jesus calling
Giving Thanks through the Pain
“When you approach Me with thanksgiving, the Light of My Presence pours into you, transforming you through and through. Walk in the Light with Me by practicing the discipline of thanksgiving.” Jesus Calling, April 6 A few years ago, when I finished speaking at a ladies’ retreat, a dear woman approached me with tears in her eyes. I could tell by the sweet smile shining through her tears that she wanted to share something from her heart. “I could relate to your stories about your daughter’s illness.” She looked down for a moment and then began again. “I have recently been declared cancer-free. Last summer, the sun was shining beautifully through my bedroom window, but I was in the worst pain I’d ever experienced. My throat was on fire from the cancer treatments, and the pain medication ...
Plan for Grumble-Free Holidays
by Tricia Goyer “Thank Me frequently as you journey through today…When your mind is occupied with thanking Me, you have no time for worrying or complaining.” Jesus Calling, November 25 The holidays ring out with jingle bells and the laughter of children. But too often they often ring out with something not so jolly: grumbles. As a mom of ten kids, the complaints and whines seemed to slide in with the season, until my husband and I decided to try something different. We invited our kids (and also my grandmother, who lives with us) to attempt a Grumble-Free Year. We knew our family’s grumbles pointed back to a serious heart-issue: discontent. It took a full twelve-months to dig out the roots of dissatisfaction. Along the way, I also discovered a few ways each of us can plan to go grumble-fre...
Our Superpowers
Leave outcomes up to Me. Follow Me wherever I lead, without worrying about how it will all turn out. Jesus Calling, November 19 Where I work, we have an ice-breaker question we ask every new person joining the team: If you could have any superpower, what would it be? The answers, as you can imagine, vary. One colleague told us her superpower would be to become instantly dry as she stepped from the shower. My own superpower—as my fellow introverts will understand—would be to turn invisible the moment I walked into a cocktail party. A New Superpower But more recently I’ve thought of a new superpower, which would be this: I would want the power to know, with complete certainty, that Everything Is Going to Be Okay. I’m not talking about the moment-to-moment stuff. Intellectually I know, for ex...
God’s Invitation to Peace and Joy
Adapted and edited for the Jesus Calling Blog. You can find Pastor Nicewonger’s original post, The Road to Peace, here. As you grow closer to Me, I open your eyes to see more and more of My Presence all around you. Jesus Calling, December 28 How do we find peace amid chaos? When turmoil reigns, anxiety rules, and worry is winning, how do we find the road to peace? My Journal Talks I came across something I wrote after meeting with my spiritual director. As we closed our time together, he invited me to live and move with the spirit of the Jesuits: seek first to discern God’s invitation, and do what you discerned wholeheartedly. Thus you find joy and peace. I was struck by his words. They voiced the way I have sought to live and move through a significant portion of my life. Notice the word ...
Finding True Satisfaction
I am the culmination of all your hopes and desires. . . . I have lifted you out of darkness into My marvelous light. – Jesus Calling, October 11 What is your heart longing for? It’s the time of year we start pondering our New Year’s resolutions, and all the things we want to gain, achieve, and experience in the months ahead. We dream about how we could be happier, healthier, and more fulfilled 365 days from now. It’s easy to create that resolutions list and think, If I could just have this or do that, I’ll finally be happy. We think if we could lose those pounds, get that job, buy that car, then we’ll experience lasting contentment. But the problem is, we confuse our current desire with our core longing, the message each of our hearts so desperately longs to hear. We hope, plan...
