“He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalm 1:3

All over my neighborhood the Jacaranda and Crepe Myrtle trees are blooming. Walking through my local park is like walking through a glorious overhead flower garden. Yet just a few short months ago these branches were void of greenery. At one point I began to imagine what it would be like for someone who grew up on a tropical island with no contact to the outside world. Now that person suddenly has the ability to come to my neighborhood in winter to visit a wise old grandfather who they have never met. The visitor would immediately think, what kind of a place is this, there is no life here. Then they would hear the wise grandfather say, “be patient and trust me, they are not dead, you will soon see life”. Week after week, month after month the visitor wakes up each day to those same barren trees. And each day the grandfather simply says to the visitor,

“Be Patient And Trust, They Are Not Dead, You Will Soon See Life.”  

When spring arrives, imagine the sense of joy and surprise from the visitor as the trees burst forth with the often promised life! Psalm 1 tells us that “Blessed is the person whose delight is in the Lord. They will prosper like a tree planted by the rivers of living water that will bring forth is fruit in its season!” Contrary to what you may believe, your dreams are not dead. You may be going through a barren time in your life but trust in God. Psalm 34 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Trust in God, you will soon see life!

“In the Image of God, He (God) created (us).” Genesis 1:27

When I first saw the Mona Lisa up close and personal in the Louve in Paris, I was a senior in college studying abroad. It was interesting to me how my first impression of the painting was that it was rather ordinary. Yes beautifully done, but, nothing that struck me as to why it was one of the most famous paintings in the world. Yet, as I drew closer I noticed the countenance about the woman in the portrait. There was a radiance about her that I could not describe, and still can’t. Leonardo DiVinci had captured something in this woman. Who was she? Of royal blood? A woman of stature? Hardly. Historians widely agree that the woman in the portrait is Lisa del Giocondo, an Italian woman who married a silk merchant at the age of sixteen, and lived her life as a middle class housewife caring for her six children. Yet in her middle class life there was a presence about her, something that Leonardo captured for all time in that painting.

We All Know People Who Exhibit A Captivating ‘Presence’,

I recently asked the question to a group of people, do you feel like you bear the image of God? The answer that came back was a very uncomfortable and reluctant, “not really”. Some said it was not possible to bear the image of God. Others said that it’s really a matter of God wanting us to bear His image, or to reflect His love. Yet what I love so much about Genesis 1:27 is that its so definitive. God created man and woman in His own image. It does not say He ‘wanted to’, or that He ‘desired to’. It says, He did it! You bear the image of God whether you are ready to admit it or not. The real question is, what does that look like? Without exception I find it in people who express what Jesus Christ talks about in Matthew 5:14, where He said, “you are the light of the world”. When you let Christ live in you, and shine through you to all you meet, you are truly bearing the image of God, and radiating His beautiful presence to a hurting world. 

“If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31

The film “My Cousin Vinny” staring Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei has to be on my top ten comedy list. A rough and tumble Brooklyn lawyer travels to a small rural town in the south to defend his cousin, Ralph Macchio, who has been wrongly accused of murder. Add in Fred Gwynn, best known for his 1960’s TV show “The Munsters”, as the judge and the resulting mix is comic genius. The case against Macchio appears on the surface to be iron clad, but in the midst of this comedy there is a life truth to be uncovered.

Breakthroughs Come When We Can See Past The Illusion.

In our lives today, the illusion is that we are helpless in life simply being tossed around by circumstances. I remember a time years ago when I would urgently pray for situations in my life, or in the lives of those around me. While there was sincere faith in those prayers, I also sensed that there was a sense of fear mixed in with my words, like I was a lawyer arguing my case with God in hopes that He would agree with me and answer my prayers. Then I decided to take scripture at face value and not read into it with my own insecurities. Take Romans 8:31-32, which says, “If God is for me, who can be against me? He (God) who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him (Jesus), graciously give us all things?” With this verse I understand that God is already on my side, I don’t have to convince Him to be. I also understand that He wants the best for me. This is why Jesus tells us, as we read in yesterdays blog, not to worry, over, and over again. We don’t have to because God is for us, period! This knowledge has forever altered my prayer life. Now, I simply have a conversation with God, I thank him, I praise him, and yes I ask His help in my life and for those I pray for. And I know that God, who graciously gave me Jesus, will give me just what I need, when I need it, in this time He has for me on this earth before He calls me home to live with Him. That makes me invincible. Discover this faith for yourself. I’m not special, I’ve just chosen a life of faith.

Jesus said, “Do not worry” Matthew 6:25-34

Jesus said, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you,

O You Of Little Faith.” 

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek” (In that time gentiles were those who did not believe in God – a people that had no faith). “For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” In just ten short verses Jesus tells us not to worry five times! Is that starting to sink in yet?

“And the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Did I not deliver you…?” Judges 10:11

In 2016, Matt Damon played the staring role in the classic Ridley Scott, Academy Award winning film, “The Martian”. The premise of the film is that man has created a very small scientific exploration colony on Mars. A severe storm hits and the scientists have to evacuate the planet, but through circumstances Matt Damon is accidentally left behind. That’s when this terrific film moves to another level as the rescue mission to save him begins. Priority number one,

No One Gets Left Behind.

In Judges 10, God reminds the children of Israel that He has rescued them them Egypt, and also from the Amorites, and also from the Philistines. God could literally continue recounting the list for it is indeed long, just as the list is long in our own lives today. We literally cannot count how many times God has rescued us. Oh there are the times we remember well, but how many times has God saved you and I from disasters we didn’t even know were about to happen? Over and over again in scripture God reminds us that He is our provider. Did you think He would stop at just one rescue in your life, or two, or maybe three is the limit, or perhaps ten – surely ten times is all I deserve! My friends, stop counting because God doesn’t. He will literally save and uphold you every minute of every hour of every day of your life. God does not leave anyone behind if you simply reach out to Him! He is all you need.

Jesus said, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” Matthew 6:34

My sister-in-law recently sent my wife and I a few 26 year old photos from one of our daughters birthdays. I absolutely loved the photos, but instantly thought, where did the time go? That party seems like it just happened yesterday. The Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney set poetry to music in their song “Yesterday.” As they reflected on years past they aptly wrote,

“Yesterday Came Suddenly”

I completely agree! One of my all time favorite quotes is, “Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans.” No, it’s not scripture, but John Lennon’s famous quote certainly holds true. Sometimes, we either spend so much time worrying about tomorrow, or reflecting on our triumphs or our disappointments from years past, that we forget to live today. Take Jesus advice and don’t worry so much about tomorrow. Taking that advice you will live more today, and yesterday won’t come so suddenly for you.

“Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.” Isaiah 40:31

Every time I open my computer lately I’m hearing about another airline flight cancellation that has disrupted travel for so many this summer. Sleeping in airports seems to be a new unwelcome version of Airbnb this year. I remember all too well my senior year in college that was spent in the study aboard program. Through various circumstances the final 28 hours of my trip found me sitting on a very hard floor at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. Mind you, this was in the pre-cell phone and pre-internet era, which left very, very few mind distraction options.

Sometimes, Waiting Can Be Grueling!

I won’t sugar coat for you what it means to wait, be it for days, weeks, months or years. Waiting is not easy, and believe me, our hero’s of the faith weren’t any better at it than we are. Don’t think for a second that Abraham, Moses, Joshua, any of the Disciples, or even Jesus when lived with us as we are found waiting to be a walk in the park. I will share with you the one thing that has helped me as I wait upon the Lord for anything. I repeat these four words, “Jesus, I trust you”, over and over again. Some days I only need to say it a few times and my spirit calms, but on other days I’ll literally lose count on how many times I say those words. Isaiah says our strength is renewed when we wait on the Lord. It is when we turn our time of waiting into a time of trusting.

Jesus said, “Unless you become like little children you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3

My wife and I were sitting at a downtown stoplight the other day when a mother pushing a stroller took the crosswalk in front of our car. The stroller was empty, for the passenger, a little girl, had decided she’d had enough of sitting and chose to walk beside her mother instead. As they passed the young girl locked eyes with us when suddenly a huge smile beamed forth, along with a big wave of her hand. We smiled and both waved back. That’s when the little girl’s smile doubled in size and her wave became more intense. She had discovered willing participants to engage with her in her smile and wave agenda. We laughed and matched her enthusiasm, cheering her on.

A Child’s Joy For Life Is Matchless

Jesus knew just what He was talking about when He said we should become as children. Children possess an innocence and a joy for the simple pleasures of life that we seem to lose as we age. They have the ability to hope, and trust, and love, and have faith in extraordinary measure. This is precisely what Jesus asks of you today. To have hope, and trust, and love, and faith in Him in extraordinary measure. I guarantee that when you do, your life will never be the same.

“For the joy set before Him (Jesus), He endured the cross…” Hebrews 12:2

So often we think of the Joy that Jesus makes possible, and promises to make possible, in our lives. These very devotional pages are filled with dozens of examples from scripture of such promises, with John 15 being just one example. Jesus said, “I say these things to you that your joy might be full and complete.” But have you ever thought about the joy we bring to Jesus? Do we bring joy to Jesus? Is that possible? You might be tempted to say, “maybe that’s only possible for some do-gooder out there”. Then again, you would be wrong, for you literally bring joy to Jesus. Hebrews 12:2 blows my mind every time I read it. The verse says, “for the joy set before Him, He endured the cross.” What is the “joy” set before Jesus? That joy is you, that joy is me.

We Are The Joy of Jesus!

With the simple act of living, you bring joy to Jesus. To him, you are worth it! “But what about all the times I screw up”, you might say. Why do you think He endured the cross? Because His joy over you is so profound that He was willing to pay for the screwups himself. Put a smile on your face today. Jesus has one while looking at you.

“Thy will be done” Matthew 6:10

A few years back on my birthday a friend said to me, “what can I do for you today?” The statement intrigued me as being uncommon. Rather than, what would you like for your birthday, or what gift can I give to you, they were asking, “what can I do for you”. Jesus said the same thing to the blind man in Mark 10:51. Jesus did not assume what the blind man’s choice would be, so he asked him. The blind man did ask for sight, which Jesus soon restored. But I was thinking, what if the blind man had said to Jesus,

Do Whatever You Desire, Lord. I’m Yours.

Can you imagine what such surrender might have led to for the blind man? We look at the miracle of sight restored, which is truly wonderful, but what greater blessings might have been in store for the blind man? So often we simply focus on our specific needs of the day, and do not look at the greater picture of what’s possible. The ultimate gift that we can give to ourselves is the exact same gift that we can give to God; our surrendered will. Lord God, let thy will be done.