Identity

Sketched X Day 13 Dinner & Identity

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Genesis 43:15-45:15
John 14:9-11
John 13:1-17
Luke 24:13-35

Sketched X, Day 13

After all this time….
Thirteen years (Genesis 37:2, Genesis 41:46) spent wondering what would become of me. Years of wondering what had become of those who had sold me into slavery – you, my half-brothers. (Genesis 37:12-28) Now here you are, back for more grain. (Genesis 43:1-14)

This time I won’t be rough with you as I was at your last visit when I desperately needed to know if your hearts had truly repented. (Genesis 42:9-20) Instead, I will continue to show kindness like I did as you returned home to our father. (Genesis 42:25-26)
I will instruct my servant to invite you to the noon meal. 

I see my brother Benjamin (Genesis 35:24) has returned with you, as I had previously instructed. (Genesis 42:20) How my heart is both joyful and heavy. I missed so much of his life while I served Potiphar and sat in prison. (Genesis 39, Genesis 41:1) O Benjamin! Let me retreat to my room as I am overwhelmed to see him as a mature young man. (Genesis 43:30)

I want to reveal myself to you, my brothers, on this visit, but I also want to continue to test your hearts. You were honest with my servant about the money I returned to you, and you gave more care to Benjamin on the journey here than you did to me that fateful day. Maybe you have learned. But how will you handle favor? Will you be jealous, like you were when our father favored me with the coat? (Genesis 37:3-4) Let us see.

First I arranged you in birth order. (Genesis 43:33) I knew that would alarm you. Then I gave my brother Benjamin five times more food and drink than the others.
But you did not get upset and for that I was overjoyed. (Genesis 44:34)
I enjoyed my time with you, but I needed to prepare for my final test. Well, not my final test, but Yahweh’s. It is He who is guiding and obstructing me in how I deal with you brothers.

As you left to return to our father, I sent my servant after you to accuse you of thievery. (Genesis 44:1-2) Many would think you are thieves, stealing my freedom and so many years of my life. But you stole nothing. Not this day, nor the day you sold me into slavery. It was all part of God’s plan, and I intended to share this truth with you if you passed my final test.

When my servant stopped you and found the cup in Benjamin’s bag I had placed there, you returned to me, not angry and indignant, but humble! You fell to the ground and bowed before me, (Genesis 44:1-14) just like in the dream that made you hate me enough to sell me. (Genesis 37:5-11) In that moment, you were more humble than I had been when I shared the dream.

And then Judah. O Judah! You mentioned I was dead, but I was not. I was right before you. But despite still holding onto that story of what happened to me, you, above all, amazed me. You came to me with humility, a sense of responsibility and dare I say love and compassion. (Genesis 44:18-34)

You offered your very life for my brother Benjamin. You offered your life to prevent our father from any further grief. I saw none of that before, but now, now, my brother, I see the change. You passed my test. All of you passed.

Now, I weep as I reveal myself to you brothers. Yes, I tricked you, but it wasn’t done in vengeance or hate. I sense your worry, but I say to you, “…don’t be grieved or angry with yourselves for selling me here, because God sent me ahead of you to preserve life.” (Genesis 45:5) Brothers, I love you in spite of your actions.

And now, I await your return with my father, Israel. How I have missed him! How I have missed all of you! My soul rejoices for the plans of Yahweh, for they are always true and right. Now hurry my brothers and bring our father to Egypt, where he will be well cared for and Yahweh will be glorified.

John: Joseph invited his brothers to a meal to reveal who he was. We see Jesus openly reveal who He is at a meal, but without any trickery in John 14. Joseph used trickery to confirm his brothers’ heart intentions, but Jesus had no need for such tactics. He simply served them humbly and lovingly by washing His disciples’ feet. (John 13:1-17)

Cleopas: Joseph went to great lengths to reveal to his brothers who he was, with the big reveal at the noon meal. I wonder if they sensed it before he told them? As I walked the road to Emmaus, I felt something, a recognition. But it was at the meal that He, Jesus, fully revealed Himself. And it was my great privilege to truly see the God who keeps on revealing Himself to humanity through our telling of Him. (Luke 24:13-35)

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A Note About Sketched
In this series, we are stepping into the shoes of various characters throughout history. Some are biblical, some are well-known in modern day times, and some are people our writers know personally. We do our best to research the culture and times surrounding these individuals to give an accurate representation of their first-person perspectives on life and the world, but we can’t be 100% accurate. “Sketched” is our best interpretation of how these characters view(ed) God, themselves, and the world around them. Our hope is that by stepping into their everyday, we will see our own lives a little differently!
Enjoy!
And keep watching for Sketched Themes to pop up throughout the year!

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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 Sketched X Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

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Here’s a link to all past studies in Sketched X!

Whole Day 1 The Broken & The Cure

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Genesis 3
1Corinthians 15:45-49
Mark 5:21-43
John 8:1-11
Acts 9:1-16

Whole, Day 1

I sat on the floor of my closet, squeezed between an overflowing laundry hamper and a stack of neatly stored shoes. Tears streamed down my face. Maybe if I couldn’t see the brokenness, it wouldn’t be real? With the lights off and the door closed, I hoped to find an escape from the wave of emotions threatening to take me under. I was broken, in need of mending.

What makes you want to run and hide, blinded by unbidden tears? While it’s likely different for each of us, brokenness is something we all experience. Sitting in the dark doesn’t make it go away, because it knows how to burrow inside of us.

Sickness, disease, family feuds, a broken marriage, a wandering child, addiction, death, war, hate. It’s all here in our world. In the muck of life, amid the hard and the heavy, who is suitable to hold our tears?

When God created the world, He made it perfect and whole. Humanity revealed its weakness when the first Adam leaned into the Great Deceiver’s carefully crafted deception. (Genesis 3:1-7) The moment Adam and Eve chose themselves over God, the world became twisted, wraithlike, shadowed. Broken.

Before we get too consumed by righteous indignation at Adam and Eve, how often do we still fall for the lie God is withholding something good from us?

Similar to our beeline to our closets, the first Adam ran and hid. (Genesis 3:8) Maybe he, too, hoped the brokenness wouldn’t catch up to him? In His love and goodness, God didn’t leave Adam hiding under the inadequate covering he created. (Genesis 3:9-21) God sought him out and provided a suitable replacement.

God hasn’t left us in our brokenness, either. He’s provided a covering for us, as well. Jesus, referred to as the second Adam, would enter our brokenness and live out the perfect life sinful humanity could not.

“So it is written: The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.” (1 Corinthians 15:45)

In His final days, he was betrayed, abandoned by those who claimed to love Him, mocked, beaten, and eventually crucified. (John 19)

He lived the life we couldn’t live
and died the death we deserved
and made a way back to the Father we could never have forged.

Over His head on the cross hung the words “King of the Jews”. (John 19:19) While this placard was tacked up in mockery, it proclaimed a haunting truth: the Jews’ long-awaited King hung on a cross, dying in front of them, at their demand.

God’s refusal to withhold anything good from His children, even Himself, was displayed that day, hoisted high on a bloody cross for all to see. Yet, they missed it. How often, amid our brokenness, do we miss the goodness of God so clearly in front of us?

It doesn’t matter who we are, our status in life, where we live, our education level, or what we’ve done, our greatest need is to know the One who made a way out of brokenness and into wholeness with Him.

When Jesus walked the earth, time and again He brought wholeness from that which was broken. When he delivered two demon-possessed men, he demonstrated authority over darkness and evil. (Matthew 8:28-34) When he healed Jairus’ daughter, He revealed His power over sickness and death. (Mark 5:21-43)

Jesus touched those whom others refused to touch, and He permitted the untouchables to touch Him. (Mark 5:25-34) He welcomed sinners, withheld condemnation, and forgave sins. (John 8:1-11) He redeemed a chief sinner into a chief messenger of the Gospel (Acts 9:1-29), showing us Jesus can change even a once-murderous heart and use it for great good.

When life hurts, when the world is unfair, when we fail, when evil is rising,
we have a place to run – the cross.
We have a place to hide – Jesus.
He is the One who willingly holds our tears. (Psalm 56:8)
He turns closet floors into prayer rooms, hiding places into healing spaces.

Our Savior understands our weakness, our brokenness. He knows what it’s like to be human.

“For we do not have a high priest [Jesus] who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin. Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.”
(Hebrews 4:15-16)

Through His death and resurrection, He has made a way to restore our brokenness into wholeness.

*Written by Mandie Maass of Brave Girls Gather

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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!

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The GT Weekend! ~ Sketched IX Week 2

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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) When Peter saw the beggar at the gate, he saw a man in need. It was apparent to all who saw him that this beggar had a physical problem which could only be fixed by divine healing. Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, satisfied his need for physical healing, but he didn’t stop there! Peter invited everyone who saw this man’s healing to receive healing for their hearts. Because of Peter’s own experience, he knew their spiritual need was much more pressing than any physical need. Peter did not sweep their wrongdoings under the rug, but neither did he withhold mercy from them because of their sin. Peter told the crowds the good news of Jesus, inviting them to repent and find true healing for their hearts. What about you? Have you repented of your sins? Have you trusted in Jesus for spiritual healing? If not, what is holding you back? If you have received this healing, have you shared it with others? When we are healed from our physical ailments, we are quick to share with others our good news. Who can you tell today about your spiritual healing? Consider sharing your story with a neighbor, coworker, or even your social media friends. Go forth walking, and leaping, and praising God!

2) What drives you? Doubt? Fear? Passion? Truth? When Jesus calls you, how do you answer? When the world asks why you call yourself a Christian, how do you respond? Who do you say Jesus is? Peter walked with Jesus, answering His call day in and day out. Peter declared the truth of Jesus’ identity, and then denied Him. But in the end, Peter risked his very life to proclaim the Good News that Jesus is the Messiah, the Healer of the world. As you look at your life, are you walking with Jesus? Do you know who He is? Are you obeying His call on your life, and declaring His name to the people around you? Take some time today to write down who Jesus is to you. Look to Scripture to see what it reveals about His identity and how this lines up with your definition. Then, consider how His identity can change you. What does it mean to follow Jesus, and how can you grow in your walk with Him? Write a prayer to God asking Him to help you grow in your understanding of Jesus, and in your ability to follow His leading.

3) In yesterday’s journey, we were reminded of Peter’s continual struggle to obey. Even after walking with Jesus, seeing Him resurrected, and hearing directly from the Holy Spirit what was expected of him, Peter fell short. Part of living in a broken world is falling short of perfection. We desire to follow Jesus and we long to serve Him faithfully, but our human nature holds us back from perfect obedience. I read recently that the Holy Spirit enables us to obey, but He does not do the work for us. James 2:17 tells us “faith, if it doesn’t have works, is dead by itself.” Where in your life are you struggling to obey God? Is there an issue in your life where you are putting your trust in earthly wisdom or the approval of others rather than trusting God’s way? Write a prayer of confession to God, and ask Him to enable you to trust Him and be obedient. Then take a step towards obedience. Maybe obedience looks like giving more generously to your church or having a hard conversation with a friend or family member. Whatever it is, show you believe God by walking in obedience to Him.

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 Isaiah 53:4-6 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

Yet He himself bore our sicknesses,
and He carried our pains;
but we in turn regarded Him stricken,
struck down by God, and afflicted.
But He was pierced because of our rebellion,
crushed because of our iniquities;
punishment for our peace was on Him,
and we are healed by His wounds.
We all went astray like sheep;
we all have turned to our own way;
and the Lord has punished Him
for the iniquity of us all.

Prayer Journal
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your word. Thank You for telling us the true stories of Your followers. How comforting to know I am not alone in my struggles to follow You. As I consider the life of Peter, I see a man who was excited and ambitious to follow You, but still fell short. He wanted to obey, and even did miracles in Your name, but he was not a perfect man. Thank you for showing us that Your love for us is never ending. Help me to walk in obedience to You. I know on my own, I cannot follow or obey You. Lord, I believe in You. I believe Your plans are better than mine. Come and heal my heart. Transform me into a person who is driven by obedience and love for You. And when I fall short, as I often do, remind me of Your great love and compassion. Enable me to show Your love and compassion to those around me. Please help me to obey Your commands and to love my neighbor as myself.

Worship Through Community

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Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

Word Day 8 It Is I Am

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Read His Words Before Ours!

John 6:16-21
Exodus 3:11-15
Isaiah 26:3-4
John 1:1-5
John 10:27-30

Word, Day 8

I can only imagine the disciples’ terror as the “high wind arose, and the sea began to churn.” (John 6:18)

When they set sail, the lake was calm, but in the darkness, far from shore, they were suddenly caught in a ferocious storm. As they battled against the wind and waves, they must have been in a desperate state. Perhaps they wondered if they would survive.

Have you ever been caught in a storm?

I’m fortunate to never have an experience like the disciples of being out in a boat in such a fierce storm, but I can certainly identify with their fear.

We all experience storms in life through challenges, disappointment, and suffering when life feels out of control just as it did for the disciples. We, too, can feel like we’re battered by the waves and desperately straining to find a way through the chaos back onto solid ground.

At moments like these, it’s very easy for circumstance and fear to overwhelm us.

Into the midst of the disciples’ fear and panic came a figure walking on water. I imagine this sight only deepened their terror until they heard the comforting call of a familiar voice, “It is I. Don’t be afraid.” (John 6:20)

The storm still raged as waves continued rolling, but Jesus invited His disciples into a space without fear. The tumultuous seas had not calmed, but Christ was present.

The Greek words translated “It is I,” in John 6:20 are “ego eimi,” which literally means, “I am.”

I am.
Don’t be afraid.

These words are reminiscent of Moses’ encounter recorded in the Old Testament. While he wasn’t caught in a physical storm, he was catapulted into a similar state of overwhelming fear. When God appeared to Moses in a burning bush, calling him away from his comforts to lead the Israelites to freedom from slavery in Egypt, Moses’ first response was, “I can’t.”  (Exodus 4:13)

He felt inadequate. (Exodus 3:11)
He was not skilled at speaking. (Exodus 4:10)
Surely, no one would listen to him. (Exodus 4:1)
Who was he to take on this momentous task? (Exodus 3:11)

The reassurance God spoke to him was not to encourage Moses that he really had all the skills required within him to pull it off. Instead, the Lord God simply promised, “I will certainly be with you.” (Exodus 3:12)

Still unsure, Moses asked for God’s name; on whose authority could Moses point to when coming up against the rulers of Egypt. To which, “God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.”” (Exodus 3:14)

I AM – two very small words with an incredibly powerful meaning.

I love the explanation provided by Compelling Truth:

“With this statement, God declared that He is self-existent, eternal, self-sufficient, self-directed, and unchanging. But this statement also declared that He is present.”

This truth was exactly what Moses needed to give him the courage to approach Pharaoh. This Name was precisely what the disciples needed in their boat on a stormy sea.
The storm didn’t need to cease, their faith needed an anchor in the all-powerful Name of the Great I Am.

For every storm we face, this truth remains for us, meeting us exactly where we are to provide precisely what we need, His presence.

If we have put our trust in Jesus, then the almighty, eternal God who created the universe, and holds all power over darkness is with us. We are secure in Him and nothing can snatch us from His hand. (John 10:28)

The more we get to know God and grasp this truth, the more we are changed.
Our circumstances may remain the same, but we are transformed.

Only a few short years after that night on the lake, the disciples displayed amazing courage and boldness in speaking out for Jesus. They were even willing to face death rather than renounce their faith in “I AM” or stop telling others of His mighty rescue of their souls. By this time, they had witnessed Jesus’ crucifixion as He took on the punishment each of us rightfully deserves because of our sin. They had seen Christ breathe His last, be buried, and then prove Death powerless as He was resurrected from the grave.

Because they knew Him more,
they trusted Him more.

They were willing to surrender their lives if required;
they knew He was worth it.

What about us?
Will we allow ourselves to be transformed as we come to know Him more?

We may not have a choice about our circumstances, but we do have a choice about where we place our trust.

Isaiah reminds us of the peace that’s possible if we can lift our eyes from our circumstances to gaze on God:

“You will keep the mind that is dependent on You in perfect peace, for it is trusting in You. Trust in the Lord forever, because in the Lord, the Lord himself, is an everlasting rock!” (Isaiah 26:3-4)

Whatever challenges you’re facing, big or small, whether you’re caught in a storm like the disciples or facing a daunting task like Moses, may you know God is with you, and may you quiet yourself to hear Him speak:

“It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

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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 Word 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 Word!

Fervent Day 9 When All Seems Lost: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out When All Seems Lost!

The Questions

1) What is our identity as believers? How Does Living “in Ephesus” and “in Christ” affect identity? (verse 1)

2) What are the spiritual blessings we have in Christ? (verse 3)

3) How do these blessings in Christ bring hope? (verse 18)

Ephesians 1

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will:
To the faithful saints in Christ Jesus at Ephesus.

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him. 5 He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ for himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace that he lavished on us in the Beloved One.

7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 He made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he purposed in Christ 10 as a plan for the right time —to bring everything together in Christ, both things in heaven and things on earth in him.

11 In him we have also received an inheritance, because we were predestined according to the plan of the one who works out everything in agreement with the purpose of his will, 12 so that we who had already put our hope in Christ might bring praise to his glory.

13 In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed. 14 The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory.

15 This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the mighty working of his strength.

20 He exercised this power in Christ by raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens— 21 far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he subjected everything under his feet and appointed him as head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.

Original Intent

1) What is our identity as believers? How Does Living “in Ephesus” and “in Christ” affect identity? (verse 1)
Our identity is often connected with our basic core values which then dictate the choices we make (e.g., relationships, career). Where we live and how we grew up are also tied to our identity; this was also true for the Ephesians. “The ancient city of Ephesus was the third-largest city in the Roman empire. Located on the southwestern corner of modern-day Turkey, Ephesus was a busy port city. It was the hub of four major roads going out into Asia Minor. In addition to being a commercial center, it was the link between Rome and the East. This unique position made it a diverse city of multiple ethnic groups. Ancient Ephesus was home to the temple of the Greek goddess Artemis (or Diana to the Romans). Artemis was the goddess of fertility, magic, and animals. The temple built in Ephesus was considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, with a size that was four times as large as the Parthenon! …  Tradesmen made their living selling silver statues of the goddess. The Ephesians had a vast array of gods and goddesses to choose from and they worshiped many of them.” [First 5 Bible Studies in Ephesians] In contrast to this pagan world, Paul brought the Gospel to the Ephesians. Those who trusted Jesus were given a new identity in Christ. They no longer served other gods or worshiped idols like other citizens of Ephesus. Being “in Christ” meant more than a way of worship. They were set apart; taken out of the world and placed in Christ. Their faith gave them freedom from the slavery of sin which was all around them. They had a new citizenship in heaven. Ephesus was no longer their home! They were “in Christ”.

2) What are the spiritual blessings we have in Christ? (verse 3)
All who surrender to Jesus are redeemed. The ancient Greek word for redemption is lootruo meaning “to liberate on the receipt of a ransom.” (Gaebelein) Our sin incurred a debt, the price of death according to Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Christ paid the punishment for our sins through His death on the cross. We are accepted (chariot meaning “highly favored” or “full of grace”) because of Christ’s work to redeem us. God chose us before the foundation of the world before we did anything for Him, and He offers His grace to all willing to accept Him. (verse 4) Strong’s Concordance says grace (xáris in Greek) means God is “always leaning toward (us)”. Can’t you see God leaning over the rails of heaven waiting for us to respond by accepting His wonderful gift? He adopted us as His own. (verse 5) In Roman law, “The person who had been adopted had all the rights of a legitimate son in his new family, completely losing all rights to his old family. Even old debts and obligations previously connected to him were abolished.” (Barclay) Gaebelein adds, “Believers in the Lord Jesus are not merely adopted into the family of God; they are born again. There is no “previous life”. Think about our old identity prior to salvation; what a relief to have all guilt and shame removed! David sang, “How joyful is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.” (Psalm 32:1-4) All believers have unspeakable spiritual riches! (verse 18) Considering Ephesus was the “bank of Asia”, it is significant that Paul mentions the believer’s wealth in Christ. Our bank is in heaven where the fullness of our glorious inheritance awaits! (See Warren Weirsbe’s Be Rich for a great resource on heavenly inheritance!)

3) How do these blessings in Christ bring hope? (verse 18)
When we accept Christ’s wonderful gift of salvation, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is like earnest money. His indwelling in a believer is the proof of God’s guarantee that He will follow through with His promise and bring us home to dwell with Him forever in Heaven. This is our confident hope! One glorious day we will be fully alive and free from the temptation to sin as we live eternally in God’s physical presence. We have a guaranteed inheritance through Jesus. Paul wanted the Ephesian believers to know the great magnitude of this rich inheritance in God’s people. We usually think only of our inheritance as salvation, righteousness, or Heaven, but Paul wanted the Ephesians to understand they were so precious to God that He considered them His own inheritance. Knowing our spiritual poverty, we wonder how God can find anything of value in us, let alone His only inheritance. Yet God creates unspeakable riches out of poor men and women because He invests Himself in them. He has invested riches of love, riches of wisdom, riches of suffering, riches of glory, and riches of holy transformation. These things accrue to a rich inheritance in the saints. (Enduring Word) He has invested Himself in us and His return on that investment will be magnificent!

Everyday Application

1) What is our identity as believers? How Does Living “in Ephesus” and “in Christ” affect identity? (verse 1)
My identity includes farmer’s daughter, baker of sweets, musician, computer programmer, and yes, a Yankee (I was born in Ohio, raised in Wisconsin). When I married Michael, I became a mother to two boys (9 & 14). My identity immediately changed from single working girl to pastor’s wife and mother while also transplanting to the south. My new family consisted of Georgia boys who rooted for the only ball team, the Georgia Bulldogs. Before long, we were expecting a child. Though we lived in Georgia, we chose a regional hospital just across the border of Tennessee to deliver our baby. I teasingly told the boys, “I didn’t want to have my baby in Georgia; thus, I was going over the state line to the birthing center in Tennessee.” Oh! We had fun joking about our baby’s identity. Now 29 years later, his blood runs Georgia red, as does mine! Our place of birth, our residence, our career, and environment we grew up in all play a role in how we identify ourselves. As Christians, however, our core identity is steeped in faith in Jesus. Those who have professed their faith in Christ are new creations! (1 Corinthians 5:17-21) We are citizens of heaven, but also ambassadors to the world around us. We are called to point others to the eternal life available only in Jesus! (Philippians 3:20, 2 Corinthians 5:11) We are on a journey to our true home and to bring along as many as possible. (1 Corinthians 9:19-27) Just like the church in Ephesus, all believers are a chosen people (Ephesians 1:4; 1 Peter 2:9-10); set apart for godliness and holiness as children of God. (Psalm 4:3, John 1:11-13) Can others see your full identity? Are you bringing as many as possible to heaven with you?

2) What are the spiritual blessings we have in Christ? (verse 3)
God’s unfolding plan for those who surrender to Him not only includes the blessings of salvation and personal transformation, but also a warm, confident relationship with the Father. (Guzik) My own earthly father was loving and caring who demonstrated God’s love. As a child, I loved to sit on Daddy’s lap or cuddle next to him. This comforting image of a good father has translated into my spiritual life. When I have a problem, I climb right into God’s lap and we talk about it. I am blessed to have this personal, confident relationship with the Father and it’s available to all! As His child, we can go before Him boldly because He is our loving Father. (Hebrews 4:14-16) Charles Spurgeon said, “We are not sitting here groaning, and crying, and fretting, and worrying, and questioning our own salvation. He has blessed us. If you think little of what God has done for you, you will do very little for him; but if you have a great notion of His great mercy to you, you will be greatly grateful to your gracious God.” (Enduring Word) When we realize His great mercy, we cannot help but “make every effort” to live holy and godly lives in worship toward Him through the power of the Holy Spirit. We are not only to praise God for what He has done, we are to live a wholly surrendered life before Him and share His glorious hope with others! (2 Peter 1:3-11) Honoring the Lord with our lives and sharing the gospel with those around us are to be marked with and woven through with love. Clarke reminds, “But as love is the fulfilling of the law, and love the fountain whence their salvation flowed, therefore love must fill their hearts towards God and each other.” Pray for opportunities to share the Gospel in love and be intentional in engaging with people as you point them to Jesus!

3) How do these blessings in Christ bring hope? (verse 18)
“Because of His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” (1 Peter 1:3-9) What a glorious hope we have! I urge you to read the entire passage in 1 Peter. No matter what we face in life, hope in Jesus is certain and sure, never fading away. This confident hope comes from the sealing of the Holy Spirit. We know, that we know, that we know, that God holds our lives and our souls for eternity, sustaining us through His Word. We can trust Him with eternity, with our next breath, our next celebration or tragedy; He will never change or abandon us. We can remind ourselves of His faithfulness by 1) reading accounts of His perfect timing in human history (see The Hall of Faith in Hebrews; look for “faithfulness” in the Psalms 66, 74, 80, 81, 89, 111, 114, 135, 136; read God With Us by Christoph Barth ); 2) read about His faithfulness to the apostles (The Acts of the Apostles); 3) and encourage one another about His faithfulness for all believers (Hebrews 10:23-25), including you! Holding tightly to our assured hope is hard, but if we keep a written record of God’s specific blessings, we can remind ourselves of His faithfulness when our faith is weak. In my own life, there have been many trials, but my hope is found in knowing God is faithful and never fails. I like to use Psalm 136 as a template to write my own blessings from God; repeating after each blessing, “His faithful love endures forever.” I pray you have this confident hope in Christ! It is yours by giving your life completely to Him. Leave everything in His hands and you will find peace, hope and security.

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Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
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!

Digging Deeper Community

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Our Current Study Theme!

This is Fervent Week Two!
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Why Dig Deeper?

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.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

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. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? 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 :-))

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Calling Day 6 For This Reason

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Ephesians 3:1-21
Ephesians 2:1-22
1 Peter 3:13-22

Calling, Day 6

For this reason.
These are the first three words in Ephesians 3.

Lean in, sisters. Paul is about to explain the motivation driving his life of incredibly challenging, incredibly impactful kingdom work.

What propelled him to get up after each beating?
What kept him going after shipwrecks?
What urged him to declare the Gospel with the same vigor he once used to attack the church?

For this reason.

Paul knew his why. And that made all the difference.

We discover Paul’s why by reading Ephesians 2. Read it aloud as if you were having a conversation with Paul, keeping in mind the passion saturating his words; this would not be a dull, emotionless speech!

Dear sisters, we share in Paul’s why:

We, too, were dead in our sins until God made us alive with Christ through grace, by faith.

We, too, were once far away from God, but have been lovingly brought near through Christ, who is our peace. (Ephesians 2:13-14) Upon His foundation, we too, together with all believers, are being built into God’s holy temple. (Ephesians 2:19-21)

For this reason, we, like Paul, can experience a similar desire to bow before the Lord, to humble ourselves at the awareness of all Christ has done for us. In this moment, overwhelmed with revelation of the mysterious love of our Father (Ephesians 3:1-7), the busyness and strife of the world around us fade away. The incessant cries for “Now and Must Do!” are wonderfully replaced with an eternal, holy urgency. This life shall pass away and we are assured we will spend eternity with Christ.
For this reason, we live with holy abandon!

But what about our co-workers, our neighbors, or the barista at our favorite coffee shop?

How can we share the good news,
the call from death to life,
and the Father’s heart longing to draw them near?

Are we willing to sacrifice our own comfort, or finances, or status
to invite the lost of our dying world into peace with God?

Paul told the church in Ephesus to not be discouraged over his afflictions on their behalf; he understood how his suffering would further God’s mission of sharing Jesus with the Gentiles.

Sharing the gospel will not be without sacrifice. It may be in the form of intense persecution, as Christians in some countries are currently experiencing. It may look like someone’s laughter after hearing the gospel. It could be a harsh “no” when asked to talk about Jesus. It might even just be the inconvenience of obedience when the Lord nudges us to hold the door for someone several steps behind us.

Regardless of what each day may bring, I desire to live with Paul’s boldness in pursuit of Christ and sharing Him with those around me. I want to trust so deeply in the Lord that even my levels of joy and peace in Him declare His goodness.

For this reason, I echo Paul’s prayer in verses 14-21, with an intense expectancy for the Lord to respond.
Will you join me, sisters?

Oh Lord, teach us to share the gift of the gospel with those around us. Strengthen us with power in our hearts through Your Spirit. Dwell within us and teach us how to love those around us. Help us comprehend Your love, which surpasses simple knowledge. 

Lord, You truly are able to do beyond what we can ask or imagine. May we live our lives for You and Your glory. Solidify our “why” within us and help us invite others to meet you wherever we go. 

Amen. 

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Treasure Day 8 The Gift Of Laboring

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Psalm 127:1-2
John 15:4-8
Colossians 1:16-18
Matthew 11:28-30

Treasure, Day 8

As treasures of God, created by and for Him,
we have been given the gift of work. 

Whether leading a corporation or a family, God has given each of us unique talents and opportunities to glorify Him and draw others to Himself. He has also provided guidelines to protect us and to help us learn to trust Him. As our Creator, God invites us into a working partnership, one in which He is both guide and co-laborer.

Psalm 127:1 explains,
“Unless the Lord builds the house,
the workers labor in vain who build the house;
Unless the Lord watches the city,
the watchmen watch in vain.”  

Our work should begin with God in mind.
Colossians 3:23 reminds us to do everything for the Lord. We are to seek Him first, allowing Him to guide our decisions and processes. When we do this, our priorities line up with His and we make decisions based on the principles He’s given His followers. Then, He can bless the work of our hands and we can step back and celebrate His work through us!

However, our identities can get tangled up in the work we do, instead of who God says we are.  When this happens, we become greedy, prideful, critical, and absent from those we love.

When we don’t view our work as God’s purposes through us, we begin micromanaging and hovering over every project instead of trusting those assigned to the work. Rather than working as a team, allowing all members to learn and thrive, decisions are made to feed the ego of the leader.

As we continue to find identity in our work,
we are consumed with busy-ness,
eventually neglecting regular meetings with our Father,
and further becoming enslaved to the success of the job to prove our worth.

We were made for work, but not for constant work.
Our bodies were made for a balance of work and rest. How kind of our Creator to model this for us! He spent six days creating, then spent the seventh day resting.

As God, He doesn’t need rest, but He showed us the importance of stepping back, seeing all we’ve done, and resting. As we practice regular Sabbath, lovingly given for our good, we demonstrate the trustworthiness of our God, who designs our work and holds all things together.

In addition, as Jesus modeled, we need to take time away daily to connect with the Lord, He who loves us best and in Whom we find our true identity. When we allow ourselves to be filled with Him first, the work we do is fueled with His purpose and energy.

As we consistently abide in Him, our work bears fruit as God intended, glorifying Him. He also reminds us how deeply He loves those we lead, and we learn how to lead them well.

Perhaps the greatest obstacle to getting time away from work is our devices. Our phones are no longer connected to the wall, but accompany us wherever we go, making us constantly, immediately accessible. With the ease of remote work comes the double-edged sword of always being “on” and consumed by work.

In addition, our devices make it all too easy to trade quietness and reflection in favor of unceasing preoccupation with social media or even games. Peeking at the screen “just this once” becomes an entire vacation lost, or a day with the family plunged into electronic isolation.

Be assured, sister, if you identify with any of this, you are not alone.

I am currently working to build limits for my own cell phone use and lack of true rest. Though I don’t work outside the home, I can get lost in the search for dinner ideas, recipes, or ways to more effectively manage my home.

The too-high cost is precious time with my family. I end up feeling more frustrated about my lack of productivity, lack of time to pursue creative outlets, or inability to rest and connect with Jesus. If you find yourself there as well, take heart and be reminded of Jesus’ words in Matthew 11:28-30,

“Come to me all you who are weak and weary,
and I will give you rest.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Our Savior knows we need rest.
The Holy Spirit gently reminds us true rest, like our true identity, is found in Him.
When we seek Him first, trusting Him with the details of the job, He is faithful to provide restoration to our weary souls as He blesses the work of our hands.

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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 Treasure 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 Treasure!

The GT Weekend! ~ Relentless Week 2

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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) “If the Lord is for us, then why has all of this happened to us?!” Gideon’s question hits all of us. If we are willing to be honest, then you know as well as I do, I’ve pleaded with the Lord over this query. I’m challenging you and me to be bold before the Lord and write out what our fill-in-the-blanks are for this question in relation to our own lives. “If the Lord is for me, why did my friend commit suicide? Why is my marriage so difficult? Why am I so weary?” Pray these to the Lord from a place of transparency and seek His solace and His answers over your own. Connect with a trusted, believing, friend in the next few days and share your thoughts, asking her to pray with you.

2)  Amy shared on Wednesday of times she had questioned God’s love for her, run from Him in anger, and have failed to follow Him. Take some time to write down, even if it’s on your phone’s notes, times when you have done the same. There is something powerful that happens in our hearts when we verbalize reality. As you take steps to be transparent with yourself, pray over these and bring them to the Lord. Tell Him honestly what you have questioned, why you were (or are) angry, and why you have run. Pray. Seek His Word, studying it as you pray for His Spirit to free you and show you His relentless love!

3)  We all like winning, don’t we? Reaching the goal, checking off that list, knowing we hit the target square on, we crave that win! Kendra reminded us yesterday that God always wins, meaning that His purposes cannot be thwarted and what He intends to accomplish, He will do. What would it look like if we abandoned our ideas of winning, and instead picked up the Lord’s? What if He became our source for strength and we shifted our eyes to see His win instead of our own? What radical difference might it make if we knew that whenever we aligned ourselves with His ways over ours, we would be assured His victory in His way and in His time?

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 Lamentations 3:22-24 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

22 Because of the Lord’s faithful love
we do not perish,
for his mercies never end.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness!
24 I say, “The Lord is my portion,
therefore I will put my hope in him.”

Prayer Journal
Because of Your love….I am here tonight to praise You, I held my babies tight today, I slept peacefully last night, I saw the sun this morning, and breathed in Your new morning mercies. Because of Your love, gracious, good Father! Your love is better than life itself! (Psalm 63:3) Teach me, on repeat, to view my days and moments and relationships and circumstances through the lens of “because of Your love” just like the psalmist wrote. Teach my lips to sing it, my hands to love with Your love, and my eyes to see with Your love. You alone are my portion, Oh God; how great is Your faithfulness!

Worship Through Community

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Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

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Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

Seeds Day 8 Stepping Into Identity

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Acts 7:54-60
Psalm 56:1-13
Ephesians 2:1-10

Seeds, Day 8

Have you ever seen one of those fundraisers where people pay a few dollars to take a sledgehammer and pound on a car destined for a junkyard? Strangely enough, this picture came to mind as I prayed about what to write. Ironically, that image has become a precious “trophy” in my mind.

Before you seriously begin to question how my brain is wired, let me take you back to one of the hardest seasons of my life.
(Feel free to question my wiring after that.) 😉

My senior year of college was a season of the sledgehammer in my life. After years of being an achiever, I suddenly found myself being told I did not measure up. In hindsight, I can see how so many different elements were in play:
lies of the enemy,
the reality of sinful people interacting (myself included),
and hard life lessons in general.

Regardless of the cocktail that led to the darkness of that year, I finished it battered in a way I had never experienced before. The majority of the hits centered around my identity.

Career
You will not succeed as a teacher.

Future
You’re graduating and have no set plans.

Home
Your family is in one state. You went to school in another. Uncertainty about where to live.

Relationship
You do not have a spouse or significant other.

I didn’t realize how so many of my identity markers were being removed in that season until I went to the wedding of a couple from my larger friend circle. At the time, my brother was dating a girl with my same first name. At the wedding, everyone began asking them when they would be getting married too. They all asked as though it were a foregone conclusion they would be the next couple to marry, and I suddenly faced the potential of no longer even having my name as part of my uniqueness. There would be another woman, in my family, with the same name.

Every major identity marker I could think of to distinguish myself to a new person felt like it had been pulled from my fingers. I remember telling my brother that very statement with tears streaming down my face. His response is forever imprinted on my mind and heart for I sensed both the love of the Lord and His reminder in his words. My brother replied that maybe, just maybe, the Lord had intentionally brought me to that place to prove that my identity is found in Him alone.

We were on the third floor balcony of a hotel and I distinctly remembering wanting to throw something off the edge when I heard those words, but I also felt all fight leave as well. This was truth spoken in love, and it became the foundation for such a grand adventure.

Large amounts of healing were still needed as I moved through that season, and I remember thinking my body and emotions had taken a beating (think fundraiser car with sledgehammer dents). However, I also recognized that my spirit and walk with the Lord had never been more alive.

The beating had left its marks, but I arose undefeated
for the Lord had carried me through it all.

In Scripture, Stephen demonstrated this reality long before my college experience, and His beating led to a literal death. His source of strength, however, shone through for the glory of the Lord. In Acts 6:8, Stephen is described as being full of grace and power evidenced through signs and wonders. He knew who he was in the Lord and he knew the Lord intimately. This was no mere acquaintance for whom he put his life on the line. Stephen’s source of strength resided deep within him and fortified his actions and faith.

So, my dear sister, while we may not walk the path of Stephen with the same level of physical persecution, we do face a daily choice to live from a similar place of identity and confidence.

What does that look like in your daily life?
What verses are imbedded in your heart and spirit that anchor your identity in Him?

Do you know that you are:
Fearfully and wonderfully made? (Psalm 139)
Called by name? (Isaiah 43:1-3)
An overcomer? (I John 5:4-5)
Forgiven? (1 John 1:9)
Seen? (Genesis 16:1-14)
Chosen? (John 15:16)

I am forever grateful for the season of having my identity deconstructed,
for it challenged me to build on the foundation of Christ alone.
I still need to remind myself of this truth and rest on the promises of who I am found in the Word, but I live with a confidence that, regardless of the battles faced,
the Lord is faithful and true. Christ in me results in victory.

Live, dear sister.
Live as Stephen did.
Live in the fullness of Christ and who He created you to be.
Step into your identity in Him.
For that is truly living.

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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 Seeds 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 Seeds!