Month: February 2024

The Power To Save

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“The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!” Daniel 6:16

How many times have we cried out, “God, where are you?” in times of crisis. Daniel faced just such a crisis. He chose not to bow down to a king because he would only bow to God. God did not rescue him in the midst of the accusations, nor the terrifying prospect of being thrown into the lions den. But in the end, God did show up for Daniel as he was able to walk out of the lions den untouched. Any fear Daniel had along the way was not enough to keep him from serving God.

His Fear Would Not Overpower His Faith

Daniel was indeed rescued. Yet, there are scores of others in the Bible who died for their faith. The great blessing we have in Jesus is that they really did not die, they graduated to eternal life. You see, God has already rescued us through Jesus. Nothing in this life can take that away other than our choice to believe or not believe. In need of rescue today? Call on Jesus.

Hope

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“His (God’s) favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning” Psalm 30:5

Cartoonist Charles Schulz of “Charlie Brown” fame once said, “A whole stack of memories are never equal to one little hope”.

Thankfully, God Is Our One Great Hope.

In God we have the one great hope in life. For Psalm 30 tells us that His favor is for life, therefore, our momentary weeping over our struggles and trials in life may indeed endure for a night, but joy does come in the morning. Have hope today, the sun will rise tomorrow.

Launch

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Jesus said, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” Luke 5:4

The poet Robert Frost once wrote: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference”. This reminds me of Jesus when he said,

“Launch Out Into The Deep”

Certainly “the deep” qualifies as a road less traveled. They are scary words quite frankly, and one’s that I have not always heeded. But I’ve also noticed something, the fish usually don’t just jump into your boat on their own. You have to venture out into the deeper waters where the fish are then cast your net to catch them. Choosing comfortable is easy, but I would venture to say less fulfilling. What dream have you been holding onto far too long? Why not try the road less traveled and choose to get to work in bringing that dream into reality.

Comfort

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“For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Fear not” Isaiah 41:13

I still remember my daughter as a baby, laying on my chest at two in the morning, sleeping soundly without a care in the world. Whatever caused her to cry herself awake didn’t matter any more. She was

At Peace In Her Father’s Arms.

We do a wonderful job of wandering wherever we want in life, and then wonder why we feel so much stress and anxiety along the way. Today you can be at peace in Your Heavenly Father’s arms. He’s only a prayer away. How sweet it is to trust in the Lord.

Perfect

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“How precious to me are Your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand” Psalm 139:17-18

We waste a great deal of time in our life battling with our own thoughts. “I’m not good enough, I’m not strong enough, I’m not good-looking enough, I’m not rich enough, thin enough, fast enough, smart enough, cool enough, cagy enough, connected enough…and the list goes on… Here’s the reality.

God Is All You Need.

God created you. His thoughts toward you are amazing, wonderful, beautiful. Bask in that knowledge today for you are wonderfully made, and you are loved, just the way you are!

Peace

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“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27

During a very difficult time someone once said to me, “how can you have so much peace at a time like this?” I told them, simple, it’s Jesus. The person I was talking to was a Christian and still, they gave me a questioning look of confusion that said, “huh?” Yet to me, my answer made all the sense in the world because Jesus is the only answer I have in life. I trust Him. I handed my life to him. That means I

“Trust Jesus For Everything And Every Situation.”

Jesus said in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” So many times we pray and give our burdens to God, then proceed to hold onto that burden as tightly as we can anyway. Why not let go and trust the promise of Jesus that He will bring peace to you. Accept His peace, not as the world gives, but as only He can give.   

Unlimited

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“For I, the Lord, do not change…” Malachi 3:6

For all of California’s supposed issues and problems, the “golden state” is aptly named. The majesty of God is on display all around us, and a constant reminder of God’s incredible attention to detail. The care he took to create everything from the vast oceans filled with life to the sand it caresses to the wildflowers watered by its morning mist. And yet the Bible tells us how much more care He took in creating you and I, and of the

Unlimited Love God Has For Us.

When God says, “I do not change” those words should warm your heart! There is an incredible promise in those four words. God cannot go against His own words, for if He did He would, by definition, change. We can take great comfort that the same God who created you, and all that you can see and experience, says He will provide for you just what you need. You have only one task and that is to have the faith to trust in Him.

Trials

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“The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord…” Job 1:21

Job is probably one of the most well known individuals in the Bible, mainly because he literally lost everything, his family, his great fortune, and yes even his health. If there was ever a man who suffered it was Job. Yet even through all of his pain, and the cynical comments from his well meaning friends that he must be cursed of God for doing something wrong, Job never once cursed God. He questions his lot in life, and laments his loses, and yet,

Job Never Blames The Lord

In Job 38, God answers Job’s questions by providing an awesome resume of His greatness and His majesty. Take the time to read this one chapter. Whenever I’m feeling blue, or sorry for myself, or questioning my lot in life, I simply read Job 38. Instantly I’m reminded of how truly great God is, and just how fortunate I am to be His child, and in His care. And every single time I soon find myself saying, “Lord, how great Thou art. Let your incredible will be done in my life. Whatever you have for me this day I gratefully receive.” Be reminded today that you have an awesome Heavenly Father.

Fragrance

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“Now thanks to God who leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place”. 2 Corinthians 2:14

Interesting how fragrance is such a keen part of our senses. A few days ago I walked by a bakery shop just as the door opened and instantly I was hungry. The smell of fresh baked bread brought back childhood memories of my mother’s and grandmother’s kitchens. There is great memory recall power in fragrance. Paul uses the power of fragrance to describe our role in giving the knowledge of Jesus to others. Think of yourself as

A Fragrant Blessing.

The question is, what kind of fragrance do you want to be? We can make our presence to others as welcome as fresh baked bread, or as harsh as a cow pasture. Let the fragrance of your life be a blessing to those around you.

Travel Plans

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“Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah for the second time, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh” Jonah 3:1

What’s so fascinating about the story of Jonah is that it’s a mirror of our own lives. God gives Jonah a command, “Go to Nineveh”. Pretty simple, right? So, what does Jonah do? He runs in the opposite direction. Sound familiar? That’s when God takes the opportunity to give Jonah a not-so-subtle reminder of who’s in charge. After three days in the belly of a whale, a hard-headed Jonah finally gets the message. The whale then spits him out on a beach and Jonah does what God wanted him to do in the first place, he heads straight for Nineveh. As my wife is so fond of saying, “we all end up where God want’s us. The question is, how do we want to arrive,

On A Cruise Ship, Or, In The Belly Of A Whale”

You may be saying, “God has not woken me up in the middle of the night and given me a ‘command’ to do anything”. Actually, He has. Jesus tells us in Luke 6:45, “Why do you call me ‘Lord,’ and yet do not do what I say?” The Bible is filled with incredible guidance from God to give us the abundant life He wants for us. The choice is ours. We can travel through life on a cruise ship, or in the belly of a whale.