My Word of the Year

It's only January 21, but the new year has already ushered in a host of changes. I started a new job in a new industry in downtown Nashville, and (drumroll, please) we are engaged! Within one week, I accepted my new job offer, gave my notice at work, and Charles proposed. Needless to say, the Christmas season felt extra special with friends and family this year. 

I've taken the past few weeks to soak up our engagement and focus on being present. The blog has taken a back seat because of that, but I'm ready to post as regularly as I can in 2018. I love this little space, and I'm so grateful to each of you joining me on the journey. 

The Lord has been teaching me so much in the past few weeks. I picked up my very first Powersheets One-Year Intentional Goal Planner at the end of the year, and I've been excitedly walking through the prep work since then. I first heard about their creator and author Lara Casey from my sister. Lara is an amazing mom, wife, entrepreneur, and sweet Christian. And her Powersheets have always intrigued me because their focus is on cultivating what really matters, with practical action steps. 

She gave me the idea for a word of the year a few years ago. Last year I chose "rooted," and the Lord truly used that word throughout those 12 months. I wrote in my journal:

“God, I pray for depth this year. Fewer commitments, fewer things, and greater focus on you. Help me to grow deep rather than wide. You will guide me. I pray I listen and obey. Strengthen my relationship because we’re both going deeper with you. Help me to do good work at my job and on my blog because I am growing deeper in you. Let all I do be an outpouring of that depth; let it continually point back to you. I pray for deeper health, healing, courage, and freedom. Let the roots grow deep, Lord.

Rooted in you, watered daily with Scripture and prayer so that I may grow and blossom. Rooted in you, Father.”

He did absolutely that—He grew the roots deep and allowed me to blossom in Him. He grew my relationship with Charles, He grew my understanding and love of His word, and He grew my process of healing and restoration. 

As I've sat and really contemplated what my word might be in 2018, God has reminded me of His faithfulness. He's reminded me how very big He is and how very small I am. And how's that a very good thing. He's brought me back to the start, to Genesis, to show me how much He's weaving His story and our stories from beginning to end. 

One word has popped up over and over for me: 

steadfast (adj.)

(1) Firmly fixed in place: immovable.

(2) Firm in belief, determination, or adherence: loyal. 

Synonyms include: faithful, devoted, steady, true, firm, constant, unwavering.

I’m making my way through Genesis, and no story better illustrates steadfastness to me than that of Abraham and Sarah. God chose Abraham to be the father of all nations, whose offspring would number more than the stars in the sky. The only problem? Both Abraham and his wife, Sarah, were old and childless. In Genesis 18, the Lord says to them that He will return in a year’s time, and Sarah will have a son. Sarah actually laughs at God, knowing she’s way past childbearing age. God speaks to them quite boldly:

“Is anything impossible for the Lord? At the appointed time, I will come back to you, and in about a year, she will have a son.”

— Genesis 18:14

God had changed Abram’s name to Abraham, from “high father” to “father of a multitude.” He had changed Sarai’s name to Sarah, from “princess” to “mother of all nations.” You know when God changes someone’s name in the Bible, He’s about to do something big. He changes names because He changes hearts. He writes the story. He makes history.  

With Sarah and Abraham, God was faithful. He gave them a son, Isaac. He came back to Sarah exactly as He said He would and at the very time that He had set (Genesis 21).

God is firm, true, unwavering. He is constant, and He is loyal, even when we falter. No matter what our lives look like, God is there. No matter what changes we go through or ups and downs we face, He remains the same.

God is the very definition of steadfast.

He is not slow to fulfill His promises, but He works on His own timetable. He wants all to be saved. (2 Peter 3:9) The Christian Standard Bible translates this verse in a way that really stands out: “The Lord does not delay his promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.”

God is patient, and His timing is always the best. I fail to believe this sometimes. I want to do things my way, according to my own schedule. What I want, when I want. For example, I felt a tug on my heart that He was going to send me out from my full-time ministry job into a secular environment. I prayed about that for 10 months in 2017 before receiving an offer and trusting it was what God had asked me to step into it. God is much bigger and greater than me.

Think of Abraham and Sarah: waiting on God’s perfect timing was absolutely worth it. They had to go through difficulties before Isaac was born. The same is true for us. I know 2018 will hold more changes. Suffering will happen. I can find hope knowing God is still the same.

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

— James 1:2-4

I pray God cultivates steadfastness in me like His son, Jesus. This year, I pray my faith is resolutely firm. I want to be devoted to God no matter the situation or season. His love for us is unwavering—I want that kind of love for Him in return. I know I am prone to worry and anxiety. I like to be in control. But God, I give that to You. 

Lord, help me to stand firm in the faith. Guard me against sin and temptation and keep me focused on you. Give me steadfastness. Endurance for the fight and total surrender to the King.

That's the life I want to live in 2018: steadfast and true. 

By Grace Through Faith

PART ONE.

I love this photo. If I had to use only one word to describe it, that word would be peace.

To me, it's the perfect depiction of peace, rest, and total awe at God's creation. The boats are docked for the night, the sun is gently setting, and a storybook pink glow is spreading across the water. 

This picture of peace is what I think of when I think about salvation. When I think about Jesus and calling Him the Lord and Savior of my life, I feel a deep sense of peace. I am assured of my salvation; I know where I’m going when this life ends.

I don’t have assurance because I did X amount of good deeds, read the Bible X minutes a day, or prayed X number of prayers. I don’t have assurance because I've been baptized, because I led X people to Christ, or because I write a blog about God.

Those things don’t save me. 

Those are what the Bible refers to as “works,” and while they can help lead me closer to God and grow in my relationship with Him, they are not the reason I have an eternal hope.

Salvation is not something I earn. It’s something God freely gives to me through faith by His grace.

If you want to look at one text in the Bible to understand this better, look no further than the book of Romans. Over and over again, Paul writes to Rome that the righteousness He has comes by faith in Jesus Christ. Grab a pen and circle how many times in Romans that Paul says “faith” or “by faith.” Paul is sharing the Gospel—that means Good News—with the people of Rome, and he does not mince words. Paul is clear that we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. 

Think about it; even children lie and manipulate. We all sin, even when we don’t want to. Our sin nature is a direct result of the fall—that time Adam and Eve listened to Satan and ate from the forbidden fruit in the garden of Eden. Sin is innately within us. 

“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin,in this way death spread to all people, because all sinned. In fact, sin was in the world before the law, but sin is not charged to a person’s account when there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin in the likeness of Adam’s transgression. He is a type of the Coming One.”

— Romans 5:12-14

But wait before you click away, feeling defeated—the story doesn’t stop there. 

Jesus is the One who is perfect, who has no sin within Him. He died the death that we deserve and rose again. He did this so that all might be reconciled to Him. The whole world! His message isn’t for the “good” people or those who seem holy. His message is for every single one of us.

Jesus came for me, while I was (and am) a sinner. While I was still dead in my trespasses, a slave to sin, He saved me. 

“ And you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you previously lived according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air,the spirit now working in the disobedient. We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also. But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! ”

— Ephesians 2:1-5

Salvation comes from accepting Christ and repenting, a big word that simply means to turn away from. When I repented, I turned away from my sin. I acknowledged that I am a sinner, and I will continue to sin even when I don’t want to. To accept Him, I declared Jesus Christ the Lord and Savior of my life. I invited Him in. I told Him my life is His. 

And by doing that, God’s Word tells me that I am saved. Saved by grace through faith, and this is not of ourselves but it is God’s gift. Not from works so that no one may boast. For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works that He prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8-10)

When we accept Christ, we get to fully claim our new identity in Him. The Holy Spirit dwells within us. The old self is gone; the new self remains. Will we still struggle? Of course. Yet we’re no longer slaves to sin. We have a new identity as holy saints, as servants to the King. 

Think about the person you love the most: your spouse, your child, your sister or brother, your best friend. Picture them, and now think of everything you would do for them. You want them to know and feel how deeply you love them. You’d do anything for them.

The way Jesus loves us is like that, except to a greater degree like we can’t even imagine. So when we put our life in His hands, when we’re “saved,” good works are a natural outpouring of the love we have for Him. They’re not what guarantee we’ll one day spend eternity with God. They’re the visible, external fruit of the amazing transformation and hold He has on our hearts.  

“Do you have passion for Jesus Christ? Do you have a love affair for the Word of God?”

My pastor asked us those questions this Sunday. They're questions I have to ask myself on a regular basis. I have to continually ask God that I would become less and He would become more.

So ask yourself, what’s the fruit of my life?

Do you want to spend time with God, in prayer, in His Word, and living a life for Him? That’s what living a “saved” life looks like. It’s not about doing a certain number of good deeds to tip the scales in your favor. If you’re living a life based on deeds and good works, you’ll never be satisfied. You’ll never not be sinful, and you'll never know what's going to happen on the day you laid to rest.

Knowing we are saved doesn't mean we don't do good works or that we live our lives however we want because we're guaranteed to go to heaven. If we're truly a Believer, then we're fully living in our new identity. When we're saved, we can't help but do good works to serve God with every ounce of our being. 

“And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. ”

— Genesis 1:31

God looked at His creation and declared it to be good. He looked at man and declared him to be very good. Did you catch that? He looks at you and me and says we are very good. He loves us in a way we cannot even comprehend. We are worth Jesus to Him—the only perfect man who ever lived, fully man and fully God. That is how much God loves us.

“But the gift is not like the trespass. For if by the one man’s trespass the many died, how much more have the grace of God and the gift which comes through the grace of the one man Jesus Christ overflowed to the many… So then, as through one trespass there is condemnation for everyone, so also through one righteous act there is justification leading to life for everyone. For just as through one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. The law came along to multiply the trespass. But where sin multiplied, grace multiplied even more so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace will reign through righteousness, resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

— Romans 5:15, 18-21

When we are Believers, we are no longer under the law but grace. Grace multiplied even more through Christ Jesus.

That is the most freeing, joyful news possible, friends. That should bring us peace that warms us to our very core. We get to have life beyond this one, a life with Jesus in eternity. And when craziness ensues in the world around us, we can be sure of the kingdom that awaits us. You're invited to His table. All you have to do is surrender to Christ. By grace through faith. 

---

If you want to talk more about Jesus Christ and faith and what-the-heck-is-all-this-stuff, shoot me a message. I love meeting new people, whether virtually or in person, and gabbing about life. 

And if you'd like to know more of my story, you can read my testimony here.

Truly, He makes beautiful things.

The Best Books and Studies For Whatever You're Going Through

I'm always on the hunt for new books and enjoy settling in for a good read. The titles below are ones that have helped me through many different seasons of life. I hope they are as encouraging and challenging for you as they have been for me. 

Any books you've read recently that I should add to my list? Let me know in the comments below!

Deepen Your Relationship

The Meaning of Marriage

I recommend this book to everyone I know, whether single, dating, engaged, or married. My boyfriend and I read through it together when we first starting dating, and it's a game-changer. You can also purchase the corresponding study guide. 

Mingling of Souls

Matt Chandler's marriage book focuses on Song of Songs, an Old Testament book often referred to for its teachings on sex. You'll learn about God's design for sex, dating, marriage, and much more in an easy-to-read (yet thought-provoking) format. 

Move Forward After a Broken Heart

It's Not You, It's God 

Technically not a book or a study, but this article from Desiring God really helped me experience healing a few years ago and recognize that a true sense of closure comes from the Lord alone.

Passion and Purity 

Elisabeth Elliot's life story is a remarkable one. Definitely look it up if you're not familiar. She's written countless books, and this one is specifically for singles (both men and women) on surrendering your relationships to Christ's control. 

Heal from Destructive Behaviors

How People Change

I went through a chunk of this workbook during my time in counseling in New York City. If you're looking for Biblical-based help to turn from sin and start anew, this is it.

Grow in Community

Life Together

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote this book based on his time in an underground seminary during the Nazi occupation of Germany. Life Together instilled in me the importance of Christian fellowship and the reminder we cannot do this life alone. 

Make Disciples

Growing Up

Become a disciple who makes disciples. Pastor Robby Gallaty (my pastor) wrote this practical guide to growing in your faith and starting a discipleship group for the very first time. It includes a Bible reading plan, accountability questions, how to share your faith, and more. You'll find even more resources and tools online here. 

Live in Freedom

Wild and Free

I read and helped lead a women's study on this book last summer. The book helped each of us experience encouragement and hope and step into the women that God created us to be. Click here to download the leader's guide. 

Strengthen Your Prayer Life

Prayer

Another favorite from Tim Keller, this one helped me structure my prayers and make them more meaningful. It's a book you'll want to read with complete focus and attention. 

A Praying Life

I haven't read this book yet, but I've heard it's an incredible way to help you connect with God and experience great joy in prayer.

Act Courageously

Anything

Jennie Allen is the real deal. If you want to live out your faith and step boldly into what God might be calling you to, then this is the book for you. Be sure to take advantage of the study guide at the back, too. 

Practice Evangelism

Turning Everyday Conversations into Gospel Conversations

We're reading through this book at work and each week, practicing what it looks like to share the Gospel. The "three-circles method" explained here can help you transition your daily conversations into more meaningful discussions about Christ.  

Understand How Faith and Work Intersect

Every Good Endeavor

How does my career fit into God's design for my life? What's the point of work? How do I serve God if I'm not called into full-time ministry? Pick up this book to get answers to these questions and more.

Recognize God's Love for You

Crazy Love

God loves you relentlessly, and He wants a relationship with you. If you're continually striving for things and nothing ever seems to satisfies, maybe it's time to fall in love with the Lord. 

Study the Bible More Effectively

Women of the Word

The book's subtitle is "How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds," and I can't describe it any better than that. Jen Wilkin is a powerhouse Bible study leader; I recommend this book to men and women alike.

A Few More Recommendations

The Broken Way (This one's been on my list for a while! Ann Voskamp is amazing.)

Disciplines of a Godly Man (Obviously have not read this one myself.)

Gospel in Life studies

How to Read the Bible for All It's Worth

Seamless (I heard Angie Smith speak at a women's conference this year. She became a Christian later in life, and I love her honesty, humor, and the way she always points back to the Word.)

What Is the Gospel?

---

If you want to talk more about Jesus Christ and faith and what-the-heck-is-all-this-stuff, shoot me a message. I love meeting new people, whether virtually or in person, and gabbing about life. 

And if you'd like to know more of my story, you can read my testimony here.

Truly, He makes beautiful things.

The Time Is Now

“If you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will come to the Jewish people from another place, but you and your father’s family will be destroyed. Who knows, perhaps you have come to your royal position for such a time as this.” (Esther 4:14)

Perhaps you have come to your royal position for such a time as this.

Have you heard this phrase before? It's one that tends to be thrown around and shows up on a variety of mugs, towels, and graphic prints. During this past year or so where I've consistently read the Bible and really fallen in love with God's Word, I've learned the stories behind popular verses like this one. My friend Laurel is an incredible artist, and one of the things I love so much about her work is that she never throws a phrase onto a product just for the heck of it. She prays over everything she hand-letters, and she explains the "why" behind it.

Because these words are not simple words. They're God-breathed and given to us divinely through scripture.

Those two sentences in the book of Esther hold so much more weight once we know the story.

Esther is a beautiful—yet ordinary—young Jewish woman. After King Xerxes disposes of Queen Vashti, he begins the search for a new queen. He's completely floored by Esther, and without knowing her true ethnic identity, he gives her a place of honor as new queen. She wins his favor, and he dotes on her with gifts, beauty treatments, and gourmet food. This ordinary woman is now living a life she could have only dreamed of.

The story starts to shift in chapter three. Haman, the king’s adviser, develops a plot to kill the Jews—all men, women, and children—due to their ethnic identity and their worshipping the Lord over the king. (Think about it: This is still happening today. Christians are killed all over the world for their faith.)

Mordecai, a Jewish man and Esther’s cousin, stands firm against Haman. In Chapter 4, he encourages Esther to do the same. Mordecai tells Esther that as a Jewish woman she will not be safe, even as the queen. The palace walls cannot protect her from the massacre Haman is planning. He implores her to act:

“Don’t think you will escape the fate of all the Jews because you are in the king’s palace. If you keep silent at this time, liberation and deliverance will come to the Jewish people from another place, but you and your father’s house will be destroyed. Who knows, perhaps you have come to your royal position for such a time as this.” (Esther 4:12-14)

Esther rises up and tells Mordecai to assemble all the Jews to fast. After three days of fasting, she will go to the king and talk to him.

“If I perish, I perish,” she says.

She prepares a banquet that both the king and Haman attend, and she boldly asks that both she and her people would be spared. Esther tells the king of Haman’s plot, and Haman is hanged. She then begs the king to revoke Haman’s evil plot against the Jews. King Xerxes allows her to sign an edict in his name declaring that the Jews can defend themselves and be ready against their enemies.

“In every province and every city, wherever the king’s command and his law reached, joy and rejoicing took place among the Jews. There was a celebration and a holiday. And many of the ethnic groups of the land professed themselves to be Jews because fear of the Jews had overcome them.” (Esther 8:17)

Mordecai and Esther take a stand for the Lord. My study bible points out that Esther is a parallel to Jesus. She comes alongside her people and intervenes. And at this time, in the Old Testament, she did not even have the example of Jesus Christ yet! She stands up based on faith and trust in God’s grace.

How much more should we take action having the knowledge that Jesus came, died, and rose for us?

I am not facing death like Esther. Most of us are not. Most of us live quite comfortable lives. God has called us to exactly where we are for His great purpose. We’re called to be bold and to serve others right here, right now.

In Every Good Endeavor, Tim Keller uses the story of Esther to illustrate how our work is not for ourselves. If we work and build, and we stay in that palace we build, we become slaves to it. It's a terrible place to be. Our work and our gifting are given to us to serve others and ultimately the King.

We have to remember that Esther is an ordinary woman. She’s not a minister or teacher. Yet God used her mightily. He wants to do the same with us.

What does that look like practically in your life right now?

I’ve been thinking about the book of Esther and her character throughout this summer. Her story applies to my current season in a few different ways. I've set four goals as I face the second half of 2017:

1.  Work with excellence and with a mindset of service.

Make the time count. My work is not about my resume, my recognition, or my success. It’s about other people and the Lord. Whether your work is in full-time ministry or not, it is meant for service. Think about how your gifts at work and beyond can be used for God.

2. Actively pursue health in mind, body, and spirit.

I want to be the full woman God intended me to be. I pray I surrender total control to him in every area of my life. Give anxiety and worry over to Him, trusting that He has a plan and provision. I want to steward my physical body well and feed my emotional health through time with Him. 

3. Pray with focus, meditate on God’s word, and fast.

Esther assembled her people to fast before she spoke to the King. I won’t be fasting from food given my medical history, but I can fast from other things. I can fast from social media and my phone, for one. Take one day a week to step away. Fasting means intentionally saying no to myself to say yes to more of God. We often see great men and women of God fasting in the Bible. That’s not a coincidence. They were putting their heart and head in a place to hear from God by shutting out the distractions that would get in the way.

Praying with focus goes beyond a quick grace before dinner. Praying with focus is specific conversation with the Lord to help me align my heart with His. This won’t happen unless I’m practicing prayer on a daily basis. And it really is a practice.

4. Take bold steps to share Jesus.

Let us speak the Truth! Sometimes I like to stay in my comfortable bubble where everyone around me is a Christian. I know the Good News of the Gospel, and I desire other people to know it, too. To have a relationship with Jesus that changes their life. Our great commission is to make disciples. I’m praying I would confidentially and without fear share the Name above all names.

The time is now. What will you do with it?

---

If you want to talk more about Jesus Christ and faith and what-the-heck-is-all-this-stuff, shoot me a message. I love meeting new people, whether virtually or in person, and gabbing about life. 

And if you'd like to know more of my story, you can read my testimony here.

Truly, He makes beautiful things.