I will

I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.
- Ezekiel 36:27 (NKJV)
 
Two little words caught my attention when a friend sent me this verse last week – “I will”.
Not I might. Not I'll think about it. Not even I'll try. I will.
How often do we make promises with the best intentions, only to find that life gets in the way? We forget, we get distracted, or circumstances change.
But when God says, "I will," He means it. And what a beautiful promise this is! God doesn't just give us a list of rules and expect us to figure everything out on our own. He promises to put His Spirit within us, guiding us, strengthening us, and helping us walk in His ways.
We won't always get everything right. We'll stumble, make mistakes, and occasionally head in the wrong direction. But we don't have to walk this journey alone.
God's Spirit is within us, and His faithfulness doesn't depend on our ability to be perfect.
He said, "I will." And that's a promise we can trust.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

from my driveway

I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
- Genesis 9:13 (NIV)
 
Last Thursday brought storms through our area. Afterward, pictures started popping up from people who had seen beautiful rainbows—some captured the entire arc, and some even saw double rainbows.
I walked outside and looked up.
From my driveway, I couldn't see the whole thing. Just one incredibly vibrant piece stretching through the clouds.
But what a piece it was.
After the flood, God placed the rainbow in the sky as a sign of His covenant. A rainbow doesn't create God's promise. It's a reminder of one He already made.
And maybe that's why I love the view I got.
Someone else could see the whole rainbow. Someone else got two. I only saw a piece—but their view didn't make mine any less beautiful.
Sometimes we do the same thing with God's goodness. We look at someone else's life and see what appears to be the whole rainbow while we're standing in our own driveway holding one little piece.
But God's faithfulness isn't determined by how much of it I can see.
A rainbow requires both light and rain. I'd certainly prefer the sunshine without the storm, but together they create something neither one can produce alone.
The rainbow isn't a promise that there will never be another storm. It's a reminder that God will still be God when the storm is over.
I may not always understand the rain. I may only see a piece of what God is doing.
But I can trust the One who made the promise.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

sunlight

For we live by faith, not by sight.
- 2 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV)
 
Last week Randy and I had some errands to run, so we went out to accomplish all the things. On our way home, I looked toward the western sky and saw a sunset unlike anything I had ever seen.
The sun itself was hidden behind a bank of dark clouds, but above them was a perfect column of golden light reaching into the sky.
Of course, I had to take a picture.
Looking at it later, something struck me: you can’t actually see the sun in the photograph.
But there is absolutely no question that it’s there.
Its light is spilling around the clouds. Their edges are glowing. The entire sky is evidence of something hidden from view.
Faith can feel like that sometimes.
There are times when I can clearly see God working—prayers are answered, doors open, and His presence seems unmistakable. Then there are seasons when I can’t see what He is doing at all.
But not seeing God at work isn’t the same as God not working.
Paul reminds us that we live by faith, not by sight. I don’t have to understand everything God is doing to trust that He is still there.
I couldn’t see the sun that evening.
But I could see its light.
Sometimes the glow around the clouds is enough to remind us that the Son is still there.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

unauthorized

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever
- Hebrews 13:8 (NIV)
 
Cats do not approve of change.
In my latest attempt to downsize, I sold the unused cat exercise wheel—which is basically an enormous hamster wheel—and replaced our six-foot, multi-tiered cat tree with a smaller five-foot version.
Boots is not impressed. The top platform of the old tree was his throne. From there he could survey his kingdom and keep an eye on everything happening below. Since the new tree arrived, he hasn’t been near it. Neither have the other cats, unless a human puts them there. And even then, they don’t stay long.
Apparently, nobody approved this renovation. I laugh at them, but I wonder how often God watches me react to change much the same way. We like what’s familiar. We know where everything is, how everything works and where our favorite perch is. Then something changes, and suddenly we’re standing at a distance thinking, I don’t like this.
Life changes constantly. Some changes we choose. Others happen without our permission, and some take much longer to accept than others.
But Hebrews gives us something steady to hold onto: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.
Our surroundings may change. Our routines may change. People and circumstances may change. We may even find ourselves looking for a new place to perch.
But the One we trust hasn’t changed at all.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

masks

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
- 1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV)
 
October is here, and everywhere you look there are pumpkins, skeletons and spiderwebs. Parents are planning costumes, churches and organizations are getting ready for trunk-or-treat events, and before long hordes of little superheroes, princesses, dinosaurs and who-knows-what-else will be holding out buckets asking for candy.
Wearing a costume for an evening can be fun.
But sometimes I wonder how many costumes we wear when it isn’t Halloween. “I’m fine.” “I’ve got it handled.” “Nothing bothers me.” “My faith is strong.”
We can become pretty good at showing people the version of ourselves we want them to see. And there’s nothing wrong with privacy—we don’t owe everyone our entire story. But there’s a difference between privacy and pretending.
Samuel was looking at outward appearances when God reminded him that He sees something different. He looks at the heart. That means there is one place we never need a costume. With God, we don’t have to pretend we aren’t hurting, questioning, struggling, angry or afraid. He already knows what’s underneath the mask. And He isn’t waiting for some polished version of us to show up.
He wants us.
Costumes are fun for October. But when you come before God, leave the mask at the door.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

character

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
- Philippians 2:3–4 (NIV)
 
I was driving to work the other morning with a migraine when a large pickup pulled up behind me at a stoplight. His headlights were shining directly into my driver’s side mirror, and the light was painful. I raised my arm to block it.
A moment later, the headlights went off.
The driver behind me had noticed.
When the light changed, he turned them back on and we both went on our way. He didn’t know why I was blocking the light. He didn’t know I had a migraine. He didn’t know me at all. He just noticed that something affecting him very little was affecting me a lot—and he did something about it.
We tend to think character reveals itself in the big things. But sometimes character is simply paying enough attention to notice someone else.
Philippians tells us not to look only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others. That requires us to look beyond ourselves—to notice the person beside us, behind us, across the table, or even in the car ahead of us.
You may never know what someone else is carrying. But you can notice.
And sometimes one small act of consideration can shine brighter than headlights ever could.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible 

enough

So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.
— Matthew 6:34 (NLT)
 
I spend a lot of time thinking about tomorrow. What needs to be done tomorrow? What am I forgetting? What could go wrong? What do I need to prepare for?
Sometimes I’m halfway through today while my mind is already living in tomorrow. Jesus gives us some pretty practical advice about that:
Don’t.
Tomorrow will get here soon enough, and when it does, God will already be there.
We aren't promised that tomorrow will be easy. We aren't even promised that everything we're worrying about will work out the way we want.
But we are given today.
Today’s grace.
Today’s strength.
Today’s blessings.
Today’s God.
Tomorrow can wait.
There is enough for today.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible