GOD OF HOPE

Daily Stop & Thinks

Stop & Think: March 22, 2023

Opportunity

While we stop to think, we often miss our opportunity. (Publilius Syrus, 1st century BC Latin writer)

When a fast-talking salesman is urging you to buy the vacuum cleaner because “today is the last day it will be this price,” you should take a little more time to think. Considering your options could really be important. But when a genuine opportunity for service arises, stopping to think about it too long could be a grave error. Think carefully but don’t miss the opportunity.

Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith (Galatians 6:10).

Stop & Think: March 21, 2023

Preparation

Every experience God gives us is the perfect preparation for the future only He can see. (Corrie Ten Boom, Holocaust survivor and author)

Not everything that happens in life is a joyful experience, but each event is an opportunity to learn and grow. With the loss of family and home and long imprisonment, Ten Boom survived with faith and hope. When difficult times come, her comment should be an encouragement to us. What is happening is not an end in itself, but preparation for handling what’s to come.

[God] comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us (2 Corinthians 1:4).  

Stop & Think: March 20, 2023

Spring

You can cut all the flowers but you cannot keep Spring from coming. (Pablo Neruda, 20th century Chilean Nobel Prize winning poet)

Today is the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere. It’s an annual seasonal phenomenon unrelated to the weather we may be experiencing today. Early flowers may have shown their heads and others are still weeks away. But it’s the season of hope we’ve all been waiting for after a long winter. Let’s enjoy the anticipation of warmth and growing things today.

Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring (Hosea 6:3).

Stop & Think: March 19, 2023

Friendship #2

Friends are God’s way of taking care of us. (Author unknown)

Emblazoned on wall posters and sweatshirts, these words are a reminder that we are not alone and that God has blessed us with helpful and loving friends. God has promised to be with his children in times of difficulty. Quite often it’s when friends are present when we’re hurting that we recognize it is God’s way of sharing his presence with us in those tough times.

God . . . will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them (Hebrews 6:10).

Stop & Think: March 18, 2023

Friendship #1

It is a sweet thing, friendship, a dear balm, a happy and auspicious bird of calm. (Percy Bysshe Shelley, 19th century English romantic poet)

Life was never intended to be lived alone. When God brought humankind into his creation, it was a pair, perfectly matched for tending his creation and populating his world. After sin messed up the picture, human relationships became increasingly important. In addition to marriage, God brings friends into people’s experience which enriches lives immeasurably.

And Jonathan made David reaffirm his vow of friendship again, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself (1 Samuel 20:17).

Stop & Think: March 17, 2023

Why?

Your whys have made you wise. (Lysa Terkeurst. author)

Why me? Why now? We often ask these questions when difficulties face in our otherwise peaceful lives. Terkeurst makes it clear that such questions can be very helpful to explain and learn from life’s hard situations. But, not having answers to the whys can make life even more difficult. That’s where faith is essential—not in our knowledge but in God’s perfect plan.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).

Stop & Think: March 16, 2023

Imprisonment

Imprisonment of the body is bitter; imprisonment of the mind is worse. (Thornton Wilder, 20th century Pulitzer Prize winning novelist)

The number of people in prisons around the world is staggering. Many deserve to be there, no doubt, but we fear for the many who are unjustly incarcerated.  Wilder suggests something even more frightening: the victims of brainwashing who are deprived of any opportunity to learn because of political or ethnic prejudices. Pray for the release of those unjustly imprisoned.

Free those who are wrongly imprisoned . . .  Let the oppressed go free and remove the chains that bind people (Isaiah 58:6).

Stop & Think: March 15, 2023

The Ides of March

Beware of the Ides of March (from Julius Caesar)

Those simple words refer merely to the middle of the month. But we hear them as a prophetic warning in Shakespeare’s play. They were a warning about potential political danger. People can be pretty superstitious about fictional warnings or common life experiences like Friday the 13th which happens every few months. Better to trust in the real and true.

Jesus shouted to the crowds, “If you trust me, you are trusting not only me, but also God who sent me (John 12:44)

Stop & Think: March 14, 2023

Life Change

Real life change starts with one step and then the next. (Chris Suitt, pastor)

Suitt continues, “Surrender is a series of choices, not a one-off event.” We often find it difficult to give in to the changes we need to make for improvement in our health or lifestyle. The word “surrender” is appropriate because it may seem like we’re in a war when we know we need to change and we’re struggling with it. Choose to surrender to the changes you need to make.

All must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do (Acts 26:20).

Stop & Think: March 13, 2023

Life’s Races and Battles

Slow and steady wins the race. (Aesop’s Fables)

Another from Aesop: “The battle is not always to the strong.” These adages are simple but profound. Simple because they are easily understood. Profound because when they are considered in our actions, they can have powerful results. Like the hare and the turtle or David and Goliath, our best, steady efforts will result in the best outcomes.

And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us (Hebrews 12:1).

Stop & Think: March 12, 2023

The Now

Be intent upon the perfection of the present day. (William Law, 17th century Church of England priest)

We often look back at past experiences and regret that we didn’t do better. We get caught up in the “what if …” On the other hand, we may be tempted to look to the future with determination to make every experience the very best we can. Both may have some limited value, but as Law points out, it’s the present that we have to be intentional about. Work hard today to do your best.

Don’t put it off; do it now! Don’t rest until you do. (Proverbs 6:4).

Stop & Think: March 11, 2023

Forgiving

Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much. (19th century Oscar Wilde, Irish poet)

When a friend offends you, most often unintentionally, it’s easy to forgive and forget. But when someone who really doesn’t like you offends you, it’s a bit more difficult to forgive. Our natural instinct is to fight back, to seek revenge. Wilde may be right, but our purpose in forgiving is not to hurt or harm the offender, but to bring him or her to a place of reconciliation and peace.

Love prospers when a fault is forgiven (Proverbs 17:9). Make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive anyone who offends you (Colossians 3:13).