Creating a Proper Heart Attitude When Times Are Hard

100 days. Oh my goodness. *sigh* Tomorrow will mark 100 days of our family being in quarantine. The stresses and constraints have tightened and laxed and tightened so many times, and our day-to-day routine has reached a stagnant loping.

Gratitude is less practiced, and our thankful hearts are tired.

You see, our world is in obvious turmoil these days. The broken state of this planet and the broken state of its inhabitants is clearly on display, and the ramification of sin is easier to identify.

On account of these challenging times it can be hard to cultivate an attitude of gratitude-- that heart-position of trust which results in a deeper settling of our faith and beautiful mental and physical changes.  (Consider picking up What's So Great About Practicing Gratitude from the freebie page for insights regarding the benefits of a biblical thankful heart.)

In light of both the difficulty of practicing gratitude and the wonderful blessings derived in cultivating thankfulness I have made this little ebook available for free. I hope it blesses your heart, and breathes a new joy in knowing God through practicing gratitude. 

May we all continue to purposefully pursue a deeper knowledge of God and invest our time and hearts in a greater appreciation of all He has called us to be.

DOWNLOAD NOW from the Freebie Page.

The Aim of the Christian

🌿As Christians this life on earth is not about freedoms and opportunities and equality. It is about laying down our comforts, our ambitions, and even our lives for the sake of others, for the glory of Christ and the furtherance of the gospel.

When justice is realized in our lifetime it is a beautiful grace, yet that is not our ultimate aim.

Our aim is to love with Jesus’s love. When His love permeates the hearts of those around us they will be transformed into people that will also instinctively and supernaturally love others. And THAT is where the change will occur. It is in the individual’s heart that we will see the birth of hope and justice.

American Christians have been afforded beautiful comfort, and we are blessed to enjoy and support our country. Yet patriotism is not eternal. And freedom is not the marker of our resolve. We must not confuse patriotism with the gospel, nor liberty with our heavenly hope. We are promised trials as Christians, yet our purpose to serve remains.

Do not be surprised when you have trouble, but love all the more, do good to those who persecute you, carry the cloak of your enemy an extra mile, and they will know us by our love.

Matter vs Palah’

𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 [MA-ter]

𝑛𝑜𝑢𝑛. something that occupies space.

𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑏. to be of importance.

"You matter." "He matters." "I matter." I understand the intention behind the phrase but, to my heart, if falls so flat. This chair matters. Because it serves me, and I will be upset (literally) if it breaks. My schedule matters. Because it allows me to accomplish that which I feel is important.

To have the same word used for both people made in the image of God AND inatimate objects seems almost crass.

Too often it seems that the phrase "______ lives matter" has become a scapegoat for caring. It is removed just enough personal investment that the subject becomes a tagline.

Perhaps if our hearts understood 𝑝𝑎𝑙𝑎ℎ' then we would appreciate God's handiwork more...

𝗣𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗵' [pah-LAH]

𝑛𝑜𝑢𝑛. to be distinct, marked out, be separated, be distinguished, to be wonderful

𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑏. to make separate, set apart

We see this word in the context of Psalm 139 where we read, "𝐼 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢, 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝐼 𝑎𝑚 𝑓𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑓𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑚𝑎𝑑𝑒. 𝑊𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑢𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑠; 𝑚𝑦 𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑙 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑠 𝑖𝑡 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑤𝑒𝑙𝑙."

Now if THAT were how we as humans view our fellow image-bearers, if we collectively perceived the intrinsic worth and inalienable value of each human being, then this world would see Jesus more clearly.

(𝑃𝑎𝑙𝑎ℎ: 𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑠 6395)