My response to a beautifully written half truth An interesting article made its way into my feed recently, penned by a well-known writer here on Medium. He’s a clever author, eloquent wordsmith and a vocal deconstructionist. I have no beef with him personally, but I do want to set the record straight on a few points for anyone else who might have read it and fallen victim to a beautifully written half truth. The piece in particular dealt with the “real” nature of sin, as he explained it. Here is my response, difficult as it was to write. What if Sin IS What You Think it is? If you ask 1,000 people what sin is, you’ll probably get 1,000 different answers. Why? Because the enemy has been working since the Fall of Man to convince humankind that we aren’t sinners, or at least that we aren’t that bad. You see, if he can convince us that we are pretty good or that our sin isn’t our fault, we can be more easily deceived into believing we don’t need a savior. Or worse, that we can save ourselves. He makes evil look holy and lures us in with crafty lies packaged as articles meant to elicit an emotional response. Friend, don’t buy it. One of the major lies in the article is that sin isn’t our fault, but rather a result of our less-than-ideal childhood, our trauma, our generational curses, our… fill in the blank. Are past hurts painful? Of course! I’ve got them myself. But here’s the thing: Trauma doesn’t cause our sin. Our sin nature causes our sin and we use our trauma to justify it. I’m not saying we shouldn’t work through our trauma or put off healing. I’m saying we can’t use our trauma to justify our sin. Sin is disobedience to God, whether big or small. Our flesh craves it, and our spirit fights against it. It’s a spiritual battle we’ll fight until the day Jesus calls us home. What about the generational stuff? Another point in the article is that a lot of our sin is the result of generational wounds that aren’t healed. Is there some truth in that? Perhaps. But the statement in and of itself is not truth. We see repeated sin patterns throughout Scripture & in our own family trees today. While they may look different (abuse here, pride there, alcoholism over there), the root cause is always the same: Disobedience to God. The article cited examples of Jesus healing and inviting sinners to him, to sit with them as they worked through their pasts. While I don’t disagree, there’s so much more to it than that. God absolutely does want us to break generational cycles of sin. We see it all throughout the Old Testament with the Israelites. The Lord brought the 12 tribes out of exile so many times, only for them to return to old patterns of sin and wind up back in exile, waiting for God to raise up yet another cycle-breaker to set them free. Fast forward to the ultimate cycle-breaker, Jesus Christ. He came to set us all free from the bondage of sin. He came to redeem us from slavery. He came to seek and to save that which was lost. Jesus didn’t come merely to sit beside us while we wallow in our past. He came to free us from the past, and to help us put aside the behaviors we justify with it. But what about the really painful “psychological bruises?” First, don’t hear what I’m not saying. I’m truly, deeply sorry that there are so many in this world who suffer at the hands of the ones who should love them most. My heart grieves for people when I hear stories of egregious familial abuse. However (and please hear the sorrow in my voice as I write this), regardless of how atrocious, evil or gut-wrenching it may have been… we do not have a license to sin because of the ways we have been hurt. Lot tried to offer up his daughters to be abused by the drunk men in town. Joseph was kidnapped and sold into slavery by his brothers. Job lost everything he owned, and almost everyone he loved. The woman at the well had been through five husbands and avoided everyone in town (it may not be explicitly written, but you can’t tell me there wasn’t pain there). Jesus was run out of town, beaten, mocked, mortally betrayed by his close friend, nailed to a cross and killed. Jesus knows this world is hard. He’s felt it. Yet he still calls us to be sanctified. Healing takes time. Jesus understands that and is grieved for you too. He will walk with you every step of the way along your healing journey. He will acknowledge the deeply painful wounds you have suffered. And then he will call you to “go and sin no more.” Why? Why would a loving, gracious God call us to stop sinning when we’re hurting so bad? Because our sin breaks fellowship with him. It also causes bitterness and hardens our hearts when we hold on to sin. By working to sin no more, we’re taking a step towards the joy and happiness we find in Christ! Don’t buy it The enemy is crafty. He pretends to be good, and tries to sell us half-truths as whole-truths. He invites us to cozy up in our sin because “we just can’t help how we are.” Don’t believe it. Don’t buy the lies he’s selling. Jesus is calling you to repentance, not because he’s mad at you, or wants you to earn your spot in heaven, but because he loves you. He wants a relationship with you. He wants to heal you. Won’t you turn to him? Thanks for reading! If any of this resonated with you, or you’d like to see more content like this, please consider visiting so you’ll never miss out on a post. © Stephanie M

We often hear the phrase “Love the sinner but hate the sin," sometimes worded slightly differently, such as “Hate the sin and love the sinner.” Regardless of the phrasing, it’s repeated so frequently that most of us never stop to ask what it really means, or whether we actually live by it. First, it’s important to note that the phrase isn’t actually in the Bible. It’s a condensed idea derived from Biblical principles, popularized by St. Augustine and later referenced by Mahatma Gandhi. On its own, the concept is sound, but over time it has become quite trite; it’s spoken as a hollow mantra and, worse, as a thinly veiled judgment. Some of the verses this concept is from: “And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.” Jude 1:22–23 “Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.” 1 Pt 2:17 “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,” Luke 6:27 “First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made in behalf of all people, for kings and all who are in authority, [..]” 1 Tim 2:1–3 I’m going to bet those stung a wee bit, considering the climate in our society at the moment. Everyone is hating on everyone, and that includes Christians. Here’s what I see daily: people repeating this phrase over and over, but not out of understanding, but as an excuse to nod approvingly at their own assumed “moral superiority,” and then walk away in judgment. Beyond The Words We do not have to condone sin, and before assuming any moral high ground, remember: we are all sinners. But we are called to act differently from the world; the world judges harshly, and we are not to join in that behavior. You need to know, it is ok to look out at the world and feel empathy. But it’s not ok to see someone dressed a certain way and judge them harshly for the path they are taking that leads them away from God. It is not our job to gossip about them behind their backs, wish them harm, or make fun of them; it is not our job to look at them any less than you would the person sitting next to you in a church pew. It is our duty to pray for them. To “love the sinner ”is to extend grace, empathy, and care, even when we disagree or recoil. To “hate the sin” is to reject destructive behavior, but without letting condemnation eclipse compassion. It’s a call to humility, not judgment; to action, not empty repetition. In practice, it means listening more than speaking, helping more than condemning, and reserving space for both truth and mercy. It challenges us to see people as God sees them: flawed, but beloved, worthy of love even when we cannot embrace their choices. Love the sinner, hate the sin, but never let your judgment drown out your mercy. © Jane Isley Thank you for taking the time to read, and please consider supporting my work. Your gift helps keep this work going. You can visit me at Faithful Writers on Medium, where other Christian writers have joined me in sharing the word of God. You can also find me on Facebook.

There is only today, and within it only this moment. A moment can not stretch; it has no way to expand beyond its purpose, it is only this precise moment you are in. Tomorrow is not yet written. We can wonder, we can guess, and we can even make plans because we believe there will be a tomorrow for us. But we do not know the moments we are going to travel through when we wake. The best-laid plans are no match for being with God in the present. When you wake, give your moments over to God. Release your hold on moments you simply do not control. The exact moment you are living in right now is a precious gift from Him to you; don’t squander it by living in the world of tomorrow before it even gets here. Those surrendered moments ease a burden you weren’t meant to carry or control and become His again upon your release. Moments, where He will guide you, carry you, support you, and cherish you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3: 5–6 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 © Jane Isley

We like to think of identity as something we build. As if we’re the authors of ourselves. But more often than not, identity is something we absorb. We pick it up without realising. From family scripts. From childhood labels. From culture’s loudest voices. From the failures we haven’t made peace with — and the successes we’ve grown addicted to. And when we forget who we are in Christ, the world is more than happy to fill in the blanks. The names we never chose The world doesn’t offer neutral ground. If you don’t know who you are, it will name you. You are your productivity. You are your sexuality. You are your trauma. You are your body. You are your social feed. You are your relationships. You are your past. You are your potential. These messages don’t come in bullet points. They come in algorithms, expectations, Instagram captions, and late-night shame. They’re stitched into the air we breathe. We may never consciously say them out loud. But we act like they’re true — hustling to stay impressive, shrinking to avoid rejection, medicating the ache with distraction or denial. Identity isn’t just emotional. It’s spiritual. This isn’t just a mental health issue. It’s a spiritual battle. Ephesians says we once “followed the ways of this world and the ruler of the kingdom of the air” (2:2). We were dead in our sins. Not confused. Not slightly misaligned. Dead. But God, being rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ. He didn’t just give us a fresh start. He gave us a new self — one that’s being remade in the image of Jesus. The gospel doesn’t merely save us from hell. It saves us from every false identity that threatens to swallow us whole. What Christ says about you In Christ, you are not your worst day. You are not your performance review. You are not your diagnosis. You are not what they said behind your back. You are not your high school reputation or your adulthood imposter syndrome. You are: Chosen (Ephesians 1:4) Adopted (Ephesians 1:5) Redeemed (Ephesians 1:7) Sealed (Ephesians 1:13) Raised up (Ephesians 2:6) Created in Christ Jesus for good works (Ephesians 2:10) This isn’t motivational fluff. These are spiritual realities — anchored in God’s eternal love, secured by Jesus’ blood, guaranteed by the Spirit’s seal. You don’t have to earn these names. You just have to remember them. Why remembering matters It’s no accident that the New Testament is full of identity language. “Put on the new self.”“Consider yourselves dead to sin.”“Be who you are in Christ.” That’s the call again and again. Not just to believe — but to remember. Because we are forgetful people. And forgetful people are vulnerable people. When we forget who we are in Christ, we reach for whatever identity offers the most comfort, the most affirmation, the least friction. And usually, those identities feel good — until they break under pressure. Until the metrics change. Until the applause stops. Until the loneliness catches up. Identity that holds When your identity is in Christ, it doesn’t mean you never struggle. But it means your struggle has context — and your value has already been decided. You don’t have to perform for love. You don’t have to prove you matter. You don’t have to chase belonging like it’s a prize you could lose. In Christ, you are secure. That means when you fail, you’re still forgiven. When you succeed, you’re still humble. When you’re forgotten by others, you’re still known by God. When the labels come, “lazy,” “too much,” “not enough,” “unlovable," they no longer have the final word. Becoming who you already are Christian growth is not about becoming someone else. It’s about becoming who you already are in Christ. It’s not self-improvement. It’s Spirit-led transformation. It’s not becoming your best self. It’s being conformed to the image of Jesus. It’s not living out of fear. It’s walking in the freedom of a name that can’t be revoked. This is not just a message for new believers. It’s for all of us. Because in a noisy world, even the most grounded Christian can lose their footing. Even the most “mature” believer can forget the names they’ve already been given. If you’ve ever found yourself asking, “Who am I, really?," you’re not alone. That question isn’t a weakness. It’s a signal. It means you’re paying attention. It means you’re hungry for truth. It means you’re ready to silence the noise and return to the only voice that really matters. If that’s where you are right now, I created something that might help. If you’re looking to slow down and remember.. There’s a lot of noise out there — and it’s easy to forget what’s most true. If you’re in a season where identity feels blurred, or if you simply want space to reflect on who you are in Christ, you might find this helpful. I’ve created a 30-day printable devotional called Identity in Christ. Each day invites you to pause, open Scripture, reflect, and pray. It’s simple, unhurried, and rooted in truth that doesn’t shift with the moment. No pressure. Just an invitation. © Nathan Cole Download Your Devotional Here

My experiences with this and no your faith is not flawed. “You must not have real faith in God, or He’d have fixed you by now.” I used to secretly worry about this and doubt myself all the time. Was I truly not “faithful enough,” or did I not “pray enough” because I still had intrusive thoughts? I’m here to tell you that’s BS. It's about the biggest pile you could find. For those unsure of what the complexity of intrusive thoughts are I recommend reading this first, Advancing Health. I have dealt with intrusive thoughts since I was a child, it straight-up sucks. What's even more exhausting is the judgment I’ve gotten from people over the years, and to be completely honest — it’s one thing to get ignorant comments from a nonbeliever, but it’s a completely different story getting ignorant comments of any kind from a Christian when you too are a Christian. Here’s the truth. You are, in fact, still a Christian, and your faith and trust are not in question by me or God because you have intrusive thoughts or struggle with any mental health condition. Your faith is not flawed, and your salvation is not on the line. It took me years of self-sabotage and misery to realize that sometimes, people should just keep their opinions to themselves. Well-meaning Christians or not, they should not be passing any judgment on your mental health. I want you to think of it this way: Would they say, “Well, you're just not praying enough” if you had diabetes? There’s a pretty good chance the answer is going to be no. (Minus the few fringe Christians who would say yes, but we’re going to ignore those.) Don’t let their voices become more intrusive thoughts. We already have enough to deal with when we get hit out of nowhere, we don’t need their voices mingled in there. We only need two voices, ours and God’s. (I'd better clarify this right away — if you're on meds, stay on them. If you need help, go and get help. God gave us medicine for a reason, there’s nothing wrong with medication for our mental health. I am on medication, and it doesn’t diminish my faith or demonstrate a lack of faith because I’m taking something.) Back to two voices: Now that I clarified that, let’s get back to the only voices that should matter when mental health things are happening to you because no one has the right to subtitle your relationship with God. I debated how to approach this next part. Basic suggestions or I could be real. I’m going with real. We already know it's exhausting when our brain literally isn’t working right. But don’t sit there and pick apart where your faith “went wrong.” You have done nothing wrong; it’s something you have, not something you did. It’s how you handle it that’s the key. By the way, I use these strategies not just for when I get hit with intrusive thoughts but also for my anxiety, PTSD, and when I’m overwhelmed. Acknowledge that it's happening, and don’t try and hide it from yourself or others. If you have safe people you can talk to about what’s going on. Most people will “mask,” to some degree. I’m guilty of this myself, I just learned over time not to have that mask on so tight that God couldn’t come in. This can be both the easiest and the hardest thing to do next, talk to Jesus. He is our counselor, literally, that is one of His roles for us. Notice how I say “talk to Him” and not pray; there is a reason for that. While prayer is a must in our lives, it was a game-changer for me when I realized out that I could just talk to Him like I'd talk to you in person. (Which is also prayer btw if your wondering, it's the mental shift that's key in certain situations.) It took me from praying for something to having this two-way conversation where I felt cared for and secure and could express myself in ways I had never done before. If you haven’t tried this yet, I would highly suggest it. When I am struggling, I absolutely need to get what’s in my head out of there. I have to talk through those thoughts and talk them out of me, if I don’t, things get worse. Jesus offers this outlet to us with no judgment, rejection, or hourly fee. I take as much time as I need and just talk to Jesus. Sometimes out loud, sometimes in my head, but either way, I open up and start clearing the clutter out, and I don’t hold back. He knows that we all need to talk sometimes and that keeping things in without a release valve is not good; we all know this. He is willingly offering His ear and heart to us for this reason. If all of us who struggle weren’t “faithful” enough, then why would one of God’s descriptions for His son be “Wonderful Counselor?” It’s an honest question to ask of those who would use the Bible in such a way against anyone who deals with any mental health diagnosis, It is also something to consider if you struggle in secret and doubt yourself. God does not love us any less if we are struggling, and it absolutely does not mean our faith is lacking in any way. Even if you have never received the type of criticism I and others have received and simply internally wonder and doubt yourself, you are not at fault for something you did not ask for. It takes more strength and grit to go to God in your worst moments and demonstrate your faith than you realize. If you are up to reading something else, please read 6 People in the Bible Who Struggled With Their Mental Health. I want to emphasize that I am not against therapy, doctors, treatments, or medication ever. I do/have done all three willingly. I am not directing anyone to stop any treatments. I encourage you to reach out and get help if you are struggling. You don’t have to do this alone and without help. I’m just sharing what I experienced and learned to do when I’m in a period of struggle and want to pass it on. © Jane Isley First published in Know Thyself, Heal Thyself on Medium. Thank you for taking the time to read, and please consider supporting my work. Your gift helps keep this work going, blesses others, and means the world to me. You can visit me at Faithful Writers on Medium, where other Christian writers have joined me in sharing the word of God. You can also find me on Facebook.

© Jane Isley He stole something and most don’t even realize it. I openly admit I love the weird, obscure, and one-off things in the Bible; I have random post-it notes all over my walls, stacks of folders with odd things in them, and that’s one of the reasons why I created Faithful Writers. One of those weird things is about the word lucifer. It’s important to understand where this word came from and also why we need to change our use of this word. So, I’m just going to dive right in, lucifer is not satan’s name. This article is about how Jerome’s mistake led to satan stealing something from Jesus that people aren’t aware of. A quick look at the controversial verse we’re looking at today. “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, who didst weaken the nations!” Isaiah 14:12. (21st Century King James Version) Not an ideal way to translate. Jerome went about his work as an “interpretation of thought.” Not the worst thing that has ever happened to a Bible translation, but also not to best either. “Interpretation of thought” is not a true interpretation. I get what he was attempting to do but wanting to convey meaning above word-for-word translation was not a good choice, especially since he relied on the Septuagint translation first, which already had translation errors. It wasn’t until after he translated the Bible into Latin that he then decided to use the Hebrew text for a “more accurate” translation, instead of just using the Hebrew text to begin with. In a nutshell, there is a ton of history, but I would drive you nuts trying to get through all of it. My focus is on just one word, lucifer. Jerome changed “heylel” to “lucifer” in Isaiah because the Septuagint had already mistranslated “heylel” as “eosphoros” (“phosphoros.”) It's also not the only place this happened, just the one that stuck and created this mess. For 1000 years, the Vulgate was the gold standard Bible. Remember, The Roman Empire didn’t want the common people to be able to read the Bible, so there was little chance to examine or question Jerome’s translation. Without realizing it, most people now think Isaiah was talking about satan because Jerome didn’t fully understand the Hebrew text. Isaiah never talked about satan, he was talking about the king of Babylon. In fact, satan is nowhere in the book of Isaiah. Isaiah 14 is about the king of Babylon, his arrogance, and his eventual death because the king equated himself to God and was full of pride. Isaiah shows us how far and hard that king fell for his tyranny, oppression, and sins against God. This story should be given back to that king as a reminder of what happens to people like that. I have to address this — because of Isaiah’s description and Jerome’s translation, it was assumed by early Christians that this was a description of satan’s fall. Since we were never given those details, we should not presume this is an account of satan’s fall, this fall is entirely about this king. The words we use for translation are just as important, if not more so than the ones we translate from. “O Lucifer, son of the morning!” The first thing to know is the Hebrew text reads hê-lêl ben- šā-ḥar; It’s that word hê-lêl (heylel) where things went wrong. hê-lêl is a pronoun, referencing a person and in this case specifically the King of Babylon. When Jerome translated it to “O Lucifer,” he created an inaccurate proper name. Jerome used what the Septuagint translation said in this situation instead of what the Hebrew text said. Simply put, he didn’t understand the Hebrew text and did a copy-and-paste translation. Some scholars have now come to theorize that he may not have been as “well versed” in Hebrew as previously assumed, which led to some of those questionable translation choices. (sources below) Now we are stuck with the wrong word. To this day, we have a Latin word still being put into some Bibles without proper translation efforts, I also discovered numerous references to translators just leaving lucifer in there because it was simply convenient to do so. While this error has increasingly gotten better over time, we are still left with lucifer being a common word in the English language, with it being defined as “another name for satan.” Most do not know this but Jerome wrote a commentary on Isaiah 14:12. and he admitted that the word meant something else. Check out the source here, you’ll also be able to view the images of his notes. Why do I think this is important to know? God stripped satan of a proper name, he doesn’t deserve one for what he did. Did you know Jesus is described as “the bright Morning Star” in Revelations 22:16? (Greek) Lucifer means “light-bringer” and “Morning Star.” (Latin) There’s the issue right there. Jerome’s translation allowed satan to steal from Jesus, taint the meaning, have people thinking he’s somehow equal to Jesus, and now has a name that he was never meant to have. We all know words have the power to create, hurt, crush, vilify, and be used to deceive. I do not believe we should be using a word that Jesus personally uses to describe Himself as for a name for satan. The devil, the satan, the serpent, the dragon, those all describe what he is. Those are the words we are given to use when referring to him, not a name. Yes, over time most have become capitalized, that’s a combination of cultural awareness of evil, language development, and sentence structure, but they are still descriptions, not names. I choose carefully when and where I capitalize those words, my Grammarly is going nuts on me right now. But I will not give satan the satisfaction of calling him by a name he stole. © Jane Isley JSTOR — Revising the Vulagte Lancaster University, The Baker Deep End Blog, Answers in Genesis, Frank W. Nelte, Biblical Hermeneutics, Biblical Hermeneutics, Scholarly Community Encyclopedia, Learn Religions, Biblical Translation Mistakes, Isreal Bible Center, Bible Scholars, Biblehub.com, Lucifer in Latin: An In-depth Etymological Analysis, Britannica, The British Museum, Biblical Hermeneutics, Gotquestions.org, Tales of Times Forgotten, Source, Wikipedia, The Origin of Satan by Elaine Pagels, Oxford English-Hebrew dictionary, Hebrew for Dummies, Hebrew Myths by Robert Graves & Raphel Patai, A Concise Lexicon to the Biblical Languages by Jay Green Sr and Maurice Robinson, Ph.D.

What can I say, I love me some good ole Psalms, and I feel this one should be said as often as Psalms 23. “I lift up my eyes to the mountains — where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip — he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you — the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm — he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” This ☝ ️is a steadfast reminder of where our true help comes from. We are called to recognize that our strength and protection do not originate from anything in the world around us, but from God and only God. If you're facing uncertainty or bracing to go headlong into a storm, this passage will point you toward God and remind you that you are never alone. Constant vigilance over His people. “The Lord watches over you” He never sleeps; think about that. Eyes always watching, always guiding, always steps ahead of us to protect us. His presence is our continual safeguard. Let Him in, so you can rest. Let Him take charge, let Him protect you and guide you. Take a step backwards into His presence and His arms and just be.God’s care is perfect, extensive beyond what we can comprehend, and everlasting. He is watching over our lives and every piece of our journeys. So right-click this image 👇 and save it where you’ll always be able to see it. AI created so your free to save this.

I don’t know about you, but I prefer to remember my deceased loved ones the way they were when they were vibrantly full of life and laughter. Similarly, I prefer to fix my eyes on the living Jesus Christ, not the graven image of a crucifix hanging on the wall of an ornate cathedral. Many believers of the Christian faith celebrate the Easter holiday, proclaiming “Hallelujah, He is risen!” referring to our Savior, Jesus Christ. Some prepare by observing Holy Week or perhaps even an entire 40 days of Lent leading up to Easter Sunday, a date which rotates on a calendar from year to year according to some formula I am admittedly ignorant about. Honestly, there is a lot I don’t understand about religion. And when I claim many of us have negative associations with the word and the concept in the title of this story, I include myself in that. When I read about what Jesus had to say and do to the Scribes and the Pharisees who attempted to catch him violating one of their laws, it proves the fact that they clearly felt threatened by his power and presence. It reminds me of all the people who verbally attempt to place God in a proverbial box by spewing what they believe God does or does not do based on a chosen narrative they have created in their own heads. How dare you. Prayer: God, please help me set aside everything I think I know about YOU and myself and listen to what YOU want me to know about YOU and who YOU created me to be. May I not presume to know more about YOU than YOU, going around telling others how they’ve got it all wrong like one of the brood of vipers (Matthew 12:34, 23:33), trying to control the cultural narrative for everyone else. May I instead be salt and light (Matthew 5:13–16) following Your Beloved Son’s perfect example as The Light of the world (John 8:12). May I demonstrate pure JOY through trials as James suggests through these translated words… Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. (James 1:2–8 NIV) Help me be still (Psalm 46:10) and hear your still small voice (1 Kings 19:11–13) aligning the desires of my heart (Psalm 37:4) with your own, Heavenly Father of Lights (James 1:17) who gives the best gifts ever! Thank you for reminding me that YOU are the ultimate Just Judge (1 Corinthians 4:3–5, Matthew 7:1) and that it is not my place to condemn others for their sins. Yes, I know I typed the words “How dare you” above regarding a personal pet peeve of mine. But here YOU are once again, gently reminding me that YOU are quite capable of defending Yourself and proving Your absolute sovereignty without me. Grateful in the knowledge I can continue this conversation with you throughout the rest of this day and night, praying without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17) with thanksgiving forevermore. In Jesus Name, Amen Why Viewings Are Not For Me I don’t know about you, but I prefer to remember my deceased loved ones the way they were when they were vibrantly full of life and laughter. Rather than worshipping an idol (Exodus 20:4) of a crucifix this Easter, I will sing praises to the risen living Savior Jesus Christ. But I will not judge you for how you choose to spend your time this coming weekend, because that is not my place. I would like to make one more point before wrapping this up. For me, Easter and Christmas are simply two more days out of the year to be in awe of God. This relationship (not religion) takes place for me 365 days a year to infinity and beyond. I am not at all trying to push my practices on you. I am merely sharing my truth. Thank you for reading (listening). © 2026 Nora Gwen. Want more content like this? Explore more articles in Rethinking Doctrine.

It can’t get any simpler than that. It doesn’t matter if you are an oldie in the faith or a newbie. This question will always remain the same. This is about the most profound question a Christian will face, and how you answer says everything. There is no… Yes, I do, but! or any other verb or adjective that could possibly follow that yes. In my journey, I have asked myself a lot of questions, battled with myself internally many times, learned and then relearned many concepts, had little faith, had a lot of faith, and I’ve even been angry with God. One day, I was faced with one of my biggest storms, and I had no choice but to face this question head-on. I couldn’t skirt around it; I couldn’t “back burner” it any longer. Once faced with it, it wasn’t going anywhere. The Holy Spirit made sure of that. I was being convicted to make a choice. I thought, I prayed, I fought with myself, and I prayed some more. Then one day I chose. My answer was yes. Such a simple answer said in an emotional whisper, but also the most complex answer I have ever had to give. My life and journey have never been the same since. The growth, guidance, love, and peace since then have been profound. You either trust God, or you don’t. There is never an in-between. © Jane Isley Thank you for taking the time to read, and please consider supporting my work. Your gift helps keep this work going, blesses others, and means the world to me. You can visit me at Faithful Writers on Medium, where other Christian writers have joined me in sharing the word of God. You can also find me on Facebook.

He tilted his head back, swallowing the cold, creamy milk. Within seconds, the entire glass was empty. “Were you thirsty?” I laughed. “I guess I forgot how much I like milk! At college, I really haven’t been drinking milk. I think because I grew up drinking milk, I figured everybody else did too, but people at college don’t do things the way we do, Mom. I think we’re different.” That’s an understatement, I thought. “What else is different? Is there anything I didn’t teach you when you were homeschooled that would have been helpful in college?” “Yes!” “Really? Like what?” “Like swear words! Mom, it felt like I landed on a different planet and didn’t know the language for my first few days in the dorms. I kept typing 4-letter words into my phone to figure out what they meant. I understand why we don’t use them, but it would have been helpful to be prepared and at least know they existed.” Good feedback from my wise son. He was a freshman in college eight years ago. If he were leaving for college this year, that conversation would have never happened. Why? Because expletives have become the norm. I hear inappropriate language while choosing produce at the grocery store, pumping gas, talking to my neighbor, and listening to politicians. What used to be reserved for rogue members of society has now infected portions of the population who would have never before considered using foul language. So why do people swear? I asked AI, which actually had a lot of positive character qualities regarding people who like to cuss. “People who swear frequently are often found to be more honest, expressive, and potentially more creative. They may also be more extraverted and have a more relaxed attitude towards social norms.” Hmm. That’s very gracious, and not what I expected. But AI is not God. Does God give us any standards for language? “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.” (Ephesians 5:4) “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29) “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is…rid yourselves of all of them: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene speech from your mouth.(Colossians 3:1, 3:8) The comparison here is: Filthy talk vs. Thanksgiving Corrupting talk vs. Grace-filled speech Obscene talk vs. Seeking Christ If we are filled with thanksgiving, grace, and Jesus, then obscenities will not be loosely flying from our lips. "Out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45b) What is the overflow of your heart? It will be evidenced by the words you speak. If you are struggling in this area, meditate on God’s word until your speech is transformed. Read God’s Word. Memorize God’s Word. Listen to God’s Word. Do it until your life looks like this: God’s Word In - God’s Word Out “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2) First published in Pursuing Perfection on Substack by © Tessa Lind, tessalind.substack.com