Honest Reflections

“When I said, “My foot is slipping,”  your unfailing love, Lord, supported me.” (Psalm 94:18 NIV)

Jesus can stop you from falling.  His unfailing love supports you so that you will not slip.  When you’re teetering on the edge of temptation, He is the One that will stop you from sliding into it.  When we keep our eyes focused on Him, He becomes our lifeline. We are tied to Him, no matter what it is we face in life.  When we start to slide down the slippery slope of sin, hopelessness or despair, He is there to keep us from falling into the pit.  Who can stop you from falling? Jesus.

Who can stop you from falling? Jesus.

Sights and Sound Theatre produces Biblical stories using all of the senses.  Over Easter, because of social isolation, they broadcast their production of Jesus for free.  In the trailer, there is a glimpse of one of the most beautiful portrayals I have seen of Jesus holding someone up.  The disciples are sailing through a storm, Jesus comes to them walking on water. When Peter sees Jesus, he needs proof that he is actually walking on water:

“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

 “Come,” He said.

 (Matthew 14:28-29 NIV)

Peter quickly steps out of the boat and walks towards Jesus amongst the waves.  But he takes his eyes off of Jesus. When he does, he begins to fall. He slowly sinks beneath the waves.  Jesus doesn’t let him fall. He reaches down, grabs his hand and pulls him up. Together, they walk to the boat.

Peter started to fall when he looked at the waves around him instead of Jesus in front of him.  We do the same thing when we focus more on our circumstances than Jesus. Right now, our country is going through arguably the worst crisis in the past 50 years.  The pandemic has shut the country down economically and physically. We can easily take our eyes off of Jesus when we’re struggling to pay the bills and feed our families.  But now is the time to focus more intently upon Him. Now is the time to let Him hold us up when our faith is slipping and we feel like we’re falling into the sea of life.

Turn to Him today.  Tell Him you are falling.  Let His unfailing love be your support.  He knows you by name. He loves you unconditionally.  He died on the cross to have a relationship with you. Don’t take your eyes off of Him now.  Let Him hold you steady and keep you from falling. He’s telling you the same thing He told Peter, “Come.”

Question of the Day:

How can you focus your eyes on Jesus today?

Further Reading: Judges 4:1-5:31 NIV, Luke 22:35-53 NIV, Psalm 94:1-23 NIV, Proverbs 14:3-4 NIV

“The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.” (Proverbs 14:1 NIV)

Foolishness will tear down your house.  Webster’s Dictionary of 1828 defines foolish: void of understanding or sound judgment;  unwise; imprudent; acting without judgment or discretion in particular things, silly; vain; trifling.  The hard truth is, we’ve all been foolish at some point in our lives.  We’ve rushed into a situation without completely understanding it. We’ve made a poor decision because we didn’t have all the facts.  There are times we’ve not been discreet, or picked a fight over something silly. None of these things will build a house, they only tear it down.  But with God’s grace and mercy, we can learn wisdom. A foolish person tears down the house, but wisdom builds it.

A foolish person tears down the house, but wisdom builds it.

The house in this verse is a representation of the relationships inside of it.  A wise woman knows how to create a home that her family wants to be in. A foolish woman creates a home no one wants to be in.

My mother was a wise woman.  She created an environment in our home where my siblings and I wanted to be, not only us, but our friends.  Our house was the neighborhood hang out when we were kids. When we grew into adults, we still wanted to hang out at home when given the chance.  This isn’t to say we didn’t have our issues, every family has issues. But even with our issues, we still wanted to be in her home.

A lot of the friends that came to our house did not want to be in their home.  Their parents were constantly fighting. The fighting would eventually involve the children.  There was no peace in their home, only strife. Each argument tore down their family home a little bit more.  Not because they argued, but because they never resolved the arguments. Instead of working towards peace, they worked towards strife.  Foolishness, as described above, creates strife. Strife does not build a home, only destroys it.

My mother was a wise woman because she followed Jesus.  The wisdom she had came from doing what Jesus did. She studied the Scriptures and she believed their truth.  She applied what God’s word said to her life and did it. Her wisdom wasn’t her own, her wisdom came from God.

We all have access to God’s wisdom.   When we place our faith in Jesus, then follow His lead, it is the wisest choice we can make.  When we read God’s word and get to know Jesus better, we will become wiser. We will be able to build homes where our children will want to be.  A foolish person tears down their house, but a wise person builds it.

Question of the Day:

What is one thing you can do to build your house today?

Further Reading: Judges 2:10-3:31NIV, Luke 22:14-34 NIV, Psalm 92:1-93:5 NIV, Proverbs 14:1-2 NIV

“When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near.” (Luke 21:30 NIV) 

Look for sprouting leaves and you will spot hope.  Hope that summer is coming. Hope that better days are ahead.  Hope for a better tomorrow. Sprouting leaves are signs of life that God gives us.  Their message, “It’s going to be ok.” God is telling us visually, “I have a plan, it is good” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV).  Sprouting leaves are one of God’s emojis for us.  They tell an entire story in one picture. A seed, planted in total darkness, watered with love, begins to bloom into new life.  Christ overcame death, and gave us new life. Look for sprouting leaves and you will spot hope.

Look for sprouting leaves and you will spot hope.

Emojis are a new language that has developed with the onset of technology.  An emoji is defined as a small digital image or icon used to express an idea, emotion, etc. Studies done in communication show that people want to know the story in the amount of time it takes to process a picture.  Our world has become one of scrolling through timelines. If you want to grab someone’s attention, you only have a few seconds.  Emojis do the trick. They convey laughter, sadness, anger, impatience and much more, all with a quick look.

God has placed emojis all around us. People’s faces are emojis.  With one look we can tell if someone is happy or sad, angry or mad. Just like sprouting leaves indicate hope, falling leaves indicate a change of season.  Animals are emojis, a tiger represents fierceness. An eagle represents strength. The rising sun indicates a new day, the setting sun the end of it. All of these are icons, made by God that convey a message.  And all of them are messages of hope:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NIV).

Just like God is with the seed when it’s planted in complete darkness, He is with us in our worst moments.  He knows the pains we have suffered, He’s waiting for us to give them to Him. Just like the seed grows out of the darkness into the light, God will do the same for us.  He will take our worst circumstances and draw them gently into the light. He will love and nourish us uniquely as He changes us into who He created us to be. The seed was planted in darkness, then nurtured with love into a sprouting leaf that turns into a magnificent flower.  God does the same for us. He takes the seeds of faith we offer Him and grows them into beautiful roses. When you see sprouting leaves, you’ve spotted hope.

Question of the Day:

What leaves of hope is God sprouting in your life?

Further Reading: Judges 1:1-2:9 NIV, Luke 21:29-22:13 NIV, Psalm 90:1-91:16 NIV, Proverbs 13:24-25 NIV

“As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins.”  (Luke 21:1-2 NIV)

The easy answer to how much you should give to God is all of it.  When we put our faith in Jesus, go all in. Giving to God is more than money.  We give to God with our hearts, our time, our priorities. Everything we do should be a reflection back to God of our love for Him.  How much should you give to God? Everything!

How much should you give to God? Everything!

“So, my very dear friends, don’t get thrown off course. Every desirable and beneficial gift comes out of heaven. The gifts are rivers of light cascading down from the Father of Light. There is nothing deceitful in God, nothing two-faced, nothing fickle. He brought us to life using the true Word, showing us off as the crown of all his creatures.” (James 1:16-18 MSG)

All we have comes from God.  When we give back to Him, we’re giving back what is already His. Malachi tells us we’re to give 10% of our wages to God (Malachi 3:10 NIV).  The wealthy were giving their 10% out of the abundance they had, but not the widow.  The widow gave more than 10%, she gave all she had:

“All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” (Luke 21:4 NIV)

And Jesus knew the difference.  He knew who was giving out of a show of their wealth, and who was giving out of love for Him.  We aren’t just to give 10%, we’re to give our all for Jesus.  

In this time of COVID19 we have an opportunity to give our all for Jesus. Not only in money, but in time and effort.  We can encourage people through social media. We can send cards in the mail to encourage people. We can continue to give to our local churches that are trying desperately to minister to their communities.  One way I’ve found to help is by donating to ThredUp.  They are an online thrift store that will buy your gently used clothes and accessories.  They will donate your proceeds to the Foodbank to help feed the hungry. There are a lot of hungry people in our world that need to be fed.

Now is the time to give all to Jesus.  This morning on the news they highlighted a foodbank whose shelves were empty.  The woman being interviewed summed it up well: “If you have 2 jars of peanut butter at home, give one away.”  How much should you give to God? Everything!

Question of the Day:

What can you give to God today?

Further Reading: Joshua 24:1-33 NIV, Luke 21:1-28 NIV, Psalm 89:38-52 NIV, Proverbs 13:20-23 NIV

“A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a trustworthy envoy brings healing.” (Proverbs 13:17 NIV)

Truth will bring healing into your life.  Our world is full of lies. Lies that we believe, lies we don’t even realize are lies.  But lies will never hold up over time, the truth will always be revealed. Jesus made it very clear what will free us:

“So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,  and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-31 ESV)

Truth will bring healing into your life.

The problem is, the truth isn’t always easy to hear or accept:

You’re going to find that there will be times when people will have no stomach for solid teaching, but will fill up on spiritual junk food—catchy opinions that tickle their fancy. They’ll turn their backs on truth and chase mirages. But you—keep your eye on what you’re doing; accept the hard times along with the good; keep the Message alive; do a thorough job as God’s servant. (2 Timothy 4:3-5 MSG)

A wicked messenger delivers spiritual junk food that does nothing to nourish our souls.  Keeping our eyes focused on Jesus, can be difficult. But if we stay focused on Him, we will find His healing:

“When Jesus heard this, he told them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” (Mark 2:17 NLT)

Bring healing into your life by keeping your eyes solely focused on Jesus.  I read this years ago, it helps me keep my eyes on Jesus:

“Federal agents don’t learn to spot counterfeit money by studying the counterfeits. They study genuine bills until they master the look of the real thing. Then when they see the bogus money they recognize it.”  John MaCarthur, Reckless Faith

When we keep our eyes on Jesus, when we study God’s word continuously, we’ll be able to recognize wicked messengers easily.  Not only will we be able to spot the lies in our life easier, Jesus will reveal to us the lies we are believing.

We all believe lies.  I’ve believed lies about myself from decades ago that God is still revealing to me.  He is still healing me with His perfect love. The more I keep my eyes on Him, the easier it is to spot the lies.

Gaze upon Jesus today.  Let His truth heal your hurts.  Let His love, comfort your grief.  Let His truth heal your broken heart.  In Jesus you’ll find rest from the lies and healing in His truth.

Question of the Day:

How can you let Jesus’s truth heal you today?

Further Reading:  Joshua 22:21-23:16 NIV, Luke 20:27-47 NIV, Psalm 89:14-37 NIV, Proverbs 13:17-19 NIV

“Good judgment wins favor,  but the way of the unfaithful leads to their destruction.”  Proverbs 13:15 NIV

Good judgement wins favor in your life.  But how do you have good judgement consistently?  We all make bad calls, unintentionally. We think what we’re doing is wise, but in the end it leads to our downfall.  One way I’ve learned to have good judgement is by relying on God’s guidance, not my own. I rely on what His word says when making a decision, instead of relying on my limited perspective.  God’s judgement is always good, but not necessarily easy to follow. To win favor in your life, let God help you make the call.

To have good favor in your life, let God help you make the call.

We, in our human nature, do not have the tools we need to make consistent good judgements.  We see from a very limited perspective, our own. We don’t see other options available to us, because we can’t see any other way to deal with the situation.  That is where God and the people He places in our lives come into play. They help us make the right judgement call.

Years ago, my mother was recovering from a whipple surgery, she had pancreatic cancer.  She was one of the 7% of people who were able to have it surgically removed.  She was staying with my brother and his wife because they were able to give her 24 hour care.  But then my brother’s wife had a bout with diverticulitis which landed her in the hospital. My brother was now overwhelmed with a wife in the hospital and a recovering mother at home.  I was scheduled to go out of town that weekend to visit friends. I had waited months for the trip. That morning, God nudged me to cancel the trip and help my brother. But it wasn’t what I wanted to do.  I called a good friend in Christ and discussed the situation with her. She confirmed the nudge God gave me. She told me I needed to cancel the trip and help my brother. Because of God and her, I made a good judgement call.

I wouldn’t have made the same decision if I was left to my own devices.  If we want to make good judgement calls, we have to let God help us. We have to listen to what His word says, and what His faithful followers say.  They have a perspective on the situation that is impossible for us as individuals to have.  

You can have good judgement in your life by spending time with God on a daily basis.  Reading HIs word, praying and waiting for the nudges God gives you. When you do, you’ll win favor with Him and people.

Question of the Day:

How can you seek God’s guidance in your decisions today?

Further Reading: Joshua 21:1-22:20 NIV, Luke 20:1-26 NIV, Psalm 89:1-13 NIV, Proverbs 13:15-16 NIV

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick,  but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” (Proverbs 13:12 NIV)

Hope is the expectation of good things to come.  Webster’s Dictionary of 1828 defines hope well:

“Hope differs from wish and desire in this, that it implies some expectation of obtaining the good desired, or the possibility of possessing it. Hope therefore always gives pleasure or joy; whereas wish and desire may produce or be accompanied with pain and anxiety.”

To define hope in your life, you have to define what it is you’re expecting to happen.  You may be hoping for a relationship to start, or a relationship to end. You may be hoping for a bigger salary, better job or long awaited promotion.  Hope may be becoming debt free, or just paying the bills each month. We all are hoping for different things in our lives. Jesus offers a hope to all of us that we can cling to together:

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV)

The hope Jesus gives us is eternal life with Him.  

When we place our trust in Jesus, our hope is no longer deferred.  He fulfills the longing inside all of us for life eternal. He is our hope.  But often we place our hope in the wrong things, when we do, it makes us heart sick.  

For many of us, during the coronavirus, we’re realizing we placed our hope in things that are not eternal.  We place hope in our finances, that they will provide for us. We place hope in our jobs, that they will always be there for us.  We place hope in our health, that we’ll always be healthy. But all of these hopes can be deferred, because all of them can be taken away from us.  Some of them have been taken away from us. The coronavirus shut down both of my small businesses almost entirely. But my hope isn’t in my businesses, my hope is in Jesus.  He is the one who has provided for me each day. He is the One who has given me good health. He is the one I place my hope in today.

Jesus can be your source of hope in this time of despair.  He can be the light in the darkness that leads you through the storm.  He’s waiting for you to place your hope in Him. When you do, you won’t be disappointed.

Question of the Day:

Who are you placing your hope in today?

Further Reading: Joshua 19:1-20:9 NIV, Luke 19:28-48 NIV, Psalm 88:1-18 NIV, Proverbs 13:12-14 NIV

“He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.” (Luke 19:3-4 NIV)

Zaccheus was the short man in today’s verse.  A tax collector, who had accumulated wealth by overtaxing the people, he was not well liked.  He had heard about Jesus and wanted to see Him. But he couldn’t see over the crowds. Being a smart man, he realized he needed to get a higher perspective on the situation.  He looked around, saw a fig tree he could climb, and up he went. He was willing to do whatever it takes to get a glimpse of Jesus. If you want to see Jesus, you have to do what it takes.

If you want to see Jesus, you have to do what it takes.

In today’s world, we don’t have to climb trees to see Jesus.  We have God’s word, written out for us. Stories like Zaccheus’s are there for us to read and learn more about Jesus.  As we begin to apply what we learn about Jesus, we’ll begin to see Him moving in our daily lives. We’ll recognize His presence when we receive an unexpected blessing.  We’ll understand it’s Him that has protected us from whatever attack we’re under. We’ll begin to see, Jesus is with us in all we do. But first we have to look for Him.

Just like Zaccheus, we have to gain a new perspective.  We have to take off the goggles of this world and start looking at it through the eyes of Jesus.  We can only do that when we make an effort to spend time with Him, getting to know Him.

My friends that know me personally, know one of my favorite things to do is get coffee with them.  I love to sit with them and talk about life. I love hearing what is going on in their lives, being able to pray for them and encourage them.  They do the same for me. We have a relationship because we are intentional about building a relationship. We’re intentional about making time for each other.  We carve out an hour from our busy schedules to dedicate to each other. If we want to see Jesus, we have to be as intentional in building our relationship with Him as we are with our friends.

Before you turn on the morning news, open God’s word.  Let the Scriptures be the first place you get your news in the morning.  Fill yourself with God’s promises, God’s wisdom, God’s love. Nothing can compare, nothing can take away from it.  If you want to see Jesus, you have to do what it takes.

Question of the Day:

Are you willing to do what it takes to see Jesus?

Further Reading: Joshua 16:1-18:28 NIV, Luke 19:1-27 NIV, Psalm 87:1-7 NIV, Proverbs 13:11 NIV

“Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” (Luke 18:27 NIV)

Jesus can make all things possible for you.  Just because He can, doesn’t mean He will. God takes the ordinary and makes them extraordinary.  No matter what our circumstances are, God is in control of them. He has the power to work the miracles we need.  He can take what to us is impossible, and make it possible. Our problem is what we want to be possible. What we see as possible, what we want to be possible, are often not the things Jesus wants for us.  Jesus can make all things possible, but that doesn’t mean He will.

Jesus can make all things possible, but that doesn’t mean He will.

Today’s verse comes at the end of a conversation that Jesus has with a rich, young ruler.  The man asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus tells him to follow the ten commandments.  The young man says he’s done all of those things. Then Jesus gets to the heart of the matter. He tells the young ruler to sell everything, give to the poor and follow Him.  The rich young ruler can’t give up his riches, he loves them more than Jesus. Jesus, understanding where this young man’s heart is says:

“How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Luke 18:24-25 NIV)

The people around Jesus that heard this conversation, wanted to know how anyone could be saved then?  That is when Jesus speaks today’s verse: what is impossible for man is possible for God.

Jesus’ first and foremost desire for all of us is to be in heaven with Him.  He wants us to have life and have it to the fullest (John 10:10 NIV).  He doesn’t want any of us to perish.  We can’t have eternal life without Jesus.  What Jesus makes possible for all of us is a relationship with God that will last forever.  Our riches here on earth will one day be gone, but our life in Christ never ends.  

What we want as possible isn’t what Jesus necessarily wants for us.  We want riches and fame, Jesus wants us to have eternal life. We want a worry free life, Jesus wants us to trust in Him.  We want safety, Jesus wants life in abundance for us. Our life here on earth was never meant to be trouble free. Jesus tells us it won’t be (John 16:33 NIV).   What Jesus wants for us is what we truly need, not the desires of this world. Jesus makes the impossible, possible, He gives us eternal life.

Question of the Day:

Have you trusted Jesus for life eternal?

Further Reading: Joshua 15:1-63 NIV, Luke 18:18-43 NIV, Psalm 86:1-17 NIV, Proverbs 13:9-10 NIV

“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” (Luke 18:1 NIV)

The reason we’re to be persistent in our prayers is because persistence pays off.  The parable Jesus shared with the disciples was about a widow. She had an adversary that was tormenting her in some way.  Day after day, she would go to the judge and ask him to do something about it. He ignored her. He was the type of judge who didn’t care about anyone but himself.  However, her persistence paid off. Eventually, he takes care of the situation because he realizes she’s never going to stop. Jesus point to this story, if an unjust judge like this one eventually does the right thing, how much more so will our heavenly Father if we don’t give up.  Persistent prayers pay off.

Persistent prayers pay off.

Persistent prayers pay off, but it probably won’t be the way you think they will.  God does answer all prayers. He answers prayers in His time, in His way. Rarely is it the way we think it will or should be.  Persistent praying does more than get an answer, persistent praying grows us closer to God. The more we talk to God, the deeper our relationship with Him grows.  When we start praying scripture, we go even deeper. Persistent prayers’ true pay off is a deeper relationship with God.

When we pray God’s promises, we hold Him accountable to His word.  Click here for a list of 50 of God’s promises from the Bible.  Scan down through the list and find the one that fits your situation.  Write it down, place it somewhere you will see it often. Memorize it, speak it, pray it.  Hold God accountable to His word. Grow closer to Him as you get to know Him more intimately through your prayers.  Your persistence will pay off. God will answer, and when He does, it will have been worth the wait.

Question of the Day:

What promise of God are you going to cling to today?

Further Reading: Joshua 13:1-14:15 NIV, Luke 18:1-17 NIV, Psalm 85:1-13 NIV, Proverbs 13:7-8 NIV