We Need Easter

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Posted by Martha Wilson, April 3, 2023

We need Easter.

Not a new dress, shoes, or purse.

Not eggs, bunnies, or jelly beans.

Not a picnic, egg hunt, or even a family gathering.

We need Jesus.

We need the cross.

We need the blood

We need His prayer.

We need the tomb.

We need resurrection.

We need new life.

We need victory in Jesus.

Does anyone besides me need a real Easter? A true “come to the Cross” Easter?

Here we are, just a couple of days before Easter Sunday. I pause and reflect as my first thoughts return to my childhood memories of dying the eggs. Baskets beside the door awaiting the Easter Bunny to fill. There were always new dresses, patent leather shoes, and a matching new purse. The family huddled on the church pew as we sang, “Up from the grave He arose.” (Ok, readers, I can’t continue to type without recalling the old forgotten hymn.)

“Up from the grave He arose.

With a mighty triumph o’er His foes.

He arose a victor from the dark domain,

And He lives forever, with His saints to reign

He arose! He arose! Hallelujah, Christ arose.”

My mind quickly sprints to the saddest yet most glorious Easter I’ve ever experienced. It was Easter 2020 when church doors were tightly shut, and no one gathered to celebrate our risen Lord. No preparations were made for celebrating, and we were filled with shock, unbelief, loneliness, and sadness.

The tap on my shoulder woke me early that morning as my husband invited me to join him for the sunrise service. As I brushed the sleep from my eyes, I reminded him there were no Easter gatherings this year. He strongly disagreed while coaxing me to get dressed, and quickly join him in the car. Off to the cemetery across from the church, we drove. We, the living, tip-toed around the tombstones and there positioned our chairs. The chairs were in tow, along with the thermos of hot coffee. Amid the darkness and symbols of death, we sat among the graves, waiting for the sun to break through.

As we settled into the silence, the choir was awakened. Ed joined the birds singing every old Easter song he could recall. Tears flowed down our cheeks as we shared the purest worship ever. There were no flashing lights, instruments, or words on a screen, but our love for our risen Lord was written on our hearts, and worship overflowed. Two hearts were longing to remember and honor our Lord.

Suddenly a peek of light began to climb into the sky. The colors on God’s pallet that morning were more beautiful than any dyed easter egg I had ever seen. The color filled the sky, and joy flooded our hearts. We recalled when the same had happened in our lives. Both as young children, we had accepted Jesus as our Saviour. The dead came to life because Jesus went to the cross. He totally changed our lives.

Just as the tomb could not hold Him, nothing could stop our worship.

No locked church doors can keep Him from expressing Himself, nor keep us, the living, from worshipping our Lord.

Pause and remember! Hush the noise and sit in the silence and Remember.

That first Easter morning, He changed everything. This cross, this grave, this empty tomb, this Resurrection suddenly changed everything. Lift your eyes from the tombs you sit among daily and watch for His glorious light to burst through the darkness.

Go, shine His light to this dark world. Go tell your Easter story.

Once I was blind, but now I can see.

Once I was lost, but now I am found.

Once I was stained, but now I am clean.

Once I was tormented, but now I am free.

Darkness turned to Light. Death turned to Life.

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” John 8:12

Martha Wilson is a writer, speaker, blogger and co-host of “A Burst of Hope” weekly podcast. She is the founder and director of Touching Hearts Ministries for women. She has led women to pursue an intimate relationship with Jesus for most of her adult life. She is bold, tender, and transparent as she teaches women to embrace powerful Biblical truths. Martha and her husband, Ed, live in Fayetteville, Georgia, and enjoy their blended family of five children, eight grandchildren, and one great-granddaughter. You can connect with Martha at: Facebook and Instagram @TouchingHeartsMinistries or listen to the A Burst of Hope Podcast.

Do You Have Ears To Hear?

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Posted by Karen Kinnaird, March 28, 2023

I don’t know about you, but I am so glad the mask mandate is over! I find it hard to hear people when they are speaking while wearing a mask. Especially in a noisy place, I had to keep asking people to repeat themselves so I could understand what they were saying. It reminds me of my childhood playing underwater in a pool, trying to hear my friends talk with muffled and muddled words.

Jesus makes many references in the Bible to hearing. Often, we hear Him say, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Of course, Jesus is not referring to physical hearing. This isn’t the kind of hearing that can be improved by taking off a mask or eliminating background noise. Did you know this phrase “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” or ones like it is in the New Testament about twenty times? The phrase is mostly in the gospels, but in Revelation, each of the letters to the seven churches includes this same statement, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

There are several characteristics of those who have ears to hear and those who don’t.

Those who don’t have ears to hear, hear sounds but are tuned out. They lack understanding so they can’t respond. Their hearts are dull. Some are not ready to hear. Some may be indifferent. Some are so distracted that they can’t hear. Some intentionally refuse to listen and refuse to obey, resulting in hard hearts. That results in spiritual insensitivity. We see that described in the book of Isaiah and Jeremiah regarding the nation of Israel.

On the flip side, those who do have ears to hear are blessed because they understand. They are willing to lean in and accept God’s truth. It sinks in. These are receptive and responsive to the Holy Spirit. Those who hear acquire some understanding and then want more and receive more, sometimes 30, 60, and 100 times more. They have insight into spiritual things and act on it. They have something to show- spiritual fruit. Hearing is not really hearing at all if the message is not acted upon!

When I was a senior in college, I had an increasing desire for spiritual things. These days, I might be classified as a “seeker.” I tried to read my Bible, but I couldn’t understand it. As a matter of fact, a guy I was dating tried to help and bought me a Good News version of the Bible because it’s simpler to read. I tried, but I still couldn’t understand it. 2 Corinthians 4 states that the gospel is hidden to those who have not accepted Christ. Satan literally blinds the mind of unbelievers. It wasn’t until someone showed me from the Bible what it really meant to be a Christian and led me to accept Jesus as Savior did I start to understand spiritual things. The Holy Spirit living in me began to gradually illuminate what I was reading. I was starting to hear. I still have that Good News Bible today inscribed with the words, “With Love, Dennis,” on the presentation page!

What can we do to have ears to hear?

1. I urge you to accept Christ today if you haven’t already. Settle the issue of who you will spend your life serving and where you will spend eternity. To hear Him, you must know Him.

2. Read your Bible. God speaks primarily through His Word. Read it consistently, uninterrupted, when you are alert, with a pen in your hand to write down the verses that speak to you.

3. Pray for God to give you ears to hear. Ask God to give you sensitivity to His voice and ask for understanding. Pray for your ears to be highly attuned to His activity.

4. Slow down, be quiet, and create a lifestyle with space in your heart and mind. We live in a culture in which we are bombarded with information that leaves our minds on overload. To tune in to God, we need to tune out the distractions of notifications, cell phones, 24/7 TV and news, social media, and unlimited podcasts. Consider setting aside time to unplug.

5. Aggressively cooperate with God. Put into practice what you are learning and do what God tells you to do. Most of us don’t need to obtain more knowledge; we need to put what we know into action. As we act upon what God says, our understanding will increase. Listen to what Jesus says in Mark 4, “Consider carefully what you hear. With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more.”

I want to have ears to hear. What about you? Do you have ears to hear? What is He saying to you?

Karen Kinnaird currently serves as the Executive Assistant for Forgiving Forward Ministries. She has been a minister’s wife for nearly 38 years and has served on local church staff and state denominational positions. An award winning blogger, Karen has a passion for encouraging women searching for hope. Karen and her husband Jimmy moved to the Atlanta area in 2021 from Oklahoma City where he now serves as the Association Missionary Strategist for Fairburn Baptist Association. Karen and Jimmy, also known as Gigi and Poppy, have 3 children and 3 grandchildren.

A New House

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Posted by Kim Stanley, March 21, 2023

I had been a believer for more than a few years when the Holy Spirit revealed this truth to me:

For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3: 3-4)

My walk with Jesus up to this point was wonderful, and our relationship was growing. He had saved me from my sin and made me His. I would be eternally grateful.

But my life was compartmentalized.

This is God time,

this is family time,

and this is work and ministry time.

And the order of all that seemed right and good.

But I was like an overly stretched rubber band ready to snap, feeling guilty that I wasn't giving each "compartment" its appropriate time and attention.

At a business conference, I heard a speaker say that she had learned her life was all God's.

No compartments.

Period.

I took that thought home with me.

Home was frustrating, though.

I was exhausted trying to balance family and ministry, striving to please God in all of it.

During the next few months, God began teaching me about grace and the exchanged life.

What happened at the cross?

Does the resurrection have any effect on my life here?

If I've been saved by grace, how does grace help in everyday life?

As I began to read through Romans, Galatians, Ephesians, and Colossians, this wonderful truth started popping out at me:

This isn't my life anymore. Christ is my life. (Galatians 2:20)

I was so frustrated and exhausted because I was trying to live the Christian life apart from the Spirit of God. And that's impossible. The only person who lived the perfect Christian life was Jesus.

My flesh, well-meaning as it may have been, was trying to make me believe that it was still alive and in charge.

The truth was my flesh was dead. It just tried to make me believe it was still alive.

When God made me a new creation, the old me died.

He didn't just clean me up and make me look better.

He re-made me. He made my dead spirit alive.

To live by faith has come to mean much more.

My faith is in the Son of God who loves me and lives His perfect life through me.

I'm just the vessel.

He is the Vine. (John 15)

I am a branch, and branches don't strive to bear fruit,

they simply abide and get all their nourishment from the Vine.

Imagine this...

I used to live in one house; let's say that house is my old self.

When Christ saved me, I moved to a different house, a new one. I loved living in this beautiful new house. But occasionally, I would make visits to the old house. I missed the old home place.

I went back and forth between houses until I eventually forgot my new address and just started living at the old house again.

As a squatter.

I didn't belong there, but it was familiar.

Then it started to feel more like a prison than a house. There were rules and expectations to live by, but try as I might, I could never measure up to them.

Checklists and standards were the prison guards, and I no longer knew who I was.

As I came to understand my new identity in Christ, I realized that this old house was not for me anymore.

So, I moved back to my new house.

It was welcoming and full of Life and Light.

And Grace.

I've lived there for quite a while now.

There are times that I still want to go back to visit the old house - usually when I'm tired, frustrated, and trying to get my needs met apart from God. When I make it up to the door to go in for a short visit, that old house is empty and dark, and there's no life there.

The Holy Spirit reminds me of the Truth of Whose I am and where I get my Life from.

And I quickly go back home again, where I belong.

By God's grace, those visits are becoming shorter and less frequent.

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? (Romans 6:1)

Kim Stanley is a worship leader, speaker, writer, and is the worship leader for Touching Hearts Ministries. She and her husband Joe have been in itinerant worship ministry for over 30 years. She is the founder and director of One Thing Worship, a retreat ministry for women that provides sacred time and space to be still and hear the voice of God. She also co-hosts a podcast called “A Burst Of Hope” with Martha Wilson. She and Joe have been married for 40 years; they have 4 grown children, one in heaven, and 6 grandchildren. They live in the south metro Atlanta area. You can connect with Kim on her website, www.joeandkimstanley.com, and on Facebook and Instagram @onethingworship.