We were traveling through town waiting at an intersection for the traffic signal to turn green. We happened to be in the lane going straight and we had vehicles to our left, in the turn lane, waiting for a green arrow. In fact, this was the third intersection we’d waited at and I happened to notice the same thing happened at all three. The lane to our left, waiting to turn left, got the green arrow before we got our green light to proceed forward. At all three intersections, as the left lane of vehicles began to move, almost without thinking, we began to inch forward. It was like the progress of the ones alongside us encouraged us to anticipate our own progress.

One of the strengths of connecting with others is that we can inspire each other to move forward. We are each at a different place in our journey but for those brief moments that we spend together, we can help each other to move. Sometimes we get stuck at an intersection in life and we need someone to come along and remind us that we can keep going…we need to keep going.

Hebrews 10:24 (NLT) tells us, “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.” The New International Version says it this way: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on…..” One of my favorite thoughts is that we are stronger when we are connected. So today we can be on the lookout. Think of ways to inspire more love and more good. Sometimes we need the inspiration and sometimes we get to be the ones to inspire.

“I didn’t want you to get your hopes up.” It was part of a conversation that I heard a mom say to her daughter in a movie recently and it struck me as such a real-life statement. Hasn’t someone said that to you at least once? Maybe you tried to console someone else with those words. There might’ve even been times that the caution was a reservation we said to ourselves. Now DON’T go gettin’ your hopes up!

I’ve been focusing on Lamentations 3:19 – 24 this week. This section of Scripture is full of hard things, sickness, attacks, shattering circumstances…and yet, laced throughout this passage there are reminders that the steadfast love of our God never ends. His mercies are new for you and me every single morning. God’s faithfulness is great and the Lord is our portion. What does it mean that He is our portion? The LORD is our inheritance, our treasure. Verse 24 reads, ‘”The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, therefore I will hope in Him.’

What a promise! I will say to myself, and to you!… GET YOUR HOPES UP!! Let all your hopes be in Christ! The One who steadfastly loves us never leaves us and is forever faithful. He is our inheritance! When we remember this…we have hope!

No guac. That’s the end of my order at every Mexican restaurant. I am not a fan of the avocado so guacamole is NOT something I want dolloped out on top of my meal. So when my friend and I were eating at a restaurant that actually made guacamole AT the table she was so emphatic that I would like it I agreed to try it her way.

I watched the server mash it then add lime juice, salt, onion, cilantro, and some other spices. My friend tasted it and asked for more of one thing and then another. And then she looked at me and said, ‘now YOU taste it!’ Hesitantly, I did. And… it actually DID taste good! I had no idea made-to-taste guac even existed!

It made me curious to ask the server about the variety of ways he is asked to make it. Mostly, the same ingredients, but less of some and more of the other. How often do we expect others to like things exactly the way we do? In fact, that often carries over to how we view each other. Wanting others to do and be exactly like we are.

Psalm 139:14 – 15 (TPT) reminds us, “I thank you, God, for making me so mysteriously complex! Everything you do is marvelously breathtaking. … You even formed every bone in my body when you created me in the secret place; carefully, skillfully you shaped me from nothing to something.”

We were each created by God. Every one of us has many of the same traits, likes, dislikes, even gifts, and talents; however, God sprinkled in exact proportions to make us individual and unique. A little more of this. A little less of that. Uniquely created by the Master Creator. Beautifully, wonderfully made.

I’ve shared about my great-grandmother’s trunk before. It is a priceless heirloom that my husband Ken secretly had restored for me one year as a Christmas gift. Our dear friend who handled the restoration told me later that it was in surprisingly good condition considering the trunk dated back to about 1890. The exterior had beautiful embossed tin between the wood framing that had very little rust and the wood had not rotted anywhere either. She said the reason she thought it had been so well preserved was because for decades it had been stored inside a larger trunk. Very little exposure to elements that would have caused aging to the ladies’ trunk hidden inside.

There is something special to me about that part of the story. Even though that trunk needed some tender care to restore it to use part of its story of preservation was being hidden inside another. The wind and rain, cold and heat, even the rays of sunshine that could cause aging were kept away from my trunk by being tucked away inside another.

Sometimes we feel stuck, useless or invisible, too young or too old to be of value. Perhaps feeling hidden is really that we’re being preserved. Maybe age, condition and value are not about what’s seen but about what’s in our heart. Colossians 3:3 from the EasyEnglish Bible tells us, “Remember that your old nature has died. God is keeping your new life safe with Christ.” Hidden in Christ is the very best place to be.

One of the quotes I remember hearing as I was growing up was this – don’t do as I do – do as I say. I think it was often said to teach the importance of making sure our words and our deeds match up. Understanding that our actions will always speak louder than our words.

The way we treat others will almost always reveal our heart toward them. Whether it is interactions with family, friends, co-workers, leadership, or neighbors…it’s important to be a good example. Lead by example. Don’t say one thing and do another. The way we learn to live like that – is by someone else leading the way.

Ephesians 5:1 from The Message makes it so clear. “Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that.” 

It doesn’t get more clear than that. Live like that. Love like that.

I was fully engaged in worship at a camp meeting service one evening. My eyes were closed and I had no idea what was happening around me. When the music ended and I opened my eyes I realized that an old friend had come in and sat in the row, and the seat, directly in front of me. I hadn’t seen her in quite a while and, honestly, my heart had been hurt by some things that had happened. Things that had caused quite a ripple and rift in my world.

I tried to concentrate on the message but my mind was distracted. Of all the rows and seats that she could have stepped into – she sat directly in front of me. I wrestled with what I should say to her when the service was concluded. I was completely caught off guard when she turned around to face me after the service and said “I feel like I owe you an apology for…” and proceeded to confess what she had done. With little hesitation I looked her in the eyes and told her that I forgave her and we hugged. I genuinely meant it.

The next morning while I was talking to God about it, I mentioned that maybe we should get together so I could wade through the list of repercussions that her actions had cost me, so that she would understand how much it had impacted me. When I paused to take a breath, I heard Him say, “I don’t keep a list.”

If there were ever a heavenly mic drop – I’m pretty sure it happened that morning. If ever someone had every reason to keep a list (and oh what a list it would be!) of all the things I’ve done and the cost accumulated for all my sins, it would be God. But the good news is that Jesus paid the price for my sin and when I accepted Him as my Savior He washed it all away.

1 John 1:9 (NIV) promises, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” There’s a period at the end of that promise. What an example He set for us to forgive one another. Maybe we’ve kept a comma at the end of an argument and God is telling us today – let it go. Forgive. Period. We can’t do it on our own, but with God’s help, we can.

Have you ever been to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming? It is home to some of the most amazing geysers that erupt on a fairly regular schedule. Since the very first National Park’s inception at Yellowstone in 1872 the most famous geyser known as ‘Old Faithful’ has done its thing predictably every day since the time it was discovered. In fact, you can watch it erupt with hot, steamy water from anywhere in the world via live webcam and each day the park notes on its website the eruption time to within ten minutes. Remarkable. Awe-inspiring. Old Faithful does its thing – every day – at about the same time – in the same way.

But even Old Faithful could be less faithful. That geyser is dependent on other things around it. It is actually a reaction to other conditions in and around the earth. It is totally possible that there would come a day when the eruption doesn’t happen.

There is only One who remains the very same today as He was thousands of years ago and will remain faithful til the end and that is our faithful God. There is no question about God’s faithfulness. Rather than reacting to outside stimuli…God’s faithfulness is part of His DNA. The very character of God IS faithfulness. He tells us in 2 Timothy 2:13 (ESV) that even “if we are faithless, He remains faithful – for He cannot deny Himself”. Even when we falter in our faithfulness to Him…He will always be true to His promises for you and me.

If you have been beating yourself up over something…regret, shame, faithlessness…take note that God has always been faithful. He IS faithful today. He will be faithful tomorrow…and forever. He loves you. He sent His Son to restore you and me to Him and we can rest in His faithfulness to us.

I saw it coming. The limbs and leaves on the trees were beginning to sway more and more. The sky was getting darker by the minute. I’d even had several hours’ notice from the radar app on my phone that there was a storm coming. And yet while the hours went by I kept using my phone for all the uses I typically expect from it. It had a full charge that morning when I left the house but I’d been using it all day.

I could have grabbed my charger and plugged in my phone to charge its battery when I first saw the potential for a big storm but I was busy doing all the things I normally do. I neglected to pay attention to the impending low battery status on my phone. While I am tempted to say ‘all of a sudden’ about the storm when it hit – the truth is that I had seen the signs. I’d even had warnings. Yet I had ignored them. So when the storm raged around me and my phone battery was flashing a red 4% battery life remaining I decided I’d better plug it in. Unfortunately, that was about a minute before the power went out and it stayed off for more than three hours!

WE have an internal battery. It’s not enough to charge it on occasion. It’s important to stay plugged in! Even if we begin our day with devotions and prayer, we head out the door and our mind shifts to our responsibilities and to-do’s of the day. Unconsciously, we unplug! We may end up struggling through things that seem way over our heads. We could even find ourselves in the middle of a full-out STORM and if we have been disconnected from Jesus for a while we may find ourselves drowning. Stay plugged in!

John 15:5 (ESV) tells us, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” Don’t let our mind or our heart get untethered from His Holy Spirit. It’s the best assurance that we won’t get lost in the hard places. Let’s decide today to keep our lives fully charged by the power of Jesus!

When my kids were in middle school they each expressed an interest in learning to play an instrument. Our son, Cody, wanted to learn to play the trumpet, and our daughter, Abby, had aspirations to play the flute. We made sure they both had instruments on which to practice. They had individual lessons on them and before long they could play the lead line of some songs that we could even recognize coming from behind the doors of their bedrooms! Yes, we celebrated their accomplishments!

There were no harmonies to their songs. It wasn’t possible to play the lead line and add harmony at the same time. However, once they began to play in the concert band something happened that was so beautiful. Other people playing other instruments began to add parts and rhythms to create something bigger. Of course, if they all played ALL their notes at the same time it sounded like a jumbled collection of noises. It took the direction of one man or woman, known as the conductor, to stand on a riser in front of them and direct them all to bring a beautiful song to life. Each musician maintained eye contact with the conductor and watched for their cue to begin to play. From beginning to end as their contribution was called for they would join in to create the song collective.

There is a great song being played that started before the world began. God’s song has had many ebbs and flows. There have been great verses and quiet ones, mysterious and joyful, anticipatory and even sad overtures. Even when the Son of God breathed His last on the cross and the whole earth shuddered under the weight of heaven’s most sorrowful song God never stepped down from His throne. He never stopped leading all of Creation in His beautiful, eternal song. Today you and I are part of God’s glorious refrain and it is an exquisite one! Even the hard parts of our verses are full of the hope we have in Christ. Some day all of us, from the beginning of time until the grand finale, will gather together around His Heavenly throne and that encore will last forever!

“After this, I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'” Revelation 7:9-10 (ESV)

You’ve probably heard the story of two men walking along a shoreline that was covered with starfish that had washed ashore. Without help, these starfish would soon die, and so one of the men bent over, picked up a starfish, and threw it back into the sea. The other man asked, “what are you doing? You can’t save them all. What difference could you possibly make?” With another starfish in his hand, the man answered his friend, “it makes a difference to THIS one!”

Today, as Americans, we have the right and privilege to cast a vote for our leadership from local government to the highest office of our land. It would be easy to decide that our single vote won’t make a difference – but that isn’t true. God instructs us to pray for our leaders (1 Timothy 2:1-4). He also tells us in Proverbs 14:34 (MSG) that “God-devotion makes a country strong; God-avoidance leaves people weak.” Every Christian around the world is instructed to pray for our leaders – but Americans actually get to CHOOSE who our leaders will be.

Your vote. My vote. Each one matters. Today let’s pray for wisdom and direction from God on who HE would have us choose. Pray…then vote. It will make a difference!