Journey
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~ Archives
May 2023
May 1
Prayer is the conduit into my presence. I know it is a mystery to you…that there must be more to it than simple intent as you turn your mind to me in faith that I will be found. Yet that is the fact of it. I am here and always accessible. I designed you in such a way that you are most effective when near and attentive to me. With that design, I created the way by which you may approach me. Come. Spend time with me. Tell me how things are, the easy and the hard things. I love you and care about it all. Even though I know all there is, I still want to hear you. It is the relationship I desire. Ask me. Thank me. Trust me…yes, even with that part you hold behind you.
1 Peter 5:7
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
May 2
Consider how you increase physical strength. Is it not accomplished through intentional stress upon muscle tissue? You frequently engage physical challenge enduring the pain for that very purpose. It is so with your faith, though your intentionality is not as keen in that regard. Over time it will be, for in the building of faith is found the richness of my promise. The challenge you face in the matter at hand produces emotional pain that demands a response. Will you skirt the challenge, deferring to your old ways in hope that it will go away? Or will you embrace the pain as opportunity to venture a step farther in faith to trust my purpose and my leading to resolution? Part of you wants to negotiate with me, to see my plan before you accept it blindly. That is your control at work to avoid faith…not an option. The choice remains…trust yourself or trust me. What is your answer?
James 1:2-4
Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
Isaiah 43:2-3
When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…
May 3
I designed you for this specific assignment, but you cannot do it apart from me. Stop trying so vainly to prove yourself. Your pride is wearing out the gears unnecessarily. Turn to me and ask. I will provide all you need to do this work…the wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, and knowledge. With all that, I will also align you properly with me. It is my Spirit at work in you. You will find that your desire for me and my way supersedes the fear of failing that drives you so ruthlessly. Wisdom, knowledge, and understanding specific to the decisions required in each moment will enter your mind and fill you with confidence and peace that comes only from me. Trust me. This is the way I intend business to be conducted.
Isaiah 11:2
And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
James 1:5
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.
Luke 11:9, 13
And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.
Proverbs 2:10-11
For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.
May 4
Do you see it…the two points of focus that I chose to honor in my friend, Daniel? First, he submissively sought understanding of my way in a critical matter. Second, he intentionally humbled himself to me. Now note the timing of my response. From the first day he resolved to those two focal points, I heard his request. I honored his reach to me by affirming his belief in a dramatic and convincing way and by assuring him of my action as I continued to structure the context into which I promoted him as my representative in a spiritually broken place. It is so with you in the challenges at hand. Take your eyes off the calendar. Pray for understanding and humble yourself in my presence. I am already answering your prayer according to my purpose in and around you. Trust me.
Daniel 10:12
Then he said, “Don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer.
May 5
I want you to understand the importance I attach to your confession of sin, both personally and nationally. So often your prayer, though eloquently stated and genuinely offered, is tuned to your need, your benefit, or your ease with no acknowledgement of sin or repentance. Yet the repentant heart is the one thing for which I search in you. It is as if you wish to receive my benefit on your terms rather than mine. You offer pride-driven determination and effort. I look for a broken and repentant confession of pride. Even in these early moments, I am revealing it to you. Admit your sin. Turn away from it. I will know and respond.
Daniel 9:20-22
I went on praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people, pleading with the LORD my God for Jerusalem, his holy mountain. As I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice. He explained to me, “Daniel, I have come here to give you insight and understanding.”
May 6
Attend the integrity of your prayer. As I examine your heart, I find mixed with your honest intercession for another or for conditions that you deem good for another is a motivation of gain for you…for relief or that you may be seen as good or important or wise or successful. You hide it well from all but me. It is the sin of self-interest and pride driven by your intense desire to be significant in the eyes of others. Confess it. Repent from it. Seek the purity of selflessness. Seek me, not significance. I am your significance. As you seek me, I will tune your heart to genuine prayer for others.
Psalms 139:1
O LORD, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.
Psalms 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.
May 7
Do you see the constancy of prayer that I desire? Your intercession is to be continuous. That sounds daunting to you, and you are right were you to attempt it on your own. As you practice the intentionality of leaning into me, depending upon my strength in you as the day begins, you will find that our conversation naturally extends into the day remarkably concurrent with your attention to other responsibilities. In fact, our continual conversation will sharpen your effectiveness in other matters. Thus, my prompt to ask about matters occurring around you in real time is easily received and acted upon.
Colossians 4:2
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
Ephesians 1:16
I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly…
May 8
I condition effective prayer upon two elements of the same dynamic…abiding. You are to abide in me, and my instructions are to abide in you. Abiding implies that you have come to me and that you have come to stay…to remain. Yet I find that you treat my requirement to abide as transient…more of a come and go proposition. In so doing, you sacrifice what could be…confidence, peace, and answered prayer. As you come and go from my presence and as the authority of my teaching ebbs and flows from your life, you defer to your old ways thinking. Pride and control rise back into their old positions, and you find yourself apart from me feeling lost and alone. Understand that I oversee your entire life all the time. Therein is experienced the strength and fulfillment you so desire. Confess the come and go style and return to my presence on my terms.
John 15:7
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
Hebrews 3:6
But Christ, as the Son, is in charge of God’s entire house. And we are God’s house, if we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ.
May 9
Think about purpose as the center of your being…command central headquarters; the room in that place in which all decisions related to your life and actions are made; the seat in that room to which all opinions yield at each decision point. Who or what occupies that seat, the place of the commander, the basis upon which critical decisions are made? There are many potential answers…self, family, work, political philosophy, patriotism, power, intellect, success, money, possessions, prestige, pleasure, affirmation. In truth, each has had its turn in the seat, each with poor results. But what is there right now? You and I both know the answer. Now consider what is needed for me to take my rightful place in that seat. I am the Commander. I am your purpose, the center of your being, the confidence of your life. Remove the imposter with a repentant nod of acquiescence. I will see to the change in authority.
2 Corinthians 3:3-4
Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts. We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ.
Romans 15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
May 10
As you recall the meeting, pray. Speak to me about what you saw and heard. It is your purpose in having been there. Remember, though you heard participants claim credit for what I have done or attempt power maneuvers to exert their will, you know the truth and you saw it prevail. Do not react to what you heard. Respond to it by leaning more heavily into my embrace. Your trust is now and always in me. I have this and I had it long before you were aware. Did you not ask me to exert my will in the matter? Trust me.
Psalm 20:7
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
May 11
Take care to treat prayer properly. I intend it to be consistent and central to your life. Learn of my gift of prayer though it will remain a mystery in many ways. It is the exercise of my Holy Spirit with your human spirit, ushering you in into my presence. My Spirit is at once your conductor, your evidence of credential, and your translator. I taught you to humble yourself as a prelude to prayer…to divest your pride and to confess sin that I reveal. So, you come to me intentionally empty of self by my invitation, trusting my terms, experiencing my love and grace to discover my purpose. You cannot experience this phenomenon apart from my initiation of it. That is why my friend David explained prayer as he did…entering my gates with thanksgiving and my courtyard with praise, giving thanks and blessing my name. Thanksgiving properly defines our relationship. When properly defined, it is properly experienced along with the wonder of my promises.
Psalm 100:4
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
Colossians 4:2
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
May 12
Yes…I hear you, and I am responding in ways that you cannot imagine. As you continue to ponder prayer, dwell upon values of character and thought for which I watch and that I will bless. Tune yourself to my stated intent. As you grasp my teaching, you will be challenged for it is contrary to cultural norms. But, if you genuinely ask, I will equip you with the characteristics with which I challenge you. Ask me. Trust me.
Jeremiah 33:3
Call to me and I will answer you and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.
Matthew 5:3-10
God blesses those who realize their need for me…
God blesses those who sorrowful for sin that separates from me…
God blesses those who are humble…
God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice…
God blesses those who are merciful…
God blesses those whose hearts are pure…
God blesses those who work for peace…
God blesses those who risk rejection for doing right…
May 13
Did you not ask? Did you not believe? Did you not humble yourself before me? Did you not confess sin that I revealed? Did you not trust me with the outcome? Yet you wonder at my response. You have learned much about my gift of prayer, but there is yet some of the old religious way in you that assumes you must do something beyond believe in faith and trust. The “doing” is important, but it is action in response to me and at my direction. It is perhaps the most difficult of the lessons to grasp. I do not require your help, only your faith and obedient response. Sometimes the response is to simply say thank you.
Hebrews 11:6
And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
May 14
The privilege of following me and the responsibility of the assignment I have given to you both require singleness of mind and surrender of will. Many distractions emerge along the way. Some are commonplace, and you have learned to ignore them. But others occur unexpectedly and dramatically seek your attention from me. It is in those moments that I have seen you drawn out of position and into old reactive habits of command and control. Your reliance shifts from me to your own devices and the gap between us grows. You cannot serve me and your old ways. How often have I shown you in those moments to keep your spirit-eyes upon me...to the point of such intentional turning to me that the distraction is completely out of your view, and you are again of single mind upon me? Return to the position for which you are designed and submit the distractive issue to my control. Nothing is impossible with me. I will lead you through it with the same power and authority that you have experienced in other matters. Follow me as I have taught you.
2 Kings 17:33-34
And though they worshiped the Lord, they continued to follow their own gods according to the religious customs of the nations from which they came. And this is still going on today. They continue to follow their former practices instead of truly worshiping the Lord and obeying the decrees, regulations, instructions, and commands he gave the descendants of Jacob, whose name he changed to Israel.
Matthew 6:24
No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
May 15
Give close attention to my Word. Read it carefully with desire to understand my instruction and my expectations. It is not like any other written text. These words are infused with my Spirit. They are alive and powerful. As you expose yourself to them, your human spirit is instantly enlivened by my Holy Spirit. Your mind is drawn to me, and your will becomes pliable and expectant. Understanding awakens along with your desire to know more as I instruct you in intentional ways with both common interpretation of the words and with application of meaning specific to you and my purpose in and through you. Yes…give close attention to my Word.
Revelation 1:3
Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
May 16
This journey is my plan for you, a plan that I designed long before you were even born. This life is your opportunity to discover it. Yes…there are challenges. I have always protected you as I led you through them. I will continue to lead and protect as I use them to teach you more about faith. Treasure the past experiences and use them as fertilizer for faith required ahead. Trust me for the strength to press faith into the next one. Start each day with realization that I have purpose in it that involves you. Seek me. Discover me daily. I have this.
Matthew 6:10
Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Job 42:2
I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Ephesians 1:11
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will…
May 17
It was in the park as you walked toward your car. I approached you. I appeared as one so completely different from you…disheveled, in need of a bath, eyes cloudy, speech heavy. Do you remember what I asked? “Sir, I’m hungry. I’m just looking for something to eat. Can you help me?”
You actually grimaced as you shook your head and hurried away. Do you remember the blessing your heard from me so kindly and clearly spoken to your retreating back? “Have a nice evening.”
I will leave that event imprinted on your mind for a while. Be ready for the next opportunity to help.
Matthew 25:37-40
“Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
May 18
You are shouldering the responsibilities of my way heavily and it is not necessary. Have I not taught you that I will carry the weight? But you insist upon shouldering these things yourself and then grow angry because they are so heavy. All you need do is relax and allow the weight to fall on me. Do you see the futility of your way in things? Settle down. Let me teach you freshly how to follow my lead. You will find that my gentleness translates easily into you, then through you to those around you…your family, your friends, your colleagues.
Matthew 11:28-30
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”
May 19
You asked me about blessing…to understand its nature, to distinguish my blessing from other elements of life. Blessing, like prayer, remains a mystery of my being and purpose so that it can never be predicted or prescribed by mankind. It is entirely mine to extend or withdraw. Blessing may be sought but it is never earned or commanded. Your true humility and complete surrender become the fertile soil in which I plant my blessing. Thus, your pride and my blessing will not co-exist. Though I may choose to bless a place or an action in a way that flows upon people who do not know me, it is always initiated in response to one who humbles himself, remains in my presence diligently seeking me, and who confesses and repents of sin as I reveal it. On occasion, my blessing may be recognized instantly, like a cool breeze moving on a hot still day. More often, it is realized after the fact as protection or peace or an unexplained change of course in a matter. In all cases, it is my favor upon you according to my purpose in you and through you.
Numbers 6: 24-26
May the LORD bless you and protect you. May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace.
May 20
I am your caretaker and guide. I provided all that you need, given you wisdom in its use and strength to exercise that wisdom. I led you, appointing each step in our journey according to my purpose. As you followed, responding to my direction, I adorned you with my grace and favor. Your simple realization of all this in these moments is also my gift. Receive it in humility with thanksgiving and praise as the day begins.
Psalm 23:1-3
The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.
May 21
What is it that you want me to do for you? What is it that you realize is impossible apart from me? What is it that drives a cry from your heart? I just placed it in your mind even as you confess your inability to cause it to be. The trivial things of life fall away as distinct realization of your need for me emerges in a focus so sharp that it is singular and apart from all other things in your life. It is that realization to which you must hold by faith. For it is that realization rising from humility and surrender to which I have already responded.
Matthew 20:30-33
Two blind men were sitting beside the road. When they heard that Jesus was coming that way, they began shouting, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
“Be quiet!” the crowd yelled at them.
But they only shouted louder, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
When Jesus heard them, he stopped and called, “What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord,” they said, “we want to see!”
Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.
John 15:5
Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.
May 22
The one thing that I require above all else, that which is at the core of a relationship with me, that which leads to all that I have planned for you…is the surrender of your will to mine. It is also the greatest hurdle for you, for you fear loss of control above all else. Yet, apart from that surrender, all you have is a worthless form of religious acknowledgement. I stand ready to shed the fullness of my grace upon you in a real and vibrant relationship…a relationship invariably defined by my love and your surrender. What will it be?
Psalm 119:34-38
Give me understanding and I will obey your instructions; I will put them into practice with all my heart. Make me walk along the path of your commands, for that is where my happiness is found. Give me an eagerness for your laws rather than a love for money! Turn my eyes from worthless things and give me life through your word. Reassure me of your promise, made to those who fear you.
May 23
After all you have learned on this journey, you still wander about worriedly rehearsing conditions and solutions without coming to me. Even this morning, you thought through a matter for almost an hour before you asked me about it. When you finally asked, I guided you to evidence of solution that had been waiting for you the entire time. Prayer is the most powerful of my gifts after salvation, but you so often treat it as a measure of last resort or a second thought. In so doing, so much of what I intend for you is missed and time is wasted. Prayer…coming into my presence and dwelling there…is to be the first part of your day and a lifestyle of consistent communication with me.
Luke 18:1
One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up.
Romans 12:12
Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble and keep on praying.
Colossians 4:2
Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.
1 Thessalonians 5:17
Never stop praying.
May 24
Come and let me examine your heart. I am looking for the attitude that I exampled for you. Let me teach you freshly that the influence you pursue must be mine, not yours. I am the Creator God of all that is or ever will be, but I willingly laid aside my divine privileges and humbly took on humanity to defeat sin and death for your benefit. I look for that same attitude in you…humility, surrender to my way, willingness to sacrifice, love for others over yourself, your opinions, and your plans. However, I often find pride and self-interest wrapped in the content of your prayer. About the influence you seek, it begins with your confession of the sin of pride and your honest repentance from it.
Psalm 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
Philippians 2:5-8
You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
May 25
Demands upon you and distractions abound. Even so, I am here. Pull your attention back to me. You will find, as you return to my presence and seek to find my eyes upon you, that the power of that which pulled at you melts away under my gaze. Anxiousness fades. Urgency of pressing questions diminishes. Peace rises. Confidence in me warms. And you realize that I know and love without end. You remember how I provided, and you rest in the fact that I am providing now. The demands, the distractions, the questions…all are ordered under my authority and grace. Enter the day freshly aware that I am your Source always and in all things.
Psalm 63:1
O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Matthew 7:7-8
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.
Psalm 27:8
You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
May 26
Consider what I mean when I instruct you to seek my face. It is my invitation to a personal engagement…one on one. It is the very heart of our relationship and the key to your effective journey. Prayer is the conduit into my presence, but it is the next level of that mysterious gift that I urge…coming before me under my gaze and into personal conversation as you would with a friend, dwelling there with me, absorbing my grace and love, receiving my strength, deepening your belief, freshening your faith. I have much to share with you. Come…seek my face.
2 Chronicles 7:14
Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.
Psalm 27:8
You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
Exodus 33:11a
Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.
May 27
I want you to understand more of what I offer in the mystery of this journey. Do not listen to those who represent themselves as having authority to demand of me. That is little more than religious pride, and I reject it. I urge upon you the realization of need for me. Examine the concept of being poor in spirit vs. pride. Ask me to teach you about being poor in spirit…the acute sense of need for me that gives understanding to humility and surrender. It opens the door to my blessing. I look for exactly that in you.
Matthew 5:3
God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
April 2023
April 1
I brought you to this point with purpose. Do not fear it. Turn your mind to me and move forward. There will be no mistaking that I am leading you. My presence will be experienced in you and around you as I guide you in understandable ways. Others will know and affirm my presence. Their affirmation is my gift of encouragement to you. I am teaching you how to follow me, and it seems unnatural right now. The farther we go, the more natural it will become. It is now and always will be a journey of faith, for my interest is the deepening of your faith and the strengthening of your trust as part of the story that I am building in you. Someday you will tell it.
Exodus 40:38
The cloud of the Lord hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and at night fire glowed inside the cloud so the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys.
April 2
(It is my privilege each year to remember each day of the week leading to Easter Sunday, to walk through the week with Jesus. I invite you to walk with us.)
Sunday was the first day of the week in those days. The Jewish observance of Passover was just five days away, and Jerusalem was full of people from around the country. You asked if I knew what to expect. Yes. In fact, I told my men exactly what to expect on the way up to Jerusalem.
Yes, I knew what would happen and when. You see, the Passover celebrates the night my people were released from slavery in Egypt those many years ago. That night the people were instructed to sacrifice an unblemished lamb and sprinkle the lamb’s blood on their front doors to indicate their obedience and belief that I would rescue them. Now, on Friday of the Passover remembrance, I would be the lamb sacrificed for the sin of all mankind. It is why I moved from Heaven to live on earth. My death, my shed blood applied to you upon your belief in me, ensured your safety from the consequence of sin. My resurrection on Sunday would prove it.
Matthew 20:17-19
As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside privately and told them what was going to happen to him. “Listen,” he said, “we’re going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die. Then they will hand him over to the Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day he will be raised from the dead.”
April 3
As I entered Jerusalem on that Monday, I saw a fruit tree that was without fruit. I caused it to wither and die as an example to my followers that I expect you to always be fruitful in their representation of me. As a fruit tree without fruit is mere pretense, so is a follower who is not obedient to my direction. It is not my intent that you undertake obedience in your own power. You will fail. I intend that you rely upon me to empower your obedience by investment of faith and confidence in my ability…even in the face of that which seems impossible. You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.
Matthew 21:18-22
In the morning, as Jesus was returning to Jerusalem, he was hungry, and he noticed a fig tree beside the road. He went over to see if there were any figs, but there were only leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” And immediately the fig tree withered up.
The disciples were amazed when they saw this and asked, “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?”
Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.”
April 4
By Tuesday morning, the religious leaders had met to find a way to arrest me on violation of Roman law. They sent spies to question me regarding the payment of taxes to the Roman government. My response is pertinent to you as you prepare to settle your taxes. Your obedience to me is first. Yet, you have responsibility to obey the laws of human government. As you do so, you create opportunity to engage to shape government within the system. Should your obedience to me place you in conflict with the law, you may suffer, but I will provide the grace and strength to guide you even in suffering. Remember, I did not enter the city that week to reform government. I was there to provide salvation for you in an eternal relationship with me. That fact remains even now.
Luke 20:20-26
Watching for their opportunity, the leaders sent spies pretending to be honest men. They tried to get Jesus to say something that could be reported to the Roman governor so he would arrest Jesus.
“Teacher,” they said, “we know that you speak and teach what is right and are not influenced by what others think. You teach the way of God truthfully. Now tell us—is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
He saw through their trickery and said, “Show me a Roman coin. Whose picture and title are stamped on it?”
“Caesar’s,” they replied.
“Well then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”
So they failed to trap him by what he said in front of the people. Instead, they were amazed by his answer, and they became silent.
April 5
On Wednesday of that last week, as I was teaching the people who gathered at the temple, I watched wealthy people dropping their gifts in the collection box. A woman I knew to be widowed and poor came and dropped in two small coins. I was moved, for while the rich gave poorly from surplus, the poor woman gave richly from little…everything she had. That is my point to you today. I created you. I fostered you. I bought you back from sin and death. I appointed you. I resource you. I guide you. I encourage you. I protect you. You are rich by my grace. That poor woman is your example. I expect you to tender title and control of all that you have and are into my hands for my purpose. That becomes a challenge of trust for you. Nevertheless, I wait.
Luke 21:1-4
While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people dropping their gifts in the collection box. Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins. “I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has.”
April 6
The religious leadership had determined to have me killed and were simply waiting for the right moment. It came late Thursday night. I spent part of the day with friends in the Bethany neighborhood just outside of Jerusalem. While we were there, two individuals acted, one to honor me, and one to betray me. Each was among those closest to me. Read their stories carefully, for you are not terribly unlike either of them. In fact, you will choose to honor or betray our relationship today by your obedience or your disobedience. Prepare now for the moment of choice that will emerge. Take your position near me and lean into my strength. Keep your spiritual eyes upon me. I will carry you successfully through the moment.
Matthew 26:6-7 Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume and poured it over his head.
Matthew 26:14-15
Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the leading priests and asked, “How much will you pay me to betray Jesus to you?” And they gave him thirty pieces of silver.
April 7
Friday, the religious leaders got what they wanted. I was arrested, brutally beaten, ridiculed, nailed to a cross, died, and was buried. At any moment through that ordeal, I could have simply called for the angels of heaven, and they would have rescued me. But I endured it for you. Sin can only be eliminated by death. That Friday, I took your place. You, once a prisoner of sin, are free from my judgment and from enslavement to sin because of my sacrificial death. Friday, in an exercise of love and grace beyond your ability to fully grasp, I…your Creator, the Master and Commander of all eternity…purchased your freedom. On Friday, with my shed blood and expended life, I paid the price of your sin. But that was only Friday…the story was not yet over.
John 18:12
So the soldiers, their commanding officer, and the Temple guards arrested Jesus and tied him up.
John 18:22
Then one of the Temple guards standing nearby slapped Jesus across the face.
John 19:1
Then Pilate had Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip.
John 19:17-18
Carrying the cross by himself, he went to the place called Place of the Skull (in Hebrew, Golgotha). There they nailed him to the cross.
John 19:34
One of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a spear…
John 19:42
…the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.
Ephesians 1:7
He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.
April 8
Saturday was a day of deep grief and struggle with unbelief. Though I told my followers what to expect, they were fixed upon their own design of the next part of our journey. On that Saturday, they had no frame into which my death and absence would fit. Grief, confusion, and incomprehension flooded their minds. Their immediate reality was that I was gone; the story was ended; hope was shredded; light was extinguished. Saturdays can be crushingly dark…you are familiar with such days. Yet, Saturday is but one day passing, and it can be endured. I did not leave them, and I will never leave you. Yes, Saturday, though dark, is but one day passing. Hope lies with Sunday, and Sunday is coming.
John 16:19
Jesus realized they wanted to ask him about it, so he said, “Are you asking yourselves what I meant? I said in a little while you won’t see me, but a little while after that you will see me again. I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn over what is going to happen to me, but the world will rejoice. You will grieve, but your grief will suddenly turn to wonderful joy.
Lamentations 5:21
Restore us, O Lord, and bring us back to you again! Give us back the joys we once had. Or have you utterly rejected us?
April 9 Easter Sunday
I am alive and present with you. That is the message of Sunday. That is the message of the ages. By the power of my resurrection, I defeated death, I broke the chains of sin, and I claimed you based on your confession of who I am and your belief in what I did. You need never fear or doubt. My promise is secure. The hope of heaven at the end of our journey is real. Between now and then, I am right beside you. Live this day and all that follow surrounded by Sunday morning power. The story is real.
John 20:1
Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.
John 20:19
That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! “Peace be with you,” he said.
1 Corinthians 15:3-5
I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen…
Romans 10:9-10 If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.
April 10
Give attention to my meeting with Peter several days after my resurrection. I have purpose in your clear understanding. I wanted the meeting to be in a place familiar to Peter…his hometown, reconnected with family and old friends, returned to his former occupation, surrounded by that which once defined his life.
In that comfortable place, the trauma of my crucifixion and his denial still fresh, uncertain of my purpose in being there, it was necessary that Peter and I reconcile. His work was about to begin in earnest. Though I knew the stature of his heart, in those moments he did not. The tension between the call of his past and my call for his future was the topic. I addressed him by the name of his past, Simon, John’s son. My question was simple. “Do you love me?”
Peter’s answer and all that followed is known to the world. What is yours?
John 21:17
A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep.
April 11
The stakes are high, higher than at any other time of your life. Understand the urgency of praying…at all times and on every occasion. Prayer is to be your way of life. The manner of prayer that I am teaching you is much more than an exercise of thought. It is prayer that arises from my Spirit in you. It initiates as you intentionally humble yourself, confess your sin, and diligently seek me. Stay alert and be persistent because the danger of evil is constant. Stay connected to me by Spirit-directed prayer. It is your greatest responsibility. Everything for which you hope depends upon it.
Ephesians 6:18
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
April 12
You are correct that prayer is an act of submission. To ask of me is your recognition that I am your Source in all things and that you and your pride are not. Humility begins with admission of your inadequacy and limitedness. From there you will discover that dependence upon me and trust by faith follow naturally. Come to me, not in your self-confidence but with confidence in my unchanging love and care. Lay down your anger and your fear. Come near and confess your belief I am real and able, that I am the Source of mercy and grace to help…that I create a way when there seems to be no way. Come seeking me.
Hebrews 4:16
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
April 13
There is a better way to do this. Defaulting to instinct under stress is a natural thing to do…in other words, it is very human of you. Those instincts are formed by experiences, upbringing, traditions, patterns of emotional reaction, and habitual thought all fed by pride and self-interest…yours or that of others whose influence you incorporated. But I teach you another way. When I was teaching a large group of people on a hillside one day, I challenged their instincts repeatedly with two phrases, “You have heard is said…But, I say to you…” My point then and my point this morning is my call to a new and effective life, a call to your heart…your mind, will, and spirit…to embrace the alternative I offer along with my supply of courage, strength, understanding, and wisdom to experience it fully. To trust your instinct is to unnecessarily revert to old ways of thinking. You have heard it said…but I say to you, the old life is gone; a new life has begun. Ask me. Trust me.
2 Corinthians 5:17
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
Romans 12:2
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
April 14
Be sure you understand my intent when I urge your persistence in prayer. It is all too easy for you to interpret my instruction in terms of your own efforts, to work harder, to diligently extend your control and engagement to gain something you want. After all, that is how you learned to engage life. It is natural for you to approach me similarly. Yes…do persist in seeking me but do so to discover me and my way rather than to gain a solution or relief or profit, extensions of you and your way. I know your needs and desires. I know the pressures upon you. Bring them to me trusting that I will respond by expanding my Spirit in you. By my Spirit, I will relieve you, encourage you, fill you with peace, direct you, conform your will to mine, introduce actionable thought, introduce resource, strengthen your ability to act, and open your eyes to the path forward making a way where there seemed to be no way. Yes, persist in prayer to discover me. I will take care of the rest.
Luke 11:9-10; 13
And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.
April 15
Many years ago, you asked if I would allow you to see with my eyes and to understand with my clarity. It is an important request and one that I have granted. As you have learned of me, so you will continue to learn. Yet, you have become comfortable and dependent upon the strength of your will and ability; conventional ways of thought; the money in your accounts; and the patterns of your life-practice. These are not bad things. I placed them at your disposal, and they remain available to you. Even so, you turn to them before you turn to me. To that extent, they have unintentionally become your gods. In this, I now challenge you. You have a choice to make about that upon which you depend to experience your hope. Will it be these limited things, or will it be me?
Matthew 16:25
If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.
Jeremiah 6:16
This is what the Lord says: Stop at the crossroads and look around. Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, “No, that’s not the road we want!”
April 16
Your attention is upon your hope for my action. You even offered to help me to hasten my work. I accept your offer. Here is what I want you to do. Give your complete attention and intentionality to responsive obedience to the pre-conditions of my promise. Humble yourself completely. Diligently seek me in prayer. Turn from your agenda to mine. What I want you to do is surrender to me and confess your pride and self-sufficiency. In such ongoing surrender, you place yourself at my disposal as part of my purpose in you and around you. I will make clear what other action you are to take. It all starts with your willing, intentional, and proactive obedience to the pre-conditions of my promise. Unreasonable? No. I already paid the price to repurchase what I created. Extreme expectation? Yes. Following me requires surrender.
2 Chronicles 7:14
Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will…
April 17
You asked to know more about prayer. Because you believe by faith that I saved you into eternal life with me, you may also be assured of my love and infinite knowledge of your needs in this life even before you are aware of them. Turn to me praying in surrendered humility with confident hope in two facts. First, I know you; I love you more than you can imagine; I have a plan specifically designed for you; and I am leading you in it. Second, at the point of your belief, my Spirit took residence in you and is constantly urging you to my way, shaping your thought and will to conform to it, and providing the wherewithal to respond obediently. As you place dependence upon those two facts by faith, you will experience the wonder of seeking my will, understanding it, and acting upon it. And you will live in the confident knowledge that you will have the requests you have asked from me.
1 John 5: 13-15
These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.
April 18
Receive this fact and place your full weight upon it. I am the newness spoken of long ago, the way to your right standing with God, to truth, to eternal life ahead and to effective life now. When you believed me, you inherited that newness with all its benefits. Your old life ended, and a new life began. But you have entertained the thought that I am a way to God among many, a side issue to be included but that your efforts are the real trick. No...I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. Bring your full attention back to me. I will show you what real living can be.
Isaiah 65:17
Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth, and no one will even think about the old ones anymore.
John 14:6
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.
2 Corinthians 5:17
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
April 19
You are aware that I answered your prayer yesterday. You experienced it as a door opening that allowed you access to exactly what you needed. Recall the sequence of events. You were fretting at the closed door, dwelling upon how you could possible open it. Your frustration blossomed like a storm cloud forming and darkened other arenas of life as it grew through the day. Then I cut through your frenetic rehearsal of inability and challenged your distance from me. I led you to confess it, turn back to me, and simply ask me for access.
You experienced freshly that the responsibility of abiding in me is placed squarely upon your shoulders, but the power to exert yourself to attend that responsibility and to persevere in it is from me. As you remain in my presence and as my instruction and way become the dynamic of your life…as you believe and act in accordance with me…does it not stand to reason that you will think and ask in complete harmony with all that I reveal about myself? Do you see how simple this is? You asked, and I answered just as I promised.
John 15:5
Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:7
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
April 20
Our relationship and my action to refine it is always about the condition of your heart…that unique combination of will, thought, belief, faith, and their unrestricted tuning to me. I am using this time to purify what was becoming an encumbered heart. As you stomp your boot upon a rock to knock off dried mud, so I have used these circumstances to shake off layers of pride, self-confidence, and complacency that I saw accruing around what must always be a pure, yielded, and responsive heart. You are aware of the trial presented by my refining process and the troubling emotions it engenders. Embrace it. You will survive intact, and you will find that following me is easier without the drag.
Proverbs 17:3
Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but the Lord tests the heart.
Zechariah 13:9
I will bring that group through the fire and make them pure. I will refine them like silver
and purify them like gold. They will call on my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘
“These are my people,” and they will say, “The Lord is our God.”
1 Peter 1:7
These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
April 21
It is in the seeking…your humble intentionality and determination to find me and to understand my way in things. Absorb my written record and instructions. Dwell upon them. Ask me for wisdom and understanding. I will give these things to you freely and abundantly. Only be sure to seek me purely…with intent to know me rather than to gain a solution. I am not a return on one of your investments, and I do not fit on a balance sheet. I am the Holy Creator, Master, and Owner of all that is.
Proverbs 2:1-5
My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. Tune your ears to wisdom and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight and ask for understanding. Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures. Then you will understand what it means to fear the LORD, and you will gain knowledge of God.
Isaiah 11:2
And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
Luke 11:13
So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.
April 22
I know the need you face. There is part of you that thinks, “This is a complicated business. Does He really understand? I have to do something.” Be assured, I am fully acquainted with every detail of the issue and will lead you step by step to its resolution. Why do you fret so? You are like a thoroughbred stomping in the gate, anxious to run. You will run and you will do so with confidence because you will run at my shoulder as I lead you through the challenge. But you must not run past me for I know the most effective course on this track and best way through the pack surrounding you. I grant wisdom. I am the source of knowledge and understanding. I grant common sense to your honest and humble mind. I am your shield and director of integrity. I guard the way as you lean into me. So, settle your stomping. Focus upon me. Keep seeking and asking. I am about to open the gate.
Proverbs 2:6-8
For the LORD grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to him.
Luke 11:9-10
And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
Luke 11:13
So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.
April 23
Your responsibility is to seek me, ask of me, and respond obediently to my direction. I will cause you to understand what is right, what is just, what is fair, and what is the right way to act in this matter. I will do so by my Spirit in you informing your thought with wisdom and specific knowledge, conforming your will to mine. I will confirm my intent with joy, peace, and confidence. You will find that wise choices and understanding emerge to protect you as you follow me through this challenge.
Proverbs 2:9-11
Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will find the right way to go. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.
Luke 11:9-10
And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
Luke 11:13
. . . how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.
April 24
I am real, and I am here. Do you believe that? I ask, not to challenge your lack of belief, but to remind you that you do. I am affirming that fact in these moments. And because you believe, I have given you understanding. You asked honestly and humbly, and I answered just as I promised. You are already aware of the decision to which I direct. You have reviewed it for consistency with My word. This is the point of challenge. For you must now trust me with what you cannot control. This is where faith fits into your conduct of business. My promises are firm, my urging is clear, but the decision to act in faith is yours.
Isaiah 30:21
And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.
Psalms 32:8
The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.
John 14:26
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
April 25
You asked about elements of my assignment that have fogged and remain beyond your ability to press forward. You are puzzled and a bit frustrated. I have purpose in this pause. It is easy for you, once confident of my direction, to presume that you know how to carry a matter forward. But I taught you to yield to me in every instant of every step in every aspect of every assignment. I paused our journey because I want you to seek me consciously and intentionally; to submit to my strength; to acknowledge and surrender your will to me. Remember the things I have done...things unexplainable but by my action. Remember my specific instructions and follow me as I have taught you. Then...only then...we will proceed.
Psalm 105:3
Exult in his holy name; rejoice, you who worship the Lord. Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him. Remember the wonders he has performed, his miracles, and the rulings he has given.
April 26
In order to lead, you must follow. For, as you follow me on my terms…close, surrendered, responsive…you will mirror my image to those you seek to lead. Remember, my requirement to follow has no exception clauses or vacation plan. I require you to be all in at all times. Thus, there will be no interruption in the reflection of my character as you lead with humility and gentleness, showing patience, and demonstrating genuine care and understanding, fostering unity and peace. All this as you guide organizational movement my way in my direction to my objective by following me.
Ephesians 4:2-3
Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.
April 27
Commit these efforts to me. Do so with moment-to-moment intentionality and unreserved trust in my ability. I will provision you, guide you, and protect you at each step. More than that, I will cause the justice of your cause to shine in unmistakable ways. Now…be still in my presence and wait for me to act. And do not worry about actions of those who may oppose this work. Trust me.
Psalm 37:5-7
Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. Be still in the presence of the Lord and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.
April 28
You learned to equate prayer with a child’s holiday wish list that a kindly old man in a red suit would honor or reject based upon your behavior for good or bad in the prior year. Over time, you held to the good vs. bad scale as the measure your worth but discounted prayer as having no more bearing upon your life than did the annual wish list. You learned to place yourself in the role of the old man…your plan, your effort, and your definition of good or bad. Then you met me. Into that scrambled self-centered model, I introduced the truth of my way. You began to understand prayer, not as a way to get what you want but as the process of humbly entering my presence, receiving forgiveness from sin, and discovering my will for you. With that discovery, you experience the confidence that I cause everything to work together for good for those who seek me.
Romans 8:26-28
And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
Hebrews 4:16
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
April 29
I know that the idea of placing your full trust upon me for these decisions and their outcome challenges you. There remains a strong part of you that defers to your personal efforts. Indeed, your effort is important, but it is not an add-on to the trust by faith that I am teaching you. Your work is to be a continually directed response to my leading so that both formation of strategy and tactical action to achieve it all remain under my direct command through the entire engagement. I built you to run. I am discipling you to run at my shoulder, neither lagging nor surging ahead. I set the direction and pace. It becomes a matter of where you place your full confidence. Is it in me or in you. You know the answer.
Proverbs 3:26
For the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught.
April 30
The need you bring to my attention is something of which I am aware and am addressing. Continue to pray for those to whom I have given responsibility in the matter. While I am silent to you on this issue, I am not so to those to whom I assigned it. Remain in my presence and continue to intercede for them. That is your role in this. I have not abandoned them. You will hear of my response, and it will be like springs flowing across parched ground. Keep praying. Follow me and watch.
Isaiah 41:17-18
When the poor and needy search for water and there is none, and their tongues are parched from thirst, then I, the Lord, will answer them. I, the God of Israel, will never abandon them. I will open up rivers for them on the high plateaus. I will give them fountains of water in the valleys. I will fill the desert with pools of water. Rivers fed by springs will flow across the parched ground.
March 2023
March 1
Be aware that the turning from self to me called repentance also applies to you currently. Long ago, you awakened to your need to confess your sinful nature and turn to me to gain salvation. But there is also need in this journey to continually course correct as you have, from time to time, become distracted from me…sin. My Spirit prompted your repentance from specific sin back to obedient thought and action…back on course, back to surrendered following. Upon your response of confession and repentance, I forgave your sin and restored the fullness of our relationship.
Acts 26:20
…that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance.
Revelation 3:3
Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent…
Psalms 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.
Psalm 139: 23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
March 2
You asked to understand repentance. Know this. Three elements are present in my action in and among people.
Conviction - my drawing of individuals to awareness of sin and need for me and my forgiveness.
Confession – my leading to recognition and admission by individuals of sin and separation from me.
Repentance – my empowering of intentional willful change from sin to surrendered obedience to me.
You have wondered at these elements in places and times among people…the flow and ebb. Know this also. The emergence and flow of these things is prompted, guided, and empowered by my Spirit according to my purpose. The ebb occurs when people attempt to produce that experience, order it, and systemize it. Apart from me, no human effort…even the effort to know me…is possible. Humbly seek me, not the experience or a solution. You will always find me. I take it from there.
2 Chronicles 7:14
Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.
March 3
There is in the process of conviction, confession, and repentance an underlying awareness of your distance from me…that something is not right, a since of troubledness or desperation. It is my Spirit stirring you, accentuating our separation. Having been near me, the position for which you are spiritually designed, the increasing distance from that position is like driving a car with a problem in the engine. There is loss of power and stability. You are experiencing the first stage of my intentional work to convict you of both the separation and its cause…sin. I bring the specific incident of sin to your mind. There will be no mistaking it, avoiding it, or excuse from it. In that moment of awareness, having been justly convicted of sin and separation and faced with the evidence, you have a decision to make…the moment of confession. How will you plea…guilty or not guilty?
James 4:8-10
Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.
Deuteronomy 4:29
But from there you will search again for the LORD your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.
March 4
My unavoidable conviction of sin and separation from me brings you to a decision. Will you take responsibility and confess the truth of your guilt in the matter, or will you claim innocence and attempt to excuse yourself on some basis of position, or authority, or good intentions? The real issue I place before you is honesty before me. Be aware that I know everything about you. You are completely transparent to me. So, an attempt at subterfuge is a step of foolishness. Your confession is the key to restoration of fellowship with me. Your refusal or avoidance perpetuates continued separation and its consequences. I urge your honest agreement in this matter and bring you to this decision, but I will not make it for you.
Psalm 139:1-4, 7
O LORD, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, LORD.
I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence!
Revelation 3:19-20
I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference.
Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.
March 5
In this process of repentance, seek me with all your heart and with all your mind. Do not linger upon things that satisfy your pride, for that is the entry to a dangerous path that leads you quickly away from my presence. Study my commandments and reflect upon my ways. Therein will you find my favor. As you delight in my instruction and keep my word before you, you will experience my presence, my forgiveness, my discernment, and my wisdom. Decisions through which I am leading you will come easily to your mind, and you will know my intent.
Psalm 119:15-16
I will study your commandments and reflect on your ways. I will delight in your decrees and not forget your word.
March 6
I know that all you see right now is the enormity of the matter that has raised before you. It has distracted you from me. We have come so far, and you have seen so much of my work in ways that you could not have imagined within your own ability. Have you learned so little? The issue before you is pulling all your attention, energy, emotion, and thought and has become the controlling element of your life. Confess your distraction...simply admit it to me. Repent from the pattern of thought that has consumed you...intentionally shift your attention from the issue and fix it upon me. I will help you. Now, come close and apply the principles of following me that I have taught you. I am Lord of everything...including this issue.
Isaiah 41:20
I am doing this so all who see this miracle will understand what it means—that it is the Lord who has done this, the Holy One of Israel who created it.
March 7
You are designed to be in my presence…in position…to be clear of the sin that so easily separates us. It is that design to which I appeal in the matter of conviction, and which enables your ready confession and your decision to repent from it. Even so, you are frustrated at the frequency of sin and the ease of its power to lure you away. I initiated and perfected your faith, and it is I who provides remedy to your frustration. Keep your mind’s eye upon me. In those instances of distraction, attend my Spirit’s call. It will be immediate upon the slightest separation. The intentional act of acknowledging your move out of position and returning your attention to me is confession and repentance. You receive my forgiveness and are restored. The longer you are near me, the more readily will you hear my warning that you have moved away and the quicker you will be restored to proper position.
Hebrews 12:1-2
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith…
March 8
I designed you to experience complete fulfillment, to live in confidence and peace, to be more effective than you can imagine…in my presence, in position near me, ever seeking to be closer. There are times when you wander out of position and distance between us grows. It is like a child who leaves the safety of a parent’s side and runs into the street, endangered by traffic. So it is with you when you stray from me. It grieves me to see you in danger, and I love you too much to allow you to remain there. I call you to return. At times I come into the danger zone to get you. And, like a loving parent, I discipline you. Requiring your confession of sin and repentance from it are essential to your restoration. Thereby I forgive you and return you to the safe and effective position for which you are designed…in my presence.
Hebrews 12:5-6
And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said,
“My child, don’t make light of the LORD’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you. For the LORD disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”
March 9
Many around you are in desperate need of my healing. Their pain does not come from a physical ailment but from a damaged heart that has been twisted and scarred. It is seldom allowed to be seen. But it is real, deeply hidden, and it is as dangerously destructive as the most aggressive cancer. A man with leprosy came to me with a condition that was deemed hopeless. Yet, he held hope, and spoke clear truth when he said, "If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean." I am as real now as I was then. I am the healer, and I am always willing. You are my representative, and you must always hold hope as you conduct those who hurt into my presence. There is no scar too deep or heart-damage too extensive that I cannot heal. Represent my healing to those in need. And represent those in need to me.
Mark 1:40-42
A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” Instantly the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed.
March 10
Your trust is well placed. For I am the only one who can calm your fear and establish your footing. The challenges with which your wrestle have purpose. It is at the end of your ability that you consider depending upon mine. You will find my way different than what you learned from watching those around you. You observed power, command, and control as the means to success. I teach humility, love, and surrender to me as the way of effectiveness and fulfillment. In short, I am teaching you the proper definition of success and how it is achieved. Your human nature rebels from such thought even as your heart is drawn to it. You see, you are designed to find your fulfillment in position in my presence. So, thank me for every circumstance that causes you to depend upon me. I am worthy of your trust.
Psalm 56:3
When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
March 11
Yes…even is this circumstance you will find peace. My authority is not diminished because of this difficulty. I am your confidence, and I will keep you from tripping. I designed you to work most effectively from position in my presence. In position you will experience peace and confidence. Even in this moment you know that you must move back to me. Simply admit it and pull your thought from the issue that is swarming you and return it to me. You will experience my peace and confidence. Remain in position with me and receive my direction forward.
Proverbs 3:26
For the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught.
Philippians 4:7
Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
March 12
Your focus is upon a solution. I want it to be upon me. It becomes a matter of belief, faith, and trust. You know about me, but you do not yet know how to trust me. It is time to examine your belief. Will it support the full weight of your trust? You are drawn to me in hope. In that hope, confess your need for belief to be matured into strength. Humble yourself. Seek me, not the solution you crave. I will respond. And you will find that faith and trust emerge.
Mark 9:23-24
Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”
Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”
Proverbs 3:5
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
Psalm 37:5
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
March 13
I do not lead you to mediocrity or small obscurities but to boldness in full dependence upon my promises. I have equipped you to see and to understand my way and my strength. I have taught you to seek me, and you have experienced my constancy in truth and rightness. Yet, you hesitate at this assignment and wonder if you can do it. Is it too long? Is it too high? Is it too complex? It is so for you alone, but it is not so for me. I led you here, and I will lead you in each step forward. Follow me in faith. I will provide the strength, the courage, the discernment, the wisdom, and the resource.
Isaiah 45:19
I publicly proclaim bold promises. I do not whisper obscurities in some dark corner. I would not have told the people of Israel to seek me if I could not be found. I, the Lord, speak only what is true and declare only what is right.
March 14
I am your only source in the bind you are experiencing. My teaching regarding total commitment is extreme and without exception. Even as you read these words, you are torn. You want my relief from the pain of circumstances, but you do not know how to turn away from patterns of living that are at the heart of the problem. A sacrifice is necessary…”taking up your cross” as I put it…dying to yourself and surrender to me of ownership of this and all other elements of your life. That necessary element…surrender…stops you. A mix of pride and fear leaves you unwilling to consider the one step necessary to freedom. Pull your attention from what you fear losing and fix it upon me…who I am. Confess your inability to move. Keep your attention upon me not the issues. You will experience desire to surrender growing, first by fractions, then by inches, then by yards. Confess me as your source of your strength. I will usher you through my extreme expectation, and you will experience freedom.
Matthew 16:24-25
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.”
March 15
Confidence in me, in my authority, in my power, and in my promise is always available to you. Yet there is need for you to carefully consider what I mean with the phrase, “the fear of the Lord.” The confidence you seek is attained only through your humble realization and confession of who I am…Creator, Master, Commander God of all; unique and exclusively holy beyond your ability to comprehend, so much so that to even think of me prompts fear in you. Even my name is holy. The fear of which I speak is your realization and confession of how weak you are before me. I know you react to this confrontation. It is your pride that wishes to claim that you are exempted from fearing me, claiming the evidence of my love. It is true. I do love you more than you know…it is part of my promise. But my love is not license to casual treatment of my holiness or to presumptively deal with me as you would a vending machine into which you place a religious coin and push the button for what you want. The relationship I offer…its benefits and its requirements…is on my terms, not yours. I am the Lord God of all, and you are not. All that lies before you is dependent upon confession of that fact.
Proverbs 14:26
In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.
Exodus 15:11
Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?
March 16
You are learned by watching individuals you admire and adopted their practices of life as your own. From them you learned that my role in things is limited to a token nod one morning a week to pay your religious dues and that you are free to live as you please beyond that. I was given no place in your life. Consequently, when the storm tide rose around you, there was only shifting sand beneath your feet. You called out, and I came to you. I lifted you from the danger and calmed you. Now I present you with a choice that only you can make. Will you follow me on my terms into my plan for you, or will you run back into the riptide? My way requires surrender to my ownership and control. I make no exceptions. Even as you long for my offer, you doubt that you can ever meet my expectations. But here is my promise. I love you more than you can even imagine. If you ask me, I will provide the courage and strength you need to follow me into the hope, peace, and confidence for which you long.
Jeremiah 17:7-8
But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.
March 17
This is a good day for you to learn more about grace...a small word with an incomprehensible breadth of meaning...sort of shorthand for all that I offer you. Grace is me moving near you in an act of extravagant love. It is my provision. It is my direction. It is my protection. It is my favor. It is my forgiveness. It is my healing. It is my salvation. It is my blessing. It is Me, in all of my righteousness and holiness, coming to you as an exercise of my will and purpose, not because you deserve it, but because I love you and choose to act for you. Yes...this is indeed a very good day for you to learn of my grace, to depend upon it, even more...to invest your life in it. Ask me to teach you about grace today.
Romans 5:21
So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Luke 7:42
But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?”
March 18
Understand the relationship between my promise of peace and conscious focus of your attention upon me. You are distracted from me by the things swirling around you. I look through that cloud of circumstantial dust into the core of your heart…to the core of your hope. I know your longing. Two motivations exist there. The one most powerful is your hope for relief, to be set free from the pressure and pain of issues. It keeps your focus glued to the circumstances. The second is a growing hope to be set free for that which I offer…to know me. Fix your thoughts upon the second hope…to know me, to experience my grace, to live with me on my terms. Only as you feed the second hope with your full intent will you experience the first. Then you will experience my promise of peace and confidence in me. Trust me.
Isaiah 26:3-4
You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Trust in the LORD always, for the LORD GOD is the eternal Rock.
Psalm 13:5
But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
March 19
Ponder your motivation honestly. Why do you follow me? Is it to experience the excitement and wonder of my power, or is it to experience me in surrender and devotion? In truth, both are in you. The first feeds your old self…your will to power and control. The second feeds the expansion of my Spirit in you. I know you and love you. I know that you seek the second as I press out the first, even as you try to hold to the edges of it. Release yourself fully to me. As exciting as seeing my power displayed may be, only in complete surrender will you fully experience all that I have planned for you.
Ezra 7:9-10
…the gracious hand of his God was on him. This was because Ezra had determined to study and obey the Law of the Lord and to teach those decrees and regulations to the people of Israel.
March 20
This new life with me is not just a lot of talk. I expect you to actively represent me and my way in the conduct of your life, every part of it, exercising purity, understanding of others, patience, kindness, and sincere love regardless of circumstances that pull to your old ways of reaction. I do not offer temporary exceptions to my requirements or look the other way as you handle a matter in your old ways. I offer no excuse from following me on my terms…I empower and direct you by my Spirit in you, instructing the use of weapons of right, truth, and faith for both offense and defense. I am teaching you to live by my power, not yours.
1 Corinthians 4:20
For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power.
2 Corinthians 6:6-7
We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love. We faithfully preach the truth. God’s power is working in us. We use the weapons of righteousness in the right hand for attack and the left hand for defense.
March 21
You are beginning to discover the difference between knowing about me and believing me. If you settle for just knowing, I will be like other things you have collected in your life…nothing special, just another toy to show to your friends and use at your convenience or turn to in desperation when nothing else works. There is no relationship in knowing about me. But when you grow to believe me, the gravitas of active relationship, surrender, dependency, and humility rises to reality and replaces the foolishness of your former way of thinking and living. You believe that I created you and equipped you for my purpose in and through you. You long to understand that purpose, more than that…you long to know me. And when you think of all this, you fall to your knees and cry for me…your Heavenly Father, Creator of everything in heaven and on earth, knowing there is no other way to live, asking that from my glorious unlimited resources, I will empower you with inner strength through my Spirit.
Ephesians 3:14-16
When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.
March 22
The moment you believed me…in humility, in relationship, in surrender, in dependency…each of which I provided upon your confession of need, I forgave your sin and entered your life. I now make my home in your heart, the intersection of your will, your mind, and your spirit. I am continually transforming you, conforming your will, shaping your thought, communicating through your spirit. You were renewed by my action and love. Now, as you continually learn to trust me investing faith upon faith, like roots stretching down into firm rich soil, you will grow in understanding of all I am and intend. Ephesians 3:17
Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.
March 23
It is my love that you must understand and pursue. Love as you learned it always seeks a return benefit, but I represent a type of love that is completely focused upon the benefit of others…mine to you and yours to others. It is irresistible and transformational. Understand this…my kind of loving cannot be experienced or enacted apart from me. The ability to love like this is not generated by your natural human self. It is initiated, empowered, and enacted in you and guided through you only by my Spirit. It is patient and kind. It is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. Yes…plumb the depths of my love. It changes everything.
Ephesians 3:18
And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
March 24
The fullness of life you seek will include your experience of my transformational love…personally and through you to those in your circle of influence. It is too great for you to understand fully and can only be experienced at the initiation of my Spirit in you. Yet I desire for you to know it and to practice it for such love is essential to relationship. You are incomplete without it. Humble yourself and ask me. I will teach you. Yes…ask me to teach you of my love.
Ephesians 3:19
May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
1 John 4:8
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
March 25
Think about it. Why would you insist upon doing this within your own limited experience and strength? You are dealing with my things, not yours. Is it not the better part of wisdom to humble yourself and ask me what I desire done with my things? And upon that discovery, to surrender yourself to my way in my unlimited strength guided by my unlimited knowledge and wisdom to my purpose in the matter? And all you need to do is humble yourself, pray, seek me, and follow the direction that I will make clear.
Ephesians 3:20
Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.
March 26
You asked who I favor. I am pleased to tell you. This is written in the book I left for you. I favor one who needs me, who knows it, and who openly admits need for me with an honest and yielded spirit. It has been described as poor in spirit...one who has come to the point in life that he or she knows without doubt or variance that I am the resource of life, not money or ability...that I am the one and only point of dependence for life, for meaning, for provision, for significance, for love, and for freedom from sin. I will favor and bless that person.
Matthew 5:3
God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
March 27
Consider my insistence upon humility…the absence of your pride in my presence. Now consider the oft-posed question, “Does not God want me to be happy?” The implication is that happiness or care-free living as defined by the one presenting the question should be my will and should be my provision. Has not that one pridefully placed himself or herself as god of life and supposed me to be subject to his or her will? I am not a genie in a bottle summoned upon one’s whim, and I do not negotiate my authority. I am Holy Lord God, Creator, and Master of all that is or ever will be. I am the beginning and the end. I will favor and bless a humble hearted person who seeks me and my way on my terms according to my purpose for that one.
Matthew 5:3
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
March 28
I made you aware of a relational matter that requires attention. Seek me in this so that I guide your thought and action. Invite my examination to reveal your motive and uncover pride. Allow me to fuel compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, and forgiveness in you. Follow me into the matter. I will provide wisdom and show you how to bring remedy.
Psalm 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; see if there be any hurtful way in me and lead me in the everlasting way.
Colossians 3:12-13
So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.
March 29
I note your trust. Though it is experimental in this matter, it is real. Your experience in this area of life has carried you until now, and you are not accustomed to inability. There is a part of you ready to take over when the opening occurs. Expect me to keep the remedy out of your hands as you learn again to give every part of your life to me all the time. You know that I will lead you through this as I have so many times in other matters. You will emerge having extended your trust and deepened your faith knowing without doubt that I led you in truth and placed you on exactly the right path. You will confess freshly that I am the source of all hope.
Psalm 25: 1-5
O LORD, I give my life to you. I trust in you, my God! Do not let me be disgraced, or let my enemies rejoice in my defeat. No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others. Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.
March 30
My challenge has revealed your pride. I direct you to seek me and the fullness of my authority and will in every area of your life…every area. Those things and patterns of thought that you presume to reserve from me, things that define who you consider yourself to be, things you most fear losing…those are the areas included in my challenge. They are to be released to me for my purpose according to will, not yours. My transforming grace and power are required for the necessary shift from your will to mine. Admit your prideful resistance and seek me. I will lead you into surrender, humility, peace, and confidence. Thereby you discover how to honestly pray for my Kingdom to come and my will to be done in your life.
Matthew 6:10
May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Luke 12:16-21
Then he told them a story: A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, “What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.” Then he said, “I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”
But God said to him, “You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?”
Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.
Romans 12:2
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
March 31
Rely upon me. You are my representative in every moment and each encounter. As such, it is essential that you demonstrate my character and culture…love, tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, making allowance for another’s faults, and forgiving anyone who offends you just as I forgave you. Yet, representing my character is difficult when emotional reaction becomes the master of your life, driving your thought, words, and behavior. I will interrupt that cycle. All you need do is ask. I will forgive you and restore calmness and peace in your troubled nature. I will order your thoughts and infuse love where enmity has lodged. It is something that I must do in you. Though you cannot cause it, you can ask. Do so now. Rely upon me. The result will amaze you.
Colossians 3:12
Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.