Great peace have those

  who love Your law;

nothing can make them stumble.

Psalm 119.165

(God's peace does not mean

an absence of conflict,

but His Presence within,

not dependent 

on favorable circumstances,

    but engraved with

    uncommon strength).

So Daniel was taken up

          out of the den,

and no kind of hurt

    was found on him,

because he had

  trusted in his God.

              Daniel 6. 20

(Trusting in God

and faithfulness to Him

was woven seamlessly 

in his daily life.

How much more would

  I know God

if I trusted Him,

even in this,

even today?)

Therefore I direct my steps

     by all Your precepts...

                    Psalm 119. 128

(Have I considered God in this?

Specifically about this?

Seeking Him 

and not an answer of my own choosing?

What does God's Word

       have to say about this?

Directing my steps doesn't mean

God hands me an itinerary 

but the next proximate step

            in trusting Him).

...but you are able,

for the Spirit of the holy God

                    is in you.

                   Daniel 4. 18

(Nothing of your own abilities,

but able

    because God is in you.

And that is going to look

     very different in this 

                  impossible situation

    and among these difficult people.

Even today.

His grace,

His glory,

    and many such things

    you will see).

Cast all your anxieties on Him,

       for He cares about you.

                     1 Peter 5. 7

(Hand them over,

don't keep taking them back.

God has been faithful to you

      your whole life long,

          through thick and thin.

He is not about to stop now).

Do not return evil for evil

or reviling for reviling,

but on the contrary

                 bless,

for to this you 

     have been called,

that you may obtain a blessing.

                     1 Peter 3. 9

(Be a contrarian.

Live in a way that is not expected

and inexplicable

          if not for God.

Am I seeking to "win" in this,

        or bring grace in my pockets?

To be right,

        or compassionate?

To complain the loudest,

     or bring the name of Jesus there?)

And on the banks,

of both sides of the river,

there will grow all kinds of trees

                     for food.

Their leaves will not wither

        nor their fruit fail,

but they will bear 

            fresh fruit every month,

because the water for them

   flows from the sanctuary.

Their fruit will be for food,

and their leaves for healing.

                  Ezekiel 47. 12

(The source of my strength

radically impacts

everyone around me.

Deep roots,

sustaining fruit,

even the leaves for healing.

That the LORD is my strength

   matters more than I can know).

O give thanks to the LORD,

          for He is good;

for His steadfast love

                endures forever.

                    Psalm 118. 29

(Not just thankful,

    but thankful to God.

Grateful that we live in a country

that has a major holiday

     just for giving thanks).

Happy Thanksgiving!

Then he brought me back

to the outer gate of the sanctuary,

which faces east;

and it was shut.

                  Ezekiel 44. 1

(Closed doors are never random

       but designed intricately by God,

                     always for good reason.

It is not a closed door at all,

    but a deeper one beckoning

for His infinite purposes

           and profound direction.

It may be about

    bringing His light and grace 

                     to a new place).

...and pray for one another

         that you may be healed.

                         James 5. 16

(One of the many side effects

of prayer:

God's healing over relationships.

"Confession and forgiveness

are the concrete forms

in which we sinful people

             love each other."

                    -- Henri Nouwen

                         In the Name of Jesus)

...beyond the nave.

               Ezekiel 41. 4

(Am I willing

to go deeper

    and grow deeper

in my relationship with God,

or just satisfied 

with being in the big room?

Daily choices,

      little steps in faithfulness).

...set your mind

upon all 

that I will show you,

for you were brought here

in order that

I might show it to you...

                  Ezekiel 40. 4

(What is the sense in this?

We are strategically placed

for His profound purposes,

perhaps even more so when we

don't see the point in it.

His glory sometimes comes with

       a side of deep mystery 

and incredible wonders

                yet to be revealed).

...being no hearer that forgets

     but a doer that acts,

he shall be blessed

                in his doing.

                     James 1. 25

(What has God placed

before me today?

Put feet on your faith

    and grace in your hands).

If any of you lacks wisdom,

let him ask God,

Who gives to all men

     generously 

         and without reproaching,

and it will be given him.

  

                       James 1. 5

(Did it even occur to me

   to ask God

   for His wisdom in this?

Even now.

Even in this.

No excuses.

No exclusions.

There is nothing small,

      or too small,

in God's economy,

nothing random,

everything profoundly used).

...but we seek the city

      which is to come.

                 Hebrews 13. 14

(Living in light of eternity

   looks very different.

Even today,

even in this

    impossible situation,

even here,

bring the name of Jesus there,

on so many levels).

From the rising of the sun 

         to its setting,

the name of the LORD

   is to be praised.

                  Psalm 113. 3

(Bookends of the day

     and all the way through.

How radically different my heart,

my vision,

my first response,

my life,

if I started and ended the day

         in praise to God Almighty?)

...let us run with perseverance 

       the race that is set before us,

looking to Jesus...

                   Hebrews 12. 1-2

(What is the course

    God has set before me today?

God has embedded profound purpose

in His training program

for the strength I will need

and to encourage others

                     along the way).

By faith

Rahab the harlot did not perish

with those who were disobedient,

because she had given

       friendly welcome to the spies.

                          Hebrews 11. 31

(The world says love yourself.

God calls us to Him,

to love those on our path,

to love strangers,

even to love those against us.

I need not know the outcome

nor the magnitude

           of even a friendly welcome,

   but just that God uses it.

A kindness is never small,

        but ever profound.

Even here.

Even in this).

With my mouth

I will give great thanks to the LORD;

I will praise Him 

    in the midst of the throng.

                         Psalm 109. 30

(Faith is revealed

in both word and work

         seamlessly woven.

And perhaps,

the LORD has brought you here

in this place,

in this circumstance,

in this conversation,

       for such a time as this,

to bring the name of Jesus there.

Praise and thanks to God 

in our culture

do not stick out like a sore thumb,

but manifest hope

               in very dark places

and the grayness of the ordinary).

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

(God designed us for community.

There is enormous purpose

                  in fellowship.

God never intended for us 

                to just attend church,

         but be the Church,

our love and encouragement for each other

    brimming over,

               transforming lives,

and getting all over the world around us).

O grant us help against the foe,

for vain is the help of man.

With God

       we shall do valiantly;

it is He who will

              tread down our foes.

                       Psalm 108. 12-13

(Who am I looking for help?

         Or not at all?

Work hard, do not fear,

and trust God for the outcome.

God provides and delivers

    in unexpected ways

    and multiple layers).

"Courage means being afraid

and saddling up anyway."

                   -- John Wayne

Let the redeemed of the LORD

              say so....

                    Psalm 107. 2

(What story has God given you

    to point others to Him?

Acknowledge God

     even in this,

     even here,

     even among the rebellious.

You can never know how God

   is using you in the lives of others).

Save us, O LORD our God,

and gather us from among the nations,

that we may give thanks

          to Your holy name

and glory in Your praise.

                 Psalm 106.47

(Seeking God 

      with singular mindset

and every dimension today

     to glorify Him).

...and make the dry tree flourish.

                      Ezekiel 17. 24

(Rooted in Him,

    the LORD will bear fruit through you

        wherever He places you.

God is not limited

    by favorable circumstances.

Indeed, His most incredible work

thrives in the most impossible places.

Even here.

Even now.

Even in this).

He rebuked the Red Sea,

         and it became dry,

and He led them 

          through the deep

   as though through a desert.

So He saved them 

from the hand of the foe,

and delivered them

from the power of the enemy.

                      Psalm 106. 9-10

(No matter what overwhelms you,

     God leads you through.

Give me wisdom and grace, O LORD,

   to know how to navigate this day

       in a way that honors You).

In the morning,

the word of the LORD came to me,

"Son of man,

has not the house of Israel,

the rebellious house, said to you,

        "What are you doing?"

                                  Ezekiel 12. 9

(Walking with God

         will always look differently.

Live in such a way

  that others can't help

                  but ask why.

What is different about you?

         His embedded grace).

... to seize the hope

         set before us.

                  Hebrews 6. 18

(To seize the hope before us,

not the despair around us.

Because of Christ,

     life is very different).

Seek the LORD and His strength,

seek His Presence continually.

                           Psalm 105. 4

(Not just seeking an answer,

       nor a particular outcome,

nor an open door,

            but seeking the LORD.

God has something

              completely different

              already woven in place,

and that is always

       rooted in relationship with Him.)

    

...and you shall know

     that I am the LORD.

                  Ezekiel 6. 7

(This phrase is repeated 62 times

in the book of Ezekiel.

What does it take

       for me to realize that?)

...and the hand of the LORD

          was upon him there.

                         Ezekiel 1. 3

(Wherever God strategically

                   places us,

whenever we are responsive to Him.

No matter what appears as the outcome,

obedience to God always brings along

            an unexpected blessing,

    even what we may never see.

"We are called to be faithful,

           not successful."

                     --Mother Teresa)