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“The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out.” (Proverbs 20:5 NIV)

Asking the right questions leads to insight.  Everyone has a story to tell.  Every story matters.  The longer we are on earth, the more entangled our stories.  The more entangled our stories, the deeper the waters of our hearts.

My 51st birthday is less than two months away.  I’ve begun to realize, in the past year, how deep the waters of our heart really are.  When I was younger, I would hear stories of people older than me dealing with issues that happened decades ago.  I never understood, until now, why.

Life’s events take time to process.

In June of 2014, I had a major car accident.  My mother passed away in February of that year. My nephew passed away in September.  In October, I was traveling for work, staying in Washington D.C.  The evening I arrived in our nation’s capital, I called home to my husband.  I immediately started interrogating him about his day.  In mid sentence, he stopped me.  He informed me I needed to quit my job.  His words flabbergasted me.  How could I quit my job of 16 years?  He explained why, “You think you’re handling life well, but you’re not.”  He was right, the stress of life was winning the battle with me.  The next day, I called my boss of over a decade and had a long talk.   She understood because she knew what I had been through.  We planned my exit from the company together.  

In the process of healing, I went to counseling.  I learned in those sessions, I suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD):

Post–traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that’s triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event.

My husband’s insight into the deep waters of my heart led me to healing.  The therapist’s insight into the events of my life gave me understanding.  PTSD, in my mind, was a war related condition for soldiers.  Until I entered therapy, I didn’t understand, I could have it too. My mother’s death came after a long battle with cancer. The car accident and my nephew’s death were traumatic events that affected me far deeper than I realized.  My therapist helped me deal with those situations.  She helped me heal because she asked the right questions.

Therapy is a path to self-understanding. Counseling is giving advice.  Understanding the difference between these two terms is essential.  Talking to my best friend and giving her my opinion is advice.  Talking to a therapist leads to self-discovery and healing from our past.

Insight reveals the deep waters of the heart.  Revelation brings truth.  Truth brings healing.

Question of the Day:

Who can help you have insight to the deep waters of your heart?

Further Reading: 2 Chronicles 19-20 NIV,  Romans 10:14-11:12 NIV, Psalm 21 NIV, Proverbs 20:4-6 NIV

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” (Psalm 20:7 NIV)

God is always trustworthy.  People will break your trust.  No one, in their humanness, is completely trustworthy.  Not me, not you, only God.

“Built Ram tough” is a slogan used to sell trucks.  When I read today’s verse, Dodge’s commercial came to mind.   We trust our vehicles.  When we turn on the ignition, we trust they will start.  With the press of a pedal, we’re on our way to wherever.  We have a false sense of security that we are safe in our metal capsule, seatbelt across our body.  But the truth is, car accidents happen everyday.  Chariots falter.  Batteries die, tires blow, gas runs out. Chariots aren’t trustworthy.

A few years ago I was in a car accident.  I was on my way to work just before 6:00 a.m. The car I was driving was a rental.  Working in Fairfax, VA, just outside of Washington, DC traffic was light.  As I  approached the blinking yellow light, I slowed, but didn’t stop completely.  Still dark, I saw no headlights from either direction.  As I entered the middle of the intersection, a taxi cab out of nowhere, ran the red light.  He T-boned the car.  In slow motion, my McDonald’s coffee cup flew forward, splashing hot liquid everywhere.  The airbags deployed as I spun round and round in the intersection.  Everything happened quickly, yet in slow motion.  Neither of our chariots survived the crash.  

God is always trustworthy.

In the midst of losing my chariot, God was with me.  As the car slowed, a passer by was at my door.  He checked me for injuries and helped me to the curb.  The police and ambulance arrived.  My only thought, I want to go home.  I asked the police for a ride to the metro station.  Dazed and confused, I stood on the platform of the subway, not knowing what to do.  A kind business man told me which train to take to Union Station.  I arrived in time to catch the train home.  Three hours after I had been t-boned in an intersection, I was in my husband’s arms, finally on the way to the hospital.  No injuries.  My day’s journey had taken a radically different direction. 

Each of those people were God in the flesh to me.  The kind stranger who helped me out of the car.  The police officers who took me to the subway.  The businessman who helped me find the right train.  God provided angels every step of the way.  My car failed me, but God didn’t.

Life is a journey, God is our tour guide.  We don’t know what the day ahead will bring.  But we know the one who does.  In Him, we can trust.

Question of the Day:

Are you trusting God for the day ahead?

Further Reading:  2 Chronicles 17-18 NIV, Romans 9:25-10:13 NIV, Psalm 20 NIV, Proverbs 20:2-3 NIV

“For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” (Romans 9:15 NIV)

God has compassion for who He wants.  One of the hardest things to understand is God’s mercy and compassion.  From our human standpoint, we think certain people don’t qualify, others do.  Why do some people suffer beyond what we can imagine, while others seem to have perfect lives?  The ultimate question people ask:  Why do bad things happen to good people?

We have to accept hard truths in our lives.  One of them is that good people don’t exist.  We are all sinners by nature.  None of us deserve the mercy and compassion God has given us:

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8 NIV)

We are all sinners, saved by grace.

A second truth to accept, death is a part of life.  We struggle understanding why people have to die?  The younger someone is, the harder death is to understand. I have family members and friends who have lost children.  I’ve met mothers who have lost children to cancer before they reached their teen years.  I’ve sat with grieving parents who have lost children in car accidents, at gunpoint, or from illness.  None of those moments are easy for anyone.  The grief and heartache is palpable. Times like these, there are no words, just raw emotions words can’t explain.  Without life, death wouldn’t exist.

Where is God’s compassion and mercy when children die?  

We can’t understand such a complex question on this side of heaven.  Only God knows.  At such pivotal times, we have a choice.  We either trust God or we don’t.  We either believe God has a purpose or He doesn’t.  We choose whether God will work this heartbreak to the good, or He won’t. Every day, in every situation, we have a choice of what we are going to do.

When my nephew died, I chose to trust God.  When I tell people about that day, I talk about a pivotal moment.  Five minutes before I received the phone call telling me he had passed, my husband walked in the front door.  He had come home from work early.  His arms were there to hold me when I received the devastating news. He was there to drive me to the hospital, a half hour away.  God’s mercy and compassion for me in the midst of heartache was evident in those five minutes.  When I think back on the worst day of my life, my faith is strengthened, not weakened. 

God has compassion and mercy for everyone.  The problem is our perspective. 

Question of the Day:

Do you need a perspective changed today?

Further Reading: 2 Chronicles 14-16 NIV, Romans 9:1-24 NIV, Psalm 19 NIV, Proverbs 20:1 NIV

“What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31 NIV)

No one wins against God.  No matter what tricks or schemes people come up with to outwit God, they always lose.  God’s will always prevails.  No matter how dismal the circumstances may look, God always wins.

Jonah is a good example.  God gave  a divine message to Jonah for Nineveh.  For Jonah, doing what God commanded was difficult.  He didn’t want these people saved.  He didn’t feel like they deserved God’s second chance.  So Jonah ran.  He hopped on a ship and headed in the opposite direction.

His troubles had just begun.  While napping below deck, the wind and waves pick up.  The sailors pray to their gods to find out what the cause of the storm is.  They realize Jonah is the problem.  When they wake him up, Jonah tells him their only option is to throw him overboard.  They toss him into the sea.  A “huge fish” swallows him (Jonah 1:17 NIV).  Jonah had temporary residency in the fish’s stomach for the next three days and nights.  Jonah prays for a second chance.  The fish vomits him on shore.  He goes to Nineveh, gives them the message from God.  They repent, Jonah pouts. 

If God is for you, who can be against you.

God’s will for your life will always prevail.  Whatever He wants, God gets.  But often, we have to work to bring our hearts into alignment with what God wants.  Jonah tried to run, but ended up in the belly of a fish.  God had a mission for him.  Until Jonah accepted his mission, all his efforts were fruitless.  

People run from God all of the time.  I run from God.  His word contains 80% of His will for our lives.  He wants us to forgive others.  He wants us to pray for our enemies.  He wants us to put Him first in everything we do.  We’re to give back our firstfruits to God.  We’re not to lie, steal or cheat.  The list of things God wants us to do is clear.  All of them circle back to the great commandment: Love God, love others (Mark 12:30-31 NIV)

The truth is, most of the time, we know exactly what God wants us to do.  We don’t want to do it.  We find excuses.  We act like we don’t know.  We are Jonah.  Running from our mission, hoping God won’t notice.  But God knows.

None of us escape God’s watchful eye.  He knows who is running from Him.  He knows who is running to Him.  All of us have done both, and will do both in the future.  God is for us.  When we’re in His will, no one can come against us.

Question of the Day:

Are you running to or from God today?

Further Reading: 2 Chronicles 11-13 NIV, Romans 8:26-39 NIV, Psalm 18:37-50 NIV, Proverbs 19:27-29 NIV

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18 NIV)

Our struggles, God’s glory. 

Paul was honest.  He doesn’t hide the fact, following Christ isn’t easy.  Hardship is a part of a Christ follower’s life.  Hardship is a part of people’s lives who don’t follow Christ as well.  Hardship is a part of everyone’s life.  Some people just conceal their pain better than others.

Paul didn’t try to hide his pain.  He was honest about his struggles.  He glorified God with each one.  He laid his aches and pains at his Father’s feet, then he picked up his cross and kept going.  Paul never forgot what Jesus did for him on the road to Damascus.  On that dirt path, Paul turned his life over to Jesus.  He was never the same again.

Our struggles, God’s glory.

We cannot comprehend God’s glory.  We don’t have the capacity to understand His true magnificence.  Only when we join Him in heaven will we understand.  Until then, we are to wait patiently:

“Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.  For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” (Romans 8:23-25 NIV)

What carries us through the struggles of today is the hope of Jesus.  Because of Him, our heavenly Father welcomes us into His arms..  When we die, they are wide open, ready to wrap around us, drawing us into the heavenly realm.  His words to us: “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23 NIV).

This life and everything in it is temporary.  Whatever situation you’re facing today, it will pass.  Nothing lasts forever:

“For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” (2 Corinthians 4:17 NIV)

When life is getting the best of you, remember it is temporary.  As Paul says, our troubles are “light and momentary.” 

COVID isn’t going to last forever. Viruses die over time as people become immune to them.  The economy will recover.  Jobs will become available.   We will have a new normal.  Life will change because of COVID, but it won’t stop.  Plexiglass is here to stay.  Masks aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.  Companies that make hand sanitizer are a safe investment.  We will adapt as needed, and keep going.

God’s glory is yet to come.  He will deliver us from all of our troubles at the appointed time.  Until then, we are to wait patiently, as we persevere.

Question of the Day:

In what situation do you need to remind yourself, it’s only temporary?

Further Reading: 2 Chronicles 8:11-10:19 NIV, Romans 8:9-25 NIV, Psalm 18:16-36 NIV, Proverbs 19:26 NIV

“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” (Romans 7:15 NIV) 

We all do what we don’t want to do.  Even Paul struggled with this predicament.  Jesus is the only one who didn’t.  The definition for humanity should include imperfection.  

How many times a day do you do something you didn’t want to do, but for some reason, you just can’t help yourself?  

Food is a great example.  I open the refrigerator door, instead of eating the apple I eat the pudding.  When I look in the pantry, instead of opting for a handful of nuts, I choose a handful of tortilla chips…with queso.  I know, at that moment, I’m making the wrong decision, yet I do it anyway. Why?

Paul explains:

As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.  For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.  For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. (Romans 7:17-20 NIV)

Everyone struggles with sin.

My ongoing battle with gluttony, habitual greed or excess in eating, is evident on the scale.  Sometimes I’m winning the battle and the number goes down, some days I’m losing, the number goes up.  I lead an active lifestyle. My problem isn’t exercise, my problem is eating.  I enlist accountability partners, I track calories, yet the battle rages.  I’ve accepted that this is my thorn in my side:

“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7 NIV)

Paul talks about the thorn in his flesh in his letter to the Corinthians.  Three times he prays and asks God to remove it, yet He doesn’t.  Paul accepts the thorn as part of his life which helps him stay humble.

Whatever sin we struggle with, God uses it the same way in our life. Pride rears its ugly head with little provocation.  We don’t need much to become conceited.  I hit one good shot in golf and I think I’m a professional.  The very next shot reminds me, I’m not. 

God knows our struggles will remain while we’re on this side of heaven.  We may not understand, but He does.   And He loves us anyway.

Question of the Day:

What thorn do you have in your side?

Further Reading:2 Chronicles 6:12-8:10 NIV, Romans 7:14-8:8 NIV, Psalm 18:1-15  NIV, Proverbs 19:24-25 NIV

“My steps have held to your paths;  my feet have not stumbled.” (Psalm 17:5 NIV)

Applying God’s word to our lives illuminates the path He wants us to follow.  We all have different paths.  Our purposes vary in life, but God doesn’t.  His word is unfailing and true.  The path is narrow, but the rewards endless:

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matthew 7:13-14 NIV)

The right path leads to life.

In a world full of choices, God simplifies the options.  Jesus gave us a Great Commandment: Love God, love others (Mark 12:30-31 NIV).  He also gave us the Great Commission:  Go and make disciples (Matthew 28: 19-20 NIV).  Whatever situation we are faced with, we can narrow our options by following Jesus’ words.  We choose to love people, or not.  We choose to share Jesus with others or not.  Every day, in every situation, we have the opportunity to choose how we respond.  

Sometimes we falter.  Sometimes we veer off the path. We don’t respond in love.  We choose not to share Jesus.  We miss our opportunity to let God’s light brighten someone else’s day. When we swerve from the path, just get back on it.

When I first started my career in retail, I managed a store in Williamsburg.  I was able to ride my bike to work.  Carrying my work clothes in my backpack, every morning I’d follow the same route.  The majority of the road was long and straight.  The asphalt had a white line that marked the side of the road.  A small “path” was created as a result.  Between the white line and the edge of the road was a gap a couple of feet wide.  I tried to keep my bike tire on the narrow path.  Every now and then I’d veer off the path, crossing the white line or going onto the dirt.  Whenever this happened, I’d get back on the path as quickly as possible.  When I think of “the narrow road” I think of those days riding my bike to work.

The narrow road is impossible to stay on all of the time.  Our humanity gets us off track every now and then.   Allow yourself grace.  Forgive yourself when you cross the white line.  Just correct your course, get back on the path and keep on going.

God knows we’ll falter, He just doesn’t want us to stop.  He wants us to keep going.  He wants us to keep trying.  He knows our hearts are in the right place.  Keep following your chosen path.  Just take one step, then another.

Question of the Day:

Have you veered off the path lately?

Further Reading: 2 Chronicles 4:1-6:11 NIV, Romans 7:1-13 NIV, Psalm 17 NIV, Proverbs 19:22-23 NIV

“Many are the plans in a person’s heart,  but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” (Proverbs 19:21 NIV)

God’s plans trump ours.  No one’s plans have worked out the way they thought they would.  Everyone has a different reality from what they thought.  

I recently watched a show on Apple TV called “Trying.”  A British comedy about a young couple “trying” to get pregnant.  In this scene, Nikki, the heroine is babysitting.  Her friend is having a baby, and Nikki is taking care of her daughter.  As they sit in the car eating ice cream, Nikki questions her young friend on her thoughts for having a sibling.  The girl isn’t happy, she has already realized, her parents don’t have as much time for her.  Nikki looks at her and says:

“You can’t get too attached to what you think your life’s going to be, that’s where your problems start.”

Nikki is a fictional character with wisdom.  All of us need to accept, life never goes as planned.  Ask any bride about her wedding day, she’ll tell you what went wrong.  The seniors who graduated in 2020 have learned this lesson young.  And when you talk to someone who has lived a long life, they can share story after story about the unexpectedness of their days.

God’s plans trump ours.

If we’re going to enjoy life to the fullest, we need to learn to ride the wave.

Where I live in Virginia, I’m close to the ocean.  I was 21 years old the first time I saw the massive body of water.  Thirty years later, I’m still in awe of the ocean’s raw power.  In the summer, we spend most weekends at the beach.  One of my favorite things to do is body surf.  Body surfing is catching a wave at just the right moment and riding it into shore.  You feel the power of the water as it carries you with it.  You can’t fight the waves, you can only go with them.  Literally, “go with the flow” of the tide.  At the end, when I’m dumped on shore, I feel exhilarated.  For a moment, I’m one with the ocean, moving in sync with its energy.   No other world exists, just pure pleasure in the moment.

Life is like the ocean.  Sometimes the water is calm, barely any waves.  Other times, the winds stir up and the waves are violent.  When the waves are crashing around you, the only thing to do is ride out the storm.  

We make our plans, but God’s plans trump ours. In order to enjoy the ride, we have to accept the truth.  God’s way is always best.  When we submit our lives to Him, He’ll teach us to surf.  We’ll learn to ride the waves, trusting Him for our destination.

Question of the Day:

What waves are you fighting today?

Further Reading: 2 Chronicles 1:1-3:17 NIV, Romans 6:1-23 NIV, Psalm 16 NIV, Proverbs 19:20-21 NIV

“Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people.” (Romans 5:18 NIV)

Eve’s bite of the apple condemned us.  Jesus’ sacrifice redeemed us.

Forbidden fruit makes many jams.  In the case of Eve, when she succumbed to temptation, sin entered the world.  Eve had no idea what she was doing when she bit into the fruit.  Most people don’t intentionally set out to cause destruction.  The alcoholic didn’t think taking the first sip of alcohol would ruin his life.  The adulteress didn’t think the harmless response to an email would start an affair.  The overeater didn’t think one piece of cake would lead to eating the entire cake.  We don’t intentionally go looking for trouble.  Neither did Eve.  She just wanted to taste the fruit.  When she did, sin entered the world.  Life changes in a moment

Life changes in a moment.

The first thing Eve did was share the fruit with Adam.  People feel better when they aren’t the only one doing something wrong.  We feel justified if someone else agrees with the decision we’re making.  We can always find someone who will go along with the rest of the crowd.  Finding someone who will take a stand against injustice is harder.  We all suffer from the effects of sin in our lives, whether our own or someone else’s.  Martin Luther King Jr. summed up our lot in life well:

“We may have all come in different ships, but we’re all in the same boat.”

We all live in a world of sin.  Each of us struggle with different sins.  We’re impacted by the sins of others.  We’re all in the same boat, we all need the same answer: Jesus.

“For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.” (Romans 5:19 NIV)

Jesus is the answer.  He gives us the strength to say no to temptation.  He faced every temptation we will ever face, yet did not succumb.  He gives us a way out.  He helps us set boundaries in our life to fight the battle of sin.  Whatever sin we struggle with each day, we can lay it at Jesus’ feet.  Jesus is the calm in the storm.  

Eve introduced sin in the world, Jesus provided the answer. 

Eating the fruit opened their eyes.  Their nakedness became apparent to them.  Their sin introduced a vulnerability in their lives they had never known.   God clothed them.  He covered their nakedness with the first sacrifice. 

Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice.  His one act clothed all of us in righteousness.  Eve introduces sin.  Jesus redeems us once and for all.

Question of the Day:

How has Jesus redeemed you?

Further Reading: 1 Chronicles 28:1-29:30 NIV, Romans 5:6-21NIV, Psalm 15:1-5 NIV, Proverbs 19:18-19 NIV

 “Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,” (Romans 4:20 NIV)

God has given you enough faith for your journey.  Whatever your path is, God has provided. 

Paul is talking about Abraham.  He is “father of many nations” (Romans 4:18 NIV).  He followed God’s commands his entire life.  He left his homeland to form a new nation.  Time and time again, he trusted God’s leading.  God gave him the faith he needed, when he needed it to do what he needed to do.  God has done the same for you.  Whatever faith you need, God will provide:

“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.”  (Romans 12:3 NIV)

Whatever faith you need, God will provide.

We don’t need faith to climb a mountain until we have a mountain to climb.  Abraham didn’t need faith to leave his homeland until God asked him too.  We don’t need faith for something God has for us 10 years from now.  We only need faith for today.  

Moses led the people out of Egypt.  The Israelites spent 40 years in the desert.  When they complained about lack of food, God provided for them:

“Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people must go out each day. Have them gather enough bread for that day. Here is how I will test them. I will see if they will follow my directions.” (Exodus 16:4 NIV)

God wanted to know if the Israelites trusted Him.

“The people of Israel did as they were told. Some gathered a lot, and some gathered a little. When they measured it out, the one who gathered a lot didn’t have too much. And the one who gathered a little had enough. Everyone gathered only what they needed.” (Exodus 16:17-18 NIV)

God provided what each person needed in the amount they needed.  The only instruction, don’t keep any until morning. Just like the Israelites, God provides fresh bread for our lives each day.  We each need a different amount for what the Lord is calling us to do.  Whatever our divine purpose is, God will give us the faith to accomplish it.

We each have divine tasks.  In order to accomplish our task, God fills us with faith.  Whatever your facing today, no matter how difficult, God will give you the faith you need.  You have enough.  God will provide.  He’ll give you exactly what you need, when you need it.

Question of the Day:

How has God given you the faith you need for today?

Further Reading: 1 Chronicles 26:12-27:34 NIV, Romans 4:13-5:5 NIV, Psalm 14 NIV, Proverbs 19:17 NIV