Finding Freedom in Forgiveness

Finding Freedom in Forgiveness

First of all, Stacey, I’d like to thank you for letting me visit today.

What’s one thing all mankind seeks? Freedom.

Several years ago, my husband and I began attending a large church not too far from us. Over the years we’d heard people talk about the inspiring sermons the pastor there would preach. I’d come to work on Monday morning, and several of my co-workers would be discussing the Sunday sermon delivered by their pastor, Buddy Hoffman. So when the time came for us to change churches, we knew exactly where we wanted to go.

Buddy was unlike any pastor I had ever heard. He had a folksy manner, and he loved tripping all over the English language. Once he told us about his recent mission trip to Asia where he saw Kubotas (i.e. pagodas) dotting the landscape. All I could picture was a hill covered with riding mowers and tractors.

One Sunday morning, he was preaching about forgiveness. Ten years later, I don’t remember the scriptures he chose or the major points of the sermon. I remember only one statement he made. “Unforgiveness is a prison.” My English-major self tensed, knowing unforgiveness wasn’t even a word. It was what my husband and I called a Buddy-ism. But it didn’t matter that it wasn’t listed in the dictionary, that spell-check would underline it. That brief statement carried a depth of meaning that entire books might not.

It’s not easy

I truly believe one of the hardest things God asks us, as Christians, to do is to forgive. Anyone who’s ever parented children knows forgiveness doesn’t come naturally. It’s often easy to forgive the penitent, but forgiving someone who’s not sorry, who doesn’t care? That can be tough. It’s sometimes easier to push the wrong aside. Try to forget it and go on with life. But forgiveness is active. It’s not enough to simply push the wrong way down into your heart rather than dealing with it.

As humans, we often seek justice instead of grace. If someone has hurt us, our carnal selves can want them to be hurt––to feel the pain we felt. And the unwillingness to forgive becomes a prison. True freedom is found in only one place.

Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Colossians 3:13

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.

Galatians 5:13

No Longer Captive

In No Longer a Captive, Ethne is trapped in a prison of “unforgiveness.” She’s spent most of her life running away from the pain her father’s behavior caused, searching for peace through forgetting. But the only way she can find peace in her life is to come to terms with the hurt her father caused in her life. To forgive him as she has been forgiven.

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Meet author Erin Unger and enter to win an ebook copy of Fateful Fall

Meet author Erin Unger and enter to win an ebook copy of Fateful Fall

It’s my pleasure to introduce you to Erin Unger.

She was raised in the hills of Virginia and spent years exploring abandoned houses and reading the scariest books she could find. She married young and enjoys an exciting fast-paced life with her hubby that sometimes rivals the suspense in her books (thanks to all her mostly grown children and a couple grandkids). Welcome, Erin!


I love how God can speak through writers to the readers. Sometimes writers aren’t even aware of the messages they are putting in their novels, but God loves to work in wondrous ways through books. It’s always been important to me to show how my characters learn and grow spiritually in every story. I love to put a biblical message in every book, and Fateful Fall is no different.

The main character, Ava Worthington, is facing uncertain times where she thinks she can work to prove her worth. It’s a trap into which we often fall, and it can be deadly to our spiritual growth.

It’s interesting how we try to work our way to get everything—including God’s blessings and favor. It happens so fast we often don’t even realize it. One minute we’re trusting our heavenly Father and the next we’re off on our own trying to prove to everyone that we are valuable—that what we do matters. But the harder we work, the further away our goal seems to drift.

God is good at reminding us we have to look to Him for our true worth. No number of people, metals, or commendations removes our feelings of inadequacy. Christ removes those feelings when we turn to Him, and He makes it clear how valuable we are to Him

“We have to look to God for our true worth. No number of people, metals, or commendations removes our feelings of inadequacy.” – Erin Unger

Luke 12:7, “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”
Luke 12:24, “Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the bird?”

New King James Version

I love how God gives me a gentle prod when I head down the road of works. He turns me back around and reminds me that I don’t need to do this or that to feel worthy. He has called me worthwhile.

I hope reading Fateful Fall encourages you to stop trying to work your way to favor, and instead, I hope it reminds you to put your focus on Christ. Let Him show you just how much worth you have in His eyes. When He does, an amazing peace will replace all feelings of inadequacy.

Order your copy through Pelican Book Group or through Amazon. After reading, be sure to leave a review!


Enter for your chance to win a copy of Fateful Fall

Answer the question below to be entered into a giveaway to receive an eBook copy of Fateful Fall, a Worthington Investigations Romantic Suspense.

What works do you find yourself falling into to gain worth?


CONTEST RULES:

Comments must be posted in the comment section of the blog post. Those receving this via email will need to navigate to Stacey’s blog and comment for a valid entry.

Contest opens on Wednesday, August 14, 2019 and closes Wednesday, August 21st, 2019 at midnight.

Chances of winning is dependant upon the number of entries. Winner will be chosen by random draw and notified by email within one week of the contest close.


About Fateful Fall:

Private Investigator Ava Worthington and her partners head to the mountains to solve the death of a farmer owner’s son who was discovered murdered in an outhouse on the property. Without local cowboy Cory’s protection, Ava won’t get the chance to follow leads as the killer tries to stop her investigation. But Ava’s falling for Cory against her better judgment. She should be working and not pining after a cowboy. And Cory doesn’t want a relationship. His successful career was destroyed by a woman he trusted, and he won’t make the same mistake twice. 

One suspect after another is cleared from Ava’s list until she’s sure she has the real killer targeted in her sights, but he’s hunting her, too. How will Ava and Cory find the killer and admit their love before they are buried under a mountain of secrets?


You can find Erin online at: www.erinungerwrites.com or on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter under the handle: ErinUngerWrites

What do you want to be when you grow up?

What do you want to be when you grow up?

I remember always having to answer that age-old question. The implication was that if I found the right career, life’s “calling” would follow. It resounded deeply in my generation. A career, a job, an occupation should be—will be—your passion. I transitioned from a psychologist to an economist to an engineer, but they all lacked that “passion.” I pursued and excelled in each, waiting patiently for the promised feeling to blossom.

Then Bella, my eldest daughter, was born. No one warned me that maybe, just maybe, my passion would not be a college major, wouldn’t have a syllabus, and wouldn’t require a degree. No one warned me that changing the world might mean neglecting my home and trying to find balance would be a daily struggle because excelling in one comes at the expense of the other.

Clarification Needed

No one clarified that my career might be the bread on the table, but it wouldn’t be my life calling. No one told me to expect to find joy in the simple things and in the people I get to share them with; the gentle breeze, a home cooked meal, and cuddles under the sheets. It was never hinted at that not owning a luxury car and not traveling around the world would be OK.

“Dream Big,” they said, failing to acknowledge the mesmerizing beauty of the small things, the small people that would tug on my clothes and give butterfly kisses. No one warned me that on most days I could be depleted but blessed, or that I could live weeks without 5 minutes to myself and still love every minute of it.

A Different Choice

I never imagined a life like this because it was rarely modeled and poorly advertised. Yet, an age-old book held this passion in high esteem and revealed to me the beauty that my previous worldview hid. It gave me the strength to pursue it with all my might and the will to make changes to my lifestyle and my wants. Tomorrow marks the beginning of a new season, new challenges, and new opportunities. Not everyone shares my journey, but oh, so many do. Many women, like me, were sold a life-calling very far from divine. Biblical motherhood is not a distraction to changing the world; it is the very catalyst that will bring forth the peace our society craves. It is my passion and my calling.

 

Marby Iglesias is a pastor’s wife in South Florida. You will find her on most days trying to keep up with her energetic toddler and baby. Her favourite pastime is sitting down for a good theology book with a cup of coffee.

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Through the Years of Tears I Have Come, by Christine Hoover

It is a delight to introduce Christine Hoover who blogs over at Grace Covers Me. Christine has graciously allowed me to share her post about her son.

Christine: Ten years ago I was crying different tears over this boy. They were bitter, desperate, pleading tears that soaked and salted my entire life. Like a broken faucet, I couldn’t restrain their constant dripping. I cried throughout worship at church, unable to sing the words and mean them. I cried while driving the car with my son in the backseat and another in my womb. I cried in my bed, clinging to my husband, broken at the sight of his tears mirroring my own. Always, I cried after interacting with other people’s children whose affront to me was simply being typical, everyday kids who were hitting all their milestones.

If you’ve cried similar tears for your children you’ll want to click here and read the rest of Christine’s story where she shares how God helped and healed not only her son, but also her own heart.

Author Christine Hoover: The grace of Christ upended my legalistic life over a decade ago and ever since, I’ve been passionate about exploring and sharing about how that grace impacts every inch of life. In addition to my blog and books, I regularly contribute to Desiring God, Flourish (an online resource for ministry wives), and For The Church. My work has also appeared on The Gospel Coalition, New Churches, Christianity Today, and Outreach.

The Next Billy Graham Might Be Drunk Right Now by Dr. Russell Moore

Whenever I start to get discouraged about the future of the church, I remember a conversation I had a few years ago with evangelical theologian Carl F. H. Henry on what would turn out to be his last visit to Southern Seminary before his death.
Several of us were lamenting the miserable shape of the church, about so much doctrinal vacuity, vapid preaching, non-existent discipleship. We asked Dr. Henry if he saw any hope in the coming generation of evangelicals.
And I will never forget his reply.
“Why, you speak as though Christianity were genetic,” he said. “Of course, there is hope for the next generation of evangelicals. But the leaders of the next generation might not be coming from the current evangelical establishment. They are probably still pagans.”
“Who knew that Saul of Tarsus was to be the great apostle to the Gentiles?” he asked us. “Who knew that God would raise up a C.S. Lewis, a Charles Colson? They were unbelievers who, once saved by the grace of God, were mighty warriors for the faith.”
Of course, the same principle applied to Henry himself. Who knew that God would raise up a newspaperman from a nominally Lutheran family to defend the Scriptures for generations of conservative evangelicals?

The next Jonathan Edwards might be the man driving in front of you with the Darwin Fish bumper decal. The next Charles Wesley might be a misogynist, profanity-spewing hip-hop artist right now. The next Billy Graham might be passed out drunk in a fraternity house right now. The next Charles Spurgeon might be making posters for a Gay Pride March right now. The next Mother Teresa might be managing an abortion clinic right now.

But the Spirit of God can turn all that around. And seems to delight to do so. The new birth doesn’t just transform lives, creating repentance and faith; it also provides new leadership to the church, and fulfills Jesus’ promise to gift his church with everything needed for her onward march through space and time (Eph. 4:8-16).
After all, while Phillip was leading the Ethiopian eunuch to Christ, Saul of Tarsus was still a murderer.
Most of the church in any generation comes along through the slow, patient discipleship of the next generation. But just to keep us from thinking Christianity is evolutionary and “natural” (or, to use Dr. Henry’s term “genetic”), Jesus shocks his church with leadership that seems to come like a Big Bang out of nowhere.
Whenever I’m tempted to despair about the shape of American Christianity, I’m reminded that Jesus never promised the triumph of the American church; he promised the triumph of the church. Most of the church, in heaven and on earth, isn’t American. Maybe the hope of the American church is right now in Nigeria or Laos or Indonesia.

Jesus will be King, and his church will flourish. And he’ll do it in the way he chooses, by exalting the humble and humbling the exalted, and by transforming cowards and thieves and murderers into the cornerstones of his New City.

So relax.

And, be kind to that atheist in front of you on the highway, the one who just shot you an obscene gesture. He might be the one who evangelizes your grandchildren.

 

Dr. Moore is the Dean of the School of Theology and Senior Vice-President for Academic Administration at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also serves as a preaching pastor at Highview Baptist Church, where he ministers weekly at the congregation’s Fegenbush location. Moore is the author of several books, including The Kingdom of Christ, Adopted for Life, and Tempted and Tried.
Used with permission

To Moms of One or Two Children, by Sarah Short

To Moms of One or Two Children, by Sarah Short

How do you do it? 

I’ve never counted, but I imagine the number of times I’ve been asked that question by Moms with one or two children is somewhere in the hundreds. I have five children, and judging by the look on the tired and weary faces that pose the question, that number seems simply impossible.How do you do it? 

Those are five loaded words. I suppose because the “it” behind that question is different for everyone.

How do you care for five little people?
How do you operate on little sleep?
How do you keep them safe?
How do you find time to do the laundry?
How do you afford them?
How do you keep from losing your ever-loving mind?

Mommas of one and two children – I understand every one of these questions. And, I understand just where you’re coming from.There are some things I want you to know about me. About children. About this journey through motherhood that we’re both on.

If no one has ever told you…
Read full article here, (and I highly recommend it!).
imageSarah lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with her husband, Jason, her four boys and her baby girl. She is really disorganized, she doesn’t make her bed, and she yells at her kids too much. She don’t garden, sew, craft, or read – so you’ll rarely find anything about those topics on her blog. She doesn’t do so many things, so when you read her stories, look at her photos, and bookmark her recipes, she hopes you’ll see a girl who shares what she does well, but is hopelessly flawed in many other ways.
Despite all that, she is loved – forever loved – by a God so big and beautiful that He came down to earth just to know her. She lives for Jesus – and her heart belongs to Him.