Month: August 2023

“You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trodden under foot by men.”

Matthew 5:13 (RSV)

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Matthew 5:16 (RSV)

Once God makes an impact in our life, it’s natural to want to share our experience with others. The right word spoken in the right moment definitely touches a person’s heart, but our biggest impact is made with actions, more than our words. This is what lighting up a life and salting the world is all about.

Evangelism seems intimidating when we think of it as an obligation to persuade others of our faith. Most of us are not called to be salesmen, missionaries, apologists or preachers, but we are all called to be salt and light.  

Maybe Jesus told us to be light for the reason that light can be seen, but not heard. His light shines through us in ways that people can see. Words mean nothing if people cannot see the light in us.

Salt flavors and preserves by mingling it into food, just as we need to mingle with the people God sends into our lives. Salt can do nothing if it’s isolated from the food it was meant to flavor or preserve. Sometimes God purposely brings people into our lives that we have very little in common with. By mingling with them, a little of our salt touches their life, and in some way, gives them a brief taste or introduction to Jesus, and remains with them as a preservative should. 

I remember someone who once left a bit of her salt in me when I once had a faithless, empty heart. In my last year of high school I had a very unique opportunity for a part time job, in the advertising department of a major department store in downtown Chicago.

In those days, stores posted ads in newspapers using hand drawn  illustrations that depicted the clothing fashions being advertised for the week. I had the privilege of being hired as a model to put on the outfits that were selected, and pose for the two artists in that advertising department, who drew those illustrations for the newspaper ads each week.

One of the artists, named Ruth, was a single woman in her forties who lived with her mother. She was soft spoken, but very friendly. We chatted as I would pose in each outfit, while she sketched me. I learned that she and her mother were both actively involved in their church. Ruth had an aura of calmness and peace about her. Although she never once mentioned Jesus, His light was still shining through her, and she left an impression on me. 

I realize in looking back, that some of her salt and light subconsciously remained with me after leaving that job and going on to college. About two years later, I experienced a life changing moment of receiving forgiveness and surrendering my life to Jesus.

If Ruth had spoken to me about Jesus, I’m sure I would not have listened, since my heart was closed to anything about God at the time. Salt and light seem to remain with a person much longer than words do. That’s what salt does, it remains within a person, preserving truth, and bringing growth to a tiny seed of faith. 

Evangelism is really nothing more than being who God made us to be, and reflecting His light and salt to others. I believe we are totally unaware of how God may be using us to be a light in our tiny corner of the world, and salt to the lives of those around us. 

I briefly made a friend in college who was from Japan, named Yoshi. He was brought up in the Buddhist faith, and in my new found joy of living for Christ, I briefly shared my faith in Jesus with him. He seemed interested and I never saw Yoshi again. Recently, his path happened to cross with a brother in law of mine. Yoshi told my brother in law that he was a practicing Christian for over forty years and that I was the influence who led him to convert.

When my brother in law told me this, I barely even remembered Yoshi. It was amazing to me that he became a faithfully practicing Christian for forty years since I last saw him. I might have left a brief taste of salt and light with him, but God led him to find the way.

We don’t need to be aware of how God uses each of us to be salt or light. Just as I saw something in Ruth, Yoshi saw it in me, and God amazingly does all the rest. 

This keeps me hoping that the Lord will use someone else’s light or salt to one day reach my own loved ones, who do not currently believe in Christ. 

God simply expects us to be who He made us to be, and as we keep shining our light and preserving with salt, it’s the Holy Spirit who is changing the lives of people all around us.

Thank you Lord, for the unique way you use each one of us as salt and light. Please shine, flavor and preserve your truth, using us in any way you choose to. Amen

“Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, “Sacrifices and offerings thou hast not desired, but a body hast thou prepared for me.”

Hebrews 10:5 (RSV)

God, the Father, who is invisible, planned for our Savior to have a visible body of flesh and blood. The Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary’s womb and His body was created from her DNA, through the power of the Holy Spirit. 

The eternal Word became flesh and inherited her physical features. Jesus probably looked exactly like His mother, except for being a man. 

So there He was, the visible Son of God, fully divine because of the Holy Spirit and fully human because of the mother God created for Him.

God clothed His only Son in a human body, and with that body, He would touch and save the world, becoming our sacrificed Lamb. The body the Father gave Him, served a twofold purpose, to save us, and to express God’s own love for us. 

Many of the miraculous healings Jesus performed, involved Him touching others or being touched by others. Every miracle Jesus did  could have been done by the invisible God, but He wanted it done through His son. 

He prepared Jesus’ body so that people could encounter Him physically. He let His feet get washed with tears of gratitude. He allowed His head to be lovingly bathed in oil. His arms held little children on His lap, talking to them and making them laugh. With His body, He became engaging and approachable to all. He hugged friends and strangers, putting His arms around them, touching all who received Him. 

God intended for His son to be more than a leader or a public speaker, He intended to draw people close to His heart, both physically and spiritually. With His hands He touched the eyes of the blind, and they received sight. He touched the hand of a little dead girl, and she opened her eyes and rose from the dead. A woman who was bent over and crippled for years, stood up straight when Jesus laid His hands on her. He touched the lepers, who no one else would dare to touch, and they were all healed. 

His hands did more than physically heal, they spiritually resurrected and transformed many lives, like Matthew, the tax collector, who left his materialistic driven lifestyle to become His disciple. Mary Magdalene was given a new life, being delivered from demonic possession, and prostitutes surrendered and changed their lives to follow Jesus.

Without having a human body, to touch humanity with, these moments of touching, feeling, healing and freeing, would not be as beautiful. 

Those hands that brought so much love, joy, wholeness and healing, were the same hands nailed to a cross. The feet that walked toward the outcasts were pierced with nails, and the eyes that looked at people with such compassion, were in a sacred head that was pierced with a crown of thorns. 

His Father prepared the body of His son for us, knowing exactly what His body would undergo. The blood that poured from Jesus was the same blood type of Mary, according to God’s deliberate plan. There was divine planning in every aspect and detail of that body which was prepared for all of us. 

Jesus’ body was God’s love letter to the world. He is God’s greatest expression of the Father’s love for us. Since God prepared and gave the world His son, by giving us His body, in every possible way, how could we doubt that He still desires intimacy with people today? Every love letter requires a response and God is still waiting for the response from many, to His love letter.

We may have missed out in being among those who touched Jesus, since we weren’t there to experience being hugged by Him, but He is the same yesterday, today and forever. He still touches people spiritually, and wants us to reach out and receive all He has to give us today. 

Lord, we are thankful for your body that was prepared for us. You were born of Mary, lived among people in this world, then suffered and died for us. Your same body was resurrected for us, and it will be the same body that returns one day, in glorified form, among the clouds, to take your people home with you for all eternity. Amen

“But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Mark 14:61-62 (NIV)

Jesus ignored many questions posed to Him by the various authorities of His day. He hardly said much to Herod or Pilate. When the high priest asked Him straight out “ Are you the Messiah?” Jesus simply answered 

“I am”, and then He went on to describe His second coming in detail. He told the high priest that he would one day see Him coming in the clouds seated at the right hand of the Power. 

It was an awesome and perplexing statement. That priest would be long dead and gone when Jesus returns, yet He told him he would “see Him” in the clouds on that day. He was indicating that both the dead and the living will see Him on the day of His second coming. Every gospel writer also wrote that all shall see Him on that day. That means even the blind and those in comas will look up and see Him, because all means all. 

For now we don’t visually see Him, but our eyes of faith see Him working His will in our lives. If it’s so important to Jesus that all shall see Him when He returns, it’s equally important that we see Him with eyes of faith, working in our lives now and today. He seems to appear in our lives in glimpses, through a word that touches our heart, or through a clearly answered prayer, or an opened door of opportunity, or in receiving His peace and consolation during trials. 

Signs from above that confirm His presence working for our good, are seen with our eyes of faith. Unless we receive a dream or a vision, we can only see by faith for now, but we are all being prepared for the day of His physical return. 

Until the day He appears in the sky, in power and glory for all to see, we keep our eyes of faith open. By faith we have a foretaste of something better to come. 

Jesus elaborated the details of His second coming in order to keep us looking for Him, here and now, in our everyday life, until that great day. Seeing with eyes of faith is what keeps us pressing forward during hardship and grief. We are looking forward to that day, when He says,

“Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”(Matthew 25:34)

Amen, come Lord Jesus, our eyes of faith are open. Show us how you have appeared to us in ways we did not recognize, and help us see you more clearly today and always, in every area of our lives. Amen

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace will be with you.”

Philippians 4:8-9 (NASB)

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

Philippians 4:6 (NASB)

As I was thinking about anxiety, I realized there are contributors to it, based on what we fill our minds with. When I asked the Holy Spirit what to write regarding anxiety, the thought came to me that we can spend our thoughts in ways that we spend our money. 

Just as we can invest money in wasteful things, that don’t bring lasting profit, we can invest our thoughts in things that don’t profit our faith, but rather increase our anxiety. 

In today’s scripture, Paul teaches us that there is a thinking skill to practice and develop. I have the choice to invest my thought life with information that is good, honorable, and worthy of praise, or I can allow my mind to be filled with negativity. If I practice and develop Paul’s way of thinking, I can invest in thoughts that strengthen my inner person. 

I can feel the difference of being dragged down when I allow negativity to fill my thought life. One person can talk to you for five minutes and drop a load of negative thoughts into your mind. That person could be a friend, coworker, banker, lawyer, doctor, or a news anchor. Listening to or watching news all throughout the day is also a contributor to negative thinking. Some of the most negative people I know are daily news junkies. 

When I listen to Christian themed radio, music, TV, or read inspiring books or scripture, I am investing in a positive thought flow where the Holy Spirit can work, creating an uplifting completely faith filled atmosphere in my mind. I hear true stories of what God is doing in other people’s lives, and I can praise Him for it, while finding renewed hope for my own miracles.

If my mind is invested in the good things God is doing, it lessens my anxiety. Everyone has real problems that cause real anxiety, but if we invest our thoughts in the really good things that God is doing in real people’s lives, it increases our faith and lifts us into a level of real peace.

If we follow Paul’s advice, and start each day with prayer, then after making our request known, we find all the things we can thank and praise God for. Verbalizing these specific blessings, defeats the spirit of worry and anxiety. 

Anytime I have observed someone who is exceptionally upbeat and cheerful, they are also a verbally thankful person. 

I’m actually thinking of some of you, who are recipients of these meditations. (It’s an honor to know such joyful, positive people of God.)

Thankfulness was never meant to remain only within our thoughts, but to be expressed to others, especially to the one we are thanking. 

If we review our past blessings, it is just natural to verbalize our thanks and praise. A skill that I need to keep practicing is the skill of investing my thoughts in the goodness of God. 

I like to listen to someone else’s true story of what God has done for them, and as a result, my faith and hope are inspired. 

David believed in verbalizing praise. He spoke a lot about God’s goodness and expressed it throughout his Psalms. David knew the importance of letting praise flow out of his mouth, instead of keeping it inside. He wrote,
“Behold, I will not restrain my lips,
Lord, You know.

I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your mercy and Your truth from the great congregation.” (Psalm 40:9-10)

There is an enemy of our soul, who wants us to restrain our lips, and trap negative thoughts within our mind. Something changes within us when the goodness of God is verbalized, and spoken about, as David described. 

When we speak of the good things God is doing, we are wielding a powerful spiritual weapon, and it’s called praise. Dark spirits are very uncomfortable around a mouth speaking God’s praises. Praise resists evil and sends the devil fleeing from us. 

We can solidify our investment in a God centered  thought life, if we practice what Paul and David prescribed for anxiety. 

By spending our thoughts wisely, on those things that bring praise to God, and then verbalizing those thoughts with thanksgiving, we will overcome anxiety and reap true peace and joy. 

Lord, lead us to a more positive thought flow and to spend our thoughts wisely and to practice verbalizing our thanks and praise. Amen

This message reminds me of this song, which is my life theme song:

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
 my soul shall exult in my God;
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness”

Isaiah 61:10 ( RSV)

“For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

Galatians 3:27  (RSV)

The Father of the prodigal made a feast and ordered his servants to bring the finest robe and put it on his son. This was the son who just came home after living in a pen full of swine. He was in urgent need of a bath, but his father wanted to first shower him with love, and rejoice over his return. The bath could wait until later. 

God loves us and receives us just as we are. He does all the deep cleaning later, and through the years He works on our transformation.

He sees all of us as His own, and it doesn’t matter where we’ve been. 

He loves us and only cares that we’re finally back home. 

Paul said that if we were baptized into Christ, we put on Christ, as someone puts on a garment. Putting on Christ is like putting on the garment of salvation. We put on Christ as the prodigal son put on his dad’s finest robe. We wear His robe by grace, and God isn’t finished with any of us yet.

Since we are all prodigals, clothed in Christ, God desires that we keep coming home to receive more of His grace and forgiveness. The robe is a symbol that we are new creatures in Christ. We are showered with many good things that come from God, who has reconciled us to Himself through His son.

It’s hard to comprehend this kind of love, that God would place His finest robe on us, especially if we’ve spent any parts of our lives with swine. Yet, Jesus willingly switched places with us.

He, who knew no sin, wore our sins on the cross, so that we could wear His robe of righteousness forever. 

(2 Corinthians 5:21) 

It’s incomprehensible but that is the essence of the gospel. If we feel undeserving, it’s because we are, and so was the prodigal son.

So, now we put on Christ, like a robe, but we don’t wear Him in secret, we wear Him publicly, showing Him to the world. People often say their faith is very private to them, but the father of the prodigal celebrated his son’s return with a huge party. He gave his son a robe to wear publicly and a party to share with everyone. His father never intended for it to be a private matter. 

Redemption is too great a gift to be kept private, it was meant to be shared with others. Jesus is waiting for many more prodigals to return, so that He can place His garment of salvation and robe of righteousness upon them.

Lord, thank you for your extravagant love for us, as you are the father of many prodigals. In taking our place on the cross, and then clothing us in your robe of righteousness, we rejoice with gratitude for our salvation. Amen. 

“Whom are you seeking?They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He said to them, “I am He.” And Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them. Now then, when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.”

John 18:4-6 (NASB)

Judas betrayed Jesus and led the soldiers to arrest Him in the garden, but only John’s gospel shared an unusual occurrence during that arrest.

As the group of soldiers were asking for Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus answered, “I am He”, and the men instantly fell backward to the ground. It’s curious how the men all fell backward when Jesus said, “ I am.”The power flowing from His presence  in those words, caused their knees to buckle and they collapsed. 

There is a deep meaning in those words. “I AM” is a divine phrase, which has history going back to the first Exodus. Jesus also said it at another time in His ministry. 

He said it to the Pharisees when they questioned how He could have ever known Abraham, who lived two thousand years before Him. 

Jesus answered, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” 

When Moses heard God speaking to him through a burning bush, God identified Himself as “I AM that I am”.  

Those awesome words filled Moses with a reverent fear, but God told him to go tell Pharaoh, “I AM has sent me.” The great I AM, the Lord, always ends doubts, gives courage, and teaches us that His Presence is a mighty and powerful one. It is that same presence that dwelt in Jesus, even in His humanity.

Jesus is perpetually with us, even when everything seems messed up, falling apart, full of doubt, or when we are overwhelmed with fear. 

He is the great I AM, who makes Himself known, whispering to our hearts, saying “I AM  still here.” He meets us in any situation, and invites us to let go and just fall into His arms. To fall into His arms is to fall into His mercy.  Even in our darkest night in the garden, when we are asking “Are you even here?” He answers us “ I AM”. 

Jesus can identify with us in the night of our doubts and questions, because He too, was once alone, betrayed, and full of questions. 

Whatever the condition is of our mind or our spirit, Jesus is speaking to us saying “ I AM right here, I know how you feel, and I will never forsake you.” His power is flowing towards us, so we can let our knees buckle and fall back into His loving arms.

Jesus, we surrender all the messy, confusing situations of our lives to you. We trust you to take charge of everything as we let go and fall into your loving and merciful arms today.  Amen

“Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you do not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me; or else believe me for the sake of the works themselves.”

John 14:9-11 (RSV)

Everything we can know about God has been revealed in the words and actions of Jesus. All that He did and everything He taught are reflections of who God, the Father is. If we see Him as anyone other than a loving Father and a caring shepherd, then we haven’t been listening to Jesus.

At the transfiguration, God spoke audibly from heaven and said, “This is my beloved Son, listen to Him,” so if we listen to Jesus, He shows us all we need to know about God, the Father. 

Jesus’ actions revealed the heart of His father, in reaching out to the marginalized people of society. In both His parables and His actions, we see in Jesus what God desired to express to the world. A gentle, patient, father of the prodigal standing with open arms and the caring shepherd who will leave the flock to chase after the one who is lost. That’s the picture God wants us to see.

When Jesus said “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” it’s an open invitation to all people to come to Him. He is inviting the broken, the burdened and the lost to come to Him. He goes on to say, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am “gentle” and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Jesus, who is one with the Father, tells us He is gentle. These are words God wants us to listen to.

He has known us from birth, He has seen all our celebrations as well as our sorrows and struggles, throughout all the ups and downs of our lives. The still quiet voice of God has always been calling us to come to Him, during all stages and phases of our lives, leading us to the state of grace which we are in today. 

I think at times in my life I was deceived, and imagined an angry God, with high standards that I could never measure up to. I imagined Him frowning at me, holding my past failures against me. 

Now I realize this was the deception of the enemy, which kept the most powerful truth from me, which is that God is my true Heavenly Father. Confessing sin is so simple and cleansing, but our nature leads us to run away from God, instead of to Him. Jesus was speaking to me during those times in my life, saying “Would that even today you knew the things that make for peace.” (Luke 19:42) 

He was calling me when I didn’t listen, but still He never gave up on me.

As parents, we know how it feels to have a child who falls short of what we had hoped for, but it doesn’t lessen our love for that child. The heart of parenthood always hopes for the child to return and be reconciled. God is our perfect parent, who is also hoping and believing we will return and be reconciled to Him. 

The word reconcile is defined as moving from a place of separation, hurt, and brokenness to a place of healing, wholeness, forgiveness, and reunion. God is slow to anger, and His very nature is patient and hoping for our reconciliation. 

He longs to move us from a state of brokenness and separation, to a state of wholeness and reunion with Him.

It’s the lovingkindness of God, not a fear of wrath, that finally leads us to that place of repentance and into a lasting relationship with Him.

When Jesus stood looking at the city of Jerusalem, He wept over it, saying that He longed to gather them under His wings as a mother hen gathers her chicks. His statement reveals the compassion of a parent, who wants to reconcile and gather all children in their arms. 

Through Jesus, we receive a glimpse of God’s true nature, who is the perfect prototype of the many earthly relationships we can know. He is our good shepherd, our perfect parent, our loving spouse, and our most loyal friend. 

To know His actions and listen to His words, is to know Jesus, and to know Jesus is to know God, the Father. 

Lord, help us to see you as our gentle, loving Father, and to know that you are always longing for us to be gathered and reconciled to You. Amen

Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the dead man’s sister, said to him, “Lord, by now there will be a stench; he has been dead for four days. Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?”

John 11:39-40 (NAB)

Martha and Mary sent for Jesus while Lazarus was sick, but Jesus arrived four days after he died. Jesus gave the impression that He was in no hurry, even though the family of Lazarus were all close friends of His. When He finally arrived, Martha thought His timing was off, and she hinted at feeling abandoned by Him. She had hoped Jesus would arrive early enough to heal her brother, but now he was gone, and so was her hope. 

Jesus didn’t abandon His friends, He wasn’t careless in timing, nor did He delay on purpose, putting Martha and Mary in a state of distress. 

He wanted to teach that it’s never too late to see the glory of God in any situation. 

As they approached the tomb of her brother, Martha began explaining to Jesus the facts about a body’s decomposition after four days, as if the Son of God needed to be informed about this. 

Despite a difficult situation where we feel God’s timing is off, or like Martha, we may feel abandoned, Jesus has been with us all along. He needs no explanation of our time limits or deadlines, because He knows all, since He is God.

Prayer needs to be more than presenting my plan on how God can solve my problems. I forget that He can work out the solution to problems, in His way, without my advice. When I have limited expectations, and am stressed out with time deadlines, I need to trust that God has a bigger plan and a better way, and He is not governed by any limitations.

One of the most important lines of prayer that Jesus ever taught us, is “Thy will be done.” I’ve never learned to appreciate those words as much as I do recently. If I say it and mean it, my perspective totally changes. It removes all anxiety and opens my mind to seeking whatever will glorify God in the given situation. They are the best four words ever, as we yield it all to Him, “Thy will be done.” It really releases all stress and anxiety.

To practice saying it and meaning it, makes it the healthiest four words we could ever say to God. If God’s will is done, He will be glorified.

Jesus’ response to Martha is probably what He would say to any of us, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” After four days, there could be no doubt that Lazarus was truly dead, and after the miracle of raising him from the dead, there was no doubt that Jesus was truly divine. The glory of God was revealed and His will was done. 

If we believe Jesus is who He is, then He transcends the laws of nature as well as all of our man made deadlines. 

There is no tomb enclosure, no time limit, and no decomposition effect that limits the power of Almighty God.

Jesus may delay an answer, but He will never abandon us. He knows what we need, and wants us to believe that when He reveals His glory, it is beyond any limitations. 

He will do whatever He needs to do in order to reveal His glory, through our lives and our loved ones’ lives. Even when the answer is not what we expected, it’s the answer that will show us the glory of God in the long run, because we believe in Him.

St Augustine said:

“If God seems slow in responding, it is because He is preparing a better gift. He will not deny us. God withholds what you are not yet ready for.”

We can trust that whatever God is doing, and however long it takes, He is preparing the best gift for us. He will always do what is best for our eternal soul, for what brings the most glory to Him, and He does everything out of His boundless love for us. 

Lord, help us to have faith to believe you transcend all deadlines and limitations. Thank you for loving us, and in everything we ask of you, help us to seek first your glory. Amen

“Thus they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and mats so that when Peter came by, at least his shadow might fall on one or another of them.  A large number of people from the towns in the vicinity of Jerusalem also gathered, bringing the sick and those disturbed by unclean spirits, and they were all cured.”

Acts 5:15-16.  (NAB)

After the resurrection of Jesus and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, Peter was transformed into a totally different person. He was no longer portrayed as weak in faith, quick tempered and fearful. 

When he walked down the street intending to preach and to pray for people, God placed an anointing upon his shadow. As his shadow was cast over the sick, it brought the healing power of Jesus to them. How incredible it must have been to see the healing that occurred by a shadow. 

Peter had a history of always being on the wrong page of God’s play book, trying to talk Jesus out of going to the cross and impulsively wielding his sword to defend Him at His arrest. There is something about Peter, who shows us that the same potential is also within each of us. We can see ourselves in Peter and can love him as surely as we love ourselves. We are all “Peters” in some way, and since there was hope for Peter, there is hope for us as well. 

I identify with Peter because although I’ve fallen away from God’s purpose at times in my life, God has been patient with me, always drawing me back to Him. 

We all have the opportunity to be continually renewed and refilled with the same Spirit that Peter had. We leave our old self behind because a renewed Peter is waiting inside each one of us. 

The Holy Spirit transformed him, and the streets were lined with people on cots, just waiting for Peter’s shadow to be cast over them. Peter simply surrendered himself to who God always knew he could be. He carried the presence of Jesus with him in his shadow wherever he went. Just like Peter, we aren’t perfect, but we are empowered and renewed to be the person God called us to be.  

We may be asking God to remove the difficult situations from our lives, but first He has a transformation to complete within us. God is always remolding us, through every trial, and He turns our ashes into beauty. If we learn anything from Peter’s amazing transformation, it’s that God never gives up on us. He is patient and forgiving, and because of His love for us, He has a vision for us to become the best version of ourselves. Believing that God is working all things together for our good, we can yield our lives to His will, and let Jesus cast His shadow through us.

Lord, we surrender every unpleasant or confusing situation in our lives to you. Fill us with your Spirit, cast your shadow through us and continue to transform us to be who you called us to be. Amen

“I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down from heaven.”

John 6:48-50 (RSV)

Manna from Heaven was sent by God to His people as they journeyed through the wilderness. King David called manna the bread of angels. (Psalm 78:25)

The book of Exodus describes it as a sweet, wafer that appeared on the ground every day and was gathered up early each morning, yet it was like nothing they had ever eaten. 

While it nourished and sustained them for the day, it could only be gathered up one day at a time. God didn’t intend for them to collect it in large quantities and then store it all up. When anyone did try to store the manna, it became worm infested and rotted the very next day. 

Hope is like manna, it has a short shelf life, and it needs to be received fresh each day. As soon as I find the hope to pray confidently about a problem or a situation, something happens a day or two later, which challenges me all over again. The hope I had yesterday could be shaken by a new affliction or trial today, but hope was always meant to be renewed daily. Just as manna had to be gathered daily, God intended for us to meet with Him daily and receive fresh new hope.

Jesus called Himself the bread of heaven, comparing Himself to living manna. Anyone who has ever experienced the presence of Jesus, has experienced His presence in a delicate, sweet and light way. He isn’t forceful, and never loud or abrasive. He doesn’t rattle hearts, He melts them. He tastes very much like manna; light, gentle, and sweet, yet incredibly nutritious to our soul. 

Jesus could have called Himself the King of kings, the Lion of Judah, a Great High Priest, or the just Judge, and it would all be true, but Jesus chose, instead, to call Himself a type of bread. Bread is a common, basic form of daily nourishment. 

Jesus does not want to be stored away until an urgent crisis arises. He longs for us to meet with Him each day to receive a fresh, new, daily portion of hope. The hope He gives us each day is more valuable than anything money can buy, which is why Jesus called Himself the bread of heaven. He wants us to draw our portion of daily nourishment from Him.

Hope sustains us through the most difficult of circumstances. It keeps our soul nourished, our faith grounded and our minds at peace. Instead of letting our worries over the past or future, cloud our mind, if we start the day with Jesus, who is the great I AM, we can live in the present, and be filled with the hope we need for today.

It’s difficult to live one day at a time, but when we think of Him as our living daily Manna from heaven, we know He is ready and willing to sustain us one day at a time.

Heavenly Father, nourish us each day on this journey through the wilderness of our lives. Give us our daily bread of hope as we start each new day, believing that all things are possible with you. Amen