Are you struggling with doubt and staggering at the promises of God. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Doubt is not necessarily a bad thing as much as it is a real thing. We should always be careful to distinguish between doubt and unbelief. Doubt is an involuntary emotion while unbelief is an act of the will. Doubt inevitably yields to the power of His presence. Unbelief, on the other hand, hardens into rebellion. The unbeliever chooses not to believe regardless of the evidence.

“Then he said to Thomas…‘Stop doubting and believe.’ Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’”

— John 20:27-28 (NIV)

Lord Jesus, I believe. Help me to believe more. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

Jesus had a special ministry to women. Mary Magdalene is a case in point. Given that she was a fallen woman and demon possessed (Mark 16:9), the religious leaders considered her a lost cause. To their way of thinking her kind was not worth saving. But Jesus saw things differently. Instead of giving up on her, He redeemed her and made her the first missionary of the resurrection.

“After Jesus rose from the dead early on Sunday morning, the first person who saw him was Mary Magdalene, the woman from whom he had cast out seven demons.”

— Mark 16:9 (NLT)

Lord Jesus, I am praying for a desperate woman who has been abused. She is broken and without hope. Only You can save her. Hold her close to Your heart and heal her wounded soul. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

Although Mary was “highly favored” she was not chosen because of her personal qualifications, but by the sovereignty of God. Therefore the focus should not be on her but on the Father who has a long history of choosing the insignificant to accomplish the impossible. If God could use a humble peasant girl like Mary to give birth to the Jesus the Son of God, then surely, He can use ordinary people just like us.

“The angel went to [Mary] and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.’”

— Luke 1:28 (NIV)

Lord Jesus, although I am nobody special let me be of service to You and Your people. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

What Jesus did for us on the cross is a sovereign work of God, independent of anything we can do. What Jesus does in us through the cross is a cooperative effort between us and God. He has already died for our sins — that is, He became our substitute, He took our place— but He cannot be our Savior unless we call upon Him in faith. Let us therefore

“…confess with [our] mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in [our] heart that God raised him from the dead, [and we] will be saved.”

— Romans 10:9-10

Lord Jesus, You are the son of God and humanity’s only Savior. I confess I am a sinner and You are my only hope. Forgive my sins and save me. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

Barabbas, the man Pilate released instead of Jesus, represents every member of our fallen race. Was Barabbas guilty of sins against God and man? So are we. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Was Barabbas under a sentence of death? So are we. “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). In the truest sense, the cross upon which Jesus died was intended not only for Barabbas, but for each of us. My sins fashioned that cross, as did yours, and it was there we should have died. But God had a better plan:

“While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

— Romans 5:8

Lord Jesus, thank You for dying that we might live. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

Often the people who need our love the most are the very people who are the most unlovable. You know, the person who talks too much. The one who always has to have the last word. The braggard who is always tooting his own horn. You may be tempted to write him off. Don’t, at least not until you have asked Jesus to help you look beyond his behavior, to help you to see that even when his actions are hostile and defensive he is often crying out for love.

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

— John 13:34 (NIC)

Lord Jesus, empower us to love with the love whereby You have loved us. In Your holy name we pray. Amen.

Look around you; I mean really look. What do you see? Probably lonely hurting people within arm’s reach, maybe right there in your own family. A spouse you’ve been too busy to love, a teenager you’ve never taken time to understand, a child who hardly knows you. Or maybe it’s the person you work with—the troublemaker. Do you have any idea why he’s so angry, so defensive? What about the misfit you worship with, the gal nobody likes. You know, the one who talks too loud, the one who tries too hard.

“…Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

— John 13:34-35( NLT)

Lord Jesus, forgive me. I am often selfish and demanding. Change me. Make me a holy lover. In Your holy name I pray.

My mother and my sister visited my father’s grave nearly every week. The last time they went to the cemetery—just a few days before Mother suffered a fatal aneurysm—my sister started back to the car and after a few steps she realized mother was not with her. Turning back toward the grave, she saw my mother kiss her first two fingers and place them on my father’s name etched in the gray granite. She heard Mom say, “I’ll always love you, Dick Exley. I hope to see you soon. It won’t be long now.” Barely two weeks later, we buried her body beside the remains of the man she loved more than life.

Lord Jesus, help us to love our spouses the way my mother loved my father. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

So how does anyone create a marriage like that? Based on their example, I can only conclude that marriage has to be built on something more than love for each other. That “something more,” in their case, was a shared faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It sustained them when the inevitable tough times came. That’s not to say that love doesn’t play a part for it does, a big part! But by itself love is not enough.

“However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.”

— Ephesians 5:33 (ESV)

Lord Jesus, help me to love Brenda the way my parents loved each other. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

Have you lost your way? Are you alienated from your spouse and estranged from your children? Are you trapped in a secret life, living a lie? Don’t despair. All is not lost. What Jesus has done for others He will do for you! Take responsibility for your sinful choices. Stop making excuses! It’s your fault! You are to blame and your only hope of deliverance is to throw yourself on the mercies of God. Pray as David prayed:

“Do not remember the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions;
According to Your mercy remember me…”

— Psalm 25:7 (NKJV)

Lord Jesus, do not throw us out on the scrapheap of life. Forgive us and transform us. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.

Abraham lied. David was guilty of adultery and murder. Peter denied Jesus three times (Luke 22:54-62). Paul was a blasphemer, a persecutor of the church, and a violent man (1 Timothy 1:12-15). If God could forgive them, if He could use them in spite of their blatant sinfulness, then there’s hope for us no matter what we have done. Let the example of the apostle Paul encourage you. He writes,

“The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.”

— 1 Timothy 1:14 (NIV)

Lord Jesus, pour out your love and grace abundantly on the man or woman who feels all hope is gone. Forgive their sins and restore their lives. In Your holy name I pray. Amen.