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O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things, things planned long ago. — Isaiah 25:1 Thoughts on Today's Verse... God's actions are not reactions to current situations, but part of his long-term plan to bring redemption. Yes, he has done marvelous things, both in history and also in our personal histories. God transformed the vile intentions of a mob urged on by evil men and made it into the atoning sacrifice for our sins to display his love, mercy, and grace ( Acts 2:22-24 ; 1 John 2:1-2 ). He changed the hearts of people who cried "Crucify him!" into people who believed in Jesus, repented of their evil, and were baptized, in faith, at Pentecost ( Acts 2:36-41 ). He turned the ugliness of the cross into an opportunity to fulfill the prophets and redeem us through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulnes...

These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. — Deuteronomy 6:6-7 Thoughts on Today's Verse... We are to begin each day with God. Every breath we take should be a powerful reminder that our Father has granted us another day of life to serve him and bless others. Each heartbeat is God's drumbeat of love, reminding us that we are blessed with another minute to offer him our best. This blessing is so easily forgotten. We best remember these truths when we teach, demonstrate, and live them with and before our families, children, and grandchildren. We should also teach, demonstrate, and live these with our spiritual friends. But, let's not leave their learning these truths to our example alone. Let's find teachable moments to explain our faith to them, praise our Heavenly Father with them, and to teach God's t...

Have not I commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. — Joshua 1:9 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Never forgotten! Never abandoned! Never alone! What a promise. God promised Joshua that he would go with him into the unknown future. The Father has promised us that he will go with us through all the seasons of life. He was there at our conception, molding us, and he will be with us through all our ups and downs, through temptations and triumphs, even through death ( Psalms 139:1-24 ). Nothing can separate us from the love of God we have through Christ Jesus our LORD ( Romans 8:35-39 ). So we can believe God's promise, feel his strength, and launch into our unknown future with courage. We are not, nor will we ever be, alone, abandoned, or forgotten! My Prayer... O God, the one who is and was and is to come, thank you for being with me and staying near me when all others forsake and leav...

"My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." — Isaiah 55:8-9 Thoughts on Today's Verse... No matter how hard we try to perceive the awesomeness of God, he is still God, and we are not. We must forever remember that the original, and still primary, sin was seeking to become equal to God. We are to know God, and we should seek to know about God, but we can never fully know everything about him or become equal with him. Trying to become equal to God and losing our sense of reverence and awe for God are at the heart of all sin. While we should seek to put on God's righteous character, gracious compassion, and faithful lovingkindness, in humility, we recognize that we cannot begin to approach his majesty, righteousness, wisdom, or holiness on our own. When we have done our best to describe and praise our gl...

He knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside. — Job 23:10-11 Thoughts on Today's Verse... How we long for Job's words in this verse to be our true confession. We are not yet gold, but long to be. We are not yet fully following the LORDs steps, but are trying to follow faithfully. We have tried not to turn aside from God's ways, but we sometimes falter. Thank God for his grace until our intentions and desires are fulfilled in our genuine discipleship. Until that day, we pursue Jesus as we seek to reflect his character and compassion, trusting in the Holy Spirit to do the work of transformation ( 2 Corinthians 3:18 ) so that the following may be true of us as it was in Jesus: He knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside. My Prayer... Magn...

Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. — Psalm 73:25-26 Thoughts on Today's Verse... What can truly fulfill and sustain you? Maybe the best way to answer that question is by asking another: What can we keep when our bodies are placed silently in their graves at death? Only our relationship with God, our Christ-like character, and our loving relationships with Jesus' disciples are permanent. These last beyond the grave. So, if these are lasting, then why would we displace them for anything that isn't lasting? Earth's treasures fail, wither, dissolve, and decay. What we have in God is forever! My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. My Prayer... Mighty Yahweh, Strong One of Israel, Keeper of the Covenant and Fulfillment-Maker of every prophecy, you are my hope, my strength, and my future. I live...