PTL Wednesdays

“Once upon a time” (I always wanted to say that 😊), you heard the gospel and gave your life to Christ. That part may have seemed simple enough, but how do you go from living for yourself to living for Him? Faith marks the beginning of the Christian life but it was never meant to stop there. Faith is meant to grow into something more. It’s like the foundation of a house. The foundation matters, but it was always designed to support a finished structure. Faith is the foundation and love is the house that mature faith becomes. That’s the picture we see in 2 Peter 1:5-7. Christians are encouraged to build on their faith with qualities like virtue, knowledge, self control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. These qualities are not replacements for faith. They’re the evidence that faith is alive and growing. Genuine faith doesn’t stay stagnant. Over time, it becomes visible in the way a person thinks, lives, and treats others. Virtue matters because it’s the first visib...

Motherhood gives a clear picture of sacrificial love. A godly mother puts her children first in ways that often go unseen. Her time, energy, and comfort are regularly set aside for someone else’s good. I remember a time when my mom bought coats for my brother and me. As I was hanging mine up in the closet, I noticed hers was showing signs of wear. She just smiled and said she’d get herself one soon. She wore that same coat all winter. That’s the kind of love that carries a real cost. That moment stayed with me because it reflects something Scripture also reveals again and again. You see it in the story of  Moses . His mother, Jochebed, despite Pharaoh’s command to kill Hebrew baby boys, chose to trust God by placing her son in a basket and sending him down the Nile. You see it in Hannah, the mother of  Samuel , who prayed for a child and then gave him to serve God in the temple. You also see it in Mary, mother of our Lord and Savior, who endured the agony of watching her Son s...