Thursday | December 17, 2020 |
Mark 15
Let’s take a walk through Mark 15.
Jesus has just been betrayed by one of his closest friends; the beginning of His journey to the cross.
It may seem odd, but I want to pull your attention to the sub-headings in this chapter:
“Jesus Delivered to Pilate”
“Pilate Delivers Jesus to be Crucified”
“Jesus is Mocked”
“The Crucifixion”
“The Death of Jesus”
“Jesus is Buried”
6 major headings. 6 major events. And that’s not including the beating Jesus had just before being sent to be crucified.
Each event, like a blow to the gut of the promise of redemption, broke His body and his heart again and again.
I imagine you’ve felt heartbroken a time or two. Maybe betrayed. Probably put up a wall or two in hopes that it wouldn’t happen again. Probably shut a person or two out who was considered “toxic.”
Jesus will never.... never see you as toxic.
He will never shut you out. Or put up walls to keep you out. He went though each of those events with us in mind, friend.
He was face to face with humanity in its wicked entirety. Face to face with people who’s hearts were filled with pride and murder- and he saw us as worth it, still.
Jesus was betrayed and delivered to pilate - you’re worth it.
Jesus was delivered to be flogged and then crucified- you’re worth it.
Jesus was mocked- you’re worth it.
Jesus was crucified- you’re worth it.
Jesus’ death and burial- you’re worth it.
He’s not changing His mind, friend. You were then, are now, and will always be His beloved.
You were then, are now, and will always be His beloved.
Live your week encouraged- He rose for you!
Live your week encouraged- He rose for you!
AuthorHannah Massa
Tuesday | December 08, 2020 |
Mark 14
“And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, "Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor." And they scolded her. But Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her."”
Mark 14:3-9
How hard can it be to have time on our own with The Lord, right? Things at every corner of our world are pulling for our attention. Phones, social media, current news, jobs, household tasks, family, and more. It’s so easy to say, “I’ll just reply to this text real quick” or “once I finish this task I can focus on The Lord.” Then before we know it, an hour has passed and we have been genuinely sucked in- again.
Whenever you say “yes” to one thing, you are saying “no” to another.
Whether it feels like it or not, we all have free time. Some more or less than others, but it’s there. It’s what we do with that free time that counts.; what we say “yes” to. It’s the time of your day or week that you could freely give to whatever you choose.
And honestly, most of us have said yes to too much. In the name of productivity we fill up our schedule.
Somewhere along the way, we got the idea that busy equals successful.
Somewhere along the way, we got the idea that busy equals successful.
The woman with this jar of oil, has shown us exactly what our yes should go towards. And when she does this, Jesus honors her time. The other men at the table are huffing and puffing disapproval and Jesus tells them this, “leave her alone...” Another version says, “why are you bothering her?”
Not “why has she interrupted us?” (Because she definitely did interrupt them)
No, her time- her gift- was honored by the Most High. And her gift has never been forgotten. Not by us and certainly not by the One to whom it was given.
What will get your time today?
What are some things in your life that need to take a back seat so you can give yourself, your time, unreservedly to the Father?AuthorHannah Massa
Tuesday | September 29, 2020 |
Mark 4Increase to Increase
By: Hannah Massa
Mark 4:1
Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. 2 And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: 3 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. 6 And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. 8 And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and ca hundredfold.” 9 And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
There are so many different ways in which we sow seed. Jesus explains that “the sower sows the word” (Mark 4:14), so we know that seed = word. I remember as a child hearing this verse, and other verses like this one, and thinking that it just meant preaching. Obviously, whoever is preaching is sharing the word, so that must be how it’s done!
Funny how we can be right and wrong at the same time.
Sowing the word can look different every day. Sometimes it’s taking a friend out for lunch who has felt a little lonely and needs a good laugh. It’s spending an extra 10 minutes in bonding/playing with your kids. It is using the gifts that you have to diligently bless others. Also, it’s preaching, and letting The Lord speak through you into the lives of others. Planting those seeds sounds simple enough, but seed doesn’t always come back how we expect it to. As we see in the key scripture above, the results are not consistent. Even when the seed fell on good soil, it did not all yield a hundredfold.
You are called to go from glory to glory. From increase to increase.
I want to draw a line here to help us understand where the difference lies. The difference is that we don’t look to our surroundings or our “seasons” to tell us when or what to sow. We also cannot rely on them to tell us when we will reap a harvest. The only way to do be successful in any capacity is to make The Lord our foundation and focus. By keeping our eyes, our minds, and our hearts on Him. 2 Corinthians 9:10 says this, “He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.”
Let me encourage you today, that Jesus did not intend for you to have unanswered prayers. Just as the crop yielded thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold, so you are called to go from glory to glory. From increase to increase. And I 100% believe that when we look to Him, He will provide all that we could ever need; indeed, all that we could ever want.
AuthorHannah Massa
