We saw the storm coming. While it was still days away, the predictions chilled our spines and jolted our complacency. “It’s a monster!” “Disaster is not only at our doorstep, it’s coming in!” Now it arrives and will it be as vast and terrible as advertised? It promises to pounce, then sit and sit upon vast swaths of our coastland – drenching, driving, and destroying so much of what we love. Many on the East Coast are fleeing the flooding. And as images of destruction begin to roll across our screens, we are all tempted to worry, wonder and fret. What can be done? Where is God in the midst of this disaster? Where is he in the midst of the storm that threatens your own life? May I remind us of one strong anchor that is hooked to at least four unbreakable lifelines? You see, God is a God of promises. From the first chapter of the Bible, Scripture makes a case for the dependability of God. Nine times the text reiterates “God said.” And without exception when God spoke, something happened. By divine fiat there were light, land, beaches, and creatures. We are left with one conclusion: God’s word is sure and his promises can be trusted. What he says happens. After 40 years in ministry I’ve seen a lot of storms. And I’ve learned that in turbulent times like this, there is nothing more secure than the anchor of God’s promises. “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Hebrews 6:19). Could you use some hope in the aftermath of this storm, and in other choppy seas you may be facing? Perhaps the wind of change and challenge is blowing in your faith, your family, or finances. Anchor deep into the unshakable promises of God. And hold on tight to these four lifelines – they can withstand the waves of worry and difficulty in your life. H ang tight, God gets you!  He’s been there. He’s been here – and he understands your pain. The stunning idea is simply this: God, for a time, became one of us. Does this promise matter? If you ever wonder if God listens, he does.  If you ever wonder if the Uncreated Creator can, in a million years, comprehend the challenges you are facing, then ponder long and hard the promise that Jesus is “able to understand our weaknesses” (Hebrews 4:15). O vercome Despair with Prayer.  When life overwhelms, pray to the one who is in charge, and know that he is praying for you. Will God do what you ask? Perhaps. Or perhaps he will do more than you imagine. Stand firmly on the promise that “when a believing person prays, great things happen” (James 5:16). And ponder this truth: Jesus, right now, at this moment, in the midst of whatever trouble you are facing, is speaking on your behalf. He is calling out to the Heavenly Father. He is advocating for a special blessing to be sent your way. You do not fight the wind and waves alone. Every day he speaks up for you. “He always lives to intercede for ” (Romans 8:34). P ull together when life comes apart.  In times of extreme challenge we can divide or we can unite. One of the beautiful things that can emerge from times of trouble is extravagant compassion and care for our neighbors – crossing lines and building bridges. Our pain bears fruit if it reminds us that everyone has value, and we were created by God, in God’s image, for God’s glory (Genesis 1:26). E vil exists, but it does not win!  Yes, we’d rather have a storm-free life, but we can count on the devil stirring up trouble and fear. Take heart, God has overcome! Satan’s days are numbered. So in those moments when all that is good appears to lose, you do not need to worry. Remind the evil one,  “The God who brings peace will soon defeat Satan and give you power over him” (Romans 16:20). Hold fast to these lifelines and ask yourself this key question: Is what I’m anchored to stronger than what I’ll go through? Sometimes it may be a calamity that thousands are facing together, or it may be a personal battle that no one else even knows you are dealing with. But God knows. He knows and he cares. And he wants to buoy you in the day-to-day difficulties and guide you home to safe harbor. When the storm hits, anchor to no one but God. Storms will come, my friend. But when they do, filter them through the promises of God. And since his promises are unbreakable, your hope will be unshakable. www.lysaterkeurst.org.

"Take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm" ( Eph. 6:13 ). Spiritual warfare isn’t as much a frontal attack on Satan’s domain as it is the ability to resist his advances. Spiritual warfare has become a popular topic in recent years. Books, tapes, and seminars on the subject abound, but there is still much confusion. Some say we must rebuke and bind Satan to thwart his power and influence. Others say we must expel demonic spirits through "deliverance ministries." Still others encourage us to band together to aggressively assault the strongholds of supposed territorial demons. But spiritual warfare isn't an outright frontal attack on the forces of darkness. Scripture says, "Submit . . . to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you" ( James 4:7 ); "Be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith" ( 1 Pet. 5:8-9 ). The idea that Christians have the authority to rebuke or bind Satan is foreign to Scripture. Even Michael the archangel treated him with more respect than that ( Jude 9 ). Spiritual victory involves submitting to God, pursuing His will, keeping your spiritual armor on, being on the alert for Satan's attacks, and then standing firm and resisting him "in the evil day" ( Eph. 6:13 ). "Evil day" is a general reference to the sin that exists in this world. As the "god of this world" ( 2 Cor. 4:4 ), Satan will continue to produce evil until he and his forces are cast into the lake of fire ( Rev. 20:10-15 ). Then the evil day will give way to an eternal age of righteousness. Countless people have pastored churches, taught Sunday School classes, led Bible studies, sung in choirs, and been involved in every conceivable area of ministry only to one day abandon their ministries and embrace the world. Somehow they stopped resisting the devil and lost the courage to stand firm. How about you? Is your commitment strong? Are you willing to stand firm for the Lord today? Suggestions for Prayer Ask God for the grace to boldly resist whatever might challenge your faith today. www.gty.org .

Have you ever found yourself having an out-of-control reaction in response to someone else’s out-of-control actions? I understand. It’s all so very hard. When I share biblical discernment with someone I love, but then they go away and do the opposite, it’s maddening. My bottled-up wisdom in the midst of their chaos produces extreme anxiety. My resulting reaction is not me being dramatic or overly emotional … I’m simply trying to save us both from the impending train wreck I can see so obviously headed our way! A perfect example would be the two gallon-sized baggies stuffed full of ripped-up papers currently sitting on my dresser. Why do I have baggies of ripped papers? So glad you asked. Some important documents came in the mail one day. In my defense, my name was included on the envelope. But the minute I opened the envelope and started reading through the contents, my blood pressure skyrocketed. One of my people was moving forward with something I deeply disagreed with. I had absolutely vocalized my many reasons to shut down this idea. I couldn’t believe they weren’t listening to me. In hindsight, I should have simply reminded my family member of my boundary to not bail them out financially if this decision was as detrimental as I thought it would be. Instead, I just stood there in my kitchen and slowly tore those papers into as many tiny pieces as I could. And when every last paper was torn, I decided that wasn’t good enough. I also tore the folders they were in and the mailing envelopes as well. I quietly stuffed all the mess into the baggies and sat them on the counter with a note that read, “This is all I have to say about this situation.” It felt so good in that moment. But the next morning, I woke up and was like,  Really, Lysa?! Really?!  All my family member said back to me was, “Wow, you’ve made quite a statement.” Now I was the one who needed to apologize and figure out a way to tell the company needing to resend the papers I accidentally, on purpose, in a crazed moment, shredded. And when I did, the lady who worked at that company told me she’d recently read one of my books. Perfect. Wonderful. Ugh. Controlling ourselves cannot be dependent on our efforts to control others. I know I have hyperextended my capacity when I shift from calm words to angry tirades. I shift from blessing to cursing. I shift from peace to chaos. I shift from discussing the papers to ripping them to shreds and putting them in baggies. I shift from trusting God to trying to fix it all myself. What do I need to do in response to situations that feel so out of control that they make me lose my self-control? Establish boundaries. Boundaries aren’t to push others away. Boundaries are to help hold me together. The truth is, without good boundaries, other people’s poor choices will bankrupt your spiritual capacity for compassion. Not to mention the fact that at some point, you’ll get so exhausted and worn down that you’ll lose your self-control because they are so out of control. You’ll sacrifice your peace on the altar of their chaos. Soon you will get swept into a desperate urgency to get them to stop! Right! Now! And we all know acts of desperation hold hands with degradation. I’m preaching to myself because I’ve got the tendency to downgrade who I really am in moments of utter frustration and exhaustion when I don’t keep appropriate boundaries. It all makes me think of today’s key verse:  “The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint, and whoever has understanding is even-tempered”  (Proverbs 17:27). When we understand that only God can bring about true change in another person’s heart and life, it frees us from all of our panic-induced attempts to control them. We can love them. Pray for them. Try to share godly wisdom with them. But we don’t have to downgrade our gentleness to hastily spoken words of anger and resentment. We don’t have to downgrade our attitude of reconciliation to acts of retaliation. We can use our words with restraint and stay even-tempered because we’re ultimately entrusting them to the Lord. I know this isn’t easy, sweet friend. But it is wise. It’s for the sake of our sanity that we draw necessary boundaries. It’s for the sake of stability that we stay consistent with those boundaries. And it’s with a heart of humility that maintaining those boundaries becomes a possibility. Lord, please forgive me for all the times I’ve tried to step into Your place in the lives of the people I love. Today, I’m releasing my loved ones into Your hands. You are their Savior, not me. Show me anywhere I need to draw healthy boundary lines, and help me maintain them with humility and love. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. TRUTH FOR TODAY Proverbs 31:26, “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” (ESV)

I don’t like to be in pain. In any way. And if I’m not careful, this aversion to pain can lead to me grabbing for something to fill the deep ache in my soul. Maybe you can relate. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.”  Ephesians 3:17b-18 (NIV) When you’re lonely and you see your ex-boyfriend post a picture with a new girl — laughing, holding hands, and looking like the happiest they’ve ever been — your flesh will want to grab at something. It’s hard not to comfort yourself by texting another guy to grab a little attention and make yourself feel better. When you’re listening to other moms talk about all the progress their children are making in reading and your child can’t even identify letters yet, your flesh will want to grab at something. It’s hard not to throw out a statement to one-up the bragging moms in an area where your child is excelling. And all these things we’re tempted to grab at? They won’t fill us the way we think they will. In the end, they only make us feel emptier. But how do we tell our flesh no when we are desperate for relief? I have discovered that the more we fill ourselves from God’s life-giving love, the less we will be dictated by the grabby-ness of our flesh. One of the most beautiful descriptions of the fullness of God is found in Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”  (Ephesians 3:14-19, NIV) My favorite part of Paul’s prayer is him asking that we have the power to grasp the fullness of the love of Christ … for then we will be filled with the fullness of God. If we grasp the full love of Christ, we won’t grab at other things to fill us. Or if we do, we’ll sense it. We’ll feel a prick in our spirit when our flesh makes frenzied swipes at happiness and we’ll pause. n this pause we find a great daily choice we can make.  Am I willing to tell my flesh no, so that I can say yes to the fullness of God in this situation? And this isn’t about us putting on a brave face and hoping for the best when we feel powerless. We have the power through Christ, who is over every power, including the pull of the flesh. When we have Christ, we are full — fully loved and accepted and empowered to say no. This is true on the days we feel it, and it’s still true when we don’t feel Jesus’ love at all. If we live rooted and established in His love, we don’t just have knowledge of His love in our minds, but it becomes a reality that anchors us. Though winds of hurt blow, they cannot uproot us and rip us apart. His love holds us. His love grounds us. His love is a glorious weight preventing the harsh words and hurtful situations from being a destructive force. We feel the wind but aren’t destroyed by it. This is the “fullness of God.” There is power in really knowing this. This isn’t dependent on what you’ve accomplished. Or on another person loving you or accepting you. Nor is it because you always feel full. You are full, because Christ brought the fullness to you. Yes, I am fully loved, fully accepted, and fully empowered to say no to my flesh. Speak that truth in the power He’s given you. Believe that truth in the power He’s given you. Live that truth in the power He’s given you. That’s how we tell our flesh no. That’s how we live fully prepared in the fullness of God. Father God, thank You for Your love for me that knows no end. Help me look to You and You alone to fill me. I want my roots to go down ever deeper in Your love. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. www.lysaterkeurst.com.

When loss happens, bitterness wants to move in. Especially when your personal feelings of loss or emptiness come because of another person’s selfishness or irresponsibility, causing something in your life to never be the same. Now, sorrow has invited a bitterness you didn’t even know you were capable of. I can write about this because I deeply understand this. But God has been helping me see that sitting in fresh grief can be a good cure for bitterness. This is exactly what happened during a funeral I recently attended. She was young and passed away very unexpectedly. And this loss … it opened up a tender place in me I had shut down. And softened those hard places. Conviction about ways my heart had gone a little off-kilter didn’t jackhammer its way through me. It didn’t have to. I just opened myself to grief. I let the weight of loss revisit me. I came out from hiding behind the unfairness of my own situation and felt my hardness be watered by the raw tears of fresh loss. This softening was good for me. Hardened hearts have such a propensity to get shattered. Soft hearts don’t as easily break. The further we get from the original source of our grief, the more solidified our hardness becomes. Undealt-with hurt and pain hardens like parched soil. And the only way to soften it afresh is for the tears to fall soft and wet and free-flowing once again. I learned recently about what to do if you have hardened soil that’s difficult to till and you want to prep it so it can grow beautiful plants. First, you start with a little water … about a half-inch. You don’t drown it. You let the ground take in the water slowly. Then you let it sit for a couple of days, so the water has time to sink below the surface. After that, you can dig down about 8 inches to overturn the ground below, exposing it to the surface. You then spray the overturned soil with a fine stream of water to soften the surface before raking it and adding compost — organic material once alive, now decomposed. What could have been waste becomes fertilizer. I am not a gardener of the earth. But all of this seems to be so applicable to my desire to tend to the hard places of my heart. In a spiritual sense, this resonates with how to turn hard bitterness into fertile soil. You don’t beat bitterness out of someone. You don’t point at and poke it out, or plead with it or provoke it out of someone. You soften the hardness out. And as the softening breaks up the hard ground, you then mix in perspective. Perspective is the best fertilizer there is. What we’ve gone through is not a waste when it fertilizes the softened ground of our hearts, increasing the chances for new life to thrive. A good farmer knows this isn’t just a one-time event for hardened ground. Each new season, the hardness of the ground needs to be worked on by softening and tilling it again. The same is true for our hearts. Left unattended, our hearts constantly get walked on and walked over, pounding us into potentially hardened places all over again. So we need to be aware of this to make softening and tilling a regular part of our life. And one of the ways we can do this is found in Romans 12:15, where God reminds us to  “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.”  It’s easy to assume grieving with others is simply our gift of love and compassion to them. But God can also use those tears to do a good work in us. I’m not saying we suddenly become inappropriately invasive stalkers at funerals. Not at all. But we can stay open enough to be aware of others’ grief. We don’t have to have a casket at the front of the church to have a funeral. Marked moments of grief happen all around us every day. I don’t know where your own losses have caused bitterness to move into your heart, sweet friend. And if no one else in this world has been kind enough to say this, I will. I’m so, so sorry for all that’s happened to you. But your heart is much too beautiful of a place for bitterness, resentment or unhealed pain. And today’s a good day for us all to remember that sitting with someone else in their grief may be exactly what we need to help us process our own. Father God, You know how much my heart wants to avoid grief. Help me remember You can use it to soften and till me. Just like a farmer knows what is good for the ground, You know what is good for the human heart. Let this softening in me lead to new life, new fruit and new, beautiful beginnings. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. TRUTH FOR TODAY Hebrews 12:15, “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” (NIV) Romans 12:15, "Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep." Romans 12:15 (ESV) www.proverbs31.org.

In 2015, The New York Times  ran an article called “Googling for God.” In this article, author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz starts by saying, “It has been a bad decade for God, at least so far.” He goes on to ask, “What questions do people have when they are questioning God?” The number one question was, “Who created God?” The number two question was, “Why does God allow suffering?” But it was the third question that slammed into my heart and made me realize the depth at which many of us struggle when we walk through devastating situations: “Why does God hate me?” I’m not alone in wondering about God’s feelings when circumstances beg me to feel betrayed. While I would have never used the word “hate,” seeing it typed out as one of the most commonly asked questions about God shows me just how dark our perspective can get. The most devastating spiritual crisis isn’t when we wonder why God isn’t doing something. It’s when we become utterly convinced He no longer cares. And that’s what I hear hiding behind that Google search. And I shudder to say this, but I think that’s what has been hiding behind my own places of disillusionment as I’ve walked through painful circumstance after devastatingly painful circumstance in recent years. What makes faith fall apart isn’t doubt. It’s becoming too certain of the wrong things. Things like:  He doesn’t care about me. How can a good God be OK with this? What I see is absolute proof that God isn’t working. That’s where I can find myself getting more and more skeptical of God’s love, God’s provision, God’s protection, God’s instructions and God’s faithfulness. And most of all, where I start fearing He really has no plan at all, and I’m just truly going to be a victim of circumstances beyond anyone’s control. The problem with that thinking is while it may line up with what my life looks like from my place of pain and confusion, it doesn’t line up with Truth. And before everything went haywire in my life, I had already put a stake in the ground, proclaiming that God’s Word is where I would turn and return to no matter what. I could resist trusting God and turning to His truth. I could run from it. I could, with bitter resignation, put my Bible on a shelf to collect dust for years. But I wouldn’t be able to escape what was already buried deep into my heart. I knew in this deep-down knowing place that what I was seeing wasn’t all that was happening. Past experiences where I have seen God’s faithfulness remind me that I don’t always see God working in the midst of my hard times. There are a few times in my life where I’ve seen dramatic moves by God happen quickly enough for me to say, “Wow, look what God is doing!” But most of the time, it’s thousands of little shifts so slight that the dailiness of His work doesn’t register in real time. It’s hard when we are living in that space where our heads know God can do anything, but our hearts are heavy because He’s not doing what we are hoping for, what we’ve prayed for, what we’ve believed for, for a long while. I get it — and I’ve cried many tears because of it. So, what helps? It helps to know these things: God often works in the unseen. Just because we can’t see it or feel it doesn’t mean He isn’t working. “We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”  (2 Corinthians 4:18, NIV). What may feel like a lack of intervention is not a sign of His lack of affection. “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness”  (Lamentations 3:21-23, NIV). God loves us too much to answer our prayers at any other time than the right time, and in any other way than the right way. “We know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose”  (Romans 8:28). Today, look for beautiful ways God is showing you assurances of His love. His deep affection is all around you, friend. Even in the waiting places. God, I know You are always working. Help me acknowledge You working in the unseen. I confess my skepticism when things are not working out the way I had planned. I choose today to believe I am not a victim to uncontrollable circumstances. Even when I don’t see it, even when I don’t feel it, I will stand on the Truth that You are working all things together for good. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. TRUTH FOR TODAY 1 Peter 5:7, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (NIV)

“My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!” Psalm 57:7 (ESV) I  trust God. Until I don’t. That doesn’t feel like a very Christian thing to say. But if I don’t acknowledge this struggle, I can’t address it. And I don’t think I’m the only one. So many of us raise our hands high as we proclaim our God is a “good, good Father,” but then we find ourselves lying in our beds at night with tear-stained pillows, facing realities that don’t feel very good at all. It’s hard not to feel suspicious of God when our circumstances don’t seem to line up with His promises. And it’s difficult not to doubt the light of His Truth when everything around us looks dark. Which brings us to Psalm 57 — a passage penned by David in the midst of a season when his circumstances and God’s promises appeared to be in complete and total opposition. At this point, David had already been anointed as the future king of Israel (1 Samuel 16:1-13) and had faithfully served King Saul. Sadly, though, Saul “rewarded” David for his service and obedience with persecution and death threats. David was left to run for his life and then hide out in a cave. Scripture also reveals David wasn’t hiding alone. This anointed but not-yet-appointed king was leading a pretty discouraging group of men. First Samuel 22:1-2 describes these 400 men as in distress, debt-ridden and discontented. Not exactly the positive, resourceful and hopeful type of people you want to have with you during one of the darkest seasons of your life. I wouldn’t judge David for one second if he had cried out to God in total frustration, saying,  “I don’t understand any of this. I’m leading a bunch of unsettled and unstable people. We are hiding in a cave. And I’m feeling utterly defeated and completely hopeless!” But the words he wrote in Psalm 57 are neither exclusively a psalm of lament nor a psalm of thanksgiving. David didn’t deny the darkness of his situation, but he also refused to allow his soul to get stuck in a place of despair. Instead, David chose to declare praises about the true nature and character of God. He reminded his soul of who God is — a God who fulfills His purposes (v. 2), a God who saves (v. 3), a God known for His faithfulness and steadfast love (vv. 3, 10). Even though David’s soul was  “bowed down”  by his circumstances (v. 6), he allowed what he knew to be true about God to steady him. This enabled David to declare in our key verse for today:  “My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!”  (v. 7). I love knowing the story behind this psalm. In a cave that surely felt like an end to all he hoped and dreamed, David acknowledged his distress, but he also lifted his eyes to praise God. David’s praise wasn’t in vain. It steadied his heart. And his painful circumstances weren’t wasted. God used those hardships to mature David. Yes, David had already been anointed to eventually become king. But it was in the womb of the earth where God met him and birthed in him a heart ready to lead. Darkness was the perfect training ground for David’s destiny. And those difficult places we so desperately want to be done with can become good training ground for us as well. But we have some choices to make. Will we see this dark time as a womb or a tomb? Is it a birth of something new or the death of what we thought should be? Will we fix our eyes on the Truth of God’s goodness, or will we give in to hopelessness and despair? Oh, friend. I know the dark places are scary. But let’s choose to believe there is purpose in every season, even the ones that don’t seem to make any sense. Let’s ask God to birth something new inside of us, allowing Him to do a work in us that will better prepare us to walk out His promises. And instead of being suspicious of Him, let’s lift up our praises to Him. Praise may not shift our circumstances, but it will definitely begin to change our hearts. We don’t always get to choose our situations, but we can choose how we live through them. Father God, thank You so much for reminding me I am never forsaken nor forgotten. You see me in this dark place, and You promise there is purpose here. Bring Your life and light where all hope seems lost, Lord. Show me how to live authentically today, making room for both sorrow and praise to coexist together. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. TRUTH FOR TODAY Psalm 103:1-2, “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.” (ESV)

"After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'" Acts 13:22 (NIV) Sometimes I wake up in the morning feeling a little grumpy.  Time to do it all again.  I’ll buy food that gets eaten. I’ll wash clothes that get dirty again. I’ll sweep floors that will somehow need to be swept again before the day is even done. Is there more to all this than just doing the tasks of everyday life? One day before I jumped into the normal routine, I sat with Jesus. And I found some big Truths as I read my Bible and took a little glance into David’s life. Despite his tendency to sin, his lack of position in his own family and how others viewed him, David had the sweet reassurance of God. And that was enough. Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God. To his older brothers, David was young — possibly even a pest. To his father, Jesse, he was just another son. To onlookers, he was a mere shepherd boy. But to God, David was the one destined to be king of Israel. And not just any king. He was from the bloodline from which Jesus would come. Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God. Even the way David was anointed to be the future king is a telling story. In 1 Samuel 16, God revealed to Samuel that He had rejected Saul as king and chosen one of Jesse's sons to be the replacement. Think of the list of qualifications that must have run through Samuel's mind for such a position: tall, smart, articulate, brave, groomed, well-mannered, a natural-born leader. Samuel saw some of these characteristics in Eliab, David's brother. “But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart”  (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV). Samuel had Jesse line up all of his sons. All of them were to be considered. Yet, Jesse didn’t call David in from tending sheep. Was this an oversight? An assumption? A judgment call? A deliberate choice? Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God. Samuel passed on each of Jesse’s sons and then asked,  “… Are these all the sons you have?”  I imagine Jesse with a quizzical expression replying, “There is still the youngest … he is tending the sheep”  (1 Samuel 16:11a-b, NIV). Surely one who spends his time taking care of animals is not the one to take care of a nation. Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God. As soon as Samuel saw David, he knew he’d found the one. David was anointed to become king. But he was not immediately ushered to the throne. It would be many years before David was recognized by the world. So, where did he go after being anointed as king? To a refining school? A government academy? Military training? Nope. He went back out to the fields and continued to shepherd his flock. A king-to-be doing lowly tasks. A future king whose character was refined in the fields of everyday life to prepare him for his calling. How like us. In the midst of smelly laundry, dirty dishes, snotty noses, misplaced keys, overdue library books, bills and that birthday gift that still needs to be mailed — there is training there. There is character building. There is attitude shaping. There is soul defining. All of which must take place for us to become what God intends. Do you ever feel overlooked by the world? Take heart — we are handpicked by God. We aren’t just doing tasks. We are building a legacy. We are shaping God’s Kingdom. We are in the process of not only discovering our calling but that of our family as well. And I don't know about you, but it sure does make me look at my everyday tasks (yes, even the smelly laundry) in a whole different light. Dear Lord, I’m grateful that even when I feel overlooked, I can rest in the fact I am handpicked by You. Help me see purpose in even the most mundane moments today. And help me live my life for an audience of One. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. TRUTH FOR TODAY 1 Corinthians 15:58c, “Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (NIV) John 15:16, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit — fruit that will last …” (NIV)

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 1 Corinthians 15:55 (ESV) Losing someone you love can cut into your heart so viciously that it forever redefines who you are and how you think. It’s what I call  deep grief . It strains against everything you’ve ever believed. So much so, you wonder how the promises that seemed so real on those thin Bible pages yesterday could possibly stand up under the weight of this enormous sadness today. This is part of what makes talking about death so difficult. The mere mention of death and dying can stir up a tremendous amount of unresolved grief. I remember standing at the side of a casket too small to accept. Pink roses draped everywhere. My heart stunned and shattered. There are still certain dates on the calendar that can trigger a flood of questions and pain surrounding the tragic loss of my baby sister. I imagine you have days like that, too. But it’s not just grief that makes it hard. There can also be a lot of fear. Fear of other loved ones dying. Fear of our own death. Fear of what the process of dying might be like for us. It can all feel so overwhelming and paralyzing. How thankful I am that Scripture holds powerful truths we can remember when the fear of dying tries to keep us from truly living. We can feel afraid … but we don’t have to live afraid. We are taught early on as Christians that  “... the wages of sin is death”  (Romans 6:23, ESV) and that Jesus came to pay that price for us. Hebrews 2:17 specifically says He came  “... to make propitiation for the sins of the people ...”  (ESV). The definition of the Greek word used here for “propitiation,”  hilaskomai , means both “to make atonement” and “to show mercy.” I love how we see the mercy of Jesus on display in Hebrews 2:14-15:  “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery”  (ESV). These words feel so very personal. What grace and kindness, that Jesus would come to free us both from the power of death  and  the fear of it. Donald Guthrie states in his commentary on Hebrews that it seems “paradoxical that Christ used death as a means of destroying the maliciousness of death.” But because death had become a reality for us as a result of sin, only the offering of Jesus’ sinless life could reverse this curse. (Romans 5:12-17) Through His death, Jesus defeated death for us. And His resurrected body allows us to now declare,  “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”  (1 Corinthians 15:55, ESV). This doesn’t mean our hearts won’t ever experience deep grief or feel the pain of loss this side of eternity. Even if you stripped a lethally poisonous scorpion of its venom, its sting would still hurt. But the scorpion’s strike would no longer hold the power to end your life. This is what Jesus has done. He has removed the fatality of death’s sting. He has given us the victory. (1 Corinthians 15:57) For those who believe in Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives, death isn’t the end. It’s another beginning. Death is but a passageway at God’s designated time for us to finally escape this broken world full of imperfections and be welcomed to the home we’ve been longing for our entire lives. (Revelation 21:4) I know how incredibly hard all this can be. But let’s hold on to the sweet knowledge that Jesus has already gone before us. We don’t have to be afraid. And if you’re struggling with the piercing pain of deep grief right now? I’m so sorry, sweet friend. Even when we know without a doubt that someday we will see our loved one again, the reality of deep grief is that it takes time. It takes prayer. It takes wading through an ocean of tears, only to discover one day that the sun is still shining. Give yourself some grace, and keep clinging to the knowledge that God is near and every one of His promises is true. Father God, death feels like one of the very worst things that can happen. And yet Your Word tenderly reminds us that it is only by our physical death that we can be resurrected in perfect union with You and receive our heavenly body. Thank You that Jesus willingly experienced death so that we can have eternal life. And thank You for meeting us in our questions and tears with Your kind presence and the hope of Your Word. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. Re-printed from https://proverbs31.org/read/devotions/full-post/2021/07/15/finding-freedom-from-the-fear-of-death.

I stood on the edge of the pool. I looked over at my sister who was maybe 4 or 5 years old at the time. She was splashing on the steps of the shallow end. I’m done with the shallow end,  I thought.  I’m 9 years old. I’m very grown and old enough to jump into the deep end. I jumped. The cold water enveloped me. I let my body fall all the way until my toes touched the bottom, and I pushed myself back above water. It was exhilarating. One day it occurred to me I could take my sister out into the deep end with me. I could let her get on my back and half-walk, half-bounce down that slope between the shallow and the deep. Surprisingly, she was hesitant when I unveiled my plan to her. It took great convincing on my part and lots of promises not to go any farther than where she felt safe. Finally, she got on my back and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. I walked slowly to the slope. One baby step down. Two steps. Three. At the third step, I slipped. We both went under very suddenly. My sister’s hands slipped from my shoulders to my throat. It felt as if she believed the only way she could be saved was to hold my throat with an increasingly intense amount of strength. Her grip tightened. My mind got foggy. And I couldn’t figure out which way to go to find safety. The only thing I absolutely felt sure of was that I was drowning. As crazy as it may sound, I can’t remember how we were saved. Maybe it’s because we made it to safety, and it wasn’t as dramatic to everyone else as I remember it. But that moment of panic is one I think about often. And every time I think about this feeling of panic or feel it rising up in me over something I’m facing, I try to remember that panic usually doesn’t save anyone. Signaling we need help can be lifesaving. But most of the time, panic hinders rather than helps. You know where I see this drowning — without water and a subsequent panicked response — most often? A woman’s insecurities. You’ve probably felt the choking effects of insecurity even if you don’t call it that. False ideas like these creep into our thoughts … You’re not as talented or smart or experienced as she is. Protect yourself and your dignity. Don’t dare try this new venture. If only you were as organized or intentional or creative as they are, then maybe you could accomplish this. But the reality is, you’re not. You know this is never going to work, right? How do I know you feel these things? Because I’ve experienced them myself. Just like in that pool all those years ago, I can go from standing securely with my head above water to slipping down a slope with seemingly nothing to grab hold of. Then the insecurity, always kind of present on my shoulder, slips into a death grip around my throat. My insecurities grip to the point where nothing life-giving can get in. I forget truth. I start pulling back from everyone. My mind gets foggy very quickly, and suddenly I can’t figure out which way to go to find safety. I’m drowning. That’s the thing about insecurity. When it grips us, the very thing we need most — truth — is the very thing we have a hard time grasping. I can be close to truth but still drowning in my insecurities. I can have truth sitting on my nightstand. I can have it preached to me on Sundays. But grasping it, standing on it and letting it shift my thinking away from panic — that’s something that requires truth to be more than just close. That requires truth to be inside me, guiding me, rewiring my thinking, and whispering, “Safety is right here. Insecurity will stop choking you when you remove its grip. Insecurity only has power over you when you allow it control over your thoughts.” And as we delight in and live out the truth of God’s Word, it truly becomes a lifeline to our souls. Something we see beautifully spelled out in our key verse:  “If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life”  (Psalm 119:92-93). I want to weave myself into your story. I’m standing in the shallow end. I’m holding on tightly to an immovable bar of truth with one hand — and with the other, I’m reaching toward you. Grab hold. Come back from the sinking place. And from the deepest place of your soul, catch your breath. Dear Lord, my insecurities are small things compared to Your truth. But they feel so big and powerful when they have a grip on me! Please help me grasp Your truth and let it change me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. www.proverbs31.org.

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” Proverbs 13:12 (ESV) Have you ever struggled because you know God can do anything, but you can’t understand why He doesn’t seem to be intervening in your situation right now? You’re trying to hang on to hope, but the more time passes without any apparent change, the harder it is. In Proverbs 13:12, we’re told, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.”  The word “deferred” in this verse refers to a hopeless situation that feels long and drawn out. It’s the seemingly unending and disappointing kind of season that can leave us tempted to look at our lives and question,  Why is God withholding this from me? Since He’s not intervening, I’ll just try to fix it myself in my way. This dangerous assumption is reminiscent of when Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Adam and Eve were free to eat from any other tree in the garden. But Eve listened to the enemy. She got alone with her own thoughts and assumptions. And it led her to doubt her Father. Instead of heeding His instruction, (Proverbs 13:1) she took control to get what she wanted. What she thought was best. (Genesis 3) And as soon as she and Adam ate the forbidden fruit … Perfection ended. Curses began. Consequences were unleashed. And they were banished from the garden. If only Eve would have noticed the other tree in the garden with her. The tree of life. The tree of God’s best way and perfect provision. It was there for her. She had a choice. And so do we. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil may not be in our physical sight today, but Satan is certainly making use of that same sense of disappointment, of our hope deferred. He wants us to be so consumed with our unmet expectations that our hearts just get more and more self-reliant and sick of waiting on God. But God wants us to look to the tree of life. Charles Spurgeon once preached, “My dear friends, you will never see the tree of life aright unless you first look at the cross … Thus then, Jesus Christ hanging on the cross is the tree of life in its wintertime.” In the darkest hour this world has ever known, Jesus died on a cross, or  “on a tree,”  as Galatians 3:13 puts it in most English Bible translations. But just as we know that trees in the wintertime only appear to be dead, so there was a redemptive transformation at work as Jesus hung on the cross. Your life may be dark and confusing today. But make no mistake — there is a powerful work happening. And Jesus wants us to hear Him saying, “Eve turned to the wrong tree and received death. I hung on a tree to bring you back to life. I am the fulfillment of your every longing. I am your Tree of Life. Look to Me.” Let’s make a different choice than Eve did. Turn from the deep desire to know all of the reasons and to control all of the outcomes. That knowledge would be a burden, and attempting to control it all will do nothing but entangle you with anxiety and fear. That’s why God didn’t want Adam and Eve to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The knowledge it would give them was a burden God never wanted them to carry. And maybe that’s why we don’t have all the answers to our “why” questions. God isn’t trying to be distant or mysterious or hard to understand. He’s being merciful. We don’t have to know the plan to trust there is a plan. We don’t have to feel good to trust there is good coming. We don’t have to see evidence of change to trust that it won’t always be this hard. We just have to close our physical eyes and turn our thoughts to Jesus. Fix our thoughts on Him. Say His Name over and over and over. And know that we can trust our Father’s heart and His plans. Father God, You keep showing me that I don’t need answers. I need Jesus. Help me stop the madness of my own assumptions of how things must turn out. My soul was made for assurance. And that is exactly what You have given me. The divine assurance of Your Son. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. FOR DEEPER STUDY Galatians 3:13, “But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’” (NLT) What are some practical ways you fix your eyes on Jesus in your own life? When do you find it hardest to focus on Him? Share your thoughts  in the comments. © 2021 by Lysa TerKeurst. All rights reserved.

To call someone a fool is serious business. Jesus warned against it in the Sermon on the Mount: "Whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire" (Matthew 5:22). But it's quite another matter when someone refers to himself or herself that way. Such is the case in 1 Samuel 26, where King Saul said to David, "I have sinned.... Indeed I have played the fool and erred exceedingly" (v. 21). Those last nine words form an autobiographical statement of Saul's life. In fact, they form a banner statement of anyone who squanders the call of God on their life. Saul started out so well. He had such advantages at his disposal, both naturally (see 1 Samuel 9:1-2, 21; 10:20-23) and supernaturally (see 1 Samuel 10:6-7, 9, 26). So what caused him to be so remorseful at the end of his life? How did he "play the fool"? First, Saul played the fool by arrogance. He started out humble, but the more elevated he became, the greater he declined inwardly. He took the credit for a victory his son Jonathan earned (see 1 Samuel 13:3-4). He sacrificed a burnt offering—a job only a priest was allowed to do (see 1 Samuel 13:7-14). He built a monument to himself (see 1 Samuel 15:12). Saul also played the fool by indifference. In one bizarre story, he didn't seem to care that his son Jonathan would die by his own command (see 1 Samuel 14:1-46). In addition, Saul played the fool by outright disobedience. In 1 Samuel 15, he disobeyed the prophet Samuel and then tried to use spiritual words and shift the blame when he was called out on it (see vv. 13-15). Finally, Saul played the fool by preeminence. He couldn't stand it if somebody else got the attention, and nowhere was this jealousy more obvious than in his relationship with David (see 1 Samuel 18:6-11; 19:9-10). Was there anything Saul could have done so that he wouldn't have ended up saying, "I have played the fool and erred exceedingly"? Let me give you four important points: 1. Saul should have lived before his God. He mentioned God. He acknowledged God. He even praised God. But there's no evidence that he allowed God to rule in his life or that he had a healthy fear and reverence of the Lord. 2. Saul should have learned from his past. Twice he said, "I have sinned" (see 15:24, 30), but he never did anything about it or tried, by God's grace, to change his behavior. 3. Saul should have leaned on his friends, but he wouldn't have anything to do with befriending those around him. 4. Saul should have looked after his character. Instead, he looked after his reputation. How he looked to other people on the outside was more important to him than who he really was on the inside. Let me tell you: you don't have to end up like Saul. No matter how you've begun or what you've experienced in the middle, you can end well. You can choose wisdom over foolishness. And it can all start right here, right now, before God. Simply and humbly acknowledge that you need God's help, and He will walk with you and give you the power to overcome.