Devotionals for the Heart: When springtime brings hope to your heart

The Unfolding Hope of Spring
A devotional by Joy Beless

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.”

—1 Peter 1:3-4a (NIV)

I love the Spring season! I love this season so much that I have my desk situated in front of the windows just so I can watch spring unfold. There is a predictability to it—knowing which trees will leaf and bloom first. Sunny yellow daffodils pop up to greet the bleak winter days. Like unfolding a letter from a dear friend whom I haven’t heard from in a while, so does my view come to life and color. What is happening in nature mirrors my soul—an awakening to a living hope, through Jesus Christ.

For Christians, resurrected life, like spring, is a gift from our risen Savior, Jesus Christ, who rose from the dead as witnessed by over 500 people (1 Corinthians 15:6) over a period of 40 days before ascending to Heaven (Acts 1:3). As followers of Jesus, we too will live with Him in resurrected bodies in Heaven one day. This gave Peter’s readers of his letter great hope during the persecution they endured as Christians. And it gives us great hope today to know that our lifetime on this earth is not all there is.

But it is possible to experience the “living hope” today that mirrors springtime and new life surrounding me. To step into the freedom we have as God’s children, forgiven and deeply loved. To receive Christ’s invitation to come and rest in Him, as a child would with a loving father. Keeping in view Christ’s teaching and scriptures that remind us of Heaven, with no tears and no pain, as we navigate life (Revelation 21:4).

I have lived through “winter” seasons of life that were difficult with grief, conflict, and no hope. Discouraging and exhausting, with seemingly unanswered prayers, the days loomed dark and gray. One such season for me was an intersection of intense caregiving and grief with other family needs. My father and aunt for different reasons both ended up in side by side rooms in a skilled nursing facility. For my aunt, she passed away after a few difficult months but for my father, it began a crisis-oriented three year journey of care. Caring for those you deeply love on a slow journey of decline while juggling your everyday responsibilities takes a toll on your own emotional, physical and spiritual health.

However, the winter seasons of life cause me to depend on Jesus in ways I never would have. Experiencing His mercy in small moments, His presence filling my soul through a song or scripture gives sustaining strength to walk through the long days of despair. Taking time to be alone with God, resting and leaning into the comfort of the Holy Spirit brought healing and hope back into my life. It was like a daffodil braving the chilly early spring days. Receiving counsel through grief healing groups and meeting with a spiritual director breathed new life and new seasons of purpose and strength. Like a barren tree in the cold, my roots of faith grew deep. I experienced God in an intimate, but quiet way to endure the season. I no longer had answers but knew I was not alone in the journey. And neither are you.

Lean into the Advocate, the Holy Spirit whom Jesus promised and dwells within you. Talk with God about the situations that seem hopeless. Look for that small “bud of color”, despite the circumstances.

Let’s Pray:

Heavenly Father,

You are the source of our “living hope” when we are discouraged and disillusioned. We praise you for the miracle of resurrected life, both within our souls and one day, reunited with you in heaven. Encourage us in difficult seasons. Remind us of our “inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade” (1 Peter 1:4). We thank you that this existence on Earth is not all there is. In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.

Song of Reflection: “Seasons Change” by Crystal Lewis. Listen to it here.

~*~
Author Bio:

Joy Beless is a worshipper of God and lover of people.

A practicing Spiritual Director, she is a speaker for retreats and conferences and facilitates guided solitude retreats at the family ranch in North Texas.

A seasoned worship leader and songwriter, she frequently weaves worship, God’s Word and spiritual practices together. She is a chapel provider for a shelter for the houseless and a certified Grief and Trauma Healing Facilitator. Serving at global retreats for Kingdom-minded women delights her soul.

She has written for Global Trellis and Missio Nexus. She connects God’s Word with the reality of our daily in all the ups and downs.

Joy is married to Roger. They live in Coppell (Texas). Joy is called "JoJo" by her nine adorable grandchildren. She enjoys the outdoors and encourages flowers to grow in the Texas heat.

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Connect with Joy:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joy.beless
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joy.beless/
Website: www.joybeless.org

Devotionals for the Heart: Anxiety

How to love someone with anxiety
A devotional by Jessica Brodie

Mental illness runs in my family, and several close relatives, including my daughter, have major struggles with anxiety.

I spent a lot of my life believing I had a personal responsibility to fix what was wrong in the world. That meant not only being an advocate and speaking up for those who are marginalized and oppressed in general, but also doing what I can to help those I love who struggle with anxiety, whether through advocacy, awareness or caregiving.

However, I am just one human being, and I have learned over the years that I am only able to do anything for others through the Lord Jesus Christ. What that means is “Jessica can’t fix anything nearly as well as God can.” In fact, the only thing I can really try to fix is myself—and even for that I need a savior! Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, not me!

But as a mom particularly, I still wrestle with that balance. It’s really important to me that my daughter feels loved and supported in the midst of her personal struggles with mental illness. Some days are far more difficult than others. They include panic attacks, or an inability to sleep because her mind-racing fears keep her awake far past her bedtime (and mine). Other days are far easier.

Our journey has taught me a few things I can do to love her well, and all these things are rooted in Scripture.

Here, then, are five key ways I’ve learned I can love someone with anxiety.

1) Listen well

James 1:19 (ESV) says, “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.”

There’s a saying I appreciate: God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason. Being a good listener is really important, especially when it comes to loving someone with anxiety. Sometimes it helps when my daughter, or others I love with anxiety, just have an ear. They can freely express all the issues spinning around in their brains. A really good thing I can do for them is hear them. Listen. Nod. Understand. It goes long way.

2) Acknowledge

The apostle John tells us in 1 John 3:18, “Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”

This has a lot in common with listening, but it goes deeper. Acknowledging is more than just hearing someone, but rather accepting the full weight of what someone is saying or feeling, admitting its existence and importance to them. Anxiety and other mental illness are often considered “invisible illness,” so the world often dismisses it as “only in their head.” But like cancer, fibromyalgia and other ailments, it’s real. And there are often physical effects along with the mental. Acknowledging can help buffer that stigma and help your loved one recognize what’s happening and how to get through.

3) Support

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 reminds us, “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!”

A lot of times, people with anxiety feel very much alone, as though no one else can understand what they are going through. I might not be able to understand what a panic attack feels like or how to rein in the overwhelming sense of doom and dread my daughter experiences with anxiety, but I can walk with her. I can help her know she’s not alone. I can also do other things: help her cling to God in the midst of her pain, take her to therapy, give her access to medication if needed, and be a stable presence in the storm.

4) Understand I can’t fix it

God tells us through the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 43:11, “I, I am the Lord, and besides me there is no savior.”

I can help my loved one with resources, get them the therapy and medication they need, and do all the other things mentioned above, but this is their journey, their struggle, their proverbial “cross to bear,” not mine. They must get through whatever that looks like. It’s not my job to fix the problem, nor is it possible, and I need to know that. They also need to know that; only Jesus is their savior.

5) Don’t take it personally

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

Sometimes my daughter will lash out at me, as though I caused her anxiety. At times like these, it helps to remind myself she’s scared or upset at the problem, not me. Loving someone goes way beyond mere emotion. My love for her doesn’t depend on whether she’s nice or snippy or well-behaved or not. It doesn’t mean she can walk all over me—I have to set boundaries for myself, too. But it’s good to know it’s not about me.

How about you—do you have any other Scriptures or key ways that help you love someone with anxiety? Share in the comments below!

~*~
Author Bio: 

Jessica Brodie is an award-winning Christian novelist, journalist, editor, blogger, and writing coach and the recipient of the 2018 American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Award for her novel, The Memory Garden. 

She is also the editor of the South Carolina United Methodist Advocate, the oldest newspaper in Methodism, and a member of the Wholly Loved Ministries team. 

Learn more about her fiction and read her faith blog at http://jessicabrodie.com.

Words of Faith: Erin's story on sharing love and Jesus Christ with children

Train A Child, Win A Soul
A Words of Faith story by Erin Unger

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” 
~ Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)

‘Growing up with my kids’ sounds like a cliché, but it was the truth for me. My husband and I started our family very young. Being a stay-at-home mom to five children born in a 6 ½ year period does something to you. Back in the day, when I had a gaggle of kids surrounding me, I was tired and overworked. And my husband worked long hours. That meant I was home alone a lot with the ‘crowd’. Oh boy, did I struggle some days. But God compelled me to not only love my own children but to reach out to others. Even with the long days of diapers and feedings, I couldn’t have too many kids with me. They needed love and Christ as much as my own.

Many a Sunday, we’d roll into church with our minivan full to the brink. Kids would pour out of it like rice out of a hole in the bag. And it didn’t end with them. We eventually did foster care for a few years, too. But there was this one year that we had a family friend who was going through a divorce. Her son was five or six at the time, and they weren’t religious. But I had this urgency to get their boy to church. I didn’t know if they’d even let him go with us, but I wasn’t going to give up. I had faith God could open doors for me, and He did just that. The parents let us take him.

It wasn’t always easy getting up even earlier, rounding up all my kids and heading to pick up more, but it was a calling. And, you don’t ignore a calling from God. I trusted my Savior to get us safely to church, and to help us with all the little ones.

A long time passed since those days of double-buckling to get to Sunday School. The busyness of life kept us moving ahead, away from the little ones so precious to us as some moved away, including that little boy. We kept tabs but we weren’t to see until years later the miracle God worked in him. That boy, now an 18-year-old young man, showed up at a family party a couple months ago.

He thanked us for caring so much for him, for bringing him to church so he could meet his Savior, one that he may have never known if we hadn’t been obedient to the calling of Christ.

I thank God for letting us see the fruit of our labor. It does a lot for your faith to see it! And I thank God that one more child is His. A life changed forever, a life that is claimed by my Savior.

Sometimes you don’t know what the end result will be. But you must answer God’s call. Who knows…you may see a miracle. Train up a child in the way he should go…

~*~
Author bio: 

Erin Unger weaves romantic suspense tales long after the midnight oil has burned out. But her natural night owl ways help her get a lot of writing done while her kids sleep. 

Her first novel, Fateful Fall (Worthington Detective Agency Book 1), released on August 2. She illustrated Memphis Learns the Hard Way by Karla Priddy Gragg in 2013. 

Splickety Magazine published her flash fiction story, An Accomplice to Love, in February 2016.

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Connect with Erin:
Website - www.erinungerwrites.com
Author Page on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ErinUngerWrites/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/erinungerwrites
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/erinungerwrites/

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