Corona Devotionals

"Let go and let God." People say  that, but what does it mean ?   I'm sure I don't know.   Or didn't...because the truth is, we hold onto some things in life so tightly that it would be a complete fallacy for us to quip "Let go and let God" about them...even though we love and trust Him. We  pretend  to know (and live!) what "Let go and let God" means, but God knows that we are  not "letting him" in certain areas. So, God does what He does best, and He starts working on us, unraveling us .  (He loves us too much to leave us where we are at.  He is always providing opportunities for us to become more  like Him and less  like us.)    He must become greater; I must become less.  ~John 3:30 God starts stripping away our pride and (self-imposed) stress by unraveling us like a mummy coming undone from ancient wrappings.  Bit by bit, God unravels us so that we might revel in Him alone, instead of our mirages of perfection/ unrealistic expect

In that moment, when the crisis hits, or the news comes, or the phone rings...God is with us and  in the   Lord   I take refuge (Psalm 11:1). In that moment when worry, anxiety, intimidation or hallucination overtakes our mind...God is with us and  in the   Lord   I take refuge (Psalm 11:1). In that  continued  moment, when the emergency becomes ongoing, when the pain becomes chronic, or when the unknown becomes a state-of-being... God is with us and  in the   Lord   I take refuge (Psalm 11:1). We can   take refuge in Him.  We can stand firm in our Lord and in the rock-solid trust that He is holding us in the palm of His hand.  Our faith in God the Father and our belief in Jesus Christ the Risen Savior are active cultures living within us at all times, but in that moment  they rise, they inflate, they become  the active ingredient in our lives.  Our faith and belief in the Lord become our beacon  during life's most treacherous storms.   So cling to Him in that  moment, don't f

King David of Israel was a big famous guy in the Bible, and he did so many things right.  His heart was founded on a direct (submissive) relationship with God... mostly. But all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God ( Romans 3:23) , and David was no different than you and me.  In fact, in his sinful-nature, he was very much like  you and me.  He wanted to please the Lord, but  Satan rose up ... and caused David to sin by wanting to  take a census of the people of Israel ( I Chronicles 21:1).    Taking a census may not sound like a big deal, but this was just the what  that caused David to sin (this time).  Each of our sinful-"what's" will be unique and they might not even appear sinful to others.  But for whatever reason (disobedience, pride, valuing strength/resources-over faith) the census was David's "sin" at that time. We each have "census" sins that crop up in our lives.   But how will we handle the conviction of them and seeking f

When I read I Chronicles 19 this morning, I shook my head.  They should have known better.    They should not have forced things and kept forcing things.  They should not have pushed their own agenda.  They should have learned from their losses instead of driving themselves and others forward and incurring more.   And I wondered where I could find a real-life example to correlate with the Biblical one. Fast-forward fourteen hours and I had a real-life example... me. ~~~ I had a plan.  God didn't plant it in my head, but I felt it was productive and possibly essential, so I set it in motion.  It involved a later-evening get-together at our house with another family with three small children.  On a school night.  After two soccer practices.   It involved me arriving home minutes before or possibly at the same time as our guests.  It involved me assigning one of our children to "be me" in terms of vacuuming prior, setting out the food and tidying up the house.  I baked a ca

Sometimes I prepare meals or baked goods in advance and freeze them.  Sealed and stacked in the depths of our freezer, they are a gift that I give myself on a future day.  The saved time, work, prep and thought is wise and it’s a way that I  love myself. To acquire wisdom is to love oneself; people who cherish understanding will prosper.  ~Proverbs 19:8 ~~~ We have three kids and anytime that they choose to study ahead of time for a test, anytime they proactively begin an assignment--instead of waiting until the last minute, or anytime that they finish a paper early…it’s wise , and a way that they love them selves .  To acquire wisdom is to love oneself; people who cherish understanding will prosper.  ~Proverbs 19:8 I’m not sure I would have equated acquiring wisdom with loving myself , but it makes so much sense.  When we  cherish understanding,  or  learn from our experiences, mistakes, triumphs and failures…we acquire wisdom , and it's a gift we give ourselves .  The Bible ha

Do3n't we hate it when others get "into our business"?   How dare they?  And what right do they  have to correct or judge us ?   Ever thought those things or something similar?  Especially when someone "calls us out" on something?   Oops.   But how about the reverse order: do we ever get into other people's business?  Correcting or judging their decisions or their sin?    You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things.  ( 2)  And we know that God, in his justice, will punish anyone who does such things.  ( 3)  Since you judge others for doing these things, why do you think you can avoid God’s judgment when you do the same things?   ~Romans 3:1-3 Oops.  It's so easy for us to question others, but the Bible brings the Truth of sin and judgment  around full-circle for us today.  It

Can we see any resemblance between these pearls and us ?  We were in the mood for an old-fashioned, comfort dessert, and today was the day for l arge pearl tapioca pudding .   Ever compare yourself to l arge pearl tapioca?  Today I realized that (as Believers) we can.   We're not so different from those little orbs.  They start off hardened and individual.  No cohesion and not very productive or conducive on their own. But smother them in some milk, add some sugar and a little vanilla, and then let them soak in it,  absorb the milk-mixture, and just stew  for quite a while, and the pearls of tapioca make some changes.   They leave their hardened state by absorbing and being filled with the milk, and in time, the hard pellets in a pot disappear and something new emerges: a completely new form and outcome of tapioca pudding.  Gone are the solitary orbs, and behold(!) a united, cohesive, luscious, yummy, comforting dessert now exists in their place.  It's difficult to separate a p

Feeling bad about feeling good?  Don't.  God gives us His blessing on being blessed, on blessing others, and on enjoying  His blessings, if we are rooted in Him. The oxy-moronic (opposite pull) of enjoying blessing-as-a-Believer is that we tend to want to feel guilty ( bad ) about feeling good . But God (and His Word) say, "Don't"--if we are seeking to live our lives for Him.  ~~~ David was king (literally), and he had the power, influence and finances to go with it.  But underneath all of that, his foundation was God: God's ways, God's will for his life, and he submitted to God.  These were David's cornerstones...and he happened to be king. Similarly in faith and dedication to God, but different in income and status--the Israelites had the same cornerstones.  ( At least for that day---the more we read the Bible the more we realize that the Israelites were hot and cold about following God--just like us. )   But today  they were all-in under the leadership