Necessary for Growth
Read The Daily:
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Isaiah 26:3
Emmett’s message reminded me that some of the seasons we wish we could skip are often the very seasons God uses the most. Nobody enjoys disappointment, setbacks, waiting, or struggle. But when we look back, those moments are often where the greatest growth happened.
I loved his perspective that what feels painful now may actually be necessary. The challenges, frustrations, and detours we face aren’t always obstacles to God’s plan. Sometimes they’re part of it. God has a way of taking situations that seem pointless in the moment and using them to develop strength, wisdom, and character in us.
When our minds stay fixed on God, we can experience peace even in difficult seasons. Not because everything makes sense, but because we trust the One who does. The season you’re in may not be easy, but it might be preparing you for something greater than you can currently see.
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Prayer for the Day
God what are you showing me? What am I going to do about it?
God help me to see one person that I can serve through a kind word, random act of kindness, or simple gift today?
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Read The New Testament In A Year
Soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” He told them, “No shakedowns, no blackmail–and be content with your rations.” The interest of the people by now was building. They were all beginning to wonder, “Could this John be the Messiah?” But John intervened: “I’m baptizing you here in the river. The main character in this drama, to whom I’m a mere stagehand, will ignite the kingdom life, a fire, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. He’s going to clean house–make a clean sweep of your lives. He’ll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he’ll put out with the trash to be burned.” There was a lot more of this–words that gave strength to the people, words that put heart in them. The Message! But Herod, the ruler, stung by John’s rebuke in the matter of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, capped his long string of evil deeds with this outrage: He put John in jail. After all the people were baptized, Jesus was baptized. As he was praying, the sky opened up and the Holy Spirit, like a dove descending, came down on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: “You are my Son, chosen and marked by my love, pride of my life.” When Jesus entered public life he was about thirty years old, the son (in public perception) of Joseph, who was– son of Heli, son of Matthat, son of Levi, son of Melchi, son of Jannai, son of Joseph, son of Mattathias, son of Amos, son of Nahum, son of Esli, son of Naggai, son of Maath, son of Mattathias, son of Semein, son of Josech, son of Joda, Luke 3:14-26
So if you speak in a way no one can understand, what’s the point of opening your mouth? There are many languages in the world and they all mean something to someone. But if I don’t understand the language, it’s not going to do me much good. It’s no different with you. Since you’re so eager to participate in what God is doing, why don’t you concentrate on doing what helps everyone in the church? So, when you pray in your private prayer language, don’t hoard the experience for yourself. Pray for the insight and ability to bring others into that intimacy. If I pray in tongues, my spirit prays but my mind lies fallow, and all that intelligence is wasted. So what’s the solution? The answer is simple enough. Do both. I should be spiritually free and expressive as I pray, but I should also be thoughtful and mindful as I pray. I should sing with my spirit, and sing with my mind. If you give a blessing using your private prayer language, which no one else understands, how can some outsider who has just shown up and has no idea what’s going on know when to say “Amen”? 1 Corinthians 14:9-16