Deeper Still Devotions

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Deeper Still Devotions

Author Archives: Tara Jen Archibald

God’s Love in Our Hopelessness

06 Thursday Apr 2023

Posted by Tara Jen Archibald in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

The phone rings. You answer. But you do not recognize the voice on the other line. As you mentally try to place the voice you hear a familiar name…a precious loved one. “What? I’m sorry. What did you just say? Can you repeat that?” you ask the still strange voice. Your precious loved one is gone. Suddenly, unexpectedly, too soon. “But I just saw her yesterday and she was fine,” you reply back. You deny what the strange voice is telling you, dropping hard into the nearest chair. The unfamiliar voice apologizes, gives promises of being in touch, and hangs up. As the line goes dead, you feel numb. Yet your mind races. Shock. Confusion. Sadness. Hopelessness.

I remember each instance like they were yesterday. We have all been there, or one day will be. Losing a loved one is hard, painful, shocking, confusing and when it happens unexpectedly, unfathomable.

As Easter approaches I begin to wonder, was this how Jesus’ followers felt when His story seemed to have abruptly and unjustly ended on the cross? Executed as a criminal, now lying dead in a tomb, their Son, brother, friend and Savior suddenly gone from their midst. Shocked, confused, hopeless. On Saturday did they know that the Son would come out tomorrow; out of the grave? Where was their hope?

Have you ever asked yourself… Where is our hope when life does not go as we had planned? Where is our hope when life is going “well”? What or who do we turn to for our joy?
The answer is in Jesus on the cross!


“And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split”
(Matthew 27:50-51).

A beautiful intricately woven curtain separated mankind from God in Bible times. This curtain was huge and very thick. The beauty of the curtain could only be seen from the inside of this innermost chamber where God used to dwell. The high priest was only allowed to enter this sanctuary on days and times allowed by God and under the strictest rules. To violate God’s law on this matter had dire consequences. The curtain stood as a reminder of how sin separates man from a holy God; a physical reminder of the vast spiritual separation that exists between God and all people.

The curtain tore the moment Jesus gave up His spirit because no more blood needed to be spilled. Jesus’ death on the cross became the once and for all offering. Our debt was paid in full; the wrath of God completely satisfied. The dividing line between the holy God and sinful mankind was obliterated. This is our hope. Now we can come confidently, boldly to Him with all of our fears, pain, tears, sorrows, praises, thanksgiving and joy.

Last December I wrote about the joy we have at Christmas. Joy at Christmas, joy in Jesus’ birth, is only possible because of the hope we have at Easter. Because of the hope of Christ’s finished work on the cross.

As a child, the curtain torn in two stood out to me every time I read Christ’s crucifixion story. It was a physical, tangible sign that what happened on the cross was real. Proof that the dividing line between God and man had been erased, a physical sign of God’s sacrificial steadfast love for me. The dividing wall that had been torn down by God alone felt like a personal invitation into the beauty and presence of the Father. An intentional act of His love for me.

John 3:16, always a favorite, says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” He LOVES the world. He LOVES me! He LOVES you! I have always treasured the next verse too, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.”

Sin separates us from God. We were all condemned to death. But instead, God condemned Jesus to death on the cross in our place. It was essentially God’s way of pulling back the curtain and inviting us into His beautiful presence; welcoming us back into fellowship with Him. Fellowship we once enjoyed in the Garden (Genesis 2) but lost (Genesis 3). He didn’t just pull back the curtain, He destroyed it.

Jesus’ death was necessary to bring victory over sin, death, and separation from God. To show the depth of God’s love for us. A God who literally loves us to death, all the way to Jesus’ death on a cross. He ripped open the curtain, willingly stretched open His loving arms on the cross, and pleads with us to come to Him.

Each time I lost a precious loved one, fear, sadness and hopelessness quickly entered my heart. Had it not been for the Holy Spirit’s presence in my life they would have consumed me and pulled me under. But God. Even more deeply felt than the fear, sadness and hopelessness was God’s love for me. Always in our moments of greatest need, He holds us, wraps His love and peace around us and gives us strength we did not know we were capable of. His love has no end, no limitations, no conditions. His love is freely willingly given. His love is immovable and immeasurable. The vastness of His love awes and amazes me still.

Amazing love. When life feels hopeless, run. Run through the curtain into the holy of holies and into His open outstretched arms. He is waiting to embrace you. He is our hope.

Father, thank you for the hope of Jesus, the hope we have because of the price Jesus paid and His resurrection. You are so good. Thank you for your amazing love, who loved us all the way to the Cross. We love you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Joy Irrepressible

16 Friday Dec 2022

Posted by Tara Jen Archibald in Uncategorized

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“And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.’” Luke 2:10-11


Heart racing, hardly able to hold my position behind the imaginary line my brothers and I imposed on ourselves. Excitement and anticipation no longer contained. The sun barely above the horizon filtered through the towering redwood trees just outside. Smells of fir tree and freshly brewed coffee added to the fervor of delight. The only light illuminating the darkness came from the kitchen below where my grandparents awaited for the day’s festivities to begin. Sounds from my parents’ bedroom at the end of the hallway alerted us that the culmination of our anticipation was imminent. We waited to hear the parental “go” that signaled the start of the race downstairs to a Christmas tree bursting with presents. Each “Santa” pile (aka unwrapped presents) that sat in front of the tree, already well studied and claimed from the balcony above, marked our own personal finish lines. The door opened and the signal given, we dashed downstairs and the once dimly lit and quiet family room turned into a flurry of activity as the presents were passed out and torn open.


This was the pinnacle of joy for me as a child…the anticipation, the receiving of a new gift, a new toy, even a new sweater. This was what joy meant to little me…this exuberant cheerfulness. Memories of the gifts all opened and the wrappings, boxes and bows gathered into a pile and properly “swam” through, still bring a smile to my face. My happiest childhood memories revolve around Christmas. But they are also some of my hardest memories. Some loved ones are no longer seated at the table to enjoy the Christmas feast. There will be no searching for that perfect present for many I miss. But also making new memories with childhood loved ones is difficult and complicated, if not impossible. Christmas is hard.


For the last two years God has sent me on a journey I never thought I would travel again. Past dysfunction and difficult memories plunged me into a dark depression and a constant struggle with deeply rooted anger. My joy was seemingly gone. Laughter was hard. Looking up was harder. But a key truth I learned going into this journey was that sadness and joy, even anger and joy, can exist simultaneously. This helped me take the next steps of healing and heart change. True joy is grounded in Jesus, not how I feel in any given moment.


John MacArthur defines joy as “a happiness based on unchanging divine promises and eternal spiritual realities. It is the sense of well-being experienced by one who knows all is well between himself and the Lord (1 Peter 1:8). Joy is not the result of favorable circumstances, and even occurs when those circumstances are the most painful and severe (John 16:20-22). Joy is a gift from God, and as such, believers are not to manufacture it but to delight in the blessing they already possess.” (Romans 14:17; Philippians 4:4).


Hard times are inevitable, but “grown-up me” can have joy in Jesus even when life around me seems to be falling apart. Because He is my hope. Because He has rescued, restored and redeemed me. Because He promises to never leave me or forsake me and because His joy is my strength (Nehemiah 8:10) in the hard.


He is the good news of great joy for all people. The long ago promised Messiah is here. Here to save all people from sin and death. He came as a tiny babe to live the perfect life we could never live. Because God’s standard is perfection. He came to die as the perfect Lamb bearing all our sin and shame. Because the payment for sin is death. But Jesus died in our place! He bore the wrath of God the Father so we would not have to. He came to rise again from the dead, conquering death once for all. Because the grave could not hold Him.


The good news of great joy that first Christmas was a Baby in a manger. Jesus was the first Christmas gift, wrapped in grace, mercy, love and forgiveness. Joy is our only reasonable response to God’s lavish love and goodness (Max Lucado, Because of Bethlehem, p.163). Joy is a choice to dwell on His promises and faithful work in our lives, rather than our circumstances. It goes deep. It endures forever. It is not circumstantial. It is not based on feelings. It is a choice.
He is joy.


In this season of waiting we also look for Him to return. As we wait “let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:1-2). Remember as we celebrate His first humble
arrival on earth that He is coming a second time in glory to wipe every tear from our eyes and restore all that is broken (Genesis 3; Revelation 21:4). There will be no death or crying or mourning or depression or anger or pain.


Christmas is hard for many, but remember it is okay to not be okay. Because our joy is rooted in Jesus, sadness, anxiety, and suffering can coexist with joy. Let our joy be praise and worship for the King has come. Praise Him for His marvelous mercy, lavish love and generous grace…these can never be taken from us. We have joy in Jesus because our hope, peace and love are
grounded in His coming…in a manger two thousand years ago and on a cloud (Acts 1:9-11) someday soon. As we approach our Savior’s birth this Advent, let us choose to race to the Joy filled manger, fixing our eyes on the ultimate finish line marked…not by a pile of exquisitely wrapped (or unwrapped) gifts, but by the ultimate Gift…Jesus. He will be back.


And let us sing…


Joy to the world! The Lord is come; Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare Him
room, and heaven and nature sing…


Joy to the earth! The Savior reigns; Let men their songs employ; While fields and floods, rocks,
hills, and plains repeat the sounding joy…


No more let sins and sorrows grow, Nor thorns infest the ground; He comes to make His
blessings flow far as the curse is found…


He rules the world with truth and grace, And makes the nations prove. The glories of His
righteousness, and wonders of His love…

Praying you have a wonderful Christmas rejoicing in the One who came to save, bring Hope everlasting, and Joy irrepressible. Praying you experience Him in new ways, as He illuminates the dark, the Light of the world.

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His Steadfast Love

06 Wednesday Oct 2021

Posted by Tara Jen Archibald in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

There are many Deeper Still Retreats happening across the nation this weekend. In preparation for a Deeper Still retreat I am serving on, our worship leader asked the team members to each come up with one retreat example that is evidence of God’s enduring steadfast love.  I wrote this poem in the spirit of Psalm 136 because I couldn’t come up with just one. Will you pray this Psalm with me for the participants coming to all the retreats this coming weekend? May each of them through the course of the retreat, come to know His steadfast love in deeper and deeper ways.

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good,

for His steadfast love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of grace,

for His steadfast love endures forever.

Give thanks to the Lord of love,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

to Him who alone heals the abortion-wounded,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

to Him who by wisdom formed every child,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

to Him who made them moms and dads,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

the Son to rule over their hearts,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

their lives to reflect His light,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

to Him who brought their stories out of darkness,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

and brought shame out from among them,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

with a gentle hand and an outstretched arm,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

He beckoned the weary and heavy laden come,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

and willingly died for their every sin,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

to break their chains with His blood,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

to make beauty from ashes,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

and collect every tear in His hands,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

To Him who is full of mercy,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

He breaks their every stronghold,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

past sinful relationships, every one,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

and places where little lives ceased,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

and gave them songs of praise and rejoicing,

for His steadfast love endures forever.

It is He who remembered their sin no more,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

and rescued their babies unto Himself,

for His steadfast love endures forever;

He who saves them to serve Him,

for His steadfast love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of freedom,

for His steadfast love endures forever.

Yes Lord, we thank you that your steadfast love endures forever. We ask for you to meet every single participant this weekend with your ever enduring steadfast love. Lord, we pray for you to speak life, hope, and healing and bring them into deeper more intimate relationship with you. We ask for open heavens over all the retreats and they would hear your voice clearly whispering your love and kindness. Give them courage to walk through the depths as you lead them in your way everlasting toward hope, healing and lasting freedom. In Jesus’ Mighty name, Amen.

www.godeeperstill.org

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