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Resting In Peace

May 19, 2023May 19, 2023 krisshetter

I sat in the back of the car texting my husband about our travels that day. Suddenly, we experienced yet another brush with death. Our car came within inches of having the entire left side (the side I was on) shorn by a large truck. My friends in the front seat continued their ongoing murmur of bickering about driving skills and directions. My next text to my husband went something like this:

Me: I realized I might die today and I’m ok with that.

My Husband: What??

Me: Ya, we almost just died a few times today but somehow I’m ok with it.

When I tell my friends about this moment they think I’m being funny and exaggerating. One friend then inquired, “but weren’t you terrified and angry?” I said, “No, really I was at peace.”

My reaction to our death-defying adventure that day reminded me of these few verses in Pastor John Newton’s famous hymn, “Amazing Grace.”

"Through many dangers, toils, and snares I have already come; 
His grace has brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home."

I’ll tell you friends, my reaction that day was a first for me. Neither the near miss or the bickering could take away the peace I was experiencing. I saw the bickering as my friends’ natural way of communicating with each other over their 60 years of loving marriage. Somehow it worked for them. And as for that little death thingy? I realized I had zero control over the situation. No amount of my yelling about my friend’s driving, yelling at the other driver, fretting , crying or whatever would change the situation. We were in the middle of nowhere so I couldn’t even demand we pull over and let me out.

Instead, I sat back and did the only things I could do: pray and worship. I didn’t beg God to save me. I told Him I trusted Him. If He had more things for me to do here on Earth then I would do them. I watched as beautiful scenery sped by and I thanked Him for His glorious creation. I thanked Him for my sweet little family whom I love and I know loves me.

I tell this story because this hasn’t always been me. I didn’t even realize it could be me until that very moment. Until I was tested by the Lord. Let’s just say I’m a really talented “backseat driver.” Or as my husband can attest, a well-practiced jump seat boss. The Holy Spirit and I have worked diligently on this topic. With each foray into my husband searching for parking places, driving past our freeway exits or taking different, less efficient routes for errands, the Holy Spirit has set on my right shoulder prodding me into silence.

It’s my desires of the flesh – pride and anger — that get me into so much trouble during these times. I know best. And if you don’t take my advice, it’s a punishable offence. But I’m heartened to know I’m probably the only one with this problem, correct?

Joy and patience are far above our strength…We must persevere in prayer that He may not permit our hearts to faint…Prayer and perseverance are necessary in our daily conflicts. The best remedy to the weariness is diligence in prayer.
John Calvin

When I realized I could not, by my own doing, take on this task of peacefulness while not in the driver’s seat I turned to God in prayer. It’s He that gives me the reminders. It’s He that tugs at my mind and heart. It’s by the Holy Spirit’s strength that not only does my mouth stay shut (mostly) but my mind turns to something else. And lo and behold, we still arrive at our destination. We may walk a bit father but we still get there! While I still struggle with this sin our Saturday errand trips have become more peaceful ventures.

This training each week led me to that moment in the back of my friends’ car. To my possible “meeting my Maker” moment. Not only did I have peace but also joy in knowing I have the love of the Lord on my side whether I’m here for another day or two or not. And I had love for my friends. They had taken the day to share an adventure with me, to share their time with me. And what an adventure it was!

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" Matthew 6:25-27

I know I can’t, by worry or fear or anger, add a single hour to my life. I do know that with prayer and worship He will make my life more peaceful and beautiful. And for that I am forever grateful. Peace be with you my friends.

The State of Peacefulness

May 17, 2023May 17, 2023 krisshetter

Throughout the last three years with my Bible study girls (BSGs) I noticed what we all struggle with the most — control. Or on the flipside, lack of trust. The results of that need to control typically lead to lack of peace. We humans like to manage situations and people without first consulting the “man upstairs.” The inevitable results create frustration, hurt feelings, anger and more.

Instead, we turn to the desires of the flesh listed just above the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy.

We must picture hell as a state where everyone is perpetually concerned about his own dignity and advancement, where everyone has a grievance, and where everyone lives with the deadly serious passions of envy, self-importance, and resentment.
C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

You may look around your own Bible study groups, church friends or even just the “good” people you know and think, “Nah, we never do any of that horrible stuff!” You might recall, however, at the beginning of this study on love that Jesus considers gossiping or defaming someone “murder.” Yikes!

We take our newly signed peace treaty with God and consider it a license to do what our flesh desires. Maybe thinking He won’t notice. We turn from the peace table, walk out the door and get angry at the first person who doesn’t do what we think they should. We fantasize of a spouse who would love us so much better, we drink away our anxieties, hold onto our bank accounts for fear of the poorhouse, speak of “Karma” when hurt by others, become jealous of our non-Christian neighbors with the fancy new car, or just turn away from others who need a bit of kindness.

Friend, God has implanted in each and every one of us the knowledge of His existence. Somehow, we all know what His desires are for our behavior, for our hearts.

"Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you." James 1:21

We know, through the Holy Spirit what is right and wrong in God’s view. When we actively or even passively work against this you know what the inevitable result is? Lack of peacefulness. That niggling in your heart and mind is God’s way of reminding you of the path toward peace. And yet we so often ignore it. We’ve been rejecting the Prince of Peace and His path since He walked on this Earth.

“On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. When the Jews saw the crowds, they (the Pharisees) were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him. Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.” Luke 13: 44-46

How incredibly sad is this point in scripture? The Pharisees and Sadducees were spoon-fed by Jesus, Himself, the truth. The glory of the heavens was opened to them. The bountiful, beautiful life was placed on a platter before them and they rejected it out of jealousy. Out of fleshly desires. Do we want to be listed among them? I pray your answer is no.

I heard a podcast recently by John Ortberg on taking a hold of the beautiful life God wants for us. He spoke of not just cutting out actions and thoughts from our lives but more importantly replacing them with a positive action and thought. The Bible speaks of cleaning house but not leaving it empty for the thief to come and take up residence. Therefore, if we want not just the glorious peace with God but God’s gift of peacefulness, we need to replace our desires of the flesh with His goodness. With the blossoms of love and joy. With trust that our God does in fact know what He is doing. He is greater than us in every aspect and will provide.

Through prayer, obedience and knowledge of His Word we can, with the Holy Spirit’s guidance, rest in His peace. Ask Him today to shine a light on the areas that are creating deadly weeds in our hearts. The Great Gardner will create a beautiful peacefulness in you that you never could’ve imagined!

Coming Up: Resting In Peace

Fruit of the Spirit: Peace

May 15, 2023May 15, 2023 krisshetter

I sat scrolling through my Instagram feed and felt my very body react with each passing post. Doom! Gloom! Watch out! The World is falling apart! I had originally created an Instagram account years ago to follow my teenage daughters’ posts. Their accounts were full of fun events and beautiful scenery. Photos taken from atop the highest peaks in our city and from endless beach days. Soon, however, I started following political-related accounts and outspoken people who warned of problems in society. In other words, I was constantly feeding my mind and soul with the opposite of what I really needed, peace.

My head’ll explode if I continue with this escapism.
Jess C Scott, EyeLeash: A Blog Novel

I finally had the same “ah ha” moment as Ms. Scott. Although I agree on the need for good citizens to stay informed, I didn’t need to be this well-informed throughout my day. Hence, I started unfollowing accounts and searched for ways to add beauty to my life. I recently told a woman from Australia, whom I follow, that I could watch her sourdough shaping videos all day. Watching her strong hands roll, pat, and lovingly form something beautiful out of God’s simple gifts of water, flour and salt.

While I brought some measure of peacefulness to my social media, I also realized this isn’t really the peace Jesus meant when He told the disciples:

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives." John 14:27

That peace, Shalom, is a gift of mercy and grace from God. It’s peace with God. It’s the kind of peace that can, if we place our trust in God, lead to a state of peacefulness. This Shalom is a relationship that only the one true God can give us. Fallen, sinful humanity works daily, hourly at being at war with God. We turn our backs on Him, we spit on His name, we refuse to show Him even a cursory love at times. Yet He, in His magnificent, lovingness still says, “Come to me and I will forgive. Not just forgive but cleanse.”

Before ever we can enjoy peace within our hearts there must be a state of peace established between us and God. We must submit ourselves to the Lord, and he must forgive the past, and make with us a covenant of peace, or else there is no peace for us; for “there is no peace, saith my God, unto the wicked.
Charles Spurgeon, Peace: A Fact & a Feeling

We stand before God like a criminal on the stand. We are guilty although so many of us refuse to admit this guilt. We call ourselves righteous because of our good deeds or warm feelings or even because we see ourselves as victims. But friend, we are all so, so guilty. And yet He provides a substitute for our punishment, a peace-treaty of sorts. One that sees Him carry the larger portion of the burden. Our portion? It’s to just say, “I’m guilty. I accept your terms.” And the dove is released. Peace with God is done and we are made righteous, we are cleansed thanks to Jesus. We are made into allies rather than enemies.

If this seems a bit far-fetched, too difficult to grasp you may be right. Imagine, if you will, standing in your local court docket. The sergeant of arms reads your crimes from a large ream of paper. The list includes small misdemeanors such as rolling through a stop sign (x100) or not turning on your blinker when changing lanes (x1000). The severity of the crimes increases to stealing (the fruit from your neighbor’s tree, the pen from the office, the item not charged but made it into your grocery bag, another person’s parking place or spot in line) to defamation of your supposed friend’s character or even of someone you have never met. The list includes all the lies, small and large, the times you were downright mean or rude, all the instances you turned a blind eye to a person in need. It may include adultery, debauchery, times of greed and idolatry. At the final page sits the judge’s punishment for all your crimes, for your crimes against humanity he says. 100 years in a harsh workcamp where you will be broken and live out your days in despair.

However, as at a wedding whereby the pastor asks if anyone has anything to speak against the impending union, the judge asks if anyone would like to intervene for the accused; anyone who would be punished in your place. You look out into the crowded benches. Into the faces of your children, your spouse, brothers, sisters, aunts, parents, friends. What are you thinking? Are you hoping someone would step forward and take your place in what will be your hell on earth? Your sweet daughter, perhaps? Your favorite sibling? Your ailing father? No, you are probably pleading with your eyes for not one of them to take your place. You love them too much. And yet your son, the strong, intelligent, gentle one stands. He declares you free of guilt and will take your place. He approaches you and looks into your eyes and says, “I am strong and you are weak I love you too much to see you suffer.” And you fall at his feet not just from the weight of his overwhelming love but also in the sorrow of your sin. You look up to him and he says, “I will see you again one day and we will both be restored in fullness.”

This is what the Lord has done for us. He takes our sentence on and erases our sin and guiltiness. He signs on the dotted line for peace and justice. He does so to allow us to blossom in God’s loving arms.

Our hearts can be free of the fears of this world because we know when our day comes we will be welcomed into God’s tent, not left outside waiting for a terrible judgement. And when we understand this Shalom type of peace it will lead us to a state of peacefulness. The peace Jesus mentioned at the end of John 14:27: “Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Coming up: A State of Peacefulness

Joy In The Small

May 12, 2023May 12, 2023 krisshetter

The six of us sat around the table enjoying our meal of tacos as we somehow found ways to laugh and grab hold of normalcy. Then one of us heard her voice call from the other room. My daughter jumped up to see what was needed. Upon returning she announced, “She wants a taco!” And so, a small plate of our feast was made and delivered to the other room. We gathered around the bed of my dying mother-in-law watching her savor a few bites of her favorite food. She had proclaimed to a nurse just a few weeks prior that she couldn’t wait to be healed so she could enjoy a taco and a beer. Although no beer was in sight this night, we all watched her take small bites of that tiny gift of a taco. We cried in our laughter. And I realized this was joy.

For the Lord takes delight in his people;
    he crowns the humble with victory.
Let his faithful people rejoice in this honor
    and sing for joy on their beds. Psalm 149: 4-5

I mentioned at the beginning of this week’s look at joy that God brought me into one of the most difficult experiences of my life not too long ago. When we finally submit ourselves to God’s will we can look back over our lives and see the pruning He has done in us for our good. Those trials and tests were given at just the right time for the right purpose. To see our lives this way we must recognize not only the love He has for us but His soverenity over us. He knows our timeline backwards and forwards. It’s why we must give up telling God what to do and instead ask Him to reveal His will to us. And although I don’t know what else He has in store for me in the coming years I do know He prepared me for the death of the woman who started me on my joy journey.

“(Jonathan) Edwards teaches us, then, of the God-centeredness of all joy in this fallen world. He reminds us that the formula to joy is not God and _____ so much as God in ___.”
Dane Ortlund, Edwards and the Christian Life

God was in the room with us that night as we watched Bev groan in delight with each tiny bite. She wasn’t pain free, she wasn’t healed, but she was joyous. In just a few days she would be gone. In her wake she left a trail of glorious blooms. Joy-filled moments with friends who came to say goodbye. Quiet, joy moments at 2:00am while pain medicine was administered, holding hands and remembering together. Laughing as we struggled ineptly to changed bedsheets under her ravaged body. We could do this because she loved the Lord more than anything. We could find joy because we knew the Lord was waiting for her.

As for me? Had the Lord taken her say five or ten years ago I would have been angry. I would have felt so lost without her. As I write this, yes, I’m crying from missing her but I’m not angry. I’m so happy for her that she is free from pain. She sits in the loving arms of God waiting for the last chapter to commence.

"Those who sow with tears
    will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
    carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
    carrying sheaves with them." Psalm 126:5-6

The question for you is do you believe Him? Do you abide in Him? Do you believe that our tears will turn to joy one day? I know a number of Christians who have a very difficult time believing this. The have a difficult time with the apostles and Jesus reminding us to find joy, yes, even in the trials. Yet we are surrounded every day with brothers and sisters who do fully believe this truth.

It’s not they that are a mystery – the ones who seem joyous in adversity. It’s those of us who aren’t joyous that are the mystery. We have the promises of God at our fingertips. We have been lovingly provided for by the Father. He has been with us in our trials. He is with you right now in whatever you are going through. He is pruning. He is watering you. Seek Him. Abide in Him. Ask Him to show you His will. Thank Him for what you do have today, for there is always something for which to be thankful for, like a taco.

"If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete." John 15:10-11

“What the sun does to a valley as night gives way to day is what joy does to the Christian as the heart is filled with joy. The Father is the sun itself, the Son is the brightness of the sun, and the Spirit is the warmth of the sun,”
Jonathan Edwards

Joy In Our Obedience

May 10, 2023May 10, 2023 krisshetter

I told a friend recently that maybe I should apologize to the world for the COVID pandemic. You see I had for years been praying to God for patience and joy to be cornerstones of my life. I thought if I just tried really hard at not doing certain behaviors I would succeed at this task. While I had found some success in listening to God and obeying when He asked me to take certain actions, I bucked and kicked at fully surrendering myself to Him. And then the pandemic came upon us.

As most of us experienced, our lives were thrown into chaos. Some people almost completely shut down. Loved ones lost not only their jobs and communion with family and friends, but their very lives themselves. We were placed in a state of intense fear and uncertainty. Where I live the government restrictions became egregious, almost to the state of Marshall Law. People were afraid to leave their homes. In some areas you could be fined over $1,000 just for sitting in your parked car on the street next to the beach. In another, the city “outlawed” people from driving up to senior care facilities and waving at them from their windows. Despair, anger, fear, was thick in the air whenever you made the allowed trip to the grocery store. And boy was I angry.

I became angry with the media for putting out confusing messages. At government officials who chastised us for wearing masks then not wearing masks. At neighbors who jumped to the other side of the street as though we each were walking around with deadly leprosy. I despaired over my church closing indefinitely and not seeming to care of the state of their members. I wanted to rage on social media, to my friends and my husband. Discord, not joy, was my refuge. While each day I spent hours doing my various Bible studies no less! I told my Bible study ladies, “I’m a great Christian when I’m at my house, until I walk out the front door.”

Then one day my husband, the chief operations person for a group of Alzheimer’s care facilities, came home looking completely undone. The exhaustion on his face confirmed his first words to me, “That’s it. I can’t do this anymore.” The long days and nights keeping his residents and staff safe while managing the ever-changing governmental rules had taken its toll. I realized he needed joy not discord from me. He didn’t need to hear me complaining at dinner about the latest news announcement. He didn’t need to feel my anger over something that happened at the grocery store. No, he needed me to be a mirror of the Holy Spirit.

“Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.”   James 3:5-6

So, my true journey of seeking joy began thanks to the pandemic. It was a test for many of us Christians. I knew my past failures meant a new approach was needed. One that was Holy Spirit directed. We can no better wish for, pressure ourselves, think into action, joy than a tree can try really hard to make cherries. But what does a cherry tree do in order to create that beautiful fruit? It allows its very essence, it’s holy purpose to do its work inside the roots, trunk, branches, leaves and blossoms. Effortlessly in full submission to its Creator.

“A Christian new birth brings a change made in the views of his mind and relish of the heart so that the regenerate person seeks his interest and happiness in God.”
Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections

You see, when we seek real change from the ugliness this world grows in us it means we seek to become who God intended us to be. People close to Him, loving Him and being immensely loved by Him. It’s no wonder “love” is listed first as a fruit of the Spirit. Without it, the rest would be impossible. In researching Christian joy, I discovered these three characteristics of a joy-filled life in full bloom.

1. Submission: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5

This submission is not slave to master as some non-Christians like to portray. No, it’s a loving mentor, teacher, parent who sincerely knows and wants the best for us. But unlike those relationships we never grow out of needing the Lord to guide us. He just guides us through more difficult and more beautiful experiences. His loving omniscience is where we must put our trust.

2. Seek to Glorify God’s Will: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2

With each word we speak, each action we take, even every thought it should be with turning ourselves over to God in worship. When we wake in the morning, prayer sets us on the right path in seeking ways to glorify Him to our family, friends, co-workers and strangers. In other words, the old saying, “What would Jesus do?” should be on our minds in conversations with the Spirit throughout our day.

3. Seek God’s Glorious Beauty: “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.” Hebrews 13:15.

Jonathan Edwards’ theological focus through the entirety of his life was God is the foundation of beauty. Nature doesn’t exist for itself but for the glorification of God. I took up a challenge to think on God every 30 minutes earlier this year. Whether in my car, cooking dinner, shopping, I stop for a minute, look around and thank God for the amazing creation around me. The beautiful sky or quenching rain. The child’s laughter nearby or even the opportunity to sit in traffic so I could listen to the rest of a podcast. He is all around us in full color and glory, especially during our trials. Praise Him!

Friend, our joy comes from the love God has shown us with the work His son has already done for us. It comes from the work the Holy Spirit is doing in us. The blossom? The fruit? That’s the work He is doing through us for all the world to see.

Fruit of the Spirit: Joy

May 8, 2023May 8, 2023 krisshetter

The search for joy and happiness has been called one of the great universal mankind desires by pastor and theologian Jonathan Edwards. It’s this craving for joy that leads some to dangerous, adrenaline junky activities. For others it sets a bar so high in relationships that they burn through marriages to find the “perfect one.” Some seek this seemingly elusive state of being through drugs, alcohol, or the accumulation of stuff. “If I only I had that car or house, I’d be happy,” the poor man speaks. “If I had a husband or children then I’d be happy,” says the single woman. As God so often does, however, He turns the world’s understanding of this simple three-letter word, joy, inside out.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:2-4

When I first read these verses a few years ago I had to laugh. It reminded me of a scene from an old movie, National Lampoon’s Animal House. In it, young men are pledging to be members of a college fraternity. In one scene they are being given the paddle and are required to yell out, “Thank you, Sir! May I have another?!” In other words, they are to act like they are enjoying the painful beating.

The disciple James admonishes the scattered Jewish Christians to rejoice in the persecution and difficulties they face. And so many of us read that, scrunch up our face and say, “What?” Prior to studying the Bible and taking my faith seriously I thought joy or happiness meant smooth sailing. When I wasn’t in that state of joy, I surmised I just wasn’t trying hard enough. When trials came, as they always do, I despaired over my lack of joy.

I spent an entire year announcing to anyone that I was seeking “sparkliness.” Yes, that’s a word I made up. But you probably know what I mean. I wanted to exude joy whenever I walked into a room. To be shiny and happy and light in my demeanor. To be free of sadness and negativity. Sounds beautiful, right? So, I put on a happy face wherever I went. I worked hard at not saying anything negative. I told myself to shake off being mad or sad. Friends, I’ve got to tell you, I failed miserably. Because if we are “faking it,” it will show up in our fruit.

“It is evident, both by Scripture and reason, that God is infinitely, eternally, unchangeably, and independently glorious and happy.”
Jonathan Edwards

So, why couldn’t I be gloriously happy as well? Which brought me running headfirst in to the book of James. My worldly version of joy was completely upended. I learned what makes God truly, gloriously happy – when we place our trust, our love, our worship in Him and Him alone.

You see, while I was striving so hard to find joy, I hadn’t realized what can truly give me a life of joy. A life where I allowed the Holy Spirit to burn away my joy-killers – discord, gossip, neediness, conceit, and envy. A life that worships and gives glory to the giver of all beautiful gifts, Jesus. The difference between those young men trying to get into a fraternity and receiving their “dues” is as a Christian we can find joy in knowing any persecution or affliction we face can be experienced in Jesus’ name. Can be turned over to our loving God for help and comfort.

The Holy Spirit and I, we started off with little tests along the way. Helping me to see the bits of goodness when things didn’t go as planned. The process of rebirth led me to one of the most difficult experiences I’ve had to date. Through terrible sadness and mountains of tears I found joy. I found it by leaning heavily on the Lord.

John Calvin was right when he said, “We can experience joy in adverse circumstances by holding God’s benefits in such esteem that the recognition of them and the meditation upon them shall overcome all sorrow.”

This week our look at the Fruit of the Spirit, joy, may feel like one of the hardest to understand to some. If, however, we’ve accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, we must also look to Him for the truth of what lies beyond this world. An eternity with our gloriously happy God who loves us so much He longs to be with us in the New Eden.

Coming Up: Obedience vs. Joy or Obedience=Joy?

A Gardener of Love

May 5, 2023May 5, 2023 krisshetter

She turned to drugs and alcohol to dull her childhood pain. The pain inflicted by an abusive, angry father. Her body was being ravaged by anger, hatred and shame. The feelings of worthlessness. And Jesus met her one night in an incredible vision. Upon waking she instantly accepted Him as her new, eternal, loving Father and set aside drugs and alcohol. It was her offering, her gift back to the Lord, however, that most likely had Him dancing in heaven. It wasn’t a payment because the Lord saves us without cost from us, without our need to do anything but say, “yes.” No, it was the only thing she really had to offer – love. Not just for the Lord but for her earthly father.

I met Julie* in a home Bible study. During the next few years, I watched as this daughter of God set aside her anger and any need for retribution while she travelled out of state to help care for her ailing father. Not once did I hear her speak ill of him again. She didn’t seek platitudes for her service to this man who had emotionally and physically abused her. She didn’t see it as an annoyance. No, she tended to her father as Jesus’ bond-servant. Sent in His name.

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. ¹⁴For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself. ¹⁵If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. Galatians 5:13-15

And what are the desires of the flesh? “Sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.” (Gal 5:19-21). Placed right there in the middle could probably be seen as the root of the rest of those desires – selfishness. Our need to receive retribution from those who have hurt us. We want so much to cry out, “but, but, but!” and list our excuses as to why we can’t show someone love.

Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind…… it is Pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began.
C.S. Lewis

When we place ourselves as “better than” the root of hatred is sown. “I would never do such a thing” when in fact we may do a version of such action daily. It is a well-honed habit that is encouraged by the world. While I may not ever murder a person as the Law warns I certainly have held murderous thoughts, which Jesus calls equal to the actual act.

How does one reach the point of loving and maybe even helping those who we just want eliminated from our lives? How do we till a blooming, beautiful garden in our hearts, not one filled with weeds? Julie sought to worship God through her actions. She knew that harboring ill feelings toward her father only hurt one person – herself. When called by her stepmother for help she stepped forward in faith. Faith that the Lord wanted her to show mercy and grace.

As for me? It’s taken me many years but I finally sought wisdom from the God who provides it generously (James 1:5). The Holy Spirit has shown me it’s better to love than to feel hate and anger. I call that hate the “Black Swirly Ball” that wants to spin around in my chest from time to time. I’m listening to the Spirit when it allows me to feel out of balance. I get quiet, turn off the tv, the music, the phone and say, “Reveal to me what’s going on, Lord. Show me where my pride or my need to be in the right is shoving out love. Help me to pray for that person, not about them.” You see I want that Black Swirly Ball to unravel and loosen my chest. Then I can breathe the fresh air of God’s beauty. I give it up to God and I ask the Holy Spirit to help me not grab it back – ever. I bring my raw emotions to the Lord and He clears my mind. Often, He asks me to serve those I find difficult to serve. When I do, I demonstrate to the people around me the work Christ has done in my heart.

My friends, if all we ever are able to do in the name of love is pray for the revealing light of God to enter into our “enemy” we’ve tilled the soil for something good to happen in us. We’ve said to Jesus, “yes, I will love as you have loved me, a sinner for sure.” We just need to be prepared for Him to ask us to take a step further and say, “Yes.” In our real and true faith, we must believe without doubting that He will work it for our good and His glory.

“You have flaws, failures, and quirks that annoy and anger others. In fact, you may be more like those whom you dislike than you’d care to admit. But Jesus still loves you and died for you – just as He did for them. What Christ did for you on the cross, He did for your worst enemy. It’s when you humbly accept this fact that you can begin to love others as Jesus does.”
Charles F. Stanley

Do you believe God? Not just believe in God but have real faith in His words and promises. If you do then you know He wants the best not just for you and your friends and family but for all people. That person at work who is causing you so many troubles? Show her love by seeing her as someone who has the weight of sin on her and needs your loving prayers. The family member who speaks ill of you to the rest of the family? He needs you to love him enough to ask God to intervene in his life. The abortionist, false teacher, dictator, murderer, thief, liar all need you. These people in one way or another are separated from God and I can’t think of a more terrible fate for which we should grieve.

Jesus commands us to love. To love others as we are loved by Him, sinners one and all. This week I encourage you to demonstrate your real faith and experience the greatest fruit ever to blossom from us – love.

*Julie is not her real name

Tilling Hatred from Our Hearts

May 3, 2023May 3, 2023 krisshetter

I recently saw a video by Dennis Prager, a prominent Jewish conservative and president of PragerU. In it he spoke with confidence how anyone who says they “love the Nazis” doesn’t know love at all. He inquired, “How can a person who says they love evil people also say they love Mother Teresa or Dietrich Bonhoeffer?” When I showed this to my Bible study groups they all agreed with that statement. So, I then asked, who else in our lives has sinned and doesn’t deserve God’s love? What level of sin does it take to be wholly rejected, never to even have the hope of forgiveness by God?

A few ladies relented and said, “Well if they asked for forgiveness on their deathbed then ok.” Which brought the next question, “So God didn’t love you until you asked for forgiveness?” And if God hated them why would He even give them a second chance, if not out of love? Wouldn’t the entire message of Jesus be pointless if we really believed this? God sent His Son to die for us, while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8). Not after we begged Him not to smote us. He loved us first. He’s commanding us to love first. This doesn’t mean the unrepentant won’t be judged. Far from it. But the beauty of God’s love is that He provides that path toward redemption and the knowledge that final retribution is His purview.

Which leads me to a second way this week to love as Jesus did. You’ll notice throughout the Gospels that Jesus sees individuals. The woman at the well was just another hated Samaritan to the Jews. But to Jesus, she was a woman in distress. A woman who had given in to a sinful lifestyle. The bleeding woman who touched the edge of his garment was just another sickly, sinful, woman who the average person disdained and ignored. She was “one of those people.” He stopped his large entourage and saw her. Saw her pain and sin and need.

Jesus shows us it’s a mistake to pass judgement on a whole people. Our propensity to group people into categories of who we like and don’t like is why there’s so much political ugliness today. While I of course don’t “love” the atrocities that were committed by the Nazis, how easy is it for us to group all German men and women who were individuals with families, jobs, dreams, fears, etc? Did too many of them hate another group of people they also saw as faceless? Yes. And the cycle went and continues to go around and around. The Arabs hate the Jews, Liberals hate Conservatives, Serbs hate Croatians, Americans hate the Russians, Protestants and Catholics hate each other, Hindus and Muslims hate each other, etc. But each of those groups are made up of people; people created in His image, all descendants of one man and one woman.

Looking back over the COVID years we can see how many “ordinary” people get caught up in doing what those in power demand for fear of retribution. Or going along because it seemed the right thing at the time. And now in the Western world we have the vaccinated versus the unvaccinated and the masked versus the unmasked. We fall so easily in to Satan’s trap of erasing each other’s individuality. He doesn’t want us to look at people as individuals because when we do, we can see ourselves. We can see their failings just like our own. We see their fears and their hopes.

Does that mean we should only hate the people in power? Jesus loved the Pharisees too. Of all the people He spoke to throughout the Gospels it’s the Pharisees on whom He seemed to spend the most effort. Why would He do that? He saw each of them as men with failings. He didn’t turn Nicodemus away when he approached seeking answers. He didn’t toss him out on his ear. No, Jesus loved him as an individual man seeking the truth. When He came, He came to save all of them too.

Mr. Prager, not having faith in Jesus, still lives in the eye for an eye world. A world where there must be constant sacrifice to try and lighten the stain of sin. He doesn’t accept how God loves us so much He sent the ultimate sacrifice to cleanse us. He hasn’t the benefit of knowing Jesus will be the ultimate judge. And that Jesus will be the one to send the unrighteous to hell. No, unfortunately the person, no matter the faith, race or nationality that doesn’t know Jesus needs and wants earthly retribution. And that equates hatred, not love.

During the time of the Holocaust, Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the man mentioned by Mr. Prager, fled to America. While in the United States he realized God was calling him back to Germany to help his fellow man. He aided thousands of Jews and others in escaping death. He spoke out against the atrocities being committed. He was eventually arrested and in the waning days of the war was executed. If there was anyone who could speak of hating the Nazis it was him.

“Christian love draws no distinction between one enemy and another, except that the more bitter our enemy’s hatred, the greater his need of love. Be his enmity political or religious, he has nothing to expect from a follower of Jesus but unqualified love. In such love there is not inner discord between the private person and official capacity. In both we are disciples of Christ, or we are not Christians at all.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

My friends, if we want to live a life free of hatred, free of the turmoil it causes, Jesus has shown us what to till in our hearts – love. Loving people enough to truly help them find real, eternal freedom. To see God’s creation the way He does – as individuals loved by Him. He didn’t say it was easy. Oh no, it’s probably one of the most difficult requests put forth for us worldly creatures. That’s why He didn’t leave us to figure it out ourselves. Holding on to hatred and extreme anger is not the garden God wants as our home.

“The list of ways chronic anger can affect a person’s well-being – and even put the health of others in peril – is long, John Schinnerer, an anger management coach says. “It’s been linked to obesity, low self-esteem, migraines, drug and alcohol addiction, depression, sexual performance problems, increased heart attack risk, lower-quality relationships, higher probability of abusing others emotionally or physically or both … higher blood pressure and stroke,” he notes.

For our physical and spiritual health we need to release that anger and not leave that space empty for the devil to fill it up again with weeds. Instead, Jesus, our good doctor, gave us the healing power of love. When you find yourselves acting, speaking, thinking out of hatred or anger toward a group of people we must first choose to obey Jesus and seek another action, another perspective. Call on the Holy Spirit. Remind yourself that the fruit of that Spirit starts with Love. For when you do, that little sprout of love will blossom into an unimaginable garden of beauty and shock those around you. It will do what is promised by Jesus in the rest of John 13: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Coming up: The gardening tasks of Love

The Fruit of Love: The Royal Command

May 1, 2023May 3, 2023 krisshetter

In March of this year a young woman walked in to a Tennessee church’s school and shot and killed three 9-year old children and three adults. She was described as “transgender” and a person with emotional problems. If you weren’t already aware of this terrible tragedy you are now. And my question is, as a Christian, how will you do in loving her? In showing her mercy and forgiveness? I can be honest in saying it wasn’t my first or even second reaction. As I was working on this new series about the fruit of the spirit I was challenged, however, to do just that – to love someone who seems unworthy of that love.

You may be familiar with the stories of Jesus and the disciples coming face-to-face with what were called “demon-possessed” people. Here’s one such story from Matthew 8:

“28 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way.29 “What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?” 30 Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding.31 The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”32 He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. “

You notice the line: “They were so violent that no one could pass that way.” I imagine the townspeople hated and feared these men. Yet, Jesus healed them. He loved them, just as He loved the townspeople who didn’t know Him and were so frightened of His abilities they sought to drive Him out of town. He loved these two men just like He loved the disciples standing next to Him. These vile, dangerous, murderous men. He loved them enough to not leave them sick and imprisoned with whatever demons had infested their brains. He freed them to live the life God intended. And although I cannot have hope for the Tennessee shooter’s soul – because the actions led to her death – I can grieve out of love that her heart, mind and soul had been twisted by this world.

As the vitriol around the world has increasedI can’t help but see the fertile ground we have tilled for Satan to blossom. For modern demons to take root in people’s minds and hearts. The angry faces on the news, the destruction of property, the glee people express when someone they don’t like is “brought down” – it’s all symptoms of a world turning toward fleshly pursuits rather than the eternal. And love? Even love has become distorted.

“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.” Luke 6:35

Loving our enemies has become, instead, love whatever people do and whatever they desire. On the contrary, Jesus’ reaction to every single person He met, whether murderous or not, was that living sinfully led to eternal death. The wordly version of “love”—do whatever feels good — was never His message. When we hand out needles to drug addicts we aren’t loving them, we are helping them destroy themselves. When we turn a blind eye to fellow Christians living sexually immoral lives, we aren’t loving them, we are giving them a fast track pass to slavery.

This challenge to love one another as Jesus did faces us Christian almost daily. What does this love look like? How can we love a person who kills innocent children and adults, at a church, no less? It seems too impossible. And it is.

I recently heard Pastor Wayne Barber say, “True faith, real faith results in an obedient person of God. The obedience is the bloom, the fruit.” That fruit cannot be created by us just as I cannot make the lettuce grow in my garden. God creates the seed, the soil, the water, the sun and the mystery of how it all comes to together. All He asks of me is to plant what He provides. To water it and then enjoy it. As with all the fruits of the Spirit in us it’s a melding of the work the Spirit does in me and the actions I choose to take in order to fully enjoy those fruits. Or put it this way: to do the one thing I have available to honor God’s provisions in my life – to glorify Him with my daily actions and worship. So how does the impossible become possible? This week we will look at three ways to live fully in bloom with the fruit of love.

Firstly, as a Christian seeking to do God’s will and live a life in full bloom, we need to accept this concept of love is not a choice. It is a command. It is the Royal Command from Jesus.

³⁴“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34

Jesus loved Judas. Need we say more? He loved the pharisees who hated Him. He loves you. Yes, you, who sins on a daily basis. You grieve the Holy Spirit probably every day in some way or another. Either by ignoring that person in need, holding on too tightly to your treasure, having an inner hatred for someone, not forgiving that relative, taking the Lord’s name in vain, being selfish, and more. Yet He loves you. You’ve stepped on His foot more times than He would want to count. You’ve disregarded Him. Ignored Him. Falsely testified about Him or maybe even pretended you didn’t know Him. And He loved you. He loves you and me enough not to want us wallowing in our sinful chains but rather seeking Him to blossom and live in freedom.

I tell you my friend, the opposite of love is hatred. And hatred kills. It imprisons us. It creates an ugliness that permeates into every pore of our being. It is that hatred or anger I came to realize, along with my pride, being the root of a very bad habit — my cursing. I’ve tried for many, many years to stop. It wasn’t until I realized the Spirit was already in me and I was fighting against it that the seedling of love for others began to sprout. The Holy Spirit, sent to guide us until Jesus’ return, is living in every one of us who has accepted Jesus as our Savior. It is there, showing us, guiding us, admonishing us. It’s the tap on our shoulder saying, “Be kind. Forgive her.” It’s the great battle of whether we let the outer world rule our hearts or the inner world of the Holy Spirit take control.

When considering this command to love, especially those who have harmed us or others, take a moment to consider Saul. He hated the Jews and especially Jewish Christians. He was murderous, feared and downright despicable. He terrorized and destroyed communities. And on his way to Damascus to do more damage, oblivious to God’s love for him, Jesus sought him out. He brought light into the darkness of Saul’s heart. The conversion of Saul to the ever-faithful disciple of Christ, Paul, might be the greatest love and rescue story in all history. He was loved even in his blackest days. Loved enough to be sought after by Jesus. He didn’t have to accept this change – because the life path set before him would be the most difficult he would ever face. But he did. In doing so the Christians around him were also faced with a difficult decision – to love him as Jesus did. To love him even though. Imagine Paul coming into a community he had torn asunder. They stood at the edge with a decision to make. To show the world what real faith looks like or to turn their backs on God.

I once read that God is love. He made us from His love to enjoy this world along with Him. When He sent His Son for our final cleansing He was telling us, “I know you’ve messed up beyond belief. I want you to be made righteous to stand next to me in all eternity.” An eternal bond of love, never to be broken again. He’s asking us to mirror that for all the world to see. To live in the hope that Jesus can cleanse a blackened heart. And in doing so the owner of that heart may take his or her place next to us as children of the One Most High. So today, think of who you seem unable to love. Ask God, ask the Holy Spirit to cleanse your heart and bring about a tender sprout of love. Have faith, real faith, without doubting. I know hard it sounds. I’ve done it. I love a few people who don’t seem to deserve it based on the world’s rules. When I did as Jesus commanded it changed my life completely.

Coming up: Hatred breeds the weeds in our heart.

The Christian Life In Full Bloom

April 4, 2023April 25, 2023 krisshetter

She said it with a slight sadness in her voice yet behind it was also feeling of joy and hope. “I only became a Christian three years ago,” she spoke in a confession-like tone. We all sat back in confusion. This woman, this seemingly long-faithful daughter of Christ, who grew up in church and even worked for years at a church, was revealing something so personal and at odds with her religious past.

“But you accepted Christ as your savior a long time ago,” I maintained. “Yes, but it wasn’t until three years ago that I began to understand what it meant and what the life He wants for me looks like,” she declared.

I call that her “Claritin Clear” moment. You might have seen those commercials for the allergy medicine where a person miserable with allergies sees life through a foggy, sneezy lens. And upon taking the medicine, the foggy lens is peeled away, revealing a clear view look at life. Unfortunately for Christians, it’s not as easy as taking a pill to finally get to this moment. But when you do, you’ll find yourself feeling like you’ve entered another realm, peering back through the foggy looking glass which shows chaos, hatred, unforgiveness, immorality and more blackness. The brokenness that God never intended for our lives. The danger could be to regret how long it took you to get to the other, clearer side. But that would only mean you still have one foot left to drag over. Because, my friend, the life Jesus wants for us looks nothing like regret. Nothing like chaos, only joy and peace and forgiveness. It looks like freedom

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
John 8:36

I was listening to the amazingly smart pastors over at The White Horse Inn podcast the other day and as usual they nailed this concept. In their discussion about The Law and our Christian understanding of it, they pointed listeners to Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5). Starting at verse 21 Jesus seems to make being a “good Christian” an even more difficult task than just following the basic 10 Commandments:

“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment.

Yikes! Here I was thinking, “well, I haven’t murdered anyone to date and I’m good about going to church and praying so I must be doing swell.” Yet, Jesus ups the ante. Because I don’t know about you but I was pretty angry with someone just last night! Pastor Bob Hiller goes on to reveal in the podcast that Jesus doesn‘t want to just change our behavior but our heart, thereby freeing us. And heart-change can only happen in partnership with Him and the Holy Spirit. If you have ever tried not getting angry at someone who has clearly done you wrong, and instead with true grace and forgiveness turned your cheek, you know how difficult it can be.

A few months ago, I realized my consistent prayers of trying to fix a bad habit – cursing – were focused on the entirely wrong problem. Cursing was simply a product of a wrong heart, an angry heart, a prideful heart. When I had that “Claritin Clear” moment my prayers changed to reflect the great blessings Christ left with us when sent someone in His place to be with us, the Holy Spirit (John 14:15-17). This Spirit of Truth, the Advocate, our Teacher, shows us the true life God wants for us while we walk on this earth. It’s a life of love, a life of peace and mercy, of freedom, a life in full bloom. It’s a journey of sanctification so that our behavior can reveal the good work He is doing in us.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23

When I took a step toward Christ saying, “I don’t want to live in anxiety, anger and chaos” the Spirit showed me the other side of that looking glass. It’s a place I want to live the rest of my days. How about you? Please join me on this 9-week journey as we look at A Christian Life in Full Bloom starting May 1. Be sure to follow the blog to receive your weekly Full Bloom post!