Isaiah 43:2-3 -  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.

In these verses, God speaks to the Israelites, assuring them that, whatever came their way, he would bring them through.

Watching the aftermaths of hurricanes that have hit Florida and Texas in recent years, we can see firsthand the power of water. You cannot ignore the forceful flood waters that threaten you. You must endure the danger. There are many stories of people who were rescued by boat or helicopter from the rising waters. Those rescue operations are a metaphor for the way our God rescues us from the rising waters of trouble at work, home or school. We must pass through them, yet God assures us that he will lift us out. God will not let us be overwhelmed or consumed by any obstacle in our path. Why? Because he is with us, and he is the Lord. He is the one to whom we cling in the midst of strife.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

There are many television shows about rebuilding, restoring or redecorating homes. We are fascinated by the way carpenters and designers reimagine a space or home. At the reveal, homeowners respond to the finished product with exclamations of delight.

I recently heard the song "Rebuilder" by the Christian group Carrollton. It celebrates our God as the greatest rebuilder of all, not of our homes but of our lives. When we are in bad shape and in need of repair because of sin, doubt or waywardness, he rebuilds us on the foundation of his goodness and grace, his blessing and love. The end result is a new creation because of the work of his Son, the carpenter, who followed through with the rebuilding of all believers by going to the cross for our forgiveness. The old is gone; the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17). There is great excitement in the reveal of our redesigned lives: "There is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents" (Luke 15:10).

No matter the condition in which we find ourselves, God can rebuild us and the results will be glorious: "We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10). What a wonderful craftsman we have!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

When Neil Armstrong brought back moon rocks from the Apollo 11 mission in 1969, the rocks were distributed to all 50 states, but many of the mementos vanished. Saddened by this development, rock hunter Joseph Gutheinz sought out the missing treasures. He successfully located all the states' rocks, except for two, New Jersey and Delaware.

While some of the rocks were stolen, Gutheinz discovered that 40 states did not record where they put the moon rocks. They simply lost track of them. Something similar can happen with the treasure of our faith in Christ, received by the power of the Holy Spirit through baptism.

Our precious faith can be ignored, or buried under work assignments or personal hobbies. Perhaps we have lost touch with some fellow believers.

In one of Jesus' parables, a woman searched for a lost coin. She was determined to look for the coin until she found it and was overjoyed when she discovered it. Our attitude should be the same as we re-embrace our faith and our fellow followers of Christ. Set aside some time to search for special friends in the faith and reconnect.

Never let the Word of God or the bonds you have with others disappear from your life!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Psalm 27:1  The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Confirmands often pick this verse as their confirmation verse. They pick it because it describes the Lord as "my light and my salvation."  A friend showed me a plaque he received. It reads: "The Lord is the strength of my life." He has put it on the wall next to his front door so he sees it whenever he heads out anywhere.

What a nice reminder that is for us all as we leave our homes - the Lord is the strength of our lives. We need his strength. He is the core, the center, the driving force that carries us forward in our lives.

When we exercise, we are supposed to "work the core," the center of our bodies around the torso, because when the core is strong, the rest of our body becomes stronger. The strength of the Lord makes our entire selves, soul and body, strong because he is strong.

Think about the strength God gives today. Draw upon that core strength, and say with the psalmist, "Of whom shall I be afraid?"
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

The Hebrew word hesed is translated as "lovingkindness" in most Bibles, but a word so rich in meaning cannot be adequately described in English. Other translations use the words "covenant," "faithfulness" and "steadfast love." It is love that is literally beyond words.

The word reveals God's character. He loves us beyond measure, beyond what we can even comprehend. It is a love that can never be matched fully in human terms. It is a love that will stop at nothing to care for us and protect us.

Hesed is most fully realized in the incarnation of Jesus. Jesus is hesed in the flesh. And he went to the greatest lengths of love to save us. He went to the cross to suffer and die and sacrifice his life for us all. "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). Then God's hesed went beyond even the grave when he raised Jesus from the dead on Easter morning.

Christ is alive and living in us; God's hesed transforms us to live a new life of divinely inspired love and compassion for others. We love as we have been loved, with our whole selves, giving our all for one another in the name of the God of hesed.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,
 

2 Corinthians 5:17  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

The butterfly is truly a "new creation" that comes out of a cocoon (a tomb of sorts) after a period of time. What once was a scrawny, worm-like creature crawling on the ground is now a colorful, beautiful, glorious creation that can fly to great heights.

What a wonderful picture of what happened through the resurrection of Christ! We who were once lowly, sinful creatures are made new. We are filled with Christ's life, soaring in service for him in this life and, on the Last Day, flying to be with him in heaven.

This is the wonderful news of Easter. Because Christ went through this transformation from death on the cross, to three days in the tomb, to resurrection life, we, too, will rise from death and the grave to a glorious eternal life. Every day is now an Easter Day, a day to celebrate that we are now God's "butterflies," flitting from place to place to spread the good news that Jesus is alive, and because he lives, we will live with him forever.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Matthew 5:16...let your light shine before others that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

The moon emits no light of its own. Instead, it reflects light from the sun. When the earth;s orbit brings it between the sun and the moon, the moon "disappears." It's still there, but as the Earth blocks the sun's rays, our lunar neighbor has nothing to reflect, and the world grows darker.

The same is true of believers. When we bask in the light of God's presence through consecrated living, Bible reading, and prayer, we reflect his light to others.

Any attempt to "shine" on our own is futile. We can't summon up what we don't have. God alone is our source of spiritual light. When we position ourselves before him, he provides enough light not only to guide our paths, but to light the way for others.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,