Blog

"God used sinful, wretched, sick-hearted people, the lowly and lesser, people just Leah, Rachel, Jacob, and like us, to bring His son to the Earth, the ultimate atonement. I often laugh in amazement at the mysterious and backward ways that God works. The way that His ultimate plan and love for us is still seen to fruition and never foiled, although we make horrendous choices and throw every possible sinful wrench in the way, His Grace is plentiful, abounding, and unconditional, and comes up like fresh, fragrant flowers enduring the conditions of unhealthy and rough soil."

"When we throw our hands up, and we are wondering where our unanswered prayers went, we forget that God has given us glimpses of blessings during our trials, according to His plan. We will not have total relief from suffering on this side of heaven, but we will have beautiful glimpses of the Lord’s rest to give us hope in the desert place until the plan for our ultimate flourishing unfolds when we meet Jesus."

"Jesus is just over there breaking down all of the social normalcies and conventions, and making room for everyone at His table. He’s just casually hanging out with a pharisee and a prostitute in the same room. No big deal. That’s actually what Jesus is getting at. We should be defying those social norms and, as Justin puts it, offering a space where change takes place."

"Thankfully, Jesus has entered into glory and He has no ordinary rules of time and space. Justin always describes the grace of Jesus like this: “…as the rain falls, and as the sun shines". The Grace of Jesus extends across the universe and is more deep and wide than we can fathom."

"I am so caught up in my busy life, and my busy heart, that it can be all that I see, and I treat it as my kingdom and desperately try to hold it up. It makes me laugh cynically when thinking of all of this, because we are all laboring in vain and working so hard to do it, all the while being completely oblivious to it. I am deeply thankful for the good news that God calls us out of ourselves and our false worship of our own worlds, and calls us into worship with Him."

"I am so familiar with this type of laughter, and I identify deeply with it. The kind of laughter that hints at constant heartache, hysteria, and frustration, so much to a point that all you have left to do is laugh. Where were you all of this time, God? Why have you waited by as I have suffered?"

Abram is an example to us as he boldly listened to God, as his self sufficiency was “scrubbed away” in the belief the Lord had refined in him that God is good and He is for us.

There are a ton of children in our church’s neighborhood who do not know what it is like to have their basic needs provided for, who do not know what it is like to have a functional and happy home, and are completely uncertain of their future, but I am certain that Jesus loves them and wants us to receive these children in His name, so that we can show them the ultimate love and care and steward them into the family of God.

My confused and ignorant heart doesn’t win, because God’s plan is permanently set, unlike my wavering thoughts.