Devotions by Meredith

Nothing Is Too Hard for God

Jeremiah 32:17, 26, 27

17 Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm, There is nothing too hard for You.

26 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, 27 “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?”

Going through trying, hard things comes along with being alive. There is no one on the face of the earth that can truly say they enjoy going through these times. But truthfully, these times can be the deepest places of blessing, learning and growing closer to the Lord than ever before. These times of trial can also be a place of cursing, choosing to be defeated and losing rather than gaining in our lives. We get to choose. Think of the challenging things you may be walking through presently. Dear one, your difficulties may not be similar to Jeremiah, the Weeping Prophet, but they are very real to you and presently can appear as insurmountable. The truth lies here—you, yourself, cannot overcome nor have the capacity to endure them all by yourself. Please pause and take in the truth that the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that what was true of His unmeasurable power in Jeremiah’s life and struggles, is as absolutely true and still available for you today. Whatever uncontrollable hardship you may find yourself in today that is pressing hard upon you, or whatever that heavy burden may be pressing and crushing you down, you, yes, you, may turn your face toward the Lord with a full confident faith, and say, “There is nothing too hard for You!” Your complete assurance in Abba Father will bring you great peace! I don’t know what your hard place may be, but I do know that whatever it is, whether harsh and cruel, or bitter, or fearful and hopeless, it is as “nothing” to Him! He is more than able to deliver you just as easily as you can call upon Him for His loving guidance, strength and direction. Whether it be difficult circumstances, wearying duties, weakening struggles, sad and bitter disappointments, cruel words, enticing thoughts, a stone cold heart in others, whatever it may be, gather them all and whatever others there may be, and stack them high one on another until you have collected a high mountain of your sorrow, and listen for the voice of your God speak calmly to you, “Is there anything too hard for Me?” Life’s cares and crosses when our hearts cause our hearts to tire and helplessness tries to settle in and we cry out, “All these things are warring against me!” Then the still small voice of our Father surfaces to our consciousness and the fact speaks that our stronghold of support of our God arises and we remember all power in heaven and earth are His! There is nothing too hard for Him to control. There is nothing too small and insignificant to escape His ever-watching eye. Remember today, there is absolutely nothing too hard for God!

What about you? Are you battling despair and weariness? Look up, dear one! God is on your side and hears even your faintest cry. He knows every tear and every weighing concern on your heart today. Tell Him all about it and remember “Nothing is too hard for your God!” May strength and blessed encouragement be your portion today.   

Direction From God

Psalm 3:5, 6

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.

6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. 

Two significant words are in these verses: “ways” and “acknowledge.” The word “ways” is defined as “a road, a course, or a mode of action.”  It implies that there are choices, opportunities that will occur in one’s life on a repetitive basis. Each new day is yet another gift and opportunity that you can experience regularly. What will each this day contain? Is the Lord speaking to us to acknowledge Him each new day, even this day, and in doing this, He will direct our paths? The word “acknowledge is translated in the Hebrew as “know,” meaning to know by observation, investigation, reflection, or firsthand experience. But the highest level of knowledge is in “direct, intimate contact.” This is shown to us as a lifetime of intimacy as when two people are married. When we think of it in a spiritual sense, it suggests an intimacy with God in daily prayer and worship that becomes impregnated with blessings to come, as well as great victories. There is a sense with our verses that if we apply the truths of these versed daily to our hearts, there will be a maintained, direct intimate contact with our Abba Father. He promises to direct our paths to fruitful, anointed happenings, led by the Holy Spirit all the way. If by chance, we head in a wrong direction, He will straighten out our pathway and make it straight and right as we put our trust in Him with all our heart, even when we don’t understand. I don’t know about you, but if I don’t have a clear understanding of the details, likes, whys when’s, how’s , etc., I can hesitate in my moving forward. In Job 1:1 Job is described as blameless and upright. The word “direct” in the Hebrew language means to be pleasing and good as well as straight, right, and upright. God was with Job as he was an upright man. God takes special care to direct the path of the upright person. We can’t earn His blessing, yet He takes special note of those who live their lives as clean and as pure as possible, looking daily to Him. Knowledge and understanding begins with the fear of the Lord. He is our primary, necessary factor, so as we draw closer and closer to Him, trusting in the Lord daily throughout our day, even when nothing makes sense other than the leading of the Holy Spirit, we know HIs knowledge, wisdom and direction will be our portion. Cherish His Presence. Study His Word to understand His heart. Listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Believe Him when He speaks to you, trusting with all your heart, and you will be God-directed and given understanding. Draw close to Him today and practice His Presence. He is with you all the way.

What about you? Are you trusting in the Lord with all your heart, or only when you can fully understand and see what He is doing and leading? Are you acknowledging Him in all your ways, or only halfway? Trust Him fully today. He has paths of blessing and peace for you, His beloved. Blessings on your day.  

Be Slow

James 1:19, 20

19 So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath, 20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

The day that we live in, we have more access and hear more in a day than our past generations would hear in a lifetime. I’ve hear that over six trillion emails are sent in a year. Probably by the writing of this, it is even more. Every twelve months, knowledge is doubling. In reality, we just can’t keep up. We are hearing and receiving information in “real time.” We have multiple screens rolling across our tv screens as we listen to a talking head who tells us yet another happening different than all the rolling sidebars on the screen. We have developed into a culture who is easily distracted. We look at people and things happening around us, yet honestly, we may not really see much of anything that is happening. Wired up, overly caffeinated and tuned in with a cell phone glued to one of our hands. Bob Moorehouse wrote an essay called The Paradox of Our Time. It’s worth a listen. “We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life. we’ve added years to life not life to years. We’ve been all the way to the moon and back but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We’ve done larger things, but not better things.” All of this is true, yet the one line, “We’ve conquered outer space but not inner space,” always reaching for more, bigger, stronger, speedier. We’ve done and conquered so much as the human race, but inner space is something else. I don’t think we’re even inching our way to conquering that. Our human hearts seem just as unruly as they’ve ever been. Let’s get honest with ourselves, the real battle of life is found on the inside of us, not the outside. Our verses for today address the question, how do you respond when the heat of life is turned up and the pressure is building, building, and you realize you are about to blow your stack? “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” Practicing this verse every day is our great challenge. Here are three things to practice and apply today and every day:

1. James 1:19a, “Be quick to hear.” Listening more and talking less is great wisdom. Listen to God and His Word daily. Hear, memorize, read, study the Word of God. 2. Slow to speak. Talk less. Ecclesiastes 5:2 tells us, “God is in heaven, and you are on earth. Therefore, let your words be few.” Who can argue with that? 3. Be slow to anger, James 1:19c. Don’t get all worked up in your rage. We all get angry, even the best of us. Anger is a deeper emotion which, when released is like an erupting volcano that spits out red-hot lava all over your life. Anger is totally under our control. God can help us as we daily look to Him.

What about you? Would you rather be known as a fighter/warrior or as a wise, patient person? The choice is always ours, and with the help of the Lord we are well able to live up to our verses for today. Have a blessed day in Him.     

He Will Not Harm You

Isaiah 42:3 NASB

3 A bruised reed He will not break and a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice.

This passage of Scripture is a front row view of the tenderness of the heart of God. The descriptive words here are beautiful and very moving penned by Isaiah, the prophet. In Isaiah 42, it is speaking of Jesus, the coming Messiah, who God, the Father delights in and upholds. Isaiah writes of His gentle heart, and of His godly character and conduct, His powerful yet compassionate nature, and of His humble ways. Father God tells us that the Spirit of God is upon Him and that He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles as well as to the Jews. When I read about Jesus, He is not an overbearing, pushy or self-absorbed person. He is quiet, kind, sympathetic, gentle and gracious. In our verse for today, is a most beautiful description of His gentle tender-hearted personality: “A bruised reed He will not break and a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish. He will faithfully bring forth justice.” It’s this last line that also gives us insight into what Jesus is able to do as well. Yes, Jesus was meek, but Jesus was not weak. Only He can demonstrate ultimate strength, and then well use that same unique strength to bring justice and rightness to wrongdoing and evil. I love the tenderness of the Lord. There can be many situations in life when the world and those around you can be mindless in their reactions and interaction with you. There are few in this world who truly care about others, and what they may be walking through on their life’s journey. It is human nature to judge and hold others to a higher standard and account than they do for themselves. There is no gentleness. When this happens, insult is added to injury. One can already be a bruised reed, doing all you can do to stand against the torrential winds and stormy winds and pressures of life. Others’ “I thinks” can inflict more pain and sorrow to already excruciating challenges. Yet, our Savior, whom the Bible tells us is acquainted with our grief and with our deepest sorrow, says He will not break an already bruised reed. Some days and circumstances, we may try our best to have a “stiff upper lip” as the saying goes, and put our best foot forward, yet the pushing and shoving of life continues on and may even get harder. Whatever dim light we may have smoldering within us, Jesus will not extinguish. He will gently blow His breath, the breath of heaven up on you. He will not bring gales, winds, and floods, but will gently shelter what flickering wick may be about to go out in you. And He promises to bring justice, His justice, His way. Release it all to Him today. Every part, from the smallest issue to the greatest. He see you. He loves you and is here right now with you. He is holding you close today.

What about you? Are you bruised and about to break? Is the light of God dimly burning in you? Remember He is with you to strengthen you, not to extinguish whatever is trying to come to a new strength. He is your strength, and He is your peace. Cast your cares on Him today. He loves you so.     

Call Out to Me

Psalm 91:15, 16

15 When they call on Me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them. 16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation. 

Do you ever feel like God is too busy to truly hear you? Or do you feel like your prayers and concerns hit the ceiling? You may feel lonely, lost and maybe even a bit frightened by how the world is today. Things used to seem so much calmer and sensible. Be encouraged today. When Jesus lives in your heart you realize nothing is out of control, for the Word of God tells us that it is He who sits on the circle of the earth, and sees all, and is in total control. He alone knows the end from the beginning and everything in between. When we lift our hearts and requests to Him, sometimes the answer is yes, sometimes it's no, and other times it is wait, it is not time for the answer to come yet. When the answer is no, that’s a harder answer to take in. We must always remember that God’s timing is not always our timing. But let’s carefully remember the promise we have for today— “When they call on Me, I will answer.” Calling upon God is done through our praying. In every time of trouble and in every circumstance—faithfully remembering He always hears you when you call on Him, and He is there with you and will always be with you, even throughout your whole life. The promise for today is for all those who trust in Him. There will always be an answer for those who truly love Him and call upon His powerful Name. In times of trouble, He will be there. Like a good father, He promises to rescue us. He never has said that we would be totally free from trouble. Trouble, danger, and death are all apart of each and every person’s life on this planet. No one is exempt, yet as His children, He has promised to always be there. Here’s where we stumble in our thinking—we must trust Him that He will do it His way because He loves us and He knows exactly the right way to help us. Isaiah 55:8-9 NLT tells us “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” say the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts.” Abba Father will and is always with us, all throughout our lives. Keep this in the front of your thinking and His peace will abide with you throughout your entire lifetime.

What about you? Are you struggling with anxiety and fear today over some issue or happening? Meditate on our verses for today and ask the Holy Spirit to quiet you, body, soul and spirit. Remember, He is faithfully with you and is always involve right down to the slightest detail of your life. He has promised not to just be with you for a while, or for a certain season, but for your entire life. He knows every detail, and the way that you should take. Trust our loving heavenly Father today. He loves you so.  

Dwell in the Land

Psalm 37:3, 4

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good: dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. 

There are times throughout the day when we may not be able to see what we are doing such as when we shower and water floods over our eyes, or when backing up our vehicle, the needed cautiousness to be able to see clearly all around as we back up. Yet there are many days when we cannot see or feel what is developing for our day. Our heavenly Father is telling us today to trust Him, and endeavor to do good. God wants us to be strong, dwell in the land and remember, rehearse His faithfulness to us throughout our days and times. He even encourages us to delight ourselves also in Him. As we lift Him up in our hearts, looking to Him, remembering His promises, allowing that song of worship to arise in your heart, the encompassing Presence of the Lord will increase as we go throughout our day. The daily pressures of life will find release as we trust Him and inwardly and outwardly delight ourselves in Him. Our passage of Scripture in verse 4 goes on to tell us that as we live this way, He will give us the desires of our hearts. This word “heart” means intellect, awareness, mind, inner person, inner feelings, deepest thoughts, our inner self. This definition encompasses the physical heart, and also a person’s inner yearnings. In Deuteronomy 6:5, God commanded Israel to love the Lord “with all your heart.” Jesus also emphasized in Mark 12:29, 30 the same thought, to love the Lord with all your heart. Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that the human heart can be very deceitful in the world, but verse 10 shows us that the Lord is still able to sort out and separate and dissect and truly discern what is in our hearts. sometimes my heart and my spirit become very tired and worn out, truly not because I wanted or willed myself to arrive at such a state, but just because the pressures of life and the giving out sometimes takes us to run very low within our own reserve. Yet when we find ourselves there, lay yourself before the Lord. Again, express your trust in the Lord, and do good with whatever strength is within you. Do it by faith. Do good as best you can. Keep keeping on in your life. Choose to be strong with as much as you can muster up. Continue on the faithfulness of the Lord. Pull yourself aside even more to be before the Lord. Give the sacrifice of praise and trust to our everlasting heavenly Father. This is the posture the Lord is looking for in each and every one of His sons and daughters. This is when the Lord recognizes that we are His own and that our eyes are upon Him and not upon our own strength. In His fatherly love and care for us, He has told us to come boldly before His throne, any time, day or night. He didn’t give us these instructions to just turn us away, but to embrace us, strengthen us and to bring us into the blessings where we can receive all that God has for us. I am choosing to delight myself in Him and dwell in the land.

What about you? Are you choosing to dwell well in your land? Are you choosing to trust Him and do good? Are you choosing to delight yourself in Him and watch to see how Abba Father will give you the desires of your heart? I pray you will choose to trust Him today. Blessings on your day.    

Mercy Over Judgment

James 2:13

Because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment. 

The book of James is a letter from the Apostle James to the Church on how to live a real and practical Christian life. James writes how we are to respond to God and also how to keep and maintain a Christlike relationship with others, which is not always an easy thing to do. In the book of James, he not only talks about how to respond to the Lord, but to dwell with others, how to maintain a Christ-led relationship with each one. James talks to us about not giving preferential treatment to the wealthy and ignoring the poor. He talks to us about breaking the Law and how if we make even one infraction this makes us a lawbreaker. Some of those who were in the Church at the time may have felt that showing favoritism as a “lesser” sin, James tells them that any sin, no matter how tiny it may seem, is breaking the entirety of God’s Law for His own. James reminds the believers that they are not to be held under the old Law; instead, they were to understand that they were under the New and better Covenant. This is a liberty which comes through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and gives us newfound freedom from the grip of sin. He admonishes us to live our life in such a way that we know that one day, every one of us will all alone stand before the Lord to give Him an account for our actions. “I couldn’t help it,” will not be a usable excuse, because the Cross of Jesus did away with that bondage. We are now under the law of perfect liberty in Jesus, our Lord and what He did for us on the Cross of Calvary. “Because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been shown such great mercy,” we are not to withhold mercy from others. We have been shown great mercy, and should by every reason of thought, find it in our hearts to have mercy on others. If we are unmerciful toward others, then the Holy Spirit will deal with us in a similar way. I need the forgiveness of the Lord when I find myself saying not so nice things when someone cuts me off in traffic, or pushes their way to grab the last grocery item off the self they knew I was going towards. The “royal” law is to love your neighbor as yourself. Help us Lord to do just that! Forgive us when we have been merciless and impatient and unkind to others around us.

What about you? Are there areas of life that you could use the flow of the Holy Spirit in a greater way? Let’s talk to the Lord about this today and ask Him to help us grow in our understanding and our yielding to His mercy to triumph over judgment. Much love to you this day.  

Ruler Over Much

Matthew 25:21

Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord. 

Luke 16:10

He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much. 

When I was a little girl growing up on the farm, it became my responsibility to feed the baby calves each morning before school and then again at supper time, (as we call dinner time in Maine). It was a process, as calf feeder (like instant milk for bovines), had to be mixed with an exact measurement of warm water for each calf. This powder mixture smelled somewhat like warm milk, enough so that the baby calves would gobble it up through the rubber nipple attached on the calf feeding pail. We always had three or four baby calves and this process took time to do. There was this one morning that I woke up late, hadn’t eaten any breakfast, and wasn’t properly organized with my school clothes and homework to then go out to the barn and go through the arduous task of feeding those annoying baby calves, one by one. In my rush not to miss the bus, I ran out the door, coat flying loosely behind me, and my school bag dragging barely off the ground. It didn’t dawn on me until I was haphazardly seated in my row, that I had not fed the baby calves. Needless to say, my day was torturous knowing I was in deep trouble! Sure enough, upon arriving home, my parents were waiting to discuss my failure to my assigned calf responsibility. It was a hard lesson to learn. I was embarrassed and ashamed that I had allowed myself to become so distracted and disorganized and that those baby calves had gone hungry all day long. It has been a lesson though that has kept me diligent and carefully responsible over those things the Lord has put in my hands. Raising five rambunctious, active children, pastoring God’s precious sheep and lambs starting at the age of twenty-two, through the years and seasons of my life, thick and thin, knowing that I was responsible to answer to Him, my Chief Shepherd. I am reminded of what Jesus spoke to Peter, “Feed My sheep; feed My lambs.” Whether it is keeping your home in good order, or reaching out to a sick friend or neighbor, or comforting a distraught workmate, whatever it may be, do all with a faithful, loving heart. Jesus noticed and slowed down for the children. I know that as a young mother, there were many days I felt left out of the loop of what others were involved in because of my responsibility to my little ones, yet Abba would remind me of how important each one of their precious lives were and He wanted me to raise them, as my season and commission, and not someone else. I’m so glad today I was faithful to do so and to stay faithful over each and every assignment He gives.

What about you? Are you working to be faithful over each and every part of your life, your assignment with His joy, His peace, and His rest in your life? Be faithful, dear one to your special calling and commission. He loves you so. Blessings on your day.     

Spirit Guided

Acts 16:6-7 NLT

Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. 

To know that our heavenly Father can keep us from making mistakes in the places and timing of our lives, brings great encouragement to my soul as well as a deep-seated trust in Him. Can you ask the Lord to stop you from wrong decisions and turns in your life, even if it goes against your will? None of us are exempt from being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I know I need to daily pray this prayer for the Lord’s constant guidance and perfect timing of His ways. I know that the Lord lives inside of me every second of the day and night. His Holy Spirit has been specifically given to us to guide us and help us to know His will. We all want to be useful and fruitful in our lives at the right time and the right season and places of our lives. If we daily seek the Lord for Him to guide and direct us, each moment and step of the way, I know He can give us listening and hearing spiritual ears and seeing spiritual eyes to see and hear what the Spirit of the Lord will say and show us. He can give us a supernatural sensitivity for each and every turn in the road if we will look to Him. And, like Paul, when we think we have heard and go ahead and plan our way, and He has another place and time for us to be in, He is more than able to bring us correction and change our course, making it very plain to us the way that He would have us go. We want to be in concert with Him, not fighting against Him because we want our own way. We want God’s full purposes to be revealed in our lives and in the lives, He has called us to walk and work with to bring encouragement and life to them as He leads us. There are even times that God puts me in a place of isolation, shutting down planned things, and being with people that somehow get canceled or changed. I have learned not to fight these course corrections as God changes them, coming to the realization that these times can become the most useful place of all in this confusing, diverse world. God is welcome to change my plans to one of solitude and learning to listen to His Voice in an even great sense. Yes, my spirit still may want to “go to Bithynia,” carrying out my own plans and ways, yet knowing I can fully trust my Father to guide me in what is best for others and myself.

What about you? Do you always have to have your own way? Are you willing to surrender your will to His and “mind the checks” for course corrections throughout your walk with Him? I pray you are, for His way is always best. Blessings on your day.  

In the School of Obedience

Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

John 14:15

15 If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

Obedience can be a funny thing. As our children grow, we try to teach them gradually that they need to obey what we tell them to do. When one joins the military, in order to succeed in whatever branch you join, you must learn to obey the commands of your officers. But let’s be real, none of us enjoy submitting our will to another person. They possibly could be giving us the wrong commands. But here’s a powerful truth, God never tells us to obey in a way that could be wrong. Obeying Him is always the best course of action. The lessons of life as we learn to obey the Lord, we where we are learning to trust that we know His voice and our trust in Him grows deeper and deeper. This means we believe and accept His awesome plans for our lives even when we don’t fully comprehend what He is working. And many times, we may feel that God’s timing is either way too early or way too late. As we learn to live and obey our heavenly Father by faith, we learn to accept His plans, methods, and timing. We are showing Him how much we love Him by obeying His commandments. It’s such a temptation to trust in our own understanding when we don’t know what to do. And it is really a test of our patience and trust to choose to wait with a trusting heart and a willingness for the Lord to reveal His next steps in our lives. One time we were in one of our favorite pizza shops waiting on our favorite pizza to finish baking, when the Lord spoke in my heart to go to another table where an older couple were sitting together and talk with them. They looked distraught and extremely tired. I didn’t jump up immediately, but waited and waited and toyed with the idea of not going to them. Then the waitress asked for my help in grabbing something for her as her arms were full delivering our pizza and salad. Helping the waitress took me directly in front of this couples’ booth. I sensed the Lord was drawing me towards them. I gently asked if I could talk to them for a moment. They both sadly shook their heads up and down and the woman slid over, and I slid in beside her. I explained that I had felt the Lord wanted me to just come over to them and tell them that He saw them and that He loved them very much and that He was with them. They both began to cry hard. The sad lady laid her head down on her arms folded on the table, burying her face in them. The man brokenly explained they had just lost their only daughter. She had committed suicide just the day before. I sat with them for awhile and comforted them the best that I possibly could. You could feel the comforting love of God encircling and pressing in all around them. I prayed with them and went back to my table. God wanted them to know He was with them. What if I had been disobedient? Would they have possibly turned away from Him forever as they were making their way through this deep sorrow? Forgive, Lord, when I hesitate and question you.

What about you? Do you find it hard to trust and obey when the Lord tells you to do something? Let’s ask the Lord to give us boldness to be quick to trust and obey even when we don’t understand. Blessings on your day.