The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” 

—Colossians 3:1–3

It’s so easy to set our minds on the things on earth. We can see them, and they require our immediate attention.

We often think that setting our minds on things above looks like staring whimsically into the clouds or spending all day in prayer, but God is also clear that we are to serve and do our work on this earth with integrity. 

So what this really looks like is keeping our hope, desires, and purpose on the things above while yet keeping our hands to the daily work that duty requires of us.

To do this, we must die to our flesh (Romans 8:13) and perform our earthly duties with heavenly intent—in the power of the Holy Spirit and trusting that no matter how unspiritual the task, we can do it while displaying his fruit.

When we’re tempted to set our energy and emotions on the things of this world, may we remember that we’re already dead, and ask ourselves if those things matter in the life we live above with Christ.

We can put our earthly wants aside and make our lives about abiding in Christ in the day–to–day for the purpose of bringing him glory and showing him to others.

The post December 8-Heaven on Our Minds appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“But when Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!’ For amazement had seized him and all his companions because of the catch of fish which they had taken; and likewise also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not fear; from now on you will be catching people.’ When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.”

—Luke 5:8–11

When Peter saw Jesus’s greatness, he knew he wasn’t worthy to be in Jesus’s presence.

Imagine Peter’s surprise when Jesus didn’t shun him, but instead invited him to join the greatest mission of all.

The understanding that we are not worthy—that the Lord’s forgiveness is undeserved—is part of the truth of the Gospel. It’s not a reason to hide or run away from him; it’s a reason to follow. We’re transformed into his image as we believe and live our belief out in obedience (1 John 2:6).

When we come to Jesus in repentance, all our sinfulness is washed away, and we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Then we must follow as the disciples did—willing to abandon all else as the disciples did if he requires it.

When we’re humble before him, he will always say, “Don’t be afraid; follow me.”

He will give us a purpose and an eternal mission, and he’s worth infinitely more than anything we could ever leave behind.

The post December 7-Because He Called appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“I will most gladly spend and be expended for your souls.” 

—2 Corinthians 12:15

Paul echoes this statement again in Philippians 2:17: “But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.”

Just like Jesus, Paul laid his life down willingly to bring others to God. This is just one example that it was not only for Jesus to sacrifice for the kingdom of God, but for all of us as fellow heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17).

That will look different for each of us. Whatever life the Lord has given us, we’re called to lay it down. “We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers and sisters. But whoever has worldly goods and sees his brother or sister in need, and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God remain in him? Little children, let’s not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:16–18).

This doesn’t mean we will do everything anyone asks or expects of us, but it does mean if we’re walking in the Spirit, we will give willingly where the Lord leads. We will gladly “spend and be expended,” whether in our time, finances, emotion, or physical effort. 

This life is not about what we can get out of it, but about what we can pour into others for the sake of the Gospel. 

The post December 6-Giving Gladly appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“She said to him, ‘Sir, you have no bucket and the well is deep; where then do you get this living water?’”

—John 4:11

Jesus was thirsty and had no bucket, but he was offering the Samaritan woman water that would quench her soul’s thirst forever.

From the woman’s perspective, she was better off than Jesus was; she held a bucket in her hands while he had nothing. How did he expect to give her any water at all?

But the living water Christ offered the Samaritan woman was himself—the very same living water each of us draws from the well of the Holy Spirit.

And we can also dip into this well to share Christ with others no matter our earthly circumstance.

Other people may have more earthly tools than we do—more money or talent, more intelligence or education, more beauty or time, more opportunities or health, more interpersonal skills or fame—but friends, if they don’t have Jesus, we should be the one offering them something.

They might look at us puzzled—how could we offer them something when our hands are empty?

But the soul’s well is too deep for them; no earthly bucket can reach the water it needs. The Samaritan woman had tried bucket after bucket of relationship—five husbands and counting—and her heart was still unsatisfied. The richest man could fill buckets to the brim, but without Christ, he would be a pauper compared to the humblest believer.

We might lack compared to others in this life, but we can offer them the wealth of eternal living water that is Christ instead of pining after their temporary advantages. Those will all count for nothing the moment our souls are required of us.

The post December 5-Living Water in Empty Hands appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“Then on the seventh day they got up early at the dawning of the day and marched around the city in the same way seven times; only on that day did they march around the city seven times.”

—Joshua 6:15

Sometimes the Lord asks us to do things that don’t make sense in any earthly way. 

“March around the city every day? What’s that going to do?”

I’m sure they all had questions. Not only that, but they were supposed to do it seven days in a row—seven days during which the people inside the walls of Jericho were likely mocking them, maybe even throwing things at them, and certainly laughing at the ridiculous display which seemed to have no purpose.

Our reaction to this kind of treatment is often to think, “This can’t be what God meant. It doesn’t make any sense, and I look like a fool.”

God had told them to do it each day, but on the seventh day, to do it seven times. By this point, they were probably tired, confused, and a little worried that nothing was going to happen. But they didn’t let their lack of understanding stop them. They continued faithfully in what God had called them to do.

When we’ve followed the Lord into battles we don’t understand, we don’t have to cower in insecurity when opposition comes. We can trust that the Lord has reasons even when we can’t see them. If the Lord asks us to walk in circles that seem to have no purpose, and it looks crazy to outsiders, let’s obey him instead of our doubts or the world’s jeers.

The post December 4-Faith in the Circles appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“He has made everything appropriate in its time.”

—Ecclesiastes 3:11

“In its time” is such an important phrase to consider. Each thing has an appropriate, appointed time.

Some trees flower before they have any leaves; some grow the leaves first. Some bushes have flowers for months, and some bloom once for mere days each season.

The largest flower in the world only blooms once approximately every forty years. There’s another that can take one–hundred years to bloom, then it dies.

This is just one reason why comparison is never helpful.

We can’t say the flower that blooms once every forty years is a failure. We can’t say that the flower that blooms once a year for a few days is incompetent.

They are each different and uniquely beautiful.

In the same way, one person may seem to have an evergreen career and enjoy win after win. Others may experience success several notable times in their lives. But some people will be the flower that blooms once in forty or one–hundred years, and that is not a failure. That is God’s ordained purpose.

We seem to think that we should all be on the same track—college, career, family, steady finances, good health. But God has different timelines, different paths, and different purposes for each of us. Each “blooming” will look different.

If you feel that your life has not blossomed the way you hoped, hang on. God will make it appropriate—some versions say “beautiful”—in its time.

The post December 3-The Wait Is Not Wasted appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“He must increase, but I must decrease.” 

—John 3:30

Most of the time when we’re discouraged, it’s because we’re worried about our own increase . . . perhaps in reputation, finances, relationship goals, personal betterment, or success.

We want to see that we matter and that what we do matters, and we tend to gauge that by numbers. Is our bank account growing? How many people seem to be appreciating, noticing, or responding to what we do? Do we have as many friends as so–and–so? Are we getting more followers?

But this is all about our increase. We are checking our worth by worldly standards.

All those things are nice if they happen, but when they become the goal, we have things backwards.

The Lord never says, “Make sure you are very successful in your life and endeavors. That’s what glorifies me.”

He repeatedly says things like, “The last shall be first” (Matthew 20:16), “whoever wants to become prominent among you shall be your servant” (Matthew 20:26), and “the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:11).

When we decrease, this is no cause for concern, because it’s not about us. And according to the Word, doing what he has for us might look very much like being a nobody in a worldly sense.

And this is actually freeing. We don’t have to seek to get our dues or be noticed. We don’t have to scramble to make an impact.

We can simply quietly serve the Lord, abide in him (John 15), grow in knowledge and discernment (Philippians 1:9), and trust that we are living in his will. If that brings our increase, it isn’t wrong, but our own increase should never be the goal.

The post December 2-Making Room for Him appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“Do not learn the way of the nations, and do not be terrified by the signs of the heavens, although the nations are terrified by them.”

—Jeremiah 10:2

Our world has its ways of handling things, but we shouldn’t look to it to learn how to respond when difficult times come.

Our culture has become increasingly fearful, and the voices in the world seem to thrive on shouting that fear out louder and stronger. So much of what we see sensationalizes all the things we could be afraid of to keep us hooked on knowing all the dreadful details, afraid to look away lest we miss something.

We shouldn’t fear the things the world fears or respond the way culture influences us to—with distress, doomsaying, anger, hatred, fearmongering, or selfish stockpiling.

So how do we respond?

We love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44).

We know that the Lord will sustain us even when there is much to be anxious about; he is our comfort (Psalm 94:18–19).

We thank him for all the ways he has come through for us in the past so we don’t forget his everlasting faithfulness (Psalm 136).

We remind ourselves that what we can see with our eyes is not the whole story; he is always there upholding and defending us (Psalm 37:17; 2 Kings 6:16; Exodus 14:14).

We remember that death and sorrow are not our end. He is making all things new (1 Corinthians 15:54–55; Revelations 21:4–5), and all who follow him have an inheritance reserved in heaven which is imperishable, undefiled, and will not fade away (1 Peter 1:4).

We don’t have to be dismayed when things in this world are dark, for Christ has already overcome the world (John 16:33).

The post December 1-Calm in Chaos appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen and welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.”

—Hebrews 11:13

We all have times of tragedy, difficulty, and struggle in this life. It’s easy in those times to ask, “Why, God? I’m trying to be faithful and serve you.”

It’s not wrong to talk to God about our doubts and disappointments or even to ask him, “Why?” He’s big enough for our questions, and we see David, Job, and others ask him the same thing.

But this verse gives us the ultimate answer: this world isn’t our home. 

When it seems like we’re not receiving the promises, we can know that we will receive them in that “better country”—the heavenly one where God is now preparing a place for us (Hebrews 11:16) beyond all imagination (1 Corinthians 2:9).

We might be strangers and exiles in this life, but Ephesians 2:19–22 reminds us that we are “no longer strangers and foreigners, but [we] are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom [we] also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.”

We don’t have to despair when this life is not meeting our expectations.

This isn’t our home, but we have one—a glorious, forever home that will realize and exceed all our expectations.

The post November 30-A Better Country appeared first on C. E. White.

The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon.

“Even if the fig tree does not blossom, and there is no fruit on the vines, if the yield of the olive fails, and the fields produce no food, even if the flock disappears from the fold, and there are no cattle in the stalls, yet I will triumph in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.”

—Habakkuk 3:17–18

There is power in praising the Lord when everything seems to be falling apart around us. It shows that our hope is truly in him and not in the blessings we have in this life. This was the charge Satan levied against Job—that if Job’s earthly blessings were taken away, he would turn away from serving God (Job 1:9–11). 

While suffering, Job cried and questioned, grieved and wished he’d never been born, but he never turned from God, though he lost all his possessions and all his family except a bitter wife.

This is our responsibility—that our faith in the Lord would not be based on what we gain or lose in this life. We can be in plenty or in need and still be content (Philippians 4:11–13) because Jesus is the treasure in a field worth trading everything else to gain (Matthew 13:44).

Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36).

So when this world lets us down, we don’t have to despair. We can still praise, knowing that the Lord and his promises are still true. We can take joy in him and the salvation he’s given us.

Rejoicing in the midst of trouble is a sign to those around us that our faith is not in this world, but in the Lord alone.

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