“…I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you.  But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise that person at the last day.”  (John 6:53-54, NLT)

I don’t understand God sometimes!   To be honest, it’s really most of the time. Why doesn’t He clearly reveal Himself to me?  Why does He often leave me guessing at who He is and what He is doing? I have these great expectations about God and what He could and should do and I get frustrated and disillusioned when I don’t see Him behaving the way I think my God should.

My husband had a cousin who found love at the age of 40 and married a man who had lost his wife to cancer.  He had three children, who longed to have a mother again.  They had prayed for three long years and she was their answer!

Her wedding was such an amazing celebration – so full of life and joy.   But only 3 months later we were in that very same church holding her funeral.  Her husband and her children were devastated! I found myself questioning God. It seemed so senseless and even cruel! How could there be any good in this?

When my son was in high school he experienced an incredible amount of loss and disappointment in a six-month period.  As a result, he became disillusioned with God.  I begged God to show Himself to my son, “He needs to see You and know that You love him.  Will You just prove to him that you are God?”  But it didn’t happen that way and my son struggled in his faith.

Why does God do that?  Why doesn’t He feel compelled to meet our expectations?

After all He is God!   You would think that because He wants everyone to come to Him, He would be out and about proving who He was and what He could do.  So why doesn’t he do that?

As I was reading my Bible one day, I came upon a passage that echoed this struggle I was having with God. Jesus was speaking to His followers and He was explaining to them that He was the Bread of Life. Look at his controversial words, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you.  But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise that person at the last day.”  (John 6:53-54, NLT)

Really?! Who wouldn’t be confused by those words? It goes on to say that many of his disciples said, “This is hard to understand, how could anyone accept it?”  (No kidding!) 

Many of his followers turned their backs on Jesus that day and so He turned to his twelve disciples and asked them if they were going to leave Him too?  Look at Peter’s reply, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68-69, NLT)

Do you see it?

Peter says, “WE BELIEVE and we KNOW you are the Holy One of God.”

I believe what Peter is saying here is that even though we don’t understand You . . . even though You aren’t meeting our expectations of what we think a Messiah should be . . . even though we can’t see the Way we will TRUST you. And I love what he says right before that statement.  “Lord, to whom would we go?”

Times without number I have heard Peter’s words echoed by other followers of Jesus in times of disillusionment, “Where would we go?  How could we ever walk this road without Him?” I’ve come to the conclusion that we cannot compel God to prove who He is.  He will do it in His time and in His way.

His WAY is the way of faith.

So when I am disillusioned because my God is not meeting my expectations, I CHOOSE to believe, to trust that His way is good.  I turn my eyes back to the cross. For how can I question His goodness, when He willing laid down His life for me?

Question: Can you choose to believe and trust God, despite your circumstances?

“But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’” (Matthew 14: 27)

I was driving home from town. The roads were slippery; it was dusk.  In the ditch ahead I noticed a large dark mound. I peered into the semi darkness to see a huge moose that had met its fate along the highway. I wondered about the driver who had hit it.

In those few seconds as I looked and wondered I suddenly found I was turning toward the ditch myself. I quickly corrected and, feeling the ice under my tires knew I had better keep my eyes focused on the road.

I realized again just how quickly an accident can happen when my eyes are taken off the road to adjust the radio, rummage for my cell phone or look at what is passing by.

It reminded me of the saying, “Where you focus, you follow.” Or, “Where you look, you go.” What is capturing your attention these days and occupying your thoughts and line of vision? Make sure it’s where you want to end up. Make sure it’s how you want to spend the currency in your “time bank.”

Can you identify the primary focus of your thoughts these days?

Is it concern and worry for a family member?
Is it your work and a project you are on?
Is it someone you are falling in love with?
Is it someone who has hurt you?
Is it your finances? Or fear of the future?
Are you focused on your health?

When we put Jesus in the center of the main thing that occupies our minds we gain a strength and find a footing that holds us steady and secure no matter what uncertainty faces us. When we leave Him to the side of the picture and focus on the things that swirl around us we often find our footing unsure and our clarity blurred.

I love the story from the Bible of Peter who was in a boat in the middle of the night tossed about by the wind and waves. He looks out and sees Jesus walking on the very waves that are buffeting his boat.  He is afraid of the storm and of the form on the water. Jesus calls to him, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid. Come to me.”

Peter steps out of the boat and moves toward Jesus, amazingly firm footed on the waves! But as he lifts his eyes from Jesus and looks at the turbulent sea fear overtakes him. He begins to sink. Immediately Jesus reaches out and pulls him up asking, “Why did you doubt me?” (Matthew 14:22-36)

Whatever is front and center on the stage of your mind today, invite Jesus into it. Focus your eyes on Him. Take courage. Don’t be afraid. Don’t let doubt tumble you into the waves of stress and worry. Jesus is able to keep you steady and His hand is ready to pull you above the waves even if you falter.

“Where you focus, you follow.” Focus on Jesus today as the center of your circumstances and watch how He will lift you from the waves and give you courage and strength and wisdom.

Lord God,
Many things occupy my thoughts today. I choose to put You in the center of my focus. I take courage in You to help me, strengthen me and give me the wisdom I need today to keep on the road of faith and not end up in the ditch of doubt or swallowed by waves of fear. Thank you for Your power at work in my heart and mind and in my life. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Questions: Where is your focus? How can you turn your eyes back to Jesus?

“When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils.” Luke 11:21-22

Why did Peter deny Jesus? He confidently declared “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” (Matthew 26:35) But only a few short hours later, Peter did the exact opposite. He denied he knew Jesus three times, just as Jesus predicted. We don’t have to imagine Peter’s sorrow. We’re told plainly that afterwards “he went outside and wept bitterly.” (Matthew 26:75)

But this doesn’t answer the question of why Peter denied knowing Him. Part of it was fear: Fear of losing his reputation by being associated with a man accused of being a criminal. Fear of his responsibilities. Fear, perhaps, for his own life. But another reason that Peter ended up denying knowing His Lord is because he was away from Him.

Peter lost sight of his Lord. It wasn’t until “The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter” (Luke 22:61) that Peter came back to his senses and realized what he had done. After losing sight of Jesus, Peter had been trying to do things on his own strength. Rather than trusting God, he was trusting in himself.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

Peter himself explains the imminent danger of trying to do everything ourselves God: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8) The apostle James advises us: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you.” (James 4:7-8) While even the strongest of men & women are no match for Satan’s temptations on our own, with God we have nothing to fear.

We can stay near to God by reading His Word, by speaking and listening to Him in prayer, and by living in community with His sons and daughters. Stay near to God, and you will never be overwhelmed.

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

Question: What is the danger of not staying near God? How does staying near God protect us from danger?

Are you struggling in your marriage? There is hope!

One of the rulers of the synagogue whose name was Jairus fell at the feet of Jesus and said, “Please come to my daughter who is dying. Come and lay your hands on her so that she will be healed and live” (Luke 8:40-56; Mark 5:35-43, NIV).

The twelve year old girl was not able to come to Jesus, she was too sick. So her father went on her behalf. He brought Jesus to her.

When Jesus, Peter, John and James neared the house, there was loud weeping and wailing. The little girl had died. The situation looked hopeless to all but Jesus. He walked up to the girl’s bed, grasped her hand and said, “Little girl, I say to you, get up.” Instantly her spirit returned and she stood up and walked around. Then Jesus told her parents to give her something to eat.

Some of our children and friends are like that little girl. They cannot come to Jesus on their own. Maybe they are too hurt, too mired in false doctrine and unbelief. They are spiritually dead.

That’s where our prayers come in–we can bring Jesus to them. He understands the problem completely and he’s the one who can help them. He can open blind eyes and deaf ears. He can cause the spiritually dead to come to new life. “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26, NIV).

So, let’s keep praying for them. Let’s keep bringing Jesus to them.

Dear Jesus, I pray that you will come to …………………….  (include name) in a very personal and profound way so that he/she will know that you are real and that you care. May they come to new life in Christ.  Amen.

Questions: Has there been a situation in your life where you were too weak to go to God on your own but someone went for you and God heard that prayer? Can you tell us about it? What lesson can we learn from Jairus?

Do you feel overwhelming stress, fear or anxiety? We are here.

Have you ever wondered about that rooster that crowed right after Peter denied his Lord?  How did it happen that the rooster crowed just then?  Why didn’t he crow sooner?  Or why not later?  Why was it immediately after Peter had denied Christ three times?

Our immediate reaction to these questions might be to answer: “For one thing, Christ predicted that would happen.  For another, by the cock crowing just at that particular time, Peter realized the awful sin he had committed and went out and wept bitterly in repentance.”

We know the Lord loved Peter.  We know also that He dearly loves each one of His followers. Thus Christians can be assured that if He had a rooster crow at the right time for Peter, then He is ready to alert us when we stray off the path of righteousness!

Could it be that our downward path toward disobedience and sin starts in the same way as Peter’s?  When Jesus predicted that His disciples would desert Him, Peter declared, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will” (Matthew 26:33)!

Oh, how sure we get of ourselves sometimes!  We get so sure that we find ourselves relying on our own instead of the Lord’s strength.  The longer and stronger we go with the Lord, the more prone we seem to do this, for we may become proud of our own Christian strength!

Then we go to sleep, as Peter did in the Garden of Gethsemane.  “Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” Jesus asked Peter (Matthew 26:40).  We may get so wrapped up in our ritual of “serving the church” that we go to sleep; we lose our vision for winning lost souls to Christ.  We are in a nice, restful rut.  We tell the Lord we would never deny Him, but we fall asleep when He needs us most.

Ah, but we still have some spurts of zeal!  See, as the soldiers come to arrest Jesus, Peter leaps up with his sword and lops off an ear!  On the surface, this looks pretty brave, but if we look closely we find that Peter had not stopped to pray about it, even when he had been told by Jesus what would happen.  In the flesh, Peter lopped off an ear; in the Spirit Jesus restored it (Luke 22:51).  Sometimes in our spurts of zeal for the Lord our efforts might drive lost souls further from Him.  How careful we must be in all His work to be led by His Spirit!

Now Peter’s faith was low.  His Lord had been arrested and led away for trial.  In the darkest hour before dawn, temptation struck and Peter fell.  He cursed and lied, but worst of all, he denied three times the Son of God, Jesus Christ.  Similarly, temptation strikes us at the darkest hour when we are totally unprepared..  After we have relied upon ourselves, gone to sleep, worked in the flesh, then temptation strikes!  And like Peter, we may fall.

Then God has a rooster crow for us.  It may be a sermon, a devotional message, a Bible lesson.  Or a difficult circumstance may cause us to awaken from our sleep.  When God confronts us and we realize how we have sinned against Him, then like Peter, let us repent with tears of sorrow.  Then forgiven, we can lift up our heads, and living in the Spirit we can go forth to make our lives count for Him in His power.

Father God, I do work hard, often with zeal of my own, neglecting to spend time in prayer listening to Your still small voice of guidance. Thank you that You keep my heart on course by the nudging of Your Holy Spirit to reveal the sin in my life. Help me to respond quickly and willingly and allow You to fill me with fresh joy and zeal that comes from You. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Questions: Tell us of a situation where you served the Lord with much zeal but forgot to pray about it. Why do we need to pray and listen to what the Lord tells us?

Then Jesus returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” He said to Peter, “are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation” (Mark 14:32-42).

Jesus must have felt desperately lonely and in need of loyal friends, the night he led his eleven disciples into the Garden of Gethsemane. He separated Peter, James and John apart from the rest, and took them a little deeper into the garden. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” He said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

Then he went a short distance further, fell to the ground, and prayed, “Father take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will” (Mark 14:36).  When He returned to his three trusted disciples He found them asleep. Can you detect the note of disappointment in His voice as He said, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour?”

This scene repeated itself three times. In his most desperate hour, Jesus was alone. Even His most devoted disciples and best friends could not share His time of anguish with him.

In our lives, also, there will be times when human friends will disappoint us. If we’ve been looking to them to meet our needs, we’ll be bitterly disappointed. But that is just the point. We are to look to God to meet our needs Who will never fail us. Jesus was not left without comfort. “An angel from heaven appeared to Jesus and strengthened him” (Luke 22:43).

Despite Peter’s failure to support Jesus during His darkest hour, Jesus expressed His love for him. “I know how it is: ‘the spirit is willing, but the body is weak’”, He said to Peter (Mark 14:38).

Jesus loved even the people who disappointed Him. He loves real people, not ideal people. And I’m very glad about this.

Dear God, I want to love as Jesus loves. He loves us with all our imperfections. Help me to love my friends like He does. Amen

Questions: What are some ways we can show people that we love them? How have others demonstrated Christ’s love to you in time of need?

About the 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

Missing the mark of being a perfect mom?  Discover how you can be yourself by taking this free online course

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

“We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise” (2 Corinthians 10:12).

One of the quickest ways for me to lose my joy and my focus is to compare my life with the lives of others. I’m content with my life – until I look across the fence and see what my neighbor has! I’m not just talking about physical blessings here, but the niggling feeling that someone is having more success than I am. Can you relate?

In 2 Corinthians 10:12 Paul tells us that those who compare themselves to others are not wise. I’m reminded of what the risen Lord Jesus Christ told Peter as they sat by a camp fire on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus had just restored Peter to fellowship and told him what his life’s work would be.

Peter turned and, looking at another disciple, he asked. “Lord, what about him?”

Jesus answered, “What is that to you? You must follow me” (John 21:21, 22).

Like Peter, we tend to compare our lives to others. God is blessing her more than me, we think. Soon another thought follows.  God isn’t fair. I’m working just as hard as she is, then why isn’t He blessing me like that?

When we compare ourselves to others, we are doubting God’s goodness. Comparisons shift our focus away from God onto our circumstances, spawning thoughts of discontent.

“Keep your eyes on me,” Jesus told Peter. “Why compare yourself with him? I have a good plan for each of you.” The same is true for us. We need to keep our eyes on Jesus and be faithful to what He has asked us to do.

When I am tempted to compare myself with others, I remind myself that God loves me! His plan is tailor-made for me. Knowing this makes it easier for me to see my own blessings. I focus on what I have, not on what I don’t have. And I trust my loving God with the rest.

Thank you, Father, that you have a beautiful plan for each of your children. I want to keep my eyes on Jesus and be faithful in doing what He has asked me to do.  Amen.

Questions: Do you compare yourself with others? What can be the result of comparing yourself to others? What can we do instead when we are tempted to compare ourselves with others?

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

Has your world shattered and left you with no hope for your marriage? Talk to us.

The twelve year old girl was not able to come to Jesus, she was too sick. So her father went on her behalf. He brought Jesus to her.

When Jesus, Peter, John and James neared the house, there was loud weeping and wailing. The little girl had died. The situation looked hopeless to all but Jesus. He walked up to the girl’s bed, grasped her hand and said, “Little girl, I say to you, get up.” Instantly her spirit returned and she stood up and walked around. Then Jesus told her parents to give her something to eat.

Some of our children and friends are like that little girl. They cannot come to Jesus on their own. Maybe they are too hurt, too mired in false doctrine and unbelief. They are spiritually dead.

That’s where our prayers come in–we can bring Jesus to them. He understands the problem completely and he’s the one who can help them. He can open blind eyes and deaf ears. He can cause the spiritually dead to come to new life. “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26, NIV).

So, let’s keep praying for them. Let’s keep bringing Jesus to them.

Dear Jesus, I pray that you will come to …………………….  (include name) in a very personal and profound way so that he/she will know that you are real and that you care. May they come to new life in Christ.  Amen.

Questions: Has there been a situation in your life where you were too weak to go to God on your own but someone went for you and God heard that prayer? Can you tell us about it? What lesson can we learn from Jairus?

About the Author Helen Grace Lescheid

It was the night of the Passover.  All four gospels tell the story. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John each include different details from the evening: about the room they found, just as Jesus had specified, how Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, the shared bread and wine, an argument that arose.  But they all record Jesus saying that one of them would betray him. (Matthew 26:21, Mark 14:18, Luke 22:21, John 13:21)

His words stunned them. “His disciples stared at one another at a loss to know which of them he meant.” (John 13:22, NIV) It was beyond comprehension.  They had given three years of their lives to him. “They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.” (Luke 22:23, NIV)

Was it silent for a while? Was there quiet whispering around the table? How long did it take for it to sink into their minds? As each one considered Jesus’ words, did he realize that he might be the one? That any one of them was capable of the deed?

“They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, ‘Surely not I, Lord?’” (Matthew 26:22, NIV)

John called himself the one Jesus’ loved. Peter later boasted that even if everyone else deserted Jesus he wouldn’t. Matthew had given up a lucrative job in tax collection to follow Jesus.  Andrew brought his brother to Jesus.   Each one asked, it couldn’t be me, could it?

And each one of us knows that sad moment deep in our soul. “Surely, not I, Lord?” Any of us could have betrayed Jesus. We all have, in one way or another.

That is precisely why Jesus died – because we all sin.  After Jesus’ resurrection, eleven of those disciples found forgiveness and were transformed. So can we.

Holy God, You know my heart – the evil I’ve done and the wrongs I’m capable of doing. Forgive me; cleanse me by Your blood; transform me by the power of Your Spirit. Amen.

Question: How has God been encouraging you lately in your spiritual journey?

About the Author:  Suzanne Benner