More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
Read between
May 3 - May 20, 2023
I saw that Christianity wasn’t just about me—my faith, my study, my growth, my self—but was ultimately about God. It seems like such a basic conclusion, but it was profound in the moment.
true spiritual depth and a life of eternal impact cannot happen apart from the Holy Spirit and God’s Word, what we see transforming the first believers—people marked by their desire for God, hungry hearts, and love for one another (Acts 2:42-47).
We need more than “pink fluff” theology of out-of-context Bible verses, compliments to our personalities that never challenge us to grow, and topical messages about womanhood and identity. We are tired of the Bible being watered down and made palatable. We need and want truth, because only truth will set us free.
The problem of shallow Christian teaching pervades women’s conferences, retreats, ministries, and devotional books. We have heard the same message time and time again—a message meant to empower us to live better lives. Yet no matter how many times we hear it, change evades us. If this message is so powerful, why haven’t our lives, marriages, and experiences of motherhood changed for the better? Why does the Christian life still feel so heavy if Jesus promised His burden was light (Matthew 11:30)?
the gospel is simply this: the whole story of Christ’s work to save us.
Being told we’re beautiful in God’s eyes is a surface response to a soul-deep problem. That problem is our own sinfulness. Sinfulness isn’t a word we like to attribute to ourselves. It’s uncomfortable and ugly. We’d much rather talk about God’s love for us—and that’s what many female writers and teachers do. But when we ignore the impact of sin on our own natures, we can’t comprehend the greatness of God’s love.
God doesn’t love us because you and I deserved it. He loves us in spite of ourselves. We are so sinful, so unable to bridge the gap between ourselves and a holy God, that He sent His Son to die on our behalf.
The gospel is good news because it gives hope to the hopeless. It lifts us out of perpetual defeat and offers us a way home. A message divorced from the complete gospel, a message of love and beauty without Jesus’s sacrifice, can never bring lasting change. The gospel is the specific solution to our specific problem with sin, however it manifests in our lives.
The first problem is that Christian women are being taught a message that is theologically deficient. Theology has a simple definition: the study of God.
Second, the message we’re hearing is self-focused. Flawed theology always turns attention away from God and onto ourselves, and that’s exactly what has happened with women’s ministry today. The messages preached to us almost inevitably focus on…us. While it might seem logical that if we focus on ourselves more, we’ll change ourselves for the better, that’s not how discipleship works. Turning our eyes to Jesus is how we are transformed. Change comes by His power, not ours.
the modern messages preached to women through books and media lack depth. In an effort to provide relevant, relatable content to Christian women, we’ve watered down the gospel. The resulting content leaves women grasping for something more.
Women must be spiritually equipped with the knowledge of God through His Word so they can minister to the people around them. This requires participating in a depth of study to which many women aren’t accustomed. Such education requires more spiritually mature women to disciple their weaker sisters. We must recognize that cute Instagram quotes, isolated Bible verses, and 15-minute quiet times are not the sum of the Christian life, but that we are called to a deep, consistent relationship with God and to teach that relationship to the people around us.
The beauty-centric gospel is responsible for creating a generation of female Christians who know little about what they believe or how those beliefs should play out on a daily basis.
we must cultivate a holy curiosity. Holy means set apart, sacred, and dedicated to God. Curiosity is a strong desire to know and learn. A holy curiosity, then, refers to a mind that strongly desires to know and learn about God. A mind like this doesn’t happen by accident. It is cultivated day by day. The Holy Spirit grows and nurtures this desire as we faithfully expose ourselves to Him through Scripture, godly community, and solid teaching
desire for God is an elusive thing. Some days we long to know God with great fervor. Other days we fall asleep on our Bibles. If we base our pursuit of God only on our feelings, we’ll never be consistent. Desire is a necessary part of deepening our relationship with the Lord, but it’s not possible in our own strength. We need transformed desires and hearts reflective of His.
We think that if we can just discover who we are in Christ, we’ll finally change. But the more we know ourselves, the more failure we see. God-defined beauty and our purpose in God’s kingdom are not to be ignored. Personality tests like the Enneagram and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator can help us learn how to better communicate and address our weaknesses. But reading more about ourselves won’t show us how to go deeper with God, because we’re not focusing on the one who matters. We’re still focusing on ourselves. Going deeper spiritually requires a shift of focus. We must turn our eyes away
...more
We cannot expect to experience relationship with someone whose company we never seek. God is a pursuer, but He will not force you to choose Him. If you want to have a deeper relationship with the Lord, He offers you every opportunity, but you must be the one to take it.
in order to become like Jesus, we must diligently seek Jesus. That’s how sanctification works.
We don’t go deeper with God by reflecting more on ourselves, or even by reading God’s Word to look for insight about ourselves. Roots of spiritual growth develop as we seek God for who He is and allow Him to do the transforming work in our hearts that we can never do on our own. He is the one who plants the desire to seek Him. He is the one who meets us when we apply diligence in faith.
I’ve learned that going deeper with God isn’t about where you meet Him or when; it’s about showing up.
By letting go of the idea that there is an ideal quiet time, we allow ourselves the freedom to know God through His Word in the toughest of seasons.
But despite what our Western minds prefer, God insists on our involvement in Christian community. We are called to vulnerability, transparency, and the sharing of our burdens. Without this, we cannot grow as believers.
We can’t draw near if we don’t open our Bibles and read them ourselves, if we don’t put ourselves into godly community, and if we don’t receive discipleship and accountability. We live abundantly when we regularly expose ourselves to the work and Spirit of God. When we do, the things that used to bore us take on the color of abundant life.
