Category: Family

True Love – 2025 Day 26 (1 John 4-5)

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Read Through the Bible in 2 Years: Proverbs 26, 1 John 3-5.

I love reading 1 John just after reading the book of John. I can imagine “the disciple whom Jesus loved” writing this letter, a letter focused on the inseparable themes of truth and love, a letter that is not addressed to any specific person or church and that John did not personally sign his name to. Sounds like John, right? For more on this read my post about John 21.

Did you notice that I reread 1 John 3? I have found that it’s easy for me to forget the context of what is written, so it’s helpful to read the previous chapter, so I can better understand what’s being said. Do you ever do that, too?

John wanted his readers to BELIEVE in Jesus, the Christ, the One who took on flesh and conquered death for us – the ones whom He loved.

John wanted his readers to have CONFIDENCE in God’s love toward us, His children, so that we would be unafraid for that kind of perfect love casts out all fear.

Think about what you just read in the book of John. Think about all that John had experienced first-hand. John had seen Jesus walk on water with his own eyes. John had been an eyewitness to Jesus healing the sick and feeding the 5,000 with a few fish and loaves of bread.

John had heard Jesus teach with his own ears. John has heard Jesus teach on the importance of forgiveness and mercy, and John had heard Jesus condemn the fake faith of the Pharisees. John himself had heard Jesus say, “A new commandment I give to you that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” (John 13:35) Remember that as you read 1 John.

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

– 1 John 4:7-11 ESV

Remember that John is a man with a nature like ours. John isn’t the God-man Jesus Christ. Yes, John had been given a special calling as an apostle. Yes, he had the unique gift of being inspired to write the scriptures. But John battled his flesh just like we do. Think about how hard it must have been for John to love impulsive Peter or Matthew, the former tax collector.

True love is sacrifice. True love is best expressed in loving the hard-to-love. So next time you’re struggling to love that irritating person at church or that aggravating coworker or disobedient child, remember the truth that God loved us while we were His enemies. This is love.

Let’s pray together,

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your love. Thank You for sending Your only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to live here on earth and to die in my place.

I pray that I will have complete confidence in Your love for me. You have made Your love evident, visible, manifest in sending Your own Son. Help me to love others with the love that You first showed to me.

In the Name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Click here for more information on reading through the Bible in Two Years.

Sorrow turned to Joy – 2025 Day 16 (John 16)

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Proverbs 16, John 16

“Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.”

– John 16:20-22 ESV

When I look at this picture, which was taken just moments after my youngest son was born, so many memories of that day flood back into my mind. After laboring into the wee hours of the night, I’d gotten my first epidural out of a crazy need for some rest, only to find myself overwhelmed by an intense feeling of panic when I couldn’t take a deep breath or feel my legs.

Yet, when that baby boy was delivered, all 8 pounds 15 ounces of him, I was even more overwhelmed by a feeling of ecstasy and joy, unexplainable to anyone who has never delivered a baby.

All the pain and exhaustion
was worth it, the very instant that little boy drew his first breath
and let out his first cry.

Just as friends try to prepare a new mom for the pain of labor and delivery, Jesus was trying to prepare His disciples for the great sorrow they would experience at His upcoming death and departure. An important part of that preparation that many experienced moms forget to share, is the immense JOY that you will experience after the pain is over.

Friends, listen to me, someday it will be worth it! Soon and very soon we are going to see the king! And there will be no more crying there. In this world we will indeed have tribulation, but we can take heart because Jesus has overcome the world.

We don’t need to try to take shortcuts to avoid the pain, hiding our lights under bushels so no one can see them, drowning our sorrows in Facebook and food. Instead, we can rejoice today because we know with certainty that these labor pains are only temporary and that they will all be worth it when we see our Savior face to face.

Will you please join me in prayer?

Heavenly Father,

You are our hope in life and death. Help us to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith. Help us to fix our minds on things that are above. Help us to number our hours and days, knowing that these times are in fact short and these trials are indeed light, in comparison to the eternal weight of glory that is to come.

We pray for those who are in the depths of sorrow today, who are at the peak of the incredible pain of labor, who can’t seem to make out that light at the end of this valley of despair. Father, please, be their comfort and help them to see Your everlasting arms carrying them and Your loving hand guiding them through this dark valley. Use us to encourage them. Help us to grieve with those who grieve just as deeply as we rejoice with those who rejoice.

We pray for those who are without hope today because they are without Christ. We pray that You will open their eyes and soften their hearts to the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ who bore their punishment by His death on the cross. May today be their day of salvation, that many will rejoice with the angels over one lost sinner who repents!

In the holy and good name of Jesus we pray. Amen

Click here for more information on reading through the Bible in Two Years.

Not Orphans – 2025 Day 14 (John 14)

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Read through the Bible in 2 years: Proverbs 14, John 14

“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you…. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” – John 14:18, 27

“I will ask the Father and he will give you another Helper (advocate, counselor) to be with you forever, even the Spirit of Truth whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him for he dwells with you and will be in you…. The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” – John 14:16-17, 26

Jesus was about to leave His disciples, to go back to His Heavenly Father, but He was not leaving them (or us) as orphans. Friends, we have not been abandoned. We are not alone. He has left us His Spirit and His peace, and He will return for us.

1. Jesus left us the Holy Spirit.

When I left my kids with Grandma, they weren’t really alone. I may have left, but I left them with a very good helper. It seems to me that for many of us the Trinity has become “The Father, The Son, and the Bible.” We underestimate our need for the Holy Spirit to be with us, to be our helper and counselor, to bring to mind what Jesus has taught us and to help us understand what the Word means. I am so thankful for the Holy Spirit’s ongoing help. When I’m praying, meditating on scripture, or studying the Word, His quiet voice often leads me to remember other passages of Scripture. The Holy Spirit also brings conviction and encouragement to my heart. Thank You, Father, for sending the Holy Spirit to abide in me and with me.

2. Jesus left us His peace.

When Jesus returned to heaven, he left His disciples, but He didn’t leave them alone – He left them with the Holy Spirit, but He also left them with His peace. “Peace” (Hebrew – “shalom”) was a customary parting greeting for Jews. Jesus here is not only wishing them farewell because he’s leaving – but He’s leaving them with His peace, giving them peace. Thayers Greek Lexicon defines this Greek word eirēnē (peace) as “the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is.” Jesus has left us with His eternal peace because we have been reconciled with God through the forgiveness of our sins through faith in the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

3. Jesus Himself will return for us.

It reminds me of when I’d say, “Don’t worry. I’m coming back,” as I left my kids home alone while I went to a meeting or out on a date with my husband. Jesus Himself will come back. Let’s be good children, eagerly waiting for His return – watching for Him, telling others about Him, and living with the trusting expectation that He is coming soon.

Thank You, Jesus, for going to prepare a place for me. Thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to be my counselor, helper, and advocate. Thank you for not leaving me alone.

Thank you for giving me Your peace, peace that surpasses worldly understanding, the supernatural peace of being held by Almighty God while a hurricane swirls around me.

I pray, Father, for all those children who are orphans in this world. I pray that You would place them in families. I pray that You would be a Father to them and provide for them the daily bread they need as well as Your peace that surpasses all understanding. Help them to know that they are not alone.

I pray, Lord, that I will be found waiting and watching. Give me Your strength and wisdom to remember that You are coming soon. Help us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. (Titus 2:12-13)

In the Name of Jesus Christ, my Savior and Lord, I pray, Amen.

Click here for more information on reading through the Bible in Two Years.

A Resolution for Adulthood

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WHEREAS God is holy and righteous and true,
WHEREAS God is merciful and gracious and kind,
WHEREAS God is always with me, wherever I go, seeing my every step, knowing my every thought and every word even before I speak it,
WHEREAS I have been created for His glory and pleasure with good works prepared in advance for me to do,
WHEREAS my life is not my own, but fully His,

I purpose this day to live a holy life, pleasing to my Heavenly Father and Creator.

I purpose to draw near to my God and keep in unhindered relationship with Him, avoiding evil and pursuing righteousness, loving Him with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, and loving my neighbor as myself.

I purpose to daily read His Word, consistently and persistently drawing near to Him, humbling myself before His perfect counsel, actively choosing to know and obey the Truth, submitting myself to Him rather than the wisdom of this world or my human emotions, so that I might be able to resist the schemes of the devil.

I purpose to treat my body as a temple of the Holy Spirit, being careful what I see, hear, and think about, where I go, and with whom I befriend, remembering the wisdom of Proverbs 13:20 that “whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”

I purpose to abstain from alcohol and drugs so that my mind, will, conscience, and emotions will not be clouded or confused by their influence.

I purpose to be above-reproach in my relationships with the other sex, treating women as sisters and men as brothers, recognizing that they are my joint-heirs with Christ and fellow image-bearers, rather than objects or idols.

These I do endeavor, for the glory of God, as well as for my good and the good of my fellow man.

Signed: __________________________________

A Resolution for AdulthoodDownload

Am I a Slave or a Son? Thoughts from Galatians 4

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Galatians 4

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God."
– Galatians 4:4-7 ESV

25 years ago we were packing our bags to travel to Russia to finalize the adoption process for our son. Adopted as a six-month-old, Nick learned to sit and crawl on our carpeted living room floor. He learned to cruise along our comfy brown couch. He learned to say “Daddy” and “Mommy” on my lap. From the moment he became a part of our family, he was given equal standing with his older sister who had grown in my womb. There were no extra rules to keep. He was our son, and we were his parents. End of story.

Thank You, Father, for adopting me as Your daughter, for placing Your Holy Spirit in my heart as a seal of the genuineness of my faith. You have engraved my name on the palms of Your hands (Isaiah 49:16) and You have caused me to bear the name of Christ. Thank You for causing me to be born again, creating me anew after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24). In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.

God Can Restore the Years the Locusts Have Eaten. Thoughts from Joel.

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Joel 1-3

Twenty years have passed since I first heard Bev Bradley’s talk titled, “Loving and Teaching the Difficult Child.” I was in the thick of homeschooling my two oldest children along with taking care of a toddler. Mrs. Bradley shared from her heart about how much she had damaged her son (and her relationship with him) through harsh words and critical attitude.

I remember how often I reacted with sinful anger when my child absolutely, positively refused to obey my commands. I remember how often I spanked and shouted and screamed in anger, sin upon sin, in my attempts to get this child to comply. I walked around with a perpetual chip on my shoulder. I was angry at my husband, angry at my child, angry at the world. And underneath it all, I was angry at God. 

Why had He done this to me? Why had He given me this difficult, disobedient child?

I went to Mrs. Bradley’s talk looking for some tips for training my child to obey, and I left with a dagger in my heart. Her words brought conviction of sin. I finally saw the log in my own eye, how much my own anger was contributing to this ongoing battle between two very strong-willed individual sinners. It was a turning point in my life as a mom.

But I also remember
Mrs. Bradley’s words,
“The Lord is restoring the years that the locusts have eaten.”

At the time I wasn’t familiar with the book of Joel. I thought she was referring to the locust plague that God sent on Egypt in Moses’s day, but still, those words encouraged me that it wasn’t too late, that there was still hope.

So I began to pray for that. I began to ask God to do that for me and my child, my family, to restore and heal the barrenness that my sharp tongue had caused.

Lord, please, will You please restore the years that the locusts have eaten?

Give me a new heart. Help me to be patient and kind. Help me to discipline with tenderness and righteousness. Keep my tongue from evil. Forgive me. Do a new thing in our family, Father, please. I need You. My family needs You. Please help us!

I wish I could say that things changed overnight, but that wouldn’t be true. I was still struggling and so was my child, but year after year, the Lord has grown us both. He gave me beauty for ashes and seedlings have sprouted in a desert land.

God has taught us more about the nature of love – that love and forgiveness and grace are intricately woven together.

Mark 9: Fame or Faithfulness?

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Mark 9

And [Jesus and His disciples] came to Capernaum. And when [Jesus] was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?”

But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. And he sat down and called the twelve.

And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”

And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”

Mark 9:33-37 ESV

For as much as I love teaching and writing for adults, I think my true calling is to teach children. They have my heart. There is something so special about the childlike faith of a child, their wonder and interest in learning new things, that really gets me excited.

I’m afraid that in the past I preferred focusing my energies on adults because it was a straighter path to becoming “known,” to garnering a larger audience. Like Jesus’s disciples who were arguing about which of them was the greatest, I fear that I was looking for fame, rather than simply being faithful to the Lord’s call.

Which reminds me of the lesson I taught this morning to the 5th-12th graders at my local Community Bible Study class. Here’s an excerpt from the lesson I shared after our study on Joshua 1-5. I hope it blesses you.

So, this week we began our study of the book of Joshua. This year we have already studied Ruth, 1st and 2nd Kings, and Job. These five books feature some of the most famous people in the Bible, people like Ruth, King Saul, King David, Job, and now Joshua.

But what about the two spies whom Rahab hid… Their names were not recorded for us in the scriptures, but they were still vitally important to God. Those two men’s faith was just as valuable as Rahab’s. Or what about the priests who carried the ark of the covenant, or the 12 men who carried the stones, across the Jordan – was their faith any less remarkable?

What about the parents who circumcised their children by faith? Or all those Israelites who kept the Passover by faith?

According to Statista.com, in a 2021 survey, 3,670 American teens between the ages of 13-17 were asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

What do you think these top 5 professions have in common?

Our culture is way too focused on being famous and way too lax about being faithful, simply doing the next thing that God has called us to. We are chasing after “fame and fortune,” instead of  “God and goodness.”

If you have been born again, then you have been given the gift of the indwelling of the Holy spirit. The Holy Spirit of God dwells in you. Think about that.

And now He is calling you to just do the next thing, do the next deed of faith.

That may be as simple as reading your Bible and completing your Bible study lesson and then coming here and sharing with your classmates what God taught you that week. That may be as simple as sitting next to or striking up a conversation with someone you don’t know very well. That may be as simple as telling the truth when you want to lie.

Whatever it is, I want you to listen to the Holy Spirit and follow Him. He will never lead you astray.

He might ask you to step out in faith someday, to follow the example of Rahab and hide a fellow believer who is being persecuted for their faith.

He might ask you to step out into your own Jordan River in sharing the gospel with someone, whether a stranger or a friend, trusting that He will keep His promises to be with You as you take that first step.

Your name may never appear on any timeline or any top 10 of anything. You may never be a world-famous athlete or gamer or musician. You may never be a social media influencer or have a YouTube channel with millions of followers and you may never invent anything world-changing.

But, oh think of it, think of this, your name, YOUR name, can be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life! And if your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, you can KNOW beyond any doubt that He has a good plan and purpose for you!

Heavenly Father, I pray that You will raise up more parents and more teachers who will invest their lives in training up children in the way that they should go so that the next generation will place their trust in You. Please, Father, stop us from this crazy pursuit of becoming rich and famous, and help us instead to be faithful to do the next thing. By Your grace and for Your glory. Amen.

What Final Words Would I Share with My Children on My Final Day? Reflections from David’s Last Words in 1 Kings 2.

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: 1 Kings 2

David knows he is about to die, so he calls his son, Solomon, to him. What did David say to this son who will be the next king of Israel?

  1. Be strong.
  2. Show yourself a man.
  3. Keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in His ways and keeping his commands as it is written in the Law of Moses.
  4. Deal wisely and justly with Joab, Barzillai, and Shimei.

Now I’m not (and never will be) the king of a nation but I (like everyone else on the planet) will one day draw my last breath. If today were my last day, what final words would I want to share with my children?

What would I say to my children
if today was my last day?

  • I love you. I’m proud of you. You are a gift to me. I’m so thankful you’re mine. God made YOU on purpose, and He has a purpose for your life. Fear not. He’s not finished yet. God is on His throne. He doesn’t save people because they’re good. They’re not. None of us are. He saves them because He is merciful and has a purpose for them. You are saved by your faith in Jesus Christ, not by your works. (Psalm 139:1-16; Romans 3:10-12; Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:3-8; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Romans 6:23)
  • Trust the Lord with all your heart. He is good. He is wise. Turn away from evil and do good. Choose to do the hard things out of love and trust for the Lord. (Proverbs 3:5-7; Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37)
  • Love is both an emotion and an action. Love others as God has loved you. Bear with others. Forgive them, remembering how much God has forgiven you. He loved you while you were yet a sinner, loving you even to the point of death, death on a cross. Remember that love is patient and kind. God is patient and kind with you, and He is calling you to be patient and kind with others. Love is not arrogant, rude, boastful, or envious. Love does not insist on its own way. The Lord of the Universe humbled Himself for you, and He is calling you to humble yourself for Him and His creation. Love never ends. Love endures. Love bears all things. He has loved you with a never-ending love. Love others like that. (Colossians 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 13:4-8; Philippians 2:1-8; Romans 5:7-8)
  • Children are a blessing from the Lord. Fill your home with them. Pour into them. Enjoy them. Train them up in the way they should go. Teach them diligently that they, too, will know and love the Lord. (Psalm 127:1-5; Proverbs 22:6; Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Psalm 78:1-8)

So, how about you? If today were your last day, what final words would you want to say to your children and loved ones?

Heavenly Father, How thankful I am for the hope that I have in my Savior, Jesus, who poured out His blood for me. How thankful I am to have the assurance that my last breath here on Earth is just the beginning of eternity with You. I pray that my children and grandchildren will have that assurance. I pray that You will strengthen me to be the mother and grandmother that You want me to be. Give me Your wisdom and lead me in when to speak and when to be silent. Make my words, Your words. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Make me a beacon pointing my family and my community to Him. For His Honor and for His glory I pray. Amen.

God Disciplines His Children for Their Good. Thoughts from Amos 2.

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: Amos 2

Sometimes it seems that professing Christians think they are immune from the consequences of their sin. Indeed Jesus has paid the price for our sin by His death on the cross, but we still must endure God’s discipline for our good.

In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.

And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?

“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”

It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

Hebrews 12:4-8 ESV

All too many American children are being left without discipline, and our nation is reaping the consequences of it.

God disciplined the Israelites and He disciplines Christians. Not because He hates us, but because He loves us.

Oh, Heavenly Father, what a blessing it is to call You, Father. What an honor to be Your daughter. Help me to endure Your discipline with humility and gratitude and trust, fully believing that You are working to conform me into the image of Your Son. You are good. Always. Help me to learn what you’re teaching me. In the Name of Jesus Christ, my Savior and Lord I pray. Amen.

A Father’s Love: Thoughts from 2 Samuel 18.

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Read through the Bible in 2 Years: 2 Samuel 18.

Even though Absalom had killed Amnon, David’s oldest son, out of revenge for him raping his sister, and even though Absalom had tried to take his father’s rightful place on the throne, David orders his army captains to deal gently with him during their battle against the Israelites (2 Samuel 18:5) And then when David finds out that Absalom is dead, David cries, “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!” (2 Samuel 18:33)

That’s how a parent’s love is. It’s unconditional. It’s love with no strings attached. No matter how your child disappoints you or angers you, you keep loving them. As 1 Corinthians 13:8a says, “love never fails.”

“He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:11-13 ESV)

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.” (Galatians 4:4-7 ESV)

“For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:7-8 ESV)

“How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.” (Psalm 36:7 ESV)

Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your steadfast, faithful love, love without end, love that never fails. You are good. You are worthy. Make us more like you. Conform us into the image of Jesus Christ, Your perfect Son. It is in His Name that we pray. Amen.