Call To God Who Heals Us

From: Our Daily Bread

Read: Genesis 50:15–20 | Bible in a Year: Isaiah 47–49; 1 Thessalonians 4

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done. Genesis 50:20

Jay Bufton turned his hospital room into a lighthouse.

The fifty-two-year-old husband, father, high school teacher, and coach was dying of cancer, but his room—Room 5020—became a beacon of hope for friends, family, and hospital workers. Because of his joyful attitude and strong faith, nurses wanted to be assigned to Jay. Some even came to see him during off-hours.

We can have confidence in our good and trustworthy God!

Even as his once-athletic body was wasting away, he greeted anyone and everyone with a smile and encouragement. One friend said, “Every time I visited Jay he was upbeat, positive, and filled with hope. He was, even while looking cancer and death in the face, living out his faith.”

At Jay’s funeral, one speaker noted that Room 5020 had a special meaning. He pointed to Genesis 50:20, in which Joseph says that although his brothers sold him into slavery, God turned the tables and accomplished something good: “the saving of many lives.” Cancer invaded Jay’s life, but by recognizing God’s hand at work Jay could say that “God intended it for good.” That’s why Jay could use even the ravages of cancer as an open door to tell others about Jesus.

What a legacy of unwavering trust in our Savior even as death was knocking at the door! What a testimony of confidence in our good and trustworthy God!

Lord, difficult things come into our lives so often. Please help us to trust You enough to see that nothing is beyond Your control. Help us to tell of Your love even in the tough times.

By God’s grace, we can have our best witness in the worst of times.

Creation Care

From: Our Daily Bread

Read: Genesis 1:26–31 | Bible in a Year: Isaiah 45–46; 1 Thessalonians 3

The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to mankind. Psalm 115:16

The “big browns” are spawning in the Owyhee River—brown trout beginning their fall nesting ritual. You can see them excavating their nests in the gravelly shallows.

Wise fishermen know that fish are spawning and try not to disturb them. They avoid walking on gravel bars where they might trample the eggs, or wading upstream from the nests where they might dislodge debris that can smother them. And they don’t fish for these trout, though it’s tempting to do so as they rest near their nests.

Care for creation honors the Creator.

These precautions are part of an ethic that governs responsible fishing. But there is a deeper and a better cause.

The Scriptures stress the fact that God has given us the earth (Gen. 1:28–30). It is ours to use, but we must use it as those who love it.

I muse on the work of God’s hands: a partridge calling across a canyon, a bull elk bugling up a fight, a herd of antelope far off in the distance, a brook trout and its kaleidoscopic rose moles, a mother otter playing in a stream with her pups—I love all these things, for they have been given to me for my delight, out of my Father’s great love.

And what I love, I protect.

Heavenly Father, You have put us here to enjoy and ponder Your marvelous creation. May everything You have made remind us of Your goodness, love, and care.

Care for creation honors the Creator.

Held By God

From: Our Daily Bread

Read: Psalm 131 | Bible in a Year: Isaiah 43–44; 1 Thessalonians 2

I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content. Psalm 131:2

As I was nearing the end of lunch with my sister and her children one afternoon, my sister told my three-year-old niece, Annica, it was time to get ready for her nap. Her face filled with alarm. “But Aunt Monica did not hold me yet today!” she objected, tears filling her eyes. My sister smiled. “Okay, she may hold you first—how long do you need?” “Five minutes,” she replied.

As I held my niece, I was grateful for how, without even trying, she constantly reminds me what it looks like to love and be loved. I think sometimes we forget that our faith journey is one of learning to experience love—God’s love—more fully than we can imagine (Eph. 3:18). When we lose that focus, we can find ourselves, like the older brother in Jesus’s parable of the prodigal son, trying desperately to win God’s approval while missing out on all He has already given us (Luke 15:25–32).

Jesus, help us to be deeply rooted in Your love.

Psalm 131 is one prayer in Scripture that can help us to “become like little children” (Matt. 18:3) and to let go of the battle in our mind over what we don’t understand (Ps. 131:1). Instead, through time with Him we can return to a place of peace (v. 2), finding the hope we need (v. 3) in His love—as calm and quiet as if we were children again in our mothers’ arms (v. 2).

Lord, we are so grateful for those in our lives who remind us what it means to love and be loved. Help us to be ever more deeply rooted in Your love.

Like children, we can learn to rest in the love of God.

Hard Times

From: Our Daily Journey

Read:

1 Kings 19:1-14
Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. . . . “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died” (I Kings 19:3-4).

Charles Spurgeon, Martin Luther, poet and hymn writer William Cowper, Mother Teresa, and contemporary author Ann Voskamp—each has been recognized for their devotion to Jesus. And each has also battled depression.

I’ve heard people say that followers of Christ can’t suffer from depression due to the joy we have in Jesus. Those who do, they say, suffer with it because of some sin. Others say depression can be prayed away if we simply have enough faith. But depression is complex and can be fueled by many factors including painful life circumstances, chemical imbalances, shame, and other challenges.

I speculate that the prophet Elijah suffered from at least one episode of depression. After he helped the widow at Zarephath (1 Kings 17:8-24), he challenged the prophets of Baal and was victorious over them (I Kings 18:18-40). He also prayed that God would send rain on the drought-stricken land, and God did. Yet on the heels of God’s mighty and spectacular deeds, Elijah grew afraid and depressed when Queen Jezebel sought revenge and vowed to kill him (I Kings 19:2-4). As a result, he fled to Mount Sinai where God met with him. Notice the loving-kindness of God. He didn’t scold Elijah for his despair, but like a nurturing parent He took care of him by providing food and drink while Elijah slept under a broom tree (I Kings 19:4-8).

Maybe you’ve suffered from depression or know someone who has. Maybe you feel isolated and are hopeless. Let me remind you—you’re not alone. God cares deeply for you. He wants you to be whole. Please consider seeking medical care and advice and telling trusted people what you’re going through. You don’t have to suffer alone.

The Good Shepherd

Read: Isaiah 40:6–11 | Bible in a Year: Isaiah 39–40; Colossians 4

He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart. Isaiah 40:11

From: Our Daily  Bread

I sat in the hospital room with my husband, waiting anxiously. Our young son was having corrective eye surgery and I felt the butterflies jostle in my stomach as I fretted and worried. I tried to pray, asking God to give me His peace. As I leafed through my Bible, I thought about Isaiah 40, so I turned to the familiar passage, wondering if anything fresh would strike me.

As I read, I caught my breath, for the words from so many years ago reminded me that the Lord “tends his flock like a shepherd” as He “gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart” (v. 11). In that moment my anxiety left me as I realized the Lord was holding us, leading us, and caring for us. That was just what I needed, Lord, I breathed silently. I felt enveloped in God’s peace during and after the surgery (which thankfully went well).

The Good Shepherd cares for His sheep.

The Lord promised His people through the prophet Isaiah that He would be their shepherd, guiding them in their daily lives and giving them comfort. We too can know His gentle tending as we tell Him our anxious thoughts and seek His love and peace. We know that He is our Good Shepherd, holding us close to His heart and carrying us in His everlasting arms.

Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep. Thank You for the gift of Your sacrificial love and for the peace that passes all understanding.

Read Oswald Chamber’s thoughts on worry.

The Good Shepherd cares for His sheep.

Practice Cheerful Hospitality

From: Our Daily Journey

1 Peter 4:7-10
Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay (1 Peter 4:9).

After Mary and Jim married and moved into their first apartment, they decided to set aside a room in which to host others. I became a beneficiary of their warm hospitality on a teaching trip. They welcomed me, a stranger, into their home and showered me with love.

The practice of hospitality is central in Scripture. Jesus received hospitality from those He ministered to (Mark 2:15-16, 14:3; Luke 7:36). Sisters Mary and Martha of Bethany opened their home to Jesus (Luke 10:38), and He probably stayed in their home each time He came to Jerusalem (Matthew 21:17; Luke 21:37).

The apostle John cited an example of a believer who hosted traveling teachers. Although strangers to him, Gaius gave them a place to stay. He was commended for his cheerful and loving hospitality: “You are being faithful to God when you care for the traveling teachers who pass through, even though they are strangers to you. They have told the church here of your loving friendship. Please continue providing for such teachers in a manner that pleases God. For they are traveling for the Lord, and they accept nothing from people who are not believers. So we ourselves should support them so that we can be their partners as they teach the truth” (3 John 1:5-8).

We may not be missionaries or traveling Bible teachers. But we can partner with them and others who need our hospitality. Peter wrote, “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other . . . . Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay” (1 Peter 4:8-9). And the apostle Paul urges us to “always be eager to practice hospitality” (Romans 12:13).

Our generous, loving God can provide what we need to show hospitality to those in need.

Wake-Up Call

From: Our Daily Bread

Read: Revelation 3:1–6 | Bible in a Year: Isaiah 34–36; Colossians 2

 During the years when I traveled frequently and stayed in a different city every night, I always scheduled a wake-up call when I checked into a hotel. Along with a personal alarm, I needed a jangling telephone to help get me out of bed and moving in the morning.

The book of Revelation contains a spiritual wake-up call in the apostle John’s letters to the seven churches in the province of Asia. To the church in Sardis he wrote this message from Jesus Himself: “I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God” (Rev. 3:1–2).

Lord, enable us to hear and respond to Your call today.

In the midst of spiritual fatigue, we may fail to notice the lethargy that creeps into our relationship with God. But the Lord tells us to “remember . . . what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent” (v. 3).

Many people find that scheduling some extra time each morning to read the Bible and talk to the Lord in prayer helps them stay spiritually alert. It’s not a job but a joy to spend time with Jesus and know that He prepares us for whatever lies ahead that day.

Lord, enable us to hear and respond to Your wake-up call today.

Spending time with Jesus is a joy!