What’s on Your List?

August 20, 2022 Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH What's on Your List? SCOTTY SMITH “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.” James 1:17-18   Abba Father, I know gratitude is a heart-habit before (and long after) it’s a feeling. So, on this August Saturday, here’s a few of your many gifts that should sabotage any whining and envy I can easily muster up. First of all, thank you for giving Jesus. I know as Christians we’re “supposed” to start there and say that, but really… thank you for loving us so much you gave your one, unique, eternally-glorious Son, Jesus, to redeem us and make all things new. To have Jesus plus nothing else is 10,000 reasons enough to stay eternally thankful. And, Father, thank you for what theologians call your “impassability” –which means you’re not like an emotional middle-schooler—reacting and acting, shifting and changing (James 1:17)—subject to hormones and circumstances. You do not change—so very constant in your sovereignty, love, and faithfulness. Among the “good” and sometimes perfect-feeling gifts you give us, here are a few on my summer 2022 list. Thank you for the texture-firm, so-sweet, 37-degree-chilled watermelon I ate. Thank you for friendship—my friends have never meant more to me. Thank you for the dance my fly rod does, and getting to yell, “Fish on!” Thank you taking me and Darlene through our 1st Covid infection, with very mild symptoms. Thank you for the joy serving with so many friends in the Global-advancing of the Gospel. Thank you, after a 4-year hiatus, for the feel and sound of striking a golf ball pretty well. I’m gonna keep adding to my list today, Father. So Very Amen.   Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! About Us    |     Council    |     Donate ©2020 The Gospel Coalition, All Rights Reserved. P.O. Box 170346 — Austin, TX 78717 Update Email  |  Unsubscribe

What’s Easiest for You to “Call to Mind”?

August 19, 2022 Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH What's Easiest for You to "Call to Mind"? SCOTTY SMITH   This I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” Lam. 3:19-24   Dear Jesus, every day we “call to mind” something or someone. It may be our “to-worry-about-list,” or our “to-blame-list,” or our “irritation-justification-list.” Sometimes it’s an unrealistic “to-do list.” None of these give us hope. In fact, they usually fuel our fear, anger, and exhaustion. Instead, by your grace and Spirit, we want to “call to mind” (and keep in mind) what and Who matters most: Your never-ending steadfast love; and you yourself, Jesus. You are our “portion”—that is our treasure, righteousness, banquet, and inheritance. You are the reason we have hope, for you are our hope. Thank you for your ever-steadfast, heart-liberating, weakness-inhabiting love. Success shouldn’t be measured today by how much we get done, but by how much we rest, rejoice, and revel in you. Help us remember all day long, “the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself in love”—love for you, and for those around us (Gal. 5:6). Even our most challenging situations, and our most difficult conversations, can be done with mercy, grace and class. Help us, Jesus. This probably won’t be a glitch-free day, but it certainly will be a grace-sufficient day. Great is your faithfulness. Every other “portion” is a trifle. Only you are treasure-worthy. So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! About Us    |     Council    |     Donate ©2020 The Gospel Coalition, All Rights Reserved. P.O. Box 170346 — Austin, TX 78717 Update Email  |  Unsubscribe

We Cannot Over-Believe This

August 18, 2022 Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH We Cannot Over-Believe This SCOTTY SMITH “Your Father already knows your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.” Luke 12-30-32   Dear Jesus, your words are mind-boggling, unbelief-exposing, heart-encouraging, and hope-fueling. And all four of those hyphenated phrases are really good, and really needed. So, here’s what you’re telling us, and really want us to believe, trust, and live. We have a Father who loves more than we can possibly imagine. We are his children because of your work on our behalf. Thank you! Our Father knows what we need, and what we think we need, but really don’t. He is generous and wise way beyond our comprehension. To seek Abba’s Kingdom above all else is to surrender to our heavenly citizenship above all other alliances, fiefdoms, and claims. It also means we don’t make you “lord of anything.” Rather, we recognize that you already are King of kings and Lord of lords—and we seek to live and love accordingly. Jesus, you spoke these next words for every generation of your “lambs,” including us. “Don’t be afraid little flock.” Hallelujah, we are your “little flock,” which means you are our Good Shepherd. You laid down your life for us—conquering sin, death, and all evil, and were raised to make all things new. Glory! This is precisely why we don’t have to live in fear. You know our “smallness” and the greatness of our Father’s great joy in giving us the Kingdom. You also know the Day he has set for your return—when the Kingdom will come in fullness. You also know how you are working in all things for our good, right now. Thank you, and So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! About Us    |     Council    |     Donate ©2020 The Gospel Coalition, All Rights Reserved. P.O. Box 170346 — Austin, TX 78717 Update Email  |  Unsubscribe

Jesus’ Loud Voice, Big Heart, and Constant Refreshment

August 17, 2022 Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH Jesus' Loud Voice, Big Heart, and Constant Refreshment SCOTTY SMITH “Whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. Prov. 11:25   Lord Jesus, it’s so awesome to begin (and continue) this August Wednesday, hearing you say to each of us in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink” (John 7:37). You are the ever-flowing fountain of grace, the lush mercy-oasis in the various deserts of life, the welcoming cottage in the dark forest—with a fire lit, meal ready, giving us the welcome and rest we’ll never find anywhere else. Thank you. “My soul finds rest in God alone.” (Ps. 62:1) Jesus, anything you give us is meant to be shared—because you always give us more than we need—”grace upon grace” (John 1:16). So, as you refresh us in the Gospel, make us refreshers today—not “fixers” and certainly not roaming-critics; not blamers (because there’s already an over-supply of those); and, most definitely, not discouragers—because you have actually commanded us to encourage each other more and more as we see the Day of your return approaching (Hebrews 10:25). So, make us “refreshers,” Jesus. It doesn’t sound very impressive or platform-building—and that’s precisely the point. It means we’re becoming more like you, Jesus, and what more could we crave, hope for, and desire? You are among us as one who serves, one who loves, one who refreshes. Thank you, Lord Jesus. So Very Amen.   Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! About Us    |     Council    |     Donate ©2020 The Gospel Coalition, All Rights Reserved. P.O. Box 170346 — Austin, TX 78717 Update Email  |  Unsubscribe

Apart from Jesus, This Is Impossible

August 16, 2022 Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH Apart from Jesus, This Is Impossible SCOTTY SMITH “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Eph 4:32; “All of you, have… sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” (I Pet. 3:8)   Lord Jesus, as with all Scriptures, these verses make us think of you. No one is kinder and more tenderhearted than you. You are the fountainhead of grace and an ocean of forgiveness. What could be more revolutionary and needed? You’re not only merciful when we’re in “bruised reeds and smoldering wicks” mode; you are altogether compassionate when we get self-absorbed, defensive, and act like spiritual orphans. You are firm with us, but never harsh; and all your reproofs are life-giving, never shame dispensing. First of all, thank you. Second of all, make us more like you, Jesus. We live and work among strong opinions, diverse perspectives, and competing narratives. It’s starting to heat up again. Because it will honor you, empower for extending your empathy, gentleness, and kindness to others. Help us lead with kindness, more so than with “rightness” and uptightness. We can risk offering a non-anxious presence because you are the Prince of Peace, and sovereign over every king, crisis, and crawdad. Continue to remind us we aren’t as free as you intend or as peaceful as you desire, and certainly not as loving as we will be one Day. Jesus, fill our hearts with your beauty, our mouths with your praise, and our hands with your mercy.  So Very Amen Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! About Us    |     Council    |     Donate ©2020 The Gospel Coalition, All Rights Reserved. P.O. Box 170346 — Austin, TX 78717 Update Email  |  Unsubscribe

Five Words

August 15, 2022 Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH Five Words SCOTTY SMITH   “He got up, and started towards his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.”  Luke 15:20   Heavenly Father, on this August Monday morning, 5 words capture how you will relate to us every day this week—”saw, compassion, ran, embraced, kissed.” You see us… and you always see us as we truly are—whether we’re a mess, moody, merry, or mercurial. We’ll never shock you. No matter what, you feel compassion for us, not contempt. We need your grace, not just for our worse days, but for our best ones as well. And you’re always running towards us in the Gospel—as a welcoming Father, not an irritated dad. You embrace us so tightly, so kindly, so gladly… and you will never let go of us. You “kiss” us—the language of affection; for we are now in Christ, not on probation—your beloved children, not your estate workers. Father, whatever our emotional condition right now, whatever our spiritual temperature, mental state, or physical location—you desire us, are pursuing us, and are committed to giving us grace upon grace. Thank you. Some of us can’t see beyond our fear, shame, and no-reason-to-hope. Some of us see other’s failures 100 times more clearly than we see our need for your mercy and grace. Some of us only see the world in shades of grey, black, and bleak. But, Father, you see things and us as they truly are; and it’s compassion you feel, running as you do, and affection you give. Thank you, 1000 times, thank you. So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! About Us    |     Council    |     Donate ©2020 The Gospel Coalition, All Rights Reserved. P.O. Box 170346 — Austin, TX 78717 Update Email  |  Unsubscribe