The Purifying Light of Jesus: A Short Devotional
But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.
— Ephesians 5:13 NIV
It was such a haul to get myself out of bed this morning.
After hitting snooze for 30 minutes, I eventually peeled myself from the bed to the couch (but not without a hot cup of coffee) and I sat before the Lord.
I had woken up from a bad dream—one that wasn’t so different from the actual conflicts taking place in my own life. It was like this dream was the catalyst into a whole host of negative thoughts and I just sat on my couch, half-praying, half-thinking about so many things that brought me grief.
The clock was ticking, as my kids would need to be up soon for school, and I felt frustrated. “Is this why I woke up early, God?” I cried out in prayer. “So I could just sit and bring up negative thought after negative thought?”
And that’s when the light cracked in.
“That’s exactly why I woke you up this morning,” was the whisper I felt sweep through my soul.
And I knew just what it meant: there was so much negativity swirling around my heart and mind. Unprocessed pain and unsettled circumstances.
What I was experiencing this morning, was an invitation to bring all that dirtiness into the purifying light of Christ. Into the love of the Father. Alongside the power of the Holy Spirit.
After some painful circumstances arose this past month, I had been trying to bury them. But let me tell you right now friend, burying ungodly seeds deep into our soul is never a good idea.
And I’m so thankful that the Lord loved me enough to blow the deep wind of the Holy Spirit over the groundwork of my soul to expose seeds that threatened to root, and to pick them out one-by-one until I was able to breathe more clearly and fully in his presence.
While I will still be moving through some of the unpleasantness of these circumstances, one thing I can tell you is that they have passed from taking residence in my soul to taking residence in the hand of my Loving Father. He is the tender of my life, and he brings about flourishing in the glory of His Light.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10 NIV
Don’t be afraid to dwell with him, my friends. He will handle your heart with the utmost care.
PS — I’ve created a resource that walks you through seven beautiful Psalms, and allows you to witness how Biblical writers brought the full span of their emotions and circumstances into the light of God’s loving presence. Learn more below! PSS — It’s good for any season. ;)
A Bible Study That Feels Like Sunshine
The psalms are beautiful for their ability to take the full span of human emotions and bring them into the light of God’s presence. They’re rich with wisdom, and stir affections for our beautiful Creator. Soak in the summertime joy as you travel through this study and fall in love with seven carefully-chosen psalms.
Features of the Study
Below are a few features you’ll find in the study:
Study and discussion questions: to support reflection in your personal study time, to stir your affections for our Heavenly Father, and to build fellowship with sisters in the faith
Background information: to understand the context of each psalm, and to aid comprehension
Cross-references: to dive deep into each psalm as you build connections to other areas of scripture
Gospel connections: consider how these Old Testament psalms tie into the complete (and beautiful) message of Scripture
Prayer prompts: intended to cause your prayer time to flourish as you hold fast to key aspects of God’s character displayed in the psalms
Group tools: icebreaker questions, a group planner, and space for prayer requests to support your time together
Scripture memory lock screens: gain password-protected access to seven scripture memory lock screens that coincide with each week of the study
Happy colors, fun illustrations, spiral binding, and more!
Seven Summer Recipes for Gathering:
A lovely addition to this study is brought to you by lifestyle blogger, Claire Mariah. She has crafted seven, simple, summery recipes for gathering. And I’ll tell you now—they’re dreamy. You can grab a peek in the photos of what to expect.
Additional Details
The size of the study is 5.5 inches by 8.5 inches—perfect for toting around in the summer months, spiral bound for easy use, and completed using premium materials.
Big Thank You
Check out the pages of these lovely gals who helped get the word out:
@festivefarrarco | festivefarrarco.com
@theejessicabrown | clothandkin.com
@clairemariahmurray | clairemariah.com
@abbyjtastad | abbyjeanphotpography.com
@karimichelle | https://linktr.ee/KariRickenbach
The psalms are beautiful for their ability to take the full span of human emotions and bring them into the light of God’s presence. They’re rich with wisdom, and stir affections for our beautiful Creator.
