"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart . . ." (Proverbs 3:5)

Trust . . . a small word with a big meaning!

A child finds it so easy to trust his parents for they have given him everything he needs to sustain him in life plus they have given him unconditional love and affection.

Our level of trust is solely dependent upon our level of intimacy and communion with the Lord. Once we have realized that He has given us everything we need to sustain us . . . once we have found Him to be the source of unconditional love and affection, then our level of trust will exceed and surpass any doubt or fear in the midst of life's sorrows and disappointments.

Press in to Him today and begin to see Him as the source of everything you need to sustain you in life, including the love and affection only a Father can give to His children!

If you expect people to meet your needs,...

"Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account." (Philippians 4:17)

A servant's heart . . . what does that have to do with this verse? Everything!

Paul had a servant's heart; he had a heart to minister to the people, to spread the good news of Jesus Christ, to see people's lives changed, to witness the miracle of precious, holy fruit growing in the lives of all those who heard his message. Although the need may have been there for Paul to receive a monetary blessing from the people he ministered to, his heart—his servant's heart—so much more desired to see fruit abounding in the lives of these people.

Today, we seem to get caught up in pursuing the "hand" of God rather than the "heart" of God. We want to know how we can be blessed…what is the "button" that triggers God's material blessings. But unfortunately we all too often lose our...

"Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life." (Jude 1:21)

The Cross . . . where Mercy met Justice!

We should have received death, yet we've been given life. We should have been beaten and crucified, yet we've been set free from the penalty of sin.

Jude fully understood Mercy as he admonished us to "look for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life."

In all that we do, everywhere that we go, all that we set our hand to, in every circumstance in life, "look for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ". When we should have received justice, mercy that bought us eternal life is ours because of Calvary.

Never lose sight of it . . . never forget it!

Dear Lord, God of Mercy . . . how can I ever thank You for such an awesome gift! I could never have deserved such Mercy, yet You bought it, paid for it, and have given it so freely to me! I will praise You from now throughout eternity for making a way for me to receive the greatest gift of all . . . Mercy from the One who gave His all so we could call You, Abba, Father!...

"And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt" (Exodus 13:17)

The Israelites had just been delivered from the hand of Pharaoh, the relentless ruler whose heart was hardened toward them. God had a plan for His people , a plan that would take time – His time.

God visibly led the children of Israel on their journey with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He could easily have led them to their destination in a very short time; however, they would not have been prepared for the battle that awaited them. The children of Israel, during their time of captivity, had been laborers not warriors. Their spirits were broken because of life's circumstances while in captivity.

It...

"And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." (Genesis 11:6-7)

Nimrod, whose name means "rebellion", sought to build a tower reaching the heavens so they could make a name for themselves. The earth was of one language, the people were one, and because of that they were powerful; there was nothing they could not accomplish because they were in one accord.

Matthew 18:19 says, "Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven." Oh, if we could only grasp this truth!

God looked down upon Nimrod as the people of the...

There are few passages in my Bible that speak into my life any more profoundly than James 1:2-3: My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience (KJV). Hardly a day goes by that I don't draw on this scripture to maintain my sanity in one way or another. As a woman, wife, mother, and grandmother, each day brings with it at least one (and most times, many) opportunities to "count it all joy" when, in fact, there is hardly anything to be joyful about!

There's a huge difference in 'knowing' this scripture and 'doing' this scripture. The knowing is easy, the doing, however, is not so easy. The phrase "count it all joy" speaks to being HAPPY and REJOICING rather than considering our difficult circumstances as punishment or a curse or even a calamity. Joy! Joy! Joy!

As women, we tend to think we...

"Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul." (Psalm 66:16)

The Lord has dealt with me me and taught me about the "fear of God" on and off for years. In many ways, throughout my day, He is revealing to me areas in which I have become casual toward His Sovereignty, Holiness, and Righteousness. If we would be truthful with ourselves, we would ALL feel the burden of conviction when it comes to recognizing and revering the Sovereignty, Holiness, and Righteousness of our Creator.

In the times when Temple Worship was still going on with the daily sacrifices and other rituals, etc., we can only imagine a High Priest, standing on the outside of the veil which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies where the presence of God was manifest. As he was about to enter in, a terrible fear came over him. He was afraid. He knew that if...

"If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them." (John 13:14-17)

One of the hardest things in life is to cast down pride and a self-serving attitude to concentrate on being a servant to others.

In today's world, everywhere we look we're enticed to consider ourselves before anyone else. Abortion serves self, homosexuality serves self, drug and alcohol abuse serve self, divorce in many instances serves self!

Jesus, through His example of love and humility, challenged us to consider others more highly than ourselves through service. John F. Kennedy once said, "Ask not...

"The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea." (Psalm 93:4)

The Lord on high . . . He is an immovable anchor cast in the storm. The Lord does more wondrous things than the noise of many waters; they cannot disturb His rest or rule; they cannot defeat His designs and purposes. God is mighty to preserve His people from being ruined by these many waters and His people's spirits from being terrified by the noise of them. He can, when He pleases, command peace in our lives. The unlimited sovereignty and unrelentless power of the awesome God we serve encourages His people, even in all the storms we face in life!

Who is mightier than the waves of any trial in our lives? The Lord on High!

Who can calm the raging storms in our lives? The Lord on High!

Whose love knows no end? The Lord on High!

Who is mightier...

"Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains." (Psalm 147:8)

He makes "grass to grow upon the mountains" . . . meditate on that for just a moment.

A while back as I listened to a guest pastor share the Word of God at our local church, my heart suddenly leaped within me. God opened my eyes to an important truth through his simple sharing. Although he used this illustration in a slightly different context, today's verse brought life to it as God stirred within my heart.

Having been from South Carolina, this pastor's family often traveled through the Blue Ridge Mountains to his home. His wife and daughter were usually in the car saying things like, "Ahhhhhhhh..... such beauty! Look at the flowers . . . look at the rustling river over the rocks . . . look at the sun peeping through the towering trees...