Forged By Faith

Romans 6:22 NIV So we've been talking about the amazing hope and promise of an eternity in Heaven. And something hit me last night while I was praying: without Christ's freedom that hope wouldn't exist. It just wouldn't be possible. You see His selfless gift gave us the freedom to leave our sins behind and move on toward something better, something that we simply don't deserve. But I don't think we really grasp just how life-changing that kind of freedom really is. I've always been one to basically hold a grudge against myself for the things that I've done wrong. I literally still feel bad about things that I did almost 15 years ago! It's a problem, but at least I realize that. It's something that I've worked on, but I still just feel terrible about some of the things that I have said and done in my life. But when I was praying last night it dawned on me just how complete Christ's freedom is. It's not just the freedom from one or two ...

Matthew 6:20 NIV Yesterday I posed a very big question: have you ever thought about the vastness of eternity? I'm just afraid that so many people are living for these lives only, and that's going to lead to quite a shock when we reach the end of this leg of the trip only to find that something else really does come next. So I just want to encourage everyone to take today's verse to heart. This is one that my mom likes to quote and share quite often. And it's really a very important lesson that everyone needs to learn and always keep in mind. While we're surrounded by all kinds of messages, things, wants, and desires, we need to always keep our priorities in line. We can't afford to let ourselves become distracted by all the wares that our world offers up. The thing that I think we've fallen for is this idea of value. We're told that all this worldly stuff is highly valuable. Now if that's the case, then we automatically think that having it or going ...

John 14:3 NIV You all ever think about eternity? As I wrote that I realized that sounds like way too deep of a question for a Saturday afternoon. But have you ever really taken some time and thought about just how long forever really is? I don't really know why, but that's kind of been on my mind for a couple of days. So as usual, when something sticks around in there for long enough, I assume that He just might be telling me to talk about it! What's amazing to me is to think that we're just getting started. Our journey has truly only just begun. It's seriously crazy to think that we've only seen such a minuscule amount of all that there is. We've all seen, heard, learned, and experienced more things than we can possibly remember. So to think that our lives have been but a drop in this ocean of eternity that's still before us is insane! I think that forever and eternity are these kinds of concepts that our little human brains can't really comprehend....

Matthew 14:28 NIV I touched on this little story from the Bible in yesterday's post. Faith is a really funny thing. Some days we're completely solid and ready to move mountains. Others we just keep stumbling and can't seem to put one foot in front of the other. It's this never ending fight to keep growing and keep our eyes fixed on Christ. It's this process of continually learning that He knows better than we do and we will rarely understand where He's taking us. I absolutely love this little piece of Scripture. It manages to show the amazing power of our faith and our likeliness to struggle with it all at the same time. Just like Peter, we call out to Him and say that we're ready for whatever and wherever He has in mind. We know that He's got us and that He will always be in control. Yet once we actually take that step of faith outside of what we can understand, things get real pretty quick! The thing is that He is going to lead us to things that we ca...

Psalm 37:24 NIV So I was getting back in the swing of things with an absolutely amazing shoulder day this afternoon. No matter how bad I've felt or how unmotivated I may be, just something about hitting shoulders that seriously brings me right back! Anyway, I was slinging in the gym and Storm by Lifehouse literally just stopped me in my tracks. Such an amazing song, and as I usually do, I'll drop a link below for you to give it a listen. The song is about those all too common times in life where we're just struggling. We know that God is there and that His love for us has never changed. We know that He's still in control and will never leave our side. But even with those promises, we still just struggle sometimes. We find ourselves doing everything we can to keep trying, but nothing seems to be working. We just seem to keep slipping and sliding and getting nowhere. I've been there so many times in my life, and I know that you have as well. As we've talked about...

John 1:5 NIV It can feel crushing. It can bring on feelings of doubt and fear. It can squeeze the joy and excitement out of our lives. It seems to always be there, some days closing in faster than others. The truth is that none of us are immune to darkness. Nobody is able to avoid the dark, dangerous, and plain old scary parts of life. And to make it even worse, we're travelling through a world that embraces wickedness. So I guess it's only inevitable to feel like we're on the losing side of this fight sometimes. But nothing, and I mean nothing can ever extinguish the light that is inside of us. No amount of darkness can ever make light fail to exist and shine on. Sure, it can and will try. And some times it does a pretty good job. But if we're still alive, then we still have the opportunity to try. And if we're still trying, then we're not defeated. And well, if we ain't been defeated yet, then let's fight like we know it. Let's fight like we know w...

2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV Here we are yet again. We're sitting here tonight as one more of our nation's cities burns. One more night of civil unrest. One more moment of rage and uncontrolled aggression. One more day of violence. One more case of looting. One more day of continuing to run in the wrong direction as fast as our selfish and sin-prone hearts will take us. This thing seems to just be the norm anymore, and I don't really have the words to express how much I don't understand any of it. When are we going to learn that this way of living and behaving just ain't working? When will we see that more hatred and more darkness only makes the problem grow bigger and bigger? When we will finally see the sin and brokenness that has infiltrated our hearts and minds to the point that riots, violence, and hate-filled messages are common? When we it get through to us that there's one big piece missing to this puzzle that we're blindly trying to put together? We've...

Proverbs 3:6 NIV So we just talked about how we don't always get what we want in life. I'm betting that comes as a surprise to nobody. But if we can learn to see it as the true blessing that it is, then we can finally start to find the peace and contentment that we would miss otherwise. You see, life isn't about doing things our way. It's not about getting what we think we need or having everything go just like we want it to go. It's about God's plans and His perfect will for our lives. It can be extremely hard to see that when we're frustrated by the disappointment of not getting our way. We become blinded to the blessings that gives us instead of the things we had our hearts set on. Once we have it in our minds that things need to happen this way or bring us this result, then anything else is just not good enough. Even if it means we get something better, we could very well miss it because we're upset. We've got to accept that we're not here to...

James 4:3 NIV Yesterday we talked about the fact that life is rarely easy. It usually goes much differently than we could ever imagine, and some of it is just flat-out hard. But it's in those difficult circumstances that we learn the most about our faith. They help us learn more about who God really is and just how faithful He's always been. This one kind of goes along with that idea. He needs to bring us to the end of ourselves so that we can finally see that He is really all that we need. We all have so many things that we want in life. Whether it's dream jobs, material comforts, or personal goals, we all have a list of things that we hope and pray for. Some we get, others we don't. Now when we get something that we want, then we're good. We're happy. But what about when we don't get those prayers answered the way we hope? What about when God says no, hold on, or here's something different? Well, we don't like not getting our way. So when those pra...

Jeremiah 29:11 NIV I'm betting you all have noticed, but just in case you haven't, this year has SUCKED!!! It's like each month has been this exciting new ride at this horrible theme park where everything goes wrong. Just when you think you've managed to get through one storm, here comes the next that nobody saw coming. I think we can all agree that this has been the craziest, most unsettling, and down-right shocking year in recent memory. And through it all, we all just keep trying to hold on to hope. Reading through Jeremiah last night and this one always just sticks out. It's one of those amazing verses that pretty much everyone knows by heart at this point. And the fact that this amazing promise is found in such a dire time is what makes it so powerful. Let's face it, life ain't no picnic. It's a battle. It's this nonstop struggle most days. It's a constant fight just to keep our heads up and keep trying to move forward. But when you take it ...

Ephesians 4:22 NIV So I had this really weird dream night before last. I was rummaging through this huge patch of dirt looking for something worth holding on to. I would pick something up, brush it off, and just toss it back down because it was all just junk. Now I've been thinking about that for a couple of days, and I really think there's a message in there. How many times does God pull us away from something, and we look back to see if there is anything worth keeping. He finally manages to get through to us and help us understand that there's something better out there, but we still look through what we have to see if we want to take anything with us. We have all lived some pretty messed up lives in the past. And God, through His endless love and mercy, has continually led us to bigger and better things. But the question is why do we still keep looking through the garbage that we were once surrounded by thinking that there's something worth keeping? Why are we convin...

Matthew 19:26 NIV 199.8. Really weird way to start one of these posts isn't it? But stick with me. If you've read some of my past posts, then you may know that I have changed up my life quite a bit over the past few years. And this morning when I stepped on the scale, the number looking up at me was 199.8. I actually dipped below two bills. That's honestly something that I can say I never thought would be possible. But as I said in my post a couple of days ago, impossible doesn't exist with God. You see, back in early 2018 I weighed over 300 pounds. Well over. Not sure exactly how much because the scale in the gym at our old apartment stopped at 300. But when I stepped on, the needle kept going anyway! So in the course of 2 1/2 years I've lost 120 or so pounds. I've completely changed up my diet. I get probably way too excited to sling weights around in the gym. I do a lot more walking than I ever did before. I'm just a completely different person, and I hon...

Matthew 11:29 NIV We talked yesterday about how one part of our walk of faith is about unlearning all the wrong things that the world has taught us and learning the right way to do things. It's about learning God's way of doing things. His way is the polar opposite of the world's way, so it only stands to reason that we're basically starting from scratch when we finally find our way to Jesus. The awesome thing is that He's ready and more than able to help make that life-changing transition! That's exactly what this verse is telling us. When we stop scratching and clawing to keep up with the broken ways of this world we're passing through, then we can just accept the help that He's ready to give us. We're told so often by those around us that we need to keep at it and keep up with the constant changes that other people are making. We're told that we have to keep up with the world or risk getting left behind. Well, seeing the dangerous direction th...

Romans 7:15 NIV Some days, like yesterday, you just don't feel like you can manage to accomplish anything. Others, like today, you put on a little Skillet Music , head to the gym, and get weird for a little while. Feels awesome to get back in the swing of things after just not feeling quite myself for a little bit. And one of their songs, Monster, left me thinking about something that I know we all deal with pretty often in life. We know what's right and what's wrong. But no matter what it just seems like we still make the worst choice more often than we should. Like I said, I know we've all been there and that we're all still a work in progress. I know that I've personally dealt with this one countless times in my life, and I have no problem at all in admitting that. I have made far more bad choices than good ones. I've done more things that I knew were wrong than I can remember. I've said and done things that I absolutely hate without catching myself. ...

Philippians 4:13 NIV I have some of the best possible news that anyone could ever share with you: it's not all on you! This is one of the most well-known and commonly quoted verses in the whole Bible. It's just one of those messages that seems to always fit whatever situation that we find ourselves in. With all of the things that we face in life, it's extraordinarily peaceful to know that we don't have to rely on our strength alone. Which is a very good thing because let's face it, we're not all that. We tend to enjoy thinking that we are. We like to tell ourselves that we're stronger and tougher than we really are. We convince ourselves that we can do anything and take on any challenge that comes our way. But when push comes to shove, we often find that maybe we're not invincible. I know the truth in that is rather humbling, but it's good to be a little more humble than a little too high on ourselves. After all, the higher we build ourselves up, the...

1 Corinthians 14:33 NIV So I saw this one earlier today and I just marveled at the simplicity of it. You know, Crowder Music has this little verse in one of his songs and it's stuck with me ever since I first heard it. "I don't think everybody's right, I think we often get it wrong. I think that when we get to Heaven, we're gonna laugh when we can see, how hard we try to make it, and how easy it should be." If you can't see the truth in that, then I'm sorry to tell you that you're broken! I'll drop a link to the song below, it's amazing! We've managed to take something simple, powerful, and beautiful and turn it into this chaotic mess. We're so divided up and confused that many don't even know which way is up anymore. Not to mention what we talked about a week or so ago about how so many inside of our faith are far too focused on the silly battles our world has gotten started. I love that this verse in Corinthians is aimed at ...

Proverbs 12:25 NIV So yesterday's little milestone had me thinking about just how incredible this opportunity really is. Do you guys realize that we each have the ability to change someone's life for the better? Do you realize that we have the ability to lift someone up when the weight of life is beating them down? Do you ever just stop and think about this gift that we've been given and the priceless chance to share it with others? We all deal with things like stress, anxiety, fear, doubt. Those are all just a part of life and nobody is immune to them. And they suck! They're far from enjoyable. All of those negative thoughts and emotions are great at squeezing the joy out of our lives and leaving us feeling hopeless and lost. We've all been there, and odds are we'll be there again. And there are so many people around us going through those rough times as we speak. That's where you and I get to come in and bring the light of Christ with us. There's absol...

1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV Day 2000! It's pretty hard to believe that I've been doing this daily Bible verse thing for nearly 5 1/2 years! 2000 days straight, definitely not something I ever started to consider when my friend sent me this little challenge, but I'm truly thankful. I'm honored and humbled at the idea that maybe God's been able to use these posts in some way. That's exactly what keeps me going, and will keep me posting these posts every single day. I've learned so much more than I ever could have imagined learning. And that's one of those exciting things that really gets me pumped up. I know that I still have so much to learn and I can't wait to see where this can go. I can't wait to see how God continues to move in my life and gives me stories and ideas to share with you guys. And I truly hope that someone out there manages to get something good out of this challenge that's become a part of my daily life. You know, I can't thi...

Psalm 31:7 NIV Britt Nicole shared this one earlier today and I thought it was perfect to go along with what we talked about yesterday. We need to look to God above and before everything else. He is our source of all that we need, and He generously provides for us every day. And He does all of it out of His endless and unchanging love for us. So why would we ever hope to find that kind of mercy anywhere else? Why would we try? Life can be a pretty solitary adventure at times. No matter how many people we have around us, we still go through things that leave us feeling lonely. We all go through things that others might not know about, and that they definitely may not understand. But through it all. God's there and He gets it. He sees our hurting and understands our struggles. He knows what we're going through and the most amazing part is that He genuinely cares. All too often I think we don't reach out and ask for help because we don't want to seem weak. We don't wa...

John 15:11 NIV Well, it was a weird and strangely rough start to the week for me. Just struggling no matter what I tried. It seemed like no matter what I tried to do, it ended up going wrong and being so much harder along the way. It's kind of like I kept finding new ways to make myself miserable and things harder. But today was an amazing bounce-back day. I'm telling you from experience, a little change in perspective has a huge impact in our lives. We get told that joy is in all kinds of places around us. People tell us that it can be found in that thing over there, or this place just ahead, or hidden behind this secret trick that they've discovered. There are so many keys to joy in our world, yet so many people are miserable and hurting. Something's not adding up here! I'd venture to guess that maybe all these things that are supposed to make us happy just can't. Maybe all these secrets to happiness are just nonsense. After walking along the edge of frustrate...

Ecclesiastes 7:20 NIV I've been thinking quite a bit about perfection. It's one of those things that I think many of us chase after, yet just never manage to find. That's because it isn't possible. Perfection just isn't gonna happen no matter how hard we try, how much we change, or how hard we focus. No matter what we do, we just can't lay our hands on it. And what we'll find is that the more try, the more disappointed we become because we're trying to fit into some kind of mold that we're never going to get in. I've noticed here lately that my workouts have just plain sucked. I've taken a week off thinking that maybe I was just worn down and needed to catch up. I've changed things up a little bit thinking that maybe a little something new might bring me back to life. I've even put my head down and tried to force my way back into feeling right. Nothing. None of it helped all that much. But I finally think I've nailed down what...

Isaiah 44:22 NIV Redemption: To compensate for the faults or bad aspects of something; to gain or regain possession of something in exchange for payment; or to fulfill or carry out a pledge or promise. Our God is so big that He fits every definition of the word! We've been talking about how we don't have to be lost in doing things our own way forever and how He will welcome us back whenever we finally realize we need Him more than anything else. Redemption is why. All of our mistakes, all our weaknesses, all our excuses have been washed away. There is literally nothing left between us and God except for us. We are all that remains in the way of the healing and forgiveness that we need. Seriously, all that stands in our way of the peaceful and joyous freedom we're looking for is our choice to turn back to Him. That's it! I think that one of the biggest hurdles we face in making that choice is that it truly seems impossible. Whether we openly admit them or not, we all kno...