Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement. In order for God to forgive sin, He required a life of an animal to be lost in substitution for the person asking forgiveness. This allowed the repentant person to be in unity and harmony with God. In the…
Isaiah 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you. God is always with us, no matter what the circumstances. He is our protector, our sure defense. No matter what danger or violence we face in life, He promises His presence and protection. Even when we feel the enemy’s flood is…
Psalm 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. The one true God is our refuge; our shelter from whatever storm we experience. He is our place of safety from any danger. He is mightier than all other forces that come against us. He is always available, no matter what trouble or distress we face. When David wrote the Psalms, he intended them to be sung. Maybe he knew we remember things better if there…
Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy. Have you ever thought of God exulting over you with love? He comes and lives inside of us—He overcomes all our enemies. He saves us through our troubles. He wants to celebrate what He has done with us. Rest in His victorious joy. His…
Isaiah 41:13 For I am the Lord your God, who upholds your right hand, who says to you, “Do not fear, I will help you.” Have you ever been faced with a seemingly impossible task? You wonder how this could possibly turn out for the good. As far as you’re concerned you are standing at the bottom of Mt. Everest with the assigned task of climbing to the top in a week. You have no training. No equipment. No possibility…
3 John 2 Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. At first glance, this scripture looks like a promise for prosperity—if your soul is prospering. Let’s look deeper. The word “prosper” in Greek means “to lead by a direct and easy way; to be successful.” In other words not walking a crooked, rocky path. “Good health” is obviously referring to good health—but there is a deeper meaning…
Psalm 91:11 For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. In God’s Little Miracle Book III, I share a story of a woman whose very abusive husband made several attempts to take her life. One day as she swam in their pond near their rural home he waded in after her with the intent to drown her. She cried out to the Lord as she had done many times before. When he…
Have you ever prayed for a thing and waited, and waited, and waited? Have you given up hope of ever seeing that prayer answered? In Bible study, we recently studied the book of Acts. Near the end of the book is a very long account of the struggles Paul had after the Lord told him he was going to Rome to stand before Caesar. After two years he was finally on his way when he was shipwrecked, bitten by a…
My attention was directed recently to the account of Jesus calling Zacchaeus down from the sycamore tree as he passed through Jerico. 1. He didn’t just say, “You there.” He called Zacchaeus by name. Has Jesus called your name to come to Him? 2. Jesus bid him to come down. Have you left your old way of living; your old habits, wrong paths, evil thoughts, to come walk the right way of Jesus? 3. Jesus invited Himself to dine with…
We are in the season of Thanksgiving—we are reminded to be grateful for the good and the bad. Sometimes it’s hard for us to see God’s good in a situation but that’s because we’re in the midst of it. We can’t see the situation from His perspective. We don’t know the good He is working out through these situations. It’s times like these that people think God has abandoned us, that He doesn’t care, that He’s forgotten our name. Nothing…