Devotionals

Isaiah 26:3–4

Peace is something that is needed between nations just as much as it is needed between neighbours. Let’s face it: we’re a warring people. Deep down underneath our placid plastic cover we are fighters. Most don’t live at peace with themselves, so it stands to reason they don’t live peacefully with others. That’s true among Christians as well as non-Christians. There are very few who live a life that is calm, easygoing, and free from anxiety.

Tucked away in the 26th chapter of Isaiah are two verses we need to dust off occasionally and let soak in.

2 Corinthians 4:7–10

There’s no getting around it, pain and suffering are inevitable. Our grandparents did not escape it, our parents did not escape it, you and I will not escape it, nor will our children escape it. Some will say, “If you suffer, you are in sin. And since you are in sin, if you will deal correctly and sufficiently with your sin, your suffering will go away.” None of that is the truth. Scripture does not support such reasoning! Let’s look at God’s perspective on suffering, delivered in the words of the apostle Paul:

1 Thessalonians 4:1–5

We have a number of ways of encouraging someone toward excellence. Paul encouraged the Thessalonians to excel in their walk with Christ.

While advocating an excelling lifestyle, Paul targets one specific area that needs constant attention—moral purity:

Jonah 1:1–4

As a pastor, I often get asked questions regarding God’s will. Here is a sample:

What if I know the will of God, but I’m not able to do it?
Why can’t I rely on my feelings?
Can I be in the will of God and not realize it?
What about situations I’m going through that aren’t addressed in the Bible?
Is God serious about everything He commands?

Remember what happened when Jonah rebelled? Read this brief refresher:

James 1:22–25

Want to know God’s will for your life? Let me suggest that you stop, look, and listen. God makes His desires known to those who stop at His Word, look carefully with a sensitive spirit, and then listen to the advice that others give through the lens of Scripture. When we go to His Word, we stop long enough to hear from above. When we look, we examine our surrounding circumstances considering what He is saying to our inner spirit—what we usually call our conscience.

John 14:1–4

What is heaven like? Will we play harps all day? Lounge around on Cloud Nine? Live in enormous mansions with solid gold streets out front? Does it mean we’ll all wear long white robes with matching sandals, glowing halos, and big flapping wings? Heaven is an actual place. A prepared place, designed for God’s redeemed people, those who have accepted God’s free gift of His salvation through His Son’s death on the cross.

Jesus said to His anxious followers:

Hebrews 6:17–19

I confess to you, at times I’ve doubted God’s purpose and promise. I say that to my own embarrassment. When things hadn’t worked as I thought they would, when I received a no instead of a yes as an answer to prayer, when I couldn’t unravel a situation and match it with the character of God...those have been times when I’ve said, “I know down inside this isn’t right.”

Yet in such times there are benefits that come from going back to God’s Word to study it again, putting on your theological cap:

Proverbs 9:10–12

If honest, most of us should admit we live with a serious shortage of what God calls wisdom. How often have you and I “gone it alone” while deciding, planning an event, determining a course of action, or developing a strategy for intervening in someone’s life? I’ve lost track of the times I’ve gone off half-cocked and responded to a difficult situation out of pure emotion rather than a profound sense of sensibility or restraint. Both of those virtues come from God. Put together, they spell W-I-S-D-O-M.

Solomon wrote:

Romans 8:1–2, 5

Only God’s Spirit can take the barrenness of our lives and bring a refreshing spirit renewal and joy.

Genesis 25:5–8

Many years ago, a wise and godly friend and financial counsellor convinced Cynthia and me that we should share our possessions and inheritance before we die. He quoted the old saying, “Do your givin’ while you’re livin’, then you’re knowin’ where it’s goin’.”

He wasn’t just sharing his opinion or delivering a personal preference. He offered to us a principle of handling our financial blessings straight from God’s Word: