You are never alone.
Let that sink in for a moment. Whatever situation you face, hardship you endure, trial you encounter, or celebration you experience—you never go through life alone.
Because Jesus gave up His life for you, you get to experience life with Him by your side … forever. Nothing can separate you from His love, and nothing you do will ever earn His approval. He loves you because He created you, and He has determined to remain faithful to you.
In Philippians 2, Paul reminds us that Jesus’ death on the cross leads to our salvation. Jesus is Lord. He has authority over our situations, our problems, our circumstances, our fears, our failures, and our successes. Jesus can cast out darkness, overcome addiction, reject temptation, heal the sick, set people free, and redeem our brokenness. And He has given us His Holy Spirit.
Because of the Holy Spirit, God lives in us, and He will work through us.
Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us that there is nothing we can do to earn our salvation, but Philippians 2 reminds us that just because our salvation is free, doesn’t mean we can take it for granted. God will help us display His love to others, but we need to actively choose to let God work in us. God wants us to partner with Him as He works through us to reach a broken world.
When you submit to God, He frees, transforms, and redeems you. He dreams with you, and for you. He formed you, and He will finish what He has started in you—if you let Him. Nothing is impossible for God.
So right now, ask God to show you how He is at work in your life. Allow Him to reveal where He has gifted, guided, and healed you. Take some time to thank Him for His faithfulness, and then brainstorm some ways to faithfully live out the plans He has for your life.
Truth Changes Everything
Think about the best news you've ever received in your life. Maybe it was a doctor walking into a waiting room and saying, "The surgery went perfectly." Maybe it was a phone call that said, "You got the job." Maybe it was two lines on a pregnancy test you'd been praying for.
Good news changes everything.
But none of those moments, as incredible as they are, even come close to the truth delivered on the first Easter morning:
"He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay."
Matthew 28:6 (NIV)
Jesus had been crucified publicly, brutally, and officially. He was wrapped, sealed in a tomb. There was no question. Jesus was dead. It was true.
But when His followers Mary and Mary Magdalene arrived to grieve? The stone was rolled away. The tomb was empty. And an angel met them with the most stunning announcement in human history.
But the angel doesn’t just tell the women the truth. He invites them to look for themselves. To step inside. To experience the...