Life is painful. Because of the fallen world we live in and our freedom to choose, there are many opportunities for landmines of pain. We learn to medicate the pain we feel in order to find comfort, but JESUS is THE comforter. Lean on Him today.
Do you ever feel like you need to prove your worth? That the grass always seems to be greener somewhere else? Do you feel caught in the trap of comparison? JESUS is YOUR SUPPLY, and it's only in Him that we are truly satisfied. Trust He is sufficient in every area of your life!
We are all desperately looking around us for other's to validate us. It's a never ending cycle that will never be filled by a person. Our worth is established by our Creator, not by man. Turn to Jesus today and be satisfied by His goodness (Jeremiah 31:14).
Neediness always leaves us wanting, and in that space, we remain unsatisfied. Jesus promised us we would be FULL! Listen to today's episode of The Third Option where we talk about THE antidote for neediness - the love of God.
God is perfect, agape love, and His love has the power to create good, overpower the darkness, and bring restoration to the broken places of our lives. Choose to receive HIS love for you today!
Hebrews 13:9 tells us that "it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace." Grace is God's undeserved favor towards us, and it allows us to KNOW God rather than just know about Him. When we know our Father's heart and fall in love with who He is, we live in the reality of His kindness and everything changes!
LOVE ENDS THE BATTLE. It instantly disarms your enemy and leaves nothing to fight about. Loving our enemy is its own reward. Listen to today's episode of "The Third Option" for some encouragement on how to love the people in your life that often feel impossible to love.
What hold us back from offering forgiveness? It's easy to feel like someone else is getting away with something or we are losing our power if we forgive the person who deeply hurt us. The reality is that forgiveness is a gift, and there is freedom for us when we offer it to others! It's an intentional decision that we have the power to make. Listen to today's episode for some encouragement on how to let go of resentment and live a life of love.
Trauma is a pervasive problem. It results from exposure to an incident or a series of events that are emotionally disturbing or life-threatening with lasting adverse effects on the individual's mental, physical, social, emotional, and/or spiritual well being. Everyone has experienced some level of trauma as a result of this fallen world. The good news is that God does not cause the trauma. His perfect love heals the broken places. If you are struggling today, we hope this episode encourages you ...
The Holy Spirit was given by God as a gift for us to receive and embrace. It's the Spirit in us that united us with God as we are loved and transformed from the inside out. He is our comforter, advocate, and counselor. How to we operate in the gifts of the Spirit? How do we understand God relationally instead of just educationally? Listen to this week's episode of The Third Option for encouragement!
Don't despise dirty feet. Following Jesus' example in John 13:1-17 can be difficult, but honor and humility, even when it is difficult is a beautiful picture of Jesus to a hurting world. Love is more powerful than shame or condemnation could ever be!
Prior to Jesus, the best of humankind lived in a good and evil duality. Jesus came to go beyond morality and to offer us abundant, zoe life. Listen to today's episode of "The Third Option" where Rick and Judi discuss why the good news is so much greater than what religion has to offer!
God has set something in motion, and nothing is going to stop it! The beautiful thing is we have the opportunity to join in and flow with it...AND it is ALWAYS for our good and for His glory.
We hear all the time that the world around us is quickly becoming more dark and evil, but data shows us that is simply not the case. Having the wrong perspective only leads to fear, anxiety, and a sense of hopelessness. When we see the world from God's perspective, through a lens of love, there is healing, and God's goodness is on full display!
We all encounter situations that are easy to look at though a temporary lens instead of an eternal one. We try and assess these situations in our own strength instead of acknowledging that God's presence and provision has been with us the whole time! You are not a victim of your circumstances - He has overcome the world!
We all know that people are complex beings, and yet we often look at what we see on the outside and judge others unjustly. God sees beyond what man seeing and instead looks at the heart. We look at the world through our own personal filters instead of seeing the beauty of God in others. Let's choose to look again, remove the mask, offer grace, and see the people around us as God sees them.
On the surface, the Bible looks like a book of knowledge about what's good and what's evil. People so often approach reading it through that lens, and it only leads to shame, condemnation, and self-righteousness. When you look through the "mask," you find that the Bible is a book of LIFE where you find the heart of God. Allow scripture to empower you to walk in the grace and love that Jesus offers us.
The Accuser often goes after our thoughts first, bringing condemnation and a lack of peace. The fear induced by the devil often can push us to act on our thoughts, resulting in a spiral of questioning ourselves and God. Choose to humble yourself, submit to the Truth, and look to Jesus. Listen for the voice of love that lives inside of you!
When we operate in the flesh, it's often out of self-protection. We fear losing ourselves. Or maybe we fear losing respect from others. Maybe we struggle with feeling dominated or rejected by others? Instead, kick fear to the curb and be inspired and motivated by the Spirit within you. Listen to today's episode where Rick and Judi address unmasking fear from the flesh.
Our world is constantly inducing fear through religion, politics, and culture. We are bombarded by fleshly things that stir up fear in our spirit, most of the times, without us even noticing it! When we choose to live in the sweet, secret, and sacred place with our Heavenly Father, fear is unmasked, and we aren't easily influenced by what is happening on the outside. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." -2 Timothy 1:7...
What is fear? And how do you know if you are being influenced by it? Listen to this week's episode where Rick and Judi discuss the power of operating in the spiritual and being led by THE Shepherd when the world's system starts to influence our thoughts and emotions.
When a loved one dies, it produces an internal chaos, and we often can't see our way through to the other side of grief. It is our natural tendency to think that the future can't possibly be as good as the past. BUT GOD. When we know the goodness of God in an intimate way, we trust that He has good things in store for our future, even in the midst of processing loss.
How do you move forward in grief? WALK TOWARDS THE LIGHT. Trust God in the process as you heal and honor your loved one by moving forward and appreciating each and every day. Shed guilt and regret and lean into God's goodness in your life!
How can beautiful things come from deep grief? In waves of sorrow, there can be beauty because there is love in it. Walking through grief can help shift your priorities and show you what is really important, create more meaningful connections with people in your life, and heighten your awareness of God's goodness. Listen to this week's episode of "The Third Option" where Rick and Judi share how they've seen God do beautiful things in the midst of a very difficult season of loss. "How lucky am I ...
Everyone experiences grief at some point in life, deep sorrow that is caused by loss of someone you love. BUT, that is not where out story stops. Even in the midst of grief, we have a supernatural comforter, and His name is Jesus. We are not alone, and we are not hopeless. Because of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, we have HOPE. Death does not have the final word! "Beloved brothers and sisters, we want you to be quite certain about the truth concerning those who have passed away, so th...
Can you love a narcissist? Doing life in close proximity with difficult people can be, well, difficult. Listen to this week's episode of "The Third Option" where Rick and Judi discuss how to love others well, protect your heart from bitterness, and move forward in relationship when you've been hurt.
People pleasers often try to earn their worth by seeking validation from others, but recognizing that God is good and loves us can shift our focus to finding our worth in His unconditional love rather than external validation. Listen to this episode of The Third Option where Rick and Judi discuss people pleasing and what causes it.
Living in fullness is the point - it is why Jesus came and offered salvation to us. Allowing God to make you whole and choosing to live out of His supply changes everything...especially relationships. Fullness allows us to extend grace, forgive others, and experience a divine type of love and connection. He is our source, and in Him we have all that we need!
It can be difficult to love others at times, but when we live from a place of abundance and fullness because of our understanding of God's Kingdom, it becomes easier. Knowing about the Gospel and revelation of the Gospel are two different things - one is head knowledge and the other creates transformation from the inside out. Receive the Father's love for you and allow His love to shine through you towards others!
If the Gospel is so good, why does man often resist it? In the fourth and final episode in this podcast series, Rick and Judi discuss how pride, self-centeredness and wrong thinking lead to us resisting the goodness of God. We hope this episode helps renew your thinking and that you experience God's heart for you in greater measure today!
