...to know whether

you love the LORD your God

with all your heart

         and with all your soul.

You shall walk after 

           the LORD your God

           and fear Him,

and keep His commandments

and obey His voice,

and you shall serve Him

        and cleave to Him.

              Deuteronomy 13. 3-4

(That will not just keep me busy today,

  but will change the trajectory of my life.

God calls us to be faithful.)

But you shall seek the place

which the LORD your God

will choose out of all of your tribes

          to put His name

and make His habitation there;

thither you shall go...

                   Deuteronomy 12. 5

(Wherever He leads today,

every direction,

every encounter,

every opportunity

to bring the name of Jesus there.)

You shall not be

        in dread of them,

for the LORD your God

     is in the midst of you,

a great and awesome God.

                 Deuteronomy 7. 21

(You are not alone.

God is at work in you

and through you

         in incredible ways.

Hold tight to God,

    not to fear.)

And very early
on the first day of the week
they went to the tomb
when the sun had risen.
And they were saying to one another,
"Who will roll away the stone
for us from the door of the tomb?"
And looking up,
they saw that the stone was rolled back
-- it was very large.
And entering the tomb,
they saw a young man
sitting on the right side,
dressed in a white robe;
and they were amazed.
And he said to them,
"Do not be amazed;
you seek Jesus of Nazareth,
who was crucified.
He is risen,
           He is not here.

             Mark 16. 2-6

(He is risen.
He is risen indeed.
And nothing will
       ever the same.)

I have been crucified with Christ;

it is no longer I who live,

   but Christ who lives in me;

and the life I now live in the flesh

    I live by faith in the Son of God,

who loved me

       and gave Himself for me.

                      Galatians 2.20

(Easter is not just a holiday,

     but that we may walk

     in the newness of life.

Sin has lost its grip on me.)

So also the chief priests,
with the scribes and elders,
mocked Him, saying,
"He saved others;
He cannot save Himself.
He is the king of Israel;
let Him come down now
        from the cross,
and we will believe in Him.

                  Matthew 27. 41-42

(But if Jesus had come down
             from the cross,
if He had not died for our sins,
He would not be our Savior.
That is why He came,
because He loves you that much.
Without Good Friday,
   there would not be Easter.)

O LORD God,

You have only begun

to show Your servant

    Your greatness

    and Your mighty hand...

                Deuteronomy 3. 24

(We have seen nothing yet.

God is mighty,

   but God is the Almighty.

God is able to do 

far more abundantly 

than we can ask or imagine.

Ephesians 3. 20)

Do not be in dread
      or afraid of them.
The LORD your God
    who goes before you
will Himself fight for you,
just as He did for you
   in Egypt before your eyes,
and in the wilderness...
in all the way that you went
until you came to this place.

             Deuteronomy 1. 30-31

(Grasp the reality
of God's faithfulness
             even in this.
No matter how it appears,
God is bringing you through.
Something deeper is going on here.)

And He said to him,

             "Follow Me."

And he left everything,

and rose,

and followed Him.

                Luke 5. 27-28

(Leave that fear.

Leave that affection.

Leave even that direction.

Help me to get up

        and follow You into this,

however that looks like

  in my life today.)

...where there was no water
     for the people to drink.

                   Numbers 33. 14

(And God still brings us through.
When we follow Him fully,
God changes everything,
      even the impossible.)

My soul clings to You,
Your right hand upholds me.

                     Psalm 63. 8

(His Presence makes
the radical difference
     in all I face
    and even how I see it.
God navigates me through.
I am not alone in this.)

The voice of one

       crying in the wilderness:

Prepare the way of the Lord,

make His paths straight.

                     Luke 3. 4

(May we be faithful to God

even in what appears to us

     as wilderness,

these places that look insignificant

            or hopeless,

      or without meaning.

God is doing a mighty work in us

                and through us

     in ways beyond our vision.

God has placed each of us

              strategically

for His profound purposes,

for His glory,

in His Name.

Even in this.)

With God

    we shall do valiantly;

it is He

who will tread down our foes.

                 Psalm 60. 12

(Not "you can do it!"

       but God,

in whatever I may face today,

whatever I may fear.

How many times does He have to tell me:

             "I am with you.

              Do not be afraid.

              Do not attempt this alone.")

So Israel yoked himself

to Baal of Peoria.

              Numbers 25. 3

(Not just another worldview,

but a burden which changes you.

Jesus says,"Take My yoke

                      upon you,"

a yoke of strength and direction,

not enslavement and despair.

With Whom do I choose

                 to walk today?

Behold, I am with you.)

    

He who belittles his neighbor

                     lacks sense,

but a man of understanding

        remains silent.

                       Proverbs 11. 12

(Belittling anyone

  will come back to haunt you.

But he who loves his neighbor,

   through that kindness and grace,

God changes the world.)

For with God

   nothing will be impossible.

                Luke 1. 37

(Remember the first part

of this promise:  "With God."

Not just wishful thinking,

   but with the reality of God,

all things abound

       in the realm of possibility.)

...and behold,

the rod of Aaron

    for the house of Levi

had sprouted

and put forth buds,

and produced blossoms,

and it bore ripe almonds.

                  Numbers 17. 8

(And sometimes,

God makes His way

           really obvious,

almonds for the picking,

          beyond explanation,

that which only God can do.

Seek God,

    not just an answer.)

But I call upon God,

   and the LORD will save me.

...He will hear my voice,

He will deliver 

          my soul in safety

from the battle that I wage,

for many are arrayed 

              against me.

                 Psalm 55. 16-18

(Everyone struggles 

            with something,

but God is stronger still.

Call upon God,

   first response 

   not last resort.)

Behold,

       God is my helper;

the LORD is

   the upholder of my life.

                Psalm 54. 4

(No matter what.

Do I worship a God of ease

or the LORD God Almighty

   who provides His strength

   in impossible places?

I am not in this alone.)

...a pleasing odor to the LORD.

                     Numbers 15. 10

(What does that look like today?

What choices can I make

        to bring Him glory,

even in this impossible situation?

Bring the name of Jesus there.

Even in this,

    His deep grace invades

    and permeates in ways

that no one would ever expect.)

The integrity of the upright

           guides them...

                      Proverbs 11. 3

(An inner strength

     rooted in daily practice,

an engraved path,

a deep reliance

    unaffected by crisis,

choosing the path of righteousness.

Live above reproach.

                    Even in this.)

...and there is nothing at all

   but this manna to look at.

                    Numbers 11. 6

(Grumbling makes us 

look right past

   the goodness of God.)

...according to the pattern

which the LORD

     had shown Moses.,.

                  Numbers 8. 4

(God will reveal

how to do this work

that He has placed before me,

according to His designs for it.

New patterns emerge

  that I have not seen before.)

The LORD bless you

           and keep you:

The LORD make His face

      to shine upon you,  

      and be gracious to you:

The LORD lift up 

  His countenance upon you,

  and give you peace.

                   Numbers 6. 24-26

(Amen!)

Walk about Zion,

go round about her,

number her towers,

consider well her ramparts,

go through her citadels,

that you may tell

   the next generation 

   that this is God,

our God for ever and ever.

He will be our guide for ever.

                    Psalm 48. 12-14

(There is no greater gift

than faithfulness to God

lived out fully 

            and passed on.

This is how 

the next generation knows

what is real:

    by what they see in you.)

...encamp

facing the tent of meeting

on every side.

               Numbers 2. 2

(May I pitch my tent

facing You 

in all things today,

in every detail,

and on every exposure.)

God is our refuge and strength,

a very present help in trouble.

Therefore

we will not fear

though the earth

              should change,

though the mountains

 shake in the heart of the sea...

                    Psalm 46. 1-2

(Seek God through 

    this overwhelming situation.

Dwell on His Presence.

Fear just blinds us

      to the reality of God.)

And they were on the road,

going up to Jerusalem,

and Jesus was walking

          ahead of them...

              Mark 10. 32

(Wherever you are,

you are not alone.

Jesus is going before you

        to guide you.

Show me Your way in this,

                    O LORD.)

...from evening to morning

     before the LORD continually.

                 Leviticus 24. 3

(Not just what I do,

not just my prayers,

         but my heart.

In His name

  and for His Kingdom.

No exclusions.)