Casandra Martin

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” – John 14:6

Being brave in a world that bullies and bruises our souls begins by heeding God’s word to put on truth. Truth is a profound place to start. Nothing will help us navigate our way through this world better than His truth. Our world is saturated in lies. We live in a palette of greys. Truth is light. Truth reveals the bright colors of freedom. Truth rips away the bars that confine our souls, allowing us to breathe.

Putting on truth means that we invite His truth to infuse itself deeply into every part of who we are. It involves more than reciting facts. Truth requires a choice that allows it to touch and transform us to the core. Putting on God’s truth is a three-fold process.

We must know the truth. Truth can’t become a part of who we are unless we know who and what truth is. This is why the Bible is so precious. God puts His truth on a page so that we can write it on our hearts.

We must trust the truth. Knowing truth is a great first step, but until we trust that truth it will stay on the surface of who we are. Trust means that we allow His truth to have access to our souls. In trusting His truth, we relinquish control, give up independence, and surrender to His transformation.

We must live the truth. What we hold as truth defines our actions, attitudes, relationships, conversations, choices, and movement. As we put on His truth, as it increasingly soaks into the crevices of our souls, it changes us. Others begin to see the truth of His truth in the way we walk through our struggles and our joys.

My Jesus Resolution today is to put on truth. It will protect me from the lies that threaten to pull me under. It will rescue me from the greys that seek to draw me into its shadows. It will guard me from the bully who wants me to doubt and be discouraged. The power of God’s truth is that it isn’t found in a list. Truth is found in the person of Jesus.

He was driving on a country road, almost to his destination, when the oil light came on. Before he could puzzle out why the oil light was suddenly illuminated, other warning lights started to appear on the dashboard. He pulled over, stopped the car, and did the best thing a boy can do – he called his dad.

Long distance, they talked through the situation and began sorting out the problem. Dad walked him through the steps to take as they investigated the trouble. God worked in the timing, location, and people to keep him safe. In the end, a tow truck came to the rescue and brought the car and the boy back home.

The next morning found the dad in deep conversation with the mechanic at the garage. A simple problem, but one that could have caused great harm if left unchecked for even a short time. “You were really lucky that he didn’t keep driving. It would have meant replacing the engine.” The boy’s willingness to stop and ask for help saved the day.

Listening in on dad’s side of the phone calls reminded me of an important lesson. It’s okay to ask for help. Our hearts have warning lights. Joy leaks out. Peace deflates. We find ourselves running low on love or patience. Too many times, I keep going. I don’t want to stop. I want to ignore the warning lights and pretend that it will all be fine later. I tell myself I can handle it on my own. The results are never good. I end up doing serious damage. Taking a moment to slow down and call for help just might save the day.

My Jesus Resolution today is to pay attention to the warning lights and ask for help. I don’t have to do life by myself. It’s okay to let others know when I need a hand, a smile, a prayer, or a hug. Contrary to what the world tells us, sharing those moments doesn’t make us look weak. It helps us be real, and in being authentic, God has room to shine.

Transformation leaves a trail. I picked the acorn up off the carpeting, wondering how it got into the house. I turned the corner, and there was another one lying on the floor. I walked into another room, glanced down by my feet, marveling at the way acorns seem to be everywhere.

Acorns are abundant right now. Scientists tell us that this is what is called a “mast” year – a year in which the oak trees overproduce their fruit. It happens every ten to fifteen years, and no one quite knows why. The result is a carpet of acorns wherever you step. The acorns make a distinctive crunch along the street in the quiet early mornings as I walk.

I picked up my shoes, watching as another acorn falls to the floor. Here is the answer to my acorn mystery. The grooves in the bottom of my walking shoes are filled with acorns. They are stuck in the channels and indentations that make up the tread of my shoes. Everywhere I step, I leave evidence behind of the places where I have walked.

What is true for my shoes is true for my heart. Everywhere I walk, I carry with me the evidence of where I have been. If I walk in selfishness, I leave a trail of pride. If I walk in anger, I leave a trail of frustration and hurt. If I walk in sin, I leave a trail of unholiness. If I walk in worship, I leave a trail of wonder. If I walk in gratitude, I leave a trail of peace. If I walk in love, I leave a trail of joy.

My Jesus Resolution today is to watch where I walk. Bits of where I walk will stay with me. Like the acorn in my shoe tread, I carry with me pieces of my journey. I want the evidence that I leave behind to tell the story of walking with God. I want the fruit that I leave behind to proclaim His name and honor His purpose. Walking in Jesus, I leave a trail behind that points to the cross.

I like to watch those home renovation shows. It is always fun to see how drab and dreary becomes bright, functional, and beautiful.

My favorite moment is “the reveal.” That is when the designer takes the family into the home and unveils the finished project. The family has been a part of the process from the beginning. They examined the plans, got covered in dust, and have tired muscles from moving and lifting. Yet in the end, they are always surprised. There is a look of wonder on their faces as they soak in the entirety of the renovation.

Watching one of those shows with my daughter, we listened to the home owners complain about the debris, doubt the designers’ know-how, and question the value of the project. They whined about the wait, and were grumpy about unexpected hitches on the way. I turned and looked at my daughter. “Don’t they watch this show? The designer always makes it turn out beautiful in the end.”

I put my head in my hands and repented right there on the couch.

We are all under construction. God is working an extreme makeover in my heart. He is tearing out old motives, mismatched attitudes, broken dreams, and sin-stained perspectives. The Master Designer is realigning priorities, laying a solid foundation, cleaning out my junk, and installing new … everything. And just like those people on the show, I complain during the construction, doubting His wisdom, questioning His design, and grumbling about the timeline.

“Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.” – 1 John 3:2

My Jesus Resolution today is to trust my Designer. He has a vision for my life. He has a plan for my heart. He is taking the old, making it new, filling it with beauty, and bringing to life His desire for my soul. Standing in the middle of the dust and debris, it is sometimes hard to see how His plan is unfolding. Instead of progress, I often see problems. But my Designer knows what He is doing. He has everything under control. There is often a mess before marvelous. I can’t wait for the big reveal.

The room was full of little boys. Scabbed knees, freckles, and smiles with loose teeth grinned back at me as we circled around the Bible to learn about Jesus. Tonight, we were talking about Jesus growing up as a little boy in Nazareth. The boys were hooked as they pictured Jesus looking just like them.

We talked about Jesus obeying His mother, following her directions, and listening when she called. But it was the discussion of Jesus working with Joseph in the carpenter’s shop that captured their attention. They pictured Jesus learning how to hammer and build things with His father. They talked about how He carried tools, learned to fix what was broken, and help someone in need.

One of the boys caught the idea of Jesus working as a carpenter and exclaimed, “He must have had big muscles and been really strong!” Another boy looked at his friend with six-year-old confidence and said, “Well, duh! It’s Jesus. Of course, He’s strong.”

I love that. This little boy carries with him an absolute assurance of Jesus’ power. He understands that there is no gap in His strength. Nothing is too big for Him to handle. Nothing is stronger, bigger, or tougher than Jesus.

Too many times I forget. I let the shadows of my struggles, the size of my worries, and the intensity of my fears pull my eyes away from God. The problem, deadline, conflict, debt, bad habit, despair, loneliness, busyness, guilt, shame, sin, or pressure seems too big, too strong, and too overwhelming. That is when I need to remember six-year-old wisdom.

My Jesus Resolution today is to apply what I learned in Bible class. Jesus really is bigger than my biggest fear. He is stronger than my mightiest worry. He is solid, reliable, faithful, and powerful. God reminds me in Isaiah 50:2b, “Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?”  Once again, a child becomes my teacher. When I feel overwhelmed today, I am going to look at my trouble and remember – Duh! It’s Jesus. Of course, He’s strong enough.

It is the simple things that catch your heart and leave you different. I just got back from taking a group of teens to do VBS for underprivileged children. There were no burning bushes, no writing on the walls, or seas parting at our feet. There were, however, enough encounters with God to leave you humbled, wide-eyed, and changed.

These God moments came in the form of little arms and giant hugs, small voices singing the big truths about Jesus Loves Me and the B-I-B-L-E, and hungry hearts being fed the Bread of Life. Children absorbed love like sponges. Teens saw with new eyes as little ones copied their steps, their words, and their attitudes. Adults stood amazed as God moved in and reminded us of the power of living fully in His presence.

Wrapping up the week, we stood in a circle talking about all the ways we had seen Jesus. Best things and blessings piled up in our hearts, breaking the hard places, and opening our eyes. One of the gentlemen standing there with us remarked that you can’t help but be changed by coming to this place. “You will always leave different. Every time.”

His words echo in my mind. Every encounter with God has the potential to leave us changed, transformed. And every day holds the possibility of meeting Him. However, in the ordinary surroundings of my routine, I miss Him. Busyness creates blinders to His presence. The familiar sometimes prevents me from seeing His face.

My Jesus Resolution today is to expect to be changed. He is here, as much in my heap of laundry as the hill country of Texas. As much in my workplace as in worship. As much in the familiar as the foreign. The difference is in my expectation. When I go on a mission trip, to church, or into someplace new, I have my eyes open for His presence. Today I am going to expect to see Him around the corner in my laundry room, at the grocery store, and in the dishes. And every time I meet Him, I am going to be changed.

He wouldn’t move. Stubborn and weary, my little dog planted himself on the tile in the kitchen, his pink tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth. His breath was coming in bursts as he sprawled out on the floor, taking in the cool air.

We had just come in from a walk. The hot, humid temperatures pierced even the early morning hours in a way that announced that summer was settling in for a long stay. I poured myself a glass of water and started working on my list for the rest of the day.

Several minutes later, I found my dog in exactly the same place. I called him, but he wouldn’t budge. Lying next to his water dish, he ignored me with a tenacity that signaled his determination to stay where he was. He wasn’t going to move.

Walking all the way into the kitchen, I finally saw what was inspiring his resolve. His water dish was empty. He needed water, and wasn’t going to go anywhere else until his thirst had been quenched. I filled his dish with cool water, watching him lap up the liquid before finally finding a place in the sun to take a nap.

He taught me a lesson this morning. When he was thirsty, he knew where to go. He didn’t run around looking for another solution. He didn’t try to solve his own problem. He waited. Quietly, determinedly, patiently waited. I need to be more like my dog.

“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” – Psalm 63:1

My Jesus Resolution today is to wait for water. Walking with God has the power to make us thirsty for His presence and hungry for His voice. I am going to satisfy myself only in Him. The world tempts me to search for my own answers and meet my own needs. I am not going to do it. Instead, I am going to tenaciously wait for God, and enjoy the sweet refreshment He has planned for my soul.

June 19^th is a celebration day. It is known as Juneteenth, marking a day of freedom dating back to the Civil War. On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation into law freeing all slaves in the United States. The news, however, of the President’s proclamation of freedom was slow in spreading across the country. In our world of instant access, internet updates, 24-hour news channels, and cell phone communication it almost seems unthinkable to us to imagine news taking years to get to the people who need it most. But that is what happened. Juneteenth celebrates the reading of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas, a year and a half after President Lincoln signed it into law. On June 19, 1865, Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, bringing with them news of the end of the Civil War and announcing freedom for the state’s quarter million slaves. Today more than half the states in the United States celebrate Juneteenth as a memorial for the day freedom rang across the country.

Can you imagine the faces of slaves hearing this news for the first time? They had been free for eighteen months and didn’t know it. They hadn’t heard the good news. No word had reached them, and so they continued to see themselves as slaves. They spent those eighteen months hoping and praying for a deliverance that had already arrived.

The parallel is easy to see. Jesus is God’s Emancipation Proclamation. He signed it in blood, nailing it to the cross for all to see. It declares freedom, new life, and hope for those held in slavery by sin. But word spreads slowly. There are many who haven’t heard the good news. Chained by guilt and bound by shame, they walk through this world unaware that freedom has already arrived.

My Jesus Resolution today is to proclaim freedom. I am going to celebrate the freedom I have in Christ. I am going to be humbled and thankful for the gift that is mine because of Jesus. I am going to ask God to open my eyes. I want to see the chains that bind others, the slavery that ensnares them, and sin for the dreadful taskmaster that it is. I have an opportunity to proclaim freedom today. A Union soldier walked into Texas, bringing with him news of freedom and life changed forever. Where are you going to walk today?

I spotted the small bush tucked up next to the side of the church building. Evening was crawling across the sky, its velvety darkness blanketing the world below. I looked at the purple blossoms and grinned. Lilacs are my favorite flower.

I grew up around lilacs. Every spring, the heavy perfume would scent the spring air of my childhood home. I really didn’t appreciate their beauty or miss their aroma until I moved south. While there is much lush beauty on the Gulf coast of Texas, there are no lilacs.

I inhaled the heady smell, savoring the moment. One of the ladies I was with saw my delight and reached over to pluck a small branch from the bush. “Take it to your hotel room,” she encouraged. I held the purple gems like a treasure. I counted the blessings in each little flower.

Creating a makeshift vase, I proudly put my lilacs on center stage in my room. A small touch of beauty in the impersonal world of travel. I smiled and enjoyed the gift.

It didn’t take long. Settled in with my book, my head came up as I noticed a change in the room. The hotel “smell” was gone. Perfume drifted across the space, filling the air with its aroma. One small sprig of lilacs changed everything.

“For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.” – 2 Corinthians 2:15

My Jesus Resolution is to remember the lesson of the lilacs. The lilacs didn’t change who they were because they stood in a different place. They didn’t try to be more or less than who they are. Lilacs are lilacs. They share the perfume God gave them with anyone who will take the time to notice their sweet aroma. Their presence alters the space they inhabit, just by being there. Being a Christian is a lot like being a lilac. A sweet aroma, a deep beauty, flows from being transformed by Christ. If we let it, the fragrance of His presence can change a room, a relationship, and even our most sin-soaked realities.

I opened the door to the grinning face of my teenaged son. There, wrapped in a black trash bag stood my boy, a picture of a big red bow taped to his head. He beamed with the delight of his own creativity as he hugged me and told me that he was my gift for the day.

This boy has always been a gift. His presence in my life reminds me daily to laugh more, love deeper, and let the sweetness of grace roll across my worries. But today it wasn’t the goofy grin, the crazy costume, or the dramatic flavor of the moment that pierced my heart. It was the gift of himself. It was the way that he captured the essence of Jesus outside my door that holds my soul in its grip.

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” – John 1:14

Open the door to your heart. Do you see Him? God in baby clothes lying in a food trough. A gift. God in little boy shoes, standing in the temple asking and answering divine questions. A gift. God walking into a muddy river to be baptized. God walking through a barren desert to be tempted. A gift. God touching the dirty, the wounded, the hurting, the unwanted – touching me. A gift. God wrapped in nothing but love, stretched out on a cross, red ribbons of agony covering His body. A gift.

Everyday Jesus stands just outside of the door of our hearts and waits. He offers Himself as a gift. Sometimes He is wrapped in blessings, answered prayers, or joy. I greedily grab at the wrapping, and miss the Gift. Other times, He is wrapped in burdens, struggles, questions, or pain. Tools He can use to teach me and usher me deeper into grace. I don’t want these wrappings, and I push the Gift away.

My Jesus Resolution today is to embrace my Gift. He will come today, just as He does every day, to offer me the gift of Himself. He will knock, and I will have a choice about how I answer the moment. I don’t want to miss the gift of His presence. I want to be changed by the fullness of grace that He brings to my door.