I had a heart-check moment this evening. Ya know, when you happen upon a situation in which you need to re-evaluate yourself, where you need to look at your heart and say, "Hmm. Something is wrong here."
This moment came after my husband sinned against me. I was hurt. And in that hurt, I felt a sense of entitlement well up inside my heart. I was thinking things like, "I do not deserve this. I would never do this to you."
Oh my goodness, how UNTRUE that is. I clearly need to be reminded of the Gospel.
The Gospel is Jesus Christ died for my sins, beat death, and therefore beat sin for all eternity {2 Timothy 1:8-10}. Here's the real question: do I appear in that sentence anywhere? Did I help Jesus accomplish this? Did I add to His work to earn my salvation? OF COURSE I DID NOT. THAT IS RIDICULOUS. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." This new life I have been given in Christ Jesus is not a result of anything I have ever done or will do. It is simply a gift, given to me by His grace.
Not only did I receive this free gift, but do you know the state I was in (and still am, every day) when I received it? "The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost" {1 Timothy 1:15}. I was and am the worst of sinners! Does the worst of sinners deserve anything? Does the worst of sinners actually avoid hurting others in ways they've been personally hurt, like I seem to think about myself? Of course not! Paul writes in Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Not only do I not deserve goodness, but I deserve damnation from God forever. I deserve hell. I deserve death. Yet, in my sin, Jesus called me to Himself to become a child of His and to play a role in His Kingdom.
After all of that reflection, I am moved to worship my Creator even more than before. I praise Him for correcting my heart. I am thankful for His Word, that I can read it and learn TRUTH. I am thankful that He saved the worst of sinners, me.
Me. I am the worst of sinners.
Believe the Gospel. It will change you forever.
"Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things!" {Psalm 98:1}
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Abortion (plus every other sin) & Grace
"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer" {Psalm 19:14}.
This is my prayer as I begin to write this blog. Abortion is a heavy topic, and I hope that my words will not be a heartbreak to any but will be givers of [His] life. Holy Spirit, guide me.
To start, let me be clear: I am pro-life. I believe that life starts at conception. I believe that this precious, little life has the same human rights as the rest of us, granted to us by our government. I believe that abortion is murder. Not only is this just an opinion or belief of mine, but this is truth. God creates all life {Genesis 1:26-27} and gets to decide when to end it {Job 1:21}. To some of you, this may appear to be cold, hard truth. But guess what? I sin, too.
"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgement.' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire" {Matthew 5:21-22}.
By providing those verses from the book of Matthew, I hope to show that this is not a blog aiming to condemn abortionists, or any other sinner (because, helllloooooo, I am also a sinner). This blog aims, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to share hope & truth. Specifically in this blog, I aim to speak to those who have been tragically broken by the topic of abortion.
Lately, abortion has been a hot topic as the presidential election approaches and we hear each candidate's viewpoint on the matter. We also have heard many viewpoints from others via social media. Articles have been and continue to be posted concerning the Planned Parenthood scandal, and my heart is heavy as I fear that many people who have been involved in an abortion in some way or another are left feeling beat-down, guilty, or unreachable. My dear fellow humans, who have been made in the likeness of God {Genesis 1:27}, this is so not true.
If you have had an abortion, there is grace for you. If you have encouraged someone or multiple people to get an abortion, there is grace for you. If you have performed an abortion, there is grace for you. If you silently stood by on the sidelines, instead of speaking up to share truth, when someone you knew was considering an abortion and ended up going through with the act, there is grace for you. If you consider yourself to have committed greater & worse sins than abortion and therefore feel you are even more unreachable, especially after reading some of the hateful articles & arguments on social media, there is grace for you.
How do I know there is grace for you? Because the Bible, which is God-ordained truth {2 Peter 1:21, 2 Timothy 3:16}, says that salvation by grace through faith is available to all people, regardless of sin or deed. "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people" {Titus 2:11}. Paul also writes about the grace of God in 2 Corinthians 12:9, "But he (the Lord) said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in weakness."
Did ya get that? His power is made perfect in our weakness. In our sin, in our inability to choose what is good everyday, His power is made perfect & His grace is sufficient for us.
There is hope for you. You fit into this category of "all people."
So, we now know that it's available to all people, but being available and having it are two separate things. How do we get it?
TURN TO THE LORD. Confess. Repent. Ask for forgiveness. Accept this grace.
"Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved...For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved" {Romans 10:9,13}.
Pray that the Lord will reveal His glory to you.
"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened" {Matthew 7:7-8}.
Pray that He will transform your mind.
"Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect" {Romans 12:2}.
Pray that He will teach your heart a new melody to sing.
Pray that He will breathe new life into you.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" {2 Corinthians 5:17}.
Jesus Christ left His riches in Heaven to walk on this earth. He was fully God and fully man. He lived a sinless life. He knew that in order to be in communion with us, His chosen people, that He would have to be the atonement, or sacrifice, for us. Our sins nailed Him to the cross. He died on our behalf, knowing each and every sin that had ever been committed and will ever be committed. And guess what? He still went to the cross for those specific sins, for us. Our sins were buried with Him in the grave. And because He beat death when He rose again on Easter morning, He beat sin once and for all! "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" {1 Corinthians 15:55} That is the Gospel, the Good News, available to all who will receive Him.
"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" {John 1:12}.
This is my prayer as I begin to write this blog. Abortion is a heavy topic, and I hope that my words will not be a heartbreak to any but will be givers of [His] life. Holy Spirit, guide me.
To start, let me be clear: I am pro-life. I believe that life starts at conception. I believe that this precious, little life has the same human rights as the rest of us, granted to us by our government. I believe that abortion is murder. Not only is this just an opinion or belief of mine, but this is truth. God creates all life {Genesis 1:26-27} and gets to decide when to end it {Job 1:21}. To some of you, this may appear to be cold, hard truth. But guess what? I sin, too.
"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgement.' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire" {Matthew 5:21-22}.
By providing those verses from the book of Matthew, I hope to show that this is not a blog aiming to condemn abortionists, or any other sinner (because, helllloooooo, I am also a sinner). This blog aims, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to share hope & truth. Specifically in this blog, I aim to speak to those who have been tragically broken by the topic of abortion.
Lately, abortion has been a hot topic as the presidential election approaches and we hear each candidate's viewpoint on the matter. We also have heard many viewpoints from others via social media. Articles have been and continue to be posted concerning the Planned Parenthood scandal, and my heart is heavy as I fear that many people who have been involved in an abortion in some way or another are left feeling beat-down, guilty, or unreachable. My dear fellow humans, who have been made in the likeness of God {Genesis 1:27}, this is so not true.
If you have had an abortion, there is grace for you. If you have encouraged someone or multiple people to get an abortion, there is grace for you. If you have performed an abortion, there is grace for you. If you silently stood by on the sidelines, instead of speaking up to share truth, when someone you knew was considering an abortion and ended up going through with the act, there is grace for you. If you consider yourself to have committed greater & worse sins than abortion and therefore feel you are even more unreachable, especially after reading some of the hateful articles & arguments on social media, there is grace for you.
How do I know there is grace for you? Because the Bible, which is God-ordained truth {2 Peter 1:21, 2 Timothy 3:16}, says that salvation by grace through faith is available to all people, regardless of sin or deed. "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people" {Titus 2:11}. Paul also writes about the grace of God in 2 Corinthians 12:9, "But he (the Lord) said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in weakness."
Did ya get that? His power is made perfect in our weakness. In our sin, in our inability to choose what is good everyday, His power is made perfect & His grace is sufficient for us.
There is hope for you. You fit into this category of "all people."
So, we now know that it's available to all people, but being available and having it are two separate things. How do we get it?
TURN TO THE LORD. Confess. Repent. Ask for forgiveness. Accept this grace.
"Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved...For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved" {Romans 10:9,13}.
Pray that the Lord will reveal His glory to you.
"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened" {Matthew 7:7-8}.
Pray that He will transform your mind.
"Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect" {Romans 12:2}.
Pray that He will teach your heart a new melody to sing.
Pray that He will breathe new life into you.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" {2 Corinthians 5:17}.
Jesus Christ left His riches in Heaven to walk on this earth. He was fully God and fully man. He lived a sinless life. He knew that in order to be in communion with us, His chosen people, that He would have to be the atonement, or sacrifice, for us. Our sins nailed Him to the cross. He died on our behalf, knowing each and every sin that had ever been committed and will ever be committed. And guess what? He still went to the cross for those specific sins, for us. Our sins were buried with Him in the grave. And because He beat death when He rose again on Easter morning, He beat sin once and for all! "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" {1 Corinthians 15:55} That is the Gospel, the Good News, available to all who will receive Him.
"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God" {John 1:12}.
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
My Testimony
Hi, I'm Kylie. I am a believer of the Good News brought to us by Jesus Christ. I don't know what these blogs are going to look like for me, but I do know that I am consumed by the desire to share with you what is good & true.
Me, drinking underage? I'm in a controlled environment with my friends. I'm not going to make bad decisions.
For starters, I thought I would share my testimony.
I was born into a Christian home, as are like 90% of the people I have met in my life. (Pulled that percentage out of my butt; it's probably not accurate.) I was raised going to Sunday school, learning Bible stories, having family devotionals, practicing all the Christian holidays, and telling everyone that I was a Christian.
It was not enough to save my soul.
My head knew it all. My heart knew very little.
I kinda sorta did as I pleased. I knew I had to uphold myself publicly as a Christian, therefore the decisions that I made that were not in alignment with Christianity, I justified.
Me, gossiping? Everyone already knows that about _____. I'm just saying facts.
Me, being impure & physical in my relationships with boyfriends? At least I'm not having sex. It says to not have sex in the Bible. (And even when it came to sex years down the road, I was most likely going to marry this boy in the future, so at least I "saved myself" for him.)
Me, idolizing music & performing? It's what I do with my life, I can't help but put everything I am into these things.
Me, drinking underage? I'm in a controlled environment with my friends. I'm not going to make bad decisions.
You see, I called myself a Christian but actually wasn't. Not because I was sinning, because I still sin every stinking day of my life. No, not because of what I was or wasn't doing, but because Jesus hadn't saved me yet. He hadn't called me. He hadn't opened my eyes. My time hadn't come.
There came a point during college where my decisions couldn't be justified any longer. I plainly knew what I was doing was sin. I needed to be saved from myself. And in those moments where I continued to choose my flesh, my sins, this world above Jesus, He came and revealed to me that He chose me over Himself.
Jesus died my soul to save. At the beginning of time, my name was written on the palm of His hands {Isaiah 49:16}. He knew, before man was even created, that I would come into existence and that I would need His saving grace. He knew that in order to do that, He would have to humbly leave the riches & glory of Heaven to become a poor human. He knew He was going to be betrayed by the ones who claimed to love Him most. He knew that He was going to be questioned, mocked, beaten, whipped, and murdered, all to accomplish my salvation {John 12:27}.
Because of that unfathomable grace, I am now free from being enslaved to the law and to my works! I don't have to hide the things I am doing wrong, because it's not avoiding wrong and doing good that makes me a Christian. It is by grace through faith that I am a believer of Jesus Christ {Ephesians 2:8-9}. I can freely proclaim my unrighteousness, because that points to how righteous our God is!
And PEOPLE, it doesn't end there! Yes, I need to know how unrighteous I am in order to view God in all His glory & splendor, but because I have received the gift of faith, I have been clothed in His righteousness {Isaiah 61:10, Romans 5:17-19}. What this means is that I have been washed as white as snow {Isaiah 1:18}. I have been deemed a new creation {2 Corinthians 5:17}. When the Lord looks at me, He sees Jesus, because Jesus' blood wholeheartedly covers my sins.
Day by day, He is sanctifying me to become more like Him {Romans 6:22}. I don't have to continue into the destructive path of sinning.
"We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives for God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus." {Romans 6:6-11}
Does this mean I do not sin anymore ever for the rest of time? No, of course not! But the pull towards sin patterns has been broken. My chains are gone. I've been set free. He has given me the gift of the Holy Spirit to dwell within me, to convict me of sins, to lead me on the path towards righteousness {John 16:8-10,13}.
Okay, so this is my testimony. You may be wondering where you fit in to all of this. Let me tell you.
Some of you who are reading this are saved. Some of you who are reading this are not saved. You may be a believer. You may be where I was at the beginning of my testimony. You may be in a place where you feel anger & hatred directed at God. You may be confused. You may want to know Jesus, but don't know how to get there.
"For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!"" {Romans 10:13-15}
Humans who are reading this: we are living in a time of anticipation of the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ. It is urgent that you know Him so that you do not spend eternity away from Him. It is not enough to try to spend your life doing good. Everyone needs Jesus. Call on Him, and He will save you. And for those of you who know Jesus, how are unbelievers to know of Him if they never hear of Him? As a believer, you are called to preach. You have been sent by Jesus! Go!
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe al that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." {Matthew 28:19-20}
Someday I will meet my Savior, face to face. I will come to know all the fullness of God. I will spend my eternity bowing down at the feet of the One who saved me {Revelation 5: 11-14}.
Will you be with me?
And PEOPLE, it doesn't end there! Yes, I need to know how unrighteous I am in order to view God in all His glory & splendor, but because I have received the gift of faith, I have been clothed in His righteousness {Isaiah 61:10, Romans 5:17-19}. What this means is that I have been washed as white as snow {Isaiah 1:18}. I have been deemed a new creation {2 Corinthians 5:17}. When the Lord looks at me, He sees Jesus, because Jesus' blood wholeheartedly covers my sins.
Day by day, He is sanctifying me to become more like Him {Romans 6:22}. I don't have to continue into the destructive path of sinning.
"We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives for God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus." {Romans 6:6-11}
Does this mean I do not sin anymore ever for the rest of time? No, of course not! But the pull towards sin patterns has been broken. My chains are gone. I've been set free. He has given me the gift of the Holy Spirit to dwell within me, to convict me of sins, to lead me on the path towards righteousness {John 16:8-10,13}.
Okay, so this is my testimony. You may be wondering where you fit in to all of this. Let me tell you.
Some of you who are reading this are saved. Some of you who are reading this are not saved. You may be a believer. You may be where I was at the beginning of my testimony. You may be in a place where you feel anger & hatred directed at God. You may be confused. You may want to know Jesus, but don't know how to get there.
"For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!"" {Romans 10:13-15}
Humans who are reading this: we are living in a time of anticipation of the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ. It is urgent that you know Him so that you do not spend eternity away from Him. It is not enough to try to spend your life doing good. Everyone needs Jesus. Call on Him, and He will save you. And for those of you who know Jesus, how are unbelievers to know of Him if they never hear of Him? As a believer, you are called to preach. You have been sent by Jesus! Go!
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe al that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." {Matthew 28:19-20}
Someday I will meet my Savior, face to face. I will come to know all the fullness of God. I will spend my eternity bowing down at the feet of the One who saved me {Revelation 5: 11-14}.
Will you be with me?
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