Sweet Sixteen

You made it! Today we close out our Sweet Sixteen Series with the final chapter in the gospel of Mark. I am so glad you took this journey with us and pray you were blessed as you pondered over the life of Jesus. 

Chapter Sixteen of the Gospel of Mark

What is so fascinating about chapter sixteen is that Mark’s ending is not neat and tidy. Not only are there tricky aspects within the text to reconcile, but there is a “longer ending” and a “shorter ending” depending on which translation you read.   

Difficult Bible passages can create confusion if our faith rests in understanding every Bible passage instead of a Living Savior. Our minds are drawn to clarity and away from confusion.

This human reality is why we embrace a good movie or book with a neat and tidy ending. Happily-ever-after, all is well with our soul. 

However, the gospel of Mark was not a make-believe story – it is the real eye witness account of the life of Jesus as he left the perfection of heaven to walk in a broken world.  

Life’s Loose Ends

Life is not a neat and tidy story. For every woman, we all have aspects of our life that are loose ends we don’t understand. Our difficulties may cause confusion, and we might draw away from living the abundant life and settle on the shore of uncertainty. But it is in our loose ends that Jesus writes his story of redemption.  

Our lives are the very parchment paper upon which Jesus continues to write his story. 

And your testimony matters. Your real-life authentic story matters! Because sharing your eyewitness account to your experience, with Jesus is the best way to evangelize. No one can argue with a changed life.  

The end of the gospel of Mark is not the end of Jesus’s story. It lives on through you as you share the good news. 

“And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone”(Mark 16:15). 

How did Jesus impact your life through the gospel of Mark during our Sweet Sixteen study?

Let Mark’s ending be your beginning – as if Mark is passing the pen to you. Who will you “go and tell” about Jesus? 

“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house” (Matthew 5:14-15). 

May the Perfect Love of Jesus give you the courage to shine by sharing with others how he has changed your life. ONWARD! 

Nourish Scripture: Mark 16

Are you eager to discover the IMPACT God wants to make on your life? Download Nourishing Your Heart!

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Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.

Many fled before the first lash tore open Jesus’ back…

The disciples abandoned him.

Judas betrayed him.

Peter denied him.

Where were the thousands, he had fed with the five loaves and two fish? Where were those who had been astounded by his miracles and crowded him with such fervor that he had to slip away? Were the people who yelled “crucify him” some of the same ones who had received healing from his hands?

But not everyone fled. The gospel of Mark records this beautiful, breathtaking detail.

“Some women were there, watching from a distance, including Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James the younger and of Joseph and Salome. They had been followers of Jesus and had cared for him while he was in Galilee. Many other women who had come with him to Jerusalem were also there” (Mark 15:40-41).

The Women Who Stayed

They stood at a distance. Mary Magdalene, Mary, Salome, and others from Jerusalem who had ministered to Jesus stopped and stood at a distance to survey the cross.

The cross . . . Calvary . . . the place where love and sorrow kissed and intertwined. Pain and passion intersected.

Yeshua—how sweet the name. Jesus. He was their Teacher, their Healer, their Bridegroom. He captured their hearts. They encountered the love of God through Jesus and they were never the same. He exalted them, he liberated them, he restored them, and he loved them. His love was extravagant.

And as Jesus ministered to others, these women ministered to his needs (Luke 8:1-3). They moved to the beat of his grace. After caring for the One they loved, how could they leave him now? And so, they watched—from a distance.

Imagine how the women felt as they looked on and yet were powerless to stop the insanity before them. Eyes wide and brimming with tears, throats thick and heavy with sorrow. I feel certain the women were silent, stunned, and scared as they witnessed the suffering their Savior was enduring.

Did they have to hold each other up or hold each other back from trying to stop the madness? Perhaps they were a bit confused. Jesus had delivered them from demons, saved them, and healed their sickness, and yet he was not stopping his own death.

• What is going on in your life that you wish Jesus would stop?
• What does not make sense?
• How do we reconcile life when the bottom drops out and our faith hangs by a thread?

I’ve been there – how about you?

Devastating disappointments can tempt the most devout faith to doubt God’s goodness. The enemy wants you to flee – not just from God but from others. But it is in these times, you need Jesus the most. Standing together with Christ we can find the strength to remain steadfast in our faith.

How the Cross Serves as a Reminder

The cross reminds us that God’s love is real and that we can trust him when we don’t understand. When Jesus took the nails and the blows, it was his love for you that carried Jesus through the cross. It was a love so deep and intimate; he gave his life for you.

I have the incredible privilege of hearing stories from women who love Jesus. I close my eyes and tears fall as I think of those who have seen appalling suffering in their life: sexual abuse, divorce, abusive husbands, betrayal, cancer, rejection, adultery, alcoholic fathers, and more.

Like the women who surveyed the cross, they could have turned away from their faith, but instead, they remain steadfast with Jesus. Often their very place of pain is now their passion for ministry.

Trust is born out of love. Don’t let the enemy of your soul use the disappointment of life to dilute your faith.

This week as you dive into the Nourish Scripture see the passionate love Jesus had for you on the cross. Come closer to the one who is passionate about you and find the strength to carry on.

Nourish Scripture: Mark 15

Are you experiencing weakness and starvation in your soul? Download Nourishing Your Heart and discover a way to connect with the nourishment you need!

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Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.

I remember the day the music seemed to stop. 

I tried to find my confidence, but it was simply missing.

Much as a glass window dazes an unwary bird that flies into it, tragedy stunned my flight and interrupted the music.

A dark cloud of depression weighed down my soul. My feet seemed heavy as I tried to lift them. Fear was ever present. Complacency settled into my thinking…

Another tune began to play in my mind. The enemy formed a new tune by twisting the tragedy to form notes of lies about the goodness of God. Each note carefully played to create doubt that would displace my faith. The more I paid attention to the deceptive music, the louder it grew.

I started to wear a careful smile and became adept at pretending I was okay. But I was not ok. I was depressed.

Have you ever felt this way? I can relate. I understand the strain of carrying a heavy soul.  

It’s ok you know. You don’t have to be ashamed. People who have never experienced depression may judge you– but not your Savior. Jesus knows how you feel. He is not ashamed of you (Hebrews 4:15).  

Your Jesus experienced a crushed soul. 

“They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, ‘Sit here while I go and pray.’ He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed. He told them, ‘My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me’” (Mark 14:32-34). 

There Is No Weakness in Depression

The Greek word for grief is adēmoneō which means to be troubled, in great distress or anguish, depressed.  

Jesus did not play it strong or cover his feelings. He did not hide away.

He called out for friends to pray for him. And he called out to his Father. He did not see his grief as weakness or something to be ashamed of… and neither should you.  

Closely on the heels of expressing his confidence in God, the prophet Jeremiah cries out in this desperation “Why was I ever born? My entire life has been filled with trouble, sorrow, and shame” (See Jeremiah 20:11-18). If Jeremiah who experienced an intimate relationship with God struggled with a heavy soul, why are Christian’s surprised or ashamed when it happens to them?  

Shame causes us to hide from God to try and handle things on our own instead of asking him for the help we need. 

Keeping your feelings bottled up inside does not allow you to process the pain. I know this because it happened to me. 

During that dark time, I began to see a therapist and the first step he gave me to find healing was bringing out my pain into the light. 

“Aliene, are you being honest with God?  Have you ever told him how you really feel? I don’t mean religious language or offering up Christian phrases, I mean authentic raw honest communication with the Creator of your soul. You are angry with God but you don’t feel like it’s ok for you to have those feelings. But God can take your anger. Honesty is your first step. I want you to set aside a day next week. And pour out your heart to him. Tell him what is in your heart”. 

And so that’s exactly what I did. I let the flood gates open…and I mean they were open. I sobbed uncontrollably and let my emotions roar. I was honest.  

And when I had no strength left and no more tears left to cry, I heard his still small voice speak to my heart. I felt an unbelievable sense of relief and God’s presence so real it felt like he was hugging me. 

And in that moment, I turned the corner. My journey to healing still took a long time, but honesty was the first step. Before this point my efforts were spent pushing down the pain, but now those efforts were redirected to process the pain. 

Be Honest and Share Your Heavy Soul

Bring your pain to Jesus. Matthew 4:16 tells us that Jesus is the light “for those who have lived in the land where death casts its shadow a light has shined.”

Has depression cast a shadow over your life?

Matthew 4:24 describes how people brought those who needed healing to Jesus. People in darkness brought to light and found healing.  

Sometimes when life hurts, we pretend we are okay to protect our hearts. However, pretending can also prevent us from being vulnerable before God.  

God can handle our anger. He can take our doubt. Our first step to trusting God again is to be honest before him. To pour our heart out to Jesus. 

Let go of pretending and be vulnerable before the One who can heal your heart and bring restoration to your heavy soul. Tap into your emotions and let them flow before your Almighty Father. Set aside time to pray. Be brave. Bring him your broken heart . . . and watch the healing begin. 

What we hide cannot heal. Honesty before your Creator brings healing to your soul.  

Nourish Scripture: Mark 14 

In order to heal, your soul requires nourishment. Download Nourishing Your Heart and discover how to THRIVE on God’s Word. 

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Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.

No more holding back.  

I wonder if the widow in the temple heard those words whispered in her soul as she clutched the warm coins in her hand. Pressing the precious metal into her perspiring palm, she held them tightly for the last time. They were all she had to live on—dropping the coins would declare her dependence on God.  

• Was she tempted to pull back?
• Did insecurity or intimidation grab her thoughts as she was surrounded by the well-to-do?
• Did they even notice her?

Her two tiny copper coins were so small compared with the heaps of money the wealthy religious placed in the offering as they paraded by.  

But Jesus noticed and asked his disciples to study this wise woman. Through his eyes—the only eyes that mattered—her offering was far greater than the vast amounts of money given for show.  

The widow was getting ready to give her all—no holding back.  

As she dropped her coins to be captured by the treasure table, the tapping and clinking must have rang out in heaven like a symphony. Jesus watched and beheld the beauty of a woman giving her heart without reservation to him, for where her treasure was, her heart was also (Matthew 6:21).  

The widow’s giving was a picture of the principle Jesus had recently taught to a teacher of the law asking which of the commandments was the most important. Pulling in words spoken to the Israelites in the wilderness on the brink of their Promised Land arrival, Jesus captured the essence of following God: no holding back.  

“Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength”(Mark 12:29-31).  

Giving Our All

Jesus said the widow in the temple truly gave because she gave all she had. No holding back. Anyone can give out of abundance, but how much more precious is our offering when we are giving Jesus our all. 

It’s easy to give out of a harvest, but it takes faith to give our last seed when the harvest is yet to come.  

As the Bridegroom beheld this sacrificial offering, notice he did not stand in the way of her giving. He did not run toward her, grab her hand, and say, “Are you crazy? This is your very last—your very last! Hold back some to see you through the coming days!”  

This passage has always caused me to pause. If our Bridegroom loved the widow, why would he stand back and watch her give everything she had to the temple treasury?  

Meeting Your Needs by Giving

Christine Cain, founder of A21 Ministries, helped me understand why Jesus did not prevent the widow from giving her all in a podcast she recorded. As I listened, I learned that it was not that he did not want her needs to be met. Jesus knew her true needs would be met through her giving. Christine Cain said this “her need was met through her seed.” I love that – don’t you? 

If Jesus can make money come from the mouth of a fish, he can provide for us in creative ways when there seems to be no way (Matthew 17:27).  

Jesus knew the widow’s giving was not about money. It was about her heart. Jesus did not stand in her way because he knew that those who choose to live for the Lord with no holding back are blessed beyond measure.  

Often when we have nothing – we discover He is our everything. 

She trusted him with all her heart…her brave heart. 

When I am down to my last mite of money, my last mite of strength, my last mite of time – let me not pull back in fear but press in to trust you with everything. 

Nourish Scripture: Mark 12

Discover how to live the abundant life Jesus gave you by finding nourishment in the Word. Download Nourishing Your Heart today!

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Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.

When we nurse a grudge and cling to unforgiveness, we come under the influence of evil thoughts and actions.

Nothing positive results from a woman nursing a grudge. Nothing. When we nurse grudges, we play into Satan’s hands, and our influence is wasted instead of being used for God’s glory.  

A woman who prays carries great influence. However, carrying unforgiveness or nursing grudges can have a negative impact on our prayer life. Today, we are going to look at the connection between forgiveness and our prayer life.  

Pray and Forgive  

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. AND when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins” (Mark 11:24-25). 

I think the most powerful and probably overlooked word in this passage is the word and. This word links the importance of forgiveness to a powerful prayer life. We know faith is a key to powerful prayer, but forgiveness is essential also. For our prayers to be effective, we need to walk in the righteousness of Christ, faith, and forgiveness (James 5:16; Mark 11:24-25).  

You see, there is a relationship between forgiveness and our faith… 

In Luke 17:3-6, when Jesus told his disciples to forgive seven times a day, they cried out, “Increase our faith.” When we cling to unforgiveness, we are putting our faith in people coming through for us instead of God. Jesus said, “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22).  

Think about a tightly balled fist representing unforgiveness and bitterness. When God pours down his blessings, we cannot receive them because our hands are closed. But when we release others, we can open our hands to receive from God.  

I have always believed faith is one of the most important aspects of prayer. However, after pondering on this passage, my eyes are wide open to the truth that forgiveness opens my clenched hands to receive because it places my faith in God instead of man. This is the relationship between faith and unforgiveness and our prayer life.

Life is not fair—and it never will be—but God is faithful to give us more than enough when we consistently walk in forgiveness.  

In our fallen world beyond the garden of Eden, we have learned that all women will experience bruises along the way caused by others hurting us. A natural reaction to this hurt is to feel that person owes us something.

The debt could be anything.

Think about a hurt you cannot seem to release. What does that person owe you?

• Money?
• Time?
• Your childhood?
• Your self-esteem?
• An apology?
• Your health?
• Your marriage?

What has been stolen? Your dignity, self-respect, or self-worth? Your reputation?  

Our offender may never be able—or willing—to give us back what they took. However, instead of looking to the offending person to restore what we lost, we need to look to Jesus by placing our faith in him.   

Look to Jesus

Jesus has secured spiritual blessing for believers and promises to bring restoration to the hurts in our lives. Jesus brings justice to the injustices in our lives.

It is not our job to administer justice and make everything right and fair. Further, the Word tells us Jesus can make up for the hurts in our lives. People cannot restore what has been lost, but Jesus can (Isaiah 61:7). The restoration may not come from the person who owes us, but it will come.  

Forgiveness is not saying what happened was acceptable or right. Forgiveness is saying, “I release you so I can receive from God.”

We may never receive what we are due from that person, but God will take care of us in ways beyond our thinking. But we must first forgive. As we forgive, we are placing our faith in the King of kings, who owns everything! (Psalm 24:1) This is the relationship between faith and forgiveness.  

People are not your source, brave heart! God has given us a greater way to handle hurts in our life. Release offenders to God so you can receive from God through forgiveness.

Let’s be wise women and walk in forgiveness. Have faith in God. Release others so you can receive from Jesus. Walk in forgiveness and watch the mountains in your life move.  

Nourish Scripture: Mark 11

To walk in forgiveness, you need balance and nourishment. Download Nourishing Your Heart to find out how to connect with Jesus and transform the way you live. 

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Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.

God’s design for family establishes a framework that creates a place of rest, solace, and love—a refuge from the storms of life. His boundaries establish a place where we are free to make the mistakes necessary to uncover our true potential and thrive, free to become who God created us to be.

• Wives are to be loved as Christ loved the church.
• Husbands are to leave the nest of their mothers to create their own family, putting their wives first.
• Daughters are to be valued and raised without anger through unconditional love.  

This love, family love, is sacrificial. It is costly. It brings beauty.  

Sadly, under the weight of a broken world, the experiences most of us have with families is fractured rather than whole, distorted rather than ideal. Every woman has an imperfect family.  

While God’s framework for family is perfect, we are not. The perfect family does not exist because there are no perfect people.  

The Goal Should Be Perfect Love

When you see the fractures do you feel like you failed or that God failed you? Do you feel the shame that comes from using the measuring stick of having a perfect family? I did that for years until I learned this truth: my goal should be perfect love not perfect families. 

Don’t believe the enemy’s lies that God’s framework for family doesn’t work.

If marriage and family have failed to satisfy your own needs or the needs of society, it was not God or his plans that failed. It was people, fallen and imperfect, who were not there to fulfill their God-given role so that you could have the security you needed. It was people, fallen and imperfect, who did not love and nurture you the way God designed you to be cared for. 

Just after Paul’s description of God’s family framework in the book of Ephesians, he writes about the armor of God and our war with the enemy (Ephesians 5:21–6:20). This order in Scripture is no accident…

The enemy knows that there is strength in family and would love nothing more than to destroy God’s design, because then he can distort our perception of our relationship with him.

But Satan’s attack on family goes beyond just us; it is an attack on the gospel itself, since God’s family framework communicates the reflection of his desire to have a relationship with all people. 

The Marriage Relationship Reveals God’s Heart

In marriage, God created a relationship like no other. It goes beyond any friendship. It is a covenant in which two lives intertwine to become one.

With the purpose of providing a reflection of the relationship between Christ and the church, the marriage relationship was designed to reveal God’s heart for intimacy with us. Quoting Genesis, Jesus reminded the Pharisees who came to test him,

“But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh” (Mark 10:6–8).   

But even in the brokenness of our own family frameworks, the gospel message pierces through those cracks when we look to Jesus.

• Redemption
• Forgiveness
• Adoption
• Unconditional love

Stop the shame in Jesus name! 

Treasured Tribe, let the fractures be the very parchment upon which Jesus writes his story of redemption, illustrating it with your life.

From our Nourish Scripture this week, we see the heart of Jesus towards women inside fractured families. Let the imperfections in your family drive you straight into the arms of the only source of perfect love—Jesus.  

Our goal should not be perfect families but, rather, families and lives that reflect God’s perfect love toward others within our fallen, fractured world. Could there be any greater blessing in life than that?

Nourish Scripture: Mark 10

When you encounter Jesus, you not only experience perfect love but also discover the truth about who you are meant to be. Download Nourishing Your Heart and learn how to use God’s Word to discover your purpose. 

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Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.

Treasured Tribe,  can we talk real today? 

There is a difference between ministering to someone who needs the Lord and tying your soul to someone who is unhealthy.

There is a difference between loving others and deeply enmeshing yourself with them. I know this – because for years I did not understand the concept of boundaries.

Can you relate? 

God is the only one who can be God (it’s not our job!) and when he is, we are free to love others and let go of those unhealthy entanglements. 

Sometimes we must take drastic steps to detach from unhealthy relationships when they are causing us to stumble. Relationships, like our eyes, hands, and feet, are good and necessary in our life, but some relationships are not healthy. 

“If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one hand than to go into the unquenchable fires of hell with two hands. If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one foot than to be thrown into hell with two feet. And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out. It’s better to enter the Kingdom of God with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell.” Mark 9:43-47 

Jesus was not advocating self-mutilation; he was making the point that it is wise to recognize your weaknesses and temptations and remove anything or anyone enticing you to sin.

Jesus is teaching an effective strategy to avoid sin—it is better to sever ourselves from anything that separates us from him than to keep it and sin.

For a time, you may need to lose something or someone valuable, essential, and beneficial so you can find your life in him. 

Identifying Unhealthy Relationships

Unhealthy relational entanglements have destroyed many of Christ’s strongest branches. We all understand the overt signs of an unhealthy relationship—signs like physical, verbal, emotional, or spiritual abuse, and infidelity. But what about the more subtle signs? 

In her book When Godly People Do Ungodly Things, Beth Moore, who has ministered to the church for years, points out how some of the most committed Christians have fallen into “messy” relationship entanglements. Beth Moore also talks about the importance of discerning clean versus messy ties in relationships.

How can we discern a messy tie? Beth provides some warning signs.

Do these describe any of your relationships—either friendships or romantic ties? 

• Unhealthy dependency on each other
• Temptation to engage sexually with the person outside of marriage 
• Someone in the relationship becomes a false Christ figure, spiritually guiding the other person more than Jesus 

Is there a relational tie in your life that needs to be severed?

Don’t ignore those red flags and warning signs, no matter how strong your emotional attachment is and how well your desires are being satisfied. Anyone who is influencing you to sin is not worth keeping around, no matter how valuable the relationship may be to you. The situation may be sticky, and the severing may be painful, but you must cut it off.  

Instead of depending on this relationship, bring your desires to God, who can fulfill every one of them. 

Nourish Scripture: Mark 9

Download Nourishing Your Heart today and discover how to rely on the Holy Spirit so your desires may be fulfilled. 

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Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.