Gospel-Centered Living

Been learning a lot about my identity in Christ and how the gospel should transform EVERYTHING. It's a daily lesson but seems especially prominent lately. It's so hard to articulate this in a short post, but I will attempt. :) It's so cool how the Lord really consolidates my learning into major themes even though I read different books.


1. Sometimes we as Christians are way too hard on ourselves. We must find the balance between hating our sin while also living in the freedom of the cross...tough! Read Nehemiah 9 and see how patient the Lord was with the Israelites...He does the same with us! We have a purpose to serve, and we can all be used in EVERY season of our lives, whether we are in a valley or on the mountaintop.

“If the cross shows me that I am far worse than I had ever imagined, it also shows me that my evil has been absorbed and forgiven. If the worst thing any human can do is kill God’s son, and that can be forgiven, then how can anything else not be forgiven?”

— Rebecca Pippert
Hope Has Its Reasons
(San Francisco, Ca.: Harper & Row, 1989), 104

Awake, Jerusalem, awake!
No longer in your sins lie down;
The garment of salvation take,
Your beauty and your strength put on.

Shake off the dust that blinds your sight,
And hides the promise from your eyes;
Arise, and struggle into light,
The great Deliverer calls: Arise!

Arise and take your place O chosen one
And go! Declare the works- the Lord has done

Shake off the bands of sad despair;
Zion, assert your liberty;
Look up, your broken heart prepare,
And God shall set the captive free.

Vessels of mercy, sons of grace,
Be cleansed from every sinful stain,
Be like your Lord, His Word embrace,
Don’t bear His holy Name in vain.

We are children of the King
We will celebrate and sing
Sing the song of the redeemed
We are His and we are free“

Words by Charles Wesley & Kondo Simfukwe, Music/Arrangement by Kondo Simfukwe © 2004 HisFame Music http://hisfameministries.com

Isaiah 43:1-2
But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.

2. The opposite of faith is control....ouch! No matter what our circumstance, we have the cross to remind us of God's love and His kindness to us. It is arrogant to think that we need to control our lives, even the small things.

"Faith in Christ and a reliance on ourselves, even to the smallest degree, are mutually exclusive.”

— Jerry Bridges
The Disciple of Grace: God's Role and Our Role in the Pursuit of Holiness
(Colorado Springs, Co.: NavPress, 1994), 50-51

I have talked to so many friends lately who are struggling but not in the Word. Sometimes it feels impossible to slow down and read and pray! I have been there. But I cannot tell you the value of getting in Scripture! The world will slowly seep more and more into your thoughts if you are not careful. As Casting Crowns say, "It's a slow fade, when you give yourself away." Oh that Christ may be are daily instructor!! Have a good weekend, friends!!