there are many things in life that we can’t change. Even in the midst of those things, help us remain happy as our joy comes from You. Amen.
16…SMILE AWAY
Good morning! Have you ever started a project with a rough estimate in mind of how long it would take to complete only to find out that your estimate was way off? And when the project takes a lot longer to complete, do you get really frustrated? I was talking to a friend after church about this very thing. He told me that now when he does projects, he adds at least an hour on to his perceived time of completion just to handle all of the unexpected things that come up as you try to get something done. Smart!
Perception also plays an important part of what type of relationship we have with God. Some people sadly believe that God sits up in heaven watching and waiting for you to mess up so He can zap you or punish you for your failure. Others believe that God doesn’t want us to have any fun because we are supposed to take life seriously. I can only imagine how these false perceptions of God must really hurt His heart. Our Heavenly Father does continually watch us but for much different reasons than those inaccuracies listed above. Scripture clearly tells us what kind of God we serve. For example, when we sin and mess up, God is sitting there ready to forgive us, pick us up, dust us off, and set us back on the right path. 1 John 1:9 says it this way, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” God desires the best things for His children. He is eager to bless us, and rejoices when we enjoy this life that He has given us. As believers we should be the happiest people on the face of this earth, regardless of any situation in our life because we have the hope that is found through Jesus Christ. Even through trials and tribulation, we need to remember what scripture tells us. 2 Corinthians 4:17 says, “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comprehension.” Praying people will see that we belong to the Lord because of our positive and happy disposition.
Lord, may we always rejoice in the blessings of being Yours. Amen.
17…FAMILY RESEMBLANCE
Good morning! I was looking through some old pictures when I came across one I didn’t remember. Upon further investigation I realized it wasn’t me in the picture but my sister. Wow, I guess you could say that there was a strong family resemblance. lol. It seems like my sister and I look more alike the older we get.
That same thing is true with our family resemblance with the Lord. When we first become God’s children upon the acceptance of asking Jesus to be our Lord and Savior, we might not look a lot like Jesus. But as we learn more about God and grow in our faith, we begin to act, think and look more Christ-like.
I love how the Lord doesn’t leave us guessing on what Christ-like looks like. Galatians 5:22-24 tells us what characteristics a believer should exhibit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
No, we won’t always show all of those characteristics. We’re still human which means we will fall short of these sometimes but as we grow more and more in the Lord, these nine beauties will be more prevalent in our lives. My prayer for us today is that we would be mindful of those things that should set us apart from non-believers. May we make a conscience effort to show the love of Christ to others today through the fruits of the Spirit. Here’s to striving for that strong family resemblance!
Lord, as we go throughout our day, please help us live a life where others are drawn to You by the fruits of the Spirit they see in our life. And Lord, please forgive us for all the times when we fall short and the fruit that others see in our live appears to be rotten. Amen.
18…OUR PRECIOUS GIFT
Good morning! The other day I had the privilege of meeting the daughter of some friends of mine. During our conversation, I learned that she had worked at a florist. My friend was bragging on the beautiful bows that her daughter could make. I told them that I had been trying to make a big bow with long streamers on each side of it for the lantern in my entryway. No matter what I tried with the bows, they all looked like a wet noodle. Come to find out, as the daughter told me, I wasn’t using the right kind of ribbon. What I needed was to have wire in the ribbon which will hold the shape of the bow instead of it being droopy like all my initial attempts were. Good to know!
Having the right supplies makes a job easier. The same is true in our Christian walk. We are all called to share the good news of Jesus Christ but what supplies are we using to help us with that job? There are lots of things we could use but our best and number one source should be the Bible. God’s words supply us with everything we could ever need.
Where prayer is our direct line TO God, the Bible is our direct line of communication FROM God. Throughout His Word we learn about His character, what He requires from us, and how to live a life that honors Him. But it’s not enough to just hear or read the Word of God. We must obey it, just like Jesus said in Luke 11:28, “...blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”
We are a blessed people to have access to Bibles. Those in other countries around the world don’t always have this freedom. My prayer for us is that we would never take for granted the fact that we are able to freely have and use the Word of God.
Lord, help us to cherish the precious gift of Your words found in the Bible. Let us not take for granted what people in other parts of the world don’t have access to. Amen.
19…MORE PATIENCE, PLEASE
Good morning! I bet if asked, nine out of ten people would say that they could use an extra dose of patience in their life and I would be one of the nine. Patience is one of those virtues that we have to exercise in order to receive God’s best in life. Waiting on the Lord sometimes is difficult but it’s always prudent. When we don’t wait on the Lord we typically do one of a couple of things. We either get in the Lord’s way because we act as though we know best, or we try to rearrange the circumstances so things work from our very limited perspectives. By doing this, we unfortunately forfeit blessings as we jump ahead of the Lord and try to handle things ourselves, convincing ourselves that the Lord needs a helping hand. Believe it or not, the Lord does not need our help to carry out His will. True, we are often blessed by being allowed to be a part of it but if we were not there, God would handle it without us. When we try to “help” God, we are not doing it for Him. Bottom line is that we are doing it for us. We just don’t have enough patience to wait for what He is going to do, even though we know that when God handles something, it is better than anything we could imagine.
Isaiah 40:31 tells what God says about having patience. “Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.” A dear friend is battling breast cancer right now and I am so proud of the way she is standing on these promises from God. When she is through with this cancer battle, I am 100% confident that she will gain that new strength, run and not get tired, and walk and not become weary. That promise isn’t just for my girlfriend, it’s for us, too. So my prayer for each of us is that we would exercise that holy discipline of patience in our lives and watch with great anticipation to see what God will do when we get out of His way.
God, our lives would be so much better if we would just be patient and wait for You to work on our behalf. Please help us to be more patient. Amen.
20…FORGIVENESS
Good morning! Forgiveness is one of those commands from God that’s not optional. When Peter asked Jesus in Matthew 18:22 how often he had to forgive a wrongdoer, Jesus’ answer surprised him. Peter offered as an answer of seven times but Jesus said, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.” Clearly that wasn’t the answer Peter was looking for, and I bet not the one we sometimes look for either. Jesus wants us to forgive each and every time we are wronged. I’ve been talking to the Lord a lot about forgiveness lately and He’s teaching me some truths that might also help you forgive from the heart as we are commanded to do.
Let’s