Tag Archives: seasons of life

Our Daily Bread — A Difficult Place

Our Daily Bread

Acts 8:4-8,26-35

I will never leave you nor forsake you. —Hebrews 13:5

When a sudden change in technology made his job obsolete, a highly trained scientist found himself working in a fast-food restaurant. One evening after our Bible study he described the situation as difficult and humbling. He said, “One good thing I can say is that the young people there seem very interested in my faith.” A member of the group responded, “I admire you for being humble. I know your faith must have something to do with it.”

Like my acquaintance, Philip may have wondered why God would pull him off an assignment in Samaria (Acts 8:4-8) and plop him in the middle of the desert (v.26). But then he found that the Ethiopian needed help understanding the Scriptures (vv.27-35), and his place made sense.

When Jesus promised He would never leave us alone (Matt. 28:20; Heb. 13:5), He meant in the hard times as well as in the good times. Our mission in the difficult seasons of life is to work or serve remembering we are doing it for God, and then to watch as God works to accomplish His purposes.

Look for God in your difficult place and discover what He’s doing in and through you there. —Randy Kilgore

Disappointment—His appointment,

No good thing will He withhold;

From denials oft we gather

Treasures of His love untold. —Young

What’s better than answers to our why questions? Trusting a good God who has His reasons.

Bible in a year: Ecclesiastes 4-6; 2 Corinthians 12

 

Our Daily Bread — The Best Season Yet

 

Ephesians 5:15-21

See then that you walk circumspectly, . . . redeeming the time, because the days are evil. —Ephesians 5:15-16

Life is a lot like the weather . . . it’s seasonal. It has a way of pushing us into the next season whether we like it or not. And when pushed into the next season, we are often uncertain and even fearful of what it might hold for us.

This is especially true of later seasons of life, when we are haunted by thoughts such as: Will I be left all alone? Will my health hold up? Will my money last? Will my mind stay fresh? As with every season of life, we have to make a choice—to waste the season in fearful thoughts or, as Paul says, make “the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16 ESV).

Regardless of your season, you can count on God’s faithfulness. He says, “‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we may boldly say: ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear’” (Heb. 13:5-6).

Because you have God’s presence and provision, you can make the most of your time in every season by following Jesus closely, spending time in His Word and prayer, loving and forgiving more freely than ever before, and serving others with joy and generosity.

God has blessed us with our present season—make the most of it! —Joe Stowell

Lord, give me the grace to accept life right where

it has put me, and help me to overcome the fear

that would waste my days. Give me the wisdom

and desire to make every day count for You.

Life matters—make the most of it!