Silas
Beloved of All
What you are asking for begins and ends with Jesus Christ. A continuous relationship with him does not rest on your own strength or good performance. It rests on what he has already done. The old self that was always trying to earn God's favor was put to death with Christ. You have been raised into a new life, with Christ now at the center instead of yourself. You do not relate to God through rules you keep or debts you repay, but through faith in the Son who loved you and gave himself for you. His grace comes before peace, because peace follows grace. When you know your sins are forgiven and your acceptance is settled in Jesus, your relationship with God is not fragile. It is sure.
For your salvation and redemption, do not look at your own capacity. God placed salvation outside your ability. He accomplished it through the work of Jesus Christ and gives you the faith to believe it. You are not a stranger earning a place; you have been brought near by the blood of Christ and made part of the family of God. Your redemption is not a future hope that hangs on your perfection. It is the present reality of being adopted as a child, able to call God your Father, the way Jesus taught us to pray.
For your marriage and family, remember that Christ himself is our peace. He does not merely offer peace as a reward for getting everything right. He is the peace between us and God, and he is able to make peace between people who would otherwise be divided. The same grace that reconciles you to God is the grace that teaches you to forgive, to listen, and to love without demands. A home is strengthened when each person in it seeks to please Christ more than self. Let your first desire be that Christ dwell in your hearts by faith and that you be rooted and grounded in love. That love is the atmosphere in which a marriage and family can heal and grow.
For debt freedom and a new home, place those desires under the larger hope you have in Christ. God is not indifferent to your needs. Jesus taught us to pray for daily bread. But your security is not ultimately in a paid off loan or a house. Your hope is in Jesus Christ and the kingdom he will establish. You who were once far off are being made at home in God. Seek his reign first, and trust him with the practical burdens. Ask him for wisdom, contentment, and open doors, and then rest in the knowledge that your true home is with him.
I am praying that you would know the liberty Christ purchased for you, that you would stand fast in it, and that you would not go back to a relationship with God based on anxiety or law. I am praying that your household would be filled with the peace that comes from grace, and that your material needs would be met according to his riches in glory. Above all, I am praying that you would know how deeply you are loved by Jesus Christ, that he would be at home in your heart, and that your whole family would know the joy of belonging to him.
Amen.
For your salvation and redemption, do not look at your own capacity. God placed salvation outside your ability. He accomplished it through the work of Jesus Christ and gives you the faith to believe it. You are not a stranger earning a place; you have been brought near by the blood of Christ and made part of the family of God. Your redemption is not a future hope that hangs on your perfection. It is the present reality of being adopted as a child, able to call God your Father, the way Jesus taught us to pray.
For your marriage and family, remember that Christ himself is our peace. He does not merely offer peace as a reward for getting everything right. He is the peace between us and God, and he is able to make peace between people who would otherwise be divided. The same grace that reconciles you to God is the grace that teaches you to forgive, to listen, and to love without demands. A home is strengthened when each person in it seeks to please Christ more than self. Let your first desire be that Christ dwell in your hearts by faith and that you be rooted and grounded in love. That love is the atmosphere in which a marriage and family can heal and grow.
For debt freedom and a new home, place those desires under the larger hope you have in Christ. God is not indifferent to your needs. Jesus taught us to pray for daily bread. But your security is not ultimately in a paid off loan or a house. Your hope is in Jesus Christ and the kingdom he will establish. You who were once far off are being made at home in God. Seek his reign first, and trust him with the practical burdens. Ask him for wisdom, contentment, and open doors, and then rest in the knowledge that your true home is with him.
I am praying that you would know the liberty Christ purchased for you, that you would stand fast in it, and that you would not go back to a relationship with God based on anxiety or law. I am praying that your household would be filled with the peace that comes from grace, and that your material needs would be met according to his riches in glory. Above all, I am praying that you would know how deeply you are loved by Jesus Christ, that he would be at home in your heart, and that your whole family would know the joy of belonging to him.
Amen.
