In today's promise, the Apostle John encourages us to be confident in our prayer life. When we ask God for anything that is in accordance with His will, He hears us. Our Father is a good father who delights in giving His kids good gifts (James 1:17) and He is listening when we cry out to Him. I think we would be surprised at how attentive God really is to our prayers.

If our view of God is that He is harsh and a taskmaster, then we will probably feel like we could never do enough to get His attention. However, this is not the picture of God that Jesus painted while He was on earth. Everything that Jesus did was an exact representation of His Father (John 14:8-10). Jesus even told us that His Dad took the time to number every one of the hairs on our head (Matthew 10:30) because of our great value to Him.

So continue to ask, seek and knock. Remember, what Jesus told us in Matthew 7:7-11...  7 “Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. 8 For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds. To him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or who is there among you, who, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, who will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!  (WEB)  Photo by Carl Dyck

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God is a family man. His whole life is about family. In Ephesians 3:14-15 Paul the Apostle says...  ¹⁴For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, ¹⁵from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, (ESV). God understands that we were created to be in families, so in today's promise, we read how God puts people who are lonely in families.

I believe His heart is that we would experience family life on earth through brothers and sisters in the kingdom of God as well as family life in heaven.  In John 8:35, Jesus tells us... Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. (NIV) Whether we have had a good family system on earth or not, we have a permanent place in the family of God where we will belong forever.

If you are struggling fitting into your natural family, be encouraged to know that you belong to an amazing supernatural family where we can call each other brothers and sisters because we have the same heavenly Father. God places the lonely in families. That is good news for each and every one of us! Photo by Barry Adams

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When we know who God is, it is easy to trust in Him. When we are convinced that He is loving and kind and gentle, we will be able to risk again and entrust our hearts fully to Him. If we are not yet convinced of His goodness, we will struggle to trust Him.

I believe that giving our Father the gift of our trust is the greatest gift that we can give Him. When we trust Him, we lower our defenses and open our hearts fully to Him. When we trust Him, we will not lean to our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6) but completely yield to His leading in our life. I believe when we begin to trust God in a simple childlike way, it moves His heart like nothing else that we can do.

In today's promise, we read that our God and Father will never, ever forsake those who trust in Him. He is unwavering in His commitment to us. He will never leave us or forsake us. For those of us who struggle with the fear of being abandoned, I pray that the reality of our Papa's goodness and closeness would drive all fear out of our hearts (1 John 4:18) so that we can fully trust Him.
Photo by Carl Dyck

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There have been many times in my own life where I have struggled with circumstances and have not had any pat answers or quick solutions to my problems. In the midst of these seasons in my life, 1 John 4:16 has become really meaningful to me. When all else fails, love will never fail.  As the Apostle John tells us in today's promise...  And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. (NIV)

Whatever challenge you are facing in your life today, you can know and depend on the love that God has for you. His love will comfort you, His love will sustain you, His love will carry you through any situation. May each one of us run into the arms of our God and Father today knowing that we can depend on His love to be enough for us no matter how difficult our journey.

God is love. He not only loves, but the very core of His being is unconditional, everlasting love for you and I. May the reality of this promise go deep into our hearts today so that we would learn to make our home living in the love that God has for us.
Photo by Jeff Epp

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God is completely free and He loves freedom. Galatians 5:1 says that it is for freedom's sake that Christ has set us free. In John 8:36, Jesus Himself speaks of the freedom He has for us when He said... If therefore the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. (WEB)

Wherever God lives, you will find freedom. If you are struggling with bondage today or are in controlling circumstances that hinder freedom, ask God to set you free!  God's plan and purpose for us is to be free to live, free to serve, free to be generous, free to dream, free to be His beloved child...free, free, free!

My prayer today is that we would all experience a new level of freedom in our lives. Ask God for more freedom and believe in your heart that it is His desire to set you free... and watch what happens in your life! Photo by Barry Adams

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In Matthew 5, Jesus shares a kingdom message that we lovingly call The Beatitudes. In this section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reveals some of the values of His kingdom. Nine times He says that people are blessed in circumstances that would seem opposite to what the world system would see as blessed. The Amplified Bible translates the word blessed that He uses as... (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous--with life-joy and satisfaction in God's favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions). (AMP)

At some point or another, we will all suffer the loss of a loved one and we will need the comfort that comes from God alone. In today's promise, we read that when we mourn we will be blessed (from a kingdom perspective) with the comfort that comes only from God Himself. Psalm 34:18 says... Yahweh is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves those who have a crushed spirit. (WEB)

If you are going through a time of grieving right now, my prayer is that this promise would be very tangible to you. I pray that you would feel God's closeness to you as He carries you through this season of mourning. Through it all, may you truly feel blessed by God despite your circumstances as described by the Amplified Bible... (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous--with life-joy and satisfaction in God's favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions). Photo by Jeff Epp

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When we hurt, God's heart is full of compassion towards us. In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, He is called the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort. When we are wounded, His desire is to bring healing to us. If you are struggling today with a broken heart, be comforted in knowing that your heavenly Father understands everything that you are going through and wants to heal your broken heart.

In Psalm 103:13-14, the English Standard Version Bible it says... ¹³As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. ¹⁴For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. (ESV) When Jesus was moved with compassion, He healed the sick. When our Father is moved with compassion, He heals us too.

My prayer today is  that we would all know that we are not alone in our struggles, for our heavenly Father loves us with all His heart and His compassion will bring healing to every wounded area in our soul.
Photo by Jeff Epp

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I love the picture that Jesus paints in this passage of Scripture. In order to better appreciate what Jesus is saying, let's read a broader view of this promise found in John 10:27-30...  27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give eternal life to them. They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.” (WEB)

Jesus tells us in this Bible passage that those who come to Him will never perish because we are being held safely in the palm of His hand where no one can snatch us away. He then goes on to double our feeling of safety and security by telling us that we are also held in His Father's hand who is the greatest of all!

Every time I think about this Scripture passage, I envision myself being firmly held in the hand of Jesus and Jesus' hand being firmly held by the Father's. What a picture of unity in the Godhead and security for us. No matter what comes your way, nothing can snatch you out of the loving, invincible hands of both Father and Son. May the thought of this security bring much peace to every troubled heart. 
Photo by Carl Dyck

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Psalm 23 is one of the most loved psalms. It has been recited in times of celebration, in times of loss and and everything in between. The author of this psalm was King David who had a good understanding of what it meant to be a shepherd. As a boy, David learned to care for the flock under his care so when he made the statement that The LORD was his shepherd, he knew what he was saying.

When David said I shall not want (KJV), he was basically saying that he would not be in need of anything because of the shepherding care of the Lord. The NLT Bible says I shall have all that I need. Shepherds look after their sheep in every way. They lead them to green pastures, they protect them and they provide all that they need to live a good life.  In John 10:12-16 Jesus tells us how a shepherd not only protects the sheep under his care but will gladly lay down his life for their safety.

The truth is that Jesus is our great shepherd and because of His loving care we will have all that we need. My prayer is that the reality of this promise will go deep into our hearts today.

Hebrews 13:20-21

20 Now may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep with the blood of an eternal covenant, our Lord Jesus, 21 make you complete in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (WEB)

Photo by Barry Adams

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The Greek word word for love used in this verse is the word agape which is used to describe the everlasting, unconditional love of God. This popular chapter of the Bible is often used as the Scripture reading for weddings to emphasize the power of love.

I would encourage you to read the entire chapter of 1 Corinthians 13 as often as possible to remind yourself of the priority of love in God's eyes. Paul the Apostle writes that love is the greatest attribute of God that we can pursue. We can have faith to move mountains, give all our possessions to the poor, understand all mysteries and have all knowledge, and even die a martyr's death, but if we don't have love, it means nothing.

1 John 4:16 simply says that God is love. The very core of His being is an unconditional, everlasting love that continually flows out to us. In today's promise the message is short and sweet. God's love will never fail you. Ever. On the day of the year that many people celebrate love (Valentine's Day), may we all be reminded of the greatest of all loves that comes from the Father to us through His Son, Jesus Christ.

The love that God has for us will never ever fail. Earthly loves may disappoint us from time to time, but the love that God has for us will never change and will last forever.
Photo by Barry Adams

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