No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.  1 Corinthians 10:13 

One of the most common thoughts we have when we are tempted is, “There is no way I can handle this pressure. The temptation is just too strong!”  But thankfully, God always provides a way out. No matter what you are facing, opportunities will be presented for you to turn away from temptation, to control your actions, and to take your thoughts captive. God not only provides his strength and guidance to help you, but also works through the words of a friend or advice of a mentor.    When you face temptation and feel like you are being sucked down into the muck and mire of this world, remember that there will always be a way out. But to find it, you have to look up, and see that God has already provided you with the strength you need to stand.

Dear God, I know that during times of trial and temptation that you will provide a way out. Help me to turn to you so that I can discover the way out that you have provided. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Repent, … and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.   Acts 3:19

In years past, when I owned horses, I would go and harvest hay each fall. It was a hot and dirty job. We picked up the bales from the field and stacked them on a truck and ultimately into the barn. Inevitably, hay particles would rain down on me as I stacked the hay. The dusty debris would find its way into my clothing, my hair, and often my eyes. It would irritate my hot, sweaty skin. Oh, how I would long for a refreshing shower to wash the dirt and debris from my body!  Sin makes our soul just as dirty — and also breaks our relationship with a holy God. (See Isa. 59:2.) This reading is a prayer of repentance. King David prayed this prayer after being confronted by Nathan the prophet about his adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah. David recognized that his sins had separated him from God. As the psalm tells us, David understood that sincere repentance restores our relationship with God and brings times of refreshing.

At times we all have spiritual dirt in our lives. But when we examine ourselves and seek God’s forgiveness, we too can experience “times of refreshing.”

Wash away our sins, dear God, and restore to us “the joy of your salvation.” (Ps. 51:12.) Amen.

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone.  James 1:13 

The Bible says that each of us will face temptation. You can’t go through life on this earth without facing it. But if we’re going to be victorious over those temptations, we have to understand one thing first“God is not the one tempting us.  It is so easy to blame God or use him as an excuse when we face temptation. But it isn’t God. He will never tempt us. In fact, the Bible tells us that God is the one who can give us the power to overcome temptation. He wants to make us strong. It is Satan who tempts us to do wrong. 

So when you are facing temptation, don’t blame God. Instead, look to him to help you through that temptation. Ask him to give you the strength. And realize that as you fight that temptation, you are not alone. God is standing there with you to help you win.

Dear God, I know that as I go through life I am going to face temptation. When that happens, I pray that you give me the strength to overcome it. Help me to turn to you in those moments and to rely on your strength to make it through. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

…but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.   James 1:14

Most of us don’t like to accept the blame for those moments in life when we miss the mark, when we hurt someone, and when we fall into temptation. Maybe we try to blame someone else for our shortcomings, or try to justify our actions with the mediocre standards of this world. But God doesn’t leave us the option of playing the blame game or making excuses. He holds us accountable for our actions.  Our sins and evil desires come right out of our own sin nature. It is Satan who is directly tethered to our temptation. He also customizes his schemes according to our strengths, vulnerabilities and weaknesses. And we are the ones who make the choice to give in to the enticements of this world. 

If you feel like you are facing temptation, don’t let yourself get dragged away by it. Instead of making excuses, cry out to God for his help and allow him to lead you to victory.

Dear God, I know there will be times when I am tempted. Please help me remember to cry out to you instead of facing temptation alone, so that with your strength, I can be victorious. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”  John 1:29

Imagine an annual religious ritual where two goats were used to cleanse the people of their sins. One goat was ceremonially sacrificed with its blood offered for the sins of the people, while the other goat had to bear the sins of the entire nation before being released into the wild. This may sound like a scene from a Discovery Channel special, but this is actually right out of the Old Testament book of Leviticus.  God’s people had sinned against him greatly, and the only way they could be forgiven of their sins was through the sacrifice of innocent animals. But the problem with this ritual was that the results were only temporary. Every year there would be new sins requiring new sacrifices from new animals. The process of covering the people’s sins was exhausting. But God had another plan in mind.  God sent his only son, Jesus Christ, to be the sacraficial lamb for his people. Jesus wasn’t sent to be a temporary sacrifice to provide relief from the consequences of sin. He was sent to be the final sacrifice for everyone’s sins—past, present and future. His death is the final payment for all who believe in him. 

But even though Jesus paid the price, there are some who still rely on rituals to save them. Some even try to earn forgiveness by doing enough good deeds. But none of these works will earn forgiveness from a holy God. Only the sacrifice of Christ can. Don’t rely on your own sacrifices to cleanse your sins. Instead, look to the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”

Lord, I want to take this time to confess my sins to you. I have done some things that are not pleasing in your sight. But I thank you for sending your son to be the ultimate sacrifice for my sins. Because of his death, I can experience permanent forgiveness and experience eternal life with you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.  Isaiah 53:5-7 

Sometimes, as we read the Bible, it’s hard to wrap our minds around it and make sense of it all. But as we look closely at the entirety of the Bible, we can see that God has a plan for our salvation throughout every page.  The book of Isaiah was penned hundreds of years before Jesus came to earth, and it stands as a testament to God’s overarching plan for our lives today. The arrival of Jesus was not a spur-of-the-moment decision; God had a plan for our salvation all along.  Isaiah prophesied Jesus’ death in graphic detail, hundreds of years before the actual crucifixion took place. He described Jesus as a lamb, which is exactly what Jesus became when he was sacrificed for our sins. God fulfilled his perfect plan at the perfect time. 

Since God took such painstaking time to fulfill his plan, it must be a plan worth trusting. When you see the details in all that God has done and said, use that to build your trust in him. Don’t miss the genius of his master plan. Instead, realize that God’s plan throughout Scripture continues in your life today. And in the perfect time, he will take you where he wants you to go.

Lord, sometimes reading the Bible can be confusing. I don’t understand everything I read. But I know that your plan is superior and that you have a plan for me as well. Help me to keep my focus on you and help me to trust in your plan. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.  Genesis 3:21 

We have all felt it—that sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when you realize a great plan wasn’t so great after all. It’s when you recognize your approach was wrong from the start. It happens when you discover you have stumbled into the wrong place and you cannot find a way out. 

That must have been the feeling Adam and Eve had right after they ate the forbidden fruit. They thought they had a brilliant cover-up plan. They realized they were naked, so they attempted to sew fig leaves together as a solution. And as you can imagine, fig leaves didn’t do a great job of covering their naked bodies.  We’ve all had times when we made a situation worse by trying to fix it ourselves. When our brilliant ideas fall short, it is a great opportunity to look to God for strength and wisdom. God’s plan is always the best plan—even when we’re too proud to ask for his help.  When Adam and Eve realized the inadequacy of their fig leaves, they accepted the greatness of God’s garments. God’s covering was far more sufficient for them. So if you are dealing with the consequences of a plan gone bad, it’s time to look to God for his solution instead of trying to cover things on your own. 

Lord, today I expose the depths of my heart to you and ask that you forgive me for my sins. I am tired of covering up with the fig leaves of shame and guilt. I ask that you cover me with the garments of your greatness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.  Matthew 6:34

Modern technology allows us to both speed up time and slow it down. In a television-makeover program, a garden or home is transformed in minutes. But in real life beautiful gardens take years of hard work, and redecorating is not as easy as it looks on TV. On the other hand, modern technology can also slow down time, as we see in the endless slow-motion replays of decisive moments in sporting events. The past is gone; the future comes at its own pace. In reality, we cannot rewind or speed up our life.  We may look back with regret, anger, and resentment at all our dashed hopes, at all our “if onlys.” Or at times we may consider the future bleak and want to rush past it. But we cannot alter time. What we have is God’s gift of today and the freedom to choose how to live it.  The Apostle Paul gave us an example when he wrote, “Forgetting what is behind … I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:13-14). Like Paul, we can take each day’s opportunities to use the gifts that God has given us.

O God, help us choose to use our time wisely, always grateful for all your gifts. Amen.

The God of compassion said, “It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, I took them up in my arms.”   Hosea 11:3

I can remember when my son was learning to walk. In front of him was a new and wonderful world, one he could not see when he was crawling. He could not see me behind him, but he held on to my fingers because he would lose his balance without me. When he became strong and balanced enough to support himself, I turned him around toward me. Once he could see me, the desire to come to me gave him the courage to take those first steps on his own into my arms. He stumbled a few times, but I was always there to catch him, strengthening his skill and faith in himself so he could someday walk on his own.

As I read Jesus’ words in Matthew 18, “Unless you change and become like children,” I realize that I’ve been crawling along through life for too long on my own. When I allow God to guide me, I see a new world, an outlook I’ve never experienced before. This new outlook builds my strength so I can look beyond the suffering and pain of the world to see the works of a wonderful Healer, Creator, and Guide. Then as I turn to God in worship, prayer, and service, I find confidence to take those first steps to God so that soon we can walk side by side.

God, help us to reach out to you, trust you as our guide, and look for your wondrous hand at work. Amen.

Do not say to yourself, “My power and the might of my own hand have gotten me this wealth.”   Deuteronomy 8:17

At a dinner, I was joined by two people I didn’t know. When their meal came, they bowed their heads and said a prayer. I smiled. “Seeing someone else pray before a meal is so nice.”

The young woman responded, “Well, why not? The food we eat comes from God.” I appreciated her simple, matter-of-fact answer.  We labor day after day so that we have money to purchase what we need to survive and to give us pleasure. We could easily say, “I worked for this. I earned it. It’s mine.”  The truth is, God created the earth and everything on it. God created us and gave us intricate minds and bodies. God gives us strength, initiative, intelligence, and the good sense to use them.  Yes, we work to earn money for food, but God gives us the ability to work to earn a living. God also causes the seeds to grow so food is available. God is indeed the source of all good things. 

Dear God, remind us that you are the source of our strength, power, and will. Amen.