August 6, 2026 · 5:30 AM

Burning The Ships

One of the most well known stories of the New World (whether true or not) is about Hernan Cortez. You may remember him from your history class back in the day. The story goes that in 1519 he had plans to conquer Mexico. As his men left their ships he wanted them to understand there was no turning back to their previous life. There also wasn’t room for failure, so he destroyed the ships. He wanted them to fight with everything they had and to leave the past behind. They fought for years to conquer the land. With the help of Allie’s they created, the weapons they brought and their determination, they were able to defeat the Aztecs and pave the way for the Spanish forces to colonize Mexico. The story of Cortez burning the ships has been used throughout history to illustrate points because it illustrates so many things including leaving things behind.

The Bible shares the story of the patriarch of Israel. God approached Abram, as he was called at that time, to ask him to leave his father and mother. Abram was asked to travel to a distant land that he didn’t know about or even which direction it was. I don’t know if Abram had to think about it or gave an immediate yes, but he left his life behind to follow where God led. Along with his story, Hebrews 11 also tells the account of Moses. Verse 24 says that when he matured, he refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. Instead of clinging to his comfortable life, he stood up for the freedom of the Hebrews. His burn the ships moment came when he stood before Pharaoh and demanded that they be let go. Because of their faith and willingness to walk away, God used them in mighty ways.

In Matthew 10:39 Jesus said, “Those who cling to their lives will give up true life. But those who let go of their lives for my sake and surrender it all to me will discover true life!” (TPT) What has God asked you to leave behind? Have you burned those ships or are you keeping an open door to them? We tend to try to leave a way back because it’s comfortable to us, but that way back impedes our progress. Jesus has asked us to give Him our whole heart and life. Surrendering to Him and His will is the only way to the abundant life He offers. It’s time we all had a burn the ships moment in our life where we commit fully to the life He called us to. We like to identify with the results of Abraham, Moses and others listed in Hebrews 11, but not with the cost. True discipleship, true Christianity, is to no longer cling to the things that hold us back and to fully surrender our lives to Him. Ask Him today to show you what things you need to let go of and then fully commit to living the life He’s called you to.

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Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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August 5, 2026 · 5:56 AM

Receiving Right Words

One of my most quoted verses in the Bible has to be Proverbs 18:21. It says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (ESV). On average, each person speaks over 12,000 words per day. The words we choose matter. However, as I began thinking about this verse more, I think it is also important for us to consider who we let speak into our life. Others have the power To bring death or life to us. We’ve all had someone say something to us at one point in our life that stayed in our mind and affected our decisions. Just because someone speaks something over us or to us, doesn’t mean we have to receive it.

In 1 Samuel 16, the prophet Samuel was looking to anoint the next king of Israel. He went to Jesse’s house to find him. Jesse lined up all his sons, but the prophet didn’t find the next king. When he asked, Jesse brought in David, Samuel acknowledged David was the next king. However, in the next chapter, David’s brothers, who were present when he was anointed, saw him at the battlefield bringing them food from home. Then Goliath steps out and David begins asking questions. Eliab, the oldest brother, heard David and said, “I know about your pride and deceit. You just want to see the battle!” (NLT) David rejected the lies from his brother spoken over him, but received the words from Samuel. Because of that, he was not only able to face Goliath, but to defeat him as well.

Another verse in Proverbs I quote often is Proverbs 13:20. It says, “Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm” (ESV). Wise people speak wise words to and over people. Fools are always tearing each other down. They speak whatever comes into their mind and say ugly things to people for a laugh. Who are you hanging around, and who are you letting speak into your life? It makes a difference in whether you will stand up and fight giants or cower and run. You will always have people who try to tear you down or speak lies over you. Like David, you have the power to reject those words and find someone else to be around. Your words matter too. Speak wisdom and blessings to people, and wise people will also want to be around you.

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August 4, 2026 · 5:48 AM

Trust Beyond Today

I grew up when you kept a map or an atlas in the glove box to help you find your way. It’s such a different experience from using the interactive maps on our phones. We’ve grown accustomed to them finding the best route, telling us where traffic is, accidents are and rerouting us when we make a mistake. A few weeks ago it told me to exit. I looked ahead and didn’t see any traffic for the next mile or so. I had a decision to make. Do I trust it knows something I don’t or do I know more than it based on what I see? I decided to stay on the freeway. In the moment I didn’t understand what it was doing. Up the road, I found out there was a major accident blocking several lanes with no exit in sight. I sat there wishing I had listened and exited, even when I didn’t know what it was doing.

In John 13, Jesus had gathered the disciples for what we now call the Last Supper. Before they ate, Jesus put on a towel and began washing the dirty feet of the disciples. Peter protested when it was his turn. In verse 7, Jesus replied, “You don’t understand now what I am doing, but someday you will” (NLT). Peter still protested what Jesus was trying to do in the moment. He didn’t understand the lesson he was being taught, couldn’t see why Jesus was doing a servants job and couldn’t see Jesus was coming to save him from his sins instead of from Rome. Because of his lack of understanding, he pushed back in the moment like many of us do when we don’t understand what God is doing. Peter ultimately surrendered his will and understood later the lesson Jesus was teaching him.

Isaiah 50:10 says, “If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the Lord and rely on your God.” Much of walking by faith and not by sight is not understanding in the moment what God is doing or why He’s doing it. We don’t see what He’s accomplishing in us through hardship in the moment. In those moments we have a choice. We can protest like Peter or we can trust in the Lord and rely on His understanding in those moments knowing He sees what’s ahead better than we do. Time gives great perspective to the times we’ve had to walk in darkness, without a ray of light. When we look back, we can see God’s hand as we walked through the Valley of the Shadow. When we gain that kind of perspective, it helps us to trust what He’s doing now, even though we may not understand in the moment.

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August 3, 2026 · 5:59 AM

Resurrecting Hope

In the early 1900’s a man named Darby and his uncle were working a gold mine in Colorado. Like many others, they invested everything they owned into the mine. One day they struck a gold vein and began working it. Then all of a sudden it disappeared. They kept digging and couldn’t find it. They dig deeper, and still it was gone. After going through their savings, their hope ran out. They decided to give up. They sold their equipment to a nearby junk dealer. That man hired an engineer to examine where they lost the vein. The engineer discovered they had quit digging about three feet from the vein. The junk dealer bought it and hit the richest gold vein in Colorado at the time. Darby was later quoted as saying, “I stopped three feet from gold because I lost hope.”

In John 11, Jesus went to Bethany after His friend Lazarus had died. When He arrived at the village, Jesus asked to be taken to the place where they had buried him. There was a large stone covering the entrance to the tomb. Verse 39 says, “Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to Him, ‘Lord, by this time there will be an offensive odor, for he has been dead four days! [It is hopeless!]’” (AMP) Even though it was hopeless, Lazarus’s sisters had them move the stone. Jesus prayed and then called out to Lazarus. He came out wrapped tightly in burial cloths. Jesus then told them to unwrap him and set him free.

I love Lamentations 3:21-22. Jeremiah was going through a hopeless season. Then he penned these words, “Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease” (NLT). All of us face hopeless situations at times. Things that God has promised seem to be long past due and impossible to revive, yet we can still dare to hope by remembering God’s faithfulness. Like Martha and Mary, we may need to roll some stones out of the way so He can call things back to life. God invites us to step out in faith and trust even when things look hopeless. Great is His faithfulness to revive, renew and to resurrect hopeless situations and forgotten dreams. Don’t lose hope yet.

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July 31, 2026 · 6:04 AM

God’s Justice

When we hear that God is just, it’s easy to picture a courtroom with God holding a gavel. While he is a righteous judge, His justice is never separated from His mercy. While His justice restores us, His mercy heals us. His justice sets things right and His mercy makes us whole. When we read that God is just, the Bible is telling us that He doesn’t just punish wrong, but He is actively working to put back together what sin tore apart. We don’t have to be afraid of a just God. We need to submit to His processes and His promises. His justice is served when our lives are restored tomHis purposes. While sometimes we want just His justice in situations, it’s good to know that it’s always coupled with His mercy.

Here are some Bible verses on God being just:

1. If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just [true to His own nature and promises], and will forgive our sins and cleanse us continually from all unrighteousness [our wrongdoing, everything not in conformity with His will and purpose].

1 John 1:9 AMP

2. Therefore the Lord waits [expectantly] and longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed (happy, fortunate) are all those who long for Him [since He will never fail them].

Isaiah 30:18 AMP

3. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.

Romans 3:25-26 NLT

4. He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!

Deuteronomy 32:4 NLT

5. He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!

Deuteronomy 32:4 NLT

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July 30, 2026 · 5:30 AM

Seasoning With Salt

There’s a saying that says, “Always leave them wanting more.” When teaching people this principle, I like to tell the story of something that happened a couple of years ago. I was riding with my friend in his truck on a rainy day. As we were going down the road, we saw a guy carrying a duffle bag walking on the shoulder. He was getting soaked and we thought the Christian thing to do was to pick him up. He put the duffle bag in the bed of the truck where it was still getting rained on, and climbed in the back seat. My buddy told him he could bring it inside, but he declined. As we we driving, he asked him what was in the bag. The man said sternly, “It’s none of your business!” Shocked, I said, “You don’t have to be rude about it. We just wanted to make sure it wasn’t going to get messed up.” He repeated himself with even more attitude. My buddy pulled the truck over and told him to get out. Before he could grab the bag, we sped off!

On the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Your lives are like salt among the people. But if you, like salt, become bland, how can your ‘saltiness’ be restored? Flavorless salt is good for nothing and will be thrown out and trampled on by others” (Matthew 5:13 TPT). Salt brings out incredible flavors in food, and it also makes you thirsty. If there’s too much, it makes the food inedible. If there’s too little, or you can’t taste it, what’s the point. The question my wife and I ask all the time is, “Did you leave them thirsting for more?” As people explore faith or are around us as Christians, that’s the question we have to ask. Did our conversation, and the way we acted, make them want to know more about God?

Colossians 4:5-6 says, “Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone” (NLT). The word “attractive” means seasoned with salt. We need to make sure we’re interacting with people who don’t know Jesus so we can be salt and light. There’s little point to salt or light unless you’re around unseasoned people in the dark. Jesus didn’t spend all His time in the Temple or only with believers. He made a point to be among people who didn’t believe in God, taught them in ways they could understand and left them wanting more. We need to ask God daily for wisdom in how to live, speak and act in front of non-believers so that we make them thirsty to know more about Him. We will know it’s the right amount when they ask for more.

P.S. I know you’re dying to know what was in the bag, and it’s none of your business. 😉😂

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Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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July 29, 2026 · 5:51 AM

Seeing God Clearly

One of the quotes I think about often is from A. W. Tozer. He said, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” How you view God governs everything else about you. Whether your view is accurate or distorted, it shapes how you interpret life, make decisions, pray, how you treat people and respond to pressure. Because of that, it’s important that we read through Scripture to see how God has revealed Himself through the lens of eternity instead of making our determination of how we see Him in the moment we’re standing in.

I love the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25. Today I want to focus on the guy who received one talent and buried it in the sand. When the master asked him what he did with his talent, he responded, “Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back” (NLT). He viewed God as a harsh task master and so he didn’t do anything with what was given to him. He let fear and a distorted view keep him from making and impact. Instead, he should have seen Him as generous. The master gave three servants talents. Then when the other two returned them to the master, the master returned the full amount back to them.

In Psalm 145:8-9, the psalmist described God by saying, “The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.” God is merciful, compassionate, good and generous. He’s not waiting for you to fail so He can get angry at you. Does your view of God line up with this? If not, you may find yourself like the third guy in that parable. Don’t go another day with a distorted view of God. It’s holding you back from doing the most with what you’ve been given. Let this verse restore your trust in God and reshape how you live. Remember, seeing God clearly is the most important thing about you.

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July 28, 2026 · 5:56 AM

Whole Hearted Commitment

I got an email at work that’s promoting a new perk. It said, “Why commit to one gym when you can have access to 20,000 gyms? Change gyms any time you like!” I started thinking about how everything has become about convenience instead of commitment. You can go month to month on so many things these days instead of having to sign an annual agreement. Other prices let you cancel any time. The ability to opt out when things become inconvenient is appealing to our nature which is why so many marketing campaigns go after it. The problem comes when we have things God created for us to commit to and we opt out for the sake of convenience.

After Moses died, Joshua led the children of Israel. He led the younger generation into the Promised Land and conquered the cities. At the end of his life, he gathered the nation together at Shechem where God had promised the land to Abraham. Before passing away, he wanted to remind the people what God had done for them and to have them recommit to following and serving the Lord. In Joshua 24:15 he said, “If it is unacceptable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve:… as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (AMP). Joshua didn’t want there to be any doubt about his commitment to following the Lord. He made a bold proclamation in front of everyone and we remember it to this day.

Deuteronomy 6:5-6 says, “And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today” (NLT). God is asking us for a whole hearted commitment that doesn’t change with the times or for convenience. Not only are we to love Him with every part of our being, we must commit ourselves to following His way of living. Like Joshua, we must stand up in this generation and choose to serve and follow the Lord. We need to look back at all God has done for us, remember the promises He’s kept and choose to daily take up our cross and commit to the life He’s called us to live in the Bible. God is asking each of us to decide if we’re going to have a whole hearted commitment to Him or not.

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July 27, 2026 · 5:58 AM

Led From The Front

One of the questions I ask in my leadership training is, “What’s the difference between a boss and a leader?” Answers vary, but eventually they’re summed up in a picture I’ve seen where a boss is on a block that the team is pulling while he points forward. The leader is at the front of the team pulling the rope. John Maxwell says that a leader knows the way, shows the way and goes the way. They lead from the front, they’re accessible and they’re interested in the success of the team. I’m sure at some point you have worked for a boss and a leader. Who would you rather work for? The leader wins every time.

In John 10 Jesus is talking to the people using terminology they could understand. He referred to them as sheep and Himself as the Good Shepherd. He explained that the sheep know the shepherd’s voice and go to Him. Then in verse 4 He says, “After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice” (NLT). There are two types of shepherds. One that drives the sheep from behind and one that leads from the front. The shepherds who lead from the front, choose the path, face the dangers first and create a safe environment for the sheep. It’s the responsibility of the sheep to align themselves with the steps of the shepherd, follow his direction and respond out of relationship.

Romans 8:14 says, “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.” Are you being led by Jesus or are you out front trying to lead Him? As children of God, we are to be led by Him, recognize His voice and to respond to Him. We need to let Him choose the path we’re following versus us choosing the path and asking for His blessing. As the Good Shepherd, He knows our name and calls to us. He’s out front doing what a shepherd does. He’s not trying to drive us. Instead He’s trying to lead us to the life He has for us, but we must be willing to be led and to follow. His call to each of us has always been, “Follow me.” Are you aligning yourself with His steps and following His direction? As His children, we must let Him lead from the front.

Photo by Quan-You Zhang on Unsplash.

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July 24, 2026 · 5:50 AM

Seeking The Lord

My nieces and nephews were playing hide and go seek in my house recently. One of them loosely looked around the first floor for the others and didn’t find anyone. She then went to the stairs and said, “I’m not coming up there to search for you!” She wasn’t really searching to begin with, but many of us search for God, the Bible and the things of God just like my niece was “searching.” When the Bible tells us to search or seek, it’s using the Hebrew word “darash.” It means to pursue intentionally, repeatedly seeking relationship. It’s more of a way of life than a temporary assignment. We’re not supposed to simply search, we’re to continually pursue Him. Don’t give up after a short while. Make seeking Him a lifestyle.

Here are some Bible verses on searching for God:

1. If you reach out to me, you will find me when you search for me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:13 TPT

2. Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.

Isaiah 55:6 NKJV

3. Seek and deeply long for the Lord and His strength [His power, His might]; Seek and deeply long for His face and His presence continually.

Psalms 105:4 AMP

4. The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

Psalm 34:10 ESV

5. The Lord is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.

Lamentations 3:25 NLT

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