Lent - Day Four - I Am Pleased with You

Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025 **********************************************************

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’” Now John wore a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.

Matthew 3:1-17

“This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.” With those words, the voice of the Father descends from the heavens at the baptism of Jesus. What would we give as children to hear such words from a parent? What would we give to hear those words spoken to us by our Father in Heaven? When we examine our lives closely and honestly what we see is all the brokenness due to our sin. So these seem to be the last words we could ever hear from God. Yet by the death and resurrection of Christ, God looks at us through the cross. He does not see our sinful nature but rather sees Christ. He does not view our sinful actions but the work of the Holy Spirit in us. Today hear the voice of the Father speaking to you. “You are my child. I love you. With you I am well pleased.”

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me. Grant that my life is filled with all that pleases You. Amen.

Lent - Day Three - The King Has Come

 Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025

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Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: ‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’" Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: “A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.” But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.” And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.
Matthew 2:1-23

The Magi came to Bethlehem in search of “the King of the Jews,” and when they found the baby Jesus they gave Him gifts worthy of a king. Jesus is a king [- the King -] and yet He said, “My kingdom is not of this world.” God’s kingdom is not simply a place. It is His active reigning in the lives of His people. Christ desires to fill your life with His Spirit, to live and reign in you. He is a king deserving of all kingly gifts, and yet what He desires above all things is to be at work in your life.

Prayer:

Jesus,  Let Your kingdom reign in our lives, that by the Holy Spirit we may trust Your Word of promise and that our thoughts, words, and actions would be a reflection of Your kingdom of holiness, grace, and mercy. Amen.

Lent - Day Two - God is Not Distant

Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025
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Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.' All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 'Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel' (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

Matthew 1:18-25

Many would say that if there is a God, He is merely a spectator who does not interact with this world. In the birth of Jesus, we see the very opposite to be true. God Himself comes into this world. He takes on our flesh. Not only does He interact with this world, but He intervenes on behalf of His creation. He is born into this world to “save His people from their sins.” And God continues to interact and intervene in our lives, for our benefit, by the work of the Holy Spirit, and with the power of His Word.

Prayer:

Holy Spirit, be at work in our lives. Encourage our faith, speak Your truth, and open our eyes to see all You are doing. Amen.

Lent - Day One - A Family Tree

Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025

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The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.

Matthew 1:1-17

The gospel of Matthew begins by giving the family genealogy of Jesus. But what could be so important about a family tree? God made His covenant promise with Abraham, who would be the father of a great nation and a blessing to all people. From that nation God promised to send the Messiah through the family line of David, bringing hope and salvation to the world. Matthew uses this genealogy to point out that Jesus was born into this family tree because He is the fulfillment of those promises made centuries earlier. But just as important is the fact that the promised Messiah, Jesus, has brought us into His family tree through His death on the cross. Through His life, death, and resurrection, we have been made children of God. We receive all the promises and blessings of being adopted into His family.

Prayer: 

Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Son, and for bringing us into Your family through His death on the cross. Amen

Is It Too Late?

"The Lord took hold of me, and I was carried away by the Spirit of the Lord to a valley filled with bones. He led me all around among the bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground and were completely dried out. Then he asked me, “Son of man, can these bones become living people again?” “O Sovereign Lord,” I replied, “you alone know the answer to that.” Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord!' "
Ezekiel 37:1-4 NLT

Ezekiel was taken to an open valley and plopped down in the middle of dead, dry bones, bleached by the sun. Nothing left of the lives that had been. No life. No hope of life. No chance of having what might have been. What could have been. Over. Finished. No hope of ever being whatever it was they set out to be and all because they wound up on that battlefield. Just dead, dry bones...

Can you see it in your mind? Can you picture that? Not a place that would evoke the desire to do a happy dance...

"And God wants me to do what?!? Are you kidding me?!? Speak to dead, dry bones?!? No way! I'd look like a fool! It's too late for that!"

Do you feel like that? Does your life feel bleached out - dead and dried up? Are you lamenting over what 'woulda, coulda, shoulda' been if you had not ______________? Do you think it's too late?

Ezekiel 37:7-10 The Message, "I prophesied just as I'd been commanded. As I prophesied, there was a sound and, oh, rustling! The bones moved and came together, bone to bone. I kept watching. Sinews formed, then muscles on the bones, then skin stretched over them. But they had no breath in them. He said to me, "Prophesy to the breath. Prophesy, son of man. Tell the breath, 'God, the Master, says, Come from the four winds. Come, breath. Breathe on these slain bodies. Breathe life!'" So I prophesied, just as he commanded me. The breath entered them and they came alive! They stood up on their feet, a huge army..."

Okay, that was just a vision. It's not like that could really happen, right? Well, I'm here to tell you that it can and it does...EVERY time God is invited. Whether it's your dead, dry bones or someone else's. Dry bones, listen to the Word of the Lord!

2nd Corinthians 5:17, "This means that ANYONE who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" [emphasis mine]

Galatians 6:15-16, "It doesn’t matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God."

Revelation 21:5, "And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful."

God is calling you. He already knows what you did or didn't do and only He can fix it. And believe it - He CAN fix it - and He WILL! But just like the watch can't be fixed till you take it to the jeweler, your life can't be fixed until you put it in God's hands. It's a safe place. Put yourself in His hands. It's NOT too late! It's NEVER too late.

Prayer:

Oh, God!
              Let our hearts respond to Your call, to Your pleading, to Your touch. Let Your will be done, Father. We don't want blessing - we want You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Building Relationships - Guest Author

From the Daily Hope Newsletter.

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“Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. . . . You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.”
Philippians 2:3, 5-6 NLT

The ability to be humble is a relationship builder. What is humility? It’s when you honor others above yourself instead of demanding or clinging to your rights.

Pride, on the other hand, destroys relationships—and it shows up in a lot of different ways. It can make you critical, judgmental, competitive, stubborn, and unforgiving. Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride leads to destruction; a proud attitude brings ruin” (NCV).

Pride is also self-deceiving. When you have a problem with pride, you struggle to see it in yourself. But everyone else can see it in you!

What does pride look like in a relationship? One, you always offer advice but never ask for it. Two, you can’t admit when you’ve had a tough week. Everybody else is saying, “Yeah, this last week was tough.” But you can’t seem to admit you have any problems.

But how does humility play out in a relationship? Notice the five relationship builders in 1 Peter 3:8: “Live in harmony, be sympathetic, love each other, have compassion, and be humble” (GW). The first four are really built on the fifth one: Be humble. That verse is an excellent model for relationships.

How does humility happen in your life? It happens by letting Jesus control your thoughts, heart, attitudes, and reactions. Growing in humility has to include Jesus.

The basic law of relationships is this: You tend to become like the people you spend time with. If you spend time with grumpy people, you get grumpier. If you spend time with happy people, you get happier. If you want to have more humility, spend time with Jesus Christ in prayer and reading his Word. Just talk to him. He is humble and wants a relationship with you.

Growing in humility may seem like a tall order, but it’s possible with Jesus... 

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Prayer:

Father, 

         Thank You for sending this teaching today. Please forgive us for walking in pride. We do not want to invoke destruction and ruin in our lives. Help us to see how pride can show up in our life. Help us to see and understand the connection between being humble and spending time with Jesus. Make us ever mindful of how we act when it’s been a while since we've connected with You. We want to build according to Your Word to "Live in harmony, be sympathetic, love each other, have compassion, and be humble." In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

He Has Not

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes."

Matthew 6:34 The Message

This scripture is taped to the monitor stand at my place of employment where I can read it every day. I printed and posted it several years ago as a reminder when the company was going through major layoffs. By God's grace and mercy, I am still there. The first couple of months I realized I was living with an underlying fear. That's when I went back to the Words I knew; to the One I can trust. God is my Source. He is my Provider. He leads me in the paths of righteousness... and my beloved Psalm 139; It doesn't matter where I go, He is there. And Hebrews 13:5 that He will never leave me nor forsake me. And so many more...

God has been reminding me to live in the present. Forgetting those things that are behind, not worrying about tomorrow and what it may or may not bring, for God is already there. He is not going to take us or send us to any place that He has not already made the way. And if we believe that (and it is our choice), then we can fully live in the peace that He has promised us. The peace that only He can give us, and the world cannot.

Don't get caught up in what may or may not happen tomorrow or the next day. We must choose to put our faith and our trust in God; to not be moved by what we see or feel. It is God and His Word that must shape our lives and the choices we make.

Remember His Word in Numbers 23:19, "God is not a man, so He does not lie. He is not human, so He does not change His mind. Has He ever spoken and failed to act? Has He ever promised and not carried it through?"  No, He has not and He never will. 

Praise His Holy Name!

Prayer:

Father,
          When I think about all You have done for us, I am overwhelmed by Your love and faithfulness. Thank You for continuing to teach us. Use us to further Your kingdom, Lord. Morning by morning, according to Your Word, awaken us and open our understanding to Your will. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

To Number Our Days

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. 

Psalm 90:12 ESV

Numbering our days in this verse is not about us knowing how many days we will live. Psalm 139:16 tells us that God determined the number of days in each of our lives before we ever breathed one of them. Rather, it is about realizing our days are not to be wasted. 

If we consider how short life truly is then making the most of our days to seek God's plan and purpose would be to gain the heart of wisdom. And by doing so, we can set and accomplish Godly priorities in the time allotted. 

It's been said, 'Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you can only spend it once.' God wastes nothing, and neither should we. 

Prayer:

Father,

           Please forgive us for the time and times we have wasted. We ask that You make the brevity of life sink into our souls so we are convicted and thus compelled to make Godly choices during our short time on this earth. Give us the wisdom and Your strength to do all that You have planned for us, according to Your Word. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Bend to the Task

"When you harvest the crops of your land, do not harvest the grain along the edges of your fields, and do not pick up what the harvesters drop. Leave it for the poor and the foreigners living among you. I am the Lord your God."
Leviticus 23:22 NLT

In a day and age when the world seems to be more and more about ME-ology, what's in it for me, selfies and selfishness, what's mine is mine, I love reading this passage of Scripture.

Provision certainly was made; however, it's important to note that the poor and the foreigners still had to come to the field and glean the grain that was there for them. It was available to them, but they had to work for it.

In some ways, this puts me in mind of harvesting God's Word for our lives. The main haul is the message or sermon we hear, but we have to dig into the Word to get what is left there for us. Not handed to us, not dropped in our laps, but rather, there for us if we will bend to the task and begin gleaning.

God has promised us that when we seek Him, He will be found. Let us glean all that we can from Him.

Prayer:

Father,
            Thank You for the provision You have made for us. Help us to gather all that You have provided so that we fulfill Your perfect plan for us. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Reminder - No Fakers

"Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality."
Romans 12:9-13 NLT

How many times in life have we pretended to be something we're not? Or pretended NOT to be something we really are? Why? To make someone like us? Or because we're afraid if they found out who we really are (or aren't), we would be judged and found wanting? How many times have you heard an exuberant, "Oh, I am too blessed to be stressed!" but if you take the time to look into their eyes, you see fear and dread...or worse - hopelessness. Do we allow the Great Pretender to carry on pretending under the guise of preserving their "dignity" or will we love enough to clasp their hand in ours and reply, "I'll agree with your confession of faith. Let me pray with you..." and let the Holy Spirit guide our words?

Even those who are trained to act can only sustain a role for so long... Our Maker did not create us to be fakers. We are called to Truth - there is nothing fake about Truth. No pretending about Truth. And even if we were GREAT pretenders, we could not play the role forever because Truth always wins out.

We are called to love... not to pretend to love. Pretend love barely lasts till the person walks out of the room.

If we can be loved without the complication of trying to remember what role we are playing, then we will be free to love in return. It starts with Christ. To love as Christ loved and gave Himself for us - that lasts forever and will sustain us through eternity - and will also sustain those around us so they can stop being Great Pretenders.

Prayer:

Father,
          You have called us to be in relationship with You. You who knows all and sees all. There is no hiding from You. Help us to be who You have created us to be - nothing fake. Nothing pretend. According to Your Word in Psalm 51, "You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make us to know wisdom. Purge us with hyssop, and we shall be clean; wash us, and we shall be whiter than snow." In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Thoughtlessly

"So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do."
Ephesians 5:15-17 NLT

We come to Christ for salvation, knowing we are sinners and unable to fix ourselves - knowing He is the only One who can save us. After we receive our salvation from Him (remember, it's a gift), we try to spend the rest of our lives doing things to earn it or prove that we're good enough to have earned it. We are not. Scripture is very clear about that. Ephesians 2:8-9 NLT reads, "God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it."

There is a plan behind all of it and we need to understand that God didn't just save us so we could get to heaven. There IS something for us to do - but it's according to HIS plan. If we continue on to verse 10, it explains, "For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." Sometimes, we get sidetracked and don't even realize it. However, if we're serious about following God, He will reveal it to us.

I remember having a dream once where I was at some social event with a lot of different people and I kept finding myself in circumstances that seemed okay to start with, but after I was there for a little bit, I would realize the conversations were full of veiled innuendos, things that I knew were not Godly, even though there was nothing blatant about it. I had to keep stepping away. Underlying the whole scenario was a sense of being in a life-threatening position. Although I couldn't actually see anything that appeared life-threatening, I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that there was no life, no Light. 

After being there for a little while, I grabbed a handful of some snack without even thinking about it, but at the first bite, it was beyond awful, and I was horrified. I immediately spit it out and kept wiping my tongue with the napkin. Finally, I headed to the restroom to brush my teeth to try to rid myself of the taste, only to have someone follow me in - someone who had no business being in there and I told them to get out. Then someone else knocked on the door looking for the person who followed me in, my response was to ask why they thought that person would be in there...

I was appalled and I immediately woke up. When I did, it was with pieces of the chorus to the song, "Undo" running around in my head.  You see, we get caught up in the things of this life and don't realize they're absolutely life-threatening to our life in Christ. Oh, on the surface, they're not bad. We're not out getting drunk or having clandestine affairs, etc, but we do things without thinking - thoughtlessly (like taking the handful of snack in the dream).  Mindlessly, they steal our time. We spend it in trivial pursuit... because it's something to do.

"So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do."

Prayer:

Father,
           In the words of the song, Lord - "Turn us around, pick us up, undo what we've become. Bring us back to the place of forgiveness and grace. We need You, need Your help. We can't do this ourselves. You're the only One who can undo what we've become..." In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-oZbBS_OhM

Reminder - Whispering Hope

God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.

Hebrews 6:17-19a NLT

Sometimes life is very hard. Sometimes, there doesn't seem to be an easy answer. And sometimes, it feels as though there are no answers at all... only questions. Why? Proverbs 13:12 in the New Living reads, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick..." 

Have you ever been heartsick? The same Scripture in the Message Bible reads, "Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick, but a sudden good break can turn life around." I want to give you a good break - it's Jesus.  Whisper His Name... That's a great contemporary Christian song popular today and I love it, but the one that has ministered to me this day is one I learned as a child with four-part harmony... Whispering Hope.

♪♫ Soft as the voice of an angel, breathing a lesson unheard, Hope, with a gentle persuasion, whispers a comforting word; Wait till the darkness is over! Wait till the tempest is done! Hope for the sunshine tomorrow, after the shower is gone. ♪♫  Whispering Hope! Oh, how welcome Thy voice! Making my heart in its sorrow rejoice. ♪♫

No matter what life brings, God is my Refuge and my Strength. He is my Hope - a strong and trustworthy anchor for my soul. And even when the world comes roaring in, I can hear His voice whispering hope to bring peace to my troubled soul.

Prayer:

Father,
          You have given both Your promise and Your oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for You to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to You for refuge have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. You are our confident hope and we thank and praise You for that. With You, we can proclaim, "It is well with my soul!" In Jesus' Name. Amen

Recognizing Royalty

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt so you would no longer be their slaves. I broke the yoke of slavery from your neck so you can walk with your heads held high.
Leviticus 26:13 NLT

But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.
Galatians 4:4-7 NLT

Most of us have no idea what it feels like to be a slave. We may use the phrase "slaving away" but most of us have no true context. By the time the exodus occurred, the Israelites as a nation had been in slavery over 400 years. They truly worked like slaves and lived like slaves. They had the mindset of being slaves with no way out. Then God showed up.

God the Almighty. According to 1 Timothy 6:15 NKJV- "He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords..." THAT God Who adopted us as His very own children. No longer slaves, but heirs according to Romans 8:17. Do we believe that? 

The King's child is a prince or princess. They might not be the firstborn, but they are still royalty. Do we recognize that? Have we allowed the Holy Spirit to renew a right spirit within us?

Prayer:

Father,

          Thank You for adopting us. Thank You for making us Your very own children. Thank You for freeing us from the slavery of sin. Cleanse our hearts and reset our minds to be who You've called us to be - Your loving children who recognize Your majesty and hasten to do Your bidding. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Applicable

"They shoot from the shadows at those whose hearts are right. The foundations of law and order have collapsed. What can the righteous do?"
Psalm 11:2b-3 NLT

It's been one of those days where it seems as though every prophet of doom and naysayer of what's wrong with the world today have all beaten a path to my door. I can only reply with what I KNOW to be Truth - no matter what the facts are - God's Word is my answer. It is always applicable!

Psalm 11, "I trust in the Lord for protection. So why do you say to me, 'Fly like a bird to the mountains for safety!' The wicked are stringing their bows and fitting their arrows on the bowstrings. They shoot from the shadows at those whose hearts are right. The foundations of law and order have collapsed. What can the righteous do?"

"But the Lord is in his holy Temple; the Lord still rules from heaven. He watches everyone closely, examining every person on earth. The Lord examines both the righteous and the wicked. He hates those who love violence. He will rain down blazing coals and burning sulfur on the wicked, punishing them with scorching winds. For the righteous Lord loves justice. The virtuous will see his face."

Prayer:

Father,
          We pray according to Your Word, when I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. We praise You, God, for what You have promised. We trust in You, God, so why should we be afraid? What can mere mortals do to us? We want to see Your face, Father! In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Because He is Holy and He is the LORD.

The Lord also said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the entire community of Israel. You must be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.”

Leviticus 19:1-2 NLT

I think I mentioned we're reading the Bible in chronological order this year. It's been very eye-opening, but also a little stressful. I'm glad that we only have a few days left in the book of Leviticus... However, God being Who He is, He has placed the perfect amount of encouragement in the midst of laying down the law (for which I am extremely grateful). The other part of that is we must come with our hearts and minds open and focused to receive His Word or we might not see the nuggets.

When I was younger, our Promise for Today used to strike fear into my heart because I didn’t fully understand what holy was, I just knew I wasn’t it. But when I came to realize that it is being set apart for God, consecrating my life – formally declaring that my life is to be lived for God - I could breathe without fear of being forever condemned to hell. And then I was further strengthened when in Chapter 20 the same God who instructs us to set ourselves apart to be holy also declares that He is the Lord who MAKES us holy. What a loving God…

Leviticus 20:7-8 NLT, "So set yourselves apart to be holy, for I am the Lord your God. 8 Keep all my decrees by putting them into practice, for I am the Lord who makes you holy."

Back to Ch 19: 9-10

I ADORE the heart of God to always provide for those who lack monetary means. 9 “When you harvest the crops of your land, do not harvest the grain along the edges of your fields, and do not pick up what the harvesters drop. 10 It is the same with your grape crop—do not strip every last bunch of grapes from the vines, and do not pick up the grapes that fall to the ground. Leave them for the poor and the foreigners living among you. I am the Lord your God."

Teaching us to be givers and to be generous as He is. And ALWAYS reminding us in each regulation that He is the LORD and the inference is that we are to be like Him in all HIS ways.

Prayer:

Father,

          Thank You for Your Word. We pray as the Bible Recap teaches us to pray. Please give us wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. Let any knowledge we gain help us to love You and others more and let us not be puffed up. Daily as we read Your Word, help us see something new about You that we've never seen before. Correct any lies we may have believed about You and please correct any misunderstandings. Direct our steps, according to Your Word. We want to know You better and love You more. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Reminder - In God We Trust...Maybe...

Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort?
Galatians 3:2-3 NLT

Guilty! Guilty as charged! When will we grasp the gist of grace? When will we comprehend the cruxes of the crucifixion? When will we divest ourselves of our delusions that we could possibly do anything to earn salvation?

Why is it so difficult to relinquish our will and our own selfish desires to the One who has given HIS all so that we could have it all? Is it because He didn't answer our prayer the way we thought He should? Is it because we didn't get the spouse, the job, the house, the car, the (fill in the blank) when we "really prayed hard"? Is it because the loved one died anyway?

Here's the Truth. We cannot have Christianity on our terms. It's not called "ME-anity." It's His rules. His way. And Jesus is the only way to God.

Where have you placed your trust?

Prayer:

Father,
           According to Your Word in Hebrews 11:6, It’s impossible to please You apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach You must believe both that You exist and that You care enough to respond to those who seek You. As an act of my will, I lay down my will in surrender to Your will, O God. I want to walk humbly before You. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen

Conviction

[Jesus speaking], “I can guarantee this truth: Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a child like this in my name welcomes me."

Matthew 18:3-5 God's Word Translation

About a decade ago, there was a little girl at our church, named Shayla. Her mother was part of the Praise and Worship team. When the music started, Shayla would move toward the front of the church and worship with her whole heart (proof that children learn what they live). One day, our pastor's wife asked Shayla to go up to the lower part of the stage and get a handheld microphone. She ran to do her bidding, slipped, then slid into the corner, recovered, picked up the microphone, and ran back... and in those few seconds, she managed to deliver an illustrated sermon of God's expectation of us.

The pastor's wife asked Shayla to get the microphone, fully expecting that Shayla would, and of course, she did. Children rise to our expectations of them. Shayla ran to do her bidding, slipped, fell, and got back up to run back to her - mission accomplished.

And in that instant, I felt God speak to my heart, "Oh, that ALL My children would run to do what I ask them to do! And if they slip and fall, that they would get up and run back to Me!"

I was convicted to my toes! How often do we - as adults - stand and argue with God, debating with Him because we'd rather do things our own way or not at all?

Prayer:

O Father!
                Forgive us for all the times we do not hasten to do Your bidding! Break the rebellious spirit in us and deliver us into Your light. Father, may we be like children who RUN to do whatever You ask of us, no matter what! Create in us clean hands and a pure heart, we pray in Jesus' Name. Amen

Returning Monday, February 17

 I hope you'll be back, too!

Come AGAIN

And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.
1 John 4:16 NKJV

Ah, yes - Valentine's Day! A superior example of extraordinary marketing ability! Now, lest you think I'm a cynic, I want to hasten to assure you that I believe in love because I believe in God! And I wholeheartedly believe in till-death-do-us-part love. I've witnessed it too many times in life to not believe it. I just don't buy into the world's version of happily-ever-after.

Life is hard, folks. Sometimes, you're not happy, but love is not about the flitting, fleeting feelings. Love is a committed choice. God is love and He chose His love for us over what He originally wanted to do - which was kill us all for the miserable, idol-worshiping, stiff-necked ingrates that we can be. How happy do you think Jesus was about being beaten beyond recognition and dying on a cross? He was not happy about that! Have you read about His time in the Garden of Gethsemane? It was not happy that put Jesus on the Cross. It was true love.

There is One who loves us enough to die for us. He's already done it. And someday, our Prince will come - AGAIN! As soon as He's done building our homes in glory and God, our Father says, 'Go get them.' Then we'll know true happily ever after.

Prayer:

Father,
           I pray for the scales to be ripped off so people can see what true love is. Help us to know the vast difference between happy and true love. Open our eyes to the Truth of Your Word. Reveal Yourself in it as we read to know You more. To know You better. To learn of love at its finest. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

All the Details

"My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts, says the Lord. And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts."

Isaiah 55:8-9 NLT

We're reading the Bible in chronological order and just finished reading through Exodus. There are passages in the Old Testament where I tend to struggle to stay focused. In the early years, especially, I thought, "Why is this in here? What relevance does it have to now?" All the strange names of fathers and sons I couldn't pronounce, all the generations and how many there were... Did you ever wonder?

I've read about the Tabernacle in the wilderness with all the minute details of each piece and post, and the linen ephod, and the outerwear, and even the underwear for the priests. Without meaning any disrespect, my observation was that it somehow seemed tedious. However, now instead of wondering what relevance it has, I want to know WHY it is relevant. And I find myself asking, "Father, what is it You want me to learn in this?"

Let's face it. I'm not going to build a mobile tabernacle in the wilderness. I'm not going to sew linen ephods and add precious stones for the twelve tribes of Israel, but God chose to include all those details in His Word. And knowing that God wastes nothing, what is the purpose of all the details? And then I got it...

It is relevant BECAUSE of the details. He is I AM - the God of everything. The God of details. Every little thing matters to Him. He has a plan for everything and He wants it done according to HIS standard. He wants the best. He wants perfection. And His way is exactly that.

When He planned our salvation before the foundation of the world, He chose perfection. He planned every last detail. Yes, He provides us mercy and grace, but those are not to excuse our sin. Christ's death and resurrection did not make excuses for us; He made restitution for our debt of sin. Christ gave His WHOLE self for us. We, in turn, owe Him our life. All of it. Every last detail.

Prayer:

Father,
            As we come before You, help us to be open and give You all the details of our lives. Help us to understand that we must bring everything - our whole self - as an offering to You so that You can make us new. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

It's a Set Up

The Lord said to Moses, “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft. And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you: 

Exodus 31:1-6 ESV

When God first told Moses to go to Pharaoh, Moses kept spouting excuses as to why he couldn't do that. "Who am I to do that? Who are you? I have a speech impediment, I can't speak to Pharaoh or the elders." God assured Moses He made the mouth, He would make it work. Even though Moses couldn’t get past his own inefficiencies, God equipped Aaron to go with Moses. (You can read that part of the story in Exodus, chapters 3 - 4.)

So, here we are in chapter 31, and God has laid out all the instructions for making the mobile Tabernacle, and He has commanded many minute details of Moses and Aaron – neither of whom were capable of doing all that He commanded. Moses didn't have the background or ability to create what God had given him to do. So what did God do?  "And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you..."

How many times has God asked us to do something and we say no because we don't know how? "What is God thinking? Doesn't He know my background? Is He setting me up to fail?" No! No! And No!

God in His greatness, in His goodness, in His faithfulness, knows what we can and cannot do. However, He doesn’t leave us in our inabilities. If we are obedient to Him, He gives to us everything we need to carry out His plan and purpose for our lives – be it the ability in us or the ability of those He puts in our lives.

People fail, that's true. People’s plans fail; but God’s plan never fails. The Word assures us God can NOT fail. No matter what you see; no matter what you hear; no matter who is in leadership on the earth. Even when you don't understand it. God is in control. 

He has the plan and He HAS set us up - to succeed! 

Prayer:

Father,
          Too often, we believe our shortcomings and what we see more than we believe Your Word. Forgive us, O God. Forgive us for doubting You and for questioning Your every move. Lord, we surrender our will and our way to Yours. Help us to remember our walk is a walk of faith, and that faith is in You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.

One of My Favorites - The Gift of Tears

You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.

Psalm 56:8b

Have you ever thanked God for tears? No, I'm not crazy. Tears are a gift from God. Yes, a GIFT. First – tears allow us to express and release what’s in our hearts when we haven’t the words to do so. They are a language that God understands. God wastes nothing, so if we didn’t need them, He wouldn’t have given them to us – readily available on any given day – often without bidding… God designed our bodies to produce tears for our well-being.

Do you know that there are different kinds of tears – with different chemical properties? The two most common are reflex tears and psychic (or emotional) tears. Reflex tears come when you get something in your eye or chop onions, peppers, etc. They are designed for and function specifically to wash out irritants. Emotional tears actually contain several protein-based hormones; one of which is a natural pain-killing endorphin – leucine-enkephalin – which is why ‘having a good cry’ often makes us feel better. And not only emotionally, but physiologically, as well.

In his article, ‘Tear Toxins,’ printed in Omni, December 1982, Tom Kovach wrote the following:

     At the St Paul Ramsey Medical Center in Minnesota, tears caused by simple irritants were compared to those brought on by emotion. Researcher William Frey found that stress-induced tears actually remove toxic ‘substances’ from the body. Volunteers were led to cry first from watching sad movies, and then from freshly cut onions. The researchers found that the tears from the movies, called emotional tears, contained far more toxic biological byproducts. Weeping, they concluded, is an excretory process which removes toxic substances that normally build up during emotional stress.

Who but a loving God could or would create that? 

Prayer:

Father,
          Thank You for the gift of tears to help us while we live here on this earth. Thank You even more for the promise of Heaven, where there will no longer be a need for tears according to Your Word in Revelation 21. Father, we can hardly wait until the day You wipe every tear from our eyes because there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things will have passed away. We long for the day. Until then, let us ever be in an attitude of gratitude for all Your precious gifts to us. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

One of My Favorites - Thankful Heart Exercise

The Lord your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live!

Deuteronomy 30:6 NLT

In engineering, acronyms are used for everything - more so than even IT people. Some of the acronyms make sense because the thing to which they refer would take 5 minutes to say. Some of them are silly or misleading. For instance, 'lb'. To most people, that refers to pounds, but in my office, it means, 'lay barge.' Fortunately, I used to be quite good at solving acronyms. In fact, I find them to be a lot of fun, and on occasion, try to create them - mostly for a laugh.

I think I've mentioned before the one created as a result of learning the rules of driving for the state of Missouri. In most of the country, a stop sign is literal. It means stop. In Missouri, it's an acronym for S.low T.o O.bvious P.ause. BIG difference. While in engineering, STOP is an acronym for Safety Training Observation Program. It's all about what you're used to and where you are…AND remembering where you’re supposed to be and what you’re supposed to be doing. 

That’s T.H.E. thing.

Sometimes in life, we get into a situation that becomes a habit. Sometimes, they're not good habits. And in the course of it, we get lazy and we gain weight or become unhealthy. Sometimes, a season in life seems to last so long that we get tunnel vision and can't see life or God from any other angle. So we stay there because that is what we have allowed ourselves to become used to. We say, 'Well, this is where I am.' Sometimes we even go so far as to say, 'This is where God has me.' because we only look inward instead of up and around. We lose sight of the Truth.

So what is T.H.E. thing to do that can change it? What if you really can't change the circumstances of where you are? What if it really IS where God has you for the time being? And what if you really don't like it? What can change? What is T.H.E. thing YOU can do to make a change?

Psalm 107:8, Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! We can thank God for something - for anything. Sometimes when I mention that to a person, their response will be, 'What for? What do I have in my life to thank God for? I have nothing. I am nothing.' Hmmm, how about that He lets you live and breathe and doesn't strike you dead for whining? Or thank Him because He's changed MY heart so that I don't have the inclination to smack you for whining? Just kidding...

This isn't a new concept. We've talked about this before. Finding one thing to be thankful for – You want to be heart-whole? You want heart health? Develop that muscle to be strong! Make T.H.E. Thing To-Do List.  T.H.E. stands for T.hankful H.eart E.xercise. I think it’s self-explanatory. Try it for one week. Make it T.H.E. Thing to do.

Prayer:

Father,
           Forgive us when we don’t recognize Your faithfulness and goodness to us. We do know that You are God and every good and perfect gift comes from You, even when they’re not packaged quite as we would like. Thank You, Father, for loving us enough to give us what we need. Give us grateful hearts to recognize Your love. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen

Important Reminder - Over-Commitment

"Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven."

Matthew 5:16 The Message

Hebrews 4:12 tells us, "For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires." And as I read again the verse in Matthew 5, I am cut with these words - "Be generous with your lives..."

I know after working all week long and keeping up with all the other commitments, it's hard to find time to be generous with our lives!! And yet, we are called to do just that.

I think we have to ask ourselves some hard questions and be truthful with the answers.

You know, we work and we have family and church commitments, and extra-curricular schedules (lessons, sports practices, etc) - we are so busy!! I know some of the people I care about have schedules that are so over-committed that it's exhausting just hearing about them. They're not bad things; there are just too many of them.

Are we over-committed? Are those over-commitments now resulting in less sleep because we lie awake thinking about what we couldn't get done today, and so we'll get up earlier tomorrow to try to get them done? Is it a control thing - we don't want to ask for help? How much stress are we adding to our loved ones when we're in "Hurry up, we have to get to (wherever it is we must be)" mode? Have we taken time to pray about what we should perhaps let go of? Wait - do we even have time to pray about that?

God is interested in relationships. His Word says they'll know we are Christians by our love. We can't show them His love if we're rushing past them to get to the next thing. Today's promise tells it like it is - "By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven."

How do we do that? "Keep open house; be generous with your lives..."

Prayer:

Father,
           Forgive us for being caught up in the cares of this world. Show us how to prioritize what's important and modify our schedules accordingly. Give us the wisdom and the grace to know when and how to say no to those things that stop us from being generous with our lives. We want to live in such a way that others will open up with You. Help us, O God! In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.

Reminder to Divide and Decide

For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.
Hebrews 4:12 NLT

In the Encarta English dictionary, there are 12 different definitions for soul. In Christianity, the soul is generally defined as the part of you which is your mind, your will and your emotions. You know - the parts that can get us in trouble.

We've talked about knowing the difference between fact and Truth. Our soul includes our feelings. Sometimes what we feel is not the Truth. So, are feelings bad? No. God gave those to us as gifts. There's lots of life that would be absolutely worthless and no fun at all without feelings or emotions. Should feelings control our lives? Should we ascribe to the world's philosophy of "If it feels good, do it?" Not according to the Word of God... but only YOU can determine if God's Word is YOUR standard.

Our soulish part always makes excuses for us. It's easy to be carnal - thinking only of our feelings and our bodies. So often we hear people make excuses for their actions, 'Well, that's just how I am. God understands...' Or how about this one? 'That's just the way God made me...' Oh, puh-leeeezzzzz...

God sent His Son to die on the cross for all that - to redeem us from our sins. To CHANGE us! He created the plan of salvation. He provided every aspect to ensure victory.  He came to save our souls from destruction. It's not His will that anyone should die without Him...but it IS our choice.

The Bible tells us in Psalm 107, "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so." What part of us got redeemed? Only our Spirit? Only our body? Christ died to save us... We are spirit, soul and body. It was a package deal. Christ paid the FULL price for us. It wasn't a Wal-Mart red light special - Salvation has never been offered at a reduced rate because Jesus didn't skimp on anything. He gave His ALL. What will YOU give for it?

It's like learning the difference between want and need. We need to recognize and discern what is the driving force behind our desires - soul or Spirit. We want a lot of things, but what do we need? Air, water, food, shelter. Isn't it interesting that God describes Himself as all those things? It's in the Word - which is the Sword of the Lord - let it divide and decide your actions.

Prayer:

Father,
           According to Your Word in verse 13 of today's text, nothing in all creation is hidden from You. Everything is naked and exposed before Your eyes, and You are the One to whom we are accountable. Shine Your light of Truth on our lives so we may rightly divide soul from Spirit. Let all we think and our subsequent actions be pleasing in Your sight. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

One of My Favorites - Clean Up, Aisle 6

It's your heart, not the dictionary, that gives meaning to your words. A good person produces good deeds and words season after season. An evil person is a blight on the orchard. Let me tell you something: Every one of these careless words is going to come back to haunt you. There will be a time of Reckoning. Words are powerful; take them seriously. Words can be your salvation. Words can also be your damnation.

Matthew 12:34b-37 The Message

You know it's easier to clean when you don't drop stuff all over the place. You might be thinking to yourself, 'What does that have to do with our text for today?' Well, lots actually, depending on who you are.

Have you ever been flippant with someone in spite of the fact that you knew you should have kept your mouth shut? I hate it when that happens! No sooner than the words leave our mouth and in our mind we can almost hear the imaginary PA system blaring, "Clean up in Aisle 6. Bring the bucket." 

Tonight, as I sat here reflecting on the day, I got a mental picture of all my words in a day being gathered in a huge bowl and offered up to the Lord. What will be His reaction? Will He breathe deeply of the beautiful essence of love and care, encouragement and edification, hope and life contained in my spoken words? Or will He gag and hold His nose, turning away from the stench of hurt and hate, discouragement and insult, despair and death?

Words are powerful; take them seriously.

Prayer:

Father,
         According to Your Word in Psalm 19:14, May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Good Enough

     Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, “Ask the Lord to remove the frogs from me and my people. I will let the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”
     Moses said to Pharaoh, “I will pray for you, your people, and your officials. Then the frogs will leave you and your houses. They will remain only in the river. When do you want the frogs to go away?”
     Pharaoh said, “Tomorrow.”
     Moses said, “It will happen as you say. In this way you will know that there is no god like the Lord our God. The frogs will leave you, your house, your officials, and your people. They will remain only in the river.”
     Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh. Moses prayed to the Lord about the frogs he had sent against Pharaoh. And the Lord did what Moses asked. The frogs died in the houses, in the yards, and in the fields. They began to rot, and the whole country began to stink. But when Pharaoh saw that they were free of the frogs, he again became stubborn. Pharaoh did not do what Moses and Aaron had asked him to do.

Exodus 8:8-15b

As we read through Exodus, the plagues give me the willies - especially the frogs. The LORD God tells Pharaoh vs 3-4, "The Nile River will be filled with frogs. They will come from the river and enter your houses. They will be in your bedrooms and in your beds. They will be in the houses of your officials and in your ovens and in your jars of water. The frogs will be all over you, your people, and your officials.” Can you picture that? Makes my skin crawl just thinking about it. "All over you..."  

What do you think bothered him more - the frogs or all the screaming and squealing because of them? It didn't take long. Verse 8 tells us, "Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron and said, 'Ask the Lord to remove the frogs from me and my people. I will let the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.' ” So the frogs died, and the citizens gathered them into heaps and they stank. But when Pharaoh got a break from the frogs, no more crawling all over him or his people - Good Enough - he went right back to his old ways.

Have you ever done that? Begged God for His best, promise whatever He wants - maybe give up that habit / addictive behavior - but as soon as we get a little break. One we can live with, it's good enough. Or is it?  

We have to ask ourselves - for whom is it good enough? For us or for God?

Prayer:

Father, 

          Please forgive us for measures we deem Good Enough. Our ways in no way measure up to Yours. You told us that clearly through Your prophet, Isaiah. We will seek You, LORD, while we can find You. We will call on You now while You are near. We choose to change our ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. We turn to You, Father, seeking Your mercy. You promise that as we do turn back to You, You will forgive generously. You are so much more than good enough! Through Christ our LORD, we pray. Amen

What Can't Be Done

"Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”)  No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 8:35-39 NLT

Read this Scripture again (and again...and again...and again) and let it soak into your spirit. No matter the situation you find yourself in - He is the Great I AM. "No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." He is ALL that you will ever need. Everything else is superfluous. 

Prayer:

Father,
           Two things You can't do - You can't fail and You can't lie. Help us to grow into the fullness of Your Truth and the unfailing faithfulness of Your love. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen 

Isolation

7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can HELP EACH OTHER. [emphasis mine]
27 All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. 

1 Corinthians 12:7, 27 NLT

Somebody needs to hear this. Are you withdrawing - isolating yourself? I must tell you that Satan's desire is to kill, steal and destroy YOU; to separate the children of God from the Father; to separate the children of God from each other. We must ask God to open our spiritual eyes to see what is going on. 

During times of war, in battles, what is the best way to watch out for the enemy? Alone? Definitely not! 

1st Corinthians 12 has much to say about doing things alone. See if this makes sense to you:

12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.

14 Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part. 15 If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear? Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything?

18 But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. 19 How strange a body would be if it had only one part! 20 Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. 21 The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.”

22 In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary. 23 And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, 24 while the more honorable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. 25 This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. 26 If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.

Today, I've included a 5-minute video from a pastor in South Carolina. If this Promise is for you today, it's worth a listen.

https://video.search.yahoo.com/search/video?fr=mcafee&p=The+Trent+tribe+Isolation&type=E210US0G0#id=2&vid=bd85d6f779529b0e7c3fec5088569e0e&action=click

Prayer:

Father,

          Draw our hearts toward You and in so doing, draw us closer together. Help us to see the Light of Your Truth in making this journey toward Home together. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Dream Busters

“It was by faith that Noah heard God’s warnings about things he could not yet see.”

Hebrews 11:7 (NCV)

Today's promise consists of excerpts from today's Daily Hope newsletter. 

Dream busters will always show up in your life. Critics, cynics, and even loved ones may question your God-given vision...

But the biggest dream buster is often yourself. The words you speak to yourself matter. If you talked to your friends the way you talk to yourself—saying things like, “I’m no good,” “I should’ve known better,” or “I’ll never succeed”—you wouldn’t have any friends.

The truth is, we lie to ourselves all the time. The Bible says, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9 NLT). We convince ourselves things are fine when they’re not, or hopeless when they’re not. That’s why you must listen to God—because He always tells the truth.

Hebrews 11:7 says, “It was by faith that Noah heard God’s warnings about things he could not yet see” (NCV).

Notice the word “heard.” Noah trusted what he heard from God, even though he couldn’t see the future. Similarly, you can’t see your future, but you must trust God. His Word is your guide. Faith is believing what you can’t see—your destiny and your eternal future.

The Bible says, “So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT).

Focus on what lasts forever, not on temporary troubles. Noah’s faith was counter-cultural, standing against the disbelief around him. How did he maintain such faith? He heard God.

You might say, “I don’t hear God!” The solution? Get closer to him. The Bible says, “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10 NIV). Turn off distractions. Sit quietly. Pray.

Only when you draw near to God can you truly hear His voice. Listen, and follow Him...

No matter what you’ve done or where you’ve been, you’ve got a place in God’s forever family ready and waiting for you. The invitation is wide open. Just believe and receive.

Prayer:

Dear God, 

     I know when I die, I’m going to give an account of my life to You. I know I have sinned against You, and I have lived by my plan, not Yours. I want that to change, starting right now. I want to turn away from my sins and turn toward You.
    Thank You for sending Jesus to die for all that I’ve done wrong so I don’t have to pay the penalty. I know I don’t deserve Your forgiveness. I know only Your grace can save me, Lord. I could never be good enough to get into a perfect place.
     Jesus, thank You for loving me so much that You took all my guilt on Yourself. You made me acceptable for heaven, and I humbly ask You to save me. I believe in You, Jesus. And I believe You will keep Your promise to save me instantly, certainly, completely, and eternally. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.