Cross My Heart Ministry

“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.

Walk in the way the Lord your God has commanded you,
so that
you may live and prosper and prolong your days
in the land that you will possess.
Deuteronomy 5:33 (NIV 1984)

The updated NIV translates walk in the way as walk in obedience. Do you think
“obedience” conveys a bit of legalism? Does it put you off? Is it easier to accept the challenge to, walk in the way than walk in obedience?

Other translations admonish us to:

• Walk in all the ways (KJV)
• Walk entirely in the way (NASB)
• Walk in all the way (ESV)
• Stay on the path (NLT)

Since few of us read Hebrew, these various translations clarify the challenge God gives us through Moses. But regardless of how the call is translated, don’t miss the so that – the reason the One who knows us best and loves us most gives for obeying His commands. (Did you notice I gave so that its own line, hoping you wouldn’t miss it? I love finding a so that, a reason for what God is calling us to do. Because, after all, He is God. He doesn’t have to tell us why.)

The so that – the blessings that He promises come to us when we walk in the way (or walk in obedience…) can be summed up in two words:

• Life
• Prosperity

Clearly, these are good things. So that means walking in His way is a good thing.

Our knee-jerk, default, auto-pilot response to obedience to the commands is often reject or resist. We stiff-arm God’s call and deem it outdated, inhibiting or unnecessary.

But we do so to our own loss.

Do we really want to forfeit life and prosperity? Clearly, life and prosperity are defined differently in God’s economy than by the world. But they are better. And they last longer.

Living life God’s way means being filled with and led by His Spirit. That then means the traits of the fruit of the Spirit will be growing in our lives. The filling and fruit of the Spirit is both the means and the prosperous result of walking in His way:

• The way of love.
• Joyful obedience.
• Peace the world cannot provide.
• Patience with others.
• Kindness we never thought we could release…or receive.
• Goodness that can only come from Him.
• Faithfulness that defies who we know we are.
• Gentleness so gentle we know it is contrary to our own nature.
• Self-control that surprises and astonishes us.

We live the “life that is truly life” (Paul’s words to Timothy, I Timothy 6:17-19), as we pivot from walking our way to walking in the way of the Lord.

His way will not always be pain free. Life and prosperity will look and feel different than we once thought.

The question we must really ask ourselves is:  Do I truly want life and prosperity?

So how about it? Are you tired of “doing it your way” (as Frank Sinatra once sang)? Are you ready to walk in the way of the Lord? If so, would you pray with me:

Lord, I want to walk in Your way. Help me to walk in Your way. I truly desire to receive and embrace every spiritual blessing of life and prosperity You have for me in Christ Jesus. This IS what I truly desire. Help me to make this my desire!

Esther resigned herself to face death at the end of Chapter 4, but three days later marches into the King’s presence with a plan. What happened? What changed? Three days of prayer and fasting!

We invite you to watch this week’s devotional video, in which Laura’s teaching focuses on the faith of Esther, the pride of Haman, and the sovereignty of God.

… Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time,
and he walked faithfully with God.
Genesis 6:9b

Noah is introduced to us in Genesis 6:9 for the first time. In just a few words, much is added to his spiritual resume. Noah is righteous and blameless. He does right things, He is a man of virtue who makes good choices. He is guiltless and without fault.

The phrase “among the people of his time” is perhaps added to make his character all the more remarkable. He lived among a wicked and perverse generation. Verse 11 describes his culture as “corrupt in God’s sight” and “full of violence.”  His choice to go against the culture is akin to “swimming upstream.” He stood out. His righteous/blameless character was a sharp contrast to the corruption and violence of the world he lived in.

You and I are declared righteous and found blameless when we place our faith in Christ. We are justified by grace. And, like Noah, we too can live differently and live counter to the culture. Paul said that we “shine … like stars in the sky.” (Philippians 2:15).

The darker the world becomes, the greater our opportunity to shine for Jesus!

The phrase that stands out most for me today is:

He walked faithfully with God.

Noah’s choice to walk with God (rather than walk with the world around him) is what made him righteous and blameless. “You are what you run with,” my mama used to say. One of our teaching pastors recently said, “Show me your friends and I’ll show you your future.”

Righteousness wasn’t the prerequisite but the result of walking with God.

I’ve read this passage many, many times since I became a student of the WORD as a young adult, but today (as there always is) I find fresh manna at God’s table!

Hidden here in Genesis 6:9, an Old Testament verse, is a New Testament truth. It’s the gospel. The good news. Our identity with Him brings change. But we must choose to go Him. We get what we are looking for – what we truly desire. We place ourselves in His presence, abide in His Word, we come to Him faithfully.

Faithfully.

That one little adverb packs a lot of punch. Noah’s walk with God wasn’t weekly – he didn’t have a Tuesday morning or Friday afternoon outing with God. His walk was not monthly or seasonal. Faithfully suggests a continual walk.

The Hebrew word for walk here is hālak. It carries the meaning, “to walk as a lifestyle.”

Some translations just say walk, but my NIV adds faithfully, perhaps trying to convey the rhythm and consistency denoted by hālak.

Do you see the challenge here? Are you willing to embrace it?

Are you taking an occasional stroll with God? Is your time with him a weekly (or monthly) 15-minute outing?

Are you ready to commit to walking faithfully? If faithfully is your intention, these adverbs might help shore up what that looks like:

• Intentionally
• Sacrificially
• Purposefully
• Deliberately
• Preferentially

Choosing to walk faithfully will not bring a reward of an extra 30 minutes to your day. You are still limited to 24 hours. Where does the time come from? How will it happen?

More than giving God 10, 20 or 30 minutes a day, perhaps faithfully means bringing Him into all of it. Every single minute. A conscious awareness of His presence will being to transform all the nitty gritty daily actions and decisions.

Walking faithfully make be exactly what Jesus was inviting us into when He said, “abide in me.” (John 15)

Lord, show me the next best step to walk faithfully with you today.

In this week’s teaching video, our study in the book of Esther has arrived at a crisis: God’s people are facing annihilation. After asking her to keep her Jewish heritage a secret, now Mordecai calls on her to plead for her people.

Esther agrees and calls for three days of prayer and fasting to prepare. Her example challenges us to engage in prayer, as well. Whatever situation we find ourselves in, there’s a prayer for that!

We invite you to watch now as Laura reminds us that whatever situation we find ourselves in, there’s a prayer for that! If you would be interested in joining our Bible study in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, or online, please reach out to us via email for more information.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
and with all your strength.
Deuteronomy 6:5

Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with
all your heart,
with all your soul, and
with all your mind.’
Matthew 22:37

 All means ALL!

When we pray that the children in our lives would love God wholeheartedly, it means ALL IN. Not half-way, not half-heartedly, and not Sundays only.

When a mama asks her teenager to take out the trash, she doesn’t expect to see the trash sitting by the front door. It must make it all the way to the curb.

When a wife wants a faithful husband, she doesn’t mean 364 days a year – she expects 365 (and some years 366)!

And when God commands us to love Him with ALL our heart, soul, mind, and strength, we need to apply the same high standard. ALL IN!

As we pray for the children in our sphere of influence to love God wholeheartedly, we can also ask God to reveal where we ourselves might be holding out.

Here are some questions we can ask as we pray for the children in our lives (and for ourselves):

• Do I have a divided heart? Is there anything I treasure more than God?
• Do I find myself praying without ceasing – having on ongoing conversation with God throughout my day?
• Does God enter my thought life on Tuesday morning or Friday afternoon?
• Do I ask God about what I buy, read, and watch?
• Has Sunday morning worship become an optional activity? Am I finding reasons — I don’t feel like braving the rain, there’s a mountain of dirty laundry, I’m in the middle of a great book and can’t wait to finish it — not to gather with other believers?
• Do I give God the first and best of each day?
• Do I speak up when others speak poorly of my God?
• Do my posts, tweets, and social media comments indict me as a woman of God?
• Do thoughts about God in my mind and heart make their way into my conversations with others?

I hope one or more of these questions convict you as they do me. Perhaps they could even prompt a loving-God-wholeheartedly conversation with your child, grandchild, nephew or niece, a student in your class or church, or a young person in your neighborhood.

Lord God, I pray this child would put You on the throne of his/her life each day and every day. I pray this would be deliberate, conscious, daily choice.  I pray he/she would love You most and best and with a wholehearted devotion.

Our Write the WORD verses for the month of October all include the word, WALK. Spanning both the Old and New Testaments, these verses will challenge us to consider our spiritual walk with Christ.

In this week’s Friday devotional video, Laura reflected on our spiritual WALK … our journey of sanctification. We invite you to listen as Laura introduces the coming month’s topic. Then, visit our Downloads page for your own copy of the October Write the WORD bookmark.

“…and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures,
which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith
which is in Christ Jesus.”
II Timothy 3:15

Paul is writing to Timothy, his spiritual son. (He refers to him in I Timothy 1:2 as “my true son in the faith.”) Thanks to the faith of his mother and grandmother, Timothy knew about God and knew the Scriptures from an early age.

But, of course, God has no grandchildren. At some point, Timothy believed for himself (II Timothy 1:5). He accepted the gift of salvation that comes by grace through faith.

Like Lois and Eunice, Timothy’s mother and grandmother, we can ensure the young people around us know the WORD. We can take them to church to hear the WORD. We can play Christian music and buy them Christian books. But, of course, none of that will save them. They must come to sincere faith in Christ on their own.

We can do everything within our power to make sure the children in our lives know the truth—and then they must choose to bend their knee to Jesus.

Perhaps you are a woman who did not come to faith yourself until your adult years. Maybe you have adult children that have rejected your faith. Do not let the enemy rob you of peace and joy for today. Do not take on illegitimate guilt. The past is done … confess anything you need to confess, receive His forgiveness (I John 1:9) and then move on! Forgive yourself, sister friend!

Choose today to pray. Pray intentionally and unceasingly for the “children” in your sphere of influence, whether they are infants, young kids, adolescents, or adults. If there is life, there is hope. Pray and keep on praying!

Lord God Almighty, thank You for the gift of salvation! Jesus, thank You for the magnitude of Your great love demonstrated at the Cross and the unmatched strength of Your mighty power demonstrated by Your resurrection. O God, thank You for loving me enough to die for me. Let this young person in my life see that you love her and died for her, too. Convict her of sin. Draw her to yourself. Overwhelm her today with Your great love. Let today be her day of salvation!

In this week’s Friday video, our ladies’ Bible study comes to the second chapter of Esther. In it, we see a beauty pageant (of sorts). But in this pageant, the contestants have no choice.

While we tend to romanticize the story of Esther, its actually a tragic display of a lustful king preying on young girls.

In Laura’s teaching lecture, we see Esther crowned queen … but celebrate the crown of life promised to those of us who love God (see James 1:12).

As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another.
Proverbs 27:17

The expression “peer pressure” certainly carries a negative connotation. Secular and non-secular studies alike have confirmed the impact (particularly during adolescence) of peers. Teenagers, when influenced by their friends, are far more vulnerable to substance abuse, reckless or anti-social behavior, bullying, and a host of other things that are potentially life-altering.  

As conscientious Christian parents and grandparents, we may try to postpone the timing of those influences … but please don’t ever assume you can avoid them altogether. And please don’t assume that another teen is godly, simply because he or she was raised in a godly family (to the best of your knowledge).  

When children are young, the adults in their lives control their relationships. We choose who they play with, what they do, and where they go. And to a certain extent—especially when the adults are very engaged with the kids—that can continue into adolescence.

But at some point, we need to hand them the reins. Only parents can decide when is the right time for that to happen. It will be a decision not only unique to each family, but perhaps to each child.  

If we are devoted to teaching and training their hearts, our focus will be to prepare them to make good choices for themselves and help them understand how they can do that. It’s easy to build high walls and keep them in place until a child turns 18 … but what happens then?  

As a mother of four adults, I’m a long-time advocate of communication early on. Ask your children and grandchildren what makes a good friend. Role play with questions like, “What would you do if ___?” Using “worst case scenario” tools, empower them for as many situations as you can imagine. Explain some of your own poor choices (or those you have witnessed in others) as a warning. Pray. Talk. Share.  

We must prepare the children in our sphere of influence to make wise choices in friends. We must also challenge them to be a positive influence upon others.

Here are a few questions that come to mind for discussion with the children you love: 

1. What qualities make for a good friend? 
2. Who is your best friend and why? 
3. What would you do if a friend wanted you to watch or do something that made you feel uncomfortable? 
4. What did Joseph do when he was in an uncomfortable situation? (See Genesis 39) 
5. Did I ever tell you about the time …? 

Each passing year is one less we have to be a daily, primary influence upon these young souls that God has placed in our lives. Ultimately, we hope and pray it is the voice of the Holy Spirit they choose to heed above all. But we know that peers will also influence their lives, attitudes, and behaviors.

If they choose well, peer pressure can be a profoundly positive influence in the life of a child.  

Lord, I pray for my children and grandchildren, and for their friends.
I pray You would raise up a generation of Christ followers
who love You and love Your Word.
I pray the children in my life would choose their confidants well.
I pray You would hedge them in from the wrong friends
and steer them to those who will be a positive influence –
that they would mutually encourage each other to live for You,
always and in all ways.
May iron sharpen iron in all their relationships.
Amen.

The Old Testament book of Esther opens with a big party! King Xerxes displays all his wealth, glory, and possessions — and summons his queen, Vashti, to come and put herself on display, as well. When she refuses, the king “became furious and burned with anger.”

In this week’s devotional video, Laura talks about the contrast between guilt and shame as we look at Xerxes’ example of what NOT to do when we feel ashamed or embarrassed. We also have an overview of the twists and turns that will unfold in the book of Esther and see that what may appear to be bad news can, in time, actually become good news (and vice versa).

But in ALL of it, God can WORK for good!