I will share about Christian books I have read or listened to.
I will be sharing about my life before and after Christ. I will include stories about my pet and other pets I have encountered.
The Miracle of New Growth
This scripture shares the important truth that new growth is coming. What is unique is the growth isn’t coming from a vibrant tree, but from a stump! A stump is the remains of something that once was vibrant and full of life, but is now seemingly dead.
But what appears to be dead is instead going to produce a “tender shoot,” meaning a young, new growth, and out of that new growth the branch will bear fruit.
For Christians, this verse is talking about the coming Messiah, Jesus, who will come from the family line of Jesse. A family that seemingly was done and cut off to just the stump. Yet, he came as a “tender shoot,” as a baby in a manger, and lived a life to bear fruit for his father and ultimately pay the sacrifice for all our sins on the cross.
This verse also points to an important application for us—that God can take things that look dead in our life and cause new growth to appear. Even when it all seems done and dead, the miracle of growth is always possible.
How to Fight Fear
Think back to a time when you were genuinely scared. Do you remember how you felt?
As much as we’d prefer to never experience fear, fear is a part of the human experience. But when we are afraid, we have options…
We can panic, stress, get overwhelmed with worry, overthink every worst-case scenario, or attempt to numb the anxiety-inducing situations in unhealthy ways. Or, we can echo David’s words:
“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”
Psalm 56:3 ESV
These words were penned as David was pursued by his father-in-law, King Saul. Seeking refuge, he fled to Gath, a Philistine city in a foreign land. When the Philistines recognized him as Israel’s warrior, God helped him to escape. He was a fugitive, alone and afraid.
But David refused to settle for scared. He resisted the urge to let fear have the final say. He decided to fight back with Truth.
And so can we.
We never have to fight alone. God has given us something more powerful than ordinary ...
