Category: Biblical Wisdom

I’m still basking in the glory of the Easter story. I spent the forty days of Lent attempting to draw closer to Christ and to remove things that hinder my faith walk. That is after all, the purpose of Lent. But, I also feel like Easter should be celebrated and reflected upon for more than just one day.

It’s only been a week since Easter and the The Easter baskets have all been plundered and the candy has long been eaten at this point. But, the miracle of the empty tomb, well it’s still glorious. I find myself once again, drawn to those three women who visited the tomb that first Easter. This time, the Gospel of Luke has grabbed my attention.

Luke’s version tells us that after that the women arrived at the tomb and found it empty, that two angels told them that Jesus had risen just as he had said. The women went at once and reported what they had seen to the apostles.

“But they did not believe the women because the words seemed to them like nonsense.” Luke 24:11

The entire idea of Jesus rising from the dead seemed like nonsense to the ones who had seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. They had seen him heal countless people and cast out demons, but the testimony of three women who they knew well, seemed like nonsense.

But, isn’t that always the case with a miracle? Miracles themselves stand on the edge of impossible. More often than not, they defy explanation. Very often, modern humanity refuses to believe, just like those apostles did.

Even so, miracles happen everyday. People survive car crashes that are deemed unsurvivable. Sometimes a medical diagnosis leaves a family little hope, yet the patient is cured. No one knows why these things occur; although many desperately need to explain them.

Back in March in Spanish Fork, Utah, four police officers were attempting to rescue the passengers in a car that was upside down in a river. The rescuers all heard a woman’s voice calling “Help!” She called out more than once and one of the rescuers even yelled into the car that they were trying the best they could to get in there.

When the flipped the car over, the mother, who was driving, was dead, and had been for hours. Her 18-month-old child, Lily was alive, but unconscious. She survived, although they don’t know how. She was upside down, strapped in her seat for nearly fourteen hours, while the temperatures dipped well below freezing.

Did all four of those police officers make the story up? No doubt, some will say they did. They believe they heard the voice of an angel. I agree with them.

Perhaps, when we experience the miraculous, we should take a cue from those women on that first Easter. Even though they were scared and shaken, they unashamedly told others what they saw. Those police officers did the same.

We don’t have to have all of the answers and we don’t have to figure it all out. Faith isn’t about understanding all of the tiny details. Faith is about believing that a God who is so much bigger than we could ever imagine, is in control and nothing is too big for Him. Miracles still happen. Just ask the family of little Lily.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Last week was spring break for my kids. I decided to take a break myself. When the kids are super stressed, mama is too and school always makes my kids stressed. This year, spring break was kicked off by Easter. We attended a church service and heard the familiar Easter story.

But, this year something different stayed with me, and that was the faith journey of three women. In the Gospel of Mark, on that first Easter Sunday, three women rose just after sunrise to visit Jesus’ tomb and anoint his body with oils and spices. These were three women on a mission. They had stayed and watched the crucifixion and now they sought the body of their beloved Jesus.

Mark’s Gospel is famously short on the details that I crave, but it does say that the women asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” Mark 16:3

Three women, walking alone, were planning on honoring Jesus by preparing his body. They felt called to serve him. They knew what they wanted to do, but they didn’t have a plan to make it happen. There was a huge stone covering the entrance to the tomb. Who would move it?

Were they planning on sweet talking the Roman soldiers who were guarding it? Did they hope that there would be some strong men hanging out in the area of the tomb who would lend them a little muscle?

The text doesn’t say, but perhaps that’s the point. They were following God’s will for their lives. They were answering the call to serve Jesus. The details didn’t matter. They believed that God would provide and He did. All four Gospels have the stone rolled away. But, the three women couldn’t have known that.

Yet, they went anyway.

My take away from this story is that if we want to serve Jesus with our lives, we have to have faith that God will make things happen. There will be stones in our path. Sometimes the stones are closer to the size of boulders. When we know that we are approaching one of those seemingly insurmountable boulders, we have two choices.

We can give up and turn around or we can stay on the path and have faith that God will roll it out of our way. We have the privilege of worshiping the same God who moved that stone.

If the three women would have stayed home that morning because they believed that logistically it was impossible to fulfill their mission, just think what they would have missed out on. They got to play a part in the greatest miracle known to mankind.

Maybe we should ask ourselves what we may lose if we pay too much attention to the logistics and not enough attention to the voice of God.

Even when passage on the road seems impossible, perhaps we should go anyway. Who knows what God may have in store for us or what part we may have to play in the continuing story of Jesus? Let’s not miss it.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

I recently read a post on the website #SheReadsTruth about Peter’s denial of Jesus when he was arrested. You can read the post here if you like. http://shereadstruth.com/2015/03/23/peter-denies-jesus/

I have never liked the account of Peter denying Jesus. It has always made me uncomfortable. I mean Jesus warned him ahead of time that he would deny him three times before the rooster crowed and Peter swore up and down that he would not, and of course, he did.

I always want to scream at Peter each time he denies Jesus, just like I used to scream at the “Friday the 13th,” movies back in high school. “Don’t go outside!” “Don’t split up!” “Don’t check out that noise!” But, they always did with disastrous consequences.

I desperately want Peter to remember that Jesus warned him. Did he forget already? It couldn’t have been more than a few hours. But, to be fair, Peter was likely scared out of his mind and confused and anxious. We never get that way; do we?

The post I read earlier brought a new thought to light, that I hadn’t considered before. She said that Jesus wanted Peter to realize that he had sinned so that he could be forgiven. Jesus pointed it out. I never thought about it that way. We can’t be forgiven of our sins if we don’t admit that we have sinned. We can’t be forgiven if we don’t repent.

That notion changed my view of this story, completely. Jesus forgave Peter after the resurrection. Peter repented. He wept bitterly when he realized Jesus had been right all along and he was wrong.

We are all sinners, but isn’t it a lot easier to see our neighbor’s sin than our own? We sometimes comfort ourselves by thinking, at least we’re not as bad as the other guy. While that may be true, that’s not really the point is it? We can only repent of our own sin, not anyone else’s, so isn’t our own sin the thing we should be most concerned with?

And if we are really truthful with ourselves, don’t we all deny Jesus in us everyday, when we do things like gossip, or say unkind things about someone, or look down on someone, or refuse to help others when we can? If we claim to be believers and followers of Jesus, aren’t we supposed to do the things he would do? When we don’t, aren’t we denying him in some way?

We are going to mess up regularly. We are likely going to get it wrong more often than right, but that’s okay. We have grace and that changes everything. We can be forgiven endlessly and the only catch is we have to ask and the slate is wiped clean.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Right after Jesus’ baptism, the Bible tells us that God’s voice from Heaven said that Jesus was His son and He was pleased with him. That definitely seems like one of those mountain top moments to me. Jesus is following God’s will and God verbally recognizes him. It seems like peace and joy should commence, right?

The very next verse, has Jesus being lead by the Holy Spirit to the wilderness to be tempted. I’ve always wondered why. He was God’s son. Why the wilderness trial?

My pastor said on Sunday that it was because Jesus had been a carpenter up until this point. He couldn’t go from being a mere carpenter to the person God meant him to be. He required some training and testing from Satan. If he couldn’t pass the wilderness test, then how could he pass the ultimate test of willingly going to the cross?

This was a bit of a light bulb moment for me. We have all spent time in the wilderness and we have all been tested or tempted in some way, on our Christian walk.

When I got home, I looked up the account in Matthew, Chapter 4. Our pastor was preaching from Mark, but Matthew’s account has may more details. As a writer myself, I’m always very curious about the details.

Matthew’s version says that Satan tested Jesus three times and each time Jesus didn’t take the bait, unlike Adam and Eve, way back in Genesis, with their run in with the him. Jesus stood firm each time. When Satan quoted scripture and attempted to twist it to his liking, Jesus quoted right back to him the truth in scripture.

Notice, that Satan didn’t leave after the first, “no.” He kept at it, but Jesus didn’t waiver. I imagine Jesus feeling a little stronger and Satan a little weaker with each refusal to go along with his plans. He began on the sneaky side, but finally came out and said what he  really wanted, which is the same thing he wants from us. He wanted Jesus to worship him.

That’s when Jesus quoted the perfect scripture, “Jesus said to him, “Away from me Satan! For it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'” Matthew 4:10.

What can we learn from Jesus’ experience in the wilderness that we can apply to our own lives when we experience wilderness moments?

First of all, God is always growing us. As long as we are on our journey, there is always room for growth. When we find ourselves in desolate places, it’s important to remember that God is with us. We are never alone. Jesus could have called out for help at any moment. He knew it. He didn’t, but he could have.

Secondly, knowing scripture really helps with our strength and resolve. We have an enemy who is very familiar with scripture. Shouldn’t we be too?

Lastly, Satan will always come after God’s people, but we have all the tools we need to resist. Best of all, we have the Holy Spirit. We too, have the ability to tell him to hit the road.

Because, the really awesome rest of the story that unfolded when Jesus told Satan to go, was he was first attended to by angels and then he began to preach.

His wilderness time lead to the greatest three years in human history.

What if God has great things planned for us following our own wilderness moments? It might be something to think about.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

My son participated in a band concert last night. I am always floored at how good a middle school band can be. I suppose it has to do with its director. All of those different instruments play just the right notes at just the right time and a beautiful melody is the result. Even when they add more members, with the right director, the music is still magnificent.

I have found this to be the case in the church choir as well. Sometimes there are very few of us, and we sound good. But then, we add two or three more and we sound great. Just like my son’s band, we have a fabulous director who knows exactly how to tell us when to sing and how loudly and which notes. It’s been an amazing phenomenon to experience.

Our church choir, like my son’s band, is always open for more willing participants.

It struck me last night, as I was watching the percussionists hustle around in the back playing all of the different instruments, and all of the woodwinds and brass play theirs, that while one more student might always be welcome and appreciated, when one is missing, it makes a difference. The same goes for the choir. Every voice matters and makes a difference.

The Body of Christ is the same scenario. There are many different parts with many different talents and gifts. Some are super visible like the preacher or the choir director. But, some people greet newcomers at the door or provide refreshments. There may be someone who is in charge of keeping coffee at the church or making sure there is toilet paper in the bathroom.

All of those jobs are equally important. Imagine for a moment, a church service without them.

Humanity loves to rank ourselves. We love to compare ourselves with other humans and jockey for better positions. But, God’s way is different. His way is to focus on Him and only on Him and then do whatever job He has given us with our unique talents and abilities we have been given.

When we commit to do that, we become part of a beautiful orchestra. When we refuse, we are missed. There are no small parts in God’s kingdom plan.

We can always add more because God is a phenomenal director and He knows exactly where to use us, but when we don’t show up or participate fully, we are missed terribly.

Lent is an ideal time to ask ourselves what part we have been playing in the Body of Christ. Are we doing our best? Are we participating fully with joy? How can we improve? How can we bring others in?

If the questions stump us, then some time in prayer will likely provide just the answers we need. We all have a part to play and a Divine Director who is patiently waiting.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

A very dear friend of mine became a Christian about a year ago. I could write an entire post about how God worked behind the scenes to bring us together, especially for such a time as this. When we get together these days, our conversation always turns to Christianity. We talk about our walk, and about God, about Jesus, about the cross and about the Holy Spirit. We discuss the Bible and what different verses and passages may mean.

She wrestles with God a fair amount of time and I often find myself as a counselor of sorts in matters like His will, and His timing, and His plan. Recently, she told me she thought she was a bi-polar Christian, sometimes on fire with hope and light and at other times in the complete pit of despair.

I quipped right back that once again, she was not special in her trials that those particular issues were something that all Christians faced. She told me I was wrong. She said that she thought that most Christians simply wanted to be comfortable. They wanted to know that eternity was in the bank, so to speak, and then they simply wanted to dress nicely, and dress their families nicely and come to church on Sundays, maybe attend a Sunday school class and then go about their business for another week.

Her statement took my breath away. Was she right? Did the majority of church going Christians look at salvation as a 401K for heaven? I have pondered this concept for a week or so. I have to admit, there have been times in my own life where I would fit into that category. Maybe you can relate?

We live in a country where it’s easy to be comfortable. It’s easy to take the ability to worship freely for granted. It’s a simple matter to be lulled into complacency in our walk. But, perhaps Lent is an ideal time to wake up and get off the pew.

Just last week, 21 Christians were beheaded in Egypt because of their faith. There’s a terrorist group out there that has made its mission to kill all Christian believers they possibly can.

At the very least, I think all Christians should be praying for the safety of our brothers and sisters around the world, not because the same violence could occur on our own soil, but because those people all the way around the world, are God’s people. They are our brothers and sisters in Christ, whether or not we have ever met them. The blood of Jesus connects us all.

Please join me during Lent and pray for all Christians and their safety and deliverance. Let’s come together and create a prayer net for each other. Let’s also go to God in prayer and ask Him if we have become comfortable and how we can get off of the pews and get plugged in. And lastly, let’s remember that, “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.” Proverbs 27:17 NLT

Let’s seek out other Christians this Lenten season and work on growing together. There’s no telling what great things could happen.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Last Sunday was Transfiguration Sunday. That wasn’t a term I ever heard as a kid. I knew the story. It’s when Jesus took Peter, James and John up on a mountain top and He transformed into His divine form. His face and clothes became a dazzling white and Moses and Elijah, who had been dead for centuries, also appeared. A cloud appeared and they heard God’s voice. He said, “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

Then it was done. Jesus transformed back into His human form. Elijah and Moses vanished. The voice of God was quiet. Peter, bless him, suggested they build shelters for the two prophets and Jesus and stay up there on that mountain forever.

Who could blame him? When we have mountain top moments, we want them to last forever. When we have breakthroughs in our Christian walk, we would often like to stay right there, on that retreat, or at that revival, or at that bedside where a miracle of some sort, occurred.

But, that’s not God’s plan for us. When we experience those intense moments, we are to learn from them and hold them close, but when a fire gets lit within us, we are supposed to spread it. That was Jesus’ Great Commission to all of His followers.

And let’s not miss what God said at this amazing mountain top moment. “Listen to him!”

Today is Ash Wednesday. It’s the first day of Lent. For the next 45 days, these three little words really should be our mantra. As Christians, we are supposed to take this time to not only repent of the things that pull us away from God, (which is why some people choose to give something up during this time like wine, coffee or chocolate); but can also take this time to contemplate activities that can draw us closer to God.

We could commit to reading the Bible daily, or reading one of the Gospels, or all of the Gospels. If we really want to listen to Jesus, the Gospels are a great place to start. We could serve at a soup kitchen or volunteer to serve in some way that we don’t normally serve. We could commit to 15 or more minutes of quiet prayer time, if we want to hear Jesus, we have to be quiet and still. We could write in a prayer journal daily for Lent. These are all activities that draw us closer to God.

While mountain top moments are incredible and often life changing, truthfully, I can’t think of anything more satisfying and comforting than a very intimate walk with Jesus. The peace and joy that come from it are impossible to beat.

I’m going to try to make this Lent about listening to what Jesus said and closely examining what He did, knowing that although it will take me to the darkness of the cross, it will also take me to the other side, to the glory of Easter. The best way for an intimate relationship, is to know Him well.

Lent seems like the perfect time to deepen our relationship with Christ. What do you think? I’d love to hear from you. What are your plans for Lent?

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

I was just reading a very interesting exchange between Jesus and a father in the Gospel of Mark, chapter four. Jesus had just come down from the mountain where the Transfiguration had occurred. He had taken three of His disciples with him on his journey and was rejoining the other nine when a man from the crowd called out for His help.

Apparently, the man’s son was possessed by a spirit that had taken away his speech and threw him to the ground making him foam at the mouth and gnash his teeth. The father was desperate for help for his child and had appealed to the nine disciples who were present for assistance, but they had been unable to help.

Jesus instructs the man to bring the boy to Him. When he does, the spirit immediately throws the child on the ground and causes him to convulse. Jesus asks the man how long the boy has been this way and the man says since childhood and the spirit sometimes throws him into a fire or water to try to kill him.

I can hear the desperation in his voice when he begs Jesus to help his child. “But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” Mark 9:22b

I picture Jesus very quietly and intently looking the man directly in the eyes and sternly giving His reply. “If you can? said Jesus. Everything is possible for him who believes.” Mark 9:23

But, this man was not giving up. He was in the presence of a power he had never known and he continued to plead for his child. “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” Mark 9:24

I can definitely identify with this poor man. He is desperate. He’s afraid. He wants to believe. He has some faith, but not complete faith. Don’t we all struggle with situations like that? We believe. We pray. We want to have complete faith that God will take care of it, but we continue to worry anyway. Giving it to God and not taking it back is a lifelong struggle for most Christians.

Do we go to God in prayer with complete confidence or do we take the unspoken word “if” with us? If is a big word when it comes to faith.

But, the scripture here seems to tell us that even when we falter, even when our faith waivers, He will help us anyway. He goes on to heal the boy despite the father’s incomplete faith.

I think the key when we are struggling with our faith is to admit it. The man told Jesus he believed, but asked Him to help with his unbelief. We have the same option today. Jesus doesn’t ask us to fake it. He asks for our open and pure hearts and our honesty. If we have needs, we are supposed to ask and if one of our needs is the lack of faith, we need to ask.

When we do, Jesus will help build or restore our faith. He will remove the “if” from the situation and then all things become possible. Doesn’t that sound fabulous?

What do you think about “ifs” and faith? I’d love to hear from you.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂