Holy habits for everyday life

June 17, 2014 by Julie 6 Comments

We’re already practicing holiness, to one degree or another. People might say you’re “all in” when it comes to letting God’s holiness drive your habits. Others might say you’re one of those who keeps God’s holiness and your habits in separate categories.

But what does God say? Does He leave it up to us to decide how holy we want to be, practically speaking? Or does He gives us any kind of a picture to show us how holiness looks in the everyday life of His followers?

The first part of Ephesians spells out our identity in Christ; the second illustrates how that identity matters. As we change who we were, contrast who we are, and imitate who the Father will always be, our new holiness in Jesus changes everything.

Holy habits due to change

Do you describe your dietary choices with words like “vegan, gluten free, dairy free, vegetarian, or sugar free?” A lifestyle change impacts how we spend, what we talk about, what decisions we make, and how we think. A lifestyle change is no small choice … if it’s authentic.

True followers seek “to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:22-24)

No one follows Christ without making a genuine change. Ephesians 4:22-32 shows us how a life of loving the Holy One requires putting off our old self and putting on the new. Old habits like lying, sinful anger, stealing, corrupt talk, and unforgiveness have to be put away. Like cleaning out Twinkies when we choose to go sugar free, past routines fall away as we take on holy habits in their place. True followers of Christ Jesus change.

Holy habits due to contrast

Sports seasons inspire fans to bring out team flags, wear jerseys, do cheers, and follow players. Devotees don’t follow every team; just their own. They may be aware of others, but they don’t buy into others. Real followers want their loyalty to be known. It’s the same for real Christ followers, “for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.” (Ephesians 5:8)

Instead of continuing to let darkness reign in our practical life, new life in Christ means the light of the Lord shines into every area of our personal everyday. The fruit of the Spirit within us comes out in how we talk to customers, discipline of our children, respond to hardships, solve financial problems, react to our mate, view our computer screen, deal with family relationships, see our culture, choose reading material, conduct our sexual life, participate in our local church, and get dressed daily. God’s light where darkness once reigned shines into every crack of our lifestyles.

The contrast brought by Christ can’t help but create holy habits where darkness once reigned.

Holy habits due to imitation

Reflection reveals the authenticity of our admiration. After all, isn’t imitation the highest form of flattery? A child’s mimicry on Fathers Day shows how much they watch, idolize, and strive to follow dad … or not. God’s unchanging holiness only requires a change in those who call Him “Abba,” Father. Our imitation brings Him praise.

For the children of God, holiness in practical living is the only believable response to the Father. “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God,” (Ephesians 5:1-2). Our growth in practicing holy living reveals the genuine nature of our adoption as sons of God.

Before we joined God’s family through Christ’s holy sacrifice, we were “sons of disobedience.“ When our father was the Devil, we imitated him. Once we’re adopted into God’s holy family, covered in a righteousness not our own, our Father is God, and we imitate Him through obedience. Like a child who grows older, revealing more and more of their father’s nature in the way they look, talk, walk, smile, laugh, and do life, so a child of God imitates the heavenly Father in holiness more and more.

A child of God has changed, lives in contrast to the world, and imitates the Father through holy habits in practical ways in everyday life.

Would you be willing to pray this prayer?

Father, You are my Father. I want to imitate You, like a genuine child who reflects Your nature. Would you make me alert to practical areas of my life where I need to mimic You more? Help me see where I’m acting more like the old me than the new me. Show me how to apply holiness in all of my life habits.

The Call to Holiness

June 5, 2014 by Ali Shaw 5 Comments

Two of my children had an argument yesterday. I could see it building for weeks and I’d been trying to quell it while equipping them to handle their feelings. But, when it comes down to it, only they can make themselves do what they know is right. And doing the right thing is sometimes so hard. Yet, I want my children to desire doing the right thing because I know of the fruit it brings.

This is something like our call to holiness.

“But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” ~ 1 Peter 1:15,16 (ESV)

www.donotdepart.com — Jenny Downey, Photo Credit, CC

In God’s Word, holiness refers to being blameless, without sin, and set apart for God’s service. Holiness begins in Believers when we accept Christ’s blood shed for forgiveness. As we grow in the Lord, our holiness can mature as well.

How can I be “set apart” when I consistently fail and mess up? Like my own children, even though I’ve learned right from wrong, practicing it can be hard. Swallowing the ugly tone before it pops out, being calm when patience wears threadbare, making the right choice even though it requires much more effort… Some days holy living can feel as impossible as flying.

When right is so hard, why does God call us to holiness? Because of His great love for us! The wise Father sets boundaries for us out of the deepest, most personal love imaginable. Like Kathy mentioned He seeks our very best (and His glory) and uses the Bible and the Spirit to teach us for our physical, emotional, and spiritual protection. A commitment to holy living can save us from many woes. The enemy would like us to believe that holiness is impossible, or at least an unnecessary dullness with no benefit. How very wrong!

Peter reminds us of God’s words “be holy as I am holy” (Lev 11:45). In the Greek, “be” means “become, transition, or emerge”. What do these words tell us? That we will become holy as we model ourselves after Jesus. All of this is not solely by our own efforts, but with the help of the Spirit. Like an ugly caterpillar that emerges transformed into a butterfly, the metamorphosis is attainable.

The Pulpit Commentary says this: “So be ye holy in all manner of conversation. In the whole course of your daily life, in all its details, as you move hither and thither among men, take the holiness of God for your pattern.”

Our wise and loving God wishes for His children to imitate Him. The term “Christian” means, after all, “little Christ.” We are told not to conform ourselves to the world, but rather to “be holy, for I am holy.” “For” is a very important little word here. We are not expected to be in equality with God’s holiness (because we could never measure up!) but rather we are to imitate, model, and pattern ourselves after God’s loving, holy nature. (1 John 2:6) When we walk like Jesus, we share Him with the world.

“Let the acts of the offspring indicate similarity to the Father.” (Augustine)

“How little people know who think holiness is dull. When one meets the real thing… it is irresistible.” (CS Lewis)

While we will never achieve perfection this side of heaven, God calls us to holiness so we may enjoy the fruits of a Christ-exalting, God-honoring, close relationship with Him.

{If you’re looking for more information on pursuing holiness, make sure you check out and enter to win (here on DoNotDepart) Kathy’s new Bible study. Another great resource is a [amazon_link id=”1563094320″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Woman’s Guide to Personal Holiness[/amazon_link].}

How has God’s call to holiness touched your life? How does knowing that holiness is for your good and for His glory encourage you?

Click to Tweet these:

“God calls us to be holy because He loves us!”

“We will become holy as we model ourselves after Jesus.”

“God calls us to holiness so we may enjoy the fruits of a close relationship with Him.”

Come thou Fount: a song for wanderers

April 15, 2014 by Julie 3 Comments

Mighty truths and stirring melodies often meld in the forge of pain. Englishman Robert Robinson wasn’t the first boy to habitually wander from the narrow path. He only went to a meeting to hear George Whitefield so he could mock it, but instead, he changed. As a young adult trying to etch out a new path for life, he wrote down the anthem of his heart. It’s an invitation, a declaration, and a confession that resonates with anyone likely to drift off course and long to return.

Invitation to COME

Having learned Jesus is the Fountain of every blessing and the changer of hearts, Robert invites Him to “Come” tune his heart to produce a song of God’s grace and mercy. Though writing in the 18th century, Robert recognized that God’s character calls “for songs of loudest praise.” This is the chorus of those who want more Jesus, who long to have the Living Water fill them to an overflow of praise. Robert longed to produce a song of praise.

“Come, Thou Fount of ev’ry blessing, tune my heart to sing Thy grace.”

Declaration of FAITH

“Jesus sought me when a stranger,” Robert admitted, but he declared recognition of how God helped him in his times of trouble. He had been wandering and in danger, but the blood of Jesus rescued him. In the Old Testament, Samuel set up an “Ebenezer stone” after God delivered the nation of Israel. Robert’s hymn was an “Ebenezer stone” of God’s rescue in his life. If you’ve experienced personal rescue, the words to this song may give your heart the voice of expression you long for.

“Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer; for he said, “Till now the Lord has helped us.” (1 Samuel 7:12)

Confession of NEED

Truth and music often meld in the forge of pain. This hymn is no different, revealing the writer’s desperate need for grace and his struggle not to wander from His Lord. No matter how much I want to cling to the Fount of every blessing, I know that I have a tendency to leave the Lord I love, to wander from the close fellowship I’m meant to have with Him.

“Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it; prone to leave the God I love,” he wrote.
Robert Robinson did stray from the Fount of every blessing after he wrote this hymn. He later recognized his folly, and in reflecting on the words he once penned, he confessed, “I would give a thousand worlds to enjoy the feelings I had then.”

Mighty truths and stirring melodies often meld in the forge of pain.

Every day must bring a fresh invitation for the Fount to “Come” tune our hearts to his praise.
Every day must resound with a declaration of our faith in God’s help for our trouble.
Every day must bring us down on a bended knee, where we beg God to come.

“Let that grace, Lord, like a fetter, bind my wand’ring heart to Thee. Here’s my heart; Lord, take and seal it; seal it for thy courts above.”

Download a printable Worship Worksheet: Come Thou Fount Bible Study Tool.

Click to TWEET and share this > Mighty truths and stirring melodies often meld in the forge of pain. http://wp.me/p1Su7F-2Tp #ComeThouFount #WanderersSong

Understanding God’s Ways

March 18, 2014 by Julie 4 Comments

I don’t understand the pattern Lisa talked about last week, but I’m so grateful for it, just the same. “We need; God provides. That’s the gospel.” I want that, even if I can’t grasp it all.

Understanding God’s Ways

How could the holy God doze away barriers to make way for ever-fallen, failing me?
How could the One who delights to give rain down grace on ever-receiving me?
How could the Father give the Son for the orphans who didn’t love back … yet?

How?

To demonstrate His intimate knowledge of us, God anticipated our bewilderment. He tenderly sheds light on our confusion in the verses following the crazy declaration that if we seek Him, “He will abundantly pardon.” ( from Isaiah 55:7) Not just adequately forgiven, but abundantly forgiven. The only right response is to worship Him.

How?

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

His thoughts are His purposes, His plans, and His intentions. And His thoughts are so unlike ours. I wouldn’t pardon abundantly, but that’s His plan.
His ways are His path, His direction, His journey, and His manner. And His manner is so unlike ours. I wouldn’t invite opposers to seek me out, but that’s His manner.

Our ways and our thoughts are so different from God’s that we can compare the contrast to the distance of heaven to earth. There are many ways to define how far space is from earth, but the International Space Station orbits at 400 km from earth; a constant boost is necessary since it is constantly “scraping” the atmosphere of the world. From earth to heaven is higher than high. But “higher” here exceeds an earthly sense of distance. Instead, it refers to lofty in deserving exaltation.

For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. (1 Corinthians 13:12)

There will be a day when God reveals how He could extend His abundant pardon to us. For now, His lofty plans and His higher manner is to be exalted above my small understanding. I don’t understand His great mercy that invites those far off to “Seek the Lord while He may be found,” but I’m so glad He invites. You?

The Missional Resource of Me

February 18, 2014 by Guest Post 3 Comments

Every original follower of Christ had a unique, one-of-a-kind combination of skills, experiences, and gifts to carry out the command to multiply the gospel throughout all of the peoples of the earth. When Jesus delivered the directive to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,” (Matthew 28:19a) he was speaking to a group of 11 varied individuals. “Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them,” (Matthew 28:16). While on the mountain, the Son of God filled the imagination and vision of the disciples as they heard the missional imperative to reach people with the gospel. Matthew may’ve been thinking about the funding, and Peter may’ve been thinking about traveling by boat.

What skills, experiences, and gifts has God woven into the fabric of your being as resources for reaching the world?

Do you know how to deliver a baby and treat illnesses?
Do you know how to teach a lesson effectively so people understand?
Do you know how to start a small business and manage money?
Do you know how to learn languages and relate in other cultures?
Have you known what it is to lose a child or suffer a great loss?
Have you experienced poverty or struggled with unemployment?
Have you faced oppression or experienced prejudice or persecution?
Have you made choices that have left you guilty?
Do you have citizenship that opens doors for you around the world?
Do you have financial resources that meet your needs and then some?
Do you have the ability to read and a Bible to explore?
Do you have an understanding of God’s truth?

God equips those He calls

God doesn’t call us without equipping us. Every disciple of Christ is a resource for reaching those who have yet to experience God’s forgiveness. No one who calls themselves by the name of Christ is exempt from a part in the grand plan of getting out the word of the truth.

God has a heart for all nations

The great giver of grace has a heart for all people, every tribe and tongue. He declares, “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, ‘The Lord reigns!'” (1 Chronicles 16:31). God plans for all nations to be included in the scope of salvation born when “God so loved the world,” (John 3:16).

God includes all disciples in the plan

In sounding out His plan for all nations to know of the salvation brought by His Son, He strategically equipped individuals, churches, and nations to spread the gospel so all will hear. “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching.” (Romans 10:14)

If you are a disciple of Christ, you are a resource to reach others. The disciples who stood around Jesus on the Galilean mountain had one thing in common with one another and with every follower of Christ since: “Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.” (Luke 12:48)

How will God use the RESOURCE of YOU?

Will He use you to send others?
Will He use you to pray?
Will He use you to train others about His plan?
Will He use you to open doors for others?
Will He use you to support national believers in their own nations?
Will He use you to be the one to go?

How has God gifted you? How has He gifted your church? How has He gifted your nation for this time in history? YOU ARE A RESOURCE TO REACH THE WORLD.

May God entrust us with much as He sends out His truth and multiplies grace among the peoples of the world.

Tweetables to share:

God doesn’t call us without equipping us http://wp.me/p1Su7F-2NH #MissionalLiving @donotdepart < Tweet this!
YOU are a resource to reach the world. http://wp.me/p1Su7F-2NH #MissionalLiving @donotdepart < Tweet this!

What Happens When Jesus Gets Ahold of Your Heart

January 23, 2014 by Lindsey 7 Comments

Admin note: We’d like to welcome Lindsey Bell to our writing team! Lindsey is a wife, awesome mom of two, and great writer with her first book coming out in less than two weeks! Meet Lindsey and her writing below.

Something happens when Jesus gets ahold of your heart.

We’ve been talking all month about how God changes us…how he makes us into new creations…how he molds our lives through his Word and His Son.

This could not be more evident than in the life of John.

John, whom Jesus called a Son of Thunder, became the disciple of love.

John, the disciple who asked Jesus for permission to call down fire on a Samaritan village (Luke 9), transformed into the man who later said these words: “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God” (1 John 4:7).

Anger to forgiveness.

Judgment to love.

Son of Thunder to Disciple of Love.

So what happened that caused John to change?

As I look at the New Testament, I think the thing that happened was this: Jesus got ahold of John’s heart.

John watched as Jesus gave his life for the sins of the world (John 3:16-17).

He listened as Jesus taught the sermon on the mount (Matthew 5).

He saw Jesus forgive the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11).

John witnessed the sinful woman pour perfume on Jesus’ feet…and then saw Jesus love this woman-this woman that everyone else refused to even look at.

When others would have avoided a person, Jesus reached out his hands and touched them. When others would have thrown stones, Jesus forgave. When others would have judged, Jesus loved.

And that’s what made all the difference for John.

I’ve learned it’s also what makes the difference for us. When Jesus gets ahold of our hearts, He changes us too.

Where once there was a heart of anger, He gives us forgiveness.

Where once there was a tendency to judge, He gives understanding and grace.

Where once there was brokenness, He gives healing.

I don’t know where you’re at today…if there’s anger eating away at your heart or pain that never seems to go away or unforgiveness threatening to destroy you…but I do know this:

If you’re willing to give these things to Jesus..and let Him get ahold of this area of your heart…something amazing is bound to happen.

Something always happens when Jesus gets ahold of your heart.

What’s a story of what changed when Jesus got a hold of your heart?

New beginnings start with history

January 21, 2014 by Julie Leave a Comment

Based on reliable information, I was destined to be a real hell-raiser. But before I could grow up to write a long, empty, broken history, God spared me and drew me to Himself. Like many others who began a relationship with Jesus as a child, I don’t have many sordid tales to convince you I was on the path of destruction. Maybe you have a testimony of early salvation and you’ve struggled with how to tell a story of life change and new beginnings that seems rather dull compared to those of dramatic transformation.

Look no further than your own family history for the answer to your dull dilemma.

With the ease of accessing information, there has been a resurgence of interest in genealogy and family history. God can use this to reach people! Online sources like Ancestry.com have taken away the barriers of discovering our ancestors. Author George Orwell spoke truth when he said, “The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.” Without looking at our history, both recent and far, we fail to shape a solid case for sin. As we uncover our lineage, we trace the pathway of the footsteps we were destined to follow.

Who were you on track to become before you began a new life in Christ?

Out of a love for history and a longing to connect with family, I began a search for my history, hoping to find something noble and redeeming. What I found was evidence left to me by generations back to the late 1500’s. Instead of a long line of saints, I found a yearbook of lost, empty, broken, lives. I needed a new beginning.

I was not only born to “look” like them, but to LIVE like them.

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11, emphasis mine)

I know we’re all born as sinners and destined to die because of it, but my family history proves I was born onto a trajectory that set me on a course for vices like alcohol, anger, and abuse. I had no hope of being a fine, upstanding citizen on my own. You?
When God intervened in the life of my parents and then in my life, He saved me from a future that was as sure as my history. He washed me, changed me, and declared me righteous because of what Jesus did. He is the God of new beginnings. Only Jesus can change the course of a life.

Praise God He can and does change the course of lives every day!

So, what’s in your story? Who were you destined to become?

Recap: Good tidings in modern times

December 31, 2013 by Julie Leave a Comment

In the past month we’ve celebrated the Word who became flesh and lived among us. We’ve talked about how to use our gift of words to display God’s glory and to share His truth. It’s all about Good Tidings in Modern Times.

Good tidings tools we’ve shared

Daily scriptures to help tame the tongue (An awesome printable calendar)
Using words for purposeful praise (Christmas praise cards)
How to send our words responsibly in modern times full of social media
How to use our words to incorporate Christ into our conversations
Advent activities and Christmas crafts for the hearts of our children
A visual reminder for Celebrating the Word with our words
How to repeat the joy of Jesus’ coming in our words
Christmas: What to do when it’s over

Though most ribbons are untied and most gifts are unwrapped, it’s still the right time to use our gift of language to reflect and share about the Word. In him is life itself!

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men.” (John 1:1-4)

We’re grateful to have you reading with us at Do Not Depart as we share tools and encouragement to abide in the Word.

If your thoughts have already turned to a new year and you just can’t wait for January inspiration, take a look at last year’s theme about Spiritual Disciplines.

How to Grow in Spiritual Disciplines

(from January 2013)

Mentoring, are you ready? Mentoring
Serving Others: Service
Staying in the Word: Reading the Bible
Following the knee-worn path: prayer
Let’s mean it – God bless you!
Giving God His due: worship
Finding quiet in an incredibly loud world: silence & solitude

Christmas: What to do when it’s over

December 26, 2013 by Julie 4 Comments

Before Christmas, there are designated songs to sing, appropriate decorations to display, and even timely tasks to do. But when it’s suddenly “done,” people sometimes flounder and ask, “What now?”

Life’s challenges didn’t pause for Christmas, and it doesn’t take long for leftovers and laundry to pile up. So “What now?” What do we do AFTER Christmas? Some of the most humble earthly characters of the incarnation story left a not-so-humble example for us to follow.

“And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.” (Luke 2:20)

If our attention and our hearts were truly turned afresh to the coming of Christ as a babe in swaddling clothes as the hope of all men, then it should show on the day after Christmas.

The shepherds went back to their regular lives.
The shepherds went back as changed people.
The shepherds continued to believe what they had heard and seen.
The shepherds glorified and praised God.

Most of our readers (and all of our team!) fit more closely into the “shepherds” category than the wise men/kings category. We can take our after Christmas cues from the common folk of old who experienced the not-so-common birth of God’s Son, Jesus.

Get back to regular life. What we celebrated changes life today!
Get back to work, but be changed because of what you know.
Keep on believing in the truth of Christ’s coming.
Let your heart be full of praise and overflow in words of praise.

Everyone who heard what the shepherds had to share wondered at the news. As the cultural distractions of the season fade, let’s give our world reason to “wonder” at how Christ’s coming changes every day of our year!

Other “After Christmas posts” from our team you might enjoy:

5 Tips for Setting Spiritual Growth Goals for the New Year with Kathy Howard

The Most Important Thing to Do This Christmas with Lindsey Bell

After Christmas Instructions with Julie

Celebrate the Word with our words

December 19, 2013 by Julie Leave a Comment

As we praise, as we share, as we converse, as we witness … may our words be an offering to the Word who became like us, to live among us, and then give His life for us.

Christ in our conversations

December 17, 2013 by Julie 3 Comments

We don’t need an official calendar holiday in order to use the gift of words well. You might not even celebrate Christmas, but if we believe the account of the Babe in the manger, we must be inspired to share the good tidings.

Christ belongs in our conversations. We’ve talked about some of the challenges of having the story of the Word who became flesh heard in our modern times. We’ve talked about using God’s gift of words to praise Him, and we’ve considered how to tame our tongues and how to take care and caution in sharing responsibly in the social media age. But how do we use our words to naturally weave Jesus into our conversations? The sight of manger scenes, talk of peace on earth, and sounds of Silent Night open doors of opportunity to talk about the Prince of Peace, regardless of our take on the Christmas season.

If Jesus can find a place in an unlikely manger, it shouldn’t be so hard to find a place in the chatter of those who know Him. A simple, but intentional, question or comment may be the pivotal point to bring up “the Jesus” in our conversations.

Christ in our conversations

Q: So do you have a favorite image that says “Christmas” to you?
A: I love to imagine the manger scene. It’s hard to grasp that God became a helpless baby for me, but He did. Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to become a man?

Q: What’s your favorite Christmas carol?
A: I’ve sung a lot of them without even thinking. Recently, I paid attention to O Holy Night. “Long lay the world in sin and error pining ’til He appeared and the soul felt His worth.” I thought about how I was pining away for something to bring me hope before I knew the worth Jesus brings to my life.

Q: So after Christmas comes the New Year. Do you have hopes for the year ahead?
A: I’d love to pray about that for you. God says that if we give God the right place in our lives, He will direct our paths. I’ll ask Him to show you what good things He has for you.

Some day, our friend or relative may come to know Jesus as their personal Savior. While we’re rejoicing, they might be wondering why we didn’t speak up and turn our common conversations to spiritual things, life-changing things. News that the Word became flesh and lived among us, full of grace and truth (John 1:14).

“but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,” (1 Peter 3:15 ESV).

When we use our gift of words to share the true events of the coming of Christ, we honor Him as holy. It’s not as complicated or frightening as we often make it. After all, the Word in us gives us hope, and that’s something amazing to talk about!

(Here is a printable sheet of more examples and reminders to help us include Christ in our conversations this Christmas and in the New Year.)

Do you have a way that works for you to turn conversations to Christ?

Good tidings in modern times

December 3, 2013 by Julie 5 Comments

I emerged from the gauntlet of perfume counters and white coated clerks thrusting sample cards under my nose. Pausing in a forest of mitten covered racks, I caught my breath and surveyed the scene, searching for it. A mention of Christmas? Evidence Christ was born? Suggestion of a manger? There was none.

Other than giant-sized posters of happy people dressed in red beneath a single word in large script saying “BELIEVE,” little proof existed to say the day was anything other than a national shopping day. “Believe what?” I wanted to shout. No one would’ve heard me over the din of doorbusters and “Next!” and crying children covered by packages in strollers.

But department store shouldn’t have to tell me what to believe. They exist for shopping days; they know their goal and they stay focused. So who’s the one to declare good tidings in these noisy, modern times?

For Christians, the Christmas season celebrates the incarnation of God’s Son, the earthly birth of the heavenly Savior. Known as “the Word,” even His name promised the giving of a message, news of hope for all mankind. And in the very story of His arrival, words took center stage.

announcements were made
government decrees were sent out
prophecy’s fulfillment was spoken
a baby was inspired by a greeting
good news of great joy was declared
songs were sung by united hosts
threats were sent out by Roman rulers
rejection was delivered by a busy innkeeper
worship was humbly spoken in the night

Along with the gift of “The Word,” God gave us the gift of words of our own. He entrusted us with the power of voice, whether spoken, written, signed, painted or played. He gave us the power to convey a message. His message. We have the potential to declare the Good Tidings.

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.“ John 1:14

Modern times are noisy times and times with more modes of delivering tidings than ever before.

With all of the words out there, people still want to know, “Believe what?”

And that’s where those entrusted with the power of words join with the shepherds and the angel host and the wise men to declare good tidings. Our modern times count on US to sound out the good news that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

Will you join Do Not Depart this month as we explore the gift of words and rediscover the power and the joy of good tidings in modern times?

Bondage broken after 18 crippled years

October 8, 2013 by Julie 10 Comments

If you’re bent over, all you can see is the dirty ground, the earth from which we came. It would be hard to lift your eyes and look up with hope if your view excludes the faces of people, the landscape, or the horizon. Even work would be mostly out of reach, not to mention community life and relationships, without the ability to look into the eyes of another person or reach forward with purpose. That’s how we meet one unnamed woman in the Gospels.

Bent over for eighteen years, the crippled woman of Luke 13:10-17 had been “kept bound” by Satan himself. Unable to even straighten up, she waited at a house of worship, a synagogue. When Jesus came to her synagogue on a Sabbath day and saw the woman’s condition, he set her on a path to change the course of her life.

Freedom from bondage

On that day, the woman long bound by Satan was unbound.

The Devil is a supplier of sickness, a developer of diseases, and an ambassador of affliction. He loved taking a woman made in the image of God and twisting her with an infirmity as a trophy of his bondage. But then Jesus saw her, called her forward, and said, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” Jesus laid his hands on her and right away her gnarled spirit-bound body straightened up. Right away, she praised God, because that’s what a genuinely unbound woman does.

Staying in bondage

On that day, a religious ruler long bound by tradition stayed bound.

The Devil has planted the sickness of legalism in the hearts of the religious ruler and his friends. Though not visibly bent in body, their hearts were gnarled by their regard for rules. As quickly as the freed woman stood to her full height in praise, the synagogue ruler was overcome with indignation, blurting out rebuke to the Healer for healing on the Sabbath day. Instead of a declaration of worship, he responded by defending the same hollow tradition that was unable to free the woman during any of her bent up, eyes down, infirmity ridden eighteen years. Jesus rebuked him in return, allowing the crowd to hear His heart for setting captives free. Instead of lifting up His opponents as He had the crippled woman, “all his opponents were humiliated” (v.17b).

The Devil despises the image bearers of God, but Jesus came to “free captives”(Isaiah 42:6-7) from the bondage of the Enemy. Has the supplier of sickness, the developer of disease, the ambassador of affliction bent you down physically, spiritually, or emotionally? Do you feel like all you can see is the dirt of the road you walk? Are you finding it hard to lift up your eyes and see a hope-filled future?

Jesus sees you, calls you, and wants to free you from what the Enemy is using to bind you. What do your shackles look like? He is the true Bondage Breaker who can take a gnarled heart or twisted relationships or a downcast life and raise them up for His glory. Ask God to unbind you and help you walk in newness of life. Let yours be the next voice to praise Him, because that’s what a genuinely unbound woman does.

Has God given you freedom from bondage in your life? Leave a comment and share a praise.

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Where you find wisdom

September 12, 2013 by Lisa Burgess 9 Comments

And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption.
1 Corinthians 1:30

I’m afraid of being stupid. I realized it a few years ago.

None of us wants to be dumb. We all need wisdom.

To make godly decisions
To raise children who know the Lord
To love others in helpful ways
To glorify God in word and deed

Who’s the wisest man who ever lived? Solomon? He asked God for wisdom when he could have asked for anything (1 Kings 3:9). He subsequently authored much of the wisdom literature in the Bible.

Yet someone wiser than Solomon is here: Jesus (Matthew 12:42). In the Bible we typically seek His wisdom in the gospels where we see Him teaching about wisdom and living wisely (Matthew 13:54).

But Jesus can also be found in the wisdom literature of the Old Testament (2 Timothy 3:15).

THE WISDOM OF HUMILITY (JOB)

When Job suffered greatly as an apparently innocent man, his friends tried to find a reason. He obviously hadn’t been wise about keeping a rule or two; why else would he have lost so much? Eventually Job himself demanded answers from God (Job 3:11 ff).

But here we see foreshadowing of another Man who suffered—despite total innocence. Not only did He not question God about it, He wisely chose to obey at painful costs to Himself.

His wisdom teaches us to let go of demanding the answers. Instead, we’re to throw ourselves on His mercy in humility. Even when we don’t understand. Maybe especially when we don’t understand.

THE WISDOM OF WORSHIP (PSALMS)

The authors of these songs put word to emotions, not only for themselves, but also for us. Jesus Himself often quoted the Psalms (Psalm 31:5, for example).

In these laments, confessions, and praises, we learn to choose the wisdom of worship, verbalizing our adoration of and to Wisdom Himself—the Rock we rest on, the Refuge we hide in, the Shepherd we walk behind.

THE WISDOM OF THE WAY (PROVERBS)

We learn in this series of sayings that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Solomon urged over and over to choose the way of wisdom over the way of foolishness.

But what we know that he didn’t is that Jesus is the Way, the truth, and the life. He is wisdom personified (Proverbs 8:17), and to be truly wise, we’ll seek Him, empowered by His Spirit in us to choose the right over wrong that Solomon was preaching about.

THE WISDOM OF HOPE (ECCLESIASTES)

This book contains questions that can haunt us still: What is life’s true meaning? What is my purpose? Is all really hopeless?

While the world’s wisdom leaves us empty of lasting answers (Ecclesiastes 1:16-18), eternal wisdom from hoping in Jesus fills us up. In Him we live and love with meaning. Instead of chasing after knowledge, we chase after Him. Only then do we find purpose renewed and hope restored.

THE WISDOM OF CONNECTION (SONG OF SOLOMON)

Whether you see this collection of poems as an analogy or as pure story, this message comes across: the intimacy of love is to be desired (Song of Solomon 1:4).

While the original audience knew about God, they lacked full knowledge about Jesus. But from our vantage point in history, we see God’s wisdom in creating a beloved bride for the perfect Bridegroom. We are wise to recognize and delight in the love of the One who makes us His spotless bride.

Study deeper in these Old Testament books to find more.

And as you do, remember: True wisdom isn’t one more piece of knowledge we learn; it’s a Person we can know.

Jesus is our wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:30), and trusting Him is the wisest thing we can ever do.

Which of the five Wisdom Books is your favorite? Why? Do you see Jesus in it?

Please share your thoughts below.

For more on Jesus in the wisdom literature, see Nancy Guthrie’s [amazon_link id=”1433526328″ target=”_blank” ]The Wisdom of God: Seeing Jesus in the Psalms & Wisdom Books[/amazon_link]

It’s our pleasure to serve & follow Jesus

April 16, 2013 by Julie 4 Comments

Where I live, the temperature crept up into the flip flop zone today, and the sky was the color blue that makes you want to stand on top of a hill and spin around. You know what I mean, don’t you? Apparently, this clear, sunny, warm day also made everyone crave Chick-fil-a. Our double drive-thru lines stretched out to the street as cars full of people dangled their hands out of their windows. The employees were not rattled by the masses or the lunchtime challenge. No, if you’re going to work at Chick-fil-a, you have to be ready to answer every customer with a genuine “My pleasure.” Becoming an employee comes with certain expectations.

If anyone serves Jesus, you have to follow him. Becoming a disciple comes with certain expectations.

The Ultimate Servant

Just after announcing that the time had finally come for the Son of Man to be glorified, Jesus explained that when “a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies,” it is able to bear a harvest. Knowing that he was about to sacrifice his life on the cross in order to offer the gift of eternal life, Jesus directed his words to those who would serve him and follow him. Instead of recruiting disciples with promises of an easy journey with guaranteed low pain and high prosperity, Jesus told the truth. He was going to be the ultimate servant by surrendering his life for others, and those who want to serve him will be called to do the same.

The Following Servant

To serve Christ the Lord is to be ready to answer every lost person with a genuine desire to sacrifice self as a follower of Christ. It may mean you forego a pleasure in order to make room for someone else. It may mean you give up your own recognition to defer to another person. It may mean you risk your reputation by claiming to know Christ Jesus. It may mean you surrender your life to a government that demands you renounce your faith. It may mean you run into a smoke filled Boston sidewalk just moments after a bombing to carry a victim to safety, because that’s what Jesus did for us in the conflict of eternity.

The Servant’s Truth

It’s unthinkable that we would serve Jesus and not follow him in a daily life of surrender. To be his servant is to be his follower. Modern church culture often sells a watered down version to entice would-be recruits to an easy grace, but Jesus tells it like it really is. Grace came with a high price, and to follow in the steps of the One who paid it, we must also live a life of surrender. For the genuine servant of Christ, it is possible to do the hard work, even the sacrificial work, of following because, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

The Servant’s Promise

The Chick-fil-a job application promises a positive work environment, competitive pay, training, flexible hours, and even fun employee outings. They’re looking for “friendly, enthusiastic people who enjoy serving customers.” That’s awesome if you’re Chick-fil-a, but Jesus asks for more and promises more.

If you serve him, you have to follow him daily, everywhere, even to the hard places.
You have to surrender everything, but you gain everything.
He promised, “If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him,” (John 12:26b).

Jesus glorified his Father by surrendering his life, and he invites us to do the same. “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (John 12:25).

To serve Jesus is to surrender your own agenda and follow him, and as you do, it will be his divine pleasure to welcome you to a present peace with him now and a perfect future with him for eternity.

Has God ever asked you to make a sacrifice as His servant/follower?
What scripture gives you confidence that God will enable you to do the hard things?