Charisa Stories

Tag: Jesus

  • The Miracle of My Mom’s Parting Gift

    If my Mom was born in today’s world I have no doubt she would have flourished with her strong, independent, and intelligent personality. But life for women in the 40’s and 50’s was limiting and I would guess a bit frustrating at times.

    I loved my Mom but our relationship was often challenging. She was raised in a family where love was not openly expressed. She could be negative and her comments often impacted me. I knew that she loved me fiercely but I will admit that I grieved for a more gracious expression of her love.

    As her health declined I prayed that her relationship with God would be clear to her and to her family. In the summer of 2006 I journeyed to Ohio to visit her. A group of Christian friends in Texas told me they would pray that I could discuss salvation with my Mom. I thanked them for their concern but in my heart I felt they were naive. They did not know my Mom. 

    Fast forward a few days as I am sitting with her. The conversation was mundane. Out of nowhere she dropped this bombshell.

    “How can you be sure that you are going to heaven?”

    You could have knocked me over with a feather and I immediately thought of those saints in Texas praying for exactly this moment. And I felt a bit of shame because I was the naive one who doubted the power of prayer. I shared the gospel with my Mom. She assured me that she had trusted Christ as her Savior. The next question was nearly as surprising.

    “What if you trusted Christ but haven’t lived it?”

    Wow. What do you say to that? I chose to tell her the truth. That she was always a child of God but she had likely forfeited some joy by not walking more consistently with Him. She had likely missed chances to serve and probably many blessings the Lord had desired her to experience. Still, there was a nagging question in my mind that I lacked the courage to address. I knew there were people who had hurt my Mom deeply and she had showed no signs of forgiveness. I was fairly certain she would take that bitter anger to her grave but I knew that was forgiven by the grace of God.

    But Mom took those comments about living for Jesus to heart. She chose to live for Him with the rest of her days. She told my niece that she had prayed more in the last year than she had in her whole life. She regularly asked me to pray for her and told me she was praying for me and especially for Joni as my bride battled breast cancer.

    My Mom began to regularly tell me she loved me. That was something you didn’t say in her family. You were just supposed to know it. She told me she was sorry if she had hurt me with her words or actions. That was the first time I had heard those words from my Mom in 53 years. It was a powerful moment of grace and reconciliation between us. When I saw her the last time she kissed me and said, “you don’t know how much you mean to me.” But she was wrong. I finally did. 

    But the real miracle happened in her last days. My niece asked Mom about a woman she had felt so much bitterness and hatred toward. When I was told about her response the words sent chills through me.

    “Oh honey. That was in the past. I have forgiven her.”

    What irony that I have been writing about forgiveness and my Mom gave me a miracle of forgiveness as her final gift. Forgiveness can happen. It is never too late. For those who think they cannot forgive I will tell you that with God it is possible. I am saddened that my Mom is gone but I am rejoicing in her victory. She was able to lay her burdens at the foot of the Cross and pass unencumbered into the presence of the Lord. She finished her days living out this verse.

    “Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”
    ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4‬:‭32‬ ‭NLT‬‬

    Seventeen Mother’s Days have gone by since she passed away. I praise God that I have not really lost my Mom.
    Nope.
    I know exactly where she is.

  • Comprehending The Gift Of God’s Grace Is Mind Boggling

    I write a lot about where our hope truly lies and how we need to be a positive light in a negative world. I came upon this wise advice for social media posters from the Gospel of John.

    “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. (John 6:43)

    I laughed when I read that and thought this might become my new life verse for this very negative political season. The verse follows a section where Jesus talks about how He is the bread of life and has come from Heaven. This was just too much for the locals who knew Him as the kid raised by Mary and Joseph down at the carpenter shop. But the message is timeless. I need to stop grumbling and start living out of who God says I am as His child. Maybe that is why God calls me His child because I sure can be childish at times.

    The grumbling verse reminded me of one of my favorite grace parables. A vineyard owner hired some workers early in the morning to help bring in the harvest. Jesus continues the story.

    “At five o’clock that afternoon he was in town again and saw some more people standing around. He asked them, ‘Why haven’t you been working today?’ “They replied, ‘Because no one hired us.’ “The landowner told them, ‘Then go out and join the others in my vineyard. (Matthew 20:6-7)

    So far the story is nice. A kind and compassionate man wants to help some poor folks who had no work. They could work an hour and at least get a tiny bit for their effort. But Jesus is about to turn the “fairness” doctrine over like a table in the Temple.

    “That evening he told the foreman to call the workers in and pay them, beginning with the last workers first. When those hired at five o’clock were paid, each received a full day’s wage. When those hired first came to get their pay, they assumed they would receive more. But they, too, were paid a day’s wage. When they received their pay, they protested to the owner, ‘Those people worked only one hour, and yet you’ve paid them just as much as you paid us who worked all day in the scorching heat.’

    “He answered one of them, ‘Friend, I haven’t been unfair! Didn’t you agree to work all day for the usual wage? Take your money and go. I wanted to pay this last worker the same as you. Is it against the law for me to do what I want with my money? Should you be jealous because I am kind to others?’

    “So those who are last now will be first then, and those who are first will be last.” (Matthew 20:8-16, NLT)

    Can’t you just see it? The grumbling of the sweaty and exhausted all day workers decrying that they had been treated unfairly yet the truth is they got exactly the wage they agreed upon. I wondered about the reaction of the latecomers. Did they gloat about their luck? I don’t think so. I imagine they wept at the kindness of an unmerited gift given by a unexpectedly kind man. At 4 pm they faced the prospect of going home with nothing to provide for their family but two hours later they had been given, not earned, a full days wage! Think of the joy as the men went home and excitedly told about this amazing generosity. The family likely gathered around and touched the denarius like a sacred gift from Heaven. What a contrast of joy from a once forgotten group of men juxtaposed against the grumbling of the people who had done the “right” thing and expected to be treated better. What a picture of grace! We don’t earn grace by a full day or one hour effort. Grace is a gift. Grace is an unearned gift of love to be savored, appreciated, and treasured. 

    My old nature screams that people who make bad decisions over and over get what they “deserve.” They don’t “deserve” to be pursued and loved and restored. They made their bed—now let them lie in it. But there is a small quiet voice in my heart that tells me that they have value. That they are loved by their Creator. And that voice asks who am I to decide who “deserves” anything? Did I “deserve” this amazing gift of grace? The honest answer is no way. Remembering that comprehending God’s amazing grace makes it way easier to love and treat kindly that person who disagrees with you. 

    Would you open the outrageous gift of grace and accept it as a mind blowing outpouring of love from a Father who delights in you? Grace doesn’t make sense in our performance based culture. Grace is outrageous. And the amazing thing I find over and over is this simple truth. Grace changes hearts. It is the word the church in America needs to model more than ever. We are given inexhaustible grace. We have more than enough to share.

  • Can The Yoke Of Jesus Really Be Called Easy?

    This has been a tough season of life for many people I care deeply about. My heart feels heavy as I remember the words of Jesus.

    “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

    I wrote about this passage in my book Stay: Lessons My Dogs Taught Me about Life, Loss, and Grace.

    What did Jesus mean by that statement, “My yoke is easy”? Clearly, the burdens of life are heavy. There is nothing easy about heartache, pain, and loss.

    I reread Jesus’ inviting words: “Come to me.” No one needs to go through life’s difficulties alone, but the truth is that Jesus will not force Himself on you. The wonderful news is He is always present and you have permission to come to Jesus whenever you are ready.

    In Jesus’ day, oxen were harnessed together with a wooden yoke, a beam that fit over the animals’ shoulders to keep them moving together in one direction. The oxen shared the effort to accomplish the task. That idea fit quite well into my former performance-driven faith. Of course Jesus is with me, but I decided that I had to pull my weight. The only problem with my view was that it was unbiblical and even dangerous.

    In this passage Jesus is not speaking of physical burdens. Jesus was talking about the yoke of the Torah, the yoke of the law of Moses, which his Jewish listeners would have known well. The Old Testament yoke represented submission to authority. The Jews knew that the law was impossible to keep, but they kept trying. Jesus was offering them His yoke of grace. Compared to the impossible standards of the Pharisees and the law, His way was easy.
    Agreed.

    Jesus makes another important offer. “Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart.”

    For years, I strained to pull my weight by self-effort, while Jesus quietly offered a better way. I don’t have to figure this out to be loved by Jesus. I just need to be available.

    “Let me teach you.”

    I wore myself out trying to do more to please Him, even as He whispered, “I am humble and gentle at heart. Your trust and faith pleases Me, not your joyless self-efforts to be better.”

    Members of that agrarian culture of Jesus’ time would have known that you train a young ox by pairing it with an experienced ox. The mature ox would carry the bulk of the burden as the younger one walked by its side and learned. That is a beautiful image. Jesus walking alongside me, but carrying the bulk of the burden (if not all of it) as I learn from Him. I don’t need to strain myself in an attempt to shoulder everything on my own; Jesus wants me to be willing to gently submit to His strength and not rely solely on mine. He is extending an offer to those who are exhausted, emotionally drained, and buckling under what life brings. Pain and loss are a given in this life, but it is comforting to know that I can find rest for my weary soul, even as I grieve and doubt and waver. When I am exhausted, I can take time and seek respite in Him. 

    Corrie Ten Boom wisely wrote these words. “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength.” That strength is found in Jesus. He is your strength and your hope. Keep your eyes on Jesus and the words of a classic old church hymn will begin to ring true in your heart.

    Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
    Look full in His wonderful face,
    And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
    In the light of His glory and grace.

    The yoke of grace is easy and the strength of Jesus will get you through tough times.

  • How To Define The Voices In Your Mind

    Recently I saw a T-shirt with this message: 

    Even if the voices in my head aren’t real they do have some good ideas. 

    I got an initial chuckle out of that one. But then I thought, “Wait! The voices in my head often have terrible ideas”.

    I suspect that is true for some of you as well. Some of the bad voices in our heads are formidable foes that come from emotional and spiritual baggage.

    If I may lean on my sports background here, Satan calls the all-out blitz when people of faith go through seasons of trial and doubt. He delights in accusing and trying to rock the very foundation of your faith. Satan is, always has been, and always will be a liar. You have learned to never trust a liar at work or in other relationships. How much more should we pray to recognize and reject the lies that Satan attacks us with during adversity?

    There is another voice. It is much softer and requires more focus to hear. It is not a voice of shame. It is a voice of hope, love, acceptance, forgiveness, and grace. You have to slow way down and be quiet to hear this voice. 

    Jesus had to deal with Satan’s lies face-to-face. Three times He was tempted by the devil’s alluring promises (see Matthew 4:1-11). He rebuked the lies by leaning on Scripture. As the time neared for His time Jesus comforted His followers with this promise of a guiding voice.

    26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. (John 14:26, NLT)

    If we believe that promise how would you expect the Spirit of God to communicate while teaching you? Through intimidation and shame? Of course not. Paul pointed out the incomprehensible love of God is his letter to the Romans.

    But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. (Romans 5:8, NLT)

    That kind of love communicates truth with grace and patience. Jesus followed that promise of the Holy Spirit with another promise. Peace of mind and heart.

    27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. (John 14:27, NLT)

    Our minds get hacked by the enemy. The voice I tend to hear first in the battle is the loud one. I need to step back, be still, and listen for the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit. 

    Satan’s voice is predictably negative. So many times I listen to the lament of friends and I recognize the voice they are hearing is not the tender Spirit of God. Here is just a partial list to evaluate to see if the voice you are hearing is from the Holy Spirit or the enemy. 

    • The voice of God convicts in love to help us grow. The enemy condemns.
    • The voice of God is calming and reassuring. The enemy creates anxiety and unrest.
    • The voice of God comforts. The enemy judges and shames.
    • The voice of God clarifies and directs. The enemy sows doubt and confusion.
    • The voice of God brings reassuring peace. The enemy peddles fear.
    • The voice of God gently leads you to trust Him. The enemy says to trust yourself.
    • The voice of God offers moral courage. The enemy promotes ungodly compromise.
    • The voice of God encourages. The enemy discourages at every turn.

    I have a simple question I ask myself when negativity floods my mind. Does the voice I am hearing reflect the grace, love, and character of Jesus? If not I redirect my heart toward His Word. Want another wonderful promise today?

    And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. (John 14:16, NLT)

    The Advocate is the Holy Spirit. He will never leave you. The Holy Spirit will always teach you and remind you of the love and grace of Christ. The Advocate will plant peace in your heart and mind. 

    I cannot imagine what my life would look like in this crazy culture without that comfort. Those voices of past sin and failures and hurt are no longer who I am. The voices of accusation that I might hear when facing loss and trials don’t define me anymore. The quiet voice of God is always available to you and me. I pray you will seek that comfort today. His tender voice is there. Always.

  • The Worst Day of Peter’s Life

    There is much written about Good Friday. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross is incomprehensible to my puny human intellect. There is much written about Easter Sunday. Christians around the world rejoice and proclaim that “He is risen!”. But there is not nearly as much written about one of the saddest and most confusing days in history. The Saturday between the Friday horror of Jesus on the Cross and the Sunday mystery of the resurrection. Some churches do observe Holy Saturday but it was never a tradition in my faith upbringing.

    I have been thinking about what that day must have been like for those who dropped everything to follow Jesus. How crushing those events had to be. I imagine the fear they felt that they would also be killed. And for what? On Saturday they feared they had given their careers and their very souls for a false hope.

    I think in particular of Peter. I identify so much with him. Like him I throw down bold statements of loyalty to the Lord and then let Him down. Like Peter I am a generally sincere but desperately needy follower of Jesus.

    You know the story about Peter before the arrest and mock trial of Jesus. Jesus tells Peter that he will deny him three times before the rooster crows at dawn. For many years I breezed by the setup to that prediction.

    “Simon (Peter), Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers.” (Luke 22, NLT)

    Jesus had already prayerfully pleaded for Peter to be used in a powerful and redemptive way before the failure, shame and repentance that Jesus knew was about to happen. Our sin does not take Jesus by surprise. Why does His grace and forgiveness surprise us?

    Like me, Peter did not hear the tender words of encouragement from the Lord. Nope. He blustered.

    “Lord, I am ready to go to prison with you, and even to die with you.”

    After the arrest of Jesus a suddenly less bold Peter followed the crowd. He denied to a servant girl that he knew Jesus. He denied his alliance to another bystander. The crushing sorrow and shame of what happened next is hard to fathom.

    About an hour later someone else insisted, “This must be one of them, because he is a Galilean, too.”

    But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.

    At that moment the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Suddenly, the Lord’s words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And Peter left the courtyard, weeping bitterly.

    I imagined what the expression might have been on the face of Jesus when He turned and looked. I suspect it was a look of sadness, compassion and longing to comfort His friend. But what Peter probably saw was only disappointment and failure. Peter’s tears likely flowed until they could no longer flow. I suspect it was hard to even breathe. His heart literally ached within his chest. His mind could not imagine any future hope. I wonder if he thought about running away or even ending it all. I wonder if he could think at all.

    That Saturday was one of the worst days in history and Peter may have felt the pain of that awful day more intensely than anyone. He did not know what would happen the next day. Peter did not yet understand what Jesus had been telling him.

    When Luke recounts that Jesus appeared to the Disciples the only one mentioned by name is Peter. What gives me hope this Easter season is the tender story of Jesus affirming and reinstating Peter to be a leader who would “feed His sheep”. That is the grace that changes a heart.

    I can betray Jesus. Ignore Him. Live selfishly. At some point I once again recognize my desperate need for Jesus to rescue me. For the thousandth time I turn to Him. And what happens? He lifts my shame bowed head and looks deeply into my eyes. He tells me how much He loves me. That is grace. That is real. That is love. Maybe I won’t have a day quite as bad as Peter on that horrible dark Saturday but his story of redemption encourages me this Easter season.

    Saturday was terrible. But Sunday was coming with the wonderful news that He is risen! He is risen for me! Jesus is pleading for me that my faith will not fail. What a joyous hope for all of us this Easter.

  • Joy to the World! He has Risen!

    I think of Keith Green every Easter week because he recorded my favorite song about the power of the resurrection. 

    What I loved most about Keith Green was his passion for Christ. Like many who came to faith during the Jesus movement Green was sold out to the Gospel.

    Every Easter week I listen to his recording of the Easter Song.

    Hear the bells ringing
    They’re singing that you can be born again
    Hear the bells ringing
    They’re singing Christ is risen from the dead

    The angel up on the tombstone
    Said He has risen, just as He said
    Quickly now, go tell his disciples
    That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

    Joy to the world, He has risen, hallelujah
    He’s risen, hallelujah
    He’s risen, hallelujah

    He is risen indeed. Keith Green experienced the resurrection power of Christ when he died in 1982. I sometimes wonder how his music might have changed as he matured in his faith. His journey just before his death offers a clue.

    After striving for years to measure up to God’s holiness, at times even questioning his own salvation, Keith came into a deeper understanding of the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross — both to forgive his sins, and to clothe him in His righteousness. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off of his chest.

    It wasn’t that Keith became less concerned with purity and holiness. But now he was more motivated by love and less by fear in His pursuit of Jesus. He learned so much more about God’s grace and the importance of pausing simply to behold His glory and enjoy His presence.

    Right there with you brother. Keith Green left an amazing legacy in just twenty-nine years and I believe the Easter Song is one of his most powerful recordings.

    Hear the bells ringing
    They’re singing that you can be healed right now
    Hear the bells ringing, they’re singing
    Christ, He will reveal it now

    The angel up on the tombstone
    Said He has risen, just as He said
    Quickly now, go tell his disciples
    That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

    Clarence Hall noted that “you can put truth in a grave, but it won’t stay there.” That was the message the angel gave to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary as they came to the tomb.

    Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying. And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.” The women ran quickly from the tomb. They were very frightened but also filled with great joy, and they rushed to give the disciples the angel’s message. (Matthew 28:5-8, NLT)

    As Keith Green powerfully sang many years ago…

    The angel up on the tombstone
    Said He has risen, just as He said
    Quickly now, go tell his disciples
    That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

    Indeed!

  • Following Jesus in a Divided World

    I have been thinking and praying a lot about following Jesus in the current climate. How can I represent the grace and love of Jesus in a culture that is angry and divided?

    I read pundits and commentators saying terrible things about the motives of Evangelicals as if all people of faith act in lockstep. They do not. To be fair, some of their accusations are valid. I wrote a book called “When Bad Christians Happen to Good People Happen to Good People” so I would suggest I have no problem owning the shortcomings of Christians. The fact is EVERY ONE of us falls short of the glory of God.

    Too often the church has made what we stand against the message of our faith instead of the wonderful and liberating Good News of the Gospel. The word Evangelical literally means “Good News”. Is that the connotation the word has in our culture today? Do we share in the degeneration of the name?

    Instead of hearing about the forgiveness and love of Christ the secular community perceives that Christians care only about power and forcing their morals into their lives. In my experience these critics of the faith are not necessarily bad people. They simply have not seen grace lived out consistently in our lives. We have failed in our messaging to emphasize the radical grace that gives life, forgiveness, and hope.

    On the faith side, people with genuine and sincere convictions see the cultural erosion and become afraid.  To my secular friends, in my experience these people of faith are also not necessarily bad people. They are worried about the cultures direction and their instinct is to regain control of the moral decline in any way possible. Sadly, the most logical path can be the worst one when the church tries to wield political power to influence morality. Philip Yancey has written a lot on this topic.

    “The gospel of Jesus was not primarily a political platform. In all the talk of voting blocks and culture wars, the message of grace—the main distinctive Christians have to offer—tends to fall aside. It is difficult, if not impossible, to communicate the message of grace from the corridors of power. I see the confusion of politics and religion as one of the greatest barriers to grace. C. S. Lewis observed that almost all crimes of Christian history have come about when religion is confused with politics. Politics, which always runs by the rules of ungrace, allures us to trade away grace for power, a temptation the church has often been unable to resist.”

    It breaks my heart that the loudest or the most quoted religious voices seem to be the voices of ungrace.  The Christian community is filled with selfless, giving, and kind people working tirelessly and without notice. I can introduce you to dozens of them that I know personally. But this community does not make the news.

    How do we navigate this ugly climate as followers of Jesus? Here are a few things I wrote down for myself to pray over.

    • Try and see everyone through the eyes of Jesus because my eyes are prejudiced and prideful.
    • Try and love them like Jesus because my love is defensive and selfish.
    • Try and see that no one misses out on the message of grace, identity, acceptance and one-way love that is offered as a free gift of grace by the finished work of Jesus on the Cross.
    • Let others know that my relationship with Jesus and His grace has changed my life, given my life purpose, given me strength to endure tragedy, and real hope for the future.
    • Be gentle in relating the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ to people in every situation and not be judgmental of their current situation. My goal is to introduce them to Jesus and let them work it out together.
    • Walk with those who are struggling and remind them that God’s Grace and forgiveness always exceeds their sin. Always.
    • Exhibit grace and kindness to those who attack me for not sharing their views.
    • Freely give grace to everyone I come in contact so I can be salt and light to my little circle of influence.
    • Give generously of my time and treasure to those who have not been as materially blessed in my neighborhood, my country, and around the world.

    Jesus has the final word on this topic and it is a powerful reminder of how His teachings do not align with cultural norms and especially with social media.

    “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:43-45, NLT

    There is a good strategy to live in such a counter cultural way. Understand, appreciate and lean fully into the Grace freely given to you by God.