Purposeful Groanings
The Bookends of Glory
The Long & Twisted Road
Who's In The Driver Seat?
In Romans 8, Paul gives us three kinds of groaning: creation groans, we groan, and the Holy Spirit intercedes for us through wordless groans. What if none of that groaning is meaningless? In today’s devotional, we explore how the Spirit meets us in our weakness, praying according to the will of God even when we don’t know what to pray. God is working toward a purpose we cannot always see, and we are not forgotten. There is glory ahead.
In Romans 8:18–25, Paul reminds us that our present suffering is not the end of the story. Creation groans, we groan, and yet we wait with hope because we know where the story is headed. Looking at the bookends of Scripture, from the glory of Genesis 1–2 to the restoration of Revelation 21–22, we are reminded that God is making all things new. We may not be able to see the glory yet, but we know it is coming. And because of that truth, we have hope.
In this devotional from Romans 8:12–17, Marie reflects on the long and twisted road of her own faith journey and what it means to truly live as a child of God. Through her story, Joseph’s story, and a favorite scene from It’s a Wonderful Life, she considers what it means to trust God when we cannot see how every twist and turn will fit together. At the heart of it all is the beautiful truth of Romans 8:14: we are God’s children, and His Spirit is leading us.
Who’s in the driver’s seat? Romans 8:5–11 invites us to pay attention to what is directing our minds and our lives. Through a very real story about a persistent dashboard warning light, Marie reflects on determination, the flesh, the Spirit, and the astonishing truth that the Spirit of God dwells in us. Maybe the warning isn’t condemnation at all. Maybe it’s an invitation to pay attention.
Have you ever found yourself caught in a “dirty rinse cycle”—replaying your failures, reliving your mistakes, and allowing shame and condemnation to wash over you again and again? In this devotional from Romans 8:1–4, Marie reflects on the difference between conviction and condemnation and the freedom we have in Christ. Paul reminds us that our struggles and failures do not define us. God has done what we could never do for ourselves, and there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Instead of allowing our feelings, failures, or the enemy’s accusations to have the final word, we can return to the truth of Scripture and let the Word wash over us. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1 Listen as we step out of the dirty rinse cycle and remember what God has already done in Christ.