By Josie Siler

Have you ever been given a great honor, only to find out it came with a lot of difficulty? I think of the person who has received the long awaited promotion, only to realize his new job not only comes with more pay, but more responsibility, difficulties and sacrifices. I think of the person who is seeking after God with all his heart, the person God singles out and chooses to be used by Him…only to suffer greatly and question God.

There is a great misconception when it comes to following Christ. Somehow over the years the western world has come to believe that if you are a Christian you shouldn’t have to suffer. Things will be made easy for you and you will succeed. However, the Bible is clear when it comes to suffering. “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when His glory is revealed (1 Peter 4:12-13, ESV).”

C.S. Lewis said, “We were promised sufferings. They were part of the program. We were even told, 'Blessed are they that mourn.'” Lewis also said, “The real problem is not why some pious, humble, believing people suffer, but why some do not.” Martin Luther said, “They gave our Master a crown of thorns. Why do we hope for a crown of roses?”

Why indeed? Why do we expect everything to go well for us when the cornerstone of our faith, Jesus Christ, suffered greatly? As we read through the Bible we see over and over how God’s chosen people suffered. Over the next weeks and months we’ll look at some of these people and see what they can teach us about our own suffering.

We may talk about Paul more in a later post, but I want to start with him today. Paul is a person I greatly admire. His teachings impact my heart and my life. Paul was formerly known as Saul, a very religious man who persecuted the early church. He was not a good man. In Acts chapter nine we read about His dramatic conversion to Christianity. He was on his way to Damascus to capture people who followed Christ and bring them to Jerusalem to be dealt with, but Jesus met him on the way and his life was never the same.

God told a man named Ananias to go and meet Saul, now called Paul. He was to lay his hands on Paul’s eyes so that Paul could regain the vision he lost during his encounter with Jesus. Ananias didn’t like this; he knew who Saul was and what he had come to Damascus to do. “But the Lord said to him [Ananias], ‘Go, for he [Paul] is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name (Acts 9:15-16, ESV).’”

God would indeed use Paul to accomplish great things for His Kingdom. Paul would indeed suffer greatly. He was stoned, he was beaten, he was shipwrecked, he suffered physical illness, and he suffered from “a thorn in his flesh” that kept him humble – among other things. He despaired of life itself at times, yet God used him powerfully. God’s still using the words He inspired Paul to write all those years ago to impact people today.

It boggles my mind how God can use the weak and the insignificant to do great things. 1 Corinthians 1:28-30 (The Message) reads, “Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these ‘nobodies’ to expose the hollow pretensions of the ‘somebodies’? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ.”

This is the encouragement we can take from God’s Word: No matter who you are or what you suffer, God can use you to do great things for Him and for His Kingdom. In fact, those whom God chooses will often suffer more than most. John Stumbo puts it well when he writes, “In a…significant and personal way, every test we face can be a personal encounter with God the Father, Son, and Spirit. Our mysterious God reveals more of Himself to us through hardship than in any other way I know. You don’t have to like your personal test, but you will have less angst and more hope if you see the test as an opportunity to enter into new dialogue and deeper relationship with God.”

Let’s choose to rejoice in our sufferings because it just might mean that God has chosen us for something special. At the very least we have the opportunity to grow in our faith and establish a deeper relationship with our Creator-God. That alone is worth celebrating!

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” – Romans 8:18, ESV

© October 29, 2013

By Erin Elizabeth Austin

So many of you have asked me questions about my trip to England, so I've put together this fun blog for you.

You might be in England if......

• Everyone wants to talk to you because you're from America, and they particularly love your Southern accent.                                                                                         
• People say you're from South Carolina, America.                           
• If everyone you meet has a different accent, even if they live only ten miles apart.

If you had told me six months ago I would have the best experience of my life to date in England, I would have said, "You're crazy!" My life has been anything but easy. In my twenty-nine short years of living, I have endured more suffering and pain than many people experience in a lifetime. Life has been incredibly hard, yet the older I get, the more I realize just how good my God really is. He took me across the Atlantic to a country I never thought about visiting to show me that He still has great, wonderful plans for my life. He showed me that He can use anything for His glory, including three diseases in one woman's body. 

Many of you were faithful to pray for me on this trip, and I want to thank you. I might have been able to go on a two-week trip to England, but my illnesses also went with me. There were days I wondered if I could physically do what had been planned, but God answered your prayers and gave me the strength and energy to do everything. Your prayers, emails, and Facebook messages brought me great joy every single day. Thank you!

And for those who wonder if God can ever do anything like this for you, I want to encourage you to not give up hope. We serve a mighty God. He can open doors that no man can shut. He is not limited by time, money, or sickness. He is the God of joy, and I pray you will see Him at work in your life in big, powerful ways. 

"So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing Himself to the worst by sending His own Son, is there anything else He wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us?.....None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us." ~ Romans 8:31-33,38-39 (The Message)


*Slideshow of a few more of my favorite pictures from the trip below.

By Katy Kauffman

I didn’t know what to call it.

When I was twenty-six years old, it came as peace. My heart had been anxious about waiting for the one right person God wanted me to marry. I had been struggling with the fact that he wasn’t here yet. I asked for God’s help. A few months later I had the most satisfying, calming, and even joyful peace. Over time, the peace has come and gone, but when I keep my heart close to God, His peace remains.

When I was twenty-two, it came as hope. I was going through an extremely hard time, one of the most trying ever. There really wasn’t anywhere to run—except to God. Through that storm, God showed me that He was enough—to help, to rescue, to set things right. He gave me hope that things would get better. And they did.

When I was thirty-one, it came as endurance. I knew God had called me to write a book, and even though it was almost finished, I felt like giving up. So many words, so much editing and designing, so many details. How would it all get finished? But He reminded me of the book’s purpose—to bless hearts, to show how God enables us to win our spiritual battles, and to excel in the marathon race of life. So He enabled me to keep running, and the end result is a book that I know He gave me the grace to write.

The apostle Paul told Timothy, his beloved son in the faith, “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:1, NKJV). Timothy had a difficult task before him—to preach God’s Word in a dangerous time, to stand for Christ amidst opposition, and to be a godly leader who would be targeted with persecution. So Paul told Timothy to be strong and to find in Christ everything he needed. Whatever God has called us to do—to trust Him when we feel like giving up, to serve Him when we don’t know how great our impact will be, to stand for Him when no one else does—He will give us the grace—the strength, endurance, and motivating love—to do it.

Don’t let the situation you are facing overwhelm you or the task ahead daunt you. However difficult our race becomes, we have Jesus and His grace to keep us going. However hard the fight, we have a Warrior who fights for us and who enables us to win our spiritual battles. Depend on Him. Depend on His grace.

© October 24, 2013

 About Katy:

Katy Kauffman is a co-founder of Lighthouse Bible Studies, a ministry which seeks to connect people to God through His Word. She has taught the Bible to women and teens, and her first Bible Study, 2 Timothy: Winning the Victory, has just been published. Her heart’s desire is for people to know and love God, understand the richness of His Word, and fulfill His plan for their lives. Katy graduated from Luther Rice Seminary with a BA in Religion, and makes her home in a cozy suburb of Atlanta, Georgia

By Josie Siler

My how quickly things change! Last week I  wrote to you about the warm weather and the beautiful leaves changing colors. It  was a Fall wonderland and so lovely. Today, I saw snow. Twice. As I write this, it’s 36 degrees with a wind chill of 28. It’s too warm for the snow to stick to the ground and I have only seen a few flurries, but how different it feels from just a week ago! To say there’s a chill in the air is putting it mildly. It’s cloudy, blustery, and the kind of weather that makes you want to curl up by a fireplace with some hot cider…or take a nap.

I know I’m on a weather/seasons kick, but living in a place where the seasons change so dramatically will do that to a person. When the seasons change I can’t help but think about the different seasons I’ve gone through in life. After church on Sunday I had the opportunity to share with a team of people who are leaving on Friday for Haiti. They will teach hygiene, drill a well, and share the hope of Christ to people who know great suffering. 

Speaking to them was difficult for me. A few seasons ago, before my body was attacked by chronic illness, I was the one going. I was the one traveling to another culture and sharing the hope found in Jesus Christ. On Sunday, I had the privilege of sharing with this special team of people about suffering. I have a lot of experience in that area – we all do. As I spent time with this team of brothers and sisters in Christ I saw their excitement; an excitement that I once knew so well. 
 
Romans 12:15 tells us to "Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep." I've found that it's easier to weep with those who weep than it is to rejoice with those who rejoice - especially if they are rejoicing about something I would love to do but physically can't. This is such a negative attitude. Friends, don't go there! Don't hold back your rejoicing from a friend who needs you to be happy with them.

On Sunday, I was finding it difficult to rejoice with my friends. It was difficult to be happy with them. Thankfully, I recognized that Satan was trying to get to me. He does that, you know. He takes the things that cause us pain, the weaknesses in our lives, and he exploits them. He tries to blow them out of proportion. He twists and stretches the truth so that it is no longer truth. I was so close to embracing the lies of the evil one. However, with the help of Christ and the spiritual armor and weapons He has given me, I stood firm.
 
Galatians 6:9-10 says, “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Friends, we need to rejoice with those who rejoice. We need to do good for others, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ. We can use our experiences, even the difficult ones, to encourage others. We can learn from each other. We can love each other.
 
I am thrilled with the season God has me in right now. He is giving me the opportunity to connect with each of you, to encourage you, and challenge you. Good things can come out of challenging seasons, so don’t give up! Remember how quickly the seasons change? Soon it will be our turn. In due season we will reap the fruit of lives lived for the glory of God. This week, no matter how you are feeling, rejoice with a friend who is rejoicing. Do good to others in your life. Don’t quit. Don't hold back. Let the love and the joy flow from your heart and soul!
 
“We may think God wants actions of a certain kind, but God wants people of a certain kind.” – C.S. Lewis
 
© October 22, 2013

By Josie Siler

Fall in Wisconsin is a beauty. As I write, the trees are at the peak of their vibrant colors and they’re breathtaking! It’s been warmer than usual, but the smell of fall is in the air. The wind blows the multicolored leaves to the ground, swirling and twirling them before they land at your feet. Some of them are crunchy and it’s such a lovely sound as you walk through them. It’s almost as magical as a winter wonderland!

Fall comes right after Spring in my book of favorites. I love Spring because it reminds me that all things can be made new. Fall, on the other hand, is a time when many people start to struggle more than usual. The leaves changing are beautiful, but it only lasts for a moment and then they are gone. The color fades and death overtakes them. We see things that were once bright with life fade into death and at times our spirit goes with it. We know the long months of winter will soon be upon us and things can seem especially dark and dreary. So what do we do?

The same things we should always do; we look to God’s Word. In this case we turn to Ecclesiastes 3. In the New Living Translation verses one through eight read:

God’s Word tells us that there is a season for all things, a season for all emotions. I pray that you find this as encouraging as I do. God’s Word acknowledges that we will go through hard times. You don’t have to hide or be ashamed if that’s where you are right now. Remember Jesus? He became human and dwelt among us. He experienced life, just like us. He experienced joy and sorrow, suffering and pain, laughter and tears. He understands what you are going through like no one else ever could. Reach out to Him. Allow Him to comfort you in your pain and fill you with the hope and peace that comes from Him alone.

God’s Word not only gives us permission to grieve, it also gives us reason to hope. You see, just like the changing of seasons, what we experience as God’s creation is subject to seasons as well. If you are currently going through a season of tears, grieving and a tearing of heart and soul, there is another season right around the corner that you will get to experience. Your season of healing, mending, laughter and dancing is coming.

Winter may be long this year, but better days are coming. A fresh Spring will soon arrive, a time of new life and growth and warmth. There is hope for tomorrow because God is already there. He will show you the path you should walk and the road you should take.

Immediately following the passage above we read, “What do people really get for all their hard work? I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end (Ecclesiastes 3:9-11, NLT).”

There is beauty where you are. It may be difficult to see right now, but it is there. One of the reasons life is so hard is because we weren’t made for life as we know it. God has planted eternity in our hearts. We long for what will be one day, but it’s not here yet and we can’t see everything God is doing. That’s where trust and faith come in. We can trust that our Creator has a good plan and that we are part of that plan. We can have faith that one day things will be as they were meant to be.

What say you, my friend? Will you take some time with me today to notice the beauty God has placed around you? Let’s thank Him for the gifts He has given us, even in the midst of difficult times.

“Your sorrow itself shall be turned into joy. Not the sorrow to be taken away, and joy to be put in its place, but the very sorrow which now grieves you shall be turned into joy. God not only takes away the bitterness and gives sweetness in its place, but turns the bitterness into sweetness itself.” ~Charles Haddon Spurgeon

(c) October 14, 2013

By Jim Davis


“Jesus didn't say, 'Blessed are those who care for the poor.' He said, 'Blessed are we where we are poor, where we are broken.' It is there that God loves us deeply and pulls us into deeper communion with himself.” ~ Henri Nouwen


Feeling blessed today? If you are down and out, if you are mourning, if you are poor, if you are hungry, if you are insulted, if you are hated, if you are broken, you should feel blessed. That’s what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5:3-12, Luke 6:20-23).

But I don’t feel blessed when I feel broken. I just feel broken.

When a law firm I was a partner in dissolved and I did not know where to look for work, when our son’s appendix ruptured, when a relationship was strained, I felt the opposite of blessed. When there was betrayal, disappointment, and heartache, I felt anti-blessed.

However, when I look back at the times I felt closest to God, the times when I grew the most spiritually, it wasn’t usually a time when everything was going great. It was a time when I needed Him. And when I consider the ways that God uses me now, I can almost always point to something painful in my past that humbled me enough to become useful.

Maybe Jesus was right (duh). Not surprisingly, other Scripture backs up Jesus’ teaching. Being broken opens up the opportunity for some of God’s most noticeable work, and draws us to Him like never before.

Jesus came to seek out broken people
If you ever doubt the pricelessness of being broken, consider who Jesus sought out. The woman at the well wasn’t exactly the most virtuous woman in the village. Zacchaeus was a cheat. Leprous outcasts. Prostitutes. The helpless, sick, and ignored. Even though society didn’t give two shakes for such people, Jesus turned over rocks to find them and then took them out to dinner.

“Why does your teacher eat with such scum?” asked the self-righteous know-it-alls. (Matt. 9:11). “Because that’s who needs me,” Jesus answered.

And He did something about their brokenness. He gave new life. He opened eyes. He broke up funerals and turned them into family reunions. The sick became healthy, the dead became alive, water became wine, and the broken became whole.

When you are broken, you are wanted and loved by Jesus. He may or may not heal an illness, but He will make your spirit whole even if your body remains sick.

Our brokenness shows God’s great strength
Paul was broken with his “thorn in the flesh.” He prayed for God to remove it, but God told Paul that “My power works best in weakness.” (2 Cor. 12:9). And Paul believed Him. He came to boast in his weakness, “For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Cor. 12:10).

Sometimes in our weakness, we know that the only way we made it through the day is because God propped us up. When we see God’s awesome sustaining power at work in our lives, we are reminded of His love and compassion. We’re prone to wander when things are rosy, but we draw near when we are broken.

Our brokenness makes us useful to God
Notice that Paul did not say, “When I am weak, then God is strong.” God is strong, of course, but Paul said that Paul is strong in his own weakness.

I think what Paul means is that when he is weak, that is when he allows God to work through him. Paul no longer relies on his own strength and education and personality and pedigree. He depends on the Spirit, and then Paul’s ministry shows real power and bears real fruit.

Jesus showed us how to do this. He said that His words and deeds were not His own, but the Father’s. God the Son was equal to God the Father, but submitted to God the Father and did His will. The Son was an instrument of the Father. (John 14:9-14)

That is a pattern we can follow. Christ lives in us, and if we remain in Him, He can live, act, and speak through us. When the branches (that’s us) are connected to the vine (Jesus), big things happen, but without that connection, we can do nothing. (John 15:5)

That power is available to us as believers at all time, but it is usually in our weakness, in our brokenness, when we are willing to stay connected and allow God to work through us instead of leaning on our own intellect and good looks and personality. Our brokenness makes us more fruitful.

                                               *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   

We are blessed when we are broken. Brokenness may still hurt, but when we are broken, God loves us and seeks us out. When we are broken, God shows His power. When we are broken, we are strong through the power of God, and our ministry bears fruit.

Blessed are the broken, indeed.

"For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust." ~ Psalm 103:14

Visit me (and follow me) on my blog, my brokenness Pinterest board, Facebook, Twitter.

My first book, “Why Me? (And Why That’s the Wrong Question” will be published by Leafwood Publishers in Spring 2014.

Related blog post: You’re Not Too Broken

By Jim Davis

Twenty-three years ago our dishes looked great. We opened a piece here and there at wedding showers, excited about starting a home and drinking coffee out of our new everyday cups that came with matching saucers and everything. They were whole, shiny, and perfect.

There aren’t many cups left now, and of those, one is missing a handle and is on the “to-be-glued” shelf. The rest are chipped, cracked, and scuffed after years of use and dishwasher cycles and a few moves. In real life, fragile things do not stay whole, shiny, and perfect, not if they are taken off the shelf to join the living.

I’m more broken after twenty-three years, too. We all are. Life and age will do that to you. Our bodies are broken as we age and expand and get sick. Our spirits are broken as people disappoint us and we disappoint them. We compare our chips and cracks to that fresh-out-of-the-box person God created us to be and feel lesser, if not downright useless.

            Why did I say that?

            How could I have done such a thing?

            Why can’t I be healthy enough to serve the way I want?

But there is good news in brokenness, too. In this post, I will talk about the way brokenness is universal and binds us together. In the next, I will discuss the way that God fixes broken things – it’s why He came – and our brokenness actually makes us more useful to Him.

Brokenness is universal
Brokenness is lonely. We want to hide it. Sometimes we are ashamed of our condition.

Why do we think we are the only ones? Yes, everyone’s situation is unique, but it is a mistake to think that everyone has it all together except for us.

Are you living with illness? Not everyone is chronically ill, and not everyone has the same illness, but we all live in fallible bodies that don’t always work the way we want them to. And none of our bodies will last forever.

Have you been hurt by someone you love? Not everyone is betrayed in the same way, but our families are made up of human beings (yes, even yours). That means they are imperfect and will sometimes act like they shouldn’t. We’ve all been crushed by others, to some extent.

Are you heartbroken by your own sin? You’ve no idea the company you have. “We all stumble in many ways.” (James 3:2). The “best” of Christians find themselves unable to do the good things they want to do, and constantly doing the bad things they don’t want to do. (Rom. 7:14-25)

The fact that other people hurt too doesn’t take away our own pain, and it doesn’t mean that we should ignore personal brokenness or pretend that it isn’t real. Here is what it means to me:

1. We do not have to be ashamed of being broken. You don’t have to be perfect. No one else is either, and they shouldn’t expect it of you. Brokenness is not the time to hide; it is when we need other people the most. “Pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.” (Eccl. 4:10)

2. We do have to be patient with different kinds of brokenness. Someone else may not be broken in the same way you are. Their struggle may be with addiction, while yours is pride. Be as understanding with them as you want them to be with you. “Make allowance for each other’s faults.” (Col. 3:13 NLT)

3. Other people need to see our brokenness. That other broken person is just as ashamed of her own brokenness as you have been of yours. She needs to know you struggle too, so that her pain will not lead her to withdraw. We do the world little good if we pretend that life is perfect; people need to see that we hurt too, and that we love God in spite of the pain.

4. Through our own pain, we know how other people hurt and can serve them better. The grace that God gives us when we are broken is not meant to be stored up. It is meant to be passed on to others. (2 Cor. 1:3-5). And when we find people who are broken in the same way we are, or were, we know how they feel and what they need. Our own brokenness trains us for service.

I’m sorry for your brokenness. I know it hurts, even if I could not possibly know the depth of your pain. But don’t think that you have to stay on the shelf if you have a broken handle. All the rest of us are chipped and cracked, too, and we need each other. Let our mutual brokenness mold us more into a single Body of Christ, for his glory and service.

And by the way, brokenness may be universal, but it doesn’t have to be eternal. That’s what we will talk about in the next post. Jesus came to seek out the broken, and He never leaves things as He finds them.

Visit me (and follow me) on my blog, my brokenness Pinterest board, Facebook, Twitter.

My first book, “Why Me? (And Why That’s the Wrong Question” will be published by Leafwood Publishers in Spring 2014.

Related blog post: You’re Not Too Broken

By Josie Siler

I love to read. I love a good suspenseful mystery filled with lots of twists and turns. I never, repeat – never, flip to the back of the book to see how it ends. I love trying to figure out what’s really going on, who did it, and where the characters will end up. I love when I get to the end of a book and can proudly declare that I figured it out before I got to the end. I love it even more when the book is so well written that I’m blindsided by one last twist at the end!

Fifty-three weeks ago today I started a journey through the book of Ephesians with you. Thirty-eight blog posts later we finally arrive at the last verse of the last chapter. Our journey started with these words from the Apostle Paul: “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:2, ESV).”

The book ends with Paul telling the people of Ephesus that he’s sending his dear friend Tychicus to them. Paul is sending his friend to tell them in person how he is doing and to encourage their hearts. You know, I feel a bit like Tychicus. Yes I know, last week I felt like the imprisoned Paul! That’s one of the things I love about the Word of God – it is full of real people living real lives. We can relate to them, learn from their mistakes and their victories, be encouraged by their lives, and be challenged to live our own life well.

 So today I feel like Tychicus. God has sent me to encourage you, the people of Broken but Priceless Ministries. I am blessed and honored to be able to do this with the words God gives me. Each blog post I write sitting in my big comfy brown leather chair that’s beginning to tilt because it’s wide and I always sit on the same side. It is my prayer that as you read the words Erin and I write, you are encouraged and blessed. Not only that, but I also pray that you will feel called by God to encourage others with the hope you have found in Christ. You can even do it from your most comfortable chair! 

I pray that you will be like the Apostle Paul and minister to others from the prison of your own body. I pray that you will personally feel and individually extend the peace, hope, love, and grace of God. Paul ends the book of Ephesians with these words: “Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible (Ephesians 6:21-24, ESV).”

These words are almost identical to the words Paul used at the beginning of this book. If you’re not like me and you read the end of the book of Ephesians first, you may have already noticed the difference. Ephesians one and six both include grace and peace, but as Paul wraps up the book in chapter six, he adds something very important – love. Peace and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible. 

I think Paul adds love at the end because he expected his readers to be filled with love for each other and for God by the time they got to the end of his letter. The first three chapters in Ephesians tell us who we are in Christ Jesus. We’re filled with a sense of awe and wonder at God’s love for us and our love for Him grows. The last three chapters are full of practical instructions and tell us how to love others out of our identity in Christ Jesus. Paul writes about relationships between husbands and wives, parents and children, employers and employees. He also gives us spiritual weapons we can use to fight the evil one, alongside of our brothers and sisters in Christ who are fighting with us and for us.

Throughout the book of Ephesians Paul is showing us how much God loves us and how much we mean to Him. He’s showing us how to love others well, fight for our relationships, and fight for God’s Kingdom on this earth. I encourage you to read through these six chapters one more time and then love others and love your Maker.

Love Jesus with an incorruptible love. The word incorruptible is the Greek word aphtharsia, which means immortality. The word is also translated into English as sincere, eternal and undying. The prayer of my heart for you is that you passionately love God with a sincere, incorruptible, eternal, and undying love and that you share that love with others.

So what say you, my new friends? Will you abide in the knowledge of who you are in Christ? Will you love Him passionately? Will you encourage others as God has encouraged you?

“Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. … Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.” -Colossians 3:12, 14 (NLT)

© October 1, 2013