Tag Archives: hope

April 22, 2014 · 7:47 AM

Nothing Is Too Hard For God

A friend of mine asked me to pray for his brother who was sick and being taken to the hospital. When he told me the diagnosis, I replied, “That’s not too hard for God.” The truth is that there is nothing too hard for Him. When we hear a diagnosis, run out of money, get our hearts broken, lose our job or anything else that affects the way we live, we tend to look at it with our human eyes. We see the impossibility of recovery instead of the God who makes all things possible. We see the negative instead of the positive.

We get so used to walking by sight that we box God in. We tell Him what He can do and can’t do. We limit His ability to make a way where there seems to be no way. We look at the situation we are trapped in and desperately try to find a way out, but all we see are blocked paths. Sometimes that’s the way it is. There’s no way out. “When God closes a door, look for a window” is not in the Bible. God allows us to be in those moments where there’s no way out so that He can show us that He’s still in charge. He wants to remind us that He is able. He wants to grow our faith.

Nothing drives us to our knees faster than being in a no way out situation. Nothing makes us depend on God more than to have no power over a situation. The Israelites were up against the Red Sea when they were leaving captivity in Egypt. Pharaoh and his army were closing in fast. There was no where to turn, no weapons to fight with and panic was setting in. They were exactly where God led them, yet they were cornered into a desperate situation. Instead of crying out to God, they complained and said they would have rather died as slaves than to be killed in the wilderness. They would have rather gone back to a life of sight than a life of faith.

In Exodus 14:13-14, Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent (ESV).” Think about that in the situation you are in today. Don’t fear. Don’t panic. Stay calm and trust God. He will work for you today. Then it says that The Lord will fight for you. He will fight your battle so you don’t have to. You only have to be silent. Just stand back and watch God work.

He sees your situation. In fact, it’s part of His plan for your life. He’s growing you through the tough times. When your back is against the wall and there’s no way out, that’s when God does the most amazing things. It takes us not acting in fear in those times to see the victory. It takes us holding on to God’s Word to get us through. The outcome may not be the way we thought it should have happened, but it will happen the way God intended it to. No one in Israel thought The Lord would part the Red Sea. His answer may not come in the way you think it will, but it will come right on time. Remember, there is nothing too hard for God.

“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me? (Jeremiah 32:27 ESV)

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March 11, 2014 · 7:40 AM

The Hope Of Heaven

As we sat around the dinner table last night, the conversation began to focus on Heaven. We went around the table asking who would be the first person we would want to meet in Heaven aside from Jesus. As we discussed different people from the Bible, I decided to post on Facebook asking others who they would like to meet. I was surprised by their answers. Instead of people from the Bible, most came back with family members they had never met. Several spoke of children they had lost through miscarriage.

What I read in other’s replies was there are so many of us who live our lives with the hope of being reunited and being made complete. Family units will be as they could have been. We’ll be able to see from one end of the family tree to the other. Heaven, for many, will be a great big family reunion. We’ll be joined together with families who were with us here on earth and with fellow heirs of Christ. I don’t know how it will work or how we will be known, but I do know that There is a great cloud of witnesses cheering us on to complete our race. Those who have gone on before don’t want us to quit.

When I think of eternity and the prize that is waiting, it always encourages me to keep going. Let’s face it, living how God called us to live isn’t easy. It’s difficult to be successful at it in a world that cheers us on to live like them. There are days where it’s just easier to quit running this race than to take another step forward. There are times when things happen that we don’t understand and we want to be angry at God. In those moments when I get frustrated and doubt that God really cares, I think of those who have already made it to Heaven and how I want to see them. I look beyond the pain of today to what is to come.

Yes, life is full of loss, hurt and pain, but God didn’t leave us without hope. He gave us the Comforter to guide us and to remind us of God’s promises. He gave us the hope of being reunited with lost loved ones. He gave us that cloud of witnesses who are cheering for you to keep going. Can you hear them? Can you imagine them standing all around you wanting you to complete the race? When I doubt or want to quit, I hear those cheers and it encourages me to keep going. They’re cheering for you too. Your family members, unborn children and a host of others will be waiting at the finish line to welcome you home. You just have to keep running even when they’ve gone on before you.

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March 7, 2014 · 7:47 AM

Free From Drifting

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It’s Free Friday! Today is the day you let go of the things in your life that keep you down or hold you back. To celebrate, I’m giving away “Great Leaders Grow: Becoming A Leader For Life” by Ken Blanchard and Mark Miller. Keep reading to find out how to enter.

I grew up playing in creeks that were near my house. When I would visit my grandmother, we would cross a huge cow pasture and go down to the creek to swing on vines and jump in it. Later in life, I went to the Frio river in west Texas to float down it. I’ve even been to the Nile river and taken a sail boat out on it several times. One thing I’ve learned about creeks and rivers is that they always take the path of least resistance. The get to their destination, but it takes a lot longer than it has to because they twist and wind instead of going on a straight line.

In life, I’ve found that I’m not much different than a river at times. I’ve let my life wander and meander wherever it took me. I’ve lost site of where I was going a time or two. I’ve been beat against the rocks and sent a different direction. I’ve forgotten where I was headed and pooled up at that spot. Something will inevitably happen, the dam will break and off I go again to wherever life takes me. Does that sound like you too? I don’t think that’s how God intended us to live our lives though.

I believe we are to live our lives on purpose. I believe we are to make paths where there aren’t any. God doesn’t want us to meander through life taking the path of least resistance. He wants us to pursue Him and go to the places where others won’t. He wants us to be leaders, not followers. He put in each one of us the ability to grow and the ability to lead. Too often we only think of ourselves as followers because we’re all following somebody. We forget to look behind us and see that there are others who are following us. Don’t believe me? Look at your Facebook page. How many friends do you have following you? Exactly! Some may have more than others, but each of us have someone following us.

It’s important that we lead with purpose and conviction. It’s important that we grow. I heard Harry Connick, Jr. say something profound this week. He said, “Do the things that are hard. Do the things that are uncomfortable and you’ll get better.” He’s saying that we won’t get better or grow unless we’re willing to do things that are not on the path of least resistance. He’s saying we have to do things that push us out of our normal, every day routines if we’re going to grow. If you want a better relationship with God, get up earlier and spend more time with Him. If you want more understanding of scripture, take a Bible course. If you want to be a better leader, force yourself to grow.

I like to tell people that I grow the most when I fail. I only fail when I take risks that put me in position to fail. I also gain the most ground when those risks pay off. It’s all about perspective. Failure to me is an opportunity to grow and get better. It’s a way to learn how not to do something. I don’t look at it as embarrassing or demoralizing. It’s actually energizing and challenging. Whether you fail taking a risk in life or for Christ, you will learn something new. You will find growth. Don’t just take the path of least resistance. Make a straight line for your goal and get there. Paul said that he pressed on for the (not drifted to the) high calling and we should too!

If you would like to win “Great Leaders Grow” by Ken Blanchard and Mark Miller, all you have to do is go to my Facebook page here and “like” it. I will randomly pick one person tomorrow (March 8, 2014) who has liked my page. If you have already liked my page and enjoy reading these daily devotionals, you are already entered. Please invite your friends to like my page so they can receive encouragement from God’s Word too.

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March 5, 2014 · 7:51 AM

Where Everybody Knows Your Name

When I think back to the time in my life when I was hurting inside deeply, I think back to what I did, where I went who I hung out with. I was reeling from a wife who left me for another man, a business that was failing and the possibility of having to file bankruptcy. Instead of finding my strength and help in the church, I turned away. I was ashamed of everything that was happening in my life and I didn’t want to admit to those who knew me what was going on. I was embarrassed at what was happening so I disappeared.

I found myself in a bar each night trying to numb the pain. I found new friends who wouldn’t know who I was and could accept me for who I was just forced to become. People from the church tried to reach out, but I ignored them because now I was floating further from the person I was supposed to be. After a while the calls slowed from the church and they picked up from my bar friends. I sat in the bar each night feeling sorry for myself and for who I was becoming.

There was a plaque on the wall behind the bar that read, “In times of trouble, friends are recognized.” I remembered thinking, these are my real friends. They’re the ones who are here during my time of trouble. I blamed the church for not helping me when I’m the one who left. I’m the one who didn’t return the calls of the few who did try to reach out. I felt like I had been abandoned by the church and embraced by the people in the bar, but I wasn’t being me. I was being the person who was letting my circumstances define me.

I knew life there was hallow and would be temporary, but I enjoyed the anonymity and lack of expectations. The while time, I knew that wasn’t who I was, however I was changing slowly into that person without realizing it. One afternoon, a co-workers husband asked me, “When was the last time you were in church?” I let him know it had been a while. He looked me in the eye and said, “Boy, you need to be where people really love you and can help you. Your church doesn’t care what’s happened. They will love you anyway. You need to be around them so they can help nurse you back to health.”

For those of you who are in the position I was in, my church did accept me back. They loved me no matter what. The fears that people would talk about me or reject me were unfounded. Those thoughts were used to keep me away from where I needed to be. The truth is that only those who knew the real me had the ability to truly love me. They are the ones who had the power to bring healing. If you’re tired of running, hiding and pretending to be someone you’re not, it’s time to go back to church for healing.

For those of you in the church, when you see those who have left come back, they need your love and acceptance more than you know. They need your unconditional love to nurse them through the pain. Be like the father in the parable of the Prodigal Son. Instead of asking where they’ve been or what they’ve done, open your arms, run to them, wrap them in love and make them feel welcome. It’s harder than you think to walk back through those doors and face people you think you’ve disappointed. Don’t make it more difficult on them by shunning them or ignoring them. They need a friend, not a judge.

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February 21, 2014 · 8:12 AM

Free From Discouragement

It’s Free Friday! Today is the day you let go of the things in your life that keep you down or hold you back. To celebrate, I’m giving away “The Favor of God: Embrace All God Has Prepared For You” by Jerry Savelle. Keep reading to find out how to enter.

My plan today was to write about getting free of discouragement, but an accident blocked the freeway and ate up all the time I had to write. I began to get discouraged just sitting there thinking that I wouldn’t be able to write today. I didn’t think of the people who were in the accident having a much worse day. I imagine they must be a lot more discouraged than I was. What about the other people who were in traffic who may lost their job because they’re showing up an hour late? None of us got off to the morning we thought we’d have when we woke up. None of us got to do the things we thought we were going to get done this morning.

The difference in a believer’s life is that we don’t have to stay discouraged when circumstances alter our plans. We don’t have to crumble when life throws a curve ball. It’s human and natural to get discouraged in bad situations. It’s the Holy Spirit living in us that reminds us where our hope is. My hope is not in man’s ability. My hope is not in the plans I have made. My hope is in The Lord. The way this morning started off was no surprise to God. He knew my plans would be thrown out of the window before I did. He knew that I would face set backs. He knew that things would happen in my life that were beyond my control.

What He wants me to know is that He’s in control. He’s my source of hope, my source of strength and my provider. He alone is the one who can bring encouragement when I can’t seem to find any hope. I just have to remember to look for Him when things aren’t going right. I have to remember that circumstances can’t affect my praise. I have to quit focusing on the negative outcomes of my situation and focus on the One who can turn it into a positive. I have to remember the one who has carved out my path, drew out the blueprint for my life and orders my steps. He is where I find my hope and encouragement on days like this.

I leave you with what David wrote when his circumstances changed his plans and life. He said, “Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Savior and my God! Now I am deeply discouraged, but I will remember you. (Psalms 42:5, 6 NLT)” Even the psalmist, the guy after God’s own heart, the man who constantly praised had times of discouragement. He told us what he did in those times. He remembered the God he served. We can do the same.

If you would like to win the “The Favor of God” by Jerry Savelle, all you have to do is go to my Facebook page here and “like” it. I will randomly pick one person tomorrow (February 22, 2014) who has liked my page. If you have already liked my page and enjoy reading these daily devotionals, you are already entered. Please invite your friends to like my page so they can receive encouragement from God’s Word too.

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February 11, 2014 · 7:25 AM

The Garment Still Fits

I was speaking with a friend who is a pastor a while back. We were talking about ministry, living the Christian life and the struggles faced by those who walk away from their faith for a period of time in their life. I shared with them my story and my calling. I talked about how in the past I couldn’t see how God could still use me since my calling came before my falling away. I felt like I needed to be perfect to fulfill the role God had designed just for me and I had wrecked it. For a long time that is what kept me up at night. I knew there was no way God could use me after how I had lived.

They shared with me the story of their child who has walked away after having been raised in church. They told me about the struggles they face, not just as a pastor, but as a parent who has a child not walking in the way they were taught. With tears in our eyes I began to share my journey back and how I’ve come to the point that I believe God can still use me despite my past and how He can actually use that to His advantage. They looked at me and said, “it was no surprise to God that you walked away or came back. He knew what paths you were going to take. He took that into consideration when He designed your robe of righteousness. And you know what? The garment still fits.”

When you look at Ephesians 2:10, you see that we are God’s masterpiece. He has created you and I with a purpose in mind. When a sculptor is creating a piece of art and they come to an imperfection in the stone, they don’t start over. They don’t even try to cut that part out of the stone. They take those blemishes, those imperfection and they incorporate it into the art work. The imperfections that threaten the future of the masterpiece are what make it unique and are what really sets it apart as a work of art. The sculptor starts each project knowing there’s no perfect stone and knows they will have to work with imperfections to make each piece work.

The second part of that verse says, “He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” He knew long ago the life each of us were going to live. He knew long ago each of us would mess up. He knew we would have imperfections, sins, disabilities and doubts. He designed all of that into the plan He made for each one of us. It doesn’t matter if you found out the plan He has for your life before you walked away, after you walked away or are seeking it out. He has built the plan for your life around the things that would happen to you and the paths that you would take. He took all that into consideration and the garment still fits you.

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February 4, 2014 · 7:46 AM

Where’s Jesus?

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Have you ever looked through any of the “Where’s Waldo” books by Martin Handford? I have always loved those books. I’ve spent countless hours as a kid, and an adult, looking for the guy in red and white. I’ve scoured beaches, mountain sides, city squares, circuses and more trying to find him. Sometimes I find him quickly and other times it takes me a while, but I always find him. Why? Because I don’t give up when I don’t see him right away. I keep looking. Sometimes I think I’ve found him, but it’s just someone drew into the picture in similar clothes to keep me off the trail.

We can use the same principles of finding Waldo to find Jesus. The first thing we have to do is start looking. We have to be willing to look through every square inch of what’s around us in order to find Him. We have to be willing to see some crazy things, some funny things and some mundane things if we’re going to find Him. We have to be willing to spend some time seeking Him out. He’s able to be found, but it requires that we spend some time doing it. We can’t give up when we don’t find Him right away.

Sometimes when I need to find Him, He’s easy to point out. I can get my answer and move on with life. Other times, it takes hours, days, months, even years to find Him. During those longer periods, it’s tough to keep going. When we aren’t rewarded quickly for our diligence, we get discouraged. We feel like failures and want to give up. I get it. You feel like you’re living in a barren wasteland while you look. You wonder if God has forgotten you and begin to think He must get pleasure from hiding from you. I can tell you that He wants to be found. He just wants to know how far you will go to get what you want.

In Jeremiah 29:13-14 God says, “When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. Yes, when you get serious about find me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed (MSG).” We have to be serious about finding Him. It can’t be a half hearted glance. We need to really seek Him out when we must have an answer. He also said we have to want to find Him more than anything else. More than food. More than our job. More than oxygen. More than our next heartbeat. When we seek Him with that kind of intensity, we won’t be disappointed.

Have you been half-heartedly seeking Him or have you been on your knees desperately seeking Him? Have you turned over ever rock looking for Him? Jesus promised that if we would seek, we would find. If we ask, we’ll be given. If we knock, it’ll be opened. Finding Jesus usually doesn’t come easy. It requires us to do work. It requires us to make serious sacrifices. Don’t give up in your search for Him. He’s wanting you to find Him for the answer you’ve been waiting on. He just needs you to spend more time, give a stronger effort and to look harder than you ever have. I promise He’s there in front of you. Block out the look a likes and all the crazy distractions and you’ll see Him.

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January 28, 2014 · 6:31 AM

The Feast of Shelters

I was reading recently in II Chronicles 7 where Solomon was dedicating the temple. During the celebration, they celebrated the Feast of Shelters. I wasn’t as familiar with that feast as Pentecost, Jubilee, Rosh Hashanah or others. I looked it up to find out more about it and found something interesting. To help Israel remember how their ancestors wandered the desert for 40 years as nomads, they would live in temporary shelters for seven days. Some would sleep on the porch of their homes, others would camp out, some would build lean to shelters and some would build temporary booths.

The shelter they stayed in needed to make sure they were exposed to the elements. If it got cold, they shivered. If it rained, they got wet. If it was hot, they sweat. All of this to remember that their ancestors didn’t have permanent dwellings like they did. It was meant as a link to their past, but for me, it’s a link to our future. These bodies we live in are our temporary shelters. We live like nomads in them moving around all over the world. We think they’re our permanent home, but like the Israelites, we look forward to going to the Promised Land and getting our permanent homes.

II Corinthians 5:1 says, “For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in Heaven, an eternal body made for us by God Himself…” Paul referred to our bodies as tents which is what the people of Israel lived in while they wandered the desert. It’s a temporary home. The problem is that we have lived this way for so long that we’ve forgotten it’s temporary and have made ourselves comfortable in them. We are only wandering here making our way to our permanent home.

These tents we live in have us exposed to the elements of life. They don’t really protect us from tragedy, problems, storms or outside forces. We feel the full force of things and hurt deeply. When we get our new bodies, our permanent ones, we will have shelter from those things. In fact, Scripture says we won’t even shed a tear in Heaven. There will be no more death either. Those permanent homes won’t be susceptible to the things that these temporary ones are. We will look back at these bodies and thank God we’re not in them anymore.

Instead of looking back at the past and reliving the hurt and exposure to life’s elements, look forward to a time when we won’t have to worry about such things. Yes, we are still living in these tents and are still being exposed to the problems here, but looking forward can help us endure the elements. Knowing that a day is coming when we’ll have protection against such things should give you strength and courage to move forward instead of being stick in the past. God wants each one of us to move forward and to think about the future He has for us. He told us about such a time because He knew it would give us hope, and hope is a powerful thing in a temporary storm.

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January 27, 2014 · 6:39 AM

You Are Not Out Of The Fight

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Last night I got to watch “Lone Survivor”. It was a moving experience like I haven’t had in a movie in a long time. When the movie was over, everyone just sat in their seats in silence. You could hear the sniffles from people crying. No one said a word as they exited. It was a very humbling thing to experience that movie. The mental and physical toughness that it took to survive was incredible. Marcus Luttrell, the lone survivor, left me with one phrase from the movie: You are not out of the fight.

I think that’s something each of us can adopt. We are each faced with hardships in our lives. Some are physical, some are mental and some are relational. We reach our breaking point because of our situation. We get pushed to our limits and feel like we can’t go on. We question if we really should, if it’s even worth it. Our faith falls through our hands like sand and we wonder where God is in our problems. We cling to what little hope we can find to survive the next go around. Just when we think we’re free, we start getting hammered again.

If you are breathing, you are not out of the fight. You have the ability to survive. God placed in you a spirit of power, love and a sound mind. You’ll need all three to make sure you are not out of the fight. You need power to stand when that’s all you can do. You need power to push forward when everything in life is trying to pull you backwards. God’s strength is made perfect in your weakness. When you realize you can’t do this on your own, His power, His strength will come in to help you make it.

You need love to give you a reason to live. There are things left in this life for you to experience. There is a new life out there waiting for you and it will only happen if you make it through. Going through hard times helps us to know what’s important in life. All the fluff, the temporary things and the things that don’t matter seem to disappear when hard times come. When all the things that don’t really matter in life are gone, you’re left with those who love you and you can start fresh with things that matter.

Finally, you need a sound mind to stay in the fight. Mental toughness and the will to survive are required. You must win the battle of the mind. That’s why God gives you a sound mind. Control the thoughts that come in and want to talk you into giving in. Bring every thought captive. Put God’s Word in so you have something to meditate on rather than everything that’s going on. If you look at the battle with your own eyes and mind, you’ll give up. If you look at it with the sound mind God gives, you’ll never be out of the fight.

On a side note, I’d like to say, “Thank you” to each of you who have served, are serving or have family in the military. I know thank you will never be enough, but it carries deep weight.

If you’d like to check out the review my friend Wade Bearden wrote on “Lone Survivor” for “Christianity Today”, click here.

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January 22, 2014 · 7:54 AM

Tips For Rebuilding

Rebuilding is hard work even when you have help. As Nehemiah worked to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, there were many who opposed him. People came along and taunted him, “If a fox climbed that wall, it would fall to pieces under his weight.” Others planned to attack them as they built. They didn’t want the wall rebuilt and the people living in safety. There were internal distractions from arguments among the workers too. It seemed that everything and everyone was against the rebuilding of the wall, but Nehemiah kept at it. He prayed and encouraged those daily who we’re rebuilding. He kept their focus on the job at hand.

Each one of us have times of rebuilding in our lives. Sometimes that rebuilding is more like a remodel. Sometimes it’s repairing holes in our wall that were created from bad decisions. Other times the whole wall around our lives lies in ruins. Everything we had or worked hard to build crumbled and fell right in front of us. It makes you feel lost, unprotected and vulnerable. There’s so much work to do to rebuild that you don’t know where to start. You want to just give up and live in the ruins. You try to rebuild one part of your life and another falls down. It’s hopeless.

I think that’s how he people of Jerusalem were in the book of Nehemiah. They had gotten used to living in the ruble and had quit trying to rebuild. Their lives were sad. They had no joy or sense of protection. They had to rely on others to protect them and were treated poorly. It wasn’t until Nehemiah came along and got them excited about rebuilding that they began to change back into who they were made to be. He encouraged them daily, prayed over them and helped them rebuild the walls. He helped them protect themselves against attacks and rebuilt their confidence with the building of the wall.

Yes, there were distractions, times where the work slowed down and people who tried to hold them back. There will be the same things in your life when you try to repair or rebuild your life. There will be people who try to hold you down, pull you backwards or taunt you. Nehemiah didn’t get down off the wall or stop working though. Instead, he set up people at the breaches in the wall to stand guard. He had the workers rebuild with one hand and hold a sword in their other.

You will need to ask people to stand in the gaps for you where you’re most vulnerable. You’ll need to stay in the Bible constantly as it is your weapon. Ephesians 6 says, “Take the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” The Message calls it an “indispensable weapon”. There will be those who oppose you. Stay constant in prayer so that you hear God’s voice above theirs. Above all, never give up. Keep working. Keep building. Don’t get used to living in the ruins. God’s desire is that you rebuild. Find someone who will encourage you daily to keep building and who will pray for you. Before you know it, the walls will be repaired and new life can begin.

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