Christina Fox, Author at Women.pcacdm.org

Lessons From My Garden on the Kingdom of God

STEPHANIE FORMENTI|CONTRIBUTOR We planted a garden this summer. We have three raised beds dedicated to some vegetables like tomatoes and cucumbers, another for herbs like basil and oregano, and one bed specifically for wildflowers. As I have watched seeds turn into flowers, and little sprouts turn into tomatoes, the Lord has taught me about work—my work and His work. Our little garden is my summer classroom for understanding work in the kingdom which led me to three parables in Matthew 13 that integrate yard work with kingdom truths. Both my hands-on time in the garden and the teachings of Jesus highlight that kingdom work involves three important aspects: weeping, waiting, and watching. Weeping: It brings me such joy each morning to walk outside and see how many new flowers have bloomed or if there are any tomatoes to harvest. But no matter how many delights my garden produces, there are always those pesky weeds. Every morning provides new gifts as well as new frustrations. The same is true for life in the kingdom of God. We know that Jesus the King already reigns and is already on the move to make all things new, but we also experience how all things are not yet under His feet. Although the kingdom has come, it is also still to come. It is already and also not yet. So, the work we do in the kingdom is work done smack dab in the middle of that tension. We push against darkness and evil and injustice and ugliness and hatred. But those things also push back against us. Kingdom work occupies that space— the space of tension...

Lessons From My Garden on the Kingdom of GodChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:03+00:00

Understanding Wisdom: Impartial and Sincere

KAREN HODGE|CONTRIBUTOR No one ever sets out to have a Ph.D. in moving. But here I am. Ministry is full of hellos and goodbyes. This past spring Chris and I made move number fourteen. Transitions are tricky and can leave us off balance. Change and unknowns often keep us up at night and bring us to our knees. These crossroads may find us clueless yet earnestly seeking His will and the wisest path forward. Should I go left, or right? Is this job offer the best for my family during this season? If I buy this item online, will it be good stewardship? So many questions, so few answers. I lack wisdom, but where do I look first? The Search for Wisdom We might look to the world that offers easy advice. Worldly wisdom is fallen and leads to what Solomon calls folly...

Understanding Wisdom: Impartial and SincereChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:09+00:00

How Job Teaches Us to Grieve With Hope

MARISSA BONDURANT|GUEST “Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:20-21). In February of 2019 my husband taped a sign on our refrigerator that said, “It’s been 0 days since an incident in this home.” He was trying to bring some levity to a horrible week for our family. One thing after another occurred and we were exhausted from dealing with all the emergencies. I remember feeling on edge with the thought of, “What’s next?” On a much bigger scale, Job understood what it was like to receive one tragic report after another. In Job 1:13 a messenger arrives and tells Job about the Sabeans who came, taking all his oxen and donkeys and destroying his servants. While he was still talking, another messenger entered and told Job that fire consumed all his sheep. While he was still talking, a third messenger inform him that his camels were stolen and more servants killed. And while that messenger was still talking, a fourth comes in and tells Job that all his children perished in a horrible house collapse. His children, his livelihood, his finances… all gone in a single day. How did Job react? And how can his response encourage us in our sufferings today?...

How Job Teaches Us to Grieve With HopeChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:13+00:00

Understanding Wisdom: Full of Mercy and Good Fruit

ABBY HUTTO|GUEST “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere” (James 3:17). When I first began reading and reflecting on the book of James, I was in my early twenties. I was eager to learn and do. I was quick to read a list of commands and rush out to try and implement them in my daily life. I tried to force myself to become pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. I was met with limited success in this endeavor! After much striving, I walked away from James discouraged. My faith often lacked the works that proved its validity. I had a tongue that I could never seem to bridle and a heart that struggled, and often failed to be merciful and gentle. For many years, I avoided James altogether. Jesus Through the Eyes of James Over a decade later, I was exhausted and burnt out from all my striving. In what felt like a last-ditch effort to recover my flailing faith, I set aside a year to study the Gospel of John. I spent this year walking with Jesus and saw him through the eyes of the beloved disciple. I saw his compassionate, merciful heart. Jesus was quick to be moved by pity when he encountered those whose lives had been ravaged by the wages of sin. His gentleness astounded me. His willingness to sit and reason with people who knew far less than he did melted my skeptical heart. He accepted those the world rejected. He valued those the world discarded. He embraced the poor, the needy, and the outcast. His impartiality cut me to the quick in a way that made me want to be around him all the time. He was merciful and full of good fruit...

Understanding Wisdom: Full of Mercy and Good FruitChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:17+00:00

The Hard but Glorious in Conflict

ALICE KIM|CONTRIBUTOR Navigating conflict often feels like stuffing a bedsheet set back into its original packaging. If you manage to return the contents, you realize it’s not the same. The once smooth and compact surface and sharp corners are now bulging with lumps and oddly shaped edges. Though we sincerely believe the gospel makes a difference between two people who love Jesus and are actively walking toward understanding and forgiveness, it seems that reconciliation and restoration are unfortunately, the exception rather than the norm. Messy Relationships We feel the weight of how messy and complicated relationships in families, marriages, friendships, coworkers, and neighbors are as we live intertwined lives. Our differing personalities, backgrounds, desires, biases, and emotional triggers are potential sources of conflict. Furthermore, the less we know about the other person, the more inaccurate assumptions fill the gaps of understanding and in turn, taint the relationship. Even with the best intentions, we are still insensitive. I know this is true of myself. We treat objects or goals more important than people. We burden others with expectations and are convinced our way is better. Sadly, the effects of living in a fallen and broken world become inescapable...

The Hard but Glorious in ConflictChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:23+00:00

Understanding Wisdom: Gentle and Open to Reason

CHRISTINA FOX|EDITOR It’s no secret that we live in a contentious age. You’d have to live off grid, in a cave, on an island, on another planet to escape the near constant mudslinging found on social media, podcasts, talk-shows, and anywhere else people gather to voice their thoughts. People have strong opinions about many things, and even more than that, will degrade the character and disregard those who differ. The ultimate line in the sand is when people refuse to associate with anyone who holds an opposing view. It's become an us-versus-them kind of world. We group off into tribes of those who agree with our philosophies and convictions, against those who don’t—and never the twain shall meet. It seems like the hills we are willing to die on grow each day, making common ground nearly impossible to find. And what about Christians? We are just as involved in this assumption-making and disdain-casting world. Our arguments may differ from the culture—thought not always—but we use the same tactics. More often than not, our desire is to win an argument, rather than to understand the person with whom we disagree. What does wisdom have to say in all this?...

Understanding Wisdom: Gentle and Open to ReasonChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:33+00:00

Let’s Talk About Bodies

TARA GIBBS|CONTRIBUTOR How often do you think about your body? Constantly? Occasionally? Almost never? Some of us think about our bodies non-stop, often with shame: “My body is too fat,” “My body is too old,” “My body is too short,” “My body is too this or too that.” “I’ve got to get this body to the gym!” Most of us would agree we don’t need to spend our lives obsessing over whether we have an Instagram-influencer-worthy body, but that doesn’t mean we don’t struggle. Others of us may think bodies shouldn’t matter. They are earthly “tents” that are passing away, or they are “the flesh” we are to subdue. Perhaps we think our bodies are shameful. Sometimes we might think the solution to our body problems is to realize that bodies are unimportant. But is that what the Bible teaches about bodies? It can feel confusing to know how God wants us to think about our bodies. What is too much? What is too little? Are bodies spiritual or are bodies unspiritual?...

Let’s Talk About BodiesChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:37+00:00

Understanding Wisdom: Pure and Peace-Loving

MARIA CURREY|CONTRIBUTOR Understanding wisdom is a lifelong journey, a walk that requires well placed steps and a steady gaze on Jesus as the perfect guide. Sometimes a verse captivates our minds and gives greater purpose to our steps in pivotal ways. James 3:17 is such a verse for me. Born out of a challenging time, one fraught with self-doubt and dire challenges, these words captured my mind nearly twenty-six years ago, “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” The place was Washington DC where our family was young, busy, growing, and moving frequently. My ambitions to love, serve, and lead for our Lord were strong, bold, and highly motivated—until large walls of challenge slammed into my heart. I remember praying, crying, and wondering how I would navigate one particular situation. Then James 3:17 came into view. Having read it many times before, it was as if I was encountering it for the first time. Each word sounded with significance echoing in the chambers of my soul...

Understanding Wisdom: Pure and Peace-LovingChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:46+00:00

A Living Grief

HEATHER MOLENDYK|CONTRIBUTOR Hot water pounds my shoulders. I reach to turn the temperature hotter, desperate for the heat to stop the shivering in my bones. Although I am completely alone, my arms hug my naked chest in a protective gesture. They attempt to hold the broken pieces of my heart together. They utterly fail. The crumpling starts with my face before traveling down my vulnerable form. Dry sobs push up through my throat, contorting my mouth in a silent scream. There I stand completely alone, body raging against the guttural pain of grief, and unable to catch my breath before the next wave of tears push past my clenched eyes. To say that losing a loved one is hard is like saying an erupting volcano causes landscaping inconveniences. The exit of one you love always leaves a hole. Others may make substitutions. Others may offer what they can. But just like the uniqueness of individual snowflakes, each person in our lives contributes a special touch that only their fingerprints can make. We all know that life – no matter how vibrant and impactful – is always temporary. Each person is destined for eternity somewhere else. No one is guaranteed tomorrow. No one can live forever. That’s what each carved stone whispers to us from the cemetery. To dust we all return. No one is exempt...

A Living GriefChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:51:56+00:00

Breathe: Give Us This Day

ROBIN STEVENS|GUEST “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11). My kids love for me to tell the story about the time I stole another girl’s lunch money in 4th grade. They’ve heard it many times, but never fail to ask, “Why, mom? What made you want to take her money?” The truth is, I don’t even know! I remember her showing the whole class her new wallet. I remember the teacher sending us all to the bathroom right before lunch to wash our hands. I remember coming back and passing the girl’s desk, where her wallet was sitting on the corner. And I remember the urge to steal it coming over me, so I quickly slipped it into my pocket. I didn’t need this girl’s money; my parents gave me my own lunch money every day. And even though I no longer feel the urge to steal anyone’s money, I do feel the urge to look around me at what others have and want them for myself, despite the fact that God has never once withheld any need from my life. God’s Gracious Provision When I was growing up, my parents made sure we had everything we needed and more, even though we lived on a teacher’s and a secretary’s salaries. When I graduated from high school, I received a gift that enabled me to attend college at almost no cost. When my husband and I decided to get married in three months’ time, I was able to find everything we needed for the wedding without any compromises. When my husband went to graduate school and we had two very small children, we were able to pay for his classes and still have me stay home with the kids thanks to some money willed to us by a family member. When my husband broke his leg and was wheelchair bound for eight weeks, friends and family came out of the woodwork to help us. And when we discovered our home had been eaten up by termites, we were able to pay for all the damage to be repaired, thanks to the generosity of a friend. I could go on and on, citing numerous ways God has provided for us over the years from “We have some leftover pizzas; would your family like to take a couple home?” to “I know you’re without a vehicle right now. We don’t need this van anymore; take it for a very small fee.” The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy (Ps. 126:3)...

Breathe: Give Us This DayChristina Fox2023-03-24T17:52:22+00:00

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