Category: Christian

Christian

Holding on to Hope

Highlighting Hope

We highlight or underline in books what we have found to be profound and worth remembering. We highlight or underline so that as we flip back through the pages, those statements will grab our attention in order that our minds may dwell upon its’ riches once again.

Highlighting Hope was inspired by Hebrews 10:23 which says, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.” In the midst of a difficulty, I read this verse and it gripped my heart. Although this storm was big in appearance, it was miniscule in the presence of my Savior. I prayed for months on end for God to remove this thorn in the flesh, and when it remained present, I knew that God was calling me to trust Him and to hold unswervingly to this hope that can only be found in Him.

Proverbs 13:12 tells us that “hope deferred makes the heart sick.” Our need for hope is great and yet that is exactly what Jesus offers, and He longs to meet this need in our lives! He is our living hope and the beauty here is that this is just the beginning! Colossians 1:5 tells us that faith and love springs up from this hope that Jesus offers!

As I have sought hope and have watched God “highlight” all around me this hope that I have in Him, I have come to realize that hope is just the starting point. As we read about, see, and experience His hope, it is a means in which He produces a greater faith and love in our lives! Praise God for His exponential work continuously being played out in us!FB_IMG_1580684964014

Christian

Seeing Storms In A New Light

Highlighting Hope

 It was a Monday evening, many years ago, and we got caught driving in a heavy downpour of rain. The rain was so heavy that we could barely see the road. As we made our way down the road, my daughter, who was two at the time, is in the backseat screaming, “Oh no Mom! It’s a “torvado”! It’s a “torvado”!” I understood her panic, because we had spent a lot of time at the beginning of that year hiding out in the bathroom from serval tornadoes that had hit the area we were living in in a very short period of time. It made quite the impression on her! Before the night was over, the heavy rain had turned into a full fledge thunderstorm.

I remember not sleeping well that night, and I was annoyed by the loud thunder and flashes of light that were constant. In my heart I was grumbling about this “storm” and how it inconvenienced me and prevented me from getting a good night’s sleep, but as I laid there wide awake, my thoughts and feelings about this storm began to quickly change. I realized that what I was complaining about was God’s way of providing for us. We all know how much we need rain, and even still, I know how quick I am to complain when the rain actually comes. (Even the lightning God uses for our benefit and I learned that it actually helps to provide the soil with nitrates, which is pretty cool!) As I laid there wide awake, I realized I looked at storms with the wrong perspective. I focused on how I felt inconvenienced and fearful of the possibility of something being struck by lightning or even losing power, but I realized that all of this happens for a reason, and ultimately it puts God’s glory on display.

“God is always working to produce a beautiful display of hope!”

As we face our storms in life, we often times we see the inconveniences, difficulties, pain, and reasons for fear, all the while missing the good that God is really doing.

That Monday night James 1:2-4, 12 took on a new meaning for me.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you face trials (storms) of many kinds, because you Know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (vs. 2-4)

“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.” (vs. 12)

As storms persist, God is at work. Nothing goes unused by our Heavenly Father, who loves us and is working all things for our good, but ultimately for His glory. In spite of any storm that may come our way, my prayer is that our hearts will dwell on God’s goodness, knowing He never leaves or forsakes us, and that our eyes would be unveiled to see the works of His hands. God always working to produce a beautiful display of hope!

lightning

Christian

A Heavenly Peace

Highlighting Hope

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, and all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

We sing this song at Christmas time to worship our King, our King who left His throne to come and abolish the great wall of separation between God and man. Jesus came to abolish this great abyss that would have otherwise remained. Jesus came, despite our unworthiness, to bestow His grace, upon grace on and in our lives. We sing in worship of this holy birth!

For those who have been redeemed by Christ, this song has a very profound meaning. There are no amount of penned words that can fully articulate the majesty of Jesus and His holy birth, but bestowed to His children are significant blessings that can readily be identified and these significant blessings are markings of a stark contrast in our lives- before and after His entrance.

Before Christ coming into your life, do you recall a restlessness, a deep longing within your heart, always left unmet? Take a moment to recall the moment when Jesus became your Savior and consider these differences.

Silent night. I’m not sure how silent that night literally was, but this significant birth now silences the voice of our accuser. John 3:17, 18 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned” Revelation 12:10 says, “Now have come the salvation of and the power of and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” Do you hear the constant sound of accusations in your heart and mind? Look unto this Savior who has been born for you and allow Him to give you your first, true silent night.

Holy Night. No day is as sacred as that first moment God captured your heart and stamped you as ‘His’. The moment that you first began your life in Christ, was certainly a holy moment, and your first true holy night. This is a holiness that we could not produce on our own, but rather it is one that had to be done for us and on our behalf. Paul addresses the believers in Corinth, as those sanctified in Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 1:2). The word sanctified is a past tense verb, which means to be set apart or declared as holy. This clearly indicates an action needing to be taken on our behalf. We in ourselves, are not holy, but Jesus is holy and in Christ Jesus, we can be declared holy, and thus allowing us to experience our first, true holy night.

All is Calm, All is Bright. Your once restless heart, your life once lived in darkness, is now filled with a calm, and a light that you had never known or had ever seen before. This new calm is unlike any other calm you’ve ever experienced, because Christ is a new peace on Earth to all people that ultimately brings us peace with God. As Jesus once rebuked a storm when He and His disciples were out at sea by saying, “Peace, be still!” Scripture then tells us that the winds ceased and there was a great calm. A life once filled with chaos can come to a complete halt by Jesus’ resounding call of, “Peace, be still.” That’s what His birth was. His very birth commands a peace over our lives that results in a great calm for our souls to experience daily. A life once full of darkness is now bursting with Christ’s light and therefore, we experience new life. Where there is Light, there is life. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Without light, there is no life” John 1:4, 5 The birth of our Savior ushered in a marvelous light this world so desperately needs.

Heavenly Peace. All of this is a result of a Holy Infant, the Christ child, coming for us. Therefore, we can sleep in a new found peace, a heavenly peace.

Are you experiencing a silent night, a holy night in Christ? Have you experienced this great calm over your heart and soul? Is there new light shining in your life this day? If not, you can experience these things by looking to the Christ Child, by looking to the Savior of the world, and for the very first time, experience a Heavenly peace here on Earth.

Christian

It Certainly is a Very Merry Christmas

Highlighting Hope

I recall having a virus when I was young that hit me pretty suddenly and settled in my joints. The excruciating pain in my joints, especially my ankles, made it impossible for me to walk for several days. I was probably in the first or second grade at the time, and the onset of this virus happened while I was at school. Thankfully my mom worked at the school that I attended and she was able to get to me quickly, put me on a rolling chair, then rolled me down the hallway, and out to her car. It’s funny how more than 30 years later I can still remember the crippling pain and my need to be carried.

The holiday season is a time of remembering and gathering with loved ones. For the Christian, its’ main purpose is to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus. This is to be a jovial time of year, and for many, hidden beneath the fixed smile on your face, is a heart that bares grief, hurt, sadness, or pain. The reason for these emotions residing in many hearts is multifaceted, and the holiday season tends to stir up or agitate a grieving heart. I often times have gone to scripture in my pain in order to seek truth, and while I may still find the pain in my heart to be present, I begin to find rest because God’s word carries me, and it can carry you. In our pain, we see a loving Savior who remains present and carries us when we feel as if we can no longer stand, no longer walk.

Grieving friends, friends who feel much sorrow this night, I pray that I might encourage you with God’s word so that you can remember your position before God.

 In Isaiah 49: 15, 16 we read, “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.”

You dear friend, are not forgotten by God. While the world seems to move forward, and your pain has you feeling stagnant, you have not been forgotten by our Heavenly Father. You are ever before Him and on the very hand that holds you, you have been engraved. To be permanently remembered and seen by God is a grand truth to behold. This is a love that is greater than our minds can ever comprehend.

Psalm 139 says, “even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.” Pain has a way of crippling us and making it feel impossible to move forward, but with God as our guide, holding us and guiding us, we have an immeasurable amount of hope to move forward because He is the one who is carrying us through.

This great hope, these great truths that we have to claim and live by this very night are only possible because,  ‘Unto you a child is born, a Savior, and He is Christ, our Lord! He is Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace.’ (Luke 2:11, Isaiah 9:6) While pain may be present in your heart this Christmas, worship this Savior who was born for you, who continues to live for you, who intercedes for you, and who continues to carry you! Jesus certainly is the true hope of the world and because of that we can say with certainty that it is a very Merry Christmas.

Christian, Encouragement, Inspiration

“You of little faith, why are you so afraid?”

Highlighting Hope

“You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” This was a question that Jesus asked his disciples who were filled with fear when they found themselves in a shaky circumstance. Jesus frequently spoke to crowds of people, often times to critics, and to people who probably had little to no faith in Him at all, but he saved this question for his followers.

This question is still applicable to believers today. As I pondered this question asked by our Lord, three things came to mind:  Worship, Correction, and Love.

When we are faced with the question “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” it causes us to acknowledge who Jesus is and give Him all the worship He is due. We are caused to recognize that He is sovereign over all of our life circumstances and, that however great the circumstance that we face may be, Jesus is infinitely greater. We are faced with remembering that the presence of our circumstance is temporary, but Jesus’ presence in our lives is continuous. “Never will He leave you; never will He forsake you.” This promise is declared in Deuteronomy 31:6 to the Israelites as they were about to enter the Promised Land that God would give to them, and Moses knew that they would face circumstances that would cause them to fear. Therefore, Moses tells them, yes, it’s going to get scary for a bit, you’ll be tempted to give way to fear, but remember God is with you continuously. Paul references this same verse in Hebrews 13:6 to remind believers of God’s constant presence in our lives. Praise God that He is ever-present!

the presence of our circumstance is temporary, but Jesus’ presence in our lives is continuous.

As I read this question asked by Jesus, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” it immediately corrects my thinking about my circumstances. When I give way to fear, I begin to give more credit to my circumstance than to my Savior. When I begin to give way to fear, I am believing that my circumstance is greater than Jesus, and that my circumstance has the final say. When fear begins to arise within our hearts, we must rush to God’s word so that we can then be changed by the renewing of our minds with truth! (Romans 12:2) By taking in truth, we will find peace because our thoughts  are now fixed on Jesus who is the author and perfector of our faith. (Heb. 12:2)

And finally, as I read this question asked by Jesus, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” I am drawn to the love of our Savior. Jesus acknowledges that in our flesh, we will be tempted to succumb to fear, and then He offers Himself to be our solution. Jesus desires that we not live a life of fear but of power, of love and sound mind.  (2 Tim 1:7)

In the book Conversion by Michael Lawrence, he says“Faith is trust, and it’s only as good as the object of its trust. So the question isn’t “Did you believe? as Fanny Crosby implied. It’s ‘Who did you believe in?’”

So, “you of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Remember in whom we are placing our trust! The Lord, Jesus Christ is with you in every single moment of every single day as you walk through any and every circumstances, and He is ready and able to supply you with everything you need! Fear not!

Christian

Life Left Within

Highlighting Hope

“You know that there is a good chance that you killed our hydrangea bushes, right? You aren’t supposed to cut them back until the spring!” That was not the response that I expected or wanted to hear from my husband! I absolutely love these bushes and the last thing I wanted to think was that I had possibly killed them!

During the right season, these bushes probably come close to 6 feet tall, and they are absolutely beautiful! But after we had a few cold snaps in the fall, they were done! The once lush, vibrant green bushes were now brown, leafless limbs. Some had even lost their form and were now bent over, sagging to the ground. They looked awful and I just had to cut them back. After I realized that I had jumped ahead on my pruning, I just stood there looking at the short, brown stubs that remained- hoping and praying that there was life still left in them.

A couple of years ago, my husband was traveling for his job, and one of the places he was sent to work experienced several tornadoes and straight line winds within a short period of time. Before the city could get back to its’ feet and recover from one destructive storm, another one was well on its way, adding to the damage. I remember us driving around town after the first storm, and seeing some trees completely pulled up from the ground, while others had just the tops completely lopped off, trunk and roots still intact. So many bushes and trees had received an untimely and vicious pruning. The place looked dead and as we looked around at what remained, you just prayed that life was still left within them. As I looked around this city and its’ devastating destruction, I felt like I was looking at an outward depiction of an inward storm I was experiencing within my own heart and mind.

I too was experiencing a relentless and destructive storm that left me feeling like all hope was lost, and I began wondering if there was still life left in me.
Looking at the short, brown stubs of my hydrangea bushes sent my mind back to this time and place of my life. Storms have a way of making us feel that we just are brown, withered, done, and dead. After the constant wear and tear they continue to bring, you begin finding yourself hoping and praying that there is still life left within, that there is still hope.

Just yesterday, I was highly encouraged when I saw little green buds sprouting up all over the short brown stubs of my hydrangeas. Although it is winter, and a harsh cold snap will probably put an end to the growth, I was able to see the proof, months later, that YES there is, in fact, still life left in both of these bushes! I rejoiced when I saw the evidences of life, and I ran to share this exciting discovery with my husband.

Just like that my hydrangea bushes still have life in them, I too discovered, in the middle of my storm, that there was still life in me. I discovered that there was life left because Jesus had not left! The surpassing power of God was at work within me, and though the storm was great and proved destructive, it could not and did not stop the life giving work that God was producing within me. During this time of my life, I experienced that the power of God was much greater, the peace of God was my constant guard, the word of God is alive and active, and I learned the deep, great, unending love of a Father!

Today, I encourage you to look to God in the midst of your storm! He is the giver of life, the giver of hope, the giver of peace, and the giver of joy! You may find yourself wondering if there is still life left within, and with God at work within you, the answer is always YES! In the middle of your storm, don’t lose hope! Be on the lookout for the evidences of the Living Hope that is steadily at work within you, because the evidences are sure to come!

There is a good work going on inside you that God is doing for those within His grasp, a working that is occurring even before your eyes are able to see! God never fails and He will not fail with you either! You are in His grasp, by His grace, for His glory!

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We ALWAYS carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body” 1 Corinthians 4:7-10

Christian

Protect the Front Row

Highlighting Hope

As I got ready one morning, my husband came in to the bathroom and asks, “Are you ready to turn on all the lights yet?” After being up all night coughing, and very little sleep, a full blast of lights was the last thing I wanted. Plus, I know where everything is in my cabinets and drawers, and very little light was needed. At least I thought I knew where everything was.

We tend to be creatures of habit. I have a typical routine of how I get ready in the morning and typical places of where I find certain items I need to get ready. I always know where to find what I need- that is until this particular morning.

As I was going to grab my eye cream, I realized it was not in its typical spot and the search began. The usual place for my eye cream is at the front of the cabinet, but a couple of weeks ago, I got out of the habit of using it, and in my lack of use, it slowly got pushed towards the back with the other products that are occasionally used.

I hadn’t purposely pushed my eye cream out of the way and in my mind, I sincerely thought it remained in it’s place at the front of the cabinet with the other important items that are used on a daily basis. But, that’s what happens to the untouched, unused things in our lives, doesn’t it? They slowly get moved from the forefront of our lives, and replaced with something else.

As I looked at that front row of items in my cabinet, I saw what appeared to be most important and mostly used in my day to day. What I thought was one of my most important items for daily use was no longer there, front and center, but had made its’ way back to being next to the hydrogen peroxide. Why? Because I stopped using it.

In that moment, the Holy Spirit asked me, “What is on the front row of your life?” What things are front and center because it’s being used often and daily? And even more convicting, what is no longer on the front row of your life due to lack of use?

Yes, we know the immeasurable value of God’s word and the tremendous power of prayer, and true community with other believers, but when we take a look at the front row of our lives, do we find them there?

Life tends to be busy and many things fight for our attention but I’m thankful for God’s reminder to protect the front row of my life, to purposefully keep Him front and center, and to remove those items that seek to take His place.

May God have an unshared, front row all to Himself in life of every believer!

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”Matthew 6:33

Christian

Jesus, Don’t You Care if We Drown?

Highlighting Hope

“Jesus, don’t you care if we drown?!” The disciples fired this question off towards Jesus when they found themselves caught in the middle of a violent and very dangerous storm as they were crossing the Sea of Galilee. (Mark 4:35-41)

It was at Jesus’ request they go to the other side of the sea. Scripture tells us that at Jesus’ request, the disciples got on the boat and set sail- no questions asked, indicating that the weather must have been right for sailing and the threat of a storm was nowhere in sight. Because who in their right mind would begin to set sail as a storm began to brew?

Disciples today are often like disciples of the past. We are good at following where Jesus calls us to go, as long as it makes sense, and no storm is within eyesight. But as soon as the storm begins to rage and the waves of difficulty crash upon our lives, we panic and frantically scream out, “Jesus, don’t you care if we drown?”

An ongoing storm in life can cause us to ask the daring question to our Savior, “Don’t you care? Don’t you care that the storm is raging on and that I feel as if I am drowning in this hardship?” If I am being totally, transparent, yes, I have asked that question. And I as I have asked that question, I learned firsthand, the answer is an emphatic YES! He does care!

Life’s storms have really caused me to wrestle through God’s word and learn how to properly apply it to my life. God challenged my heart through this specific passage by causing me to ask the following questions:

  1. What does this account tell me about Jesus?
  2. What do I learn about Jesus’ presence during life’s storms?
  3. What should I do in the middle of life’s storms?
  4. How does this passage help me to learn to push aside my frantic emotions to see God’s truth?
  5. What truths have I learned about Jesus?
  6. How does truth strengthen my faith?
  7. How do all of these factors provide me with unwavering hope?
  8. What has been fueling my hope?

When you feel like you are going to be overcome by your storm! RUN to the word of God for truth and speak His truth over your life!

Truth’s this passage shows us that we can cling to:

  • Never will Jesus leave or forsake us in our storms.
  • Jesus’ presence offers us a peace and rest in the midst of chaos.
  • Jesus is greater than any storm we face!
  • Just as creation was spoken into existence, creation still obeys the voice of our Creator!
  • Jesus longs for us to focus on truth during our storms! (Jesus, specifically asked, “Why are you so afraid?”)
  • Jesus longs for us see His power over all things and therefore we can always have faith in Him to carry us through whatever we face!
  • Our faith can only be strengthened by growing in our knowledge of Jesus!
  • We can live life confidently because whatever comes our way, God’s presence remains and He remains sovereign over all things!
  • Jesus alone is the true essence of hope- In Christ alone our hope is found!

Friends, if you find yourself in some sort of storm today, this passage of scripture holds rich truths for you to cling to! Jesus, our all-knowing Savior, is guiding your steps each and every day! As He calls you from one place to another, there will be (not maybe) storms that we face. As we face those storms, we can know that YES, my Savior cares for me!

Christian

What is Highlighting Hope?

Highlighting Hope

What is Highlighting Hope? Where did you get the name?

These are two questions that I have been asked pretty frequently in the past month and I wanted to take a moment to share with you the “why”.

In September of 2016, I miscarried our third baby a few days shy of 12 weeks. I was left to labor through it at home and I was left pretty shaken. I was desperately wanting time to just stand still so I could process all that had just happened and grieve, but as life would have it, time continued to roll on.

Within a matter of two or three days of this miscarriage, my husband received a job promotion that we had been praying about, but it would require him to be out of town throughout the week and hopefully make it home on the weekends.

I was pretty bitter that God would answer this prayer when he did. The wounds in my heart were so fresh and I wanted my husband close by and not three hours from home. What I didn’t know then, was God had a plan in all of this. His timing is perfect, even if it feels painful. God used this time of my husband being gone to teach me to look to Him for the comfort and truth that only He could provide me.

In the days to come, I would soon begin a battle with anxiety. I didn’t understand this then, but there is big difference in willful anxiety and clinical anxiety. Mine was clinical.

Through all of these circumstances that left me feeling shaken and even alone- I learned that I was not. I learned just how alive and active the word of God is and it carried me through 3 agonizing years of anxiety.

My comfort came from the Holy Spirit’s prompting to write down the truths and themes of hope that were screaming at me from the pages of His word. God was healing me and comforting me everyday with His word. Knowing God more is what brought me true comfort!

As I began to write these things down, God then told me something terrifying to do- share. I realized obeying Him and honoring Him was more important than any criticism from others that I could ever receive. I had to quit worrying about my imperfections because we are imperfect people looking to a perfect Savior. I needed to remove my mask and share how God has worked and is working in my life. I was being called to share the unwavering hope that God supplies to His people.

Through this trial, I learned how much God cares that we hurt , cares that we feel shaken and that even if we ‘feel’ shaken, we don’t have to be. I learned that the enemy works in isolation, but God has called us to community with one another, so we can speak His truth into one another’s lives.

The name Highlighting Hope came from the Lord. As I was writing one day in the spring of 2017, this was the name that He gave. God wants His people to know Him and knowing Him results in unwavering HOPE!

Christian

When God Leads, He Leads with His presence!

Highlighting Hope

There are times when making decisions can be extremely exhausting for me. Especially when the “way to go” doesn’t seem so clear. There have been times when my pros and cons lists seem to be equal in weight, causing the thoughts in my brain to feel like a ping pong ball bouncing around recklessly as I strive to come to a decision.

But then there are times when the decisions I should make are more obvious, and very little mental energy is needed in the decision making process. I wish more of life was lived in the “cut and dry” but in my experience, this is rarely the case. There have been so many different paths to choose from over the years, and many choices for us to make as a family, and the choices that we should make have not always been glaringly obvious, causing us to call out to the Lord with a plea of “Lead us, God! Lead us in the way we should go.”

The Israelites also found themselves in a place where the way that they should go was not so clear, and they needed God’s constant guidance to lead them. The desert could not have been an easy place to navigate through, and therefore God not only guided them at night in a pillar of fire, but He also guided them during the day in a pillar of cloud. Day or night, they were in need of God’s constant guidance, and not only was it God’s guidance, it was His very presence that was going before them!

Recently, my husband was very excited to learn and share with me a new term that he discovered- theophany. (THEE-O-FU-NEE) A theophany is a visible manifestation to humankind of God. This manifestation is an action that CLEARLY shows something that is abstract to people!

Understanding that the cloud by day and the fire by night were not just objects attached to a fishing pole dangling from the sky for the Israelites to follow, but it was an act of guidance that also showed that the very presence of God was with them is pretty mind blowing to say the least!! His presence went before them, and He, God, manifested Himself in such a way to lead His people moment by moment, day or night!

How this truth changes the way that I will pray when the path of life seems clear OR unclear! No longer will I just pray “Lead me Lord!” Instead, I long for my prayer to be, “Go before me Lord and allow me to go in the way of your theophany, in the way that You are manifesting your presence. Lead me and allow me to follow You!”

Our lives are SO much more than an obstacle course to be navigated through, but rather our lives should be lived with the moment by moment guidance of the God who desires to not only lead us, but to lead us with His presence, and ultimately lead us to that glorious promised land!

When the decisions of life seem to be difficult to make, take heart in knowing that it may just be that God is striving for us to see Him lead us with His presence, and remind us of our constant need for His guidance, day and night, that He will faithfully provide!

Exodus 13:21
“ By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.”