.
Use our anger to point us to your holiness, righteous fury, and redemptive work.
Help us embrace utter dependency as we wait on you to make all things new and right.

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Don’t miss today’s Digging Deeper!     And we’d love to hear your thoughts from today’s Journey!    Comment Here!

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Character Week One! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!
Click the above image for today’s Digging Deeper!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Character!

Character Day 3 Jealous God

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Exodus 20:1-21
John 3:16
Philippians 2:1-11

Character, Day 3

I see the word jealous and I think bad, wrong, sinful.  The word should never be a word that describes my heart or my mind, much less God!  I think of all the times that my mom told me as a teenager not to be jealous or those times in my own mind I was warned of the green-eyed monster of jealousy rearing its ugly head. There are even children’s song that give admonition against the sin of jealously.

However, in this case, when it comes to God and His character,
jealousy doesn’t hold the same connotation.
There is nothing evil, nothing sinful, about God.
So, having a jealous God must be something righteous.
The jealousy of God is a characteristic of His, just like love or faithfulness, that He cannot deny about Himself.
So, what does it mean that God is jealous?
And why does it matter?

 

What does it mean that God is jealous?
Abba Father who longs so deeply to be deeply rooted in each of our lives fights for us.
He battles our battles,
He weeps when we weep,
and He rejoices when His children rejoice.
This same God desires so deeply that not one of His little sheep be apart from Him.
He covets our time, our hearts, our life, our all.
He wants all of us.

He is jealous of those things that steal our time, our precious God-given time.
When we commit to His ways, it is not something to take lightly.
NO!
He wants us to be who He created us to be which goes against the very culture and fallen world we live in.

Since the Fall, when sin entered the world through Adam and Eve, God has fought to redeem His people so much so that He willingly sent His son to die on the cross to make the wrongs of humanity right (John 3:16, Romans 5:12-21).
He pursues every nook of our heart and speaks redemption over our darkest parts. In that process, He wants nothing to replace Him as being Sovereign of our life. He is jealous of all things that we put before Him.

Our time,
our possessions,
our finances,
our jobs,
our children,
our ministries….the list could go on!
It includes anything in our life that replaces His Lordship.

Don’t be mistaken in thinking God’s characteristic of jealousy falls under the same definition of jealousy like the world.
The world’s jealousy shrivels and eats at the heart and mind.
No, His jealously is a righteous one calling us back to our first love.
Calling us back to our Creator, our Father, our Savior, and our Lord.
Righteous jealously seeks after and pursues even the one lost sheep, the prodigal son, and the wayward woman at the well.
A jealous God seeks to restore relationship,
redeem the time, and
radically transform the lives of those that allow it,
because of His great love for us!

So why does it matter?
It matters because if God didn’t care…He wouldn’t care!
Silly sentence, I know, but our faith apart from God intimately caring about His creation and desiring a relationship with us, with me, is nothing.
Our faith, without a jealous God who cares enough to refuse to leave us in our sin and shame, means I am, we are, lost for all eternity.
God seeks after His Bride, the Church, and desires she not play the harlot anymore.

Just as we read throughout the Old Testament, the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people, were told as part of the 10 Commandments in Exodus 20:5, stop messing around with other gods (little g, no power, not the real thing gods) and know that I am jealous for you and I AM the One True God!
This was both a message of love, but also a condemnation of behavior and a warning to return or suffer the consequences of living apart from the Lord.
God wants everything we do to look like Him (Philippians 2:5).
It matters because the God we serve is holy and full of truth.
His jealousy comes when we allow the things in our personal worlds to crowd Him out.
He is jealous for that space!
He wants all of our space and desires for nothing less than things of eternal value that put His glory on display. When our hearts are fully delighting in the love of the God who jealously pursues us, our hearts are unleashed for abundance!

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Character Week One! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Character!

Chase Day 7 Chasing Anger: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days...are a pretty big deal at GT!

We search God's Word together, ask questions as we read, dig around to find the original intentions at the time of writing, and then make some applications to our everyday lives.
Along the way, we hope you'll pick up some new tools to study Scripture and you'll see truth in a new and accessible way!
Dig In!

The Passage

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James 1:19-21 Christian Standard Bible (CSB)

My dear brothers and sisters, understand this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger, 20 for human anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness. 21 Therefore, ridding yourselves of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent, humbly receive the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

The Questions

1) How are listening, speaking, and anger related?

2) Is human anger different from God’s anger?

3) What produces the righteousness of God?

The Findings for Intention

1) How are listening, speaking, and anger related?
Cross references are incredibly helpful tools for students of the Bible. Others have already done all the hard work to connect the same word or same usage of that word to other similar usages/phrases in the Bible. The cross-references for “anger” in verse 21 lead us to several passages; consider this one from Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 or here from Proverbs 4:23-27. Both of these references (and many more) teach that our outward actions, words, and emotions are rooted directly to our hearts. How we listen and how we speak, are barometers for the condition of our hearts. Jesus talks about this in Luke 6:45 saying, “…out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” The book of James as a whole is about training in the disciplines of godly living that honors God with our whole life. One of these is the discipline of the tongue. To safeguard against anger, James teaches us to train our tongue as well as our ears. Slow. Slow. Slow. Slow to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger will do much for our training in godliness.  See also James 3:1-12 for more on this disciplined training!

2) Is human anger different from God’s anger?
So Much Yes! James makes a clear distinction here to help us see the difference. Man’s anger doesn’t bring about the righteousness of God, and the opposite is true as well. God’s anger does bring about His righteousness. When we become angry and let it spew unbridled from our tongue, and when, because of anger, we stop listening, only jumping in to defend ourselves, we will never bring about God’s righteousness in our relationships. Instead, relationships are broken and we recklessly hurt others with our words (Proverbs 12:18). God’s anger is a righteous anger over sin in the lives of His beloved children. His anger is purposeful with a heart of love behind it, a love that is pursuing a relationship of intimacy with us. Our anger? It rarely comes from a heart of love for the other person. Though, sometimes our anger can indeed have pure motives, but Paul warns us, “In your anger, do not sin.” (Ephesians 4:26)

3) What produces the righteousness of God?
In verse 21, we see “therefore”, which should be read “in light of” or “because our anger doesn’t produce God’s righteousness, and we are called to holy, righteous living, combat that anger with these”: “put away all filthiness, all rampant wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word.” That “word” is the freeing gospel of Jesus Christ, knowing that we were helpless to create righteousness on our own, Jesus became righteousness for us on our behalf! (2 Corinthians 5:21) None of this discipline training is possible without this full-hearted embrace of the freeing gospel! But James is quick to insist, “be doers of the word and not just hearers only.” Embrace the word of the free gospel, but link arms with “Faith” and “Obedience” and follow closely as you train in godliness.

The Everyday Application

1) How are listening, speaking, and anger related?
In our culture, we spend a lot of time disciplining our bodies and training them to excel at the best with food and fitness. Have you ever considered what it would look like to train and discipline our hearts? After all, it’s only our souls that will last into eternity, not our bodies. Consider beginning some heart-training for godliness in the arena of your ears, your tongue, and the anger inside. Ask the Holy Spirit for His help to grow you and to help you reach for grace instead of anger. When we listen, let’s be intentional and slow down to really hear (not distracted hearing). When we choose to speak, let’s choose our words carefully and slowly. When in doubt, give the benefit of the doubt! Don’t think the worst of the other person, instead, extend grace and ask for clarification. It’s hard! Don’t be discouraged, training and discipline is hard work with great reward! When in doubt, give the benefit of the doubt! Don’t think the worst of the other person, instead, extend grace and ask for clarification.

2) Is human anger different from God’s anger?
When we’re speaking with non-believers, we want to share His love. Our words and actions need to be in alignment to do that effectively. The listener will not receive our words well if we are shouting at them about how wrong they are or even how much they annoy us; they will only walk out of our lives. Keeping our anger in check allows for even more conversation with our sisters to transpire. Reflecting on God’s holy anger over our sin can be a source of encouragement to be broken over the sin in our life instead of turning a blind eye to that sin.

3) What produces the righteousness of God?
If we put our faith in the King of Kings, the Mighty One, the Prince of Peace, our lives will be changed forever. The Holy Spirit is in the business of transforming lives by leading us into things that sharpen us and let us reflect the Son even better. After experiencing that initial transformation, we have begun to produce the righteousness of God in our lives. As that takes root and begins to bear fruit, our faith is deepened and God’s righteousness is on display even brighter. It throws us into a beautiful cycle, for His glory on display for the world to see!

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*Written by Michelle Promise and Rebecca Adams

I Can Do That!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read through it (always more than a verse or two).
3) Write down your questions as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God in your everyday!

The Community!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into
Chase Week Two!
Don’t miss out on the discussion. 
We’d love to hear your thoughts!

The Tools!

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources.  Just type in the verse you’re looking at and Boom! It’s right in front of you in English and Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament), which are the original languages the Bible was written in.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want to get more background on a word or phrasing or passage? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

The Why!

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus.
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Chase Day 6 Chasing Anger

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Jonah 3:10
Jonah 4:1-3
Ephesians 4:26-31
James 1:19-20

Anger.

The word alone carries all kinds of negative connotations.
None of us want to admit that we struggle with the feeling, but I’m willing to bet most of us wrestle with it far more than we’d like to admit.
I know I do.
It’s funny, because until tasked with writing this piece, I didn’t fully realize that I was even dealing with anger. When asked to take on the topic of Jonah’s anger, I quickly agreed.
“Sure, I can write about anger,” I thought to myself.
“I don’t really relate to it, but I can write about it.”
I can almost hear God chuckling to Himself as I recount my thoughts to you now. Not in a spiteful way, but more of an “Oh, Child. You have so much growth ahead of you. Take My hand, I’ll walk you through it,” kind of way.

Allow me to set the stage for you. Jonah had run from God in an attempt to escape obedience. After a tumultuous boat ride, a swift kick overboard, and three days and nights in the belly of the giant fish, he was puked out onto dry land and finally chose to obey God. He traveled a great distance (by foot) to Nineveh, where he warned the people that their sin had angered God and destruction was nigh.

Let’s pause here.

I wonder what our old pal Jonah expected at that point. I wonder if he mostly expected them to jeer and ridicule him for his message. Was he expecting tomatoes and stones to be thrown in his direction? I wonder if that’s why he ran – because he didn’t want to deal with their rejection in the face of his message. Was he afraid? (I mean, none of us have ever felt that way…Right?)

I wonder if he thought they’d keep on partying and sinning away until God flattened their town. But the people of Nineveh were distraught at the delivery of his message.
They were convicted and turned from their sin. Instead of hurling shouts and insults at Jonah, they began to fast and pray. Then, their king found out…and joined them.

The New Living Translation puts it like this (Jonah 3:10 and 4:1):
When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, He changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction He had threatened. This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry.

Ya’ll? Can we be real for a minute?
We don’t like it when our plans get changed.
Yes, we know that God is in control.
Yes, we profess that we want our plans to mirror His…but let’s be honest.
Don’t we also hold fast to a (perceived) secret contingency that we want our plans to mirror His…so long as His plans mirror ours?

The Word tells us that “This change of plans greatly upset Jonah, and he became very angry.

Truth?
This may as well have been written about me. And maybe you, too?
Think about the last time plans were changed on you. Were you graceful and did you roll with it? I wasn’t, and I didn’t.
The change of plans greatly upset me, and I became very angry.

Jonah was downright frustrated. I get it.
The dude didn’t want to go to Nineveh to begin with.
He tried to run, but God chased him.
He spent three days and nights in the belly of a disgusting fish.
Then, he was vomited out…Ick.

Jonah finally obeyed, only to find himself hoofing it the long distance to Nineveh…where he finally delivered the message of impending destruction…only to find that God had decided to show mercy instead! After all of that!

Can you claim you wouldn’t have wrestled anger, or at the very least, frustration in that instance? I’m not sure I can.

What I love about this so much is that in the face of Jonah’s unrighteous anger, God doesn’t smite him down or “put him in his place.” Instead, He responds with a quiet question:
Is it right for you to be angry about this?

Isn’t that just His gentle way?
Of course, it was wrong of Jonah to be angry.
But rather than ridicule him or call him out for being petty, our loving Father encourages introspection. He leads Jonah to Truth, but doesn’t force it on him.
And He does the same for us.

We have a choice to make when our day doesn’t go our way,
when our health isn’t what we envisioned,
when our spouse doesn’t respond the way we wanted,
when our children make choices we hoped they wouldn’t,
when our life doesn’t look as we imagined.
We can choose to respond in anger,
or we can pause and give thanks for God’s sovereignty in our life.

We all feel anger sometimes.
God created the capacity for anger within us, and it would be foolish to pretend like we don’t experience that feeling. But He also placed His Spirit within us when we accepted Christ, and as a new creation in Him, we are held to a higher standard.

As we move forward, let’s recognize the moments when our anger begins to flare and imagine that God were asking us the same question He asked Jonah:
Is it right for you to be angry about this?

Let’s choose to chase Him rather than anger!

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Chase Week Two! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Chase!