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January 18, 2018

Bible Gateway 25th Anniversary Sweepstakes for January

Bible Gateway is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a new sweepstakes every month this year!

This month enter for a chance to win a copy of the NIV Zondervan Study Bible premium leather edition (Zondervan, 2015), which has a suggested retail value of $149.99. Two winners will be selected at random. One entry per person; legal residents of the USA 18 years of age and older. Entry period: Jan. 10, 2018 (midnight ET) – Jan. 28, 2018 (11:59 pm ET).

[Read the New International Version (NIV) translation on Bible Gateway]

Once you’ve entered, tell your friends and followers about Bible Gateway’s 25th Anniversary—and what Bible Gateway means to you—in your posts on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media; when you do, use the #MyBibleGateway hashtag to communicate the fun!

Sweepstakes Links:

Click Here to Enter This Month’s Sweepstakes

Click Here for the Official Sweepstakes Rules

Bible Gateway’s 25 Years

Venture back to the year 1993. The first widely used graphical World Wide Web browser, Mosaic (later to become Netscape), was introduced, representing a major turning point in the Internet’s journey toward wide-scale user acceptance; US President Bill Clinton put the White House online; the first ever webcam connected to the Internet; and, topping the news in 1993, Bible Gateway, a fledgling idea in the mind of a college staffer, launched as an internal Bible research tool for college students.

Twenty-five years ago, the nascent World Wide Web accounted for only 1% of telecommunications information flow. By 2007, that number rose to 97%. Today, in the center of the information deluge flowing on the Web, sits BibleGateway.com (@biblegateway), the most-visited Christian website in the world; home to more than 200 Bible versions in more than 70 languages; and a trusted resource for more than 140 million people in more than 200 countries every year. Rely on it every day for all your Bible needs.

Everybody has questions about the Bible. With Bible Gateway Plus, you’ll be ready to answer them! Try it free today!

January 18, 2018

How to Fight Fear, Wrestle Worry, and Allay Anxiety: An Interview with Alli Worthington

Jonathan Petersen

Sometimes Jesus’ call to “fear not” seems like the hardest instruction to follow. Some days you faultlessly juggle everything that is your life—kids, husband, house, job, church, friendships, school, pets, appointments, and on and on. Other days the very thought of which ball you’re going to drop puts your anxiety level through the roof.

Bible Gateway interviewed Alli Worthington (@alli) about her book, Fierce Faith: A Woman’s Guide to Fighting Fear, Wrestling Worry, and Overcoming Anxiety (Zondervan, 2018).

Why are fear and worry such a constant struggle for so many, in spite of the Bible’s repeated admonition to “fear not”?

Alli Worthington: Twenty million Americans struggle with anxiety. Fear is something that we all deal with at some point in our lives. It’s part of being human. The danger for Christians is to heap self-condemnation on ourselves when we feel fear, worry, and anxiety because we think it shows a lack of faith. I believe the Bible tells us so many times to “fear not” precisely because everyone deals with fear and it’s said to encourage us and to comfort us when we’re afraid.

How should a person handle personal rejection so that it doesn’t contribute to anxiety?

Alli Worthington: The most important thing to do is to acknowledge the hurt, ban negative self-talk, remember how Jesus sees you, and connect with people who care about you. When we’re in the process of healing from a rejection, it’s easy to pretend it doesn’t hurt, but what we don’t reveal is very hard to heal.

We want to acknowledge what has happened and be careful not to hurt ourselves even more through negative self-talk. When we feel rejected it’s easy to take it out on ourselves. Self-criticism is often confused with humility, but it’s not; I believe it’s straight-up sinful behavior. If Jesus doesn’t talk to us that way, we shouldn’t either.

And finally, it’s important to surround yourself with people who love you and who will build you up and encourage you. Being in community is the key, but we need to make sure we surround ourselves with people who build us up instead of tear us down.

Explain how the battle against fear can be fought on the spiritual and the physical level.

Alli Worthington: We’re beings made out of both body and spirit, the physical and spiritual. My spirit knows that the victory is in Jesus. My spirit knows I have nothing to fear. But my body lives in the physical world, and my body often feels flat-out scared. There’s a battle between the spiritual and physical. When the spirit says, “Perfect love casts out fear,” our bodies reply, “But I’m still scared.”

Since we all live on two levels, we have to learn to fight fear, anxiety, and worry on two levels, both with the spiritual and physical. We can fight using truth found in Scripture, the peace we find in Jesus, and using practical steps in our everyday lives.

What are the Five Bad B’s?

Alli Worthington: The Five Bad B’s are the unconscious coping strategies that we all use to deal with fear, anxiety, and worry:

Busy: when we feel anxious, a common coping strategy is to stay busy to distract ourselves from our worries.
Blame: blaming others when we feel scared or worried is a common coping mechanism. It’s as if our brains are saying, “I can’t handle feeling this way and I need to take it out someone else,” so we shift our focus to others instead of focusing on the problem or uncomfortable feeling at hand.
Binge: binging is the act of doing something to excess as a way to numb uncomfortable emotions. It could be excessive eating, exercise, watching TV, shopping, or any number of other things.
Bury: we bury our feelings in three primary ways: through denial, procrastination, and avoidance, and often these three ways become intertwined with one another.
Brood: this is when we replay in our minds what’s happened or what could happen, over and over again. Another word for this is rumination. Experts say that brooding over something in your past or fear of something in the future is directly related to developing depression.

It’s common to avoid battling our fear, anxiety, and worry and instead busy ourselves, blame others, binge away our concerns, bury our worries, or brood until we’re an emotional mess. But when we’re armed with the knowledge of these unhealthy coping mechanisms, we don’t have to get stuck there. There’s a better way, and a step-by-step guide for overcoming what holds us back.

What’s the relationship between social media and the fear of missing out (FOMO)?

Alli Worthington: Because we live in a time where we have a world of information, images, and videos coming at us instantly, FOMO isn’t going to go away. In a world of constant connection, FOMO—and its evil twin, social comparison—are the struggles of our time.

Because of social media, we see the most fun, most amazing, most exciting hand-picked moments and hundreds of acquaintances lives, all in real-time. And if you’ve just cleaned up a diaper blowout, gotten fired, or are simply hanging around eating Cheetos on the couch when you see these posts, FOMO pops up and whispers to you that you don’t measure up in comparison.

What is the Battle Plan you include in the book?

Alli Worthington: Fierce Faith, as a whole, is a manual on how to fight individual fears, worries, and anxieties. Each chapter has a unique battle plan for that specific fear. The step-by-step way to overcome the fear of something bad happening in the future, for example, is completely different than the step-by-step to overcome the fear that something terrible will happen to our children. However, there’s an overarching battle plan that we use for all of our fear, worry, and anxiety. I call it the Four Good A’s. We fight the Five Bad B’s with the Four Good A’s:

Aware: be aware of your feelings. Our feelings come from a combination of what we think and what we believe. Feelings are the way we know the health of our thoughts. When we’re aware of our feelings, it helps them not be able to sneak up and sideswipe us. Being aware allows us to be self-compassionate instead of self-critical. Giving yourself permission to feel, and acknowledge your true feelings, is the first step in battling fear.
Avoid the Five Bad B’s: when we’re aware that we’re using any of the Bad B’s we can begin to avoid them and not stay stuck in behaviors that are unhealthy for us.
Ask Jesus for help: take it to Jesus and let him fight the spiritual battle. We need to ask for a clear mind, peaceful heart, and extra strength to encourage us on our difficult days. Our most powerful tools will always be prayer and worship. We know that we should take everything to Jesus, that the battle is his and that we fight not for a victory, but from a place of an already won victory.
Attack: practice the battle plan to take care of anxieties on the physical plane. Paul tells us in Philippians 4:6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Talk about a plan of attack! Paul begins by telling us to watch how we think about the things in our lives. It’s with our thoughts we decide to believe the lies of the enemy; to be our own false prophets of the future and steal our own happiness in life. We can attack by changing our thoughts and our behaviors.

The enemy has a plan to keep us from experiencing the full life God has created for us. His plan counts on us being unaware and unarmed. To fight back, we must be aware of our thoughts and arm ourselves with the truth that Jesus spoke when he said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Bio: Alli Worthington is a speaker, blogger, author of Breaking Busy, and the executive director of Propel Women. As an executive coach, Alli has helped individuals, small business owners, and Fortune 500 companies be more successful. Alli’s no-nonsense, guilt-free take on motherhood, parenting, and balance has led to appearances on The Today Show and Good Morning America. She lives outside Nashville with her husband, Mark, their five sons, and a rescued dog and cat who moved onto their doorstep. You can connect with Alli at AlliWorthington.com.

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January 17, 2018

Do I Have a Right to Die?

Guest Post

By Joni Eareckson Tada

No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main . . . Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee. ~JOHN DONNE

For the moment, forget everything you’ve ever heard about right-to-die or right-to-life positions. Put aside the court rulings. Push out of your mind the tug-at-your-heart stories you’ve seen in the movies or read about online.

Now, with no one reading your thoughts, may I ask, “Do you know when it is right to die? For you? For your family?” Please, I realize this may not be a theoretical question for you. You may be one who could write a real-life tug-at-your-heart story. And you may have already made up your mind about how and when you want to die. Whatever your response, I want you to know that your decision matters.

It matters more than you realize.

Let me explain. Since at one time I served on a national council that drafted major civil rights legislation, my husband, Ken, then a high school government teacher, asked me to speak to his classes on the subject of legalizing euthanasia. This was well before California had legalized medically assisted death, but plenty of initiatives were testing the waters. Ken wanted me to talk to his students about the implications of a right-to-die law. The classroom was crowded with kids standing along the back and leaning against the chalkboards covering the walls.

I was surprised by how interested they were as I divulged my despair of earlier days. I admitted my relief that no right-to-die law existed when I was in the hospital and hooked up to machines. I then underscored how critical it was for every student to become informed and involved in shaping society’s response to the problem. Then I added, “What role do you think society should play in helping people decide when it is right to die?”

A few hands went up. I could tell by their answers that they felt society should take action to help hurting and dying people—some students insisting on life no matter how burdensome the treatment, and a few wanting to help by hurrying along the death process.

One student shared how his mother was getting demoralized by the burden of taking care of his sister with developmental delays. He felt society should, in his words, “do something.”

“Like what?” I playfully challenged.

“Like . . . I’m not sure, but society ought to get more involved in the lives of people like my mother.”

I glanced at Ken. He nodded, as if to give the go-ahead to take a free rein with this young man. “May I ask what you have done to get more involved?”

The student smiled and shrugged.

“How have you helped alleviate the burden? Have you taken your sister on an outing lately? Maybe to the beach?” I teased. “Have you offered to do some shopping for your mother? Maybe your mom wouldn’t be so demoralized, maybe she wouldn’t feel so stressed or burdened, if you rolled up your sleeves a little higher to help.”

A couple of his friends by the chalkboard laughed and threw wads of paper at him. “Okay, okay, I see your point,” he chuckled.

I smiled. “My point is this: Society is not a bunch of people way out there who sit around big tables and think up political trends or cultural drifts; society is you. Your actions, your decisions, matter. What you do or don’t do has a ripple effect on everyone around you. And on a smaller scale, your participation can even make a huge difference in what your family decides to do with your sister.”

The classroom fell silent, and I knew the lesson was being driven home. I paused, scanned the face of each student, and closed by saying, “You, my friends, are society.”

Your Point of View Matters

And that’s how much your point of view matters. You may be the one who fiercely advocates pulling the plug, or the one who fights to keep a heart pumping until the bitter end. Whichever it is, you must, in the words of John Donne, know this: no man is an island.

We are such private people. We would like to be able to make a life or death decision in a vacuum or even at an arm’s-length distance from others. But we can’t. Your point of view and how you act on it, let’s say as you lie in bed with a terminal illness, not only matters to you and your family; it matters to a wide network of friends and associates as well. In other words, to society. The cultural drift is channeled by your decision to either pull the plug or hold on to life.

In fact, will you permit me to get personal? If you can, dismiss your real-life circumstances for a moment. Let’s pretend you are in bed with a terminal illness, and doctors say you could live for another six months. Your pain can be effectively managed. And you have an opportunity to make a choice about medical treatment. You can decline treatment if you want—and you even live in a state whose laws permit you to request a medically assisted death. Your family says it’s up to you. I know it’s hard to pretend such an antiseptic situation, devoid of real grief and actual anguish, because distress would play a key role. But given this sterile scenario, what would you do? What would you say?

Are you one who might say, “It’s none of your business. I’ll control how and when I die, and what’s more, I feel no responsibility to society. I’m only responsible to myself and to those I love.”

I hear what you’re saying. But when people maintain that their death is their own business and the business of “those I love,” they do not consider the significance of their decision on the wider circle of life. A decision to cut life short, even if only a few months, does not stop with “those I love,” but affects a whole network of relationships: friends, former colleagues, teachers, distant family members, casual acquaintances, and even nurses and doctors who occasionally stop by your bedside.

Just what effect might your decision have? Your gutsy choice to face suffering head-on forces others around you to sit up and take notice. It’s called strengthening the character of a helping society. When people observe perseverance, endurance, and courage, their moral fiber is reinforced. Conversely, your choice to bow out of life can and does weaken the moral resolve of that same society.

Years after my hospitalization, my mother continued to receive letters from nurses, cafeteria workers, and a family whose daughter had suffered a severe brain injury and had been hooked up to machines two beds away from me in the intensive care unit. My parents made gutsy choices that involved facing suffering head-on. And the decisions they made regarding my care had a lasting impact on these people. And who knows what ripple effects have come from the choices they have made in the years since?

If you believe your decision is private and independent, think again. Your choice to speed up the dying process is like playing a delicate game of pick-up sticks. You carefully lift a stick, hoping not to disturb the intricate web. But just when you think you’ve succeeded, your independent action ends up jiggling the fragile balance and sending other sticks rolling.

And as the apostle Paul writes in Romans 14:7, “None of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone.”

You Have Your Rights . . . Sort Of

“But I have a right to decide what’s best for me,” you may say. “I’m entitled to exercise my independence. It’s fundamental to what this country is all about. Even the courts recognize my autonomy as a patient.”

True, because you are a mentally competent person, the judge would probably bang the gavel in your favor. Like you said, you have rights, and you may end up literally dying for them.

But like all other liberties, your choice is not absolute—no ifs, ands, or buts. Your self-determination to die has strings attached if it adversely affects the rights of others. That’s why more than half the states in our country have laws against aiding a person in suicide. Even states that have legalized physician-assisted suicide still have laws against just anyone assisting. And also, these laws insist—though not always followed in practice—that the patient be in the final six months of a terminal illness and be able to make the final action that brings about their death. Why all the legal safeguards? Think it through: if everybody ended their life as a solution to problems, the very fabric of our society would ultimately unravel, and with it all the other individual rights we enjoy.

Yes, you have a glistening right of privacy, as long as it does not overshadow the rights of others. But legalized euthanasia can seriously infringe on the rights of many physicians. You might want to exercise a right to die, but do you have the right to ask a physician, whose duty is to heal, to comply with your wishes or even to make a referral? No person, in the name of self-determination, should be able to oblige a doctor to prescribe a fatal dose when it goes against the physician’s oath to “do no harm.” Yet already we have seen lawsuits against doctors who refuse to assist in hastening a patient’s death. Or again, in death with dignity acts, there is no requirement that next of kin be notified before a person follows through on his or her plan to hasten death. Shouldn’t parents, a spouse, or children have the right to know before their loved one is beyond their reach?

But wait, it sounds a little like we’re trading baseball cards here.

Like, “My rights are more valuable than yours!”

“Oh, yeah? Well, my one right is worth more than your three combined!”

Our rights are not things that can be exchanged, bargained over, or transferred like property. Essentially, rights are moral claims to be recognized by law, not things to be traded. And moral claims have to take into account responsibility, limits on freedom, and ethical standards that reflect the good of the entire community.

When we clamor about the sanctity of our individual rights, we may be reinforcing an all-too-human failing, namely, the tendency to place ourselves at the center of the moral universe. If taken to the extreme, clamor over individual rights can lead to one indignation after another about the inherent limitations of society, and we will never be satisfied.

The fact is, true rights are based in God’s moral law. Proverbs 31:8–9 reads, “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” But take God out of the picture, and rights become nothing more than people’s willful determinations dressed up in the language of “rights” to give them a showy kind of dignity. Then the exercise of rights becomes nothing more than a national competition between who is more victimized than whom.

As I shared in my husband’s government class, “You, my friend, are society.” So welcome to the club of community, and even though some may try to drown out other styles of discourse with shouts about personal rights, the community may have a thing or two to say, and it may say it a lot louder. After all, community can only progress when its individuals exercise higher moral choices, and community is sacrificed when individuals choose with only themselves in mind.

________

Taken from When Is It Right To Die? A Comforting and Surprising Look at Death and Dying by Joni Eareckson Tada. Click to learn more about this title.

More and more people who are terminally ill are choosing assisted suicide. When is it Right to Die? offers a different path with alternatives of hope, compassion, and death with real dignity. Joni Eareckson Tada knows what it means to wrestle with this issue and to wish for a painless solution. For the last 50 years she has been confined to a wheelchair and struggled against her own paralysis. And she sat by the bedside of her dying father, thinking, So much suffering, why not end it all quickly, painlessly?

The terminally ill, the elderly, the disabled, the depressed and suicidal, can all be swept up into this movement of self-deliverance. Skip the suffering. Put a quick end to merciless pain and mental anguish. These are tempting enticements to the hurting. Joni doesn’t give pat answers. Instead, she gives warm comfort from God and practical help to meet the realities for those facing death.

When Is It Right to Die tells the stories of families who have wrestled with end-of-life questions. Behind every right-to-die situation is a family. A family like yours. In her warm, personal way, Joni takes the reader into the lives of families and lets them speak about assisted suicide. What they say is surprising.

Whether you have a dying family member, facing moral and medical choices, or struggling with a chronic condition that feels overwhelming, this book will help you find practical encouragement and biblical advice to help you make difficult decisions.

Joni Eareckson Tada knows the struggle of dealing with daily pain and suffering since a diving accident in 1967 left her paralyzed from the neck down. She is the CEO of Joni and Friends, an organization that accelerates Christian outreach in the disability community, provides practical support and spiritual help to special-needs families worldwide, and equips thousands of churches in developing disability ministry. Joni is the author of numerous bestselling books, including Joni (her autobiography), When God Weeps, Diamonds in the Dust, and A Spectacle of Glory. Joni and her husband, Ken, have been married for 35 years. For more information on Joni and Friends, visit www.joniandfriends.org.

January 17, 2018

How to Live The Bible — Living In Reality

Mel Lawrenz

This is the eleventh lesson in author and pastor Mel Lawrenz’ How to Live the Bible series. If you know someone or a group who would like to follow along on this journey through Scripture, they can get more info and sign up to receive these essays via email here.

The only way to live a stable, healthy, and fruitful life, is to live in reality. There are many ways by which we could live in fantasies and illusions that will set us up for certain disappointment and maybe worse. The fantasy that we are able to have or control whatever we wish is one. The illusion that we are entirely helpless is another. The Scriptures give us a true and reliable picture of what is true about life. The Bible offers reality—not spiritual platitudes that are merely wishful thinking.

Business Man in a storm illustration

Romans 8 is a passage that anchors us in reality. It speaks of true pain and stresses and losses in life, on the one hand. And it offers genuine hope, on the other hand. The passage speaks honestly about suffering, calling it “frustration,” and “bondage to decay” that leads to “groaning.” This is true of all creation, and so it is true of us.

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” (Romans 8:18-25)

All that leads to one of the most-often quoted verses in the Bible, Romans 8:28: “in all things God works for the good of those who love him.” This phrase has often been twisted into the following shape: God is good, God works all things together for the good, therefore everything that happens must be good in some sense, and you should try to see the good things that are going to come out of your difficulties.

But that is not what the verse says, which is, that God (because he is good) works toward the good, and that he is doing so at all times, under all circumstances (“in all things”). It is not that all things are good (they are not). Not that all things add up to a positive sum (life is not arithmetic). Not that all things become good things.

Rather, God is at work amidst “all things,” which means every day and every chapter of life, even the dark ones. He is at work. He doesn’t sleep. He doesn’t leave. Any work that God does is good because he is God. Even the bad chapters of life end up being passageways to something better. There is light at the end of the tunnel—there really is.

Murder is not a good thing, neither is cancer, adultery, starvation and impoverishment, enmity, and unemployment. The grieving person does not have to translate a woeful loss into something good. Yet or she can be assured that a sovereign God takes all circumstances under the sun, losses as well as gains, and is able to continue to work goodness into the lives of those he loves. Most people who have lost something or someone valuable will agree that it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all—and that’s no platitude.

Some Christians seek a quick fix to some trouble in life because they think the gospel of Christ will somehow seem insufficient if it cannot deliver a speedy recovery (although certainly the real issue is often the common human desire to avoid pain). But what makes us think God prefers immediacy to process? The entire Christian life is one of growth and development—so also the hard, educative process of rearranging one’s life to adapt to significant losses. Our reactions to life’s difficulties are some of the most profoundly maturing processes that anyone can experience. No wonder it takes time.

If we live in reality—seeing suffering for what it really is, but knowing that there is true hope for the good—we are less likely to be devastated if we encounter some tragedy. And we will be able to live in the goodness of God. That is reality.

[If you believe this series will be helpful, this is the perfect time to forward this to a friend, a group, or a congregation, and tell them they too may sign up for the weekly emails here]

Mel Lawrenz (@MelLawrenz) trains an international network of Christian leaders, ministry pioneers, and thought-leaders. He served as senior pastor of Elmbrook Church in Brookfield, Wisconsin, for ten years and now serves as Elmbrook’s minister at large. He has a PhD in the history of Christian thought and is on the adjunct faculty of Trinity International University. Mel is the author of 18 books, including How to Understand the Bible—A Simple Guide and Spiritual Influence: the Hidden Power Behind Leadership (Zondervan, 2012). See more of Mel’s writing at WordWay.

January 16, 2018

Kids Ask the Best Questions About God and the Bible: An Interview with Kathryn Slattery

Jonathan Petersen

Children ask such questions as, “How do I know the Bible is true?” “What does it mean when the Bible talks about the kingdom of God?” “How can God be three persons at the same time?” “Why couldn’t Jesus just stay on Earth forever?” “What is baptism?” “Who invented time?”

Bible Gateway interviewed Kathryn Slattery about her book, 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids (Tommy Nelson, 2017).

In what way, if any, did Bible Gateway help you write this book?

Kathryn Slattery: Oh, my goodness, 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids, which is rooted in Scripture, could not have been written without Bible Gateway! This new book took me more than two years to write, and I literally must have entered at least 5,000 Scripture searches and comparisons in the process!

What a far cry from 30 years ago, when my resources for biblical research were limited to my dog-eared Layman’s Parallel Bible (which offered only four translations) and Cruden’s Handy Concordance to the Bible (which, truth be told, was not always so “handy!”)

Today, Bible Gateway sits at the top of my computer’s list of “Favorite” links and rarely a day goes by that I don’t consult it. Personally, I love the site’s “Verse of the Day,” and since I’m not the best memorizer, I’m forever grateful for how Bible Gateway helps me easily find the correct wording, chapter, and verse for favorite scriptures. Professionally, Bible Gateway is, in a word, a godsend. It is, far and away, my most important, essential Scripture resource.

Hooray for Bible Gateway! You’re a blessing to countless seekers and believers around the world, helping us all grow in both love and knowledge of our good and loving God. I just recently downloaded the Bible Gateway App, and it’s terrific, too—especially for searches on the go!

What inspired you to write 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids?

Kathryn Slattery: As the mother of two children, I understand that growing up these days isn’t easy. Children, like grown-ups, need faith. We’re now living in what historians and theologians call the “post-Christian” age. Secular humanism, moral relativism, political correctness, and a brutally raw popular culture have created a moral atmosphere of murky gray where there are few absolutes to help parents and children take a stand on what’s good and bad, right and wrong. Add to that, there’s the harsh cruelty of social media (Thumbs up! Thumbs down!) and our culture’s tendency to measure a person’s worth by their achievements (athletic, academic, artistic) rather than simply loving unconditionally … Oh my goodness. It’s not easy being human, that’s for sure!

At the same time, we can rejoice that children enter this world with a tremendous capacity for faith. For children, believing in God is instinctive. It’s as natural as breathing. As Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Mark 10:14; Luke 18:16).

As adults, it’s not only our privilege, but also our responsibility to nurture our children’s God-given faith. Typically, our children’s Christian education includes involvement in Sunday school, familiarity with the Bible, and routine prayers at meals and bedtimes. But in this challenging day and age, that’s not really enough. It takes a personal, intimate relationship with a loving God to breathe life and meaning into these religious traditions.

During my many years as a fifth grade Sunday school teacher, I was stunned to discover how little my students knew about the Bible and basic Christianity. Their questions really took me by surprise, and I was determined to find a way to help them find meaningful, helpful, age-appropriate answers. Today more than ever, children need to be informed and reassured of these three unchanging, eternal truths:

God is real
God personally loves them
God has a unique purpose for each of their precious lives.

With this as my goal, a few years ago I wrote a book called If I Could Ask God Anything: Awesome Bible Answers for Curious Kids, featuring real-life questions from real-life kids about God, Jesus, the Bible and basic Christianity. Kids, parents and teachers really liked the book and wanted more—lots more! “Please write a 365-day devotional for kids,” they asked. So, I did!

What is your objective in writing this book? Is there a progression?

Kathryn Slattery: Day-by-day, naturally and gently, 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids nurtures and grows the young reader’s love and knowledge of God through a deep and lasting personal relationship with his Son, Jesus. The book begins with an introduction to God our loving heavenly Creator and Father, God’s Son Jesus our Savior, and God’s Holy Spirit, who lives in our human hearts. Each day’s devotion begins with a Bible verse and ends with a short prayer, and is written so that it can be read and enjoyed on its own.

In the book’s introduction, I reassure the young reader to not worry if they miss a day or week or month of readings. I explain that whenever the child opens the book, God is so happy to have their attention, and eager to speak and listen to them in a loving, personal way. If the child wants to read ahead to the next day or go back and read yesterday’s devotion, that’s okay. As I encourage in the introduction, “The more you read, the more you will learn!” To this end, most devotions include a “Want to know more?” interactive cross-reference at the bottom of the page for the extra-curious child who wants to dig deeper and learn more.

What makes this book different from other daily devotionals?

Kathryn Slattery: In addition to introducing the young reader to knowing our loving God through a personal relationship with Jesus, the book also offers a complete introduction to basic biblically-based orthodox Christianity! Day-by-day, over the course of one year, the daily devotions engage both the reader’s heart and mind. In other words, with its unique Q-&-A format, 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids is both inspirational and educational. It serves the dual purpose of being both a classic daily devotional and essential teaching resource. No other devotional does this!

What are your favorite features of the book?

Kathryn Slattery: I love the “Want to know more?” interactive cross-references for extra-curious kids. They remind me of yummy spiritual potato chips: once you’ve tasted one, you can’t stop! They’re steppingstones that lead the child on an exciting faith adventure.

I love the book’s emphasis on building the young reader’s faith vocabulary. Over time, children—like grownups—can and should be empowered to articulate what they believe about God, and why.

I love the way the book is written for all Christian denominations. The daily readings deepen the young reader’s understanding of how faith works both in their own church experience, and also helps them see how they fit into the larger historic, world-wide body of Christ at work in the world today.

I love the book’s incredibly comprehensive Index of 366 Questions which cover the following topics: Time; God; God’s Promises; Jesus; God’s Holy Spirit; The Bible; The Old Testament; The New Testament; Christianity; Prayer; The Church; Christian Seasons, Holidays and Traditions; Being a Christian Here and Now; Being a Christian Forever and Ever; Big Questions, and Famous Christians. Phew!

There are, of course, zillions of questions about God and Jesus and Christianity—way more than can be answered in a single year—but I think kids and grown-ups alike will appreciate the book’s thorough research and accuracy for such a wide range of theological, historical, and faith topics. (In case you’re wondering why there are 366 questions, it’s thanks to Leap Day on February 29!)

Finally, I love the book’s “voice.” Special care was taken to write in fresh, clear, easy-to-understand language, and to respectfully not “talk down” to the young reader! The end result is a book that’s not preachy, dry, dusty or boring! When I was writing the book, I imagined the voice of an everyday mom talking with her child, tenderly, lovingly—and with a little bit of humor, too!

What’s the number one question kids ask about God?

Kathryn Slattery: Little ones are very practical and literal-minded, and want to know answers to questions like, “If God is invisible how can I know he’s real?;” “What does Jesus look like?;” and “Will I see my pet in heaven?”

Bigger kids ask bigger questions, such as “Can I believe in God and still believe in science?;” “Is it okay to pray before a test?;” and “Does it matter to God how much time I spend online and watching TV?” I’ll never forget the day one of my fifth grade Sunday school students raised his hand and asked, “Mrs. Slattery, if God is all-powerful and all-loving, why does he allow evil to exist?” Yikes! Talk about a challenging question!

The amazing truth is, big or small, children basically have the same questions about God as grown-ups.

What’s your favorite question in 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids?

Kathryn Slattery: Oh, there are so many, I hardly know where to begin! Let’s see… Here’s a good one: “Is it true that an astronaut celebrated communion on the moon?” You’ll have to open the book and turn to the devotion for September 27 on page 282 to find out!

[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, First Liquid Poured on the Moon and the First Food Eaten There Were Communion Elements]

I also love the question “Is it okay to question and sometimes have doubts about God?” The answer is yes! God loves it when his children ask questions. Questioning God is not unbelief. It’s the sign of a healthy, curious human mind! That’s why I encourage young readers to keep asking God questions. God loves a curious mind and a seeking heart. At one time or another, we’re all like the early believer who cried, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief” (Mark 9:24 NIV)!

How do you answer the question in the book, “What should I do when I think a church service is boring?”

Kathryn Slattery: Oh, I’m so glad you asked! This is a great example of one of the more practical, everyone-experiences-this-sometimes questions. Here’s my answer, including the opening Bible verse, closing prayer, and “Want to know more?” cross-references, which demonstrates how they’re like yummy spiritual potato chips!

(October 9) Help! What Should I Do When I Think a Church Service Is Boring?

Continue to think about the things that are good and worthy of praise.
Philippians 4:8 (ICB)

Everyone gets a little sleepy or bored during church sometimes. It’s not always easy to sit still indoors when outside the sun is shining or to stay awake when you’re sleepy. It’s not always easy to pay attention if the preacher is talking about something hard to understand. Not to worry! Jesus was human, so he experienced times of restlessness, sleepiness, and boredom too. In other words, God understands. Here are a few ideas to help you the next time you find yourself a little bit sleepy or bored during church:

Tell God how you feel, and ask him to help you.

Make a list of all the things you’re thankful for.

Make a list of nice things you might do for other people.

Pray for all the people you love.

God, when my thoughts wander, remind me to ask for your help.

Want to know more? See August 26, “Can God Actually Talk to Me?”; September 1, “What Should I Do When I Can’t Think of What to Pray?”; and November 28, “What Does It Mean to Count My Blessings?”

How should families use 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids?

Kathryn Slattery: I absolutely love the thought of a young reader curled up in a quiet spot, lost in the pages of the book, and with each passing day being increasingly comforted and reassured of God’s reality and love. I also love picturing a mom or dad with a little one snuggled on their lap, reading and praying out loud together to their heavenly Father. With its Q-&-A format, the book is also perfect for family devotions around the kitchen table. You’d be amazed at the lively conversation each day’s devotion can inspire!

Who benefits most from the book?

Kathryn Slattery: Oh, that’s easy! Everyone who has a precious little one in their life will want to share 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids because it’s a book that promises to make a powerful positive difference in that child’s life. By “everyone,” I mean every mom, dad, grandparent, godparent, aunt, uncle, sibling, friend, Sunday school teacher, home schooling parent—everyone!

What is your favorite Bible passage and why?

I absolutely love the 23rd Psalm. Thanks to Bible Gateway, I only recently committed it to memory, and it’s so reassuring, comforting, and hopeful. As I drift off to sleep, I love picturing Jesus, my Good Shepherd, making me lie down in green pastures … leading me beside still waters … guiding me along his chosen paths … his rod and his staff protecting me. “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever” (Psalm 23:6 KJV) Amen! What a beautiful promise!

Bio: Known by millions as a longtime Contributing Editor for Guideposts magazine, Kathryn “Kitty” Slattery has written hundreds of stories of hope and inspiration for a wide variety of publications, including ParentLife, Today’s Christian Woman, and Angels on Earth magazines.

In addition to her latest children’s book, 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids: An “If I Could Ask God Anything” Devotional (Tommy Nelson), she’s the author of My Friend Jesus (Tommy Nelson), If I Could Ask God Anything: Awesome Bible Answers for Curious Kids (Tommy Nelson), Heart Songs: A Family Treasury of True Stories of Hope and Inspiration (Guideposts Inspiring Voices), the memoir Lost & Found: One Daughter’s Story of Amazing Grace (Guideposts Books), Grandma I’ll Miss You: A Child’s Story about Death and New Life (David C. Cook), The Grace To Grow: The Power of Christian Faith in Emotional Healing, A Bright-Shining Place: the Story of a Miracle, and she’s a contributing author to numerous Guideposts anthologies, and TommyNelson.com. Her children’s book The Gospel for Kids (David C. Cook) has more than 100,000 copies in print in nine languages. Kathryn, who is known as “Kitty,” resides in New Hampshire with her husband Tom, and they’re the parents of two grown children. Visit Kitty and learn more about her work at her website, KathrynSlattery.com and her Facebook Author Page, Kathryn “Kitty” Slattery.

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January 14, 2018

Bible News Roundup – Week of January 14, 2018

Jonathan Petersen

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Bill Filed to Require Bible Elective to be Offered in all West Virginia Schools
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Iowa House Bill Would Allow Bible Class in Public Schools
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⇨ Des Moines Register: Bill Would Add ‘Bible Literacy’ Class to Iowa Public Schools
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How the Bible Helps Mike Pence Navigate His Role as USA Vice President
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Mission Cry Reaches Goal of a Bible for Every Home in Belize
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Half of Germans Have a Bible, Only 6% Read It Regularly
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Poll Finds 0% of Icelanders Under 25 Believe Bible Creation Story
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Half of Brits Say They Pray, Including 20 Percent With No Faith
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January 11, 2018

Celebrating Bible Gateway’s 25th Anniversary

Drew Reichard

This year, Bible Gateway is excited to be celebrating its 25th anniversary! Bible Gateway launched a quarter-century ago as a Bible research tool for college students. Today it’s the most visited Christian website in the world—home to more than 200 Bible versions in more than 70 languages and a trusted daily resource for more than 140 million people in more than 200 countries.

As part of that celebration, you can enjoy some new aspects of our site. Share Bible Gateway-related stories and enter our sweepstakes, which will be held throughout the year. You can find out more about that and other new features by exploring the brand new MyBibleGateway page.

As fun as it is for a website like us to look back and realize that we have an internet legacy that has outlived popular fads like Myspace or Napster, Bible Gateway is unique because we’re also part of a much deeper and established legacy. We are grateful and humbled to be a catalyst for spreading God’s Word to his people in a way that is intuitive, up-to-date, and a joy to use.

We are part of that legacy, belonging body and soul to Jesus Christ, just as the first Christians were. Just as Abraham was. Just as David was. Just as we know some of their stories, we want to hear yours. So be sure to visit our MyBibleGateway page and tell us how Bible Gateway has helped you celebrate moments in your life or sustained you in times of crisis or grief.

Bible Gateway, by being a trusted place where Scripture resides, is excited to be a part of a tradition that links us, as to something far older, as well as to something new.

When I think about the unique difficulties that modern-day Christians like us face, I’m keenly aware of our dependence upon digital connectivity. Mobile phones, smart devices, WiFi: there are positive and negative aspects to having that connectivity constantly at our fingertips, but Bible Gateway—a trustworthy companion for reading, understanding, and applying the Bible—is proud to be one of the positive characteristics of an invention as various and as broken as the humans who use it.

From the outset, our mission was to keep the Bible relevant, to infuse it into every part of our lives, into every journey, wherever we found ourselves. If the internet was going to be part of our every single day, we wanted Scripture to be there too.

Twenty-five years ago, who could have known how the prevalence of this digitization would grow. We have it with us now—most of us do—in our pockets and our purses. The internet is where our kids hang out with their friends. It’s one of the first places to which we turn for information and connection. Bible Gateway is there and is a force of God’s voice in that sphere of our lives.

We are excited and proud to be present everywhere you go, and we are dedicated to keeping the Bible in a safe space on a relevant platform. We are here for all your significant moments and all your average days. Bible Gateway can be trusted to continually provide you with the Bible whatever the future brings, and that’s what excites us the most: that we can be an instrument for the Living Word of God to speak to his people in this ubiquitous medium.

January 11, 2018

How to Encounter God When Reading the Bible: An Interview with Tim Chester

Jonathan Petersen

Do we approach the Bible believing that the One who spoke and brought the universe into existence, whose voice thundered from Mount Sinai, and whose words healed the sick is the same God who speaks to us today through Scripture? Are we reading the Bible not merely to learn information about God but to hear his voice and encounter his presence?

Bible Gateway interviewed Tim Chester (@timchestercouk) about his book, Bible Matters: Making Sense of Scripture (InterVarsity Press, 2017).

What do you mean that you regularly read the Bible because you have to?

Tim Chester: It’s important first to say what I don’t mean. I don’t mean we need to read our Bibles because there’s some law that says good Christians read a chapter every day. Reading the Bible doesn’t make us more or less a Christian. We have God’s approval because of the righteousness of Jesus. So why is reading the Bible important? One picture I use is eating. I don’t eat because there’s some law that says I must consume three meals I day. I eat because I get hungry—I need to eat food to live and I love food in all its many different tastes. The same is true of the Bible. I read it reach day because I need God’s word to live and because I love it (or rather because I love him).

What are the ways you describe that God speaks to humans?

Tim Chester: God speaks to us through creation, through history, and ultimately through his Son. The Bible is the Spirit-inspired record of that revelation in Christ. So the Bible—read and preached—is the primary way in which God speaks to us today. And the Bible is the measure by which we understand and test every other form of revelation.

How can the Bible be both a human book and a divine book?

Tim Chester: There’s an element of mystery here. The process was not simply one of dictation. The human authors were not simply writing down what they were told to say in the way Muslim’s claim Mohammad received the Quran. The writers of Old Testament history tell us they drew on other written sources. Luke carefully collected his material. Paul wrote letters full of passion to meet specific needs. Throughout the Bible we see the personality of the human authors in what they wrote. And yet the Bible is clear that every word is inspired by God’s Spirit. The Spirit so worked through the human authors that what they wrote were the words of God. It’s this dual authorship that ensures the Bible really connects with us as readers. It’s a word from God written in human language reflecting human experience. When you think of the huge gulf that exists between the Creator and his creatures, it’s remarkable that God communicates with us so clearly and so intimately.

What portion of the Bible did Jesus have in his day and how did he use it?

Tim Chester: Jesus had what we now call the Old Testament. Of course, he wouldn’t have had a copy on his shelf. There were no printed Bibles, only hand-written scrolls read in the synagogue. But Jesus clearly imbibed what he heard for he often quotes the Old Testament. And he always assumes its authority as God’s word.

At the same time he recognized that he’s the fulfillment of its promises. In the Sermon on the Mount he affirms the Law, but then takes it further—or rather deeper—making it a matter of the heart. On the road to Emmaus he shows how he’s the fulfillment of the Old Testament. This is really important. It’s not just that there are a few messianic prophecies. ‘Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets,’ says Luke 24:27, ‘he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.’ Notice the word ‘all.’ It’s all about Jesus! In Bible Matters I try to show how that works.

What do you mean the Holy Spirit “activates the Bible”?

Tim Chester: God spoke through the Bible 2,000-plus years ago. But God continues to speak through the Bible. This is so important. Too often we can think of the Bible as a kind of encyclopedia of theology. There’s some truth to that because it’s the key foundation of our thinking. But the Bible is much more than this. It’s a relational Bible through which God speaks—present tense—to us. And it’s the Holy Spirit who makes it living and personal to us today.

It’s amazing: the Spirit who was at work in the authors of the Bible to ensure what they wrote was God’s word is the same Spirit who is at work in the readers of the Bible to ensure what they hear is God’s word.

How is the Bible relational?

Tim Chester: The Bible is not just a repository of information. It’s one of the means God uses to relate to us. He speaks and we listen. I think this is so important. It changes how we view the Bible. It becomes a place of intimacy. It becomes words of love spoken by a Father to reassure his children or by a husband to reassure wife.

One of the reasons people are so obsessed with prophecies and words of knowledge is that we have not rightly emphasised the intimate, relational nature of the Bible. People long to hear a personal message from God that’s specific to them, when in fact that’s what they’re hearing every day as they read their Bibles and every week as they hear it preached.

What does the intentionality of the Bible mean for its readers?

Tim Chester: God wrote the Bible to communicate to us and to draw us into a relationship with himself. Think about what that means. If it’s God’s intention to communicate with us, then we can be confident he will.

In other words, God didn’t write in some kind of secret code. The key message of the Bible is plain. That should give us great confidence as we read the Bible.

Sometimes we think of reading the Bible as one-way traffic. We come with the intent of learning something about God and we’re not sure how we’ll get on. But God is also involved when the Bible is read. And God is intent on communicating to us as we read. So we can and should read the Bible with expectation.

Moreover God’s intent is more than simply to communicate. The Bible is a book that gives life, hope, conviction, wisdom, insight, power. It’s one of the key means by which God is at work in his world. And so it must be central to our lives, our churches, and our ministries.

How reliable is the Bible?

Tim Chester: Completely! If God intends to communicate with us, then we can be sure he will succeed. It’s not just that the Bible is an accurate record of God’s revelation in Christ. It is also ‘fit for purpose.’ We can trust it to achieve what God intends: to bring life to the dead, comfort to the weary, challenge to the proud, and so on.

How do you respond to skeptics who say the Bible is full of contradictions?

Tim Chester: There are lots of ways of addressing the specific issues that people have. But I encourage Christians to start by thinking why it is they trust the Bible. Some people may have explored all the manuscript evidence and worked through all the apologetic challenges. If that’s you, then good for you. But most us trust the Bible because we’ve found it to be trustworthy—simple as that. So talk about that with skeptics. Above all, expose people to the Bible itself. Challenge them to read it for themselves. Remember, God wrote it to bring life. Let it do the job.

What do you mean “death and resurrection are how we come to the Bible”?

Tim Chester: To answer this question we need to take a step back and ask what it is that stops us reading the Bible aright. The answer is our sin. In our pride and selfishness we find reasons to justify what we want to do. And we bring this attitude to the Bible, finding ways to avoid its challenge.

So good Bible reading starts with dying to self. We need to set aside our self-will and our self-justification. That requires prayer for the Spirit’s help and it requires reading the Bible in community so our brothers and sisters can challenge us.

The encouraging thing is that the Spirit give us resurrection life. So we can expect to hear God’s voice through the Spirit. The whole Christian life is patterned on the cross and resurrection—dying to self and living the new life we have in Christ. And reading the Bible is not an exception to this pattern.

Why do you love the Bible?

Tim Chester: There are so many ways I could answer that question. But the main one is this: it leads my Savior. In the pages of Scripture I encounter the Lord Jesus. I see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

How do you want readers of your book to be changed?

Tim Chester: My main desire is that readers have a growing sense of living in relationship with the triune God. And that requires seeing the Bible in a fresh way—not simply as a book about God, but as a book in which we meet God. I want people to come to the Bible expecting to hear God’s voice and encounter his presence.

What is a favorite Bible passage of yours and why?

Tim Chester: That’s easy. It’s whatever I’m working on at the moment. I often find that when I preach I do so with the conviction that nothing is more important that the message of the passage we’re looking at. That’s because, as I’ve prepared, the passage has really gripped my heart. So, for the record, that means Isaiah 49 is my favorite passage. But it will be something different next week!

What are your thoughts about Bible Gateway and the Bible Gateway App?

Tim Chester: Again, that’s easy. It’s my go-to online Bible. It’s great for finding verses you can only half-remember. I use it a lot for copying Bible verses into sermon notes or writing projects. But, if I may, I do want to encourage people to read the Bible in book form as their default. A paper Bible gives you a much better sense of context and the evidence suggests people retain more when they read physical books.

Is there anything else you’d like to say?

Tim Chester: In October 2017 we celebrated the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. One of the key drivers and principles of that rediscovery of the gospel was the authority, supremacy, and intimacy of Scripture. There would be no better way to commemorate the Reformation than for us to rediscover for ourselves afresh the authority, supremacy, and intimacy of Scripture in our generation.

Bio: Dr. Tim Chester is the pastor of Grace Church Boroughbridge in North Yorkshire, UK, a faculty member of Crosslands Training, and chair of Keswick Ministries. He is the author of over 40 books, including Bible Matters: Making Sense of Scripture, The Glory of the Cross, You Can Change: God’s Transforming Power for Our Sinful Behavior and Negative Emotions, and Why the Reformation Still Matters. He is married to Helen and has two daughters.

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January 10, 2018

FOMO: A Cunning Weapon of the Enemy and How to Fight Back

Guest Post

By Alli Worthington

I know Eve gets a lot of blame for causing the original sin and all, but let’s take a minute to think about the underlying reasons. Could one of them be Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)?

There she was, just minding her own business, all the while listening to Adam naming every last thing in the garden, having himself a ball, swinging from vines and yelling, “Eve, you have got to do this!” Suddenly, from out of nowhere, up slithers that evil serpent, convincing her she is missing out on something big, something God doesn’t want her to have.

Suddenly, maybe, she felt discontent.

The enemy wields the weapon of discontent through FOMO and it spreads like a virus. Listen to how he convinced Eve that she only “thought” she had it all. Watch how he created FOMO in her, despite her truly perfect life.

Now the serpent was craftier than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ”For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. (Genesis 3:1–6)

See what the enemy did there? He planted the seed of longing in her, a seed of discontent that made Eve certain she was missing out. The enemy robbed Eve of the joy of her present circumstances and convinced her to trade that in for a chance at what she was missing.

Just let that sink in for a moment.

And if that weren’t bad enough, Eve had to bring Adam into her FOMO state of mind. Adam was doing stuff in the garden, wrestling bears, skipping rocks, and, well, I don’t know, other man stuff. He had no idea he was missing out on anything until Eve made him aware of his own FOMO.

I can just imagine the scene in the Garden of Eden.

“Adam, I have the most exciting news. The best thing just happened. You have got to try it!”

Adam probably resisted for a moment, but then I imagine he too was captured by the fear of missing out, and he caved in to the call of FOMO.

Later in the Bible, we read the story of the prodigal son and his equally epic case of FOMO (see Luke 15:11–32). There are not many details given us in Scripture as to why he asked his father for his inheritance, but I like to imagine FOMO had a part in it. He must have felt the world outside his homeland offered something he was missing, and he had to have it at all costs.

Just like Adam and Eve, he had everything: a stable home, a loving father, everything he could possibly want or need there at his fingertips. And just like Adam and Eve, he gave up everything to answer the call of FOMO.

And that’s the way FOMO is. It’s highly contagious. We’ve been catching it from each other ever since. The problem now is we catch it in real time from millions of people!

What happened to Adam and Eve and to the prodigal son is the same thing that happens to many of us. We question, “If we stay here, in this place God has created for us, within the confines and safety of his will, will we be missing out?” Knowing that the enemy uses FOMO to draw us outside of the circle of God’s will is the primary reason we must have a battle plan to fight him. Next time you feel an attack of FOMO coming on, try these steps.

1. Check Yourself

The first step is to check yourself. When you are feeling left out or like you’re missing out on something amazing, ask yourself some version of the following questions:

Do I really want to be there instead of here?
Is that what’s really important right now?
Am I feeling jealous of someone else’s fun or success? Is that really my lane to run in?
How can I stay focused ahead in my own lane?
What do I want that I don’t have right now?
Do I have PMS? (Seriously, I always get FOMO when I’m hormonal.)

Most of the time if we go through the process of asking ourselves the tough questions, even when we are upset and emotional, the answers bring freedom.

2. Name the Underlying Emotions

Some have argued that FOMO is a combination of anxiety and envy. (Ouch, that kind of hurts, doesn’t it? No one likes to think of themselves as being envious.) But when we think about all the different ways in our lives that we feel FOMO, one or both of those two emotions tends to be a root cause. In one instance as I watched my sweet girlfriends have the time of their lives in Las Vegas, I felt both anxiety and envy. My anxiety caused me to question my own sense of security. Was I okay? Was I enough? Was my life good enough? Do my friends really still love me? And in my envy I wished I were doing all the things they were doing in that moment. I wanted to go spend a lot of money in the spa, eat fancy dinners, and go see all those shows. But I have five kids, a mortgage, tuition, and lots of sets of braces. Recognizing our ugly emotions like anxiety and envy, then naming them and claiming them (even when they’re uncomfortable), actually helps us move past the very short-lived fear of missing out.

3. Switch Your FOMO into JOMO

“Turn off your phone, go be with the family you adore, and do what you actually love to do.” I had become so focused on what my friends were doing I was neglecting my family at home. Instead of enjoying what was right in front of me, the people I loved most in the world, I was wasting my time, ruining my own happiness. And Megan was right to call me out on it and tell me not to post anything on Instagram. We can’t try to stage joy for shallow validation from people out in social media land; instead, we have to find joy with the people who share our homes and hold our hearts. The way not to buy into the fear of missing out is by opening our eyes to what surrounds us right now, finding the magic in our lives, because often it’s hidden in plain sight. When we see what is wonderful around us we can change our FOMO into JOMO: the Joy of Missing Out.

4. Do Happy Now

This is one of my favorites. Do happy now means going for the quick win. Do something you love immediately: go for a walk, snuggle your kids (or your nieces and nephews), watch your favorite movie on Netflix, love on your pets, read a good book, or do whatever it is you do that always puts a smile on your face.

Just a word of caution on this one, though. Don’t give in to negative ways of alleviating your FOMO, strategies like retail therapy (no matter how great you’ll look in those shoes) or overindulging in your favorite foods or certain beverages. Those things might make you happy in the moment, but down the road, they will be much worse for you than the worst case of FOMO.

The great news about FOMO is it is temporary. When you are in the middle of a FOMO attack, going for the quick win, the fun distraction, or even a quick cuddle from someone you love will usually be enough to let those FOMO storm clouds pass on by.

5. Reframe your thoughts

There is a very cool technique that therapists use called reframing. Essentially it means we take our thoughts or situations and look at them with a new lens, or put them in new frame. When we feel sad, we frame all situations negatively. Our thoughts are more negative.

When we feel angry, we frame things in an angry way. The secret is taking a step back and looking at our thoughts and reactions to see if we can reframe them.

After talking with someone about my friends in Vegas, I realized all the negative thoughts were playing in a loop and making everything look bad. I happened to have a hair elastic around my wrist, so I decided that for the rest of the weekend, every time I found myself brooding or blaming, I’d snap that hair elastic. It wasn’t hard enough to hurt, but it did serve as a silly reminder.

It was so silly, so simple, and amazingly it did make me aware of how often the negative thoughts were dragging me down. Just being aware helped me remember to let out a little “help me, Jesus” prayer, take my thoughts captive, reframe them, and direct my energy back to my family.

Reframing thoughts is a cool trick for battling FOMO. For example, instead of thinking of my friends in Vegas having fun without me and feeling sorry for myself with thoughts like this: Must be nice to go to Vegas and have all that fun. I’ll just be here cleaning the rug, I reframed it to: I chose not to go to Vegas because when I’m there, I don’t like it there. I’m home with the family I love.

6. Stay Focused on Jesus

Five years ago, I wouldn’t have included this section on staying focused on Jesus to battle FOMO. I would’ve found it too trite, too easy, too Sunday school lesson-ish. But as I’ve grown, and walked with Jesus a little longer, I see now that if I’m focused on him, he helps me squash the feelings of envy with gratefulness, his acceptance replaces my feelings of rejection, and his presence fills up my loneliness.

It is only by keeping focused on him and trusting his plans for me that I can silence and defeat the work of the enemy and his tool: FOMO.

Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1). His command is so clear, so simple—“Do not worry, believe in God, and believe in me.”

He makes our paths straight; he guides us along still waters; he restores our soul; he knew us before we were born; he sees our lives from beginning to end; and he alone determines our destiny.

He’s teaching me that if I’m meant to do something, or I’m meant to have something, or if I’m meant to be included in something, I will be. Where he wants me is where I’ll be.

Because I know he holds the future, I don’t have to fear that I am missing out. On anything.

________

Adapted from Fierce Faith: A Woman’s Guide to Fighting Fear, Wrestling Worry, and Overcoming Anxiety by Alli Worthington. Click here to learn more about this title.

Sometimes Jesus’s call to “fear not” seems like the hardest instruction to follow.

Some days you faultlessly juggle everything that is your life—kids, husband, house, job, church, friendships, school, pets, appointments, and on and on. Other days the very thought of which ball you’re going to drop puts your anxiety level through the roof. You’re afraid you’re forgetting something. And you are: God’s advice to fear not.

Alli Worthington knows all about the ways a woman can be hard on herself. She shares her own fear struggles with humor and honesty—while offering real strategies for coping with life’s big worries as well as those little everyday worries.

Alli uses biblical wisdom and practical insight to help you:

Identify fear-based thinking.
Overcome the big and little worries in life.
Learn a simple trick to stop the anxiety spiral.
Live a more confident, less worried life.

Grab a cup of coffee and sit down for some encouragement from a friend. Alli’s no-nonsense, wise advice will lighten your heart and help you cut through the daily clutter of fear and worry to reconnect with your own fierce faith.

Alli Worthington helps people be successful in life and business. She is an advisor, speaker, and the Executive Director of Propel Women. As an executive and entrepreneurial coach, Alli helps individuals, small business owners, and Fortune 500 companies be more successful. Alli’s no-nonsense, guilt-free take on motherhood, parenting, and balance has led to appearances on The Today Show and Good Morning America. She lives outside Nashville with her husband, Mark, their five sons, and a pampered rescued dog. You can connect with Alli at AlliWorthington.com.

January 10, 2018

How to Live The Bible — Guilt and Shame in Everyday Life

Mel Lawrenz

This is the tenth lesson in author and pastor Mel Lawrenz’ How to Live the Bible series. If you know someone or a group who would like to follow along on this journey through Scripture, they can get more info and sign up to receive these essays via email here.

Though all people are created with conscience—the ability to sense the difference between right and wrong, or good, better, and best—it is possible to become so hard-hearted that it seems one does not even have a conscience.

Man praying with Bible illustration

Conscience is part of the hard wiring of human beings created in God’s image. Romans 2 says that all people have consciences and inner thoughts that sometimes accuse, sometimes excuse. Some people are plagued with a sense of supposed guilt, of active shame. But there are people who have so closed themselves to the voice of conscience that they function as amoral creatures. In an extreme case, the sociopath shows absolutely no regard for other people, indifferent to suffering, which they themselves may inflict, perhaps because he or she suffered severely at the hands of someone else. Human beings can have “seared” consciences. Hard hearts. Corrupted minds.

This is why we desperately need consciences that are active and healthy and balanced. This is part of the foundation of Christian faith. 1 Peter 3:21 calls baptism “an appeal to God for a good conscience.” Hebrews 10:22 says “let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” Hebrews 9:14 says that the blood of Christ, his sacrificial death, is what can “purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.”

But like everything else about us, the conscience is fallible. It is possible to have a “weak conscience” (1 Cor. 8:7, 10). The conscience can be “defiled” (Titus 1:5). Worse, it can be “seared” (1 Tim. 4:2), meaning that all its sensitivity is deadened.

So the question is, how can this God-given inner moral responsiveness be protected and refined?

If one of your car’s warning lights comes on, you would do well not to ignore it. Instead, you have a mechanic check it out, who may tell you it is a good thing you heeded the warning because your radiator has a leak, or your engine has burned up most of its oil, or your brake line is clogged. But it is also possible the mechanic will tell you that everything is fine, and that the warning light was malfunctioning.

This is the way it is with conscience. When we are deeply troubled, when our minds are troubled about something we did or said, when our stomachs are twisted in knots, we need to work the issue and figure out whether or not we are guilty, and what needs to happen for rectitude. What matters is figuring out whether we, by objective standards, are guilty, not merely whether we feel guilty, or ashamed. This distinction is frequently forgotten today: being guilty versus feeling guilty; the objective versus the subjective.

If we are guilty of something, it is appropriate that we feel guilty or ashamed of what we did. (More on this in Overcoming Guilt and Shame by Daniel Green and Mel Lawrenz.)

Conscience is a God-given moral sensitivity that sometimes delivers a sense of being right, and at other times of being wrong. The question then becomes: is the voice of conscience, right here, right now, delivering an accurate message?

Many people suffer from an overly-sensitive conscience which troubles them unnecessarily. Some people really suffer with this. They have been put to shame by important people in their lives for long stretches of time. They have perpetually troubled hearts. They have a hard time resting in the forgiveness of God. They may take Christian faith as a whole system of shame imposed on them. They may feel as though they need to live under restrictions that are not necessary (which is approximately what Paul meant by the “weak conscience” of some in 1 Corinthians 8).

The young Martin Luther was like this. He said he labored under “an extremely disturbed conscience” that was misplaced and exaggerated. After he discovered the real meaning of the gospel of grace his conscience was liberated. And he would need it. Years later he would stand before the most powerful leaders of his day who were demanding that he recant what he had written about the grace and truth found in Christ. But his conscience would not let him take back what he had written. His famous words before an emperor and other powerful men still echo today:

“Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Holy Scriptures or by evident reason–for I can believe neither pope nor councils alone, as it is clear that they have erred repeatedly and contradicted themselves—I consider myself convicted by the testimony of Holy Scripture, which is my basis; my conscience is captive to the Word of God. Thus I cannot and will not recant, because acting against one’s conscience is neither safe nor sound. God help me. Amen.”

Some see in Luther’s brave stand the exemplar of modern man, asserting personal conscience above all other people or leaders or institutions. But that misses Luther’s main point. He said his conscience was “captive to the Word of God,” not that his conscience was its own lord and master.

It is not good to be tortured by an overly-sensitive conscience. And it is disastrous to hurt others because we have “seared” consciences. Living the Bible means one’s conscience is submitted to God’s word in the fullness of its grace and truth. This will happen when we read Scripture without bias or preference—regularly, thoughtfully, intelligently—asking the Spirit of God to shape us from the inside out.

Find forgiveness, find freedom, find restored conscience…

[If you believe this series will be helpful, this is the perfect time to forward this to a friend, a group, or a congregation, and tell them they too may sign up for the weekly emails here]

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