Jesus Calling

I hate to say this since many of my friends write devotionals, but generally speaking, I don’t like them. Awful, isn’t it? But so many devotionals just make me feel guilty. Usually, after a long, touching story, the author asks a question, something along the lines of, “What about you? Do you love God enough?” “Do you live your life in prayer?” “Do you have unshakable faith?”

The answer is usually “no.” I am not meeting the demands presented by the author–which often means I’m not doing as God demands. Another word for this is “conviction.” And after a week’s worth of reading devotionals, I’m pretty much convicted that I’m the world’s worst Christian and should, as Martin Luther did, flog my back until it’s shredded meat. I’m not sure how much I’m exaggerating here. Over the years, I’ve read devotionals that left me totally questioning my salvation.

Truth of the matter is, there is nothing good in me, and if you want to convict me of how evil I am, it doesn’t take much. I’m well aware of that fact.

Thank God for His Son!

If not for the great sacrifice, I would have no hope. And I know that.

So, for the longest time, I stopped reading devotionals entirely, except for a precious few by Lynn Mosher, Sandy King, or Lisa Buffaloe–and I’m not a regular on any of their sites.

But recently, I found Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling.

Oh, this is a wonderful book! Sarah provided some of the most encouraging thoughts and verses I’ve seen in a long time. The reminder is clear on every page–yeah, I’m awful, but He still loves me, and He’s not going to toss me aside just because I sin and fall short of His glory. This book concentrates on trusting Him, entering His peace, and remembering how deep and unshakable His love is.

Yeah, I can read this on a daily basis. Particularly now, when so much going on in my life is scary and out of my hands.

If you’re ready to see how much He loves you instead of how much you’ve disappointed Him, grab Jesus Calling.

~~~~~~~~~

Guess what? There’s an article about me in the March/April 2013 edition of Southern Writers Magazine. I’m honored! This is both a print mag and an ezine, so I’ve had a little step up from being on blogs. Cool, huh?