Cross My Heart Ministry

There are never enough Sundays in the month to unpack all the righteousness verses we’ve written in our Write the WORD study. Therefore, on this final Sunday of March, let’s  approach these last few days of the month by surveying some powerful scriptures and praying the WORD together today.  

Because so many of the women reading this are wives, mothers, and/or grandmothers, let’s specifically frame our prayers as intercession for our precious ones. 

Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
your justice like the great deep.
You, Lord, preserve both people and animals. 
Psalm 36:6

Lord Almighty, I praise You for the height and depth of Your righteousness. Your power knows no limits. You are mighty to save. I pray Your righteousness — and Your love — would be known by my children and grandchildren, and that they would worship and adore You. 

The righteousness of the upright delivers them, 
but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires.
Proverbs 11:6

Jesus, may my loved ones be declared righteous by placing their faith in You. I pray their identity in You would both call and equip them to live righteous, upright lives and that those good choices would protect them and bring them joy. Deliver my children and grandchildren from evil. May their desire to live for You and please You be greater than any desire for evil. Holy Spirit, call them to live faithfully for You! 

In the way of righteousness there is life; 
along that path is immortality. 
Proverbs 12:28

God, thank you for the eternal life we have because of Your gift of grace. Jesus, thank you for Your sacrificial death that makes immortality possible for mortal humans. Holy Spirit, draw my children, and their children, and future generations of our family, to place their faith in You — to walk in the way of righteousness and find the “life that is truly life.” 

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst
for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Matthews 5:6

O Lord, make us hungry and thirsty for You! I pray that nothing and no one besides You would bring satisfaction in my life, or the lives of my loved ones. Let every other gift pale in comparison to the greatest gift of knowing You and abiding in You. As we know You more, make us want to live more for You, in You, and through You. Make the way of righteousness be not a way of drudgery or duty, but one of delight and joy! 

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, 
and all these things will be given to you as well. 
Matthew 6:33

Lord, bless our family with a single-minded focus on You. I pray that advancing Your kingdom and Your righteousness would consume our hearts and minds. As we choose to daily seek and serve You, may all other blessings flow in and be kept as far-distant seconds, thirds, fourths, etc. I pray our chief aim — the overriding, consuming focus of our thoughts and desire of our hearts — would be for You. 

For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—
a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, 
just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
Romans 1:17

O Jesus, let them know — let me model — that righteousness is only found by faith. Forgive us for venturing off the path to counterfeit, manufactured righteousness that really isn’t righteousness at all. Allow us to reject both legalism (the “have-to” list) and liberalism (the “don’t have to” dismissal of the list). Allow my children, and our entire family, to live in that sweet spot of abiding in You. Call us to live righteous lives … not to earn Your favor, but because “by faith we have been saved by grace.” Reveal this truth. Let them see it, embrace it, and walk in it! Let the truth they have been taught in our home become the reality of their lives! 

November may be synonymous with “giving thanks,” but every month — every day — is a good time to thank God. Our list of reasons to thank Him is unending, with each day bringing new blessings. In this week’s teaching video, Laura shares a suggestion (prompted by King David) for another reason to praise Him. We hope you’ll enjoy her thoughts, inspired by this month’s Write the WORD bookmark.

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“My tongue will speak of your righteousness
and of your praises all day long.”
Psalm 35:28

Whatever is in our hearts and on our minds will most likely make its way out to our tongues.  

If we are planning a vacation, a garage sale, or a family reunion—we talk about it. If we are getting a child ready for college, preparing for vacation Bible school, or shopping for a new washing machine, those things may dominate our conversations. 

When David declares, “My tongue will speak of your righteousness,” it’s a powerful ancient-world call to us in modern day … a call to join in.  And it’s a declaration not just whispered in the morning during our intimate quiet time with God, but is to be declared to those in our sphere of influence — all day long.

Let’s evaluate honestly whether you and I tell our families, the women we mentor, and those in our friend group: God is righteous! 

Does even the thought of doing so sound and feel a bit “awkward” (borrowing a word my millennial daughter uses to describe anything uncomfortable)?

Does it feel almost fanatical to even consider doing so? 

Perhaps you and I are more comfortable telling others: 

• God loves you!
• God is merciful! 
• God’s grace is unending! 

All those statements are true. Absolutely. Unequivocally. 

Only a loving, merciful God would endure the pain and shame of the cross to pay the debt He didn’t owe. But the reason He was an acceptable offering is His righteousness.  

He is holy.

He is righteous.

He is great.

He is mighty to save.

Have you declared His righteousness lately? Have you spoken of it out loud? Have you proclaimed it to others? 

In last week’s Sunday Soaking, we challenged one another to thank Him for His righteousness. This week we are going a step further, with a challenge to proclaim it out loud.  

Wives, daughters, mothers, grandmothers:  let it begin with us! 

By declaring His righteousness (as well as His love), we share the truth about the nature of God. And that truth might make — most likely will make — some people uncomfortable.  

And guess what? It should make every one of us uncomfortable, because it should call and convict us of our own unrighteousness.  

Focusing on God’s love is good. It is powerful and reassuring. But the same should also be true of His righteousness. As we worship and adore Him, as we serve Him, as we learn more of Him and grow closer to Him, we will be conformed to His image. 

Ask yourself these questions:

• Am I more loving than five years ago, twelve months ago, or a week ago? 
• Am I more righteous than five years ago? Twelve months ago? A week ago? 

Choosing to proclaim love sounds positive and encouraging and acceptable. Choosing to do the same with God’s righteousness seems to invite labels like holier-than-thou, fanatical, or legalistic.  

It’s not that we are perfect; we know that’s impossible. But neither do we celebrate, rationalize, or whitewash our sin (or the sin of others). Sin must be confessed. We mourn it and turn from it. We ask the Holy Spirit both to convict us, and to allow us to go forward in freedom from the bondage sin brings.  

At the end of the day — and, most assuredly, at the end of time — it matters not what you or I think, dear sister friend. What truly matters is what God says. Sin is sin because of God’s timeless truth … not because you and I make a list, or have a vote on what does and does not belong on that list. The Bible is our plumb line, not cultural norms, man-made laws, or the latest trend in media or our social circles.  

We are living in a world where anything goes, truth is up for a vote, and absolutes are not tolerated. Of even greater concern and alarm: the lies are coming from those who profess faith in Christ, not just the unbelievers.  

Ignore the noise. Tune out the voices of our culture. Pay attention to what the Bible proclaims.

We must love our family members enough to tell them the truth. We must love our neighbor enough to tell her the truth.  

When each of us steps out of time and into eternity, knowing the truth is what preserves and saves us.  

Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
(John 14:6)

Do you know Jesus? Do you proclaim His love and His righteousness … all day long?

Ask your Heavenly Father for the courage and confidence to share His truth with those you encounter each day: God loves you just like you are – but He loves you too much to leave you there.

Rise up, sisters!  The road ahead for us — and certainly for our babies and grandbabies — is growing more rocky with every passing day. It’s time to buckle up and put on the armor our Savior has provided. Are you wearing your belt of truth and your breastplate of righteousness? (Ephesians 6:10-20) 

If we know the truth, we must proclaim the truth. How can you commit to speaking of His righteousness all day long today?

This week we wrapped up our ladies’ Bible study in I Corinthians. Paul packs a lot into chapter 16, as he encourages believers to:

• Stand guard
• Stand firm
• Be courageous
• Be strong
• Give
• Refresh others

We hope you are moved by these words from Laura, as we present the final teaching video in our I Corinthians study.

It’s not too late to join us for the final days of March, as we prepare our hearts for Easter by reading, writing, and studying verses about righteousness. We invite you to visit our Downloads page, where you’ll find our Write the WORD bookmark, corresponding S.O.A.P. Bible study outline, and other resources to help you love God and love His WORD!

“I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness
and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.”
Psalm 7:17 

We have so many reasons to thank God. We thank Him for our families, our homes, and our many blessings.  We thank Him for answered prayers. We thank Him for many facets of His character: His love, compassion, grace, and mercy. 

But does it ever occur to us to thank Him for His righteousness?  

As I consider my salvation, I realize that God’s righteousness—combined with His love—is what makes my destiny for eternity a reality.  

I have thanked and praised Him often for His love, but His righteousness is equally important.

If He was loving but lacked righteousness, the requirements of the law would not be satisfied in Jesus; the law required a righteous sacrifice be nailed to that Cross. But if He was righteous only, not loving, He may have declined the Cross altogether.

It’s not either/or … it’s both/and! 

Because Christ Jesus is both loving and righteous, we must thank Him. Our Savior is perfectly righteous – without blemish – and perfectly loving. Only Jesus satisfies both requirements.  

For each of us, our natural temperament or personality may lead us to focus more on His love or on His righteousness. But, like two sides of the same coin, He is both.

Thankfully, He is both.  

Please just stop for a few moments and allow that truth to settle in. Acknowledge He is both. Choose to be grateful that He is both. Thank Him for being both.  

Only in Jesus, the God-Man, are the righteous requirements of the law satisfied. Only in Jesus do we have hope for eternity. Only in Jesus can we be declared righteous in God’s eyes.  

Thank you, Jesus, for being righteous. Thank you, Jesus, for being loving.  

Let’s proclaim with the Psalmist:  

I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness
and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.

Our latest teaching video features thoughts from Molly Duddleston from Cross Church Pinnacle Hills, on I Corinthians chapter 15, where Paul refuted false teaching that had crept into the church at Corinth. We hope you’ll listen now as Molly addresses one of the foundational truths of Christianity: the resurrection.

Have you downloaded our March Write the WORD bookmark and (optional) S.O.A.P. Bible study pages? If not, we hope you’ll jump in today and join us for the rest of the month as we read, write, and meditate on verses about righteousness. Visit our Downloads page for these and other free resources to help you balance your heart for God and His children, with the many commitments of your busy life.

“…not having a righteousness of my own
that comes from the law,
but that which is through faith in Christ—
the righteousness that comes from God
on the basis of faith.”
Philippians 3:9

I recently searched online for houses of similar size and style. I found two 3-bedroom, 2-bath, ranch style homes – but the similarities ended there. One is located in Newport Beach, CA; the other in Bay St. Louis, MS. Their prices: $2,335,000 and $139,900, respectively. That’s $1,474 per square foot vs. $89 per square foot! 

A supply list of how many 2″ x 4″ boards, windows, doors, and shingles required to duplicate each house would, most likely, be roughly the same. The value has more to do with location. One home is declared more valuable, because of where it is. 

We are all fixer-uppers. We are all in need of some changing out and some updating. And it is our location at the foot of the cross that has us declared righteous. As Paul says, we have no righteousness on our own – it is all imputed to us through Christ. 

You and I may not feel righteous. We may not always behave like women of God…but if our identity is in Christ, that’s exactly what we are. Our location at the foot of the cross means we are sinners, but we are declared righteous. 

Our location at the cross changes everything! 

We know we are unworthy, but are declared worthy because of Jesus. In Christ, we are made righteous. In Romans 3, Paul reminds us: 

This righteousness from God comes through faith
in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
There is no difference between Jew and Gentile,
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
and all are justified freely by his grace
through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

We are justified – we are declared righteous – in Christ. That’s a game changer! 

When you look at yourself (or when the world looks at you), what do you see? A woman who has messed up…again? A less-than-perfect wife and mom? A woman who is less-than striving and trying to be more-than? To get it right?  

When God sees you, you are viewed through the completed work of Jesus. You are loved and forgiven. You are righteous.  

Because we have been declared righteous, we get to live righteous! No more striving – just resting in our identity in Him and free to live loved.  

You are not who the world says you are. You are more than what you see when you look at yourself in the mirror. The world may see a sinner with a past, but God declares you to be a saint with a future! Go ahead – live like the righteous woman He declares you to be!

In this week’s teaching video, Laura addresses a topic from I Corinthians 14 that many may view as controversial: tongues. We hope you’ll watch as she lays this out – and then make some time to pray over your questions, asking to allow love to lead out as you exercise your own God-given spiritual gifts.

If you have not yet downloaded your own copy of our free Write the WORD bookmark, it’s not too late to join in as we read, write, and study verses with the word RIGHTEOUSNESS this month! Visit our Downloads page for the March bookmark, S.O.A.P. Bible study pages, and other free resources.

“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
Ephesians 5:21 

Here is yet another verse underscoring that our relationship with Jesus makes every other relationship work. 

If I love Jesus, I will love the “one anothers” in my life. Because I have been forgiven by Jesus, I must forgive the “one anothers” in my life. And because I want to honor and revere Jesus, I will submit to the “one anothers” in my life.  

Jesus is the inspiration, the reason, and the joyful compulsion for pushing forward to release inexplicable love, forgiveness, respect, and honor.  

And, most importantly, He is also the source of the ability to get it done.  

There is no fuel in my fleshly engine to love and keep on loving, to forgive and keep on forgiving, to submit and keep on submitting. The assignment is way too exhausting, painful, time-consuming, and humiliating.  

I can’t do it. The “Laura” in me gives out, gives up, or (in many cases) never even gets started.

With some “one anothers” in my life, I just don’t want to.

With others, I’ve tried and given up.  

A horizontal view prompts a zillion reasons (…excuses?) why I cannot and should not. I can easily justify giving myself a pass. Perhaps I even congratulate myself for simply considering the release of love, forgiveness, and honor to a particular person.

But then there’s the vertical perspective. I look up. Focusing my heart and mind on Jesus brings contrition. He loves me in spite of.  He forgives me even if. He honors me no matter.  

He knows everything – all the stuff I’ve thought, said, and done. Even the ugly buried deep, He knows. And He loves, forgives, and honors me anyway.

I am wholly undeserving, and He gives anyway.  

If I hold tenaciously to anger, resentment, bitterness, and unforgiveness – and refuse to release love, honor, forgiveness, and compassion – perhaps it says more about my relationship with Jesus than my fractured relationship with my “one another.”  

• Do I trust He is big enough to protect me? 
• Do I trust He will see and provide? 
• Do I believe He is able to help me do what I could never do on my own? 
• Do I believe Him?  
• Is the object of my faith bigger than my what-ifs?  

Clearly, this girl has some praying and pondering to do! How about you?

Our Write the WORD bookmark for March is now available, and in this week’s teaching video, Laura takes a few moments to introduce our next topic. To prepare our hearts for Easter, we’ve chosen the word RIGHTEOUSNESS. We invite you to listen as Laura unpacks truth about righteousness — before the cross and after — and encourage you to download your own copy of our March bookmark as we get ready to read, write, and study what scripture says about righteousness in the coming month.

“Be kind and compassionate to one another,
forgiving each other,
just as in Christ God forgave you.”
Ephesians 4:32 

Just because we are believers does not mean we will not hurt each other. In fact, those we are closest to have the greatest capacity for wounding us.  

When a stranger is mean, we can (literally or figuratively) roll our eyes and walk away. But when a “one another” criticizes us, tears and sleepless nights may result. Ice cream could be involved.  

In extreme cases those wounds are deeper than hurt feelings. They can bring life-long consequences. The most horrific of those behaviors cast a shameful eye on the body of Christ. The result can be years of counseling for the victim, and incarceration for the perpetrator when justice must be served.  

You and I may never (I hope) face those extreme circumstances. But we probably will encounter relationship struggles that need more than a quart of Rocky Road to overcome.  

All of us have most likely endured – and may face again – a situation where we are insulted, criticized, misunderstood, unappreciated, overlooked, condemned, maligned, or gossiped about by a fellow believer. It may come from a member of our church, our circle of friends, perhaps even our family.  

When the “one anothers” in our lives behave badly, that’s on them. They are responsible for their behavior.  

But our response to their bad behavior is on us. I am responsible for me. You are responsible for you. And one day, we will all answer to God for every bit of it. 

Are you and I holding onto a hurt … perhaps one that began years ago? Has it rooted itself in deep, growing from a tiny seed to a firmly entrenched plant of bitterness with kudzu-type tenacity?  

• Have you rounded a corner at the grocery store, seen someone at the end of the aisle, and done an oh-I-need-milk U-turn to avoid a face-to-face encounter? 
• Have you stopped going to family reunions when you know certain family members will be there?  
• Do you retrieve that scene from the iCloud storage of your mind and replay it once in a while, just to remind yourself why you’re angry … and why you have the right to that anger? 

Are you being held captive in your own prison of unforgiveness?

Would you consider the possibility that holding onto the hurt, refusing to forgive, may be injuring you more than the one who offended you? 

I heard someone once say, “We tend to judge others by their behavior, but judge ourselves by our intentions.” Might we tend to whitewash our role as we remember, retell, and replay? 

If you’ve made it this far, please accept some learned-the-hard-way counsel from a woman who has lived long enough to make far too many mistakes. I’ve cried and prayed with a lot of women who have been hurt, I have hurt people, and I have been hurt myself.  

Here’s the advice that bubbles up from those experiences: 

• Own your part of it.
  Hurts and fractures in relationships are seldom 100% one person’s fault. Rarely is one party completely blameless. If you are 2% culpable, own that 2%. Seek forgiveness, repent, do whatever necessary to make it right.
• Release forgiveness.
  The only way to be free from this thing in your past – and move forward into your future – is to forgive. Failing to do so robs you of today, and every tomorrow, until you do.

Let it go.   

Choose to let it go.  

Pray you can let it go.      

Allow the Holy Spirit to enable you to begin to forgive. Allow Him to open the door to the prison where you’ve held yourself hostage.  

A few additional thoughts on forgiveness: 

1. It is a choice – not an emotion.  
2. It is an expectation of Christ-followers. 
3. Because I am forgiven, I must choose to forgive. 
4. In the context of God’s forgiveness of us, no call to forgive is too great.  
5. Surely, our refusal to forgive each other breaks the heart of God. We are made in His image; as parents, we know how devastated we are when our children are at odds.  
6. Forgiveness does not mean the behavior was acceptable.  
7. Forgiveness is not reconciliation. (That takes time and work.) 
8. You don’t have to be asked for forgiveness to give it. (In fact, the person you need to forgive may have passed.) 
9. Forgiveness loosens the enemy’s foothold in our lives.  
10. Forgiveness allows us to move forward in our effectiveness for the Kingdom. 

Look back above and re-read Ephesians 4:32. If we are walking in kindness and compassion, forgiveness will be the natural result. I’m praying we all take seriously this call to exercise kindness and compassion.

Who is God calling you – and me – to forgive today?

This week’s Bible study focused on I Corinthians 13. We invite you to watch Friday’s devotional video, in which we attempted to answer these questions:

• What is love?
• Where does it come from?
• What does love do and not do?
• How did Jesus teach us to love?

We pray that, after watching our most recent teaching video, the familiar words of this profound passage are transformed to mean something much greater than you previously thought.

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