The engineer inside me, is routinely trying to figure out the how and why about everything. This is the mindset in many people who wonder, “If God exists, why doesn’t he just show himself and everyone would believe?” Interesting, the Bible describes how God started that way. He was right there with Adam and Eve and they still disobeyed. He was right there physically with the Israelites when He led them out of Egypt, and they disobeyed and worshiped idols. And during Jesus’ life, He did miracles, fulfilled prophecies, and most people didn’t believe. Is it reasonable to think that it would be any different today if God made an appearance?

What God really wants from us is for us to submit our lives to Him in faith. Matthew 11:25 says, “And Jesus prayed this prayer: “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding the truth from those who think themselves so wise, and for revealing it to little children. Yes, Father, for it pleased you to do it this way!” NLT

When we submit without understanding, like a child who trusts without knowing, we are where God wants us to be.

Dear Lord, strengthen us to have child-like faith in you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

I drove by my old house a few days ago, and in the yard was a tree I planted 20 years ago. When I planted it, it was about four feet high and a couple feet across. Now it is 20 feet high and spreads about 10 feet in each direction.

Psalm 92 uses the growth of a tree as a metaphor for the life of a believer, it says in verses 12-15, “But the godly shall flourish like palm trees and grow tall as the cedars of Lebanon, for they are transplanted into the Lord’s own garden and are under his personal care. Even in old age they will still produce fruit and be vital and green. This honors the Lord and exhibits his faithful care. He is my shelter. There is nothing but goodness in him!”

When we submit ourselves to God and honor him, he transplants us into his garden, and promises to care for and shelter us.

Dear Lord, thank you for the knowledge that if we honor and submit to you, you will care for us and make us flourish. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Paul writes in Hebrews 4:16, “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.”

I try to picture this situation in my mind’s eye; We, simple humans, boldly approaching Almighty God who made everything and has power over everything. How could that be appropriate? Yet just like an earthly father, who wants to provide for his family’s needs and help them be all they can be, God wants us to come to him with the confidence that He has mercy and grace beyond our understanding to help us.

Dear Lord, what a humbling and powerful confidence this gives us to know that we can come to you boldly and you will always be there with mercy and grace for us when we are in need. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Have you read stories about successful people, athletes, musicians, actors, chefs, Nobel prize winners, business people, etc. and the story writes about how they studied under the same instructor that coached several other great athletes, or the person studied under the same professor as several other famous people.

These successful people are bringing fame and “glory” to their teacher, coach, or mentor as a result of their own success.

In a similar way, Jesus’ tells us in Matthew 5 that we, Christians, are the light of the world. In verse 16 he says, “let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”

We need to be those people who bring glory to our teacher, Jesus, with our actions.

Dear Lord, thank you for setting the example for us on how to live a humble life serving others with love. Help us live this life and be a light for all to see and bring glory to you. 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. This is a simple example that gives 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.