Quick update and why I paused.

If this is your first time receiving Covered in His Dust, welcome.

Grace and peace to you.

I have a small change of plans to tell you about.

I'm taking the week off. Sort of.

I've spent the last week deep in preparation for the next newsletter. Multiple sermons watched. Notes filled. The text has been turned over and over in my heart and hands. But I'm not publishing it today.

Two reasons.

First, my body. Since mid-December I've been dealing with a nerve issue that started in my neck, crawled down to my shoulders, settled into my left shoulder blade, and has now worked its way around to my left side. Sitting at a desk for more than 15 or 20 minutes has been genuinely hard. Today is the best I've felt in three months, and I believe (and pray) I'm finally turning a corner. Praise God I've been sleeping. But I need another week.

Second, the text itself. The three verses I'm covering next week are not verses you rush. Many scholars consider Romans 3:24 to be the most important verse in all of Scripture.

"...and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." Romans 3:24

That verse deserves more than a tired man's best effort on a deadline. So I'm giving it a week.

1,015 of you have joined in the last 30 days.

Every single one of you found a tiny newsletter written by a missionary in Guatemala who just tries to slow down and ask better questions of an ancient text. I genuinely don't know what to do with that except feel the weight of it and say thank you.

So. Thank you.

If you just found us, you may feel like you walked into the middle of a movie. You did. We're deep in Romans right now, and there's real context behind everything we're building toward. Here's what I'd suggest:

Jump in with us next week at Romans 3:24-26. It's a good entry point and the passage stands on its own. Or if you want the full picture, start at the beginning with [the intro to Romans] and work through [the full archive] from Chapter 1.

Either way works. I just don't want you feeling lost when you're sitting on something this good.

A preview of what's coming:

Most Christians have heard that they possess the “righteousness of Christ.” But very few could tell you what that actually means. There are remarkably few sermons on justification. And yet here's how theologian Robert Reymond describes what happens when God justifies a sinner:

“In God’s sight, the ungodly man, now in Christ, has perfectly kept the moral law of God. Which means that in Christ he has perfectly loved God with all his heart, soul, mind, and strength. And loved his neighbor as himself.”

Slow down when you read that.
That's what we're unpacking next week.

Where are you reading from?

One of my favorite things about this newsletter is the map of people behind it.

We currently have readers in 24 countries:

Australia, Barbados, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Finland, Guatemala, India, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Philippines, Poland, Scotland, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, and Zimbabwe.

And across 23 US states:

Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.

If your country or state isn't on that list, reply and tell me. I want to know where you are.

Last thing.

If you haven't checked out my most recent book yet, you can find it at shopcoveredinhisdust.com. Order the bundle and I'll send you a free digital copy of our memoir Do You Love Me? It was an Amazon bestseller in three categories. Read the reviews and see what people are saying HERE.

I love you,
George

If a friend shared this Bible study with you and you’d like to receive it straight to your inbox, just click HERE to subscribe—it’s free and always will be!

George Sisneros is a full-time missionary in Guatemala and the founder of Ordinary Missionaries and the El Rosario Christian Academy for Boys.

He’s been married to his wife, Vonda, for 27 years. He’s a father to nine children, five adopted.

In 2024, George and his wife expanded to Cuba, joining forces with nine pastors committed to transforming lives through the gospel.

You can get George’s newest digital book, Uncovering Scripture: The Gospel of Luke HERE.