Category: Kerrington’s Posts

Written By: Crystal Cyr  Based on: Ephesians 3

As I was studying this chapter I noticed that the beginning verses through to verse 11 are a bit of a summary of the last chapter and seeing as we focused on that in great depth previously; this blog post will be focused more on verses 12 to the end of the chapter.  (Insert plug here to read the last post on Chapter 2 if you haven’t already. hee hee 😉 )  Although Paul does add that basically he is honored that God would choose him to spread this Good News as he is least deserving, (I can totally relate to that feeling!), yet another reminder that God doesn’t choose us based on our qualifications, but rather because He wants to show Himself strong in our weaknesses.

In verse 12 we see that because of Christ we can be bold and confident in God’s presence; this is because as we learned in Chapter 1, we are accepted and loved.  Skip down to verse 16 and we are reminded that we have access to unlimited resources in Christ and inner strength because His Spirit lives in us.  More amazing news again! 🙂

Verse 17 says, “Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him.  Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.”  Notice that it says that Christ makes His home in our hearts as we trust Him…that implies that there is room for Him to “settle in” to our hearts.  How much Christ makes Himself at home in our heart is up to us; for some He may only be a house guest, for others He might be like a boarder…invited to move in and live there but with conditions and limited access to certain rooms…or, and this is the best…He could be completely at home with no restrictions to any areas of our heart and as much rights and say to matters in the home as the owner.  Isn’t that amazing?!

So the second part of that verse says that for us to stay strong, our roots need to grow deep, like a tree, down into the soil of God’s love.  We’ll only go as deep in Christ as we allow Him to go deep (or become at home) in us.  The next few verses tell us how to grow deep in the love of God; the first way, by understanding His love with our minds, and the second way by us experiencing His love.

Practically speaking, what does it look like for us to understand God’s love with our minds and how do we cultivate that?  I believe we can do this in three basic ways; firstly being that we can read about His love in His written word the Bible, secondly, we can hear about His love from other’s…this is why community and authentic relationships are so important in the body of Christ…we are built up from being real with one another about our struggles and victories, and the third way we can understand God’s love is by thinking about those things that we’ve heard and read.  The more we think on these things the more we allow room for the Holy Spirit to unpack an understanding in our hearts which leads to a change in our beliefs.

Experiencing God’s love is the other half of how we dig our roots down deep.  So how do we experience His love?  That can seem like a way out-there concept…easy to say but how do we practically do that?  Well, I thought of it in terms of a relationship with a friend or a spouse; that individual could show all the love they want in every single one of the five love languages, but if my heart is closed towards that person than it doesn’t matter what they say or do, I will refuse to receive that love.

So what does it look like to have an open heart, what does that mean?  Having an open heart simply means that you are being real with yourself and God about what’s really going on inside of you, and you are willing to let the other individual (in this case God) in to your inner world.  So our only responsibility in order to experience God’s love is to keep our hearts open.

If this is true, than I think it’s important to look at what keeps us from opening our hearts.  There can be any number of reasons that we can give, but I think what it really boils down to is fear; fear of rejection/punishment/being hurt.  Fear will cause us to want to keep our hearts closed in an effort to self-protect.

1 John 4:18 says that perfect love casts out fear.  Therefore, the only way to get rid of this fear is by love, and more specifically the love of God, because Christ is perfect love.  So the more we open our hearts to Him to let Him love us, the less fear can keep our hearts closed.

So where do we start?  That answer seems like a “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” type solution.  Well, first of all, this is why we need faith, but secondly, I suggest starting with an area of your heart that is easier to open and allow His love to displace that fear.  Practically speaking, that means that every moment you feel fear trying to sneak back in to that area, invite God’s love in to remind you of His truth.

As we begin to yield more areas of our heart to Christ’s love, by simply keeping an open heart (staying real/vulnerable with ourselves and God about what’s going on inside of us), the more we begin to want more of that love to fill our hearts.  This is how gradually, day-by-day, we can become stronger, as we open our hearts to receive more of Christ’s love, and displace more of our fear.  Then, as the end of verse 19 says, we “will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.” (NLT)  Let’s let verse 20 be our response to all of this; “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” Keep digging into Perfect Love this week!

Join Us on Facebook at our UYM Bible Study Group

Or by Email: uniquelyyoursblog@gmail.com

Bless you, UYM Bible Study Group!

Until Next Time,

~Cyrstal

Written By: Kerrington Sweeney

Hello Ladies:

Todays Challenge, Is to be bold and ask for prayer! While I was preparing and researching about prayer for today, this incredible quote came up in my search and I had to share…it says:

“Fight all your battles on your knees and you will win every time.”

When I read that, God really tugged on my heart. Whatever trials or tough situations you are facing today. Give it to God, allow Him to work in your life, like never before. Our Prayer team here at UYM, would absolutely LOVE to pray with you and for you…Comment your Prayer requests below or send us an email. We look forward to having this opportunity as an online community, to pray with you and to support you in your life journey.

Join Us on Facebook at our UYM Bible Study Group

Or by Email: uniquelyyoursblog@gmail.com

Bless you, UYM Bible Study Group!

~Kerrington Sweeney

Contact us here, Please know that all prayer requests are highly confidential within UYM Staff.

Written By: Kerrington Sweeney

Hello Ladies:

Welcome back to Tell It Tuesdays…This is where we get real. Today’s challenge, is to tell it. What’s one struggle your facing right here, right now. I know at times, we have a fear of being vulnerable and sharing our struggles but, I believe in ‘sharing the burden.’ Today, I am going to share briefly about ‘Seasons of Life.’

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 reads…

“For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what has been planted. A time to kill, and a time to heal. A time to break down, and time to build up. A time to weep, and a time to laugh. A time to mourn and a time to dance. A time to cast away stones and a time to gather them; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain. A time to seek, and a time to lose. A time to keep and a time to cast away. A time to tear, and a time to sew. A time to keep silent, and a time to speak. A time to love, and a time to hate. A time for war, and a time for peace.”

There certainly is a time for everything. Everything has a season. Good seasons. Bad seasons. Productive seasons. Growth seasons. And, seasons of decline. Seasons of mourning. Grief. Seasons of laughter. Seasons where there are more obstacles than opportunities. Often followed by seasons where we can’t seem to find time for all the opportunities. There are seasons of stretching, where God seems to shape something new in our hearts. And, we often don’t know what that new is until we enter another season. Seasons of passionate, growing love. And, tough seasons, where love is tested. Seasons you’re more the leader and seasons where you’re more being led. Seasons of blessings. And, seasons of wondering where are all those blessings others seem to be experiencing. There are seasons of discovery and seasons where we get to invest what we have discovered in others…

When we don’t understand this concept of seasons — especially in the bad seasons — we can begin to believe that seasons never change. We may stop trusting. Stop dreaming. Stop taking risks. But, life comes in seasons. Seasons do change. Sometimes quickly. And, sometimes seasons may even overlap each other. When we find ourselves in a good season — especially an extended good season — we can start to take the season for granted. We may even forget that seasons change. Sometimes quickly. And, so we aren’t prepared.

In my life there has been times to cry, don’t get me wrong…I for sure don’t live the “perfect life.” There have been times to dance and sing but, there are still times to mourn. There has certainly been, a Season for everything and for that I am truly grateful. I want to encourage each of you today, that no matter the season of Life you are in, right at this very moment. Jesus Christ is working all things together for your good. He is working to bring greater revelation of Himself in your life.

We can rest easy knowing this…

“…My times are in Your hand.” Proverbs 31:15

Join Us on Facebook at our UYM Bible Study Group

Or by Email: uniquelyyoursblog@gmail.com

Bless you, UYM Bible Study Group.

Until Next Time,

~Kerrington

Written By: Kerrington Sweeney

Hello Ladies:

Get those Bibles out!! We are excited to have another reading requirement assignment for this week. This weeks assignment:

Ephesians 3

Join Us on Facebook at our UYM Bible Study Group

Or by Email: uniquelyyoursblog@gmail.com

Until Next Time,

~Kerrington

Written By: Crystal Cyr

Based off of: Ephesians 2

In this chapter there is much discussion about the Jews and Gentiles being reconciled and united in the person of Christ. In order to really understand what is being said here we must take a look at the Jewish people’s history. (If hearing the word “history” makes you want to check out, I would encourage you to stick with me because this is good stuff…and yes, I may be slightly biased, but this still holds to be true…trust me. 😉 )
A very brief synopsis of the situation is this; the Jewish people were (and still are) God’s chosen people, they were the ones who first had relationship with, worshipped, and followed Him. Long before Jesus was on the scene God had instructed them on requirements for the temple they were to build for His Presence to live in, which only the priests could enter, and very detailed instructions on how the priests were to make atonement for the sins of the people through the death and blood of a perfect animal. The Jewish people had lived in this way for generations, following very strict, exact rules and regulations set out by God in order for them to hear from Him and meet with Him through the priests. Just check out Leviticus for a taste of some of the many rules set out for them. Fast forward to the New Testament and we see how these rules had led some Israelites to become experts in the law, but to forsake the very heart behind the laws; Jesus called these Pharisees out many times even referring to them as white washed tombs, implying that they looked good on the outside with their knowledge and strict law compliance, but were full of dead rotting corpses inside, meaning their hearts were full of the sin they preached against, pretty harsh, right? Take Paul, the author of Ephesians, for example, before he had a revelation that Jesus Christ was the promised Messiah through an amazing encounter with God, He was a devout Jewish leader, persecuting and even killing Christians and was 100% convinced that he was making God happy doing this! Talk about a real deviation from the original plan right?!
Here’s the amazing thing though; God not only knew that this would happen, but he prepared for it to happen. He was waiting in anticipation for the day that he could fulfil the old covenant in the person of his Son Jesus, the perfect, sinless sacrifice for all of our sins, allowing not only Jews but also Gentiles to have free access to Him at any time and at any place. He couldn’t wait to adopt the rest of us into His family! He was wanting to tear down the wall of law and outward religious behaviour that separated us and unite us into one new person.
This is the very message of this scripture; undeserved mercy, and grace, which is the favour of God that destroys the power of sin in our lives, and empowers us to live for Christ. This mercy and grace had absolutely nothing to do with us, but absolutely everything to do with Christ. Our past; accepted, adopted, good, or bad, doesn’t matter, we’re all on even ground at the foot of the cross. Paul was the perfect example of undeserved mercy and grace and a good reminder that it has nothing to do with us and everything to do with Christ. Perhaps today, you find yourself struggling with the same problem that the Jewish Pharisees had developed; doing what you know is the right thing to do on the outside but experiencing no change on the inside in your thoughts and attitudes. Sometimes this can happen so subtle that we don’t even realize we’ve slipped into that place until we find ourselves comparing and either criticizing others by elevating ourselves, or beating ourselves up over our shortcomings; either way, these things are evidence that we have begun to base our identity on our works, rather than on our unchanging position with Christ. This response amounts to nothing more than religion that seeks to earn it’s way to God rather than that of the cross, which is God’s way of reaching out to us. His only requirement now is that we receive and believe Him.
As I reflected on this scripture I was asking the Lord to show me what He was saying in all of this and how it relates to us today. Although this is literally speaking of the Jews and Gentiles as two separate people groups becoming One in Christ, He showed me that these two groups can also be representative of how we can still behave and respond to Him today. This first response being that of pride and outward obedience with no allowance for the transforming power of the Holy Spirit Who transforms us from the inside-out, and the second being like that which is represented by the Gentile group.
The Gentiles were outsiders to the ways and laws of God prior to the cross; they had no idea of the requirements that were in place in order to be considered acceptable to God, nor of the restrictions in place in order to speak to, or come close to God. Today we can read and understand the requirements of the Old Testament and we can know that the forgiveness and acceptance that we have received in Christ is an amazing thing; but we can still find ourselves quickly taking it for granted. This heart attitude puts us into a place of familiarity with the Lord, which is exactly what Paul was cautioning us against.
As I was writing this I read just a few of the end chapters of Exodus and the beginning chapters of Leviticus (I know…riveting right?) which were describing all of the instructions that God had set out in the building of His Tabernacle (the place where He was to dwell) and the instructions for sacrificial atonement. When I finished reading all of this I was struck with a reverence and a deeper revelation of the love of God. Here is why, in the Old Testament only the Priests could enter into the Dwelling Place of God, and the details of when they could enter, and how, right down to every layer of clothing that they had to wear were so specific that if they were not followed correctly they could die in the Presence of God.

The Tabernacle itself was built with careful attention to every detail; God did not miss one thing in the building of it, not one stone. Yet years later, God chose to make the perfect sacrifice for our sins in His Son and then offer His Holy Spirit to live in us…us individually, and us collectively, Jew and Gentile as His Body, His Church, His Dwelling Place, with Christ being the head of us all.

Are you getting this yet? God wanted connection one-on-one with us so much that He completely did away with all of the previous requirements of a beautifully adorned tabernacle of precious jewels and materials to instead live in unperfect, weak, messy, prone-to-sin, and prone-to-wander vessels of flesh and blood. That is incredible love. A Holy, Righteous, Perfect God who deserves to, and could chose to, live anywhere, instead choosing to live in us…a people who had not a chance in the world to meet with Him prior to the Cross.
This revelation caused me to question myself: Have I forgotten what I’ve been rescued from? Have I been blinded to the enormous wall of requirements that Christ tore down for ME to be able to freely walk into His Presence at any time? Have I become so familiar with His Presence that I take it for granted, waltzing in and out like a child would in a Palace of great wealth, getting what I want when I want it and then leaving until I need something else; the whole time utterly unaware of the enormous privilege I’ve been entrusted with?

The good news is that if the answer is yes, than we can simply turn our hearts back to Him and receive His love and restore our connection. So whether you find yourself in the category of going about your religious duties without that heart transformation, or receiving a heart transformation but taking it for granted, today allow the Lord to do what only He can do because each one of us is an important part of His Dwelling Place; not one more important than the other, but each of us a precious living stone in His temple.

“…God is building a home. He’s using us all – irrespective of how we got here – in what he is building…a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.” (Eph 2:19-22 MSG)

Until Next Time,

~Crystal

Hello Ladies:

Today’s challenge, is a little different than usual. Click the image below to watch an incredible video about Prayer and the importance of prayer. We look forward to the discussion on the UYM Bible Study Facebook Group later on today…

Bless you UYM Bible Study Group!

~Kerrington Sweeney

Hello Ladies:

Welcome to Tell It Tuesdays…This is where we get real. Today’s challenge, is to tell it. What’s one struggle your facing right here, right now. I know at times, we have a fear of being vulnerable and sharing our struggles but, I believe in ‘sharing the burden.’ As I was preparing for today, I stumbled on to the verse in the Bible  Isaiah 66:9 it says…

“I will not cause pain, without allowing something new to be born. Says the Lord.”

The struggle-some season you may be caught in currently, won’t last forever and to think that it says something new will become out of this. How amazing is that. When you feel at your lowest point…your rock bottom…You can look up and know that God already has incredible plans for you.

Dear Heavenly Father,

I thank you for each and every woman reading this. I thank you for allowing us this opportunity to share our burdens, to lighten our loads. We know that, you are the ultimate creator, mentor and guide. I thank you for every struggle that was confessed today. God I thank you, for the new levels of vulnerability and courage these women are stepping into. I ask a special blessing on each of them, as we all continue to grow and draw closer to you on a daily basis. We pray this in your precious Holy Name. Amen!!

Bless you UYM Bible Study Group!

~Kerrington Sweeney