Fortune Cookie

On October 13, 2025   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

 

Jeremiah 29: 11

“For I know the plans that I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”

I would like to tell you another story today hoping that you not only enjoy it but that you find inspiration and hope in it. This story is about my friend Nathan.

Nathan is a Human Resources director. In January, his corporate headquarters surprised everyone with the announcement that the facility he is employed at was going to close. It was a stunning announcement. The planned execution date, October. Nathan had a facility full of folks who would shortly be without employment, but he also had his own career repercussions to think about. Of course, if you are the HR director of a facility that is about to close, you’ve got a lot of worries and stress. That is where faith in Christ and his Father are so important.

Fast forward to the Saturday after July 4th. Nathan’s wife suggested they go for a ride. Then, despite having a refrigerator full of leftovers from July 4th, they decided to stop at a favorite Chinese restaurant. At the end of the meal, the waitress delivered two fortune cookies to their table. They each took their cookie and opened them. Nathan’s wife, Penny, looked at him and wanted to know what was wrong. Nathan shared his fortune, “October is going to bring love and happiness.” Really? October, of all months! No one else would have suggested that it was going to be a good month in any way with so many friends losing their jobs.

The following Tuesday, the local Community College posted a job for an HR Director. Several people contacted Nathan to let him know about the posting. Honestly, I don’t think Nathan had given his own employment a great deal of consideration. Besides, he figured the Community College would want someone with a background in education.

I saw Nathan during these months. Notwithstanding the palpable stress that ran through the facility, Nathan exhibited surprising peace. He has said, “As I get older, I value peace” and one could tell that he was pursuing peace even while he had the concern of all those employees on his heart. I suspect those closest to him wished he would give greater attention to his own issues but rather than running to a new job, he felt he had to “see this to the end.” He told his wife, “I have peace.”

When you partner with God, it necessarily means that you can’t sit on your hands, though. Partnership implies contributions by all the partners.  Last week’s post taught that God will “go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.” God will level the path and even bust through doors for us, but we must get on our feet and walk. In Nathan’s case that meant he needed to fill out the application, order transcripts and get some references together despite believing he would not be the ideal candidate for the community college.

Three weeks later, on a Tuesday, the college emailed him saying they would like to schedule an interview with him for that Friday. Many of you will have cringed just then, thinking it would be tough to clear your calendar that quickly. Well, miraculously, Nathan had Friday off. The interview lasted two hours which would seem to be a good sign, a sign of interest but 2 ½ weeks later, he had heard nothing from the college. Then the Tuesday after Labor Day, Nathan was sitting at his desk. The job circumstance and the interview at the Community College came to his mind. He bowed his head, prayed and, as he says, for the first time in his life, fully gave the situation to God. He let go of the care of it. He took his hands and mind completely out of situation and rested in the peace that whatever came of the community college position, it would be God’s will and one way or another, God would provide.

Within 5 minutes of releasing the job and his concerns to God, Nathan received an email request from the college for him to call them. Once on the phone, they didn’t dance around but rather offered him the job right away. It seems that all Nathan had to do was to let go.

This is a story of provision, of partnering with God, of following his leading, of faith, of trust but ultimately of surrender. Nathan says it is an example of what happens when you get out of God’s way. He also says that God didn’t just open doors for him; God busted them down. Isn’t that exactly what Isaiah 45: 2 – 3 promises? “I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.”

As promised in today’s verse, God had a good plan for Nathan, one for his welfare. You have the same promise. Is there something troubling you? Are you dealing with a difficult circumstance? If you were speaking with Nathan, I believe he would tell you, “Give it to God and then get out of His way!”

Go with God and be blessed!

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Delightful

On June 16, 2025   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 37: 4 – 6

Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will do it. And He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your judgment as the noonday.

Verse 4 is often quoted but I wanted you to see it in a larger context. First of all, these are the verses which follow June 2nd’s Word of the Day about being jealous of people who seem to be enjoying life’s good things but seem to have done little to earn them. God tells us to pay no attention to evil doers nor be envious of them, but rather to trust in Him. Then He says to delight in Him and He will give you the desires of your heart. So, rather than looking at the prosperity and success of the wrong doers, look to Jesus, delight in Him and He will give you your desires. And yours won’t be fleeting like that of the evil doers.

Secondly, commit your plan to Him. You have things you want, goals you would like to achieve. Well, commit all those ideas and plans to Him. Lay them before Him. He has the strength and wisdom to bring them to pass. What’s more, He just may have a better plan. Trust in Him, lay your hopes and desire before Him and He will bring it to pass.

Now here is the hardest part of it. Once you have committed your way to Him, let trust have its full measure. More often than not, answers do not appear immediately. It is what you do while you are waiting for Him to bring it to pass that has the greatest influence on your outcome. Don’t wait to “see” what God is going to do. Go ahead and start declaring it from the beginning. Do not trust in your eyes. Trust in your God. Your success is going to be so great that it will be as bright as the noon sun. Those people that you once envied will be as nothing. They will envy you. And when you are enjoying the desires of your heart, remember the God of your heart who brought it to pass.

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Trusting You

On July 8, 2024   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 9: 10

And those who know Thy name will put their trust in Thee; for Thou, O Lord, has not forsaken those who seek Thee.

I feel like naming every devotional lately “Good News.” I think it’s because I’ve been in a time of need and these verses have helped me get through a challenge. I particularly take comfort in the last phrase of this verse. I hope you do too.

Last week we looked at Psalm 9: 9 and found that God is an impregnable fortress in which we are completely safe in the day of trouble. This, the very next verse, shows us the relationship side of that fortress of protection. Imagine, if you will, that beautiful, wonderful castle that God built just for you. You are standing outside of it when you see Pharaoh’s army marching towards you. You turn and look at the castle, but instead of running towards it in relief, your heart becomes gripped with fear because you are not sure that it is really going to protect you against this danger. You fear that God really has forsaken you and that the castle is just going to crumble around you. I get it.

In real life we cannot see the fortress of God and may not have developed our trust in His protection. Therefore, in the day of trouble many of us either tremble with fear and worry or attempt to defeat the enemy with our own puny weaponry. When we have learned to trust Him, then we run into His fortress although in a sense it is a figurative fortress. The truth is that He really is a fortress, and you really can, in real life, run into His protection. You must first know Him, know beyond a doubt that He has not forsaken you and trust that He really will protect you. When you have that kind of trust, you really will be able to stand against the forces of the enemy completely safe and protected. You will watch as God defeats your foe, and you will have never even lifted a finger.

Those who know His name will put their trust in Him. His name is Yahweh. Now you know.

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Hideaway 

On October 17, 2022   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 46: 1 – 3

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth should change, and though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains quake at its swelling pride.

Above the psalmist paints a picture of great natural disasters. I see volcanoes erupting with violent earthquakes. The earth itself is afire while the sea is whipped into a tempest. And yet, through it all we shall not fear for the Lord God is our refuge and our very present help in every time of need.

The Bible is consistent in telling us to “fear not.” Yet there are many times that we do allow fear to persuade our actions. It is not because of disobedience that we fall into fear. It is because we do not have a complete revelation of the power of our God. We are not as connected to his strength as the psalmist was. We have not yet developed our awareness of God as our refuge to the point that we can have unshakeable confidence in His ability to take care of us.

Some have though. During recent calamities there arose stories of the people who were saved because they hid in God. The great and devastating tsunami took many lives but there were those who surfaced to tell us how God protected them. These same kinds of experiences were recounted from survivors of the trade tower attacks and the subway bombings in England. Wherever the forces of evil arise to threaten the children of God, there will be the stories of victory from those who ran into the refuge of their Lord. Let us, therefore, give more attention to the saving strength of our God than to the fear campaign of the wicked. Our God is supreme. His power and love are everlasting. Let us praise and thank Him for all that He is. Let us hide ourselves in Him.

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Trusting God

On December 13, 2021   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 28: 25      Amplified

An arrogant and greedy man stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the Lord will be blessed and prosper.

As we have learned, reading a verse from several translations often adds a deeper understanding of the message. This verse is actually a bit confusing when you do, but the Amplified version brings all the different readings together fairly well. Here is a link to several versions of this scripture.

Arrogance plays into this verse in two ways. First, people of pride and arrogance create tension and animosity within groups. They do not value the opinions or efforts of others. Thus, they create strife. Second, arrogant people look to themselves for answers; to their own thoughts and feelings rather than trusting the Lord for wisdom. Thus, because they lack Godly wisdom and push for answer arising from their own ambitions and ideas, they lead to greater strife and to failure.

Greedy people are self-serving and so serve their desires instead of the needs of the group, friends or family. In fact, greed can cause one to frustrate the purposes of others in favor of furthering their own lusts and ambitions. It is easy to see how this could create strife.

The Passion translation brings out another angle. It says that those who make hasty, rash decisions show their self-reliance. It is proof that one does not take the time to inquire of God, to seek His wisdom. Of course, this circles back around to arrogance. When we are quick to make a decision, we usually have not taken the time to ask our cohorts or our God for their wisdom and this shows how little we think of others’ opinions, even God’s. We have become the God of our lives and we are doomed to failure.

This verse applies to all facets of life, but I think it is particularly interesting when considering group dynamics and organizational efficiencies. No one likes a know-it-all and they cause tension within the group. Of course, surround yourself with humble hard-working people when it is within your power to do so, but if you have an arrogant or greedy person within your ranks, be sure to pray for them. Though they act arrogantly, their behaviors usually stem from a weak self-esteem. We all need prayer including the folks who are creating strife in your organization. Avoid the arrogant and greedy because their way leads to ruin and failure. Seek the Lord in all things and prosper.

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Finding Good

On September 20, 2021   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 16: 20

One who pays attention to the word will find good, and blessed is one who trusts in the LORD.

I wrote last week on how the Word of the Day got its name and its start. Now here is this verse reminding us that the Word brings goodness to our lives. That is why we must develop our relationship with the Word.

God gave us His Word to guide us. Surely, the guidance of the Lord takes us to places of goodness, refreshing and blessing. I often think of the Bible as a How-to manual. We can get direction about everything in life. The problem is that sometimes we treat it too much like a sacred document or a piece of literature. While it is both, it is first and foremost a functional document and those other aspects can take away from its primary function.

Another problem many of us have is that we were raised on the King James Version. Let’s be honest, most of us don’t understand old English that well. I mean, read the Canterbury Tales and tell me what they mean. While I still like the King James for Luke 2 and Psalm 23 I just can’t use it for everyday enlightenment. If I want it to lead me to good, I need to understand it and for me that is best done with the NASB. In truth, while the NASB is my daily go to Bible, I use a lot of translations so that I can reap the most out of a scripture.

As to the second phrase of today’s verse, I find when we get comfortable with the Word and learn how to find God in it, our level of trust grows exponentially. When I need God, I know He is always waiting for me and will reveal Himself in His Word. I cannot recount the number of times I was desperate to hear from God, opened up my Bible and He spoke to me.

My advice is to get a translation of the Bible with which you are comfortable. Maybe a NIV or NLB will work for you. Then begin to read. Don’t start with Genesis though. Begin with Matthew 1: 1. Read the Psalms and read the Proverbs. If you will read the first four chapters of the New Testament, the Psalms and Proverbs, you will have a great foundation poured. Then, read the rest of the New Testament. By the time you finish, you will be ready for the Old Testament, and you will see it with renewed eyes. There is a lot of great stuff back there but don’t let it overwhelm you. Lay a foundation first. Find your Bible and in so doing, find goodness and blessing.

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Stirred, not Shaken

On November 9, 2020   /   Word of the Day   /   1 Comment

Psalm 125: 1

Those who trust the Lord are like Mount Zion, which can never be shaken. It remains firm forever.

We need to hear this today. It is a good dose of encouragement and reinforcement. As we keep our trust in the Lord, we cannot be shaken. We shall remain firm forever. Does that encourage your heart today?

Trusting in God means we remind ourselves of what He has said instead of casually letting thoughts run through our minds. It also means correcting our thinking. If your mind (or mouth) says something which is not inline with the Word of God, you can arrest it instantaneously and replace it with the language of God. For example, “I feel sick.” That may be true but what does the Word say. It says you are healed so you change your thinking and put your trust in God and His word. So now it sounds like this, “I may feel sick, but God sent His Word and healed me and by His stripes, I am healed.” You can always articulate that trust too. “I don’t feel well but I trust the Lord will restore me to full health. I trust His healing power is at work in my body right now!”

Of course, this is applicable in every aspect of life, not just our health. When beset by worry or frustration, you can shift gears and get back onto the trust train. Picture Yahweh on His throne or with His hand on the wheel. What visualization reminds you that you have not been abandoned or forgotten? Get that image fixed in your mind and call it up whenever your trust seems to be slipping. Remind yourself about God’s great love and power and stand firm in His grace. Then you will be like Mount Zion. You will not be shaken.

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