Teach your children how Jesus saved them when they struggle with doubting God's love.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way, and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Is 53:6

One day, I watched a flock of sheep just meander through the pasture. They were aimless, following each other—sort of. Watching them helped me understand this verse more clearly.

God says we all are like sheep. We are people, families, generations that are infected with the same sin Adam first had: a protection of self instead of trust in God. No matter what addiction or shameful sin makes its ugliness known in our families, we are not alone. Every one of us are sheep…turned to our own way.

Sin, struggle, weakness, and addiction can be found everywhere we look. 

But God who loves us more than we love ourselves, could not stand that we would be alone in our failures.

In a love we carelessly cannot know, he gave his own innocent Son to this earth to become our flesh and live with us perfectly. Even as he was sinned against and tempted mercilessly, he suffered and died for us and took the judgment we all deserve—the judgment we feel every time an injustice is done against us.

And in our place he became our sin.

He died an innocent Lamb sacrifice for us. We, who live like we deserve that love, but know we don’t.

And because that God, Man, Friend, Brother, Bridegroom, Savior gave up everything for us, we are free to be with him forever.

This is not because we are self-actualized, enlightened, or just downright good, but because of the trust the Spirit has given us to know that in Jesus alone we have the status as God’s child. 

A Daily Prayer:
Oh, God, your mercy is so great when I contemplate how great my sin is that you have forgiven. Help me to see, love, and talk to others as one who is deserved of hell but released by your blood. Amen.