Are you experiencing financial concerns? We are here to listen.

David shows us what to do when life doesn’t make sense. First, he expressed his feelings honestly: “Hear my cry, O LORD…Have mercy on me…save me” he wrote in Psalm 86. Then he recounted a trait of God’s character: “you will answer me… for you are kind and forgiving, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you.”

When life did not make sense, David stood on the character of God. David knew that God’s character of love and faithfulness does not change. He is the same on bad days as He is on good days.

Are you going through a difficult and confusing time right now? Express your feelings honestly to God. You might want to pray, “God, I don’t understand what’s happening. I don’t like what’s happening. But I want to trust You with this. You are a compassionate and gracious God, abounding in love and faithfulness.”

Everything around you might be caving in. But when you stand on the character of God, you have a center, a firm foundation, a hope for the future.  David did eventually become king of Israel. Because he’d gone through a difficult testing time, He could now sing of God’s faithfulness in an authentic way.

Father God, I want to trust You even when life doesn’t make sense. Amen.

Questions: Are you going through a difficult and confusing time right now? What is the one sure thing that you know about God that can help you through these difficult times?

TAKE THE NEXT STEP: Discover the Character of God

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever” (Psalm 107).

Let me give two more reasons why we have such a hard time accepting God’s love.

All of us have experienced rejection in life.

• You may have felt rejected by one or both parents because you could never please.

• You may have felt rejected in school because you were “different.”

• You may have felt rejected at work because you didn’t slough off like the rest.

• You may have felt rejected by a spouse or by your children. They don’t call nearly often enough, do they?

• You may have experienced a love that didn’t last. At first, it seemed like you had found a kindred spirit. You did everything together. Then something happened. The phone calls didn’t come as often and when you phoned, you got the busy signal. Eventually, the calls stopped coming altogether. And when you met in person, there was a coldness there.

These unhappy experiences have colored our idea of God’s love. We’ve become cynical. When we read, “God’s love endures forever,” we wonder how long is forever really.

The Bible gives the following adjectives when describing God’s love: everlasting, eternal, faithful, unfailing…

The second reason we find it hard to accept God’s love is that sin has hardened our hearts so we can’t absorb God’s love. We’re like a pebble in the brook: it has all that life-giving water flowing over it, but it can’t absorb it. It remains cold and unyielding.

We must get rid of the sin so that our hearts become soft again. Confess your sin to God (specifically name it), repent of it (I’m sorry and turn away from it) and receive God’s forgiveness (know you are cleansed.)

Knowing that God loves you makes all the difference in the world.

Then no matter what happens, you have stability–a solid rock under your feet. A refuge in the storm. A Friend who walks with you and talks with you. A Confidant with whom it is safe to pour out your heart. A Person who understands you, believes in you, and fights for you.

You see, His love never cools off. After all, His love is everlasting, eternal, faithful, unfailing…

Dear God, I want to have a soft heart so that I can receive more of Your love. Please fill up the ground of my heart by the power of Your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Question: What must I do to become more receptive to God’s love?

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, How God Reveals Himself, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog

Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30 am EDT.

“We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up” (Romans 15:1, 2).

“It’s taken me so long to learn some wisdom, and now nobody wants to hear it!” a woman laughed.

We’d been talking about our grown children and how to communicate with them. We concluded, that, although they want our support, they don’t necessarily want our advice. On the contrary, we might get the response, “You just don’t understand.”

So how can we best help our grown children? By being encouragers!

Isn’t that what most of us want? Somebody who will believe in us, hear us when we’re hurting, and cheer us on when we’re running the race.

How I thank God for people who encouraged me when life was tough. Like Mr. and Mrs. Ed Turner, both in their nineties. Whenever I felt discouraged, I knew I could go to this couple’s home. Mrs. Turner would serve me a cup of tea and Mr. Turner would position himself so as to hear me better. I had one hour in which I could unburden myself. Then he’d say, “We’ve heard enough now, Helen. Let’s take it to the Father.”

He prayed a most heartfelt prayer. Sometimes, he’d give me a Scripture to hang onto like the following: “Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 62:5, 6).

His parting words to me would be: “Now leave it with God, Helen. He’s perfectly able to take care of this for you.” Come to think of it, Mr. Turner gave me very little advice. Perhaps he’d learned the wisdom of when to be quiet. Like the Bible says, “A man’s wisdom gives him patience…” (Proverbs 19:11 NIV).

Father, I thank you that You are working in our children’s lives. Help me to have the wisdom of patience the Bible speaks about.

Questions: How can you encourage your grown children today? How can you build someone up in the faith? Perhaps a neighbor or a friend or a perfect stranger.

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

Daily audio podcast: A second daily devotional, Discipleship: Renewing your Mind, today on the Men’s Devotional Blog

Is your marriage satisfying?  Talk to someone who will come alongside you

Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30 am EDT.

“We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up” (Romans 15:1, 2).

“It’s taken me so long to learn some wisdom, and now nobody wants to hear it!” a woman laughed.

We’d been talking about our grown children and how to communicate with them. We concluded that, although they want our support, they don’t necessarily want our advice. On the contrary, we might get the response, “You just don’t understand.”

So how can we best help our grown children? By being encouragers!

Isn’t that what most of us want? Somebody who will believe in us, hear us when we’re hurting, and cheer us on when we’re running the race.

How I thank God for people who encouraged me when life was tough. Like Mr. and Mrs. Ed Turner, both in their nineties. Whenever I felt discouraged, I knew I could go to this couple’s home. Mrs. Turner would serve me a cup of tea and Mr. Turner would position himself so as to hear me better. I had one hour in which I could unburden myself. Then he’d say, “We’ve heard enough now, Helen. Let’s take it to the Father.”

He prayed a most heartfelt prayer. Sometimes, he’d give me a Scripture to hang onto like the following: “Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 62:5, 6).

His parting words to me would be: “Now leave it with God, Helen. He’s perfectly able to take care of this for you.” Come to think of it, Mr. Turner gave me very little advice. Perhaps he’d learned the wisdom of when to be quiet. Like the Bible says, “A man’s wisdom gives him patience…” (Proverbs 19:11 NIV).

Father, I thank you that You are working in our children’s lives. Help me to have the wisdom of patience the Bible speaks about.

Questions: How can you encourage your grown children today? How can you build someone up in the faith?

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

Need someone to listen to what you are saying? We listen. Talk to us.

“My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry”  (James 1:19, NIV).

When Job’s three friends heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and went to sympathize with him and comfort him.  They sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him because they saw how great his suffering was. (Job 2:11-13, NIV) Then, wanting to help him out of his misery, they began to speak. And said all the wrong things!

“The first service that we can perform for anyone is to listen,” says Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Most of us don’t listen well. “I know just how you feel,” we say, and then we launch into a personal story to prove it. What have we just done? We’ve moved to center stage and made the other person listen to us! When we talk too much and listen too little, we communicate to others that we think our ideas or experiences are more important than theirs.

Persons who’ve helped me the most are those who listened not only with their ears but also with their eyes. Their whole demeanor said, “I’m interested in what you have to say.” I gained courage from their support.

Dear God, I want to be a person who can listen to another’s tale of woe or triumph without topping it with one of my own. Amen

Questions: Are you a good listener? What does it mean to be a good listener?

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

“Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:20

What did Jesus do when He faced a problem? Such as having 5,000 hungry people in the wilderness with only five small barley loaves and two small fish at His disposal? Jesus took one small loaf, broke it in half, lifted it up to heaven, and gave thanks.

Another time, Jesus was confronted with the death of his dear friend, Lazarus. Standing at the burial tomb, the sound of wailing in the air, the accusations of the sisters in his ears –what did Jesus do? He raised his eyes to heaven and simply said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me…” When confronted with a problem, Jesus gave thanks. Interesting, isn’t it? We usually say please.

The language of faith is not please, but thank you. Please is a beggar’s language. It denotes, I’m not quite sure that God will do anything. Maybe if I pray louder, longer, and with more sincerity, He will do it. So the onus is on me–on doing it right. When we give thanks, the onus is on God: we expect Him to look after the problem.

Notice, we are not told to feel thankful; that would be unrealistic. It wouldn’t even make sense. Some things are downright evil, and God hates evil. We are instructed to give thanks. That’s something we can do even if we don’t feel thankful. It’s a decision we make.

It’s okay to pray like this: “God, I don’t like what’s happened. It doesn’t make any sense to me. But I thank you that You know what this is all about and You will work even this into Your good purpose for my life.”

When we give thanks to God in every situation, change happens. Perhaps the greatest change is inside of us.

We begin to notice our blessings–even the small ones. Hope flourishes. Perspective sharpens. We can see more clearly what’s truly important–what needs to be done. We give God an opportunity to work His miracles within us and outside of us.

Prayer: Father, thank you that no matter what’s happening, you’re still in control. Thank you that you always have my best interest at heart.

Question: What problems are you facing?

About this Author: Helen Grace Lescheid

“Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything,” Peter  said. “But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” (Luke 5:4,5)

Peter was an excellent fisherman. He’d been at his profession for a very long time. After all, he made his living that way. One morning, after a long night of fishing and catching nothing, he was ready to hang up the nets and go home for a good sleep. But Jesus had other plans,  “Put out into the deep water, and let down the nets for a catch,” he told  Peter.

“Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything,” Peter  said. “But because you say so, I will let down the nets” (Luke 5:4,5).  Peter could have argued, “I’m the fisherman around here. You do the preaching and I’ll do the fishing, okay.”  But he surrendered his pride and his tiredness to Jesus.

“Because you say so, I will let down the nets,” he said. The end result? “They caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in another boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.” (Luke 5:6,7)

Sometimes what God wants us to do doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t seem to be the right timing or the right thing to do. Still, if God is speaking to us, we don’t need to understand, obedience is what counts.

One note of caution: Make sure it’s God’ voice you are hearing. How can you tell? God will never tell you something that goes contrary to His character or His word.

Dear God, I want to listen well and to obey promptly. Amen

Question: How can you tell, how can you be sure, that you are hearing God’s voice?

About this Author: Helen Grace Lescheid

Are you feeling ready to walk away from a relationship – are you possibly even considering divorce? We want to pray for you.

Peter was an excellent fisherman. He’d been at his profession for a very long time. After all, he made his living that way. One morning, after a long night of fishing and catching nothing, he was ready to hang up the nets and go home for a good sleep. But Jesus had other plans, “Put out into the deep water, and let down the nets for a catch,” He told  Peter.

“Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything,” Peter said. “But because you say so, I will let down the nets” (Luke 5:4, 5).  Peter could have argued, “I’m the fisherman around here. You do the preaching and I’ll do the fishing, okay.”  But he surrendered his pride and his tiredness to Jesus.

“Because you say so, I will let down the nets,” he said. The end result? “They caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in another boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink” (Luke 5:6, 7).

Sometimes what God wants us to do doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t seem to be the right timing or the right thing to do.  Still, if God is speaking to us, we don’t need to understand, obedience is what counts.

One note of caution: Make sure it’s God’ voice you are hearing. How can you tell? God will never tell you something that goes contrary to His character or His word.

Dear God, I want to listen well and to obey promptly. Amen

Questions: How can you tell if you are hearing God’s voice?  How do you respond if what God is asking you to do is inconvenient?

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

Join us for our Daily Devotional Chat today in our Women’s Chatroom at 10:30 am EDT.

“By the seventh day God had finished the (creation) work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work” (Genesis 2:2, NIV).

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me,” Jesus said.  “Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest” (Matthew 11:28 The Message).

Most of us do not know how to rest. We’ve been raised on the slogan.  It all depends on how hard you work. Try harder and you’ll succeed.

It’s interesting to note that God’s order is rest before work. Even creation tells us this. God rested on the seventh day which happened to be mankind’s first day on planet earth. What’s the message? It all depends on God working through me, not in my own frenetic efforts to get the work done.  God wants us to work in a restful frame of mind.

“Walk with Me and work with Me–watch how I do it,” Jesus said. “Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you.  Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly” (Matthew 11:28-30, The Message).

“The best thing I can do for my world is to know God in such a way that others will look at my life and want to know him too,” says Jill Briscoe.

Father, I want to work in sync with you today. I don’t want to run ahead or lag behind. Help me to be alert and sensitive to your leading. Thank you for the privilege of working with you.  Amen.

Questions: How does one work in a restful frame of mind? What is the most important thing that we can do for our world?

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

“By the seventh day God had finished the (creation) work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.” (Genesis 2:2, NIV)

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me,” Jesus said.  “Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest.” (Matthew 11:28 The Message)

Most of us do not know how to rest. We’ve been raised on the slogan.  It all depends on how hard you work. Try harder and you’ll succeed.

It’s interesting to note that God’s order is rest before work. Even creation tells us this. God rested on the seventh day which happened to be mankind’s first day on planet earth. What’s the message? It all depends on God working through me, not in my own frenetic efforts to get the work done.  God wants us to work in a restful frame of mind.

“Walk with Me and work with me–watch how I do it,” Jesus said. “Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you.  Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:28-30, The Message)

“The best thing I can do for my world is to know God in such a way that others will look at my life and want to know him too,” says Jill Briscoe

Father, I want to work in sync with you today. I don’t want to run ahead or lag behind. Help me to be alert and sensitive to your leading. Thank you for the privilege of working with you.  Amen.

Question: Where do you find quiet time alone with God?

About the Author: Helen Grace Lescheid