Anything You Ask

Read John 10-12

John 11:22 says, "But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee."  Martha at first said Lazarus wouldn’t have died if Jesus had been there to prevent it.  Then when Jesus said Lazarus would be raised from the dead, she said she knew it would happen like with all others, in the last day.  She was trying to understand her brother’s death in the ways she knew.

She knew Jesus could heal sicknesses and about the final days.  She knew Jesus could do anything He wanted to do, but it sounded like she was afraid to hope that Jesus would chooses to raise Lazarus from the dead that day.

When things we pray for don’t happen right away or happen the way we think they should have, we try to understand why.  Our faith is built up when we see answers to our prayers and we don’t want to lose faith just because things aren’t going as we’d hoped.  God doesn’t need for us to make excuses for Him.  All He wants from us is to keep believing.

Tomorrow’s reading: John 13-15

Why Is This Happening?

Read John 7-9

John 9:2 says, "And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?"  So many of the things that happen to us, to our loved ones, and even to strangers seem like they must be punishments for something.  They’re so hurtful, so terrible that there must have been a way to have prevented it—at least something we can do to keep such things from ever happening again.

We’re ready to repent, but we can’t think what we need to repent from.  We’re ready to change, but we don’t know what changes we need to make.

But when those terrible things happen, it may not be a punishment.  It may not even be a consequence for an action taken.  Sometimes those terrible things just happen and what we need is strength from the Lord to see us through and comfort from Him to carry us through to the other side of the pain.

Tomorrow’s reading: John 10-12

Use What You Have

Read John 4-6

John 6:9 says, "There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?"  I’ve heard of communities that come together to bake the world’s largest loaf of bread.  Five of those loaves and two whales might have been enough for that many people to each get a bite of food.  But he couldn’t have carried all that too easily.  He had enough for himself, maybe to last all day.

But he gave the disciples his lunch, never allowing its insufficiency to keep him from sharing it.  And while the disciples complained, they took the food the boy offered, despite the fact that it was too little to be of any use.

Than the miracle happened.  Over five thousand people ate and had plenty.  There were even leftovers.  When we give what we have to the Lord, He accepts it and makes our little bit into something useful.

Tomorrow’s reading: John 7-9

Receive Not Our Witness

Read John 1-3

John 3:11 says, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness."  We don’t always know who to believe.  We start off believing everybody, only to discover the hard way that not everyone can be trusted—not everyone tells the truth.

Jesus came up against this problem.  People didn’t always believe what He said.  Sometimes they wanted more of an explanation, other times doubting Him outright.

We may not be able to win any theological arguments with others seeking to know more about God or just trying to frustrate us, but we own our testimonies.  We know what God has done for us.  Whether or not someone believes us, they can’t take that away from us.

Tomorrow’s reading: John 4-6

Never Too Late

Read Luke 22-24

Luke 23:43 says, "And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise."  Two thieves were crucified with Jesus.  One mocked and one repented.  The one who repented was forgiven right then and there.

Jesus didn’t make him wait to see if his remorse did him any good.  He told him right away that he was forgiven and would be in Paradise with Him.

We can know we are forgiven, too.  It doesn’t matter what we’ve done or how long we’ve waited to repent.  When we finally repent, when we finally ask for forgiveness, God forgives us on the spot and restores our relationship to Him.  It’s not too late.

Tomorrow’s reading: John 1-3

Giving All You’ve Got

Read Luke 19-21

Luke 21:4 says, "For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had."  Jesus was impressed with the widow’s offering and wanted to impress His listeners with an important lesson.  The widow gave all she had while everyone else gave some of what they had.

We may not feel like we’re ready to be used by the Lord.  We’re not smart enough, not old enough or young enough, not rich enough, not important enough, not talented enough.  But God doesn’t have requirements that we have to meet before He can use us.

We can be used where we are and as what we are.  Whatever we have, if we give it all to Him, He’ll find a place for us, He’ll find something worthwhile for us, He’ll find a way to use us to make a difference in someone else’s life.

Tomorrow’s reading: Luke 22-24

Unprofitable Servants

Read Luke 16-18

Luke 17:10 says, "So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do."  We get more feedback than we need from everyone around us.  Parents tell their children how they can improve.  Children tell their parents how they are falling short.  We get evaluations regularly at work and criticism often.  Strangers feel free to tell us when we fail to meet their expectations.

Even when we aren’t being criticized, we look for measures of how well we’re doing.  Do we have the same things others have?  Do people seem to like us?  Are we dependable?  We want to know we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing.

But God wants us to seek higher than that.  He wants us to look for ways to do more than the minimum.  If we settle for doing our duty, we are unprofitable servants.  It’s when we find the little extras to do that we will be “good and faithful” servants.

Tomorrow’s reading: Luke 19-21