Where is Heaven?

My four-year-old grandson asked me a profound question: “Where is Heaven, Mimi?” When our grandsons stay overnight at our house, I always take the opportunity to share about the things of God as part of the bedtime routine. In an instant God gave me the right answer that a child can understand: “Heaven is where Jesus is.” I would have never thought of that answer, but the Holy Spirit inspired me to answer correctly and succinctly. And my grandson understood and believed.

I then told my grandson that Jesus is preparing a special place for each of us for when our turn to go to heaven comes. I explained that most likely I will go to heaven before him because I am older. And that I will be waiting for him in heaven with Jesus when his turn to go comes. I ended this story by telling him that we would have a huge balloon party when we meet in heaven again with all our loved ones. And that we would be together in heaven forever. He went to sleep with a big smile on his face and the peace of God.

Reflecting on this beautiful conversation, I thanked God for giving me the right answer at the right moment. Every conversation we have about God with a child is a seed we plant in their hearts that will produce fruit. Proverbs 22:6 (NLT) tells us to “Teach your children to choose the right path, and when they are older, they will remain upon it.” I then asked God to lead me to Scriptures that explain and describe heaven. I wanted to have more conversations about heaven with my grandson.

The first Scripture I remembered is John 14:1-7 (NLT) “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There are many rooms in my Father’s home, and I am going to prepare a place for you. If this were not so, I would tell you plainly. When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. And you know the way to where I am going.” “No, we don’t know, Lord,” Thomas said. “We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him!”

In addition to telling my grandson that heaven is where Jesus is, I also wanted to emphasize two other important concepts. First, that we only go to heaven when we accept Jesus in our hearts as our Savior. Secondly, that once we are saved, we go to heaven and will be together—forever. The concept of eternity is new to my grandson, but he is starting to understand that “forever” means a long, long time. It means “always.” And understanding that concept gave him peace and hope. Isaiah 25:8 says that “He will swallow up death forever! The Sovereign Lord will wipe away all tears.”

I will leave you with these encouraging words from Colossians 3:1-5:

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.

My prayer is for you to have the assurance that you will be with Jesus forever when your turn comes to leave this earth. We don’t know when we’re going. But we can know where we’re going when our earthly life ends.

Don’t Give up On America!

When we hear the news about the economy, the increased crime, and about America as a nation walking away from God, we get discouraged. We question if our prayers are worth it because we don’t see immediate results. But today I want to encourage you to not give up on America! The Bible tells us in Ephesians 6:18 to “Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere.” America is a nation founded by Christians and there are still millions of believers in this country.

Watching your beloved country go down the tube is very disheartening. But the Lord revealed something very important to me this week. Our prayers do matter. Let me share the story of Jonah. The Book of Jonah is the shortest book in the Bible, but the story is very powerful.

Jonah received a message from the Lord to “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh! Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are” (Jonah 1:2). But Jonah didn’t want to go because he feared the people in that evil city. So, he went the opposite way, bought a ticket, and got on a boat going to Tarshish. While on the boat, God sent a terrible storm, and the sailors were terrified. They prayed to their gods to calm the storm, but they didn’t answer. They soon found out that Jonah had disobeyed his God and that’s why the storm happened. Jonah asked them to throw him overboard and the storm would be gone.

So, they did. As soon as they threw Jonah into the sea, the storm calmed down. The sailors were amazed at God’s power and vowed to serve Him going forward. As Jonah sank into the bottom of the sea, God sent a huge fish that swallowed Jonah and kept him inside for three days and three nights. During this time Jonah repented and God made the fish to spit him out.

Then the Lord asked Jonah a second time to go to Nineveh with His message. This time Jonah obeyed the Lord’s command and went to Nineveh. Once he arrived and shared God’s message that said: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they decided to go without food and wear sackcloth to show their sorrow” (Jonah 3:3-5).

And when the king heard the message, he issued a decree to the city: “No one, not even the animals, may eat or drink anything at all. Everyone is required to wear sackcloth and pray earnestly to God. Everyone must turn from their evil ways and stop all their violence. Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will have pity on us and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us” (Jonah 3: 7-9).

As everyone repented and prayed, a miracle happened. “When God saw that they had put a stop to their evil ways, he had mercy on them and didn’t carry out the destruction he had threatened” (Jonah 3:10). Interestingly, when Jonah saw God’s mercy on this evil city, he was upset because he wanted them to be destroyed. They deserved it. But God challenged Jonah and told him he could not question God’s mercy. “Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?” (Jonah 4:11).

What a beautiful story of God’s mercy, forgiveness, and second chances. I learned five lessons from this story:

1)     Disobedience: We each have a special calling and when we disobey God’s command or run away from Him, we pay the consequences of our disobedience. Storms come to our life because of our own fault. We bring it to ourselves and, unfortunately, those around us also suffer the consequences.

2)     Repentance: The moment we repent from our hearts, God forgives us and gives a second chance to obey His command. Jonah didn’t get out of his troubles and walked away. He had to fulfil his unique mission. We must repent and stop sinning.

3)     Forgiveness: No matter how evil people and an entire country are, if everyone repents and seeks God’s forgiveness with humility, God will forgive us. He will even stop His judgment from destroying our entire country. This revelation gave me hope. Let’s not give up on America. Let’s repent as a nation from having walked away from God. We took Him out of our schools and allowed evil to destroy our families. Along with repentance comes fervent prayer for our nation and for one another. Prayer for God to forgive us and to spare us from destruction. Sometimes destruction is not only physical but spiritual, which is worse because it has eternal consequences.

4)     Love: God cares. He cares for each person in the entire world. He does not want anyone to perish, which is precisely why He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die for all our sins. But we must repent and accept the free gift of salvation.

5)     Witness: When we obey God, others will see His power and will believe too. We are to be examples of God’s mercy and love for humanity.

I hope the story of Jonah will inspire and encourage you to pray for America and for all its citizens.

The Whole Armor of God

We are the army of God. And typically, armies prepare for war before they are attacked. Christianity is under attack and, therefore, if you call yourself a Christian or a follower of Jesus Christ, then you are under attack too. But this war is not a physical war, at least not yet. This is a spiritual war and, therefore, we must fight this war with all the spiritual tools that God gave us as described in the Bible.

Let’s unfold “The Whole Armor of God” from Ephesians 6:10-18 (NLT)

10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. We must be and remain strong throughout the battle and God gives us His mighty power to do it.

11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. Once we put the entire armor of God then we can stand firm against ALL the strategies of the devil. The devil is relentless and never stops attacking. If one strategy doesn’t work against you, he will come up with a new one until he gets you down. He is always on the attack and never sleeps. Therefore, our strategy should be to put on all God’s armor and keep it on at all times.

12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. We tend to think that people are the enemy. But the Bible tells us that the real enemy is Satan and all the evil spirits that we cannot see with our eyes. However, we can sense them in our spirit because God made us in His image which means we all are spirit beings too. This is a spiritual battle!

13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Every piece of armor has its specific function, and we are to wear all the pieces. The goal is to not only survive the battle but to stand firm, meaning you are unharmed and not barely surviving on the ground. You are standing and firm!

14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. We are not only to fight and stand firm, but we are to stand our ground. God gave us several specific tools as part of His armor. We defend our ground with the truth. And Jesus is the truth (John 14:6)! Additionally, righteousness covers the entire body as our "body armor." We have the ability to be righteous but it’s our choice.

15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. The Good News of the Gospel gives us peace to know that we will be with Jesus when our physical body dies. When we are at peace, we can think more clearly and then become fully prepared.

16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. The Bible also tells us that everything is possible for those who believe (Mark 9:23). Without faith, we accomplish nothing. Faith stops the enemy’s attacks on their tracks. The darts simply fall to the ground.

17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. We must accept Jesus as our Savior to be saved. Once we are saved, then we can and must use the entire armor to protect us from the enemy’s attacks. If you notice, most of the equipment is used to defend ourselves from the attacks of the devil. But the Word of God is the truth that cuts through all lies. It is our biggest offense weapon to destroy the enemy.

18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. In these days when the attacks of the devil are constant so our prayers should be also. We must pray on every occasion we can, day and night. There are so many people in need of God who are lost and searching for answers. Others, who are believers, need our prayers of support and faith to help them get through the rough circumstances they’re living through.

I hope I have encouraged you to pray incessantly and to put on the entire armor of God that is at your disposal. There is no time to waste!

The Promise – Let’s Celebrate Easter Every Day!

In the Christian faith, during Christmas we celebrate the birth of the Promise—Jesus was born. During Easter we celebrate the fulfillment of the Promise—Jesus’ death and resurrection. So, what is this Promise? For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it. (John 3:16-17). This is the Promise—the gift of salvation.

 On the sixth day of creation, God created humans. So God created people in his own image; God patterned them after himself; male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27). Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was excellent in every way (v. 31). Then only two chapters later, we messed everything up and sinned for the first time. So the Lord banished Adam and his wife from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:23) and our lives with sin began…

 Now let’s talk about who is the Promise? Isaiah Chapter 53 describes who He is and what He goes through for us!! His name is JESUS!

2 There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
3 He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way when he went by.
He was despised, and we did not care.

4 Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
5 But he was wounded and crushed for our sins.
He was beaten that we might have peace.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
6 All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.

 7 He was oppressed and treated harshly,
yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
8 Unjustly condemned, he was led away.
No one cared that he died without descendants,
that his life was cut short in midstream.
But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people.
9 He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone.
But he was buried like a criminal;
he was put in a rich man’s grave.

10 But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief.
Yet when his life is made an offering for sin,
he will have many descendants.
He will enjoy a long life,
and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands.
11 When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied.

And because of his experience,
my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.
12 I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier,
because he exposed himself to death.
He was counted among the sinners.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for sinners.

At God’s appointed time, Jesus was born in Bethlehem and we celebrate his birth at Christmas. “Look! The Virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and he will be called Immanuel (meaning, God with us)” (Matthew 2:23). And at the appointed time, Jesus died on the cross for our sins. At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice “Eli, Eli, lema sabachtani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”… Then Jesus shouted out again, and he gave up his spirit (Matthew 27:45-50). A rich man, who was a follower of Jesus, asked Pilate for his body and buried Jesus in a brand-new tomb. He rolled a great stone across the entrance of the tomb.

Jesus was in the tomb for three days. But then, God fulfilled His biggest promise yet. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, because an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and rolled aside the stone and sat on it… The angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid! He said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He has been raised from the dead, just as he said would happen” (Matthew 28:2-7).

And that is the story of salvation. Do you know Jesus? If not, today is your day of salvation. Simply ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and invite Him into your life. He will be with you just as He promised: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

Let’s celebrate Easter every day! 

Leaders Must Be Faithful Stewards

The concept that leaders must be faithful stewards takes maturity to understand. Additionally, it takes courage to lead and not everyone possesses the leadership talent. Therefore, those who have the innate ability to lead stand out from the crowd. And when those leaders develop the leadership talent, they realize they must steward everything they have at their disposal.

I encourage you to view stewardship as your biggest responsibility as a leader. Let’s start by examining the source of our talents. Romans 12:6-8 tells us that, God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well. …If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. If your gift is to encourage other, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.”

Next, let’s examine the various areas of stewardship we are entrusted with:

Steward your money.

In Luke 16 we read the story of the Shrewd Manager where a rich man entrusts a manager to steward all his affairs. The owner heard the manager was dishonest and, consequently, fired him. Verses 10-12 say, “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own? “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”

These verses remind us of the importance to be a faithful steward of the money God entrusts us with. Remember, everything belongs to God. He chooses who He gives what and our responsibility is to steward every single thing that He entrusts us with. The key to not get attached to money is to be generous and help others consistently as stated above in Romans 12 “If you have money, share it generously.”

From the practical perspective, setting financial goals is also important to be a good steward of your money. In addition, setting a monthly budget and sticking to it is crucial to stay on track with your financial goals. Lastly, living within your means is imperative to avoid debt which is one reason some people end up in poverty. This is especially important during inflationary times.

Steward your talents.

As stated above, God gave talents to each person, and we must steward those talents as well. In The Fire Within: Connect Your Gifts with Your Calling book, I dedicated an entire chapter that I called “Treasure Chest – You,” to describe how we can discover, polish, and use our gifts. I make the analogy of talents with jewels: “Gemstones have the capacity to allow the light to shine through, like emeralds, or to reflect the light, like pearls. The same happens with our gifts. Allowing God’s light to shine through or reflect His light on our gifs, so others can be blessed, is a gift in itself. Our gifts are for us and others to enjoy and for God to get the glory. Each gift has a special purpose.”

I encourage you to discover your talents, develop them, and use them to help others. Use them in your job and outside of work as a volunteer to help people in your community.

Steward the talent of others.

As a leader, you are responsible to guide and lead your employees. And that includes utilizing their own talents in a way that helps them develop those talents. In the Bring YOUR Shoes: A Fresh Perspective for Leaders with Big Shoes to Fill book, I wrote a chapter called “Do You Allow Your Employees to Flourish?” where I encourage you to allow employees to explore and expand their talents in three ways: 1) Trust that your employees can do their jobs. 2) Challenge your employees with new things where they can use their talents. 3) Value your employees and acknowledge their talents and what they bring to your organization as a person.

Steward your time and invest in relationships.

In a separate chapter of the Bring YOUR Shoes book, called “A New Concept: Invest Your Time,” I encourage you to invest your time in what’s most important: people. When we invest our time in the relationships God entrusted us with, we demonstrate the ability to steward our relationships well. A few practical things you can do to steward your time are: Be present at home and at work. This means when you are with your family, truly be present with them. When you are at work, perform the duties you are responsible to do, gladly. Be strategic on how you invest your time and choose based on the stewardship principle.

I hope this blog helps you reflect on everything you possess and provides you tips to become the best steward that you can be with what you have. Leaders must be faithful stewards and it takes courage to lead and discipline to faithfully steward our money, time, talents, and relationships.

Even Jesus Needed Time with God

Even Jesus needed time with God; but for some reason, we think we can manage without spending time in the presence of God. Saturdays are my special days with the Lord. I look forward to this quality time with God and protect it like it’s the most important meeting of my week—because it is!

I try to spend a few minutes in prayer each morning before starting work. But often I only have one minute. I also try to spend time reading my Bible at night as I get into bed. Unfortunately, often my eyes start closing and the Bible almost falls on me as I begin to fall asleep. Regardless of my continued attempts I fall short of spending quality time with Jesus.

When Jesus was on earth, He was intentional about spending time with His Father. And so should we. If we don’t schedule time in our calendars, it simply won’t happen. If we don’t keep trying despite our failure to do it consistently, then we never create the habit. We read in the Scriptures that “Jesus went off by himself to pray” which tells us He did it often and that prayer was part of His daily life. Matthew 26:36 says, Then Jesus went with them to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and he said, “Sit here while I go over there to pray.”

Mark 1:35 tells us, Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray. Jesus knew that if he didn’t go pray right away early in the morning, the day would get busy and there would be no time to be with God the rest of the day. And Luke 6:12 says that One day soon afterward Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night. As a human, it is so hard to stay up all night praying. Maybe for some of you it is easy, but for me personally, I can’t do it. But despite his humanity, Jesus prayed… He prayed continually and on every occasion. He knew the importance of prayer and how vital it was for Him to be filled with the Spirit to complete His Mission.

We each have a mission to accomplish too. So today I want to encourage you to pursue prayer in your life. Make the time, delete other commitments from your calendar to allow time to be with God. In addition to filling up your spiritual tank, you will receive an immediate reward—God multiplies your time. He ensures that you accomplish everything you need to get done. It’s a miraculous thing! Below are a few tips that have helped me through the years to keep my commitment to pray and spend time with God consistently:

·        Be intentional about making time to pray.

·        Do cancel other meetings to spend time with God.

·        Be consistent and pick the same day of the week and/or same time of the day.

·        Be persistent. Don’t give up just because you couldn’t do it for a few days.

·        During your time with the Lord, pray for others and give thanks.

·        Expect a reward. Expect the reward of being filled with the Holy Spirit and expect the peace of God that comes from being in His presence.

I hope these ideas will inspire you to set aside quality time with God. I promise you that you will experience an amazing transformation in your life and you will see your prayers being answered. Remember, even Jesus needed time with God. And so do we! 

God Gives Us the Desires of Our Hearts

2023 marked our 35th wedding anniversary in July and we started the year knowing that God gives us the desires of our hearts. We decided to spend one week in Grand Cayman in January and invited our kids and grandkids. They said yes!

Despite some health issues we had in the family, God assured me that everything would turn out okay. One evening I was praying particularly about the trip because we were contemplating canceling the entire trip. I asked the Lord to give me something from His Word to comfort me. And He did. I opened my Bible to Ezekiel 37:14 “I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live and return home to your own land. Then you will know that I am the Lord. You will see that I have done everything just as I promised. I, the Lord, have spoken!”

I thought that was an amazing response to my plea as our trip was to another country and the Lord is telling me that we will return safely to our own home. It couldn’t be clearer. But then I asked the Lord to give me a second Scripture, just in case that was just chance. And He did. I opened my Bible again. This time, to Psalm 42:5 “Why am I discouraged? Why so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again—my Savior and my God!” This Scripture gave me hope!

I, still with doubts in my heart that I was hearing from him, asked once again for a third Scripture. And He did. This time I opened my Bible to Isaiah 19:22 “The Lord will strike Egypt in a way that will bring healing. For the Egyptians will turn to the Lord, and he will listen to their pleas and heal them.”

God is so sweet to continue to answer our prayers even when we are not sure we’re hearing from Him. So today I’m writing to share that He kept all His promises and we had the most amazing vacation together as a family. We created so many happy memories that will last a lifetime! My heart is full of gratitude for this gift as this was one of my life’s heart desires—to spend vacation time at a beautiful beach with our kids and grandkids. I am grateful they all want to spend time with us and that we all have a loving relationship. While there, we celebrated our grandson’s 4th birthday and our 1 year old grandson learned to walk all by himself!

I leave you with my favorite Scripture from the Bible: Psalm 37:3-5 “Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you.”

We all have desires of our heart and when those desires align with God’s will, He gives us those desires because it pleases Him, as a Father.

The Return on Investment (ROI) of Your Time – Merry Christmas!

This Christmas, I encourage you to give your loved ones the gift of your time. The ROI of your time will be the biggest gift you receive this season! As you invest your time in others’ lives, will you expect a return on your investment? Or will you expect nothing in return?

Investors invest their money in business ventures hoping it will produce a positive return on their investment. Otherwise, they would not do it and many businesses may not exist if no one invested in them at startup. Investors know their expectations for their Return on Investment (ROI). But what if that investment is your time, an intangible yet your most valuable asset? Should you expect a return on your time too? I do and I encourage you to expect a return as well.

Let me explain. While the ROI on your time may never be a financial return, your ROI will always be something. At the least, you will feel like you helped someone—even if that person never even says “thank you” to you. At the most, you will see the fruit of your investment of time by how you were able to impact that person’s life. And sometimes the return on your investment will be in the spiritual realm. You won’t see it here, but you will see it when you go to heaven.

Below are some examples of how you can give the gift of your time:

·        Spend time with children: Whether you spend time with your own kids, grandkids, or relatives, or volunteer at a nonprofit to spend time with children, this is always a good investment of your time. When you give children of your time, you are giving them special attention and they feel valued and loved.

·        Listen to a widow or widower: People who have recently lost a spouse need special attention and love, especially during the holidays. Often, we don’t know what to say to someone who’s lost a loved one, not realizing that what they need is not for us to say anything. They just need us to listen to them as they process their grief.

·        Spend time with your parents: If you’re blessed to still have your parents alive, make the effort to call them, visit them, or do a virtual call if they live away. The special time you spend together will help you create memories that will last a lifetime. If you no longer have your parents, encourage others to connect or reconnect with theirs as we never know if there will be a “next time.”

·        Nurture your friendships: Time spent with dear friends rejuvenates you and increases your happiness. Sharing laughter and sometimes tears create a special bond that deepens your relationship.

·        Share the Gospel: As a follower of Jesus, I invest my time sharing the Gospel of hope with my friends who may not know how to incorporate Jesus in their everyday life.

·        Spend time with God: God, your Father, yearns for your time. God rejoices when you spend time with Him, simply worshiping Him, reading the Bible, or bringing your prayer requests for others to Him.

I hope these ideas inspire you to give of your time this Christmas season. Your gift of time will get you the biggest return on your investment you’ve ever imagined—whether it’s here on earth or in eternity later.

Merry Christmas!

All in God’s Timing – Are You Ready?

People need to be ready to receive the good news of the Gospel. Sometimes we get impatient with God because He doesn’t answer our prayers immediately. We ask God for many things and for many people. Today I want to focus on our prayers involving others receiving Jesus in their heart. We often pray for loved ones who don’t know Jesus, people who have walked away from God, or friends and family who, in our opinion, and are not living their lives according to the Bible. But who are we to judge them? No one truly knows another person’s heart and their personal relationship with Jesus.

Some people are vocal about their relationship with God and others like to keep it to themselves. Over the years, I have changed my approach to praying for my loved ones. I now pray for my friends and family members to get closer to God. That way, regardless of how close or how far they may be in their walk with God, my prayer is valid. I personally want to get closer to God in my own faith journey.

Sometimes we pray for the same person for many years, and we don’t see results. We talk to those people and try to convince them to follow Christ. We read Bible passages and send them texts, and nothing happens. It’s like we’re sending messages to a wrong phone number or like our emails got stuck in spam… never answered. But today I want to encourage you to never stop sharing the Gospel with all the people that God puts in your path during your life. Each person matures spiritually in their own time. Every person is unique and the timing when their heart is ready to receive the message is God’s timing, not ours.

Therefore, don’t get discouraged when the person you’re praying for does not respond to you. Often, God sends a different person at just the right time, who tells them something that opens up their heart to receive salvation. Other times, an event happens in their life that breaks them down to the point of repentance or desperation where they cry out to God to help them. They receive the gift of salvation then. But all the seeds that you and others planted in this person’s heart over the years allows this person to be ready at the right time in their lives.

All in God’s timing. Are you ready to receive the gift of salvation? If you already have it, are you ready it to share it with others? I leave you with this scripture to encourage you:

1 Corinthians 3:6 (NLT) “I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow.”

Create Memories – Happy Thanksgiving!

Ever since I moved to the United States in 1986, I have wanted to see some of the beautiful landscapes this country has to offer. The summer of 2022, my husband and I had the opportunity to visit several Western States. From the start, my purpose was to create new memories with him in these beautiful places that would last a lifetime. I also asked God to show me His love through His beautiful creation. And He did.

We visited South Dakota and went to see Mount Rushmore, the Bad Lands, Black Hills, and took a trip to see the Devils Tower in Wyoming. The next trip took us directly to Wyoming, so we visited Yellowstone where we say many geysers and hot springs but the most beautiful and impressive of all was, of course, the Old Faithful. We walked on the board walk along the amazing pools and springs of boiling water and we arrived at the Beauty Pool displaying its vibrant colors of blues, greens, and yellows. Then there were three geysers that never stopped gushing boiling water up in the air. In the distance and sometimes closer than comfortable, we saw bison. They move slowly but are always on the move. They walk around enjoying freedom and eating off the land. We must return to Yellowstone so we can explore a little more since we only saw a few acres out of the 2.2 million acres of incredible beauty!

Lastly, we went to Arizona and took the opportunity to visit the Grand Canyon again. We visited almost twenty years ago with our children, and we wanted to create new memories while overlooking the breath-taking views. I’m always about creating memories and “moments” that are unforgettable. Moments that I can go back to and remember with a smile in my face and gratitude in my heart. When I recognize one of those moments, I tell my husband, “Stop… I’m creating a moment.” We stop, take a deep breath to remember even the smells around us, we look around to remember the surroundings, and we hug. That moment is now cemented in my heart and in my brain forever.

The pastor from my church recently talked about creating moments with your family, with your friends, and with God. I create memories with my family and favorite friends by being intentional about getting together regardless of how busy I may be. I create memories with God every Saturday morning when I spend extra time with Him. It’s my personal one-on-one time with my Creator and Savior. I pray during the week too; but this is my dedicated, intentional time with Jesus where I share my heart, write in my journal, cry, pray, read my Bible, and write inspirational messages such as this one. I know He listens!

I leave you with encouraging thoughts during this Thanksgiving season:

·        Express your love daily for your spouse and for your loved ones—family, friends, coworkers, everyone!

·        Reach out to others so they can support you and pray for you during difficult times.

·        Hang on to Jesus! Allow Him to walk with you through each situation.

·        Thank God every day for your life and the life of your loved ones.

·        Living with gratitude is key to your happiness. Be thankful. Be grateful. Be happy.

Here are some Scriptures of thanksgiving to lift you up:

Psalm 9:1 (NLT) I will thank you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done.

Psalm 28:7 (NLT) The Lord is my strength, my shield from every danger. I trust in him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.

Psalm 103:2 (NLT) Praise the Lord, I tell myself, and never forget the good things he does for me.”

Create memories with your family, your friends, and with God. I wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving, full of love and gratitude to God for life!

“What is God, Mimi?”

That was the question my three-and one-half year-old grandson asked me recently. I had never been asked that question by any adult or anyone I know… until this day. Henry was supposed to take a nap that afternoon. But instead, he decided to talk about Jesus. I have a crucifix of Jesus on the cross by my bed. I have shared about Jesus with Henry before many times. But today, he really was intrigued by seeing Jesus on the cross. He jumped on my bed and asked me if he could hold Jesus. I gave him the crucifix and we started the deepest conversation I have ever had with a child. Here is how the conversation went:

Henry: “Why did the bad guys nailed Jesus to the cross?”

Mimi: “Because they didn’t want Jesus to live. They wanted him dead.”

Henry: “Jesus is dead?”

Mimi: “No, He was dead only for 3 days. This is only a picture of Jesus on the cross, so we don’t forget what He went through. He died for our sins so we could go to heaven when we die. They buried him inside a tomb and rolled over a huge stone that no one could move… But then, God sent an angel who removed the big stone and God woke Jesus up. He raised Jesus from the dead.”

Henry: “Jesus is awake?”

Mimi: “Yes, He is alive, and His Spirit is in our hearts when we accept Him as our Savior.”

Henry: after thinking for a few seconds, “What is God, Mimi?”

Mimi: After a split moment and asking God to give me the right answer that a child could understand, I responded: “God is LOVE.”

Henry: “God is love?”

Mimi: “Yes, Henry. He created everything out of His deep love. He made you and me and all the people. And He loves you.

Henry: “I love Jesus.” Henry still can’t say the “L” sound so he said, “I ‘wove’ Jesus!”

 Wow! I have never been so touched by such a deep question, and even more so coming from a child, my beloved grandson. God gave me the perfect answer: God is LOVE! One word, so simple yet so profound. It encompasses everything that God is and represents. Everything God does is out of love for us. It’s clearly stated in the well-known verse from the Scriptures John 3:16 (NLT) For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.

 Be encouraged! Share your faith in Jesus with your children and grandchildren. They have “child-like” faith and will see and believe the truth of the Scriptures. That is our only hope to see all our loved ones in heaven for eternity.

 Matthew 18:3 Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Pray and Release

My list of people to pray for continues to grow. There is so much pain, despair, hopelessness, and sickness around us. But I don’t lose hope in God’s promises. Jesus said that we will have troubles in this world. But He also encouraged us to have faith in Him because He has “overcome the world.”

Often when a loved one is sick or is in any kind of need, I worry. Then I pray… and continue to worry. I pray some more and continue to worry. It’s easy to pray and it’s easy to worry. My goal, however, is to “pray and release.” Why is that so difficult? Our human nature has the tendency to worry. Our spirit tends to pray and release. What does that mean?

It means that when we pray, we need to leave the burden at the cross, at the feet of Jesus. We release the worry, the person, the issue, the circumstance, and trust God. It means it’s now in God’s hands. We then continue to pray but without the worry because we have the assurance that God will take care of the issue and of us.

The word “release” means to “free from confinement, bondage, obligation, pain, etc.; to let go.” It also means “to free from anything that restrains or fastens.” In other words, when we release our burdens to God, we are also released from the bondage of the worry or pain we may be carrying. Therefore, when we pray for others, not only God listens to our prayers, but when we also release the burden, we free ourselves from the weight of those burdens on us.

I will leave you today with these encouraging Scriptures:

John 16:33 (NLT) “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NLT) Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

James 5:16 (NLT) Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.

As you pray for others, I encourage you to release the worry and leave the burden at the feet of Jesus. Pray and release!

Stay the Course

It was the Saturday before Independence Day and my husband and I made plans to meet at a lake with family at 4 p.m. We wanted to enjoy the summer day and the outdoors. That morning it started raining and the forecast didn’t look promising. We started texting back and forth discussing if we should change our plans.

We came up with plan A, B, and C. We finally decided to meet at our house at 4 p.m. and if the weather got better, we would go outside to the deck or to a lake. The rain continued… until 2 p.m. The sun came out. After all the texts back and forth, we decided to keep our original plans to meet at one of the ten thousand lakes we have in Minnesota.

 While reflecting on all the time we spent worrying about the weather and changing plans, I got a revelation… Sometimes when God gives us direction to do something and we choose to do it in faith, we must stay the course regardless of circumstances. At the same time, we must be willing to change plans as God directs us.

 Often God gives us direction in a specific area of our lives. Accepting God’s direction and agreeing to follow through takes faith and effort. Because it is easier to not follow through, often at the first sign of trouble or feeling uncomfortable, we start doubting if we heard from God, if we should come up with our own plans, or if we should even cancel the entire idea. While it’s good to remain flexible for God to show us a new way of following His direction, sometimes it’s much better to simply stay the course. Just because circumstances around us change or new problems arise, doesn’t mean God won’t come through for us.

 I will leave you with this Scripture to encourage you to stay the course when you know you heard God’s direction in your life regardless of the circumstances around you.

 Psalm 37:23-24 (NLT)

The Lord directs the steps of the godly.
He delights in every detail of their lives.
Though they stumble, they will never fall,
for the Lord holds them by the hand.

Happy Easter!

It’s Easter again! Where will you be? What does it really mean to you as a Christian? During Easter, we remember the horrible death of Jesus Christ on the cross and the reason why He went through such an experience: for each one of us! But it was all part of God’s plan to send His only Son to die for all our sins so our relationship with the Father could be restored and, as a result, we could live with God for eternity in heaven. During Easter we, most importantly, celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. He didn’t just die and ended the book of His story. No, that was the end of that chapter. God raised Jesus from the dead as proof of His supernatural power and to put an end to death. All motivated by His love for us!

Jesus lives! And He offers the gift of eternal life to each of us—for FREE! All we have to do is accept the gift. How do we accept this amazing gift? By admitting that we are sinners in need of a Savior and accepting Jesus as our only Savior. I will leave you with the Scriptures that explain the simple message of salvation. I encourage you to say “yes” to Jesus and enjoy the blessings of walking your life’s journey with Him!

John 3:16-17 (NLT) Why God sent Jesus:

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.

Hebrews 12:2 (NLT) Why Jesus endured the cross:

Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

Romans 10:9-10 How we get saved and accept the gift of salvation:

For if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.

Happy Easter!

A Beautiful Thing Can Be Deceiving

Two beautiful, mature trees stood in our backyard. They looked healthy on the outside for many years. But we started noticing that birds and squirrels were making it their home. We noticed holes in several places, so we asked the tree experts. They confirmed the trees were sick and had to go. It took us a couple of years to decide it was time to cut the trees as they were now a threat to fall on our deck and damage our house.

The day came when the “tree guys” started cutting all the branches, one at a time starting from the top down. Until it was time to cut the big trunks which was easier to cut than they thought… One was completely hallowed and the other one was rotted on the inside. They said the trees were in big danger of falling in the next windstorm that would come our way.

As I saw the majestic trees coming down, I expressed my sadness to God and said, “Lord, why did we have to get rid of these beautiful trees that provided shade to us and beauty to our backyard—in addition to costing a ton of money?” The Lord gently responded in my heart, “Sometimes you need to get rid of obstacles that are right in front of you and that look beautiful, in order to see the grand view in front of you. My plans for what lies ahead are so much bigger than what you see up close.”

What an amazing revelation. A beautiful thing can be deceiving! I wiped my tears and praised God for the “new view” of my backyard which expands over an acre beyond our deck. We have nature that we cannot touch by city ordinance. We have a pond, all kinds of trees, deer, turtles, geese, ducks, herrings, birds of all types, one owl, and even an eagle visits us occasionally. What a gift to have this view in the middle of the suburbs.

As I write this message for you, I’m enjoying my new expanded and grandiose view. I’m in awe of God’s creation and what He’s done for me in my life. During this season, we know that even though everything looks dead on the outside, life is about to spring out. Pretty soon, life will come out of the trees, flowers will bloom, and the smell of a new Spring will be evident.

I wonder, what kinds of obstacles are in my life that prevent me from seeing God’s full plan for my life? I will ask God to show me. And I encourage you to do the same. I will leave you with one of my favorite scriptures:

Isaiah 55:8-11 (NLT)

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.
“And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.
For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so my ways are higher than your ways
and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

“The rain and snow come down from the heavens
and stay on the ground to water the earth.
They cause the grain to grow,
producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry.

 It is the same with my word.
I send it out, and it always produces fruit.
It will accomplish all I want it to,
and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

Are You a Prayer Warrior?

Are you a prayer warrior? The other day, I was scrolling through Facebook and saw a posting from a friend who had lost a loved one. I quickly responded as other as others did and typed, “I’m sorry for your loss. I will pray for you and your family.” And kept scrolling down the page… I then stopped and asked myself the question: “Am I really praying for this person? Am I going to remember to pray later?” I immediately stopped and prayed for that person in that very moment because I realized I was going to forget later.

We often tell people we will pray for them but do we really? We may have good intentions but, in reality, we forget or simply say what everyone else is saying because seldom we find the right words to express our sincere sympathy for those who have lost one or are going through a rough time in their lives. Below are three things I now do to ensure I keep my word and pray as promised. After all, those reading our messages are counting on our prayers to get them through their journey.

Make a list.

I started a written list of every person who has asked me for prayer. I write their name, who asked me for prayer, and what I’m praying for. I now have two pages of people I’m praying for daily! When a prayer is answered, I check it off and praise God! If not, then I keep them on my list until I am released.

Do pray.

With a list at hand, I then pray every day for each person, by name. I ask God to help them, heal them, give them grace, strengthen them, or whatever else I have in my heart to ask God for that person. When we intercede for others, God listens. He always does. And He always answers—even if it’s not in our time. He answers in His time.

Tell them you’re praying.

Telling others you’re praying for them accomplishes three things: 1) You are keeping yourself accountable for praying; 2) You encourage those who need the prayers; and 3) You are acknowledging to God that you need Him. Every time I tell a friend, relative, or even a customer that I prayed for them or for their loved one or their job (whatever the subject is) they immediately respond and tell me, “I needed this today!” or “Thank you for your prayers. They do help!”

Prayer is a weapon that God gave us to fight the good fight. Most of the time, it’s the only weapon we have! In God’s army, I want to be a prayer warrior! Dictionary.com describes the word warrior as “a person engaged or experienced in warfare; soldier, a person who shows or has shown great vigor, courage, or aggressiveness.” Each word here is an important word. We must be engaged in prayer like a soldier is in battle. We must get experienced in praying by doing it daily. We must not give up and pray with vigor, courage, and aggressiveness—never giving up on praying nor believing. We are living in times when we need to pray day and night. Every day is a new battle, and we are God’s soldiers until Jesus returns…

I will leave you with a question and two Scriptures: Are you a prayer warrior?

Exodos 3:15 (NLT)

The Lord is a warrior; Yahweh is his name!

Judges 4:14 (NLT)

Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get ready! This is the day the Lord will give you victory over Sisera, for the Lord is marching ahead of you.” So Barak led his 10,000 warriors down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle.

Understanding the Mystery of Salvation

In reflecting about the amazing gift of salvation, I read scriptures in Romans that explain God’s perfect plan to save us all. Let me attempt to explain it in a simple way as I understand it. God chose the Jews as His chosen people. Why? Because He created all people and He decided to choose the Jews. We don’t question God’s choices.

God’s Chosen People

If we go back to the beginning when humanity rejected God, He then came up with a plan to save us by sending His only Son, Jesus, into the world. Jesus came with only one mission—to save human beings and restore our relationship back to God. John 14:6 states that, Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

Jesus came into the Jewish family as a Jew. But He was rejected by most of His own people. Romans 11:5 says that “not all the Jews have turned away from God. A few are being saved as a result of God’s kindness in choosing them.” Later in Romans 11:7 the Scripture tells us that “God has put them into a deep sleep. To this very day he has shut their eyes so they do not see and closed their ears so they do not hear.” The reason this happened is because God found a way for the rest of humanity (outside the Jewish people) to get saved. “His purpose was to make salvation available to the Gentiles, and then the Jews would be jealous and want it for themselves.” (Romans 11:11) In other words, “The Jews’ rejection meant that God offered salvation to the rest of the world.” (v. 12).

The Olive Tree

God makes the analogy of the Olive tree as “Abraham’s tree” where Jesus is the root, and the Jews are the branches. However, the Jews who rejected Jesus are like branches that were broken off. Then God allowed us, the Gentiles, to be grafted into the Olive tree. As explained in verses 16-17, “For if the roots of the tree are holy, the branches will be, too. But some of these branches from Abraham’s tree, some of the Jews, have been broken off. And you, Gentiles, who were branches from a wild olive tree, were grafted in. So now you also receive the blessing God has promised Abraham and his children, sharing in God’s rich nourishment of his special olive tree.”

So, we are in! Thank you, God! But we are warned to not be proudful of this privilege because if God was willing to break off His own branches, He won’t spare us either. Now, how do we stay attached to the tree and connected to the root? How do we make sure we are not broken off? The answer is in our hands. We continue to trust God and, in His kindness (v. 22).

God’s Plan of Salvation Is a Mystery

This entire plan of salvation is a mystery. In the end, God’s plan is for the Jews to return to Him and to save as many human beings as possible. But each person must choose God too. Romans 11:25 tells us that, “Some of the Jews have hard hearts, but this will last only until the complete number of Gentiles comes to Christ. And so all Israel will be saved.” I wondered, what is the “complete number of Gentiles”? It’s as many as possible. It’s as many as will answer “yes” to the call. Lastly, v. 31 says, “But someday they, too, will share in God’s mercy.” “They” means the Jews.

What a wonderful, amazing, and loving plan this is for all of us. What a promise God gave us and what a merciful God we serve. He could have chosen not to save us and not even give us the opportunity. I am forever grateful that He chose to save us and opened a door to spend eternity with Him.

I encourage you to reflect in the bigger masterplan of God’s salvation for all of us. If you haven’t accepted Jesus as your Savior, today is your day. You will never regret being a follower of Jesus.

A Lesson in Humility – Merry Christmas!

The King of the Universe, our Lord Jesus Christ, was born in a manger—a lesson in humility. From the moment Jesus arrived on earth, He demonstrated what being humble really means.

Back in 2021, I contracted the COVID-19 corona virus. As you prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus this month, I would like to share the lessons I learned from this experience that are timeless:

• Humility: It takes humility to accept that it can happen to you and that you are not exempt from this disease. Proverbs 11:2 says that “Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”

• Vulnerability: Being vulnerable with others is what makes you human and that’s how people relate to you better.

• Transparency: There is no reason to cover up that you got infected with the virus. People need to know if they were exposed to you while you were contagious.

• Survival: You do have to embrace a survival attitude and be purposed to overcome this disease.

• Persistence: Be persistent and ask medical questions until you are satisfied. Be persistent also to take care of yourself from day one. Listen to your body.

• It’s okay to be human: We have no choice, right? We are human beings, and our bodies are fragile and vulnerable to the things of the world. But we can stay in shape and do everything in our power to stay healthy.

• Empathy: The best thing you can do these days when people share their life experiences is to empathize with them and listen to their stories—especially if they lost a loved one.

• Compassion: Lastly, being compassionate with others goes a long way when people are going through hardship.

As we enter the time of year to remember the “why” you’re here, stay focused on Jesus. He is the ultimate example of all the traits explained above. Jesus displayed humility throughout his life and taught us how to imitate Him in our journey.

Be encouraged and stay positive. Ask God for wisdom in making all your decisions concerning your personal health and choices. I will leave you with this special scripture from Psalm 103:1-5 (NLT)

Let all that I am praise the Lord;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good things he does for me.
He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.
He redeems me from death
and crowns me with love and tender mercies.
He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!

I wish you a Merry Christmas and a New Year filled with new hope and joy!

"Mimi, Let's Play!"

“Mimi, let’s play!” are the sweet words I hear repeatedly when my grandson Henry is over. When was the last time you played with a child? Most of us don’t really remember playing with others when we were younger than five years old. It is known that humans don’t remember the first three years of their lives because that part of the brain has not yet developed.

As adults we forget the beautiful thing it is to simply play. When we play, our brains get refreshed and renewed. We learn and explore other areas of our brain. We get outside our daily routine of work and worries. I’m not a scientist but I do know what it does to me when I play. Playing with my grandson invigorates me, refreshes my mind, and relaxes me. I truly “sleep like a baby,” as we say. When my grandson goes home for the day, I don’t know who’s more tired—him or me! But the next day I am super productive, my mind feels rejuvenated, and I’m in a positive mood.

The other activity we do a lot is laugh! We laugh uncontrollably on the floor for the silliest things. Henry thinks I’m hilarious and I think he’s just as funny, so we celebrate our funny faces and our silliness. As my husband says, we wind each other up! Every time we laugh, we are creating lasting memories of love in our hearts. Even if children don’t remember exactly what we did, they will remember the feeling of happiness they felt when we’re together.

The other day my husband and I were out for a walk with Henry, and we realized he won’t remember these walks… but we will! Then we also realized that because of technology, we can physically record these precious moments. When we later share those special moments with our grandchildren, they will cement these memories in their minds and in their hearts. What a blessing!

When was the last time you played and laughed so hard you got tears of joy? If you can’t remember, I encourage you to visit friends with little children and get to know them. If you are a parent of young children, play, play, and play some more. These years are precious and truly fly by. If you are a grandparent, I encourage you to get to know your grandchildren. Spend one-on-one time with each one as well as time playing together. You may feel physically exhausted from playing at the end of the day. But your mind will be renewed and refreshed like never before.

There is enough pain in the world and around us. Enjoy the precious moments God sends your way each time you have the opportunity to play and laugh!

I will leave you with an encouraging Scripture today:

Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT) But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Life Today: Stormy, Yet There Is Hope!

You faithfully answer our prayers with awesome deeds, O God our savior.
You are the hope of everyone on earth, even those who sail on distant seas.

Psalm 65:5 (NLT)

My brother captured this phenomenal image from the skies of Naples, Florida and shared it with our family as he reflected: “Life today: Stormy, yet there is hope.” I immediately was inspired to write about this profound statement.

When we stop to see what is going on around the world, we may agree that we, as a humankind, are going through a global storm—the pandemic. Simultaneously, there are many countries that are experiencing the aftermath of catastrophic floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, fires, volcano eruptions, riots, protests, terrorism, increased crime, and the list goes on. The world is getting darker. But, as the picture shows us, there is light beyond the storm. There is always hope!

God speaks to us in many ways. Sometimes He speaks to us through an amazing horizon like this scenery. Other times His Word tells us what to do and hope for. Yet other times, He speaks to us through another believer. In every instance, He is continually reminding us that He has not left us. He is right here with us—in the storm, through the storm, and after the storm. It is important that we don’t ignore the storm. We must recognize the storm for what it is. Sometimes we bring the storm to ourselves because our actions have consequences. Other times, we live through the storms that someone else brought to us because they are in our lives. And then there are the storms that come just because we live in a lost world where bad things do happen to good people.

Yes, there is always hope. But the hope is not in riches, in science, technology, nor a president, nor a country… Our only source of hope is Jesus! It is so simple yet so hard to accept and comprehend that “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it” (John 3:16). The message of salvation, the message of hope must be told.

Our common mission as Christians is to share the Gospel with the world. One way is to share the Word of God with others. Isaiah 55:10-11 says, “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it. You will live in joy and peace.” We plant the seeds of the Word of God, and He ensures it produces fruit in that person’s life.

I know many believers who are living through horrible, unthinkable storms right now. Yet they are hanging on to the little ray of light that comes from knowing Jesus Christ personally. They have the revelation that God will get them through it, despite the deep pain they feel while walking in the valley of darkness. The Lord promised us that He will be with us during our tribulations and reminded us that He overcame the world.

I will leave you with Scriptures that encourage us to put our hope in the Lord:

Job 11:18 Having hope will give you courage. You will be protected and will rest in safety.

Isaiah 55:6-7 Seek the Lord while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. Let the people turn from their wicked deeds. Let them banish from their minds the very thought of doing wrong! Let them turn to the Lord that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Psalm 25:5 Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.

Psalm 31:24 So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!

Psalm 33:20 We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield.

Psalm 33:22 Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone.

Psalm 39:7 And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.

Psalm 42:11 Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Savior and my God!

Psalm 119:116 Lord, sustain me as you promised, that I may live! Do not let my hope be crushed.

Be encouraged, Jesus told us in John 16:33:

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me.
Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.
But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”