I love my writing job here at The Hill Hangout. One of the things I love best about it is getting to share fabulous opportunities with you, and even host a few terrific giveaways. And I have a deal for you today!!! Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, the husband and wife team who brought you The Bible mini-series on the History Channel, have a new movie coming out. This time, they are telling in greater depth the story of Jesus’ life in Son of God. Son of God is a full length feature film which will open in theaters THIS FRIDAY!!

Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church and author of The Purpose Driven Life, says about Son of God, “I’ve probably seen most, if not all, of the films about Jesus produced in the past 50 years. This one stands alone, in a class by itself, as the best I’ve ever seen. Brilliantly produced with stunning cinematography, a Hans Zimmer score and academy-worthy acting, it stands head-and-shoulder above the rest.

“Son of God draws you into the story from the start. Not since the release of “The Passion of The Christ” ten years ago have I been this excited about a movie…Son of God brings to the Big screen the Story of Jesus. Here we see the wonder of His birth, The power of His mission, The loving sacrifice of His death but most importantly, we see The Eternal Hope of His resurrection. I am thrilled that 20th century Fox are distributing this film and know it will be a blessing to millions when it opens in theaters all across America this Spring.”

Want to see a quick preview?

And now for the fun part… I’m giving away three pairs of tickets to see the movie!! Just leave a comment on this post, and I will randomly select three readers to receive a pair of tickets. Only one comment per person, please. All repeats will be deleted. I will announce winners on Friday morning, just in time for you to see the movie on opening night.

To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy.

But if the unbeliever leaves, let it be so. The brother or the sister is not bound in such circumstances; God has called us to live in peace. How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or, how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?

Do you have an unbelieving spouse? God sees you and has given you insight from His word on how to respond.

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

This weekend I had the privilege of participating in our church’s women’s conference. It was a fabulous Friday night and Saturday morning filled with teaching from Vicki Courtney (who I now want to by my new BFF). We spent the weekend discussing the why-not and how-to of being satisfied in Christ.

As women, even Christ-chasing women, living in the crazy world, we have to look for satisfaction in the right places or we can make a huge mess of things. I think we know that we SHOULD BE looking for our satisfaction in Christ alone, but we sometimes can’t recognize and identify those places where we are looking to other gods to fulfill us. I dare say there is not a true follower of Christ out there who willingly seeks satisfaction in other gods, but yet it can happen so easily.

John 10:10 tells us that Christ came that we might have life and have it in abundance or have it in a way that satisfies. He wants us to be satisfied, but He wants that satisfaction to come from Him. Our worldly relationships are a precious gift from God, but they weren’t designed to be the source of satisfaction. Only Jesus Himself can meet our needs with such extravagance that we feel completely fulfilled, full of purpose, and sated.

Many of us (me included) have looked for significance in our relationships with our husbands, the beauty of our homes, and how well our children behave. We pride ourselves on our work achievements or the accomplishments of our children. If we have a long list of friends who enjoy our company and respect our wisdom and opinions, then we must be important, right? We forget that our worth comes from the fact that God created us in His image and redeemed us with the blood of His dear Son. He took us from a life of emptiness into a life of abundance. We were once lost and now are found. We were dead in our sin, and He gave us life through His atonement. THAT is the source of our true satisfaction.

Maybe your list of false gods looks different than mine. I encourage you to take a deep look and pray that God would reveal to you the places you are seeking fulfillment other than in Him. And when He does show you those areas, be quick and faithful to re-direct your affection to Him in that area. Listen, as busy moms, we have distractions all day long that will keep us from abiding in Him. But when we can learn to stay plugged into Him as the source of our satisfaction, we won’t burden other people with that role and the work He gives us to do will be accomplished with the proper perspective.

I’d love to say that once we hear this truth, we will follow it without fail the rest of our days. But that simply isn’t true. Satan is crafty and is always at work to steer our affections away from our First Love. As long as we serve Christ on this earth, we will have to occasionally take stock of where we stand with Him and make adjustments to stay on track. Don’t be discouraged when you find that you have once again looked for satisfaction in the world. Just confess it to God, repent of it, and get your heart right again.

A prayer for New Year’s Day from the Lutheran Book of Prayer:

It is on account of Your mercy alone, O Lord, that I am not consumed, because Your compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. Abide with me, O God, throughout the coming year. Be my guide in all perplexities, my strength in my weakness, my ever-ready help in all my troubles. Forgive me all my sins. O Sabaoth Lord, look down from heaven and in grace behold and visit Your holy Church, which You have chosen for Your own. Preserve for us Your saving Word and Your Sacraments, that Your vine may send out its boughs from sea to sea and its branches to the uttermost parts of the earth. Look graciously upon our nation and all the nations of the world, and bless them with peace. Grant to all that are in authority wisdom and courage to rule in such a way that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life in all godliness and honesty. To You, almighty Creator and gracious God, I commit this nation, my church, my family and loved ones, and myself. Abide with me. With Your grace and mercy preserve me whole – soul and body – blameless to the coming of my Lord Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Blessings to you all in 2014, friends. May you abide in Him as He abides with you.

A prayer for New Year’s Eve from the Lutheran Book of Prayer:

Lord, make me to know my end and the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am. Another year of my pilgrimage has passed. I am a year nearer to my death, to judgment, nearer to eternal life with Christ, my Lord. Where shall I run as the sins of the past year and the transgressions of all my years rise to condemn me? Lord, to You alone I flee for refuge in these last hours of the waning year. For the sake of Your own Son, whom You sent to be the Savior of all men, be gracious to me, and pardon my iniquity. Trusting in the merits of my Savior, I come boldly to Your throne of grace, in full confidence that there I shall obtain mercy and find grace to help me in my time of need. Oh, satisfy me early with Your mercy that I may rejoice and be glad all my days. Let me, in a manner befitting a child of God, conclude the old year and begin the new, a year in which You would be pleased to dwell among us continually in Your goodness and means of grace; for the sake of Your dear Son, Jesus Christ, my Lord.

Amen.

From the Lutheran Book of Prayer:

“Lord God, gracious Father, who in the fullness of time sent Your Son to become man, to assume human flesh like mine and to become my Brother, I thank You for Your truth and Your fatherly goodness in giving us this Savior. By His birth, death, and resurrection, we are delivered from sin, death, Satan, and hell. I beseech You, keep me until the end in true knowledge of my Redeemer, that with the holy angels, I may rejoice at His nativity, and on the Last Day, when He comes again, I may behold Him, together with You and the Holy Spirit, in glory and majesty, world without end.”

Amen.

From the Lutheran Book of Prayer:

“O great and glorious Redeemer, Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, we praise You, we bless You, we worship You, we glorify You, we give thanks to You for Your great glory. O Lord God, Lamb of God, the only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, King of kings and Lord of lords, Emmanuel, God with us!For You only are holy; You only are the Lord; You only, O Christ, with the Holy Spirit, are the most high in the glory of God the Father. But chiefly on this most holy of nights we adore You for leaving the glory that You hadwith the Father before the world began. We humbly ask You, by the holy mystery of Your incarnation and nativity, to deliver us, good Lord. You who came that we might have life and be saved from our sin, be gracious to us and save us. Let the glad tidings we commemorate this night be made known to all people.”

Amen.