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May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. — Romans 15:13 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Hope, joy, and peace sound terrific. The problem for us as mere mortals is that we live on a flawed planet with flawed people and with tendencies to go to war with each other. How are we going to find hope, joy, and peace? We for sure won't find them in the sloganeering, the sappy marketing version of hope, joy, and peace we hear from people with simplistic solutions that don't work in the real world. We need answers from someone who has lived with the grit of the real world, experienced the highs and lows that mortality brings, and yet still managed to live with hope, joy, and peace. That someone is Jesus, who loved deeply, gathered people to himself openly, blessed powerfully, and could calm raging seas or endure the worst kind of torture with grace and forgiveness! Two moves are vital for ...

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. — Psalm 23:1-3 Thoughts on Today's Verse... "He restores my soul." My, that sounds so good, doesn't it? But David's shepherd psalm ( Psalm 23:1-6 ) and Jesus' promises as our Good Shepherd ( John 10:14-15 ) are far more than sweet religious talk. When we've reached that point where we don't think we can continue, our Shepherd blesses us with the strength so that we can keep on walking. When we're in a struggle and things are tough, his power upholds us, so we run and not grow weary. When we're winning victories in his name, we can soar on wings like eagles because he supports and sustains ( Isaiah 40:28-31 ). God the Son is our good Shepherd who loves us, sustains us, nourishes us, stills us, and restores us. The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he lead...

As God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. — Colossians 3:12 Thoughts on Today's Verse... "I wonder what we should wear to that meeting?" This is an expected question when we are invited to an event or an occasion of great honor. In this passage, Paul reminds us to put on the set of clothing that is always in style, especially with God. We should clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience! We wear this clothing because we are special. We are God's chosen people who are holy and dearly loved. This clothing is from the Ultimate Designer's "Godly Character Collection." We should best wear it when with other people, and when we are alone by ourselves, and we think no one is looking. These qualities are hard to wear, but always a blessing to those who meet us when we're decked out in this wardrobe. Our prayer is that when we put on t...

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "... It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. ... Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved." — Acts 4:10-12 Thoughts on Today's Verse... "Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! There's just something about that name!"* The words to the song are right. Salvation from our broken world and our warped nature is found in no one else except Jesus. He is our Savior because he was willing to come to this world, bear our limitations, endure the shame of the cross, carry the weight of our sin, and then triumph over all of it to bring us grace ( Philippians 2:6-11 ). We wholeheartedly agree: "Salvation is found in no one else"! My Prayer... Through the precious name of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, my LORD, I thank and praise you, God Most High. Yo...

Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. — 2 Peter 1:5-8 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Wow! What a message. God wants us to be productive in our lives. He wants us to have more than just head knowledge; he wants us to put our knowledge to work in our lives and be effective and productive with it. I've got to make a genuine effort to grow in these qualities. While the Holy Spirit is doing God's work of transforming me to become like Jesus ( 2 Corinthians 3:18 ) and produce the fruit of the Spirit ( Galatians 5:22-23 ), God wants me to do my part and "make every effort" to grow in these qualities "in ...

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 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Because Jesus is our LORD and Savior, God is in our lives. He is at work right now, undoing Satan's destructive messes and leading us into the relationships and places he wants us to go as his salt to season and preserve the world, and his light to shine in dark places and bring hope for a better future ( Matthew 6:13-16 ). This is true in everything we do and everywhere we go. This is true when we think things are good and when we feel like things are horrible. The key is for us to seek his purpose, to live his will, and share his grace. If that is our goal, then we can be sure of our God, and that he is with us every step of the way, working everything out for our eternal good, no matter how things might look moment to moment. Video Commentary... ToGather Worship Guide | More ToGather Videos My Prayer... Thank yo...