The Lily Letters

Matthew 6:25-30 paraphrased (NIV):  "Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.... Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?  ... God clothes the grass of the field, will he not clothe you - you of little faith?"   Who among us doesn't struggle with anxiety?  Compare worry with trying to tuck an octopus into bed.  One tentacle or another keeps popping out from under the covers.  If we're not worried about one thing, it's the other.  If we're not worried about our kids, it's our aging parents.  Or the medical bills.  Or the funny sound under the hood of our car.   In the Bible, Jesus spoke much about worry.  In a nutshell, He told us not to!  Jesus never dismissed the untidy realities of daily life - He knew those troubles first hand, having spent years as a carpenter in Nazareth, probably living hand-to-mouth as He helped to support His family...

An ex cerpt from Dotheword.com Matthew 21:23-32 You’ve done it again. After an intense bout with temptation, you’ve surrendered. You’ve eaten that extra slice of cake. You’ve stretched your budget to buy that new phone. You’ve responded to your spouse out of anger rather than understanding. Now you’re caught in the throes of guilt—what do you do? Often, our tendency is to repent with a promise: “I’ll try harder this time!” However, our well-intended promises are rarely strong enough to overcome the harsh cycle of sin and repentance. Within a few months, days, or even hours, we find ourselves doing the very same thing again—why? Matthew 21:23-32 sheds light on this phenomenon. The scripture begins with the chief priests and elders posing a question to Jesus: “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” ( Matthew 21:25 ) This question is so abstract and theoretical that it is easy to lose interest in it altogether. After all, we know that Christ’s auth...

  “I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns” -Philippians 1:6 (NLT) Do you ever wonder, why? Why am I here in this place at this time? I think that’s something everyone wonders at one time or another. I know I did. Everywhere we turn in this world, something is telling us we don’t quite measure up and we don’t really matter all that much anyway.  If you’re searching for the truth about who you are and why you are, here it is: we’re all here because God created us. We’re not some random accident of molecules and evolution. We are “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). We’re “marvelous” (NLT) and “amazing” (NCV). And not just we as in all of humankind, but you specifically. God made you wonderful, marvelous, and amazing. And He made you on purpose.  God didn’t stop there, though. He made you on purpose and with a purpose . That purpose has nothing to do w...