Speaker 1: 0:02

Hi and welcome to our podcast, revelation Within On the Go. I'm Heidi Biles-Mapperson, one of your hosts and the owner and lead coach of the RevelationWithinorg ministry.

Speaker 2: 0:12

And I'm Christina Motley, your other host, also a Revelation Within coach and Heidi's partner in all things Revelation Within, and we're so happy to invite you to join us for this episode of Revelation Within on the show. You went low that time, I went low.

Speaker 1: 0:39

Well, welcome, welcome, welcome. We're so glad you're here. Yeah, in our community right now, in RevWithinteam, we are living, loved during the month of February. I don't know, if this will air in February or not, but in our community we're living loved.

Speaker 2: 0:57

I love that theme living loved. I love that I do.

Speaker 1: 1:02

I do, I do, I love that, I do, I do, I do so. During our meetings with our girls and guys, we kind of did a deep dive into this theme of living loved. We're not talking about just feeling affection from God, but experiencing really all that's possible, this profound transformation, by really embracing the fact that we are deeply and unconditionally loved by God, the God of the universe, the creator of all things.

Speaker 1: 1:33

It's amazing, so we're going to dive into that with you all today a little bit too. It's really good for us to repeat it. We need to hear this again and again, and again yes, so we're going to look at how we can live in the truth that we are redeemed because he chooses to redeem us, to love us, and the difference that it makes to us. Yes, so to kind of set the stage for our discussion, christina, would you read Hosea, chapter three?

Speaker 2: 2:01

verse one yes, I would love to. The Lord said to me go show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods.

Speaker 1: 2:19

Oh boy, doesn't that just settle on you in a kind of heavy sort of way?

Speaker 2: 2:23

Yes, it does, it's also a beautiful message.

Speaker 1: 2:27

God wants Hosea to live out the way that God loves his people. He wants Hosea to live that kind of love out for Gomer, his wife, which is just amazing. I always struggle with the name Gomer being for a woman because of Gomer Pyle.

Speaker 2: 2:45

I know Gomer Pyle. Exactly, that is exactly. So, just so we're clear on that, it's just an ugly name.

Speaker 1: 2:54

Maybe it was pronounced differently in the Hebrew yeah, maybe Anyway so we're going to just open our hearts up today to God's message. So visualize this If you want to. You can close your eyes and we're going to go into the marketplace in ancient Israel and we're going to have a glimpse of some goings on.

Speaker 1: 3:17

Picture yourself in this bustling marketplace. It's alive with activity. Every sound and sight has a story to tell. The air is thick, with scents of spices and earthy aroma of dust being kicked up by countless feet, and the sunlight, sort of, is filtering through canopies of vibrant fabrics overhead, creating kind of a patchwork of color that dances across the crowd. Traders are shouting to be overheard over the cacophony of bargaining voices, each trying to outdo the other in a symphony of commerce. It's a scene both chaotic and rhythmic, where life's exchanges unfold moment by moment. Life's exchanges unfold moment by moment.

Speaker 1: 4:04

Amidst this vibrant chaos stands Hosea, weaving through the throng with a sense of purpose that sets him apart. His heart pounds not from exertion but from the mix of emotions swirling within him, determination tempered by an unshakable love. As he moves, his eyes are focused, scanning the myriad faces and stalls with single-minded intent. Then he sees her. His gaze lands on Gomer, his wife, standing in stark contrast to the bustling life around her. She is bound, her head bowed low, as if her very soul has been weighed down by shame and betrayal. Her posture speaks of defeat and despair, a silent testimony to the choices that have led her here. But to Hosea she is more than her circumstances, more than her mistakes, more than her sin. Every step he takes toward her is filled with significance. The crowd parts subtly as he approaches, whispers darting like quicksilver through their ranks. What is he doing here After everything she's done? They murmur. Yet Hosea moves forward undeterred, his presence alone quieting the rising tide of judgment and disbelief.

Speaker 1: 5:29

In this charged atmosphere, hosea arrives before Gomer's captor, his love for Gomer radiating outward like a shield. He meets the man's gaze with steadfast resolve, laying down 15 shekels of silver and some barley, the agreed price for her freedom. To some it might seem a simple transaction, yet in that moment it becomes so much more an act rich in symbolism and sacrifice. As he takes Gomer's hand to guide her home, every whisper fades into insignificance. She doesn't deserve this redemption, she hasn't earned it. That's precisely the point. Love like Hosea's doesn't hinge on merit or worthiness. It simply is. It acts, it redeems, it restores, not because it must, but because it chooses to again and again.

Speaker 2: 6:30

Wow, oh my goodness, so beautiful. So this vivid story pictures God's love for us, a relentless pursuit that sees beyond our failures and calls us back from our self-imposed exiles. Our failures and calls us back from our self-imposed exiles. It's a love that pays what we cannot, that steps into our messes with hands outstretched, not in condemnation but in grace and hope. We see ourselves in Gomer's plight, the ways we wander, seeking false promises, only to find ourselves ensnared by them. Yet through it all, god mirrors Hosea's unwavering path towards us, silent against the world's judgments, yet loud in his declaration you are loved, you are redeemed and you are brought home, not for who you are or what you have done, but because of who he is. This is God's love for us. So we are Gomer, aren't we? I mean, this is who we are. This describes us. How often do we wander off you?

Speaker 1: 7:43

couldn't even count the numbers of times Exactly.

Speaker 2: 7:47

Chasing. What are we chasing? Fleeting pleasures? We're chasing approval. We're chasing counterfeits, counterfeit comforts we're chasing. Yet these pursuits only bind us tighter in shackles that were never meant for us. So, despite our wanderings, god doesn't turn away. His steps remain steady as he moves towards us, paying the ultimate price the blood of his son Jesus. He redeems us over and over, and over and over, not because of who we are, but because of who he is, over and over because of who we are, but because of who he is.

Speaker 1: 9:06

Take a moment to picture Hosea in that marketplace, stepping toward Gomer. What does that image reveal about how God moves toward you in your weakest moments? Consider how it might impact you if you were aware of this kind of love that God has for you as you live each day. How might relishing and resting in this unconditional, immovable, unending love impact you? How might it impact?

Speaker 2: 9:40

you. Oftentimes, when we speak of God's love, it feels distant, something kind of out there, rather than drawn intimately close. Today let's change that by diving deeper into understanding the depth of God's love through scripture. So let's start with Romans 5.8. But God demonstrates his own love toward us in that, while we were still sinners, christ died for us. So this underscores a love so profound that it defies logic, a love demonstrated while we were still in sin.

Speaker 1: 10:23

We want to consider. What does this say about our need to perform or prove ourselves? Ephesians 3, 17 to 19 says so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and the depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge that you may be, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge that you may be, filled to all the fullness of God. I love that Paul says here to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, supernatural kind of knowing.

Speaker 2: 10:58

I think Right, yes, we can't even fathom it.

Speaker 1: 11:02

No, and Paul speaks in this passage, in Ephesians 3, 17 and 19, about being rooted in this humongous, immense love. It's a grounding force, it's got us rooted to itself. It's meant to sustain us, meant to give us all we need for nourishment, for life.

Speaker 2: 11:22

Yes, definitely. John 3, 16 and 17,. For God so loved the world that he gave his only son so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send the son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through him. So, of course, this is perhaps the most well-known declaration of God's intention sending his son not to judge but to save. How amazing is that truth.

Speaker 1: 11:57

It is. I love that passage Partly. Obviously the gospel message is right there, front and center in John 3.16. But in verse 17, I'm reminded that God didn't intend for us to grab a hold of condemnation and use that to somehow form and shape us into better people. That's not his intention, you know. He didn't send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save us. And so I mean he gave us such a gift and it's not to be like warped in some way, hating us ourselves, into positive change. It's just not going to happen.

Speaker 1: 12:34

And so I love that. It's clear that God wants us to receive his love and that condemnation is. It's a lie, it's a lie, it's not for us.

Speaker 1: 12:47

1 John, 4, 9 and 10 says by this the love of God was revealed in us, that God has sent his only son into the world so that we may live through him In. This is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins. It's just such a beautiful truth that God's love was revealed not because we loved him first but because he chose to love us first.

Speaker 1: 13:15

God's love for us is not about my performance. I can't perform to win it and I cannot perform to lose it. He has chosen to love.

Speaker 2: 13:29

Jeremiah 31.3,. Long ago, the Lord said to Israel I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love, with unfailing love, I have drawn you to myself. That is so beautiful, so intimate, so sweet. So long ago, the Lord declared his unwavering commitment to his people, describing a love that is both everlasting and steadfast. This verse reassures us that God's love transcends time, extending from eternity past into the present and future. It's a love that continuously draws us to him, not based on our actions, just like what you said, heidi, but on his eternal promise, something we can really stand on.

Speaker 1: 14:20

Yeah, you know, it's interesting, I think, of the imagery that God used in adopting us that we see throughout the New Testament. We see it in Ephesians, for example, and I've never known of a situation where somebody adopted a child that they didn't choose to adopt didn't choose to adopt. Maybe it's happened but I think it's cool that God has given us that illustration as the nature of his love and relationship with us, and his choosing us.

Speaker 1: 14:56

Right. Zephaniah 317 tells us the Lord, your God, is in your midst. A mighty one who will save is in your midst. A mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness.

Speaker 2: 15:13

He will quiet you by his love. He will exult over you with loud singing.

Speaker 1: 15:17

Yes, I love this because this verse paints this picture of God, not as some distant out there. Deity, you know, god, I mean he is.

Speaker 1: 15:27

God, obviously, but he is a mighty presence right here in our midst, right here with us, with me. His saving power is coupled with joy and delight in his people. His creation Imagine, the creator of the universe is rejoicing over you, Christina, over you, listener, with singing, with dancing and loud shouts quieting your fears of his love. It really does speak to a very intimate relationship where God not only saves but delights in his people and he offers peace and comfort through his presence.

Speaker 2: 16:08

I think this is hard for a lot of people to fathom. I've heard a lot of people who struggle with this, and I've struggled with it in the past, but again, here's the source. This tells us what is true. So, as we renew our minds again and again with this truth, we begin to believe it and we begin to live like we believe it. Yeah, psalm 136, 26,. Give thanks to the God of heaven for his steadfast love endures forever, forever. Yes, forever and ever and ever. So in this simple yet profound, really profound declaration, we're called to give thanks for God's enduring love, and this is a theme that runs throughout this psalm. The phrase steadfast love endures forever is a refrain it happens, you know, it's written again and again. That reminds us of the constancy and faithfulness of God's affection. No matter the circumstances, his love remains unchanged and eternal, inviting us to respond with gratitude and trust. Yay, good stuff. It's making us smile, isn't it Heidi? Yes, it is.

Speaker 2: 17:30

We are having big smiles over here.

Speaker 1: 17:33

Yeah, and the more we repeat it to ourselves, the more likely we are to believe it. And I really think that's if you struggle with believing these truths. It's God's word, he said it, it's true, it's factual, it is what is true, even when you feel like it's not true. If you speak God's truth to yourself and take captive your own thoughts, you'll begin to believe it too, and it will make you smile too. Yep, all right. So Lamentations 3, 22 to 23. This is one. I just love, this passage.

Speaker 1: 18:07

So if we back up to earlier in chapter three of Lamentations, we see Jeremiah really describes just how difficult it is for him to process what he is experiencing. He says about God. He says he has filled me with bitterness, he has sated me with wormwood, he has made my teeth grind on gravel and made me cower in ashes. My soul is bereft of peace. I have forgotten what happiness is. So I say my endurance has perished. So has my hope from the Lord.

Speaker 1: 18:44

This is a sad, sad state of affairs. He is really, oh, my goodness. And then he goes on and says remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood in the gall. My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. But this I call to mind and therefore I have hope he starts to renew his mind here. I love this. I know the stead, fast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness, don't you just love that? God led Jeremiah to stop his runaway thoughts and to turn to him and call to mind what is true about God. And I mean, I just think that's such a great reminder.

Speaker 2: 19:38

It's great. Yeah, it's a great example of mind renewal.

Speaker 1: 19:42

It is, it's right there, it's right there, and I love that we have this great reminder of God's inexhaustible mercy. It's right there. It's right there, and I love that we have this great reminder of God's inexhaustible mercy. It's not going anywhere. His faithfulness is unending. Each new day is filled with renewed mercies, again and again. It's a testament to his steadfast commitment to us, despite our mess ups, despite our shortcomings. And there's this promise here that his love never ceases, and it offers us hope in the darkest times, like it did to Jeremiah, assuring us that every morning is a fresh opportunity to experience his faithfulness, his great faithfulness, anew. I just love it. I love God's word. Isn't God's word fun?

Speaker 2: 20:30

It is, it's amazing, it's alive, it's active.

Speaker 1: 20:35

I love it. It is, and so have you ever had such a difficult? I don't know where. I know you have, because you're my bestie and I know lots about you. Have you ever felt so sad and disappointed and struggling so much? And when you started to renew your mind, you just did with an act of your will. It changed things for you Maybe not the circumstances, but your perspective.

Speaker 2: 21:02

Yeah, it happens all the time. I use it all the time. I have several ongoing situations right now that are challenging and they go on, and I can expect that they will go on, and sometimes they really bring me down and. I can call to mind God's truth. I can choose that. I can choose what's in my mind. I can choose my thoughts. And I can choose, like you said, rather than spinning around, letting those thoughts spin in your mind, which leads me down a path of hopelessness and despair. You know just like.

Speaker 1: 21:42

Jeremiah here, and it leads to the counterfeit comforts.

Speaker 2: 21:45

Leads to the counterfeits. It leads to wanting to escape, to get in that space pod and fly away. It does. That's what it leads to for all of us. But to be able to call to mind the truth and say it out loud, even if you're not feeling it, you're not believing it, you don't really feel like it is, you're like I don't even know, I'm just in this really bad place. But being able to say those truths aloud again and again, it changes. It turns my heart to the Lord, fixes my eyes on him and changes my experience. Right in the moment, my thoughts are traded out for his. And that's what the renewing of the mind is. It stops the process of spiraling downward into something really negative and destructive and it turns things around.

Speaker 2: 22:39

It's amazing what can happen it makes me think of Psalm 131.

Speaker 1: 22:47

It's a short little Psalm, but when I renew my mind it's like it puts the brakes on where my thoughts were going. I like to say, my runaway thoughts are going to take me captive If I don't stop them and take them captive. They're going to take me captive. So Psalm 131 says, oh Lord, my heart is not lifted up, my eyes are not raised too high, I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me, but I have calmed and quieted my soul like a weaned child with its mother. Like a weaned child is my soul within me. Oh Israel, hope in the Lord, from this time forth and forevermore. I love that because I can choose.

Speaker 1: 23:32

Like you said, christina, I can choose what I will think about and I can calm and quiet my soul by doing what Jeremiah did you know, calling to mind what I know is true. What God says is true in his word is true. It may not be my sense right now, I may not be feeling it, but as I repeat the truth, I will. You know, what I think on is going to affect my feelings and my beliefs and what I believe is going to affect my actions. So, oh, it's a good thing to do.

Speaker 2: 24:02

Yes, I'm so grateful. I'm so grateful for the renewing of the mind and that we can choose at any time, any place. It can take just a few seconds to say one statement of truth that will turn my heart toward the Lord and turn it away from those runaway thoughts, as you said, right.

Speaker 1: 24:20

And just some examples of situations that I know I would have turned to a counterfeit comfort, and at times I did. I can't pretend to be perfect, just examples where I would have turned to a counterfeit comfort, and at times I did. I can't pretend to be perfect, just examples where I would have turned to food and eating or turned to numbing out or turned to something, and instead was able to renew my mind or could renew my mind. Um, one of the big examples that comes to mind is when I realized my first marriage was was ending. Um, and I needed to call to mind what is true and, and some of the things that were true were the many, the 33 years that God had given me with a man who was really good in so many ways and so many ways, and to just be thankful and grateful for the many things I did enjoy and experience. It didn't change the reality, the sad reality of what I was facing.

Speaker 1: 25:12

Over the years I've had a number of situations when my thoughts, if I didn't take them captive, they could have taken me captive and to do things I didn't want to do but would do, to shut down, to numb out, to not feel it might be turning to food. It might be turning to playing video games. Yes, at 63 years of age, I still love video games. Okay, why do I make something of it? No, anyway, we keep it real on this podcast.

Speaker 1: 25:39

Yeah Well, and there's nothing wrong with different things like that, necessarily but, I, don't want to do them because I can't cope or I won't cope with what God has allowed. For some reason, God allowed these hardships, and so that was one example. When my marriage was coming to an end, I had to renew my mind about who I am. I had to remind myself wait a minute, Mr Bilesma does not define me. What is true is God has chosen me. God calls me to belong to him and he is passionate for me.

Speaker 1: 26:14

What is true is that I am not defined by my marital status. Another example is moving from beautiful Catalina Island to the mainland again to live with my husband's mother. But really I can remind myself okay, who is God in this? What is he like? What does the word of God say about who he is? Because those things are true, whether they feel like they're true to me or not, and over time I begin to see hey, what's going on here is it's putting what I'm experiencing, these hardships, into the context of a bigger God is at work than I can imagine.

Speaker 1: 26:53

He is way bigger than these circumstances that I'm struggling with, and when I renew my mind, I actually find there's a little joy that comes up it doesn't deny my circumstances, but there's a little joy that comes up and I began to believe that we are on the cusp of change. Here we are on the precipice of a miracle, anyway.

Speaker 2: 27:15

We're so glad that you've been here with us today and we hope that something that we talked about resonated with you. It certainly resonated with me. Anyway, we would love to invite you to join us for our next podcast episode of Revelation Within.

Speaker 1: 27:40

I hope to see you again next time. Bye-bye.