Roses of Grace

( Note: There's an important announcement at the end of this post, so make sure to read to the end!) Do you like your testimony? Maybe you don't. Maybe you think it's boring—powerful, maybe, and true, but basic. Boring. And if it's important, it's only important to you. Or maybe you're thinking that all testimonies are valuable, regardless of how "boring" they are. And you're right! But you still think that you'd have more to talk about if you had a more interesting life. People would listen to you more than they currently do.  In short, you feel like what you have to say isn't important.  This isn't just about your testimony. It's a symptom of a larger problem: you don't think your story matters, you think you don't have anything to say. Maybe you get nervous when anyone asks you for advice because you don't think you're wise enough. Maybe you don't share the Gospel in conversations because you feel like your ...

What's the most important question you'll ever answer?  Some options might come to mind. "Where should I go to college?" "What career should I pick?" Or maybe you even think of, "will you marry me?"  But no. Those things aren't a matter of life or death.  The most important question you'll ever answer is the question Jesus asks his disciples in Matthew 16:15: "Who do you say that I am?"  It's impossible to overstate the importance of this question. This is a matter of life or death—Jesus's identity is of cosmic importance.  Why is it so important? Because your answer will show your heart.  Do you really believe the truth? Then you have eternal life, joy, and peace.  But if you don't, your heart is still dead in your trespasses and sins. (Ephesians 2:1) Who do you say that Jesus is?   A Good Teacher The Bible is like a self-help book—a really good one. There's good stuff in there. We can pick and choose what to agr...

Happy Valentine's Day! Everyone lives in community. And so, relationships are something that everyone deals with—except for hermits and astronauts, and I sincerely doubt you're one of those. So everyone deals with the ups and downs of being in community.  And American culture places a heavy focus on romantic relationships in particular. According to one article from Forbes , Americans typically spend over $20 billion in total for Valentine's Day. That's a lot!  Even for those of us who don't date, relationships can take the top priority. Friendships give us the pleasant feeling of being admired, and we love connecting with like-minded people.  And that's great. But sometimes I wonder if we take it too far. There's nothing inherently wrong with these relationships. They can be a blessing. But it's also easy to let them become too important in your life. It's easy to let them become an idol. What defines you? Is it your earthly relationships with your...

  There are a lot of popular sayings floating around—phrases that people reach for when they're searching for something encouraging to say. I'm sure you know what I mean. Phrases like "you are loved," "you are unique," "you are powerful." "You can do anything." "You are strong."  Those phrases tend to bug me. Part of me rebels against them: they're oversimplifications! That's not how life works! You can't just say the magic words to make everything better! The thing is, they're not all wrong. But I think it's our responsibility as Christians—Christians who are told to "rightly handle the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15)—to be careful with our words. And part of caring about truth means looking beyond the surface-level meaning of our words, and seeking to understand, Biblically, what is true.  So, here are four popular sayings, and the Biblical perspective about them!    #1: You are perfect the way th...