A good friend and I were laughing about a fishing trip we took a number of years ago. We were sharing a tent with a couple of other friends and woke up to a small stream of water running through the center of the tent and the storm raging on.  The four of us ran over to the shower house and took up refuge under the eave.  With just a couple of hours to daybreak, we found it difficult to find anything positive in our situation.

Garrison Keillor, author, story teller and humorist, probably expressed how we were feeling that night when he said, “Thank you dear God, for this good life, and forgive us if we do not love it enough. Thank you for the rain.  And for the chance to wake up in three hours and go fishing; I thank you for that now because I won’t feel so thankful then.”

An attitude of gratefulness can be, shall we say… suppressed, when we walk out the door and find that there is rain falling on our life. Joshua 1:9 tells us “I’ve commanded you to be brave and strong, haven’t I?  Don’t be alarmed or terrified, because the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”

A silver lining may be hard to find in those storm clouds, but we must find courage and strength in the knowledge that God is with us, holding us up no matter what we may face. There is hope and light through the darkness.

Pray today, “Thank you Lord for this rain. I trust You’re with me and that You will never leave me.  Amen!”

To maintain and grow a relationship, communication is imperative.  But when you read or hear the word “communicate” or “communication”, what’s your immediate thought?  Does your mind go immediately to talking?  If it does, you’re not alone.

For most people, as soon as someone starts talking, we immediately begin formulating a response.   Yet anatomically, we’re designed to listen twice as much as we talk, right?  Unfortunately, our mouths tend to be workaholic and our ears have turned in the retirement papers.

As you look upon the time you spend in prayer, are you consistently lifting up items that you want God to address but not allowing time to listen for God’s response?  Jeremiah 33:3 tells us “call to me and I will answer and reveal to you wondrous secrets that you haven’t known.”

Just imagine how different things might be if we just spent more time listening rather than trying to make our point – both in our day-to-day life and in the time we spending talking to God.

Prayer today, “Dear God, my mouth is closed and my ears open to you….Amen”

The story of Zacchaeus is one that makes me laugh.  I think it’s because I put some cartoon music to his actions and in my mind’s eye, I paint a picture using the artistry of cartoonists of the 1950’s like Hanna & Barbera.  Now, of course you can insert whatever cartoonist you’d insert as your favorite.  Anyway, poor Zacchaeus, he was too short to see Jesus as he walked down the street.  He was probably standing on his tippy toes, trying to catch a glimpse of this man he had heard so much about, but it wasn’t until he climbed a tree that he could finally see Jesus.

Luke 19:1-5 tells of this story, it reads “Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through town.  A man there named Zacchaeus, a ruler among tax collectors, was rich.  He was trying to see who Jesus was, but, being a short man, he couldn’t because of the crowd.  So he ran ahead and climbed up a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus, who was about to pass that way.”

As followers of Jesus, we are a lot like that little tax collector.  We are constantly trying to catch a peek of God, regularly trying to reach that mark but falling just a little short, standing on our “toes” only to not quite make it.  We can become disappointed and discouraged, but I say there is a way.

Have you considered that we can have a conversation with God whenever we want or need?  We can seek God’s wisdom through His words by picking up the bible, and we no more have to turn to our neighbor to see and have tangible evidence of God’s love and grace.

Let me share a quick story.  I have a co-worker who is consistently positive and without fail, supportive, forgiving and helpful.  Even on some of my worst days, they are there with a positive word and helping hand.  You see, without saying it, my co-worker is exemplifying what Jesus taught and the exact reason Zacchaeus wanted to climb the tree to see Jesus.  I wonder how we can make it so that folks don’t need to climb a tree when they’re near us in order to catch a glimpse of Him.

Prayer for today “God, help me to lose myself and be more in the image of Jesus today and every day.  Amen”

The modern version of “Let’s Make a Deal” is hosted by Wayne Brady. If you’ve not seen it, it’s a game show where people are randomly selected from the audience to play games.  At some point, they have the opportunity to trade A for B, but that trade could either result in them receiving a fabulous prize or a giant rocking chair.

Have you ever played the role of the contestant with God during a prayer? You know, “God, if you’ll do this for me, then I’ll start going to church every single week, I PROMISE!”  Solomon in the first few verses of Ecclesiastes 5 warns us of this.  Verses 2 and 3 sums it up:

^“Don’t be quick with your mouth or say anything hastily before God, because God is in heaven, but you are on earth. Therefore, let your words be few. Remember:  Dreams come with many cares, and the voice of fools with many words”

When we take time to have a conversation with God, remember that He knows our heart and understand our every need and desire. So rather than trying to make a deal, share your heart with God and remain faithful instead of winding up with a giant chair that you don’t have room for.

Prayer for today: “God, you know my heart and I trust you will provide. Amen”

I used to joke about different things that a road (filled with pot holes) or a situation was (or went) as smooth as crunchy peanut butter.  I know it’s a weird analogy, but that’s just how it felt in certain situations.  I’d struggle and fight, (figuratively) and would wind up frustrated and worn out.

Slowly, the older I got and the deeper the relationship I had with God, I realized that I didn’t have to take on things by myself.  I didn’t have to struggle the way I was.  In fact, the more I removed myself and the more I let God move in the situation, the better it went.  Now, I’m not talking about being a long distance landlord, but instead of trying to push your will onto something, step back and see where God’s taking it.

Isaiah 26:7 says “ But for those who are righteous, the way is not steep and rough.  You are a God who does what is right, and you smooth out the path ahead of them”.  So the next time you struggle, consider stepping back a little to see where God is going to take things and maybe the crunchy peanut butter can remain on the sandwich and out of the situation.

Pray today “God, You are all powerful.  Help me to rely more upon You and less upon myself.  Amen”

Pain? It seems to surround us. It could be the child next door to you whose fellow classmates are teasing or bullying them.  A neighbor who’s been told by their partner that the relationship is over. A loved one or family member that just found out they are losing their job, or it could be you that’s just learned from your doctor (or are waiting to hear from your doctor) about a test.

C.S. Lewis was once asked “Why do the righteous suffer?” He responded, “Because they are the only ones who can take it”

Peter had some commentary on this very subject as he wrote to the churches of Asia.

1 Peter 2:19-21   Now it is commendable if, because of one’s understanding of God someone should endure pain through suffering unjustly. But what praise come from enduring patiently when you have sinned and are better for it? But if you endure steadfastly when you’ve done good and suffer for it this is commendable before God.

You were called to this kind of endurance because Christ suffered on your behalf. He left you an example so that you might follow in his footsteps.

There are a couple of questions – both very similar – and I am quite sure most everybody has been asked, or has asked, one or both of them:

“Why do bad things happen to good people?”

or

Why is God doing this to me?”

I know in my lifetime I’ve asked and been asked both questions and there’s a part of me who’s always struggled with the answer. The struggle has not come from a point of faith, but the environment in which the question is asked in order to find the right words that would be heard.

God is good! He’s love and forgiveness. God is peace, understanding, healing and strength. God is refuge in a storm. God is the light that guides us through the most difficult times. There are countless examples throughout the Bible and in the people and lives that surround us.

What God is not, is hatred and unforgiveness. God is not spiteful or unjust. You need only turn a few pages into the very first book of the Bible to find the first example of suffering and pain. It has been present since the very beginning and will continue until He returns.

So if we can agree that God is good, that suffering pain are not of His hand, and finally that both have been and will continue to be a part of our world until He returns, then what is Peter trying to say in his message? What message or messages are we to take from his words?

There are a few things we can take from what he has said. The Reverend Billy Graham had some things he believed we could take or learn from these difficult times. In his message, he explained that there was a message of love and compassion.

Jesus said, “…for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me” (Matthew 25:35-36).

I believe that there has to be a willingness to submit to God and His mighty power. Letting go of the suffering and pain and placing it into God’s hands. Think about it – in the greatest example of pain, Christ himself suffered unjustly entrusting Himself in God. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Get down on our knees, and give to God what is weighing so heavily on our minds and hearts. That part is easy, but not taking it back, not grabbing a hold of it a minutes later – that’s the part we must learn to embrace.

There also has to be an element of learning as we traverse the rocky trail. I’ve long heard that when we make a mistake, we should learn from it, but I believe we can learn something from each trial we’ve experienced. So while we’re bowing to our Lord in prayer, ask God what is to be learned from the situation. With this wisdom, you’ll be better equipped to handle the next situation you face. It may also allow you to give a small piece of comfort to a friend or loved one if they are carrying a similar burden.

Finally, as we face these situations, and once we come through the other end, we must celebrate and give thanks to God for the love and grace God has shown us not only in the words that we share with Him but also through what we do and the testimony we give to others. In this way, we share the fruit of God’s love and God’s grace with others.

Parnell Bailey (contributor to “The Daily Bread”) once visited an orange grove where an irrigation pump had broken down. The season was unusually dry, and some of the trees were beginning to die for lack of water.

The man giving the tour then took Bailey to his own orchard where irrigation was used sparingly. The trees in this grove were healthy, tall, with branches reaching to the sky – the leaves deep green, and they were filled with fruit.  “These trees could go without rain for another 2 weeks,” he said. “You see, when they were young, I frequently kept water from them. This hardship caused them to send their roots deeper into the soil in search of moisture. Now mine are the deepest-rooted trees in the area. While others are being scorched by the sun, these are finding moisture at a greater depth.”

For us, the roots are our faith. Roots that go deep and reach the living water. They hold us strong and tall so that we can endure the pain and suffering we’ll face in our lives. They are the knowledge that no matter what we face, God is there and will carry the heavy weight laying upon us.

The branches are our arms and hands as we stretch them to the heavens acknowledging God’s presence in our lives. Celebrating God’s love and mercy. Giving Him the praise and glory.

Finally, the fruit an outward example of God’s love and grace and the example we can share with others through our lives.  Amen