Walk Into 2024 Without Feeling Overwhelmed!

Twenty twenty-four.
A fresh start.
A blank page.
A clean slate.

A collective excitement permeates the air every year about this time. You can feel it, right?! There is something appealing about new beginnings and endless possibilities that sparks renewed hope. We are inspired to write goals, try new things, and unleash our potential.

Eat better. Exercise more. Be on time (Ahem, I see you rolling your eyes at me. This year will be different!). Stay on top of laundry. Save more money. Read through the Bible. Do regular one-on-one dates with each of my kids. Read those books. Write that book.

I find it so interesting that every single year, with the changing of the calendar, this same phenomenon occurs. Clearly, human beings are hungry for better and hardwired to improve. And regardless of how the prior year went, we are eager to turn the page and forge ahead to a better version of ourselves.

I have to say that I appreciate and applaud this spirit of initiative and improvement. I think it’s a great thing to evaluate how we as individuals can be our best and then set goals accordingly.

Yet, as I consider my aspirations for the coming year, I realize that a lot of them are very ME-centric. How can I be better so that I can feel better about myself? How can I try hard enough and muster up the discipline and fortitude to reach my goals? How can I elevate Sarah?

And, if you’re like me, the list of what you want to improve starts getting really long…like, overwhelmingly and irrationally long. This is the point when I usually decide to sum up everything with one word.

Yes, that’s it, a word for the year! It’s usually something like “discipline.” Brilliant! That encompasses just about everything that I hope to achieve this year.

You can do it, Sarah! Just be more disciplined in EVERY SINGLE AREA of your life! That’s it. And 2024 will be a smashing success. You got this!

So here I am, turning my excitement for the fresh start of a new year into a crushing weight by putting a lot of pressure on myself.

That’s probably why every year about three months from now, I decide that I’m just not really a New Year’s resolution kinda gal. (Until next year, of course.)But this year, I would like to take advantage of the fresh start in a more realistic way. In praying through what that looks like, the Lord has given me a couple of things to focus on.

1. Instead of Living in Fear of Failure, Ask God where He wants me to be and what He wants me to do.

Rather than making a long list of all the things I think I should be doing, I am going to ask God what He wants me to do. I’m going to ask Him to guide me, and then rely on the Holy Spirit to follow where He leads. I am going to make the most of what He has already put in front of me. Yes, I am still going to aim for better eating and more exercise. But rather than making it all about me or how great I can be, I am aiming to make it about Him.

2. Instead of Living Under Pressure, Remember that I’m here for His Glory and Not Mine.

It’s great to have goals; it’s great to want to be my best. We should want that. But ultimately, the point is not to prop up Sarah. Everything I do should be done for the glory of the One who made me. My desire is that my actions point to Him and cause people to applaud Jesus and not me. And I will have to remind myself of this over and over, because my human nature always makes everything about me.

You know what? I actually feel relieved! If I’m following the Lord, I am right where I need to be, whatever that looks like. I can let go of the pressure to improve everything all at once, and let the Lord of the universe be Lord of my everyday life.

That may all sound simple, but I think I could use some simple in my life. I’m going to try to filter my decisions through these two focal points, and not sweat the details quite so much.Now if you’ll excuse me, there’s a bike over in the corner calling my name.

The post A Remedy for the New Year’s Overwhelm appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

In an Age of Deconstruction, It is Vital We Know the Truth of the Resurrection

Perhaps the most common word spoken to me each day is “why.” My kids have never taken my word for anything or let things go because I gave them an answer. Following almost every statement I make or explanation I provide is the question, “Why, mom?”

We are raising a generation of skeptics. And it goes back a few generations before. We have been taught to question everything and not take anyone at his or her word.

And even though I often get annoyed and respond with, “Because I said so,” I actually think it’s a great thing. I want my kids to be inquisitive, seek understanding, and ask, “why?”. I don’t want them to be blind followers or just take someone’s word for it. 

They took my word for a long time regarding issues of faith and the Bible. But in this age of deconstruction, as Bible-believing followers of Jesus Christ, we must know that the principles we hold dear concerning Jesus, His life, His death, and most importantly, His resurrection are true and valid. A generation asks us, “Why should I believe what you believe?”

Into this space, This Redeemed Life wants to speak truth into the void. Our new teaching series, Promises, looks at the promises of God in Scripture and WHY we should anchor our souls to these truths. Our latest teaching, The Promise of the Resurrection, is perfect for those asking: Did the Resurrection truly happen? Why does it matter? And how can I know it is true?

Tune into This Redeemed Life on YouTube to watch this new teaching. We believe it will encourage your faith in Jesus and His resurrection, equip you to answer questions from your non-Christian friends and provide key evidence to the validity of God’s promises. 

The post Why the Resurrection Matters appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

Each afternoon, when I check my mailbox, I grab the miscellaneous contents and immediately head to a trash can. Typically, my mail is filled with sales promotions and bills that are promptly tossed. But occasionally, checking the mail brings delight when I see an invitation sticking out of the pile. Invitations stand out because they are on pretty paper, hand-written, and I recognize the sender’s name on the envelope. So, while the rest of the mail gets trashed, invitations are opened, reviewed, and require a response.

The Bible is filled with invitations from God. An important one is Amos 5:4, where the Lord invites us to “Seek Him and live!” This invitation goes out, but only those who respond to it experience what Jesus calls the abundant life. To seek the Lord is much more than simply identifying as a Christian; seeking God’s face is a pursuit of the heart where we press into His presence, draw upon His power and grace, and ask the Lord for wisdom and direction for our lives.

Not only does God invite us to “seek Him and live,” but Scripture gives specific promises to those who respond to God’s divine invitation. 

1. God rewards those who seek Him! (Hebrews 11:6)
2. God never forsakes those who seek Him (Psalm 9:9)
3. God delivers those who seek Him from all fear! (Psalm 34:4)

Whether you are facing a significant life decision, need God’s wisdom in a relationship, or need His grace to endure, the promise from God is “seek Him and live.” 

Today at This Redeemed Life, we released a brand new teaching from Marian Jordan Ellis on the Promises of God. Marian shares the benefits of seeking God and how we press into His presence. Watch this new series on YouTube and discover God’s incredible promises for those who seek Him! 

The post The Promises of God: Seek Me and Live appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

Hi, I’m Kennedy. I’m a summer intern with This Redeemed Life Ministry. My story is one marked by the redemptive power of God to take a wasted life and make all things new by His Grace. For this reason, I want to share a few things I’ve learned about God’s Grace. First, grace is a gift. It is undeserved favor given to us in Christ.  This truth is fundamental to appreciating grace. But secondly, grace, when we truly understand it, is an act of God’s mercy that we should never abuse.

Growing up, my two favorite days of the year were my birthday and Christmas. The reason is quite simple, gifts. Who doesn’t love a good gift? Like most kids, I loved presents. They were free, and I did nothing to earn or deserve them; I just received them. This paints the perfect picture of God’s Grace.

The Gospel teaches us that God offers us a free gift – the greatest gift of all time – eternal life. As Romans 6:23 says: “For the wages of sin is death but the Gift of God in Christ Jesus our Lord is eternal life.”

Let’s take a second to break this verse down. The hard truth is this: “For the wages of sin is death.” This scripture teaches us if we have sinned, which according to Romans 6:23, we “all have sinned,” then because of this rebellion, we deserve death and eternal separation from God. If this verse were the end there, it would be sad indeed. However, it says, “But the Gift of God in Christ Jesus our Lord is eternal life.” Instead of death, God offers us a gift of eternal life when we put our faith in Jesus.

Friends, this is the Gospel of Grace; it is a gift of God.

This truth confronts the lie that many believe God’s love must be earned with good works or achieved with a perfect performance. However, the critical part of understanding grace is that we do not deserve it; we actually deserve the opposite. The Gospel declares that because of Grace, God has made a way through His son, Jesus, so we can spend eternity with Him. So just as Jesus took the place of a convicted criminal when He died on the cross, so Jesus took our place and faced death for us. That’s why the entire message of Christianity is summed up in the word grace.

Now that we understand that God’s Grace is a gift and the only access we have to a relationship with Him, we must address the issue of cheap grace.

The problem in the church today is that many people talk about grace and turn around and abuse it. Some treat God’s amazing grace as an excuse to indulge our sinful nature and consider it a “FREE PASS” to sin. Grace is not a free pass to sin; it is God’s empowerment to free us from sin and evil.

I love how John Piper explains this: “Grace is not simply lenient when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon. Therefore, the effort we make to obey God is not an effort done in our own strength, but in the strength which God supplies.”

I went through a season of life when I treated God’s Grace like a free pass to sin. Although I was a Christian, I was living in rebelion and using grace as an excuse. But I was miserable because Jesus died to free me from sin, not to enable me to stay chained to it.

My view of grace changed when I had a revelation of Jesus’ death on the cross. Before that experience, I heard about the cross and believed Jesus died for me, but I didn’t comprehend the depths of His love that would send Him to such a horrific and brutal death. One day while I was worshiping God, I closed my eyes and imagined Jesus nailed to the cross. I could see the blood and His ragged torn flesh. Then, in my heart, I sensed Jesus say, “Kennedy, I would do it again all just for you.” I remember weeping to the point that I couldn’t see straight. For the first time in my life, I understood that God’s Grace is neither cheap nor a free pass to sin.

The Grace of God cost Jesus the excruciating cross. It was for my sin and rebellion that He suffered and died. From that moment, I didn’t want to continue to live in sin and trample over the Grace of God. I wanted to live a life worthy of the One who died for me. My life became a response to God’s love shown to me on the cross. It is this picture of grace that has transformed me. As John Piper said, “It is the enabling gift of God not to sin.”

So whether you grew up in church and have heard the word grace more times than you can count, or you are a seeker reading this, I want to say from one sinner to another, God’s Grace is amazing. When we receive this undeserved gift, we are given life, forgiveness, and freedom.

There is not a day that has gone by since that revelation of Jesus on the cross that I don’t marvel at the mercy and love God has extended to me. Friend, I pray the same for you.

To dig deeper into the Grace of God, tune into This Redeemed Life on YouTube and watch The Wonders of Grace. In this teaching, Marian Jordan Ellis unpacks God’s Word and explains how God’s Grace transforms us from the inside out.

Written by Kennedy Adcock

Kennedy is a Summer Intern with This Redeemed Life. She hopes to pursue ministry after she graduates from Texas A&M in December 2023. You can follow her on Instagram @Kennedy_Adcock

The post The Gift of Grace appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

Everyone from Hollywood celebrities to old Church ladies talk about prayer, but what is it? And, what, if anything, does prayer accomplish? It is noteworthy that of all the things Jesus’ disciples asked Him, the one thing they asked Him to teach them was how to pray. The reason for their question is because they witnessed the power of Jesus’ prayer life. They watched how Jesus’ relationship with His Father through prayer brought Heaven to earth.

This reminds me of how Andrew Murray describes prayer.

“We must begin to believe that God, in the mystery of prayer, has entrusted us with a force that can move the Heavenly world, and can bring its power down to earth.” – Andrew Murray

Don’t miss this –Prayer is a force that can move the Heavenly world!

In prayer, the power of heaven comes to earth. The impossible becomes possible. The presence and power of God experienced. Prayer is not a list or a formality; it is, at the core, an engagement with God.

Recently my husband and I traveled to England, one of my favorite places on earth. While there, I was able to tour him around Oxford University, a place that holds great significance in my life. As we stood there I sensed the power of prayer as I thought of the countless ways God had moved in my life since I studied there twenty years ago as a single woman. From ministry to marriage, the story of my life could be told through the answered prayers that rocked my world and changed my life forever— how my longings brought me face to face with my desperate need for God’s heavenly intervention and when I called out to Him, He answered and moved in my story for His glory.

In the opening scene, I’m a young twenty-something woman—empty, hurting, and spiraling out of control. I didn’t know Jesus at that point, and one night, while sitting in a bar, I tossed my first real prayer towards heaven: “God, if you’re real, help.”

“Help.” Not an eloquent prayer, but a powerful one.

That prayer changed the trajectory of my life. Soon a friend invited me to her church where I truly heard the Gospel. I heard that I was created by God and for a relationship with Him, and I would never find love, fill my emptiness, or experience real life apart from Jesus. The grace of God intersected my mess; He heard my prayer and set me free.

The next scene is of that same young woman, new to her faith, yet struggling to live it out in the midst of a strong pull back to the world and sin. Sitting in my car one night, I broke down in tears. I couldn’t do it without God’s power.

This time, my prayer wasn’t a single phrase, but an audible cry: “God, I can’t live this Christian life unless you change my heart. Give me a heart to love you more than anything else in this world.” I connected the dots…If I loved God, then I would live for God.

Friends, it is hard to put into words the supernatural transformation that occurred as a result of that prayer. Heaven invaded my heart. My desires changed. I began to hate the things that I was formerly enslaved to. I hungered to know God more.

I literally experienced butterflies for Jesus. But more than just emotion, I experienced the power of the Holy Spirit to live for God.

God answered my prayer in powerful ways. He gave me a deep love for His Word. I began to read it like my life depended on it, and in reality, I think it did. As I read the Word, my prayers began to take on more boldness. Faith fuels our prayers and as I discovered more about God in the Bible, I was emboldened to believe Him more for my life and for others.

As I grew in my relationship with God, prayer became more than just a morning quiet time. Prayer was my life-line to a real God who supplied my needs, moved mountains, provided wisdom, and brought His comfort in times of need.

Another huge answer to prayer was for the healing of my heart from painful wounds. Friends, I was a mess before Jesus. Thankfully, God longs to heal us. My inner healing occurred on my knees—in His presence—as I cried out to the Lord. There are thousands of prayers that went into that season, but the bottom line is this: I was not healed by medicine or therapy, I was healed by the presence of Jesus. (Yes, He can and does use both meds and therapy.) But it was Jesus, the Great Physician, who touched my soul and transformed a little girl who thought she was unwanted, usable, and useless into a woman who, today, knows she is beloved, pure and called. I am a new creation and living in freedom and wholeness because of prayer.

I will never forget the prayers that birthed this ministry. Sensing early on in my walk with Jesus that my life was not my own anymore, I laid down my life to the call with one simple prayer, “Wherever you lead, I’ll go.”

There is no formula, there is just surrender.

I see myself, in my early thirties, walking the streets of Oxford, England. I was there as a seminary student when the Holy Spirit gripped my heart for women who don’t know Jesus. One of my professors quoted D.L. Moody who said, “The world has yet to see what God can do with one life fully committed to him.” That line ripped through my soul like hot lava. I wanted to be that girl! So walking through the cobblestone alleys of Oxford, I talked to Jesus about this burning in my soul, saying, “Send me. Use me. All of me, for all of You.”

That simple prayer —“send me”—birthed This Redeemed Life Ministry.

The next two years of my life would be the most intense, God-shaping season I’ve ever experienced. The Lord guided me to start this ministry. Step by step, He led me.  First, calling me to write my story in a book called Sex and the City Uncovered, and then working miracle after miracle to get this unknown-nobody published. From there He miraculously opened doors on college campuses across the nation for me to share the Gospel.

Prayer is my oxygen. I’m desperate for Jesus. I didn’t know what I was doing (and still don’t) and desperately needed the Lord to lead. Prayer opened every door, provided every opportunity, imparted wisdom, and empowers everything we do at TRL.

This last testimony is one I’ve shared often with single women. The Lord faithfully answered my years of praying for a husband in a way that still blows me away today.

I’ll be honest, at times my prayers for marriage were full-on-ugly-cries as I wavered in unbelief asking, “God, why not me?” But most days, in my quiet-time, I recorded the same simple requests in my journal.

• I prayed for a man who loved Jesus more than anything else in this world.
• I prayed for a man who would be a ministry partner.
• And selfishly, a man who would be taller than me.  (Yep, God can handle our non-spiritual requests.)
•  Finally, I always prayed, “Don’t give me what I want, give me your best!”

Let’s be real—this request was not answered overnight. Few are. Years passed and I would waver in faith, until one day I sensed God calling me to step up my game. He wanted me to start a prayer group for women to intercede for our future husbands. This sounded crazy to me, but I’m so glad I obeyed.  I emailed some friends and we met on the first Monday of the month.

Something shifted in my prayers during this season. Instead of showing up with my list to tell God what to do, I began to listen to the Holy Spirit, asking Him to show me how to pray. As I allowed the Spirit to lead our prayer times, I experienced more confidence that I was praying God’s will. About a year later, I met Justin. Looking back, I know the Lord was showing me how to pray for him and preparing my heart to meet him.

Friends, these are just a few examples of how prayer has transformed my life. But here’s the honest truth. I still feel like a rookie. I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of what God has for us. That being said, I want to take this opportunity to what I’ve learned.

1. Prayer is best when it is raw, messy, and honest. I think the more real we are with God, the better. He loves for us to bring our true selves before Him. Don’t worry about having the right words, or reciting specific phrases, prayer is simply talking to Him.

2.We have not because we ask not. (Matthew 7:7) The Bible tells us to be persistent and to keep asking. As I look back on specific prayers over the years, I know that God wanted me to ASK, so that I could SEE Him as the PROVIDER.

3. God’s delays are not God’s denials. Often we stop praying when we don’t see an answer, when in reality, this is the time that we should keep praying. Just because we are in a waiting season doesn’t mean God said “no.” As I reflect back on my years of singleness, I know the Lord allowed that season for my good. His delay in answering my prayers was for a purpose that I could not see at the time.

4.Prayer + the Word go hand in hand. If you want to become a woman of prayer, then here is my challenge: Become a woman of the Word! The Bible fuels a prayer life. It shows us how God worked in the past and reminds us how He can work today. Don’t limit God through unbelief. The same God who parted the Red Sea, brought down the walls of Jericho, and raised Jesus from the dead is the One who hears You. When you are immersed in God’s Word, then your prayers will come from a deep well of faith.

5. Keep a prayer journal. I have stacks of prayer journals in my office from the past 15 years of walking with Jesus. These journals help me tangibly see how God answered my prayers. Sometimes I will flip back through journals from 1999, 2004, 2009 and stand in awe of what Jesus has done. He is faithful!

6. When we can’t understand His hand, we trust His heart. I have friends struggling through some very difficult days. The prayer of one friend in particular for physical healing has yet to be answered. I’ve watched as her deep love for Jesus has grown more and more through this journey. Cancer is an ugly, nasty disease. And though it ravages her body, it has not changed her faith. We live in a broken world. Yes, God answers prayer, but sometimes His answers arrive in packages we don’t expect.  Our hope is in Him, not in a particular outcome. He is good. The key to faith is trusting His heart, even when we don’t understand His hand.

7. God’s Best is Worth Praying For! Prayer is a force that brings the power of heaven to earth. I want to encourage any woman reading this to pray bold prayers. If you have a desire or vision, pray it into existence! If you have a longing, take it to the King of Kings. I honestly believe that we partner with God through our prayers to bring about the will of God in our lives. From ministry to marriage, I’ve seen this truth played out in my life time and time again. God’s best is worth praying for!

Friend, prayer is our access to the very throne room of God and through our relational communication, we experience His nearness, guidance, and provision. I conclude with these thoughts from Andrew Murray on prayer:

“Beware in your prayers, above everything else, of limiting God, not only by unbelief,
but by fancying that you know what He can do. Expect unexpected things above all that we ask or think.” – Andrew Murray

 

The post 7 Powerful Truths I’ve Learned About Prayer appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

You Have a Purpose in the Kingdom of God

At dawn on Sunday, Mary Magdalene slipped into the cold Jerusalem morning. Her destination was the garden, where Jesus had been buried. Just two days ago, she watched in disbelief and agony as He was tortured and died. She was also there with Jesus’ mother, Mary, as they took His body down from the cross and buried Him in a borrowed grave. Death did not deter her devotion. The other disciples were too afraid to surface from hiding, but not Mary. She was the first person to the tomb. She didn’t care; she had one thing on her mind—ministering to her Jesus. What could the Romans do to her now? They’d already taken away the one thing that mattered to her in the world—her Lord.

As she ran towards the tomb, she remembered the first day she saw Him. He entered her village, and her world turned upside down. Everyone had heard of Him, but now she would see the One that many believed was Messiah—the Savior. Could He be? “Just one glimpse,” she told herself. She’d always heard that the Messiah would make all things new—He would heal the sick, give sight to the blind, and free the captives. She thought, “Maybe if I just see Him, then my years of torture will end.” You see, Mary was terrorized by seven demons and her life was riddled by the destruction of the enemy. But by faith, she made her way to Jesus. She pressed through the crowds, which parted at her presence. No one wanted to associate with such an unclean, crazed woman. No one, but Jesus, that is.

Mary encountered Jesus and breathed the sweet air of freedom. She believed that He was the Messiah—the Son of the Living God. Revelation brought transformation. From that moment on, she devoted her life to following her Savior. Words cannot express the love she felt for Him.

How can you not love the one who sets you free?
How can you not love the one who heals your body, soul, and spirit?
How can you not love the one who offers acceptance when all you’ve known is rejection?

As she hurried towards the tomb, she thought, “He cast seven demons out of me, yet didn’t spare His life from crucifixion. I’m living proof that He had the power—why did He submit to such a death?” Mary and the other disciples were slow to comprehend the reason for His death and now the news she was about to hear would change the world forever.

As Mary neared the tomb, she stopped with fright. The grave…the tomb…the stone—it was rolled away! Assuming the worst, that someone had stolen His body, she sprinted back to get Peter and John. Gasping for air, she reported the news, “They’ve taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put Him!”  Upon hearing her news, the two men sprinted ahead of her to the garden.

Mary was right. The stone was rolled away. Jesus was not in the grave. Peter and John found the strangest thing inside …His clothes were neatly folded. The scene in the tomb did not indicate a hasty body snatching. Confused, they turned and headed back to join the others. But not Mary, she stood outside the tomb crying. Jesus, her Lord and her Savior, was gone.

The past few days’ events caught up with her. She must have been in shock from watching the brutality of His death, but now with His body missing, the flood of grief poured out. With hot tears streaming down her cheeks, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels seated where Jesus’ body had been placed. John’s gospel tells us what happened next:

But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned, and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her. John 20:11-18

Scripture tells us that what occurred in the garden would forever change Mary and all who place their hope in King Jesus. Turning away from the angels, she saw a man standing before her. Assuming He was the gardener, she continued until the man spoke her name, “Mary.” Now, there would be no denying Who was speaking. She knew that voice!

That voice set her free.
That voice healed her life.
That voice gave her hope to keep living.
This was the voice of her Jesus.

“Teacher, “she exclaimed as she flung herself at him.

Could it be true?
Is it really my Lord?
How can this be?
I watched Him die, but here He is …  very much alive.

As these thoughts flooded her mind, she was unaware that she was holding onto Him, too afraid to let go. Loosening her hold on Him, Jesus commissioned the woman who was once defeated by demons to declare His victory, saying, “Mary, go tell the others. I am alive!” Obediently she ran back to the disciples, becoming the first proclaimer of the resurrection. With a radiant smile, she declared, “I have seen Jesus—He is alive!”

SET FREE AND SENT.

Set free and sent. This is Mary Magdalene’s story. She experienced Jesus’s incredible power to transform a life, and then He sent her to bear witness to the world that He is alive. This is also my story. As a young woman in my mid-twenties I encountered Jesus, and my world was rocked. Just like Mary, I too was imprisoned to the Enemy. But Jesus was more powerful and set me free from sin, shame, and brokenness. And He didn’t stop there. Jesus healed me to send me out to proclaim victory and to tell the world that He can do the same for anyone who comes to Him.

Friends, women play a vital role in the Kingdom of God. After all, the very first proclaimer of the resurrection was a woman. If you know Jesus as Savior, then you have the same redemption story and now you just need to share it! Just as He sent Mary Magdalene out to proclaim the resurrection story, He is sending you to proclaim the same great news of His love and salvation to your friends, coworkers, and family. I also pray you will discover your spiritual gifts and use them in your local church and surrender your life to where ever Jesus sends you. Your role in the Kingodm of God is vital… each of us set free and sent!

The post Set Free and Sent appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

“The Bible is supernatural; it is God breathed, it transforms lives, tells us who we are, and gives us a purpose. The Word of God is a Wonder!” –Marian Jordan Ellis

Hi, I’m Kennedy. I’m a summer intern with This Redeemed Life Ministry. I will never forget attending a Christian conference in college that changed my life. Until then, I was the typical sorority girl who lived for the next party and centered her life on pleasure. I, for sure, wasn’t living for Jesus; I was living for all the things the world said would make me happy. During that conference, I heard the message of Jesus and knew He was calling me. But it wasn’t until the last day, when the worship team led the song, “Build My Life,” that I surrendered mine to Jesus. If you aren’t familiar with this song, the chorus says: 

 I will build my life upon Your love
It is a firm foundation
And I will put my trust in You alone
And I will not be shaken

For months before this conference, I was confronted with the reality of Jesus. But in that moment,I faced a choice: to surrender and follow Jesus or to continue living for myself and this world. I chose Jesus. I lifted my hands during that song and confessed the lyrics as my prayer. That is the day I said “yes” to Jesus. The broken party girl, completely ruled by the sinful world, turned to God and was rescued by His grace. I left that conference a changed woman.

Leaving that confernce, I knew I was different. The sinful desires that held me captive for years began to fall away. Not to say that I didn’t struggle with sin after that, because I did. However, for the first time, I experienced conviction for what I was doing, but most importantly, I now wanted to please God. I did not want to return to my old, empty way of living. I wanted to know Jesus with all my heart and “build my life on His love.”

Let me pause and say this was just the beginning of my transformation. The real change happened after the conference when I returned to my college town and began seeking Jesus on my own through reading the Bible. It was during that season that I experienced the supernatural power of the Word of God, or as Marian likes to say, “The Wonder of the Word” for myself.

I was hungry for the Word and sought people to teach me the Bible. As I read the Bible, God softened my heart and revealed areas of my life that He wanted to change. As I opened it each day, I felt myself changing on the inside– something I could never do in my own power. Now, I understood why the Bible is called a wonder.

“For the word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword , piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12

The Bible is a wonder because it transformed my life from the inside out.

I share my transformation story because I know some people have experienced a similar encounter with Jesus at a conference or summer camp. Perhaps you also lifted your hands up in surrender, but then you came back home but your life went back to the old “normal.” 

You may be reading this and can recall when you, too, said “yes” to Jesus, but today your life looks the same as it did before that decision. Friends, I am here to tell you as living proof that the Bible is, in fact, a wonder. I’m not sure what would have happened to me after that conference had I not been encouraged to read the Scripture and learn to follow Jesus.

There is no substitute for time in God’s Word. We can have powerful encounters with Jesus at summer camps and conferences, but we must return home and seek Him for ourselves. To experience His transforming power, we must open our Bibles to know Him. Then we will encounter His supernatural presence and power in our lives.  

If you can relate or maybe you just have questions about the Bible, I want to encourage you to listen to Marian Jordan Ellis’ new Bible teaching, The Wonder of the Word. This Bible teaching will encourage your faith, stir your passion for knowing God through His Word, and answer questions about the Bible’s authority and authenticity. Tune into this teaching on YouTube and leave a comment because we’d love to connect with you and hear what Jesus is doing in your life.

Written by Kennedy Adcock

Kennedy is a Summer Intern with This Redeemed Life. She hopes to pursue ministry after she graduates from Texas A&M in December 2023. You can follow her on Instagram @Kennedy_Adcock

The post The Wonder of the Word of God appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

Are you in a season where you need God to show off? Are you walking through a trial in which you want to believe God can and still does work wonders? Are you struggling to hope for a breakthrough, a deliverance, or for God to meet a particular need in your life? Or, have you given up hope, believing it’s too late or your problem is too big?

I get it. When I was in high school, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. I felt like I was drowning and didn’t know which way was up. As a girl who grew up in church, I read in the Bible that Jesus performed miracles: turning water into wine, parting the Red Sea, and closing the mouths of lions, but where was Jesus now? I needed Him to heal my mom and calm the storming seas of my heart. The question that haunted me was this – is God the same today as He was in the Bible? Does He still work wonders?

I vividly recall when my mom was diagnosed, sitting in my living room with my sister as my mom told us the results of her biopsy. The tests were positive; it was cancer. Immediately, I ran to my room, sat on my bathroom floor, and cried. Fear swarmed my thoughts. Instead of running to the faith of my childhood, I ran to alcohol. This went on for nights and nights. I tried to ignore the reality of my mom’s illness by numbing my pain. Turning to alcohol was an escape, but it didn’t offer me the hope and peace my soul craved.

Years later, while in college, I came to genuine faith in Jesus Christ and watched with my own eyes how God worked wonders in my mom’s sickness and her healing. Not only did Jesus deliver me from my sin and alcohol addiction, but He has proven Himself faithful in countless ways. I can tell you without hesitation today that He is the same God of the Bible. Yes, Jesus still works wonders!

Perhaps you are a single woman, and the hope of marriage seems too far gone. Or maybe you’ve been diagnosed with something, and you read in the Bible that God can heal, but don’t dare hope for yourself. Or, perhaps you long to be a mom, but the pregnancy test remains negative each month. Whatever your struggle, our faith needs to rest on the fact that God is the same “yesterday, today, and forever” … and yes, He is the God who works wonders! (Psalm 78:11)

Hebrews 11:1 reminds us, “Faith is being sure of what we hope for, being convinced of what we do not see.” Perhaps your faith needs a boost today so that you can hope for a move of God in your life. Perhaps your heart needs a fresh reminder that our God is the one who opened prison doors, healed the blind man, and provided water from the rock!

Tune into our new series, Wonders of God, and check out the first episode, “Expecting Wonders,” where Marian Jordan Ellis opens God’s Word and fuels our faith in the God who can move mountains and delight in showing up and showing off for His children.

Watch Expecting Wonders on You Tube:

Or tune in wherever you listen to podcasts.

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Google Podcasts

Make sure to subscribe and turn on post notifications for Marian Jordan Ellis and This Redeemed Life Ministry so you don’t miss out on anything!

Written by Kennedy Adcock

Kennedy is a Summer Intern with This Redeemed Life. She hopes to pursue ministry after she graduates from Texas A&M in December 2023. You can follow her on Instagram @Kennedy_Adcock

The post Does God Still Work Wonders? appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

How to Prepare Your Heart for Easter

Feast on Jesus this Lent with Behold and Believe, a 40 Day Study of the Life of Jesus

“Oh, wait, don’t eat that! You can’t eat it!” 

It was during the season of Lent when my childhood friend Megan caught my hand just before I popped the peanut butter cup into my mouth. I half-heartedly thanked her for the reminder, and with reluctance, threw away the candy that seemed infinitely more appealing now that I couldn’t eat it. It wasn’t so much that I couldn’t eat it, but more that I was choosing not to. 

If you had asked my ten-year-old self why I wasn’t eating one of my favorite treats, I would have told you that I gave up chocolate for Lent. But if you had asked me the reason I gave it up, I probably would have fumbled for an answer.

Now that I am a few decades older and hopefully a little wiser, I have a better understanding of the Lenten season and why Christians observe it. Lent takes place over the 40 days leading up to Easter, and is a period of turning our attention to the sufferings of Christ and reflecting on the sacrifice He made for our sin. People often commit to fasting or abstaining from certain things as a way of honoring Jesus’ sacrifice. Some fast from a particular food or from social media. It is a time of preparing our hearts both to remember Good Friday, when Jesus endured unspeakable agony on the cross, and also to celebrate the glorious resurrection of our Savior on Easter Sunday.

As the Lenten season approaches, many of us consider how we might turn our full attention to Jesus. Perhaps I’ll give up something for those 40 days. Buckle up, (peanut) buttercup! Actually, this year, I am thinking more about what I can take in. How can I spend quality time with Jesus, getting to know my Savior more deeply and personally? 

What about you? Have you stopped to consider how you will prepare your heart for Easter this year? Instead of simply saying no to your favorite dessert, I want to challenge you to take the next 40 days to focus on knowing, loving, and following Jesus more. 

Experience Jesus this Easter

If you are like me and want to truly experience Jesus at Easter this year, then I want to encourage you to take the next 40 days to walk through Behold and Believe, A Study of the Gospel of John, which is an in-depth journey through the life and ministry of Jesus. This study, written by Marian Jordan Ellis, examines the eye-witness account of John, one of Jesus’ closest friends and disciples. Not only do we behold Jesus’ ministry and miracles through the Gospel of John, but Marian unpacks the Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming Messiah and how Jesus fulfilled them. Day by day as you walk through Behold and Believe you will savor the richness of God’s Word and feast upon the glory of God.

Behold and Believe is A 40 day walk through the life, teachings, and miracles of Jesus that culminates with His death and resurrection. A great way to spend the 40 days of Lent in preparation for Easter.

• You’ll walk alongside Jesus and His disciples as He first begins His public ministry.
• You’ll watch in awe as He heals the sick and performs miracles.
• You’ll see His great compassion and love as you listen to His teachings.
• You’ll weep alongside His followers as He is hung on a cross.
• And you’ll burst with joy when the stone is rolled away on that third day!
• You’ll be in awe of the way God planned and orchestrated every detail, and how the Bible is one story of God’s love for humanity and His plan to rescue them.
• You’ll behold the Messiah, and believe that He is who He says He is. Your heart will be turned toward your Savior.

A family member recently told me that she has never really enjoyed doing Bible studies, but that she looks forward to sitting down with Behold and Believe each day. Another woman said she has been discipling a friend who is new to studying the Bible, and they are going through Behold and Believe. She says, “Marian’s humor and analogies, and the way she explains John’s intentional order of events have helped put the pieces of our Lord’s ministry together with ease. What joy it brings to see my friend nod with understanding!” 

Behold and Believe is wonderful for large groups or small groups, or even to go through on your own. In addition to the rich teaching in the study book, each week has an accompanying video teaching by Marian that is available for free online. 

There are lots of good devotionals out there for Lent, but I cannot recommend with enough enthusiasm that you do Behold and Believe. It transformed my faith because as I got to know Jesus better, I couldn’t help but love Him more. 

Feast on Jesus this Lent

Truth be told, I often miss the whole season of Lent, and then all of a sudden Easter has come and gone. I’ve usually set out some cute baskets of treats for my kids and done a professional job of hiding eggs (I’m talking – find them in unexpected places the remainder of the year – professional!). I always enjoy the Easter service at church and worshiping our risen Lord. But I feel like I’m unprepared for it, and the moment passes me by. I’m often struck by the sense that I missed out on the weight of the holiday, and also on the magnitude of the resurrection. I don’t want to just observe what Jesus did in His life and death, I want to participate in it!

I know how I’m spending Lent this year. Want to join me? 

Order Behold and Believe on Amazon today and watch the videos here: https://www.beholdandbelieve.com

Sarah Fredrick Thompson is a Staff Writer at This Redeemed Life Ministries

Sarah Thompson has a master’s degree in International Affairs from the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M, and has worked in the fields of government, nonprofit, and women’s ministry. Wife to Austin and homeschool mom to Eleanor, Evan, and Annie, Sarah is soaking up the chaos and joy of raising three kids and cheering them on in all their activities. A perfect day would be spent in the mountains and involve hiking, reading, family and friends. She lives in San Antonio, Texas with her family and two dogs, Huckleberry and Gracie. Sarah is passionate about Truth and seeing people experience the joy that is found in a relationship with Jesus.

The post How to Prepare Your Heart for Easter appeared first on This Redeemed Life.

Chances are you’ve probably sung the classic Christmas hymn, The First Noel. But have you stopped to ponder the meaning of the word, noel?

The first Noel the angel did say

was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;

 in the field where they lay keeping their sheep 

on a cold winter’s night that was so deep. 

Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, born is the King of Israel.

Christmas hymns are my absolute favorite. Move over Mariah Carey; all I want for Christmas is Carrie Underwood singing, “Oh Holy Night.” Not only do these sacred hymns remind us of the true meaning of Christmas, but they are also packed with excellent theology. 

The First Noel is one of my favorites. It describes the story from Luke 2, which explains how the Bethlehem shepherds, the first to hear of the Savior’s birth from an angelic messenger, were also the first to declare the glorious news to the world.

Recently, I was singing The First Noel and was stopped in my tracks as I puzzled, “What is the meaning of Noel?” Friends, I love writing and reading words, but I especially love studying the origin and history of language.

For this reason, I began researching the historical roots of the word Noel. Noel is the French word for Christmas. I knew that, but that didn’t help me understand why the Shepherd’s declared Noel. So, I kept digging. 

I soon discovered that Noel is a linguistic puzzle. Originally in French, it meant “news.” But it finds its origins in the Latin word for “birth.” Centuries later, it would mean “shouts of joy” in English. Pulling the threads of this puzzle together, I learned that Noel is a joyous declaration to the world, saying, “A Child is Born, and now all is well!” Let’s say that agian. 

Noel … Now, All is Well.

For a world crippled by the weight of sin… Now, All is Well

For the soul hungry for the love of God… Now, All is Well

For the heart weighed down by guilt and shame… Now, All is Well

As you sing The First Noel this Christmas season, let the familiar carol remind your heart that because of Jesus, Now, All is Well. 

Watch the entire teaching on The Meaning of The First Noel on YouTube.

The post What is the Meaning of The First Noel? appeared first on This Redeemed Life.