But the God of my father

    has been with me.

              Genesis 31. 5

(These two words

    make all the difference

    into the trajectory of life:

             But God...

Recognize the

  chronicle of His faithfulness

and His Presence

  even in mystery and suffering.

Underlying all experience,

               God is with me.

               I am not alone.

This is not the end of the story

   but that which God redeems.

It is not just in the extraordinary

  that God miraculously intervenes,

but even in what we consider

              the ordinary,

     even when we miss His hand.

Because supernaturally

    is how God always works.)

O LORD,

We miss out

because we do not recognize

      Your hand,

      Your designs,

      Your intervention,

      and Your Presence

             in all things.

You are with us.

May Your abiding in us

   change our hearts

that we are not paralyzed by dread

      but delight in

   storming the castle with You.

Help us to fulfill the obvious,

to be sensitive

     to the invisible,

and have shoes tied on

   to respond immediately

     to Your voice,

not just willing

    but heart and hands ready,

eyes on You,

to step into the needs

        all around us

                        today.

 

"Behold, I am with you

and will keep you

    wherever you go..."

Then Jacob awoke

           from his sleep

and said,

"Surely the LORD

      is in this place,

and I did not know it."

          Genesis 28. 15-16

(In the dark and scary places,

even in the most unexpected

   details and developments,

on the rocky paths

      and strange rabbit trails,

we realize

     the Presence of God.

We are distracted and

      overwhelmed by

circumstances, discomfort,

inconvenience,

and sometimes,

      hard stones as pillows.

But He is here,

          right with us.

What in the world

   am I doing here?

Did I take a wrong turn?

Did God make a mistake?

But in those shadows,

God reveals Himself:

  "I am with you.

   Even in this place.

   Now watch this...")

O LORD,

Help us to not just be

       aware of You,

but in awe of You

  and what You are doing,

far beyond our eyesight,

far beyond our lifetimes.

Your Presence is with us,

    a reality not just a feeling.

May we not just be

           mindful of You

but have the mind of Christ

as we walk into

          Your day for us.

Help us see things differently.

   because we know You.

 

Fear not,

   for I am with you...

       Genesis 26. 24

(Trusting God

    and walking with Him

does not change

           the circumstances

but changes our hearts,

how we view

     what is before us,

how we approach

      and navigate,

how we respond

      to God's voice,

what we do

    and how we do it.

Fear blocks out the light.

Trusting God

     into the known and unknown

always changes the journey

              and the outcome.

What if

    there was nothing to fear?

How would I approach this

                differently

if I knew God is with me?)

O LORD,

So often we fear

         instead of trusting You.

May our first response

   be to run to You

   and walk with You

            through it.

Please help us not just to endure

    but to be a blessing to others

    and to bless Your name.

Guide us into this day

             differently

because You are with us

and we need not fear.

 

And He said to them,

"Why are you afraid,

    O you of little faith?"

Then He rose and rebuked

    the winds and the sea,

and there was great calm.

And the men marveled,

saying, "What sort of man is this,

  that even winds and sea

                      obey Him?"

                Matthew 8. 26-27

(Everyone struggles with something.

What are we missing out on

            because we fear?

God calls us to follow Him,

know Him,

abide in Him,

   even in the storms of life.

God does not promise

  a gentle breeze

            and a glassy sea,

but a great adventure

        into His glory.

We fear the known.

We fear the unknown.

But God owns both.

"Watch this," He says.

Trusting Him

    changes the journey.)

O LORD,

Everyone of us

is in some kind of small boat

     with a storm forecasted

     or bearing down on us.

Show us how to navigate

  this storm-tossed sea

  or volatile passage

  or fear that threatens us.

Help us to ride with You

   through what we see

   and what we

          cannot yet see.

Your peace is contagious.

Help us to trust

  not just what You are doing,

           but who You are.

Help us to not miss

    Your wow in this.

 

Trust

      in the LORD

with all your heart,

and do not lean

  on your own understanding.

In all your ways

            acknowledge Him,

and He will make straight

                  your paths.

             Proverbs 3. 5-6

(How differently would

      our lives look

if we committed ourselves

   to trusting God

      every morning,

      every hard circumstance,

      every surprise,

      every shadow?

When we trust Him,

God takes us on a different journey

          and to a different outcome,

even through circumstances

                 we don't understand.

God's way may not be paved

      or easy,

but He promises,

           "Fear not, I am with you."

How do I need to trust Him

                       today?

     Even in this.)

O LORD,

This new day,

this new week,

even in the beginning

            of another year,

may we trust You

     with all of our hearts,

all eyes on You,

shoes tied on,

ready to follow You

   into Your day for us.

It is not that we need to

   lay our day before You

   to squish You into it,

but be willing and ready

      as You lay Your day

               before us.

Help us to acknowledge You

        in all we do,

to bless You,

to magnify Your holy name.

 

...and in your offspring

shall all the nations of the earth

               be blessed,

because you have

     obeyed My voice.

           Genesis 22. 18

(We have no idea of the

    generational ramifications

    of obeying God.

No act of responding to God

           is insignificant,

no act too small

   that God does not use.

The Scriptures

            show us that.

Learn to trust God.)

O LORD,

May we not just

        listen for Your voice,

    nor listen to You,

but respond

       by trusting You.

You have not forgotten us.

You have a strong hold

           over us,

even in this difficulty,

even in this mystery.

You are working so powerfully

     we cannot even see it

                     yet.

But You are here.

You are with us.

Help us to triumph over

         our fears

by trusting You.

 

But seek first

the kingdom of God

  and His righteousness,

and all these things

  will be added to you.

            Matthew 6. 33

(God's antidote to anxiety

      is "Trust Me in this."

Just one step of obedience

produces the strength

            for the now and next.

And then

       God reveals another step

       in His unlikely ways

    and unexpected packages.

"Do you trust Me

       to take another step?"

Even when we cannot

    yet see the outcome

    or the path?

Where to go

    and what to do

hinges on trusting Him,

even when it doesn't

           seem to matter.

Because it always does.)

O LORD,

Our lives are so dependent

                   on You,

    more than we know.

Help us to

      not seek answers

                   and outcomes,

but to seek You first,

   not as a last resort.

Even what we see as

     small steps of trust

   have eternal reverberations.

There are no small obediences

          in Your eyes,

only faithfulness.