When we yield to God's will and take the steps that He desires, events do not always unfold the way we expect.  We might find ourselves on his ordained path wondering why things have turned out the way that they have.  We might even question whether, given the choice again, we would make the same decision.  If we know that we have followed his path, and that his will is perfect and for our good, then we should be confident in whatever we have decided.

The great masters of the arts put their work behind their passion.  They could not be sure that their work would create a legacy, immortalize them in our culture, or be tossed aside when the next great works appeared.  Beethoven and Rembrandt could not have known that we would be admiring and studying them today.  Let us focus not on our legacy but on our work, and let us trust that God will use that work to impact others long after we are gone.

Recently, I have been challenged to evaluate how I spend this time and this life while God still grants me minutes and hours here.  There is a lot we could be doing, and then there is a lot we should be doing.  Perhaps it is time yet again for us to seek God regarding whether there are a few more minutes or hours we can devote to him and his kingdom, a better way to spend this time.

Eras, seasons, and times. That is what we expect to experience in this life.  Or perhaps life is just one long yet brief season.  Or perhaps it is both.

When you think that this fallen world is too much to bear, don't pray to be taken out of it.  There is a real, perfect, renewed Earth to come when Jesus restores ALL things.  Focus on that future place, and ask God to show you your role in getting us from here to there.

We have seen proud or self-centered people fall far in this life.  We also have seen similar people seem to coast through life and end on a high note.  Yet, the word of God tells us that every proud and haughty person will be brought down.  This is still the case regardless of what we see in people's lives, and there is a foundational truth that requires it.

Paul told the Philippian church no to be anxious or worried but to be prayerful.  A recent dream had by a friend of mine painted a picture which might cause some to worry, but that same picture caused me to hope.  Let me share with you that dream and what I believe the Lord has shown me in it.

There is joy, meaning, and purpose to so much of this life, but the wrong perspective will send us looking for those things in places where we will never find them.  Let us seek God for direction for our fulfillment in life.

God puts hope in front of us so that we can bring that same hope to others.  Sometimes we accomplish this with words and sometimes with actions.  Let us ask God to reveal to us the opportunities we have today to be another person's hope.

To pursue God and his kingdom is about more than what we can gain.  Blessings, treasures, gifts, mercy, and eternal life are great.  Who would not want them? However, pursuing God is about pursuing holiness in us as well, a transformation only He can bring.  If we are not pursuing the development of godliness within us, we are not pursuing God.