While We Wait

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:29-31

When you want to quit, be encouraged that you don’t have to keep going on your own strength. 

Remember this promise – God will renew your strength as you wait upon Him. You can lean on Him to help you keep running your race so you can finish your course.

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the promise of Isaiah 40:29-31. Help us to wait on You and trust in Your unfailing love, so that we may renew our strength and soar like eagles. Give us the courage to run with endurance, walk with confidence, and overcome any challenges that we may face. In Jesus' name, amen 🙏.

God is at Work

God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him. Philippians 2:13

God is at work in us, causing us to be willing and obedient ... giving us the grace and changing us ... so that we will be able to do what He wants us to do.  He gives us the desire and power to accomplish His will, not our pleasures.

God WILL carry out His plan. Either He will work IN us or He will work ON us. Either way, He WILL accomplish His purpose.

We have all seen the sign on the highway 'MEN AT WORK'. We can put a sign over the Christian: 'GOD AT WORK'. In the quest for God to make us like Jesus, He may have to chisel, sand, steel wool and polish us. God will continue to polish us until Jesus comes back to get us.

Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6
 
We need to relax, stop being so hard on ourselves, and allow God to work through us.

Father, I pray that You help us to trust You to complete the work that You have begun in us. Help us to allow You to work through us. Change us. Make us more like You. In Jesus' name, amen.

The Unconditional Love of God

God showed how much He loved us by sending His one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through Him. This is real love - not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. 1 John 4:9,10






One of the biggest struggles many people face is a feeling that the Lord couldn't possibly love them. Yet the Bible clearly tells us He does. Far from just saying so with words, God has also given us ample proof. Creation itself is an expression of His awesome care for us. He designed this earth as the perfect habitation for humanity and provides us with the necessities of life. But the highest expression of His love is manifested in His provision for our eternal needs. He sent His Son to redeem us from sin so that we could be forgiven and reconciled to God - and then live with Him in heaven forever.

So why, with all this evidence, do so many of us still doubt His love? Perhaps the reason is that we are looking at it from our own limited perspective: since we can't love others unconditionally, we doubt that the Lord can. After all, human logic considers it reasonable to be loving towards people who measure up to our standards - but to hold ourselves aloof from those who don't.

We've been hurt way too many times and have had so many inappropriate role models that can't show love because they weren't shown love either. It's hard to feel safe to trust God enough to let our guard down and love Him.

Maybe we just feel unworthy of His love. Well, I have news for you: no one is worthy. God's love is not based on whether we're deserving or not. We don't have to earn His love, it's not by works. He already loves us, just the way we are, for God IS love.

Divine love is conditioned not on our performance but on God's nature. It's like the ocean's tide. You can stand on the shore and say, 'I don't believe in waves,' but that doesn't stop them from coming. Likewise, nothing you do or feel will stop the Father's love from washing over you.

Father, I pray that You wrap Your arms around us. Tell us how much You love us. Show us how much You love us. Help us to believe how much You love us. Help us to love You back. In Jesus' name, amen.