If the Peace of Jesus Isn’t Ruling in Our Hearts, What Is?

Heavenward. Read the latest from Scotty Smith's blog. ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­  

Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH If the Peace of Jesus Isn't Ruling in Our Hearts, What Is? SCOTTY SMITH    "May the Lord of peace himself give you his peace at all times and in every situation." (2Thess.3:16). " Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts." (Col.3:15)    Lord Jesus, there's no part of our being, chapter in our stories, or concern of our hearts outside your care. Though you've never promised to give us immediate solutions, fixes, and resolutions—you have promised never to leave or forsake us. And you are always with us as the Lord of Peace. Hallelujah and thank you.    Paul's admonition to "let" your peace rule in our hearts comes both as invitation and indictment. We know that, ultimately, we cannot stop your hand and heart—for which we are eternally grateful. However we can temporally rob our hearts of joy, hope, and gentleness when we don't surrender to your peace as Lord, Sovereign, and King or our hearts.    We're often happy to "let" your peace be like a refreshing décor, a new color scheme, or even a welcome guest in our heart-manor. But, Jesus, you didn't enter our lives as decoration and guest, but as reconstruction and Lord.    Hallelujah, we have the Lord of Peace as the Lord of our heart-manor—willing to give us his peace "at all times is every situation" (2Thess.3:16). So, if your peace isn't ruling in our hearts, what is? This is our confession time, Jesus. You already know this stuff, but we need to own it before your throne of grace. Here's a few; there are many more. Show us and free us:     Fear is a lousy heart-lord, but we often give him the keys to the manor and the thermostat. Anger only dwells in our hearts to rob, kill, and destroy—and shouldn't even be a guest, much less a ruler. Control—really, the illusion of control. Insistence on "it's my way or the highway" is more like a jungle trail that leads to aloneness and deep regret.    Jesus, your banner over us is love, so we hoist afresh our white flag of surrender. We want your peace to rule in our hearts more than we want our way, period. And So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! The Gospel Coalition 8520 Allison Pointe Boulevard,  Suite 220 Indianapolis,  IN  46250  United States You received this email because you are subscribed to Scotty Smith's Blog: Heavenward from The Gospel Coalition. Take control of your inbox. Manage your preferences and choose which newsletters you want to receive or unsubscribe from all emails.

We’ll Never Be too Enthralled, Gripped, and Adoring of Jesus

Heavenward. Read the latest from Scotty Smith's blog. ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­  

Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH We'll Never Be too Enthralled, Gripped, and Adoring of Jesus SCOTTY SMITH " The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen" (Rev.22:21)    Lord Jesus, it's not just the last verse in the Bible, but (Rev.22:21) is the first, middle, and last word spoken throughout the history of the world and the entirety of our personal stories. The one thing we can count on every year, 24/7, in every place and circumstance is your grace. All hype and hyperbole aside, your grace is the most certain, inexhaustible, necessary, and glorious reality we will ever experience in life and eternity.    This is true because grace isn't a "something" but a " Someone." Jesus you are the personification of God's grace—the incarnation and essence of perfect love, sacrificial redemption, total restoration. Before you entered the world on our behalf, you created the cosmos as an act of sovereign grace. Nothing exists apart from you (Col.1:15-17), and you sustain everything by the power of your word (Heb.1:3). Gravity depends on you just like grace is defined by you.    When you were born, " grace appeared" (Tit.2:11). To be saved by grace is to be saved 100% by you, Jesus (2 Cor.8:9). The law came through Moses, but "grace and truth" came through you; and from your fullness, we continue to receive " grace upon grace" (Jn.1:16-17). You "give more grace" (James 4:11) because we need more grace. Life and heaven will always be about more of you, Jesus.    To receive " sufficient grace" (2Cor.12:9) is to get all of you we need in any and every situation. You are the whole armor of God (Eph.6:10-18) we wear, and the Divine Warrior who fights and prevails on our behalf. You don't just give us life; you are our very life and only hope of glory (Col.3:1-4). Thank you, Jesus. Thank you. So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! The Gospel Coalition 8520 Allison Pointe Boulevard,  Suite 220 Indianapolis,  IN  46250  United States You received this email because you are subscribed to Scotty Smith's Blog: Heavenward from The Gospel Coalition. Take control of your inbox. Manage your preferences and choose which newsletters you want to receive or unsubscribe from all emails.

Seven “I Will’s” Not “I Might’s”

Heavenward. Read the latest from Scotty Smith's blog.

Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH Seven "I Will's" Not "I Might's" SCOTTY SMITH I will be their God, and they will be my people. I will give them oneness of heart and way. I will make an everlasting covenant with them. I will never stop doing good to them. I will fill their hearts with awe and adoration of me. I will rejoice in doing them good. I will assuredly plant them in the "land." (7 Promises to us from our Father in Jeremiah 32:38–41)    Heavenly Father, thank you… I know this passage—but I want it to own me, re-thrill me, run after me when I lose my way, re-center me when I lose hope, and shape the rest of my journey Home. You are the quintessential Promise Maker and Promise Keeper.    If "7" is the perfect number, then all seven of these promises lead us smack dab unavoidably to Jesus our perfect Savior—the "Yes!" and fulfillment of every promise you have made (2Cor.1:20). We belong to you because you gave Jesus for us (Rom.8:31-33), and you gave us to Jesus (Jn.17:24). We have a new heart because of the new birth you've given us (1Pet.1:3-5), and the New Covenant you made with us through Jesus (Ezek.36:26, Matt.26:28). Stunning, staggering, and "Hallelujah!"    Today and forever, you will never stop doing good to us, Father—always doing so with unwavering joy and incomparable delight. "Good" doesn't always mean "pleasant," immediately understandable, or what we'd choose—but one Day we will celebrate your provision of "good" as our utter and only "best."    And, Father, as surely as you have already hidden our lives in Jesus (Col.3:1-4), so you will "plant us" in the ultimate land of "the new heaven and new earth" (Rev.21-22). Until that Day, Abba, supersize love for you, because we want to love you as you love us—with all our heart and soul. So Very  Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! The Gospel Coalition 8520 Allison Pointe Boulevard,  Suite 220 Indianapolis,  IN  46250  United States You received this email because you are subscribed to Scotty Smith's Blog: Heavenward from The Gospel Coalition. Take control of your inbox. Manage your preferences and choose which newsletters you want to receive or unsubscribe from all emails.

Only in God Do I Really and Deeply Find Rest (Ps.62:1)

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Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH Only in God Do I Really and Deeply Find Rest (Ps.62:1) SCOTTY SMITH   " The promise of entering God's rest still stands and it is through the gift of faith, not the sweat of work, that we enter his unique rest. Therefore, let's strive to enter that rest—and reenter it time and again when we lose or leave it." (Paraphrase of Hebrews 4:1-3, 9-11).    Lord Jesus, you don't just commend rest, you command it. And tonight, I'll get all hooked up to electrodes and monitors at a sleep study center to discover to what extent I sleep, nap, or "noddle" my way through the night. REM-less sleep is like oxygen-less breathing—that doesn't end up too well.    But sleep apnea is one thing; " life apnea" is another. Not getting enough grace into our hearts is WAY worse than not getting enough oxygen to our brains. That's why you tell us to strive to enter the rest of the Gospel: To strain to not strain. To stay restless till we rest fully in you—for the first or 117th time.    There's no greater rest than to know you are at peace with us, Jesus—to be certain you are resting in your love towards us and rejoicing over us with loud singing (Zeph.3:17). Indeed, Sabbath isn't just a wonderful day; it's you as our only and perfect Savior. So why are we restless—or even rest-averse?    We are legalists and performers to the core—allergic to grace, addicted to earning, and plagued with unbelief. Rescue us, Jesus. Some of us have gotten so used to living a busy, driven, cluttered life we are clueless about any form of rest. Rescue us, Jesus.    Some of us have no clue, and no set of electrodes and monitors can diagnose us. But your Word, Spirit, really good friends—and maybe a spiritual director or gifted counselor can help us. Humble us, Jesus, so we'll get the help we need. So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! The Gospel Coalition 8520 Allison Pointe Boulevard,  Suite 220 Indianapolis,  IN  46250  United States You received this email because you are subscribed to Scotty Smith's Blog: Heavenward from The Gospel Coalition. Take control of your inbox. Manage your preferences and choose which newsletters you want to receive or unsubscribe from all emails.

Taking Hold of Being Held Fast

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Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH Taking Hold of Being Held Fast SCOTTY SMITH " I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me." Phil.3:12    Lord Jesus, I can't imagine a better way to live 2026 than to make it a year of grasping more fully your grasp of us in the Gospel. You are holding us fast, and you will hold us fast all the way Home—a destination I treasure more than ever on this my 76th birthday.    Thank you for holding us as our joy-filled Savior and perfect righteousness. The saints in heaven are more whole than we are, but they're not more saved. Those you save you save 100%.    Thank you for holding us as an enthralled Bridegroom embraces his beloved Bride—for that is the affection with which you love us. Yours is the only love that is better than life, the only love that is enough for our sin and brokenness, the only love that will never let go of us. Hallelujah!    Thank you for holding us as our mighty and merciful King—for that is who you are, Jesus. Indeed, we are married to the King of the cosmos, the Creator and sustainer of all things—the only Sovereign able, delighted, and committed to making all things new and beautiful. We're more on the brink of your return than we're on the brink of anything else. Another big Hallelujah for that good news flash.    Lastly, thank you, Jesus for holding us as the Author and finisher of our life story. You only and always write with the ink of grace—irrespective of what life feels like at times. Why did you first take hold of us? Because you love us. What do you have planned for us and the cosmos in 2026? We don't know, but we do know we can trust your loving, nail-scarred hands to hold, carry, and finish our stories. Hallelujah and So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! The Gospel Coalition 8520 Allison Pointe Boulevard,  Suite 220 Indianapolis,  IN  46250  United States You received this email because you are subscribed to Scotty Smith's Blog: Heavenward from The Gospel Coalition. Take control of your inbox. Manage your preferences and choose which newsletters you want to receive or unsubscribe from all emails.

Making Peace with Mystery through the Peace We Have in Jesus

Heavenward. Read the latest from Scotty Smith's blog.

Heavenward SCOTTY SMITH Making Peace with Mystery through the Peace We Have in Jesus SCOTTY SMITH    Joseph to his brothers, " You meant evil  against me—and that is what you did. But God meant good for many others beyond me and our own family—because that is who he is. Is it now a 'payback' time for me? No. You don't have to be afraid, for I will provide for you and your little ones." (Paraphrase of Genesis 50:20-21)    Heavenly Father, the story behind the story in this passage is dark, ugly, and horrifying. Joseph's brothers first threw him into a pit to die slowly, before they trafficked him to pagans to extend his suffering before he would surely die as a slave. This story doesn't end with a bow on it, but with mystery written all over it—so help us.    The good you brought out of this evil was exponential—life-giving provision for multitudes in and around Egypt. But the evil did not become good or acceptable. You sent Jesus to destroy evil—not to make lemonade out of lemons. Joseph's brothers weren't excused; they were convicted, humbled, and forgiven.    They, along with thousands of others, experienced the wonders of your sovereign power and the greatness of your mercy and grace—just like we do every day in the Gospel. Whether our deepest hurts and hardest stories were generated by random accidents, by people we should be able to trust, or by lamentable choices we have made—there is always a bigger Story in play. But you never call us to simply find a "moral in the story," but eventually to see Jesus in every story.    You are always at work for our good and the good of others through us (Rom.8:28). The devil is always at work for evil knowing  "his time is short" (Rev.12:12). Both are true because the Gospel is true. Father, we don't understand the outworking of your sovereignty over all things, and the difference between things you plan, allow, use, and things you redeem—but we count on it and rest in it. Help us, Father. Show us more and more of Jesus. So Very Amen. Wish you had a roundup of our best content? Subscribe to our weekly Update. SIGN ME UP! The Gospel Coalition  PO Box #1637    Columbia  MO  65205    You received this email because you are subscribed to Scotty Smith's Blog: Heavenward from The Gospel Coalition. Take control of your inbox. Manage your preferences and choose which newsletters you want to receive or unsubscribe from all emails.