Not by Power Nor by Might

      I’m going to throw it back to good ole days for a minute. I don’t know about you guys, but I was a dumb teenager. (I’m 22 now for the record.) Of course, you never had any moments in your teenage years when you did things you regret. (Let’s laugh together.) But seriously, I made mistakes. I hung out with friends that I shouldn’t have, did things I shouldn’t have done, and said things I shouldn’t have said. (Also for the record, like the rest of us, I still stumble and fail of course but teenage Emma was a different story.) I really struggled with how to deal with those failures. I was carrying the weight of my burdens around with me and that can really take a toll.

      We’ve all dealt with this to some extent whether big or small. Shame, guilt, and furthermore, inadequacy are some of the biggest hindrances I have seen in this life. Why is this? I believe it’s because there is a part of our human nature that strives for perfection. But at the same time, there is another part that believes when we mess up, our value is diminished. A few quick truths: There will never be a time in your life when you reach perfection. There will never be a time when you don’t mess up even if in a small way. You will deal with sin for the rest of your earthly life. You need Jesus’ grace to handle a problem like this.

      It can be so hard to wrap our small little stubborn minds around but grasp this: Jesus didn’t die on the cross because we deserved it. There is nothing in this life that we can do to earn the Love and Grace of Jesus. (See Zechariah 4:6.) We are all messed up. None of us is worthy . The good news is that Jesus carried every one of our burdens to the Cross that faithful day because He loves us.

      So dear friend, hold onto that today. If you are struggling with guilt just know you are not the first nor the last to fall short of the Glory of God. Just give it to Jesus. Don’t let the guilt of the past hold you back any longer. He is ready and waiting with open arms to help you carry that load.

New Years Resolution

2020 is over, finally. I’ve been asked a lot about what my New Years resolution is, and honestly, I’m just thankful that 2020 is behind us. Even as I type that, I cringe a little at the lack of faith that statement has. 2020 was written long before it played out. But yet, what about this past year seemed so impossible to overcome? Maybe it was COVID-19, and it’s implications or reasons specific just to you. For me, it was both. Two verses helped me, and I know God sent them to me not only for 2020 but as a reminder of His desire for us.

1. Although not released this year, Zach Williams' song, “Fear is a Liar,” is what I considered my soundtrack. Subsequently, Matthew 6:25 -27 has found its way written on my bathroom mirror and plenty of sticky notes throughout the year. 25 “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? 26 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? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”

2. 2 Timothy 1: 7, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and love and a sound mind.” How powerful is that? That tells me, not only is worrying not going to get me anywhere, it‘s simply not from God. God does not give us a Spirit of Fear. If it’s not from God, it’s worth letting go, is it not? From someone who struggles with fear and doubt, repeating the key phrases of those verses, and reminding myself daily of God’s love for me, I made it through the most anxious times of the past year. My only new year resolution is to move past the difficulties of 2020 and continue to cling to the truths God has revealed while striving to be a woman not burdened by a spirit of fear.