what treasure are you searching for?
this life, this world, has much to offer. if we look around us we can see so much vying for our attention.
we’re trapped in a cycle of materialism, needing that new job, a raise, a car, your dream house, and if you break out of that lie you’re trapped in another one.
instead of prioritizing the material you prioritize experiences. time with friends, travels around the world, seeing new places and meeting new people all while hoping to discover yourself.
you’re looking for the wrong treasure, in the wrong place.
there is no job, no car, no adventure, no friend, or experience that can satisfy the true desire of your heart.
you see, you and i were made by a Creator so much greater than we could ever imagine, and He planted a desire in our hearts long before we ever entered into this world.
that desire is Him. we long for love, for meaning, for purpose, for real life, and it’s all found in Him.
there is nothing more useless you can do with your life, than spend it apart from Jesus.
He loves you and treasures you, and in Him alone can you find life, purpose, love, fulfillment. in Him alone can you find the greatest treasure of all.
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” -Matthew 13:44-46
#jesussaves #canonusa #radlcore
nearly 2000 years ago, Jesus was crucified for you.
He was crucified for me too, in fact He was crucified for the entire world, and all of our sins.
even knowing the outcome resulting in His resurrection and victory, it’s still so sobering to think of the pain He endured for me.
His own creation, beloved and treasured by Him, rejected Him and put Him to death.
and in His rich love and mercy, He endured the cross for us.
what a gift, one that i will never be able to repay.
but He didn’t endure the cross without reason. He endured it to make a payment, to clear us of our debts and transgressions. Jesus took our place, so that we would be redeemed and restored to fellowship with the Father.
Jesus died, so that you could know God, and chase after Him for eternity.
thank you Lord. thank you for bearing my cross, even when it was my own actions that condemned you in the first place.
“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” -Isaiah 53:5
#jesussaves #canonusa
it’s been 995 days since i met my bestfriend. at the time i had no idea how much i would come to love her.
it’s been 636 days since i’ve had the pleasure of pursuing her heart. the majority of this time we’ve spent apart across countries and oceans, and our love has only been refined by that distance.
it’s been 113 days since she said yes to forever with me. how did i convince her ?!?
and now, it’s only 76 days till the start of forever with her.
my love, i can’t wait to marry you. and if i had to wait for all that time again, i would.
love you :)
thank you @chloefreelandphotos for the engagement photos !
do not go gentle into that good night
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right, Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
exploring the world with my RADL pack. #radlcore
@shopradl trekking packs designed in bonsall, california.
Jesus lived, was crucified, and resurrected all for you and i.
for the skeptics and those filled with doubt about the reality of a God so madly in love with His creation that He’d die for them, here are the facts.
-Jesus was a real person. Nearly every serious historian (believer or skeptic) agrees: Jesus of Nazareth lived in 1st-century Judea, was baptized by John the Baptist, taught publicly, and was crucified under Pontius Pilate around AD 30–33.
-His crucifixion has been confirmed by enemies of Christianity — Roman historian Tacitus records that “Christus” suffered the extreme penalty of crucifixion at the hands of Pontius Pilate. Jewish historian Josephus also mentions Jesus’ execution by Pilate. These are hostile sources — they had zero reason to help the Christian story.
-The New Testament is the best-attested ancient document we have — Over 5,600 Greek manuscripts + 19,000+ in other languages. The earliest fragments date to within decades of the events. Compare that to most ancient works (like Homer or Caesar) which survive in a handful of copies written centuries later. -The empty tomb is historically credible. Even many skeptical scholars accept the tomb was found empty. Reasons: it’s reported by all four Gospels, the first witnesses were women (whose testimony was considered weak in that culture — embarrassing detail no one would invent), and the Jewish and Roman authorities never produced a body to shut the story down.
-The disciples’ transformation is hard to explain otherwise — These men went from hiding in fear after the crucifixion to boldly proclaiming the resurrection — most of them dying for that claim. People don’t willingly die for something they know is a lie. Something radical happened to them.
cont. in pinned comment
what are you anxious about?
after 6 months spent in mexico, i’m going back to the US in 2 days, and with another season of transition comes the inevitable worry from change.
don’t get me wrong, change is exciting, and i’m so stoked to go back home, but besides the embrace of cherished friendships, i’ll have new anxieties to welcome me back.
i’m stepping into a new season, one i’ve never been in before, and honestly it’s quite scary. i get married in july, and that makes me acutely aware that i have a responsibility to provide not just for myself anymore, but for another human being. how much pressure is that!
now, i could easily give way to worry and anxiety. and some people might try to persuade me to do so, in the name of wisdom and prudence.
yet i can’t help but wonder, if i had all the wisdom in the world, would it be worth anything without faith?
you see, wisdom can get you places, but it only takes you so far. i believe sometimes we convince ourselves that we’re using wisdom even if it comes at the cost of strengthening our faith and trusting God.
is it wise to abandon our faith in God? is it wise to put our trust in anything or anyone besides the True and Living God?
what are you worried about? maybe you had a good reason to be worried, but isn’t that all the more reason to set that worry down and trust in God?
who knows what this life holds? only God. so why are you living life like it’s some sort of strategic game? God has given us breath in our longs to LIVE a wild and full life for Him.
maybe all that worry and anxiety is holding you back.
“But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” -Matthew 6:30-33
could i take your place?
ever since i can remember, i’ve always been captivated by the mountains. something about their grandeur, about the way they tower over me.
i wonder, what would it be like to be a mountain? to stand in its place and command power over its surroundings.
everything shrinks back in the sight of a mountain. the trees dwarf, the waters feel a little less powerful, and we stand in awe.
what to the mountains themselves say, to such high praise and awe that we give?
now i know mountains can’t talk, but sometimes i feel as though they do. they whisper a soft word so as not to overwhelm me.
“look.” “see.” “there is One greater than even i.”
the glory of the mountains are just the tip of the iceberg. they merely echo a faint shout of the Majesty who made them.
and so, i will mirror the posture of the mountains. not in standing tall with splendor, but bowing down, singing praise to the One who made me.
you are more glorious Jesus. you are worthy of my awe and adoration.
“The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, before the Lord of all the earth.” -Psalm 97:5
#jesussaves #canonusa
what do you long for?
during my younger years in high school, i had this deep longing for connection, for meaningful friendship.
different events and changes in circumstances prevented me from feeling like i belonged in any one friend group.
i longed for a place. a home.
i tried to feel that desire in me by being someone i wasn’t. i would drink till the “funner” me came out, finally able to connect and socialize without fear or overthinking. most nights like that would often end with me pissing people off anyways by doing something dumb.
in my desire to belong, to be home, i only made that hole deeper.
but what if there were no man-made solution to fill the gap in me? would that longing never go away?
it wasn’t until i realized that there was no man-made solution for me, that i finally understood why i had such a deep craving for connection and belonging.
God made me. He made me to have fellowship and communion with Him. He made me to have a rich, fulfilling relationship with Him, and i had been robbing myself of that in my pursuit to satisfy that desire.
wanna hear something crazy?
God made YOU for those same reasons. He made YOU to have fellowship and communion with Him. He made YOU to have a rich, fulfilling relationship with Him.
what desires, what problems are you trying to fill and fix by some man-made solution?
what if the only reasonable explanation for that continuous hunger, is that we were made for somewhere greater than this world?
what if we were made by Someone great for a glory we couldn’t possibly understand now?
“For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” -Colossians 1:16
“If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that i was made for another world.” -C.S. Lewis
#jesussaves #canonusa
who are you waiting on?
i’m 23 years old, and i have close to nothing figured out in life. yep, you heard me right.
somedays i still feel like a kid. and by some peoples perspective i still am, after all 23 years isn’t that much time in the grand scheme of things.
but i’ve experienced quite a bit in this life. lots of ups and downs, with many more to come.
i honestly don’t know how i would’ve gotten through a lot of those things, without the hope i had. and i’m so grateful i still have that hope.
my hope isn’t based on a change in circumstances or a specific preferred outcome.
the hope i have is based on character. the character of a person in fact.
a character that remains unchanging, steadfast, and faithful. a character that blows every other standard of goodness out of the water. a character that i get to know and experience in ways that i can’t even describe or begin to be deserving of.
my hope is placed in Jesus, because i know His character. i know who He is. i know what He’s done for me. what He does for me everyday, and what He will continue to do for me. and all of that comes from the love He has for me.
my hope is in Him because i know He’s greater than any high or low i’ll face in this life. my hope is in Him because there’s not a moment where He leaves my side, not a moment where He will abandon me.
my hope is in Him because He has overcome death, and invited me to share that victory with Him.
you may think that’s not reason enough to place all my hope in Him and wait on Him during the hardships of this life.
to that, i ask: if Jesus overcame death and the grave for me, what can’t He do?
what can’t He do for you?
“but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” -Isaiah 40:31
#jesussaves #canonusa
