Jesus is Alive

​My daughter, Kia, sent this to me last week. She had written her own "encourager" and felt compelled to share it...

Jesus is Alive
"The basic Christian story of creation, fall, promise, and fulfillment is clearly discernible in Scripture to those who can see a good beyond this world and whose minds recognize that charity is beyond the intellect. For people whose desires are merely worldly, the Bible has no appeal whatsoever." -Blaise Pascal, Three Outsiders, p. 45Is the Bible appealing to us? Well, as Christians our answer is yes. That book is full of truth and promises that provide hope for us in this hopeless world. But are we actually reading the Bible every day or are we doing it as a chore? What in our life or in our thoughts is preventing us from depending on God for everything? If we fully comprehend that we are nothing without him, we can't help but soak up his Word daily in order to be filled with life. We should be praying continually to show devotion to him, to thank him, and to be with him. We should be seeking to risk and tell everyone we come in contact with about his love. 

I think about the disciples (Luke 24:13-49). This past Easter I was thinking about the switch that occurred in them after the resurrection. For some reason I think of them as some of the best, most faithful followers of Jesus. But they made so many mistakes when they were with Jesus. There are examples in the gospels of them misinterpreting what Jesus taught and prophesied. It wasn't until after the resurrection, when Jesus died for their sins and they had evidence of his resurrection that they tapped into the power of the resurrection. That is when they became all in, full of boldness and passion. Just like the disciples, we can't be fully committed to Jesus and his mission until we recognize the power of the resurrection. 

​How can we do that? I know in my life, I need to set aside time to reflect on who I am. I think about my human, sinful nature and how naturally selfish my thoughts are. I need to recognize that Jesus is the only one who knows me to the core, the good, the bad, and the super sinful. He loves me so much that he took the punishment that I fully deserve. Now, I am alive. I can truly live in freedom because of what he's done. By taking time to remember and reflect on that often, then the reality of the resurrection becomes a stronger part of us. And we can start living like it actually radically changed us. Take a listen to the song Resurrecting by Elevation Worship. There is a line that sings "the resurrected king is resurrecting me" may we live that out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rf8Zzn4nOzc

A girl who loves Jesus,
Kia