Deep-End Discipleship

“So then, if anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation. The old things have gone away, and look, new things have arrived! In other words, God was reconciling the world to himself through Christ, by not counting people’s sins against them. He has trusted us with this message of reconciliation.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17, 19 – Friendship is a truly special yet sometimes complicated thing. As small children, friendship seems easy. As we grow, friendships tend to get more complicated. As we grow up, friendships tend to become more complicated. Sometimes a friend can do something to us that’s truly painful, or, perhaps we do something painful to a friend. It’s sadly so easy to hurt, intentionally or unintentionally, those closest to us. Reconciliation is when two parties choose to forgive past hurt or grievance and come up with some kind of resolution in how to move forward in the relationship. According to the Bible, we were separated from God because of our s...

“For your steadfast love is before my eyes,    and I walk in your faithfulness. I do not sit with men of falsehood,   nor do I consort with hypocrites. I hate the assembly of evildoers,   and I will not sit with the wicked. I wash my hands in innocence and go around your altar, O Lord, proclaiming thanksgiving aloud, and telling all your wondrous deeds.” -Psalm 26: 3-7 ESV- The people that we spend our time with have a big effect on us throughout our lives. Friends are often our support system, sounding board, confidant, and so much more. Statistically, as we get older our friend group gets smaller and smaller. I think that this shift is probably for many different reasons. One of my guesses is because we want to focus on a few deep relationships rather than multiple surface level relationships. I also think that our inner circle gets smaller because we slowly get to know ourselves better. I feel like throughout my life I have always been one who jumped...

"...I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me."              - 2 Samuel 7:11-14a I have two of these necklaces...well, really two halves of them. My BFF in middle school was Chrissy Holder, and then my BFF in high school was Jenny Griffith. I write "was" because we no longer talk. I can't even find Jenny on social media. The weird thing is, I couldn't tell you what happened to our friendships. We just drifted apart. With Chrissy, I did something behind her back that hurt her feelings, and although I apologized, we were no longer "best friends forever....

“I have revealed your name to the people you gave me from this world. They were yours and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you.   This is because I gave them the words that you gave me, and they received them. They truly understood that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I’m praying for them. I’m not praying for the world but for those you gave me, because they are yours.   Everything that is mine is yours and everything that is yours is mine; I have been glorified in them.” - John 17:6-10 CEB You know those phrases that are natural responses in conversations? Things like, “okay, love you, bye” or, “talk to you later”  are things that we say without even thinking about it. It’s these phrases that we have become so comfortable with so they just roll off the tongue. I also think that the phrase, “I’ll be praying for you” is something that we say without really thinking a...

“This is what I’m saying, brothers and sisters: The time has drawn short. From now on, those who have wives should be like people who don’t have them. Those who are sad should be like people who aren’t crying. Those who are happy should be like people who aren’t happy. Those who buy something should be like people who don’t have possessions. Those who use the world should be like people who aren’t preoccupied with it, because this world in its present form is passing away.” - 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 CEB - Amidst all the apostle Paul has to say in the Bible, this is not always one of the favorite verses. It doesn’t sound comfortable to have to suddenly act like something you’re not. You might paraphrase what the apostle says as such, “So you were happy – don’t worry about that anymore. So you were sad – stop crying now. So you are really concerned about the people in your life who care to you – don’t focus too much on them.” This is hard for us to hear as a message of Good New...