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We’ve been studying the book of Judges and we see the cycle. God’s people did evil in his sight.

“You have not listened to me. You have put other things in my place and they have become your priority. You no longer seek me, you’re seeking something else first.”

So the Lord hands them over to the control of their enemies until they cry out to him again. When they cry out, he raises up an ordinary person to lead them to freedom.

When God’s people cry out to him, he rescues them from the enemy who has held them in bondage and sets them free. Then there is a season of peace again … until his people once again become complacent and drift back.

What God has been telling me over and over again is, “My people are in bondage and they don’t even know it.” What is our bondage? Our screens. Our screens have taken the place of God, and we wonder why we can’t hear God anymore. Our screens have become our tool of wisdom, our source of connection, and our guiding voice. All while we miss the fact that the enemy has us in bondage.

Here’s what my soul knows – My phone is evil in the sight of God. It’s taking me away from him and the life he created me for. Is there some good there too? Absolutely? But the enemy is capitalizing on the good I cling to and bombarding me with far more evil. God is sending a message, and the message is, TURN AWAY FROM THIS.

The average American spends 7 hours and 4 minutes per day looking at their screens. What we don’t see are the chains the enemy binds us in with our screens, and the darkness that dances around us while we do. We are literally being destroyed. Our families are being destroyed. We are consumed and we keep coming back for more. More links on the chain. More darkness dancing around us.

So, who will cry out to God? Who will see this bondage for what it is and decide we don’t want to live this way anymore? I know God has been impressing this on me. In my prayer time, God has told me about his desire to rescue his children from the chains of our phones. It’s just hard for me to imagine my words being powerful enough to make a difference, when the truth is, I too struggle with that bondage at times. And I already see my sweet 3 year old grandson with glazed over eyes, chained to a screen.

But as we study the Old Testament and we see the stories repeated over and over again, we cannot ignore it’s still happening. The bondage of the enemy looks different, but the chains are still real. The effects are still real. Lives are being sacrificed and God is not pleased. And none of this will change until we cry out to God for help.

So, who is God raising up to lead his people back to him? Ordinary people, just as he always has. Ordinary people like me who is absolutely sickened by my own chosen bondage. I’m letting it happen. And ordinary people like a 14 year old girl named Madison.

The video of Madison’s testimony is going viral. Some may dismiss it, but I have no doubt God’s Holy Spirit is telling me to not only listen, but to blast this. I’m not going to change anything, I’m going to read it just as it’s being shared. I believe within her testimony is the most vivid depiction of the real bondage we’re in today.

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I was in the backseat scrolling through TikTok, barely paying attention to mom driving me to volleyball practice. My little brother Tyler was playing his Nintendo Switch next to me.

The semi-truck came out of nowhere. Mom screamed.

But then… I was floating above our car.

That’s when I saw him.

When he smiled at me, I felt like I was home. Really home. Not like our house back in Oak Ridge — something deeper.

“Am I dead?” I asked him.

It looked like a giant room with thousands of screens floating in the air.

“What is this?” I asked.

As we walked through the room, I could see closer. Each screen showed someone like me, hunched over. Scrolling mindlessly. Their eyes looked empty.

“What are those?” I whispered, moving closer to Jesus.

The shadows were putting more links on the chain with every swipe of her finger.

I remembered crying in my bedroom because Kylie posted pictures from her birthday party that I wasn’t invited to. I’d spent three hours that night scrolling through everyone’s perfect lives, feeling worse and worse.

Jesus touched the screen and I could hear Emma’s thoughts:

We moved to another screen.

“His anger is growing. His ability to feel compassion is shrinking.”

Jesus showed me more screens. Kids sending cruel messages to classmates while laughing. Girls taking inappropriate pictures to get attention.

I shook my head. He waved his hand, and I saw what looked like an hourglass. But instead of sand, it was filled with moments of my life. Moments I’d never get back.

I saw hundreds of sunsets I’d missed because I was taking selfies instead of actually looking at them. I saw myself ignoring my brother when he wanted to play because I couldn’t pause my TikTok scrolling.

“8,422 hours,” Jesus said quietly. “That’s how much of your life was given to a screen.”

“Yes,” Jesus said. “And that’s why I’m showing you this. The enemy has found a way into every home, every bedroom, every mind, without anyone noticing. Parents give their children these devices without understanding they’re handing them poison in small, addictive doses.”

He showed me hundreds of moments where he had tried to speak to me — when I was alone in my room, or walking to school, or lying in bed at night. Times when his presence was there, when he wanted to comfort me or guide me.

But every single time, I’d reached for my phone instead. I’d chosen the noise over his voice.

Tears were streaming down my face now. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t know.”

Then he showed me one more scene.

Outside it was raining, just like the day of the accident. But inside, it was warm and bright. I could almost smell mom’s cookies baking.

“This could have been tonight,” Jesus said softly, “if the phones had been put away.”

“Madison,” Jesus said, “your time here isn’t finished. You have an important message to share.”

He smiled that smile that made me feel completely loved. “I’m always with you, Madison. But your family needs you, and others need to hear what you’ve seen.”

“Some will,” he said. “And that’s enough to start changing things.”

Then pain. So much pain.

The doctors called it a miracle. They said my heart had stopped for 12 minutes. They said I should have brain damage, but all my tests came back normal. They couldn’t explain it.

Tyler made me a card that said, “Best sister ever,” even though I’d been pretty mean to him lately.

When they finally took the breathing tube out, the first thing I said was, “Where’s my phone?”

And I started crying. Not because I missed my phone, but because I was relieved it was gone.

The first night I was home from the hospital, I asked everyone to put their phones in a basket. Then I told them about Jesus. About the screens. About the shadows. About the moments we’d lost.

That was six months ago.

The hardest part was going back to school and telling my friends.

My best friend Zoe deleted Snapchat after I told her what I saw. She said she’d been feeling more anxious and sad lately but couldn’t figure out why. Now she’s sleeping better.

I still struggle sometimes. Those apps are designed to pull you back in. Sometimes I borrow Mom’s phone and find myself mindlessly scrolling before I even realize what I’m doing.

If you’re listening to this, I want you to try something. Just for one day, put your phone away. Look at the people around you. Really look at them. Listen when they talk. Feel the sun on your face without taking a picture of it.

You might be surprised by what you hear in the quiet.

I know some people won’t believe my story. That’s okay.

The shadows want you to believe you’re missing out. But the truth is, life — real life — is happening right now, all around you.

But I know what I saw. I know what I felt. And I know we can’t keep living like this — heads down, thumbs scrolling, hearts empty.

Put down your phone. Look up. He’s waiting to show you what really matters.

My name is Madison Taylor Brooks.

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Jesus is opening our eyes to the chains. The enemy has found his way into every home, and every screen is a little glowing prison where we are held in bondage. The enemy of our soul and his workers speak lies through our screens, and we keep coming back for more. Chained. Captive. Enslaved.

Jesus said in Luke 4: 18-19, “God has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

It’s time to be set free, my fellow captives. The enemy has done his damage and now it’s time to cry out to the Lord for him to break these chains. Jesus, set us free.

Psalm 107: 13-14, “Lord, help! they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. He led them from the darkness and deepest gloom; he snapped their chains.”

Break these chains, Lord. We’re truly in trouble here.

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Do you feel like you work hard, but something always happens and you never have success? Like all your work is for nothing? You work and you work and you work, but there never seems to be a harvest after all the work?

If that’s you, you have no idea how absolutely perfect the timing of today’s devotional is! We will be looking at a story of God’s people who were stuck in a season of suck, absolutely struggling to survive, never reaping a harvest after all their hard work. And this story is going to show us the WHY behind it all, then the way OUT of it all. And my friend, it may just be your answer.

We’re in Judges 6, let’s first read the story in verses 1-6. “The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. So the Lord handed them over to the Midianites for 7 years. The Midianites were so cruel that the Israelites made hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds. Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, they would be attacked. They left the Israelites with nothing to eat, taking all the sheep, goats, cattle and donkeys. These enemy hordes, coming with their livestock and tents, were as thick as locusts; they arrived on droves of camels too numerous to count. And they stayed until the land was stripped bare. So Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help.”

If you’ve been following our study this week of the book of Judges, you remember how this is an account of God’s chosen and treasured people whom he continually rescued. But each time after he rescued them and they lived in peace for a while, they would eventually go back to their old evil and stubborn ways. And that’s precisely what has happened here. In their time of peace while life was easier, they grew complacent and they drifted their way back into sin.

What was their sin? They had once again elevated other things into God’s place. They stopped worshiping God and instead gave their lives to things that had no power to help them, only power to destroy them. So, they were destroyed. In their sin, God handed them over to their enemy for 7 years. That enemy was the Midianites.

The Midinites were ruthless and without mercy. They were cruel beyond all measure, absolutely starving the Israelites.

So now the Israelites were not living in their beautiful blessed land promised to them by God, they were instead hiding in caves fighting for survival. This wasn’t God’s best plan for them, it wasn’t his promise for them, but it became his plan of redemption.

You see, God has a Plan A for your life. It is his best plan. A plan where you live up to your fullest potential and walk in his promises. But, because he has given us free will instead of making us brainwashed robots without choices, we have the power of choice. You can choose to follow God’s best plan for your life, or you can choose not to. When you choose not to, then God must resort to Plan B. Plan B is harder. Plan B takes much longer. But, plan B redeems our allowed bad choices. Thank you God for writing a Plan B instead of just writing us off.

God handed his people over to their enemies for absolute hardship as his Plan B. His eye never left them. He saw them as they hid in caves. He saw them as a they struggled so hard to plant food and harvest even a single meal before their enemies would steal it. And in his plan of redemption, he knew eventually this hardship would bring them back to him.

This is a picture of what sin does in our lives. Sin robs us of all we work hard for. Sin never allows us to see a good harvest. Sin creates problems that leave us hiding in dark places, forcing us to forfeit blessings and promises. But never forget, there’s a way back from that.

Notice verse 2 says, “The Midianites were so cruel that the Israelites made hiding place for themselves in mountains, caves, and strongholds.” Mountains, those are hard places. Caves, those are dark places. And strongholds. Wow, this is where we hide. When we allow sin into our lives, when we do the things we know we shouldn’t do, when we put other things before God and wander away from him, we find ourselves in hard places, dark places and strongholds.

Is there something that has a strong hold on your life? Something that you seem powerless to overcome? Something that pulls you back into what you swore you would never go back to again? Something that holds you back from a life of freedom? That’s what happens when we continue to do things our own way without God.

So, God allows a Plan B. A plan that is so much harder than his original plan for us. A plan that takes so much longer than he path he had for us But it’s a plan that redeems our bad choices and eventually brings us back to him.

God knew this hardship would eventually bring his people back to him. It took them 7 years of hiding, 7 years of extreme hardship, 7 years of a constantly stolen harvests to finally cry out to God for help. Sadly, I bet God was ready to rescue them far before that. I bet he was ready to respond to their cry for help on year 1, on year 2, on year 3. But they didn’t cry to him. They just hid in their season of suck as it stretched on and on for 7 years.

If you’re hiding in your season of suck, this is your sign to cry out now. Don’t wait. Don’t stay stuck here. Why would you spend another year of all you’re working so hard for to just be stolen? Why would you forfeit that harvest again? Why would you stay in that dark place? Why would you sit in your stronghold as the destruction continues? You can cry out to God right now and things will start changing.

When the Israelites finally cried out to God, he brought a rescuer to them. His name was Gideon. He was a totally unlikely hero, but his weakness was not a problem for God. When God’s people seek him for help, he helps! He shows up and changes things. He brings us out of our dark caves, off our hard mountains, and sets us free from those strongholds. He equips us for battle and leads us to victory.

But none of that happens until we cry out to him.

Sin and going your own way has maybe taken you the long way around and you now find yourself in a season of suck where nothing seems to work and you’re just stuck. Honey, don’t stay there. Ask God now what needs to change. Ask him now to check your heart and reveal anything in you that is offensive to him. Put God back in his rightful place in your life. Give him his space and shut everything else down.

Psalm 120:1, “I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer.” I believe that is true for me. Do you believe that can be true for you too? Do you believe you can take all your trouble to God, all your wrong choices, all your hiding and shame, all your mess ups and misplaced priorities, and cry out to him for help?

Psalm 50:15, “Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory.” There it is. Will you call on him in this trouble? If you will, God will rescue you. Somehow, someway, he will show you how to fight and get out of this. He will take you off the mountain of your hard place. He will lead you out of those dark caves where you’ve been hiding. And girl, he will set you free of those strongholds.

And when he rescues you, you give him glory.

Hasn’t he already rescued you so many times? Is he getting the glory still?

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What you have is what God will use. What he gives you will be what is required.

Why do we become so hyper focused on what we don’t have and then spend our lives trying to get more? Our entire existence gets wrapped up in trying to earn more so we can get more. For what? Really, does all of that really make you happy, or does it add the stress of trying to pay for it, maintain it and manage it.

In my late 30’s I wanted nothing but the big house to fill with all the beautiful things. So, we built it and I decorated it. Then we struggled to keep it. Soon, what we owned owned us.

We then entered legal battles to keep our little girls who we were adopting from an orphanage in Mexico. Money was needed for attorneys and the problem was I had spent all our money plus I had charged every card we had to it’s max. That’s when we began selling things. Piece by piece, I sold all the beautiful things I had filled the big house with just so we could pay the next attorney to fight for our family.

Eventually, our family sat in an empty house with nothing but mattresses on the floor. And you know what I heard? I heard the echo of laughter. Our kids were racing through the entire house on scooters screaming with delight, “Why didn’t we get rid of everything a long time ago? This is awesome, Mom!”

That was the first day I felt free from everything I had been working so hard to collect and build. We sold the big dream house and we began traveling. That was 13 years ago. I still don’t own a house, a bed, a dining room table or a couch. And honestly, I don’t need any of it. I’ve found what God has given me is enough and when my heart isn’t constantly chasing more, then my heart is free to be filled by things far greater than my money could buy.

One day this life will be over and you will have a legacy that outlives you. I assure you that legacy will have nothing to do with what you bought or how much money you had in your account. The legacy you leave will be how you used what God gave you. How will you use the time God gives you? How will you use the talents he has blessed you with? How will you use what you have to help others?

The legacy of a man named Shamgar is summed up in 2 sentences in Judges chapter 3. His entire life story, everything that would be remembered, written and talked about is right here. Judges 3:31, “Shamgar son of Anath rescued Israel. He once killed 600 Philistines with an ox goad.”

That’s it. His whole life comes down to this. We know because he is in the book of Judges that he is one of the 12 judges God himself would raise up as a rescuer for the Israelites. He rescued his people by using an ox goad.

First, I know you want to know what an ox goad is. Well, it’s simply a stick about 8 feet long used to poke and guide an ox when plowing. And just in case you’re a city girl, an ox is just a cow. So essentially, this is a cattle prod. Shamgar rescued his people by using a cattle prod as a very unexpected weapon for victory.

What he had is what God used. What God had given him is all that was required. He didn’t have to wait to fight his battles until he had the proper weapons. He didn’t have to store up an artillery before going to battle. Nope, he showed up with his cattle prod and he did what had to be done.

What we see here is God wants us to use what he has already given us instead of thinking we have to have something more or something different. What you have already is enough. The simplest thing you have is the most powerful thing you could possibly have when God chooses to use it.

God uses simple things to accomplish great things. You don’t need more things. You don’t need different things. You need to let God work through the simplest of things you already have.

God uses simple people to accomplish great things. Shamgar was the son of Anath. Anath is essentially a nobody in history. We know absolutely nothing about him. He wasn’t anyone special. He didn’t come from anyone special or do anything special. But he raised a son who God then raised up as a leader, and that is special.

I don’t know who you’re raising, but God says they’re for a special purpose. I don’t know what work you’re doing, but God says it’s a work he wants to use. I don’t know what you have, but God says it’s enough.

You’re just a simple person who God wants to use. You may only have simple things, but God wants to use your simple things for eternal impact. What you have could rescue another soul. What you have could set someone free. What you have could point someone to Jesus.

2 Peter 1:3-4, “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. (He has already done it. Right now, we have everything we need to live right, live well and live big.) We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. (That’s how we will do it – by coming to know God more, not getting more.) And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. (Our human desires for more are getting in the way, but God enables us to escape that corruption.)

What a trick of the enemy to keep us so hyper focused on getting more so that we fail to see the value of the simple things we already have. What a trick of Satan himself to make us think we’re too simple to ever be used by God.

Hey girl, you’re exactly what God is looking for! What you already have is everything he will need.

What if we stopped our quest for more and decided we will just be available more?

When I let go of the big house and the obsession with filling it, I suddenly had all this time to invest in my family and others. I had time to start speaking to you each morning. I had time to be God’s vessel instead of a robotic sales person chasing bonuses and big bucks. The house and the job would never be part of my legacy anyway. It will probably be something more like, “She just sat wherever she was, held a simple microphone, and taught the Bible in a way we could understand. She often twisted her words, said things she shouldn’t have, and laughed a lot, but she made Jesus real.”

Simple person with simple things, used by God.

That’s who I am. That’s who you are called to be.

Clear your life of everything else, see what you already have and decide you’re going to start using it for God.

What you have is what God will use. What he gives you will be what is required.

My prayer for you is Hebrews 13:21, “May he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, though the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to him. All glory to him forever and ever!”

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What could you do when you’re empowered, driven and directed by the Holy Spirit? Answer: Absolutely anything God desired. No matter the odds, no matter the circumstances, no matter your limitations. WITH GOD, nothing would be impossible. This is the power you seek. This is the direction you seek. The Holy Spirit living, working and flowing through you is your answer.

That’s how you get through this. That’s how you get your breakthrough. That’s how you go to the next level. That’s how you experience victory. It is the gift of God’s Spirit within you making the impossible possible.

Yesterday, we read about a man named Othniel who was the first of 12 judges God would raise up as leaders in battle for his people to set them free from their bondage and lead them back into a right relationship with God. Othniel is not listed as a strong and mighty man. He’s not listed to have extreme wisdom or top notch military training. His one qualifying factor is named using only 8 words. 8 words is what sets Othniel apart to lead the Israelites to victory. Judges 3:10, “The Spirit of the Lord came upon him.”

God’s spirit gave him power. God’s spirit guided his steps. God’s spirit strengthened him. God’s spirit made him a great leader when it appears he was never a leader before. It was his only qualifying factor. He had a job to do and God’s spirit was the way he would do it.

What is it you need to do? What impossible are you staring down wondering how in the world you will ever overcome this? What seems way too big and way too hard for you? My sister, there are only two ways you can do this: With God’s help or without God’s help. Those are your choices.

Without God’s help, you will be relying on your own strength. Without God’s help you will be using your own limited sight and knowledge. Without God’s help you will be restrained by human limitations as you battle demonic attacks. That’s not a fair battle, but it is the battle you will face. The enemy won’t change just because you’re working from only human power.

But, you could do this with God’s help. You can walk in there today with the Spirit of God guiding your words. You could show up today with a higher perspective and divine wisdom flowing through you. You could have supernatural strength within to do impossible things as you battle the attacks of the enemy. And let me tell you something right now, YOU COULD WIN!

Why would we ever choose to do this without God? But we often do.

I was recently talking with a friend of mine who is struggling in her marriage. They’re finally going to marriage counseling and she said, “We only have two choices – either this will work, or this won’t work.” Immediately I felt God’s spirit rise up in me and say, “Nope, that can’t be on the table. Divorce can’t be an option walking in. Your options here are you either do this WITH God, or you try and do this WITHOUT God. Girl, do this WITH GOD.”

That is the sole qualifying factor to saving a marriage. That is the only qualifying factor for guiding your children. That is the only qualifying factor for overcoming what has been holding you back. That is the only qualifying factor for stepping out of bondage and living in the full potential of the life God has for you. The qualifying factor is being empowered by the Spirit of God.

God, I want to do this with you. I don’t want to even thing about doing it without you.

Now, let me give you a word from God that will stir up his Spirit within you right now. When you hear this, you will feel that leap of his Spirit inside. Ready?

Zechariah 4:6-7, “Not by might nor by power, but by my spirit. What are you mighty mountain, you will become level ground.”

Now the MSG translation, “You can’t force these things. They only come about through my Spirit. So big mountain, who do you think you are?”

Whatever mountain you’re facing, whatever has been standing in your way, the only way you can overcome it is through God’s Holy Spirit. This will not be overcome through any idea you come up with on your own. Your own skills or willpower will not be enough. Your plans will fall short. You won’t be able to force this. That mountain simply can not and will not be moved by you.

Forcing this will only exhaust you. The mountain will not grow weary from you trying to move it – you will. The mountain will not grow frustrated – you will. The problem will stand tall and mighty and be absolutely unshaken by your attempts. That’s the result of you using your own power and force in this battle.

But everything changes when you are empowered by the Spirit of God. With God, nothing is impossible. With God’s Spirit flowing through you, that mountain standing in your way becomes level ground.

It is God’s Spirit that will give you the right battle plan. You fight for your marriage with God’s Spirit guiding you. You build your business with God’s Spirit guiding you. You overcome your strongholds with God’s Spirit guiding you. You restore your family with God’s Spirit guiding you. You walk through this and you heal with God’s Spirit guiding you.

Absolutely nothing else matters. Not your degree. Not your strengths or talents. Not your past and not your big plans. Nothing but God’s Spirit.

8 words is all you need to change everything about your story. “The Spirit of the Lord came upon her.” This is how supernatural power and strength shows up. This is how divinely directed next steps are taken. This is how someone totally ordinary like you is able to do the extraordinary.

Holy Spirit, come. You are welcome here. There is space for you in my life. You’re everything I need.

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Where is there distress in your life? Where are you burdened and suffering? Do you know that God wants to rescue you? He wants to restore you. But first, he wants you to learn the lesson he has for you here so you don’t just come right back to this place of suffering once again.

This week we’re in a new book of the Bible. We will make our way through Judges. This is an Old Testament book with an unstated author. Many believe it was written by the Prophet Samuel about 1,000 years before Jesus. Regardless, we know this … 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.” With confidence we know God wants to teach us from his word and help us do what is right so we can overcome what has been wrong in our lives.

Could you agree that maybe there’s been something wrong in your life? Maybe your heart has gotten a little twisted or your priorities are out of alignment. And because of what is wrong, you are living in a life that has fallen short of God’s best promises. But the good news is, God doesn’t want to just leave his girls burdened and suffering. He wants to teach us so we can do better.

That’s what we’re going to learn today from Judges chapter 2 & 3. Lord, help us to realize what’s wrong in our lives and teach us to do what is right. And God says, “Okay, my girl, let’s get to work!”

The author of Judges literally tells us what the entire book is about in 1 paragraph. He sums it up in chapter 2, verse 16-19, “The Lord raised up judges to rescue the Israelites from their attackers. When the Lord raised up a judge over Israel, he was with that judge and rescued the people from their enemies throughout the judge’s lifetime. For the Lord took pity on his people, who were burdened by oppression and suffering. But when the judge died, the people returned to their corrupt ways, behaving worse than those who had lived before them. They went after other gods, serving and worship them. And they refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.”

A judge here is not a legal authority of court. Rather, a judge is a military leader divinely appointed by God. The judge not only lead the people to victory, but he lead them back to a right relationship with God. But, the problem was, the people would be given victory, and eventually they would drift. They would drift in their commitments, drift in their priorities, and eventually end up back in their evil practices and stubborn ways.

Isn’t this us? God rescues us from one mess, makes a way and gets us out … but eventually we begin making the next mess for ourselves and we are back to suffering again. There’s something wrong in our lives and God wants to show us what that is and teach us to do it right.

Judges 3:7-8, “The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. (Now, here’s what they did wrong.) They forgot about the Lord their God, and they served the images of Baal and the Asherah poles. (This means they put other things before God. They trusted in something other than God. We are 100% guilty of the same.) Then the Lord burned with anger against Israel, and he turned them over to an enemy King. The Israelites served that enemy King for 8 years.”

So, what had happened here was their sin had left them in bondage. They were left to serve a master that held them captive and made their life miserable.

My friends, nothing has changed. Yes, we’re thousands of years later, but we’re still doing the same thing. We’re given the victory, then we’re growing complacent. With complacency comes contempt. We get so comfortable that we forget who saved us last time and we start doing our own thing. Little by little, God just gets pushed out. And that’s how we end up in bondage. We end up with a master in the form of an addiction, in the form of a warped sense of self, or in the form of an overly busy life that demands all our time. And there we sit with our master and we become miserable.

Has work become your master? You’re slaving away to serve that master and you have absolutely no life left.

Has that relationship become your master? You’ve given up everything to make someone else happy enough to stay, but you’ve lost yourself in the process.

Whatever has become your master will eventually make you miserable because you have replaced the one true master of your life who brings peace and fulfillment … that is God.

After the Israelites served the enemy king for 8 years, they finally came to their senses and did something different. Verse 9-11, “But when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, the Lord raised up a rescuer to save them. His name was Othniel. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he became Israel’s judge. He went to war against the enemy King, and the Lord gave Othniel victory over him. So there was peace in the land for 40 years. Then Otheniel died.”

All God’s people had to do was cry out for help, and God sent a rescuer. With that rescuer, they lived in peace for 40 years. 40 years is a long time to be blessed, and eventually you forget why you’re blessed. Eventually you forget how bad it was before God rescued you. Eventually your priorities shift and you begin the drift.

So, the people drifted.

Verse 12, here it comes. “Once again the Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight, and the Lord gave another enemy King control over Israel because of their evil. The Israelites served him for 18 years. But when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, the Lord again raised up a rescuer to save them.”

The first time it took them 8 years of living in bondage to cry out to God. This time it took 18 years. 18 years of bondage to an enemy. 18 years of slavery. 18 years of life getting worse and worse. Why in the world would they wait so long?

For the same reason we do! We think we can fix this on our own. We think God doesn’t care about our little problems, so we don’t ask. We think the next thing is going to be our answer, until it’s not. We think if we just try harder it will change, but we’re only left exhausted, frustrated and worse than we began. All while God is saying, “If you will cry out to me, I’ll rescue you.”

Keep reading in Judges and it’s the same cycle again and again. God rescues his people, they grow complacent over time and go back to old ways, and they wind up in bondage to an enemy until they finally call out to God again to rescue them. And they wait longer and longer to cry out to God, while each time the bondage grows worse and worse.

This is a cycle. A cycle you only stay stuck in if you choose it. Let’s simply NOT choose it.

We can cry out to God here, he can rescue us, and we can stay committed to him. We can stop the drift so we don’t end up in the enemy’s bondage again. We can continually call out to God as if we need him today as much as we needed him the first time he rescued us. Because actually, we do. We desperately need God. Every single day we need him.

Without God we will mess this thing up royally. That’s just the truth. Without him we will drift ourselves right into the enemy’s hands and be absolutely miserable. Lord, don’t let me drift. I make space for you, now please keep me close to you.

If you’ve been drifting away from God, recognize the cycle and call out to him now. Don’t wait. There’s absolutely no reason for you to wait until things get worse. God is so merciful to respond. Scripture says, “The Lord takes pity on his people who are burdened by oppression and suffering.”

Lord, don’t let us drift back to where we were. Save us now before it gets worse.

God works through his people. He rescues through his appointed and anointed ones. If you recognize the cycle and you’re back to drifting again, today is the best day to ask for God’s rescuer. You were never meant to rescue yourself.

If I can be the one to help, my hand is reaching out for you, Sis.

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This morning, after asking God to use me as his vessel to speak to you, I randomly opened my Bible and found a word I had written several months ago in bold letters. It said REPAIR.

Repair is needed in your life, isn’t it? Something has gotten broken. Something isn’t working. Something is hurting.

Your great big God knew there would come a time when you would come to him and ask him to fix this. The amazing news is, God knows exactly how to fix this. He has a plan for repair. But, his repair will require your participation.

Write down the word REPAIR. By definition it means to fix a thing suffering from damage or a fault. Is that you? Your relationship? Your situation? There’s been damage. There’s a fault. Repair is desperately needed.

Now, looking at this word repair, RE is the prefix. It means “again”. Pair is a set of two things together. Repair is pair again. Bring back together again what has been separated.

Think of a bluetooth device. If you’re connecting your phone to a wireless speaker, you must pair them. Connect them. If they lose connection, you must re-pair them.

REPAIR.

Now back to that area of your life that desperately needs repair. That thing that got broken. That thing that isn’t working. That thing that is hurting. Honey, you’ve lost connection. It’s time to be re-paired.

God can fix this. He is your source for healing. He is your source for restoration. He is your provider and your way maker. A disconnect from him creates disruption and destruction in your life. It’s time to connect to the source again.

Jesus said in John 15:5, “Apart from me, you can do nothing.” In Matthew 19:26 Jesus says, “With God, all things are possible.”

On a bluetooth device, there’s typically a little blue light that flashes when it’s available for pairing. The very first thing that will choose to pair with it will be connected. The light flashes as it searches for connection. Let me tell you something, God’s blue light is flashing. He’s available for pairing. Jesus made that connection possible and it’s an open line for you. You simply must choose to connect.

Now, think about on your phone settings, you have to choose your connection. There’s a list of all bluetooth devices near you, and you select which one to pair with.

Girl, who are you going to pair with? Are you pairing up with the noise of the world, the distraction of social media, the drama or trauma of your past? Or will you choose God?

You were made for a connection with your Creator. You’re a pair. He created you with a God shaped hole within which only he can fill. That’s why you feel an emptiness within when you busy yourself with all these other things. That’s why nothing works when you keep trying to do it on your own. It’s simply not your design.

Re-pair with God. Connect to him again. He’s available, but you have to choose him as your source. This is true repair for your life. Re-pair with God. Come back into connection.

James 4:8, “Come close to God, and God will come close to you.” I like to say it like this, if you take one step towards God, he will take a thousand towards you. He will repair this when you choose to re-pair with him.

The connection is available. Choose it.

Jesus said in John 15:5, “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” Verse 7, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted.”

This is the repair you seek. This is the healing. This is the restoration. This is the fixing of what has been broken and not working.

You’ve been trying to do this all on your own, but you were created for a pairing with your Creator. When paired, life flows. When disconnected, it simply doesn’t work.

What causes the disconnect from God? Plain and simple, sin. Isaiah 59:, “Your iniquities have separated you from your God and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” And honey, it’s not just you. Romans 3:23 says, ” For ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We’ve all failed. We’ve all sinned. We’ve all created a disconnect.

What sin has separated you from God and needs repair? For many of us it’s the sin of being too busy for God. Really is that a sin? Yes – it’s an idol. Anything that takes God’s place in our lives is an idol. We’ve worshiped entertainment and influencers and left a disconnect with our God.

But Jesus has made the re-pair possible. Acts 3:19, “Repent then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out.”

What isn’t working in your life? Has it been disconnected from God? It’s time to re-pair with God.

This is true repair.

The blue light is flashing. Will you connect?

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You may have been totally wrong and you may have been doing the wrong thing for a really long time, but God can turn that all around now. He can pull you out of the mess you created and save you from this. There’s only one thing you have to do. You must sincerely humble yourself and seek God. Lay it all down – the excuses, the guilt, the shame, the lies, the coverup – and look for God’s hand here.

2 Chronicles 33 tells of a King of Judah named Manasseh. Manasseh took the throne when he was only 12 years old and he was the ruler for 55 years. He did wrong, really wrong. His acts were evil in the sight of the Lord and absolutely detestable. Within the Lord’s temple, he built altars to other gods and worshiped them in the one true God’s place. Verse 6 says, “Manasseh also sacrificed his own sons in the fire in the valley of Bin-Hinnom. He practiced sorcery, divination, and witchcraft, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the Lord’s sight, arousing his anger.”

God is not pleased when we seek guidance and direction from any other source, real or unreal, other than Him. Plain and simple, don’t do that. If God is not revealing something to you, don’t go out seeking that knowledge in other ways. If God wanted you to know the future, he would tell you, not some woman in a sitting in a dark room of a little shack along the highway. God’s words are already in your Bible, you don’t need to flip a card or perform a ritual to discover them.

What happens when we are living the wrong way? Well, we face consequences. We create messes, we live in messes. We seek things other than God, we find things other than God, and if it’s not God then it’s not good.

Life becomes really hard when we do the wrong things. I’m not saying life is miraculously easy when we live right, but it becomes unnecessarily hard when we’re doing it wrong. There’s absolutely no peace when we’re constantly trying to cover things up. There’s no joy when we’re secretly dabbling in things we know we shouldn’t dabble in. But dang if the devil doesn’t trick us into it anyway, huh?

Verse 10-11, “The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they ignored all his warnings. So the Lord sent the commanders of the Asyrian armies, and they took Manasseh prisoner. They put a ring through his nose, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon.”

God sends us warnings. Warnings to turn from our wrong and seek him. Warnings to change what we’re doing on our own before he has to get involved and change things for us. You see my friend, if you’re not willing to change what God is prompting you to change, God may just step in and change things for you. Forced change is always harder than self-realized change.

Manasseh’s life is now miserable because he refused to partner with God in changing the things he was doing wrong. He has a ring in his nose and he’s bound in chains by the enemy. And whew, if that isn’t exactly what happens to us. The enemy binds us and claims us as his captive when we continue to do the things God has warned us are wrong. Our families fall apart. Everyone is suffering. Chaos surrounds us.

But there’s good news coming. Grace and mercy is waiting to meet you right here! You’re one choice away from those chains being broken and this mess being redeemed.

Verse 12-13, “But while in deep distress, Manasseh sought the Lord his God and sincerely humbled himself before the God of his ancestors. And when he prayed, the Lord listened to him and was moved by his request. So the Lord brought Manasseh back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom Then Manasseh finally realized that the Lord alone is God!”

Manasseh wasn’t required to fix a single thing first. There were no first steps of cleaning himself up. With the ring through his nose and the chains still wrapped around him, held captive by the enemy, he sincerely humbled himself and sought God. That was his game changer!

And my friend, it’s your game changer too.

Humble yourself. That means drop the excuses. Drop the guilt and shame. Drop every self-concocted way of fixing this (Because you can’t. You cannot fix this on your own. The enemy has you chained up in this. You’re stuck.) Drop it all in full acknowledgement that you’ve come to the end of yourself, and seek God. Just God. God alone.

Seeking God means intentionally looking for him. Remember, you only look for what you expect to find. Expect to find him here waiting for you. Expect to find him here responding to your prayer. For when you pray, God listens and he is MOVED by your request.

Call out to him now. God, I need you. Lord, where are you in this mess I’ve created? I’m seeking you now.

And here he comes. He’s moving in response.

Scripture doesn’t tell us how God got Manasseh out of the enemy’s chains, but we know he did. We know he was set free. We know his life was restored and he was given another chance.

The rest of 2 Chronicles 33 tells how this King who had done evil in the sight of the Lord his entire life was now forever changed. He returned to his land and he tore down the wrong he had built. He restored the good he had ruined. And he not only did this for himself, but verse 16 says, “He also encourage the people of Judah to worship the Lord.”

Whew let me tell you something, when you sincerely humble yourself and seek God, he not only fixes you, but he uses you to help fix others!

God can fix this. All you have to do is lay everything else down and call out to him. He is moved by your prayer and he will respond. You can’t fix this, but God can!

Song – Freedom Hymn by Austin French

I push, I pull

John 8:36 “Who the son sets free, is free indeed.”

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Proverbs 4:23, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” This is where we start for any desired or necessary change because this is where every single thing in your life originates. Your heart. Any issue you have is from a heart issue. Any battle you fight within is a heart battle.

NLT: Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

It’s so easy to think we need to start by working on our habits or change our circle of influence, but the first and most important thing we must do is check our heart. Otherwise, it’s like putting new rims on a car with a blown engine. What good is that? What good is the rhinestone steering wheel cover when half of your engine fell out on the street? Engine first, then the other stuff can follow. Without the engine, your car is absolutely no good. Without a healed heart, all these other changes are temporary.

The Hebrew word for heart is Lev. It means your inner self, your core. It is your control central. There is no Hebrew word for mind, only heart. This is the source of your thoughts, your desires and your actions. If the heart is damaged, every aspect of your life is negatively affected.

Why should you guard your heart? Because the enemy is attacking it. Plain and simple, your inner being is his target. Girl, you can have great hair and he doesn’t care. You can have fabulous legs or a perfect smile and it’s of no concern to him. But that heart of yours is a real issue for Satan. If he can damage your heart, he twists your thoughts. If he can damage your heart, he corrupts your desires. If he can damage your heart, he has you acting as his puppet.

And that’s why scripture says ABOVE ALL ELSE, GUARD YOUR HEART. Your heart is the most important part of you. Everything in your life is flowing from your heart. If your heart is pure, then your thoughts are pure, your desires are pure and your actions are pure. But if it is polluted, every thing else is polluted and eventually ruined.

THIS IS A HEART ISSUE. It was always a heart issue. And it is always a heart issue. Change the heart and everything that flows from it naturally changes.

How do you change your heart? That’s a really big job. That’s an overhaul you’re not equipped for. That’s why God did it for you. Ezekiel 36:26-27, God says, “I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.”

A new heart comes from God. It is his gift to us through Jesus. We don’t earn a new heart, we simply accept it.

The new heart offered by God is healed of all past damages. It is no longer wounded. It has been made brand new.

The new heart offered by God is not reminded of it’s past wrongs. It is not weighed down by shame or chained by guilt. It is free to beat without burden. It has been made new.

Now, protect this new heart God is offering you because the enemy sure wants to poke at it. A poked at heart thinks negative thoughts of worry and fear. A poked at heart is overwhelmed and uncertain. A poked at heart beats shallow and plays little. And let’s be clear, that’s not God’s desire for the heart Jesus died to give you.

If you’re struggling with an addiction, whether it be an addiction to alcohol, addiction to your phone, or addiction to attention from men – it’s a heart issue. Honey, your heart has been poked at. Either you’re functioning from an old heart that’s never been made new by God, or you’ve allowed the gift of your new heart to be bombarded by the attacks of Satan.

If you’re watching someone you love go down the wrong path and make horrible life choices, at the core of it they’re dealing with a heart issue. Their heart has been damaged, now the thoughts and actions coming from their core are twisted. They’re simply off. They don’t need a rhinestone steering wheel to look cute, they need an engine overhaul by a heart mechanic.

Jesus is our heart mechanic. He can fix this. And truly, only he can fix this. Everything else you do is a temporary fix that will soon falter.

I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of temporary fixes. I’m tired of diets and hacks and 21 day formulas. I want to deal with the real issue so this is fixed at ground zero. MY HEART.

The new heart God promises us is a heart that is tender and responsive to him. That means in our core we will know God’s will and WANT to respond to it. We won’t fight it. We won’t be so darn stubborn and make our messes like we used to.

The new heart God promises us is empowered by his Spirit. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that is a spirit of “power, love and self-discipline.” This is how we make changes that we could never make before. This is how we have breakthroughs where we were always held back. This is how we overcome, then never come back again.

God, go to work on my heart. Make it new, then show me how to guard it. Where have I left open doors to the enemy that are allowing his attacks on my new heart? Where am I failing to protect my heart and therefore suffering in thought, desire and action that has been infected?

Father, how can I partner with you in healing in the hearts of others? I don’t want to be on the attack team poking on hearts causing more damage. I don’t want to be part of the shame squad. I want to be a conduit of the Holy Spirit who empowers your girls to receive their healed, whole heart and a changed life.

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Have you ever had to clean up a mess you didn’t create? Did someone else’s problem become your problem and by association you were negatively affected? Maybe right now you’re dealing with something that wasn’t your fault, but it is your reality. It’s not fair, but it’s for real yours now and what you do with it from here matters.

God sees how you’re carrying this. He knows the details and he hasn’t overlooked you in the middle of this. You may be part of a group affected, but you will be singled out in accordance to your individual actions and attitude. Here’s how I know, it’s in our Bible.

Last week in episode #1903 titled “Hey, That’s Me” we studied the story of Caleb who waited for God’s promise for 45 years, then he walked in the Promised Land. And after all those years of waiting, he declared in Joshua 14: 10-12, “The Lord has kept me alive and well as he promised for all these 45 years since Moses made this promise – even while Israel wandered in the wilderness. Today I am 85 years old. I am as strong now as I was when Moses sent me on that journey, and I can still travel and fight as well as I could then. So give me the hill country that the Lord promised me.”

Do you remember why he had to wait for 45 years to step into his promise? Because of someone else! He was delayed because of someone else’s disobedience. Someone else’s failure created a problem for him, and that problem lasted from the time he was 40 to the time he was 85.

Back up a bit and Caleb explains the delay. Verse 7-8, “I was 40 years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me to explore the land of Canaan. I returned and gave an honest report, but my brothers who went with me frightened the people from entering the Promised Land. For my part, I wholeheartedly followed the Lord my God.”

Caleb went as 1 of 12 spies chosen by Moses to check out the land God had promised them. There they saw a beautiful and blessed land overflowing with abundance, inhabited to giant people. When the 12 spies returned to give their report, 10 of them focused on how huge their enemies were and spread fear among the people. Caleb and Joshua acknowledged the truth of how big their enemies were, but they were grounded in faith reminding everyone of God’s promise. Numbers 14: 8, “They are only helpless prey to us! They have no protection, but the Lord is with us! Don’t be afraid of them!”

But the people ignored the faith filled report of Caleb and Joshua, and listened only to the fear spread by the other 10 spies. They refused to move forward and cowered in forfeit. Yes, they forfeited what God had promised. The Israelites were left to wander in the wilderness for over 40 years.

Caleb and Joshua couldn’t conquer the land on their own, so they too were stuck. Imagine for a moment how frustrating this must have been. They knew God had promised them victory, they knew the way had already been made, they knew everything they could ever dream of was right there waiting for them, but they couldn’t enter because of the unbelief and fear of everyone else.

Everyone else’s problem became their problem. They were in a mess they didn’t create. And that mess lasted for 45 years. 45 years of wandering in a wilderness the two men of faith didn’t choose. 45 years of being surrounded by people who’s lack of faith kept them from walking in the fullness of their own faith. 45 years of life passed where they didn’t get to live in the abundance God had promised because of the choice of others.

But does Caleb sound bitter here? Does he sound pitiful? No. He sounds positive. He sounds powerful. He sounds ready!

You can be pitiful or you can be powerful, but you can’t be both. Caleb chose power. And today, God says to his girls, “Choose power here. You don’t have to be pitiful when you know my eye is on you personally.”

Caleb says, “For my part, I wholeheartedly followed the Lord my God.” And that right there is what you’re being asked to do. That’s all you can do. You can’t change everyone else. You can’t force others to agree or change. You can’t make them take that step of faith with you. And maybe that means you get delayed because of it, but my sister, you don’t have to grow bitter because of it. You don’t have to sacrifice your power here and become pitiful. You can remain wholehearted.

The problem is, when we find ourselves in messes we didn’t create and suffer the consequences of other’s decisions, we struggle to remain wholehearted. We start showing up half-hearted. We give half-hearted efforts with half-hearted commitments because that bitterness has gotten down within us.

We’re angry over what they have caused and what it is costing us. And while that’s a fair feeling, it’s not working in your favor. That feeling has been eating away at your heart and how can you remain wholehearted if half of it’s been eaten up with bitterness and anger? Even though it may be justified, it’s still creating damage within you.

Caleb says, “For my part, I wholeheartedly followed the Lord my God.” Did everyone else? No. But his focus isn’t on everyone else. His focus is on his part. With his part, he gave his whole heart and didn’t allow the efforts and attitudes of others to affect his part.

And through the wait, through the wandering in the wilderness for all those years created by those who chose to forfeit the promise in fear, Caleb kept his heart whole. He knew God watched him for his part. He wasn’t responsible for everyone else, he was responsible for his part. And though he couldn’t change everyone else, he couldn’t allow everyone else to change him. He couldn’t allow the delay to create bitterness. He couldn’t focus on the unfairness and allow self pity to eat at his heart.

And neither can you.

So, this isn’t your fault. You didn’t choose this. Someone else caused this problem or this delay.

Okay, suck it up, buttercup. Your part is still up to you. You can’t change them, but you also can’t allow them to change you. You can’t allow this delay to create bitterness within you. You can’t focus on how unfair it is because that self pity will eat away at your heart and leave you half-hearted.

God wants your wholehearted commitment. He wants your wholehearted effort. He wants your wholehearted faith.

God sees how you’re carrying this. He knows the details and he hasn’t overlooked you in the middle of this. You may be part of a group affected, but you will be singled out in accordance to your individual actions and attitude.

Caleb was delayed because of the 10 unbelievers, but he never became their victim. He walked in his promise. For 45 years, Caleb rehearsed God’s promise in his heart. That’s why he’s able to say, “I’m 85 years old and I am as strong now as when I started my journey. So give me my promise.” He never gave up on God’s promise. Anger and bitterness didn’t take his promise.

Victims forfeit their promise. Caleb wasn’t a victim. His whole heart remained focused on the faithfulness of God and he knew God’s promises were still for him. And my guess is, even in the wait, he wasn’t miserable. He was preparing himself. He was rehearsing and repeating the promises. You see, when you know God’s promises are coming, you don’t get overwhelmed with the details of today.

God has promises for you. Will you focus on them, or will you allow yourself to become overwhelmed with the details of today? Will you grow miserable in the wait and allow your heart to become half-hearted? Will you become bitter against those who have caused you problems and made this mess? That’s precisely what the enemy of every promise God has spoken over your life wants. The enemy wants you to check out. The enemy wants you to get all up in your feelings and get pitiful. The enemy wants you to be miserable. The enemy wants you to forfeit God’s promises.

But God says, if you will remain wholehearted towards me in the delay, I will bring you to my promises. I will fulfill every one of them for you. I will pull you out of the crowd and personally reward you.

You’re not asked to fix anyone else’s part. You’re responsible for YOUR PART. And for your part, God is asking you to wholeheartedly follow him. In the delay. Through the problems and messes you didn’t create. Refuse to become bitter. Resist the invitation to be pitiful. Hold on to your power and never forget God’s promises for you. He hasn’t forgotten his promises and he will fulfill them.

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There are things happening in your life right now that you don’t understand. Things you can’t control. However, there are clues all around you to remind you of who IS in control. Reminders of how you’ve always been taken care of. Leftovers of what has happened for you before.

What leftovers do you have? Leftovers of the last miracle God pulled off for you. Leftovers of the last ridiculous blessing you didn’t deserve. Leftovers of provision that was more than enough. Those leftovers are for a purpose, and perhaps it’s a purpose that is perfectly timed for what is happening right now.

The Bible tells us a story about leftovers. In fact, there are 4 accounts of this story so I recommend reading each of them. They are: Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:30-44, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:1-14. This is a story of abundance that proved Jesus’ power over impossible odds. But before there were leftovers, there was a need with an grossly insufficient supply. Of course the story is the feeding of the crowd, but this story goes beyond the feeding. This story goes directly to your boat today to meet you where you are and remind you of what God has done.

5,000 men plus their families had gathered to hear Jesus teach. They had stayed all day to listen to his every word, and they grew hungry. The only food available in the crowd was carried by a young boy, a measly 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. And Jesus says, that’s enough. What you have is enough. In fact, it will be more than enough! Jesus fed every person there all they could eat from the bread and fish that never ran out.

Out of curiosity, I wanted to understand the magnitude of this miracle. Many people believe this food given by a young boy in the crowd was his lunch packed that day by his mother. The loaves of bread were more like crackers and the 2 small fish were something like sardines. Others say the fish were likely smoked tilapia and the bread were small loaves of barley. But really, it doesn’t matter. It’s still absolutely ridiculous to think it could feed a crowd of 5,000 men PLUS their families.

So, as a visual, I asked ChatGPT, if you had a large Papa John’s pizza and you split it evenly among 5,000 men (I’m not even including their wives and children), how much would each man receive? The answer: About 0.16% of a single slice. That’s roughly the size of a crumb or a small flake of cheese. Everyone gets a microscopic taste, just enough to say they participated.

But, in the hands of Jesus, it became MORE THAN ENOUGH. Every account of this story says EVERYONE ate as much as they wanted.

Afterwards, Jesus told the disciples to gather the leftovers. Yes, the leftovers were important. 12 baskets full of leftovers. This is significant. The leftovers mattered. Proof of miraculous provision. Evidence of God’s power in personal matters.

What would these leftovers become? They show up one more time in scripture and I believe it’s just for you and I to see today.

After the feeding of the crowd, and the gathering of the leftovers, Jesus instructs his disciples to get on a boat and leave. Later that night they find themselves in a battle with the winds blowing against them. Jesus comes walking out on the water to them and scares the bejesus out of them. You know the bejesus … have you ever had the bejesus scared out of you? You see something and you’re like “oh, be Jesus, be Jesus, please be Jesus.” The “be Jesus” came right out of you. Well, the disciples thought he was a ghost on the water and the bejesus is scared out of them, and then they realize it actually IS JESUS.

Peter has a moment of bold courage and walks on the water with Jesus, then the waves come and he starts to sink, Jesus saves him, then Jesus gets in the boat and the waters calm down. Awesome, good story. But there’s one more thing. One more thing only mentioned in Mark’s account of this evening on the water … the leftovers.

Mark 6: 50-52 “Immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.”

They had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened. Oh wait, now we’re back to what had happened before Jesus came walking on the water, before the wild winds, before the boat. We’re back to the last thing Jesus had done for them.

Not only had Jesus miraculously fed them, but he had invited them to be part of sharing the miracle with the crowd of thousands. They were there. They saw what started as only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. They saw how many people ate. And they personally collected 12 baskets full of leftovers.

And my guess is, on that boat with them where they are now struggling and afraid, sit the leftovers. How many baskets? 12. That’s one basket of leftovers for each disciple. Their own basket that contained proof of His power, his provision, and his personal care. They were supposed to understand the lesson and carry it with them into the next struggle, but their hearts were hardened and they did not understand.

They didn’t understand God is always with them. They didn’t understand his power is unmatched. They didn’t understand he is master over all. They didn’t understand his care is personally for them. So now, on the boat in the dark with a wind of resistance, they struggle and forget what they already have. They didn’t understand.

And maybe you don’t either. You’re waking up to your own basket full of leftovers. Leftovers that prove God has been faithful. Leftovers that serve as reminders of all he has done to carry you through and bring you here. But you’re so focused on the wind blowing against you and the struggle to move forward that you’ve forgotten what God has already done for you.

The lesson is, if God took care of you before, sister he will take care of you again. If he brought you through the last thing, he will bring you through this thing. If he fed you last night, he will guide you through today’s storms.

In the boat with the disciples was proof of what Jesus had just done. More leftovers than what they began with before feeding thousands of people. That’s impossible! They had impossible in the boat with them!

You have impossible in the house with you girl! Truly. Impossible things have happened for you. All around you are leftovers of the Father’s extravagant love in the form of miraculous provision, unlikely breakthroughs, insane strength, unspeakable peace, and simply things that worked that probably shouldn’t have worked. Does anyone else have something in their life that worked that honestly just shouldn’t have worked. You did it all wrong, and yet it still came together. You really messed up, yet somehow it’s okay. That’s the miraculous work of Jesus. See it for what it is!

Always remember these things. Carry these leftovers with you, you’re going to need them when the winds of resistance hit and your efforts aren’t as productive.

The disciples were shocked when Jesus walked on the water. They were shocked when he got in their boat and made the winds die down. But they shouldn’t have been shocked. They should have known Jesus was a water walker. They should have known he was a way maker. They should have known because they had just seen him feed all those people, and they had just gathered more leftover food than there was to begin with. They had proof of who he was in the leftovers, but their hearts were hardened and they didn’t allow that truth to get inside them.

Maybe your heart has been hardened and you have dismissed what God has already done for you. You dismissed it as insignificant like it didn’t really matter. Or you labeled it as good luck like with the stars finally aligning for you. Or you’ve assumed you’re just that good on your own and you’ve been making this stuff happen. Oh goodness, Lord forgive us. Our hearts have been hardened.

May we see the leftovers we wake up to for what they really are … proof of God’s goodness and evidence of his power.

May we take our leftovers of what Jesus did for us last time and boldly face the storms of today without fear.

May we step into today knowing God is for us, he is with us, and what he has done before he will do again! Gather your leftovers and remember what he has done for you!

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