Walk Through Fire {Book Review}

October 15, 2015 By: Angela Parlin

“Life changes in an instant.”

~Joan Didion, The Year of Magical Thinking

I’ve never walked through fire.

But I know how it feels to answer the phone and have your life change instantly through an unexpected tragedy.

On a day when he was scheduled to be off work in August of 1999, David Bowers walked through the doors of the industrial gas plant where he worked. He planned to be there for a short time, just to get some extra work done.

He came back through those doors later that day, facing a 125 percent mortality rate, with 94 percent of his body severely burned in a plant explosion.

Walk Through Fire, by Carly & David Bowers, tells the inspirational story of this couple and their two small children, whose comfortable lives were turned upside down through David’s sudden and life-altering accident.

One of my favorite parts of this book is that they tell the story, chapter by chapter, from both his and her perspectives. They take us with them into the hours and days just after the accident, so that we experience their story through the eyes of the injured and the one desperate to see him through.

In the hospital’s burn unit, their days could be summarized, “Pray. Hope. Wait. Repeat.” (page 70)

Along the way, David amazed doctors with better-than-expected recovery, but he also faced numerous surgeries, various infections, and many other challenges along the way.

After four long months in the burn unit, David was moved to a rehab hospital, where both of them faced the reality that their lives would never be the same.

When David was able to move back home again, they were incredibly grateful for how far God had brought them. But they also dealt with intense fears and anxieties, and their children needed help navigating a new way of life.

In those desperate times, they began to discover the truth of Nehemiah 8:10~For the joy of the Lord is your strength.

On the one-year anniversary of the accident, they opened their doors and threw a big party, to celebrate David’s life and recovery. The tradition stuck, and they’ve celebrated every year since.

David and Carly knew they could easily get lost in the misery of this tragedy and fix their eyes on all they had lost. Instead, they chose to get busy living, to find joy and hope in the Lord.

“I’ve learned, through fire of the body and struggles of the soul, that God goes before me. And He will always prepare my way.” (David Bowers, page 257)

They made a deliberate choice, to believe in a God who brings light into the darkest places.

This book will encourage and inspire you, and I highly recommend it. If you or someone you love have been through a life-changing hardship, please let David and Carly encourage you with their hopeful perspective, as they share their story of growing stronger in faith through this adversity.

Click here to find out more about Walk Through Fire, and to receive the first chapter in your inbox for free!

Purchase Walk Through Fire on Amazon.com.

*Subscribe to the right to receive weekly posts in your inbox. I’d be honored! Thank you, Angela

What Does it Mean to Ignore Such a Great Salvation?

October 13, 2015 By: Angela Parlin

Pay the most careful attention to the gospel, so that you do not drift away.

As I wrote last week, this warning came to Jewish believers, who were tempted to return to the religion and rituals of their culture.

In the previous chapter, the writer reminds us of Jesus’ position as God’s Son–that He made and owns the world, sustains all things, is the representation and radiance of God, provides purification from sin, and is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven.

In view of these truths about Jesus, our best response is to highly esteem Christ and His gospel.

Esteem Christ, who is superior to the prophets and angels, Christ who is superior to the Law of Moses. (See post on Hebrews 1–Jesus, Where Are You?)

Why, then, was the Law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The Law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator. Galatians 3:19

The Law was given to make people aware of sin. But the Law was only a shadow of something better to come. The promised Seed, Jesus Christ, is that Something Better. Jesus is the superior One who we hold in the highest regard, whose offer of salvation we must never ignore.

For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, How shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? Hebrews 2:2-3a

The “message spoken through angels” refers to the Law of Moses, which demanded to be taken seriously. Hebrews 10 tells that anyone who rejected the Law died without mercy.

Since Jesus is greater than the Law, how much more seriously we should take His words? How much more should we act on them?

What does it mean to ignore so great a salvation?

After all, this passage is not speaking to unbelievers, but to believers. This question is not about rejecting Christ for salvation–it’s about neglecting to abide in Jesus Christ, to walk with Him each day.

To ignore such a great salvation is to neglect or make light of it. It’s to stay wrapped up in our own lives, and to make little room for the Lord. It could be simply staying too busy to spend time with Him.

When we neglect to meet with Jesus in prayer, and we choose to live our lives without the input of His Word, we are ignoring such a great salvation.

In Matthew 22, a king prepares a great wedding feast for his son, and his servants invite the guests to come.

But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. (verse 5)

They refused to stop what they were doing. They were too busy, and so they ignored the opportunity. Others were invited instead. Others were willing to come. What a sobering story.

May it never be the way we treat the gospel. May it never be the way we treat King Jesus.

And yet, haven’t we all at some time?

Let us abide in Christ and make room for His Word, so that we esteem Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives.

I’d love for you to join me on this journey…Subscribe in the box to the right, and you’ll never miss a new post! Thanks, Angela

Kingdom Treasure

October 8, 2015 By: Angela Parlin

What do you desire?

It may be the most important question you’ll ever answer.

Before you respond with the answer you think you should say, give it some thought. Resist the temptation to use the fast-pass. Let these questions help you get to the heart of what you desire most.

What makes you happy?
What is it you crave, that you’re sure would make you happier?
What do you worry about?
What are you afraid of?
Where do you run for comfort?
What do you fear losing, or fear never attaining?
What would you never want to live without?

Jesus spoke about treasure in the book of Matthew. He told a mini-parable, comparing the kingdom of heaven to a treasure.

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” (Matthew 13:44, NIV)

Many people think Jesus makes the point that we should treasure the kingdom of heaven so much, that we’d give up everything in order to gain it.

While most of us would agree, that finding the kingdom of heaven is like finding treasure, we struggle with the part about giving up everything.

Let’s be honest, don’t you want to believe Jesus wants you to have it all—and Him too? Yet this parable shows us something different.

In his Joy he went and sold all he had and bought that field.

Clearly, the man saw something wonderful there. He found joy in the treasure.

We, too have found joy in God’s Presence. But like our mothers used to say, we “want to have our cake and eat it, too.”

We’ve turned our eyes upon Jesus–but for many of us, the things of this earth have not yet grown dim.

We know He’s the only One who satisfies–yet we look to other people and things and involvements and accomplishments and pleasures–to fill our souls.

We need to bring it all to Jesus–to offer Him our worries, dreams, fears, and desires–and then ask Him to BE our greatest desire.

Even so, there’s another interpretation of this parable. It changes the whole conversation.

What if the man in the story who found the treasure is Jesus?

He sold all He had to save the world. With joy, He gave up everything, to reconcile us to God.

But the story didn’t end there.

He endured the cross, with joy, so we could taste and see His goodness. He bought the field, to make us His family.

He gave up all, in order to open wide the door and let us enter. And then everything He owns becomes our own.

If the man in the story is Jesus, that means WE are the treasure.

And the world grows dim. Does it not?

May the world remain behind us, and the cross before.

*Be sure to check out the Life Passionately blog (click here), where my words are featured today. There you will find the beautiful My Life Day Planner, to help you organize your life while keeping you grounded in God’s Word. My friend, Carley, is the amazing artist behind this project, and her heart is to bring Jesus into our daily lives, keeping God at the forefront of our minds. You won’t want to miss her lovely work!

**Also linking up with Suzie Eller at #livefreeThursday today, with the prompt: this is me. Because I am His treasure, this IS me. In Him, I see more clearly who I really am. I hope the same for you!

Always, feel free to share these words, and don’t forget to subscribe to receive these updates each week! Thank you for coming along!

Don’t Drift Away

October 6, 2015 By: Angela Parlin

On my birthday this last summer, my family blessed me with the gift of making the day all about whatever I wanted.

Talk about a Mom’s wildest dream! 🙂

We were staying at my favorite place, the North Carolina beach where the sun first kissed my skin and stole my heart and ate up weekends when it was only the two of us and two first real jobs.

It was the perfect day. There was running and music and my favorite people, warm sunshine and a light breeze, and all six of us jumping restless waves with screams and laughter.

We were headed back to the sand, and I was chatting away like I was already standing, stable on the shore.

My husband turned around and saw the giant wave coming over my head, but it was too late for a proper warning. It swallowed me, for a moment. It swept me right off my feet, while I carried on without a clue.

When I came up drenched and gasping, I had no idea I was missing something.

“Weren’t you wearing sunglasses a minute ago?” My husband asked.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t wearing the cheap backup pair that day. In which the ocean ate my sunglasses–happy birthday to me. 🙂

All of us looked for the frames, but they had clearly drifted away, never to be recovered.

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. Hebrews 2:1

I think that’s one of the saddest phrases in the Bible. Drift away. So that we do not drift away.

It tells me that’s a possibility, people knowing Christ yet drifting away. Maybe they didn’t hear the warning. Maybe they heard, but they didn’t listen to it. Maybe they didn’t even realize they were slipping away.

Hebrews gives this warning–to pay the most careful attention–to Jewish believers, those who had heard the gospel and believed. Though they had tasted of heaven, some of them still drifted back to what was familiar. Though they embraced Jesus Christ as Messiah, they were going back to the old rituals, the old religion, the old sacrifices in the temple.

Everybody was doing those things, it seemed, living there in the shadows, stuck in the customs of their culture and trying to earn their way to God.

So this warning came, to listen carefully to the truth. The word therefore points back to the why, to the message of Hebrews 1, which I wrote about last week.

Because Jesus sits in the place of highest honor, at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. (Hebrews 1:7) Because Jesus is higher than the angels, higher than the prophets.

Therefore, pay attention, because you’re in danger of drifting away.

My friends, drifting away is easy. It happens quickly, naturally, even without realization. Paying attention is the hard part. Paying attention requires effort and awareness. It’s listening, but it’s also obeying, even though obedience to God’s Word is counter-cultural.

I want to encourage you to hold fast to the truth.

Jesus is the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him.

Jesus is the Bread of Life, the Light of the world, the Good Shepherd and the Gate, the Resurrection and the Life, the True Vine.

Are you anchored in the superiority of Jesus? Do you hold Jesus above all else in your life?

Or could you be floating with the world’s current, drifting away like sunglasses swallowed by a wave, unaware?

Hold Him fast.

~Angela

*Please subscribe to this blog in the box to the right, if you’d like to receive new posts in your email inbox. And always feel welcome to share any posts that encourage you!

Jesus, Where Are You? {#RaRaLinkup}

September 29, 2015 By: Angela Parlin

Sometimes, life leaves us wondering, Jesus? Where are you?

Sometimes trials last year after year, and we don’t see how God works good things through those hard places.

So often, we need a reminder of who Jesus is and what He’s done and what He’s still doing for His loved ones.

The book of Hebrews begins by telling us that God speaks through Jesus to the world.

Previously, God spoke to the prophets, the Old Testament writers. He revealed Himself to them, with divinely inspired revelation, but that revelation was incomplete. He also spoke to people through angels. The original audience for this book, the Jews, had highest regard for the ministry of angels.

But now, God wants us to know, He has spoken in a far superior way.

God has spoken to the world through the person of Jesus Christ, His Son, who is greater than prophets and angels.

Hebrews 1 offers 7 awesome descriptions of Jesus Christ:

He is Heir of all things. He owns the world.
He made the universe.
He is the radiance of God’s glory. As the sun’s brilliance cannot be separated from the sun itself, so Jesus’ glory is also God’s glory. (NIV Study Bible)
He’s the exact representation of God’s being. Jesus is not just a reflection of God. He is God!
He sustains all things by His powerful word. In the beginning was the Word, John chapter 1 says about Jesus. Jesus holds everything together, sustaining the world with His powerful word (Colossians 1:17).
He provided purification for our sins. Through His death on the cross, He provided the payment, to fully redeem us.
He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

The right hand of God is the position of highest honor and limitless power. It symbolizes privilege, power, dominion, and authority.

We know from God’s Word where Jesus is. We don’t ever need to wonder.

Jesus is in the position of honor, at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven, actively ruling with God as Lord of all.

It’s interesting that it says “Jesus sits,” isn’t it? You don’t sit down unless your work is done. Jesus sits to symbolize that His work is complete. He has already paid the greatest cost to rescue us, and His work is complete.

Hebrews 1 continues to explain Jesus’ superiority to angels, quoting 7 Old Testament scriptures which show Jesus as God’s Son and the One whom even angels worship.

Angels may be fascinating to us, but they are simply God’s servants, His messengers, “sent to serve those who will inherit salvation.” They’re not rulers. They are beings God created to help carry out His plans for His people.

But the point of this chapter is not angels at all. The point is Jesus.

When our lives leave us wondering, Jesus, where are you?, we only need to be still in His presence and remember the truth.

Having completed His work for us, Jesus sits at the Majesty’s Right Hand in heaven, sustaining the world with His powerful word.

I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my Right Hand, I will not be shaken. Psalm 16:8

Hello to all my blogging friends who are here to join the #RaRaLinkup today…I look forward to reading your words this week!

I invite you to SUBSCRIBE to my blog by entering your email address in the Subscribe Box to the right! Thank you for joining me!

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“Life changes in an instant.”

He came back through those doors later that day, facing a 125 percent mortality rate, with 94 percent of his body severely burned in a plant explosion.

In the hospital’s burn unit, their days could be summarized, “Pray. Hope. Wait. Repeat.” (page 70)

In those desperate times, they began to discover the truth of Nehemiah 8:10~For the joy of the Lord is your strength.

They made a deliberate choice, to believe in a God who brings light into the darkest places.

*Subscribe to the right to receive weekly posts in your inbox. I’d be honored! Thank you, Angela

Share this:

Like this:

Pay the most careful attention to the gospel, so that you do not drift away.

In view of these truths about Jesus, our best response is to highly esteem Christ and His gospel.

For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, How shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? Hebrews 2:2-3a

What does it mean to ignore so great a salvation?

To ignore such a great salvation is to neglect or make light of it. It’s to stay wrapped up in our own lives, and to make little room for the Lord. It could be simply staying too busy to spend time with Him.

But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. (verse 5)

Let us abide in Christ and make room for His Word, so that we esteem Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives.

I’d love for you to join me on this journey…Subscribe in the box to the right, and you’ll never miss a new post! Thanks, Angela

Share this:

Like this:

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” (Matthew 13:44, NIV)

We’ve turned our eyes upon Jesus–but for many of us, the things of this earth have not yet grown dim.

We need to bring it all to Jesus–to offer Him our worries, dreams, fears, and desires–and then ask Him to BE our greatest desire.

What if the man in the story who found the treasure is Jesus?

If the man in the story is Jesus, that means WE are the treasure.

Share this:

Like this:

On my birthday this last summer, my family blessed me with the gift of making the day all about whatever I wanted.

When I came up drenched and gasping, I had no idea I was missing something.

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. Hebrews 2:1

Because Jesus sits in the place of highest honor, at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. (Hebrews 1:7) Because Jesus is higher than the angels, higher than the prophets.

Therefore, pay attention, because you’re in danger of drifting away.

I want to encourage you to hold fast to the truth.

Share this:

Like this:

Sometimes, life leaves us wondering, Jesus? Where are you?

God has spoken to the world through the person of Jesus Christ, His Son, who is greater than prophets and angels.

The right hand of God is the position of highest honor and limitless power. It symbolizes privilege, power, dominion, and authority.

Jesus is in the position of honor, at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven, actively ruling with God as Lord of all.

But the point of this chapter is not angels at all. The point is Jesus.

Having completed His work for us, Jesus sits at the Majesty’s Right Hand in heaven, sustaining the world with His powerful word.

I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my Right Hand, I will not be shaken. Psalm 16:8

I invite you to SUBSCRIBE to my blog by entering your email address in the Subscribe Box to the right! Thank you for joining me!

Share this:

Like this:

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