Making the Most of Every Opportunity

Andy and I agreed early in our marriage that the focus of our family traditions should always be to stay our hearts on Jesus. But there are some traditions I grew up with and loved that aren't Christian. And many traditions our kid's friends have aren't Christian either, but could point to Christ... if we're intentional. Easter eggs are an example. Eggs really have nothing to do with Jesus, but I grew up hunting for them and love that memory. Family Life created an outreach to use Easter eggs to teach the gospel story to children. They are called resurrection eggs and we LOVE them! Jimmy, age 3: "Jesus died to pay for our sin, but he beat death. So, if we ask, we can beat death too." So our kids hunt for eggs each Easter, just like many kids in America. But these eggs each have a toy inside to help prompt each part of the gospel. It has a small booklet that gives the specific Bible passages and a short summary of each story. Jimmy, age 4. "Loo...

“Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself , so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted .   In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” This time of reflection and looking at Jesus in His holiness and beauty taking on my sin of ugliness and hate to make me righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21) has been flooring me. The more I look at myself and hurt and cry and feel even shame, the more my heart is opening to how amazing His love is. He died my death! He endured beating, mocking, rejection, hatred, and He took it all with deep love for those very people. For me. WOW! It’s also making this Hebrews 12 passage come alive to me. Consider Him who endured the hostility so that I won’t grow weary. Knowing how He suffered and was rejected for me is such a reminder that I’ll really never suffer like that ever. I’ll never fully know it. But yet He will allow me to suffer here and see glimpses of His great suffering....

My favorite songs are the ones that are packed full of Biblical truth. These encourage me and remind me of the gospel- pointing me to Jesus. Sovereign Grace music continually does this. This Easter, they have released a celebration of Christ raised from the grave. You should consider buying it (and others by them). Check out their store for song samples, free downloads from past albums, and to purchase.    "He is not here, for he has risen, as he said.” These words, spoken by an angel to the women at Jesus’s tomb, changed history forever. Christ’s resurrection was more than a display of raw supernatural power. It was the single event that assures us that his payment for our sins has been accepted. God’s wrath is satisfied. Death is defeated. The powers of darkness are overcome. Sin’s dominion has been broken. And the life of the age to come has dawned. The songs on this album celebrate these realities, experienced and enjoyed by all who place their faith and hope in Jesus C...

"Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you... For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures..."- 1 Corinthians 15:1,3 Easter is by far my favorite holiday to celebrate. I love  this time to remember Jesus' death and resurrection. It's so sad how quickly I forget and drop my gaze off of Jesus. Sometimes winter feels so long, I put my mind towards the details of daily life, or I even pour myself into striving (ouch) to live out His Word and I lose sight of His great love. I need to have regular seasons where I'm pointed back to the good news of Jesus Christ. And Easter is always so timely. I'll share in the next several blogs what Easter looks like in our home. Our biggest emphasis is on Easter week itself, but here are some ways we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus...

“… looking to Jesus , the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” I have an almost instant desire in this time of preparation for Easter to jump to the celebration of the empty tomb and Christ raised again. But God has been slowing me down to really know the JOY of victory by first looking at the pain from sin that lead to death… and this Jesus who took it on for me. I read Martin Luther describe how Christ’s beauty as Son of God (Psalm 45:2) helps us see and know Him more. But it’s in His lack of beauty in human form (Isaiah 53:2) that we can begin to know ourselves. I deserve those thorns. I deserve the beatings. I deserve the punishment. I don’t want to brush off my hands because I know He took the punishment and miss that I deserved the punishment. I don’t want to forget who I am apart from Christ and who I continually will run back to be again w...

Last weekend I shared a post (you can read it here ) about remembering and learning from those who have gone before us. A few of you asked what we teach our kids about death and dying. This is a short response that I hope helps. We all know that life here doesn't go on forever and we all will die. But we don't often talk about it. And trying to explain death and "afterlife" to our kids in a way that brings truth-filled hope can feel overwhelming. We love sharing the gospel with our kids and certainly strive to share often that heaven is real, Jesus is real, He willingly died, taking on all God's wrath (anger/punishment) for sin, and then He rose again. The Bible says that because of that now those who are His will live forever in heaven. But one day, I received a phone call saying that our good friends' baby died and the mommy was in danger of dying. My son was there as I received the call (and had to call and tell others). The next week Andy's Da...

I shared part of my journey in Psalm 131 by sharing the sin snares (Pride, comparison/judgement, and anxiety) that rob me all of us from a calm and quiet soul in God. So what should I seek? "O  Lord , my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the  Lord from this time forth and forevermore." "I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child..." Many of you know very well the difference between a baby still breastfeeding vs. a weaned child. When Mommy walks in the room, the baby still feeding from Mommy may cry, scream, and lunge at Mommy. Even as Mommy settles in, the baby may thrash panicky until latched on. This is often how I feel I run to God. It's in a slight panic, but knowing He is the source I need. Yet,  here  the Psa...

"Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith." -Hebrews 13:7 One way Andy and I like to "make the most" of our calendar year is by remembering people who we loved and loved us that have died. On the anniversary of my brother's death, we pray for my family as soon as we wake up in the morning. On the anniversary of my Grandpa's death, I email my Dad after we pray to let him know someone else remembers. We have others as well (putting a wreath on my friends grave, calling a friend's Mom, etc.) Today, we are starting a new tradition in our house. This morning at breakfast, we are taking a few minutes to remember our Gam. This is the first person Jimmy loved who has died and we want him to know how good it is to remember. Sweet Gam- You are loved and missed We're following the structure of Hebrews 13:7:   Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word o...

I'm encouraged by this quote from John Piper on Psalm 19:7 ... “Even on days when every cinder in our soul feels cold, if we crawl to the Word of God and cry out for ears to hear, the cold ashes will be lifted and the tiny spark of life will be fanned. For ‘the law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.’"

My reflection on Psalm 131 after reading an article by David Powlison... "O  Lord , my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the  Lord from this time forth and forevermore." "My heart is not lifted up" - Oh how I constantly battle pride. Not even  just  pride, but I have a constant sin of looking at me and missing Christ. It's a daily stumbling block to seek Christ and His glory and lay down my life and I see here that the Psalmist wisely knows seeking ourselves will only lead us away from God and rob us of any peace in Christ. "My eyes are not raised too high" - Am I comparing myself to others? David Powlison says this is when I make  ME  big and  you  small. I hate that I might miss some great fellowship with other...

We are learning as we parent just how full of sin our hearts are. Though we are starting to address it in our kids, God is drawing out our hearts and it's been beautiful. I shared in this series how change comes from the heart, outward and we use many ways to help our kids see their sin and also know Jesus who loves us and draws His own out  of sin and gives us new hearts to love Him. Read these posts about 1) our hearts , 2)   how parents can choose ease instead of heart training , 3)  questions to draw out the heart , 4)  when to go the next step beyond questions , and 5)  what our correction process looks like . We are not hopeless in sin. We are confident that God changes hearts and brings freedom. So that is what we teach. We teach it from His Word and through our daily actions and conversations. "And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh ...

God is showing me how we are called to live Him out together. Read more here . Yet that call is for us to be separate. We should look different from the culture around us. In the foreword to Crazy Love, Chris Tomlin wrote, "What I find interesting is that the Christians [in Acts 11:26] didn't name themselves. But rather, they were called (or named) "Christians" by those watching their lives. I wonder if it would be the same today. Could someone look at your life or look at my life and name me a Christian?" I have been chewing on that quote. God has been teaching us (and so many others we are hearing from) that we (Andy and I) have not lived differently from those around us. We've given, but are we willing to sacrifice for others? We want to share Him with all but have we sought our own reputation/acceptance in the process? We desire to love each other as He loves us, but do we lay down our lives daily to lift each other towards Him? Painfully, Andy and I s...