Posted by: jakinnan | November 4, 2014

Call it Good

pretty

There are many things we need to rename in our lives. Our work. Our relationships. Even our life itself. Rename them. Rename your life. It’s good. Because your life belongs to our good God, and he’s got you. Rename yourself. God has.

My parents named me Stasi. It means resurrection. There is a lot in my life that has needed resurrecting over the years—my wounded heart, my damaged sexuality, my broken self-perception, my dreams, my relationships, my calling. And God is resurrecting every area of my life to life. He is resurrecting my mind to be able to believe that all he has made, and all he has made me, is good. He is resurrecting my dreams and my desires and even my yearning to be deeply known and perfectly loved. Yes, my parents named me Stasi, but really it was God who named me “Resurrection.”

Knowing who we are enables us to live the life we have been born to live—the life the seen and unseen world needs us to live. We need to know who we are and own who we are. Who are you? What is your identity—really?

You are a new creation in Christ, more than a conqueror. Victorious. Strong. Empowered. Safe. Secure. Sealed. You are a channel of the life and love of God. You are alive in Christ. You are the Beloved of God. You are His.

– Stasi Eldredge, Becoming Myself

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Posted by: jakinnan | November 4, 2014

11/4/2014 Scripture

littlelight

My child, don’t go along with them!
    Stay far away from their paths.
They rush to commit evil deeds.
    They hurry to commit murder.
If a bird sees a trap being set,
    it knows to stay away.
But these people set an ambush for themselves;
    they are trying to get themselves killed.
Such is the fate of all who are greedy for money;
    it robs them of life.

-Proverbs 1:15-19 NLT

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Posted by: jakinnan | November 3, 2014

11/03/2014 Scripture

flow

My child, listen when your father corrects you.
    Don’t neglect your mother’s instruction.
What you learn from them will crown you with grace
    and be a chain of honor around your neck.

-Proverbs 1:8-9 NLT

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Posted by: jakinnan | November 3, 2014

11/02/2014 Scripture

snowpink

Follow the steps of good men instead,
    and stay on the paths of the righteous.
For only the godly will live in the land,
    and those with integrity will remain in it.
But the wicked will be removed from the land,
    and the treacherous will be uprooted.

-Proverbs 2:20-22 NLT

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Posted by: jakinnan | November 1, 2014

11/01/2014 Scripture

rockypath

Wisdom will save you from evil people,
    from those whose words are twisted.
These men turn from the right way
    to walk down dark paths.
They take pleasure in doing wrong,
    and they enjoy the twisted ways of evil.
Their actions are crooked,
    and their ways are wrong.

-Proverbs 2:12-15 NLT

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Posted by: jakinnan | November 1, 2014

10/31/2014 Scripture

sunmist

Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair,
    and you will find the right way to go.
For wisdom will enter your heart,
    and knowledge will fill you with joy.
Wise choices will watch over you.
    Understanding will keep you safe.

-Proverbs 2:9-11 NLT

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Posted by: jakinnan | November 1, 2014

10/30/2014 Scripture

greenpath

My child, listen to what I say,
    and treasure my commands.
Tune your ears to wisdom,
    and concentrate on understanding.
Cry out for insight,
    and ask for understanding.
Search for them as you would for silver;
    seek them like hidden treasures.
Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,
    and you will gain knowledge of God.
For the Lord grants wisdom!
    From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest.
    He is a shield to those who walk with integrity.
He guards the paths of the just
    and protects those who are faithful to him.

-Proverbs 2:1-8 NLT

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Posted by: jakinnan | October 29, 2014

Don’t Take the Bait

redtree

The only way is love. Paul says love “keeps no record of wrongs” (1 Cor. 13:5). In loving relationships, we want to throw away the list in our heads of wrongs done to us and ignore them when they raise their indictments yet again. Too often we keep those lists, ruminate on them, and nurse them like a wounded animal. We say we forgive—and we may even believe we have—but when the list presents itself again we entertain it with a sort of sick satisfaction. “See what they did? Remember what she said?” We have taken the bait of offense. We are inside the trap.

The word used in Scripture for offense actually means “bait,” the bait that is placed inside a trap to lure an animal to its death.

Offenses need to be forgiven quickly, or they will fester and poison the relationship. The poison seeps out and affects our own souls as well. Offenses that are held on to lead to death.

People will hurt us. We will hurt and offend as well. We all will do this with intention and without, with our thoughts bent to wound and with no thought at all. Jesus took all our offenses into his broken body when he died for us, and he took everyone else’s as well. All that he suffered—the beating, the scourging, the mocking, and finally the crucifixion—was more than enough to pay for it all. Our offenses and theirs.

– Stasi Eldredge, Becoming Myself

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Posted by: jakinnan | October 29, 2014

10/29/2014 Scripture

bow

Do not withhold good from those who deserve it
    when it’s in your power to help them.
If you can help your neighbor now, don’t say,
    “Come back tomorrow, and then I’ll help you.”

Don’t plot harm against your neighbor,
    for those who live nearby trust you.
Don’t pick a fight without reason,
    when no one has done you harm.

-Proverbs 3:27-30 NLT

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Posted by: jakinnan | October 28, 2014

What IS Discipleship?

sandset

What have we come to accept as “discipleship”? A friend of mine recently handed me a program from a large and successful church somewhere in the Midwest. It’s a rather exemplary model of what the idea has fallen to. Their plan for discipleship involves, first, becoming a member of this particular church. Then they encourage you to take a course on doctrine. Be “faithful” in attending the Sunday morning service and a small group fellowship. Complete a special course on Christian growth. Live a life that demonstrates clear evidence of spiritual growth. Complete a class on evangelism. Consistently look for opportunities to evangelize. Complete a course on finances, one on marriage, and another on parenting (provided that you are married or a parent). Complete a leadership training course, a hermeneutics course, a course on spiritual gifts, and another on biblical counseling. Participate in missions. Carry a significant local church ministry “load.”

You’re probably surprised that I would question this sort of program; most churches are trying to get their folks to complete something like this, one way or another. No doubt a great deal of helpful information is passed on. My goodness, you could earn an MBA with less effort. But let me ask you: A program like this—does it teach a person how to apply principles, or how to walk with God? They are not the same thing.

– John Eldredge, Waking the Dead

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