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Sacrifice Day 5 Don’t Miss The Boat

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Genesis 6
Genesis 9
Joel 2:12-13
John 3:16-17
Revelation 21:3-5

Sacrifice, Day 5

Noah and his ark are infamous from infancy onward in American culture, from infants sleeping in rainbow-decorated nurseries to preschoolers scribbling pictures of the ark.

The rainbow reminds, “God keeps His promises.”

We focus on Noah and family safe in the ark, and feel warm and cozy.

We don’t want to consider people being washed away as waters sprang up from the earth while rains rushed down.

So, we make jokes like, “Need a boat? I NOAH guy.”

What happened in Genesis 6-9 is no laughing matter, and though it’s uncomfortable to discuss, I encourage you to stick this out. I pray as we study together today, we will marvel at the gracious faithfulness of God.

Let’s view this story from a VERY different perspective, GOD’s.

“When the Lord saw that human wickedness was widespread on the earth and that every inclination of the human mind was nothing but evil all the time, the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth, and he was deeply grieved.” (Genesis 6:5-6)

If we’ve ever loved someone deeply, we may understand how God felt. As a mother, my heart breaks when I see one of my children make a bad decision resulting in pain.

One of my favorite books is the Jesus Storybook Bible; I’m often moved to tears as I read to my kids. Lloyd-Jones does an EXCELLENT job of helping us see God’s heart overflowing with a “never stopping, never giving up, unbreaking, always and forever love” for each and every one of us.

From the moment sin first entered the world, God’s LOVE moved Him to act. Yes, He made Adam and Eve leave the garden, but not before He promised one day He would make right all that was wrong.

And from that day forward, God has been at work to restore His broken creation and redeem all that has been lost.

Noah’s cultural setting was grim, and ripe for redemption.

“God saw how corrupt the earth was, for every creature had corrupted its way on the earth. Then God said to Noah, ‘I am going to put an end to every creature, for the earth is filled with wickedness because of them[.]” (Genesis 6: 12-13)

God’s pain-filled heart knew His people would destroy themselves by their own wicked ways. Out of love, He stepped in to stop them.

Mercifully, BEFORE He carried out His just consequence of destruction, He told Noah of His rescue plan, and invited Noah to preach rescue to those around him. (2 Peter 2:5)

In the book of Joel, the prophet describes God’s unrelenting desire for His people to RETURN to Him.

“Even now–
This is the Lord’s declaration–
Turn to me with all your heart,
With fasting, weeping, and mourning.
Tear your hearts,
and not just your clothes,
And return to the Lord your God.
For he is gracious and compassionate,
Slow to anger and abounding in faithful love,
And he relents from sending disaster.” (Joel 2:12-13)

God WANTS us to choose Him.
But He never forces us to do so.
As Noah obediently built the ark, those around him continued to reject God’s call to return.
It’s as if we watch Psalm 14:1 unfold before our eyes:

“The fool says in his heart, ‘There’s no God.’
They are corrupt; they do vile deeds.
There is no one who does good.” 

Noah received God’s instruction to build a never-before-known ark, and he and his family spent years completing the project. (Genesis 6:14-22)

Perhaps God was giving the people more time to repent.

But no one did.

Finally, in the fullness of time, God’s final instructions came to Noah, “Enter the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you alone are righteous before me in this generation.” (Genesis 7:1)

Still, for seven more days, God waited. (Genesis 7:10)

Was He aching for someone, even one, to return to Him?

Just as we cannot plumb the depths of God’s love, we cannot know the expanse of His pain at our rejection. The time had come, the Lord’s hand closed the door to the ark, and the floodgates unleashed their justice. (Genesis 7:11-16)

Amidst the destruction, the prophet Joel reminds us God always longs for restoration.

We see evidence of this as finally, the waters recede, and Noah and his family, along with allllll the animals, set foot on dry land. (Genesis 8:15-19)

NOW comes the rainbow, and God’s promise to never again destroy the earth with a flood. (Genesis 9:12-17) Each time we see a rainbow, we can remember God is faithful.

We see His faithfulness and longing for restoration again when God Himself carried out the Ultimate Rescue Plan, sending Jesus to bear the penalty for OUR sins, dying so we could live. (John 3:16-17) He then rose from the dead, conquering sin and death forever!

Jesus has provided the way of salvation, extending His grace freely to all who will accept.

The choice is ours.

Noah’s story ended with a fresh earth and a rainbow, testifying to God’s faithfulness.

For all believers, our story on earth transitions to eternity, to a new heaven and earth where Christ Himself is enthroned with an un-ending rainbow. (Revelation 4:3)

From His throne, Christ declares, “Look, I am making everything new.” (Revelation 21:5)

If you haven’t trusted Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, please don’t miss the boat (pun intended). Reach out to someone TODAY and ask how you can be certain of spending eternity in God’s glorious presence.

I can’t wait to feel the warmth of His embrace!

More than anything, I would love for you to spend eternity with me, with JESUS!

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Reveal Day 5 The Longest Night

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Zephaniah 3:18-20
Malachi 4:1-6
Luke 1:26-38
Romans 5:6-8
Revelation 22:6-21

Reveal, Day 5

As I tossed and turned in an unfamiliar bed, it seemed like morning would never come.

I was tired, but sleep eluded me. Away from home for the first time, in a dorm filled with unfamiliar people, in darkness far deeper than I was accustomed to at home, it was impossible to settle.

After lying there, trying to sleep for what felt like hours, I finally grabbed my torch (that’s a flashlight for my American friends) I drew it under the covers so as not to disturb the others, and checked the time only to find, to my dismay, just twenty minutes had passed.

There were still hours to wait until morning . . .

The Israelites faced an even longer night.

Throughout the Old Testament, God promised a Messiah, a Saviour who would come to redeem and restore, who would deal with the problem of sin and provide a way back to closeness with God.

Zephaniah spoke of an end to oppression and shame, a gathering of God’s people who had been scattered, and the restoration of good fortune.

Malachi described a day when wickedness would be dealt with, and assured the people of God’s promise that, “for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.” (Malachi 4:2)

The promises were amazing . . . but then silence.

And waiting . . .

And still more waiting . . .

. . . Over four hundred years after Malachi’s words at the end of the Old Testament, the Israelites were still waiting for God’s promises to come true. Even worse, there were no more messages from the prophets. It seemed God had gone s i l e n t.

Perhaps this led to questions:

Would God’s promise of a Redeemer ever come true?
Had He forgotten?
Could He really be trusted?

And what about you? What are you waiting for just now?

The fulfilment of a long-held dream?
An answer to prayer?
Resolution in a situation of uncertainty?

Maybe, like the Israelites, you know God’s promises, but you’re struggling to see any evidence of their truth in your current situation. Maybe it feels like God has gone silent. It can be easy to lose hope, to wonder if God really will come through for us. Those times of waiting can be unsettling, uncomfortable, and often dark.

But what if God is at work in the waiting?
What if He is waiting, too . . .
For just the right moment?

Hundreds of years after Zephaniah and Malachi’s words, Jesus came, and the promise was fulfilled. It’s striking to note Paul, writing after the coming of Jesus, looks back on the fulfilment of the promise and describes both Jesus’ birth and His death as coming at just the right time.

“When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman.” (Galatians 4:4)

“For while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly.” (Romans 5:6)

Suddenly, we realize the years of waiting were not caused by a delay, but were part of God’s design.

During those four hundred years, God may have been silent, but He was not inactive.
Various world powers rose and fell as predicted in prophecies in the book of Daniel. The Old Testament was translated into Greek, which was important for God’s Word being spread among the Gentiles. And Israel was conquered by the Romans, leaving the Jewish people desperate for freedom from oppression, recognising their only hope was in the coming of the Messiah.

The scene was set for Jesus to come.

Not only was God at work in the big picture of world events, but He was also preparing individuals for their part in His plan.

When the moment came, Mary was ready. She was ready to respond with faith and obedience despite the seeming impossibility of the angel’s message.

We can’t always understand why we have to wait; God’s ways and His timing are often not the same as ours. But we can trust in His goodness and His faithfulness. His promises will be fulfilled, sometimes (often!) in unexpected ways.

We can also trust He has a purpose in the waiting. Sometimes, while we are concerned with our circumstances, God is more interested in growing our character and our dependence on Him.

Often, the times of waiting reveal our lack of control and our inability to fix things for ourselves. They can drive us to God as they remind us our true hope is found in Him.

As we prepare to celebrate Jesus’ first coming, may it remind us, even when the situations troubling us are resolved, we are still waiting.

We are waiting for the day when He will come again, when sorrow and suffering will finally be gone forever, when our waiting will come to an end, when we see “the bright morning star” (Revelation 22:16) and we know the longest night is finally over and the darkness is no more.

Come, Lord Jesus! (Revelation 22:20)

..
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Esther Day 6 The Price Of Obedience

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Deuteronomy 11:18-28
Esther 3:1-6
Luke 14:25-34
Romans 6:15-23
James 4:4-17

Esther, Day 6

I sat at the small table with my journal open as I closed my eyes and breathed in the unusually quiet moment. Gently, He pressed into my spirit.

Ask her for forgiveness.

The name He whispered rang between my ears, and my mind stuttered. Umm…WHAT? Did I hear You correctly? That can’t be right…I haven’t done anything wrong! For what, Lord? 

Does it matter? The question resonated in His still, quiet way.

I took a breath and squared my shoulders. No, it doesn’t. I will do it. I will obey. But Lord…it might help the conversation go a little more smoothly if I know what caused the rift I’m restoring. What am I supposed to say when she asks what I am asking her to forgive…and I come up empty? What will she think then? Am I supposed to tell her I don’t know? I hate to break it to You, but that might not go so well. 

Restore the relationship. His voice was a little firmer this time.

Okay. 

Now.

Have you ever found yourself in that place, Love? On the receiving end of a divine directive leaving you knee deep in questions…and neck deep in confusion? The longer I walk with the Lord, the more convinced I become that the God Who loves to converse with us chooses to speak to us in a way that sparks all those questions.

He could give us a vision to shake our perception of reality and inspire immediate obedience without a single question. He could speak audibly, shaking Heaven and earth. He could speak through a burning bush, or write on the wall of our living room, or send an angel to deliver a message.

But, it fills His Father-heart to draw us into deeper intimacy through dialogue with Him. As we seek to understand His work and His voice, we find ourselves pressing fervently into a more intimate relationship, eager to hear Him and know Him.

Obedience is a theme the Lord has been speaking to me about for most of my adult life, but over the past few months He has been putting an even finer point on the difference between obedience and submission.

As a strong-willed child, obedience never came naturally. I remember questioning practically every thing my parents directed. I remember wishing I were more agreeable like some of my siblings. I even remember being disgusted with myself for the way I often responded. The internal battle I wrestled on a daily basis was great.
I wanted to simply obey and be agreeable, but something in me needed to know the why, and the how, and if I could possibly do it differently.
To my parents’ ever-loving-chagrin, I tested every boundary.

My strong-willed child-self didn’t fully understand what the Lord has been teaching me about obedience and submission: Obedience is the choice to intentionally bend our will in response to our Father’s directive. Submission is the heart posture He cultivates within us when we choose to make Him our highest priority.

Love, did you know it is possible to obey without submitting? We can obey with trudging feet and a disgruntled countenance. We can obey with pride. We can obey with anger. We can obey with comparison, and envy, and a spirit of competition.

But when we obey out of our flesh, we are forsaking the relationship.
We are missing revelation and grasping religion instead. 

I don’t know what went through Mordecai’s mind when King Ahaseurus decreed all should bow to Haman, but he did know just what meant to disobey the king’s order.
Mordecai knew who he was, and Whose he was.

He was one of God’s chosen people; he knew he’d been set apart. Because his identity was wholly found in God, this intimate, experiential knowledge bolstered his bravery in the face of what should have been certain death. Others in the king’s court reported Mordecai’s bold refusal, reporting him to Haman. It stands to reason that Mordecai was most likely ostracized as soon as other officials at the King’s Gate realized he would not compromise his faith to please the king.

Mordecai could have joined the ranks of all those who face persecution and death for their faith. He didn’t know what the future would hold. Still, Mordecai chose to obey his God. He chose to forsake his pride, his status, his social acceptance, his name, even his very life.

Do you know what I don’t picture when I read the account of Mordecai refusing to bow to Haman? I don’t picture a man choosing to obey reluctantly. I don’t picture a man hiding behind curtains, or disguising his face. He wasn’t grumbling or complaining that he was being forced to do something he didn’t really feel comfortable doing.

Mordecai submitted. 

His heart posture was willing. He was in right relationship with the Lord, unencumbered by pride, or self-interest, or self-preservation. It wasn’t about him, at all. Not really.

And because Mordecai’s heart posture was one of submission, the Lord’s plan to preserve His chosen people was fulfilled through Esther.

Sister, what is our good Father highlighting to you today? Where is He stirring your heart? Have you been going through the motions of obedience, but your heart posture has not been right before the Lord? Where are you holding on to your own designs, rather than leaning in to what Your Creator has planned?

We all have areas where we need the Lord to reveal direction.
Spend some time with Him today, and ask Him to speak to you.
He longs to share His heart with you!

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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 Esther Week Two! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

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The GT Weekend! ~ Sketched IV 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) With parents who divorced when she was only 6, but still raised in believing households, Cassidy was eventually faced with a difficult realization. She believed God had abandoned her when she needed Him most. Sure, she believed He loved her, but there was certainly no possible way He could have been with her during her most painful moments, she felt so deeply abandoned. Eventually, through studying God’s word for herself, seeking wise counsel, and learning to transparently live in biblical community, Cassidy traded in the heavy, hurtful lies she’d been believing for truth grounded in Scripture. Where have your own wounds left you holding onto lies that Scripture refutes? Have you held up your beliefs lately to the light of His Word and examined them against solid truth?

2) With vulnerable transparency, Danielle shared on Wednesday of her struggle to always perform and achieve perfect success, while also never missing out on an opportunity to party, drink, and smoke. Keeping up with two polar opposite lifestyles, however, found her wrapped in shame and guilty secrets. Surely, God despised her, she thought, and she pushed away from church and faith. God’s relentless pursuit of Danielle’s heart eventually caught up to her as she gave birth and she realized with sudden awareness how much she wanted her son to know Christ. God used the small life of her infant son to bring Danielle back to God’s heart. What small things can you see along your own journey that have arrested your attention for God’s purposes? Take time to write down a few of those pivotal markers, then write out a praise to the Lord for the ways He has lovingly pursued you!

3) Denise hit rock bottom with her marriage unraveling on all sides while welcoming the precious life of her daughter, and later her son. In her words, she “couldn’t do it (her) own anymore”. Where have you voiced a similar sentiment? Contrarily, where are you actively working to keep up the hard work and figure this out on your own strength? Whether you’ve crossed the line of faith or not, we are all tempted to do it on our own. It’s when we, like Denise, realize we just cannot do it, that we are in the sweetest place to benefit from the tenderness of Jesus as His love finally catches up to us and we surrender to His gracious forgiveness of every single time we walked away. Spend some time writing down where you’ve pushed hard to do it on your own in the past, and ask the Holy Spirit to convict you of where you might still be doing it now.

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 John 8:12 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Prayer Journal
Oh Lord, how m-a-n-y times am I convinced that I can survive on my own. I attempt to create my own “light” in my life, building my own kind of success. How quickly I am willing to trade the delicacies of your life-giving light for the foolishness of my own pride. Lord, I confess, that often, I’m too wrapped up in myself to even realize my broken appetite for Self and Sin. Please, Lord, un-blind my eyes. Help me to see the Treasure of Your Light and to pursue You above all else. Thank you for being my Rescuing Savior, always pursuing me with Love!

Worship Through Community

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Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

Prodigal Day 5 Not By Your Strength

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Luke 15:20-32
Matthew 11:28-30
Revelation 22:17
Psalm 139:1-12attachment-1-27

I was just five years old when I found my life verse. It was an accident, really. I opened up my Bible one evening to read a Bible verse to my family:
“Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

“Mama! This is Chuckie’s verse!” I exclaimed, thinking only of my cousin in that very moment. He and I were two peas in a pod; we were peas and carrots, as Forrest Gump would say. Born just a month apart, we shared everything from birthday parties to the same kindergarten teacher. My little cousin had endured more than the average five year old. Due to his parents’ divorce, he was shuffled back and forth between a working mom, a working dad, and my house, where we would spend most of our time playing together while having cloud-watching picnics and climbing trees. These verses were for him. He had a rough life, but if he came to Jesus, then Jesus would give him rest. This verse has been special to me ever since, and I have remembered it time and time again as I endured my own heavy burdens.

The Bible is speckled with “come to Jesus” verses, and many songs have been written with the same theme. Every single Sunday for many years, my little Baptist church would stand and sing:
Just as I am without one plea
But that Thou blood was shed for me
And that Thou bidst me come to Thee
O Lamb of God, I come! I come!

Many Sundays I would watch people walk down one of the aisles to the pastor standing at the front, as they would come to Jesus, sometimes for the first time, and sometimes for the first time in a long time. Each knowing that it was no longer their own strength that brought them home, but it was the welcome of a God who loved them despite their wanderings.

In the parable of the Prodigal Son, we read about both sons “coming” home. The first comes home after a season of destruction and poor decisions. He comes home after hitting rock bottom. The second comes home after a long and tiring day of working in the fields. He comes home after his tasks for the day are complete.

As they both come home seeking rest – of the spirit for one son and of the body for the other – neither of them make it into the house alone.

The first son comes home full of shame and guilt. He is dirty, he is spent, he is ashamed, he is alone. He comes home clothed in humility, seeking the forgiveness of his father. He doesn’t make it very far before his father
comes
to
him.

He doesn’t just come. He runs.

He sees his wandering son’s return, and he runs to him to embrace him and rejoice in his coming home.

The second son comes home full of aches and exhaustion. He is marked with dirt, his bones need rest, his self-sufficiency has made him arrogant, his pride has fed into anger. He also is alone. He comes home with the air of a man who just worked hard for his father. He doesn’t make it very far before he stops.

He hears music. He smells delicious food. There is a celebration going on inside and it has nothing to do with him. He stands there, flabbergasted and angry when he hears the celebration is in honor of his brother. But he doesn’t stand there long before his father
comes
to
him.

I once was in the shoes of the first son. Maybe you have been, too. Rock bottom… filing for bankruptcy, signing divorce papers, walking into the soup kitchen or food pantry, staring at the negative sign on the bank statement, looking at a positive on the results of a test… the depths of despair.

And with that despair, I found myself returning to the Father. I found myself coming home. But I didn’t have to go all the way, because my Father was already waiting for me. His welcome was already waiting as my own strength was waning. 

I have also been in the shoes of the second son. Maybe you’ve found yourself with those same feelings, as well. Frustrated, because you have just given every last penny you had to the Lord, but you see your friend’s family being blessed abundantly in their finances. Annoyed, because you have served Sunday after Sunday in the nursery with no recognition and there is a new lady at church who is already on the worship team, with her face ten times bigger than life on the screen above everyone’s head. Angry, because you have worked hard for the Lord and you are exhausted and worn and weary, but you feel completely lost and forgotten.

And in that frustration, annoyance, or anger, I have found myself coming home. Burdened with pride, but finding I didn’t have to go all the way, because my Father was already waiting for me then, too. His welcome was already waiting. 

You see, the Father knows us. He knows the most detailed and intimate parts of our thoughts. He knew exactly what would happen before we would come to Him with all of our brokenness, so He could give us rest.
And He knew exactly how hard we would work to serve Him and see His Kingdom come. And He knows that we will be tired, and we will be worn, and we will need rest.

So, He comes to us.
Ready to offer our burdened spirits rest.
Ready to give our weary bodies rest.
He comes regardless of our effort.
Regardless of our goodness.
Regardless of the stench of our sin.

But, only after we’ve realized that we want to come to Him.
He waits until we are ready to come home,
and then He shows us that He came a long time ago.

So, wherever you find yourself, whether you are just now hitting the depths of despair, or whether you are in the middle of a season of hard work… know that whenever you are ready to come to the Father, He will know, and He will already be waiting for you.

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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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Sketched Day 10
Hosea

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Hosea 1
Hosea 2
Hosea 3image-2

My Adonai.

I have believed You, followed You, served You, worshiped You, obeyed You.
I speak the words You have given me, even when they break my heart.  Because of Your words, my people curse my name and turn their backs to me.  My spirit is heavy for Israel, but I trust You.

You, the Author of Life, the one true God.  You, who loved us in chains and called us to freedom.  You taught us to walk.  You have lifted us and healed us.  Time and again you have beckoned, and time and again we run from You and find solace in others.  You gave us Your Name, and clothed us in robes of righteousness.  You set Your seal upon us, but we have hardened our hearts against You.  Your people do not want to hear.  They will not listen.  They have scorned You.  Trading Your tender affections and mercies for cold, lifeless idols.  Ignoring Your precepts and Law, they run blindly into the arms of so many others.  Forsaking the Living for the dead.

And still, You persist.  I don’t understand it.  What kind of love is this?
And Adonai, why did You give it to me?

Gomer is my wife.  Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh.  I knew her family, her history, her past indiscretions.  And I chose her; I made her my bride.  I loved her, cared for her, provided for her.  I gave her my name and companionship.  I gave her children.

I knew this was coming.  You told me it would, and I believed You.  You told me to choose her, knowing her past.  Knowing her future.
I obeyed… and I thought I was prepared.

What You didn’t tell me was how You would pour into me a love for her unlike any I could even begin to describe.  Even now, when anger and rage at this betrayal should threaten to strangle me, they do not.  This heaviness, this sorrow that fills me…  It is not for me that I weep, but for her.

I didn’t ask for this.  I don’t want it.

If there was any way for me to turn it off, I would, but I can not.  I know that I should be furious.  Murderous, even.  But I love her more in this moment than ever before.  She is broken, Adonai.  And I am broken for her.  Her adultery should warrant death by our law, but I can not bear the thought of even a moment without her.  Even now, she is in the arms of another.  I feel like I should hate him and want to kill him, but she is my only concern.  She is hurting.  With each breath I can feel it.  My hands tremble at the thought of the pain she is inflicting upon herself.

Adonai help me, I must go to her.

I must win her back.  She has forgotten the love I have for her.  She doesn’t remember the way she takes my breath away, or the way she fills my thoughts and heart.  I must remind her.  I will draw her away from him to a beautiful place, somewhere we can be alone.  I will speak words of love to her, words that will soften her heart and fill her with hope.  I will bring the beautiful robes I bought for her, the fine jewelry that belongs to her as my wife.  I will tell her stories of our love when it was new, and I will speak to her of our future together.  I will remind her of when she took my name and promised to belong only to me, and I to her.  I will bare my heart to her and convince her of my love.  I must convince her!

I will go to her.
And I will bring her home with me.

Hosea’s incredible choice to obey God and love adulterous Gomer is a heartrending picture of Father’s love for a land that embraced false idols instead of Him.  In Hosea’s pursuit of Gomer’s heart, we see reflected the determined passion with which God pursues us and loves us, even in our sin.  So often, we feel we must change and repent in order for Father to love us and forgive us, but Hosea illustrates that couldn’t be further from the truth:

He loves us perfectly and completely, right where we are.
There is nothing we can do to earn His forgiveness and love,
because He has already given it freely.

He loves us too much to leave us in our sin,
but He will get down in the dirt and fight for us.
Once we pause long enough to recognize that pursuit, that extravagant love, we have a choice to make:  Will we believe that He loves us that much?  Will we trust Him with our hearts and lives, repent from our ways and follow Him?

Will you?
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Only One

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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!

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 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 Sketched!

Beauty Day 3
Flawless

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Matthew 11:28-30
Psalms 23:1-6
Isaiah 40:6-8
Isaiah 40:21-31
Psalms 139:13-18

flawlessFlawless. 
I don’t know about you, but when I hear that word, my thoughts are instantly drawn to my physical attributes.  Maybe it’s because I’m a photographer, and so much of my job is portraying others in the best possible light.

Maybe it’s the selfie-stick culture that we live in.

Or maybe it is because I’m human.

Whatever the reason, rather than being drawn to character traits, admirable choices, honesty, selflessness, joy, or any other intangible attribute, my mind instead turns to the physical.

My skin tone.  Blemishes.  My weight.  The tiny laugh lines that have begun to form around my eyes.  My too-big nose.  The chin I wish was more slim.  The few gray hairs that I find from time to time.  The way one of my eyes looks bigger than the other.  I am currently in my third trimester, so I can’t even see my feet right now, but I know they are rough and not very pretty.
I have recently realized that the less quality time I spend with God, the more I begin to focus on my physical attributes.
I don’t generally consider myself to be an insecure person, but lately I am so easily convinced that I’m not (thin enough, young enough, outgoing enough, pretty enough…)  And I know that directly coincides with the pace our lives have set lately and that I have not been making as much time for God lately.

I’m not (and never will be) flawless.
Yet so easily I forget that I’m not called to be flawless.
I’m called to be humble.
Broken.
Loving.
Kind.
Patient.
Obedient.
Faithful.
Not flawless.

Battling the three enemies of our beauty is a challenge best accomplished when we turn our gaze to Christ, His word, and how He views us instead of our own perspective.

We are each fearfully and wonderfully made.
God doesn’t make us haphazardly.
He takes great care when designing each of us, and He makes no mistakes.
The little wrinkles and gray hairs that trouble me?  He placed them there as He bestowed wisdom and discernment upon me.
My eyes? He gave them to me so I could see others with His vision and heart.

And the more time I spend with Him, the more He shares His heart with me.
How He sees me.  
His heart for others.
And He shapes my heart to mirror His.
I would much rather reflect Him than my own intentions!

As I write this, tomorrow is the seventh anniversary of my wedding to my husband.  This past weekend, we were blessed to go on a date night, and I dressed up and wore full makeup for the first time in…  I honestly couldn’t tell you how long!  With two toddlers and a new Tiny that will arrive soon, I do not always get the chance to style my hair or apply full makeup.  (Let’s be honest.  If I make it out of the house with children fed, all our belongings in tow and without some form of bodily excrement on me I feel like it’s a win.)  I was so excited to spend some alone time with my husband – it was ridiculous!  It took us a while to figure out what to do, and we spent the entire drive there talking – without interruptions!  It’s amazing to me how much having one’s undivided attention will do for a relationship.  Even if it’s just one date night every few months.

I can’t help but recognize that the same is true in my relationship with God.  When I fail to plan and make time to spend in prayer and listening to Him, my spirit hungers for that fulfillment.  Peace.  Joy.
I miss basking in His fullness.
Of course, He is always there, but when I am not making the commitment to just be present, my spirit is affected.  I hunger for those things, and when I am not spiritually fed I unintentionally find myself searching for validation and fulfillment elsewhere.
And this world does not have the things that will satisfy me.  

No matter how busy, hectic and overwhelming life can be, I need to focus on spending time resting in Him.  He is the only One that can restore my soul and satisfy my spirit, and His thoughts about me are far more precious than I can even comprehend.

Regardless of what the world may tell me, He is the only One that is flawless.

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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 Beauty 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 Beauty!