forgiveness

Jesus holding a child's hand walking on a meadow path surrounded by flowers and trees

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Perfect Patience for Imperfect People

June 5, 2026April 15, 2026 krisshetter

“The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression;” Numbers 14:18

“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9

When my youngest daughter, now 28, was a toddler I found myself praying the same prayer every day throughout the day. “Lord, give me patience!” At times I prayed in exasperation but often I prayed through tears. She is a lovely young woman, now with toddlers of her own; a woman full of love for the Lord.

As a child, however, she was relentlessly busy—emptying cupboards, climbing counters to reach what I had forbidden, and leaving toys in my path. Rarely idle and endlessly creative, she moved with a confidence that suggested my “no” simply meant I hadn’t yet understood her reasoning.

A friend who was never going to have children once told me to not break her spirit. Teachers loved her wit and creativity even in Kindergarten. I responded to them, “You don’t have to live with her.” She always wanted more – more things, more activities, more of me, more, more, more. I loved and love her dearly but I was at my own wit’s end most days when she was little.

More Than Just Patience

One Sunday our pastor at the time spoke the words I so desperately needed. “If you keep asking for the same thing from God over and over and you aren’t seeing any fruit, then maybe it’s time to ask for something different.” In that moment I realized I wasn’t praying wrong – I was praying too narrowly. I had been fixated on patience as if it were something God handed out in isolation, rather than part of a much richer work He was doing in me.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23

You find “patience” nestled right in the middle of the fruits of the Spirit. But surrounding it are so many other good gifts He provides. I started asking for God to help me release those other aspects of the Holy Spirit. I needed to slow down, be kind, have joy in what He had blessed me. Instead of demanding, I started co-working with my daughter. I sat calmly with her talking about trust and my desire for her safety. Patience came to me through other gifts.

His Patience Is His Mercy

This struggle with patience didn’t just shape my parenting—it reshaped how I see justice, mercy, and grace. We should all seek to be patient and merciful to others as God has so graciously done for us throughout our years. It’s why Christians must push back against the concept of “karma.” You notice most people who invoke the idea do so in glee of someone else’s suffering? And yet we all deserve some sort of punishment, probably every day. For things we said, thought or did or for those things we didn’t.

“Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.” Isaiah 30:18

The LORD has been patient with this world for millennium. He promised never to flood the earth again with His wrath against sin and evil. Instead, He sent prophets armed with His Word to warn people and to plead with people to trust in Him and Him only. He even sent His son to take our punishment we so rightly deserve.

“But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.“ 1 Timothy 1:16

Friend, His patience is a perfect gift for us imperfect people. We should never say we can’t come to Him because of our failures. He is waiting for us to seek Him so He can lavish us with forgiveness. He doesn’t grow weary in His waiting. However, we are promised that one day the waiting period will be over. We will all face His eternal justice.

When non-believers question, “Where is your God?” We can faithfully answer that He is in the midst of us, patiently waiting for them to repent. For now, we thank Him for the patience He shows us and the unbelievers we love. We can thank Him too for the patience He has gifted us through the Holy Spirit.

As for me and my daughter I can be so thankful for how patient He has been to both of us. Thankful for how much He has loved us. He has blessed us with a beautiful relationship filled with joy.

“But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Psalm 86:15

Antique brass balance scale with metal weights on one side and a stone heart on the other

God Is Just—So We Can Forgive

May 15, 2026May 13, 2026 krisshetter

“Many seek an audience with a ruler, but it is from the Lord that one gets justice.” – Proverbs 29:26

“Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.” – Romans 12:19

Back in 2009, 14-year old Amber Dubois disappeared walking to school one morning in a town to the north of me. There were few clues as to her whereabouts. She was even considered by some in law enforcement to have been a runaway. But in less than a year, another teenager, Chelsea King, a 17-year old from an even closer town, disappeared while on a training run. Many of us joined search parties that seemed to last for days. Chelsea’s brutal killer was finally captured when, while evading police, he sat down for a meal at a local Mexican restaurant. The waitress recognized him from news reports as a person of interest.

Thankfully for Amber’s mother, Chelsea’s murderer confessed to both killings and revealed Amber’s location. A story that all too often happens across the world today. Young women brutalized and left for dead by evil people.

I share this story because when the killer was brought before the courts both sets of parents shared something which shocked many. Something that without knowing a just God would be difficult to accept.

“I got the answers about her last moments that I wanted … I forgave him because I had another daughter to raise, and if I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to live,” said Amber’s mother, Carrie Cave. But it wasn’t only her who forgave the man, Chelsea’s parents did as well.

Limits To Forgiveness?

About a year later while I was in a church home group, we discussed the Christian idea of forgiveness. These terrible murders became the topic. One member stated emphatically, “I think they’re lying (the parents). There is absolutely no way they can or I could forgive that man. Ever.” Yet Jesus, while bleeding and beaten, in agonizing pain on the cross looked down at His tormentors and murders and pleaded with God.

“Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” — Luke 23:34

So how is it that as believers we can forgive the slights, the maliciousness, the cruel or even the evil done to us or those we love? How can we forgive when we have been wronged by a friend, a spouse or family member? We forgive because we should know in our hearts that God is just. He has forgiven us all our slights and taunts and disrespect we have done to Him because a sacrifice was made in our place. We aren’t forgiven without a penalty being wrought.

“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” – Galatians 6:7

When we forgive, we say two things to God: 1) thank you for forgiving me my sins and 2) I trust that justice will be done. That what a man sows, he will reap. Throughout the Old Testament we see God’s justice in the sacrifices and penance of the Jews. We do wrong, and someone must pay. Our bull escapes and injures someone so He created the penance needed for restoration.

He never asks us to seek vengeance. He reminds us that vengeance is God’s and His alone. Even the death penalty for committing murder was to first be proven by three witnesses beyond reproach. And the subsequent death for the offender was not to be seen as our justice, but God’s. A purposeful death of one of His own requires the ultimate payment. And forgiveness towards that person on our part never meant excusing evil or removing legal consequences.

All Will Be Judged

One day everyone will stand before God and our lives taken into account. It’s not “kharma” or some tit for tat. If we accept the blood shed for us by Jesus as our covering for sins, our names are written into the Book of Life. If we don’t there’s only one other path – hell. We can argue as to what that might look like for different people, but I can guarantee that it’s not any place we want to be.

Friends, the world’s sense of justice and forgiveness, especially that which we’ve seen emerge in the last 15 years or so, doesn’t really look much like God’s justice. That’s because we are all first children of the evil one, led astray to do works against God’s plan. Black, white, brown, male, female, rich or poor – all of us were dead in our trespasses against Him. All of us were lined up for wrath.

I once slogged my way through Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s, “The Cost of Discipleship.” For much of it you find yourself in a deep study of Jesus’ words on the Sermon on the Mount. With each chapter I would become a bit despondent. Because to truly follow Jesus’ words would be impossible. Just like following the 10 Commandments convicted the Israelites. Bonhoeffer says in his book:

“When we come before God with hearts full of contempt and unreconciled with our neighbors, we are individually and as a congregation worshipping an idol.”

You see without a full and complete submission to our Lord Jesus Christ our lives are filled with unjust, evil thoughts and works. New “social justice” says only the rich or the white man, the straight person or the Christian, commits atrocities and therefore must be punished. But God says we all deserve death. His standard of righteousness and justice is higher than any of ours. Completely unattainable on our own. His mercy towards us in our failures isn’t pretending sin didn’t happen; justice is dealt with by God at the cross or at His judgement seat.

So, when as Christians we say, as the one home group member stated so proudly, we can never forgive someone, how should God then view us if He is a God of justice? When we say the Lord’s prayer do we really believe it? That God will mete out justice to those who not only haven’t sought forgiveness from our Righteous God but also refuse to pass on the forgiveness we have been gifted?

“Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who have sinned against us.” — Matthew 6:9-15

A Full Life or A Life Full of Bitterness?

The murder of someone I cherish is something I hope to never experience. Because I know if I do, I’ll be faced with this difficult question. Will I accept that God’s justice is all I need to forgive? As Amber’s mom so rightly pointed out, we need to forgive or else we cannot fully live. And Bonhoeffer says we then worship something other than God.

The unbeliever blinks at us in confusion, thinking we aren’t in pain over what someone has done to us because we forgive. We, however, know God has already forgiven us much and the justice we so crave, if needed one day, will find it at the foot of God’s throne.

“‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’” – Revelation 21:4

“Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you.” – Psalms 89:14

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The Generosity of God

April 22, 2026April 18, 2026 krisshetter

“You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.” – Psalm 145:16

“And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” – 2 Corinthians 9:8

In the “Finding Nemo” movie, the seagulls were given an easy line to recall: “Mine! Mine! Mine!” If you’ve ever sat with your lunch at the beach, you’ll see this scene come to life. A seagull will beat out even small children for that half-eaten sandwich you left uncovered.

I’m reminded of that scene when I hear someone fixate on what others have instead of trusting God’s provision. A desire for what someone else has earned is scarcity thinking, folks. A thinking that sets us far apart from God’s world.

From the very beginning God gave humans everything we could ever need. He created us and therefore knew what would bring us nourishment, joy and rest. Even as the Israelites wandered in the desert He was generous with food to sustain them. When they needed water, He made rocks overflow with fresh clean water.

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:19

Our generous God sees it before we need it. Now when I say that, your mind might jump to that new dress, fancy car, dashing young man (or woman). While He may provide those to you, His generosity has more depth than fleshly desires.

The Bible reminds us to ask with His will in mind, not ours. I didn’t always understand this kind of generosity until God confronted me with my own misplaced hopes. I once believed that moving to a lake house would solve my anxiety and health struggles. When financial hardship struck instead, God revealed that my dream had become an idol. In letting go, I began to see His generosity more clearly: a stronger marriage, deeper prayer life, richer friendships, and unexpected peace.

That financial situation drew my husband and I closer together. My husband began leading us in prayer nightly. My Bible study time deepened. Friendships grew fonder. And peace came from a whole different place than I’d imagined. God generously provided what I truly needed.

God’s Gifts vs The World’s

When we define God’s blessing based on worldly wants, He comes across as stingy. The God of the Bible is much bigger and more generous than we can imagine. We are chastised for not having because we don’t even think to ask. Peace in our relationships, joyfulness, forgiveness towards others, a sense of purpose – those are some of the higher gifts He pours over our hearts and minds. Gifts He then wants us to turn over to others in generosity.

Yes, He has also blessed me with a wonderful home, food to eat, finances that allow me to travel and more. But those things are blessing far beyond what we all really need. The ultimate gift He has so generously gifted is His Son, Jesus Christ. His blood was shed in forgiveness of our sins so we may have an eternal relationship with the God of the universe. A gift we could never earn through our performance. A gift He hands to us with great sacrifice and without us lifting a finger.

He gives each day our daily bread which nourishes our souls. When I’m feeling disconnected from the Holy Spirit, I remind myself to list the generous ways He has showered me and my family.

Friend, God is not stingy. He is generous. Generous with His love and forgiveness. Generous with His blessings and provision. Come to Him and ask. And when you ask, ask with the right motives as James guides us. Ask for the small and the impossible.

Dear God,

Thank you for your amazing power and work in our lives, thank you for your goodness and for your blessings over us. Thank you that you are able to bring hope through even the toughest of times, strengthening us for your purposes. Thank you for your great love and care. Thank you for your mercy and grace. Thank you that you are always with us and will never leave us. Thank you for your incredible sacrifice so that we might have freedom and life. Forgive us for when we don’t thank you enough, for who you are, for all that you do, for all that you’ve given. Help us to set our eyes and our hearts on you afresh. Renew our spirits, fill us with your peace and joy. We love you and we need you, this day and every day. We give you praise and thanks, for You alone are worthy! In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen

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Loving Enough

December 20, 2025 krisshetter

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

Hello Friends! I haven’t written for the blog in over a year and have missed hearing from you with your comments and insights! Many of you know that this year has been one of many highs and lows. In April, I commenced being a full time caregiver to my father, diagnosed the July previous with advanced bladder cancer. It was a blessing filled with trials, sadness and laughter. In September, my eldest daughter and I sat by his bedside watching him take his last breath.

As many of you have experienced yourself, being a caregiver not only takes up your physical time but also your mental and emotional time. The thought of researching and writing was a dim, distant light this year. Recently, that light has burned brighter with each passing day. My prayers have included this burning desire. I just today began gathering materials for a possible study in Romans. I don’t know where it will lead but I know being in His Word is always fruitful.

Holy Spirit Nudges

As always happens when I start pondering writing with more fervor, the Holy Spirit nudges me and reveals truths to me. Today, in fact just a few moments ago, was no different.

In my Truth for Life devotional (Alistair Begg), I was challenged like King David, to repent and humble myself. To stop covering lies and let God cover them for me. I wrote that I don’t love God as I should, nearly enough. It was a hard truth to write but one that has weighed on my mind for some time.

And because God loves a great illustration to bring His point home, as I was sitting indisposed in my bathroom, both my dogs came up to check on my progress. I say “both” because my dad’s dog now lives with us. A dog whose fur is the exact color of my now deceased mother’s hair. A dog who has lived most of his life in an unhappy home, full of strife and anger.

As both came to nuzzle against my knees, I begrudgingly petted Ben – my dad’s dog. Yet when my dog Tucker put his cold, wet nose on my skin I leaned in to snuggle with the big lump. Tucker wandered off and little Ben laid close to my feet. And I felt that Holy Spirit nudge on my heart.

You see, my allergies have gotten terrible with a second dog. And after just one day of my new carpet Ben peed on it in two places. He’s kind of neurotic and yelps at the slightest movement. He follows me around breathing heavily and anxiously wherever I go. He wanders off when we are at the beach as though he’s forgotten what I look and sound like. His bark is sharp and annoying. He’s underfoot and over needy.

And I don’t love him like I should. Like he needs.

Loving At Arms-Length

Ben is cute as a button. But I don’t want to love him. I don’t want to give myself fully over to him. He represents a terrible past that I just want left behind.

In that moment in the bathroom, I realized what it means that I don’t love God the way I should. I stand at arms-length from Him. Because if I were to truly love Him, I would have to give all of myself to Him. I would have to accept the good things and the bad things that come my way through His hands. I would have to give up my fears, my prejudices, my preferences. I would have to go “all in.”

While God may not sneak over to a corner and pee on my new carpet, He might bring people (or dogs) into my life that will. People who need mercy, forgiveness and love. I know this because He put me, a broken, sinful person, into other believers’ lives. And I pray for their mercy, love and forgiveness towards me.

More Jesus

Ben, sweet goofy Ben, needs a lot of love and patience. I need a lot more Zyrtec. More than that, I need a lot more Jesus. I need to love Jesus a lot more than I do. So, I prayed for forgiveness today that I don’t love enough the God who sacrificed His Son for me. Who has forgiven my yelping and my anxiety. For making a mess on beautiful things.

While I know the coming year will be full of unbelievers doing terrible things, I also know that God will be at work. He will be in the tears and the laughter. His glory will be available for anyone to see. And I want to be sure to see and love Him at all times, in all places and in all circumstances.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Ben and Tucker

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The Well-Travelled Soul

May 19, 2025May 13, 2025 krisshetter

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might.”  Ephesians 1: 17-19

Have you ever heard someone young described as having an “old soul?” It usually describes a young person who seems to think and act much older than their actual years. Or someone who enjoys music, art, crafting, etc. from years past. I’ll be honest, I cringe when I hear this phrase. Because usually the person they describe just seems naturally more introverted. Not shy, just one who enjoys quiet. Quiet time and quiet activities.

In reality, all Christians must travel the highway of sanctification to attain true and deep wisdom. We gather it along the road in our baskets little by little with each trial and tribulation and heartbreak. Each time we act in God’s will, not the way of the world, we find another fruit in that basket. When we get to the end of our sanctification road, our dents, scratches, repairs and maybe even a little duct tape, will be our trophies of gathered wisdom.

I bring the “old soul” view up because it flies in the face of what the sanctification road means for a Christian. Worldly wisdom can only get us so far on this journey. We, however, seek the wisdom gifted by Christ Jesus. The wisdom that comes from the different steps we have discussed thus far: knowledge of our LORD, submission to the LORD, the experiences of trials, and the stewardship of all He has given us.

King Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 7:3-4, “Sorrow is better than laughter, for by sadness of face the heart is made glad. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.“

In other words, we learn a lot more about life, ourselves, others, and God when we face sadness and hardship. So that supposed 10 year old “old soul,” if raised in a modern society, has yet to gather much in their basket of life.

Worldly Wisdom vs. Godly Wisdom

What’s the difference between worldly wisdom and God’s wisdom? If you study Proverbs, you’ll see the best worldly wisdom has to offer actually comes directly from that book! The worst is highlighted throughout the Bible with names such as greed, lust, selfishness, pride, and vengeance. Worldly wisdom so often focuses on the “me” and not the “thee.”

The world tells us it is wise to go along with our loved ones’ sins. “Go along to get along.” “Don’t judge.” God’s Word flies in the face of this when He tells us: “My dear friends, if you know people who have wandered off from God’s truth, don’t write them off. Go after them. Get them back and you will have rescued precious lives from destruction and prevented an epidemic of wandering away from God.” (James 5:19-20 the Message)

We are likewise reminded when we share the freedom message of Christ Jesus it may separate us from those same friends and family—a worldly unwise move. In light of this, we hold on to the truth that this is yet another act of submitting; which brings us closer to God’s wise plan for our lives.

The world tells you it’s wise to have sex outside marriage. Why? Apparently so you know more about sex and can pick a good sex partner in marriage. And besides they say, it’s your “right” to have a little fun. The Bible tells us “There’s more to sex than mere skin on skin. Sex is as much spiritual mystery as physical fact. As written in Scripture, “The two become one.” Since we want to become spiritually one with the Master, we must not pursue the kind of sex that avoids commitment and intimacy, leaving us lonelier than ever—the kind of sex that can never “become one.” (1 Cor 16:19-20 the Message) The promoters of sexually immoral behavior call abstinence before marriage unwise. Yet God’s wisdom tells us to value this gift as precious.

My friends, besides standing with Jesus at the end of my life, my end-goal on this journey is wisdom. When to keep my mouth shut and when to speak. When to help others and when to be wary of fools. Recognizing good character and keeping far afield of pigs who want to steal my pearls. Remaining calm when the world says to panic. A knowing that forgiving those the world says I should hate actually heals my own soul.

This week’s question: What’s something you have become wiser about in your journey of life?

Next week we’ll take one last look at our sanctification journey as we wisely travel the road home.

For more study on wisdom check out these series: “31 Days of God’s Wisdom” and “Enjoy Life: From Meaningless to Meaningful (a study of Ecclesiastes)

The Ingredient for Holiness

April 28, 2025April 23, 2025 krisshetter

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, or I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

Welcome back to our second look at the recipe for holiness in our sanctification journey! If you missed last week’s post and my quest for the perfect Southern buttermilk biscuit, click here!

In today’s scripture, Jesus reaches out His hand and yearns for you throughout the Gospels. It’s like you’re His perfect buttermilk biscuit! However, so many read the first line of this scripture and forget the rest. How does that turn out in following a recipe?

Jesus goes on to say, “take my yoke.” That means to put it on and bear it. You see, we all are yoked right now to something. We are obedient and submissive to many worldly things. The rules of the road, rules of propriety, relationship rules, government rules, corporate rules, and the modern virtual signaling rules. We commit ourselves in obedience each day to them, seeking to be accepted, seen, and loved. Yet when Jesus commands us to be obedient and submissive to Him, so many decide His rules leave a bad taste in their mouths.

Unbelievers so often think of Christianity as a set of rules you have to follow. Plus, plus a bunch of fun-filled ingredients of life you have to give up. All the while, they search in futility for fulfillment of those nine life goals we talked about last week by being obedient to the culture and fleshly desires.

Come and Belong

Jesus says, come, all you who are weary. Weary of trying recipe after recipe to find a sense of belonging and being seen and understood. Weary of the world’s weight on your shoulders, never feeling like you’re winning at life.

Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?” Luke 9:23-25

Friends, I know Christians who yearn for good relationships yet harbor unending unforgiveness. Others turn their backs on God’s demand for submissiveness as they write up their own life plan to which God must submit. There are plenty of Christians who seek treasure over Christ. Man’s approval rather than God’s eternal love. There are so many miserable Christians wearing God’s head chef hat.

Come and Enjoy

We can enjoy all the goodness God offers today. The ingredients for the life we all so desperately desire can be found in His Word. Throw off sexual immorality, despise greed and selfishness, forgive even your enemies, and be loving and a peacemaker to all. If we know His Word and we have seen Him at work at our most desperate hours, how can we continue to just dip our finger in the cake batter and call us “done?” I want to be the finished product that God desires for me, don’t you?

If Jesus, on the eve of His death, could pray, “Your will, not mine” to the Father, then shouldn’t we?

Christian friend, are you just a churchgoer, someone knowledgeable about God? Have you gone through trials and learned God loves you? And yet when you hear His voice speaking to you through His Word, you either pretend it doesn’t apply to you or you flat out ignore what He asks of you.

He says “forgive” and you won’t. He says “give” and you don’t. He commands you to love and you say you can’t. You are missing out on God’s gloriously good gifts. True fulfillment means casting off being worried about what the world (and your family and friends) thinks of you. We put on Jesus’ yoke of obedience and submission.

Come to Eternal Happiness

I may not yet know how to make the perfect buttermilk biscuit. But I do know the recipe for eternal happiness. It’s written out in 66 God-breathed books. Ask yourself today what you are refusing to do for God? He has a great recipe for your life. But He needs you to put on your apprentice apron and get to the work He has laid out for you.

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him. Psalm 34:8

This week’s question: What is the one thing you continually refuse to be obedient or submissive to God about?

Enjoying Life With Gladness

April 22, 2024April 8, 2024 krisshetter

At this point in your life, you’ve probably been asked one or both of these questions:

If you were told you were to die tomorrow, what would you do?
If the world were to end tomorrow, what would you do tonight?

They are two different scenarios. The first sees life moving forward for the rest of the world without you in it. The second is a complete destruction of all we know. For me, however, the answers are both the same. I would gather my family and others that I love. We would spend time in prayer asking God to sustain us through the trial so that we would see His face at our end. I would want us to gather in laughter, remembering all the wonderful times God has provided us throughout our time together. We would eat a scrumptious meal, most likely prepared by my husband, enjoy good wine, and pray some more.

Here’s the thing, we should always assume these two questions are a distinct possibility. That is, if we truly believe the message of the Bible. First, we will all die, just as we have seen in earlier chapters of Ecclesiastes. It’s not if but when. For every single one of us. Secondly, if it’s not the rapture coming upon us then we should be honest that the world is now filled with weapons that could easily kill us all. Does this mean we live every day in fear of these two truths? No, but truth can and should set us free to live in reality.

^“All share a common destiny—the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not.” Ecclesiastes 9:2

That “common destiny” is the evil we call death. So, what do we do with this truth? We live each day serving the one true God and live in gladness.

^“Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do.⁸Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil.” Ecclesiastes 9:7-8

Gladness is not hedonism. Gladness is not escapism. Gladness isn’t folly. You could easily imagine, in fact movies and books have taken the “if the end were tomorrow what would we do” topic and shown us the possibilities the unrighteous might take. Some might go on drug, alcohol or sexual benders. Getting blotto to ease their fears or pain. The age-old “eat and drink because tomorrow we might die” path toward annihilation. It’s a twisting of the message found throughout Ecclesiastes. Other might go on a theft and destruction rampage. That thinking shines the light on people who live without wisdom or God.

Why shouldn’t we think this way? I mean your life is about to end, right? Let’s remember the times when Moses and Abraham negotiated with God to save their people.

^“Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not sparethe place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”  Genesis 18:23-26

^“But Moses implored the Lord his God and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? ¹²Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people.” Exodus 32:11-12

So here you are, you’ve committed every sin possible against man and God the night before you are to die and suddenly a righteous person pleads for mercy on the world’s behalf. The ungodly will surely find themselves on the wrong side of that historical moment. Or maybe that person is praying for your healing because you have been personally given that death sentence. Will God abide or will He see justice done?

That’s what the “fear of God” is about. Knowing there is a presence higher than us who will one day serve justice to all. Do we love God and therefore want to live our lives in service to Him? Or do we grieve the Holy Spirit daily, hourly even, and turn our backs on Him?

^“For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even their name is forgotten. ⁶Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 9:5-6

Until the day we actually die we still have time. Time to submit ourselves over to the Lord Most High. Time to reconcile with loved ones. Time to give out mercy and forgiveness in abundance. Time to enjoy our lives with gladness. Because once your time is up, the dead have no such chances.

Joy is the serious business of heaven.”
C.S. Lewis, Letters to Malcom

Rejoicing our lives in gladness means we make the most of every moment. We make as many everyday moments special. Because they are special. That moment right now, you will never have back. The moments pass by so quickly in our short lives. Do you want to live them in bitterness and anger? In the fog of folly and hedonism? Or in joyfulness and with endurance?

I saw a great example of taking everyday moments and making them full of gladness. Once a month a mom of four young children creates “Fancy Dinner Night.” The children all dress in their finest clothing. She makes picture menus of the meal she has planned. There’s candles and cloth napkins and the fancy china. She plays the role of waitress and hands out the menus as though she is serving clients at a 5 star Michelin restaurant. Even the toddler has a picture menu from which to choose his meal. She is training them not only to enjoy an everyday moment but how to act with character at mealtimes. It was so sweet and beautiful!

Console yourself, dear Battos. Things may be better tomorrow. While there’s life, there’s hope. Only the dead have none.”
Greek Poet Theokritos

There is always hope for tomorrow; a tomorrow filled with gladness. Why? Because we have the life and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He suffered the most gruesome of deaths to take on our sins. He sacrificed not only His human body but His heavenly one when he came to earth to live among us. He showed us what the citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven will look like – ones who fully rely on God, they forgive and are forgiven, they put others ahead of themselves, they mourn over their sin. And when He was resurrected, He proved that those Kingdom Citizens will also be raised from the dead and be given yet another new life. What amazing hope we have for our eternal lives after this short time here on earth.

When we live in gladness and joy, we seek to serve others in His Holy Name. We love others well in His name. We take every moment, even in the trials and tribulations, and thank Him for providing for us, for healing us, and being our guiding light. So why oh, why would we want to miss out on that hope? Why would we not want to share that hope with those around us who choose daily leaning toward something less?

It’s not by searching for special things that we find joy, but by making the everyday things special.”
Warren Wiersbe

Friends, our time here is truly short so consider well your answers to the first two questions I presented. Because eternity is forever. A forever spent in the presence of the glory of God or of the pain of hell.

"So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and the wise and what they do are in God’s hands, but no one knows whether love or hate awaits them.” Ecclesiastes 9:1

King Solomon eventually, in his study of the meaningless life, discovers that we do, in fact, know what awaits us. If we take the narrow path set before us by Jesus we are greeted with unmeasurable love. Our knowledge of that truth should give us the endurance to live each day in gladness. And to spread that truth to so many others.

Are you the type that tells your family and friends that your best china is sitting locked away in some dusty cupboard? “It’s for special times.” And those times never seem to come? Break out that china, the linen napkins, the candles, even if it’s just you enjoying it or grab a few neighbors you’ve always wanted to meet. Make your everyday special in some way and rejoice with gladness!

You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”
C.S. Lewis

Enjoying the “Enough” Life Part Two

April 10, 2024April 9, 2024 krisshetter

Did you miss part one of Enjoying the Enough Life? Click here!

Enjoyment without God is merely entertainment.
Warren Wiersbe

No one on this great blue planet is without sin. Without sinful desires and thoughts. Without sinful emotions. So, if we seek contentment, or unconditional wholeness solely from within what do we find? Our sinful selves just like I did when I embarked on my happiness journey a few years ago. And we turn back to the unfulfilling emotion of fleeting happiness.

What guides a person to being truly joy-filled or content in every situation? How do we achieve that “unconditional wholeness” researcher Daniel Cordaro mentioned after visiting that Himalayan tribe? It requires something outside us to guide us through the ups and downs, the trials and tribulations of life. It’s easy to enjoy a new car. But what about when it breaks down? It takes no effort to enjoy the birthday party at the park you so expertly planned but what happens when it rains? Does your happiness bucket completely empty and you turn into Attila the Hun, raging at others? Or you weep and sulk feeling the cosmos hates you?

"Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. ¹²I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. ¹³I can do all things through him who strengthens me."  Philippians 4: 11-13

That strength to endure a peasant life that Tolstoy witnessed, a life of labor and toil, a life of disappointments and tragedy, and yes, even a life full of wealth comes only from God. (Ecc 5:19 & 6:2) Through the Holy Spirit who comes to dwell in us when we say, “Yes!” to Jesus as our Lord and Savior. It’s the fountain from which we draw on every single moment of every day to guide us and strengthen us. Because my friends, you cannot find wholeness without Him.

Deep-seated in the American mind, for example, is the disastrous idea that we should pursue happiness. But what is happiness? And what are the realities through which one could achieve it? And how, practically speaking, does one pursue happiness? One might pursue happiness on the carpe diem principle. But that can be understood in many ways. It could endorse a sensuality of the present moment or endorse devoting the present moment to improvement of one’s character, to serving others, or to serving God. Usually in our times, however, it is some form of sensuality. Our choice between these options will have profound implications for our efforts to become a genuinely good person and to live harmoniously with reality, with how things really are.
Dallas Willard

My Bible study ladies are currently studying Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount by Jen Wilkins. In the first week we read and discovered the messages behind the first 12 verses, also known as the Beatitudes. Jesus’ goal in this sermon was to re-define for the disciples what not only the Kingdom of Heaven looks like but what its citizens look like. The first four beatitudes describe the character of its citizens:

We Are Poor in Spirit: accepting we are weak and sinful in need of a strength outside ourselves
We Are Mourners: we recognize our sinfulness and weep over it daily. Asking God for forgiveness for each time we act, speak or think (even feel) in opposition to God’s will for us.
We Are Meek: in modeling Jesus’ submission to the Father in going to the cross for humanity’s sins and therefore suffering a terrible death, we too seek humility and submission to God.
We Are Hungry and Thirsty: not for earthly glory, praise and wealth but for our hearts and minds to be daily cleansed. We constantly seek His will for our life so that we can glorify Him. We cast off our old selves and thirst for the new bodies and New Eden to come.

These citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven? They will be abundant with fruit and content in all situations. The fruits of love, joy, peace, goodness, kindness, patience, self-control and faithfulness can be seen by all around them. They spread that fruit and His Word throughout our families, communities and the world. We achieve the ultimate peace in the face of persecution. Peace with God. Our friction between us is gone. We are made whole because He breathes the Holy Spirit into us, making us one with Him.

"And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one…²²The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, ²³I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me." John 17: 11 & 22-23

One with the Creator of all things seen and unseen – Elohim, Jehovah. What more could a tiny, sinful human want for all eternity? All other pales in comparison! No self-help book without God can help you achieve such gloriously contented status. King Solomon discovered that our sinful toil without God is usually for our own gain and our appetite is never satisfied on our own (Ecc 6:7).

"The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
    They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
    there is none who does good." Psalm 14:1-2

I once saw an interaction with a non-believer and a street preacher. The young, unbelieving woman stated, “How can you say I won’t go to heaven (which as a non-believer why would she care?) when I’m a good person. I’m better than most Christians. I don’t lie, cheat or steal.” Yet, as Jesus reminds us further in the Sermon on the Mount if you even let your heart yearn to do any of those things you are guilty. And I would bet all that I have she has, in fact, actually lied. She has probably stolen something – maybe someone’s dignity by gossiping about them. And cheating? She might have thought that little deed or breaking some municipal law wasn’t that “big of a deal” but it’s still cheating. She is at odds with God, broken and not whole.

It is only through the gift of reconciliation for our sins, no matter their size, of which Jesus Christ paid for, that we can come upright before the God of the Universe. Where we receive mercy and forgiveness so we don’t have to live in shame and hurt, grasping for pleasures to dull our pain. No, instead He brushes us off and clothes us in white garments. He brings us into His family and calls us His sons and daughters. He pours out His love and gives a piece of Him to live in us so we can have that “unconditional wholeness.” He gifts us with “enough” each day so that we may be satisfied.

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, ³for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.⁴And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  James 1:2-4

We are made perfect and complete, meaning made whole, when we face life’s trials and rely on the God who gives us strength and hope. We are honed and shaped into the image of the only being that walked this earth who was sinless and fully content — Jesus.

Friend, if you want to get off the roller coaster of seeking “happiness” and then being brought low by trials, look to our All Mighty God and His Son. He is our provider, our protector, our armor, our joy, our hope. He has never broken a promise and He never will. He promises you a new life at the end of the rainbow – not a pot of gold. And with that promise and hope we can live a contented, meaningful life of “enough” in a world of chaos.

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Fake, Dead or Alive?

December 18, 2023December 17, 2023 krisshetter

"By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples."  John 15:8

My pastor yesterday asked a very controversial question of our congregation and the results were surprising to me. ”Raise your hand if you have a fake tree. Now raise your hand if you have a real tree.” The majority of people have a fake tree. I, however, will always have a real tree gracing my living room! He went on to talk about how a real tree is really just a dead tree cut off from the earth. He used this analogy to talk about dead faith and not abiding in God.

However, I wondered, how many Christians out there are actually relying on a “fake faith?” A faith in which we go through the motions and do all the right volunteering and giving. We pray and do Bible Studies. And yet, we also despise our neighbor or that person who hurt us years ago. Forgiveness? Forget about it! We compare ourselves to others, especially during the Christmas season. We give to charities but ignore the person in need that’s right in front of us! We play victim that no one gives us the attention we need and deserve. We make excuses for our language, our thoughts. We look so much like the world but “at least we go to church.”

Today was the first day of my challenge to love and serve others. I wonder how you did? Did you stop and help a person struggling to get a cart loose from the cart corral? Did you let someone go ahead of you in line at the grocery store — without feeling like you deserved a badge? Did you help out that person at work who just is so annoying? But you did it with love? Send a comment about what you did in His name without any benefit to you!

Yesterday, as my church continues through the book of John we focused on John 15:1-17. It’s the famous verses on Jesus declaring Himself to be the vine and His disciples being the branches.

When my husband and I left church I asked Him what new things he learned. He hadn’t realized that Jesus was the root stock and we are the branches that grow out of that stock along the strings which the “vine dresser” makes. As Jesus’ branches we can only exist as an outgrowth of Him. I shared that I learned that the verse John 15:2 isn’t what I originally thought:

"Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit." John 15:2

On face value this seems a bit scary. We think we need to work really hard at serving the Lord, serving others and bringing people to Christ. It may seem so difficult that we don’t even try. Or we make halfhearted attempts to love the Lord by serving others. And if the fruits of our labor aren’t successful then chop, chop! But the words “takes away” in Greek actually are “airo,” meaning to elevate. So the Father doesn’t cut off believers when they supposedly fail. No, in His loving and glorious way He picks us up off the ground and gently puts us back along His life giving strings. It is only those folks who consciously choose to hate God that get cut off. (John 15:6).

True love for Jesus, true “abiding in Him” means thinking on Him every minute of the day. It means asking Him when we wake up to place people in front of us to serve. It means before we head out to work that we ask Him to help you be at peace in traffic and to guide you in being kind and loving to those challenging people you encounter. It means when you are tasked with something difficult you immediately turn to Him for strength and wisdom.

We glorify God when we tap into every ounce of power and wisdom He has available to us. Like an inert seed placed in the ground, it can’t do anything without the soil around it, the water to feed it, and the sun to give it life. WE are that seed. And when we stay close to the Lord we grow and produce fruit, not on our own, but because of the work He has done through us.

Jesus’ love and care for us produces fruit. Our love and abiding in Him gives Him the opportunity to serve the flock. And the results for us personally?

"If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full." John 15:10-11

And I don’t know about you but I want and need joy in my life. A joy that is so deep and everlasting that only our Glorious Savior can provide. Let us all, as we approach the celebration of our Lord’s birth this week remember to abide so closely in Him. Allow Him to shine out of you so brightly that the world wants to know more.

Soli Deo Gloria

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Taking Offense

January 12, 2023January 1, 2023 krisshetter

Fools show their annoyance at once,
    but the prudent overlook an insult. Proverbs 12:16

This is the second rendition of today’s post. When I started this blog over two years ago, I asked the Holy Spirit to speak through me. If writing a particular post felt like I was pulling teeth I knew it wasn’t coming from the right source. As a result, the post I wrote earlier went into the “delete” pile. Each sentence I wrote was interrupted either by texts, my husband, timers going off, etc. I now realize every time my mind wandered to one of those interruptions it was a tap on my shoulder to re-focus and re-write.

You see what was happening in the background of my original text was this very proverb. I was getting annoyed and offended by problems surrounding an event I am hosting. It only took me about a half a day to finally figure it out. The Holy Spirit giving me a real life example of practicing what I preach!

Being offended has risen to an artform these days. We are offended by other drivers, cashiers, politicians, neighbors, strangers, businesses, faceless people in our social media threads, our friends, our family, our spouses and on and on. If “they” don’t conform to our wants and needs, it might ruin our day. If “they” don’t act how we think they should we are hurt and insulted. No grace and definitely no mercy.

We take for granted that God won’t do the same to us. Thank goodness because we all probably offend Him multiple times a day. While He may allow our sinful actions to suffer the corresponding consequences, He isn’t sending down bolts of lightning to smote us each time we mess up. He hasn’t washed His hands of us because He’s had it for the last time.

Friends, it’s time to step back and control our emotions. We have in Jesus the perfect example for us today. He was whipped, beaten, stabbed, spit on, forsaken by friends, and hung on a cross yet He still loved. He still asked God to grant mercy. Today, can’t we do the same with the brothers and sisters around us who are probably doing their best to make it through this day just like you? I, for one, got this message loud and clear today.

Gracious God, thank you for your mercy. Help me to deliver that same mercy and grace to those around me who might insult me or cause offense. I thank you for teaching me how to seek peace throughout my days. Amen