“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John 10:10, NKJV

When I was in the eleventh grade, a friend met me in the hallway one September day right after the school year began, and said, “My friend, Richard Sharp wants me to ask if you will go to the ‘Back to School’ dance with him next weekend?” My response… “Why doesn’t he ask me himself?” Well, after receiving a personal invitation to the school dance from the somewhat shy young man resulted in the most exciting fifty years of my earthly life. Although Richard went to heaven eleven years ago, I have two beautiful daughters and four precious grandchildren to prove I made the right decision by saying, “yes.”

What if Richard had not taken the time to ask me out, would our paths have crossed at a future date? Maybe, maybe not, but I do know this—without some type of personal interaction at some point in time, Richard and I would not have had any relationship at all. How do I know this to be true? The obvious answer is that humans require interaction to build any type of relationship, meaningful or otherwise; I believe most logical and reasonable people agree with this provable and pivotal fact.

God created human beings with a need for personal relationships not only to give us the opportunity to experience a deep emotional connection with each other but also the opportunity to experience a deep emotional connection with our Creator. Therefore, two thousand years ago Jesus Christ, Immanuel [God with us] entered the world in the flesh, into the human experience to give us an opportunity to get to know Him by having a relationship with Him. Like Richard personally inviting me to the school dance, Jesus invites you and me to get to know Him by spending time with Him, while building a meaningful relationship that promises a present hope and an eternal deliverance. Sixty years ago, I said, yes, to Richard’s invitation; forty years ago, I said, yes, to the invitation of Jesus. I have never regretted accepting either invitation!

At this very moment, Jesus is inviting you into a personal relationship so you can get to know Him. Friend, will you say, yes?

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever, Amen” (Ephesians 3:20, NKJV).

The words of the Book of Ephesians “exceedingly abundantly…” echo in the recesses of my mind whenever I think of how much God loves me. No matter what is happening in my life or the world, holding onto the truth of God’s Word is paramount to the peace and contentment I feel. So often, we in our humanity make the mistake of facing our circumstances first on how and what we feel in the moment, rather than what we know to be true according to the Bible; when we allow this to happen, we risk facing challenges with unnecessary confusion about not only the present and future, but also about the faithfulness of our Lord.

How much does God love you and me? Our Creator Father has never and will never hold back on His affection for us. In the letter Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus, he prays that “He [God] would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width, and length, and depth, and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Eph. 3:16-19, emphasis mine).

Sweet friend, please re-read the previous paragraph, keeping in mind that God’s promises are as relevant and powerful today, in your life and mine, as they were when the Apostle Paul penned them well over 2000 years ago. No matter what you are going through; no matter how impossible your circumstances may feel, trust and believe in the Word of God, who raised His Son, Jesus from death to life. The empty tomb is our Father’s guarantee, that He is still on the throne. This is the Truth! Do you believe it?

Father, help us to remember in times of what feels like complete hopelessness in this world, that nothing, absolutely nothing is out of Your reach and control. Give us the strength and the faith to have a heavenly perspective, no matter what. Amen.

“Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:16, NIV).

If only we could “plug in” our desired destination to get through life and then have an app to click on to show the best and safest route to get there, I wonder how many people would use it? While the concept at first thought may sound enticing, probably many of us who have lived in this world long enough realize that the most difficult and challenging “detours,” though worn and weathered in places have made us stronger and perhaps a little wiser than we could have been otherwise; maybe you find yourself in this category? Let me tell you a story to lend visual aid to this metaphor.

A few weeks ago, I began working with a talented horticulturist on a landscape plan for my new home. When visiting the nursery supplying the inventory, one tree immediately caught my eye.

“What kind of tree is that?” I asked.

The expert helping me replied, “that is a Japanese Red Maple.”

She slowed the golf cart to a stop. I hopped out and encircling the beautiful, red-leafed specimen, I began noticing the trunk of the tree. Like photographs I have seen, the brown bark twisting and turning, the rough thickness, gnarled with age reminded me of a bonsai tree. The total width of the tree looked to be about eight feet in diameter and the height maybe five and a half feet. By the size of the trunk, I asked the next logical and obvious question.

“How old is the Japanese Red Maple?”

She replied, “Well, we are not positive, but we do know it is at least fifty years old, could be more like seventy.”The horticulturist went on to explained some of its history. “When the owner of the landscaping company bought his first home at around the age of twenty, the tree was already in his yard. He lived in the house for fifty years, so it could easily be seventy years old.”

“I would like that tree!” I said emphatically.

The Japanese Red Maple has now been relocated and rests, again, in the ground in a prominent location in my yard. I can see it from many different angles to remind me that the wear and tear of time can produce grace, beauty, and strength, not only in trees, but within the person who trusts in the Lord. With every twist and turn in the journey of our lives, God will sustain us and mold us into the being He created us to be by His Almighty power if we will trust Him.

“To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks [or an aged Japanese Red Maple] that the Lord has planted for his own glory” (Isaiah 61:3, NLT, paraphrase mine).

Father in heaven, Creator and Lord of all life be with us through every experience and circumstance. Give us the courage and strength to endure challenges that will surely accompany us on the journey this side of heaven. Give us a glimpse into what You see resulting in remaining steadfast, no matter the challenges that come our way. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore, it is not a great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.” 2 Corinthians 11:13-15, NKJV

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I the LORD, search the heart, and test the mind, even to give every man, according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.” Jeremiah 17:9-10, NKJV

Sometimes I wonder why God did not stick with His original design and begin life for human beings in the adult years. Adam and Eve did not go through the “early childhood years,” or the dreaded teenage years. Oh, right – that plan did not end well! When I read that the human brain does not fully develop until the years between age twenty-five to thirty, the all too often poor decision making prior to this timeframe makes perfect sense. If only poor decision making had a cutoff date, then only God knows what the world could be like. Our Creator Father knew in the perfect Garden of Eden that when giving humans a choice, He was opening the door to rebellion, and history proves we walked right through it and have been defiant ever since. Choosing rebellion over obedience is part of the natural human sinful condition (Genesis 3).

Recently, I have had dreams with a repeated theme—choosing between doing the right thing, versus doing the wrong thing. The circumstances in each dream are different but the premise is always the same, will I make the right choice? In the dream, like a person with multiple personalities, instinctively, I know clearly what to do, but despite clarity, I make the wrong choice. These dreams are stressful. When finally awake, I am so happy knowing it is only a dream…or is it?

Gracious Father, how many opportunities do I have throughout each day, when I am fully awake and conscious, where I make bad decisions and poor choices? Do I make excuses for my careless words or unkind thoughts toward others? Do I express my actions to You with evidence of having been wrongly treated, and thereby believing myself justified? Forgive me, Lord! Cleanse me from within, so that both my heart and mind line up with Your desire for making choices wisely. In the name of Jesus, Amen.   

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33, NKJV.

“So, teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:12, NKJV.

Gone are the “good old days,” when physical calendars were our only resource for keeping track of daily activities. One often had their calendar hanging by a magnet on the refrigerator (ah yes, magnet-ready refrigerator doors are “good old days” gone too!). In those days, each family member was expected to enter upcoming commitments for all to see, so that schedules might run smoothly. Large XX’s appeared in the blocks crossing off past days, no longer applicable except to document historical events. (Promise not to tell anyone, but I still keep a physical calendar because I am such a visual person).

According to the introduction of Psalm 90, we are told Moses is the author. We have no idea how Moses or the people of his generation kept track of time and events, but we do know he understood the importance of both. “Teach us to number our days…” is one way of saying, remember your past, “that we may gain a heart of wisdom” and learn from it. After spending forty years in the desert in search of the “Promised Land,” Moses, who was God’s appointed leader of the Israelites experienced the good, bad, and ugly characteristics of humanity, including those of himself. A journey that should have taken only a matter of days to complete turned into a generation of self-identifying whiners, and God-identifying “stiff-necked people” (Exodus 32:9).

Through the “magic” of technology, today we have a glimpse into the generation in which we now live. People like posting everything for all to see…what they eat, do, and think in real time. Life, for such people, is often unfiltered and raw. Friend, every new day offers unexplored opportunities for self-identification and God-identification through the characteristics of our human expression. As we number our days and learn from them, I pray, God if You determine our actions be made visible for all the world to see, Lord, let Your life lessons mold and make us into the image of Your Son, Jesus. Give us the kind of wisdom that lets the world see more of Jesus in what we say, do, and think, and less of ourselves. Amen.

John 11:35, NKJV