wordspread

I cracked an egg, watching its yolk emerge and plop slipperily into my mixing bowl. And in such a simple task as mixing together the ingredients for banana bread, God nudged my heart with a reminder of what it means to be a member of the church.  "For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ."  ~ 1 Corinthians 12:12 The reminder? That being part of the church is like being an ingredient in a loaf of banana bread (respectfully). While being part of the church WAY better than banana bread, for the sake of the example, stick with me. :)  Christians are part of the universal church - and together, we make up Christ's bride. God created us for community, and he didn't intend for us to walk alone in our faith. That's why we have brothers and sisters with different abilities than we do; because the variety of skills and gifts we have create a beautiful result.  "For the body does

Honored to write for Gospel Centered Discipleship this summer! Check out this article  here !

The Bible is laden with birth stories. Eve's. Sarah's. Rebecca's. Rachel's. Elizabeth's. Hannah's. Mary's. And so many others. But laden throughout all scripture is the undercurrent of a greater birth story in the lives of you and me: the story of us being born into the family of God.  We hear of increased pain in childbearing (Eve). Giving birth as an elderly woman (Elizabeth, giving birth to John the Baptist). Barrenness (Rebecca, for 20 years!), twin birth (also Rebecca, giving birth to Jacob and Esau), post-menopausal birth (Sarah), dying in childbirth (Rachel, when she had Benjamin), and even giving birth as a virgin (Mary, giving birth to Jesus). It is no wonder we hear about birth so much in the Scripture; it is is a significant event. It's incredibly hard, but it's also something we can be proud of, because the end result is, or is supposed to be, beautiful new life. But unfortunately, birth is broken. It doesn't always end in new life, a

In seasons of hardship, God has done me no wrong. In seasons of doubt, God has never been wrong. In the seasons of waiting and wandering want, His timing has never been wrong. Though I may think it, by Him I am not wronged, for in Him no wrong can be found. He is not wrong in what He will make right. By Him I am not wronged by day or by night; For what is wrong in this world is no fault of God's What is wrong in this world with Him is always at odds. His will is to work all things by His might, That all wrongs in His justice will be made, one day, right. In the seasons of suffering, God has done me no wrong. In the seasons of loss, God has never been wrong. Though I may think it, by Him I am not wronged, for in Him no wrong can be found. By his hand I am not and will not be wronged, for in Him no wrong can be found. So still I will be as the wrong He will fight, And I long for that day when all wrong will be right. Oh, for that day do I long. #spreadtheword

Never has a task felt so repetitive and so mundane.  Nonetheless, never has a task felt so needed and so incredibly purposeful: Changing. Yet. Another. Dirty. Diaper.  From soiled to clean, once again.  And it would be silly to become frustrated with the task when these youngsters we care for are so little that they're simply unable to control these natural bodily functions. It isn't a perfect analogy, but bear with me. Or if we're talking about the baby on your lap, maybe it would be better suited to say "bear down" with me as they fill their pants again! Ok, that's probably taking my inner labor/delivery nurse bodily-function-language-filter (or lack thereof) too far. You'll have to bear down with me, too. Oops. Too far, again? Well, there goes the hope for a smooth delivery of this topic! Ha! Are you laughing with (or at) me yet? Ok, but for real: I can't help but think: Is this perhaps how God views the cleansing of our sin? Repetitive. Purposeful.

As I sit here gazing at our sweet baby's face, it's as if I've never seen or understood a baby's helpless state before; I find myself having a "lightbulb" moment, where Matthew 18:3 hits me in a brand new way. Our precious son, completely reliant on us as his caretakers: the two people God chose, enabled and entrusted to give life to this little one. Whoa, dude. That's a big responsibility. And yet, my heart rejoices as Mary's did in Luke chapter 1, "magnifying" the Lord, because no, I could not have done anything this beautiful apart from the Lord, the Creator. I rejoice in Zion's life. He's such a blessing to GET to take care of!! The Lord has indeed done beautiful things for us, and HOLY is his name! And then, to think that God willingly gave up his firstborn - his one and only Son for us. It seems unfair. Probably because it is. Yet, Jesus went willingly into the humble, helpless human form as he became a baby. But, that's a w