christianity

Life is Beautiful

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then he who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through his Spirit who lives in you.”

Romans 8:11 CSB

I’ve been thinking recently of how beautiful life truly is. Maybe it’s due to the fact that the sun came out and I felt early signs of Spring, but I think it’s mainly due to reflecting on the beauty of the world around me.

When we first moved into our house, we noticed a tree in the back that looked dead, only to find out that a new tree was growing out of it. It is a crazy thing to see, this husk of the old and dead having new life burst from it. I’m encouraged by this, because it reminds me of how God never gives up on us, on how new life can always be breathed into us.

Life is beautiful because we have a beautiful creator, one who loves us and each day breathes new life into us and gives us a chance to start again.  

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You Can Control Who You Choose To Be

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“If the God we serve exists, then he can rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he can rescue us from the power of you, the king. But even if he does not rescue us, we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.”

Daniel 3:17-18 CSB

There are a lot of things out of our control in this world, but the one thing we can control is ourselves. I think this especially true in this cultural moment where a lot of what is happening in the world seems crazy, and it is, but rather than give up hope, we can control who we want to be in this moment. Do we want to make a difference where God has placed us? Then we must be active in how we love those in our circles.

I was thinking about this concept after reading through some of the icons in the old testament; from Joseph who chose to focus on God during temptations, David who chooses to remain humble under a tyrant king, and Shadrach Meshach, and Abednego who choose to remain faithful despite the threat of death if they didn’t worship false gods. These are strong examples for us now, to remain faithful to a loving God and choose to control our actions despite of what may be happening in our own lives and world.

You can’t control the world around you, but you can control who you choose to be in the world.  

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Made – Reflections in our Current Time

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.”

James 1:18 NLT

Current events have been heartbreaking. Heartbreaking because there is a continuing snowball effect of how people are being treated. Lines are being deepened and words continue to be used to vilify whole people groups to the point where people are taken, beaten and murdered.

What’s even worse, is we see this as a cycle, one that continues over and over, each time growing worse and worse.

As followers of Christ, we should not fall into this trap of treating others that contradicts the truth of Scripture.

The truth of Scripture is that we are God’s most prized possession, made in His image, loved so much that He made a way to restore a relationship with Him. Called to lead others into that same grace by how we love others.

What we are seeing, is the effects of sin, distorting the original image of God to our own making. My heart breaks and I have righteous anger especially when those who claim to be a disciple of Jesus, twist Scripture and truth in order to justify looking at others as if they are not made in the image of God.

This is wrong and I have to make the distinction that I do not align in any way with those who use God’s love as a weapon and not a free gift for all.

So, I am choosing to use my words, especially for those that desire to follow Christ, that we are all made in God’s image, worthy of love and called to love others no matter what.

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The Cost of Community

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as any had need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.”

Acts 2:45-47

The cost of community is inconvenience. I heard this statement from a while back and it really stuck with me, as I love the power that this communicates. Everyone desires community, because people want to be authentically known and loved, to have someone that will be there when life is good and when life presents challenges. The hard part is actually finding good, authentic community, because it comes at a price.

In order to be a part of a village, you have to be a villager.

What this means is that you have to play the role, and not just be a consumer. Which is exactly what we find when reading on how the first church operated. They came together and met the needs of those around them, and when they found themselves in need, they had cultivated relationships with those who had their back.

This is the type of community I desire, and one that I need to actively participate in, so that means that inconvenience is the price I must pay in order to foster deep community.

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Looking Back to Move Ahead

/ Joshua Thomas / 1 Comment

“…In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ you should tell them, ‘The water of the Jordan was cut off in front of the ark of the Lord’s covenant. When it crossed the Jordan, the Jordan’s water was cut off.’ Therefore these stones will always be a memorial for the Israelites.”

Joshua 4:6-7 CSB

For the last few years, I decided that I would keep a commonplace notebook, and as part of that, recap every month. I jot down major events that happened in my life as well as what I’m currently enjoying and what is filling my emotional tank. I have loved doing this, because it is a capsule of each month and where I’ve been. I always then, at the end of the year, look back through these notebooks and am reminded of what happened and how God moved in my life over the course of the year.

I use Field Notes pocket journals, and I have loved documenting the joys and little things in life so that I can be empowered to move forward. I believe it is so vital to look back and see how much you have grown in order to move ahead with a deeper passion. As a writer, I love journaling, but I believe everyone can benefit by taking time to mark down your reflections in order to have a history that you can look back and be grateful for.

When we look back, we see how God moved in our life, which gives us a greater ambition to move ahead in confidence that He will move again.

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Embracing the New Year

/ Joshua Thomas / 1 Comment

“Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

1 John 4:7-8 CSB

You did it! You made it through another year and are facing the start of the new chapter. I think it is always so important to celebrate the fact that you made it through another year, with all the good and the hard that came alongside it. You can be proud, because you are a wiser and better person because of this growth.

I love this time of post celebration and looking at the new year ahead of us, because it offers us a chance to continue a path of growth in our wisdom and love. Something I’ve done every year, is choose a word to be my focus for the year, not as a goal, but as a mindset or character trait that I wish to grow and center myself on. You may think this is a cliché, but I believe it is wise to set an intention for your year, not a goal that can feel shameful if you miss, but something that you can cultivate in your spirit so that you become a clearer version of who God has designed you to be.

My word that I chose for this year is, “embrace.”

To embrace something, is to hold close to your heart, to welcome in with deep love and affection, to step into the new season with open arms ready for whatever may greet you.

In a world where Jesus’ name is taken in vain by grifters, I want my life to be an example of love and light that the life of Jesus proclaimed, a life that Jesus called us to walk into and embrace.

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The Quiet Beauty of Christmas

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“Mary was treasuring up all these things in her heart and meditating on them.”

Luke 2:19 CSB

A little bit ago at this point, we had a small amount of snow come to North Carolina. By snow of course I mean a wintery mix of rain and “snow,” but that’s not the point. What I always love about these moments, is the beauty that comes. I was able to be outside at night and just listen to the snowfall and watch the little bits of it build up around the Christmas lights on the house, it was wonderful, and in this quiet moment, I was able to reflect on all of the joys that I have in my life.

I adore these quiet moments of Christmas, whether it’s the sound of laughter from Violet playing, nothing but the light of the Christmas tree in the living room after everyone is asleep, or the sounds of wrapping paper covering gifts as dear Danielle and I sit on the floor of our room. To me that’s the magic and it reminds me of the importance to embrace the quiet moments in our lives.

When you embrace the quiet beauty in life, your perspective shifts to the holy gift that Christ gives to each of us.

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Kindness is Easy When You Know the Needs Around You

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“If anyone has this world’s goods and sees a fellow believer in need but withholds compassion from him—how does God’s love reside in him? Little children, let us not love in word or speech, but in action and in truth.”

1 John 3:17-18 CSB

I think way too often we overcomplicate being kind. It’s not always convenient, we often try to make hoops to jump through or other requirements in order to justify it; but the truth is, as a follower of Christ, being kind is a fruit of the Spirit and one that is much simpler than we try to make it. When we look at the way Jesus poured into the lives of the people around Him, it was often Him just being present with those around Him.

That’s what the core of being kind is, just being present with those around you, so that when a need or opportunity arises, you are there, ready to be a light.

John reiterates this when he reminds followers of the way, that it’s not about just saying something, but living it out.

Kindness is easy when you know the needs around you and are present to act as an example of Christ.

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Your Greatest Ministry Opportunity is All Around You

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

John 13:34-35 CSB

I’ve been in and around the church world for most of my life, and I always think about how easy it is to think of ministry as something just for a select few, and that the field in which to do ministry always must be drastic or extreme. But what if that just simply isn’t true? What would you do if I told you that mindset just simply isn’t Biblical at all?

We are all called to follow Jesus and be His disciples, which means that we are called to be a light in the world, there is no special requirement or criteria to do that.

The thing that’s even more beautiful about this? Your greatest ministry opportunity is all around you. Your ministry field is your neighborhood, office, classroom, and your own home.

It’s not complicated, it’s about being present to the people all around you and pointing them to Christ by the way you love well.

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A Spirit of Power

/ Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

“Therefore, I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.”

2 Timothy 1:6-7 CSB

I’m sitting here writing this on a beautiful October day; rain, cloudy skies, and the leaves look like they are on fire. I love this time of year and love how fun it is to get into the spooky mindset, and ultimately eating lots of sweets. This month plays with testing your fear, now I am not a super scary season person, but I do enjoy the Scooby-Doo levels of fear that this time brings with it. I think about fear much more during this season, which is why I have been writing about it. We have fears about stepping out in faith and stepping into the life that Christ ushers us into, there is fear of the unknown and fear of failure.

What this season does, though, is reminds we that we give fear too much power in our lives.

Fear can truly paralyze us into being good with where we are, when God wants to move us into a life of deeper meaning. The thing is, we give fear too much power, when the truth is, Christ gives us a spirit of power.

When we choose to live a life of power, love, and discipline, we no longer allow fear to control our minds and begin living the way Jesus calls us into.

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