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This is the two-hundred-thirteenth 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.
“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.” Ephesians 1:18-19
By Bunmi Laditan
If you’re reading this, it’s probably because you’re a parent, a grandparent, an uncle, an aunt, a caregiver in these wild and crazy times. And you need a little (or maybe a lot of) extra help.
Raising and pouring love into a child is an amazing calling. But let’s be honest: it’s also incredibly difficult.
Caring for children stretches our patience, fries our brains, and zaps us of our energy, but we wake up and do it over and over again because, well, they’re ours and we love them.
Before I became a believer in Jesus, I dealt with the stress in every possible way except prayer. I’d binge-watch TV series looking for escape, indulge in glass after glass of wine trying to numb my brain, climb to the pinnacle of my career, thinking money and the approval (envy) of others would give me fulfillment. But I found none of what I sought.
Americans who consistently read and apply the Bible report greater levels of hope and resilience, according to American Bible Society’s 12th annual State of the Bible report. The study shows that those who interact on a regular basis with the God of the Bible see their lives change for the better. Overall scores of Human Flourishing have risen to or exceeded the pre-pandemic levels.
[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, Scripture Engagement is Healthy for You]
The Human Flourishing Index was developed at Harvard University’s T. H. Chan School of Public Health focusing on six areas of human life:
The first five categories are combined to attain the Human Flourishing Index score on a scale of 1 to 10. When financial stability is added to the mix, a separate Secure Flourishing score is created.
[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, Don’t Merely Read the Bible—Engage With the Bible!]
Students of the Bible shouldn’t be surprised by these findings. The principle of character growth through hardship resounds through Scripture. “For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow” (James 1:3 NLT). Jesus also promoted a particular sense of material stability when he said, “Do not be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn’t life worth more than food?” (Matthew 6:25 GNT). In fact, biblical principles connect well with a number of the Human Flourishing domains.
By Henri Nouwen
Healing begins with our taking our pain out of its diabolic isolation and seeing that whatever we suffer, we suffer it in communion with all of humanity, and yes, all of creation. In so doing, we become participants in the great battle against the powers of darkness. Our little lives participate in something larger.
We are called to grieve our losses. It seems paradoxical, but healing and dancing begin with looking squarely at what causes us pain. We face the secret losses that have paralyzed us and kept us imprisoned in denial or shame or guilt. We do not nurse the illusion that we can hopscotch our way through difficulties. For by trying to hide parts of our story from God’s eye and our own consciousness, we become judges of our own past. We limit divine mercy to our human fears. Our efforts to disconnect ourselves from our own suffering end up disconnecting our suffering from God’s suffering for us. The way out of our loss and hurt is in and through. When Jesus said, “For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners” (Matthew 9:13), he affirmed that only those who can face their wounded condition can be available for healing and enter a new way of living.
Read this week’s Bible Gateway Weekly Brief newsletter
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⇨ FaithGateway Store
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Get biblically wise and spiritually fit. Become a member of Bible Gateway Plus. Try it right now during a FREE trial period!
This is the two-hundred-twelfth 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.
“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.” Ephesians 1:18-19
By Scott Sauls
Regret from the past dies hard for us. The one whom the Bible calls “the accuser” throws it in our faces, keeping memories about the worst things we’ve done so alive that in our minds, they start to define us.
“I said something mean” becomes “I am mean.”
“I did something ugly” becomes “I am ugly.”
“I made a big mistake” becomes “I am a big mistake.”
Guilt (the regrettable things we have done) can so easily turn into toxic shame (the regrettable worms that we are) as we appraise our own worth. The interplay between guilt and toxic shame becomes, for some of us, a distinction without a difference.
The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible (Zondervan) (website), first published in 1908, is one of the oldest and most widely used study Bibles available today. Since its first publication, it has been refined and expanded upon several times to create a robust, single-volume library of Bible study tools.
The TCR stands apart from other study Bibles in that it doesn’t include verse-by-verse commentary. Instead, it combines a 100,000-entry topical chain-reference system with an extensive topical index that connects over 8,000 topics. This system allows Scripture to interpret Scripture, making it an excellent, unbiased study Bible for anyone in any denomination.
[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, Thompson Chain-Reference Bible Updated and On Bible Gateway Plus]
The Thompson® Chain-Reference® Bible is one of the more than 50 Bible study references conveniently available to members of Bible Gateway Plus. Learn how you can try it right now!
In this article we’ll discuss the Thompson chain-reference system, indexes, and some of its main study tools, and explore how they work together to create a one-of-a-kind study system that’s as easy to use as it is in-depth.
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