MARY K ASHLEY

I admittedly haven't considered God's mercy consistently in any deep way until the last year. It's a phrase we hear often in the Christian world.. 'His mercies are new each morning!' (Lamentations 3:23). Praise Him for that, but what does that actually mean? How does and should this profoundly impact the life of the believer? So what does the word mercy mean? To begin, the word mercy is defined in the dictionary as "compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender

Whether you have heard the term 'cancel culture' or not, I would venture to guess you may have witnessed it both played out and its after-effects either from afar or personally. Oftentimes coined as 'call-out culture' as well, this concept manifests when either an individual or group of people withdraw support (cancel) public figures, companies, or individuals after they have subjectively done offensive or inappropriate things based upon the group that is judging. Performed p

My Utmost Affections Upon You, O God I recognize Father that apart from abiding in your Son, I can do nothing (John 15:5). This is not a statement of self-deprecation but of understanding, by your Spirit, that I get my very identity from Christ. For it was you Father that elected and predestined me for adoption before the foundation of the world. (Ephesians 1:5-6) It was you Jesus that gave me new life, salvation, and forgiveness through your death and resurrection - so that

Looking around us, the realities that settle into our communities, cities, and nations, may seem to be far from a reality we would or could have dreamed up. The very finite nature of mankind has, in my opinion, been on full display for the past 11-12 months. The moment we perceived that the end was near, it proved just to be a new beginning to whatever tumultuous, difficult, or altogether unthinkable page turn from the book that was and is both 2020 and 2021. It can feel, for

This year has been one, for many, a culmination of 361 days of hopelessness, despair, anxiety, or dismal vantage points. Much of these feelings can be attributed to real and credible hardship. If you weren't aware, we are all in the middle of a global pandemic; a pandemic we thought may have been over in a few weeks, a summer, or at the ringing of the new year. As if a pandemic wasn't enough, there has been unrest in an array of circles, relationships, and spheres. To utter t

"Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter." (Proverbs 24:11) I am fully aware that this blog may be one of my most unpopular, contentious, and revealing, but I am reminded often that where God places me to be and whatever He calls me to do is not for the glory of me but instead for the pursuit of truth and glory of Him. Although the title of this blog eludes to my personal account of my views changing from pro-choice t

Over the last few weeks, I, probably like many of you, have felt inundated with all things elections. Whether it be from all of the news stations, radios, podcasts, blogs, or conversations within friend groups or around us, I have been swarmed by the weight of November 3rd. In addition, it seems almost inescapable to avoid seeing social media confrontations over various policies, appointees, and potential elected officials. It can become easy to get lost in the whirlwind of i

As I was out on a walk yesterday talking with a friend, I was reminded of the stark contrast in the way in which we, as Christians, are to both live out and define the characteristics which exemplify our new life in Christ. Specifically, I've been meditating on the idea of humility. As we observe the ever-present contention and oftentimes prideful arrogance in the discussions and debates around us, the idea of humility seems to both be missing and convoluted in our subjective

The Christian good works in the Bible don't necessarily include changing the world, and that's a good thing. If you've been a Christian for any number of years, you may have felt as though your everyday life as a mom, dad, employee, wife, husband, etc. somehow wasn't enough; that what was expected of you was to change the world and spend countless hours devising a plan and path in order to do that. This idea, whether from external or internal sources, may have led to feelings

The idea of performing or working in order to earn your way into heaven is unfortunately not uncommon among those who profess to be Christians. Even more, although it may not be outwardly expressed verbatim as a works-based salvation or justification, the influences of such doctrine are jarringly rampant in sermons and books around us today. Even as the authors of the New Testament are abundantly clear that it is not of works, deeds, or accolades of our own that we are a new

If you're anything like me, you can sometimes feel the urge to resist a season where the formalities and consistency you once knew seem to be far gone. The feeling of disruption in the uniformity of a routine and the perceived ability to expect what most days will look like, is one I've seen both myself and most others resist. Any season of life where control seems to be lacking can easily lead to stress, anxiety, and overthinking. It's not often we take a step back to realiz

I hope the totality of my blogs have shown that the state of my heart is never to "call out" or "cancel" certain pastors, teachers, or authors. Whenever I write on the rampant false and incorrect teachings in the Church, it is never as much about one teacher themselves as it is about the destruction that they are proclaiming and writing. I don't write about one certain pastor because of any personal distaste for their characteristics or persona. They could be a joyful, funny

How many times, as it relates to both critical and minor decisions have you found yourself unsure of what step you are to take next? Decisions of any size can at times feel helpless due to the innate human inability to know for certain what will come as the consequent. We are oftentimes left standing between the obvious choice of ice cream or no ice cream or the more serious election that lacks any level of discernability. In both the Christian and non-believing world, choice

Moralistic Therapeutic Deism - "God wants me to be happy, believe in myself, and just be nice." This doesn't sound so bad, right? "What is so wrong with this statement", you might be asking. The reason it doesn't sound bad is that unfortunately, this form of Christianity has seeped into churches all around us. Similar to the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel, moralistic therapeutic deism is a version of Christianity where our purpose is found within ourselves, our life is

Learning a Biblical Approach to Seasons of Hardship We currently reside in time and space where suffering feels particularly rampant. Whether as a result of injustices, violent behavior of varying kinds, diseases and death, financial loss, or much of the like, it can suggest or feel as though this season is unique to us right now. In reality, suffering has been a component of life from the moment that sin entered into the world. Moreover, all of the adversity, discomfort, and

Write My Story Series I remember growing up in an environment where God was spoken of by those close to me. Whether it be prayers and stories of angels with my mom or aunt, attending Lutheran church, or the mix of Lutheran classes and Catholic discussions, I had at least heard mentions of God and who He might be. I mean, there are even people in my family who are nuns. So, much of my upbringing was in more of an orderly and traditional setting with regards to church. I was ev

In my last post, we discussed that Christian apologetics is not just for the trained, philosophical and theological thinkers, or those with a burning passion for it. Christian apologetics, as Peter outlines, is for all Christians. He teaches that we are to honor Christ as Lord in our hearts while always being prepared to give a defense for our faith and the hope we have in Jesus. We are to do it with gentleness, respect, and keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak

You might be starting this post asking yourself, "what in the world is Christian apologetics?" There may also be some of you that say Christian apologetics are for those that love to study theology, philosophy, and form eloquent thoughts and ideas - but not for you. In this post today I'll both explain what Christian apologetics is and why I believe it is an important concept for all Christians to understand and practice correctly. This subject might feel hard, anxiety-ridden

Love Your Neighbor As Yourself We find ourselves pinned in the middle of Matthew 22:34-40 after my last post. Here we find a lawyer asking Jesus a question in order to test his knowledge on the greatest commandment. Jesus responded to him and others listening with with two commandments instead. The first being, to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. The second commandment, he said, was like the first - like it, but not it: To love your neighbor as your

Love the Lord Your God With All Your Heart, Soul, and Mind I remember hearing it put so simply. When facing any difficulty, situation, or burden in life always take a step back and ask God.. "How can I love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul, and mind, and how can I love my neighbor as myself in this exact circumstance?" It sounds so simple, but yet it seems incredibly difficult in the midst of any hurdle life presents itself for us to jump over or through let alone the