We have curated 12 passages to memorize this year which are connected to our 2023 rallying cry, "We are humble before and joyful in Jesus!" Let's treasure God's word in our hearts each month.
January
James 4:10 – Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
We are here to make disciples and plant churches by proclaiming and displaying the grace of God to sinners and sufferers. After seeking the Lord we’ve discerned our rallying cry for 2023 is not a new project or hill to charge, but a focus on being:
We are humble before & joyful in Jesus!
The road to how we got here is a long one. When you walk into Grace Church and see us with our five teenage boys, with a happy marriage, and the Aledo life it is hard to see where we came from.
We are thrilled to be a part of Grace Church and serve the children and families of Aledo. Our hope and prayer is to see families discipled and formed into the image of Christ so that the next generation of saints may know, trust, and love our good and gracious God.
In just a couple of weeks, our family will observe the Advent season. Celebrating Advent has become a dear and rich tradition for us over the past several years. Traditionally, Advent is observed during the four Sundays leading up to Christmas, but many resources make this heart-preparing observation a daily activity.
I cannot count the number of times friends have spoken difficult truths to me in love. Honestly, I don’t think I want to know the version of myself that would exist without those faithful wounds. I don’t think that version of Kelly would be very nice to be around. Each person who sailed into the tumultuous waters of conflict with me has rendered me an invaluable service. They were friends to me in the truest sense: sacrificing their own comfort with the risk of an unknown outcome, to help me grow into maturity.
The following is an excerpt from the book summary of “Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands” by Paul Tripp.
You must identify entry gates in your relationships to move it “from a casual relationship to a life-changing one.”
Entry gates are not persons or problems, but “a particular person’s experience of the situation, problem, or relationship.”
You must seek to find where a person is struggling in the moment.
Let’s consider some practical items on how to start friendships and deepen them...
1. The best thing you can do to start and deepen friendships with others is to make God your greatest friend. He truly knows you and deeply loves you. To put a human into that role will crush them and discourage you. Jesus is the supreme friend. Martin Luther stated, “God’s friendship is more precious than that of the whole world.” You’re bestie if I may. As well as if you are enjoying your friendship with Jesus it will flow into your horizontal friendships.
Proverbs 12:26 – The righteous should choose his friends carefully.
Proverbs 13:15 – Good understanding gains favor, but the way of the unfaithful is hard.
Proverbs 13:18 – Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is honored.
Proverbs 13:20 – Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.
Proverbs 14:10 – The heart knows its own bitterness, and no stranger shares its joy.
When we were young friendship happened to us. Believing that friendship will “just happen to us” is an immature perspective on adult friendship
The wish-dream of friendship is a hindrance to real, biblical friendship. When we hold an ideal of friendship in our minds, believing it's attainable, we hold a standard above the heads of the real men and women God has placed in our lives and then wonder why we’re constantly disappointed by the realities, complexities, and difficulties in our relationships.
When people ask me to explain Redemption Groups I usually refer to the basic definition from Mike Wilkerson: “A Redemption Group is an intense small group that digs deep into difficult and seldom-discussed areas of life, such as abuse, addiction, and trials of all sorts…Far beyond Bible study, Redemption Groups are about life study—your life connecting with Jesus’ life. Participants challenge one another, and the Word reveals hearts.”
