Devotions

[heartbroken]

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But What if You Could?
November 7, 2024
by Lysa TerKeurst, President and Chief Visionary Officer of Proverbs 31 Ministries

“Return to your rest, my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.” Psalm 116:7 (CSB)

It was just a broken ice maker. It wasn’t a catastrophic event.  I was safe. I was in a good place. And I was looking forward to spending a few days on vacation. But when the ice maker broke at the beach house we were staying in, I started spiraling. I was having an out-of-proportion reaction to the minor situation in front of me. And when that happens, I know it’s not just about the thing. It’s all the other things attached to this thing.  I can’t fix this thing! And I can’t find a repairman. And even if I do find someone to help me, what if a part has to be ordered?

And what if that part is on back order? Or worse yet, what if it can’t be fixed? Now here I am with another broken thing, and there’s nothing I can do about it!

I’m usually very “go with the flow.” But not this day.  About the third time I said out loud, “I can’t fix this ice maker!”

I stopped myself, and five words popped into my head.  But what if I could?

What if I try to fix it?

What’s the worst thing that could happen it breaks?

It’s already broken. I rolled my eyes at the absurdity of what I was about to attempt. I Googled “how to fix an ice maker.” It was too general of a search, bringing up way too many options and way too many written instructions. Then I decided to look on YouTube, and I narrowed my search with the name of the fridge.  I watched the video several times. I opened the freezer. And no joke I did it! I fixed that ice maker! You would have thought I just climbed Mount Everest or finished running a marathon based on my victory dance around that kitchen!  I know this is a whole lot of drama around what should have been just an everyday aggravation. But isn’t this where a lot of us fall apart?

It’s that last little broken thing, put on top of all the hurt we’re carrying, that breaks us wide open and leaks out another flood of tears.  It was never really about the ice maker. It was a moment of resilience I could see, touch and celebrate. This resilience was tangible evidence that I was healing, growing, and moving forward by trying new things.  Most of all, it was a moment when I didn’t succumb to the limitations of living hurt. I’ve written in my journal so many times, “Just because I’ve been hurt doesn’t mean I have to live hurt.”

That’s easy to write. Hard to live out.  That day in the kitchen, I fixed that ice maker in a rebellious act of resilience. And I knew this was going to be an important part of getting unstuck and moving forward.  For me, two words that indicate stuckness are “can’t” and “don’t.”  I can’t deal with this. I can’t do this. I can’t trust people. I can’t fix this. I can’t change. I don’t think this is ever going to get better. I don’t want to try. I don’t believe it’s possible. I don’t think God has a good plan for me. I don’t want to hope again.  Now, please lean in close here. If we don’t tend well to this kind of broken processing, our can’ts and don’ts will turn into won’ts.

I won’t do this.
I won’t trust people.
I won’t fix this.
I won’t change.
I won’t try.
I won’t believe.
I won’t trust that God has a good plan.
I won’t hope again.

Healing is layered and can be complicated. It takes time to process and move forward from heartbreak, betrayal and broken trust … probably more time than any of us want it to take. But by listening for our “I can’ts” and “I don’ts” and making sure they don’t turn into “I won’ts,” we can see significant progress today. Build our resilience muscles today. Prove today that being brave is not always something we feel — it’s something we do.

Let’s resist fear and anxiety and come into alignment with truth today, like Psalm 116:7: “Return to your rest, my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.”

Friend, you don’t have to fix an ice maker, but don’t miss an opportunity to overcome an “I can’t” or “I don’t” today. Maybe try using some new words … I am willing to try. Maybe I can find someone who can teach me. This is an opportunity for me to be brave. But what if I could?

[heartbroken]

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Five Scriptural Prayers for Joy When Life Is Hard
November 8, 2024
by Asheritah Ciuciu

“I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!” John 15:11 (NLT)

Why am I so cranky?

Have you ever asked yourself that question?

I have, more times than I care to admit.  I could blame my child who just responded disrespectfully to a reasonable request. I could blame my co-worker whose political chatter grates on my nerves. I could blame the stubborn imperfections I see when I look in the mirror.  But truthfully, none of those situations should have the power to steal my joy and turn me into a grump because Jesus offers me His overflowing joy.  In John 15:11, just hours before He would be betrayed, arrested and executed, Jesus told His disciples: “I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!” (NLT).

What Jesus promised His disciples, and by extension those of us who follow Him today, is a supernatural joy that transcends circumstances. A supernatural joy that comes only from God’s work in us, often in response to our prayers.  The truth is we need God’s help to grow into women of joy, and thankfully, our Bibles are full of sample prayers we can learn to pray on our own. After all, if joy is a fruit of God’s Spirit in us (Galatians 5:22) and the Father longs for us to bear fruit (John 15:2), won’t He be pleased to answer our prayers and grant us joy in Christ?

He certainly will.  So let us confidently ask God to grow us into women of contagious joy, unbothered by mundane irritations and filled with His Spirit.  Here are five powerful prayers you can start praying today:

1.  Based on Nehemiah 8:10: Your joy is my strength, Lord, so please fill me with Your supernatural power to respond cheerfully even when I’m tired.

2.  Based on Psalm 30:5: Though my sorrow may last through this dark night, Your joy will come in the morning. Help me wait patiently for You to turn my tears to laughter.

3.  Based on Psalm 51:12: Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, Jesus, and make me quick to obey You.

4.  Based on Psalm 4:6-7: Lord, You can fill my heart with more joy than a shopping spree or exotic vacation or [fill in the blank]. I choose to trust You.

5.  Based on Psalm 13:3 and Psalm 34:5: Restore the sparkle to my eyes, Lord. May my wrinkles and laugh lines reveal that I am a woman whose face radiates Your joy!

May we grow in supernatural joy that points us and our world to Jesus.

[Lil angel]

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It’s Not Too Late To Turn Back
November 26, 2024
by Carol Whitaker
COMPEL Pro Member

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 (NIV)

“Wait this can’t be right,” I said, looking at the unfamiliar landscape outside my car window.

On my way to my son’s football game, I realized after 20 minutes of driving that I had missed a turn. It would take another 20 minutes to get to my destination.  I sighed in frustration. I was already running late, and my mistake had eaten up valuable time. I had a choice: Give up and go home, or take the time needed to get on the correct path. Honestly, I felt like giving up, but imagining my son’s disappointment when I didn’t show up motivated me to keep going.  The next morning, the Holy Spirit reminded me how my choice to head in the right direction paralleled a turn I had made recently in my spiritual life.  Just a few weeks prior, I had told God that I’d gone too far and that it would take too much work to get back to Him. In the aftermath of my divorce, I entered into an unhealthy relationship and made ungodly choices. When I longed to walk away from the relationship and get right with God again, my overwhelming shame and guilt made it seem impossible.  Immediately after voicing my fears to Him, I heard these words in a song: “Doesn’t matter, doesn’t matter, doesn’t matter what you’ve done. You are never, you are never, never too far gone” (“Never Too Far Gone” by Jordan Feliz).

God assured me it wasn’t too late; I wasn’t too far gone. As Romans 8:1 says: “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (NIV). Similarly, 1 John 1:9 tells us: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

These verses point to two truths:

1.  When believers in Jesus mess up, we aren’t condemned. Satan wants us to believe that we’re too bad for God to forgive, that God doesn't want us back after we’ve sinned. Satan feeds us thoughts like, I can’t believe you did that. You call yourself a Christian? How could you make that mistake again? While God convicts us of sin and prompts us to repent, He doesn’t cast us away. When we sin, He pursues us, wooing us back to Himself.

2.  God cleanses us of unrighteousness. God restores us by forgiving and cleansing us. When we turn to Him and confess our sins, He takes away our shame, our guilt, and the stain of our wrongdoing, making us whole again.

Maybe you’re caught in a trap of poor decisions. Maybe you went in a different direction than God told you to go. Maybe you feel weighed down by shame and condemnation.  You don’t have to continue on that path you can go back, correcting your course. Don’t listen to the lie that you’ve gone too far or that God doesn’t want you because of what you’ve done. His grace and mercy are waiting for you, you only need to turn.

[PippaJane]

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A Prayer for Christmas Joy
December 2, 2024
by Asheritah Ciuciu

“When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.” Matthew 2:10 (NIV)

I wiped the smeared icing off the tabletop, taking deep breaths to calm my racing heart.

“What’s the point?” I sighed, brushing away tears, leaving a sugar streak on my cheek. “Why even try?” I swiped the collapsed gingerbread walls and sticky gumdrops into the bin, scrapping yet another failed Pinterest project.

How do we fight so hard to create fun holiday memories, only to feel like failures?

We imagine these weeks playing out like the script of a Hallmark movie: beautiful family moments set to cheerful tunes. But reality crashes into those daydreams, leaving us disgruntled and weary.

Instead of laughter and cherished moments … chaos and wailing.
Instead of a fun romp through the tree farm … frozen toes and hungry complaining.
Instead of perfectly frosted sugar cookies … burnt edges and runny royal icing.
Instead of peaceful family gatherings … harsh words and hurt feelings.

It’s supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year. So how do we evict the Grinch-like grumpiness and Charlie Brown sadness to recapture the joy of Christmas?

I’m encouraged by the story of the wise men preserved for us in Scripture. As they followed a shining star for hundreds of miles, looking for Jesus, they stopped by King Herod's Jerusalem palace.   But King Herod had to tell them Jesus wasn't there He was in Bethlehem. “After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed” (Matthew 2:9-10, NIV).

Overjoyed.

That word gives me pause. When the wise men saw the star, the ESV Bible says “they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy” (Matthew 2:10).

That is what I want for us this Christmas season: to recalibrate our holiday disorientation and set our sights on the shining Light of the world. Then we’ll rejoice with jubilation and celebration as the Magi did so long ago.  I offer this prayer for Christmas joy as a simple path to turn our attention back to King Jesus. May you find its words guiding you into His presence again and again:  Lord, how creative You are to use even the stars above to guide people into Your presence! Draw us close to Yourself by any means this Christmas season. Turn our disappointments into prompts for prayer and our festive celebrations into channels of adoration.  You alone bring true joy to the world, so help us slow down, quiet our hearts, and fix our eyes on You, Jesus the Light that shines brighter than any star. As the wise men were filled with great joy, fill us up to overflow with the wonder of Your birth, Jesus.

[Lost Soul]

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An Incredible Opportunity
December 17, 2024
by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

“On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’” John 7:37-38 (NIV)

For many believers in Jesus, the subject of “daily devotions” evokes a sense of duty or guilt. Have you ever felt this way?

The practice of having daily devotions was emphasized and exhibited in my home when I was a girl. And after more than 60 years of walking with the Lord, I’m still a huge believer in the importance of spending time in God’s Word and prayer each day.  But I’ve found great freedom and joy as I’ve come to realize that devotional time isn’t so much an obligation as it is an incredible opportunity to know God. There’s a world of difference between checking “devotions” off a to-do list and having devotion. The God of the universe has invited us to draw near to Him, to enter into the Holy of Holies, to experience an intimate love relationship with Him. As James says in his book of the Bible, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you” (James 4:8a, CSB).

If you’re God’s child, I believe there is within you something that will never be satisfied by anything less than genuine, close fellowship with your heavenly Father. Until you see Him face to face, you will long and thirst to know Him more.  “As a deer gets thirsty for streams of water, I truly am thirsty for you, my God” (Psalm 42:1, CEV).

If you’re thirsty, Jesus’ words in John 7:37-38 are also an invitation to come to Him not to another program or to one more requirement but to Jesus, the source of all life:  “On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’”

Come to Him, come to His Word, and drink. Drink deeply, keep on drinking, and let Him quench your thirst. And then watch as rivers of living water flow out through you to quench the thirst of those around you.

[Admin]

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From the Darkness Light Has Dawned
December 20, 2024
by Sarah Freymuth

“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5 (ESV)

Winter keeps coming, a heaviness in the air and in my chest. Sometimes it’s hard to see my way through this time of perpetual darkness, the appearance of the sun so late, its sinking so early in the day. Even harder still when I have to take a puppy out in the whipping Wisconsin wind.  On the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice, we see the least amount of light. The veil of darkness might make us wish we could curl up and hibernate all winter.  And like the literal dark of this winter day, we can also grow weary of emotional or spiritual darkness, whether it’s more bloodshed on the news, late nights spent waiting for a prodigal child to return, another month of barely paying all the bills, or a season where joy has been elusive. We make our way through the days with that same temptation to close our eyes, hoping to open them to a time when things are different.  Will this winter of our hearts always last?

We sit and wait and wonder.  But even when it feels like dawn will never come the Bright Morning Star is awake and alight with life and hope (Revelation 22:16). Jesus has come into this world and taken darkness captive by the power of His light. First John 1:5 reminds us “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.”

And Psalm 139:8-12 says He does not fear going to the depths for us. The darkness is not dark to Him. Nothing in our situation can scare Him away. It’s the opposite in our suffering, He draws close.  Jesus came to a world riddled with darkness, destruction, temptation and broken systems. He was born as a man, while still fully God, and lived among us, calling all people to Himself as the Light of life. When we are weary, He is our strength. When we run out of steam, He keeps us going. When we battle the lies of the evil one, He fights for us.  He is the Light that cannot be overcome (John 1:5). This is the hope we hold close, the joy that illuminates our hearts because we can shift our focus from the weak winter sun to the eternal Son who sets us free to live in His love and shine it out to others.  The more I am mindful of this truth, today's wakeup doesn’t seem as harsh as usual. Blue and gray and white clouds climb the sky patterned in winter’s blanket, a layered beauty I know the sun resides behind.  Glory to God the Light of the world has come.

[Admin]

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Establishing the Work of Your Hands
December 23, 2024
by Karen Ehman

“And let the beauty and delightfulness and favor of the Lord our God be upon us; confirm and establish the work of our hands yes, the work of our hands, confirm and establish it.” Psalm 90:17 (AMPC)

My daughter who once loved to brush the hair of her dolls, her siblings, or any animal that would sit still is now a salon owner who loves to help her mama with all things beauty related.  Recently, she asked what skincare products I use. A sheepish smile crept over my face. You see, I don’t use any products at all! She was flabbergasted, and quicker than you can say “collagen cream,” she hooked me up with a three-step regimen to keep my skin glowing.  Yet Psalm 90:17 talks about a different beauty the beauty of the Lord: “And let the beauty and delightfulness and favor of the Lord our God be upon us; confirm and establish the work of our hands yes, the work of our hands, confirm and establish it.”

I love that the beauty of the Lord resting upon us is mentioned alongside God establishing the work of our hands. The Hebrew term for “work” in this verse maaseh refers to common tasks, practices, concerns and deeds. These are the routine duties we perform, the practices we implement so our days run smoothly. "Work" may also include the concerns we have about someone who requires our attention or the deeds our hands carry out for those who are hurting.  In Psalm 90:17, we find a marvelous daily pattern of prayer: asking God, in all His beauty, to confirm and establish the work of our hands. And accompanying this prayer, I’ve also implemented a three-step regimen to carry out each evening that can help me have a beautiful next day.  First, I ask myself what I need to "button up." Is there an issue unresolved or a task unfinished?

Did I get interrupted while doing the dishes or paying bills online? I will identify one such task I can button up before bed, checking it off my to-do list.

Second, I choose something I can get a head start on for the next day. For instance, could I brown the meat for the sloppy Joes I plan to make for a grieving neighbor?

Getting a jump start on a task or two can help tomorrow go more smoothly.

Finally, I ask myself what my "big three" chores are for the next day. I might have a dozen things I’d like to accomplish; however, I list only the top three most imperative tasks. Three feels doable, and I can always add more items if those get completed.

God cares deeply about our daily lives. When we earnestly pray, He — in all His beauty — will establish our plans and empower us to work to complete them for His glory alone.