Guest Blogger
Dean Cross

I’m so excited to have my handsome hubby be my first guest blogger. He is sharing about his journey to feeling fully accepted by God. I know you will enjoy reading his first blog and we hope you enjoy the video too.

You can follow Dean on FB and instagram @deancross1

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To start, I want to say how proud that I am of Jodi. She’s an amazing woman that refuses to be defined by disease, life, fears, or the grief I have caused her through the years.

I’m honored to write the first guest blog of jodibethcross.com. It’s my first blog ever, so go easy on me.

As a teenager I hiked Mount Washington in New Hampshire, along with a couple of my brothers. At times we could only see a short distance of the trail. Until…WOW! What.A.View from 6,288 feet!

Last October I had the immense honor to travel to Israel with some amazing friends. If you ever get the chance to go…GO!

In Tiberias, while jogging alongside the Sea of Galilee, as the sun was setting, I experienced “the view” that changed everything. Suddenly a scripture that I have known since childhood came to life to me.

It was John 3:16 that says, “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.”

Suddenly, while gazing at the same landscape and water Jesus walked on, this scripture became real. It wasn’t just a story of something that happened thousands of years ago and thousands of miles away. It was in THAT very place that God sent His Son…because of His incomprehensible love for me and you. I was wrecked!

After knowing God for over four decades, I FINALLY saw the life-changing view I had been walking near all along. I could see, know, understand and feel God’s love and acceptance. In that moment, I realized that I’ve lived my life trying to earn His acceptance by doing the right thing, being a kind and good man, husband, father, son, brother, pastor…you name it.

Standing by the Sea of Galilee, I realized that God accepts me AS I AM. Broken, sinful, stripped down, nothing-good-to-offer, Dean. And you know what? He accepts YOU exactly the same way.

Jeremiah 31:3 says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”

Do you believe that for you? My prayer is that today, you catch a glimpse of “the view” He has for you. One of God’s FULL acceptance of YOU. One of God sending His Son to kick dirt, walk on water, do miracles, die a gruesome death, and leave an empty tomb just for YOU!

Take a beat, hit the pause button of life, put down your phone, shut off the music, take a deep breath, maybe even take a walk…and breathe in God’s full acceptance of you, just as you are. May you be drawn by His unfailing kindness today and catch a glimpse of His everlasting love.

Enjoy THE VIEW!

Dean Cross (proud husband of Jodi Beth Cross, aka…Hot Sexy Momma). ;-)