Category Archives: Woman of Valor

December 19, 2018

Action!

By marilynnchadwick

Action. Movement. Progress. Results in life matter. James challenges us to consider our results—the bottom line of our beliefs. What we believe impacts how we live.

But do our actions make us good enough for God? Does the salvation of our souls depend upon how well we live out the commandments? Must we work our way to heaven? Absolutely not!

Our One Word Devotional focus today is on the word action. Let’s see what James has to say about the importance of our actions:

Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. (James 2:17 NIV)

So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead) (James 1:17 AMP).

These words have sparked controversy for centuries.  But the exhortation here is not so much about how we get “saved.”  Rather, what are the characteristicsof saving faith?  Quite simply, if faith has no corresponding actions, it’s not real faith, James argues.  Outward actions are merely evidence that our faith is “alive and kicking.”

Let me give you a practical illustration:  I have two flower arrangements in my kitchen window.  One is a beautiful vase of freshly cut flowers. Beautiful, but dead—those flowers can never reproduce.  The other container holds a lovely potted bloom, its roots surrounded by soil, ready for planting.  It will live and produce new blooms…again and again. This flower is alive.

In a similar way, true faith, by its very nature, will produce actions that correspond to our inner beliefs.  This kind of faith is alive.

If you have trusted Jesus for your salvation—accepting His death and resurrection as payment for your sins—you are “saved.” Your righteousness is settled.  You are made perfect in God’s sight by grace through faith.  Period.

Such faith is alive and will naturally produce actions.  This does not mean you are perfect all at once or that you will never fail. But you are alive, forever a member of God’s family.  Once that question is settled, ask yourself:  Since I believe, what is God asking me to do as a corresponding act of obedience?

God’s Word is also alive (Hebrews 4:12).  It tells us how to live out our beliefs. The Holy Spirit gives us the power we need to follow the commands in Scripture.

Today, listen for your marching orders.  What actions will you take after you read and meditate upon God’s living Word?

Lord, let my faith be alive and active. I come to Your Word for life, power, and inspiration.  Remind me to care for the poor and the poor in Spirit.  Give me Your eyes as I go about my business today and nudge me when to give a kind word, a helping hand, a few dollars. Prick my heart with an urgency for action.  Break my heart for what breaks Yours.

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December 2, 2018

21 Day Experiment-Day 18

By marilynnchadwick

Jesus talks a lot about His heavenly kingdom. This kingdom dwells within us, He tells us. I’ve heard the caution that we shouldn’t be “so heavenly minded that we’re no earthly good.” Yet Jesus tells us to set our mind on things above. To be absorbed with His kingdom.

Our challenge is to dwell in Jesus’ kingdom, while also living as temporary citizens of earth. God must have thought we could inhabit both kingdoms, or He would have simply taken us to heaven the minute we accepted Jesus.

Welcome to day 18 of our 21-Day Experiment. We’re near the finish line—so hold on tight!

Biblically, the word kingdom describes the royal dominion and eternal sovereignty of God.  Jesus knew this, and when interrogated by Pilate, He said simply, My kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36).

Think about it: We live on earth and in heaven. Sometimes the two clash. So how do we respond?  I’m sure the disciples wrestled with this “dual citizenship.”

Let’s look at what Jesus taught them:

It all begins with prayer.  His disciples had watched Him wage kingdom battles. He healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out demons.  The forces of darkness had to bow before this Savior. Yet the only thing the disciples ever specifically asked Jesus to teach them was how to pray (Luke 11:1).

Jesus gave them a short tutorial—what we call the “Lord’s Prayer.” He teaches them to pray from a kingdom vantage point: “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” 

We’re to pray for God’s kingdom to be brought to earth. In heaven, God’s will is done perfectly. So when we pray for His kingdom, we are praying for His will.

In the original Greek, this verse is in the imperative tense—more of a command than a request.  It’s as if we are to pray, “Kingdom come!  Will be done on earth!”  I sometimes think Jesus wants us to stamp our feet, shake our fist, and shout a bit as we speak God’s Word into a fallen world that is still crawling with enemies.

Spiritual victories don’t come without a fight. Without God’s Word as our authority.  But the Bible calls it a “good fight” (1 Timothy 1:18).  Jesus wants us to have a heavenly perspective to our prayers, but a watchful eye toward earth for our results.

Prayer: Lord, I declare that Your kingdom will come and Your will is to be done. In heaven, on earth and in my own life.  Help me to be “kingdom-minded” as I go about my day. And give me open eyes to see Your results here on earth!

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November 28, 2018

21 Day Experiment-Day 14

By marilynnchadwick

“No way!“ My older son used to exclaim to his younger brother when something amazing or unexpected had just happened. To which his little brother would answer back,” Way!”

Way can describe a course of action. Or directions to a destination: “What’s the quickest way to go to the beach?” A method of doing something: “What’s the best way to prepare a healthy meal?”  Or execute a good golf swing?

The word way in the Bible comes from hodos, translated “road.” It can describe our course of life, conduct, or behavior. The “way of the Lord” is the revealed will of God. That’s why the early church was called “The Way,” well before believers were referred to as “Christians.”

But the word way brings up an important question:  “Is Jesus the only way to God?”  Some people believe that Jesus is simply one of many ways.  Sounds appealing at first—easier to swallow. Until you think about the reality that without Jesus, there is no firm assurance of the forgiveness of sins. No promise of eternity in Heaven.

There are really only two world’s religions, as my husband David often says:

  1. You’re saved by perfectly obeying a standard of rules or laws, thus trying to work your way to God. Impossible for imperfect humans.
  2. Or you are saved by grace. You accept Christ’s sacrifice on the cross as full payment for all your sins and follow Him as the only way to God.

My watchword for today from John Chapter 14 is short and simple:   

I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6).

People the world over would agree that Jesus was a “good man, wonderful teacher, a true humanitarian.” But not the only way to God.

Yet Jesus, Himself, claimed to be the long-awaited Messiah and the only way to the Father. Such a claim—if not true—makes Him an out-and-out liar. The very same man people esteem as a great moral teacher would be the greatest of imposters.  Or as C.S. Lewis so eloquently put it, Jesus is “a liar, a legend, a lunatic, or the truth.” I would also add, He is the “Way.”

Prayer: Lord, I pray for Your Holy Spirit to open the door to a conversation with my friend ___________ who has been seeking You—but just doesn’t know it yet.

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November 25, 2018

21 Day Experiment-Day 11

By marilynnchadwick

Believe. To believe means to accept something as true.  What you believe impacts your thoughts, feelings, actions—and ultimately, the course of your life.  “What do you believe?” just might be the most important question you’ll ever answer.

In John 11, the word “believe” is used eight times.  Here we find two of Jesus’ dearest friends, Mary and Martha, grief-stricken over the death of their beloved brother Lazarus.

Can you imagine their hurt and confusion?  They knew Jesus could have saved Lazarus if He’d just gotten there sooner. They’d had seen Him heal many times. The disciples were also perplexed—especially when Jesus told them, “Lazarus is dead and I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe” (John 11:14).

When Jesus finally arrives—four days late—Martha cries out, “Lord, if you had been here my brother would not have died!” Jesus reminds her that her brother will rise again. “I know he will rise again at the resurrection,” replies Martha. I can just imagine her blurting out, “But what about now…I am hurting now!”

“I am the resurrection,” Jesus says. “The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” He asks her.  “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world” (John 11:25-27).

Wow. Martha presses through her grief and testifies that Jesus is the long awaited Messiah! Jesus knew the big picture—the ultimate story of redemption. But He was also moved by their present grief. The text tell us He was “deeply moved in spirit and troubled.”  The word translated as “troubled” is tarasso. It implies great agony of soul and is the same word used to describe Jesus as he contemplated the cross (John 12:27).

Jesus agonizes over the death of his friend and weeps intensely. “I know that you always hear me,” He prays to the Father, “but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

Then in a loud voice that must have shaken all of creation He shouts, “Lazarus, come forth!”  And out walks the man who came back to life. No wonder many onlookers put their faith in Jesus.

Maybe you’re facing a huge disappointment. You know Jesus could fix it, so why hasn’t He shown up yet?  Maybe your faith has been shaken to its core.

I’m reminded of what Jesus said when He learned of Lazarus’ sickness. It’s my watchword:

This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory, so that God’s Son may be glorified through it (John 11:4).

Jesus knew the end of the story. He knows the end of yours.  Would you entrust that heartbreaking situation to Him, believing that your pain may be the raw material for a miracle? Dare to pray that those who see His work in your life may truly believe He is the Son of God.

 

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November 16, 2018

21 Day Experiment-Day 2

By marilynnchadwick

It’s not too late to jump on board our 21 Day Experiment in Prayer.  We’re reading through John’s Gospel. Today is Chapter Two.  Each time I perform this experiment, I come away with eyes open to a deeper understanding of Jesus.

Years ago, I went from atheist to believer in one dramatic moment. A short time later, I met and married my minster husband. I left my corporate career and moved cross-country to serve God with David.  A whole lot of changes going on!

I loved my husband. Our new life was an adventure. But I was mystified by the Bible, baffled by prayer, and didn’t speak “Christian-ese.”

One day I came across the 21 Day Experiment in a book by a former atheist and newspaper reporter, Emily Gardiner Neal (The Healing Power of Christ ). Right up my alley. Continue reading

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