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If We Are Lacking Love, We Are Lacking Everything.

July 11, 2026 / / 0 Comments

Wesley Mendes

“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.” –1 Corinthians 13:1-3

Throughout the Bible, God’s Word speaks about the posture of our hearts. Whether you’ve been a Christian for a long time or are just beginning your walk, it’s important to reflect on the condition of your heart and intentions. We must ask ourselves before we step into our responsibilities or our ministries, if any; before we use our God-given gifts or talents, this one vital question:

Am I walking in love?

The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3: “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal…”

Think about what Paul is saying.

You can preach powerful sermons. You can sing beautifully. You can pray passionately. You can serve faithfully every week. You can even operate in incredible spiritual gifts.

But if love isn’t the foundation…

It’s just noise.

Paul goes even further. He says that you could understand the deepest mysteries of God. You could possess faith strong enough to move mountains. You could give away everything you own to help the poor. You could spend your entire life serving others.

Yet without love…

“I am nothing.”

“I gain nothing.”

Those are very sobering words.

Love isn’t an accessory to the Christian life—it is the very evidence of Christ living within us.

Everything we do should be anchored in the love of God because everything God does flows from who He is. Love Itself. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. “–1 John 4:7-8

God doesn’t simply show love.

God is love.

So if our service isn’t anchored in love, it isn’t anchored in Christ.

Jesus illustrated this beautifully in Matthew 18:23-35 through the parable of the unforgiving servant: “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded. “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’ “But he refused. Instead, he had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went to their master to tell him everything. “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger, his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he should pay back all he owed. “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

A servant owed a debt so enormous he could never repay it. Yet instead of receiving the punishment he deserved, his master forgave the entire debt. Entirely. Freely. But that same servant walked out, found someone who owed him a tiny fraction by comparison, grabbed him by the throat, and demanded repayment without mercy.

Jesus’ point is unmistakable.

How can someone who has received unimaginable mercy refuse to extend mercy?

How can someone who has been loved so extravagantly refuse to love others?

The truth is…

God loved us when we were at our worst.

God forgave a debt we could never repay.

God showed mercy when justice was what we deserved.

Today, He gives us the privilege of representing Him.

What an incredible responsibility.

We must first examine our hearts, asking ourselves: “Are we showing up in life with the same love that Christ first showed us?” Whether it’s at home, at work, or at school, our goal is to reveal Jesus.

Being a Christian was never meant to be a performance. “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.” –Matthew 15:8-9

As Christians, we’re meant to pour from our overflow; what’s already inside of us.

From the overflow of the grace we’ve received.

The mercy we’ve experienced.

The overflow of love that rescued us.

Your every act of service, in all you do, be rooted in this one simple truth …

You have been loved beyond measure. Now, go love others in the same way.

If this speaks to your heart today and you realize you’ve been lacking the love Christ has called you to live out, don’t let that discourage you—let it draw you closer to Him. Ask God to strengthen your heart. Ask Him to reveal the places where you’ve become impatient, unforgiving, judgmental, or simply indifferent. Invite the Holy Spirit to transform you so that when opportunities arise to show mercy, grace, compassion, and love, your response reflects the very heart of Christ.

Remember, demonstrating the love of Christ isn’t about trying harder in your own strength. It’s about allowing God’s love to change you so deeply that loving others becomes the natural overflow from what Jesus has already done in you.

And if you’ve never accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, today can be the day that changes everything. The Bible assures us: “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” –Romans 10:9-10

Jesus is the Son of God. He lived the perfect life we could never live, died on the cross for our sins, and three days later rose from the grave, defeating sin and death so that we could have eternal life.

Today, you can come to Him by faith, praying: “Jesus, I believe You are the Son of God. I believe You died for my sins and rose again on the third day. I repent of my sin, and I ask You to forgive me. Come into my life, be the Lord of my heart, and help me follow You all the days of my life. Thank You for loving me, saving me, and making me new.” If you prayed that prayer with a sincere heart, welcome to the family of God. Your journey with Jesus has just begun, and He will continue to shape you into someone who reflects His love more and more each day.

Who? Me, Lord…? Yes, You!

June 20, 2026 /

MaryEllen Montville

“And the Lord said to him, ‘But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” And he said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me.” –Judges 6:16-17

Before Gideon had offered up a single word of protest to God, one single, “I’m not qualified,” in God’s Divine Providence, the Midianites were defeated foes; still, God used Gideon to accomplish this. Likewise, God uses you and me today to do the same, fulfill His will. “So shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth: it shall not return to Me void [without producing any effect, useless], but it shall accomplish that which I please and purpose, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” —Isaiah 55:11

Have you ever had a Gideonesque conversation with God?

Have you ever told the Creator of the universe—the One Scripture says, formed you in your mother’s womb and knows your every thought before you even think it, what it is you are or are not, capable of doing, being, or becoming? Shamefully, I have! Yet I now recognize the futility of ever having had such a conversation after its being held up to the Truth of God’s Word: “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.” –Psalm 139:1-4

Yet that’s precisely what had happened with Gideon…

God had appeared to Gideon while he was threshing wheat in a wine press; threshing wheat where grapes, typically, are pressed to make wine because one: Gideon was hiding, and two: Gideon was afraid. From whom and of what? Gideon was hiding from the Midianites, who were attacking Israel at that time and stealing their food stores.

Gideon hid in the winepress to thresh wheat out of fear he’d be seen threshing by the Midianites, and they would come to steal his remaining wheat. These few details are a whole teaching in themselves, but they’re for another day, maybe a part two to this teaching?

What we’ll focus on today is that part of Gideon’s story where God appears to him, calling Gideon what he did not—could not—see in himself.

Only God knew who Gideon would become, because God Himself had foreordained Gideon’s life, imbuing it with a perfect purpose and plan—and that wasn’t to hide out in some winepress. It’s this part of Gideon’s story I felt led to focus on today. “And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” –Judges 6:11

Like Gideon, I believe some of you have heard God calling you by a name you also don’t yet recognize. “And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” –Judges 6:12

Who? Me, Lord…? Yes, you!

God is asking you to step out in faith, beloved, into a new season you feel woefully unprepared for—totally ill-equipped and wholly unqualified to take on, if you’re being honest. Like Gideon, you keep asking God for a sign that it’s really Him who is asking this of you. Him who’s put this desire in your heart. “Then Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said.” –Judges 6:36-37

Despite all your questioning, beloved, hear this: it’s already here. Remember, in God’s Providence, the Midianites were defeated before God called Gideon to do battle with them, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” –Matthew 6:10

So this new name is commensurate with the calling God has placed on you—remember, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and, so as He did with Gideon, God calls each of us according to how He sees us, which, typically, is not how we see ourselves. “For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].” –Ephesians 2:10

Before you know it, you too will be walking into God’s next for your life, whether that’s a brand-new relationship with Jesus or into the new thing Jesus has placed on your heart to do. Then, I pray, your questioning and self-doubt will become little more than a memory. Because if God planted that God-sized vision, desire, or calling on your life, then God will bring it to pass.

Remember, friend, “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken and will He not make it good and fulfill it?” –Numbers 23:19.

What God has predestined for your life and mine, beloved, what He calls us—who we are, right now, but can’t yet see in ourselves, will come to pass. “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” –Psalm 43:19

Still, you hand God every excuse for why He’s gotten it all wrong, how what He is calling you to do is simply impossible; you’re not alone, Gideon made that same mistake. Maybe you’re thinking, “Surely God’s forgotten my past! What I’ve done, who I’ve been—how I’ve failed Him?”

Maybe you feel weak as water, in character or faith?

So, out of fear or shame, you make excuses—you hide, but God will always find you out, beloved! “Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” And Gideon said to him, “Please, my Lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” –Judges 6:11-15

Friends, God’s Word is filled with stories such as Gideon’s.

Accounts of people much like you and me, ordinary people doing ordinary things, and then God showed up and transformed their ordinary into the extraordinary; events and the feats we read about throughout His Inerrant Word. Think of Noah, Father Abraham, Elijah, Esther, or the Apostle Paul. So it’s here then, I’ll remind you, the one hiding out today, or you, who’s feeling inept, inadequate, the very least of His children—that nowhere in God’s Word do we witness God call a person to do anything He did not fully equip them to do. “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” –Philippians 2:13

You’re right to feel the way you do, beloved, because the Truth is, apart from God, you and I are indeed woefully inept, completely ill-equipped. But with God, in the power of His Might, you and I can and will do all that He has foreordained us to do. “In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides].” –Ephesians 6:10

Have you asked Jesus, this same God who once called Gideon, a man who felt unworthy of the call God had on his life, to come into yours? To give you a new beginning in Him. If you will, and you mean it sincerely, Jesus will come and make you a new creation; old ways will pass away, and Jesus will make all things in your life new again. God promises: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” Ezekiel 36:26

Condemnation vs. Conviction: Is the Cross Really Enough?

June 13, 2026 /

Wesley Mendes

“There is therefore now condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” — Romans 8:1

Many believers faithfully attend church, worship passionately, serve consistently, and genuinely love Jesus, yet still carry a weight Christ never intended them to bear; living under a cloud of guilt, shame, and condemnation. Every time they stumble, every time they battle the same temptation, every time they fall short, they begin to believe the lies of Satan:

“God must be disappointed in me.”

“I’m not good enough.”

“Maybe I’ve failed too many times.”

“Maybe I’m too broken for God to use.”

If we’re honest, most of us Christians have wrestled with these thoughts at some point in our walk. The problem is, these thoughts do not come from Jesus…

Jesus’ Gospel is not built upon your perfection. It is built upon His perfection.

The Cross is enough.

Jesus’ Blood is enough.

Jesus was and is more than enough.

This does not mean sin is acceptable. By no means!!! It does not mean we stop pursuing holiness, but it does mean that our failures do not have the final word because Jesus already has. One of the greatest tricks of the enemy is convincing believers that conviction and condemnation are the same thing. Which they are not. Condemnation says:

“You failed, so you are worthless.”

“God is finished with you.”

“Hide from God.”

“You’ll never change.”

“You are your sin.”

Condemnation drives people away from God. It produces shame, fear, and hopelessness.

Conviction, however, sounds different. Conviction says:

“This path is hurting you.”

“Come back to Me.”

“Repent because I love you.”

“You are called higher.”

“Your identity is still Mine.”

Conviction draws us closer to God. It reveals sin while simultaneously reminding us that God’s grace is available.

The enemy wants us trapped in shame. The Holy Spirit wants us restored in love. When Jesus went to the Cross, He didn’t partially forgive sin, leaving some for us to carry. He didn’t say, “I’ll cover everything except the mistakes you keep repeating.” Jesus forgave our every sin: past, present, and future. All of them. Scripture tells us in Colossians 2:14, “Christ canceled the record of debt that stood against us and nailed it to the cross.”

Think about that…

The accusations, failures, guilt, regrets, and shame that once stood against us were nailed to the Cross with Jesus. So why do so many believers continue carrying what Christ already carried?

Many Christians repent but continue punishing themselves. They ask God for forgiveness but continue living condemned. They worship on Sunday while secretly believing God is angry with them. But if the Blood of Jesus is powerful enough to save you, it is powerful enough to restore you.

Peter’s Failure Didn’t Disqualify Him

Peter provides one of the clearest examples of God’s restoring grace. Peter loved Jesus deeply. Yet he repeatedly struggled with fear and inconsistency. He stepped out of the boat in faith but, afraid, began to sink. He boldly declared that he would never abandon Jesus, only to deny Him three times before the crucifixion. Peter’s failure was public, painful, and undeniable.

Yet after the resurrection, Jesus did not condemn Peter.

Jesus didn’t ask him:

“Why did you fail Me?”

“How could you betray Me?”

“What makes you think I can trust you again?”

Instead, Jesus asked a different question:

“Do you love Me?” Jesus restored what shame tried to destroy.

Even before Peter failed, Jesus told him, in Luke 22:32, “When you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” Notice Jesus didn’t say “if.” He said, “When.” Jesus knew Peter would fail, yet He still chose him. That’s grace.

God’s pattern of patience:

Peter wasn’t the only person in Scripture who struggled repeatedly. Moses battled anger and frustration. Samson repeatedly compromised and gave in to temptation. Jonah continually resisted God’s calling. The Israelites complained, doubted, and rebelled, even after witnessing God’s miracles.

Yet throughout Scripture, we see the same pattern.

God corrected them.

God disciplined them.

God taught them.

But God did not abandon them!

These stories do not excuse sin. They reveal the incredible patience and mercy of God. God does not say, “Keep sinning, it doesn’t matter.” But neither does He say, “One more failure and I’m done with you.” A loving Father convicts, corrects, restores, and continues calling His children forward. One of the greatest battles believers face is identity. Many people define themselves by their struggles. They say:

“I’m an addict.”

“I’m an angry person.”

“I’m a failure.”

“I’m damaged.”

“I’m too far gone.”

But Scripture says something different. Second Corinthians 5:17 declares, “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” Your struggle is not your identity. Your worst moment is not your identity. Your past is not your identity.

Your identity is found in Christ.

Our enemy constantly reminds us of who we were. God continually reminds you of whose you are. When you understand your identity as a redeemed child of God, you begin to fight from a place of victory rather than for acceptance. Some people become uncomfortable when grace is emphasized because they fear it will encourage people to sin.

But TRUE grace does just the opposite.

Grace does not say, “Sin doesn’t matter.” Grace says, “You no longer have to remain enslaved to sin.” Real grace changes the heart. Love transforms a person from the inside out. People who understand grace don’t want to run toward sin. They want to run toward Jesus.

The more we understand His mercy, the more we desire to honor Jesus with our lives.

Conviction changes behavior through our relationship with Jesus. Condemnation attempts to change behavior through fear. Only one leads to lasting transformation. When Jesus cried out, “It is finished,” He meant exactly what He said.

Your salvation was not left unfinished.

Your freedom was not left incomplete.

Your forgiveness was not left partial.

The Cross settled it.

You do not earn God’s love.

You do not earn grace.

You do not earn salvation.

You receive them by faith in Jesus Christ.

Because of the Cross:

You are loved.

Mercy is available.

Grace is greater.

Your failure is not final.

The enemy wants believers trapped in shame because shame keeps people hiding. But God calls His children into the light. There is a difference between conviction and condemnation. One brings you back to the Father. The other drives you away from Him. So if you belong to Christ, stop carrying what Jesus already carried. Stop living as though the Cross wasn’t enough. Stop allowing shame to speak louder than God’s promises. Romans 8:1 still stands today: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Notice it doesn’t say there’s less condemnation; it says no condemnation.

If you’re struggling with feelings of condemnation, invite Jesus into your heart as your Savior. Jesus promises to take that burden from you. “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed.” –Luke 4:18

God’s Pause

May 30, 2026 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Before a young woman’s turn came to go in to King Xerxes, she had to complete twelve months of beauty treatments prescribed for the women, six months with oil of myrrh and six with perfumes and cosmetics.” –Esther 2:12

It was in this place where God hit the pause button on Esther’s life—not forever, but for a time. A pause is only for a set time. Never forget that, beloved, especially when it starts to feel like forever. God’s pause is that space between calling and its fulfillment. That time —however long, God uses to prepare us for His next…

Are you there?

Does it feel as if God has hit the pause button on that hope He placed in your heart? That vision of your “next,” He shared with you?

Are you looking around, wondering if God somehow forgot you?

When God hits pause on your life, it can feel isolating—you start questioning yourself: “Did I truly hear from God?”

If you don’t guard your heart in this place, silent as the grave, often. Still, like trees before a storm, heavy feeling, even, not light and freeing as you’d expect, Satan will have access to that open door he needs in convincing you that God has abandoned you; that the silence, this lack of movement, the stillness, it’s all proof that what you’re feeling is real: “God has no further use for me.”

You’re there, aren’t you?

In the pause? That Holy tension…

Holy Spirit will not let you escape it, no matter how hard you fight Him—not that you want to, fight Him, that is. You just want something to happen. Some sign from God that He hasn’t forgotten what He promised. Hasn’t forgotten you.

Because that’s what it feels like right now, and the weight of those feelings is making your knees buckle. Because sometimes believing for something so big is bigger than your “right now” faith. That’s when God, being Lovingkindness and infinite mercy Himself, creates a pause…

You’re no longer where you’ve been, looking around you, that much is obvious.

Still, you’re certainly nowhere near where God is taking you, the Holy Spirit keeps confirming that much…

You’re in that place where nothing but everything seems to be happening all at once. You just can’t seem to pull all the threads together just yet, so the picture of the completed tapestry is just there, out of view—still, something is happening.

God used a pause in Esther’s story to prepare her.

Again, Loving Father, He is, Jesus knows our frame; what and how much we can withstand before the weight of His intended blessing breaks us instead. “For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust” –Psalm 103:14. So God lavishes His gifts of time and His personal attention upon us—ensuring every detail, each person required, friend or foe, every lesson and element needed to fully prepare us to thrive under the full weight of His blessing, is brought together at just the right time, in just the right place to be used with meticulous precision.

Still, how Jesus prepares each of His children for what He has for us varies according to His plan for our lives. “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” –2 Corinthians 1:21-22

Take Joseph, for instance; there were no spa treatments in Joseph’s story.

Instead, his time of preparation included a pit and prison, betrayal and lies.

Father Abrahams’s pause meant leaving home and family behind and heading off to somewhere known only to God, with no map in hand. His only directions were God’s go and His promise. “The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Go from your country, your people, and your father’s household to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth. I will be blessed through you.” –Genesis 12:1-3

What about Noah? People thought he was a complete loon!

Building something no one had ever heard of to be prepared for something no one had ever seen. Rain? What’s that! And all because the unseen God he served, the God with the yet unknown name, said to. “And God said to Noah, ‘I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make yourself an ark of gopher wood. And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female. Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.” –Genesis 6:13-14;19;22.

Then there’s the man Jesus chose to be His forerunner.

Who goes around munching on locusts and wild honey? Who does that! Yet John faithfully traversed the wilderness wearing clothes made of animal skins and, to anyone who would listen, screamed aloud about a Kingdom yet to come: they needed to repent and be baptized; the Messiah was coming—man judges by outward appearance, for God, it’s all about the heart. “In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'” John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.” –Matthew 3:1-5

My point: the list of those servants who have experienced God’s pause—His deafening silence and seemingly fluid relationship with time —can all be found between the covers of your Bible; your experience with God’s pause is not unique, beloved. From Genesis to Revelation, God’s pause button has been obvious—if we have eyes to see it. Actually, it’s in Genesis, if you read with the eyes of the Spirit, where you’ll find an instance, maybe a first, where God chose to hit His pause button. It’s where He sheds the blood of innocent animals to cover over Adam and Eve’s nakedness, their sin. “And the LORD God made clothing from animal skins for Adam and his wife.” –Genesis 3:21

“For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.” –Leviticus 17:11

It would take some 40 centuries, yes, centuries, before God took His finger off that particular pause button. Still, He had prepared the perfect time and place, had selected the absolute right, not perfect, people: friends, and foes, needed to introduce His Perfect Lamb to this world.

So you see, beloved, God has not forgotten you.

He’s just hit pause because to Him, our character matters more than our comfort—some of us get spa treatments, others, pits and prison. Why? God, our Loving Master Potter, is doing what He alone knows is best for each of us. He is preparing you —preparing us all —to be received; not by any earthly king but by our King, Jesus—and that kind of preparation takes time, His, not yours. “But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?'” Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?” –Romans 9:20-21

Do you know Jesus Friend? He not only knows you, but He loves you. What if the fact that you’re reading this today isn’t an accident? What if, instead, it’s God saying the pause is over? That today is the day Jesus has chosen for you to follow Him, to be His. “For he says, ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” –2 Corinthians 6:2

But I Didn’t Mean To…

May 16, 2026 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Then the Lord’s anger was aroused against Uzzah, and he struck him dead because he had laid his hand on the Ark. So Uzzah died there in the presence of God.” –1 Chronicles 13:10

What had Uzzah done so wrong that God would kill him on the spot? At first read, it’s hard to understand why God would have done this. More so, I believe, if you have an intimate relationship with Jesus, whom you know to be Love itself. Hard, that is, if you’ve let slip your mind the fact that this same, Loving Jesus hates sin and is just. That He is to be revered as the Majestic Glory He is. Exalted as Creator of all things, seen and unseen. Awed, being the only Person who ever said, “Let there be,” and there was; from solar systems to ants to acorns, each was birthed into existence simply because Jesus willed it. Jesus is Lovingkindness Itself, and He’s just; they’re inseparable.

Thus, God has the inherent right to do whatsoever He will with His children and His creations.” But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? ‘Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, Why did you make me like this?’ Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?” –Romans 9:20-21

Yes, Jesus freely lavishes grace upon us; still, He abhors sin.

We’ve all fallen short, friends. We sin.

We’re guilty of forgetting how worthy Jesus is of our utmost respect, obedience, and reverence. Do we forget intentionally?

I certainly hope not—otherwise, we ought to question if we’re truly saved…

But what if unintentionality and familiarity are what make us and Uzzah akin in our sin of forgetfulness?

We did it. We committed the sin; we’re definitely guilty, but we didn’t mean to.

To even begin to wrap our heads around why God killed Uzzah for what some earthly parents may have forgiven, we must be open to witnessing God’s Love for us through the lens of His Holiness—which is inextricably linked to His justice; they’re inseparable—we cannot pull them apart.

We can’t choose one but not the other as though it belongs in the enemy camp.

God’s Holiness and His justice are kin—

Scripture proves it to us…

Hand in hand with John 3:16, God’s Love and justice, His Holiness, are perfectly displayed in Romans 5:8-9. “But God demonstrates his own Love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!”

God’s Love and justice are foundational elements of His salvation:

His justice demands that sin be punished, atonement be made, and moral order be kept—punishment is a judicial requirement. While His Love is beneficent: Love spares, forgives, defends, covers, protects, blesses, goes to bat for, if you will. And nowhere in Scripture do we witness a greater example of the conjunctivity between God’s justice, Holiness, and Love than at the Cross of Christ.

There, the jurisdictional requirements God demands be kept that justice be served, and moral order maintained were met when Jesus’ Perfect Love willingly offered His sinless life in exchange for our sin-filled lives; satisfying God’s demand for justice, all the while sparing humanity through His perfect atonement. Hence, protecting us from the wrath of God, which our sins so justly deserve. “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” –Romans 6:23

Now you might be saying, okay, with you so far, but how does all of what you laid out connect to God killing Uzzah?

Regarding Uzzah specifically, he and his clan had been chosen by God to carry the Ark of God using specified carrying poles—the Ark should never have been placed on a common cart. In addition, Uzzah was not a priest; he was a Levite, meaning he had no business touching Holy things. This included his reaching out to steady the Ark of God—however well-intentioned he was. God had forewarned His people that anyone who did such a thing would die. “When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all its furniture, as the camp sets out, after all that [is done, but not before], the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them [using the poles], so that they do not touch the holy things, and die. These are the things in the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle) which the sons of Kohath are to carry.” –Numbers 4:15

The Levites (Uzzah’s tribe) had hosted the Ark of God for two years. Had Uzzah’s proximity to God’s Presence inadvertently allowed him to become too comfortable being around God? Had he forgotten the great honor which had been bestowed upon him—forgetting then God’s Holiness? Maybe, his sheer proximity to the very Presence of God had bred a certain irreverence in Uzzah unawares?

Here, brothers and sisters, is where you and I have far more in common with Uzzah than we’d care to admit.

We, too, forget—however unintentionally—that we serve a Holy God, and that His Commandments, those “guardrails” He’s lovingly put in place to protect us, aren’t suggestions, they’re commands that, when broken, bring consequences.

Perhaps, like Uzzah, we’ve gotten so “familiar” with Jesus that we’ve forgotten—I forget, because God knows, ashamedly, I’m guilty—just how Holy our God is.

Maybe because we live within a culture—even some church cultures, sadly—that stresses “God is Love” and He is, but fails to teach and remind us that, because God is Love Itself, it doesn’t mean He’s quit being just and moral. God hates sin.

The fact that Jesus is a friend who sticks closer than a brother doesn’t change that.

Will we see Uzzah in eternity? I believe so.

God seemingly used Uzzah, as He did Pharaoh, as He can with anyone He so chooses, as a vessel through which He displayed Divine retribution and instilled Godly fear in His people. “So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills”. –Romans 9:18. God reminds us to keep Holy what is Holy —God also, according to His Word, knows the heart and secret thoughts of all men—Uzzah’s included. “For He says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whomever I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I have compassion.’ So then God’s choice is not dependent on human will, nor on human effort [the totality of human striving], but on God who shows mercy [to whomever He chooses—it is His sovereign gift]. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “I raised you up for this very purpose, to display My power in [dealing with] you, and so that My name would be proclaimed in all the earth.” So then, He has mercy on whom He wills (chooses), and He hardens [the heart of] whom He wills.” –Romans 9:15-18

Uzzah stood on the very ground God used to teach His people the ultimate lesson on the importance of obedience and keeping Holy things—Holy; of not forgetting His Word or the laws He had already given them—those guardrails given to protect them from His judgment and His wrath.

So, is it possible that the ground where God struck Uzzah dead was a place of foreshadowing, pointing us towards that place where Jesus’s finished work would, one day, appease God’s wrath—that ground where heaven met earth, where every Blood-bought believer is grateful exists—I know I certainly am. “But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.” –Galatians 4:4-5

Some may find this teaching hard, perhaps questioning why I didn’t just skip to the part where God’s love for Uzzah saves him.

My reply is simply this: I must be obedient to share with you what God places on my heart, to not shrink back because it may be hard for some to take in—I leave God to touch your minds and hearts as only He can. As for me, I will say as Paul did: “For I never shrank or kept back or fell short from declaring to you the whole purpose and plan and counsel of God.”

God loves you, friend, and He wants a relationship with you. He’s made a way to have that with you through His Son, Jesus. Have you accepted Jesus ‘ unfathomable free gift of salvation? If not, ask Him to come into your heart today—mean it, and He will. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.” –Romans 5:8-9

I Am, Life.

April 4, 2026 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” –John 11:25-26

There are times Martha gets a bad rap.

But not today!

Martha has become known for her busyness—always doing something while her sister, Mary, was commended by Jesus, for choosing what is best—stillness at His feet; drinking in every Word that spills from His lips.“But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” –Luke 10:41-43

Today, Jesus makes clear, however, despite Martha’s busy schedule and diligent attention to her everyday chores, she has not neglected to hold fast to what He has shared with her.

I pray Jesus’ acknowledgment of Martha’s heart, love, and belief in Him, in the midst of her busy life, despite all that still needed to get done, encourages that busy mom or pastor’s wife, Jesus knows your heart as well. He sees that sister, brother, mother, or daughter who stretches themself daily in service to others, desiring to meet their needs, all the while praying silently to their Lord for just five minutes of quiet so they too might pour their full attention at Jesus’ feet.

Now, before running to get her sister, Mary, Martha ended her conversation with Jesus by assuring Him of her faith in Him. That she knew—despite her pain, even in the midst of her chore-filled, others need me, every day life—that she could never forget Jesus is who He claimed to be, and that He could and would do all He had promised. “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.” –John 11:27

So on this Resurrection Eve, I felt led to spotlight what Martha knew rather than her busyness. Martha knew her Lord. “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”

Dear ones, you may be in the midst of a “Martha” season, still, hold tight to your “Mary” heart…

It’s Resurrection Sunday, tomorrow! Hallelujah!

For the Christian, it’s a day like no other; not even Christmas, as glorious, celebratory, and meaningful to us as it is. Why? Resurrection Sunday reminds Christians of the living hope we possess because Jesus defeated death and the grave—once, for all. And that all who believe on God’s Son, have life eternal in Him. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” –1 Peter 1:3.

No other god, so-called, has defeated death and the grave, having been raised from the dead. Buddha, Muhammad, even Krishna, to name but three; their remains, still in their graves—but not Jesus’! Jesus’ resurrection from the grave assures the believer that where He is, we will be—He has promised us: “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” –John 14:3.

 With this eternal Truth in mind, please pause here a moment to ask and answer that same question Jesus once asked of Martha: “Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?

 Everyone alive must answer, friend.

If not now, a day is coming, soon and very soon, when each man will.

God’s Word assures of this—believe it, or not.

“For this reason also [because He obeyed and so completely humbled Himself], God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow [in submission], of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess and openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord (sovereign God), to the glory of God the Father.” –Philippians 2:9-11

Now I didn’t ask you to answer Jesus’ question to scare or intimidate you, quite the opposite. I asked it out of love. Hopeful that Jesus is your Lord and Savior—that you do have a loving, intimate, Life-giving relationship with Him, and have, with a pure heart, said, as Martha did, “Yes, Lord,” she told him. “I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.” –John 11:27

I ask those also, who have yet to decide their answer, to search their hearts now and ask themselves, “Who is Jesus to me?” As you do, please use God’s beautiful Truth below to help guide your decision. Understanding what Jesus did for you, specifically, is deeply personal, and your answer will inevitably determine your eternal destiny.

“When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.” –Romans 5:6-11

Because Jesus was Martha’s Lord and Savior, she had a deeply personal relationship with Him and understood this Truth.

I pray you do, or will, before this day draws to a close…

God sent Jesus into this world to pay your sin debt—and mine—a debt we could never pay—Jesus didn’t come to condemn you, friend, but to save you! The guiltless sacrificed in place of the guilty. Jesus took your place on that Cross He was savagely nailed to and died on. All that you might have eternal life. “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” –John 3:17.

Put simply, Jesus came into this world to ensure you be given the opportunity—along with every man—to answer for yourself the question He once posed to Martha. “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?

Martha believed, and she is with Jesus today, where she’ll be for eternity.

How about you?

Do you believe?

You must choose, friends, because not choosing is a choice.

Heaven or hell—that’s all there is.

I’m praying you choose heaven.

God’s Word promises you can and will have eternal life with Christ if, like Martha, you genuinely believe that Jesus is who He has claimed to be and will do all He promised to do. Read His promise for yourself. “If you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes [in Christ as Savior] resulting in his justification [that is, being made righteous—being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God]; and with the mouth he acknowledges and confesses [his faith openly], resulting in and confirming [his] salvation.” —Romans 10:9-10

It’s Resurrection Sunday, tomorrow, Hallelujah!

I pray you experience a true Resurrection miracle: being set free from the grip from the kingdom of darkness, sin, and death; being born again into new Life with Jesus; and getting to meet Martha!

Take A Stand.

March 21, 2026 /

Elda Othello-Wrightington

Life can feel like we are in the midst of a war—sometimes a battlefield—and we often don’t even know what we are fighting or how to fight it. Sometimes the fight is within us; other times, it’s outside ourselves. Outside of our control. I find that war from within can be one of the hardest to fight at times. Especially the war that happens in the mind. But the bible tells us to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.

In 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, it reads, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.”

In this season, the word “stronghold” has stood out as I navigate life and pray for others.

So, what are strongholds? This AI definition struck me. It reads: “In the Bible, a stronghold refers to deeply ingrained, deceptive thought patterns, lies, or sinful habits that hold a person captive and oppose God’s truth, often built from past experiences like trauma or rejection, acting as mental fortresses that block spiritual growth and obedience to Christ.”

When something is ingrained, it has deep roots.

And guess what: a person is held captive by these roots and sometimes doesn’t even realize it. I’ve learned over the years that only God’s Truth can untangle the lies one finds themselves in. As a counselor, the bigger question I find myself asking God is, “Then how do I help others break free from strongholds if they can’t see them and are so entangled in them?”

Wrestling with this question has been such a challenge for me, as one of my own loved ones is stuck in their own mental fortress as a result of past traumas and feelings of rejection. Dealing with that can feel debilitating at times because I all I want to do is help them, but I know I am not God (neither do I want to be God), and I know that they also must want to be helped!

They have to submit themselves, wanting to be free, via surrender to God, but what if they can’t see?

So I went back to the bible…

How do we help them break such strongholds?

Well, because they’re supernatural, helping break them must be done through the Holy Spirit.

You cannot fight supernatural strongholds in the flesh.

As Ephesians 6 says, we do not war according to the flesh, but through the weapons the Lord has given us. Those supernatural weapons are found in Ephesians 6:10-18: “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”

We need to STAND for that person via intercession.

I recently learned that intercession is likened to travail or labor. It has a feminine bent in that women push during labor, not that men can’t or don’t experience such; they do.

During labor, women push not just with their own strength, but with some form of supernatural strength. I have no children, but I do know what it means to labor. It’s hard work standing in the gap for someone else’s breakthrough. What is essential to stand is how the Word of God tells us to do it: But Stand in “His strength” and not in your own. Stand with God’s armor, and His armor entails: TRUTH, knowing what God says, it’s His Truth that will set the person free, and you too, in whatever situation you are in.

Standing in Truth means declaring the Word of God in prayer.

Stand in righteousness, which means being in right standing with God; possessing Godly character, not perfection, but His character, because feeling frustrated is a very real thing, and those feelings of frustration will try to bubble up.

But the next verse tells us to stand in peace, knowing the Lord will fight this battle. And that He’s ready to pour out His peace on the one struggling with the stronghold, even when it feels hard for them to receive it.

“We walk by faith and not by sight” – 2 Corinthians 5:7.

Standing in faith can be hard sometimes, especially when it’s so much easier to see things with natural eyes than with supernatural eyes. Scripture encourages us, “I will lift my eyes to the Hills from where comes my help, my help comes from the lord” –Psalm 121:1-2.

We have to keep our eyes focused on God, not on how the person is presenting.

We have to keep our eyes on the Lord to “Stand still, and know that we will see His Salvation” – Exodus 14:13 – and that is often the hardest part. But stand, with the Sword of the Spirit in hand, which is the word of God. Hold on to His Word and His promises as you do.

And lastly, stand by praying always, whether you fully understand what’s happening or not.

Don’t give up on praying. God hears the cries of his saints. The Word of God says, “the effectual fervent prayers of the righteous shall avail; it shall come forth.” –James 5:16. The Lord is fighting your battle; you are not fighting alone.

All you need to do is take a STAND.

You may have read this teaching through, yet may never have given your heart to the Lord. Today is your day! John 3:16 says: “God so loved the world that whoever shall believe in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” Friend, make the decision today and by faith, take a stand; know and be assured that the Lord is in your midst. He will fight your battles.

No Greater Assurance.

March 14, 2026 /

MaryEllen Montville

“And I assure you that the time is coming, indeed it’s here now, when the dead will hear my voice—the voice of the Son of God. And those who listen will live.” –John 5:25

Assurance, as defined by the world, in this case, by Oxford Languages: a positive declaration intended to give confidence; a promise; confidence or certainty in one’s own abilities.

Assurance, as defined in Acts 17:31, by the Living God: “He has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

Let me ask you, is a declaration of assurance given by a man, a mayor, president, king, or statesman, even the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence, actual assurance?

Does such a promise made by any of these alleviate your fears?

Do you rest at night trusting that a man can fulfill, to the utmost, every promise he’s made regarding your safety and well-being?

Before you answer, stop and think about the current state of this world, I mean globally, not just your little corner of it.

Take a moment now and call to mind, if you can, all the promises you’ve heard recently from presidents, statesmen, and kings of countries; mere men, each one, educated men, certainly. Experienced, we certainly hope so. Well-intended? Call me naïve, but yes, I do believe that most men who seek to lead others start out well-intentioned, wanting the best for those who have put their trust in them and aiming to do their best for them.

Yet, at the end of the day, I have learned that the best of men are, at best, just men, and being created beings, will always fall short of their highest and best intentions; I know I am most certainly guilty of this.

But there is One who has never broken a promise—not a single one. “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?” –Numbers 23:19

One who assures us, present tense, that He will do all and everything He has spoken, fulfilling every promise He’s made from the beginning of time, before time, more accurately, to this very day. “For no word from God will ever fail.” –Luke 1:37

Jesus has never failed—not once, because what He says He has heard from His Father, El Elyon, God Most High, Creator of us all and of things seen and unseen. “For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.” –John 12:49

And everything He does is in perfect alignment with the Father’s will. “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.” –John 6:38.

This same Jesus, Christ the Lord, who can do all things but fail, says this. “There is a judge for the one who rejects Me and does not receive My words: The word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. I have not spoken on My own, but the Father who sent Me has commanded Me what to say and how to say it. And I know that His command leads to eternal life. So I speak exactly what the Father has told Me to say.” –John 12:48-50

At any time, any man can assure you of anything, friends, this much we know; it’s the way of the world. The question, then, is not whether someone can assure you, but whether they can put legs under their assurance. Which brings up a thought: do you trust men in the same way you trust the chairs you sit on? An action, like other actions, people do without much thought. You sit automatically, yet seldom, if ever, do you question or give thought to the stability of the chair you’re quite literally placing the full weight of your trust on—

Here’s my point, friends. If you watch the news, even briefly, or glance at the headlines of most newspapers, or follow online threads, you can’t have missed that this world is changing 2 fast and 2 furious, for all you action movie buffs, except this is no movie, it’s real life. Your life.

I’m curious: who are you trusting to keep you, your family, your children, and loved ones safe from harm?

Now, before you answer or say that what you see happening elsewhere in the world will never happen to you, not here in good ole’ US of A, think again, because it can.

Hear me now. I pray earnestly that such hardships and fear never touch you. I pray God keep you and all those you love safe, in the palm of His Sovereign Right Hand. But above this, because Jesus has assured us, again, present tense, both saved and yet saved alike, that in this world, even with all the assurances we’re handed by each other or those well-intended officials, the president and all the good fighting men willing to lay down life and limb to protect us, we will, nonetheless, have troubles.

I’m not trying to be a Debbie-downer, friends, I’m simply sharing with you what Jesus assured us of, read it here for yourself: “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” –John 16:33

What things is Jesus referring to?

To read the full account of all that Jesus assures us will happen, read the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 24. Here’s a snippet to get you started. “Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” –Matthew 5-13.

Sound familiar?

Scholars tell us that Jesus’s birth fulfilled some 300 Old Testament prophecies concerning Him. Probability studies conducted by the mathematician Peter Stoner suggest that the odds of Jesus fulfilling just “eight” of the over 300 Messianic prophecies found in the Old Testament are 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. For those of us who are not mathematicians, that’s 1 in 100 quadrillion. (These calculations were published in “Science Speaks” by Peter Stoner.)

And whether mathematically correct or not, the Bible makes plain that Jesus has fulfilled every Old Testament prophecy concerning Him. From His birth in Bethlehem and being born of a virgin: Micah 5:2; Isaiah 7:14, to His ministry: Isaiah 61:1-2, to His betrayal and death: Zechariah 11:12; Ps. 22:7-8,16, culminating in Jesus’ burial and Resurrection: Isaiah 53:9; His being buried with the rich: Isaiah 53:9 and His resurrection: Psalm 16:10, Jesus has fulfilled every single one of these.

So, why would anyone think that Jesus won’t fulfill those yet-to-be-fulfilled?

Since none of us are equipped nor were we created to go it alone, my hope and prayer for you in these turbulent, trying times, is that you have or will this day, put the full weight of your trust in Jesus, who can help you navigate the turbulent waters of our times, steadying you, and leading you through what looks like the thing sent to take you out. No mere man, any man, from any political party, whether He be a president, king, or statesman, nor a Declaration written by mere men, regardless of their well-intentionedness, can do this.

So I pray the full weight of your trust will rest squarely and immutably on Jesus, the only one who can. He faithfully saved twelve others who put their trust in Him while in a storm. How? He commanded what was threatening them to be still. “When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!” –Mark 4:38;41.

God has afforded you the privilege of making many choices in this life, friend, yet He has given you only One sure hope: His Son, Jesus. Will you put the full weight of your trust in Him?

Broken, For You…

February 21, 2026 /

MaryEllen Montville

“And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” —Luke 22:1

Did Jesus’ disciples realize they were witnessing the ushering in of the New Covenant? Had they connected the dots of John the Baptist’s words concerning Jesus to what was happening at their Passover table? “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” –John 1:29.

Had they fully grasped that Jesus is God’s Perfect, Sinless Lamb?

Did they have “ears to hear “Jesus when He’d told them that soon, and very soon, His own Body would be broken, much like the pieces of Bread He’d handed them? Or, that His Blood would be poured out as freely as the wine He poured into that cup of the New Covenant—for the forgiveness of their sins—and those of the whole world? “And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” –Luke 22:20.

Scripture indicates they did not fully understand—at least not that night.

The disciples’ truer understanding of Who Jesus was and why His Body had to be broken for them—and for you—would come later, in an upper room, after His death and resurrection, 10 days, in fact, after His ascension—and beyond.

Their understanding would come after Jesus’s Body had been broken for them at the hands of Roman soldiers—His Blood, shed for their sins.

In hindsight, the twelve men who loved Jesus, walked with Him daily, and willingly laid down their very lives for Him, began to understand fully, and that’s how it is for many of us today. Like them, we don’t always get all of what Jesus is doing right before our eyes until after. John 4:26 explains it to us this way: “But the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will help you remember everything that I have told you.”

God uses hindsight as a teacher…

Through the power of God’s Holy Spirit, time, experience, and reflection provide us, as they did Jesus’ earliest disciples, with gnōsis—knowledge of spiritual mysteries we often miss in the moment. John 4:26 explains it to us this way: “But the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will help you remember everything that I have told you.”

Long before Jesus and His disciples shared their final Passover night, the Prophets of old had foretold everything they would experience—at God’s hand. “Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.” –Isaiah 52:10-12.

Did you catch that?

The breaking of the Bread at their Passover table, the night Jesus, through His wholehearted obedience and submission to the Father’s will, ushered in the New Covenant—a foreshadowing of God’s intention. God predestined to bring about His perfect will through the breaking of the Body of His One and only Son. Jesus’ Body would be broken for you and me, for the remission of our sins—Jesus was born sinless.

God intended that Jesus’ Body be broken for you and me. And Jesus intended to surrender to His Father’s will fully. Being Emmanuel, God with us—Jesus knew He must be broken—must die. By His dying, a Kernel would fall to ground, and an eternal harvest of many brothers and sisters would spring forth, New Life—starting with eleven of the twelve who sat around Him at His Passover table. “But Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a seed; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” –John 12:23-24.

Eleven? I thought there were 12 disciples.

There were.

Yet not all of Jesus’ disciples could accept the hard Truths Jesus had shared with them; thus, one turned away. No, far worse: he didn’t just turn away after walking with Jesus, eating with Him, and drinking in everything He had taught the others. No, this one so wanted things his own way, his heart, so unyielding to God’s will and Truth, that He sold Jesus to His enemies even after having eaten the Bread that had been broken, Bread Jesus claimed was His very Body—broken for him…

Judas had religion, sure. He was, it appears, searching for something.

There may even have been a moment when Judas really wanted to believe in Jesus, so it surprised him when he started to feel some way toward Jesus. Maybe it was when Judas realized that Jesus wasn’t calling His disciples to a life of ease and comfort, but to sacrifice, humility, and to consider others above themselves that Judas’s heart became open to Satan?

Twelve sat as witnesses to the New Covenant. Twelve watched on as Jesus explained why He had wanted—needed—to be together with them this set-apart Passover night. Eleven of them, though they did not yet fully understand all that Jesus was sharing with them in real time, knew enough, had seen and heard enough from Jesus, they trusted Him enough, had tasted and seen enough to believe—without having to fully understand to take and eat what was being offered up for them. They trusted that in time, Jesus would make all these things clear to them—everyone except one, that is. He refused to believe. “Jesus answered, “[The one who will betray me] is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “Do quickly what you are going to do.” –John 13:26-27.

Jesus’ Body was broken for you. His sacrifice, being broken, once for all, is powerful enough to cover the sins of the whole world—but you must want what Jesus gave over His Body to be broken for: Jesus died and rose again to grant you access to His table—to partake of the New Covenant. Eleven accepted and ate unto eternal life. One would not. You have the same choice today as these twelve did on that final Passover night.

Will you accept New Life Jesus offers you through His Blood, shed for you, His Body, broken for you, or will you refuse Him, choosing empty religion or your own will instead? “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life. Yes, I am the bread of life! Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all died. Anyone who eats the bread from heaven, however, will never die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh.” –John 6:47-51

Broken Open. Part 2 of a series…

February 14, 2026 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure Nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.” –John 12:1-3

Last week, I shared the first of a three-part series titled “Why God breaks us before using us.” Today, we’ll spend our time together diving into Broken Open, part two in this series: I’ll wrap things up next Saturday, February 21st.

To recap: Part One shone a light on snippets of Prophet Elijah’s life. I encourage you to go back and read it if you haven’t already; the Holy Spirit shared some deep Truths—He revealed the first reason God breaks us before using us: Preparation.

Next week, part 3 will find Jesus and His disciples at a table where bread was broken—so that Life-everlasting might be shared.

But for today, we’ll follow the thread connecting Mary, the sister of Lazarus, Jesus, and the significance of their being together on Passover. We’ll witness what’s released when something—or Someone—is broken open.

The Passover table is set, everyone is present and seated—Jesus, in the seat of honor, then, in walks Mary. What is she carrying? It looks like a vase, no, it’s a jar. She bypasses the only vacant seat at the table and kneels, jar in hand, at Jesus’ feet. Breaking it open—the unmistakable scent of pure Nard instantly saturated every molecule of air in that room. All eyes were glued on Mary as she upended her vase, emptying the entirety of its contents onto Jesus’s feet. They watched, in stunned silence, as tears spilled from eyes locked on His, eyes that overflowed with love, and undeniable devotion—and something else, knowing, maybe? But what?

Whatever her knowing, it had driven her to this heaven-met-earth moment.

Yet how could Mary, an unmarried woman, afford such a superluxe purchase as pure Nard? I pose the following for your consideration: Mary used either her dowry to purchase the Nard, or the costly bottle of perfume was her dowry. Either way, Mary quite literally poured out her future security—a potential husband and children to care for her in her old age—onto Jesus’ feet. “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, wherever this gospel [of salvation] is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told in memory of her [for her act of love and devotion].” –Matthew 26:13

According to Jewish Scholar and teacher Hayyim Schauss, “As far back as early biblical times, it was customary for a good father to give the whole of the mohar (bride price or dowry) or at least a large part of it to his daughter.”A father who appropriated the whole mohar for himself was considered unkind and harsh. A rich father sometimes gave his daughter a field, or other landed property, as well as female slaves.

Any public knowledge of a woman of Mary’s time making such an uncharacteristic, audacious move as Mary did would have surely cost her far more than her dowry; it would have cost her reputation as well. Yet seemingly, Mary didn’t care. She had determined to pour out everything she had on the One she loved—Jesus. The One whom, in a display of unabashed love, Mary, had literally laid down her life. “But whatever was gain to me I count as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things as loss compared to the surpassing excellence of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ.’ –Philippians 3:7-8

Mary couldn’t have known she’d laid down her life before feet that would soon be nailed to His Cross. That His Blood, priceless and eternal, would be poured out with a kind of love only a handful, like herself, understand. “I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.” –Philippians 3:10-11.

At Passover, the blood of goats or lambs was sacrificed; we see their blood first shed, then smeared on the doorposts and lintels of the Israelites’ homes that very first Passover night. This foreshadowed the day when Jesus’ Blood would be shed for the whole world. “While the Israelites were still in the land of Egypt, the Lord gave the following instructions to Moses and Aaron: “From now on, this month will be the first month of the year for you. Announce to the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each family must choose a lamb or a young goat for a sacrifice, one animal for each household. The animal you select must be a one-year-old male, either a sheep or a goat, with no defects. They are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. –Exodus 12:1-3;5;7.

Concerning Jesus’ sacrifice, the Apostle Paul reminds us: “He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves, but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood.” –Hebrews 9:12.

There is nothing random with God. Nothing unplanned, unknown, or accidental.

His timing and ways are perfect—indisputable. So it was no accident that Jesus had to be sacrificed at Passover, nor was it an accident that Mary would break open her jar of costly Nard to unknowingly anoint Jesus for His burial. And concerning Mary’s actions, as if to defend and exalt her, Jesus said: “She has done what she could to anoint My body in advance of My burial. And truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached in all the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” –Mark 14:8-9.

Again, there are no accidents with God.

Jesus’s sinless body was broken open for you.

His Blood, shed in accordance with the will and Law of God. “Even the first plan required a death to set it in motion. After Moses had read out all the terms of the plan of the law—God’s “will”—he took the blood of sacrificed animals and, in a solemn ritual, sprinkled the document and the people who were its beneficiaries. And then he attested its validity with the words, “This is the blood of the covenant commanded by God.” He did the same thing with the place of worship and its furniture. Moses said to the people, “This is the blood of the covenant God has established with you.” Practically everything in a will hinges on a death. That’s why blood, the evidence of death, is used so much in our tradition, especially regarding forgiveness of sins.” –Hebrews 9:22

Lambs and goats were prepared in advance to be Passover sacrifices; ultimately, their blood was spilled to atone for the people’s sins. So too, God’s spotless Lamb had been prepared to spill His Sin-less Blood. Mary saw to that when she anointed Him. God’s Perfect Lamb would be broken open, quite literally. Once, for all.

Mary’s jar, broken open. Jesus’ being anointed, His Body broken open by a Roman spear— was part of God’s plan—all of it. In His Providence, God will break or allow something or someone to be broken open, so that its precious content can be released for use: blessing those it touches by healing them, saving them, anointing them for future use, or whatever else God sees fit to do. In His Sovereignty, God ensures that what needs to be broken open will be, releasing what’s within to accomplish His predestined purpose fully.

Has God allowed you to be broken open?

If so, rejoice, beloved! God is releasing what He placed in you, precious and costly, to bless, help heal, save, or anoint His own—or those who will be. You being broken open released what God knew they needed. See, that’s the thing about being broken open, it’s seldom about us; it’s about what’s in us waiting on God’s perfect timing to be released, like with Mary’s jar of costly Nard broken open at the exact moment it needed to be used to anoint God’s Spotless Lamb for His death.

Crazy, right! To rejoice in your pain. Yet isn’t that what our Lord did? “…Who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” –Hebrews 12:2-3

Do you know this Jesus who allowed Himself to be broken open for you? You can if you want to. Ask Jesus into your life, and mean it, if you will, and do—Jesus will do the rest. “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” –Romans 10:9-10

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