children, not primarily for our spouses, but for the Lord. And God graciously rewards us for our labors. We may not get paid in dollars and cents, but I imagine we won't be concerned about that as we worship our Savior for eternity. What joy there will be on that day! Let this truth motivate you to find joy in your everyday work, knowing that God sees it and is pleased as you work for His glory. It is not worthless—there is great value and joy to be found in it.

Learning Contentment

If we are struggling to find joy or are disillusioned in our work, it's likely that discontentment is lurking right under the surface.

Paul tells us in Philippians 4:11, "Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content." I'm grateful for all of the verses surrounding this one. Paul knew how to be brought low, and he also knew abundance. In all of Paul's circumstances, comfort and strength came from the Lord (v. 13). So it must be with us. Paul never said he went through various trials and temptations and was naturally and always content. No, Paul learned to be content. God gives us a glimpse of progressive sanctification in the life of Paul. We can be encouraged that if we struggle with discontentment in the mundane, we can repent of this and begin to thank God for the work He has given to us. Contentment in what we do has to be learned; no one is naturally gifted to be content.

Work is hard. There is no doubt about it. So let us ask the Lord to give us eyes to see our work as work being done unto Him. As Christians, our lives are to be given away following the example of Christ. Let us ask our Lord to help us serve, work, and labor, knowing that Jesus, our perfect model, came to serve and not to be served (Matt. 20:28). As we reflect on what Christ has done, we find deep joy and purpose and value in modeling our lives after His. Work, even the most mundane work, has a purpose—to glorify God. That's something to work for.

put our faith and pro-life convictions into action.

boogeyman. He is the sovereign, loving, awesome God who came to redeem a people for Himself. He is good and loves us relentlessly. So, in response to our knowledge of His loving character, we discipline ourselves to repent daily of the sin for which Christ has already died.

Walk in the Light

One of the many side effects I've experienced from getting older is an inability to see the road while driving at night. Everything glows. If it rains, it's as if someone is shining a bright light in my eyes. Like the responsible adult that I am, I have yet to go to an eye doctor. So, I'm driving around in the dark, blind as a bat.

Thankfully, we don't have to do this as Christians. We've seen the light. The gospel has shined light into darkness. And this light isn't disorienting; it's a gift of grace that purifies and guides us.

But perhaps you've been walking around like you are still in the dark. God calls you to walk in the light. To walk in the light means to walk in the goodness and grace of God, living a life that is reflective of the Savior, and walking in a manner worthy of the gospel. Repentance is one of the clearest ways to walk in this light. The Apostle John tells us, "If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth" (1 John 1:6). To walk in darkness is either to walk with the knowledge of sin and ignore it or to walk as if we are completely without sin, never repenting (1 John 1:8). The grace of God allows us to not only acknowledge that we continue to struggle with sin, but also to turn from our sin.

We see clearly that our walking in the light isn't perfect—not even close. We will never reach perfection on this earth. That's why repentance is such a beautiful gift from our God. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). Oh, what grace. We confess our sins to God—acknowledging our great need for Him to turn us from our sin—and what does He do? He does what He's already done—pours out the grace we need to change. His wrath was reserved for Jesus. We don't receive punishment or wrath for our sins—we receive grace. There are, of course, consequences for sin, but even so, our standing before God doesn't change. God is sovereign and rules over all.

He is holy, yet because of Jesus we can approach Him. Run, don't walk, to the throne of grace. Don't walk like a blind man while you can walk in the light that is available to you. Walk in the light. Confess your sin and receive grace. There is no condemnation for you.

hearts of stone to hearts of flesh (Ezek. 36:26). The Christian who understands his nature before God is eager to share with his fellow man.

My own testimony comes to mind here. God sent a young girl aflame for Jesus and His gospel to share the good news with me. I was not running after God—actually, quite the opposite. My salvation required His pursuit. I remember this when I read Ephesians 2 and the truth of the words seems to jump off the page: I was dead, but God made me alive through Jesus' death on the cross. By a free gift, I was made alive by grace through faith (vv. 1-10). I could never have saved myself, and I didn't think my heart needed transformation, but He knew what I needed, He did the work, and He used a sinner saved by that same grace to teach me about Him.

Since that day, my heart and its desires have changed. Even as I wrestle with the sin that so easily distracts me, there remains a longing for the Lord.

As image-bearers, when we hear the good news, we are changed from the inside out. This does not mean that we are immediately sanctified, nor does it mean that we will not have ebbs and flows in our excitement or devotion to and for the Lord. For we know that we are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another (2 Cor. 3:18).

Sanctification is a process. And this, too, is God's doing. Like Paul, we proclaim, "Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us" (2 Cor. 3:5). Fundamentally, the work of sanctification in our lives is the Lord's doing, and we devote ourselves to Him because we know we are His—His workmanship, His image-bearers, and His children. We love God because He first loved us and gave His Son to be a ransom for us (1 John 4:9). As we interact with others, our lives proclaim what we know about God in love for them and for God.

weary or fainthearted in our fight for faith (v. 3). We will be trained, tested, and strained, but as we walk by faith and not by sight, we walk in the knowledge that God is treating us like His children (vv. 7–8). And His discipline yields sweet rewards (v. 11). We can rest assured that there is a great purpose in all He does. He acts for our good (v. 10).

Let’s join Paul in praising our Father who chose us to be His (Eph. 1:3–6).

to remember that God is our Father and that He loves to pour out gifts to His children. All you and I must do is receive.

As I write this article, I’m sitting in a room filled with bright colors and cheerful pictures. The sun is beaming through a large window. I can see the sky, and it’s blue and beautiful. And yet not one of these things can change my sorrowful heart. Condemnation has set in, and there isn’t anything that will help me cast my cares in the right place besides the Word of God and His Spirit.

So I open my Bible on my lap and turn to those familiar verses in Romans 8:1, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” It doesn’t matter if you’ve been a Christian for one day or one hundred years, we all must be reminded that we have complete peace with God because of His Son Jesus. There is no condemnation. There is no sentence of wrongdoing. But haven’t we done so much to be condemned for? Yes. But Jesus paid it all. God did what the law could not do. Read Romans 8:3–4.

God is holy and just and rightly requires holiness and perfection from us. Sin cannot be in His presence; He won’t tolerate it. He is righteous and pure. We are the opposite. Yes, as His image-bearers we have the capacity to reflect some of the beauty of God. But as Paul also explained, “For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). We fall short. In our sinful nature, we are powerless to change ourselves. We are in need of saving from the wrath of God.

So God gave His Son.

Paul again writes, “And [we] are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, who God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Rom. 3:24). God gave His Son as the full and complete payment for our sin. Both our sin and the resulting condemnation have been wiped away.

When we think of a payment, we often imagine some sort of deposit—like giving money to a bank. That is not how justification plays out in the life of a new Christian. We don’t give anything—Jesus gives all. We don’t pay anything—Jesus pays it all. And then He continues to give and plead on our behalf throughout our entire walk of faith. All of this is a free gift of His grace (Eph. 2:8).

So if you are sitting there weary of your sin, repent and rest in Christ knowing that it has been covered. Your sin has been forgiven not in part but the whole—every bit of that filthy sin has been covered and paid for by the blood of the Lamb. No more crushing condemnation for you and me.

If God doesn’t condemn us, why do we condemn ourselves? Remember the truth and sufficiency of Christ’s work on the cross. Receive and thank God for Jesus.

work He began—including helping us put away our idolatry.

share the gospel. I’ve received my marching orders, first from Christ and then, surprisingly, from someone who doesn’t know Him.

good news is that Jesus has crushed the sin of our quarrelsome spirits and has given us freedom to put off unrighteousness and put on faithful witness for our good and His glory.

will fail, but there’s repentance and forgiveness available. Let’s call out to God for help to put off that nasty, selfish sin, and love.

to do what He asks of us. We are ambassadors, but not out of begrudging duty. Rather, we are motivated by love and the fear of the Lord (v. 11).

that they are meant not for our glory but for His. As we remember that God is the giver of all good things, including gifts that He apportions as He wills (1 Cor. 12:11), we can be content with what we have and put it to good use. We must ask the giver of good gifts to help us walk in love and unity in the body. For we know that love never ends (13:8).

sing with a loud voice, “He’s always been faithful to me.” Let’s do this because we understand the truth of God’s Word and because it is true of who God is. God is faithful.

it on to our children and even our grandchildren, let it begin with us.