Knowing & Being Known

Have you ever felt like a failure, or of no use to God, or thought that God wouldn’t want to answer your prayers? Until I first read Colin Urquhart’s book, *In Christ Jesus*, I had never realized how significant that little word ‘*in*’ is in the New Testament. Understanding that, as a Christian, you are ‘*in*’ Christ Jesus revolutionizes how you see yourself, your self-image, your identity and how you understand your value to God. Write…

Part of our healing comes with forgiveness (of ourselves and others), and part of it comes with repentance. But first, we have to begin with how God sees us. How he sees you. Do you know? You are deeply and completely loved (Rom. 8:38–39) You are totally and completely forgiven (1 John 2:12) When God sees you, he sees the righteousness of Jesus (2 Cor. 5:21) You mean the whole world to him (John 3:16) He thinks you are beautiful. Right now (Song of Sol. 4:1) He is…

In 1970, a car executive visiting Denmark learned that a 1939 Buick Dual Cowl Phaeton was owned by a local resident. Since the car never actually went into production, it was a rare find—a one-of-kind vehicle. Delighted with the discovery, the executive bought the car and spent his time and money to have it restored. Currently, this unique car is featured in a world-renowned collection of classic vehicles. Hidden treasures can take many forms, and in the book of 2…

I’m reading a book written by the author of The Shack, Wm. Paul Young. In fact, it was a topic on this week's Embracing Brokenness Podcast. I'd encourage you to Listen Here. Many of the premises in his book have been considered controversial. I will say this, as I’ve delved deeper into what Young is saying I find myself agreeing more than disagreeing with the vast majority of the Lies We Believe about God, the book's title. I’ll focus on one…

When Apollo 11’s Eagle lunar module landed on the moon’s Sea of Tranquility on July 20, 1969, the space travelers took time to recover from their flight before stepping onto the moon’s surface. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin had received permission to bring bread and wine so he could take Communion. After reading Scripture, he tasted the first foods ever consumed on the moon. Later, he wrote: “I poured the wine into the chalice our church had given me. In the one…

God calls His children to live holy lives. Yet in our attempts to obey this command, we often commit to change our behavior, only to fail a few days later. The problem is that we’re starting at the wrong place. Ungodly actions flow from sinful thoughts and attitudes, like selfishness, greed, jealousy, anger, resentment, and unforgiveness. These can be changed only as our mind is renewed by the Holy Spirit. As we spend time each day in Scripture, the Spirit transforms…

Fingerprints have long been used to identify people, but they can be faked by creating copies. Similarly, the pattern of the iris in the human eye is a reliable source for ID—until someone alters the pattern with a contact lens to skew the results. The use of biometrics to identify individuals can be defeated. So, what qualifies as a unique identifying characteristic? It turns out that everyone’s blood-vessel patterns are unique and virtually impossible to.…

Michelangelo Buonarroti, the 15th-century Italian artist known for masterworks like David and the Pietà, once said this about his art: “The sculpture is already complete within the marble block before I start my work. It is already there. I just have to chisel away the superfluous material.” Though not made of granite or marble, we are also creations of a Master Craftsman. Ephesians 2:10 says, “We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for…

The man possessed by many demons asked Jesus, “Why are You interfering with me?” You know the answer. It’s the same one He has for you. Because He loved him. And He loves you. If we are to find healing and true joy, we need to lean into His interference. And to do that, we must first ask ourselves the question, what part of our lives is He interfering with? Think about it. Picture Jesus approaching you with searching eyes that look straight into your soul,…