Marissa Henley

Encouraging weary women to hope in Christ alone

The Light Shines {No Matter What Monday}

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My daughter calls out as I start to leave her room: “Don’t forget the closet light, Mom!” This part of her bedtime routine is just as important as the kiss on the forehead. She hates being alone in her room at night—being alone in the dark would be unbearable.

As adults, we have our own versions of being scared of the dark. What dark struggle, question, doubt, or fear are you facing?  Are you searching along the wall for a light switch, for anything that might dispel the darkness? For answers, comfort, resolution, or restoration?

Isaiah 9:2: The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.

God’s people in the Old Testament walked in darkness for centuries. They awaited the Messiah, a Savior who would rescue them from the darkness of sin and death. They clung to a promise without understanding what it meant or how it would be fulfilled. How could God possibly unravel the mess caused by evil and sin?

In John 1, we see that Jesus Christ is the answer to life’s darkness. He is the light that those walking in darkness so desperately need.

John 1:5, 9: The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.

The true light is here, breaking through the darkness. In Christ, we have everything we need to battle fear, sin, questions, doubts—even death. The darkness of these struggles cannot overcome His light. The light of Christ guarantees that the darkness will never win. He brings forgiveness for our sin, power for our struggles, and comfort for our troubled hearts.

No matter what you face this week, the light of Christ shines in the darkness.

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God Made You His Child and Heir {No Matter What Monday}

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One night before bedtime, my daughter was stalling in one of my favorite ways—by showering me with compliments from head to toe. As she moved from my hair to my clothes, she mentioned my wedding ring with the “fake diamond in it.” I laughed and corrected her, “No, Sweetheart, that’s actually a real diamond.” Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened. “Mom!” she exclaimed. “You’re rich! You should take that to someone to sell it and buy me an American Girl doll!”

Sometimes I feel the same way when I see the riches of God in display in His Word. The riches of the Father’s mercy (Ephesians 2:4). The riches left by the Son when He took on flesh (2 Corinthians 8:9). The Holy Spirit richly poured out through salvation in Christ (Titus 3:5-6).

My jaw drops and my eyes widen when I think that the One who has everything would choose to make me His child and provide me with an eternal inheritance. My Savior sacrificed it all to redeem me and purchased my salvation with His blood.

Last week we saw in Galatians 4:4-6 that God has given us the privilege of calling Him our Father. In the next verse, Paul tells us even more about our status as children of God:

“So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God” (Galatians 4:7).

Because God made us His children by His grace, we are promised an inheritance that is imperishable and kept for us in heaven (1 Peter 1:3-4). Romans 8:17 tells us that we are co-heirs with Christ, and we can only imagine what His inheritance must be like!

God’s abundant provision for us isn’t just the riches of eternal life with Him. He also gives what we need each day. In Matthew 7, we read that just as earthly parents give their children what they need, our heavenly Father will do the same for us. There’s nothing we need that He doesn’t have. He’s rich, remember? He will not withhold any good thing from us (Psalm 84:11).

No matter what you face this week, God has made you an heir to the riches of His grace.

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We Call God Our “Abba! Father!” {No Matter What Monday}

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When my son was a toddler, we went through an awkward phase when he used the word “dada” to refer to all men. I’d watch him look around the store and spot a random stranger, and I’d brace myself for what would come next. “Dada!” would fly enthusiastically from his mouth as Mr. Random Stranger looked around in confusion.

My son didn’t yet understand that the word we use to refer to his daddy was a precious name for an even-more-precious relationship. Now that he’s a teenager, he knows that the love of his father is unique. He calls him “Dad” because of the relationship they share. And we see in Galatians 4 that God has given us, His adopted children, the unique privilege of calling Him our Father:

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Galatians 4:4-6)

In these verses, we see the work of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit bringing us into this special relationship and giving us the privilege of calling God our Father. We are adopted children because God sent forth His Son to redeem us. Just a few verses earlier, Paul tells the Galatians that “in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith” (3:26). Our adoption as sons is a free gift of God’s grace given to us on the basis of faith in Christ.

God also sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts. Romans 8:15 tells us that we cry “Abba, Father!” because of the Spirit of adoption given to us. Because God the Father has sent both His Son and His Spirit, we can cry out to God with confidence and know that He hears the pleas of His children.

No matter what you face this week, we have the privilege of calling God our “Abba! Father!”

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God’s Free Gift of Adoption {No Matter What Monday}

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We have the same conversation almost every night at bedtime. I tell my daughter I love her. She says, “I love you more.” And I reply, “That’s not possible. I love you more, and I loved you first.”

I win the Who-Loves-Whom-The-Most battle because I loved my daughter before she even had an awareness that I existed. I know her 9-year-old mind can’t begin to fathom the depth of my love for her. It reminds me of God’s love—a love so deep, so wide, so infinite, so indescribable, beyond the comprehension of His children.

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” (1 John 3:1)

God’s Word describes many ways that His free gift of grace changes our lives. As we are united to Christ by faith, we receive all that He earned on our behalf: redemption, forgiveness, eternal life, and more. One of my favorites of all the benefits we receive from Christ is our adoption as sons and daughters of God.

Because of the lavish love of the Father, He united us to His Son, Jesus Christ, and made us His children. The Westminster Shorter Catechism defines adoption as “an act of God’s free grace, whereby we are received into the number, and have a right to all the privileges of the sons of God.” That’s amazing news! God brings us into His family and treats us as His children.

If our adoption is an act of God’s free grace, we can’t earn it, and we can’t lose it. He doesn’t love us as His daughters and sons because we’re loveable, because we’re good children, or because we bring something valuable to the relationship. Adoption is one-sided—a Father welcoming a child and giving the child all the privileges and rights that come with being part of the family.

No matter what you face this week, you’ve been adopted by God’s free grace.

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