The Sunday Paper

January 4

Cast all your anxiety on him, for he cares for you.

1 Peter 5:7

One minute Stevie was laboring through snowdrifts, the next he was flat on

his back.

A rural paperboy, Stevie was held captive under the weight of two hundred

Sunday edition papers jammed into the bags crisscrossing his shoulders. It was

3:15 a.m., and there was no one he could call on for help.

Slight of build, it was all he could do to hoist the bags in place before leav-

ing the house on his early morning trek. His route usually took him an hour

and a half to deliver. The deep snow would increase that by fifty percent. But

right now it stood to be several hours! He realized he had to extricate himself

if he didn’t want to spend several hours waiting for someone to miss him and

come looking.

Spurred on by the thought of freezing to death at the tender age of eleven,

he managed to dig himself out from under the bags. Free of his predicament,

he left one bag lying there, returning for it in a circuitous route after emptying

the first bag.

Stevie learned two valuable lessons that morning: never carry more than

you can handle, and fear is a great motivator!

h

God never intends us to carry the burdens of life alone. We make that choice

ourselves. Today’s headline speaks of sharing the load. Too often we try to

extricate ourselves from the burdens of life. We struggle under intense, self-

inflicted weight, not understanding that God is right beside us, waiting for us

to ask for help. 

As with Stevie, we sometimes try to carry more than we are

meant to. Succeeding on our own in the beginning, we come to believe that it

is God’s plan for us to do it ourselves. If we do that enough times successfully,

we end up like Stevie—with the weight of the world on our shoulders.

As we learn to become God sufficient instead of self-sufficient, we find

that our burdens decrease as our dependency on God increases.

Prayer

“Teach me to share, Lord. Sometimes I’m not so good

at it. I’ve been told to be self-sufficient in order to be

strong. Show me the benefits of giving You the heavy

weight of daily living. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 Don’t Let Me Go

January 3

If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us from here.

Exodus 33:15

Don and Candy had a decision to make. Their attorney had called, telling them

they had been given Candy’s childhood home, a Brownstone duplex in Ohio,

in an estate settlement. Her aunt, who had lived in the upstairs apartment, had

recently passed away, leaving Candy the property with a clear deed.

But, having worked in their church’s youth ministry for over twenty years,

they felt a strong call to stay here in California and minister to the kids of their

neighborhood. They were unsure of whether their time here was to come to an

end at this time.

Lying in bed that night they discussed their options and prayed, asking

God to show them what He wanted them to do. During the night both dreamt

the same dream. In the dream they were driving away from the duplex, waving

goodbye to a stranger standing on the porch. Upon awakening, they shared

their dream with each other and came to the conclusion God was telling them

to rent out the duplex and stay in California for now.

h

We all have difficult choices in which we would like to know that our final

decision was inspired by God. And God will not always be as conspicuous in

His answers as He was with Don and Candy. Yet, learning to listen for His

response to our prayers and petitions can be achieved. Hearing God is not

rocket science, but it does require active listening on our part.

By reading and studying God’s Word each day, we learn to draw on Spirit-

inspired insight and wisdom hidden for us within the pages of Scripture. There

are tremendous benefits to submitting everything to God and asking for His

guidance.

As in Moses’ case, we should cry, “If You’re not where I’m going, don’t

let me go!” Through active listening can we develop the ability to hear God’s

response to our requests.

Prayer

“Please let me know Your will for the days and events

of my life, Lord. Teach me to listen and hear what

Your Spirit reveals to me and then act accordingly

with courage and peace. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

Mourn Just a While

January 2

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Matthew 5:4

In a daze at the graveside, the young parents were thinking about that

moment three days ago when the switch to the respirator had been turned

off. Their infant son, Michael, had been born with no brain function. Prenatal

ultrasounds and sonograms had been business as usual. There had been no

cause for alarm, no telltale signs, until Michael was born.

A void so vast with a sense of unending pain gripped them as they laid their

son to rest. They were to begin grief counseling with their pastor tomorrow.

An older couple from church had called last night to offer words of comfort

and hope. Right now, comfort was elusive and didn’t feel like an attainable

goal. They felt the pain of a loss so unspeakable that it tore at their hearts with

relentless realization. Their son was gone! They didn’t know if they would ever

recover. Quite honestly, today, they didn’t much care about the future. In time,

they would learn that grief is a process. Comfort would come. But today they

mourned.

The older couple had reached out in experience. They had lost twin daugh-

ters several years before in a car crash. They knew firsthand the pain that

gripped this young couple, and they wanted them to know that God could heal

their pain. It would not go away immediately, but with love and support, they

would weather this storm.

 h

The loss of a child seems so unfair. Death has a way of seeming final. And

comfort is so elusive in a child’s unexpected passing.

Mourning is a process; it teaches us to respect and appreciate the sanctity

of life. The process of mourning grows us in ways nothing else can; it causes an

urgency of purpose, and focusing on that purpose is where the healing begins.

Death is not the end; it is the promise of a new beginning. Mourning may

last for the night, but joy comes in the morning.

Prayer

“Abba! We cry out in our pain. Bring comfort and peace

to those who know this pain. Bring direction to their lives

this day. Show them how to bring this pain to You so they

might be healed and find peace. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

The Spotlight

January 1

 

You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples.

Psalm 77:14

The officer listened as the radio dispatch reported a westbound motorist in the eastbound lanes of the interstate he was patrolling. The driver was traveling in the wrong direction at a high rate of speed, heading toward his position. Entering the westbound lanes, he turned on his spotlight, hoping to alert eastbound drivers to the danger while systematically looking for the wrong-way vehicle.

Radio reports told him that he was ahead of the vehicle, so he slowed down. Scanning back in the direction the vehicle was coming from, he spotted the car’s headlights, a stark contrast among the taillights in that lane. He could see motorists taking evasive action to avoid the oncoming car. As the vehicle approached, he matched its speed, shining his spotlight on the driver-side window in hopes of getting the driver’s attention. 

Finally, the driver responded and pulled over. As two other cruisers pulled up, he turned off the spotlight. Just as the light winked out, he remembered the repair order he’d issued on this car two weeks before for a broken spotlight. 

Trying the spotlight once again, it failed to work. Exiting the cruiser, he used his flashlight to illuminate the spotlight. He noticed the same broken bulb from two weeks ago lying at the bottom of the lens. The repairs had not been completed!

 †

There are those who question whether God still performs miracles. Some feel the need to explain how things happen.

Whether you believe this story or not will be determined by Who you perceive God to be. 

By explaining how things happen, we maintain a false sense of control over them. If we are unable to explain the how of events, we are then required to believe by faith. 

God continually displayed His power among the nation of Israel during the exodus, yet they continued to rebel because miracles themselves do not ensure belief.

The story above is true. Events are related exactly as they happened. God is big enough to make a broken spotlight work. 

He leaves the belief part up to us...

 

 

Prayer

“Teach us to have faith, Lord. And forgive us for our doubt. It’s not always so easy to believe without seeing. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 Unveiled Hope

December 31

Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.

1 Thessalonians 4:13

Mary Jane Phillips lay in a bed in her daughter’s kitchen, in the final stages of what appeared to be cancer. As her daughter cared for her, she sat up in bed and said, “Oh, my! There’s Mrs. Leonard!”

Everyone present was amazed as she named off several dead relatives and long-gone friends. It appeared as if Mary Jane was being given a view through the portals of Heaven. She continued to name people who were long-forgotten, even people who had passed away recently. And then, she said, “And Mrs. Sader, too!” at which point the family figured she must be hallucinating, because Mrs. Sader was very much alive. They had just spoken to her that morning.

Just then, the telephone rang and one of the girls answered it. A startled look crossed her face. As she hung up the phone, she announced in an astonished voice, “Mrs. Sader passed away just a little while ago!”

Only minutes later, Mary Jane Phillips joined Mrs. Sader as she met Jesus face-to-face.

†

This event changed my mother’s life, for having listened to her Grandmother speak so candidly about Heaven brought the certainty of its truth to her heart and spirit. She has never known a fear of dying because Grandma Phillips had unveiled the mystery of death to a six-year-old that day.

In this same way Paul wants us to know the hope he professes; that on the day God calls us home we will be greeted by our loved-ones and friends as we enter Heaven to be with Jesus.

Prayer

“Give me the certainty of my true home, Lord, and take away any vestiges of fear of death. Speak to my spirit of the reality of Heaven. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”

 Why Bother, LORD?

December 30

I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. 

John 15:16

Lost in thought, I didn’t hear my cell phone buzz. I was pondering the reason I was even finishing the second volume in my devotional series. Volume one: Snapshots: A Spiritual Look At Daily Life, released in 2009, had yet to break the one thousand book sales barrier. So why did it matter that I complete the second volume?

The phone’s second buzz registered, letting me know there was a message. “Hi Craig!” came Molly’s familiar voice. “I wanted to let you know God is still using you! I just spoke with a man that’s going through some tough times, and he had a copy of Snapshots! He said someone gave it to him after he shared about his struggles! I told him, ‘I know the author, and God has been using him and that book to change people’s lives!’”

As I listened, Molly’s voice was drowned out by God’s, “What you do for Me is more important than you can conceive. I weave your fruit through other’s lives, drawing them closer to Me. Numbers are arbitrary in light of eternity. Your faithfulness, in spite of the doubt, allows Me to nourish others, and give them hope.”

I wept. God had orchestrated events so my doubts would be put to rest. I opened my laptop and wrote this devotion.

†

In our humanity, attaching expectations to our spiritual service isn’t unusual. We want God to do wonderful and meaningful things with our service. When we don’t readily see results we can begin to doubt that what we do matters. We wonder, “Why do I bother, Lord?” As a result, our service to the Lord can lose the enthusiasm and devotion it was begun with which, in turn, negatively influences our relationship with God and others.

In today’s text, John tells us God has chosen and purposed us to not only work on His behalf, but that our work will affect future generations.

When your doubt whispers, why bother?, don’t give up. Stand in faith, trusting God’s promise that what we do matters more than we can ever imagine.

Prayer

“LORD, continue using what You purpose me to do and leave the results of that service to You, expectation free. In Jesus’ Name, amen!”

 Worth a Second Glance

December 29

The LORD does not look at the things man looks at…the outward appearance…the LORD looks at the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7

Corey came into our lives much the way of the lost puppy. Our sixteen year old daughter, Lindsay, who’d never dated before he showed up, came home one afternoon from school and told us about the ‘new boy’ in her class. “He seems really nice, Mom, but he doesn’t talk much, and keeps to himself.”

“Be nice to him, Linds,” Nancy said. “He probably needs a friend.”

So Lindsay set out to be Corey’s friend, even inviting him to dinner. When she brought him to the house for the first time, Corey looked like a lost pup, weighing about a buck and a quarter; a skinny kid who’d seen more than his share of life. But beyond the baggy pants and lone wolf disguise there was something about Corey that made you take a second look.

Corey and Lindsay have been married for twenty years now, and Nancy and I couldn’t have asked for a better mate for our daughter. Over the past twenty-four years we’ve witnessed Corey’s commitment to God, our daughter, life, and now his daughter and son, grow into what God intended. In that time he has grown and matured both physically and spiritually. He is a godly man who works with youth, and seeks to do God’s will. That he adores our daughter and dotes on her is proof that she chose well. Watching him with our grandchildren only validates it more.

I guess Nancy and I saw what Lindsay saw that made us each take that second look; a good heart awaiting maturity.

†

Every parent wants their children to marry well. Fathers especially want their beautiful little girl to find someone who will not only treat her right, but will never give him reason to regret transferring responsibility and care to another man.

I can say I have never had a single regret. That is in part to allowing God to show me Corey’s heart instead of assuming the young man with an attitude wasn’t the right man for my daughter.

If we, as parents, want our children to chose wisely we must teach them how to look past all the outward appearance and discern, with the Holy Spirit's help, what is in someone else’s heart.

Prayer

“Help me see what You see, Lord. Help me listen for Your recommendation or disapproval instead of judging someone on my own. In Jesus’ Name, amen,”