by Stacey | Oct 13, 2016 | Devotionals, reflections, and encouragement
“I asked God into my heart, but I don’t think that it worked,” he said, as if the words he prayed held magical powers inaccessible to him. “I don’t feel different. Nothing’s changed.”
His heartbreakingly honest confession was accompanied by a wide and fearful expression afraid to hope. Did he pray it wrong? Did he say the wrong words? Was he really saved for eternity? Wasn’t something supposed to be different?
Repent and believe
Mark 1:15: and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
How many people have, in a moment of conviction, walked to the front of the church aisle, repeated phrases fed to them, raised their hand or stood up only to wake the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that, defeated because nothing feels different? How many people have wrongly believed that verses like John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life,” and Romans 10:9, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved,” means the only requirement for salvation is to repeat some magic words?
Yes, the person who believes in Jesus Christ has eternal life and will be saved. I do not dispute that nor challenge the simplicity and beauty of that wonderful truth. However, the believing and confessing, which secures salvation, includes repentance, holy living, and dying to self. They go hand in hand and cannot be separated. “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46). Even Jesus questioned the people who claimed to follow Him but failed to obey His commands.
There is no forgiveness without repentance. There is no repentance without a desire to replace sinful habits and actions with God-honouring ones. And nothing changes until God grants the desire to pursue Him and the Holy Spirit transforms a heart.
Perhaps the problem plaguing young man from the beginning is not a failure for the “words to take” but more of a failure to understand what it means to count the cost, pick up his cross, repent, and follow Jesus. Perhaps it was a failure to acknowledge that he couldn’t continue on his merry way, relishing his sin, and making selfish choices. It was, perhaps, a refusal or unawareness of the need to die to self.
“Cheap grace seeks to hide the cost of discipleship from people. It seeks to claim that as long as we make a profession of faith, we are saved. God’s grace covers all our sins. Again, that is a wonderful truth! The apostle Paul says as much when he writes, “Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 5:20-21). Yet, right after writing that, Paul follows it with this: “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:1-2). Salvation by grace alone through faith alone is so much more than simply mouthing the words “Jesus is Lord.” We are not saved by a profession of faith. We are not saved by praying the Sinner’s Prayer. We are not saved by signing a card or walking an aisle. We are saved by a living and active faith (James 2:14-26), a faith that manifests itself in repentance, obedience and love of God and our neighbor. Salvation is not a transaction; it’s a transformation. Paul says it best when he says we are “new creations” in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).”
GotQuestions.org
The Great Exchange
“Salvation is not a transaction, it’s a transformation.” Yes, I love that. But it is imperative to define “transaction” in that context. Salvation is not me putting out specific words and God putting in salvation because I parroted the right phrase. In that sense, salvation is not a transaction. But salvation is the exchange of my sin for the righteousness of Christ. In that sense, it is a transaction.
Self Examination
Have you been transformed? Or, like the boy from the beginning, have you only just begun to understand that God is calling you to do more than a repeat-after-me prayer? Don’t be fooled by cheap grace. Examine yourself and see if you are in the faith. Your confession of faith must be accompanied by repentance and change.
Answer the call, repent and believe.
*Click the block quote to be redirected to Got Questions and read the full explanation of how grace can be cheapened.
by Stacey | Sep 22, 2016 | Devotionals, reflections, and encouragement
The Lord’s timing is perfect.
When the demands of life press down hard let that truth sink deep. The Lord’s timing is perfect.
When edits for two books are due, as race day fast approaches and school steals far more time than expected, the Lord’s timing is perfect. When ministry commitments demand attention while there are mouths to feed, clothes to wash, and a home to keep, the Lord’s timing is perfect. He gives us everything we need, moment by moment, as we depend on Him and offer all of self for His glory.
When you wonder, “How much more can I give?” The Lord answers, “Give me it all.” Because He is worthy.
Holy delays bend human schedules and bow stubborn hearts.
God might be more interested in how you respond to life’s impositions than removing them from your path.
Unexpected interruptions cause anxiety to surface, but the Spirit fights back. He is sovereign. Prioritize one day at a time. What has God called me to today? What will most glorify Him right now?
One choice at a time, you can follow His lead and trust that He will provide what you need to serve Him well. He who calls you is faithful.
Sheep follow the Shepherd, trusting His voice. He leads His own to green pastures and beside quiet waters.
The answer is found in more—more of what you have the least: time. More time with the Lord. More time in His Word. More time to rest in green pastures and drink the quiet waters.
To follow His voice, we must know it. We come to know Him by spending time with Him. The alarm rings a bit sooner each morning, and He comes first. Then, one by one, tasks are completed. Edits addressed. Race training accomplished. School is prioritized. Ministry demands met. Bellies fed. Clothes washed. Home kept. One choice at a time, God provides as I seek Him first. He leads me to green pastures in His Word. The quiet waters of early morning stillness with Him restore my soul. We must seek God above all other things.
Let your praise rise to the Lord from a thankful heart. Good gifts come from above and stir total surrender. All of your life. All of your dreams. All of you.
For only the Lord is good. Only the Lord is worthy of praise. Only the Lord.
by Stacey | Sep 15, 2016 | Devotionals, reflections, and encouragement
September rushes in unavoidable change. Summer turns to autumn. Trees drop their leaves. Temperatures dip. Fortunately, September has always been a favourite month of mine. However, this year, the changes ushered in have been bittersweet.
Sweet Changes
Some of the best changes are the two new book contacts signed within one week of each other. (Whoo hoo!) Novel #2, tentatively titled, In Too Deep, has been picked up by my publisher, Pelican Book Group. And, Glorious Surrender, (the book – not the website) was awarded the Women’s Journey of Faith award. It won a publishing contract and will be released within the next year. Sometimes, I have to pinch myself to believe this dream of writing is actually coming true. The ‘sweet’ is holding Unexpected Love in my hands, turning the pages and seeing Julie’s passionate love for her children and Lord come to life through images and words.
Bitter changes
The most bitter change was saying good-bye to a dear friend who is now with her Lord. There are no words to convey the hole she leaves in her community, her church, and in her family. Her departure makes autumn a little bit harsher and a whole lot colder.
Emotional changes
We started homeschooling again. Day one was great, two, three, and four left me questioning my sanity. Can I really teach these kids? This is so much harder than I remember it being last year. What if I fail?
As I navigate this emotional month, I thank the Lord my identity and self worth are not rooted in the external. My identity and worth are rooted in the One who never changes, the One who never fails. His strength is enough. He fills every need, comforts every wounded heart, and holds the only opinion that matters.
What really matters
In the end, it doesn’t matter how my next two books are received by the world as long as my words glorify the Lord.
It’s normal and right to grieve the loss of my friend. God promises that as I prioritize Him and His word, pressing onward day by day, eventually this mourning will turn into joy. Blessed are those who mourn, for they are comforted. There have been some sweet moments of drawing closer to my Lord during my grief.
And school? Well, there are good days and bad days, easy days and hard days. And God is with me every day, reminding me to speak in love and with gentleness, to persevere, and to keep the big picture in front of me. These precious days with our littles are going too fast. They are worth the extra effort, the extra time, and the extra energy.
Living a life that points them to Christ is what really matters.
by Stacey | Sep 1, 2016 | Devotionals, reflections, and encouragement
This week a good friend transitioned from the perishable to the imperishable. My youngest prayed that she would: “have a great first day with Jesus.” I know she did.
As I mourn her death, this excerpt, adapted from Unexpected Love, reminds me that despite how I feel, this good-bye is not forever..
Good-bye arrives too soon and it tempts me to say it wasn’t enough. I’ll never be ready. I’ll never be ready to let go, but I must because God sheathed immortal souls in temporal flesh and earthen vessels.
He gives us just enough.
We have just enough time to embrace our Creator. We have just enough opportunity to glorify him. We have just enough love. We have just enough laughter. We have just enough.
She inhaled the temporary and exhaled eternity. She is with her Lord.
Now, we must remember the Lord. He is the perfect Father who never leaves. He will guide us, counsel us, and love us until all our written days transpire. He is the only constant in this changing world. Through good and bad, hard and easy, joys and sorrows, we must turn to him and believe.
We have just enough time to believe that he is more than enough for all time.
Yes, I grieve her death. But I also celebrate her arrival in the place where she now shares in the resurrection of Jesus. This truth means that all who believe in Jesus and fully surrender to him will one day join her in worshiping our King for eternity. Because of that truth, this isn’t good-bye; it’s until then.
Until then, my sweet friend, I will miss you.
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by Stacey | Aug 18, 2016 | Devotionals, reflections, and encouragement
The goodness of God is everywhere: new routes made in a traumatized brain, babies born too early now healthy and strong, blades slicing through flesh but not stealing life, a pushing back against paralysis, delayed surgery resulting in new, life-saving options.
The goodness of my Father overwhelms me when I dwell on all he has done. Who am I to receive such mercy from God? Who am I to receive what I don’t deserve?
Who is God?
God has revealed himself to be who he says he is: healer, provider, sustainer, and Lord. He has made his love known. Every answer to my prayers is not ‘yes’, but still, he has made it plain that he—and only he—holds everything in his hand. What remains to be determined is how we respond.
Earthly healing, as magnificent and wonderful as it is to receive, is a dim foreshadowing of eternity where Jesus heals all wounds, rights every wrong, and welcomes the redeemed into his eternal presence. “Yes, be amazed at earthly healing,” says the preacher. “But be more amazed at the Lord who heals.”
The only fitting response
Each merciful act is a point of decision. It is a call to repent, to turn from sin, and embrace the forgiveness of God. It is a call to move from simply being aware of the Lord to completely surrendering all that we are and all that we have to him to use for his purposes and glory.
A deeper calling
But this call goes even further. God doesn’t save us so we can be comfortable in this life. He has called us to, “proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness and into his marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9
The world is filled with people who need to hear of Jesus and “how will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him who they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?” Romans 10:14-15
How have you responded to his goodness? With whom have you shared the goodness of God?
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by Stacey | Aug 11, 2016 | Devotionals, reflections, and encouragement
Dead men walking fill the world. You look into their eyes, on the street, in the mirror. Dead men with an over-inflated sense of self importance. Dead men with loud voices. Dead men setting their own course. Dead men deceived into believing their good deeds bring something of value to the table. Every man, woman, and child was once a dead man, following the father of lies, giving themselves over to the passions and desires of the world.
But God
Rich in mercy. Withholding the punishment we deserve. Gifting what we don’t deserve because of love. He loves us. He made us alive. He raises us up. He seats us with him in the heavenly places. He shows us the immeasurable riches of his grace and kindness through Jesus.
Dead in sin
We were dead in our trespasses, bringing nothing to the table, not even the urge to live. Deceived into believing we set our course, but blindly following the rut carved out by the enemy. Existing, but dead. Influencing the world, yet influencing nothing of eternal value. Lulled into a false sense of existence, eyes blind to eternity, and not knowing—or not caring—about what we are missing.
But…
Isn’t that a great word? It changes EVERYTHING. It acknowledges the reality of everything stated before, then sets us in a new direction.
But God, in a great act of grace, gives what we don’t deserve—life through saving faith. He calls. He opens eyes. He gives life. And the dead become alive in Him.
It is not our own doing. It is a gift from God.
Ephesians 2:1-10, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body[a] and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
