You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.
                                (Psalm 139:2-3) NIV

Both of our children are unique & different from each other in almost every way. So, we learned very quickly that we had to handle them each differently. This was especially true when we had to discipline them. For example, when our son would do something wrong, if we told him to go to his room and stay there as punishment, it would drive him absolutely crazy! He couldn’t stand it. He’d be yelling every 5 minutes to see if he could come out of his room. Now our daughter, if we sent her to her room as punishment, she would go to her room and lay down and take a nap. It didn’t bother her in the least. She loved being by herself so it really wasn’t punishment for her. We had to tailor punishment to each child differently.
When Jesus planned our personalities, He wired each of us uniquely. He made us all different, special, and precious. It must delight Him that no one — even identical twins — thinks and acts exactly alike. Jesus relates personally to each of us. He rebuked His disciple Peter for his lack of faith, gently taught Martha, whose brother Lazarus had died, and He forgave and corrected the woman caught in adultery. Every encounter was as unique as the individual to whom Jesus talked to.
When I have a problem that seems in-fixable, it comforts me to know my Lord has a custom-made solution just for me. He never gives His children cookie-cutter answers. We each hold an exclusive place in His heart, and He loves us as individuals. We can be confident that when we pray, He will respond in the way we need it most.

Faith Step – Ask Jesus to show you 3 unique qualities you possess and then thank                 Him for loving you just as you are.

For the joy set before him he endured the cross . . .    (Hebrews 12:2) NIV

It was a typical Sunday morning at church, except for one thing. In the back pew sat a man who hadn’t been there for a long time. It’s not that he didn’t want to worship with his church family, but he had been incarcerated for 5 years. This was his first Sunday of freedom. The people in that congregation saw everything that morning through his eyes. The smiles and hugs and tears that greeted him, grateful of his return. The new prayers for him as he moved from serving Jesus behind bars to serving in society again. The way every lyric of the worship songs and every Scripture passage seemed divinely orchestrated to remind us of freedom in Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit to help us live day to day. The joy on his face reflected what must have felt like finally drawing a deep breath after so long in the “grave” of his circumstances, comparable to the inexpressible joy of the moment when Jesus drew His first breath after His resurrection.
Suffocated by the weight of our sins, Jesus conquered death to breathe and worship anew. And what was the reason for the joy on His face? US! He’d successfully purchased our freedom and future. Within a short time, He would return to the right hand of His Father. But before then, He had another assignment — showing Himself to His followers, even those who had let doubts creep in.
He knew we earth dwellers would find our joy in His very presence. The plan worked. He gave up His life for ours and then breathed again. Just imagine how loudly He sang on His first Sunday of freedom!

Faith Step – What’s your favorite “freedom” worship song? Sing TI from your heart, as                 if you’ve been liberated just moments ago. That’s the kind of joy worth                 maintaining every day.

The King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”    (Matthew 25:40) NIV

The story is told of a Pastor who received a letter from a prison inmate that he had not met and did not know. In three pages of meticulously handwritten words, this inmate, whose name was Trevor, told the pastor about himself — his family, the jobs he’d held, the courses he’d taken in prison, and his love for Jesus. References to Scripture were generously sprinkled throughout, including the pastor’s favorite, Jeremiah 29:11, which Trevor was holding onto because he believed God still had a plan for his life. He spoke about regret for his mistakes, loneliness, and a desire to receive mail from fellow believers outside the walls.
The pastor’s heart went out to Trevor, but he hesitated about writing him. He was a stranger. He had no idea what crime he had committed. Would he ask for money? But the pastor heard Jesus whisper softly from the above verse, “the least of these.” Rereading Trevor’s letter, he wondered how many people reside in their own prisons of loneliness and regret? Trevor’s last line cinched his decision: “Please, please, please, don’t forget or judge me.” He signed it, “Love in Christ, Trevor.”
The pastor decided that corresponding with Trevor would be an act of love, not only toward Trevor, but to Jesus. He decided to write to Trevor and to recruit others to do so as well.

Faith Step:    Write a letter to someone in prison or lonely and show Jesus’ love.

Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love
surrounds the one who trusts in him.    (Psalm 32:10) NIV

There are many people who have a thing for quilts; I know we do in our family. It might be because of the beautiful colors and patterns or the fact that they are cottony soft against our skin. Or it might be because of the tradition and love we feel from these homemade items. Before she died, Torrie’s Granny made quilts. She made them for Torrie & I; she made them for our kids and she even made them for the grandkids before she passed. Those quilts are precious to us; symbols of Granny’s love for us. When we use them to snuggle and cuddle, we somehow know that we have been and are loved.
Jesus’ compassion for us is even more precious than our quilts. He weaves a tapestry of joy and hope around us as we are sheltered in His care. In the depths of our spirits, we can know that Jesus sees us as we are: unique, beautiful, and precious in His sight, just like our quilts. He loves us completely and in-conditionally. In His all-encompassing love, we find safety, peace, and rest.

Faith Step:    Do you believe that Jesus’ love surrounds you completely? Take time to                 meditate on Psalm 32:10. Ask Jesus to reveal His great love for you.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
                        (Matthew 11:28) NIV

Someone gave me a devotional book for Christmas entitled “What a Great Word!” It emphasizes a different word that you focus on spiritually each day. I started it on January 1, but when I got it I leafed through it and one page jumped out at me — or should I say a word jumped out at me. That word was rest.
To be honest, Jesus had been hammering me with that theme for quite a while but I just couldn’t/wouldn’t hear Him. Or maybe I heard Him, but I was working to rest. As in doing everything I could do to rest or chastising myself when I failed to rest — and growing tired of trying so hard, because that’s what I tend to do. But that’s not what this verse has in mind.
Was it a coincidence that that theme word appeared just as I was pressed into rest by testing positive for Covid? It just so happens that I was so tired, I had thrown up my hands in defeat.
As a result, I’m enjoying a lot of genuine rest. Later in this passage, Jesus describes His rest: easy, light, gentle, and humble. I would also add peaceful. It’s not lazy rest but an internal sense of peaceful ease — going with the flow, so to speak.
I guess I am sleeping in more, but I’m just really a lot more restful in my mind and actions. But the results are encouraging. Some of the things that I had been mentally and physically toiling over seem to be falling into place and unfolding with ease. I could really get used to resting in You, Jesus. Is this what You meant all along about giving us rest?

Faith Step – Pick a problem you’ve been working on and apply this verse by stopping whatever you’re doing. Let Jesus have it while you rest.

“Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him,
 for God is our refuge.”    (Psalm 62:8) NIV

I am a pretty reserved person when it comes to sharing my feelings about virtually everything. Most times you can’t tell how I feel about anything. And lately, it seems that I’ve developed a tendency to hold back even during prayer time. The heaviest burdens on my heart seem to be ones that I sometimes skirt around, lightly touch on, or even ignore. These are requests, some that I’ve been praying about for years with no visible answer yet, or situations that seem so messy I just don’t know where to start. I’m afraid my attitude reveals a cynicism and lack of faith.
I’m always touched by 1 Samuel 1 where Hannah was so caught up in her prayer about not having children that the priest accused her of being drunk. Hannah explained that she was not drunk but was pouring out her heart to the Lord. In the New Testament, we see people pour out their hearts to Jesus about their blindness or disease or on behalf of their suffering child.
The Bible makes it clear that Jesus knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows our inner thoughts and motivations and what we will do and say. He also knows our needs to unburden our hearts before Him. His Word encourages us to confess our sins, confide our deepest longings, and share what is troubling our minds. Jesus wants us to open up to Him, not because He needs to know what’s going on but because WE need the reminder that He is with us through it all.

Faith Step – Examine your prayer life to see if there’s a problem troubling your spirit that you’ve been reluctant to discuss with Jesus. Demonstrate your trust in Him by pouring out your heart to Him.

“This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.”
                (Psalm 118:24) NIV

I have a friend who has experienced significant losses. She and her husband went bankrupt. Then one of her daughters was killed by a drunk driver. A hurricane destroyed their home, and later cancer claimed her husband and son-in-law within a year. She acknowledges these events and the pain they’ve caused her, but she refuses to cling to that pain, because she realizes that doing so would only steep her in discouragement, and that’s no way to live. She is one of the most upbeat people I know. Her love for Jesus radiates from her face and her words reflect the depth of her relationship with Him. She truly knows what it means to practice living in His presence.

She told me one time that her mother had always been an upbeat person too. She had learned it from her. She said, “Every morning when she woke up, instead of saying, like most of us, ‘Good Lord, morning!’ She would say, ‘Good morning Lord! What wonderful things do you have planned for me today?’ That invited His presence and set the tone for her entire day. No matter what happened, she knew that He was sovereign.
Over the years, I’ve sought to practice that same ritual. I have found that it sets my mind and heart in a place of eager anticipation. No matter what the day holds, Jesus holds me. I will rejoice and be glad in His presence, His power, and His promises.
What’s the first thought that enters your mind when you wake up? If it’s anxiety about the day, then retrain your thoughts to focus on Jesus through the simple prayer in today’s Scripture verse.

Faith Step – Memorize Psalm 118:24. Thank Jesus for the gift of today.

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”     (Matthew 17:20) NIV

As uncomfortable & stressful as 2020 had been, in October, I was looking forward to the last couple of months of the year, settling back into a routine and planning to re-group, pray and plan for 2021 and seek God’s will for the next year. Then I had an accident at home & fell. I had to get an x-ray to see if anything was broken. Nothing was broken but something they saw on the x-ray turned into cancer in my lung. Not exactly what I was looking forward to.
As we all have discovered, this life is a journey that can be joyful or painful. It is paved with appointments & disappointments, research & decisions. It can be physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausting. I have been pondering the obstacles that this diagnosis presents. Then I remembered that Jesus encourages us to pray for mountains to be moved. The mountain of phone calls, paperwork & doctor appointments. The mountain of sadness & anxiety & illness. For some it could be a mountain of financial strain, broken relationships, loneliness, addiction, or a lack of direction. Whatever needs we have, Jesus can provide answers. When we remember how much bigger He is than those mountains, they begin to shrink right before our eyes.
There are a thousand things that are hard about these mountains, but Jesus is the Lord of millions of blessings. He will outnumber the problems with His overwhelming grace & mercy.

Faith Step – If you’re facing a mountain, imagine it shrinking before our Savior.

But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little cold will never enter it.”    (Luke 18:16-17) NIV

I love games and puzzles, so during this recent “time off” I decided to complete a crossword. I like doing them, so I got me something to drink and sat down to try to fill in the empty squares. Hmmm…a four-letter word meaning “endnotes.” I’d come back to that one. A ten-letter word describing “dinner-bell sequence.” I couldn’t even guess. At my house, I just say, “it’s ready,” and step aside. For an hour I deciphered definitions, even going through the alphabet letter by letter until I found the correct words. By the time all the squares were filled, I needed more to drink.

Sometimes, my life seems like a puzzle, packed with senseless bits and pieces that don’t appear to fit together. Solutions can shift from simple to complicated in an instant, leaving me confused and frustrated as I think, “Why has Jesus allowed this to happen to me?”
But I don’t need to understand the “why” behind His choices — that’s not what He’s teaching me. Instead, I’m here to learn trust, with a capital T. My daily, childlike dependence on Jesus pleases Him. When things go well, I can offer thanks, and when they don’t go well, I’ll cling to Him in faith. I know He’ll guide me until I finish this puzzle called life.
But for now, what’s a five-letter word for peace?   J.E.S.U.S.

Faith Step – Find a word puzzle. As you work on the confusing parts, remember that when life confounds you, you can trust Jesus to guide you through. He’s got you!

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams I the wasteland.
                                (Isaiah 43:19) NIV

Years ago, I was seeing a Christian pastoral counselor for some painful, persistent issues. One day, he announced excitedly, “Jesus gave me this verse for you,” and he recited the verse above. I was hungry for a fresh start but paralyzed by my past and unable to see the new possibilities unfolding before me. I promptly wrote down the verse to remind me that God is the Author of new things!
I’ve made many New Year’s resolutions in my life. Along with the familiar “lose a few pounds” or “stick to a budget,” I’ve had many ambitious, worthy goals as well. I have attained some big and small goals, though, I admit, more often, my goals were shelved shamefully by February or sooner.

Have you ever heard the expression, “Whatever we create in our own strength, we sustain in our own strength.” That strikes a chord because I’ve labored very hard for some goals, fighting against a strong current, and wondering if God was present in my struggles.
The Bible is full of ordinary people with God-given goals far beyond their human capacity, achievable only by God Himself: Nehemiah rebuilding the wall, Joshua and Gideon fighting formidable foes, and the apostles sharing the Gospel worldwide.
Now, as I seek Jesus’ peaceful, gentle way, I look for the new thing He is already doing and aim to align myself with Him, the true Stream in the desert, and then behold with wonder what He does. Jesus makes all things new and His resolutions never fail.

Faith Step: This New Year, resolve to draw near to Jesus and the newness He offers.                 Behold what He does!