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Category 104 Faith Works 0518 0718
Category 104 Faith Works 0518 0718
Category 104 Faith Works 0518 0718
05
18 Faith | Works
CAN WE TALK?
God wants to hear from you! The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Journal can inspire you to deepen the
conversation between your heart and His using encouraging Bible verses, beautiful calligraphy, and guiding
life principles from Dr. Stanley. There are pages for recording your hopes, insights, questions, prayer
requests—and God’s answers. Communicate with God like never before through journaling.
$15 usd
Find helpful tips, examples, tools, and learn about all the journal features online.
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09 INTOUCH.ORG
FA I T H | W O R K S
stones. Each stone was settled in But I have recently discovered any other way? (Matt. 26:39). that God has not promised a life
its own perfect square, and each something else: I am afraid of I am the way, Jesus says, and without suffering.
square led directly to the next. God, too. that may be the only answer we Can we love someone we fear?
I did not give my paper garden absolutely need (John 14:6). I cannot love a garden snake,
squares for weeds or squares for IS IT POSSIBLE to fear God and to Walking on easy answers can but, then, that snake does not
the groundhogs who love to eat love Him? I always believed this help us begin our journey, but love me. We love because the
dahlias. My children would help
me weed. My cats would chase
I am afraid of what was an easy question, and in the
first springtime of our faith, we
ultimately we must step out on
the Cornerstone Himself. This
mighty God we do fear loved us
first (1 John 4:19). We love, not
away the groundhogs.
In earliest spring my gar-
lurks in the world. I am need ready answers. They are
our stepping stones, and I walked
is a scary thing to do, and fear
is precisely the right word for
because He helps us avoid death
and suffering, but because His
den still resembled that paper afraid of what lurks in my firmly on the knowledge that fear the experience. Fear isn’t merely comfort is real and solid beneath
plan, but any vision of neat
grids and perfect squares was heart. But I have recently of God is not like other kinds of
fear. It is a kind of awe. Yet the
a synonym for awe, as I once
claimed. Standing on the Corner-
our feet. And we love because
we believe His assurance that
soon blurred, then completely
obliterated by the living garden. discovered something else: day comes when we cannot find
that familiar solid ground. Our
stone of Christ, I have trembled
to acknowledge the One who
all these winters are leading us
to one eternal spring. I do not
Zinnias flopped onto the roses.
Dahlias defied the sticks and
I am afraid of God, too. foot hovers in air, and we trem-
ble to remember that “the Lord
holds the power of life and death
in His scarred hands. I have been
know what we will find beyond
the perceived safety of our gar-
twine I used to cage them. And a kills and makes alive; He brings painfully aware of my own weak- den gates, but I know every step-
giant Norway maple cast shade down to Sheol and raises up” ness. I have felt both great peace ping stone along this Jesus Way
onto one quarter of the plot, (1 Sam. 2:6). He is God of the and the troubling recognition has been laid for us in love.
stunting growth and undermin- killing frost as well as the God
ing my hopes for perfect sym- of spring. I have only to imagine
metry. Between the weeds the some terrible loss or some awful
children failed to pull and the disappointment to recognize that
floppy flowers I failed to trim, what I feel is not awe. I am afraid.
the stepping stones disappeared Can we really trust Him? This
entirely, though I still managed world is choked with the bram-
to find one or two from memory. bles of injustice, anguish, and
And the groundhogs? Every death, and God gives no guarantee
morning for weeks, I woke to that our lives won’t be touched by
find one more dahlia brought low
for a nighttime buffet. I was sometimes uneasy imag- And where am I? I have hid-
the same. My paper sketch was
no help against hungry ground-
Like Job and David,
ining new questions for which I den myself away among these hogs, and my easy answers are no we have questions
FOR A LONG WHILE, my spiritual
life was a neat and tidy thing,
had not yet prepared an answer,
but it is the old questions that
familiar answers and known
paths because I am afraid. The
match for suffering. Like Job and
David, we have questions and we and we have God, but
too. In this interior landscape,
every hard question had its cor-
have proven to be the wildest,
perhaps because they have the
weeds of my own persistent
shortcomings have spread, and
have God, but we don’t necessar-
ily have answers. we don’t necessarily
responding easy answer, which
encircled my soul like stepping
deepest roots. And no questions
are older than the questions
I have heard the howls of hun-
gry animals just beyond the EVERY EDEN has its crafty snake
have answers.
stones. I went round and round that first echoed in Eden after stepping stones. Stealing, kill- whispering questions laced with
on those answers, feeling safe Adam and Eve rejected God’s ing, and destroying, their deeds fear and doubt, but unanswered
and confident. But if we walk good way. fill newspaper headlines day by questions need not frighten us.
with God long enough, some Where are you? God asked day (John 10:10). I feel threat- Truth suffered and died on a
of our questions will defy the Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:9). ened by the evil of a world that cross that we might all conquer
sticks and twine we use to cage Where are you? God asks me has turned its back on love, but I death, and Truth has invited
them. Some easy answers will and you. also feel implicated in it. us to walk with Him. But this
go missing beneath the weeds, I was afraid because I was I am afraid of what lurks in the requires picking up our own
the drifting leaves, or the tur- naked; so I hid myself, Adam world. I am afraid of what lurks cross, and it is only reasonable
moil of a sin-soaked world. said (v. 10). in my heart. to ask, as Jesus once did, Is there
T H O U G H T F U L FA I T H . D E V O T E D L I V I N G . 10 11 INTOUCH.ORG
FA I T H | W O R K S
and in no time most of the peo- comes along that isn’t sweeter through-Friday world for very well acquainted with life’s chill.
ple in the room were raising than the one before. What do long—love people and places In other words, if we’re going to
EVERY SEAT IN THE ROOM WAS FILLED , so a handful of people, hands and voices. But suddenly you do with that day? Or week? and things—and you have to chase hard after the God who
including me, had to stand against a back wall—a row of floor-to- the music stopped. One member That month? Or year? admit there are days when those is our hearts’ strength and our
ceiling windows, which bathed the room with the bright 8 a.m. of the duo said, “OK, we’ve got With each trip around the sun, chilly lines hit the mark. Yes, we portion forever, I need you—and
sunlight. Standing on a slightly raised platform were a couple some people in the back trying I find myself more and more at are called to be singular in our you need me, too.
T H O U G H T F U L FA I T H . D E V O T E D L I V I N G . 12 13 INTOUCH.ORG
FA I T H | W O R K S
ONE QUESTION, FOUR ANSWERS I WAS RAISED with an understanding that the The storms of adversity are a part of life. It’s not a question of if they’ll
good news of Jesus is personal salvation come, but when. When you’re blindsided, are you sure your anchor
and individual reconciliation to God, but as will hold fast? In Standing Strong, Dr. Stanley identifies the most
I’ve grown in my faith, my understanding
foundational truths about God and His Word, and reminds us that our
of the good news has encompassed a
essential beliefs about life issues will make all the difference. When
broader vision of God’s kingdom here on
earth. God desires not just our repentance our convictions are based on the rock-solid foundation of God’s
and relationship to Him; He also invites us enduring promises, we can stand strong with unwavering confidence
into the work of restoration. Our individual no matter the circumstances.
relationship to God should have commu-
nity impact, which involves seeking justice
$19 usd
to correct systems and structures that per-
petuate oppression and marginalize people
made in the image of God. For followers of
Christ, loving our neighbor means engag-
ing the systems and structures in which our
neighbors live. Jesus cared not just about
people’s spiritual condition but about their
physical and social needs as well, and we
have the privilege to continue that work as
the church.
HOW HAS YOUR VISION OF GOD —Jenny Yang, VP of Advocacy and Policy
at World Relief and co-author of Welcoming
CHANGED AS YOU’VE GROWN IN YOUR FAITH? the Stranger: Justice, Compassion & Truth
in the Immigration Debate
I’VE BEEN A CHRISTIAN for nearly 40 years IN RECENT MONTHS I have begun to feel a I HAVE FOUND GOD to become more familiar
now, and to speak frankly, I am often disap- shift in my vision of God. It has always been and more strange at the same time. I get
pointed by how little, over those decades, I easier for me to relate to Jesus and to the now, in my mid-40s, more than I did as a teen
have grown in holiness. My teenage self Holy Spirit, but recently I have felt God what it means to be a friend of God. It’s a
would have expected me to be much more pursuing me as a loving father does his wonderful feeling: that relaxed sense of
Christlike by now! But while I may be disap- daughter. My view of God as Father has being at home with someone. But I also find
pointed in myself, I am not discouraged. My always led me to see Him as a disciplinarian myself equally at home with the mystery of
shortcomings have made me more aware, who is impossible to please and will spank God, with the things that exceed my capac-
day by day and year by year, of how patient me when I mess up. But as I have pro- ity to comprehend. I understand more fully
God is with me, how forbearing, how full of gressed in my faith, God is showing me that this mystery is something to be entered
kindness and grace. Like the father of the that while any good father disciplines into deeply rather than mastered. It makes
Prodigal Son, He waits for me when I stray those he loves, our heavenly Father also me think of what Bonhoeffer once said, that
from Him and comes to meet me when I delights in seeing His children smile, laugh, “[the] more we come to know a thing, the
turn back to Him. It is therefore fitting that and enjoy being with Him. I want to more mysterious it becomes for us. Not the
even in the book of Lamentations, we hear: become that little girl who curls up in her person who is furthest away from us is the
“The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never Daddy’s lap, asks Him for the desires of her biggest mystery, but rather the nearest
cease, for His compassions never fail. They heart, full of faith, and accepts that He one.” His observation makes sense of my
are new every morning; great is Your faith- knows best. How interesting it is to grow experience of God—and gives me peace.
ILLUSTRATION BY ELTIPO
fulness” (3:22-23). in maturity while regressing to childlike- —W. David O. Taylor, Assistant Professor
—Alan Jacobs, Distinguished Professor of ness at the same time! of Theology and Culture at Fuller
Humanities in the Honors Program of Baylor —Mandisa, Grammy Award-winning Theological Seminary, and author of The
University and author of How to Think: A recording artist. Her latest album is Theater of God’s Glory: Calvin, Creation,
Survival Guide for a World at Odds Out of the Dark. and the Liturgical Arts
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T H O U G H T F U L FA I T H . D E V O T E D L I V I N G . 14
FA I T H | W O R K S
DAY 7
I find myself saying the prayer
to myself as I get the mail or
A Simple when I am picking up clothes
from my bedroom floor—when
Refrain it’s quiet.
I’m realizing there isn’t much
What I learned by incorporating silence in my life. When I’m not
listening to music, I’m listening
thoughtful repetition into my prayer life
to a podcast or watching a video What if, like holding
BY ALINE MELLO
PHOTOGRAPH BY
on my phone. These can deepen
my understanding of life and eye contact with someone
DARREN BRAUN relationships or offer relief to
the daily anxiety that consumes for too long, silence
my mind. So maybe filling up
silence isn’t such a bad thing—
requires confrontation?
but I wonder.
I DON’T KNOW GOD as well as What if, like holding eye con-
I think I do. tact with someone for too long,
silence requires confrontation?
This devastating revelation What if it asks me to stay exactly
came after several heartbreak- where I am, as I am, in the real-
ing disappointments in my life, ity of my life—alone with the
which made me doubt every- stinging disappointment and
thing—especially how to inter- the monotony of every day, the
act with God. Questions poured deeper questions pushing their
out of the darker, hidden part way up toward light? groups makes me uncomfortable. out on the floor. They brought
of my brain like ants fleeing a Perhaps that’s why silence Those who know me have heard large plate after large plate—of
damaged anthill. draws me to prayer, to God. my disclaimers about my own chicken and beef and vegetables
It creates room to reflect. The group: I change “Brazilians eat a and herbs—and placed them
Do I even know how to pray? deeper I think, the more ques- lot of corn” to “Well, the Brazil- on the sheet. There were clear,
Why do I keep asking Him tions I ask, the closer I get to the ians from my town, and my fam- small rice wraps and bowls with
for the same things? Is there answer—and it’s always Jesus. ily—actually, just the ones I’ve water. Our hosts taught us how
even a point? Even in the midst of pain, of hard met—seem to me like they eat to dip our fingers in the bowls,
questions, it comes back to Him. more corn than non-Brazilians.” and dab the sides of the wraps so
To address my doubt, I decided have felt. Yet the early Christians not only persisted but flourished. I Silence invites me there sooner. But how do I know when my ten- that when we stuffed and folded
to look into what the first Chris- discovered that praying at fixed hours throughout the day was among dency has gone too far? them, they’d stay sealed.
tians did after Jesus ascended. I their spiritual disciplines. DAY 15 When I was a teenager, my We sat cross-legged around
figured His disappearance into Though I was afraid it would become another item on a to-do list, The Lord’s Prayer uses the plu- father’s soccer team played the sheet and began the dance of
heaven must have been a big I determined to incorporate praying Matthew 6:9-13 into my daily ral. It trips me up. Our Father in against a majority Vietnamese reaching and passing plates. We
enough event to make at least habits. I did so three times a day, hoping it would help me overcome heaven. Give us today our daily team every Sunday. So after a ate for hours—soccer rivalry,
some of them feel as lost as I the emptiness that had become all too common. I decided I’d try it bread. I consider changing it to game, when one of the players language barriers, cultural dif-
did. Were they disappointed? for three weeks. singular, but I can’t bring myself invited my family to eat at his ferences put aside.
Did they feel abandoned? These to change Jesus’ prayer. home, we said yes. That night, we wouldn’t have
people could, only a month DAY 1 The plural makes me think I’ve We arrived at the apartment, eaten, had we not passed the
prior, hear and hug Jesus. But When I remembered to pray today, I was already walking my dog ignored the importance of groups and the couple led us to the liv- plates. The community in that
now they had to communicate for the night. It was too late to space the prayers out. Isn’t the point in Christianity. Our society is ing room. The couches and cof- room wasn’t just enjoyable—it
with Him somehow through the of praying three times supposed to be about an all-day awareness of obsessed with individuality, fee table were against the wall, was needed.
Holy Spirit. How odd that must God? I pray only once—before bed—and I hope it counts. and so am I—fitting people into and there was a bed sheet spread Even when we’re Continued on pg 18
T H O U G H T F U L FA I T H . D E V O T E D L I V I N G . 16 17 INTOUCH.ORG
FA I T H | W O R K S
LYRIC ESSAY
PLUMAGE by Cameron Lawrence
eating alone, we can still remem-
ber we are part of a greater
group—along with the peo-
ple who picked and packaged
the vegetables, the person who
cooked them. Maybe that’s why
“
Jesus instructed His disciples
to pray in the plural, rather than
WHAT’S WRONG WITH ME, I’m so lazy,” my accomplished
the singular. He said it as if He
wanted us to remember that even Jesus instructed His
friend says one afternoon, and I know what he means
when we’re alone, we’re not—we
remain members of a larger body.
disciples to pray in the plural. is help me hate myself less, because for as long as we’ve
DAY 22
He wanted us to remember known each other, there’s been an invisible mouth he’s trying to feed,
Yesterday was the last day of
my prayer experiment. Tonight,
that even when we’re alone, a mythical beast with an unquenchable hankering for the impos-
when I was walking out of the we’re not—we remain sible—a requirement that lives somewhere between hell and the
store, I saw a group of four
women and three children sit- members of a larger body. stubble on his chin. I know by “lazy” he means that he has willingly
ting on the ground. They were
brown-skinned like me, and one climbed inside inaction as if a plush casket, and every moment
woman said “Please,” hand out- without completing a task is another feather in the funeral pillow.
stretched. Startled, I looked at
her and said, “Oh, I’m so sorry!” To be worthy of this body—these days spent lengthening grocery
and kept walking.
I almost turned around. I lines and adding congestion to highways—my friend believes there
almost put my groceries in my should be perpetual evidence of his being here, preferably in the
car and went back. But I didn’t.
What could I have done? Fear form of something a person can praise or spend. His moments in
made my heart pound heavy. I today their daily bread, all the I USED TO THINK prayer needed
was one woman. It was dark. food they need. I had to believe to be felt first, then practiced. It time collecting hair-like on the slender rachis of a quill, dipped into
Should I have invited them into that my failure wasn’t enough sounds silly in hindsight, but I the marrow of existence to write again and again the line I am here.
the store and bought them neces- to deter God from helping fam- thought God would hear me bet-
sities? Should I have given them ilies like them. Have mercy on ter if I spoke with more emotion. Because my friend has confused life with its doings, as if someday
the milk from my bag? The cash them. Have mercy on me. I had to I’ve learned that He is always
in my wallet? Maybe yes. Maybe believe that God doesn’t choose attuned to me, even when I am he will arrive on a mountaintop, where all the self-possessed sec-
I should’ve done all of it. I am between us. That He doesn’t careless with my time and atten- onds of his striving will coalesce into a beautiful pair of wings, capa-
tired of those of us who offer give me cereal and soy milk but tion. Prayer is there to make me
prayer but not bread. But tonight ignores them. Forgive us our remember God, not make God ble of sending him soaring above the trees, free from the shadows of
that’s all I did. sins as we forgive those who remember me. So when I slow
I prayed out loud. Our Father have sinned against us. I had to down to pray each morning, after- self-loathing. I say to my friend, “I’m sorry, I understand,” but what
in heaven, have mercy on them. know that it doesn’t all depend noon, and night, I draw closer to I mean to tell him is the basis of worth-ship is not accomplishment
I stood outside my car, hand on on my efforts, my prayers. And I my Father in heaven. And, though
the handle. Forgive me. I felt the had to remember that just as they I may still not yet know Him as but worship, in rising each morning to stretch one’s empty hands
shame, the regret of it. Forgive lacked God’s mercy and needed it, well as I once thought I did, I can
me. May Your name be kept holy. so did I. The plural in the prayer reserve time to connect with Him upward and say thank you—a burden so light you might be forgiven
May Your kingdom come soon. included them, too. Don’t let us even in my confusion, failure, and for thinking it doesn’t weigh enough, for once again picking up the
May Your will be done in their yield to temptation, but save all apathy—to turn my face toward
lives, as it is in heaven. Give them of us from the evil one. Amen. Him and begin again. same old heaviness and continuing to fall.
T H O U G H T F U L FA I T H . D E V O T E D L I V I N G . 18 19 INTOUCH.ORG
FA I T H | W O R K S
We’ve been using a prayer innate attraction to holy things. liturgy carries me, in my spiri-
book to guide us through these “It’s shivering,” Oliver says,
LIKE THE PARALYTIC IN tually injured state, to the altar.
times. It is a liturgy of sorts, as the flickering candle holds THE GOSPELS, WHOSE There, I sit with God in silence.
The Little Church with an order of songs, psalms,
Scripture readings, and scripted
our gaze. The tiny flame creates
a hush, a set-apartness, which
FRIENDS CARRY HIM TO
JESUS, THE LITURGY
Children, too, require carry-
ing. “In His arm He will gather
prayers, along with space immediately slows our pace and the lambs and carry them in
When it comes to forming healthy habits of worship, don’t
underestimate the role your home can play.
for silence and free-flowing makes us take notice. The first CARRIES ME, IN MY His bosom,” says Isaiah of our
intercession. item in the liturgy is a song, which SPIRITUALLY INJURED Shepherd God (40:11). Liturgies,
The words reflect and lit- Oliver selects at random from a through their ritual nature, also
BY LIUAN HUSKA ILLUSTRATION BY MICHAEL KIRKHAM
urgy combined with 3-year-old tattered red songbook. The songs
STATE, TO THE ALTAR. serve our young ones, forming
might seem incongruous. Maybe in the book are simple and repeti- THERE, I SIT WITH GOD a worship “habit.” The order of
you think of splattered candle tive, which gives him a chance to IN SILENCE. songs, readings, prayers, and
wax, wiggly legs making unholy join in after a couple rounds. even the uncomfortable minutes
FIRST, we light the candle. The flame is a physical hallowing of bumps in the silence, and rushed “Our soul is waiting for God. of silence create a shape for our
our living room space, where we hold weekly family worship. As readings. That is sometimes Our hearts find joy in the Lord.” hearts, helpful especially for
we’ve transitioned from our previous church and not yet started the case. More often than not, We sing this slowly, eight or those of us (me included) who
attending a new church regularly, these times serve as a spiritual though, I’ve been pleasantly sur- nine or 10 times. The words etch find ourselves in a time of tran-
huddle for my husband, our 3-year-old son, and me (and the baby, if prised by how much Oliver has grooves on our hearts, which we sition. For children, the liturgy
he’s not napping). taken to the liturgy, and by his can return to at other times of holds a sacred space in which to
the day to touch wonderingly. explore and wonder.
I’ve found Oliver humming the prompts, “Baba, it’s your turn. We might not come from litur-
tunes we have sung, or mutter- Mama, do you have anybody gical traditions, but most Chris-
ing snippets of songs before fall- else?” We move on to some tians have some form of public
ing asleep, “Jesus, remember scripted prayers, including the worship that includes prayers,
me [when you come into your Lord’s Prayer, and end with a responses, and orderly progres-
kingdom] …” song. Most importantly for him, sion—what some people call an
A psalm is next—Psalm 71. I Oliver gets to blow out the can- order of worship. What this does
explain what refuge means—a dle to signal the end of “church is make clear that our worship is
shack, say, in a thunderstorm. time.” His desire to participate not something we created our-
Later, Oliver interrupts, “What in whatever small ways he can selves but rather something we
is ‘awe’?” We go back to the reassures us that what we are receive from those who came
thunderstorm example: “Some- doing is sinking beneath the sur- before us (though we have the
thing that makes you go, ‘Wow!’” face level and into his heart. freedom to make adjustments,
Then come readings—one from My husband and I are coming as our family does to include our
the Old Testament and one from out of a season where we have children). These ties ground my
the Gospels, followed by another been burnt out by church—by generation and the ones to follow
song, then a time of silence. expectations of a certain level of by reminding us we are part of
Sometimes we set a timer to help involvement, by the pressure to something deeper and broader
contain the minutes for Oliver. appear pious. What I appreciate than the present moment. You
Today we play it by ear, moving about this prayer book are the might call this Church with a
on when he gets too fidgety. reasonable expectations. You big C, Church at its best. I think
Next are “Intercessions.” We show up, even if you don’t have that this sense of belonging to
take turns bringing up people anything particularly poignant the Church, of touching a current
we know—my parents, whose to say. The psalms, readings, steadier than the ebbs and flows
house was flooded in Hurricane and prayers shared by others of our own short lives, is part
Harvey, for example. When near and far, living and now of what Oliver is responding to
nobody says anything for a dead, carry you along. Like the when he joins in. It is something
while, Oliver (who has inher- paralytic in the Gospels, whose to look for in the new church
ited my type A personality), friends carry him to Jesus, the we’ll call home.
T H O U G H T F U L FA I T H . D E V O T E D L I V I N G . 20 21 INTOUCH.ORG
Dive Deeper. Soar Higher. 07
18 Faith | Works
Imagine spending your personal devotional time growing in faith with a
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09 INTOUCH.ORG
deep grief and deeper healing in Oh, God! Your grace is fluid, complete release, the weight- After the last person spoke
a Sunday morning sound bite? flowing, flooding, unleashed, lessness in my chest, the peace to me, I saw the woman who’d
And how could I share about my unlimited, unmeasured, opening up in my heart like a unknowingly called me a mur-
past sin in a holy worship ser- undeserved—a gift bestowed fluttering of wings. deress, standing at a distance. I
vice, especially with men and
children present?
I hid my sin because without merit, without cost
to me, free. It is a ceiling-
After the worship service,
many men, women, and teens
saw her hiding behind her own
fig leaf of remorse. I walked
As a new Christian in my early
20s, I’d had an abortion. I was
many people I knew hated less sky, a relentless riot of
rain, a shoreless, bottomless
stepped up to offer love, thanks,
encouragement, and tears. One
over to her, arms outstretched.
She leaned forward, press-
young, confused, petrified of abortion and failed to ocean, there for the taking woman held me close, whisper- ing her face into my shoulder.
childbirth, and overwhelmed by
the thought of raising a child. I show a shred of compassion, by the teaspoonful, cupful,
bucketful, basinful, what-
ing in my ear, “I understand your
pain personally. Please, may we
“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m
so sorry,” her words a sweet
felt trapped. Immediately after
the procedure had taken place, I love, or grace. ever amount for whatever
need. And, with the taking,
talk later?” Several others did the
same. Then an elderly man said
refrain. “I just didn’t under-
stand,” she said. “Can you ever
was relieved, with no real aware- no diminishing supply— in quavering voice, “I’ve never forgive me?”
ness of my sin or empathy for my unending, unfathomable. told anyone, but my mother had Author Max Lucado said of
child. I’d bought the abortionist’s an abortion out of desperation God, “We hide. He seeks. We
“blob of tissue” lie. For almost 20 years, I’ve during the Depression, because bring sin. He brings a sacrifice.
Over the years, however, my sandbagged the flow of Your my parents couldn’t feed another We try fig leaves. He brings the
decision haunted me. As God grace and lay dying in the child. She regretted her decision robe of righteousness.” That day
convicted me through Scripture When I finished reading, each shame suddenly overtaking me sand—parched and shriv- for the rest of her life, and so did I saw fig leaves falling down at the
and others’ testimonies, I real- participant came forward and again at the thought of speak- eled like snakeskin, thick- we. I long to see my sibling in foot of the cross and hearts lifted
ized the grave sin I’d committed cradled me in tenderness and ing to our congregation? Then tongued, cotton-eyed, unable heaven.” Another man admitted, up to the throne of God. Wor-
and grieved my child’s death. love. Their actions reminded me it came to me: Six months ear- to see or speak or receive “I never knew until recently that shippers who’d had abortions
Though I confessed my guilt of our loving Lord, who showed lier I’d had a talk with an older forgiveness, unable to walk the reason my mother divorced and those who had judged them,
and begged God’s forgiveness, heartfelt compassion to the woman at church. Not knowing to the water to plunge my fes- my father and landed in a psych all were draped in the righteous
I couldn’t receive it because of woman caught in the shame of my past, she asked, “Lynn, how tering heart into Your ocean’s ward was because she’d had two robes of Christ’s grace, compas-
the alienation my shame caused. adultery. Rather than hurling can women murder their own depths. I’m Bethesda Pool’s abortions. He couldn’t help her sion, and love—garments He had
For 18 years I would agonize— stones her way, He confronted children? They are the coldest, paralytic—immobile—wait- because she could never forgive purchased with His blood, robes
unable to feel God’s forgiveness the judgmental hypocrisy of her most callous creatures imag- ing for You to stir the waters, herself. I wish she could have that had expunged their shame
and unable to absolve myself. accusers, and they left in shame inable. They are detestable.” I lift me up, and put me in to heard your story.” and mine.
I absorbed the harsh condem- and silence. But Jesus remained. stayed silent. baptize my wound in the sea
nation Christians spewed at Just as God had covered Adam As I prayed now whether to of Your grace, to bury my sin
women like me without ever and Eve’s nakedness with gar- share my testimony, God spoke. in the depths of the ocean.
understanding our desperation ments made from the skin of sac- He impressed upon me these With Your help, I would be
or knowing our stories. I hid
my sin because many people I
rificial animals, Jesus—the One
who would someday sacrifice His
thoughts: Fix your eyes on Jesus.
He endured the cross and scorned
satisfied now to swallow even
the tiniest raindrop of grace. Fix your eyes on Jesus.
knew hated abortion and failed
to show a shred of compassion,
life for the adulteress’s—draped
her in His robe of righteousness
its shame and pardoned yours.
Tell your story. Share His grace.
I’m dying of thirst for Your
love, thirst for Your pardon.
He endured the cross and
love, or grace.
But God knew how much
and declared, “I do not condemn
you, either. Go. From now on sin
I said yes to God and to Pastor
Mike, telling my story on a sunny Your love flows freely. I’m
scorned its shame and
I needed such kindness and
bestowed it at a secular journ-
no more” (John 8:11).
Jesus hadn’t condemned me,
Sunday morning. And I hid noth-
ing—my sin, His forgiveness;
ready to receive the forgive-
ness You gave me when You
pardoned yours. Tell your
aling retreat. As I responded to nor had these retreat partici- my shame, His atonement; my opened wide Your arms on story. Share His grace.
a writing prompt about a deep pants. I hoped I would receive self-condemnation, His Self- Calvary’s cross, when You
emotional injury that had never such a caring response if Chris- giving grace. Oh, how I shared died for my sin of abortion.
healed, God used my pen to lance tians heard my story, so I His grace through joyful tears
that festering wound. Writing began telling it to small groups as I read the prayer I had written When I finished reading my
allowed me to give voice to my of women. Not one stone was in my journal on the day Christ prayer, just as I had so many
anguish for the first time. thrown. So why was this hideous set me free from abortion’s guilt: ye a rs a go , I ex p e r i e n c e d
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ONE QUESTION, FOUR ANSWERS River City Community Church and author of The storms of adversity are a part of life. It’s not a question of if they’ll
White Awake: An Honest Look at What come, but when. When you’re blindsided, are you sure your anchor
It Means to Be White will hold fast? In Standing Strong, Dr. Stanley identifies the most
foundational truths about God and His Word, and reminds us that our
THE OPIOID CRISIS IN AMERICA is a troubling
essential beliefs about life issues will make all the difference. When
pro-life issue nobody’s talking about. If we
care about unborn babies and seeing lives our convictions are based on the rock-solid foundation of God’s
saved, we must also care for children enduring promises, we can stand strong with unwavering confidence
affected by drugs. Likewise, increasing no matter the circumstances.
numbers of kids have entered foster care
because they’ve suffered abuse at the hands
$19 usd
of their parents, many of whom are dealing
with addiction. So if we’re going to say we’re
pro-adoption and pro-foster care but are
not dealing with some of the underlying
issues, we’re missing an opportunity. Drug
addiction affects our communities. Every-
one can tell you a story about families that
have been ripped apart because of it, so if
we want to uphold human dignity, we can’t
neglect this issue. It affects our broken
world in more ways than we realize.
WHAT IS ONE ISSUE YOU WISH THE CHURCH —Phillip Bethancourt, Executive V.P. of the
Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission and
WOULD ADDRESS DIFFERENTLY? Assistant Professor of Christian Theology at
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
I WISH THE CHURCH would address mental GENESIS 1 TELLS US we are created in the very I DON’T LIKE BEING CRITICAL of the church,
illness differently. By conflating neuro- likeness and image of God. The social con- because there are many congregations out
chemical issues with spiritual ones, the struct of race, however, was engineered to there that are hitting on all cylinders. How-
church harms people. Those with bipolar communicate a very different agenda: that ever, I think all believers need to do a bet-
disorder desperately need a mood stabilizer human value is determined by where a per- ter job of engaging with Scripture. William
but have been told they’ll get better if only son falls on the racial hierarchy. Certain Lane, the man who discipled me, talked
they will pray more, have more faith, and races in our nation have been deemed bet- about the disciplined use of the imagina-
read their Bible more often. That is spiritual ter than others, allowing evils such as slav- tion. What he meant was that we should do
abuse at worst and spiritual malpractice at ery and white supremacy to thrive. The our homework and understand the cul-
best. Of course, everyone is well served by racial narrative that some humans are more tures, history, geography, and languages
praying more and being in the Word. But we worthy than others is wrong, but it is more used in the Bible. But we need to use that
wouldn’t tell a cancer patient to do those than that: It is a mockery of God. knowledge in a way that empowers people
things alone in order to be cured. We should Despite constantly being reminded of to engage with Scripture on their own. We
likewise stop doing so to people with serious our history of racial brokenness, Christians try to cross all the T’s and dot all the I’s
mental illness. It’s dangerous and harmful. nonetheless hear their churches classify ourselves rather than trust the power of
These precious suffering individuals need racial issues as “social” issues that take a God’s Word to do the work. Jesus is a very
ILLUSTRATION BY DAN FORSTER
the love and wisdom of Christ manifested backseat to the core work of proclaiming compelling person, and if we do our best
to them. The time has come. We can and the gospel. I wish the church would call out to present who He really is, people are
must do better. the sin of racial injustice with clear convic- going to respond.
—Kelly M. Rosati, CEO of KMR Consulting tion, pointing us to the Christ, whose pur- —Michael Card, award-winning
and former V.P., Advocacy for Children for pose was to create one new humanity. singer-songwriter and author of John:
Focus on the Family —Daniel Hill, Founding and Senior Pastor of The Gospel of Wisdom
1-800-980-0020 | INTOUCH.ORG/STANDINGSTRONG
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LYRIC ESSAY
IN THE DIM by John VandenOever
resources I have—an education,
employment, reliable transpor-
tation, a house in a good neigh-
borhood, food on the table,
medical insurance, friends to
T
lend a hand—it is still challenging
to care for our boys. How had she HE MOON HANGS LOW as the sun sleeps, my teen-
managed it for a few months, let
alone years? I wondered, wiping age son due at work in 10 minutes. But the engine
my nose with a shirtsleeve. Sure,
my family had been poor when I was holding my sons’ doesn’t sound when I turn the key, only a patch-
I was growing up, but I’d had a
birth mother accountable work of lights on the instrument panel. I crank again
mother and father who loved one
into another failure. So we ferry our things to my
another, a stable home life, and a
safety net. for not being me, for not
wife’s car, and drive away as the cost of repair settles on me.
When my husband and I were
first married and struggling to making the choices I’d been When we arrive where my son works, he opens his door and
make ends meet, my grand-
mother told me, “Baby, we won’t
taught were right. the December air bites—just as I was warming up. “Lord, help
let you get in a mess. If I have to
scrape the bottom of the bar- me,” I say, as my son walks past. The world in hibernation as
rel, I’ll split it with you.” It had
always been that way. When I bullet along quiet roads. God, look at me, I think, a doubt-
trouble came knocking, my fam-
ily went to the front door to
ing fool, acting as though You hibernate, too. So I pray, “Help
answer it together. That kind of my unbelief” and troll the downtown streets, squinting at the
certitude has a way of shaping
a person. It undoubtedly gave dim parking lots. An odd little spot behind the Marriott with
me a different perspective and had.’” Nick heeds this wise coun- a wall, a flimsy paper privacy
helped me to make decisions sel, but until I got knocked in the screen between me and the fact a self-service box and an early-bird rate. Then a mistake—a
with the long game in mind. My
boys’ birth mother had few or
dirt, metaphorically speaking,
I’d forgotten it. So much of my
that, with a few changes to our
respective situations, she and I
man I think is the lot attendant. “Help me,” he says, just out of
none of those advantages. Sure, highbrow morality wasn’t the weren’t so different. And with jail and homeless, in need of only nine dollars. A simple story,
she’d made poor choices—I’m product of amazing virtue or that realization, my anger evap-
not trying to excuse her by any Christian character, but divine orated, and it became impossible and yet I don’t understand. From his back pocket he unfolds an
means—but ignorance and des- providence. I was holding my for me to hate her any longer.
peration, rather than malice, sons’ birth mother accountable Am I still exasperated at official-looking document, but I’m not reading, only consider-
accounted for many of them.
In the opening lines of The
for not being me, for not mak-
ing the choices I’d been taught
times? Certainly. Is she the
source of my frustration? Often,
ing the words, Give to everyone who asks. And since I’m asking,
Great Gatsby, narrator Nick were right. But how could she without a doubt. But I’ve crossed seeking, knocking, trying to believe, I retrieve my
Carraway says, “In my younger have known without someone to the battle line to stand with her,
and more vulnerable years my guide her, to help her get ready this woman I may never meet but wallet and he takes the cash. Where the money
father gave me some advice that for adulthood the way my par- who gave me two of the greatest
I’ve been turning over in my ents had done for me? joys of my life. We’re still walk- will go, who knows, but in the dark morning I
mind ever since. ‘Whenever you
feel like criticizing any one,’ he
As I sat in a dark closet in a
puddle of self-pity, an even more
ing that minefield, but we’re
making progress. And thankfully
AU DIO
Listen to the writer
think about my lack and this man who lacks more.
told me, ‘just remember that all surprising truth finally dawned a bomb in my heart—perhaps read his lyric essay So before he goes, I put my hand on his shoulder. I
the people in this world haven’t on me. My anger had really been one of many—has been disarmed at intouch.org/
had the advantages that you’ve some pathetic attempt to erect for good. inthedim. bow and say, “Lord, help us both.”
T H O U G H T F U L FA I T H . D E V O T E D L I V I N G . 18 19 INTOUCH.ORG
ment “I learned my catechism wouldn’t save me.” In one way, she was we’re exposed to. don’t), we’re alerted to some kind guarding our hearts means we back at some mythical golden era
right. Rote memorization of doctrine doesn’t get anyone into God’s Much of our cultural catechesis of brokenness somewhere in deliberately seek to break the or forward to some movement
kingdom. But there is a way in which such practices do redeem us. consists of traditions worth cele- the world, and then are barraged ingrained habits warring against we believe will save us. No, we
Catechism is a fancy word for “formal instruction.” Specifically, brating. These are a beautiful part with the corresponding range of our souls. Second, and perhaps look upward and onward, antic-
catechisms are a series of questions and answers about core doctrinal of the diverse tapestry of human- opinions that follow. even more importantly, we must ipating that city whose builder
issues. If you have any familiarity with them, it might be from some of ity, a product of how God has, in Have we stopped to consider allow Scripture and theology and maker is God.
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