Tag: Holidays

Jesus Changes Everything

Courtney3 Comments

“Choir of angels sing glory to the newborn King a baby changes everything..my whole life has turned around I was lost but now I’m found a baby changes everything.” – A Baby Changes Everything, Faith Hill.

Time after time, almost every Christmas, I try to imagine what the first Christmas was like for the cast of characters living during the time of Jesus’ birth. How they felt. What they went through. What they were thinking. A couple of years ago, I even did a short blogging series on Mary’s Point of View and Joseph’s Point of View speculating what it would be like to walk in their shoes. And it seems that with each passing year—though it’s an account that I’ve read thousands of times before, I’m able to pull something different from the story of how it all began. The story of our Savior.

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A Savior who enters into the normal paradigms of our life—and changes everything about it. 

Mary was just an ordinary girl—probably not much older than fifteen.Joseph was an carpenter from a humble background. Shepherds, who were among society’s poorest and plainest were some of the first to see our Savior. But Jesus invaded each one of their lives—and when Jesus stepped into the picture, their lives were forever changed. 

The crazy thing? The same could be said of the world today. When Jesus steps into the picture, nothing is ever the same. Former drug addicts become powerful preachers. The greedy transform to the generous. Career criminals change their ways. Families are healed. Marriages are restored. Lives are lived with purpose. Because when you encounter Jesus, it is impossible to remain the same. 

I saw this happen in my own family growing up. When my family came to Christ during my preteen years, it forever changed the way that we interacted with each other. How we lived. What was important. And though I came to Christ when I was still too young to have done anything too crazy, following Jesus has shaped and continues to shape my perspective on this world—allowing me to have joy in the midst of hardships and a peace that can only be found in Him. 

Galatians 4:1-7 says this;

*”What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. 2 The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. 3 So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces[a] of the world. 4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.[b] 6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba,[c] Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.” 

Because of Jesus, we can know a love that is unlike anything this world could ever give us. We can know a hope greater than anything we have ever known before. And we can have full access to God the Father because through Jesus we have been made sons and daughters of the King. All because Jesus left the perfection of Heaven to come down to this earth as a baby to die on a cross and save us from our sins. The story of our Savior is the greatest story ever told. And living our lives completely sold out to our Savior is the greatest decision we could ever make!

This Christmas, I want to challenge you to remember the One found in the first five letters of the word. To remember that Jesus still invades the lives of every person who has said yes to Jesus today. And that no one—no matter how hardened they may seem, is beyond hope. This Christmas, I want to challenge you to remember that Jesus changes everything.“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” – Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV).

*Verse taken from The Passion Translation (TPT).

Christmas Classics: It’s A Wonderful Life

Courtney4 Comments

*Warning, this post contains spoilers

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” – Ephesians 2:10. (NIV) 

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“When the bell rings, an angel gets their wings.”

Today is officially the last day of my Christmas Classics series, and I am closing it with one of the most well-known Christmas classics of our time: It’s A Wonderful Life. 

It’s A Wonderful Life is a (black and white!) Christmas movie created in 1946 about a young man named George Bailey who learns the meaning of Christmas after being visited by an angel named Clarence. George is at the end of his rope and contemplating suicide, after being faced with a lot of disasters at work that feel too big for him to handle. He sees no point in continuing to live until the angel shows him how his life has touched others—and what the world would be like without him. Through this he learns to see the value of his life and goes back to be with his family—and celebrates Christmas with a renewed hope, joy, and purpose.

It’s A Wonderful Life asks the timeless question that many of us have probably asked ourselves at some point: Does my life matter? Am I making a difference? Would this world be different if I weren’t there? And despite the notion that an angel “getting their wings when the bell rings” might be a little theologically shakey, there are a lot of good lessons that we, as Christians, can learn from this movie.

Jeremiah 1:5 says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” (NIV) and 1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (NIV).

God has plans for each one of us, and whether or not we were ‘planned’ in the natural sense, God knew and formed each one of us before we were born! Though Jeremiah 1:5 is speaking about Jeremiah, it applies to each one of us—before we were even formed God knew us, and had an incredible plan for our lives! And in 1 Peter 2:9, Peter is speaking to every believer who has been called out of darkness, into God’s glorious light! God’s desire for each one of us is life, and that we live out the dreams that He has for us and impact those around us! 

If you’re reading this today, and asking any of the same questions that George Bailey asked in It’s A Wonderful Life, than I want you to know one thing above all else: your life matters! God would not have created you intricately and divinely in your mother’s womb if it didn’t. If you are alive and breathing today than God still has plans for you. If you just look around to those that you see each and every day, you will find lives that God wants you to impact—in your school, in your friend group, and in your family. And, there is no one else on this planet that can live out the life God created you to live! You matter. To God, and to so many people that see and interact with you every day! 

Maybe you’re reading this today and thinking ‘I already know this. I already know that my life and every other life on this planet matters.’ If that’s the case, than maybe you’ll find yourself in a different character in this story—Clarence. Maybe God wants to use you to encourage someone in your sphere of influence today, and remind them that their life matters! Maybe God wants to use you as someone’s guardian angel. God will often use us to speak to those who are hurting, and maybe as you’re reading this, the Lord is putting someone on your heart that you need to talk to. If that’s the case, than I want to challenge you to be obedient. You never know how God might want to use you in another person’s life! Maybe you could be somebody’s Clarence! 

If you get nothing else out of this post, than please remember this: God loves you, your life matters, and God wants to use you to impact the lives of others. In the words of the pastor/writer Max Lucado, “You weren’t an accident. You weren’t mass produced. You aren’t an assembly-line product. You were deliberately planned, specifically gifted, and lovingly positioned on the Earth by the Master Craftsman.” 

May we always remember this; this Christmas, and the rest of our days!

Thankful List 2017

Courtney6 Comments

Hey everyone, despite the fact that this has been a bit of a rough week for me, I wanted to post ten things that I’m thankful for, as I do pretty much every year. For those of you who are wondering, I am doing better (though I’m sure it will take some time) and as much as has gone wrong this year, there has still been a lot that has gone right.

Thus, here area some things that I am thankful for in 2017…

  1. Family – In the midst of all of the changes that have happened this past year, some good and some bad, I’m thankful to have a family that I could turn to through all of life’s moments. I’m thankful for both my parents and my extended family, who have supported me as I’ve gone through my year, and my transition from kid to adult.
  2. Friends – Someone once said that friends are the family that we choose for ourselves, and I can truly say this of my friends. I am thankful both for the friends that I grew up with, who are as comfortable as an old favorite sweater, and for the friends that I’ve met over the last few years, who have been there for me in ways that words cannot even begin to express. I am thankful for the long talks, the lighthearted times, and for all of the times in between.
  3. Faith – As always, I am thankful for my salvation through Christ and the ways that He has sustained me through this past year. I am thankful that I can always turn to Him and that we serve a God who has a grace for us when we fall short. I am also thankful for the ways He has led me to places far greater than anything I could ask or imagine.
  4. My school – I feel super thankful to be at a school that shares my faith and values, and for the flexibility it has given me to further pursue my passion for writing, a part time job, and time with family and friends. I have had amazing professors this past semester who have shown me grace through some of the trials I have gone through and who I have learned so much from. I have always enjoyed the classes I have taken that have helped me learn about faith in addition to academia.
  5. My job – Right now I am at my favorite part time job so far. I love the store that I am at (which is beautifully decorated for Christmas) and I love the people I work with. They are all super friendly and I get along with them all really well. Working has been an exciting thing for me this year, and I am thankful to have the opportunity work part time while going to school.
  6. My church – I am super thankful to be able to say that I’m at a church that I love! As I’ve mentioned before, during my teenage years, I was at a church that wasn’t healthy and I’m glad to be at a really good church now! The pastors are all very cool, the people are nice, and the church is very real – which is something that can all too often be hard to find. I am thankful that God has led my family to my church and I really like it there.
  7. Books – This year, I have made it my goal to read more, and I am thankful to say that I have found quite a few books that I have loved! Some of these awesome titles include Four Weeks, Five People, Every Last Word, Someday, Someday, Maybe, and A Walk To Remember. I would highly recommend any one of these!
  8. Writing – Honestly, I think writing (after God) is the one thing that keeps me sane. I absolutely loving disappearing into another world or writing down my thoughts in a blog. Also, I have a couple things in mind for book releases that God willing, should be showing up in print soon!
  9. Health – As always, I’m thankful not just for my own health, but for the health of those around me. This past year my grandpa had to have back surgery, but thankfully, he’s doing better now. Meanwhile, I have also become more aware of the importance of mental health, and have taken steps to better get my OCD under control. So far, though I still struggle, I’ve been doing a lot better.
  10. Food, water, shelter – These things, like health, are also something to appreciate. Especially after the terrors of all of the hurricanes this past year.

How about you? What are you thankful for? Feel free to discuss it in the comments below!