Suffering

 

This is where every heartbreak will finally make sense. Not because pain was meaningless - but because it was never wasted. 

Christianity doesn't teach that suffering is an illusion. It teaches that suffering is temporary, purposeful, and ultimately redeemed. Every disappointment. Every betrayal. Every prayer that felt unanswered. Scripture says God keeps count of our tears. That means your pain isn't ignored, it's recorded.

But here’s the deeper truth: hope in Christ is not escapism. It's a promise anchored in eternity. The same God who walked through suffering in this world promises restoration beyond it. 

The resurrection is not poetic language - it is the guarantee that broken things do not stay broken. One day justice will be complete. One day grief will end. One day faith will become sight.

And when that day comes, you will see that even the hardest chapters were part of a story moving toward glory.

He leads us in paths of righteosness

 

When Scripture says Jesus “leads us in paths of righteousness” (Psalm 23:3), it isn’t just poetry - it's a pattern.

In the ancient world, a shepherd walked ahead of the flock, not behind it. The sheep followed his voice, step by step, trusting the path even when it wound through steep cliffs or thick fog. 

The safety wasn’t in the terrain…it was in the One leading. The same is true for you today.

Spiritual growth doesn’t come from knowing the whole route - it comes from taking the next faithful step. In Hebrew, the word for “path” often describes a narrow, carved-out trail. It implies precision, guidance, and intentionality. 

God doesn’t ask you to navigate life alone - He promises to go first, to steady your footing, and to draw you forward with His voice.

If Jesus is reaching for your hand, it means the path ahead isn’t meant to be walked in your strength but in His.

Ocean pictures

 

Snow pictures

 

The cross

 

Christians look to the cross not as a symbol of suffering, but as a symbol of completed work. In Greek, Jesus’ final word was tetelestai - “It is finished.” 

In ancient accounting, that meant "paid in full."

•  Your past? Paid.

•  Your failures? Paid.

•  Your sins? Completely and eternally covered.

What makes this so powerful is that Jesus didn’t simply cancel a debt - He absorbed it. In the first century, a debt marked tetelestai could never be reopened, questioned, or brought back against you in court. 

It was permanently removed from your record. That’s the theological weight of the cross:

•  It means the accusations against you hold no legal ground in the courtroom of heaven.

•  It means God’s forgiveness is not emotional but judicial - rooted in completed, irreversible payment.

•  It means you don’t live toward victory, but from victory.

The cross teaches us that grace isn’t God overlooking sin. Grace is God fully dealing with sin in Jesus so that you can walk in freedom without pretending you’re perfect.

When you understand that the work is finished, you stop striving to earn what Christ has already secured - and you begin living in the gratitude, confidence, and peace that flows from a debt forever erased.

Christmas day..2025