When engaged in meditative prayer, it is important to always compare and back up words received with Scripture. Over and over, I see examples of the Lord carrying, lifting, tirelessly rescuing his people. Psalm 40:2 is one such example I love: “He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.”

At first, these words took me off guard, because rarely do we humans think about our children doing horrible things. But then the Christlikeness of that statement hit me hard. Isn’t this exactly how God feels toward us? Listening to the emotion in this man’s voice as he spoke, I realized how God must feel when we continue to doubt His love and push it aside due to guilt or shame.

Part of being created in God's image means He gave us a mind to know Him, a will to choose Him and a heart to love Him. He isn’t interested in forcing us into submission—He longs for us to come to Him freely, trusting that He will lovingly lead us in the way we should go. And when we do (with His help), He surrounds us and fills us with His unfailing love…Lord, help us to trust you more each day!

Understanding God’s plan can be challenging. If we could fully comprehend the Creator, that would mean we assume His role – which we cannot. Isaiah reminds us in 55:8 that God’s thoughts and ways are infinitely higher than ours. Miracles come in unforeseen ways. Therefore, we need not worry, fret, or strive to decipher everything. Place your trust in God and declare, “I don’t know how God will bring this to pass, but I believe He will.” Then, follow His guidance with obedience and prepare yourself for a miracle.

Have you ever found yourself in a state of frantic anxiety trying to figure out how to fix a difficult situation? I think we all have at some point. I wonder if we should take some advice from Moses and remember who God is and what he has done. Not only has he parted the red sea he has conquered sin, satan and death on our behalf. If you find yourself in an impossible situation, cry out to God! He is mighty to save! He loves you deeply and he won’t leave you to fend for yourself. You need only to trust in Him, stand firm and be still.

WHILE WE WERE STILL SINNERS, God sent His Son. God did not send His Son when we were clean of the puke. He did not send His Son when we got our act together. God meets us in our mess and cleans up our mess by the blood of Christ because just as River can't clean up himself, neither can we. Why does God clean up our mess? Because just as one might say it's a mother's nature to love their child, love actually is God's nature! He is the only one capable of perfect love.

Jesus method of grace is not sweeping her sin under the rug. He clearly commands her to not go on sinning. His method of truth is not fear driven. He does not shame her. Instead he extends grace, which powerfully leads her to the truth. Do you believe that God's grace is more powerful than the fear of consequences? Do you believe that the Truth is what will ultimately set you free? As Christians, I pray the Holy Spirit helps shape our hearts and minds to be a people that rightly reflect Gods character... Full of Grace and Truth.

In the same way, there are dark times in our lives when it can be difficult to see God's goodness, but we know and believe that God is always good. We are thankful for this and many other reminders of the truth which is the anchor for our souls. God has indeed been good to us through this difficulty.