One definition of the word intuition is, “the ability to acquire knowledge without inference or the use of reason.”

Proverbs 3:5,6 writes, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.”

I think from a human perspective, these things feel similar. When we consciously pursue God’s will, his direction comes to us like intuition. 1 Kings 19:12 says God spoke to Elijah in a “still small voice.”

If we are looking and listening, God makes his guidance evident, but often subtly.

Dear Lord, We trust that you are there to guide us. Help us have the senses to recognize your will. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Some Bible verses just tell us things so clearly that it is almost hard to accept what they say.

Proverbs 22:4 is one of these. Saying, “True humility and fear of the Lord lead to riches, honor, and long life.”

Wouldn’t we and our world be better off if we pursued these objectives of humility and the fear of the Lord?

Dear Lord, In the Bible, you tell us many times in many ways to submit to you and let you guide our ways, promising that you will lead us in life when we do. Help us humbly follow your direction so that we may live the lives you desire for us, and bring glory to you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Paul says in Romans 15:13, “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”

I think this verse supports a view I have which is that hope helps strengthen our faith and our faith is demonstrated through expectation.

Think of a time where things felt hopeless. At that point it was very difficult to have faith in a positive outcome, and without faith it is much more likely we expect a negative result.

In contrast, when we have hope we can build our faith on that hope, and expect a positive result.

This is very true about hope, faith, and expectation of salvation, but I believe it is also true in the practical parts of our lives. When we can truly feel hopeful that a difficult issue will be resolved, our faith in God’s work in our lives grows and we expect a positive result. As Paul writes, God is that source of hope that sparks our faith which we demonstrate with the “confident hope” and expectation.

Dear Lord, thank you for being the source of hope so that we can live our lives with joy and peace trusting in you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

What does it mean to be mature? or What does it mean when we tell someone to “grow up?” It doesn’t have anything to do with their age, but is more about their behavior and judgment. One definition of maturity is the ability to accept delayed gratification; to work on something for an extended period of time before seeing the results.

In a similar way as we become more mature in our Christian faith, we can begin to accept the struggles and challenges of being a Christian with the joy of knowing we will be rewarded in time. We accept those challenges out of love for God, and our fellow men and women. Paul writes in Romans 8:18, ” Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will give us later.”

Dear Lord, Help us become more mature Christians to take our suffering and struggles in faith, knowing that our future reward will be the peace of trusting you, and ultimately our eternal reward in heaven. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

I think we all can admit that it feels good to be better than someone else at something. Better golfer, smarter, richer, in better shape, our child’s school is better, company is better; there are an unlimited number of ways we can find to try to compare ourselves to others in order to pump ourselves up. Though it is great to work hard and strive to make ourselves better, boasting about our advantages shows that our focus is in the wrong place.

Jeremiah 9:23-24 says, “This is what the Lord says: “Don’t let the wise boast in their wisdom, or the powerful boast in their power, or the rich boast in their riches. But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the Lord who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth, and that I delight in these things.”

There is only one thing we can rightly boast about and be proud in, and that is our Lord God.

Dear Lord, it is your awesome power that made everything we know, and all the while you care about each of us individually. Help us put our pride in you and be grateful that you called and loved each of us. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.