Devotions By Jan

Category Archives: Faithfulness


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Trivial Pursuit

Scripture for Today: Psalm 139:2-3 “You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; You are familiar with all my ways.”

Trivial Pursuit is probably one of my least favorite board games.  Somehow, the questions on popular culture and general knowledge have a way of stumping me and making me look stupid!  Yet it has enjoyed much success having sold over a 100 million games in 26 countries and in 17 different languages!  I console myself with the thought that the one who wins is simply the one who knows the most trivia!

Today’s verse describes God’s intimate knowledge of us.  He knows not only our physical movements but the direction of our thoughts as well.  God is so big that the smallest most trivial detail does not get past Him!  He knows when, where and why a swallow falls to the ground and He knows just how many hairs are currently on my head.  Our powerful God is not only Lord of the universe but also cares about the puny unimportant minutia of our lives.  His omniscience is all inclusive.

I find enormous comfort and assurance to know He is intimately involved in the details of my life.  Because of His love and grace, I do not have to hide from this knowledge.  And His intimate knowledge of me means I can live without fear.  I can move confidently through my day, knowing He is there.  He knows and He cares, even when it is something so small that has me worried.  Rather than get nervous over what could happen, I can trust Him.  There is nothing too small for His notice.  There is nothing too trivial.

Thank you Lord, that I can come to You over the smallest thing.


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Taking it Easy?

Scripture for Today: Psalm 71:18 “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, ’til I declare Your power to the next generation, Your mighty acts to all who are to come.”

This image has rest and relaxation written all over it!  I can imagine that the couple pictured have lived a busy and productive life, maybe with several career changes.  Perhaps they have stopped punching a clock.  The hard part of raising a family is behind them.  They have paid their dues and are now enjoying their “golden years.”

Today’s verse is looking forward to this stage of life.  But rather than thinking about well-deserved rest and relaxation, David still has a “to do” list in mind.  He looks forward to declaring to the next generation all that the Lord has done for him.  There is still a story to be told to others of all of God’s miracles seen in a lifetime!  With age, the story becomes longer and richer and more credible.

I know He will never leave me or forsake me (I Kings 8:57)  He has shown Himself faithful to me time and time again! Declaring His power and His greatness is a privilege belonging especially to those of a certain age.  In testifying to His faithfulness throughout a long life, others are encouraged to persevere in the faith.  In this sense, there is no retirement when it comes to speaking to the next generation of God’s greatness!  And it is often in looking back over the years that we see more clearly His miraculous hand!  I know my children and my grandchildren are watching me.  They will never see perfection but my prayer is that they will hear from me praise and testimony to God’s power!

Lord, keep me praising You to others.

 


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Diamond in the Rough

Scripture for Today: Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

A diamond in the rough does not look like much.  Yet, the finished product is stunning!  A diamond is especially valuable when it is unearthed from the ground.  Those “diamonds” that are fabricated in labs or simulated are not quite as appreciated.  It is the cost, time and effort of mining that contribute to making a diamond precious.  The mined diamond may be dirty, unformed and rough around the edges.  But in the hands of a skilled cutter it is transformed into a gorgeous faceted gem.

Today’s verse describes a life-long creative process.  God is continually at work in the heart of every believer.  He has His work cut out for Him, changing us to be like His Son.  He has pledged to continue this work faithfully right up until the moment of Christ’s return.  He never quits.  He never gives up.  One day the work Jesus is doing in me will be complete.  One day I will be like Him (I John 3:2).

He asks me to cooperate with Him.  He even creates in me the desire to cooperate! (Phil. 2:13)  It is a strange working partnership where He provides the strength and the motivation.  However He is the Craftsman doing the cutting and faceting.   And some of those cuts He makes go deep.  I often do not understand what He is doing.  But He asks me to trust His love and goodness whether I understand or not. What He is creating in me is always more beautiful than anything I could achieve.  He has promised an incredible outcome.

Thank you Lord, that I can trust  Your work in me!


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Ramona’s Marriage Place

Scripture for Today:  Proverbs 14:1  “The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands.”

This adobe building in Old Town, San Diego called Casa de Estudillo or Estudillo House was once considered one of the finest homes of its day.  Built in 1827, it later came to be associated with a work of fiction entitled, Ramona.  Tourists flocked to the site, believing that the story took place there.  In the absence of the owners, the caretaker decided to capitalize on its popularity and sold pieces of the house as souvenirs!  Obviously, the state of the house rapidly deteriorated!  It was restored in 1910 and later declared a historical landmark.

Today’s verse describes a house coming down.  It is very much in the power of a woman to make or break a household.  A foolish woman needs no help to bring the house down around her head.  But a wise woman will fight for her home and her family.  She will do everything in her power to protect those precious walls.  The wise woman fears the Lord first and foremost (Psalm 111:10).  Following God’s commandments in a marriage relationship and as parents is the surest way to keep that house standing.  A foolish woman will consider God’s way as old fashioned and antiquated.  Without realizing it, the foolish woman will tear her own house down little by little.

There are cracks in my walls every now and then.  Sometimes following God’s way is just difficult.  I need His help to obey.  He has made His plan clear in His Word for all the family relationships.  And sometimes it is at odds with how our society operates.  But following His way is well worth the effort.

Thank you, Lord, that my house is still standing!  Keep me faithful to You.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Looking Through the Kaleidoscope

Scripture for Today: Isaiah 43:19  “See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”

This beautiful image was taken through an iPhone lens fitted to the eye hole of a kaleidoscope.  I used to look through them as a child, fascinated with the different colors, shapes and patterns.  The kaleidoscope was originally invented in 1815 as part of a scientific experiment on light polarization before becoming a popular toy.  It is amazing how those mirrors inside can change loose pieces of glass, beads and pebbles into amazing vibrant patterns!

Today’s verse is an encouragement to look at life differently.  Rather than focus exclusively on the past and what God has done, we are to rotate that kaleidoscope and see the new image the Lord wants to produce.  We can miss the new thing He wants to create in our lives.  To us it may not look like much.  Our lives can seem like random bits and pieces.  Our lives can even resemble a wilderness or wasteland.  But He has a purpose in bringing it all together in a new and exciting pattern!

He makes a way.  The Lord is a Master at taking the broken pieces of my life and fashioning them into something beautiful.  Sometimes, all I see are the ups and downs of the past.  So often I miss seeing how they are fitting together.  I do not always see the new thing He is creating.  But He is faithful to His promise to work all things for the good of those who love Him (Rom. 8:28).  He is continually creating His character in me.

Thank you, Lord, that no detail of my life is beyond Your reach to produce something beautiful!