Thursday, June 30, 2016

For he held fast
         to the LORD...
And the LORD was with him;
wherever he went forth,
                   he prospered.

                       2 Kings 18. 7

(God brings forth a new outcome,
    something radically different,
when we are faithful to Him.
We will never realize
how deeply God uses us.)

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

And he did what was right
     in the eyes of the LORD.

                  2 Kings 15. 34

(What do I choose
   in what I face today?
My way or the High way?
One act of faithfulness
  engraves the way for the next,
for more than can be counted.
If we only knew
       the impact of what is right,
faithful to God,
gracious to others,
we would never even hesitate
to follow Him into it.)

Tuesday, June 28, 2016

And he said,
   "The LORD'S arrow of victory..."
 
                   2 Kings 13. 17

(What am I following
into this tough situation
or impossible relationship?
Follow God through it.
He will reveal Himself to you.
God's direction
    always points to Him.
His victory even in this,
even in you,
profoundly impacts others.
God's victory
 is never the end of the story.)

Monday, June 27, 2016

...that they should be
    the LORD's people.

                   2 Kings 11. 17

(Evident in all we do and say
     today in whatever we face,
wherever God places us,
even in our attitudes,
     glorifying to You, O LIRD.
May we be mindful
   of who we are
and Whose we are.)

Sunday, June 26, 2016

So he prepared for them
         a great feast.

                    2 Kings 6. 23

(Kindness is
  a powerful force.
Take them by surprise.)

Saturday, June 25, 2016

But about midnight 
Paul and Silas were praying 
and singing hymns to God,
and the prisoners 
were listening to them...

                  Acts 16. 25

(How you respond in crisis
depends on what you do
on the most ordinary of days.
Someone is always 
watching you to see
               if God is real.)

Friday, June 24, 2016

Then Elisha prayed and said,
"O LORD, I pray to You,
open his eyes
     that he may see."
So the LORD opened 
the eyes of the young man,
and he saw;
and behold,
the mountain was full
of horses and chariots of Fire
round about Elisha.

              2 Kings 6. 17

(Open our eyes, O LORD,
to the reality of Your Presence.
We are surrounded!
How differently would we live
if we realized God's hand
  in this impossible situation.)

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Now the Syrians
on one of their raids
had carried off
           a little maid
from the land of Israel,
and she waited on Naaman's wife.

                2 Kings 5. 2

(Strategically placed
          for God's glory.
So are you.)


Wednesday, June 22, 2016

And Elisha said to her,
"What shall I do for you?
Tell me,
what have you in your house?"
And she said,
"Your maidservant has nothing
in the house,
     except a jar of oil."

               2 Kings 4. 2

(God does not add.
God multiplies 
   when we follow Him into it,
to bring us from 
    our obvious need
                  to His glory in it.
God specializes
   in what we see
   as impossible situations.)

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

...Is it because
there is no God in Israel
    to inquire of His word?

            2 Kings 1. 16

(Have I even considered
       God's way in this?
Have I even listened
    for His voice in this?
God works far beyond
                 the obvious.
Inquire early
              and often.
Show me, O LORD,
how to navigate
      not around this,
but through it
           for Your glory.)

Monday, June 20, 2016

Though I walk
     in the midst of trouble,
You preserve my life...
The LORD will fulfill
     His purpose for me.

                Psalm 138. 7-8

(No matter what,
no matter how difficult
            or impossible,
God is at work,
            even in this.
There is not just a reason for it,
     there is God's purpose all over.
In Him, all things hold together.
I have only to be faithful,
        follow Him into it,
and hold on tight.)
       

Sunday, June 19, 2016

How shall we sing the LORD's song
        in a foreign land?

                             Psalm 137. 4

(Every which way we can
    in every word, deed
                  and attitude,
a new melody
   that resets my heart
   and points others to Him.
How does that sound like
       for me today?)

Saturday, June 18, 2016

...to Him who led His people
          through the wilderness,
for His steadfast love
               endures forever...

                         Psalm 136. 16

(God does not always deliver
      out of an impossible situation,
but through it,
His purposes so profound
             we cannot grasp.
This hard place,
this difficulty,
this uncomfortable journey
       may not be about you,
but incredibly a chronicle
           of God's faithfulness
to encourage someone else
  to know that God is real.)

Friday, June 17, 2016

And he said to his servant,
"Go up now,
       look toward the sea."
And he went up and looked,
and said, "There is nothing."
And he said,
      "Go again seven times."
And at the seventh time,
he said, 
         "Behold, a little cloud
like a man's hand 
is rising out of the sea."

                   1 Kings 18. 43-44

(When we seek God in this,
          over and over again,
even in this impossible situation,
He reveals Himself,
sometimes in ways
          we never expect.
Listen for His still small voice,
watch for that little cloud
      suddenly on your radar
for His glory.)

Thursday, June 16, 2016

He who forgives an offense
               seeks love,
but he who repeats a matter
       alienates a friend.

               Proverbs 17. 9

(Forgiveness opens a door
      to a higher road,
forgiveness sets aside pride.
What would happen
if I set aside my pride in this?
What if I carried grace into it
                              instead?
What if .....?)

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

...to put His name there.

                     1 Kings 14. 21

(Why am I here in this place?
Why am I here
     in this impossible situation?
Bear the name of Jesus
                          in all I do.)

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

I will not enter my house
       or get into my bed;
I will not give sleep to my eyes
       or slumber to my eyelids,
until I find a place for the LORD,
a dwelling place
   for the Mighty One of Jacob.

                    Psalm 132. 3-5

(Not fit Him in,
but follow Him in)

Monday, June 13, 2016

But Saul increased 
all the more in strength,
and confounded the Jews
who lived in Damascus 
by proving that Jesus
                 was the Christ.

                          Acts 9. 22

(Not by scripted answers
nor by winning any argument,
but by a transformed heart.
There is nothing more convincing 
about the gospel


than a life changed by grace.)

Sunday, June 12, 2016

Now an angel of the LORD
said to Philip,
"Rise and go
toward the south to the road
that goes down from
      Jerusalem to Gaza."
This is a desert place.
And he rose and went.

                Acts 8. 26-27

(Our response is not dependent
on knowing God's purposes in it.
God always has profound designs
in what only appears
        to be wilderness,
too deep to understand,
too many dimensions to realize.)

Saturday, June 11, 2016

But the LORD said
  to David my father,
"Whereas it was 
in your heart to build
a house for My name,
you did well 
that it was in your heart.
Nevertheless you shall
not build the house
but your son
who shall be born to you
shall build the house
       for My name.

           1 Kings 8. 18-19

(Your most significant 
work is living a life
faithful to God,
preparing the way
for a children yet unborn.
Plant big vision,
that will both outlive you
         and provide 
for generations to come.)

Friday, June 10, 2016

...and as he drew near to look,
there came the voice of the LORD...

                           Acts 7. 31

(What am I doing here,
what is this before me?
Trusting God
means following Him
even when I cannot yet see
    or understand
    the path or the outcome.
God will reveal Himself.
It is not that He will lead me.
He is guiding me through it.
I have only to be faithful.)

   

Thursday, June 9, 2016

...sojourners in a land
      belonging to others...

                   Acts 7. 6

(God's profound purposes prevail
      even there,
      even in mystery,
      even in what I cannot yet see.
I am strategically placed
not in a wasteland,
but a frontier for His kingdom.
God changes the landscape
    by changing my heart.)
   

Wednesday, June 8, 2016

And he had peace
on all sides around him.

               1 Kings 4. 24

(In the Old Testament,
peace was the mark
of being faithful to God.
It is not that the situation
is different, but when we
are at peace with God,
we see things differently
and respond with grace
instead of conflict.
It doesn't have to be
      a confrontation.)

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

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

                 Psalm 124. 8

(Not just a reminder 
       but a reality.
LORD, show me how
   to navigate this!)

Monday, June 6, 2016

...sweetness of speech   increases persuasiveness.

               Proverbs 16. 21

(Words are not returnable.
Choose carefully.
No returns,
     no exchanges.
How differently 
   can I say this?)

Sunday, June 5, 2016

.., we hear them
telling in our own tongues 
the mighty works of God.

               Acts 2. 11

(God has given you
a story in your own words
that translates the gospel 
so others can understand.)

Saturday, June 4, 2016

...and the LORD wrought
a great victory that day.

              2 Samuel 23. 10, 12

(Always in more dimensions
     than we can know.
When we follow God into it,
when we are faithful to Him,
even in what is incomprehensible,
the LORD does not
         work out an outcome.
He works in multiple outcomes.)

Friday, June 3, 2016

...and you shall be 
    My witnesses in Jerusalem 
and in all Judea 
                 and Samaria
and to the end of the earth.

                        Acts 1. 8

(You are strategically placed
        for His name's sake
right here,
          right now.
Yes, even here. 
This too is ministry.
As a sign was once fastened
above the exit door
of my church,
"You are now entering
       your mission field.")

Thursday, June 2, 2016

 He said to them,
"Cast the net
on the right side of the boat,
and you will find some."
So they cast it,
and now
they were not able
       to haul it in,
for the quantity of fish.

                      John 21. 6

(When we follow God into it,
He always blesses
in incredible and impossible ways,
even in those things
we do not yet comprehend.)

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

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

                       Psalm 119. 165

(The residual effect
           of daily Scripture
works something radical in us.
God changes our hearts,
God changes our mindset,
God changes the outcome.
Get to where
       nothing can throw you
  and responsive to all.)