Tag Archives: trusting God

May 22, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Wait Patiently

Have you ever prayed for patience? If you haven’t, don’t try it! I’m kidding. It turns out that when you pray for patience, God typically doesn’t just give it to you. Instead, you will earn patience through a series of events that will try your patience. I don’t really have patience when I see things that need to be done. I start doing the work to get it done whether it’s the right time or not. There are times when my wife has to make me stop and wait to do things. I’d rather do them right then and get the satisfaction of completing the task than to wait. I’m also competitive, and with that comes comparison. If someone else is doing more, working harder, completing tasks or succeeding where I think I should be, it drives me to push forward without rest. I easily lose sight of the bigger picture, and I forget that patience and steadiness bring success and blessings.

I don’t think Abraham and Sarah were very patient either. When God made the promise that he would be the father of many nations, Abram was 75 years old. When his wife didn’t immediately get pregnant, I’m sure He doubted God, or did what we do when we run out of patience, and took matters into his own hands. Because they didn’t wait for the promise, Abraham got another woman pregnant thinking that he was doing God a favor or enacting His plan for Him. It was 25 years after the promise that he had Isaac through his wife. If he thought he was too old to have kids at 75, imagine what he was thinking as he approached 100. Yet, because God told him to wait for the promise, he did.

Psalm 37:7 says, “Be patient and wait for the Lord to act; don’t be worried about those who prosper or those who succeed in their evil plans” (GNT). I love that this verse speaks to our focus. Quit looking at what other people are accomplishing, and thinking about how you wish you were farther along at this point in your life. Be patient and wait for God’s timing. There’s a greater blessing for us when we do. Put your focus back on being faithful where you are, doing the little things, and God will reward you in due season. I know how hard that is, but it is the right thing to do. Even though you may be able to act now, be patient. God is using this time to prepare you for the blessings that are coming so that when His time is right, you won’t squander what He gives you.

Photo by Serkan Göktay on Pexels.

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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May 21, 2025 · 5:37 AM

Provision And Protection

I love reading stories of George Muller. He was a German man who helped over 10,000 orphans. He lived completely by faith. One morning he knew the pantry was empty, but the kids needed to eat. He sat them all down at their tables for breakfast and prayed to thank God for their food. Not long after saying, “Amen,” there was a knock on the door. A baker said the Lord woke him up in the middle of the night to bake bread for the kids. He handed over enough bread for them to eat. Then there was another knock on the door. A milk delivery wagon got stuck and offered them all their milk. God provided for their need.

In 1 Samuel 21, Saul was trying to kill David out of jealousy. Jonathan warned him and he fled to the town of Nob, which was the spiritual center of Israel at the time. He was hungry and tired from his journey as he entered the tabernacle. The priest saw him and wanted to know why he was there. David told him he was on a mission, but needed food. The on,y thing available was the bread reserved for priests. Verse 6 says, “Since there was no other food available, the priest gave him the holy bread—the Bread of the Presence that was placed before the Lord in the Tabernacle. It had just been replaced that day with fresh bread” (NLT). This bread represented God provision and protection for Israel. Ahimelech, the priest, understood God’s compassion and provided the bread to David.

Isaiah 55:1 says, “Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink— even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine or milk— it’s all free!” God’s blessings and provision are freely given to us. They can’t be earned. He’s looking for those who are spiritually hungry and thirst to come to the place of His presence. He’s waiting for those who come to the place where they realize they can’t do everything on their own and must live by faith. When we come to that place, He offers provision and protection for us. When we realize we have nothing but what He offers is when we realize we have everything. What God offers can only be bought with desire, humility and surrender. It can be scary to stand there with nothing the way George Muller and David did, but they both trusted God to provide and He did.

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May 20, 2025 · 5:35 AM

God’s Training Ground

One of the things God does is shape us in unseen moments. I talk to so many people who share wisdom with me that fought battles in obscurity. One person recently shared how her mom abandoned she and her brother when she was a teen. She raised him like she was a single mom as she put herself through college and taught Sunday school. Her husband told me that he found out about that while dating her. He realized the character she had because she had and knew that was shaping her to be a great mother and wife. She had men who wouldn’t date her because she was raising her brother. Now they have grown children of their own and decades of marriage behind them.

In 1 Samuel 17, Goliath was taunting the army of Israel and defying God. All of their untested and untrained warriors fled in fear. For forty days he came out twice a day challenging them, but no one rose to the occasion until David showed up. In verses 34-36 David told Saul, “When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock, I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. I have done this to both lions and bears, and I’ll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the armies of the living God!” (NLT) David’s confidence came from private victories in battles where he learned to trust God. He knew God would show up and defeat the giant.

1 Peter 5:6 says, “So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.” We often want greater exposure without having through God’s training ground of obscurity. We want public victories without winning private battles. However, we must remain humble and learn to trust God in the dark before He shines the light on us. Obscurity is not abandonment. David’s years of watching sheep even after he had been anointed king, were used to grow and prepare him. He had more private battles to face before he could lead the nation’s army. God will lift you up at the right time. Until then, learn and grow as much as you can in God’s training ground.

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May 13, 2025 · 5:35 AM

The Stone Of Help

Whenever I visit Washington D.C., I make time to stop in at Ebenezer’s Coffeehouse. It’s a few blocks from the Capitol building. Several years ago I read the story of how a church was looking for ways to intersect with the world. There was an abandoned building turned crack house that they wanted to buy. They didn’t have a lot of money and others were bidding on it. After several big prayers and trusting God, they were awarded the building. They created Ebenezer’s. On the coffee sleeves, you’ll find, “SFSG.” It stands for, “So far, so God.” God has helped them along the way, and they keep trusting Him. I go there as a reminder that God answers big prayers and needs.

In 1 Samuel 7, we read the story of when the Philistines returned the Ark to Israel after having taken it in battle. Samuel called all of Israel together to call them to repentance in front of the Ark. the Philistines thought they were gearing up for war and showed up to attack them. They called on God for help and He fought their battle for them. Verse 12 says, “Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and he named it Ebenezer (stone of help), saying, ‘Thus far the Lord has helped us’” (AMP). That stone became a reminder to the people of Israel that God shows up and helps.

Isaiah 50:7 says, “For the Lord God helps Me, Therefore, I have not been ashamed or humiliated. Therefore, I have made My face like flint, And I know that I shall not be put to shame.” We all need markers in our lives to remind us of times when God showed up and answered a big prayer. Our memories are short and we forget the next time we’re faced with an impossibly. It’s important that we appreciate previous victories from God and also learn to stay dependent on Him for future ones. So far God has helped you. He is an ever present help in our time of need (Psalm 46:1). Revisit the Ebenezers of your life often and keep trusting God to help you.

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May 12, 2025 · 5:35 AM

Seasonal Opportunities

Life is full of seasons. Some only last for a short time, while others seems to go on for years. The writer of Ecclesiastes said there is a time and season for everything. There’s a season to plant, and one to harvest. There’s a season to build and one for tearing down. There’s are seasons of plenty of, and some of scarcity. The writer lists several verses of these seasons in chapter 3. Too many times though, we’re looking to get out of the season we’re in, or we’re simply looking ahead to what’s next. What happens in those cases is that we miss the opportunities God had for us in our current season.

The life of Joseph, found in Genesis 37-50, goes through many seasons in his life. He messed up during the season of being favored by his father. However, he made the most of his season of being a slave in Potiphar’s house. He was promoted because he worked hard during that period. When he was falsely accused and sent to prison for years, he took advantage of that opportunity. He even continued to be faithful after he was forgotten. Eventually the seasons of plenty and famine came. During that time, he took every opportunity available and was reunited with his family.

Proverbs 10:5 says, “He who gathers during summer and takes advantage of his opportunities is a son who acts wisely, But he who sleeps during harvest and ignores the moment of opportunity is a son who acts shamefully” (AMP). I don’t know what season you’re in right now, but I know God has opportunities for you in it. Don’t be so dismayed or in a hurry to get out of it. You may miss what God has for you. Joseph was able to be blessed and promoted in each season he was in because he acted wisely. We never read of him complaining about the seasons he went through. Instead, we can see how God was with him, even in his season of being forgotten. Today, ask God to show you what opportunities He has for you in this season, and ask Him to help you to take advantage of them.

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May 2, 2025 · 5:53 AM

Defiant Trust

One of my favorite things about the book of Job is that pulls the veil back for us. We get to read how Satan went to Heaven and sought permission to test Job. We know it was Satan causing all the calamity, death and loss for Job. However, Job didn’t get to know about that. He went through all his loss having to trust God and not blame Him. It’s easy to trust God when you’re living the blessed life, but can you still trust Him when everything is slipping through your fingers and it feels like He’s out to get you? Job fell and worshipped in that moment. In the face of such loss, Job showed defiant trust in God.

Here are some Bible verses on trusting God:

1. Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. Even so, I will defend my own ways before Him.

Job 13:15 NKJV

2. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you.

Psalms 37:5 NLT

3. Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 NKJV

4. But in the day that I’m afraid, I lay all my fears before you and trust in you with all my heart.

Psalms 56:3 TPT

5. Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which can never be shaken, never be moved.

Psalm 125:1 GNT

Photo by Max Andrey on Pexels.

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May 1, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Quit Panicking

One of the most common Christian myths many of us believe is that when I do what God asks me to, there won’t be any issues and things will go smoothly. For me, it seems like when I step out in faith and do what God asks, things often start going wrong. There are times it feels like I’ve jumped out of an airplane, but I’m not the one who gets to pull the cord on the parachute. The ground starts getting closer and I start to panic. I cry out, “God, where are you? Did you tell me to do this? Why haven’t you worked on my behalf yet? Don’t you care about my reputation? My family? I thought you were going to work out everything for my good.” At that point, it’s easy to start questioning if I really heard God or if I’m really in His will because I’m looking at external factors and I’m believing the myth that everything should be smooth sailing when I’m in His will through obedience.

In Mark 4, after a long day of teaching, night was falling and Jesus said, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the lake” (TPT). They all piled in a boat, and several people from the crowd got in boats to follow them across the lake. Being tired from teaching, Jesus decided to call it a night. He laid down and fell asleep. That’s when a ferocious storm came rolling in with violent winds that were rocking the boat and causing it to take on so much water that they were afraid of sinking. In verse 39, they had a similar prayer to mine. They woke Jesus up and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re all about to die?” Jesus, once He was fully awake, steps out, rebukes the wind and calms the sea. I’m sure He gave them a disappointed look as He said, “Why are you so afraid? Haven’t you learned to trust yet?”

Those words are ringing in my ears today as I shift my focus from my circumstances to who He is. When things don’t go the way we thought they should after our obedience, fear creeps in. Fear of failure. Fear of being embarrassed. Fear of going broke. Fear of our own ship going down. The storm you’re in may be great, but He is greater. It may feel like He’s asleep, but He knows what you’re going through. Push through the fear and panic, and trust that if He’s called you to it, He’ll get you through it. A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor, and easy times never stretch our faith. Yes, it might have been a big leap you took, but your faith has so much more room to grow. Now is not the time for panic. It’s the time for prayer and faith. He hasn’t ever failed you, and He won’t start failing you today.

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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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April 14, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Divine Interruptions

I didn’t grow up in a church that taught any of the reflective practices of Lent, so when my first ministry job was at a church that did, I had some learning to do. As we approached Easter, I had the opportunity to travel to Israel. I remember making it a point to walk down the Via Dolorosa and stopping at the different stations of the cross before finishing at the Garden Tomb. At Station Five, I came across a man I knew little about. His name was Simon of Cyrene. Mark 15:21 says, “A passerby named Simon, who was from Cyrene, was coming in from the countryside just then, and the soldiers forced him to carry Jesus’ cross. (Simon was the father of Alexander and Rufus)” (NLT). He was coming in to celebrate the Passover, and through divine interference, he was forced to carry Jesus’ cross, which changed the trajectory of his family. Paul and Luke mention Simon’s sons listed here in their letters to the Early Church.

Take a moment to look back at your life when things seemed to go off the rails. Can you now see God’s hand in those moments? Simon didn’t know it, but when he was forced to carry the cross, he was able to see the Son of God up close. Like the Roman guard, he must have had a moment when he realized who Jesus really was. While he was on his way to sacrifice a Passover lamb, he came face to face with the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. I can see him rejoining his sons at the foot of Calvary, exhausted from the journey. I wonder if he stood near John and Mary as Jesus spoke to them. Did he cry as Jesus said, “It is finished”? I don’t know any of these answers, but I do know that he was chosen by God for this moment. It was no accident that he was the person the guards grabbed.

This story has me reflecting on divine interruptions in my life. In the moment, they take me off schedule, mess up my day, and wreck my plans. Divine interruptions can be frustrating in the moment, but I’ve learned that divine interruptions are where transformation begins. Proverbs 19:21 says, “You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail” (NLT). His purposes often conflict with my plans. When I start to complain, I’ve learned to stop and ask, “Lord, is this You?” I’ve been divinely interrupted enough to know to be grateful when He does interrupt me. I want His transformation and purposes to prevail in my life. Without those intersections, I would simply stay on my current trajectory. What about you? Are you willing to invite God to divinely interrupt your plans in this season of Lent?

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April 10, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Learning Through Pain

One of the mantras that I’ve heard for a while is, “Change before you have to.” I wasn’t always sure what that meant, but I’ve found out a few times in my life and wished I had. Many times the Holy Spirit has sounded the warning alarms in my life, and many of those times I’ve hit the snooze button. His warnings are letting us know that if we continue on the path we’re on, we’re headed for trouble. When I’ve disregarded them, I’ve fallen flat on my face and gone through some painful times as a result of my sin. Sometimes I’m so hard headed and want to do things my own way that the only way I’ll listen or make the necessary changes in my life are to go through a painful time so that next time I’ll listen. God is more concerned with our holiness than our comfort.

It’s hard to put some things in perspective as you read the Bible. In some books, you may cover hundreds of years of history. I keep thinking, “How did they mess up again so quickly? Why won’t they learn?” Yet, their track record is better than mine a lot of the times. In Deuteronomy 30:19 God said He sets before us life and death, blessings and cursing, and that the choice is ours. He wants us to choose life, but when we don’t, their are painful consequences to help us to turn back to Him and to remind us not to go down that path again. It works for a while, but our brains are bent toward trying to do things our way instead of His. Pain is often one of the best motivators for our brain, and it can condition it to not repeat mistakes.

God knows you and I aren’t perfect. He knows we’re going to mess up. Thankfully He doesn’t wipe His hands clean of us and give up. His grace is greater than our biggest mistakes and His offer of forgiveness is open to us. God will do whatever it takes to bring us back, even if it means pain, discomfort or embarrassment. Proverbs 20:30 says, “Sometimes it takes a painful experience to make us change our ways” (GNT). He knows there are a lot of stubborn people like myself who need those painful reminders to come back home. The Prodigal Son lasted in his painful experience as long as he could before he finally decided to go back home. You and I have the same opportunity to return to a waiting Father who will run to us, love us and put the family robe and ring back on our finger if only we will return.

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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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April 9, 2025 · 5:43 AM

Obedience Brings Victory

Have you ever felt God leading you to do something that didn’t make sense? I’ve felt that way several times. Once I was facing a serious challenge to my character. My initial strategy was to go on the defensive and then attack. As I mapped out my plans, God had a different strategy in mind. It was to be still and quiet. It was the opposite of what I felt should happen. What I wanted to do made sense, and what God was asking didn’t. I had a choice to make. I could choose to do what made sense or I could obey. I decided to obey. What God asked me to do worked out better than anything I could have done.

In Joshua 6, the Israelites faced their first enemy in the Promised Land. Jericho had thick, intimidating walls. Israel didn’t have siege equipment or battering rams. I’m sure Joshua met with his military leaders to devise a strategy. Then he met the captain of the Lord’s army. He was told to simply march quietly around the walls for seven days. On the seventh trip around the wall on the seventh day, they were to blast trumpets and shout. It didn’t make sense, but Joshua had learned that victory comes through obedience. He followed God’s strategy, rather than his own, and God destroyed what had been impossible and intimidating.

Zechariah 4:6 says, “The angel told me to give Zerubbabel this message from the Lord: ‘You will succeed, not by military might or by your own strength, but by my spirit’” (GNT). So much in life depends on obedience to what God desires for us to do. However, we must first stop and ask what He wants in each situation. I don’t know what intimidating walls you’re facing today, but I do know that His strategy will work better than yours. It may not make sense or seem like the right thing to do in the moment. It might even seem crazy or counterintuitive, but remember that obedience brings victory. Follow His leading and plan, then watch the walls fall before your eyes.

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