It all started with an eagle. A year and a half ago, I was about to start a new job. As I was writing in my journal about it, perched on my favorite spot in the house, I saw a large brown bird on our backyard fence. I gasped, grabbed my binoculars, and zoomed in on what I thought was an elusive hawk that I’ve seen before and have been trying to identify.
I finally captured the hawk.
But this was no ordinary bird. This was a golden eagle sitting in the sun. I could see him clearly, right down to his distinctive beak. I watched as he turned his head a complete 180 degrees, probably scouting out his breakfast.
So, I dressed quickly and went outside to get a better look. I did the short loop behind our house, and, since it was such a nice morning, the short walk turned into a longer walk. As I continued down the main road, all I saw was more birds. Birds of every shape and size, from geese and egrets by the pond to the smallest sparrows dotting the grass.
My favorite was the trio of tiny blue birds with chestnut chests, which I later researched and discovered to be Eastern bluebirds. It seemed as if they were following me down the road, swooping and landing and swooping up again.
I love object lessons in nature, when scenes outside point to what we see in God’s Word. There are so many verses that mention birds, and some that specifically mention eagles. These verses tell of God’s faithful care and abundant provision. They issue a call to rise above worry and to trust the sovereignty of almighty God.
Is. 40: 31 NET “Those who wait for the Lord’s help find renewed strength; they rise up as if they had eagles’ wings…”
Matthew 10: 29-31 NIV “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”
Matthew 6:25-27 NIV “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”
“Look at the birds of the air.” “Don’t be afraid.” That’s just what He led me to do on that spontaneous morning walk – to look and to be reminded. The nests in the trees, the birds seen, the birds unseen but heard clearly. Everywhere I looked, there were reminders of His faithfulness, reminders of Him. I love reminders such as these, and I love what they point to – the One whose praises the birds sing, our faithful, loving Creator.
Starting a new job. How long we continue to live in this city. When we move to the next. Financial goals. All the changing seasons of life.
The birds remind me to lay all this down at the feet of our Creator. This loving God invites us to know Him, and in knowing Him, we have all we need. (2 Peter 1:3)
At the start of each new season of life, at every bend in the road, in every moment of my life – I have all I need. I have everything I need in knowing God.
And I always will.
So, I trust Him to provide each next step at each right time. He is near, and He is faithful. He provides. He does it for the birds, and He does it for me.
The season of spring has been gracing us with its presence for nearly a month now. The 21st of March has come and gone, and even Easter is behind us, but I only recently remembered to put out my front porch spring sign. Better late than never I suppose.
The turning over of one season into the next snuck up on me this year because I’ve started a new job. I’ve returned to my social work roots as a case manager for home health for the elderly and disabled. I’ve entered a new season, one I’m enjoying.
Changing seasons in nature, changing seasons of life – change is constant. But one thing that never changes is the holy, indestructible, unwavering love of God.
It’s a love that never fails, never fades, never changes. It’s a love that reaches to the very depths of our souls. It’s unconditional and eternal. It envelopes the whole world in its vastness yet it draws near to us intimately and personally. It’s a love like no other.
It transcends our questions, our doubts, our fears. It eclipses our needs, our failings, our struggles. The love of God is all-encompassing and everlasting.
No one else is capable of loving us the way God loves us because God is love. The very definition of love is… God. “God is love.” (1 John 4: 8, 16) We love – ourselves, others, God – because He first loved us. There can be no love without God. He is the source and essence of love.
When we find God, we find love – and we find we are so very loved by Him. We are loved with a love no one else on Earth is capable of.
And because God never changes (Hebrews 13:8), His love for us will never change. It will always be there for us, whether we feel it or not. Whether we acknowledge it or not. In the midst of changes and challenges, in good times and bad, His love exists. His love endures. And it’s ours for the taking.
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
1 John 4:16 NIV
As we accept, embrace, and internalize the love He has for us, we then love Him, ourselves, and others.
What a truly blessed life is available to us – to spend our days being loved by God and loving others. A life enriched, a life of purpose.
A life of love.
May we know “what is the length and width, height and depth of God’s love.” Ephesians 3:18 HCSB
Italy awaits me. Or so I think. In my family, we’ve been talking about a big overseas girls’ trip for years now; just my mom, my sister, my niece, and me. We haven’t had a clear destination or timeframe in mind, just the desire to travel and make memories together. But now, my sister wants to run in the Rome marathon in 2024, and my mom wants to show the sights in Italy to my niece and me, since we’ve never been there. So, while this idea is in seed form now, it may take root and become reality. In just two years, the women in my family may invade Italy.
I’m picturing pizza at its finest, window shopping, tossing coins in fountains. I’m picturing wandering through vineyards and sampling what they produce. I’m picturing warm sunlight over Tuscan hills, a good evening meal after a full day of exploring.
I’m sure this is nowhere near what the Apostle Paul pictured when he looked forward to going to Italy. Regardless of what he envisioned, it seems Rome was never far from his thoughts.
“I long to see you.” Romans 1:11 NASB
“I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.” Romans 1:15 NIV
“I have been longing for many years to see you.” Romans 15:23 NIV
“I must also see Rome.” Acts 19:21 NET
Throughout Paul’s ministry, Rome loomed large. Wherever he went, whatever he did, he seemed to know Rome was ahead. And he did make it there, eventually. He made it there unhindered.
Unhindered.
This is the very last word in the book of Acts (NASB translation), and it perfectly sums up Paul’s state and the state of the Gospel after everything that happened in the preceding 28 chapters.
After all the attempts to silence the Gospel; after all the detours and delays; after beatings, imprisonment, shipwreck – through it all, Paul arrived at his destination: Rome. He was a little worse for wear, but he was unhindered. And the message of life and salvation in Jesus’ name continued to spread throughout that region – unhindered.
He was unhindered because he remained obedient to the Lord, stayed focused on Him and not the circumstances surrounding him, and trusted the Lord regardless. He knew God could do anything, use anything, accomplish anything. He knew God would bring him to Rome, and he did.
His faith was unhindered.
And the Gospel was unhindered. Nothing could stop it! The message of the resurrection of Jesus and the hope and life found in Him spread literally everywhere Paul went. People were saved, the church was strengthened, and the kingdom of God advanced – unhindered.
There is an important lesson for us here, something we see clearly throughout all of Pauls’ missionary journeys, through all the miles he clocked. It’s the lesson of looking at the big picture and not hyper fixating on one small scene, even though this is easy to do.
God can use what seems like a detour to bring us right where we need to be. Paul knew God wanted him to go to Rome, so he didn’t worry about all the stops and starts along the way. He trusted God to protect him and to bring him to the right place at the right time.
And he opened himself up to opportunities along the way – everywhere he went, he ministered. In a prison cell, in the Areopagus, in city after city, onboard a ship, on the island where they shipwrecked – all along the way to Rome, he ministered to those around him.
He didn’t discount those opportunities just because they weren’t at his final destination. He didn’t belittle his circumstances just because they weren’t ideal. He didn’t write off the possibility that God could move – even in circumstances such as his.
He was faithful where he was while he was on the way to where he was going.
So, what’s your Rome? What’s the one thing you desire from God? Your overarching goal, your focus, the thing you see clearly in your mind but not yet in reality.
It’s good to have a Rome. We should all have a Rome, a direction we’ve received from the Lord, plans and desires and goals that we’ve surrendered to the Lord and are pursuing in Him, with Him.
Rome is a good thing as long as we don’t rush the journey to get there. We must be careful not to be so focused on getting to what’s ahead that we miss what God has for us along the way. We need not be so consumed with seeing the Coliseum, the museums, the history, and the hills that we neglect to see the beauty in front of us right now.
God has people for us to impact, lessons to learn, growth to gain now. And all this will only serve to prepare us for when we do get to our Rome.
Remember the big picture. Rome is just one stop in life’s journey; God has many places to take us. And regardless of the backdrop of each season of life, God can accomplish something good in it, and He can bring us to the next destination on time even when it seems like we’re miles away.
So, let’s savor each season, keeping our eyes open to the opportunities around us, all while we work towards Rome. Let’s take a mental snapshot of each phase of life, internalizing the lessons learned, and adding new postcards to the collection as we go. And as we do, the big picture of our lives will become clearer and clearer, lovelier with each passing year, as we move forward – unhindered.
And when we finally make it to our Rome, we will be ready to receive all that awaits us there because we’ve been faithful along the way. I believe Rome will be breathtakingly beautiful – and that’s worth waiting for.
Having lived most of my life in Florida, hurricanes are nothing new. But seeing the images of the devastation from Hurricane Ian are mind-boggling. Rivers where streets once were. Empty plots where houses once stood. The outline of a state altered.
These images recall the destruction of Hurricane Michael, the last major storm to hit Florida. My family and I witnessed the remnants of this destruction first-hand when we visited the area in the spring after the storm. Even then, Michael’s mark was evident everywhere we looked.
Mexico Beach, FL – only foundations remain where properties once stood
Port St. Joe, FL – where a gazebo used to be by our favorite restaurant
Like many others, I pray for the rescue efforts, the survivors, and all those impacted by Ian. As the water recedes, may resources rush in. And may the rebuilding process be successful and smooth – layer upon layer, brick by brick.
Storms can be scary. Experiencing them on land is bad enough; I couldn’t imagine being on a boat in the middle of a hurricane! But that is exactly where the Apostle Paul found himself in Acts 27. He was on board a ship to Rome in the middle of a storm, with the dangerous shallows of Syrtis lurking nearby. According to the New English Translation, this was an area of sandbars and shallow water. “It had a horrible reputation as a sailors’ graveyard… The name alone struck terror in those who heard it.” (footnote for Acts 27:17 NET)
Yet Paul stood steadfast. In verse 23, he tells the other passengers of the vision God gave him assuring him of his safety and the safety of everyone onboard. Consider his choice of words as he explains his vision and introduces God to them. “For this very night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood before me, saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul…” (Acts 27:23, 24 NASB)
The God to whom I belong and whom I serve. According to the New English Translation, the original Greek word translated as belong means “of whom I am.” In other words, “I am of Him.”
Many churchgoers profess belief in God, but can they say they are of Him? It’s one thing to go to church, spend time around Christians, and participate in Christian activity. It’s another thing entirely to belong to Him.
I am of Him.
I belong to Him.
In Him, I live and move and have my being (Acts 17:28)
These truths are the Christian’s mantra. What defines us as Christians, as seen in Galatians 2:20, is that we died to ourselves and now live for Him. We no longer live for ourselves (2 Corinthians 5:14, 15). Because of the sacrificial death of Jesus and His resurrection, we now have eternal life. Therefore, we are of Him – and hopefully our lives reflect that.
What a wonderful truth! I’m so thankful for the freedom to be alive in Him – that we can be begotten of Him and filled with His life. We can be free from servitude to self, a relentless master, and serve the One who alone knows what’s best for us and can bring it about.
We now live by a higher standard than our impulses and desires. We live by faith in the son of God who loves us and died for us (Galatians 2:20). We live abundant life (John 10:10).
So, by dying to ourselves and living for God, we forfeit what can never truly satisfy and embrace what we were made for – a beautiful exchange. We gladly sacrifice what is lesser to receive what is greater.
And in so doing, we let God do for us what no one and nothing else can, what we can’t do ourselves. He saves and satisfies our souls. He meets our every need and lavishes us with love.
We then spend the rest of our earthly lives belonging to Him. We can say we are of Him, and we let this infuse every facet of life – life as it was meant to be lived.
Somehow, I’m not sure the math checks out, but I choose to trust You anyway. I choose to remember what You promised in Your Word:
“We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”
2 Corinthians 4:7 NIV
I have an all-surpassing power in me. It surpasses weariness, temptation, struggles, limitations. It surpasses everything that would hinder me as I live in pursuit of God and His purposes for me.
This is a power nothing can diminish – not a global pandemic, not the actions and opinions of others, not my own faults and failings, not regrets of the past or unknowns in the future, not the circumstances I’m unable to change.
Certainly, nothing and no one can conquer the power of God at work in the lives of those who love Him. Nothing and no one. Because the source of the power is indisputable, all-knowing, ever present. And because He will never change, that power will always be available.
At the intersection of my human limitation and His supernatural ability, where my finite understanding meets His all-knowing, at the crossroad of seen and unseen is a choice. The choice to dwell on how I feel and what I see or to tap into the ever-flowing stream of God’s wisdom and strength.
So, I can be overwhelmed by my emotions or overflowing with His grace. I can let my circumstances define my mood, or I can process my circumstances and emotions in Him. I can remain depleted or come to Him to be refreshed.
So yes, the number of things on my to-do list may be more than the amount of time I have today. The amount of energy in my body may be nowhere close to what I wish it was. But I’m thankful for how God’s math checks out. He multiples grace and strength in us. His well of resources never runs dry. The daily stress of life, the major moments and the minutiae cannot subtract from the all-surpassing power in us.
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.”
Fall is upon us, and I, for one, am excited! I’m ready to do some baking, break out my fall candles, and cheer on my college football team this weekend. School is back in session and routines are resuming. Everything is gearing up for a busy, productive season.
And that is a good thing. Summer brought some much-needed down time, so we can handle things picking back up. As long as we go about it with the right perspective, as long as we remember one thing.
The Bible tells of a time when Jesus went to visit two of his friends, Mary and Martha. Martha busied herself with preparing food and serving her guests, while her sister, Mary, sat with Jesus and hung on His every word. Martha complained to Jesus that Mary had left her with all the work to do.
Jesus replied, “Martha, Martha, … you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41, 42 NIV
I can be like Martha more than I care to admit. Why is it so easy to become so distracted? Why does busyness so quickly consume us? Why is the focus on the “one thing” so hard to maintain?
We are busy people. We have jobs, we have families, we have bills. We have people whose lives we want to invest in and people who depend on us. We have commitments, deadlines, and households to manage. And we want to be faithful in all these things. We genuinely want to do a good job with all that’s on our plate.
I think God knew what the pace of life would be in our day. He knew we’d have full schedules and good intentions. That’s why He told us beforehand to remember the one thing. Which is what, exactly?
I think the one thing Jesus was referring to was Himself. Mary was close by Jesus, sitting at his feet in the posture of a disciple, listening to Him. The one thing is relationship with Jesus; it’s maintaining intimate connection with Him, despite all that’s happening around you.
An important aspect of this is guarding. If the one thing is the main thing, then we must hold on to it. We must actively work to maintain it. The Bible exhorts us in Proverbs 4:23 (NET), “Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it are the sources of life.” So, we guard our hearts when emotions swell, when circumstances swirl out of control, when stress surges. We guard against weariness, against distractions, against anything that sucks the life out of us. We guard our time, our priorities, our energy. And we fervently guard against distractions from the one thing.
We guard our lives by maintaining a laser-like focus on God, His Word, and His presence in our daily lives. We stay connected to Jesus, let His strength energize us, and let that carry us through our busy days. And we stay closely connected to other believers who can help us as we live our lives in pursuit of this one thing.
What does this look like in our lives practically?
Spend time with God daily in His Word and in prayer. This is our lifeline.
Share your life with other trusted believers and be accountable to them. Join a small group. Share prayer requests. Share your heart.
Take an overview of your schedule and make sure it reflects what’s important to you. If you need to drop something from your schedule, do it, and don’t feel guilty.
Take breaks when you need to. Take care of yourself. Sleep, exercise, and quality food go a long way.
Make time for people. Phone calls, texts, and definitely face to face time – whether that’s long lunches where you can really catch up or simply running errands together. Take care of others. And let them take care of you.
This certainly isn’t an exhaustive list, and it’s nothing we haven’t heard before. But hopefully it’s a timely reminder as we enter the busy fall season:
We can be busy without letting busyness consume us. We can balance multiple competing demands without succumbing to stress. We can conquer our to-do list without growing weary.
We just need to remember one thing.
Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.
The thought ran through my mind as I fought back tears. I was a newlywed, riding in the car in my new town, unimpressed with my new surroundings, overwhelmed with drastic life changes. Even though I was glad to be married, I couldn’t help but miss the friends, the job, the church I had left behind – a culture that resonated with me, a city where I had put down roots. I was in a new chapter of my life – which was a good thing – but the scenery changed dramatically.
I liked the old view better.
That was ten years ago, and thankfully I’ve gotten used to my new surroundings. They’re not new anymore. Time has helped me adapt, but what helped the most was changing my thinking – reminding myself of the correct definition of life.
As a Christ follower, my life does not exist in my job, my relationships, my calendar, my responsibilities. My life isn’t just what I can see in front of me. My life comes from a higher Source. The rest – the daily stuff of life – is just circumstantial.
It can be easy to allow circumstances to consume us and morph into our identity. They are realities we deal with on a daily basis. They’re on our mind when we lay in bed at night, and they’re waiting for us the next morning. It’s all we think about when we think about us.
Single wanting to be married, married and wanting a baby, a health scare, a family crisis, what we see in the mirror, financial abundance or scarcity, a degree with letters after our name, our title at work, the title of “Mom” – these do not define us. They are opportunities to trust God and opportunities to serve others. They can give direction and meaning to our life, they can greatly affect our life, but they are not our life.
The number on the scale is not who I am.The number of followers I have on social media is not who I am. My unfulfilled goals and desires, my successes and struggles, others’ perceptions of me – these do not define me. They are not who I am.
Of course, that doesn’t mean we don’t have goals and work towards progress. The number on the scale doesn’t define me, sure, but I’m still working to lower that number to a healthier range. Not for looks, likes, or any reason other than wanting to steward the body God’s given me and to have energy to do all He’s called me to do.
It also doesn’t mean we simply coast and neglect to address the looming issues in life – the catastrophes and crises, the overwhelming issues we all deal with. When I had cancer, I met it head on. It was a focus of my prayers, my research, my mental capacity. It consumed much of my time.
Even though these things don’t define us, they are still a big deal. Huge! So, we tackle these issues from a standpoint of who we are in Christ. We filter our circumstances though the Word of God – who He is, what He’s done for us, and who He says we are.
As Christians, our identity is not in our circumstances but in the person of Jesus and the finished work of the cross. Because of His sacrificial death and resurrection, we can say-
I am a new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
I have been given new life. (Galatians 2:20)
I have been adopted into His family. (Ephesians 1:4, 5 and Romans 8:15-17)
I am His. (Song of Solomon 2:16)
Cancer, money, marital status – these are not who I am. Fill in the blank in your own life. For me, infertility is not who I am. It is not my identity. It is something I deal with on a daily basis, and it has drastically affected my life, but it is not my life.
My life is not the sum total of my circumstances. My life is Christ. And that life could not be more loving, more exhilarating, or more fulfilling. It’s not perfect, but it’s a life I rejoice to live every day, regardless of the circumstances.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you will also appear with him in glory.
There’s something so poignant about the first sounds of birdsong in spring. Their clear notes are almost piercing at first, louder after a long absence. It makes you realize that you’ve missed the sweet sound, that the passing winter was silent, void of the music now filling the air.
I wonder if Mary Magdalene’s Easter morning walk to the garden was accompanied by birdsong. Did nature sense something big was happening?
I love imaging this scene in John 20 and picturing myself in Mary’s shoes. What was that morning like? How far did she have to walk? Was it light by the time she got to the garden? What did she see – her 360-degree view of the scene that changed everything?
I like to imagine that she heard birdsong as she entered the garden. Maybe the smell of wet earth rose to meet her. Maybe the morning mist was starting to clear as she neared the tomb.
I don’t know the specifics of that Easter morning, but I do know Jesus cast seven demons out of her (Mark 16:9 and Luke 8:2). I know He was her only hope. If He didn’t rise from the dead, then there would be nothing to keep her from going back to her old life, no power to maintain her freedom. So, she would not leave Jesus. She could not. He was her only hope – and while that hope may have been dwindling in His followers, it was not extinguished.
With an ember of hope flickering in her eyes and undying love in her heart, she went to the tomb, to the last place she had seen Him. She went to minister to Him one last time. She could not bear to be separated from Him, even from His dead body. She had to see it through to the end. Her devotion demanded it.
And devotion she had in spades. Let’s continue our deep dive into John 20 and consider the ways in which Mary’s devotion to Jesus was expressed.
Spring has sprung, and as Easter approaches, my thoughts turn toward the very first Easter morning so many years ago. It’s a moment I think about often, a moment I can’t wait to ask about when I get to Heaven.
Because this is the moment that makes us, the moment that defines our faith as Christians.
My favorite account of this is in John 20, which is my probably my favorite passage in all of Scripture. The context of this passage is this:
Jesus was crucified, and he is now dead. Physical death was verified by more than one witness.
His body was placed in a new tomb close to the crucifixion site.
Mary Magdalene, one of the followers of Jesus, witnessed the crucifixion and witnessed His body being placed in the tomb.
After seeing this, she went home to prepare spices. The next day was the Jewish Sabbath day, so she rested in observance of this.
The day after the Sabbath, while it was still dark, the first moment she could, she grabbed her spices and headed to the tomb. She was planning to anoint Jesus’ body with her spices according to Jewish burial customs, but, thankfully, her plans didn’t go the way she thought.
I love tracing Jesus’s steps in all four gospels, and I love encountering Jesus along with Mary. I’m next to her at the foot of the cross. I go home with her and prepare spices to anoint his body. I walk with her into the garden in the cool of the morning.
And I picture this moment as it unfolds, the moment all the Gospels have been leading up to, the moment all of history hangs on, the crucial, indisputable moment around which everything else revolves – Jesus alive and offering Himself to us in intimate relationship. This is the very crux of Christianity, and it’s worth exploring.
The essence of the Christian faith is not simply being a good person, doing good deeds, filling a seat in church week in and week out, or even believing that God exists. Even demons believe that (James 2:19). The essence of Christianity is knowledge of God – not just knowing about Him but knowing Him. John 17:3 tells us the definition of eternal life is knowing God.
The essence of Christianity is God calling us by name, just like He did with Mary (John 20:16), and us responding to Him. The first step in this is accepting the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross for us, and responding in full surrender of ourselves. And then it’s living out that knowledge every day of our lives in service to God and others. It’s the defining relationship of our life.
This is not about sentiment, and it’s not merely an intellectual exercise. It’s not about an experience. It’s about the substance and reality of the risen Lord – the one who still calls us to Himself.
This is why John 20 and the similar accounts in the other Gospels are so important. It’s why I love imagining that moment. And I love seeing it from Mary’s perspective.
Can you imagine what she must have felt the night He died? As a close follower of Jesus, she must have felt wholly overwhelmed and dismayed. There must have been such shock and grief. But there was also love – love for the Lord, remembrance of all He had done in His time on earth, gratitude for His salvation and deliverance. And I think Mary poured all that love and remembrance into her spices – a beautiful gift for the Lord. I can just see her at work, pouring her spice mixture into jars, with tears in her eyes but resolve in her heart.
So, come what may, she was not leaving that tomb until she had anointed His body. She was going to pour out her love and devotion on to Him one last time.
But thankfully, her spices weren’t needed. The tomb – borrowed for a few days – was no longer needed. There was no longer a dead body, no longer a reason for her to despair.
There was only life.
And the moment Mary encountered Jesus alive is a moment available to us all. I don’t know the specifics of that first Easter morning, but I know the life and love that are only found in Jesus. They are there for the taking. The reality Mary experienced in that precious moment is a reality we can experience every day. We can encounter Jesus in the best, most intimate relationship we’ll ever know. We can encounter Jesus alive and be made alive ourselves – alive in our very souls, alive always.
