Written by Lisanka Martínez, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Venezuela

When we read in Ephesians 4:29 "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen" (NIV), it is necessary to keep in mind that it is a command for all Christians in all times, places, and circumstances. Because of this, we notice the commitment that it represents to be able to express ourselves, as the Word indicates, so that our speech is edifying for those who listen to us, always avoiding the opposite.

This commitment, I confess, has been an uphill struggle for me on several occasions, and incredibly more so in my life as a Christian. Before I studied the Word, when I read or listened to this verse, it seemed to me to be directed at people who were mean in their language, uncontrolled, or who always spoke with malice and double meanings, offending and mocking others. I thought it was not addressed to me, who, although I said a bad word from time to time, tried to be careful where and to whom I said it, being respectful of the people with whom I had some contact.

Later, as a Christian, I remember an anecdote that happened to me during a discipleship class in which I participated shortly after being baptized.

I arrived 15 minutes early to the meeting set for 8 a.m. and I found only the sister in charge of the class who had been there since 7:30 a.m. The rest of the group arrived in a span of half an hour. Much later, the sister who led the class was the last to arrive with another of the sisters. When I asked them what had happened to them and why they were so late, the accompanying sister told me that it was the time the person in charge had told her because they needed to wait until everyone was there before beginning.

I was very upset, and I let the leader know that I thought it was disrespectful for her to arrive almost an hour late to start the class. My attitude had its immediate response: her face was transformed, and she spent the next half an hour sharing an improvised lecture (with its corresponding biblical passages) in which she explained why a neophyte like me should not call out a more mature woman in the faith. I listened to her speech quietly, still upset, and then we finally moved on to the prepared class material. Of course, nothing she said convinced me that she hadn't disrespected all of us. Being Venezuelan, I should have been used to that characteristic of many of my compatriots: the failure to comply with schedules and the lack of respect for others' time; however, I was not and still am not.

Reflecting on this experience, I now think that she, with more experience in the faith, should have simply apologized to everyone for being late and told me, the insubordinate one, that we would talk more calmly about the subject later, instead of showing that she was in charge and that the rest of us should respect and obey her. In conclusion, we both failed as friends, sisters, and group members.

How many of you have had something like this happen? (I remember a story shared by our sister Michelle where she related a similar experience involving a church trip to the beach, found in the book, In God’s Right Hand). Fortunately, those experiences now seem very distant, and we remember them more objectively, although for everyone in the group that day, it would not have been edifying despite the use of the Bible and the fact that no corrupt words were used.

Studying Social Work, I learned about what it means to be in a group and even more so if we formed a team: the commitment, the level of confidentiality, and cohesion that this implied. It should have been a piece of cake to transfer that to my church groups many years later. However, experience has shown me that I have failed in my commitment to God and to the members of the group because of the way I am, always trying to give instructions about the right way to do or say things without being loving, understanding, and compassionate enough in most cases. My commitment is not only to teach, but also to listen and show the greatest empathy, and I want my face and gestures to reflect the love of Christ and not just my words. Now, I work daily to correct and change with God's help.

Do you hear yourself and your sisters in your small group showing love?

Written by Amanda Santos, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in João Pessoa

When I was a child, my mother always said, “God gave us two ears and one mouth because we should listen more and speak less.” Although most of the time she was just reprimanding me for being a child who talked too much during classes and services, she was paraphrasing James 1:19: “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (NIV).

Today's theme says that “listening is an altruistic act.” If we search for the meaning of altruistic we find that it refers to someone who cares about others and acts voluntarily to benefit them. The Bible contains several verses that talk about altruism such as Philippians 2:3-4: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of others." And John 13:34b says: "Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." The act of listening is the same as loving.

We live at such a busy pace that we even set audio messages we receive on communication platforms at advanced speed to hear and solve things faster. How many times do we watch a video of a class, even a sermon, and put it on “2x” because the faster we listen, the better? It seems like stopping and listening carefully to what someone else has to say will cost us so much. I put myself in this position. I've always liked to do things quickly, think quickly, and resolve things quickly. How many times have I chosen a cooking video to watch, and before the cook got halfway through the recipe, I decided that I had already heard everything I needed and could make the rest myself. Almost every time, I failed and had to go back and watch the video again to find out where I went wrong.

I remember a teacher who asked me a question in class: “Did you hear what I said, Amanda?” and I promptly answered yes. Then she asked again: “Okay, but did you listen to what I said?” Maybe at first you will have the same reaction as I did, “But aren’t those the same thing: hear and listen?” And the answer is no. Hearing is the capture of sounds by the ear, a mechanical and natural process that does not require interpretation. But listening is the action of paying attention, understanding and interpreting what is heard, and making use of it. How many times have I heard people but didn't listen to them?

It takes effort, attention, and dedication to fulfill the role of listener.

Effort is required because we need to break this bad habit of speeding things up. If you've gotten used to hearing everything very quickly, you'll find it strange and even uncomfortable having to listen to someone who speaks slowly. So yes, we need to put in effort to be good listeners.

Attention is necessary because our mind easily takes us away from the conversation. We remember that we didn't take the clothes off the line, we forgot to defrost the meat, or so many tasks that if we are not centered and paying full attention, our mind will ramble and we won't actually be listening to our sister.

And of course, listening takes dedication. Colossians 3:23 says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” We need to dedicate ourselves day after day to being good listeners. Remember, listening to your brother or sister in Christ is an act of love. It is an act of service to the Kingdom of God.

When we are willing to listen to what a sister has to say, we are giving her a safe and trustworthy space where she can share her problems, confess her sins, and share her prayer requests with God. Being open to being that person who listens with an open heart and loves her sister is serving the Lord. If a sister comes to you to talk, she believes she will be in a safe place, without judgment, and with lots of love.

May we be attentive and available to be God's instruments in the lives of our brothers and sisters, and may our ears be open to listen to what they need to tell us. May our hearts be ready to love and exhort when necessary. And may only the Word of God come out of our lips.

Written by Kara Benson, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Arkansas

“The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him”” (Gen. 2:18). We were not made to be alone. From the beginning of creation, God purposed that people should have companionship. As the poet John Donne observed, “No man is an island.” Instead of intending for us to live in isolation, God designed us to live in community.

“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families…” (Psalm 68:5-6a)

Indeed he has. He has set us in a family of fellow Christians. We should not have to go through life feeling alone because we have been given brothers, sisters, mothers, and children in Christ (Mark 10:29-31).

However, there are many who may be struggling with loneliness. Who might they be?

• An elderly resident living in a nursing home or retirement community
• A mother at home with her children
• A young adult who comes home from work each day to an empty apartment
• Someone who doesn’t have any family members living nearby
• A couple that just moved to the area and doesn’t know anyone in the congregation yet.

How can we help them?

• Visit the elderly and simply spend some time by their side.
• Invite someone to celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas with your family.
• Throw a housewarming party for the young single lady who just bought her first house.
• Call someone who is homebound and listen to their stories.
• Check on a stay-at-home mom and see if you can meet her for coffee – or better yet, if you can bring coffee over to her house and visit with her for a while.
• Plan a weekend fellowship opportunity for young families to get together and get to know the new family in the congregation.

Sisters, I will share with you my personal experience of loneliness. During our second year of marriage, I was working from home on editing a Bible study workbook in Spanish. Aside from my husband and the students I tutored weekly in Spanish, I only saw people on Sunday mornings, Wednesday nights, and when I went to the grocery store. The hours I spent in silence, alone, seemed endless.

Then the pandemic hit.

Thankfully, a congregation in another town continued meeting. We drove up and met with them in the parking lot on Sundays. That was the highlight of my week – seeing their faces and waving to one another through the windows. Watching Hebrews 10:25 lived out was so encouraging to me. There is a reason that God inspired the author to write that command to not forsake the assembly – it is both for the sake of ourselves and for the sake of others. Even though we were singing in our cars and hearing the sermon broadcasted through the radio, we were still able to find a way to assemble and worship truly together.

We belong to one another. Paul writes, “you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household (Eph. 2:19). As members of God’s household in Christ, “we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others” (Rom. 12:5). Has someone helped you feel like you belong? During my season of struggle, a mom from our congregation invited me to breakfast with her and one of her young children, and then to tag along on their grocery shopping trip. While going grocery shopping may seem mundane, it can be made into a ministry opportunity. Her invitation welcomed me to come alongside her and reminded me that I was not alone. What we did together was immaterial; I was grateful for being included in their lives. She made me feel like I belonged, and I hope her simple action will inspire you to do the same for another sister.

#IronRoseSister #HIStories #loneliness #community #oneanother #notaloneinChrist #guestwriter #blog

Written by Katie Forbess, volunteer and President of IRSM Board

Iron Rose Sister Ministries’ theme for this year is “Committed to Christ 24/7 in 2024.”

Have you ever stood in a moment when you felt you could lose everything? I mean everything could literally be taken away from you. The life that you were living and all the reasons that you were holding your head high could be removed from you. If you were to lose literally everything that you had, what would you be left with?

I can’t say that this has happened to me, but I did face a time in which I seriously considered that it could. What was I left with? Christ. I was left with Christ. Christ to show me how to act and what to do. Christ to define who I am. Christ to give me a reason to keep going and put one foot in front of the other. Christ to allow me to say, “It’s going to be okay. I don’t know when or exactly how, but it’s going to be okay.”

“But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ” (Php. 3:7).

What did I gain? All that stuff that I was scared to lose became nothing, in comparison to my desire to know Christ better. Follow Him more. Read my Bible more. Talk to others about Him more. That experience made me rethink the way that I live day to day and the way that I am committed to Christ.

The theme for this year is very personal to me as I strive to continue counting everything lost in comparison to what I find and look forward to finding in Christ. I now live committed to Christ 24/7 but does that mean that I don’t have more to learn? No.

How does that commitment shape and form every other commitment in my life? I can say that what we will be studying this year as our theme was foundational to how I made it out of that situation and how it strengthened my resolve to get closer to Him.

Each month we will focus on a new theme to help us consider how we can be more committed to Christ including “Committed in Prayer,” “Committed to One Another in Christ,” and “Committed to Trust and Obey.”

Take a minute to consider everything you have as a loss compared to Christ. Every title you have earned, every relationship that you are in, all the money you have made—everything is gone. What are you left with? I pray the answer is Christ.

Written by Ilca Medeiros, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Brazil

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Mt 22:36-40 NIV)

When we are called to talk about love for God, we almost automatically begin to talk about His love for us. We can do this excellently because it is a perfect and spotless love. When we become aware of such great love and such an impactful example, we come across a commandment (Mt 22:36-40), which would not make sense to us if it did not come from God: “Love”! It is not a love of only feelings, but of action. The Bible says that we should love Him above all things and this love is a reflection of God's unconditional love for us. First John 4:19 says, “We love because he first loved us.” When we feel this love for God, we want to please Him, obey Him, and serve Him with a heart full of gratitude.

The first source of love for God according to Matthew 22:36-40 is the HEART.
A clean heart without bitterness and resentment is a fertile land for cultivating love, which spreads to everyone around us. Whoever loves God with all their heart longs to be with Him, draws closer to Him, and develops intimacy through prayer, communion, and His Word. We like to be around those we love. So it should be with God. He doesn't need anything we have. Not even our love. Now we can imagine our Creator rejoicing in the fact that we love Him with all our hearts! I know that we are capable of feeling such love, of being side by side with Him every day, because He Himself promised in Matthew 28:20 that He would be with us every day. On good days and bad days. Just hold His hand.

God knows how much we love Him by the way we treat our brothers and sisters. How we are connected to each other, how we see each other, how we care for and serve those in need. “...Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister” (1Jn 4:21).

The second source of love for God according to Matthew 22:36-40 is the SOUL.
Our soul is the center of our attitudes. It leads us to practice what comes from the heart. It's feeling in practice! The word soul comes from the Latin animu which means “that which animates”. It reveals our personality; it is the center of our will. Loving God with our soul means leaving behind everything that imprisons us and prevents us from serving. It's denying ourselves when love requires sacrifice and change.

When we love God in our souls, we seek communion with our brothers and sisters even when our bodies are tired and we don't want to go to church. We still strive to offer God the best of ourselves with attitudes that please Him.

What our soul feels reflects in our body and our actions. We cannot forget to feed our souls with good things so that every offering of love to God has a sweet aroma. We become weak in our souls when we leave God out of our battles.

The third source of love for God according to Matthew 22:36-40 is UNDERSTANDING.
When we make the decision to serve God, we are asked if we understand the importance of our decision, and we say yes. We understand that from then on, our lives are linked to God for eternity. Once the initial thrill has passed, it is worth reflecting on: Who is God for us? What difference does He make in our lives? Are our relationships influenced by Him?

The way we understand our new life in Christ makes us grateful, happy, and full of hope. We return to God a love that comes from Him. To understand His love, it is necessary for Him to live in us, as there is no other source of understanding this love other than in Him. The same God who loves us in practice, commands us to love Him. We are not obligated, but motivated to love Him by understanding that He is everything in us, knowing that He is our Creator, Father of Love, and Protector.

We love God when we understand the size of the connection we have with Him. We love not only in moments of blessings received but based on His feelings for us. Constant, continuous, and unconditional.

We can make a list of things we still are not doing to demonstrate our love for God. This love must be contagious. May everyone around us know how much we love Him, and may they want to know Him.

Written by Deanna Brooks, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Arkansas

Psalm 119, the longest psalm—written in alphabetic acrostic form, using a letter from the Hebrew alphabet to start each section of eight verses—is thought to have been written by David, not in his usual manner, but with bursts of exclamations about our Holy God. While some scholars suggest other authors, my opinion is that it sounds like David’s other writings, so I will be referring to him as the author.

When I read Psalm 119, I think of the time in 2 Samuel 6 when the ark of the covenant was brought back to Jerusalem and David was leaping and dancing in the street. Psalm 119 is full of this kind of joy and spontaneous delight despite trials and hardships because of the trust the writer had in the Lord.

Matthew Henry describes Psalm 119 as “a collection of David's pious and devout [expressions], the short and sudden breathings and elevations of his soul to God… a chest of gold rings, not a chain of gold links.”

David mentions these attributes of the Lord… attributes which lead to his and our love for God and trust in Him, which then take us to an obedient life:
       Trustworthiness (v 42)
       Righteousness (verses 7, 62, 75, 106, 123, 138, 144, 160, 164, 172)
       Faithfulness (v 86)
       Truthfulness (verses 43, 142, 151, 160)
       Unchangeableness (v 89)
       Light (v 105)
       Purity (v 9-11)
       Eternal (verses 90, 152)

David writes of slander, persecution, and taunts against him, but his confidence is in the Word of God, described throughout the psalm with these words:
       Law
       Precepts
       Testimonies
       Statutes
       Word
       Commandments
       Judgments
       Ordinances

Psalm 119 reminds us how sufficient the Word of God is as it expands on Psalm 19:7-9 (ESV):
The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether.

David begins Psalm 119 with a blessing for those who walk in the law of the Lord and seek Him with their whole heart, reminding us of words written in Psalm 1:2, “But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.”

He then continues in Psalm 119 with other verses that lead us to loving, trusting, and obeying our Lord:

“Oh that my ways may be steadfast” (v 5).

“With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (v 10-11).

“I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word” (v16).

“Make me understand the way of your precepts, and I will meditate on your wondrous works” (v 27).

“I have chosen the way of faithfulness” (v 30).

“I will keep your law continually” (v 44).

“In your steadfast love give me life, that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.” (v 88).

“Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day” (v 97).

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (v 105).

“Consider how I love your precepts! Give me life according to your steadfast love” (v 159).

“I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight” (v 174).

When David wrote this psalm, we see the love, trust, and desire for obedience in his heart.

Similar thoughts are found in Psalm 33:4-5, 22:

For the word of the LORD is upright, and all His work is done in faithfulness. He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD…Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.

1 Samuel 13:14 and Acts 13:22 call David a man after God’s own heart. I think in reading Psalm 119 we easily see that the writer longs to do the will of the Lord as he praises and delights in His commands.

For us: Do we have that intense longing to do God’s will? Do we hunger and thirst after righteousness (Mt. 5:6)?

Written by Deanna Brooks, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Arkansas

In the fall of 1965, my grandparents moved to Junction City, Arkansas, to work with a small congregation. Grandad was 73; Mama Dee was 68 and completely blind from diabetic complications. They moved into a house across the street from the school, and, like they always did, began making friends with neighbors.

About three years later, a family moved into a house on the school property. My grandparents noticed four-year-old Alan, and he could often be found at their house eating cookies and drinking milk while Mama Dee told him about Adam and Eve, Moses, Joseph, David, and most importantly Jesus.

The family did not go to church anywhere. The father was an alcoholic who drank much of his school teaching salary. Alan never missed going to church with my grandparents, and as soon as his younger brothers were able to go, he brought them along, too. Grandad taught Alan to read scripture in public, lead singing, and lead prayer.

There were times when I was visiting, and my grandmother would make a pot of soup or roast and potatoes to take across the street to the family.

Occasionally the mother accompanied her children to church. The father was hostile and told my grandad not to take his family to church, but Alan would slip away with his brothers while his dad was away or sleeping drunk and come anyway.

Then, the family moved. My grandparents grieved, and they often prayed that the boys would not follow in their dad’s, Phil’s, footsteps. When the family moved, the dad’s sister who was a faithful Christian lived nearby and was able to be more involved, and she enlisted the help of the local preacher.

The day came when God got Phil’s attention, and Phil was willing to listen. A few days later my grandparents got a letter from Phil, thanking them for loving him and his family, even though he had been a “no-good heathen.” He wrote about being baptized for the remission of sins and said that he wanted to tell others the good news.

A few years ago, I received a message from Alan who said he had told the story of Jim and Dee Layton all over the world… how they reached out to a small child and began telling him simple truths from the Bible, leading him to faith in Jesus. My grandparents lived 1 Corinthians 9:19b: “I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them” (ESV). They saw a need and quietly met that need.

Phil, his son Alan, and Phil’s other sons have spoken at events over the last 45 years or so, reaching people who would never come into the door of a church building. They have taken the gospel message outside the walls and have told the message of salvation to countless thousands.

All of this started with an older couple who noticed a small child and opened their home and hearts to him. I am reminded of Jesus who said, “Let the little children come to me” (Mt 19:14a).

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Eph 2:10). My grandparents had been doing their good works for many years wherever they were, and the love they showed Alan and his family was just the way they lived life.

Paul wrote to Timothy: “What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also” (2Ti 2:2).

An older couple… neither of whom finished high school… a young boy… a sister… another preacher… and the Word of God combined to bring a family into the fold, and that family has been able to reach out to many others.

We look around and see people who don’t know the message someone taught us. Will we be part of Paul’s admonition to Timothy to teach faithful men (and women) who in turn will teach others also?

Written by Kat Bittner, volunteer and Board member for Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Colorado

“Love is a great master. It teaches us to be what we never were.”


(Jean-Baptiste Poquelin aka Molière)

I really do appreciate those words. I appreciate them because they exemplify relationship with Jesus. You see, love invokes a sense of action. It calls on us to do things that, albeit good and wonderful, are often out of our nature. Love calls us to do things we may never have done and to be what we may never have been. Personally, I’ve not much patience for folks who are ill-tempered or self-centered. If someone has wounded my family or friends, it can be considerably troublesome for me to be kind. It is nearly impossible for me to forgive the wicked and ungodly who violate children. And I’m not generally eager to abandon my addictive, gluttonous behaviors with food. I do love those carbs and sugar. A lot!

If I am to do anything to be what I’ve never been—to let love be a great master in my life—I have to be like Jesus. Jesus is love, characterized by all the things that love does (1Co 13:4-8). I must be mastered by Him rather than be mastered by my selfish inclinations. And while there can be no perfection in me for whatever I choose, I can certainly aim to do my best and allow Jesus to guide my path.

“A man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.” (Pr 16:9, NKJV) 

I have spent most of my life struggling with morbid obesity, an addictive and unhealthy relationship with food, and a latent self-loathing. I was especially good at denying the animus I had with my body. It’s only been in the last several years that I’ve come to realize the former declarations of “I’m happy” or “I’m not insecure” were actually lies that allowed my struggles with food to master my life. I wasn’t happy in my obesity. I wasn’t happy when I binged. And I wasn’t happy or confident in my body despite my proclamations to the contrary. Rather, I was being mastered by my manipulative tendency instead of letting Jesus master me.

Scripture tells us that “the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other so that you are not to do what you want” (Gal 5:17, NIV). Doing what I wanted—consuming food to extremes for my emotional pleasure—was contrary to the Spirit. It was the sin of gluttony, too, and for an extraordinarily long time, I denied that as well. I wasn’t being mastered by Jesus. In truth, I was being mastered by sin. I was among those “… whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ … headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite” (Php 3:18b-19a, NLT). Wow! I was convicted after God lovingly but firmly reiterated in His word that I needed profound change. That change could only come through letting Jesus master my life rather than my god of food.

“God’s truth stands firm like a foundation stone with this inscription: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and ‘All who belong to the Lord must turn away from evil’” (2Ti 2:19b, NLT).

If I were to emulate Jesus, I needed to give up the sin (evil) in my life to be what I never was before. And once I stopped denying that I was being mastered by food, I could begin to be mastered by Jesus. I needed only to give it fully to Him.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1Jn 1:9, NKJV).

Owning my addictive behavior and self-manipulation was a first step. Along with support from friends and family, wise counsel, and a good amount of weight loss which resulted in the resolution of all my co-morbidities, I am a different person. I am better because of a change in my thinking. I am better because of renewed focus. But more than those, the thing that has made me better is Jesus!

Jesus is the great Master! He teaches us to be who we never were before. Who will you be that you have never been before with Jesus as your Master?

Written by Amanda Vilela, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Sergipe, Brazil

The gospels narrate facts about the life of Christ, from His birth to His crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. The book of Luke gives us particular details about the first events in Christ’s life on earth. He tells us that Mary was the woman God chose as the instrument for the coming of Christ into the world.

Mary decidedly makes herself available to do God’s will. It is important to remember that Mary was an ordinary young woman, subject to the same weaknesses and challenges that life imposes on us, but she understood the greater purpose of human existence: to give glory solely to God, and worship and serve Him only (Lk 4:8). How beautiful is her example of obedience to God; how sweet were her words:

My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. (Lk 1:46-50 NIV)

The figure of Mary is frequently inaccurately interpreted by many who do not understand that glory and praise should be given only to God. All of us humans, even though the Lord is merciful with us and trusts us with great missions, are merely instruments in His hands.

We can extract valuable lessons and teachings from Mary’s story. After all, what made Mary special? Why did the Lord choose her for this mission? Mary had the same thing Sarah, Deborah, Ruth, Abigail, Lydia, and many others who were used by God in His work had: a heart surrendered to the Lord and willing to live in accordance with His will—ordinary women who loved God’s commandments.

Reading the Bible, I admire the way that men and women placed God’s will before their own, as is made clear by the way they presented themselves to the Lord: “Here am I” (Isa 6:8), “Speak, for your servant is listening” (1 Sa 3:10), and “I am the Lord’s servant” (Lk 1:38).

Mary understood that obeying God would cause radical change in her life. As a result, she ended up becoming a target of persecution. We see this clearly when Mary and Joseph, guided by an angel of God, flee to Egypt fearing persecution from Herod. Obeying God means living a life of self-denial and trust. We are convinced that God will fulfill our needs as He fulfilled those of Mary and Joseph. Even though she carried the Messiah in an “uncomfortable” way during the end of her pregnancy, they continued traveling, trusting in God’s care. They surrendered their lives in obedience to the Lord, with the certainty that His promises would be fulfilled, “For no word from God will ever fail” (Lk 1:37).

Mary trusted that God would be her defender in the face of possible accusations with respect to her integrity as a woman. Above all, Mary’s good example teaches us to put ourselves in the position of servants. Her example teaches us humility, virtue, loyalty, obedience, and a God-fearing heart.

Mary was a woman chosen by God to bring the Savior into the world, and she was at the foot of the cross. She followed His steps and walked with Jesus in His mission, being an example of faith and obedience—a woman after God’s own heart. May Christ help us to walk with faith and to respond to our call as Mary did. “May your word to me be fulfilled” (Lk 1:38).

Written by Ana Teresa Vivas, volunteer for Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Canada

At the risk of emphasizing the obvious, I'm going to repeat the title of this blog post: "Men and Women Who Followed in Jesus' Footsteps" and emphasize the highlighted phrase because I want to focus on it.

In the gospels, we can learn the names of the apostles— the twelve closest followers of Jesus. Additionally, we can learn something of their lives and their example as imitators of Him. But there were also other men and women who followed Jesus, if not so closely or from the beginning of His ministry, but still with the same great love and commitment to Him and His work.

We cannot identify them all specifically because there were multitudes who followed Jesus, although many also abandoned Him (Jn 6:66), but we will not talk about these today.

Let's look at this short list:

Luke 19:1-9, Zacchaeus
John 4:46-53, King's Officer
Mark 15:40-41, Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James the younger and Joseph, and Salome
Matthew 12:15, A crowd

Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples. (Lk 8:1-3, NLT)

These are people, just like you and me, who believed in Jesus. We don't know in detail about their lives as disciples. We only know of their encounters with Him, and we can see their examples of commitment.

Look at the example of the women mentioned in Luke 8:1-3. It impresses me to think of myself in the place of one of them and imagine walking after Jesus two centuries ago. No way! I have so many questions for them, such as what it was like being a woman and living within their culture. And what about the issue of female grooming? They were very confident about who to follow and why. That alone explains their investment of energy, time, and money in Jesus and His evangelistic campaign.

With these people, we can identify and "chew on” what a follower of Jesus looks like and how I can represent that in the 21st century.

Someone who follows in the footsteps of Jesus is willing to change their values (Zacchaeus), is not afraid of threats (Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward), and risks their position (the king's official).

There are many more examples of men and women following Jesus in the gospels, and from all of them, if we stop for a few minutes, we can learn something if we look closely— if we get into that "movie" of the life of Jesus.

Who is a follower then? From the examples that we can find in the four books that narrate Jesus' life, we can conclude that these are some of the characteristics of His followers: they are willing to change their lives, to invest their monetary gains in the work of Jesus, to invest energy and time, and to sacrifice comforts. These are some of the ways those early disciples showed their commitment and set an example of how to follow the Lord.

What other ways can you identify that they were fully engaged? What other things did they sacrifice? How do you see yourself as a follower of Jesus?

Add your answers to these questions in the comments or make any other observations based on the topic of this blog post.

I encourage you and me to look to Jesus 24/7, 365 days a year, and get from Him the motivation to be His faithful followers.

Written by Corina Diaz, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministry in Argentina

When I read the story of Moses, I imagine the cloud that accompanied the Israelite people during their wandering through the wilderness, clearly displaying the presence of God, showing them His power and care.

On the day the tabernacle, the tent of the covenant law, was set up, the cloud covered it. From evening till morning the cloud above the tabernacle looked like fire. That is how it continued to be; the cloud covered it, and at night it looked like fire. Whenever the cloud lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped. (Num. 9:15-17 NIV)

We notice that the cloud accompanied the people, but above all, it guided and pointed them toward the place where they were to dwell; it was the actual presence of God, visible to them to indicate His constant presence. This is a wonderful fact: the presence of God was with them.

It reminds me of the times when I seek the presence of very close people in my life that help me feel more secure when facing important challenges, but it also invites me to remember that I don't need the physical presence of a cloud because Jesus dwells in my heart and leads my life.

There is another interesting characteristic of the cloud that accompanied Moses: this cloud contained the burning glory of God.

When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud. To the Israelites the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain. Then Moses entered the cloud as he went on up the mountain. And he stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights. (Ex. 24:15-18)

We conclude that this cloud had two functions: to guide and provide shade for the people, and also to protect the people from the glory of God that burns like fire. I believe that the presence of God works for us in the same way; far or near we know that His presence accompanies us and protects us. Jesus, in turn, as an intermediary between us and the Father, takes us by the hand and allows us to have a direct connection with the Creator.

Are you looking to God to lead and protect you as you journey through life?

#IronRoseSister #teachthroughrelationships #learnthroughrelationships #lifelonglearner #walkingwiththecloud #gloryofGod #blog #guestwriter

Written by Vivian Arcila, volunteer with Ministerio Hermana Rosa de Hierro in Canada

“So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the Lord for him.”(1 Sam. 1:20)

Before I became a Christian, I had two children. Six years after being baptized for the forgiveness of sins, I prayed to the Lord asking Him to give me a third child, if it was His will. In 2006, God responded to my prayers and I had a beautiful, healthy baby boy. However, at that time, I was 38 and when I was three months pregnant, I had facial paralysis and since I was pregnant, they couldn’t give me the treatment because it might affect the baby. The result was that I have still not recovered full mobility of the left side of my face. This saddened me because I liked to be happy and smile. Additionally, the world had recently entered into the digital stage where people were sharing pictures on social media, but my face would likely never look the same. The happiness from my motherhood was eclipsed by this unexpected change in my life. They were difficult months in which I had many mixed emotions: the joy of having a new baby in my arms and yet feeling that I no longer had beauty in my face. I was active in the church, especially in the area of evangelism, but with my new appearance, I didn’t feel sure of myself nor excited to share a conversation with someone.

Those dark months led me to seek the Lord’s presence, to seek Him in prayer, and to read His Word. It was also a season in which I could examine myself in the light of the Bible and repent for areas in my life in which I was not being obedient. My insecurities led me to disconnect from the world, but at the same time, I was getting to know God more. In His Word, we discover that at times, the answers to our prayers are Yes, as He answered Hannah, Samuel’s mother, and me with my pregnancy. But at other times, like He said to Paul, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’”(2 Cor. 12:9)

What a beautiful revelation! And so, I prayed again to the Creator and I said, “Lord, if you aren’t going to return the mobility in my face, please give me Your grace so that I can draw closer to others with a new smile in the Spirit that they will notice.” From that moment on, I began to be filled again with the immutable joy of the Lord, that is found in Christ’s sacrifice for our sins and that brings us hope of eternal life, which is not changed by any temporary or permanent situation happening in my life.

It is true that God, as a kind and merciful Father, responds to our requests through dreams or goals in this world, but these answers are not always in line with what we want. There are women who have prayed that they could be mothers, but they have not gotten pregnant; others for a husband, but have never married; others for healing from an illness that has not come about; and others for reconciliation in marriage or family relationships that have not been resolved. Therefore, we may ask ourselves, is His grace sufficient for us? Is the power of God being perfected through our weakness? Am I living joyfully in the Lord or am I frustrated because my personal goals are not being achieved? Is God’s plan for my life and others’ lives more important than my human aspirations?

So, is the source of my joy in motherhood or in marriage? In beauty or in a successful career? Maybe in not having any illness?

It's not that it's a sin to have aspirations in this life. The problem is when we live frustrated for not achieving them and lose the joy of our salvation, or when these earthly goals take the Sovereign Creator’s place in our heart.

According to the world’s standards, we will always lack something in order to feel complete: be taller, a beautiful face, a husband, a child, a grandchild, more or less weight, a university degree, a promotion, my own home or a bigger home, but the Word of God in Colossians 2:9-10 tells us where our fullness comes from: “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.”

What is most important to us? Personal success or to be transformed into the image of Christ?

#IronRoseSister #HIStories #Hannah #motherhood #truejoy #guestwriter

Written by Marbella Parra, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Honduras

In my Christian life, I have gone through different stages. There have been times when I have felt that I was doing things for God, but I didn't really feel close to Him. More than once, I have wondered how I can diagnose and evaluate my spiritual life. Have you ever felt the same way or asked yourself the same question? What method can we use to evaluate our spiritual life and our relationship with God? In this blog article, we will analyze the teachings of the apostle Paul in Galatians 5 and Romans 8 to define what spirituality is and learn how to create our own thermometer to analyze our relationship with God.

When we talk about spirituality, we tend to confuse some aspects. Many times, we qualify as spiritual, someone who practices spiritual disciplines, that is, someone who prays, meditates on the Scriptures, and attends services, among other things. However, while spiritual disciplines lead us to spirituality, they are not the definitive sign that we are truly spiritual. As we read Romans 8 and Galatians 5, we note that the apostle Paul describes a spiritual person as one who is led by the Holy Spirit to produce His fruit (e.g. love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and self-control in Gal 5:22-23). In this sense, being spiritual is not so much about a set of activities we perform but about a state: a level of connection with God. At this level of relationship with God, the Holy Spirit greatly influences us, enabling us to have attitudes that reflect Christ's character and abandon carnal attitudes.

Unfortunately, many of us have reversed the formula. We believe that through great willpower we must reach a level of perfection that allows us to be worthy of God. However, the good news is that even though we are unworthy, through Jesus' sacrifice, we have the opportunity to be forgiven and receive the Holy Spirit. In the letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul states that we are adopted as children of God and receive the Spirit by which we can call Him "Daddy." What a powerful and consoling message! This means that if we want to develop the character of Christ, the only way to do so is to seek God with a humbled heart and entrust ourselves to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The formula is that the more we seek Him and humble ourselves before Him, the closer we are to God, and we are transformed and empowered by His Holy Spirit.

We can then say that a heart that is close to God is one that humbles itself before Him and rests in the grace received through Jesus. The result of this is a person who is in a process of sanctification through the guidance of the Holy Spirit to live in the image of Christ. With this in mind, our actions are a sign of our nearness or distance from God. If a person is close to God, he will reflect Him through the fruit of the Spirit, but also, a person who is far from Him will reflect Him through the fruit of the flesh. In short, my sinful actions are the symptoms of drifting away from God, and my good deeds are the symptoms of becoming close to Him.

From this, we can create a personal spiritual thermometer that helps us identify in ourselves how close or far we are from God. A thermometer needs a positive measurement scale, so for this part, we will use the fruit of the Holy Spirit as a reference. We also need a negative measurement scale for which we will use the fruit of the flesh. Our diagnostic process (which should be daily) involves evaluating our attitudes, thoughts, and words throughout the day and seeing in which direction they move. Are my actions, thoughts, and words a reflection of the fruit of the Holy Spirit? If the answer is no, this is a symptom that our heart is not close to God. At those times, let’s set aside time to seek His presence, repent, and ask for His guidance and the control of His Holy Spirit. If the answer is yes, let us give glory to God because we know that the good that is in us does not come from our effort, but from the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, so we must continue to seek Him daily to continue to be perfected in Him.

Would you be willing to use this spiritual thermometer every day? Do you think it would help you grow in your commitment to God?

Written by Deanna Brooks, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Arkansas

Be perfect. Be holy. These words ring in my ears over and over… and I hurt, because I know my weak spots. Can you identify? Have you had those feelings?

First Peter 1:15-16 tells us: “…as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy’” (ESV).

The Savior said, “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48).

I see these commands as the path our lives should take so we better understand our Heavenly Father's desire for us to follow Him. We sin… none of us are righteous (Ro 3:10), but when we obey Jesus and are baptized for the remission of sins, His righteousness covers us (2Co 5:21; Php 3:9; Gal 3:27; Eph 4:24).

God told Samuel that He looks on the heart (1Sa 16:7).

At Antioch, Paul told those present that David was a man after God’s own heart (Ac 13:22).

When I read this, I think of David as a man who wanted more than anything to do God’s will, despite the battles he sometimes had with Satan… and David, like we do, sometimes lost those battles with Satan.

A verse that is special to me is Psalm 25:7, where David writes: “Remember not the sins of my youth.” All of us understand that as we grow in our relationship with God, we realize we made some poor decisions in our earlier lives that we would not make now simply because of the experience we have in life. We have to learn how to deal with peer pressure, to learn to control desires when something looks good but is wrong, and sometimes by simply learning it is ok, and right, to say “no.”

In Psalm 51 David cries out for God to “create within [him] a clean heart.” The Hebrew word David used for “create” is the same word in Genesis 1:1… something only God can do.

What do you think God looks for in a heart that seeks Him? I think of the following:

1. God wants my heart to love Him. “…Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Dt 30:6b). ”…Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Mt 22:37b).
2. God wants my heart to put Him first. “You shall have no other gods before me” (Ex 20:3).
3. God wants my heart to serve Him. “…serve him with all your heart and with all your soul” (Dt 11:13b).
4. God wants my heart to keep His Word. “This day the LORD your God commands you to do these statutes and rules. You shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and with all your soul” (Dt 26:16).
5. God wants my heart to seek Him. “And they entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul” (2Ch 15:12). “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart” (Jer 29:13).
6. God wants my heart to follow Him. “…My servant David, who kept my commandments and followed me with all his heart, doing only that which was right in my eyes” (1Ki 14:8b).
7. God wants my heart to praise Him. “I will glorify your name forever” (Ps 86:12b).
8. God wants my heart to trust Him. "For our heart is glad in Him, because we trust in His holy name” (Ps 33:21). “In God whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?” (Ps 56:4).
9. God wants my heart to have unwavering faith in Him. “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (Jn 11:25, 26).

I believe God said of David: “I have found a man who cares about the things I care about.”

I need to ask: What am I doing in my life to make sure the things important to me are the same things that are important to my Heavenly Father?

Written by Bailey Vesperman, Creative Director with Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Growing up, my world was black and white. To be a “good” daughter, I did my chores without complaining, ate my vegetables, and didn’t fight with my brother. Breaking any of the family rules meant I was behaving badly and would not get rewards like extra playtime or dessert. I also applied this kind of thinking in my church life. Attending Bible class and sitting still through the sermon were “good” behaviors and were rewarded most often with stickers (the most enticing reward of my childhood).

It’s no wonder that for the longest time, my faith revolved around doing the right things and being a good person. I believed if I followed the rules, I would be deemed good enough and would gain the reward of going to Heaven. I’m sure you can imagine how discouraging this mindset was! Every time I sinned, I felt like I was one step further away from my reward.

Time and time again, the Bible both tells and shows us that humans are incapable of achieving salvation on their own. One of my favorite examples of this is Abraham. In Genesis 15, we see Abraham (who is still Abram at this time) preparing to make a covenant with God. The Lord has just promised that He will give him descendants that outnumber the stars in the sky, and a promised land in which they would live.

So the Lord said to him, ‘Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.’ Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half. (Ge. 15:9-10)

Then, Abram falls asleep, the Lord speaks to him, and he sees a smoking pot and a flaming torch pass through the carcasses.

In the Israelite culture, making a covenant with someone was much more significant than simply saying “I promise.” Two people entering a covenant with each other would cut the animals apart and take turns walking in the blood between the carcasses. This was a symbolic gesture that meant if one person could not uphold their end of the deal, the other person could perform the same act to them (as in, kill them and walk through their blood). While it’s a very violent and bleak thought, it sends the right message. These types of promises were not made lightly.

Yet when God entered the covenant with Abram, we see something a little different. Abram never walks between the carcasses—rather, a torch and a smoking pot pass through. God passes through twice, taking up both sides of the promise. God knew Abram was incapable of living righteously enough to earn the reward of living in the Promised Land. In Genesis 16, we see Abram doubting God’s promise when he chooses to have a son with Hagar. If left to his own devices, Abram would have never been worthy of the reward God had in store for him. Yet God, in His infinite grace, took the burden of punishment upon himself so Abram and his descendants could be blessed.

This same covenant applies to us today. As humans, we are incapable of earning our salvation by being “good,” but God knows this and has taken on the burden of our sins by sacrificing Christ for us. All that He asks of us is to put our faith in Him. Philippians 3:9b (NLT) says, “I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.” Isn’t that a relieving thought! Because we are sinful by nature, there is nothing we can do to save ourselves. Yet God wants to reward us with grace and salvation even though we do not deserve it. And the only cost is placing our faith in Him.

As an adult now, I still strive to live righteously for God, but I can rest in the knowledge that my shortcomings do not mean I will not receive my reward someday. Christ has already paid the price for me, and for that reason, I strive to serve Him faithfully. I pray that we may all find rest in His goodness as we move into this new year!

Written by Rianna Elmshaeuser, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Colorado

One of the most comforting memes I’ve ever seen says, “When God put a calling on your life, he already factored in your stupidity.” When God calls us to something, it can be exciting and terrifying all at once. Feelings of “I want this but I have no idea what I’m doing,” and ”What if I mess it up and souls are lost because I was mistaken about my calling” race through our minds. To put my favorite meme another way, God knows everything about you; good and bad, your level of competence, the family you’re from, the church you attend, your deepest fears and failings, the questionable and sometimes destructive patterns in your life. He looked at all of that and He said, “You. I pick you.”

When God called Isaiah in Isaiah 6, the prophet was distressed because he wasn’t perfect and had sinned. After pointing this out to God, Isaiah was cleansed of his guilt and sins. God called again and Isaiah said, “Here am I. Send me!” (Isa 6:8b NIV). If we have obeyed the gospel and are followers of Christ, we are in the same position as Isaiah. I know people like Isaiah who have something put on their hearts by God and are able to seize the opportunity placed before them without hesitation. God says, “Jump,” and they say, “How high?”

I wish this were the case for me, but it is not. On the spectrum of taking a leap of faith, I fall a lot closer to Moses than I do Isaiah. Let’s look at Moses’ calling by God which started with a miracle and goes on for two chapters. After witnessing the miracle of an ever-burning bush, Moses is told to go to the elders of Israel and convince them, who already believe in God, to go to the king. God tells Moses exactly what he should say and what God will do to convince Pharoah to let the Israelites go. I want to pause and just note that, wouldn’t that be great? Not only would you have a whole crowd of people with you to confront the most powerful king in the world at the time, but God says, “Here is the game plan and how the future will play out.”

Moses argues and argues even after more miracles are performed for him until God gets angry. He is being told to speak again and again and again by Almighty God of whom he has the good sense to be very afraid and he still asks Him to send someone else. But in Exodus 4:14, we see that God already knew that Moses, in addition to being the meekest man that ever lived, had an unmatched and unrivaled fear of public speaking for all of time.

Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, ‘What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you’”. (Ex 4:14)

God wanted Moses to trust Him, but He knew how hard that would be, so He called Moses’ brother out to the wilderness before His conversation with Moses.

It is easy to look at Moses’ story and shake my head in awe at his stubbornness. But then when I look at my own life, I know that I need constant reassurance from God in my calling. God is patient and faithful and always provides it, but when will I push Him too far? Take a look at your own life. Is there something that you feel pushed to do but have found reason after reason after reason not to do it? God has demonstrated and documented His ultimate power for all of us yet somehow we manage to believe that He cannot overcome our individual personality flaws.

I recently started my Master’s program to become a counselor and on the first day of class, the professor asked everyone why they chose Denver Seminary. The stories everyone told were fascinating. There were people from Asia, the Caribbean, Central America, South America, and all over the United States. Each person had a unique story. Some were not sure exactly how they wound up at this school. Some had dreamed of coming there. There was one person who had desperately tried to leave the area to get away from home but wound up five minutes from her house.

What I am taking away from the stories shared and from Isaiah and Moses is that when God puts a calling on your life, trust Him. He knows what He’s doing, and He picked you for a reason.

Written by Beliza Kocev, Brazil Coordinator for Iron Rose Sister Ministries

“Mercy triumphs over judgment!” (Jas 2:13b NIV)

I grew up in a very strict environment. The achievements, rarely celebrated, were seen as “she did no more than her obligation.” On the other hand, failures brought many punishments and were often remembered again, and again and again…

At the beginning of my Christian life, someone explained to me the difference between God's grace and God's mercy. In short: Grace—receiving something we don't deserve—salvation and eternal life. Mercy—not receiving something we deserve—punishment for sin and eternal death. “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved” (Eph 2:4-5).

We win on both sides! This didn't come for free, although it is for us! But not for God! “You were bought at a price” (1Co 6:20a). John the Baptist presented Jesus as the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world (Jn 1:29), and, by taking away our sin, He promises us eternal life (1Jn 2:25).

God's greatest mercy is to free us from eternal death, which is the consequence of our sin, and that in itself is a reason for great joy and celebration. But God's mercy is inexhaustible (La 3:22), and He gives us the chance to rewrite our story, and to live a new life here on earth! Yet another reason to celebrate! Although we need to deal with the consequences of our actions, we have the chance to live here as new creatures and feel the transformation of God in our actions, words, and even wills.

And part of celebrating God’s mercy is extending that mercy to others: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Lk 6:36). The parable of the unmerciful servant teaches us a valuable lesson: our failure to do God's will— our sin— is more serious than any offense anyone could commit against us (Mt 18:21-35).

“You wicked servant… I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?” (Mt 18:32-33). Part of the Christian life is showing the world the light of Jesus. When we are merciful to the people around us, we show our gratitude to God and celebrate the mercy He has given us.

Another way to celebrate is to proclaim this mercy so that other people can also experience it. Living with God, knowing that His goodness and mercy are with us, changes our lives. After all, it is impossible not to have your life transformed by knowing Christ, with eternal life in perspective! “The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made” (Ps 145:8-9). In a world full of evil, knowing God's goodness and mercy brings us comfort, encouragement, and purpose.

Another way to celebrate God's mercy is to remember it! When we know God and become aware of our sins, God's mercy touches us. We feel the love of God, expressed in His mercy in sending His only Son, the love that compels us, that led Him to become flesh so that we could be with them eternally. Gratitude and remembrance of God's mercy should not only be in our hearts at the moment of our conversion. They should be a significant part of our ongoing walk of faith. And so, in moments of failure and stumbling, when guilt and shame overwhelm us, let us remember that we can go to our merciful Father. May the memory of His open arms, full of mercy, bring us the courage to not move away from His path after falling.

May we be aware and rejoice in the mercy we receive from God, may we cry out for His mercy in the valleys of our lives, and may we proclaim to everyone how this mercy can also reach them!

In Psalm 89, the psalmist feels so grateful. He contemplates the wonderful actions of the LORD and has a clear intention: “I will sing of the LORD’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations” (Ps 89:1).

How will you celebrate God’s infinite mercy today?

Written by Wendy Neill, Advancement Coordinator for Iron Rose Sister Ministries

The entire Bible is the story of our relationship with God. In the beginning, He formed a perfect world, then created a man and a woman to multiply, reign over it, and walk with Him in relationship. But they betrayed Him, and they unleashed evil in the world. He had to banish them from the Garden of Eden and the relationship with God was damaged.

Throughout the Old Testament, we see the cycle of betrayal and restoration between God and His people. God gave them specific laws regarding sacrifices to atone for their sins so the relationship could continue. Those sacrifices only covered the sins already committed, not future sins, so they had to regularly go back and offer sacrifices again. Eventually, God’s people quit bothering. They started worshiping other gods and completely lost track of God’s Law. In 2 Chronicles 34:14-21, Hilkiah the priest stumbled across the Book of the Law while bringing out the funds to repair the temple. I can almost picture him in a temple storeroom blowing the dust off an old book on the shelf.

To get a glimpse of how bad things were between God and His people, read Ezekiel 16. God said He was fed up with His “wife” who acted like a prostitute, and He was going to let her lovers destroy her (fulfilled with the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.). But even at the end of that chilling chapter, God says, “Yet I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you” (Ez. 16:60 NIV).

It wasn’t just Israel that was estranged from God. We were all estranged from Him: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). God sent His Son to re-establish that everlasting covenant and to restore our relationship with Him.

And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.... All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them. (2 Cor. 5:15, 18-19a NIV)

I am so grateful to live on this side of the cross and to know the saving grace of Jesus! I can have a restored relationship with God because of Christ’s ultimate sacrifice. All past and future sins are covered if I remain in Him. But it doesn’t stop there. Let’s read the next few verses.

And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor. 5:19b-21)

Paul is talking about himself and his fellow teachers, but we also can share this message of reconciliation with those around us. This is the gospel, the good news! We don’t have to be afraid of God’s wrath any longer if we remain in Christ. In the final chapter of the Bible, we find that we can live with God again in a perfect relationship, unmarred by sin:

No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. (Rev. 22:3-4)

Our blog theme for this year has been “Teaching and Learning through Relationships.” How can you rejoice and teach others this week about our restored relationship with God through Christ?

Written by Wendy Neill, Advancement Coordinator for Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Have you ever had someone look at you like you were crazy when you talked about God? I have.

My favorite subject is heaven. My greatest joy is encouraging people to look forward to eating twelve crops of fruit from the tree of life (Rev 22:2,14,19), drinking the water of life (Rev 22:1,17), and worshiping God on His sapphire throne surrounded by a rainbow that resembles an emerald (Eze 1:26-28; Rev 4:2-3). I can understand why some people think that sounds crazy!

Apparently, there were people who thought Paul was not right in the head. In 2 Corinthians 5, he is also excited about heaven! He talks about the new eternal body we will get once this earthly body (our “tent”) is destroyed or taken down (v. 1). He says he would rather be away from the body (in other words, dead), and at home with Christ in heaven (v. 8). Paul knew his words sounded like lunacy to some and like logic to others:

If we are "out of our mind," as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. (2Co 5:13-15 NIV)

He doesn’t care if he appears out of his mind or of sound mind. Christ’s love compels Paul to teach because he is convinced of the good news. If we are fully convinced that Christ died for all of us, we can stop worrying about what people think about our state of mind, and just live for Him.

That’s not easy, is it? We don’t like to look crazy. Even if we share with others what Christ has done, we might focus on the more “logical” aspects, or the inoffensive bits. But even Jesus was accused of being out of His mind (Mk 3:21, Jn 10:20). As His followers, we can expect the same treatment.

Today is a good day to quit being self-conscious and instead, be “out of our minds” for Christ and our future hope.

• Are you willing to appear “out of your mind” for Christ?
• Are you compelled to speak because you are convinced?

Need inspiration? Listen to the song “Crazy People” by Casting Crowns.

Written by Kara Benson, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Alabama

[Let us fix] our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Heb 12:2 NIV)

What does it mean to persevere? It is to maintain a purpose or to continue in a course of action despite difficulty. The key to perseverance is persistence in the face of challenge. We are called to persevere as committed disciples…

• Despite what other people think, say, or do. “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” (Ro 12:2).
• Despite the deceptive draw of sin. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Heb 12:1).
• Despite our past. Consider Acts 9:20-22. Do you think that Paul ever heard negative comments about his former lifestyle of persecuting the Lord’s church? Yet he writes, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Php 3:13b-14).
• Despite thorns in the flesh. Paul pleaded with the Lord to remove his physical struggle.

But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2Co 12:9-10)

Let this be our humble attitude regarding our health issues, current struggles, and burdens we bear. We can learn thankfulness for our trials as we allow them to lead us closer to Christ.

Why do we persevere? We persevere to…

• Finish the race. “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him” (Jas 1:12).
• Reap a harvest. “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Gal 6:9).
• Receive the blessings of righteousness, peace, and sharing in God’s holiness. “God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Heb 12:10b-11).
• Strive for maturity and completeness. “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” (Jas 1:2-4).
• Encounter the power and goodness of God. “As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy” (Jas 5:11).
• Experience opportunities to help and comfort others. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God” (2Co 1:3-4).

How do we persevere?

We set our sights on Jesus. We meditate on the life of Christ, the teachings of Christ, the sufferings of Christ, the resurrection of Christ, the promises of Christ, and the glory of Christ. We contemplate what it will be like to finally be home with Jesus, at last, eternally in heaven. We eagerly anticipate the return of our beloved Lord, long for that day, and speed its coming (2Pe 3:12). With our words and with our hearts, we say, “Come, Lord Jesus.”

These [trials] have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (1Pe 1:7-9)