Repentance: A Posture of Humility

by Angie Thomas

Repentance is such an interesting idea and one I understand somewhat intellectually but have a difficult time walking out.  Merriam Webster defines repentance as a verb, “to turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one’s life. To change one’s mind.” The problem is that for a long time in my Christian life I didn’t understand that I needed to be doing this DAILY.  I thought I had repented the moment I had dedicated my life to Christ and confessed my sins. Why would I need to keep doing it? The answer is because while our hearts have been changed and made righteous, our minds and lives are still broken.  What is our motivation for this struggle to change our life and mind?  Romans 2:4 says, “God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance.”  His kindness, undeserved love, His grace.  Those moments when you sense the Lord’s blessing and His love, when you recall the Gospel and that He sacrificially gave His life to atone for you, a dirty, rotten sinner—this kindness is to under-gird our repentance.  I am praying that our appreciation for His sacrifice that we did not deserve will lead us all to true and lasting repentance.  Paul says it so clearly: “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret” (2 Corinthians 7:10a).

God’s kindness to me in Jesus results in true grief over my sin that produces repentance that leads to salvation. Easy, right?!

You might want to consider doing a word search on repentance in your Bible. I highly recommend the Bible App for this.

/by

A Fountain of Life

by Susan Sampson

Psalm 63 reminds us that we live in a dry and weary land where there is no water.  I desperately want to be an oasis to my husband. Too many times I have been the kiss of death!  I have spoken words that have been like “sword thrusts” (Prov. 12:18).  It breaks my heart to think of how many words of death I have plunged into the hearts of those I say I love.  Praise God that His love covers a multitude of sins!  Praise God that He alone has the power to bring the dead to life!  Praise God that Jesus came to save sinners.  Thank you Lord that you have removed our hearts of stone and given us hearts of flesh (Ezekiel 36).  You have given us this gift of life and now tell us to “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life” (Prov. 4:23).

How can we be this fountain of life?  We must immerse ourselves in THE Fountain of Life – God’s word!  Recently I took a bath with a “bath bomb” from LUSH!!  I think that’s what they are called:)  My husband and I could not get over how soft my skin felt afterwards!  It was truly amazing!  Jesus tells us that “apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).  Imagine the softening effects on our heart as we bathe in God’s word!  My dear precious sisters in Christ, let’s stop being deceived into thinking our to-do lists are more important than our time with the Lord.  Laurie urged us that if we only do ONE thing all day it would be to make time with the Lord.  Lord have mercy, give us grace to not give into our flesh or the enemies lies.  Draw us to yourself!

Spending time with the Lord in His word will keep us filled with the Living Water.  Our flesh-o-meter will read high in the Spirit.  We will be filled with the fruits of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.  These are not fruits of the flesh!  John 6:63, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all.” 

We are missionaries!!  I love that!  Our husbands all come from “man world”.  We are missionaries in this land everyday.  We must prepare!

One way we can prepare is by asking the Lord and others to show us really how we are communicating.  I’m reminded of the home video I watched from 10 years ago of me with my daughter who was 5 at the time.  It was incredibly painful, but incredibly helpful.  We can’t see.  We are so blind to our own sin.  Please let us not shrink back from this instruction.  Let us trust in the Lord’s love and kindness and grace and ask our husbands and children or friends how we come across.  Do not fear!  The Lord loves us in our sin.  He died for our sin.  He does not want us to stay in our sin.

May we take what they say not as criticism, but as life transforming gifts.  May we take what we are learning in God’s word and in this study and apply it to our hearts today so that we can truly be a “fountain of life.”

I thank the Lord for each of you, His beautiful body.

/by

The Soil of Lies

eMoment by Laurie Aker

Focus Scripture: Luke 11:33-36

33   “No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar 

or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may 

see the light. 34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. 

When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light,

 but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. 

35 Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. 

36 If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, 

it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”

We have been given the Light—

Jesus Christ.

No matter how dark it gets,

we don’t want to hide our Light under a bushel.

On the cross, Jesus overcame darkness and death,

but the enemy seeks to thrust us back to the

grave from whence we came. He shovels lies upon our soul,

hoping to snuff out the light of life and bury us alive.

We must stand up by faith,

brush off the devil’s dirt in the power of God’s grace,

 and walk forward in the Light whether we “feel” like it or not.

1 John 1:7

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, 

we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus 

his Son cleanses us from all sin. 

We have been given the Light.

We must walk in the Light.

/by