Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and thereby put Me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing. Malachi 3.10 (The LORD will utterly, entirely, completely change your life)

Tuesday, December 30, 2014

And He
who sat upon the throne said,
"Behold,
    I make all things new."

             Revelation 21. 5

(New year,
       new heart,
           new vision,
His indwelling
   changes me
   from the inside out.)

Monday, December 29, 2014

Open your mouth for the dumb,
for the rights of all
   who are left desolate.
Open your mouth,
judge righteously,
maintain the rights
    of the poor and needy.

           Proverbs 31. 8-9

(One of the most distinctive marks
of the early Christians was their
radical love and care for the vulnerable.
Who has God placed on my heart today?)

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Praise the LORD!
For it is good
  to sing praises to our God,
for He is gracious,
and a song of praise
                   is fitting.

(Praising God
         changes me)


 

Saturday, December 27, 2014

...and pressing anger
       produces strife.

               Proverbs 30.33

(Anger is a byproduct 
         of selfishness.
It is not just
   the other guy's problem.
Seek not just when
              to stand back,
but how to defuse,
how to bring 
            grace to it.)

Friday, December 26, 2014

...for we have heard
    that God is with you.

            Zechariah 8. 23

(the evidence 
     of the indwelling Spirit,
the impact on everyone around you)

Thursday, December 25, 2014

For unto us
   a child is born,
to us a son is given...

             Isaiah 9.6

(And that changes everything)

Joy to the World
    The Lord has come...

Merry Christmas, my friend!

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Thus says the LORD of hosts,
Render true judgments,
show kindness and mercy
    each to his brother,
do not oppress the widow,
the fatherless,
the sojourner,
or the poor,
and let none of you
devise evil against his brother
            in his heart.

             Zechariah 7. 9-10

(God calls us to be radical
     in loving one another,
a different mindset,
a transformed heart.
God changes us
     by His grace.)

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Not by might,
     nor by power,
          but by My Spirit,
says the LORD of hosts.

            Zechariah 4.6

(God meets you 
      in your deepest need.
He delivers from our fears
    and releases 
       from what enslaves us.
Follow Him through
   your impossible situation.)

Monday, December 22, 2014

For lo,
I will come
      and dwell in your midst,
says the LORD.

            Zechariah 2.10

(His abiding changes everything.
This is not a difficult situation,
    but an opportunity
              to practice grace.
Bring a new heart to it.)

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Thus says the LORD of hosts:
Return to Me,
         says the LORD of hosts,
and I will return to you,
says the LORD of hosts.

               Zechariah 1.3

(God always has the porch light on.
The front door is always unlocked.
He runs to meet you
                 with great delight.)


Saturday, December 20, 2014

Then Haggai,
the messenger of the LORD,
spoke to the people
with the LORD's message,
    "I am with you,
        says the LORD."

                  Haggai 1.13

(If I fully grasped that reality,
     how should I then live?
The most fruitful place on earth
     is the center of His will.
No matter what.)

Friday, December 19, 2014

On the day I called,
       You answered me,
my strength of soul
   You did increase.

                   Psalm 138. 3

(The most miraculous 
is not that God plucks us out
of our situation,
     but how He redeems it.)

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

But as for me,
I will look to the LORD,
I will wait
  for the God of my salvation;
my God will hear me.

                    Micah 7.7

(Wait. Be still. Listen.
God will reveal Himself to you
      in this situation,
even that which makes no sense
                              YET.)

Monday, December 15, 2014

Do not My words do good
   to him who walks uprightly?

                      Micah 2.7

(Every time I read God's Word,
it changes me
and impacts everyone around me.
God changes my heart
     and transforms the landscape.)

Sunday, December 14, 2014

Then Jonah prayed
     to the LORD his God
from the belly of the fish, saying,
"I called to the LORD,
              out of my distress,
and He answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
      and You heard my voice."

                     Jonah 2. 1-2

(Then Jonah prayed...
   and his story radically changes.)

Saturday, December 13, 2014

...cast their crowns 
     before the throne,
singing,
"Worthy are You,
         our Lord and God,
to receive 
glory and honor and power,
for You created all things,
and by Your will
they existed and were created."

                Revelation 4. 10-11

(How can I give Him glory today?
What form will that take?
Singing His song,
           not mine.)

Friday, December 12, 2014

I do not occupy myself
with things
too great 
and too marvelous for me.
But I have calmed 
     and quieted my soul,
like a child quieted
     at its mother's breast,
like a child quieted
                  is my soul.

              Psalm 131. 1-2

(Let God embrace me in this.
I am not in control,
but choose to dwell
  in the arms of the Almighty.)

Thursday, December 11, 2014

But let justice
   roll down like waters,
and righteousness
   like an ever flowing stream.

                Amos 5.24

(Justice and righteousness 
        are not social causes,
but a personal call
  for doing what is 
  good and right 
       and full of grace.)

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Do you see a man
   hasty in his words?
There is more hope 
    for a fool
        than for him.

              Proverbs 29.20

(Slow to speak,
    quick to listen.
Choose carefully.
Words are 
     not returnable.)

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

I will restore to you
the years
that the swarming locust
        has eaten...

                  Joel 2.25

(God will redeem your past,
God will redeem your life.)

Monday, December 8, 2014

...the Holy One
      in your midst...

                  Hosea 11.9

(That reality
   changes everything.)

Sunday, December 7, 2014

No greater joy
  can I have than this,
to hear that my children
       follow the truth.

          3 John 1. 4

(God does not call us
     to be successful,
but to be faithful.)

Saturday, December 6, 2014

As the mountains
  are round about Jerusalem 
so the LORD
  is round about His people,
from this time forth
      and forevermore.

            Psalm 125.2

(Everything is different
because you know Him.
Even here.
Even in this situation.
The safest place on earth
  is the center of His will .)

Friday, December 5, 2014

Our help is 
  in the name of the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.

                  Psalm 124.8

(Not just in the time of crisis.
Nothing is too big for Him,
no detail too small.) 

Thursday, December 4, 2014

To You I lift up my eyes,
O You who are enthroned
         in the heavens!

                  Psalm 123.1

(Not time to panic,
     but time to listen.
What do I need to do?
How can I handle this?
Wait, be still, listen.
First response,
    not last resort.)

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

...but the people 
      who know their God
shall stand firm
           and take action.

               Daniel 11.32

(Going forth 
      on His strength alone.
He will reveal 
       what you are to do.
Eyes open,
hearts responsive,
    sneakers tied.)

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From whence does my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
      who made heaven and earth.

                    Psalm 121. 1-2

(It doesn't get 
       any better than that!
Keep my eyes on Him,
no matter what 
     is swirling around me.)

Monday, December 1, 2014

In my distress
     I cry to the LORD,
that He may answer me.

             Psalm 120.1

(Pray expectantly.
Not "will He answer?"
     but how?)

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Great peace have those
    who love Your law;
nothing 
   can make them stumble.

             Psalm 119.165

(Move freely in the midst
of turmoil
   with peace and grace.
God's Word makes
      a visible difference
  and changes me.)


Thursday, November 27, 2014

Practice hospitality
     ungrudgingly
to one another.

          1 Peter 4.9

(Striving to be
    not the perfect hostess,
but a gracious one.
What am I serving up today?
What am I bringing to the table?)

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

...a tender heart
      and a humble mind.

           1 Peter 3.8

(What am I bringing to the table?
Approach situations
        and relationships
with gentleness,
compassion
and grace.)


Monday, November 24, 2014

...the sanctuary of the LORD
       in the midst of it.

           Ezekiel 48.10

(An intentional effort
     in all I do today,
my words,
my attitudes,
my choices.
His Presence
    changes everything.)

Sunday, November 23, 2014

...that you may declare
the wonderful deeds of Him
who called you out of darkness
  into His marvelous light.
Once you were no people
  but now you are God's people;
once you had not received mercy
  but now
      you have received mercy.

                 1 Peter 2. 9-10

(May that difference be evident
in everything about you.
It's who you are,
      forgiven and redeemed.
Nothing can ever be the same.
Live that way.)

Saturday, November 22, 2014

...I am their inheritance
   ...I am their possession.

           Ezekiel 44.28

(Live like an heir,
evident in my focus,
my vision,
in every kindness,
  the mark of His Presence.)

Friday, November 21, 2014

...the garments
in which they minister...

          Ezekiel 42.14

(An intentional mindset,
a transforming vision,
wherever we go today,
whatever we do.
God changes me.
"A long obedience
in the same direction."
    -- Eugene Peterson)

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Its vestibule faced
    the outer court,
and it had palm trees
    on its jambs,
one on either side,
and its stairway
    had eight steps.

         Ezekiel 40.37

(Even the smallest details,
    the smallest kindnesses,
are profound in God's eyes.
What am I thinking that
       "doesn't matter?"
It all does,
redeemed in a thousand ways.)

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Son of man,
    look with your eyes,
and hear with your ears,
and set your mind
   upon all that I shall show you,
for you were brought here
in order that 
   I might show it to you.

               Ezekiel 40.4

(Watch and listen
expectantly for God.
Don't miss what He is doing
           in your midst.
Don't miss why He has
   divinely placed you here.)

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

And He said to me,
"Son of man,
     can these bones live?"
And I answered,
     "O Lord GOD, you know."
Again He said to me,
"Prophesy to these bones,
and say to them,
   O dry bones, 
   hear the word of the LORD.
Thus says the Lord GOD
to these bones:
   Behold, I will cause breath
   to enter you,
       and you shall live.

           Ezekiel 37. 3-5

(Does it make a difference
if I read God's Word every day?
You will never be the same.
God's Word changes you completely,
    a visible redeeming.)

Monday, November 17, 2014

And they will say,
"This land that was desolate
has become like
        the garden of Eden,
and the waste and desolate
            and ruined cities
are now inhabited and fortified."
Then the nations
  that are left round about you
shall know that I, the LORD,
have rebuilt the ruined places,
and replanted that which was desolate;
I, the LORD, have spoken,
       and I will do it.

                  Ezekiel 36. 35-36

(A new heart,
     a visible difference,
that which changes you,
that which impacts
  everyone around you.
God At Work.)

Sunday, November 16, 2014

I will make with them
   a covenant of peace
and banish wild beasts
           from the land,
so that
they may dwells securely
   in the wilderness
and sleep in the woods.

           Ezekiel 34.25

(Live in the reality 
     of His Presence.)

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Therefore lift your drooping hands
   and strengthen your weak knees,
and make straight paths
                 for your feet,
so that
  what is lame 
      may not be put out of joint
but rather be healed.

         Hebrews 12. 12-13

(Be encouraged.
God is strengthening,
healing,
and using you mightily.
All of which 
    increase in increments.)

Friday, November 14, 2014

Therefore,
since we are surrounded
by so great a cloud of witnesses,
let us also lay aside
every weight and sin
     which clings so closely,
and let us run with perseverance
     the race that is set before us,
looking to Jesus...

                 Hebrews 12.1-2

(The course that is set
    before me today,
surrounded by those who are watching
    to see if God is real)

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Iron sharpens iron,
and one man sharpens another.

               Proverbs 27.17

(Seek out friendships
which strengthen you)

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Rule in the midst of your foes!

                   Psalm 110.2

(Bring grace to the table,
no matter the turmoil.)

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

With my mouth
I will give great thanks
    to the LORD;
I will praise Him
  in the midst of the throng.

          Psalm 109.30
(Live out His grace
          and love,
in word and deed,
every which way you can)

Monday, November 10, 2014

With God 
  we shall do valiantly;
it is He 
  who will tread down
                   our foes.

           Psalm 108.13

(Trust Him with the outcome.
Our foes are anything we fear,
both real
       and imagined.)

Sunday, November 9, 2014

He turns a desert
     into pools of water,
a parched land
     into springs of water.

                Psalm 107. 35

(With God, we can see
    everything differently,
everything with great purpose.
Even this.
The change happens when we stop
       asking "why,"
and start asking God "what.")

Saturday, November 8, 2014

...that we may give thanks
        to Your holy name
and glory in Your praise.

              Psalm 106.47

(Giving thanks
      and giving Him glory
changes everything
about me
and about my day.)

Friday, November 7, 2014

From the bed
where it was planted,
He transplanted it
to good soil
   by abundant waters,
that it might
bring forth branches,
and bear fruit,
and become a noble vine.

        Ezekiel 17. 7-8

(Wherever He leads,
wherever we are,
God brings forth fruit
and plants big trees.
We have only
to follow Him into it.)

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Yet He saved them
      for His name's sake,
that He might make known
      His mighty power.
He rebuked the Red Sea,
and it became dry,
and He led them 
       through the deep
       as through a desert.
So He saved them 
   from the hand of the foe,
and delivered them
   from the power 
          of the enemy.

                Psalm 106. 8-10

(See where you are
        differently,
not a place to flee
but faithfully follow Him
into His deeper purposes.
God will redeem
even what I don't understand.)
     

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

He opened the rock,
and water gushed forth;
it flowed through the desert
             like a river.

                 Psalm 105.41

(When we fully seek Him,
He guides and provides
through the most
       impossible situations.
Even in what appears
   to be wilderness,
God redeems
   His deep purposes.)

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

...yet
     I have been a sanctuary
     to them.

                  Ezekiel 11.16

(Seek His Presence
    right in the midst
of your impossible situation.
No matter what is going on,
the LORD is your strength,
       your refuge,
       your shield,
             and your song.
You are never alone.)

Monday, November 3, 2014

Seek the LORD and His strength,
seek His presence 
                   continually.

                      Psalm 105.4

(Seeking Him
 becomes my intentional default
               in all things,
          on all days
          both great and small,
that which will change
     the course of my life)

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Let us then with confidence
  draw near to the throne of grace,
that we may receive mercy
and find grace to help
             in time of need.

             Hebrews 4.16

(That time of need
may not be my own,
but drawing near
to impart grace
    in desperate situations
    and the desperate hearts
    of those all around us.)

Saturday, November 1, 2014

And you shall speak
     My words to them,
whether they hear
           or refuse to hear,
for they are a rebellious house.

                    Ezekiel 2.7

(We are called to be faithful
and leave the results in God's hands.
Even when it appears
      no one is listening,
    you never know who is.)

Friday, October 31, 2014

The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger,
and abounding in steadfast love.

                      Psalm 103.8

(How should I respond?
This is it,
the mark of His indwelling
     in impossible situations.)

Thursday, October 30, 2014

But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of the LORD
           never ceases,
His mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness.

              Lamentations 3. 21-23

(Never forget this.
No matter what you face.
No matter what.
May these words course through
    your mind and heart.)

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

...because the hearts of the saints
have been refreshed through you.

             Philemon 1.7

(We are all surrounded
by people starved
     for encouragement
in word and deed.
Nothing done in love
is insignificant.)

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Serve the LORD with gladness.
Come into His presence with singing.

                      Psalm 100.2

(Not just a good attitude,
      but a happy heart.
It will change your day.
Guaranteed.)

Monday, October 27, 2014

Show yourself in all respects
a model of good deeds...

              Titus 2.7

(This is how to do it,
    the living out of His grace,
in the smallest detail,
in the most impossible places.)

Sunday, October 26, 2014

Their Redeemer is strong,
the LORD of hosts
      is His name.

           Jeremiah 50.34

(No one beyond His redeeming,
nothing beyond His strength)

Saturday, October 25, 2014

...preach the Word,
be urgent in season
     and out of season...

           2 Timothy 4. 2

(by how you live)

Friday, October 24, 2014

All scripture is inspired by God
and profitable for teaching,
for reproof,
for correction,
and for training in righteousness ,
that the man of God
           may be complete,
equipped for
   every good work.

             2 Timothy 3. 16-17

(God's Word changes us.
Different eyes,
    different heart.)

Thursday, October 23, 2014

...that the LORD your God
   may show us
         the way should go,
and the thing that we should do.

              Jeremiah 42.3

(Wait. Be still. Listen.
God will reveal Himself.
My heart is open
    to Your leading, O LORD.
No detail too small.)

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Because you have made
    the LORD your refuge,
the Most High 
          your habitation,
no evil shall befall you,
no scourge come near 
               your tent.
For He will give His angels
    charge of you
         in all your ways.

                 Psalm 91. 9-11

(Dwell in His Presence.
Seek Him out,
       even in this.
God will bring you through.
He will protect you
     even in its midst.)

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

A man without self control
is like a city broken into
   and left without walls.

           Proverbs 25.28

(A shield around,
  scaffolding and strength within.)

Monday, October 20, 2014

So also good deeds are conspicuous,
  and even when they are not,
they cannot remain hidden.

            1 Timothy 5.25

(God is using you for His glory
    even in the smallest kindness.)

Sunday, October 19, 2014

Thus says the LORD who made the earth,
the LORD who formed it to establish it
      --the LORD is His name:
Call to Me
     and I will answer you,
and will tell you great and hidden things
      which you have not known.

                   Jeremiah 33.3

(When Christ is at the center of your life,
you do not just have another worldview,
                 but corrected vision.
God opens up new dimensions to you.
You see everything differently.)

Saturday, October 18, 2014

For I will satisfy the weary soul,
and every languishing soul
    I will replenish.

           Jeremiah 31.25

(My strength is not my own,
    but only in Him.)

Friday, October 17, 2014

...found grace in the wilderness.

           Jeremiah 31.2

(No matter what,
    no matter where,
God will redeem the hard places
  when we follow Him into it.)

Thursday, October 16, 2014

But seek the welfare
of the city where 
I have sent you into exile,
and pray to the LORD
  on its behalf,
for in its welfare
  you will find
           your welfare.

        Jeremiah 29.7

(Wherever God sends you today,
His divine appointments
        His strategic placement)

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Now may the Lord of peace
   Himself give you peace
at all times
              in all ways.
The Lord be with you all.

              2 Thessalonians 3.16

(Even in the most impossible situations.
God makes the strategic difference.
Mind set,
heart set,
eyes set on Him.)

Monday, October 13, 2014

A word fitly spoken
is like apples of gold
    in a setting of silver.

          Proverbs 25.11

(Give me Your vocabulary today,
         O LORD,
that my words may be 
        gracious and kind,
extending Your hope
      and compassion
even in dark places.
        "Use His words."

Sunday, October 12, 2014

...always seek to do good
  to one another and to all.
Rejoice always,
pray constantly,
give thanks
  in all circumstances.

1 Thessalonians 5. 15-18

(And God will take care
      of the rest.
See differently.
Think Christianly
        about all things.)

Saturday, October 11, 2014

Blessed is the man
   who trusts in the LORD,
   whose trust is the LORD.
He is like a tree
  planted by water,
that sends out its roots
         by the stream,
and does not fear
         when heat comes,
   for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious
  in the year of drought,
for it does not cease
          to bear fruit.
  
Jeremiah 17. 7-8

(Take root downward,
      bear fruit upward,
no matter the circumstances)

Friday, October 10, 2014

...the Word of God,
which is at work
               in you.. 

1 Thessalonians 2.13

(Yes, it makes a deep 
     and powerful difference,
  in your heart,
  in your day,
  in everything 
     around you.)

Thursday, October 9, 2014

And behold,
the waist cloth was spoiled,
it was good for nothing.

            Jeremiah 13.7

(Even in what
   looks ruined to us,
           God redeems.
God is working
   His greater purposes,
   His deeper plans.)

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Whatever your task,
       work heartily,
as serving the Lord
and not men...

             Colossians 3.24

(What has God placed
before me today?
There is nothing small
in His eyes,
nothing He will not use
in mighty ways.)

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Thus says the LORD:
"Let not the wise man
        glory in his wisdom,
let not the mighty man
        glory in his might,
let not the rich man
        glory in his riches,
but let him who glories
        glory in this,
that he understands 
                and knows Me,
that I am the LORD
who practice steadfast love,
   justice and righteousness
   in the earth,
for in these things I delight,
                 says the LORD."

Jeremiah 9. 23-24

(When it comes down to it,
what is my bottom line?)