Tag Archives: faith

February 9, 2024 · 5:35 AM

Giving God Your Little

There are times when God asks us to do something but we look at our resources and tell Him we can’t. Instead of taking a step of faith, I say, “But God, I only have this.” What I forget in those moments is that God is a multiplier. He can multiply what little I have if I’m willing to offer it up instead of an excuse. He doesn’t require much in order to accomplish what He asks of us. He wants to see if we’re willing to give Him our little and to allow Him to do with it what He wants. The Bible is full of stories where people were willing to give what little they had and saw God do incredible things with it. A little is enough in God’s hands.

Here are some Bible verses on giving God a little.

1. He told them, “It was because of your lack of faith. I promise you, if you have faith inside of you no bigger than the size of a small mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move away from here and go over there,’ and you will see it move! There is nothing you couldn’t do!

Matthew 17:20 TPT

2. But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered. “Bring them here,” he said. Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people. They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers.

Matthew 14:17-20 NLT

3. But she said, “I swear by the Lord your God that I don’t have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die.” But Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid! Go ahead and do just what you’ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use what’s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!” So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days. There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.

1 Kings 17:12-16 NLT

4. A destitute widow walked up and dropped in two small copper coins, worth less than a penny. Jesus called his disciples to gather around and then said to them, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given a larger offering than any of the wealthy.”

Mark 12:42-43 TPT

5. It is much better to have little combined with much of God than to have the fabulous wealth of the wicked and nothing else.

Psalms 37:16 TPT

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February 1, 2024 · 5:30 AM

Barren Seasons

Have you been through a barren season? It’s those seasons where you have planted seeds and watered them, but nothing is growing or producing. It’s a little frustrating and a lot scary. To have followed God’s principles in the Bible and to not see Him move on your behalf can be worrisome. In those times, I’ve prayed, “God, where are you? Why haven’t you responded yet? I thought by now you would have shown up,” only to be answered by silence. Barren seasons show up out of no where and can last a while. They put your faith to the test, but what you can’t see, and what you have to remind yourself, is what God is doing with those planted seeds underground.

Habakkuk 3:17-18 gives us the prescription for these times. It says, “Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!” (NLT) We must continue to praise God anyway and choose to honor Him. Our hope is not in the fruits of our labor, but in the Lord. We cannot allow what we see in our circumstances to dictate our relationship with God. Circumstances are fickle, but God remains the same yesterday, today and forever.

In those barren seasons, I recount the character of God. I look back on who He has always been, not on how I perceive Him in my current situation. Relationships dictated by emotions fail because emotions can be manipulated. They must be built on something deeper. You must choose to love, to rejoice in the Lord and to be joyful even in the dry seasons. God has not changed who He is, nor has He stopped working on your behalf. Choose to rejoice no matter what the fields of your life look like right now. Trust in Him to be who He always has been. He is Jehovah Jireh, your provider and source even in the barren seasons. Your trust needs to be in Him rather than in the fruit of your labor.

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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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January 29, 2024 · 5:36 AM

The Rough Road

One of the things I hear a lot of people say when they go through a tough time is that they must not be in God’s will. God’s path for our lives isn’t always the easy one. Tough times doesn’t mean you have angered God or turned His wrath toward you. There are times He takes us through the sunless valley of the shadow of death. There are times when the road He takes you down is in the wilderness where you feel like you can’t feel Him or through waters that are too deep and it feels like you’re drowning. If He always took you through green pastures, your faith would never grow. The rough roads are where we learn to trust Him even when we can’t feel Him.

In the book of Exodus, God displays His mighty power for both the Egyptians and Israelites to see. He then set them free from their captor and immediately led them into the desert. Not long after, they felt cornered at the Red Sea with Pharaoh’s army pinning them down. Were they out of God’s will? No. God protected them from the army and then parted the water. The road then

led them through the wilderness where they experienced hunger and thirst. Even though they experienced hardship, they were still in His will and on His path. Remember, He provided manna there, brought water from the rock, led them with a cloud by day and a fire by night. Their clothes and shoes also never wore out. In the wilderness, God was still providing for them as He led them to the Promised Land.

Psalm 77:19 says, ”Your way was through the sea, your path through the great waters; yet your footprints were unseen“ (ESV). God’s way is always the best way, but it’s not always the easy way or the quickest. He cares more about your growth than your comfort. When we go through deep waters where we can’t see His footprints to lead us, it causes our roots to grow deeper in Him. It causes us to spend more time in prayer and our faith finds a new level. The times in our lives when we draw closest to God are usually times where we feel like we’re going under and can’t breathe. You are not necessarily off His path or out of His will when you experience these things. Don’t look for blame in these moments. Instead, look for His presence. He is there leading you, guarding you and providing for you when the road gets rough. Your Promised Land is just ahead.

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January 8, 2024 · 5:39 AM

Melting Ice

When God’s promises seem slow or feel like they’re never going to come to pass, how do you respond? Do you keep doing what you’re doing to prepare for them or do you give up hope thinking they’re dead? I heard John Maxwell talk about something similar regarding melting ice. Imagine it’s 27 degrees out and you’re working on raising the temperature and it goes up to 28. The ice is still frozen, but you keep going and it gets to 29. Still nothing. You keep going and it grid to 30, then 31. It can feel like nothing is happening because the ice hasn’t changed at all and you’ve done everything you can. However, don’t give up because once it hits 32, all that has taken place begins to work suddenly.

In Ezekiel 37, God took Ezekiel to a valley of dry bones where God asked if they could live again. Instead of stating the obvious that the situation was hopeless, he replied that only God knew. God told him to prophesy to them to come together because God was going to make them live again. There was a great rattling in the valley as they came together into individual skeletons. Then muscles, joints and skin covered them. A great army stood there lifeless until God told him to prophesy to the four winds to breathe on them. Suddenly they came alive. God then said that Israel had given up on his promise to return them home from captivity saying all hope was lost. However, God wasn’t done. He was going to breathe life into His promise when all hope seemed lost.

I Corinthians 1:9 says, ”God is faithful [He is reliable, trustworthy and ever true to His promise—He can be depended on]“ (AMP). The Bible is full of stories of people whom God’s promises seemed like they would never come. Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years for a son. Joseph was away from his family for over a decade before his dream came true. David remained a shepherd then ran for his life for over 15 years while being promised the kingdom before he became king. If it seems like everything is still or moving in the wrong direction, keep believing, keep working towards it and trust God. He is faithful to His promises even when it seems all hope is lost. 32 degrees is just around the corner.

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December 18, 2023 · 5:46 AM

The Right Time

One thing I’ve learned is that God operates on His own time. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve reached out in desperation praying to get an answer on my time. There have been times when He’s come through right at the deadline. There have been other times when my deadline has come and gone while I was waiting for Him to answer. I think of Lazarus who was sick when his sisters sent word for Jesus to come and heal him. While Jesus was waiting, Lazarus died. Four days after that, Jesus showed up and raised him from the dead. No matter what our deadline is, His answer will come at the right time. He sees a bigger picture than what we see.

For 400 years before Jesus was born, God was silent. Famine had struck the land a generation before Jesus that threatened to wipe out the country. The Romans took over the world, including Israel. Yet God didn’t answer their cries. However, it was the Roman’s who called for a census that would send Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem in order to fulfill the prophecy that the Messiah would be born there. It was because of the Romans that the known world had a unified language which allowed the Gospel to spread quickly. While people cried out for deliverance, God waited for the right moment to bring salvation to us.

Galatians 4:4 says, ”But when the right time came, God sent his Son“ (NLT). Looking back, you can always see that God answers when the right time came. I don’t know what you’re praying for, but don’t stop. Your deadline May have come and gone, but keep praying. There is nothing impossible for God. He can do what seems impossible to us. He won’t be early with His answer, but when the right time comes, He will bring you the answer that is in accordance with His plan. Don’t give up if you’re still waiting or if God seems silent. Keep asking. Keep knocking. Keep seeking. Keep believing too because God is at work and setting things in motion. He will send His son to answer at the right time.

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December 14, 2023 · 5:30 AM

Getting In The Wheelbarrow

I like to tell people that you will always act on what you truly believe, especially when you’re under pressure. It’s easy to say you believe something, but the proof comes when stress is applied. There’s a story of a man named Charles Blonden who famously put out a tightrope across Niagara Falls. He crossed it several times using different methods like stilts, backwards, blindfolded, carrying a stove and cooking on it. One time he pushed a wheelbarrow across it. When he arrived on the other side, the crowd applauded. He then asked who believed he could push someone in that wheelbarrow across the tightrope. Everyone cheered agreeing that he could. He then asked for a volunteer from the cheering crowd. The crowd fell silent and no one volunteered. Later his manager Harry Colcord did ride across on his back.

It’s easy to say we believe something until we have to get I to the wheelbarrow. In the Old Testament, God asked Abraham to take his only son to the land of Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice (Genesis 22). This was a faith testing moment. God had already told him that through Isaac he would have many descendants. He took Isaac to the mountain anyway because He truly believed God. David’s faith was tested too. He had been anointed king, but God delayed in that promise. He had several opportunities to kill Saul, the current king, but he trusted God’s timing instead. Many opportunities presented themselves, but he passed on them all as he waited for God’s perfect timing.

Testing is part of God’s means of proving our faith just like He did for those in the Bible. If He tested them, He’ll test us. 1 Peter 1:7 says, “Their purpose is to prove that your faith is genuine. Even gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire; and so your faith, which is much more precious than gold, must also be tested, so that it may endure. Then you will receive praise and glory and honor on the Day when Jesus Christ is revealed” (GNT). Testing purifies and solidifies our faith. Don’t back down from what you believe when hard times come or when you’re called out on it. Get in the wheelbarrow and trust God to carry you across Niagara’s Falls. He’s proven time and time again He’s able to, but it’s up to us to trust Him enough to get in.

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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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December 13, 2023 · 5:29 AM

Eliminate Hopelessness

In the 1950’s a professor did an experiment where he placed rats in water to see how long it would take for them to drown. Several died within minutes. He then decided to introduce hope into the experiment to see if that changed anything. He placed more rats in the water and waited until they were giving up. Once they began to drown, he reached in, grabbed them and held them a few minutes before placing them back in the water. This time they didn’t give up. They continued to swim for much longer than before. He wrote that the rats quickly learn that the situation is not hopeless and when hopelessness is eliminated, they do not die.

When Abraham was 75 years old, he had given up on having kids. He began to reason and come to terms that everything he had acquired in life would go to his servant. He was hopeless at that point, but God visited him and told him he would have a son. Abraham was excited and believed God. However, a year passed without Sarah getting pregnant. Then another. Soon a decade passed. Then another. Because God eliminated hopelessness, Abraham continued to believe. When he turned 100, his wife finally became pregnant and had a son. They named him Isaac, which means laughter. God did the impossible for a couple and all they could do was laugh when He did.

Isaiah 40 was written to Israel while they were in captivity in Babylon. They were on the verge of giving up. God spoke to them on verse 31 and said, ”But those who trust in the Lord for help will find their strength renewed. They will rise on wings like eagles; they will run and not get weary; they will walk and not grow weak“ (GNT). If God can give a 100 year old a baby and deliver an entire nation from captivity, He can meet your need. He will eliminate hopelessness from your situation and give you strength to keep going. When God is involved, it is never too late, never too far gone and never too hopeless. One word from Him and the situation will turn around. Receive His strength today to keep going and to trust Him.

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November 27, 2023 · 5:49 AM

Limitless

A couple of years ago, there was a concert my wife and I wanted to go to, but it sold out in minutes. My wife closed her eyes and prayed, “Lord, you know we would like to go. Can you please provide free tickets?” Honestly, I laughed when she said amen. She asked me what was so funny. I told her, “There’s no way anyone is going to give us free tickets to that concert. Everyone wants to go.” I didn’t think that God could or would answer that prayer. The day before the concert, she woke up to a text from someone offering us two tickets for free because they couldn’t go. I had to repent that morning for putting a limit on God.

In Genesis 18, two angels visited Abraham . He offered them food and drink for their journey. They asked him where Sarah was and he told them she was in the tent. Then in verse 10 one angel said, “Nine months from now I will come back, and your wife Sarah will have a son” (GNT). Sarah was behind him, at the door of the tent, listening and then laughed at the prophesy. There was no way God could answer that prayer in her mind. She was too old and Abraham was even older. However, nine months later she birthed a son and named him Isaac, which meant laughter. She had put a limit on God and He showed her He can do anything.

In Mark 10:27 Jesus said, “With people [as far as it depends on them] it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God” (AMP). What situation or need do you have right now that you’re laughing and saying, “There’s no way God could answer that”? You cannot put limits on a limitless God. Sure it is impossible for you or anyone else to accomplish, but there is nothing impossible for God to do. We can’t project our human restrictions on the Almighty. Today, change your laughter into prayer. Put what can’t be done in His hands and ask Him to do it. Yes, ask Him even about the thing that you haven’t even been willing to pray about because you think it is impossible. God is able to do abundantly more than you can even ask or think. He is limitless.

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October 17, 2023 · 5:39 AM

Complete Faith

I grew up hearing the stories of George Mueller. He was a man of faith who lived in the early 1800’s and cared for over 10,000 orphans in his lifetime. One morning the head mistress of the 300 children in the orphanage told him that the kids were dressed for school, but they didn’t have anything for breakfast or any money to purchase it. George told the kids to sit at the tables and they put out their place settings. He then thanked the Lord for providing food. Just then the local baker knocked on the door. He said he couldn’t sleep and thought the kids could use some bread. He baked all night and brought it to them. As soon as he left, there was another knock at the door. A milkman said his cart broke down just outside and he needed to get rid of the milk before it went bad. George kept a prayer journal and in it had over 50,000 times when God answered his prayers.

In Joshua 3, the Israelites had left the desert and were ready to enter the Promised Land. After a three day fast, the people consecrated themselves before entering. While Joshua was praying, God said, “Give this command to the priests who carry the Ark of the Covenant: ‘When you reach the banks of the Jordan River, take a few steps into the river and stop there’” (NLT). In order for them to be able cross the Jordan, they had to step into the mud and the water. When the priests, carrying the Ark of the Covenant, stepped into the water, God then stopped the river so they could pass through on dry ground. When everyone had crossed, the priests stepped out of the middle of the river and it began to flow again.

James 2 tells us how our faith and actions are interlinked. He used Abraham putting Isaac on the altar trusting God to provide as an example. In verse 22 it says, “You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete.” In almost every example I can find, people acted in faith before God answered their prayer. Not only did they ask God to provide or to help, they sat the kids down to eat, they stepped into a raging river and they tied up their son and raised the knife. Faith and action are interlinked. What is the step of faith God wants for from you for the prayers you’re asking Him for to be answered? Don’t just pray and believe. Act! Let your actions make your faith complete.

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August 31, 2023 · 5:30 AM

An Open Hand

To me, one of the most challenging things God has spoken to anyone in Scripture is in Genesis 12:1. “The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you’” (NLT). He was 75 years old at the time. He was well established, and yet God asked him to pack everything up and go to a destination that would be shown to him at a later time. His faith in action is inspiring to me. The Bible later says that his faith was counted at righteousness. That’s a faith we should all aspire to have.

Fast forward to the New Testament and Jesus spoke something very similar to all of us. In Luke 14:33 Jesus said, “So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.” Every one of us who follows Christ is given the same call that went out to Abram. I believe it’s God’s reminder to us that this place is not our home. Everything we have here is temporary and we can’t take it with us. We must be willing to let go of earthly things so we can receive from God the spiritual things He has for us. We can only do that if we have an open hand.

My wife and I try to be intentional with keeping an open hand with the possessions we have. When your hands are open to God, He can place things in them and take things out of them whenever He wants. Faith like Abraham’s is trusting God with all you have and with the direction of your life. You may not get to know the destination, but you still have to pack up and leave if He asks to walk away from everything that’s familiar to you. God’s greatest blessings are stored up for those who are willing to give Him whatever He asks for and for those who follow Him wherever He leads. What are you willing to let go of should God ask for it? Are you holding onto to earthly things too tightly? Pray that God would help you keep an open hand and heart then watch what He does.

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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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