"Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." John 12:24
This is the time of year when I think of the verse above. It's autumn, and after the blaze of foliage that colored our world for a few weeks, the leaves have mostly faded. Trees are being stripped of their covering, of the life that had once run through their limbs. They are dying. Seeds and bulbs are being planted in preparation for the Spring season. But first, they have to die. As much as we shy away from the topic of death, there is a certain beauty in dying. In fact, dying is necessary. If it weren't for death, we wouldn't witness the miracle of resurrection, of new life. In the same way, our salvation in Christ was only made possible by His death. He had to die, in order to redeem us. He had to die in order to restore our relationship with God. He had to die to satisfy the demands of Divine Justice and God's wrath. And yet, He lives! He rose with resurrection power and LIFE. His resurrection secured salvation for us, and also secured every promise found in scripture. In other words, He brought forth a harvest that was so abundant. A harvest of believers He is in the process of nurturing and preparing for that great Harvest Day at the end of time. Matthew Henry's commentary on this verse stood out, and I thought I'd share it with you: "This immortal seed submitted to the laws of mortality, he lay in the grave like seed under the clods but as the seed comes up again green, and fresh, and flourishing, and with a great increase, so one dying Christ gathered to himself thousands of living Christians, and he became their root. The salvation of souls hitherto, and henceforward to the end of time, is all owing to the dying of this corn of wheat." What an amazing Savior we serve!
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Have you ever felt pushed to your breaking point?
The circumstances are different for everyone, but things tend to pile on your shoulders all at once, weighing like a burden too heavy for you to carry. You feel so weak, so fragile, and your emotions become tattered. Your patience is stretched taut, and you don’t know how much more you can take. If there is anything true about this situation, it is that you can’t do this. You weren’t made to carry this burden alone. In those moments, we have a gracious Helper. A merciful Friend who comes alongside us and shows us how He can handle everything. I experienced something similar a few weeks ago when some unexpected responsibilities fell on my shoulders. All I can say, looking back on it, was that God was there to give me the strength, the peace, and the patience exactly when I needed it. And He is so faithful to do that in every moment of our lives if we just trust Him. At the very start of that week, I saw this quote on my Instagram feed, and I wanted to share it with you today, especially for those of you who might be going through a season of hardship. “If you wake up feeling fragile, remember that God is not, and then trust Him to be everything you need today.” -C.S. Lewis. I commented on the post afterward, and a follower responded: “Isn’t it amazing how faithful He is to do that? He will most definitely allow us to walk through way more than we can handle, simply so that we can experience HIS ability to handle it.” So I want to encourage you, friends: Keep on fighting the good fight, pray for an abundant supply of strength and peace, and you’ll find that He is with you and that He will give you grace if only you ask Him. <3 "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong." (2 Corinthians 12: 9-10) Did you know that the Bible has 31,101 verses?
Out of all that, I'm sure many of you have a list of your favorites, the ones that you go to again and again for the comfort or the assurance that you need from Him. I'm not going to ask you what your most favorite verse is, but rather one that you turn to in those moments of distress. So tell me. . . what is your go-to verse? I'd like to share mine with you. :) "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." ~Isaiah 41:10 One of the reasons I love this verse is because of all the promises jam-packed into a single verse. Did you notice all of them? He is with us. He is our God. He will strengthen us. He will help us. He will uphold us. And it starts with a phrase that is so, so comforting. Fear thou not. . . It's almost like a father's whisper to his fearful child: "Don't be afraid." Think about it. We fear a lot of things addressed in this verse: -Being alone -Things we can't control -Weakness -Without help -Falling down (whether in a physical or spiritual sense) Re-read the verse, then the list of promises and you'll find that. . . -We are NOT alone. -We know the One who controls all things. -We are strengthened by Him. -Help is only a prayer away. -He won't let us fall. Most of all, He is more than enough. <3 Happy September, friends!
I hope you all had a wonderful summer, collecting memories that you'll cherish for a long time to come. How did it go by so fast?!? You may have noticed I've been MIA lately, and that's because I took a social media break for the whole month of August. During my time off social media, I realized that it had been a source of envy, comparison, and discontent in my life. If any of you are thinking of taking an extended social media break, I highly recommend it. You'll find more time to do things that you love to do. A break gives you more time to read, to write, to go on adventures that don't involve virtual places or screens, and to spend more quality time with Jesus. <3 Writing update: I hadn't written anything in over a year, so I gathered up my tools and started writing a story. This one may never see the light of day. It's more of a practice draft, giving me the opportunity to practice different writing techniques and skills. And it's one of my original stories that I wrote when I was 12. . . so yeah, it needed some modernizing. ;) Music recommendations: Have any of you listened to Phil Wickham's music? He just released an album titled, I Believe, and there are SO MANY GREAT SONGS ON IT!! Can you tell I'm excited? Lol! Creator, Holy Moment, Praise the Lord, Psalm 23, and Your Name is Holy are a few of my favorites from the album. (I'm listening to Creator as I write this.) I'm back to posting on here more regularly now (hopefully). So tell me, how did you spend your summer? Let me know in the comments! P.S. Here is a resource if you're interested in taking a social media fast. How are you doing on your reading goals this year? This is my first year setting an actual reading goal, as you see in the image above. I'm reading and logging my finished books into the Goodreads app. So, I've been pretty busy this summer. ;) I'm curious. . . what is the largest number of books you've read in a year? Let me know in the comments. There have been so many fascinating books that have hit the list this year. From a True Crime book about the Mafia, to spiritually refreshing ones like Victim of Grace, to a historical fiction tale with time-traveling twists. Each read has been unique, and so fun to delve into! Starting #19 tonight! :) If you're curious about finding a new read, or a new author, check out the slide-show below. (These were some of the titles I read this year.) |
AuthorHi! I'm Carolyn, a writer seeking to glorify God with my words. Archives
February 2024
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