thirteen

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.
- Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)
 
Today is Friday the 13th.
For many people, that date carries a reputation for bad luck. Movies have been made about it, stories have been told about it, and some people even go out of their way to avoid certain things on this day.
But I have always liked Friday the 13th. I’ve never really considered it to be a day of bad luck. In fact, I’ve seen plenty of good things happen when the number 13 is involved.
Of course, sometimes difficult things do happen on the 13th. But difficult things also happen on the 4th, the 17th, and every other day on the calendar. The truth is, thirteen is just a number. Sometimes we attach meaning to things because of one experience or one difficult moment. If something painful happened on a particular day, it’s easy to start expecting that day to bring trouble again.
But our lives are not guided by luck, superstition, or numbers on a calendar, they are guided by God.
Scripture reminds us to trust in the Lord with all our hearts and not lean on our own understanding. When we acknowledge Him in all our ways, He directs our paths. Trusting God means stepping forward even when we don’t know exactly what the day will hold. Some days will bring joy, others will bring challenges, but none of them are outside of God’s care.
The date on the calendar does not determine our future, God does.
So whether today feels ordinary, exciting, or uncertain, we can move forward with confidence knowing that the One who guides our lives is far greater than any superstition or fear.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible 

let go

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
- Isaiah 43:18–19 (NIV)

Spring is a season of movement. The days grow longer, the air changes, and the earth begins to wake up after months of winter.
But sometimes the hardest part of moving forward isn’t the step ahead — it’s letting go of what’s behind us.
Letting go is hard. Whether it’s the death of a loved one, a relationship that has ended, or trying to pick up the pieces after life didn’t unfold the way we expected, moving forward is not easy. People often expect us to bounce back and be our old selves in a matter of days, when in reality all we want — and sometimes all we need — is time to mourn.
God understands that.
Through the prophet Isaiah, He gives a simple but powerful reminder: forget the former things and do not dwell on the past. That doesn’t mean the past didn’t matter or that it didn’t shape us. It simply means that God is not finished writing our story.
Too often we hold onto things that keep us stuck — mistakes we’ve made, regrets we carry, disappointments we didn’t expect, or even seasons that simply didn’t turn out the way we hoped.
I’ve noticed in my own life that it’s easy to replay old moments in my mind. Things I wish I had done differently or opportunities I missed. But when we stay focused on what’s behind us, we can miss what God is doing right in front of us.
Isaiah reminds us that God is always at work, creating something new. Sometimes it’s obvious, and sometimes it’s just beginning to “spring up” quietly where we least expect it.
Just like the first flowers pushing through the soil, God often begins new things in small ways.
Our part is to notice… and to trust Him enough to keep moving forward.
When we release the weight of yesterday, our hands are free to receive what God is doing today.

 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

wake up

And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
- Romans 13:11 (NIV)
 
This weekend we “sprang forward” with Daylight Saving Time. Whether we like it or not, the clocks moved ahead and suddenly an hour of sleep disappeared.
For some people it’s exciting—longer evenings, more sunlight, hints of spring. For others, it feels like a groggy adjustment as our bodies try to catch up with the clock.
Spiritually, though, this idea of waking up is something Scripture talks about often.
Paul wrote in Romans that it is time to wake up from our spiritual slumber. Life has a way of lulling us into routines. We go to work, check our lists, run errands, scroll through our phones, and before long days have passed without us really noticing what God might be doing around us.
I know this happens to me sometimes. I can get so focused on getting through my to-do list that I forget to pause and recognize the bigger picture of what God is doing in my life and in the lives of the people around me.
Spring is a wonderful reminder to wake up.
The world outside begins to stretch and stir again. Trees that looked lifeless start pushing out tiny buds. Flowers push through the soil. The sun stays up a little longer each evening.
Creation itself seems to whisper: It’s time to wake up.
The same can be true in our faith. Sometimes God gently nudges our hearts, reminding us to lift our eyes again—to notice His presence, His blessings, and the opportunities He places in front of us to love and serve others.
Every new day is an invitation to wake up spiritually. To pay attention. To live intentionally. To remember that our time on this earth matters.
And just like the clock moved forward this weekend, our faith can move forward too.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

spring forward

For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.
- Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NLT)
 
Each year, we “spring forward,” adjusting our clocks to make better use of daylight as winter fades. That is this weekend, by the way, don't forget! Daylight Saving Time was first introduced to take advantage of longer daylight hours during the warmer months—more light for work, for planting, for productivity, and for life lived outdoors. It wasn’t about creating time, but about using it well.
Spring has always been a season of beginnings. Seeds are planted beneath the soil long before anything is visible. Growth starts quietly, hidden from view, requiring trust, patience, and forward movement—even when progress can’t yet be seen.
Faith works the same way.
Moving forward in our faith doesn’t always feel dramatic. Sometimes it feels like loss—an hour of sleep, a season of waiting, a step taken before we feel ready. But God uses forward movement to position us for growth. When we choose to trust Him with our next step, we are planting seeds—seeds of obedience, hope, and perseverance.
Springing forward spiritually means believing that what God is doing beneath the surface matters. It means trusting that He is working in the soil of our hearts, preparing us for what’s to come. We don’t rush the growth—but we don’t stay stuck either.
God is faithful in every season. And when we move forward with Him, even small steps can lead to abundant growth.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

refresh

Jesus replied, ‘I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don’t be surprised when I say, “You must be born again.” The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.’
- John 3:5–8 (NLT)
 
I come from a time when kids played outside all day. Parents didn’t track us with phones or timers—they just said, “Come home when the streetlights come on.” I could be in my own backyard making roads in the dirt for my brother’s Matchbox cars, or at the park rolling down a hill in freshly cut grass.
By the time I came inside, I was covered in dirt—hands, knees, feet, hair. And without fail, my mother would send me straight to the bath. No arguments. No delay. And stepping out of that water—clean, fresh, reset—felt so good.
That’s the picture I think of when Jesus talks about being born of water and the Spirit.
The refreshing God offers isn’t about scrubbing away mistakes or trying harder to stay clean. It’s about renewal. It’s about the Spirit doing what only He can do—washing, restoring, and breathing new life into us. We don’t control it. We don’t fully understand it. Like the wind, we can’t see where it comes from or where it’s going—but we feel its effect.
The Holy Spirit refreshes us from the inside out. He removes what clings to us from the world and reminds us who we truly are. We don’t just need correction—we need renewal. Again and again.
And just like that childhood bath, God’s refreshment isn’t meant to be a one-time thing. It’s an invitation to return, to be made new, and to step back into life lighter than before.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

reveal

If people can’t see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; but when they attend to what He reveals, they are most blessed.
- Proverbs 29:18 (MSG)
 
We love a good reveal.
Grand openings come with excitement—fresh spaces, new products, big plans. Marketing managers do their job well: radio spots, TV ads, flyers, “coming soon” billboards. Anticipation builds and expectations grow. And then the day finally arrives… the doors open… and sometimes the reveal is less than glamorous. Less than promised. Less than we imagined.
That kind of disappointment sticks with us. It teaches us to expect less, to guard our hope, to assume the reveal won’t live up to the hype.
But God’s reveals don’t work that way.
God doesn’t overwhelm us with flashy previews or polished campaigns. He reveals Himself intentionally, often quietly, and always faithfully. When we miss what He’s doing, we stumble—not because we don’t care, but because we can’t see. Yet when we attend to what He reveals, Scripture says we are most blessed.
God doesn’t reveal everything at once. He reveals what we need, when we need it. One truth. One step. One word. And if a word from God is all we have, then a word from God is all we need.
The blessing isn’t found in knowing the whole plan—it’s found in paying attention to what He’s showing us right now. God’s reveal may not come with fanfare, but it never disappoints. It always leads us closer to Him.
 
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Daily Inspiration from the Bible

dry

This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
- Ezekiel 37:5–6 (NIV)
 
There is a difference between living and being truly alive.
In Ezekiel 37, the bones weren’t just tired or weak—they were dry. Lifeless. Beyond self-repair. And yet, God didn’t start by giving them direction or discipline. He gave them breath. Because without His breath, there is no real life.
I didn’t grow up in church the way many people did. Church attendance was sporadic at best, spread across multiple denominations, and I never really felt like I had a place that was “home.” As I got older, I drifted away completely. Life became heavy and difficult—but I didn’t make the connection that something deeper was missing.
It wasn’t until an accident nearly cost me my life that I began to seek God again. And even then, it took years before I truly learned who He is—that He isn’t just someone we learn about, but Someone we can know. Someone we can have a relationship with.
Looking back, I can see it clearly now. I was living. But I wasn’t alive.
Like the bones in Ezekiel’s vision, I existed without breath. And when God restored my breath—His breath—everything changed. My vision. My hope. My understanding of who He is and who I am in Him. Life didn’t suddenly become perfect, but it became alive.
God still breathes life into dry places. Into weary hearts. Into faith that feels thin or forgotten. And when His breath fills us, we begin to live the way we were always meant to live.
 
#dailybreadbykitty
Daily Inspiration from the Bible