Living the Christian life is a journey of suffering and joy. It’s a road on the way to Damascus. These stories include what it means to live as a fisher of men in modern day times.
It’s pretty simple. The God of heaven, who made the sea and dry land.
The God of the storm and our oasis.
The God of our strength and every weakness.
The God of our only saving grace, His son, Jesus Christ.
What to do? Most likely, it’s a question you ask often. I do.
I’m convinced when my mind understands the eternal calling here on earth, then my earthly calling will be fulfilled in eternal ways.
In other words, when you grasp that God put you here to experience mercy in the face of emotions, to extend grace when situations fall short of expectations, to flood the nations with Jesus’ love and compassion, then what you should ‘do’ is exactly this.
Our ‘calling’ can sound daunting when we hear “nations” but see only our neighborhoods.
Start with your next step. Small steps in obedience to God’s desire for your life leads to an eternal gain.
Are you fighting selfishness? Pray for the welfare of others before you begin prayers for yourself. Are you consumed with concerns of a comfortable life; more money, more time? Then say ‘yes’ to the company of others and give away what you have all the more.
In whatever way you share Jesus with others, that is what God has called you to.
The skills, talents, and resources God has gifted you with to carry His compassion to even just one soul, that is your calling.
God’s will is that you do this with a thankful heart. 1 Thessalonians 5:18
We are Prisoners of Hope!
We look at our circumstances and expect Jesus to enter in. We don’t panic in the storm because He gave us a promise. He is our Strong Tower, our stronghold in the storm.
The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17 ESV
Our days are not dictated by the moods of other people. God is here in our midst and calms us with His love.
God wrote “good” on the single worst day in history. There is not one day, or week, or month, or year of suffering… not one trauma, loss, or pain with which God cannot write “good” over you in Christ Jesus too. All it takes is the belief that His blood covers all of you; in the past, the present, and what is to come.
In God’s presence, pain has no place, sickness has no place, weariness has no place, depression has no place.
At the cross, we find all our answers.
In what Jesus lived for, in what Jesus died for, that is the meaning to life.
God will let you get to the bottom, maybe lose something important, or even become desperate just so you and I can experience Him all the more. The Almighty waits for our hands to surrender so we can see His sufficiency is all we ever need.
Our Creator God cares about having a relationship with His children. He holds the keys to life and is championing every effort to discover Him more.
Instead of complaining or stressing out about a situation, this is the time to say, God, you have created an opportunity for me to see your power, to experience your hand, to go deeper in my relationship with You by seeing You like I have never witnessed your grace, your favor, or your strength before.
“Only God.” This is the beginning of every God-glorifying story.
Any temporary loss has an eternal gain if you can change your perspective on the problem. Our promise-keeping God never asks us to give up anything without offering something far greater in its place.
You can’t get confused if you refuse to get into reasoning. Faith trusts God and doesn’t need to know why. Our faith thrives when we don’t have the answers.
The Bible reminds us that we don’t lean on our own understanding but live our lives guided by God’s instructions.
God never intended us to know why things happen the way they do. Be careful that you don’t allow your desire for answers keep you straining and struggling in a sea of confusion. He created us to be devoted to Him. Faith is standing firm with a focus on His Word. Faith is persevering in praise to Him when adversity strikes. When the voice of the enemy comes to fight, faith rests in the all-sufficiency of Christ.
It takes greater faith to be denied what you want and love the Author, our Creator, just as much. 
While you can’t change the past, you can change the present.
The crushing convictions you may have experienced in the aftermath of your past are not lost. That burden of conviction on your heart is a guilt between you and God, and He is a God of second chances; it’s called today.
Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message I tell you.” So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. – Jonah 3:1-3 ESV
Today is your second chance.You can change how you respond to frustration. You can set new boundaries and protect what you have left. You can get help. You can walk away from that addiction. You can honor your loved ones by putting new priorities in place.
There’s still time to pick up the phone, text, reach out, show up. Perhaps for you it’s not picking up more but putting down what you already have; the pain, the blame, the worry.
Conviction is between you and God, the Author and Creator of your soul. He uses this kind of remorse and guilt on your conscious to change the course of your days ahead. He’s guiding you with a hand on your heart to steer your steps into more blessings, more favor, higher places with more responsibility.
If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. – Luke 16:10 NLT
Your Father will not give you more work or more burden than you can bear. He gives you and I a choice every day as He waits for change to reveal your growth, your strength, your resilience.
There is no shame changing who you used to be into the person you want to be, the person you know you can be.
Here is an opportunity to respect failed attempts yesterday by taking the second chance to change today.
The past carries casualties of our ignored convictions. May your present be the change God is calling you to be.
Every day the steps you take, the words you choose, the way you feel says a lot about what faith looks like to you. When worries come your way or fear knocks at the door, your response is a reflection of what you believe about Jesus and your place in His story.
It is easy to live uptight, distressed about finances, tormented with thoughts, questioning a relationship, or even wondering if a loved one will ever come back to the Lord. Living discouraged in our circumstance speaks volumes to a world taking notes of our testimony.
Choosing an attitude that puts all its burdens in Jesus’ basket, now that’s a story of faith.
What words will He pour out of your spirit and leave on the parchment of someone else’s heart?
Your mess is only part of God’s message through your life. His redemption is the rest of the story. God gave you a story to tell of His grace and forgiveness.
I pray that you find the time today to document His faithfulness and spill the ink with wholehearted sincerity in thanksgiving for answers to prayers you have yet to ask.
It’s not if you face trials, tragedies, and loss—but when. Mourning something you think is over is always premature when Jesus is in the picture. Pain is turned into power in the hands of Christ. Heartbreaks heal. Suffering is temporary.
In his book, Through the Eyes of a Lion, Pastor Levi Lusko explains how in moments of anxiety or worry, the best thing to do is to run toward the fear.
Here are four ways to push through the pain, find light in a dark place, and run toward the ROAR.
Often, the thing we need to do is the opposite of what fear tells us to do. Esther walked into the king’s presence uninvited. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow down to King Nebuchadnezzar and were thrown into a fiery furnace. David didn’t just face Goliath, he ran toward the giant.
Sometimes running toward the roar means staying when fear makes us feel like bolting. We might be tempted to quit at work, run out of our relationships, or walk out on the Church. Faith doesn’t always call us to go. Sometimes it says, “Stay.” What masquerades as faith can actually be flakiness.
Regret can paralyze you. One of the most difficult things about moving forward is the condemnation you can feel about your past. 1 John 3:20 NLT says this: Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything. God is not scared of what scares you. Surrender what scares you, get back up by the power of His Spirit, and keep moving.
The world you live in now is not your home, so there’s no need to get too comfortable here. Keep your eyes on the prize. This life will be over before you know it. Only what’s done for Christ will last.
An element of fear is necessary for there to be faith. In a place of panic, you might mistake destiny for danger and run from the very thing meant to deliver you. The right perspective can put the anxiety and worry to rest.
How do you know the difference?
Ask yourself these questions in moments of doubt:
Where there is impossible pain there is also incredible power. Keep your eye on eternity, and keep running toward the roar!
