perspective – BeanSpired Editions

A clock with a decorative wooden frame hangs on a wall. It reads 8:07. Natural light shines on it from the left, but the room also seems to be lit with soft artificial light.

Nothing can guarantee we'll make it through hardship without scars, slip-ups, or shaky moments. But there are things we can do to maximize our chances of suffering in a way that honors God and makes us more like Jesus. And a lot of that work begins long before the trial does.

The green heart-shaped leaves of an Eastern Redbud tree fill most of the photo. The closest are mere inches from the camera. Some leaves are in sunlight, others in full or partial shade. A few bits of blue sky show though the canopy of leaves. The leafy branches cast shadows on the grass below.

God

A Love That’s Easily Pleased

July 29, 2022July 29, 2022 Megan Bean

When we truly, deeply love someone, we’re easily pleased with their gifts. They could give us a rock and we’d treasure it—because it’s from them. If their heart’s in it, our heart responds. I wondered: How pleased am I with what God gives me? What does that say about our relationship? And how does He respond to what I offer Him?

A white plastic basket sits on the ground in the aisle a barn. The basket has two rectangular compartments and a handle running along the divider between them. Its compartments are filled with various brightly-colored brushes and tools used to groom horses. The floor of the barn aisle is covered with rather dirty rubber mats. Shade and morning sunlight streak the ground. Under a board fence in the background are the plants and dirt of a paddock.

Donkey Devos, God, Life

Waiting for Perfection

June 13, 2022June 13, 2022 Megan Bean

If God wants our sanctification so badly, why doesn't He just skim off our old selves and slip on the new in an instant? Why make us endure the wait?

A brilliant sunrise fills the sky over the dark treetops of a forest. Clouds ranging from gold to orange to dark pink and purple spread across a pale blue sky. The horizon where the sun is about to come up is almost white.

Donkey Devos, God

Not Like Us

March 31, 2022June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

He might be above and beyond us in just about every way. But He also draws close to us in all His holy otherness.

Old fallen maple leaves cover the ground, almost completely obscuring the grass. The leaves are dry and brown, with pale undersides.

God, Life

Coming Unburied

February 25, 2022June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

What do you do with the stuff that can't and won't stay buried, yet is still undeniably not what you wanted in your life?

A furry gray donkey with a white nose and belly and a dark stripe down its shoulder stands in a snowy pasture. It turns its head toward the camera and pricks its ears. The pasture in which it stands is long and narrow, with wire mesh fences, and slopes downhill toward a forest. The forest consists of pine and bare deciduous trees. Through their branches the sky shows a bright cloudless blue. Some trees off-screen to the right streak the snow with shadows.

Donkey Devos, God, Holidays & Seasons, Tough Times

Finding God When Things Look Bleak

January 25, 2022June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

We may not always be sure what to make of what God sends us. But we can always trust and know the One who sends it.

The face of a dark brown donkey stares into the camera. He wears a forest-green halter with gold-colored hardware. His face, neck, and shoulder fill most of the picture. Beyond him to the left is a metal barn wall. A light gray donkey photobombs in the lower left corner of the image.

Donkey Devos, Life

Back to the Present

September 29, 2021June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

Our walk with God requires a similar presence of mind. In order to stick with Him through a world of temptations and uncertainty, we need to keep our focus on Him and where He is guiding us.

Relationships

Be Offended, And Do Not Sin

April 26, 2021June 1, 2022 Megan Bean

We can’t always control the way we feel in contentious situations. But with God’s help, we can control how we respond.

God, Gospel, Tough Times

Only Goodness and Mercy

February 19, 2021June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

Yes, trouble may chase us. Pain may nag us. Sorrow might ambush us again and again. Guilt and shame may nip at our heels. But the only things that can keep up with us, day in and day out, all the days of our lives, are the goodness and faithful love of God. And like the Good Shepherd He is, He will send them after us relentlessly. No, scratch that – He’ll come after us Himself, bringing them with Him. Because that’s who He is.