When my children were young and I was teaching them something they were anxious about, like diving in the pool, or learning to ride a bike, they would be reluctant, and I would say “trust me” and reassure them that I would prevent them from getting hurt.

Reading Psalm 139:23,24 brought this memory back to me. It says, “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.”

Just like my children’s anxious thoughts about risking in order to learn something new, I think this verse is telling us that our anxious thoughts show a lack of trust in God’s concern for us. We want God to remind us when we are not trusting him so that we can correct ourselves and continue following him with confidence.

Dear Lord, You know everything about us, every thought, action, feeling, and every detail about us physically. It is impossible for us to comprehend your knowledge of us, and you love us as well. Help us realize that we therefore can put our complete trust in you, without anxiety, and you will guide our steps. How wonderful this is. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Do you ever wonder how people who have been victims of terrible crimes can forgive those who committed those crimes? We know that the Bible tells us we should forgive, but in some cases it seems almost impossible.

Proverbs 10:12 says, “..love covers all wrongs.” and in 1 John 4:8, John writes, “…God is love.” It is God’s love working through us that allows us to forgive those who seem un-forgivable, and to overcome those seemingly impossible conflicts we encounter.

Dear Lord, It was ultimately your love for us that covered our wrongs through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Help us draw on your love to overcome conflicts in our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

I think a challenging paradox or conflict in life is that dissatisfaction with something is what motivates us to improve it. When we make improvements, we make life better for ourselves and others. However, it is hard to be happy and enjoy ourselves when we are dissatisfied.

One potential solution to this paradox is to start with a thankful heart, then look at improving as a way to serve, rather than looking at things as broken and needing repair. For example, if our car is dirty and needs a wash, we could start with, “my car looks terrible, I am going to get it washed.” or we can approach it as, “It is a beautiful day, I’m going to get my car washed and it is going to look great.” It seems like a subtle difference, but it is obvious to those around us, and effects our perspective on everything.

Psalm 118:24 is a classic verse to put ourselves in that thankful mindset, “This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
and Psalm 118:29, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.”

We all have so much for which to be thankful! Even if everything has room for improvement.

Dear Lord, Help us wake up and start each day remembering that we have very much for which to be happy, most importantly our Salvation. Help us show this thankful joy in our demeanor to attract others to what we have in you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Writing to the Christians in Rome, Paul tells them how the many details in the Old Testament laws can be simplified.

In Romans 13:9,10 he writes, “The commandments say, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”

This simplification ties right to the answer Jesus gave to the Pharisees when asked, what was the greatest commandment. Jesus told them loving God with all your heart, soul, and mind, but the second greatest is to love your neighbor as yourself. Matthew 22:40 says, “The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

Even today, remembering these two simple rules is the basis for how God wants us to live. If we evaluate our actions against these two rules, we can see if we are staying on the right course.

Dear Lord, “Love You and love our neighbor,” is really the essence of living the Christian life. Help us all to remember that. If we all did, our world would become a much better place. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

One of the questions people have about the accuracy of the Bible is, how can we be sure there is no transmission error, meaning error in the message between the time the events occurred and when they were recorded in the writings we have today.

I came across an interesting way to answer that question in “Why Trust the Bible?” by Greg Gilbert, he uses the following example.

Can you recite the words to the nursery rhyme “Jack and Jill?” “Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch…..” Did you learn this by reading it? Most of us learned this by hearing it told to us by our parents, and we told it to our children, but we remember the words verbatim. Do you know when this was originally composed? 1791 Over 200 years ago.

So we obviously have a clear example of people’s ability to maintain the original words of a story for many years without having to have the original text available for reference. Giving us more confidence in what 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.”

Dear Lord, thank you for giving us the wisdom in the Bible. Help us to find strength and confidence in its teaching. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.