As hard as Iris Urrey Blue tried, she could not hide from Him. Pursuing her every step of the way, in and out of prison, in the middle of heroin highs and robberies, was her Creator, who in eternity past had devised a plan that would turn this "incorrigible rebel" into one of His trophies of grace.
We live in a culture that thrives on performance and reward. If we study hard enough, we should get good grades. If we practice hard enough, we should win awards and trophies. If we work hard enough, we should get a promotion. It is easy to adopt this way of thinking in our spiritual lives. If our lives are good enough, we should get into heaven. If we just do more, God should be pleased. If we follow the rules, we should be better Christians. Nothing could be further from the truth.It is vital that we continually remind ourselves that the gospel is a gospel of grace. Why? Because it is easy to set aside the grace of God and live in a way that depends on us. We begin to rely on what we can do for ourselves, rather than what God can do, and has done for us through Jesus Christ. We continue to struggle with the truth that God's love is unconditional. Often we forget there is nothing we can do or have to do to earn it. We live less than abundant lives, thinking God is disappointed with us; that we don't measure up. As a result, believers end up living mediocre and passionless lives, trapped in the lie that they aren't good enough. Instead of choosing the freedom that is ours in Christ, like the Galatian believers, we choose slavery. Christians can make the serious mistake of believing that the gospel is reserved for salvation. The gospel is so much more than just about saving us. It is the hope that keeps us, while we wait for Jesus to return. It is what transforms us into Christ's image. The gospel is so powerful that we need to remind ourselves of it every day so we never take it for granted. Galatians is probably the harshest of Paul's letters. The dangerous position of the Galatian church and the critical nature of Paul's message drove him to write frankly and sharply to this group of Christians. For Paul, and for you and me, there is nothing more important than guarding the gospel of grace, because it is a serious offense to set aside the grace of God. Because "if righteousness came through the law, than Christ died in vain (Galatians 2:21)."So we do not set aside the grace of God. We cling to it. We stand on it. We hope in it. We grow in it. That's what Paul wanted for the Galatian believers, and that is what God wants for you and me. May this study cause you to live in the abundance of the one true gospel, the Gospel of grace!
Written for every mom who helps too much with homework just to impress the teacher and every dad who takes credit for his daughter’s soccer success, Trophy Child will give parents the encouragement they need to nurture their kids into who God created them to be. Our culture’s obsession with achievement often leads parents to form expectations for their kids based on the world’s standards, not on the Bible. As a result, their kids feel they never measure up. Trophy Child will help modern Christian parents create a home where children find success in following their heavenly Father’s leading for them—and readers know the joy of seeing their children embrace their full potential as children of God.
A more abundant life is within your reach. Join Jess Connolly as she casts a fresh vision for how to break free of cheap grace and empty rule-keeping and change the world rather than be changed by it. Grace is always good news, but it's not cheap. True grace compels us to change, and that's where holiness comes in. Jess Connolly--beloved writer, speaker, business coach, coauthor of Wild and Free, and author of You Are the Girl for the Job--will be the first to admit that not long ago, like many women, she embraced God's grace, but found herself forgetting holiness altogether. Dance, Stand, Run charts Jess's discovery that holiness was never meant to be a shaming reminder of what we "should" do, but rather a profound privilege of becoming more like Christ. In Dance, Stand, Run, Jess shares the truth that changed her life and her faith forever: once we've gripped the grace that Jesus has given us by faith and planted our feet on his holy ground, we become ambassadors of life, hope, truth, and love. Jess will give you the encouragement you need to finally: Claim your identity as a holy daughter of God Live out your holy influence with confidence before a watching world Discover your true purpose Dance, Stand, Run is an invitation to God's daughters to step into the movements of abundant life: dancing in grace, standing firm in holiness, and running on mission.
Sound familiar? 1. You spot a cute boy (we’ll call him Boy A). 2. You dream about Boy A. 3. You do whatever it takes to make Boy A notice you. 4. Even though Boy A doesn’t pursue you, you hang on to your dream of Boy A until he (a) moves to the North Pole with no access to a cell phone or computer, (b) dies and is buried or cremated, or (c) begins dating another girl. 5. You mend your broken heart by hating Boy A and finding another cute boy (Boy B). You replace Boy A with Boy B and begin all over again . . . Paula has gone through an entire alphabet—and more—of boys over the years. As she shares her journal entries and stories—the good, the bad, and the ugly—you’ll be encouraged to trust God with your love life and buckle up for the ride! Written for teen girls, Confessions of a Boy-Crazy Girl will help you on your own journey from neediness to freedom. Part of the True Woman publishing line, whose goal is to encourage women to exude God’s beauty by embracing his design for womanhood
For the last ten years, Angnes Parsons's biggest challenge has been juggling yoga classes and lunch dates. Her Santa Monica house staff takes care of everything, leaving Agnes to focus on her trophy-wife responsibilities. When her husband disappears, leaving Agnes and their infant daughter with no money, no home, and no staff, she is forced to move across the country, where she lands a job teaching at an all-boys boarding school in the Bronx. It is here that Agnes finds out what kind of woman she can be. Ultimately, she has to decide if she prefers the woman an dmother she has become... or the trophy life she left behind. -- adapted from book jacket
NEW YORK TIMES BEST HISTORICAL FICTION OF 2020 "Only Katy Simpson Smith could have written a novel of such elegance, emotional power, and grace. The Everlasting, a quadruple love story spanning two millennia, is no less than the story of love itself—its frustrations and thrills, its blunders and transcendent glories. Meraviglioso."—Nathaniel Rich, author of King Zeno From a supremely talented author comes this brilliant and inventive literary work of historical fiction, set in Rome in four different centuries, that explores love in all its various incarnations and ponders elemental questions of good and evil, obedience and free will that connect four unforgettable lives . Spanning two thousand years, The Everlasting follows four characters whose struggles resonate across the centuries: an early Christian child martyr; a medieval monk on crypt duty in a church; a Medici princess of Moorish descent; and a contemporary field biologist conducting an illicit affair. Outsiders to a city layered and dense with history, this quartet separated by time grapple with the physicality of bodies, the necessity for sacrifice, and the power of love to sustain and challenge faith. Their small rebellions are witnessed and provoked by an omniscient, time-traveling Satan who, though incorporeal, nonetheless suffers from a heart in search of repair. As their dramas unfold amid the brick, marble, and ghosts of Rome, they each must decide what it means to be good. Twelve-year old Prisca defiles the scrolls of her father’s library. Felix, a holy man, watches his friend’s body decay and is reminded of the first boy he loved passionately. Giulia de’ Medici, a beauty with dark skin and limitless wealth, wants to deliver herself from her unborn child. Tom, an American biologist studying the lives of the smallest creatures, cannot pinpoint when his own marriage began to die. As each of these conflicted people struggles with forces they cannot control, their circumstances raise a profound and timeless question at the heart of faith: What is our duty to each other, and what will God forgive? Moving back through time from today (The Wilderness) to the Renaissance (The City) to the Middle Ages (The Grave) and finally to Rome under Marcus Aurelius (The Paradise), Tom, Guilia, Felix, and Prisca search and suffer for love in the eternal city, made vivid and familiar as they reappear in each century.