Cross My Heart Ministry

For seven days celebrate the Feast to the LORD your God
at the place the LORD will choose.
For the LORD your God will bless you
in all your harvest and
in all the work of your hands, and
your joy will be complete.
Deuteronomy 16:15

The fruit of our labor – whether we harvest literally or figuratively – is a result of God’s blessing and provision. The farmer’s toil is rewarded with a literal harvest, while the tradesman celebrates a completed project, and the author, a published book. A mother may rejoice that potty training has been successfully navigated, a student delights in the completion of finals week, and homeowners celebrate when the flower beds are weeded and mulched.

Work brings satisfaction, and the completion of work brings joy. The resources to do the job coupled with our personal capacity to lift, walk, labor, think and produce – all are the blessings of the One who gave us life and endowed us with resources.

All we are and all we have are a gift from Him.

As we are wrapping up the Thanksgiving season, we can recall certain words that point to this annual season: harvest, gratitude, thankfulness. And, as we prepare to replace the pumpkins and cornucopias with Christmas trees and holly wreaths, and as orange and yellow give way to red and green, we are poised to usher in a new set of seasonal words: peace, joy, merry, noel.

But as we re-read the verse above – one we might label as a “Thanksgiving” verse because of the harvest theme – we note it concludes with JOY.

We need not relegate JOY to celebrating Christmas only (any more than we need to assign thankfulness only to Thanksgiving). Life is a rhythm … an ebb and flow of seasons, work, and satisfaction that prompt thankfulness, joy,and grateful praise to the God who provided all of it!

Let’s make JOY the end result of every season!

Our Write the WORD bookmark for the month of December was conceived to help us focus on JOY, a word that appears in each daily verse. As you read, write, ponder, and pray God’s WORD this month, it is my fervent hope that you will then be prompted to speak it, tell it, and live it. May your joy be complete!

Be sure to visit our ‘Downloads’ page for your own copy of this month’s Write The WORD: JOY bookmark and S.O.A.P. Bible study pages.

In this week’s devotional video, Laura issues a challenge to add thanking and praising “bookends” to the beginning and end of each day. Inspired by both I Chronicles 23:30 (duties for the Levites) and the life of Brother Andrew (The Practice of the Presence of God), we pray this challenge will be accepted – and change up our “why” for all we do during the holiday season and into the new year.

You can order your copy of The Practice of the Presence of God here (and Cross My Heart Ministry might even receive a few pennies from Amazon when you do). And don’t forget to visit our Downloads page for the December Write the WORD bookmark, S.O.A.P. study pages, and more.

“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.”
II Corinthians 9:8

What a great verse! God is able to bless you and bless me—and to do it abundantly.

It’s a wonderful time to meditate on this verse, as we move into this week of celebration and thanksgiving for the abundance that our Heavenly Father has given us.

Blessing is defined differently in God’s economy than in the world. Our culture measures blessing in dollars, square footage, or social media views and likes.

But when God blesses us, it’s about what we get to be part of, not what we get.

Blessing from God is “catch and release.” He blesses us so that we can bless others. And when you get that—when that becomes the desire of your heart—everything changes. You gain a new perspective on who you are, the purpose for your life, and why you were created.

• Not just blessing, but abundant blessing.
• Not just some times, but all times.
• Not just a little, but all that you need.
• And not a few of our works, but every good work.

Because of God’s provision, we are blessed with everything we need: the presence of His Spirit, the gift if of His Word, and the daily gift of time and people to love on.

Because of God’s presence and provision, we can abound at ALL times and in EVERY good work. Does that truth stir your heart, friend? Does it light your fire? Does it spur you on, as it does me?

The word abound means to be over and above, to exceed the ordinary, to overflow, and to have a surplus.

What a promise! What a God! How good He is to us! He is the God of unlimited resources—the creator and sustainer of our universe and the lover of our souls.

Reading this verse on my birthday just last week, I chose to receive it as a great gift from our very good God. It’s a gift for you, too! But like any other gift, we must open and use it before we can truly own and appreciate it.

As we head into Thanksgiving week, are you ready for some abounding—some “catching and releasing” of God’s abundant blessings? I know I am! Thank you, Lord!

Paul gets very personal in the lesson from this week’s teaching video. We hear his testimony and it can be summarized:

• I was…
• But God…
• And now…

We invite you to listen as Laura unpacks this powerful story of Amazing Grace and hope Paul’s story spurs you on to tell YOUR story—and that others will hear that story and glorify God!

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at
Cross My Heart Ministry!

Love must be sincere.
Hate what is evil. Cling to what is good.
Romans 12:9

Paul makes a declaration about love at the beginning of verse 9: Love must be sincere. He then follows up with several ways we can walk that out. The first two applications address how we respond to GOOD versus how we respond to evil.

Paul maintains that love, then, is active—not passive. Love is more than a noun; it’s also a verb.

Words are cheap. How easy it is to wax poetic, say the right thing, and tell folks what they want to hear. Everyone longs to be loved, but don’t we also want the love we receive to be genuine … real … authentic?

Pretended love is fabricated. It is manipulative, self-seeking, and opportunistic. It’s not really love at all, but a cheap counterfeit. Love is proven real by what it does. How it is lived out.

Do we love others because of what they can do for us … what we can get from them?

Do others love us with less than honorable motivations?

In our flesh—our human condition—we are predisposed towards selfishness, pride, and insincere love. We default to making it “all about me.”

• Do I love others … so that I will be filled up?
• Do I love others … so that I will be needed?
• Do I love others … so that I will feel love in return?

If our emotions are never returned in kind, how do we respond? Irritation? Disappointment? Anger? All those could indicate an insincere love.

Sincere love expects nothing in return. It releases love without the expectation of being lifted up, fawned over, or even thanked. If my love boomerang doesn’t come back at me, do I stop playing the love game?

The NASB version for Romans 12:9 reads, “Let love be without hypocrisy.”

Do I love hypocritically? Do I say one thing with my lips but hold a different attitude in my heart and mind? Sincere love is consistent from the inside all the way to the outside!

Sincere love is a fierce love; it actively hates evil. It fights against, defies, and seeks to eradicate evil. And it simultaneously clings to the GOOD. Even when it’s hard to do it, we keep holding on … clinging to the good!

What does loving sincerely—by hating evil and clinging to good—look like in your life?

If you’re following our ministry this month, we’re all getting a double dose of GOOD!

The Write the WORD bookmark for November is focused on New Testament verses that all include the word “GOOD” and our weekly ladies’ group is studying the book of Galatians—where Paul relentlessly defends and proclaims the GOOD NEWS.

We invite you to listen to this week’s teaching video as Laura talks a little about the good news of the gospel. We hope it inspires you to Write the WORD with us during November. There are still two weeks left in the month, and you can down the free bookmark with verses from our Downloads page!

“However, I consider my life worth nothing to me,
if only I may finish the race and complete the task
the Lord Jesus has given me –
the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.”
Acts 20:24

It may have taken Paul a bit of time to accept the baton Jesus was offering, but once he grabbed hold of it, he just kept running! Nothing else mattered. Not even life itself was more precious to Paul than completing his assignment from Jesus.

In Acts 20, Paul’s race is taking him to Jerusalem—and, humanly speaking, it will not end well for Paul there. He knows what lies ahead. He is not sprinting with his eyes closed. He runs with determination and a relentless commitment to finish strong.

The Holy Spirit has warned him that the next leg of his race will bring prison and hardship. His response: “I consider my life worth nothing to me.”

After the Damascus Road experience, Paul’s life is defined by carrying the good news to anyone who would listen … and even to those who refused to listen! By the end of Acts, there is an even greater urgency, a determined compulsion to run harder.

Paul ran hard not because he was an overachiever or because there was a reward waiting for him. He ran for Jesus. He ran because the baton he carried was given to him by our Savior.

Do you and I run for the same reason?

The good news of salvation is a message we all carry. If we know and love God, we know the gospel … but are we eager to share it? Do we look for opportunities to deliver it, or hide our baton and share it grudgingly? Are we carrying it where Jesus has directed, or—like the poor guy who intercepted the football, got turned around, then ran the ball into the opposing team’s end zone—are we running hard but in the wrong direction?

Paul was sent to Jerusalem. Some are sent to Africa or Alaska, China or Cyprus. You and I may be sent across town or across the street.

WHERE we end up matters much less than WHO sends us. Whatever our destination, the message will be the same: the gospel. But are we running races not assigned to us? Are we sitting on the sidelines when we should be in the race?

How can we know? We ask.

Jesus, empower me by your Spirit to run the race You have assigned to me. Show me my race. Help me to do no more – and no less – than You have apportioned to me. Fuel me for the race by Your Spirit. Thank you for the precious baton of truth I carry: the good news, the gospel. Help me to never ever get over what You have done for me. Help me to run all the way to the finish line and to run for Your glory!

Paul opens the book of Galatians by reminding them first that they have been rescued. The Gospel—the Good News—should prompt praise. But the Galatians have deserted the truth and listened to the lies from those who have distorted and perverted the gospel, making it no gospel at all. We invite you to watch and listen to this week’s teaching lecture, and be reminded of the Gospel: salvation by faith alone through grace alone!

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the good news of the kingdom,
and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
Matthew 4:23

• It’s all good!
• Good as new!
• Good news or bad news?
• Good to see you
• Good deal
• A world of good
• Good sport
• Good day
• Goodbye

We throw around the word good to describe everything from lunch to world events. We use it to distinguish positive from negative and to greet one another (both coming and going).

So common is the word’s usage that it’s one of the 52 sight words on the Dolch primer list for children. It’s so familiar (and perhaps overused) that we may not give it a lot of thought.

This month, I hope we will give some thought to good – particularly, to the use of the word in the New Testament, where we will find that good (depending on your translation) may also be translated gospel.

Our Write the WORD bookmark for November highlights New Testament verses that feature the word, good. (We hope you’ll join us in January, when we drill down on the same word with verses from the Old Testament.)

The first verse on our list comes from Matthew 4:23 (noted above). It clues us in on the mission of Jesus during His earthly, incarnate time of ministry: teaching, proclaiming, and healing. His teaching and proclaiming brought good news. His healing confirmed the authenticity of His message. Healing provided tangible evidence of His power over disease and illness. It pointed to the greater truth: His power to heal not only physically, but spiritually. The good news – the gospel – was celebrated by those who embraced it then. And it is still celebrated, all these years later, by those who accept it now.

Are you experiencing the gospel as a reality in your life? Do you believe Jesus – His life, death, and resurrection – made good news possible for you? What difference is it making in your life? How is God moving and working in your life to live the reality of the gospel? How is it providing peace and joy, purpose and provision to you personally?

Is it all good for you – because you have believed the good news He proclaimed?

Visit our Downloads page today
for your copy of this month’s 
Write the WORD bookmark,
optional S.O.A.P. study pages, and
other free resources!

In this week’s Friday video, we welcome you to our study in Galatians: Be Free and Live Free!

Paul wrote this letter to the churches he established in Galatia. The theme of the book is the GOSPEL.

In this introductory teaching lecture from Laura, we learn that Paul writes to address an issue in the churches: the gospel has been messed with and he will not have it!

As you listen, we hope and pray you will have a deeper understanding of the gospel for your life — the gospel that sets you free and enables you to live free. Click here to access “Who Was Saul/Paul?,” the one-page worksheet used with the small group discussion today.

“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

If you and I are truly disciples, we will follow Jesus.

Following Him may begin as a have-to. But the longer I follow Him, the more I want to follow Him.

In Him, I find my place. My people. My purpose. No better place to be. Staying close to Jesus brings safety and security. It brings peace and it brings joy.

This may beg the question, How do I know I’m following Jesus?

The answer is in the verse above:  you are walking in the light instead of the darkness.

Followers of Jesus walk in the light of His presence. One indicator we are staying close to Him is  fellowship with other believers. I John 1:7a says:

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another …

Think about it. If you are following hard after Jesus – staying right on His heels – there will be other believers walking (or running!) right along with you! A good self-check to ask, “Am I going at this alone?”

And we allow His WORD to illumine our path:

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. [Psalm 119:105]

More self-check questions:

• Do I intentionally and consciously make decisions based upon the WORD of God?
• Have I ever made a course correction based upon the WORD of God?
• Do I humbly receive the guidance of the WORD?
• Do I downplay the commands of Scripture when they contradict my wants, desires, or choices?

Following hard after Jesus can be…hard. But if you know Jesus, you have the “light of life” because His Holy Spirit has taken up residence in your heart. He empowers us to keep walking, and to keep following.

Just as our physical muscles get stronger as they are used, so do our faith muscles. And somewhere along the journey have-to gives way to want-to and then delight-to and even need-to.

We come to realize that staying close to Jesus is the best place, the safest place, and the most joyous place. There’s scary stuff out there in the dark! Why mess with that when I can stay in the light with my Lord?!

I pray this week finds you walking in the light, as you follow hard after our Lord!

As our ladies’ group wrapped up their study of Esther, it was a joy to celebrate God’s sovereignty as we examined the many ways He turned the tables in the events unfolding in the book of Esther. In this week’s teaching lecture, Laura reminded us that He does the same in our lives today! We hope this week’s devotional video (and the entire study of Esther) will prompt you to turn your heart to Him!

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me…
Psalm 23:4a

Have you had a “dark valley” experience?

Life in this world has a way of bringing those. Our journey through life takes us to exhilarating mountain-tops and unwanted valleys. The path is sometimes straight, sometimes winding. Some days we see ahead for miles; others, barely enough for the next step. Our journey may be smooth, bumpy, curvy, loud, or lonely.

Spiritually speaking, we may think of the mountain-top walks as times we are closest to God. The sun shines on our faces and all seems right. Peaceful. Worry-free.

In contrast, then, the valley is often a metaphor for life’s struggles: the dangerous, disappointing, and downright hard things that come. A valley walk might bring small irritations and interruptions or deeply painful circumstances – some the result of things we’ve done and others the result of things done to us. Either way, living in the valley can bring no small degree of disillusion, disappointment, and even despair. A time where the sojourner may even question God’s goodness and His faithfulness.

Have you been there? In a place that you ask:

God, are you there?

Do you see?

Do you love me?

Hard things can bring on a crisis to our faith. When we come to the realization that God is big enough, powerful enough, strong enough to do anything. To fix everything. To put the pieces back together, write the wrong, and bring beauty from ashes. Just a nod from Him or a tiny twitch of His pinky finger. We wait, we ask … yet He does not oblige.

The realities of the valley can shake our faith. Some among us have allowed those realities to shatter their faith. But they can also be the most profound opportunity to bolster and strengthen our faith.

Valley-walkers need not conjure up our courage, shake our fist, and boldly declare, “I will not be afraid!” All the human bravado we can muster can’t make us courageous enough to conquer every scary monster in the dark valley.  We can make that declaration, but it’s not our own resolve that keeps fear at bay.

The real why behind our declaration – the real reason we can walk without fear – is the presence of God. Because He walks with us, we can keep putting one foot in front of the other, doing the next thing, going forward (sometimes just inch by inch as find our footing). All because our hand is in His.

Is the valley a few yards or a few miles? Will the darkness be around a few days or a few months? Or do we measure it in years?

So many questions.

As I read Psalm 23 again and again, I often find there is new insight in the old, familiar passage. And as I write His Word this week, the “light-bulb” moment is prompted by the little preposition, through.

The valley is a season. It may be a long season, but it won’t last forever. Asking the questions helps us walk through.

Have you settled in with your pain? Are you embracing it as a martyr – allowing it to define you? Are you choosing to live in the valley rather than walk through it?

Would you allow God’s presence to give you courage to get up, take His hand, and walk through?

No matter how far or how long, each step strengthens our faith muscles.

What happens begins to matter less.

Who is with me matters so much more.

God doesn’t suddenly become bigger, but because my faith is bigger, He is a bigger presence in my life.

The valley experiences prompt questions.  So many questions. The woman of God asks the questions and leans in to really listen for His answers. We accept His answers, even when they are:

Wait.

Trust me.

Not yet.

His presence calms and reassures. His presence brings peace. Nothing has changed (yet), and yet everything has changed, because the valley has changed me. I trust Him more deeply, hold His hand more tightly.

I may not have all the answers, but I have Him.

And when my question becomes:

Is He enough?

I can declare, even through tears:

He is enough.

HE IS ENOUGH!

OH, JESUS YOU ARE MORE THAN ENOUGH!

In this week’s devotional video, we welcome Jennifer Francis as guest teacher for our ladies Bible study. You will be blessed as Jennifer walks through this week’s text to see how God was providentially working in every detail of the events of Esther’s story. We invite you to listen as Jennifer explains how God accomplished His redemptive purpose through Esther, and as we celebrate that truth, we can rejoice that He does the same for us.