It’s Important That You Know This

May 13, 2025 Gracie

Your Faith – It’s Important That You Know This

It's important that you know this

It’s important that you know this – God loves you, and He always will.

Even when your life is difficult at times, You are not truly alone.

God isn’t going anywhere.

Who is man to deserve such a loving Heavenly Father?

It’s hard to even imagine the depths of God’s love.

Through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross we are redeemed from the eternal punishment that we rightly deserve.

This beautiful quote from Joni Eareckson Tada is filled with encouragement . . .

There is a word that marks the love of Christ, and that is excessive. His love for you overflows all reason, all expectations, all your hopes and dreams. For Christ to lay down his life for you tells you that his covenant is no schoolboy pledge or head-of-state agreement or legal contract. Christ’s love is riddled with powerful emotion. For him to die for you is for him to be delighted in you.
Let Christ’s passion for you stir the depths of your yearnings for him. Let yourself be drawn to him today, not only because of his sacrifice for your sin but because of his desire for your soul. – Joni Eareckson Tada, Christian author and CEO of Joni and Friends¹

We are His children, and even though we often fail Him, He offers us forgiveness. There is no love more pure or greater than His.

Recently, I came across a poem that captures the unwavering nature of God’s love for us. With a huge thank you to Deborah Ann Belka, I’m happy to share it here.

No Other One

I know no other Savior,
no other who would forgive
nor collect in His bottle
the tears I have to give.

I know no other Shepherd,
no other to show the way
nor when I am in the valley
listen to what I have to say.

I know no other Lamb,
no other who peace brings
nor one who can lead me
to those life giving springs.

I know no other Light,
no other shines so clear
nor one when I am afraid
can take away my fear.

I know no other Creator,
no other with the skill
nor one who loves me
like I know He always will.

I know no other God,
no other one has come before
nor one who’ll come after . . .
for my God is forever more!

1 Kings 8:60

“That all the people of the earth
may know that the Lord is God,
and that there is none else.” – King James Version, Public Domain

He knows us inside and out, the good and the bad, and yet, offers us infinite grace and compassion.

Thank You, Heavenly Father

for who You are, and that You so deeply care for us

May our lives be a shining reflection

of Your goodness and mercy

to those around us.

¹Quotation is from Joni Eareckson Tada, 1 John 4:19 Commentary, [2024] Courtesy of Precept Austin, Web. Accessed 19 April, 2025.

²Poetry courtesy of Deborah Ann Belka, “No Other One.” [online post], June 13, 2023, Web. Accessed April 20, 2025. Retrieved from https://poetrybydeborahann.wordpress.com/

The Elephant In The Room

August 17, 2017 Gracie

The Elephant In The Room

Ask for help

Do you know someone who is struggling with severe depression?

Have they reached out to you for help?

If they’re open to sharing their private struggles with you, praise God for that positive step.

On the other hand, a severely depressed person who won’t open up may be in a lot more emotional trouble than you might think.

despair and no hope

Close to *800,000 people die every year due to suicide, that’s according to statistics from the World Health Organization.

What’s just as heartbreaking is that the number of suicide “attempts” is even higher.

At those alarming rates, I’m pretty sure it hits close to home.

It’s the elephant in the room. That empty seat in the dining room is a painful reminder of a precious life tragically lost.

Overwhelming Despair

Why are some people crippled by their severe depression while others can learn to manage their illness and live a productive life?

It doesn’t matter whether you’re a celebrity or homeless, an office worker, or a WWII veteran.

Christian or non-Christian – feelings of depression do not discriminate.

One thing is for certain, these consuming emotions aren’t coming from God, although He allows them.

They reek of the Enemy (of our souls) who ultimately wants to destroy us.

We Need Each Other

There’s a world of hate and division brewing which is stirred up by the media and other groups.

I hope you can turn it off.

Mercy and grace come from God alone.

Can we please quit fighting?

As Christians, we are needed elsewhere.

Our depressed loved ones deserve our prayers, attention, and compassion.

Why compassion?

If someone is struggling with thoughts of taking their own life they often feel guilty or embarrassed. It’s sad that there’s a stigma in society that says if you’re in need of help or counseling, you’re messed up beyond repair. That needs to stop.

We need each other.

we need each other

These are just a few of the issues covered in the new film from Living Waters called “Exit: The Appeal of Suicide.” As a Christian blogger, I was very interested in seeing it before the movie’s mass release on YouTube.

However, I must issue a caution. Viewer discretion is advised as some may find the subject matter too intense.

Cries For Help

Writing this article about the “Exit” movie brought back some memories for me of a former coworker who took her life. It happened years after I left that job, but I remember how shocking it was when I got the news. I’d gone to dinner with her (name withheld) and a few other friends a couple of times. I never even had a clue that she was struggling so much internally.

It’s heartbreaking. A life, precious in God’s sight, ended all too soon.

When someone commits suicide, they take the heart of their loved ones with them. I can only imagine the overwhelming grief her best friends and family went through as they prepared for her funeral.

A Timeless Struggle

Depression is not anything new. Reading through some of the Psalms in the Bible, for instance, you can picture King David’s emotional battle as he pleads for God’s mercy and forgiveness, yet he also praises God for the peace that only He provides.

Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer! – **Psalm 4:1, English Standard Version, ESV.

Someone I greatly admire is Joni Eareckson Tada. She’s a Christian author, speaker, and also a talented artist among other involvements.

Joni was paralyzed in a diving accident right after high school and has lived as a quadriplegic ever since. To hear her speak, she knows full well the strongholds of depression and self-doubt firsthand. Through many years of painful struggles, including a bout with breast cancer, Joni remains an inspiration and a great example of courage and grace under fire.

The movie, “Exit: The Appeal of Suicide” is available for free starting August 16th on YouTube.

If you know of someone who is struggling with debilitating depression and you are concerned for their safety, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number is: 1-800-273-8255.

# # #

*Statistics courtesy of World Health Organization. (Updated 2017, March). Suicide Fact Sheet. [Media Centre article]. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs398/en/
**Scripture quotation is from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2016 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
***Joni Eareckson Tada quotation, courtesy of “Joni Eareckson Tada Shares Her Story.” Published January 28, 2014. Online video clip. YouTube. Web.

Our Exceptional God