94 results for tag: Lianna

In My Father’s House Are Many Rooms

“In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?” John 14:2 The disciples are concerned, here, with the departure of Jesus. They know that He will be away from them. In the previous verse, they are called to remember their faith in Jesus so that their hearts would not be troubledj. Jesus does not discourage their desire for nearness. Instead, He says that He is going to provide a way for even greater closeness—a place for the disciples (and us) in heaven. This reality would provide for even greater comfort and calm for their hearts. Jesus seemingly uses a metaphor here, that ...

Let Not Your Heart Be Overcome

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.” John 14:1 The disciples were concerned about Jesus’ imminent departure from them. Jesus says not to be troubled at the fact that He will not be on earth, walking with the disciples through the rest of their lives. He wants the disciples to remain steadfast according to the strength that He alone could impart. He looks to their hearts, aiming to give comfort and emotional support. So, he encourages the disciples that they believe in God, and in Jesus. The command to believe in God (14:1) can also be translated: “You believe in God.”¹ He reminds them of the preciousness ...

In the Word: Patiently Enduring

Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be meditating on 2 Corinthians 1:3-11. As we study the truths found in these verses together, we’d love you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into God's Word each week with us! “If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer.” 2 Corinthians 1:6 READ: Being able to ...

Dear Noelle: A Letter to my Hope Baby

Noelle, My dear, we miss you. Oh, we miss you. You’re missing from every day. There’s a hole in our family. How I want you! I got to wrap my mommy-arms around you in the hospital. You were a perfect baby. Full cheeks. Sweet hair. Plump lips. You were beautiful. I’m not over losing you. Though my grief is much different now these years later, it seems that yours are the tears that don’t stop being shed. And, I’m still waiting. Jesus. That’s who you’re enjoying now. How blessed! How beautiful! How rich! How glorious! I’ve gotten to know him better since you went ahead. Much. And, what I know without a shadow of a doubt is that I have ...

In the Word: God of All Comforts

Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be meditating on 2 Corinthians 1:3-11. As we study the truths found in these verses together, we’d love you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into God's Word each week with us! "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction" 2 Corinthians 1:3-4a READ: It’s often noted that God is with us in our adversities, that He is ...

The Heart of Joy

Joy—do you neglect this fruit of the Spirit like I do? Jesus has spoken to my heart, challenging me to a life of greater joy. It’s a hard word for me, I will admit it. He knows that. So, He gives me days to breathe, converse with Him, relax, be, rest, recuperate from sorrows—and yes, to summon joy to my heart little by little. Just as He kindly challenges me, He also provides the means for me to look to Him and receive the joy that He gives. As bits of joy appear in my life like little stars of glory, I start to wonder what it would look like for my joy to be full and radiant! What does misplaced joy look like in your life? You see, my joy is ...

I Know Why I Weep

There she stood, outside of Jesus’ tomb. Stooping to look inside, her weeping formed a river of anguish. She did not yet know that her Lord was risen.  Instead of Jesus’ body within that tomb, Mary Magdalene beheld two angels. Sitting, dressed in white. They knew that Jesus had risen.  So they asked Mary, “Woman, why are you weeping?” Why was she weeping in that tomb-garden? As I read of her answer recorded in the Gospel of John (chapter 20), I think that her reason is at the root of all tears of sorrow, in a sense.  “They have taken away my Lord…” she said.  Hers were genuine tears, tears for her greatest treasure—but not ...

Combating the Idleness of Grief

“We urge you, brethren, admonish the idle […] be patient with everyone”1 Thessalonians 5:14 NASB I understand, firsthand, that grief can stall a person—it can take a physical toll that might, especially at first, preclude the amount of activity in life that used to take no thought. Though this may seem disconcerting and endless, in my experience, it is an aspect of grief that time does change with time. But even further, perhaps you have been sitting, for a while now, with a sense that little is worth doing anymore in this life. I have had these thoughts. But the apostle Paul has practical encouragement. In 1 Thessalonians 4:11, he ...

Darkness Has Not Overcome the Light

“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 Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher).” John 20:15-16 When Mary Magdalene first recognized the risen Christ, she spoke the word Rabboni, Teacher, a word of personal knowledge and a word of submission. “Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, ‘Children, do you have any ...

The Day Jesus Died

Directly in front of me were church members standing to read the account of the crucifixion that Good Friday. I was dressed in black—something to outwardly signify my setting aside time to think of the day my Jesus had died. But I didn’t want to listen as the Scripture readers gave voice to the stripes, the crown of thorns, and the cross at “The Place of a Skull.” Stuck to my chair, I diverted eye contact from the readers—looking through vision soft and wet to the wall at my right. Some weeks have passed between that day and this one—sitting down with the account of Jesus’ death for this series. I still don’t want to look because I ...