God is ruler over our prosperity and our disasters. (Isaiah 45:7)

Isaiah 45:7

 

New International Version (NIV)

 

⁷ I form the light and create darkness,
    I bring prosperity and create disaster;
    I, the Lord, do all these things.


God is ruler over light and darkness, over prosperity and disaster. Our lives are sprinkled with both types of experiences, and both are needed for us to grow spiritually. When good times come, thank God and use your prosperity for Him. When bad times come, don't resent them, but ask what you can learn from this refining experience to make you a better servant of God.


Joe

God forgives and forgets. (Isaiah 43:25)

Isaiah 43:25

New Living Translation (NLT)

²⁵ “I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake
    and will never think of them again.


How tempting it is to remind someone of a past offense ! But when God forgives our sins He totally forgets them. We never have to fear that He will remind us of them later. Because God forgives our sin, we need to forgive others.


Joe




 

Do people see God reflected in you? (Isaiah 43:10-11)

Isaiah 43:10-11

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

¹⁰ “But you are my witnesses, O Israel!” says the Lord.
    “You are my servant.
You have been chosen to know me, believe in me,
    and understand that I alone am God.
There is no other God—
    there never has been, and there never will be.
¹¹ I, yes I, am the Lord,
    and there is no other Savior.


Israel's task was to be a witness, telling the world who God is and what He has done. Believers today share the responsibility of being God's witnesses. Do people know what God is like through your words and example? They cannot see God directly, but they can see Him reflected in you.


Joe





 

Rivers of difficulty. (Isaiah 43:2)

Isaiah 43:2

New Living Translation (NLT)

² When you go through deep waters,
    I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
    you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
    you will not be burned up;
    the flames will not consume you.


Going through rivers of difficulty will either cause you to drown or force you to grow stronger. If you go in on your own strength, you are more likely to drown. If you invite the Lord to go in with you, He will protect you.


Joe



 

Call upon God to renew your strength. (Isaiah 40:29-31)

Isaiah 40:29-31

New Living Translation (NLT)

²⁹ He gives power to the weak
    and strength to the powerless.
³⁰ Even youths will become weak and tired,
    and young men will fall in exhaustion.
³¹ But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
    They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
    They will walk and not faint.


Even the strongest people get tired at times, but God's power and strength never diminish. He is never too tired or too busy to help and listen. His strength is our source of strength. When you feel all of life crushing you and cannot go another step, remember that you can call upon God to renew your strength.


Joe




 

God's Word is eternal. (Isaiah 40:6-8)

Isaiah 40:6-8

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

⁶ A voice said, “Shout!”
    I asked, “What should I shout?”

“Shout that people are like the grass.
    Their beauty fades as quickly
    as the flowers in a field.
⁷ The grass withers and the flowers fade
    beneath the breath of the Lord.
    And so it is with people.
⁸ The grass withers and the flowers fade,
    but the word of our God stands forever.”


People are compared here to grass and flowers that wither away. We are mortal, but God's Word is eternal and unfailing. Public opinion changes and is unreliable, but God's Word is constant. Only in God's eternal Word will we find lasting solutions to our problems and needs.


Joe





 

Don't become a slave to your idols. (Isaiah 31:7)

Isaiah 31:7

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

⁷ I know the glorious day will come when each of you will throw away the gold idols and silver images your sinful hands have made.

Someday these people will throw their idols away, recognizing that they are nothing but man-made objects. Idols such as money, fame, or success are seductive. Instead of contributing to our spiritual development, they rob us of our time, energy, and devotion that ought to be directed toward God. At first our idols seem exciting and promise to take us places, but in the end we will find that we have become their slaves. We need to recognize their worthlessness now, before they rob us of our freedom.

Joe

 

 

 

 

 

 

Listen for His voice (Isaiah 30:21)

Isaiah 30:21

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

²¹ Your own ears will hear him.
    Right behind you a voice will say,
“This is the way you should go,”
    whether to the right or to the left.


When the people of Jerusalem left God's path, he would correct them. He will do the same for us. But when we hear His voice of correction, we must be willing to follow it !


Joe

God knows everything about us. (Isaiah 29:15)

Isaiah 29:15

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁵ What sorrow awaits those who try to hide their plans from the Lord,
    who do their evil deeds in the dark!
“The Lord can’t see us,” they say.
    “He doesn’t know what’s going on!”


Thinking God couldn't see them and didn't know what was happening, the people of Jerusalem tried to hide their plans from Him. How strange that so many people think they can hide from God. In Psalm 139:1-4 (below), we learn that God has examined us and knows everything about us. Would you be embarrassed if your best friends knew all your personal thoughts? Remember that God knows all of them.


Joe


Psalm 139
New Living Translation (NLT)

¹ O Lord, you have examined my heart
    and know everything about me.
² You know when I sit down or stand up.
    You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
³ You see me when I travel
    and when I rest at home.
    You know everything I do.
⁴ You know what I am going to say
    even before I say it, Lord.

Are you just going through the motions? (Isaiah 29:13-14)

Isaiah 29:13-14

 

New International Version (NIV)

 

¹³ The Lord says:

“These people come near to me with their mouth
    and honor me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far from me.
Their worship of me
    is based on merely human rules they have been taught.
¹⁴ Therefore once more I will astound these people
    with wonder upon wonder;
the wisdom of the wise will perish,
    the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.”



The people claimed to be close to God, but they were disobedient and merely went through the motions; therefore, God would bring judgment upon them. Religion had become routine instead of real. Jesus quoted Isaiah's condemnation of Israel's hypocrisy when He spoke to the Pharisees (see Matthew 15:7). We are all capable of hypocrisy. Often we slip into routine patterns when we worship and we neglect to give God our love and devotion. If we want to be called God's people, we must be obedient and worship Him honestly and sincerely.



Joe


 

Different people require different treatment. (Isaiah 28:23-29)

Isaiah 28:23-29

New International Version (NIV)

²³ Listen and hear my voice;
    pay attention and hear what I say.
²⁴ When a farmer plows for planting, does he plow continually?
    Does he keep on breaking up and working the soil?
²⁵ When he has leveled the surface,
    does he not sow caraway and scatter cumin?
Does he not plant wheat in its place,
    barley in its plot,
    and spelt in its field?
²⁶ His God instructs him
    and teaches him the right way.

²⁷ Caraway is not threshed with a sledge,
    nor is the wheel of a cart rolled over cumin;
caraway is beaten out with a rod,
    and cumin with a stick.
²⁸ Grain must be ground to make bread;
    so one does not go on threshing it forever.
The wheels of a threshing cart may be rolled over it,
    but one does not use horses to grind grain.
²⁹ All this also comes from the Lord Almighty,
    whose plan is wonderful,
    whose wisdom is magnificent.


The farmer uses special tools to plant and harvest tender herbs so he will not destroy them. He takes into account how fragile they are. In the same way God takes all our individual circumstances and weaknesses into account. He deals with each of us sensitively. We should follow His example when we deal with others. Different people require different treatment. Be sensitive to the needs of those around you and the special treatment they may need.



Joe






 

Is your life built on a firm foundation? (Isaiah 28:16)

Isaiah 28:16

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁶ Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“Look! I am placing a foundation stone in Jerusalem,
    a firm and tested stone.
It is a precious cornerstone that is safe to build on.
    Whoever believes need never be shaken.


If you're building anything, you need a firm base. Isaiah speaks of a foundation stone, a cornerstone, that will be laid in Zion. This cornerstone is the Messiah, the foundation on whom we build our lives. Is your life built on the flimsy base of your own successes or dreams? Or is it set on a firm foundation?


Joe


 

Are you withering spiritually. (Isaiah 27:11)

Isaiah 27:11

New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ When its twigs are dry, they are broken off
    and women come and make fires with them.
For this is a people without understanding;
    so their Maker has no compassion on them,
    and their Creator shows them no favor.




Isaiah compares the state of Israel's spiritual life with dry trigs that are broken off and used to make fires. Trees in Scripture often represent spiritual life. The trunk is the channel of strength from God; the branches are the people who serve Him. Tree branches sometimes waver and blow in the wind. Like Israel, they may dry up from internal decay and become useless for anything except building a fire. What kind of branch are you? If you are withering spiritually, check to see if you are firmly attached to God.


Joe




 

We can make a difference. (Isaiah 24:4-5)

Isaiah 24:4-5

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

⁴ The earth mourns and dries up,
    and the land wastes away and withers.
    Even the greatest people on earth waste away.
⁵ The earth suffers for the sins of its people,
    for they have twisted God’s instructions,
violated his laws,
    and broken his everlasting covenant.


Not only the people suffered from their sins; even the land suffered the effects of evil and law breaking. Today we see the results of sin in our own land - pollution, crime, addiction, poverty. Sin affects ever aspect of society so extensively that even those faithful to God suffer. We cannot blame God for these conditions because human sin has brought them about. The more we who are believers renounce sin, speak against immoral practices, and share God's Word with others, the more we slow our society's deterioration. We must not give up: sin is rampant, but we can make a difference.



Joe



 

Don't take pride in your accomplishments. (Isaiah 9:8-10)

Isaiah 9:8-10

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

⁸ The Lord has spoken out against Jacob;
    his judgment has fallen upon Israel.
⁹ And the people of Israel and Samaria,
    who spoke with such pride and arrogance,
    will soon know it.
¹⁰ They said, “We will replace the broken bricks of our ruins with finished stone,
    and replant the felled sycamore-fig trees with cedars.”


Pride made Israel think it would recover and rebuild in its own strength. Even though God made Israel a nation and gave them the land they occupied, the people put their trust in themselves rather than in Him. Too often we take pride in our accomplishments, forgetting that it is God who has given us our accomplishments and ability. We may even become proud of our unique status as Christians. God is not pleased with any pride or trust in ourselves because it cuts off our contact with Him.




Joe

Don't blame God. (Isaiah 8:21)

Isaiah 8:21

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

²¹ They will go from one place to another, weary and hungry. And because they are hungry, they will rage and curse their king and their God. They will look up to heaven.

After rejecting God's plan for them, the people of Judah would blame God for their trials. People continually blame God for their self-induced problems. How do you respond to the unpleasant results of your own choices. Where do you fix the blame? Instead of blaming God, look for ways to grow through your failures.

Joe

 

 

 

 

 

Fire Hazards (Isaiah 1:31)

Isaiah 1:31

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

 

³¹ The strongest among you will disappear like straw;
    their evil deeds will be the spark that sets it on fire.
They and their evil works will burn up together,    and no one will be able to put out the fire.


A spark set to tinder ignites a quick, devouring fire. God compares strong people whose evil deeds devour them to a roaring fire. Our lives can be destroyed quickly by a small but deadly spark of evil. What potential "fire hazards" do you need to remove?


Joe

Reflect His image. (Isaiah 1:25)

Isaiah 1:25

 

New International Version (NIV)

 

²⁵ I will turn my hand against you;
    I will thoroughly purge away your dross
    and remove all your impurities.


God promised to refine His people similar to the way that metal is purged with lye in a smelting pot. This process involves melting the metal and skimming off the impure dross until the worker can see his own image in the liquid metal. We must be willing to submit to God, allowing Him to remove our sin so that we might reflect His image.


Joe

Life is fragile. (Ecclesiastes 12:6-8)

Ecclesiastes 12:6-8

New International Version (NIV)

 

⁶ Remember him—before the silver cord is severed,
    and the golden bowl is broken;
before the pitcher is shattered at the spring,
    and the wheel broken at the well,
⁷ and the dust returns to the ground it came from,
    and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

⁸ “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher.
    “Everything is meaningless!”


The silver cord, golden bowl, pitcher and wheel symbolize life's fragility. How easily death comes to us; how swiftly and unexpectedly we can return to the dust from which we came. Therefore, we should recognize life as a precious resource to be used wisely and not squandered frivolously.


Joe


 

Seek God now ! (Ecclesiastes 12:1)

Ecclesiastes 12:1

New International Version (NIV)

12 Remember your Creator
    in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come
    and the years approach when you will say,
    “I find no pleasure in them”—


A life without God can produce a bitter, lonely and hopeless old age. A life centered around God is fulfilling; it will make the "days of trouble" - when disabilities, sickness, and handicaps cause barriers to enjoying life,  - satisfying because of the hope of eternal life. Being young is exciting. But the excitement of youth can become a barrier to closeness with God if it makes young people focus on passing pleasures instead of eternal values. Make your strength available to God when it is still yours - during your youthful years. Don't waste it on evil or meaningless activities that become bad habits and make you callous. Seek God now.


Joe


 

It does matter. (Ecclesiastes 11:9-10)

Ecclesiastes 11:9-10

 

New International Version (NIV)

 

⁹ You who are young, be happy while you are young,
    and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.
Follow the ways of your heart
    and whatever your eyes see,
but know that for all these things
    God will bring you into judgment.
¹⁰ So then, banish anxiety from your heart
    and cast off the troubles of your body,
    for youth and vigor are meaningless.


We often hear people say, "It doesn't matter." But many of your choices will be irreversible - they will stay with you for a lifetime. What you do when you're young does matter. Enjoy life now, but don't do anything physically, morally, or spiritually that will prevent you from enjoying life when you are old.


Joe




 

Do you wait for perfect conditions? (Ecclesiastes 11:4)

Ecclesiastes 11:4

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁴ Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant.
    If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.



Waiting for perfect conditions will mean inactivity. This practical insight is especially applicable to our spiritual life. If we wait for the perfect time and place for personal Bible reading, we will never begin. If we wait for the perfect church, we will never join. If we wait for the perfect ministry, we will never serve. Take steps now to grow spiritually. Don't wait for conditions that may never exist.



Joe





 

Mothers are a beautiful example of Love. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁴ Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud ⁵ or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. ⁶ It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. ⁷ Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

 When it comes to the Bible’s most well-known passage on love, mothers are beautiful examples of the high calling of love that is described.

Joe

Happy Mother's Day

Is your ax dull? (Ecclesiastes 10:10)

Ecclesiastes 10:10

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁰ Using a dull ax requires great strength,
    so sharpen the blade.
That’s the value of wisdom;    it helps you succeed.


Trying to do anything without the necessary skills or tools is like chopping wood with a dull ax. If your tool is dull, you should sharpen it to do a better job. Similarly, if you lack skills, you should sharpen them through training and practice. In each situation, sharpening the ax means recognizing where a problem exists, acquiring or honing the skills to do the job better, and then going out and doing it. Find the areas of your life where your "ax" is dull, and sharpen your skills so you can be more effective for God's work.




Joe



 

Every good thing comes from God. (Ecclesiastes 5:19-20)

Ecclesiastes 5:19-20

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁹ And it is a good thing to receive wealth from God and the good health to enjoy it. To enjoy your work and accept your lot in life—this is indeed a gift from God. ²⁰ God keeps such people so busy enjoying life that they take no time to brood over the past.

God wants us to view what we have (whether it is much or little) with right perspective - our possessions are a gift from God. Although they are not the source of joy, they are a reason to rejoice because every good thing comes from God. We should focus more on the Giver than the gift. We can be content with what we have when we realize that with God we have everything we need.

Joe

A time for everything. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

New Living Translation (NLT)

3 For everything there is a season,
    a time for every activity under heaven.
² A time to be born and a time to die.
    A time to plant and a time to harvest.
³ A time to kill and a time to heal.
    A time to tear down and a time to build up.
⁴ A time to cry and a time to laugh.
    A time to grieve and a time to dance.
⁵ A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
    A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
⁶ A time to search and a time to quit searching.
    A time to keep and a time to throw away.
⁷ A time to tear and a time to mend.
    A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
⁸ A time to love and a time to hate.
    A time for war and a time for peace.


Timing is important. All the experiences listed in these verses are appropriate at certain times. The secret to peace with God is to discover, accept, and appreciate God's perfect timing. The danger is to doubt or resent God's timing. This can lead to despair, rebellion, or moving ahead without His advice.


Joe





 

All you need is God. (Ecclesiastes 2:16)

Ecclesiastes 2:16

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁶ For the wise and the foolish both die. The wise will not be remembered any longer than the fool. In the days to come, both will be forgotten.

Solomon realized that wisdom alone cannot guarantee eternal life. Wisdom, riches, and personal achievement matter very little after death - and everyone must die. We must not build our lives on perishable pursuits, but on the solid foundation of God. Then even if everything we have is taken away, we still have God, who is all we really need anyway.

Joe

 

 

 

 

Chasing the wind? (Ecclesiastes 2:11)

Ecclesiastes 2:11

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹¹ But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.

Solomon summarized all his attempts at finding life's meaning as "chasing the wind." We feel the wind as it passes, but we can't catch hold of it or keep it. In all our accomplishments, even the big ones, our good feelings are only temporary. Security and self-worth are not found in these accomplishments, but far beyond them in the Love of God. Think about what you find worthwhile in your life - where you place your time, energy, and money. Will you one day look back and decide that these, too, were like "chasing the wind"?

Joe

 

The people become like their leaders. (Proverbs 29:16)

Proverbs 29:16

 

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁶ When the wicked are in authority, sin flourishes,
    but the godly will live to see their downfall.


When the wicked are in leadership, sin prevails. In any organization - whether a church, a business, a family, or a government - the climate comes from the top. The people become like their leaders. What kind of climate are you setting for the people you lead?




Joe


 

Don't forget the people who are helping you. (Proverbs 27:18)

Proverbs 27:18

New Life Version (NLV)

¹⁸ He who cares for the fig tree will eat its fruit, and he who cares for the one he works for will be honored.

With all the problems an employer (or leader) has, it can be easy to overlook the very people who most deserve attention - faithful employees (or volunteers). The people who stand behind you, who work hard and help you get the job done, deserve to share in your success. Be sure that in all your worrying, planning and organizing, you don't forget the people who are helping you the most.

Joe

 

 

 

Cut the fuel line. (Proverbs 26:20)

Proverbs 26:20

The Message (MSG)

²⁰ When you run out of wood, the fire goes out;
    when the gossip ends, the quarrel dies down.


Talking about every little irritation or piece of gossip only keeps the fires of anger going. Refusing to discuss them cuts the fuel line and makes the fires die out. Does someone continually irritate you? Decide not to complain about the person, and see if your irritation dies from lack of fuel.


Joe