Lori Stanley Roeleveld's Blog

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Reputation 101 for Christians.

What do people say about you?��

Does it matter?

I know the “right” answer is — of course not! People can say what they want! We know who we are. Sticks and stones and all that.

Okay, sure, I get that. I’ve said that. Sounds super mature. And at the end of the day, it’s true.����But what if what people say about you impacts their understanding of who Jesus is?

What if they believe a lie? What if they associate you with a group of people who don’t even begin to represent your views? What if someone actually steals your reputation? Falsely accuses you? Misunderstands you completely?

I’ve experienced each of these scenarios and I can honestly say that “what do people say about you?” is not the most important question. It matters. It’s not insignificant.

We are to live in such a way that people speak well of us because our words, actions, attitudes, and integrity merit praise.

Proverbs 22:1 says, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.” And 1 Peter 2:12 reads, “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” In 1 Timothy 3, Paul counsels that elders or overseers must be “above reproach” (v 2) and ” be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil” (v 7).

We are called to live like Christ and behave, think, and speak in ways that reflect a heart surrendered to Jesus. Period. Full stop. That is our calling. And, in a sinless world, that would result in an unblemished reputation.

But, we live here, not in the New Jerusalem but in the old, rundown Sin City known as life this side of glory and the neighborhood ain’t what it used to be.

Twenty-five years ago, living the way we live and believing what we believe made us trustworthy, people of integrity, even upstanding citizens.

Fifteen years ago, same beliefs, same lives made us the “odd” but nice enough neighbors who still had old-fashioned beliefs and talked about Jesus like we had coffee with Him every morning.

Now, those same beliefs, same lives, in some quarters, make us dangerous, suspect of a host of potential crimes including racism, fascism, and nationalism (unless we’re the “good kind” of Christian– whatever that is in your neighborhood). Or conversely, we’re compromisers, heretics, worldly, and diluters of the faith. One sideways breath and we’re fair game for believers and non-believers alike.

Part of me says– whatever.

Jesus’s enemies called Him names — Beelzebul (Matthew 10:25), imposter/deceiver (Matthew 27:63), a glutton, drunkard, friend of tax collectors and sinners (Matthew 11:19), and blasphemer (John 10:33) among others. He tells us if we’re living as we should not to expect any less. Why should we be spared when He wasn’t?

I know mature leaders who would advise that we “can only control ourselves.” What others do or say is not within our purview to govern. Jesus was silent before His accusers. Psalm 37:7 advises us to leave it to God, “Be still before the��Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!”��

But, I would also point out that Paul presented a defense of himself, not for his or his ego’s sake, but so that believers would not be detoured from the gospel of Jesus Christ. Study 2 Corinthians and Galatians and you will understand what I believe is a more important question than “What Do People Say About You?”

You see, a vital question that should concern you is this: What do YOU believe about You?

Part of the reason we get so tossed about by what others say or think is that we haven’t grounded our own thinking about who we are in our identity in Christ. We hear other people talk about Christians and we start to fret– wait, are we racist? Are we worldly? Are we nationalists? Are we compromising heretics?

The problem is that’s the wrong mirror. What is fashionable, reasonable, acceptable, and cultural changes. It’s like a fun house mirror where just when we’ve adjusted to one reflection, the mirror modifies and we’re changing ourselves again to accomodate the mirror.

God’s mirror reflects TRUTH.��There is a TRUTH about you. It is a truth that no one can steal or destroy. It is a truth you need to understand and embrace. It’s not found on any news station and it’s not found on social media. No one generation has it nailed down. Only God knows and He’s communicated it through His Son, Jesus.

In Matthew 16:13-20, when Jesus asked the disciples, “���Who do people say the Son of Man is?��� It’s not because Jesus was confused.�� John 13:3-4 says, “Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power,��and that he had come from God��and was returning to God;��so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.”

Jesus knew God the Father and trusted Him. And, Jesus knew where He came from and where He was going.

Paul knew Jesus and trusted Him with salvation. Paul knew what He was before Christ, who He was in Christ, and where He would go as He followed Christ.

If you find yourself tossed about these days or see the church tossed about, know it’s time to dig into the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth and that is found in God, His Word, His Son, Jesus.

Don’t be a racist, fascist, nationalist, worldly, compromising heretic.

Do trust Jesus Christ for your whole salvation, not relying on your works.

Do live as He did, refraining from sin, actively loving others, and doing good works prepared for you before the foundations of the earth.

Don’t chase those who speak against you trying to play cleanup of your reputation but don’t be afraid to point to your godly actions and speak clearly the truth of Jesus you know and live for the sake of those trying to receive the gospel.

Reputation 101 for Christians. Let us keep our heads and hearts about us, loved ones. There is foolishness afoot and we must be wise for the sake of the gospel so that all who have ears can hear.

Thoughts? I respond to every comment and reply to every email.

Have you preordered God’s Abundant Mercy: 40 Days of Living in His Compassion? It’s a beautiful book you’re going to want by your bedside as you wrestle with mercy in a merciless world.

Also, please share this blog/website with your friends! New subscribers will receive the gift of 52 Faith Questions to Challenge and Grow Your Walk with Jesus.

Reputation 101 for Christians https://t.co/bF5R6vAghw #Christianliving #Jesus

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) October 6, 2025

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Regrets. Starting over. Regrets again.

I’ve heard  people proclaim they have no regrets. Frankly, I don’t believe them (unless they are moving toward narcissism). It’s popular to state that you have no time for regrets or that you don’t regret anything you’ve done, even the mistakes, because they’ve all gotten you where you are now. I get the sentiment but it doesn’t really make sense.

Do you think that’s wise thinking for the child abuser? The narcissistic leader who led her people to ruin? The drunk driver who took the life of innocent passengers but survived?

“We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28 ESV), but that doesn’t mean everything that happened is good. AND, this verse is speaking of those who love Him. It is specific to us, not to all humanity.

We all have regrets– or we should, at least, because we’ve all done wrong. Paul wrote in Romans 3:10-12 ESV,

“None is righteous, no, not one;
 no one understands;
    no one seeks for God.
 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
    no one does good,
    not even one.”

Our habit of making selfish, sinful, unwise choices results in undesireable consequences that should help us regret those decisions.

Many of us, at least inwardly, do acknowledge this feeling of regret, the desire to start over, to begin again.

The desire to go back to the beginning is so universal it should lead us to ask why so many experience it. If we’re meant to toss off regret and simply move forward, why do we keep trying to start again?

You see it in society’s builders and deconstructors alike. They take different paths and use different language but they’re all trying to return to the genesis in order to begin again. Fresh. New. Changed.

I think it’s because none of us began at the start of the story. We’ve all come in mid-way and while we were immediately engaged in the plot, we live with a  persistent feeling that we’re missing vital information. We should listen to that feeling. God wrote that whisper into our lives.

You and I were born in the middle. We all had a beginning but it was further back than the day of our conception– we each started as ideas conceived in the mind of God who chose the place and precise time of our delivery into the greater story– but He injected us right into the middle.

Did He do this so we’d spend our lives with this vague sense that we don’t have all the information we need to understand the plot or to successfully find our way to a happy conclusion?

Not at all. Or maybe yes. I believe He wants us to long to start over, to want to find the beginning.

He did it precisely so we would long to start again. He did it to create in us a yearning for the information we can only find at the beginning.

We are just confused about what we’re seeking.

You see, the beginning we seek wasn’t our birth or even our conception. The beginning we crave isn’t found by restarting our marriage, our parenting, our friendships, our church, or our country.

The beginning is Jesus.

He is the Alpha and the Omega. The Beginning and the End. The First and the Last.

It means He is eternal. He is God. He was, He is, He is to come. It means He holds every key and we should want to in relationship with Him.

To understand the middle, that place where we live, we need Jesus who is the Beginning and the End.

When someone mentions that they have regrets, it isn’t wisdom for us to tell them that regret is a waste of time or energy. Instead, ask what their regrets lead them to long for– often, they’ll say, “I wish I could start over.” Or “I wish I could begin again.”

Then we can help them see that, “Ahh, your soul longs for the Alpha and the Omega. The One who is the beginning and the end.”

Do you wish our country could start over? Your church? Your career? Your family? Your life? Your soul is aching for Jesus. He is the place where we all begin and where we begin again.

Jesus.

Thoughts? I respond to every comment and reply to every email!

I have two gifts for you this week! THIS FIRST OFFER IS TIME-LIMITED. I WILL REMOVE THE LINK FROM THIS POST IN FIVE DAYS. The first is my new opt-in lead magnet, 52 Faith Questions to Challenge and Grow Your Walk with Jesus, being offered to all new subscribers (Please spread the word!). In gratitude for your faithfulness, you can download it HERE! (If something on your phone or computer blocks you, email me at lorisroel@gmail.com and I’ll send it along.

Also, in honor of Hobbit Day 2025, here are 10 Perfect Scriptures to Disturb the Hobbit in All of us. Ever wonder why I’m the “Disturber of Hobbits”? Find out HERE!

AND PLEASE ACCEPT MY APOLOGIES for the two empty emails you’ve received. We’re working with MailerLite to find out what is causing this annoying glitch.

 

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Dear Readers,

It’s been on my heart to write you some honest thoughts about our relationship (yours and mine) and life as a Christian writer in the days of publishing, consumerism, and division in the country/church.

First, God made me a writer. It’s in my original design.

As long as I can remember, I’ve written.  That’s me. I read and I write. (These days, I work hard to remember to also get up and move.)

Since the first time I sang, I Surrender All, I’ve known I wanted my writing to serve Him, the Living Word. If you strip me down to my essence, I am a sinner in love with Jesus, miraculously saved by grace, who has relied on that grace and written about it all my life so that others might love Him, too. I’m sure my agent knows this but don’t tell my publisher– even if I wasn’t paid to write, I would write.  Jeremiah’s words totally resonate with me “If I say, ‘I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,’ there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in,  and I cannot” (Jeremiah 20:9 ESV).

Second, God has given me a heart for you, people who have followed Jesus in this complicated world, often for decades.

Some of you are pastors, leaders, writers, speakers, or missionaries, but others of you have powerful ministries in your homes, in your prayer rooms, or in ways most of us won’t know until you receive your reward in glory. Like me, you love Jesus and like me, you love His Word. You know you aren’t living perfectly or sinlessly but every day, you open the Bible, pray, and seek His face again. I do, too.

Image by Sirin from Pixabay

These days, it’s hard not to lose heart. The division in our country and in our churches causes you great pain although some of you would argue one side and some of you the other. Your heart is heavy for your children, grandchildren, or the next generation of believers. Sometimes in the heat of spiritual battle, confusion or doubts creep in and you find comfort knowing there are others holding on to the truth you also hold dear. Those numbers are dwindling but you also believe God doesn’t need numbers. He’s not Tinkerbell counting on our applause to survive.

The deceitfulness rampant in our country angers you and it breaks your heart to know that some will fall away from the faith, lose heart, or never hear the truth of Jesus because sin and deception have suppressed the truth. You trust in the Sovereignty of God but you also trust that He calls us to bear witness.  You want to be among those who speak the truth but fewer and fewer are willing to listen. Even you have faced disappointments and hardships and heartaches that have sometimes quietly put your heart at risk.

You don’t want surfacy devotions and you’re tired of pablum and platitudes. You want real writing about what it’s honestly like to struggle with God’s Word and living breathing humans needing love. I want to be here for that.

Third, sometimes I lose my way as a writer.

Christian writers seeking traditional publishing have wrestled in the past twenty years with needing numbers of readers and honestly, that goes against everything we believe about where our focus is supposed to be. Most of us don’t want to be any kind of celebrity. We have no inner desire to be “followed” by thousands. And yet, we have experienced rejection after rejection, book projects that were praised for biblical content, strong writing, and relevance but sadly, we don’t have the numbers and so . . . file it away and try again.

Now, that’s hard, but it’s not hard like living in areas of the world where Christians are persecuted, imprisoned, even killed. It’s not hard like leaving family and friends to serve overseas to share the gospel. It’s not hard like being the only one in your family who knows Jesus.

It’s hard like pastoring and preaching in a small New England church week after week with humility and grace and I’ve seen godly men do this without complaint. 

So, this letter is not a complaint but I want you to be aware of the myriad temptations facing Christians who write– temptations to sensationalize, pander, compromise, or to give up. I’ve faced all those temptations. Pray for those called to preach, to speak, to write for Jesus that we have courage to resist and to remain faithful even when no one listens or reads. There are even newer temptations coming along with the rise of AI (artificial intelligence). We can ask it to do our writing for us. When we’re trying to earn an income and reach more people, the ease of that can be tempting. One reason for this post is that I want you to know I have committed NOT to allow AI to write my blog posts, articles, or any portion of my books. These blog posts and Substacks are written from scratch by me.

cstar55

Finally, I’m coming back to the heart of writing which for me is living worship.

I am blessed to be surrounded by godly men and women in the Christian writing world with their heads and hearts on straight about the business of writing. We encourage one another to be content with “small” ministries, to write and speak the truth even when it’s unpopular as long as its biblical, and not to chase the numbers (although we remain faithful to spreading God’s messages to as many people as we can reach).

I’m equally blessed to have a publisher, Our Daily Bread Publishing, committed to theological integrity, and editors who allow me to write deeper devotions with the writing voice God has given me. I believe you found that in Graceful Influence and you’ll find it again in God’s Abundant Mercy releasing this Spring. Hopefully, the new book I’m working on, The Emptiness Cure, will find a home that also cherishes biblical depth and the needs of believers who have walked with Jesus for a long time.

But, for a time I think I’ve been pinballing around blog/Substack topics trying to find some footing I started to lose (like Asaph in Psalm 73). I have opinions about all kinds of national topics including world politics, cultural conflicts, deconstruction of faith, and Christian celebrity influencers and occasionally I’ll write a thought or two about something that’s on trend but that’s not the focus of my daily life. I will write about headlines (as I know some of you value those posts) but I believe it’s been a mistake to let the media and the culture LEAD our conversation. God leads. We follow His leads and whether the culture follows or not, we have one another, yes?

I want to return to topics that may not be sensational but I find them in God’s Word and wrestle to apply them to my daily life– and so do you. I want to write to glorify God and I want to write for YOU.

Years ago, when I began blogging, I once complained to God that I was doing all this writing for “only 30” readers. In that moment, I sensed a great conviction of the Holy Spirit that each of those readers were of great value to Jesus and if I couldn’t value them, why would He send more. I repented and I committed to write with excellence no matter the size of my reach. Of course, my readership has grown and I remember you’re not numbers, you’re men and women like me, seeking God, walking toward home, trying hard to remain on the narrow road and love the way Jesus loved in a world that hates you a little more every day. We need one another and are blessed to walk this road together.

So, I really need your thoughts. Write in the comments or send me an email (lorisroel@gmail.com) and let me know what topics you need to read about in the days and weeks to come. We can face them and wrestle through them together.

I remain the disturber of hobbits, wanting not to settle into a Jesus-following life that is comfortable and easy but to be willing to follow Him into the discomfort of a life of truth, love, and sacrifice. That’s what I want to write about but more importantly, that’s what I want to live. What is on your mind these days? Please, let me know.  Goodness and mercy, Lori

Honest Thoughts from a Christian Writer about Us https://t.co/jWjSf5tOwG #Christianwriter #ChristiansandAI

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) August 26, 2025

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One has little power. Will you be the one?

One is no great voice. Will you be the one?

One is no force for change. Will you be the one?

And yet, “For the eyes of the Lord roam throughout the earth, so that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His” (2 Chronicles 16:9 NASB).

Be the one.

We look to crowds, to masses, to majorities for power. He has all power so He seeks the one. THe one whose heart is His.

This summer I’m working through the kings, those who reigned during the mess that was the divided kingdom because I feel at home there in that chaotic, crumbling time.

Most of us have lived in the divided kingdom of a broken relationship, home,

Image by Anton Abramov from Pixabay

congregation, or country. We know what it is to hear the raging protests, the whispers of palace intrigue, and the weeping of casual victims lost among the crowds.

What strikes me as I study is that often, even when all the people desert the Lord and race after idols, there remains one. One who calls for reform. One who destroys the high places. One who tries to return and encourages others to repent or to hold their ground. One who seeks to follow.

Be the one.

Where does this one find the heart? the vision? the initiative? the will?

I have to believe it was the Father drawing them. In the New Testament Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day” John 6:44 NASB.

Even when a king followed badly, the Lord noticed. He saw.

From Abel to Enoch, Noah to Abram, Hagar to Ruth, Elijah to Malachi, Daniel to Nehemiah, He sees the one. He found the one Mary in a see of Marys. He found the one tax collector among the compromisers and the one Zealot among the resistors. He seeks the lost lamb and He sees you.

Be the one.

Image by DaveMeier from Pixabay

We are never lost in the crowd. No one else may hear our voice or sense the stirring in our hearts, but He will, He does.

Why does this matter?

First, it is evidence that no matter how far any culture, country, congregation, family, or fellowship falls from God, it is possible still for one person to continue to follow Him. No excuses. He is and He does not hide from us, He desires to be found. His eyes search for us.

Second, it is possible for ONE to impact many. One whose heart is completely His has influence we cannot begin to comprehend. This theme resonates from Genesis to Revelation.

God so loved the world, yes, but He works through us one-by-one. We are part of a greater family of God but He sees individual hearts, he

Image by bess.hamiti@gmail.com from Pixabay

ars individual prayers, uses individual lives.

This is the song in my heart today. I know it’s hard. Where you are, it may appear to be impossible. That is an illusion conjured by the enemy.

He seeks the one. He encourages the one. He lives in and works through the one. Be that one, my friend. Be that one.

Thoughts? I respond to every comment and reply to every email. I love to hear your heart!

Goodness and mercy, Lori

The eyes of God search for the one. Be the one. https://t.co/3MWn6H9flp #betheone #Jesus

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) August 15, 2025

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Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

I have been so tired.

I’ve experienced the kind of weariness that hours of sleep won’t cure. I know. I’ve tried.

Easy to know the reason.

Months of traveling around the country to speak to women famished for encouragement and peace. Writing dozens of articles and blog posts on a wide-range of biblical topics. Taking in editing on worthy projects to keep the lights on and the wi-fi working. Coaching a select group of women with writing gifts and burgeoning ministries– investing in their words as well as mine.

And doing all the things a woman in her sixties is doing– asking people about Medicare plans, visiting friends, celebrating my own adult children and building relationships with the grands. Leading women’s Bible study, lamenting extra pounds, singing at church, cooking, cleaning, organizing, keeping appointments, de-cluttering, paying bills.

Harder to know the cure.

Sleep wasn’t cutting it. Reducing screen time and news helped but not entirely.

Then, the heat arrived. Have you been in Rhode Island in July? 99% humidity and dewpoints over 75 day after endless day and no breeze even at night. Last week, I dithered on at prayer meeting like a madwoman about the drone of AC window units and the oppressive temps and my desperation for relief.

Just when I imagined this might be the July that breaks me, the heat relinquished its grasp around Rhode Island’s throat. I opened the

Image by JamesDeMers from Pixabay

windows. Dragged my laptop onto the porch. Poured some coffee. Inhaled. And He restored my soul.

So now, I’ve been developing a big new idea for a next book. Hip deep in God’s Word, I’ve been researching and writing and it is so well with my soul.

There’s so much I have wanted to write here, so much I would like to say to you, my readers, my friends, but I didn’t delude myself into thinking I’m the only weary one around and you must be so weary of opening emails and reading opinions about our current state of affairs and our souls.

I have wanted to write about standing firm in God’s truth even when we’re surrounded by Pilates who wonder if truth even exists and rush to wash their hands of Jesus’s blood.

To write about the urgency of studying the Bible, the entire Bible, and sitting under sound teachers whose lives are consistent with their words, teachers who cause discomfort because they won’t preach peace in the midst of war, even if they see you walking out the door to join the line for prophets who will tell you exactly what you hunger to hear.

To express my longing for deep, extended conversations between reasonable people who disagree but who can still crack open a cold one, stoke a fire, and laugh through passionate discourse, insightful questions, and long pauses to consider what’s been said before offering a response. My fear that those campfire chats are slipping into the ancient past like children playing outdoors until the street lights come on, civility, respect, and biblical literacy.

To remind you not all division is bad or wrong, in fact, some division is ordained. Since Pentecost when we became saints, we’ve been called to be set apart and there are times when that means others will walk away from us and times when our sandals will do the walking. That we must grow accustomed to being misunderstood and yet, not use that as an excuse for silence because it’s not about us now, is it?

Image by Valter from Pixabay

But today I listened to an old sermon preached by a pastor already home talking about old Abraham and how God calls us out to call us in and when we wander, He calls us back.

Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 6:23, “And he brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers.”

And old Abraham knew about this because God called him out of Ur and brought Him into that land of promise and when Jesus took us in, we fell under that promise and followed Jesus outside the camp that we might bear the reproach he endured. And we joined Abraham on that walk of faith toward a city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. And like Abraham, even if we wander down to Egypt, He will call us back up to the city where we belong. But, don’t we just keep wandering?

Which is why we sometimes grow so weary we can’t do what we normally do with ease– not write, nor preach, nor give, nor speak, nor join the debate, nor read, nor listen, nor barely hold onto hope– but we do not despair because hope will hold on to us.

“so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 6:18-20 ESV).

This pastor preached that the heart of every problem is the problem in the heart. And that was it really, I was losing heart. But, I have found rest for my soul in Him my heart will be restored.

Just as old Abraham left everything he knew to come out in faith, so we must come out to leave whatever must remain behind to follow God wherever He leads.

But have courage because as imperfectly as Abraham and Sarah, and later Moses and many others followed the Living God, God was faithful. He was the one who made something of them– a chosen people, a holy nation. And we each have a seat at the table because of Jesus, not because we’re so smart or well-behaved or wise but because of Him.

So, I apologize for lapses between posts. It may happen still. A weary heart revives at the pace the Lord decides but I am full of hope.

And you? Tell me about your summer, your heart, what you long to say that you’ve kept silent. We are strangers and pilgrims,

Image by Nurel57 from Pixabay

my friends, and we are not home yet but one day, He will bring us in to that far off land. For now, He walks beside us, leading us, keeping us, and sometimes dividing us from those traveling a different way (He is, after all, the Door and what does a door do but divide even as it provides safety and warmth and quiet).

One day, we will all cry, “I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it till now…Come further up, come further in!” ~C.S.Lewis, The Last Battle

But for now, we have Him and one another and Paris. Okay, we don’t have Paris but we can find a gentle breeze and some days, that is more than Paris.

Take just a moment and listen to this refreshing and hopeful song written by my friend and brother in Christ, Brian Schrag, Further Up and Further In

What are your thoughts? I love to hear from you! It is a ministry to my heart. I respond to every comment and reply to every email. Thank you for your patience with me. Goodness and mercy, Lori

Why I stopped writing https://t.co/eDZCyMUS9k #losingheart #divided

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) July 22, 2025

The post Why I Stopped Writing and the Ins and Outs of Faith appeared first on Lori Roeleveld.

I am a small town girl down to my DNA.

There is nothing “big city” about me and I’ve never yearned for those bright lights.

That’s not to say I haven’t done my time visiting and living in cities. When I was young and full of heart to be near where God was at work (and imagined it only happened in places teeming with people), I lived and worked in Providence, Central Falls, and Pawtucket. I took a job just outside Philadelphia and spent a January college mid-term in New York City. I’ve visited Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago, Osaka, Kyoto, and Boston to name a few. My favorite city to tour is Washington, D.C. where I have wonderful family memories but overall, I like my small town in my small state.

Cities fill the headline news. Cities are problematic for crime, crowds, and cars. Cities are loud with light that dims the stars. It’s easier for me to imagine myself near to God on my front porch with the sounds of peepers in the trees but I must admit I pray more often and with greater fervor in the city (and not just for parking).

So, it’s problematic that the apostle John had a vision of heaven and it was a city (Revelation 21-22). What? When I imagine the room Jesus has prepared for me, there’s a front porch, a lake full of still water, and lots of trees. Never in my wildest imagination is it an apartment overlooking a narrow street.

But one of the greatest chapters of the Bible, Hebrews 11, also proclaims that these great men and women of faith were looking forward to a city, “But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city” (Hebrews 11:16).

Sure enough, we only have glimpses of what is to come. Heaven and earth will be made new and God loves His creation so I don’t imagine Him paving over paradise and leaving us without nature and that’s the rub, isn’t it?

My imagination cannot match the creative power of the Living God (and I have the imagination of a writer). Paul writes in Ephesians 3:20-21, “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” And Paul quotes Isaiah in 1 Corinthians 2:9 writing, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.”

But a city?

Am I the only one who struggles with that?

There are aspects of cities that I love. I adore having people from many different ethnic origins living side-by-side. The aroma of the various foods, the music, and the languages. I love the cultural aspects of cities, art, theater, dance, architecture, and orchestras. There is much to enjoy.

And the city we look forward to in glory “has foundations, whose designer and builder is God” (Hebrews 11:10). I am curious to see His design, our Master Builder and Artist of all Artistry!

It also promises to be a city without sin. Now that is certainly something beyond our imaginations now. We’ve lived with sin for so long, we imagine it’s something we require like oxygen and coffee but really, it was never part of our original blueprint. Without it, the headlines will be filled with love, with beauty, and with joy.

Because really, isn’t it the people, the crush of them, the sheer numbers of them, and the crash of their sinfulness into one another that makes the city a fearful place? We don’t truly fear the city– we fear one another. But that’s true in small town life, too.

You see, when I imagine that porch and the still water, I imagine myself whole and holy. Even this side of glory, I can fool myself into that thinking when I sit alone in prayer, holding my Bible, and it’s just God and me. It’s other people that reveal the unsanctified frontiers of my wild heart and expose me for who I am, a sinner redeemed by the perfect sacrifice of the perfect Jesus who loved me and saved me despite my sin.

And what a blessed ministry is that exposé!

He had the perfect home in Heaven and yet, He made Himself human and came to this crowded city of a world to love us face-to-face, to sit across the table from us knowing He brushed the hand of the one who would betray and the other who would deny and the rest who would flee in the hour of His greatest need.

I need the city. I need the press of people so I don’t fall prey to the delusion that I am done and that Jesus loves me best and that I can save myself.

Last month in Chicago, I had trepidation about taking a taxi by myself. The drive to the airport was long and the city was preparing for a day of protests the next morning. The tension rose with the humidity and the small town girl in me sent up a prayer.

My driver was originally from Ghana but now lives here. He was kind and in our early chatter, we learned that both of us know Jesus. I asked if the police barricades and the press of protesters would interfere with his job or give him anxiety.

“This is not my concern. My citizenship is in Heaven and so that is where I keep my eyes. This is not my home. My home is with Him and so my thoughts are not of these protests but of Him. I have been listening to a sermon by the Reverend Billy Graham about praying in the Holy Spirit. Would you like to listen with me and we can discuss it as we drive? Do not worry, my sistah, I will get you safely to the airport.”

Why do I resist the city that is His Body, the church? For as much as I was humbled by my brother, the driver, so was I comforted and challenged to grow up a bit more. The ride was double the normal time because of the barricades and the police and the people but I was sorry it ended so soon because that taxi was an outpost of glory.

And so we can be for one another. We must resist isolation. We must not neglect meeting together as some are in the habit of doing (Hebrews 1o:25). We are His city on a hill (Matthew 5:14) and yes, this means we are exposed and our sins became the talk of others but it also means His light shines through us. Even this is beyond our imaginations but we serve a great God who never needed our false fronts or our self-made attempts at perfection to bring His kingdom come. We are never called to hide but to humble service and graceful words of truth.

This place is not our home. Our home, that beautiful city designed and built by the Father of Light, awaits, and don’t we want it full, full of those we love and those we once feared and those we once called strangers whom we now know as brothers and sisters of the Most High God!

We must embrace His city now and keep our eyes on the city yet to come.

Thoughts? I love to hear from you. I respond to every comment and reply to every email.

One little surprise!!! Here is the BEAUTIFUL cover of my upcoming book, God’s Abundant Mercy: 40 Days of Living in His Compassion.

This exploration of 40 Bible verses about mercy releases in April 2026 (although you can preorder it now). I’m so excited because the message that rings most in my heart from this study is that MERCY TRIUMPHS! Praise God.

What is the most surprising thing about heaven? https://t.co/s6CKPBESEh #heaven #cityonahill

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) July 1, 2025

The post The Most Surprising Thing about Heaven appeared first on Lori Roeleveld.

It’s easy for me to play along with the nation’s latest favorite parlor game of judging the actions of those who sit in seats of power.

They’re public figures, right? Fair game, after all.

Everyone has a favorite British prince and an opinion on their father, the king who loves his gardens.

We can all get behind David when Goliath invades even if David does refuse to wear a tie.

And there’s one leader whose name is certain to divide a room, a friendship, a congregation, a family. No one runs lukewarm on that one.

From the cheap seats, we can see how much it matters who has the ear of the one holding all the cards (or nukes, as it were).

Are they surrounded by yes-staffers?

Does their spouse run the show?

Do they poison or imprison public detractors?

Is that senior advisor exercising undue influence?

Does the media set the agenda or do they?

And it’s not that it doesn’t matter what happens from those thrones (of course, it does) but sometimes we focus on their kingdoms while ignoring the one we rule.

Palace intrigue isn’t reserved for the Kremlin or the Conclave, it crops up in congregations and clans as small as your cottage, too.

Who advises you? Who influences your focus? Have you run a scan, lately, on the sources of your information?

Beware of the Zeresh in your life. She’s worth identifying. She’s worth avoiding.

In the story of Esther, our focus is often on the two women central to the story—Queen Vashti and Hadassah (née Queen Esther). But Zeresh lurks in the wings which is where she tends to squat in every life.

Zeresh was Haman’s wife. And if you know the story of Esther (really, even if you don’t), Haman is the villain. He’s a self-centered, scheming, power-hungry ruler who sidled up to King Ahasuerus, rule of Persia, husband to Esther.

The king elevated Haman above all other leaders and they became banquet buddies, you know, the guy who sits beside the king sharing glasses of wine and enjoying how great they were together. It would have been an historic bromance except that Haman hated the Jews, in particular one Jew who refused to bow to him, Mordecai.

Mordecai was Esther’s guardian, the relative who raised her. The Queen, you see, was also a Jew.

Long story short, Haman convinced the king to enact an irrevocable edict that on a certain day, all the peoples would kill their Jewish neighbors, entire families, and plunder their homes and goods. You know, just a little bloodbath while Haman swapped stories and chuckles with the king over a hookah.

Mordecai prompted Esther to risk her life and appeal to her husband for the lives of her people so she invited the king and Haman to a banquet.

This made Haman crazy happy but on his way home, Mordecai’s refusal to bow down kills his buzz so Haman whined about it to Zeresh and his friends.

This stellar crop of cronies suggested Haman build a gallows and convince the king to hang Mordecai on it—then proceed to the banquet and enjoy himself. Haman LOVES this advice and that becomes his plan. He sleeps like a baby, unlike the king. You see, God kept the king up all night reading the kingdom records and especially pointing out Mordecai’s faithfulness. Next day, the king asked Haman to publicly, personally, honor Mordecai.

When it’s done, Haman runs home to Zeresh and the gang. When he explained what happened, they respond, “Yeah, Dude, if Mordecai is Jewish, you’re toast, man. It’s pretty over.” Then, they probably enjoyed Haman’s wine and food for the rest of the night.

Haman died on the gallows he erected (Zeresh’s idea) for Mordecai and Esther saved her people. Haman’s friends probably befriended another powerful Persian and ate his bread and wine.

Who has your ear?

It matters.

It always matters.

Proverbs 27:6 says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy.”

Cultivate friends who will wound you, in love, rather than kill you with words you enjoy hearing.

Esther is a story about power. Kings who believe they have it and common men, like Mordecai, who know where it actually lies. Who use the power of their common lives wisely

No way Mordecai should have emerged from that story alive and yet . . . God.

While your eyes are on the ones who appear to have all power, are you ignoring the power of the one beautiful, surrendered life God gave you, my friend?

Are you scheming and dreaming or are you acting in faith? (If you’re not subscribed to my Disturber of Hobbits Substack and missed my post on scheming, CLICK HERE to read Stolen Hearts )

Are you dining with fools with little regard for life and eternal truths or are you sharing your table with men and women like Mordecai?

Find yourself a Mordecai because “who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14 ESV)

Need more convincing that your small life surrendered to Jesus has inestimable power? You’ll want to pick up a copy of Graceful Influence. (AWSA’s Golden Scroll Christian Book of the Year 2024) You’ll come away appreciating the far-flung influence your life and choices have.

Palace intrigue and who really has power from the Conclave to the Kremlin https://t.co/C3puBpmHfY #Esther #Conclave2025

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) May 6, 2025

The post Palace Intrigue from the Conclave to the Kremlin and Who Really Has the Power (And who has your ear, my friend?) appeared first on Lori Roeleveld.

Image by Seidenperle from Pixabay

I have not been here in this way in a while. I apologize for my silence.

Still, “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.” Proverbs 10:19

That’s the simple reason for my recent silence in these blogging spaces.

You don’t have to be a writer and speaker for your days to be filled with words in our times. Talking heads abound.

On any given morning, the moment I switch off my phone alarm, the temptation begins to check notifications. There, I’m sure to find breaking news from several media outlets I follow, right beside the days’ weather and one or two emails encouraging Christian outrage at one transgression or another.

I have thoughts. I have opinions. I consider writing but seriously, don’t we all need a giant pause where the only sound we hear is water lapping and birds calling from the trees?

Image by Khusen Rustamov from Pixabay

Notifications beckon but my commitment is God’s Word first. One verse, at least, in my thoughts before the bombardment begins. Hopefully, more. And a prayer. There’s an area rug beside my bed that reminds me when I plant my feet to pray. “Lord, I am yours and You are everything. Thank you for life, breath, a new day, and especially Jesus. I surrender my soul to Your Holy Spirit and ask for Your eyes, Your ears, Your heart, Amen.”

Doesn’t always look as beautiful as I write it to be (although, more days than not now, it does). Better to begin the day in the silence of my mind filled with His promises than the opinions of others paid to incite indignation and fear.

Today, the death of the Pope was everywhere. That broke into my thinking with all the sorts of conflicting thoughts a faithful Protestant might have at the passing of the Catholic pope. I didn’t know or follow Jorge Mario Bergoglio, but I thought, what a lovely day for a believer to go home.

My heart was full this Easter. I was home with people who love me as one of them. The music we sang was familiar and true. Our humble pastor spoke truth brilliantly so I remembered Jesus and I learned. There was hot coffee and simple food. The sunrise and the morning services were full of the powerful truth that Jesus rose from the dead.

Jesus. Rose. From the dead. Historical fact.

Image by congerdesign from Pixabay

He lives. He has triumphed—triumphed, the Spirit reminded my muddy soul—over sin, over death, over hatred, over evil, over all. Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.

Because He lives, anyone under the salvation and Lordship of Jesus Christ, if they departed this outpost of glory today is enjoying the radiance of eternal life even now.

Us, we’re still caught in the tension of the glory here but yet to come and the muck of our own grounded lives.

So, I’ve been speaking to women at retreats around the U.S. and reveling in seeing God work through His Word in their lives.

And as my soul fed on their stories, transformations, healings, encouragements, and conversions, my body gained weight on the lovely (and abundant) food, my head recovered from a concussion caused by a collision with the lid of my trunk at the airport, my voice held up despite an extended illness just prior to the events that gifted me with laryngitis, and I survived all the joys and challenges of air travel and long miles alone on the road.

The tension of the glory here, and yet to come.

It’s speaking season and it’s not done yet. A few more commitments before I settle back to life at home.

Speaking is a marvelous, messy mystery where the murk of my humanity (like the need to shower and sleep, the inevitability of my struggle with vanity and insecurity, and the terrifying prospect of standing before complete strangers who may or may not receive what I have to offer) merges with the miracle of the Holy Spirit at work in our midst because when two or three gather in His name, there He is.

Between these mountain-tops, there’s that landing home full of laundry, bill-paying, birthday-gift shopping and celebrations, catching up with family and friends and clients and assignments, dinners to be cooked, scales to be faced, prayers to be prayed and more words to be written.

I’m working on a new project. One that’s so precious and that I’m so eager to share but first, I need to be sure I’m hearing from God and not just my own enthusiasm. I tend to run off with a headline and forget to read the fine print and so, I wait.

In the midst of all these words, I had none for here. Occasionally, I felt guilty but here’s what I know about you, my readers, my friends. You’re not interested in words thrown here because it’s “that time.” Your time is full, too. Why waste it with a duty post?

And I was with some of you face-to-face.

I relish that. I adore the opportunity to dialog. To listen to your hearts. To know more of you and minister with hugs, unhurried conversations, and yes, food.

Image by Carlos Carlos Alberto from Pixabay

But I missed meeting you here, too. Still, I haven’t much to say. A long list of wordy assignments awaits me today along with packing once again to see God work.

One thought struck me yesterday as my pastor preached.

In Luke 24:36-49, Jesus was patiently assuring His follower that yes, indeed, although He was dead, He is now alive. Even after He showed them His hands and feet, they still “disbelieved for joy and marveling,” (v 41).

Then, “he said to them, ‘Have you anything to eat?’ And they gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them.” (vs 41-43).

By this, they saw Jesus was alive—He ate. A piece of fish here. Also, He shared a meal with those on the road to Emmaus. He cooked fish for Peter and the others on the beach.

With all my struggles with food, suddenly I remembered that I eat because I live. Life is a gift. Life is beautiful. Jesus ate to show He lives.

And we will eat again with Him in the Kingdom.

Our relationship with Him and with food will be right and it will be an eternity where all that was wrong is reversed so that going forward, our eternity is as He envisioned us to be.

Plan to join Him there, loved ones. There’s a seat at His table for you.

Image by ArjanneHolsappel from Pixabay

O glorious day. I would love to return home on the day after celebrating His resurrection with the Body of Christ. If I do, be sad for my loss but rejoice that I am home and have found my seat at His table.

Jesus said in Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

**I’d love to come speak at your women’s event and visit with you face-to-face! Planning something or want help planning? Email me at lorisroel@gmail.com. Let’s chat (and share a meal).

Silence, the Pope, and Broiled Fish https://t.co/iq3b2q9MMC #PopeFrancis #JesusLives

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) April 21, 2025

The post Silence, the Pope, and Broiled Fish appeared first on Lori Roeleveld.

Image by rickey123 from Pixabay

I haven’t been writing lately because I’ve recently learned how unimpressive my credentials are.

Compared to my countless friends on social media, I am seriously lacking in the necessary experience to address the latest controversies.

Before you read any further, I warn you that I am not:

an expert in the intricacies of international diplomacy and peacemaking.proficient in the detailed biographies (both acknowledged and/or previously unrevealed/undisclosed or redacted) of Zelenskyy, Putin, or Trump.privy to the backroom workings of either the Democratic or the Republican parties.a world-renowned scholar on either the rise of Hitler or the fall of democracies to communism.an end-times prophet with special knowledge of either the anti-Christ, Gog and Magog, or God’s current relationship with any of the aforementioned world leaders.someone with access to a close friend, neighbor, coworker, relative, former pastor or professor, second-cousin or secret friend who is any of the above.

Not that I don’t have opinions. “Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war!” Psalm 120:6-7 ESV

I hate war.I love freedom.Life is better than death.Peacemaking is often ugly and it’s not a spectator sport.Truth is the first casualty of war.It’s wrong to initiate aggression.It’s easy to have opinions from the cheap seats.“We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12 ESV

The latest Facebook feeding frenzy has been a boon to my resolve to reduce my time on social media. My friends are shouting without censor, unfriending with fervor, and spewing righteous rage so hot I use oven mitts to check my phone.

Honestly, you would think, from the number of times I’ve seen it cited, that Jesus overturned the tables at the temple in Jerusalem daily for His entire ministry. I’ve seen it used to justify at least a million memes.

I’m not discouraged when I learn that friends or others I respect see situations differently than I see them. What discourages me is when I see condemnation, labels, ultimatums, refusal to dialog, and happy division emerging from these disagreements.

Dear friends, don’t we know? “How good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.” Psalm 133:1-3 ESV

I don’t understand how all these people shouting into the social media-verse are such experts on peace when apparently, they aren’t even capable of peaceful dialog with people who share the same faith and live in the same country.

These days are testing my faith. I am asking God so many questions. 

Questions like:

Besides the Bible, in the midst of this flood of deception, where do we turn for truth?How do we know when it is sinful to speak and when it’s sinful to remain silent?Do you want Christians communicators to be debating online or is it time to go completely local and analog with these conversations?How do we maintain peace with one another even when we differ on current events?Besides intercession, what actions can we take, as believers, to best support your people in Ukraine, in Russia, in Europe, in China, in Mexico, in Canada, in the U.S.?How can we best reflect Jesus when we disagree?

This is not a dress rehearsal. This is our life, our lot, and our front line. There are not numerous wars around the world. There is one war. It is the war for souls and God invites our engagement on every front.

How do we wage peace?How do we sow seeds of relationship as we disagree?How do we discuss, differ, and debate from a foundation of grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ?

Image by Bob Dmyt from Pixabay

I’m not an expert on many things. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I study His every move. I read His every Word. I have thrown my lot in with Him. He is my peace even as the battle rages. He is my commander in chief. He is the truth. the way. the life.

From the beginning of time until now, there have always been men and women, kings and queens, presidents and prime ministers, dictators and diplomats exchanging words in high level rooms seated in leather chairs, surrounded by aides supplying fresh lemon water and delicacies while mothers and young wives holding babies beat their breasts beside freshly dug graves and young men exchange bicycles and video games for automatic rifles and sit with shaking hands praying not to have to die or to kill.

And the church has always found a way to continue to love–even under fire.

How do we love one another through this?What are we adding to the peace? to the conversation? to the truth?What earthly weapons are we willing to lay down so we are free to take up the weapons that are not of this world?Who will we follow and how will we lead those who follow us in this frought time?What questions are WE asking? And what questions is God asking US?

Putin, Zelenskyy, and Trump have a certain amount of power. How much power have we yielded to these leaders over ourselves and our relationships, our behavior, our  time, our peace? In the end we’ll find they had less eternal influence than one single soul completely yielded to Christ. Are we that soul?

Thoughts? I respond to every comment and reply to every email.

https://t.co/nkd2cLGSDP #Ukraine #Zelenskyy

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) March 3, 2025

 

The post How Do We Love in a Time of War? (on overturned temple tables, Ukraine, the United States, and God’s people) appeared first on Lori Roeleveld.

I am grateful for a humble, Jesus-loving pastor who doesn’t weave each week’s sermon from the whole cloth of the headlines and social media debates.

Oh, he’ll give you scriptural guidance if you’re wading your way through the muck of 2025 but not in a tweet.

It will look more like an open-book exam in a quiet room with extended time for thought and dialog.

He’s on social media but he’s no meme-a-minute minister. More like a steady-stream-of-Scripture scholar interspersed with slice-of-life comics and quotes from old dead guys whose faith survived their own 2025’s.

Our current sermon series, a leisurely stroll through Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, has been rolling along for weeks.

Now, we’re in Esther and, from that pulpit, our pastor is doing something radical, even unthinkable–he’s simply reading and teaching Esther.

With all the noise in the world, he has us open our Bibles, find where we left off, and continue on.

He reads the passage. Reads it again, slowly, helping us understand cultural or biblical context. Speculates from time-to-time but makes it clear it’s speculation. Then, when we’ve read it with our own eyes and should really have the gist of what the passage actually says, what happened, and what we might learn of God from it, he concludes with one or two thoughts for us.

But since now we’ve read it ourselves, been carefully taught, and we’re filled with the Holy Spirit, the Lord speaks.

I’ve read Esther many, many times. Women’s Bible studies and retreats spend inordinate and disproportionate hours on Esther and Ruth. This week, though, I saw something new.

Two main characters become indignant. Two other main characters, with much more reason for indignance, instead listen, speak quietly, and act when action is called for.

That struck me because my current world is awash with indignation.

From screaming podcasters to talking heads on television to friends on social media, I am subject to lethal doses of indignation the moment I check my phone in the morning. And not only am I subjected to it, I’m also encouraged to join in, suspect if I don’t, and the object of it if I dare suggest another way. (And yet, here I go.)

In Esther, King A (the name by which he’ll be known here for ease of reading) is powerful over all the Persian empire. His word is law. He has all that any man could desire–more even. One week, he throws a banquet for all his nobles and they enjoy his wealth and drink– a lot. His wife, Queen Vashti, holds a separate banquet for the women. At last, when everyone is quite rosy, King A sends a command that Queen Vashti appear before him. She declines.

We don’t know why (and even if you think you know, refrain from telling me).

King A becomes indignant. And in his indignance, she becomes “the woman formerly known as Queen Vashti” and he listens to unwise counsel from a bunch of his unwise guests. (Read the book for details.) He creates an ill-advised law and initiates a campaign to find a new queen.

That’s when we meet the two people who refrain from indignation–Mordecai and the young relative entrusted to his care, Hadassah, who will become known as Esther.

Read the story. You’ll see Mordecai and Esther do a lot of listening. They speak quietly, even when they are following the ways of their people rather than the king’s edicts. They act when necessary but not before.

You see, they are exiles, foreigners, Jews dispersed to a land that isn’t theirs. Their people have been endangered many times just for being who they are. They follow a living God but they are in a land of many gods. We can assume they’ve seen some trouble since Esther is an orphan and they are far from home.

But, they refrain from indignation. At least, from public displays.

The second man who indulges indignation is Haman. Haman has power, wealth, position, and every reason to be secure in life but such men never seem to rest easily on their status and acquisitions. He convinces King A to command that everyone bow down and pay homage to him.

Mordecai does not bow.

We don’t know why (and even if you do know, refrain from telling me).

Haman becomes indignant. And in his indignance, he indulges an ancient prejudice in his heart and entices King A to enact a law that on one certain day, all the people in all the kingdom shall murder every Jewish man, woman, and child in the land.

It would seem a threat to the Jews but as it turns out, Haman is the one executed in the end.

Indignation: “anger or annoyance provoked by what is perceived as unfair treatment.”

So, to recap, two powerful men grow indignant at perceived threats  and act unfairly, unwisely, and dangerously only to have it backfire in the end. One man and one woman, under constant actual threat listen carefully, speak quietly, and take action when action is required and they overcome.

After church, I began to think through the biblical stories. Who was indignant? Joseph’s brothers? Pharoah? Job’s friends? Nabal? Jonah? Who listened, spoke quietly, and acted when action was called for? Joseph. Job. Daniel. Moses. Abigail. God.

This is what guides me as we enter the breach of 2025. I am tethered to the rock that is higher than I. I stand on God’s Word. I listen to the quiet whisper of the Holy Spirit. I walk with Jesus. I listen. I speak quietly. I act when action is required. At least, that is my goal.

Indignation seems powerful. Rants are beautiful things. As a writer, I adore a well-crafted passionate rant but sort of like I appreciate a meal loaded with carbs, salt, and fat. It’s a delicious indulgence but the next morning is a dawn of regrets and consequences. A steady diet of it would surely lead to an early death.

None of us will build our platforms on listening, speaking quietly, and acting when action is required–at least, not on this side of glory. I get the temptation.

And yet, who knows? When the book of Esther opens, King A and Haman have all the power. They are the ones who look as if they’re holding every card.

God isn’t even mentioned in Esther. That’s the power He holds. Even in a foreign land where His name is not spoken and His presence isn’t celebrated by all, He is.

And those who know that, live to testify.

On this outpost of glory, we represent the One who has gone ahead to prepare a place for us. His life and His teachings weren’t characterized by indignation. If anyone had reason for it, it was Him.

He leads a different Way. Blessed are all who follow, even in a hostile land with many false gods.

Thoughts? I respond to every comment and reply to every email.  

If you’re feeling ill-equipped for hard conversations in 2025, remember there’s a book full of biblical counsel to remove from you the dread of hard conversation and equip you to have more effective ones. It’s the Bible (okay, there’s also one that I wrote called The Art of Hard Conversations: Biblical Tools for the Tough Talks that Matter and I drew from the Bible but, read the Bible first and THEN go for mine.)

Check this out! You won’t believe what happened. https://t.co/pIH4voyzgo #rant #Jesus

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) February 4, 2025

The post You Are Not Going to Believe This is Happening! appeared first on Lori Roeleveld.