Today I seem to be wrestling with the question “Will being a good person and doing good deeds get you eternal life?”.

And the honest answer is I don’t know.  I know that this is something a lot of people, members of my family included, believe.  That if they do good, and are a good person than, if there is an after-life, if there is a heaven, they will go there.

If you read Romans 2: 6-11 you will see that Paul states:  “God will judge everyone according to his deeds.  Those who do good will attain eternal life.  Those who do evil will incur wrath.  Those who do evil will suffer tribulation.  Those who do good will receive glory.  God will judge everyone impartially.”

And this isn’t the only place in the bible where the idea of being judged by your actions is presented.  So, the question then becomes how does this fit into the idea Paul later presents that man can only be saved by grace through faith alone, apart from our works.? Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God;it is not from works, so that no one can boast.”

I mean, if all we need to do to get into heaven is do good deeds, then what was the point of Jesus dying on the cross?

Let me point out right now that I’m no religious scholar, these are just my thoughts.

Let’s go with the idea that people who do good deeds are judged based on their good deeds. But how many of us are Mother Theresa?  I mean sure, I might do something good in any given day, hold the door, pay for someone’s coffee, spend time with someone who is sick or elderly.  You know what I mean, right?  But over the course of that same day, I probably also going to do some crappy things too, like yell at a driver who got in my way or wasn’t driving fast enough, take out my frustrations about work on my kids or my spouse or have a bad thought.  The point is that there isn’t a day that goes by that I can look back and say I was perfect.

I think that is the point of Jesus dying on the cross.  Sure, good deeds are important, and I absolutely think that they are a sign of God working in the world. A person who shows God’s love in their actions, even though they don’t yet know him, may be moving along the road to a heavenly journey.  But can any of us, if we are really honest with ourselves, say that we can tip the scales in our favor by simply doing good deeds.  Are they so much greater than the negative?

If you can say yes.  Then I congratulate you and commend you.  I do think some people are just born more good than others.

That being said,  I know I can’t.  I don’t, in my heart, believe that I am a good person.  I can be a gossip and jealous and envious.  I yell at my kids when they don’t deserve it.  I yell at my husband when I’m frustrated.  Do I try to do good things for the people around me?  Do I try to live like Jesus and be loving and patient and gentle and kind?  Absolutely!  But not for a minute do I think that I can stack up enough good deeds to outweigh the bad.  That’s just not how I’m made.  But I don’t need to.  That’s why I have Jesus.

Jesus took all of our sinful ways upon himself and laid down his life for us.  The gift of his sacrifice means that I don’t have to be perfect.  I don’t have to try to “good deed” myself into heaven.  All I have to do is believe in him.  And I think that really believing in him and making him a part of my life, makes me a more loving, gentle, patient and kind person. It makes me more good. I know my family thinks so.

So I guess the answer I’ve come to is that I’m sure there are people who can do enough good deeds to out weigh the bad, but I know I’m not one of them.  If I’m going to heaven, it will be through my faith in the grace and love of Jesus.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this in the comments section below.  And don’t forget to follow this blog if you’ve enjoyed reading it.

God bless,

Meredith

Each morning after I’m done my bible reading for the day, and again before I do any writing (including this blog) I like to say a prayer.  After my bible readings I ask God to open my heart and my mind to his message and to give me wisdom to understand the truth of his words.  Before I sit down to write, I ask that he guide my words and message, so that what I am sharing is his will, and because I always try to remember that in him I can do “infinitely more than I can ask or imagine”.

If it isn’t already obvious, today I’d like to talk a bit about prayer.  How many of us incorporate prayer into our daily lives?  I willing to bet that there are lots of people out there who would say that they believe in God, but a lot less that actually speak to him on a daily basis.  But, that’s what prayer is, it’s our way of talking to God.

There are so many passages in the gospels, but especially in the gospel of Luke that speak of Jesus going off by himself to pray.  There are lots of passages about this because this was something Jesus did a lot.

Now let’s look at  this from a couple of different angles  First of all, Jesus was the son of God.  It makes sense that he would want to stay in touch with his Father.  Talking with people, with our parents, is part of having a relationship with them.  It is through conversation that we learn about the things happening in their lives and share things that are important to us.

Of course God already knew what Jesus was doing.  So do my parents.  They know I’m driving kids to school, making lunches, writing comics.  But it is in that active communication, in Jesus specifically setting aside time to have a meaningful and heartfelt conversation with his Father, that the relationship is nurtured, that he is nurtured.

And that’s the second point I want to touch on in this post.  That prayer is nurturing.  Yes, Jesus absolutely was the son of God, but he was also human.  That means he had all of the same emotions that you and I do.  He had moments when he was tired and emotionally wrung out (image having people clamoring for you to help them all the time)  I know that sometimes trying to meet the needs and demands of my family can be emotionally exhausting – but being surrounded by people wanting a miracle, needing a miracle or a sign or to expose your weaknesses….

I’m sure at also times that Jesus was frustrated and angry, imagine having the Pharisees constantly picking at him, trying to undermine who he said he was.  But it wasn’t to his disciples that he downloaded those feelings.  He gave them to his heavenly Father.  He gave them to God.  Jesus used time with his Father, in prayer, to restore himself.

I want you now to think about times in your life when you are feeling tired and wrung out and stressed.  Of course there are times when we unintentionally download those feelings onto our family and those we love.  But how much better if we turn to our Father in heaven and give him those feelings.

Prayer doesn’t have to be complicated.  You don’t have to sound like your preacher or priest for God to listen, you just have to reach out.  David (my husband) and I have talked about this and he confessed that he felt like he didn’t really know how to pray.  The disciples didn’t know how to pray either, but when they were ready, when they asked how,  Jesus taught them.  Luke 11: 2-5

He said to them, “When you pray, say:

“Father,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come.

Give us each day our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins,

for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.

And lead us not into temptation.”

May of us already know the Lord’s Prayer by heart.  I recommended that Dave start there, just taking time to really say it, to think about what it is saying and what he was praying for and to try to make that a daily habit.

Many people will tell you (and it is what I was taught) that the Lord’s prayer was really Christ giving us a pattern for how to pray.  First we give glory to God and thank him for our blessings.  Then we present our petitions, (for strength, freedom, peace, health), we ask for forgiveness and pray for others and then ask for protection from falling away, or being led astray.

I used to think of prayer as a chore, something that I was supposed to do.  Now I find myself reaching out and talking to God throughout my day.  In fact, my day wouldn’t feel right if I wasn’t talking to him multiple times.  He is my Father and he loves me so very much, he was just waiting for me to reach out to him so that he could show it.

I guess today’s challenge is prayer.  Try reaching out and developing that relationship with your Father in heaven.  I can promise you will be glad you did.

God bless,

Meredith

Here’s a rocking song to inspire you today!

 

So I have been thinking a lot today about the journey God has taken me on over the last year or more. Although I have touched on my faith journey briefly, I feel like today it might be appropriate to talk about it more in depth.

I started my most recent journey back to God, or connecting with God, through C.S. Lewis.  It was shortly after I had finished writing Wonder Woman for DC Comics and I had pitched to basically everyone I knew and no one had responded.  There was a point at which a part of me asked “Why are you waiting for someone to give you permission to do what it is you want to do?”  It was at that moment that I decided to write Rose.  I knew that I had loved the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe series and I felt that I wanted to write something along those same lines; something that subtly nodded toward God and my beliefs.  It was that feeling, that idea, that prompted me to go to my local book store and purchase almost everything they had, that had been written by C.S. Lewis.  I knew enough then to know that he was a religious scholar, but up until that point I had never actually read any of his religious writings.  I started with an anthology that began with Mere Christianity, then I moved on to The Problem with Pain, The Weight of Glory, The Four Loves, The Screwtape Letters and The Great Divorce.  With every thing I read, I felt as if I gained a clearer understanding of what a real, thoughtful Christianity or belief in God could be like.  C.S. Lewis writes in a way that is sophisticated enough that you need to pay attention, but emotional enough that your heart really understands what he is saying (or at least mine did).  By this point I was almost a year into reading, my faith journey, and writing Rose (trying to incorporate some of those ideas about love).

That spring I watched my then eight-year old come up from Sunday school and tell me for the umpteenth time how much he hated coming to church.  (At some point early that spring we had decided to start attending church more regularly.)  Looking at my sad child, in God’s house mad me angry.  Coming to church and learning about God shouldn’t make him feel like this. I was sitting in my pew, stewing about the quality of our Sunday school, when a voice, literally as clear as a bell, spoke in my head and said “If you don’t like it, do something about it.”   I knew at that moment, that God was calling me.  The only question that remained to be answered…would I accept the call?

I’m going to interrupt this story to really clearly point out, or emphasis, something that was happening, something that God was doing in my life.  He was tapping me on the shoulder in a way that I could accept and understand.  He introduced me to a Christian scholar that spoke to my heart, he directed me to write a story with a heroine loosely based upon his son’s sacrificial love and then he called me to work in his church.  God was preparing me; getting me ready, slowly, and carefully, waiting until I was ready and then calling me each time, to step up and make another commitment to him.

Skip forward a couple of months, Lent was quickly approaching and my church was offering a Lenten bible study.  I decided to try it out.  And I want to be very clear here – I absolutely believe that this was another way in which God called me, because the Lenten bible study was on the books of John.  Now I don’t know how much you have read of John’s writings, but I honestly don’t believe that there is a book or writer in the bible that speaks more clearly and specifically about God and Jesus and his love for mankind.  For the very first time in my life, I recall reading the bible and feeling like it made complete and total sense.  I could clearly understand exactly what the message was that was given to me.

Now let me be honest.  I have tried reading the bible on many occasions.  I’ve started at Genesis.  I’ve started at Matthew.  I’ve tried starting where I last left off, but I have never tried starting where God directed me.  It was around this time that I also discovered the Netflix program A.D. Kingdom and Empire.  This is a series of shows that basically tries to reenact the biblical stories of Acts.  Do you see where I’m going here?  God had made a move in my life and the more I responded to him, the more he fed me in a way that developed my belief and my understanding of him and his love and message.  I’m not sure that I have enough room to speak to all of the other ways in which he was moving in my life and my career. But I was starting to get the point.  God was calling me.  It was time for me to get to know him, to understand him and his work and his purpose for me on a deeper level.

If you are still with me, thank you.  I know this is a lot.  And let me tell you, not once since then have I looked back.  Every day in my life I feel his presence.  I feel him speaking to me in a very real way and I pray every single day that I do his will. I started this blog because I genuinely wish for every single person to have the opportunity to know and feel God’s love the way I have experienced it recently.  I have lived without God.  I have lived letting him into my life on my terms and now, I am living my life on his terms.  Let me tell you, of those options, I choose his terms every single day.  God is so good and he loves us so much.  We just have to open our hearts to him and let him in.

I am so fulling committed to God because he has shown me over the course of this past year and more that he is fully committed to me.  He has chased me down and, now that I have found him, now that I have truly found him, I never want to let him go. So today, when I pray, I am praying for everyone who reads this blog to feel and experience God’s love the way I do.  I pray for you to open your self and your heart so that you can hear God speaking in your life.  Once you experience the never-ending, overwhelming, reckless love of God, you won’t want to let go either.

God bless,

Meredith

I want to talk today about the level of discomfort we are willing to undergo for our faith.

How many of us would be willing to admit, if asked, before a crowd of people that we believe in God? I willing to bet it would make a lot of us uncomfortable to be asked. I freely admit that there have been times in my life where I have been one of those people. I might have acknowledged that I believed in God, but in a chill, there’s got to be something out there sort of way.

Why do we do that?

Fear.

We’re afraid that people might judge us for believing.  We’re afraid they’ll think we’re one of those “crazy” Christians and they won’t want to be our friend.  Ultimately, I think its because we are afraid of losing something that we think is important.

I have always believed in God, but there have been lots of times when I’ve held that belief close, like a secret that needed to be protected.  What I was really protecting was the idea of whom I wanted the world to see.  I was okay believing in God as long as it didn’t make me feel uncomfortable.

Now that I’m farther along in my faith journey, I have started to experience what I thought was a new fear, but have come to realize is just the same old fear expressed in a different way.  A fear of being uncomfortable.  I’m afraid of what God is going to ask of me, the closer I get to him.  When I really look at that fear, I realize that I’m still afraid of losing something.  I’m willing to read my bible every day and pray and sing praises to God, just as long as he doesn’t ask more of me.  I don’t want my faith to become uncomfortable.

But then I think like a parent – I know I always come back to this.  Would I accept my child never trying something new, something that might be amazing, because he was “uncomfortable” or afraid.  Absolutely not.  I would love him and encourage him and then, if he still put up a fuss, I would make him do it.  But I would never push my child to do something that I thought would hurt him.  And when I think about it this way – I know that my fear of what God will ask or expect from me is groundless.

Last week I posted the Zack Williams song “Fear is a Liar”.  I really believe that when I start to feel fear, especially about my faith or expressing it loudly and proudly to others, or diving more deeply into it, or giving more of myself and my life to God — that fear doesn’t come from God.  It comes from the one who would love nothing more than to keep me from God.  To keep my relationship with my faith “comfortable”  – because that means I can never grow.  I can never be the full expression of the person God created me to be.

What is so important to me that I am afraid of losing it?  Realistically, what will I lose because I express my faith?

Jesus says “Give and it will be given to you.  A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.  For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” Luke 6:38

The more I give to God, of my heart, my soul, my self…the more he will give to me.  Having faith isn’t about losing, it’s about gaining.  Gaining a perfect love and joy that can’t come from anything here in this world.  It can only come from Christ.

When you push your child to try something new it’s because you want them to grow and develop and be the very best they can be.  God wants that for us too.  So I’m resolving to give up my fear, to be willing to be uncomfortable for God.  I think, much like learning to tie your shoes, the more you do it, the easier it gets.

Let’s all get uncomfortable today.

God bless,

Meredith

Here’s that Zack Williams song again because you can never be reminded too many times that “Fear is a Liar!”

 

 

A regular reader reminded me that I didn’t post a song this morning.  That’s because it took a bit before God revealed the perfect song for me and how I was feeling about the amazing love of Jesus.  What I love, is that this morning’s post inspired a reader to send me a song too.  So here they both are (his first). ENJOY and GOD BLESS!  — Meredith

Readers:

 

Mine:

One of my favorite things about the Gospel of John is the way it portrays Jesus, not as someone who has come to judge and condemn, but as someone who loves and is warm and welcoming.

My Lenten bible study this year called “Meeting Jesus in the Gospel of John” by the Society of Saint John the Evangelist at Virginia Theological Seminary,  and it really spoke to my heart about the type of relationship Jesus wants to have with me.

John 13:23  “One of his disciples – the who whom Jesus loved – was reclining next to him.” 

I can’t possibly image during all of the years of Jesus’ ministry that his disciples spent that entire time worshiping and adoring him.  In fact they often questioned him.  What I like about this phrase is it shows that they also relaxed with him.  They just hung around together – they were friends.

It’s so strange isn’t it.  We think of the Christ whom we worship at church and pray to, who we see hung on the cross to die for our sins, but how often do we think of having a relationship with God that is so casual? Can we even conceptualize hanging out and laughing together just like we would with our friends.   But I think that’s exactly what the point of this passage is.  It’s talking about a relationship of love, of being loved.  And being loved…that comes of “knowing” and of being known.  As in, Jesus knows you deeply and intimately and you can know him in that very same way.

I think there is a reason for God the Father and God the Son.  God is above us, he’s supposed to be, he’s “the maker and preserver of all things”. God knew that mankind just couldn’t get past his godliness to really have the relationship he desires to have with us. But Jesus… in Jesus he calls us to be his friend, to love and be a part of his family.  We are all “children of God”.

I really believe that is in coming to know him and that amazing and powerful love that he has for all of us, that we come closer to really knowing God our Father.  So when you feel sometimes as if God is remote and out of reach, try reaching out to your brother, your friend – Jesus just like you would to any other friend.  Talk to him about your good days and your bad.

God bless,

Meredith

Sometimes God’s presence in your life can be hard to see and sometimes, when you’re ready, (when you’ve made your pocket) he hits you over the head.

I said yesterday that I started reading the beatitudes (I’m reading Luke 6), but what I didn’t say was that I could not get past the “Love for Enemies” part.  And there was one line specifically that I couldn’t get past  “If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic.  Give to everyone who asks and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.”

I had such a difficult time with this that I couldn’t continue reading and this morning I decided I still wasn’t ready and read 2 Thessalonians instead.  I was all ready to move on to 1st Timothy when I got an uncomfortable feeling and a pressure inside me that said I needed to go back to the Luke.  I have learned to recognize this as God’s voice, directing me to something important.

Now let me preface this with the knowledge if you are unfamiliar with 2 Thessalonians, that my first reading was filled with verses like “He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ”.  and “But the Lord is faithful and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.”  All day yesterday I felt as if something was getting between me and God.  I couldn’t feel him like I usually do.  Today, God took the time to remind me that he loves me and then he sent me back to Luke to figure out what he meant and face my own spiritual failings – the thing that was coming between us.

“…if someone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.”  For a year now I have been harboring anger and resentment toward someone who claims to have lost something that had a significant monetary value.  Insurance claims have been filed, but still there has been a part of me that wants that person to pay for taking something away that I valued.  Today, even though I didn’t want to let that part of me go…God showed me that it is coming between us.  It’s hard isn’t it?   To forgive people when we feel as if they have violated our rights, when we feel as if our anger is justified.

C.S. Lewis writes that pride is really mankind’s greatest sin.  God showed me today,  for me in that situation, the truth of that statement.  I mean, what was lost was a piece of paper covered in black ink.  Is that really more important than a person?  More important than showing God’s love to that person and forgiveness?  We need to remember, I need to remember that things are only things and that to be a Christian, to live a life in God, means to set aside what we think of as our personal rights , so that we can show people a love that passes all understanding.

So when I say that sometimes God hits you over the head, I mean that I knew exactly what he was saying to me today.  That letting go of my pride and treating those who wrong me with kindness and and love is the next part of my journey.  It is the next “fruit” that the Spirit wants to give me.  Getting a direct message from God makes me feel how much he loves me and cares for me and that he hears me.  I prayed yesterday for him to show me what I was doing wrong…today he did.

I started this blog because I wish with all of my heart for you to find that type of relationship with God.  For your heart to be as full as mine is today of God’s love and blessing.   I pray that  God speaks to you as clearly as he has spoken to me.

If you want to read more about God’s “radical” love you can do so here.

https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-26-radical-love-luke-627-35

God Bless,

Meredith

 

Part of my bible reading today was the beatitudes.  For those of you who don’t know, the beatitudes are the blesseds…

 

• Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
• Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
• Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.
• Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
• Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
• Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.
• Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
• Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

 

As I read the beatitudes I thought, as I always do, how unlike myself they sound.  I’m definitely not meek, sometimes I’m not merciful, I don’t know that I always thirst for righteousness in the way I should and that whole clean heart thing… I can be quick to anger, prideful, arrogant, etc.   Uh Oh!

I really wanted to understand what Jesus was trying to say here and in the course of my journey to deeper knowledge and understanding I have found that bible.org is a good resource for me.  And I’m going to talk about the two ideas that really resonated with me today.

I think the thing that struck me first was the description given for what being blessed  means.  “An exclamation of the inner joy and peace that comes from being right with God – a happiness that transcends the happenings of the world around you and comes to the soul form being favored by God.”  WOW!   I want that!  I’ve experienced that at moments in my life and it is so amazing, I cry.  Every time!

The article moved on to talk about what it really meant to be poor.  Poor as in humbling yourself before God.  Poor as in being a contrite spirit.  Now, not only is that something I can do, that is something I have been trying to do a lot more of.  Recognizing that everything I have is a gift given to me by God. The ultimate idea of this, is that we live a life that is in total dependence upon God.  I don’t think that means you can sit back on the couch and eat potato chips and rely on God to provide you with what you need.  But I do absolutely believe that if work hard at what you do and try and devote yourself and your life to God, he will provide.  My son says that’s not fair because I win either way.  If something I pray for happens, I give thanks, and if it doesn’t, then it wasn’t meant to be.  I don’t know about you, but I’m totally good with the idea of winning regardless of the outcome.

So I said I wasn’t a meek person.  Anyone who has met me will absolutely confirm that.  So what does Jesus mean blessed are the meek? The article I read stated that meek means “having a spirit of gentleness and self control, free from malice and a condescending spirit”.  It also says that these are “fruits of the Spirit – they are produced in the Christian by the Holy Spirit”.

I may not be meek yet, but I can absolutely vouch for the fact that drawing closer to God has changed me as a person.  Even my family comment on how much more patient I am.  If I feel the tide of jealousy or envy rise up, I immediately send out a prayer and always that feeling is taken away and replaced with gratitude for everything I have and for the love God has given me. I know the Spirit of God is working in me to give me a new heart, a clean heart.

It’s been a few days since I picked a song and I feel like one really gets to the point of what I felt in today’s message.  We need to stop being afraid of what we are going to lose when we turn to God.  He will give us absolutely everything we need to live a life close to and knowing him, including meekness and a clean heart.  And that feeling of being blessed is possible for all of us…all we need to do is just go ‘All In” with God.

God bless,

Meredith

 

Sometime last year, God introduced me to the works of George MacDonald.  For the many of you who don’t recognize the name, the writings of George MacDonald were the inspiration behind some of the greatest fantasy writers of modern day including J. R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis (a personal favorite of mine),

One of the books I purchased on MacDonald contained several of his sermons and one in particular resonated with me because of the genius of it’s imagery.  I’d like to share a part of that now.

“He is the God of comfort and consolation.  He will sooth and satisfy His children better than any mother her infant.

…He gives what His child needs – often by refusing what he asks….There are good things God must delay giving until His child has a pocket to hold them – till he gets His child to make that pocket.  He must first make him fit to receive and to have.  There is no part of our nature that shall not be satisfied – and that not by lessening it, but by enlarging it to embrace an ever-enlarging enough.”

“There are good things God must delay giving until His child has a pocket to hold them – till he gets His child to make that pocket”.  What incredible imagery.  I know the first time I read this I instantly recalled a time when I thought I was ready for something, but God showed me that I hadn’t yet finished making my pocket.  For me, that meant turning my heart and soul fully and completely toward God.  Until I was able to focus on working for God’s approval instead of the world’s I couldn’t move forward in my career.  As a writer, in this age of instant critiques, it is so easy to get caught up in what other people say about you and your work.  I know it can be that way for many of us in our daily lives.  Is our kid in the right sport?  on the right team? is our car/house enough?  Do I have the right friends?  Job?  Clothes?  I think of all of the ways in which I allowed the world to intrude on me and get in the way of God’s plan for my life.

Ephesians 3:20 says  “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us”.   I want to  give God time to make the perfect pocket to hold the gifts that he wants to give me so that I can be so much more than I could possibly ask to be – because his power is at work within me.

I always bring it back to being a parent – and it is part of the reason why I think parenting well is so important – because in our relationships with our children and our parents, we are given a glimpse of the relationship that is possible with our Father in heaven.

Don’t you want to give your children so much more than they can ask or imagine?  But you don’t take off the training wheels until your child is ready to ride on their own.

My prayer for you today is that you find the courage to open yourself to God’s plan for your life.  Let him make you a pocket, perfectly designed, to hold all of the gifts he would so dearly love to give you.

God bless,

Meredith