My thoughts (Lynnette Pullen):

It seems that there are reality shows on every television station these days. I typically don’t watch them but I heard about one recently that caught my interest. The premise is about people who have “flat-lined” or died. . . and come back. These people have had an experience that caused them to be clinically dead, however were revived shortly after. These people claim to have afterlife experiences in which some encounter God. I must admit, I watch this show regularly and am often so engaged I find myself holding my breath at times. One afternoon, I was deeply engaged in this show while a young man was telling his experience.

This young man says that he had a very brief encounter in heaven. He had been electrocuted and his heart and lungs were no longer functioning. He realized he was dead and was in God’s presence. All of a sudden, he heard God speak his name. He equated it to thunder speaking. Then as quickly as he passed he was revived. As I heard this story, and quite to my surprise, I started to cry. Not a quiet tear shed either, a big, sobbing, heaving cry.

I had no idea what had come over me. I knew they were tears of sadness but I couldn’t figure out why. I was so embarrassed I didn’t tell my family, but it bugged me. After some time, I realized that I was deeply fearful that God didn’t know my name, and more specifically that God didn’t know me. I think in the deepest part of my heart I wondered if I was invisible to God like I seem to be to other people in this world. I mean, God is. . . well, “God.” And I am one of billions. I am one drop in a vast ocean. I expressed my grief to God and these verses were laid upon my heart:

Your eyes saw my body even before it was formed.
You planned how many days I would live.
You wrote down the number of them in your book
before I had lived through even one of them.
God, your thoughts about me are priceless.
No one can possibly add them all up.
If I could count them,
they would be more than the grains of sand.
If I were to fall asleep counting and then wake up,
you would still be there with me.

Prayer for the day: God, sometimes this world can make us feel invisible and forgotten. It is a scary feeling to think you do not know us — our thoughts, our fears, our joys and aspirations. Yet your word says that you know us intimately. Please send us signs to remind us of how much you care for us. Help us to remember the love you have for us and teach us to show that love to each other. Amen.

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.

My thoughts (Ben Lamb):

The writer of today’s Psalm seems to feel alone in the world. It was as if God was a million miles away, not checking Heaven’s Inbox for urgent messages.

“Why, God? Why have You forsaken me?!” Do you ever find yourself saying the same thing?

These words were also spoken by Jesus on the cross (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34), so I’m hard-pressed to believe that it’s inappropriate for us to ask the same question as well.

Some moments in life are easy to get through, and it can be tempting to think, “Life is good. I can certainly feel God’s presence. Yay-rah-rah for me.”

But, what about those gut-wrenching experiences during which it seems the sun will never shine again within our hearts or lives? Has God really ditched us like a worn out toy whose usefulness is gone?

The Psalmist continues on and acknowledges God’s holiness and offers praise anyway, despite feeling abandoned. The writer then remembers the example set by his ancestors. Those previous generations had continued on in faith and continued to rely on God and ultimately “. . .were not disappointed.”

As I think back to Jesus on the cross and his wondering why God seemed to have forsaken him, something comes to mind. Yes, Jesus expressed those honest and sincere feelings to God. Yet he, too, continued to show faith in God, through his own decision to not exercise the option of being rescued from his plight. I’m eternally grateful for Jesus’ decision.

Jesus’ depth of faith in God is mighty impressive. I’m encouraged to maintain faith when things aren’t easy-going in my own life and I, too, feel alone.

Thought for the day: “. . .he has said, ‘I will never leave you or forsake you.’ So we can say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?’ (Hebrews 13:5-6)

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.

My thoughts (Robert Ferguson):

I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my supplications. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live. Psalm 116:1-2

Have you ever heard Whitney Houston and the Georgia Mass Choir sing I Love the Lord? (Take a listen below.)

It stirs my soul every time I hear it. That song and the reading for today always remind me that God is ever-present and listening to our hearts when they cry out!

We live in fearful times. We watch the news nervously to see what the next earth shaking calamity will be. Will it be terrorism, natural disaster, a worsening economy, or a violent criminal on the loose? And on top of what happens outside of our homes we also tend to remain fearful about our own Christian walk and faith. Oh God, I want to believe that your grace and mercy are forever but what about my sin, what about my walk, what if I get so far off track that you no longer want to be bothered with me? What will I do then? Where is God in all of this?

Let me share a powerful lesson I learned years ago. When you get real with yourself and with God, you will discover closeness with our Creator that you may have never known before. I may not get everything I want in just the exact way that I want it and there are rough days, but one thing I know and abide in is that God is keeping me and making a way for me every day.

What are you afraid of today? What keeps you awake at night? Please hear me clearly on this point: You are not less of a Christian for being afraid!

It’s OK to talk to the Lord about it. Cry out to God and even shout if you need to. These are the moments that you will develop a deep love for the Lord. In this age of uncertainty there is one thing that is absolutely certain: The Lord will respond when you cry out.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Thought for the day: Listen to the song I Love the Lord. As you listen to this song, think about what troubles you today and take it to the Lord. Rest and be secure in God’s presence.

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.

My thoughts (Melody Merida):

Most parents have time to prepare for the arrival of their children — time to childproof the house, to decorate a nursery, to shop for adorable baby clothes, to think about baby names, or to hear a tiny heartbeat through an ultrasound. Most parents have nine months to fall in love with the little gift they are about to receive.

My partner and I finished our adoption paperwork and were told to wait 12 to 18 months before we would be matched with a child. That was October 8, 2010. On November 16, only six short weeks later, we received a phone call that changed our lives completely. It was our adoption agency calling to tell us that a baby boy had been born earlier that morning and the mother had chosen us to be his adoptive family; the agency wanted to know if we wanted him. Without hesitation we said yes and less than 48 hours later he had moved into our home. But he had taken up residence in our hearts before we ever laid eyes on him.

People sometimes think I’m crazy when I tell them that I loved my son before I even knew he existed, but it is the truth. When I had no idea that an amazingly brave and wonderful woman carried him inside her, I loved him. The idea of him, which he has already exceeded, was born in my heart long before he was born into this world. That first moment we saw him was merely a confirmation of what we already knew: we were head over heels in love.

Our scripture for today reminds of such love. Imagine a love for you that is so complete it existed before you ever did. That is God’s love for you. In the same way that my yet-to-be-born child owned my heart, so too do you own the heart of God. Read again what I wrote about the love I have for my son and know to the very core of you that this is how God feels about you. You have already exceeded the idea of you. You are fearfully and wonderfully made!

Thought for the day: God is head over heels in love with me! May I reciprocate that love by giving it to all those I meet today. Amen.

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.

My thoughts (Cheryl Stonestreet):

I remember the first time I heard someone read this passage. I nearly fell off my chair. How true this passage still is! It is heartbreaking to watch someone we love crash and burn because of an addictive disease. It’s even worse when there are innocent children in the line of fire.

Today we know a little more about addiction and addictive personality. Thankfully too today, we have a better handle on treating problems of addiction. I have had the great fortune to know many people in 12 Step programs. I have seen the miracle of hazy addicts turn, in time, into clear eyed, productive people. In all of these people, one thing is common; they have found a Loving God.

Many have returned to church or are coming for the first time in their lives, all because they have a new thirst — to learn more about this Loving God. When they walk in the door, what do they see? What does any newcomer see? Are we truly welcoming? Or are we so tied up in our own lives and agendas that we are distracted from Christ’s true message? There is life anew, for any and all who seek it.

Thought for the day: Lord, when someone new comes into my path, let me listen to them and treat them with the same gentleness and love you have shown me when I was so raw and vulnerable. Lord, let me be an instrument of thy peace.

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.

My thoughts (Ben Lamb):

Talk about a daunting task for Joshua: leading his entire nation of people into their new home! In verses 1-7, God had appointed Joshua to take over as Israel’s leader following the death of Moses and also gave him this monumental assignment.

I can’t begin to imagine how I’d pull off such a Herculean task all by my li’l ol’ self, but Joshua did manage to do it. Oh, wait a minute… I just figured out why it was a success: “…the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (v9). Yeah, that’s the reason; Joshua didn’t do it all by himself!

Too often I seem to forget this very real fact. In our present day and age, God is still with us — via the Holy Spirit. Jesus said so himself (John 14:26).

How do you sense when God is speaking to you?

For myself, I try to align my thoughts and actions with the Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). If something seems to contradict these characteristics, then I’m highly suspicious of it. There are additional ways which may be unique to an individual as well.

Here’s a personal example. Some of the Be Still and Know devotionals I share practically write themselves. Sometimes, however, I have a really difficult time knowing how to handle the scripture that has been assigned. It’s at these times that God consistently grants me an extra assurance of the Holy Spirit’s guidance.

A number of possible ideas will come to mind about how and what to write. As the ideas pass through my mind one at a time, one — and only one — makes me become teary-eyed. As soon as another idea comes to mind, the tears stop. Whenever that same idea comes around again, the tears start up again. I know wholeheartedly which idea to use.

If you have a special way of knowing what the Holy Spirit is leading you to do in various areas of your life, why not share those experiences with others?

Thought for the day: As my friend Jackie used to say, “God hasn’t brought you this far just to dump you!”

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.