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

an overflowing blessing.

                             Malachi 3. 10

(Bring my full heart before Him

      and see what the LORD will do.

A heart turned to Him

       brings you to profoundly new places,

even right where you are.

Next year is going to be different.

          Follow Him into it.)

Behold,

the dwelling of God is with men.

He will dwell with them,

and they shall be His people,

and God Himself will be with them;

He will wipe away

   every tear from their eyes,

and death shall be no more,

neither shall their be mourning

nor crying,

nor pain any more,

for the former things

            have passed away.

And He who sat upon the throne said,

    "Behold, I make all things new."

                           Revelation 21. 3-5

(Not just a promise,

              but a reality.

He is the God of newness,

not just of second chances,

        but making things right again.

God redeems.

Even in this,

  no darkness too deep.

This is not the end of your story,

nor the end of one year

          or the start of the next,

but the beginning of new life in Him.)

For pressing milk
         produces curds,
pressing the nose
         produces blood,
and pressing anger
         produces strife.

               Proverbs 30. 33

(Find another way through it.
Learn how to let it go.
know how to pursue peace,
and avoid the obvious potholes.
Grace in your heart,
      healing in your hands.)

I will make them
       strong in the LORD,
and they shall glory
                 in His name.

                Zechariah 10. 12

(In whatever you do,
         His help is always there,
         His hope
            that on which you can
            stake your life.
Wherever you are,
   the LORD is with you.)

And the angel said to them,
"Be not afraid,
for behold,
I bring you good news
              of great joy
which will come to all people;
for to you is born this day
in the city of David
a Savior,
   Who is Christ the Lord.

                 Luke 2. 10-11

(And nothing
   is ever the same.
As all the children said this morning,
           "He came!!!!")

Merry Christmas, my friend!
You are loved.

...for the day of small things
       is not to be despised.

                Zechariah 4. 10

(Those are the times
when God works in
    profound ways,
the extraordinary spreading
      His roots in our lives.
There is nothing insignificant
    or ordinary
in God's economy.)

Not by might,

not by power,

   but by My Spirit,

says the LORD of hosts.

What are you,

         O great mountain?

Before Zerubbabel

you shall become a plain...

                Zechariah 4. 6-7

(That which only the LORD can do.

What mountain do I face?

Impossible.

          But by God.

He meets me 

    in my deepest need.)

For I will be to her

    a wall of fire round about,

    says the LORD,

and I will be 

      the glory within her.

                   Zechariah 2. 5

(Even in the most impossible

           situations,

I am not alone.

Make me aware of You,

                      O LORD.

You are my shield,

You are my strength.)

I know

   that the LORD maintains

   the cause of the afflicted

and executes justice for the needy.

Surely the righteous

  shall give thanks to Your name;

the upright 

  shall dwell in Your presence.

                      Psalm 140. 12-13

(The Psalms are such powerful words,

because they reflect the hard core

           cries of the human heart.

David does not just believe;

                     David knows

        the LORD never lets you go.

David has seen it with his own eyes

  what a relationship with God means.

David did not write this psalm

         as a nice poem or positive thought

    but through the reality

                of the LORD in his life.

Dwell in His Presence.

Even now.

Even in this.

The LORD never lets you go.)

Take courage,

  all you people of the land,

  says the LORD;

work,

        for I am with you,

   says the LORD of hosts,

according to the promise 

that I made you

      when you came out of Egypt.

My Spirit abides among you;

                fear not.

                      Haggai 2. 4-5

(Take courage

     in spite of circumstances

and in everything

   that the LORD 

        has laid before you today.

You are not alone.

God's profound purpose

           prevails in it,

even in that I cannot see

                   or understand,

   nothing that He cannot use

      for His glory.

There is nothing mundane

                in God's economy.)

    

Do not fear, O Zion;

let not your hands grow weak.

The LORD, your God

        is in your midst,

a warrior who gives victory;

He will rejoice over you

               with gladness,

He will renew you in His love;

He will exult over you

with loud singing

as on a day of festival.

                    Zephaniah 3. 16-17

(No one loves you more than God.

He never said life would be easy,

but He promises over and over again,

    "Do not fear.  I am with you."

The LORD is in your midst.

Don't miss Him.

The LORD will fulfill,

   His divinely appointed purposes.

His victory in this.

Even in this.

Always in His steadfast love.

Even in what I cannot understand.)

Though the fig tree do not blossom,

nor fruit be on the vines,

the produce of the olive fail

and the fields yield no food,

the flock be cut off

                 from the fold

and there be no herd in the stalls,

yet

     I will rejoice in the LORD,

I will joy in the God of my salvation.

God, the Lord, is my strength;

He makes my feet like hinds' feet,

He makes me tread

             upon my high places.

                      Habakkuk 3. 17-19

(Trust God,

        not the circumstances.

No matter what,

           YET "I am with you.

                    I've got this.")

The LORD is good,

a stronghold in the day of trouble;

He knows those

     who take refuge in Him.

                         Nahum 1. 7

(A refuge in the Bible

is not a place to hide,

       but a place to abide,

not a place to run away,

    but a place of strengthening

               from which to go forth.

A flight attendant says,

         "Know your exits

              in case of trouble."

God says,

         "Know Me."

Worshiping God

is not just something I ought to do,

not just another thing yet on my list.

Coming before Him

    changes the trajectory of your life.)

... and redeemed you

from the house of bondage.

                      Micah 6. 4

(You don't live there anymore.

God has saved you.

Live that way.)

There
     you shall be rescued,
there
   the LORD will redeem you
from the hand of your enemies.

                   Micah 4. 10

(God works in the
        most incredible ways
and in the most unlikely places,
that which only God can do.
It is a promise to hold onto
even when we cannot understand,
even in what we don't see coming.
God is faithful.
God is good.
Seek out God in this,
     not just an exit door.
Rescue may not mean
     being airlifted out,
but His deliverance often comes
           right in the midst,
His way right through
                 the impossible.)

... yet You

brought up my life from the Pit,

O LORD my God.

When my soul fainted within me,

I remembered the LORD,

and my prayer came to You...

                       Jonah 2. 6-7

(The pit of despair

   is not the end of the story.

"Yet God..."

           changes everything,

the course of my story,

the trajectory of my life,

the condition of my heart.

The miry bog

        is a place of deliverance,

not where God intends me to dwell,

no matter the circumstances.

God will not bring you through this;

    He IS bringing you through this.)

The fear of man lays a snare,

but he

who trusts in the LORD

                            is safe.

              Proverbs 29. 25

(O LORD,

do not let me trip

    over my own fear.

Help me to follow You

          through it

and trust You in it,

No matter the circumstances,

Emmanuel

     --God with us.)

Behold,

I stand at the door and knock;

if anyone hears My voice

        and opens the door,

I will come in to him

and eat with him,

   and he with Me.

           Revelation 3. 20

(Open the door

     and let Jesus 

into what you are going through.

You are not alone

           in your situation.

He is waiting for you.

He is waiting

        to change everything).

Seek the LORD

             and live...

               Amos 5. 6

(Seek the LORD

through your narrow scary place,

seek Him through the miry bog,

seek Him even on the really good days.

What is Your way in this, O LORD?

When we do not seek a solution,

          but God Himself,

He will show a better way.

Always a path of forgiveness

                   and grace.

Even in impossible places.)

Be faithful unto death,

and I will give you

       the crown of life.

                 Revelation 2. 10

("Be faithful to Me,

             even in this,"

the daily struggles

    and the ordinary,

              not just the extremes.)

"If we do not do

the running steadily

           in the little ways,

we shall do nothing

                    in the crisis."

  

             -- Oswald Chambers

"I am the Alpha and the Omega,"
             says the Lord God,
Who is
and Who was
and Who is to come.

            Revelation 1. 8

(The one thing
     that never changes:
              God Himself.
The Almighty
 is bigger than what
 I am going through,
what is in the past,
what is before me.
It is not unknown to Him.
"I am with you always."
Even now.)

 

...the Holy One 

            in your midst...

                   Hosea 11. 9

(Be aware of His Presence.

Go forth

into your impossible situation

     with the reality of who He is,

the Mighty One 

         Who changes everything.

God never gives up on you.

Right there with you.

Even in this.)

Let us know,

let us press on

     to know the LORD;

His going forth is

          sure as the dawn;

He will come to us

as the spring rains 

      that water the earth.

              Hosea 6. 3

(You can count on Him.

Press on.

God is working mightily.

Give Him the time and space

     to bring forth His purposes.)

Those who trust in the LORD
are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be moved,
     but abides for ever.
As the mountains are
     round about Jerusalem,
so the LORD
       is round about His people,
from this time forth
               and forevermore.

                Psalm 125. 1-2

(You are not alone.
You are surrounded.
Trust the LORD through this,
         one step at a time,
         no trust too small,
         no trust too big for Him.
"I am with you.
You can trust Me with this,
in this,
and even through this.
I've got this, the LORD says.
      I've got you.")

... and make the Valley of Achor
              a door of hope.

                        Hosea 2. 15

(Achor means "trouble."
God redeems our valley of despair
and transforms it
           into deep hope in Him.
It is a place I am only moving through
       not where I am stuck forever.
God always provides a door
   that leads directly to Him.
No matter what.
No matter where.
"I am with you.")

Then I Daniel looked ....

              Daniel 12. 5

(What am I missing,

what am I missing out on,

because I am not

seeking God Himself in this,

not just an answer?)

...but only for a time.

              Daniel 11. 24

(What often defeats us

is thinking this is the end,

we are stuck forever,

and nothing will

    ever be the same.

But God is bigger still.

In His eyes

       "not ever the same"

is a very good thing indeed.

That is what redeeming 

           is all about.

We just can't see it yet.)

O my God,
incline Your ear and hear,
open Your eyes
and behold our desolations,
and the city
   which is called by Your name,
for we do not present
our supplications before You
on the ground of our righteousness,
but on the ground
             of Your great mercy.

                       Daniel 9. 18

(Come before the LORD
     in your desolation.
He will run
   to meet you in your need.
My help comes.
My help comes from the LORD.)

...but He touched me
and set me on my feet.

                    Daniel. 8. 18

(God meets us
not just in our time of need,
      but in our need.
God does not intend for us
to dwell in the miry bog
      but to abide in Him.)

I rejoice at Your Word
like one who finds great spoil.

                      Psalm 119. 162

(My daily bread,
my daily strength.
Take as much as one can
and come back for more.
God changes
the course of our lives).

...and the king cried out
in a tone of anguish
    and said to Daniel,
"O Daniel,
servant of the living God,
has your God
   whom you serve continually,
been able
to deliver you from the lions?"

                 Daniel 6. 19

(What is my impossible situation?
The living God
    has not left me there alone.
It is not that there
         is nothing to be afraid of,
but there is everything
to trust God about.)

I have heard of you
that the Spirit of the holy God
              is in you,
and that light
and understanding
and excellent wisdom
         are found in you.

                   Daniel 5. 14

(In what I face today,
abiding in Him
           changes everything.
Everyone struggles with something.
Don't leave home
            without Him.)

For this very reason
make every effort to supplement
your faith with virtue,
and virtue with knowledge,
and knowledge with self control,
and self control with steadfastness,
and steadfastness with godliness,
and godliness with
                   brotherly affection,
and brotherly affection with love.
 
                           2 Peter 1. 5-7

(Because someday
it will keep you
       from going under.)

...but there is a God in heaven...

                           Daniel 2. 28

(And that reality
           changes everything.
God may not change my situation,
     but He can change
                  my heart in this.)

Finally, all of you,
have unity of spirit,
sympathy,
love of the brethren,
a tender heart and a humble mind.
Do not return evil for evil,
or reviling for reviling,
but on the contrary
                           bless,
for to this you have been called
that you might obtain blessing.

                   1 Peter 3. 8-9

(For to this you have been called
       even in the midst of turmoil,
God calls us to be His.
Do what is right.
Seek peace and pursue it.)

O give thanks to the LORD,
        for He is good,
for His steadfast love
               endures for ever.

                Psalm 107. 1

(Not just thankful today,
    but thankful to God.
Not just for what we see as favorable,
but for His goodness
      far too deep to understand
                                               yet.
Giving thanks to God
        changes us.)
     
Happy Thanksgiving!

...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

(Live that way.
God has changed you.
May others say this holiday,
"Wow, what happened to her?"
"Wow, he is a different person!"
And that would be
      His redeeming grace in you.)

Open my eyes ,
that I may behold wondrous things
        out of Your Word.

                 Psalm119. 18

(God reveals Himself
   through Scripture.
Every time you open His Word,
it changes you
      and everyone around you.
Take something with you
          into your day.
"Never head into unknown territory
       without a full tank.")

The prayer of a righteous man
has great power in its effects.

                              James 5. 16

(A prayer never prayed
has 100 percent chance
of not being answered.
Praying matters.
       It matters a lot.
That is why the evil one
tries so hard to convince us
                    otherwise.
Whatever you are facing,
      have you prayed about it?)

Draw near to God
and He will draw near to you.

                    James 4. 8

(Seek God
and He will reveal
     Himself to you.
No one
    -- but no one--
stands beyond His grace.
No matter what.
Because that is who He is.
God loves you,
    and He knows your name.)

For where jealousy
   and selfish ambition exist,
there will be disorder
      and every vile practice.
But the wisdom from above
              is first pure,
then peaceable,
gentle,
open to reason,
full of mercy and good fruits,
without uncertainty
              or insincerity.
And the harvest of righteousness
is sown in peace
          by those who make peace.

                      James 3. 16-18

(Willing to yield,
willing to leave all that behind,
intentional in planting
                 something new.
What are you bringing
    to Thanksgiving this year?)

The hand of the LORD
           was upon me,
and he brought me out
     by the Spirit of the LORD,
and set me down
         in the midst of the valley;
it was full of bones.

               Ezekiel 37. 1

(You brought me here, O LORD?
God's profound purposes prevail,
even in a place of unconnected pieces,
even in what does not seem to have life at all.
Now watch
            what God will do.
Open yourself
     to the vision of God in this.)

A new heart I will give you,
and a new spirit
    I will put within you,
and I will take out of your flesh
          the heart of stone
and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put My spirit within you,
and cause you
       to walk in My statutes
and be careful
       to observe My ordinances.

                      Ezekiel 36. 26-27

(God is not about second chances.
He is about all things new.
God changes everything
       from the inside out
and aligns our hearts with His.
Love God and love people.)

Not to us, O LORD,
            not to us,
but to Your name
                   give glory.

                  Psalm 115. 1

(Whose glory am I seeking
                   in this?
Whose name have I written
                   on it?)

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.
Strive for peace
           with all men...

                  Hebrews 12.  12-14

(How am I approaching
      this difficult person,
      this impossible situation,
      this ongoing struggle?
Am I slogging through a miry bog
        with a heart already defeated?
Or am I seeking God
   that He would strengthen me
   through it instead?
What is Your way in this?
God always brings
    something different to the table.)

Light dawns in the darkness
                 for the upright;
he is gracious,
    merciful,
       and righteous.

                    Psalm 112. 4

(No matter what.
No matter where.
God opens a way,
    for grace, mercy,
          and doing what is right,
not dependent on circumstances
        but in knowing Him.)

He considered that
       God was able...

              Hebrews 11. 19

(Seeking Him
should be my first response,
         not last resort.
God is able.
         He is my strength.
Have I even considered
       the reality of God in this?)

Now faith is the assurance
     of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen.

                        Hebrews 11. 1

(Not a belief system
               or a worldview,
but the certainty
    on which I stake my life,
a relationship
    that changes everything about me,
the core of who I am,
           the reality of who He is.)

And let us consider
how to stir up one another
   to love and good works,
not neglecting to meet together,
as is the habit of some,
but encouraging one another,
and all the more as you see
the Day drawing near.

              Hebrews 10. 24-25

(You need others,
 others need you.
God never intended for us
   to live in isolation,
but in love for Him
              and others.)

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

             Psalm 108.13

(The key phrase here
        is "with God."
Don't leave home
             without Him.
Don't head into the day
       with an empty tank.
Sometimes God
          diverts the storm,
but He is always with me
              through it.
"Fear not.
      I am with you.")

For He shatters
       the doors of bronze,
and cuts in two
       the bars of iron.

                  Psalm 107. 16

(When I seek God,
     He guides me through unexpected doors
     that only He can open.
God specializes in impossible situations.
Our hope in Him
        is not a future event
but a daily revealing.)

The word of the LORD came to me again...

                                   Ezekiel 18. 1

(Not a one-time set of directives

       in time of crisis or urgency,

but a continual daily conversation.)

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

(God has placed you strategically
                 for His purposes
     that you may know Him more.
Abiding in Him,
you cannot help but be transformed,
     you shall not remain as you are.
Even in what appears a barren place,
     God creates a place of flourishing.
His Presence alters the landscape.
Change is designed by God
            to bring forth growth.)

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 though 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

(God leads us through

  our own deep scary places

           by His powerful hand

       and in unexpected ways

that we would know Him more.

It is not that God will be

         on the other side of this,

but He is right there with us,

             bringing us through.

God never said that life will be easy,

   but He promises,

            "I am with you.")

      

"What are you doing?"

            Ezekiel 12. 8

(Live in such a way

that others cannot help

     but ask "why?"

That is what the gospel

                looks like.)

Then I looked,
     and behold ...

          Ezekiel 10. 1

(Seek God in this.
Not if God will show me,
  but how
  He is revealing Himself to me?
God does not just show me
       a different perspective,
but His way in this.)

Seek the LORD

    and His strength,

seek His Presence

               continually.

           Psalm 105. 4

(Seek the LORD

     through this.

Even this.

God doesn't care about this?

       Absolutely He does.

God will change what you see,

how you respond,

the course of your day,

the course of your life.

He will change your heart.

God unfolds what is incredible

        in His plans for you.

Don't miss it.)

And the hand of the LORD
     was there upon me,
and He said to me,
"Arise,
go forth into the plain,
and there I will
       speak with you."

             Ezekiel 3. 22

(Even when it does not
     make sense to me,
even when it is
   a place I would not
   choose myself to go,
He whispers, "Follow Me."
In what I see a dead-end
   or a barren place,
God places
   His divine appointments.)

...and the hand of the LORD
    was upon him there.

                 Ezekiel 1. 3

(The reality of His Presence
prevails over circumstances,
even here,
 even in this,
     no randomness at all.
God never said
        life would be easy,
but He promises,
over and over again,
   "Fear not,
     I am with you.")

But we see Jesus...

         Hebrews 2. 9

(I cannot know everything,
nor understand all,
but I can seek
           Him who does.
See Jesus where I am today).

I will walk with integrity
         within my house,
I will not set before my eyes
          anything that is base.

                   Psalm 101. 2-3

(Know when to turn away,
know how to walk away,
know to simply turn it off.
Make a choice.)

Remind them to be submissive
   to rulers and authorities,
to be obedient,
to be ready for any honest work,
to speak evil of no one,
to avoid quarreling,
to be gentle,
and to show perfect courtesy
                toward all men.

                            Titus 3. 1-2

(That should keep me busy today.
 Respond as a Christ-follower
                              in all things.
Practicing the presence of God
                      even in this.)

It is He
Who made the earth
                 by His power,
Who established the world
                 by His wisdom,
and by His understanding
    stretched out the heavens.

                  Jeremiah 51. 15

(This crazy situation,
this impossible relationship,
this enormous problem,
   are not too big for the LORD.
I can depend on Him.
     I am not alone in this.
There is something really profound
     not just in the outcome
     but in the knowing.)

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

             Jeremiah 50. 34

(I am not alone in this.
My Redeemer is strong.
The LORD will deliver me through.
The LORD will redeem.
                      Even this.
And because God
      is not restrained by time,
He is already redeeming,
               present tense.)

Then shall all the trees of the wood

        sing for joy...

                    Psalm 96. 12

( All the incredible colors of autumn

     are just a bare glimpse of His majesty

and a reminder

       of what is to come.)

But fear not,
O Jacob My servant,
nor be dismayed, O Israel;
for lo,
    I will save you from afar,
and your offspring
    from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return
        and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
Fear not, O Jacob My servant,
                      says the LORD,
for I am with you.

                 Jeremiah 46. 27-28

(Fear only blocks out the light.
God grants quietness and peace
         in impossible places.
"I am with you"
           is not just a promise
    but a reality.)

...that it may be well with us
when we obey
      the voice of the LORD.

                  Jeremiah 42. 6

(It always is.)

Because you have made

    the LORD your refuge,

the Most High your habitation...

                    Psalm 91. 9

(That changes everything.

God transforms and redeems

       the course of your life.

What we may see

   as circumstances

   we would not have chosen,

God opens opportunities

   such as we would not believe.)

Like cold water 

     to a thirsty soul,

so is good news

   from a far country.

             Proverbs 25. 25

(Who has God placed

           on my heart

to encourage today?)

So also good deeds

       are conspicuous,

and even when they are not,

they cannot remain hidden.

             1 Timothy 5. 25

(God always bears fruit

through goodness,

kindness,

        and grace,

even that which you may never see.

You can never know

  how profoundly God is using you.

God transforms even the simplest action

        into the most significant of all.)

Give thanks to the LORD of hosts,

for the LORD is good,

for His steadfast love

          endures for ever.

                 Jeremiah 33. 11

(the words to the song

       that never ends,

the refrain to the chorus

    that forever sustains me.

Over and over again,

   throughout my day,

   throughout my life.

Even in this.)

...I prayed to the LORD, saying,
"Ah, Lord GOD!
It is You
who have made
    the heavens and the earth
by Your great power
  and Your outstretched arm!
Nothing is too hard for You...

                Jeremiah 32. 16-17

(It is You.
 It is You.
 It is You.
The wonders of His creation
   are only a reminder
   of His power.
       Even in this.)

...found grace in the wilderness.

                  Jeremiah 31. 2

(God provides

for the longings of my heart

and the strength I need

     in unexpected places.

And sometimes

     it is not about me).