Honest Reflections

2 minute read.

Daily Reading: Job 41-42 GW; Romans 8 GW

God’s Spirit intercedes.

During highly charged emotional events in our life, we don’t know what to pray.  The heaviness of the emotions we feel is difficult to verbalize.  Knowing life is changing in ways you disagree with makes praying challenging.  At times when you don’t know what to say, God does.  His Spirit within you intercedes on your behalf.  

When one of my best friends was leaving to plant a church two states away, we didn’t know what to pray.  Realizing this would change our friendship forever, our hearts were heavy.  Neither of us knew what to pray, but God knew what our sighs meant. 

“You know what I long for Lord; You hear my every sigh.” (Psalm 38:9 NLT) 

God’s Spirit helped us in our weakness, knowing our needs better than we did at the time.  Years later, our friendship is closer than ever; God gave us what we needed when we needed it.

God knows your needs.

God knows your needs better than you do.  His Spirit within you allows you to relax.  You don’t have to know everything.  Words aren’t necessary for God to understand your emotions and feelings.  As your Creator, He knows you better than you know yourself.  God is in your corner, cheering you on in the race of life.  He provides your needs before you even need them.  One day at a time, God helps you persevere.

Just like wifi is an invisible connection between us and our devices, God’s Spirit does the same for us.  We’re always connected, whether we’re praying or not.  God is downloading our needs into our Spirit before we know we need them.  Just like wifi allows automatic updates, the communication between our Spirit and God does the same.  

Trust God’s Spirit keeps you connected to God at all times.  Even if you don’t know what to pray for, God’s Spirit does.  You’re never alone; God is always with you.

Lord, thank You for our lasting connection to You through Your Spirit.  Forgive us for not trusting You more.  Thank You for always having our back.  As we move through our day, provide our needs.  Help us represent You well in all we do.  All glory is Yours.  IJNIP.  Amen

Question for reflection

What area of your life are you struggling with prayer?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading:  Job 39-40 GW; Romans 7 GW

Natural tendencies frustrate.

If you asked people, “Why do you do the bad things you do?” They probably wouldn’t have an immediate answer.  Temptation is hard to resist. If a piece of German Chocolate Cake is sitting in front of me, even though my goal is to eat healthily, I doubt I could resist the temptation of the moist chocolate cake with creamy coconut icing.  I’m also sure guilt would set in quickly after I finished my treat.  Why do I do what I don’t want to do?

Because I’m human, and so are you.

Sin nature is part of the human condition.  Whatever the reason we justify doing something evil, it’s still evil.  Instead of doing good, we do bad.  When arguing with someone, you know the best thing to do is stop talking.  But instead, you let words flow; you know you shouldn’t speak.  Instead of working to restore unity, you create further division. If you’re not careful, the divide can widen quickly, causing permanent damage.  Yet we keep going, not stopping, causing more harm.

More God, less you.

The only way to combat my sinful nature is to ask God for more of Him, less of me.  In my humanness, I’m going to sin.  Only with God can I control my actions.  And I need a lot of God to control my quick temper and fast tongue.  My best solution to not say anything in a heated conversation is to put my hand over my mouth and physically stop myself from talking.  I learned this trick from my pastor’s wife, a wise woman.

Accept your humanity.  Recognize the battle against your sinful nature is one that will exist while you’re on earth.  We never reach a place of perfection, not until we move into eternity.  Only when God calls us home will we stop fighting against our natural desires and tendencies.  Accepting our limitations means we know where we need God’s help.  God is ready to assist, whatever we need.

Life is full of regrets.  No one means to cause themselves harm.  But yet we do.  Give your shortcomings to God.  Ask Him to help you do better.

Lord, thank You for loving us warts and all.  Forgive us for doing the things we don’t mean to do.  Fill us with Your Spirit, more of You, less of us.  Help us do good, not evil, all the days of our lives.  IJNIP. Amen

Question for reflection

What area of your life do you need God’s help today?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading:  Psalms 104 GW; Job 38 GW; Romans 6 GW

Let go of the past.

Jesus forgives our past and makes the future bright.  Whatever skeletons are in your closet no longer have power over you.  When God forgives, He does so entirely.  Today is your opportunity to start new.

“Devenir” is the French word for becoming.  To help me remember that I’m becoming a new person in Christ every day, I created a license plate with the word on it.  Every time I see the adjective, it reminds me of God’s continuous work in me.  The person I was ten years ago, I no longer am.  Following Jesus leads us away from the sins of yesterday into the fullness of life with Him.

When we place our faith in Jesus, He brings light into our lives.  Our past mistakes help others not follow the path we once did.  Sharing our struggles with others helps creates community.  Turning our lives over to Jesus allows Him to take what was once old and make it new.

Transform.

Let your life change as you follow Jesus.  God doesn’t expect perfection, just effort.  Changing your ways takes time and energy.  Transformation occurs when we do what God wants instead of what we want.  Saying yes to God means saying no to our fleshly desires. 

When a caterpillar becomes a butterfly, it has to go through a metamorphosis.  Transformation occurs when the caterpillar enters the Pupa stage.  Wrapped inside a cocoon of silk, the caterpillar is undergoing massive change.  From the outside, nothing appears to happen, but on the inside, a beautiful butterfly is forming.  Some caterpillars take up to two years to transition, while others only a few weeks.

God is transforming us.  We might not see the change immediately, but over time our wings will grow.  Our old self is left behind as our new one emerges. 

Lord, thank You for transforming us.  Forgive us for resisting the change you are trying to make.  Help us today transition into a new creation.  Allow Your Spirit to guide us as we navigate through our days.  In all things, we are becoming new, one day at a time.  IJNIP. Amen

Question for reflection

How is God transforming you today?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading:  Job 36-37 GW; Psalms 29 GW; Romans 5 GW

Suffering breeds confidence.

When you face the worst-case scenario and overcome it, you gain confidence.  Only when you go through something, do you know you can survive it. 

We all will experience things in life we wish we never would, but we will grow more confident in God through those times.  Applying God’s word to our troubles will guide us through our heartaches.  Believing in God’s promises give us hope to face the day.  Jesus overcame the world for us:

 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 NIV)

When my dad died, I was a junior in high school.  Passing away in June, I will never forget returning to school in the fall.  People either avoided me because they didn’t know what to say, or they told me how strong I was for surviving my dad’s death.  Nothing irritated me more than people admiring my strength.  From my perspective, toughness wasn’t part of the equation.  I wasn’t strong; I just didn’t have a choice.  Whether I liked it or not, I lost my father at a young age, and nothing I did would change that fact.  Not strong, just accepting.

Lean into God.

God helped me persevere.  When my young heart railed with anger against God for taking my father, God took it.  As I struggled through my days, God was ready with outstretched arms every time I turned to Him.  Looking back, I can see the actions God took to protect me from myself; my pain caused self-destructive actions.  Living caused endurance; I had no choice but to keep going.  God became my confidence; with Him, I persevered.

God is working in your suffering.  Each day, His presence is with you.  Lean into Him for strength.  Let Him help you endure.  As you do, your confidence will grow; God will help you persevere.  God is dependable; face today confidently with Him.

Lord, You are our rock.  In times of trouble, You do not move.  Forgive us for forgetting that fact.  As we face our struggles, help us endure them.  Let our confidence grow as we place our trust in You, no matter what the circumstances.  In You, we find hope for a better day.  IJNIP. Amen

Question for reflection

How do you need God to help you endure today?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading:  Job 34-35 GW; Romans 4 GW

God wants you to believe.

Faith is what wins God’s approval, not good deeds or works, just belief.  God’s gift of grace and mercy is accessible to all who choose to believe in Him.  Eternal life is something only received when we trust what God says is true.  No matter how hard you try, you cannot save yourself.  Only with Jesus can you find true salvation.

Journeying with God begins when we choose to believe in Him.  As soon as we accept our need for God in our lives, He is ready and waiting to start leading us.  Instead of trusting in your understanding, you lean into God’s

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV)

As soon as you trust in God, you gain His approval.  God understands that you aren’t perfect. He doesn’t expect perfection.  God’s reason for creating you is specific.  God designed you for your purpose, no one else’s.  What you consider a weakness, God considers strengthing.

Accept God’s approval.

God loves you just the way you are.  His plan for your life is full of adventure.  God never intended for you to have an uneventful journey.  Potholes are part of everyone’s path.  Unexpected bumps in the road are what God uses to draw us closer to Him.  If everything were perfect, we wouldn’t need God.  Our imperfections are what draw us closer to Him.

God’s approval comes when you first believe. Nothing can change God’s mind about you. Neither your mistakes that lie in the past nor the ones that will happen in the future will change God’s affection for you. You are His; He is yours.

“God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.” (Ephesians 1:5 NLT)

God is pleased with you.  You are His beloved.  You are God-approved.

Lord, thank You for adopting us into Your family.  Forgive us for not believing we belong.  Help us know today how deeply You love us.  Let us feel Your approval for us in our soul.  In all things, the glory is Yours.  IJNIP.  Amen

Question for reflection

How do you feel God’s approval in your life?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading: Job 32-33 GW; Psalms 103 GW; Romans 3 GW

God separates sin.

When God forgives, He does so entirely.  God removes our sin from us as far as the east is from the west.  In other words, our misdeeds are gone for good.  We’re the ones who don’t believe in His forgiveness.  I struggle with forgiving myself, which means I’m the one who is holding on to my faults, not God.  

When we confess our sins to God, He immediately forgives us.  We are to go then and sin no more (John 8:11 NIV).  As I’ve grown closer to Jesus, I have become more sensitive to my sinful nature.  When a nasty thought pops in my head, I’m much quicker to ask God for forgiveness.  I know what we feed is what grows. 

Trust in God’s forgiveness.

Take the clean slate God is offering.  Whatever you are beating yourself up about today, give it to God.  Allow His grace and mercy to flow into your life.  Believe God takes your sin and separates it from you as far as the east is from the west. 

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV)

We need God’s mercies every day.  No matter how hard I try not to sin, I still do.  Our human nature can’t help itself.  My sins aren’t what they were twenty years ago.  Like the adulterous woman, I’ve left those sins behind.  But I still struggle with common human emotions, jealousy, pride, gluttony.  Life means battling our sinful nature; we all have our weaknesses. Perfection isn’t acquired until we reach the pearly gates. 

Accept God’s forgiveness.  Each morning His mercies are available.  Begin your new life today.

Lord, thank You for Your forgiveness.  Forgive us for not grasping how far you remove our sin from us.  As we start this day, help us find new life in you as we leave yesterday’s sins behind, striving to run the race You have for us.  Our lives are Yours; without You, we are nothing.  IJNIP. Amen

Question for reflection

What sin are you holding onto that God forgave?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading: Job 31 GW; Romans 2 GW

Give love, not judgment.

Paul is beginning a chapter and a half dialogue on judgment. He’s calling to task those who judge others because they themselves do the same thing. Scrolling through the 10 Commandments will remind you of your sin. As the old saying goes, if you say you’ve never lied, your lying. Who hasn’t lied? White lies told to spare someone’s feelings count as lies.

Judging is tough because we all do it.  And when we sum up another person, we do it from a limited perspective, ours.  We are basing our judgment on what we perceive.  Let’s face the facts; we don’t know much.  We may have information about particular things, but we don’t understand everything.  When we judge people, we are doing so from our own bias because of our limited knowledge.

Realize your limitations.

Growing closer to God makes me realize I judge people.  I’ve also realized that because I have high standards for myself, I place the same on others.  But God did not create people to live up to my standards.  God reminds me, He’s the Judge; my role is to love.

To help me battle my judgemental ways, I use these verses:

“Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with the judgment you pronounce, you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.  Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:1-3 ESV)

When I start down the judging road, I remind myself, I’ve got a plank in my own eye.  Imperfection defines me; even in my striving for perfection, I fall short.  Before I judge another, I need to take a look in the mirror.  We’re all sinners, all equal in the eyes of God.

Remember, we all have planks.  Each of us falls short of perfection.  But God loves us anyway.  And He expects us to love as well.

Lord, thank You for loving us, warts and all.  Forgive us for judging others unfairly.  Remind us of the planks in our own eyes.  Help us deal with our stuff before we ask others to deal with theirs.  Lead us to healthier relationships as we follow You.  Give us grace for ourselves and others.  IJNIP.  Amen

Question for reflection

What plank does God want you to deal with today?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading:  Psalms 17 GW; Job 30 GW; Romans 1 GW

Lies lead to false gods.

Cell phone worship is a good example.  Our external brain is something we all have.  If we lose our phones, we lose our world.  On a recent train trip, a gentleman left his phone with his brother.  While waiting for the train’s arrival, he realized his loss.  I let him borrow my phone to call his brother; the problem was, he couldn’t remember the number.  Why?  Because his contact information was on his phone.  Whether we realize we worship our phones or not, we all do to a certain level.  Our dependence on them is proof.

The lie we’re believing, we need our cell phones to live.  But in actuality, people lived thousands of years without phones just fine.  They may have led happier lives since they didn’t have the constant distraction of notifications and rings.  In today’s age, leaving our phones behind is a major crisis.  Phone worship is a real thing.  When we worship what is created rather than the Creator, we miss the blessing.

Focus on the Father.

To keep our eyes looking up, we must remember the truth about life.  God is our Creator; without Him, we couldn’t live.  He provides the air we breathe, the food we eat, and the homes where we live.  You can live without a cell phone, but you can’t live without air.  Oxygen is a gift from God we all take for granted.

Life is full of lies.  Every advertisement tries to tell you what the next thing, “You can’t live without…” is.  You must have this car, live in this neighborhood, or wear these clothes if you’re going to find happiness; complete lies, all of them.  None of these things will bring you the joy you will find following Jesus, not one.

True blessing is the peace that surpasses all understanding, a calm found only through a relationship with God.  Forget about the stuff.  Focus on the Father.

Lord, thank You for the blessings we have in our lives.  Forgive us for worshipping our phones more than You.  Help us remember today what is most important, relationship with You.  Let Your peace transcends our lives as we pursue a closer relationship with You.  IJNIP. Amen

Question for reflection

What are you worshipping?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading:  Psalms 111 GW; Job 28-29 GW; Colossians 4 GW

Think before you speak.

Planning your words prepares you for the tough questions.  On average, people spend 12 hours per week preparing for and attending meetings.  The worst part of the study, most of the meetings we prep for aren’t productive.  Unproductive meetings mean unnecessary stress.  The time and effort put into preparing are wasted, a well as the meeting time.  But yet, if we don’t prepare, we can get caught off guard without an answer.

Whatever the meeting, whether business or family, take time to prep.  Man wastes time, but God doesn’t.  Nothing you do for the Lord will go unnoticed, especially preparing your words so that you can answer questions about Him.

“But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,” (1 Peter 3:15 ESV)

Prepare a Two-minute testimony.

Over the years, I’ve heard different methods of sharing your faith, but my favorite is the “Two-minute testimony.”  Find a way to summarize your faith in God in two minutes.  Answer these three questions to help you get started:

• What does your relationship with God mean to you?  
• What is your most pivotal “God moment” in your life?  (Tell about a time that something happened that you knew God working in your life.)
• How are you continuing to grow your relationship with God?

Just saying “Thank God” for something He does in the moment opens up amazing conversations.

I taught a private tennis lesson to a six-year-old on a 90-degree day when a cooling wind blew.  In relief, I raised my arms to heaven and said, “Thank You God for the breeze.”  When the wind blew again a few minutes later, my little student raised her arms to heaven and thanked God.  Just like that, I shared my faith with another, using few words.

Prepare your God story.  Pray for God to give you opportunities to share your tale.  Give God all the glory.

Lord, thank You for giving us something to talk about today.  Forgive us for missed opportunities to share You with others.  Help us prepare our Two-minute testimony, then give us the chance to share it with others. IJNIP. Amen

Question for reflection

What’s your God story?

2 minute read.

Daily Reading: Job 25-27 GW; Psalms 26 GW; Colossians 3 GW

God’s word teaches and encourages.

When my friend Denny died after a long illness, I spoke at his memorial.  Bedridden for months, minutes before I was to speak, God brought this verse to mind:

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” (Phil. 4:8 NLT)

In my moment of grief, God knew how to make me smile.  As I pondered this verse, thinking of my friend, I began to smile.  As I said at his memorial that day, Denny was all of these things, honorable, right, pure, lovely, admirable and praiseworthy.  And now he is in the arms of his heavenly Father, completely healed and whole again.  My heart found joy thinking of Denny’s peace.

Fix your thoughts on God.

Setting your mind on God, through His word, will help you find His peace.  Only when we are intentional about what we think will our actions reflect our thoughts.  Even in the midst of heartache, God’s word can penetrate the pain.  Releasing our feelings to God helps us to move through difficult situations.  Journeying with God means continuing to move forward and through our pain.

“The best way out is always through.”  Robert Frost

Since I’ve spent a lifetime trying to avoid pain, I’ve come to realize, it’s unavoidable.  Hurt is part of growth.  But we must move through the hurt to find the joy.  Experiencing the pain will help us heal from it.  If we didn’t love so deeply we wouldn’t feel sadness.  In order to appreciate a good day, we must have bad ones.  Life is a mixture of both.

Filling our hearts with God’s hymns, psalms and songs help us to move through the pain of life.  God’s timeliness brings joy at the right moment.  As we fix our thoughts on God, He’ll make us want to sing.

Lord, thank You for making us smile when we need it most.  Forgive us for getting stuck in our pain.  Help us today move through the hurts we feel, finding joy as we focus our thoughts on You.   Fill us withl Your word, create joyful hearts in us today.  Fill our lungs with songs of praise.  IJNIP.  Amen

Question for reflection

What verse brings joy to your heart?