“Then David said to the Philistine, ‘You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, […]
“‘Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.’” John 14:1 (ESV) God designed you for eternity. Everybody will live somewhere forever. As Bruce Wilkinson says, “Your beliefs determine where you will spend eternity; your behavior determines how you will spend eternity.” When you choose to live the life God has […]
“And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.” Jonah 2:10 (ESV) Where would you be if God were not the God of second chances? You would be without hope and without a future. God will not only pursue you with His redeeming love, but He also gives […]
“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Romans 8:29 (ESV) We take comfort in knowing that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). […]
“So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people,” Joshua 3:14 (ESV) Joshua came face to face with an obstacle that prevented entry into the Promised Land. He was in charge of mobilizing the children of Israel to inherit […]
“During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.” Exodus 2:23-25 (ESV) God […]
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23:6 (ESV) You are not home, yet! God has a mission for you to fulfill before He calls you home. Don’t get so focused on your destination that you neglect the daily ministry God wants you to extend […]
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.” Psalm 23:5 (ESV) God is not limited by your limitations. Your overwhelming circumstances do not overwhelm God. The challenges in your environment are not impossible for God. God can see that which you cannot see. God knows that which you do […]
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4 (ESV) In the Seventeenth Century, a monk named, Brother Lawrence, worked in the kitchen of the Carmelite Monastery in Paris, France. He is remembered for his daily intimacy with God in the […]
“He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” Psalm 23:2-3 (ESV) The Shepherd will restore your soul. Living in a fallen world can erode your enthusiasm and erase your energy. The constant friction of the world, the flesh, and the devil can drain […]
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” Psalm 23:1 (ESV) God never intended for you to walk through adversity alone. Maybe you have heard someone say that God will never put more on you than you can handle. That’s not true. God will not put more on you than you can handle with His help. When you come to know Christ as […]
“The angel of the LORD came back a second time and touched him and said, ‘Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.’ So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.” 1 […]
“‘I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.’” Exodus 20:2 (NIV) Moses spent forty years in the palace, forty years in the desert, and then forty years as the deliverer of the children of Israel. God was strategically developing Moses for the special assignment of […]
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.” Hebrews 1:1-2 (NIV) God is a God of revelation. He […]
“Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.” Psalm 57:1 (NIV) Where do you turn when you need refuge? The world offers many choices. You can lose yourself in the stream […]
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV) God is the Father […]
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 (NIV) Consider all the moving parts that are featured in one single day in your life. The complexities of life are painted upon the canvas of our existence. […]
“Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their […]
“By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night.” Exodus 13:21 (NIV) The GPS navigational system in the Old Testament for the children of […]
“From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God.” Jonah 2:1 (NIV) If you spent three days and three nights inside a great fish that God provided, you would probably place that in the category of a life changing experience. Your entire life would be marked by that one experience with God. You […]
“And Elisha said to her, ‘What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?’ And she said, ‘Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.’” 2 Kings 4:2 (ESV) I want you to think about how far you have come during your life on the earth. […]
“‘You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, and the Lord will be with you.” 2 Chronicles 20:17 (ESV) Jehoshaphat proclaimed […]
“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” Psalm 20:7 (ESV) Trust is a fragile item in the life of a believer. Trust is like the petal of a rose. Trust can beautify a difficult path and create an aroma pleasing to Christ. Trust can also […]
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. 3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear […]
“I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping. 7 My eye wastes away because of grief; it grows weak because of all my foes.” Psalm 6:6-7 (ESV) David was well acquainted with victory, despair, and grief. He had known the favor of God […]
“And the Lord threw them into a panic before Israel, who struck them with a great blow at Gibeon and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 And as they fled before Israel, while they were going down the ascent of Beth-horon, the […]
“And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did […]
“But Moses said to the LORD, ‘Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.’ 11 Then the LORD said to him, ‘Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or […]
“And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, ‘Jacob, Jacob.’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ 3 Then he said, ‘I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you into a great nation. 4 I myself will […]
“Joseph answered Pharaoh, ‘It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.’” Genesis 41:16 (ESV) God uses human instrumentality in His redemptive process. God chooses to involve us in His master plan. Life is not about our story that we invite God into. Life is about God’s story that He invites us […]