abandoned to Christ.

Mike Huckabee, former Governor of Arkansas has encouraged faithful Christians across our great nation to support Chick-fil-A and the Cathy Family (owner/founder of the company) as they uphold God's definition for marriage.

As expected, the world is enraged with Christians who are honest and loving enough to stand firm in the faith they profess. Often Christians are called hypocrites because when push comes to shove, we don't stand firm in what we claim to believe. Like many, peer pressure cripples our personal convictions and sadly makes us deny the words of the Christ who died to save our lives.

Ironically, these same people who are persecuting the Cathy family claim they would never want to believe in Christ because we don't always live what we claim to believe. Basically, if we don't stand firm and live holy lives as unto the Lord Jesus the world hates us and ridicules us, labeling us as spineless hypocrites. But if we do stand firm on the precepts of our God and Father, then we're labeled as being hateful and intolerant of everything that's different from us. We are intolerant, but only of all that which is evil.

Loving good and rejecting evil is not hateful...it's good. I think even unbelievers would agree to that. I mean, who would rather be brutally beaten than offered help when in need? We all want good done to us, but we don't always give it. No one desires evil to come upon them, but many give it.

Conclusion: if the founder and owners of Chick-fil-A have always professed their faith in Christ as the foundation for how they run their company, why are so many in an uproar when, against massive pressure, the Cathy family continues to affirm God's definition of all things (in this case, marriage)?

Let's honor and support those who honor God. And let's patiently love those who don't.

"For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine...Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."

~Romans 1:11-12; Hebrews 10:23-25 (ESV)

It's been about four months since my back surgery, and though I still have five to eight months till full recovery, I'm grateful and amazed by all that the Lord has brought me through.

I remember the day after the surgery, I decided that I no longer needed pain meds (I don't recommend this). Not realizing that the pain meds were what were helping me manage my pain, I requested I be taken off of them. When the effects of the pain meds wore off, my body screamed for mercy from the excruciating pain. It took a full day for the meds to kick in, but God's mercy worked faster and gave me comfort and peace better than any medication could.

Because the medications hadn't set in yet, I couldn't even sleep though I was exhausted. So my darling husband began to read the Word of God while I lay there nearly in tears due to the pain. Within minutes, my soul was quenched and my body benefited from the eternal feeding I was receiving from the Word of our Lord.

When my husband saw how amazingly God's Word was able to bring me blessed comfort, he began to do this on a regular basis, even when the pain meds kicked in the next day. For weeks, this became our new habit...and a wonderful one at that.

My sweetheart would start a book of the Bible and read all the through it, then we'd discuss it (if I was still awake). We even began doing this at bedtime when I came home. There's just something special about my darling reading the Words of God to me. For some reason it seems that I somehow understand it better. I'm not sure why, but it's really a lovely thing. And if I hadn't been given the opportunity to suffer such a painful surgery, then we wouldn't have been able to experience the awesome power of God's Word in another beautiful way! So though I hated the pain, I'm even more grateful for my heavenly Father's words and the comfort I received from the God of all comfort.

We too often take the words of the Almighty for granted. We pull it out and dust it off only when we find ourselves in a mess. But when we get to enjoy light and cheerful times, we forget to thank God for them and we forget to offer Him the praise that He is due.

Let us learn to not only call out to Him when we're in the valley, but also shout His praise and give thanks to Him when we reach the mountain top.

"I rejoice at your word like one who finds great spoil." ~Psalm 119:162

Mary Kassian is an award winning author, internationally renowned speaker and a distinguished professor at Southern Baptist Seminary. She’s the author of multiple books including Girls Gone Wise, and co-author (with Nancy Leigh DeMoss) of True Woman 101: Divine Design and one of the speakers at the True Woman Conference 2012 that will be held in Indianapolis, Ind., on September 20-22.

(Look for the giveaway at the end of this article).

“An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels...She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy...She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue...Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.”~Proverbs 31:10, 20, 26, 30

A woman who knows she was made to be a strong yet delicate, beautiful creation of God, is indeed an extreme rarity. Her value and contribution to her family, the Church and her community is incomparable to the vain notions and deceitful promises of the feminist movement.

True freedom is not found in demanding equality with just another sinner. True freedom is found only in God’s grace and mercy, fully manifested in the Person of Jesus Christ. Only the Truth can set anyone free (John 8:31-32). And Jesus Christ alone is the Truth (John 14:6).

Sunny: How was the True Woman Movement birthed?

Mary: In 2002, after recording a radio program for Revive our Hearts, Nancy invited me and a few other friends to her home. All of us but Nancy (who was very ill) were discussing the devastating effects of feminism on our society. We marveled at how such a small group of women launched a movement that dramatically changed our world. Nancy surprised us all when she chimed in and said, “If a handful of angry, determined women made such a profound impact for evil, imagine what a handful of God-loving, Spirit-filled women could do for good.”

God worked on both our hearts over the years regarding true, biblical womanhood and in 2007 Nancy contacted me, asking me to help her with the first True Woman Conferencethat was held in Chicago in 2008. We had no plans beyond this, but God did. There was such a hunger from other Christian women to learn and understand what true biblical womanhood was, we realized this wasn’t the end, but the beginning of a countercultural movement towards what God created women to be.

Sunny: What is the ‘30-day True Woman Makeover’ and how is it similar or different from the‘40-day Heart Preparation’?

Mary: The 30-day makeover is...[read full article]

Read Psalm 145

click the photo to enlarge and read the Scripture

It's been four weeks since I was diagnosed as being clinically and severely depressed and was prescribed Lexapro, an SSRI (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor) which is a type of anti-depressant.

I experienced some mild side-effects the first five days, but nothing since then, which I'm very grateful to the Lord for. My doctor said that it'll be about six weeks until I really notice a major difference, but I'm already noticing a little now. Getting out of bed isn't nearly as difficult as it used to be and neither is running some of my errands. I'm not as scared to got out in public by myself anymore and I've found ways to make dinner without overwhelming myself. I still don't make the bed often and sometimes get behind on laundry. But everyone is still well-fed, wearing clean clothes and I'm not biting everyone's head off anymore. It's a small improvement, and I'll take it.

But even prior to the meds taking effect, I had brunch with a my sweet sister-friend Jayne (a few weeks ago) and I shared with her how I knew that somehow, with the way God gifted me, that I was going to do depression a little differently. For those who know me well, me doing things a bit out of the norm will not be a shock; it's actually...expected.

God's given me the spiritual gifts of prophecy, teaching, exhortation and faith. With these gifts, though I still feel like crawling in a hole most days, I can't help but encourage and exhort others. I can't help but share God's goodness; proclaim His sovereignty and kindness towards us at all times. I can't help but speak what I have witnessed from my Lord. I just can't help it.

"for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard."

~Acts 4:20

So to those who've been down, or are struggling with trusting God or have questions, require comfort or counsel, I just can't help but offer it to them. What's odd is, I still struggle to respond to people about daily life. But when someone's in need of the way God's gifted me, I can't help but reach out to gird them up and strengthen them. Isn't it just like our heavenly Father to use the weak, scared, confused daughter to bend down and lift up another? Of course it is. This way, it's assured that God will get all the glory and praise because it's obvious to everyone that it's all being done by the magnificent power and grace of the Lord Jesus.

"It is always upon human weakness and humiliation, not human strength and confidence, that God chooses to build His Kingdom; and that He can use us not merely in spite of our ordinariness and helplessness and disqualifying infirmities, but precisely because of them."

~James S. Stewart (1896-1990)

May the Lamb who was slain, receive all the praise and glory for all the good He has done, is doing and will do; for He alone is worthy. Amen.

One of the most reassuring things in this world is knowing Christ and being known by Him—to be called by God Almighty as one of His children; to be saved by His grace through the sacrifice of His one and only Son and to live in His constant faithful love. There is nothing better than this.

"But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh."

~2 Corinthians 4:7-11

Though the LORD has allowed me to suffer a time of depression, knowing He is sovereign, good and loves me, brings me comfort and peace in the midst of this chemically imbalanced storm. I don't know how all this will play out and what my heavenly Father's reasons are for allowing this trial, but I do know that I can trust Him; so the reason doesn't really matter—only the One doing the reasoning does.

Daily I struggle to just get out of bed...and stay out of bed. I struggle to go for my walks and do my physical therapy exercises. I struggle to make my bed and some days I don't. I just want everything to stop because it's all just too overwhelming. Even answering an email or going out in public to run errands or go to church alone. Everything is a struggle.

Decisions are my enemy and every minute seems to hold me captive to the emptiness of each day. And in the midst of this seeming hopelessness, God's word alone has been a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Ps 119:105). No matter where I go or what I do, the LORD is there and His word upholds me, preserves me and endures me through it all (Ps 40:11).

My days are spent in constant battle. And thanks be to God it is on my knees in prayer. Constant communication with my Savior and constantly seeking His face is all that keeps me going...but really, isn't that all that should keep any of us going?

One of the things I'm learning in the gloom of depression is that we're not as humble of a people as we ought to be. We don't have faith like children. We have faith like grown adults who've gotten to big for our britches because we've deceived ourselves into believing all the knowledge we've gained over the years have made us something greater than what we really are (Romans 12:3); making us less dependent on God and more dependent on our personal experiences.

If we only live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord, than why do so many of us know so little of it? Why is God's word not hidden in our hearts like the treasure it is? Why is it not obviously manifested in our lives as it ought to be? Are we transformed by God's word or deformed by our prideful opinions?

If not for the greatest Treasure this world has known, Jesus Christ the Lord and His Spirit dwelling in me, I know my depression would make me its slave. But since I am already a slave of Christ; a slave of righteousness, I cannot be enslaved to another. My body, my mind, my soul...my total being has been purchased with the precious blood of the Lamb of God and I trust my Good Shepherd and cry to Him at all times for help. And He helps me...every time.

"Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him,
on those who hope in His steadfast love,
that He may deliver their soul from death
and keep them alive in famine.

Our soul waits for the LORD;
He is our help and our shield.
For our heart is glad in Him,
because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us,
even as we hope in You."
~Psalm 33:18-22

If you're presently going through a trial and find that you don't have the same peace and comfort I have in the midst of pain, then please contact me as I'd love to share with you, the only truth that can set you free.

It can be, but not always. There's self-pity (which is a sin) that brings some to become depressed. There are times when we're wounded due to self-inflicted trauma (meaning, you've behaved in ungodly and immature ways and now you have to lie in the messy bed you've made [1 Peter 2:20, 3:9, 4:14-15]). And there are traumatic situations that occur in a person’s life that are totally out of their control which brings them to depression.

In order to find out whether or not it's a faith issue or a medical issue, you should visit with your Pastor and/or a wiser and older Christian as well as your physician to determine the cause (if possible) and the degree of your depression.

I've been depressed before in my life, mostly due to self-inflicted stress and trauma, mixed in with a large dose of self-pity. And this depression was a faith issue. How do I know? Well, because my eyes were focused on me and my life and how I thought everything should be. It’s clear I was involved in self-worship. Since I was in despair due to a sin issue, that’s what made my depression a faith issue rather than a medical one.

After my recent back surgery, I was put on heavy pain medications that I'd never been on before and for a longer time period than I’m accustomed to (two and a half months). I unknowingly got myself off of them too quickly and suffered from painful withdrawal symptoms; one of them being depression.

It's been nearly two weeks since I've completely been off of my pain medications and all the withdrawal symptoms have subsided to a manageable point...except the depression. After suffering from this depression for four weeks, I went to see my doctor.

Though it's still a bit humiliating to admit, I've been diagnosed as being clinically and severely depressed due to low serotonin and was put on Lexapro which is an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor); a type of anti-depression medication.

I've only been on it for a week now and it takes three to four weeks for it to build up in my body, so I'm not noticing any relief from my depression yet.

But you know, God has blessed me with the most wonderful family and friends. My darling husband has been amazingly supportive, tender, understanding and proactive in helping me determine exactly what activities I "need" to do and not do. And in treating me so tenderly, through his actions, our sons have learned the same. My friends have lovingly and faithfully kept me in their prayers. They’ve come to visit me, brought me gifts that lift my soul, encourage me and do things that help relieve the heavy burden I perpetually feel.

Though I’m easily overwhelmed by most things, I’m grateful to God for His word, my family and friends that brings me so much joy and peace, even in the midst of my present darkness.

Twenty years ago today, the Lord chose to unite me and my beloved husband together in holy matrimony.

We were both young, naive about marriage and still a bit prideful and self-serving. Naturally our pride deceived us into believing otherwise.

The first several years of our marriage were rocky as we both tried to mold one another into our own image of what we thought a husband/wife looked like.

With one child, and conversations about divorce, we were nearly done. But God's plans are never thwarted.

Never.

The Lord decided that we would be married until death do us part and have two sons with whom He would also use for His glory. As we've learned, our marriage isn't about the two of us—it's about Christ.

Out of God's great mercy and compassion for the young fools we were, He granted us the wisdom we finally asked for and committed to love one another always second to Christ. We took divorce off the table and resolved to keep Christ as our First Love; to serve Him, to bring Him glory and please Him in every way with our marriage.

No longer seeing marriage as a way to feel "complete" or satisfy any self-fulfilling desires, we pressed on to love one another not because to make each other happy, but because God created our marriage to make us holy and conform us more and more into the image of Christ.

We've had many trials in our marriage. Trials with extended family. Trials with friends. Trials with our kids. And through it all, God made our marriage stronger and more firmer in Christ. With every wind of adversity, we hunkered down together to find our identity, our purpose, our lives, hid in Christ alone.

I strive to the be biblical, Proverbs 31 woman first to please my Lord, second to serve and honor my husband. My husband strives to live up to all that is written in God's word of what a man after His own heart looks like (Eph 5:25-31); and he does this well.

Though I still have a long way to go, the Lord has given us both the peace and love we need to press on together as we long to deepen our relationship with Christ as "one"—living only to please, honor and glorify the Son of God.

We are here to make much of Jesus. Not of ourselves.

May the LORD receive all praise and glory for the 20 years He's generously granted us and for whatever more He chooses to give us. May the name of the Lord forever be praised. Amen.

"Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;

our God is merciful.

The LORD preserves the simple;

when I was brought low, He saved me.

Return, O my soul, to your rest;

for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you."

Psalm 116:5-7

As Christians, most of us know the well-rehearsed verse "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,..." (James 1:2). But most of us don't really understand what it means to consider our trials a joy—especially when the reality of it finally sets in and takes us down a road we never meant to travel...if we let it.

I'm nearly seven weeks out from my latest surgery; the worst and most painful experience I can remember. And now, at last, the reality of it all is finally beginning to set in: nights with interrupted sleep, the confinement of a brace, the weakness I notice when I don't have it on, the fatigue...oh, the fatigue. Yes, it's all starting to become very old and very real, making the "joy" in this trial appear as if it's impossible to grasp. But God promises everything is not as they appear (2 Cor 4:16-18). So I look to Him and not to that which I can only see.

"I lift up my eyes to the hills.

From where does my help come?

My help comes from the LORD,

who made heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved;

He who keeps you will not slumber.

Behold, He who keeps Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD is your keeper;

the LORD is your shade on your right hand.

The sun shall not strike you by day,

nor the moon by night.

The LORD will keep you from all evil;

He will keep your life.

The LORD will keep

your going out and your coming in

from this time forth and forevermore."

~PSALM 121

Refreshing. Comforting. Enlightening. I love God's word. Don't you?

Now, before I go on, let me make one thing clear lest anyone take this beautiful passage of Scripture and mutilate it with their own perverse thinking. God is most certainly not saying here that nothing "bad" (evil) will ever happen to you. No, read the rest of that sentence, "He will keep your life." Now that's quite a different thing than promising that all you days will be filled with nothing but happiness, health, wealth and ease. Far from it. It means so much more. The LORD of heaven and earth is promising that those who fear Him, have repented and trusted in the name of His one and only Son, will have their life hid and protected in Him and therefore will never be in danger or fear of the second death; which is eternal damnation in Hell; for their life is kept by God, with God and for God...alone.

Being a child of God means so much more than the false teachers of prosperity (i.e., Joyce Meyer, Joel Osteen, Creflo Dollar, etc.) preach today. God's word promises that our lives are kept by Him. We are eternally His; it just doesn't get any better than that. There is no degree of health or wealth that trumps this promise: my life is hid in Christ (Psalm 27:5).

So when the reality of this trial set in, I began to grow quite weary of this surgery that has a nine month recovery period, countless limitations, added measures to keep my back safe, extreme fatigue, the brace, struggling with a self-pitying bad attitude, and a tired and wearied not-so-"sunny" disposition. As a matter of fact, I believe there are days I could change my name to "mildly cloudy with a chance of showers, so don't provoke me" or "severe weather ahead, take cover and don't come near". But even still, in the midst of the reality of this trial and the weariness of it all, I am grateful that my life is hid in Christ; my life is kept by God Almighty, and in due time, He will lift me up from this place and I will be healed (whether it be on this side of Heaven or not, I do not know, nor do I care).

I know all I need to know: though the waves of reality come crashing down on me, once I cry out to my glorious Savior, He always, immediately reaches out His hand and lifts me up to where He is; on steady footing and in His presence so I can see things the way He does: with eternity in view (Matt 14:30-33; Is 43:1-2).

This is not my home. This body is not my permanent body. These limitations are temporary. And one day, I will have a new, perfect body; one without sin. One day, I will see my Lord in His full glory. One day, I will be free from every trouble in this world and live the rest of my days in Heaven, with my God, my Savior. One day, I will be able to worship Him as He is due (1 Chron 16:29), and I will be able to do this faithfully without the constant interruptions of this flesh of sin.

One day, I'll be Home.

"I waited patiently for the LORD; He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the LORD."

~Psalm 40:1-3

This is my prayer.

If you're reading this today and you realize you don't have the same assurance I have, please contact me. I'd love to share the love of Christ with you.

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