Have you had moments where you felt as if you safely fled from a bear only to come face to face with a lion? You know, you finally get out of one bad situation only to find yourself quickly in another one. You find yourself wondering which way to turn.  

No matter how you choose to describe it, there are times when life just seems to be a constant uphill battle. Trouble seems to track you down, no matter how hard you work to hide from it. Trouble comes at us from all directions. It comes in many shapes and sizes, in a variety of colors. Sometimes we find trouble. Other times, trouble finds us. A sense of isolation often accompanies trouble. We wonder if anyone sees us, or even cares.

No matter where trouble is located, or whether it finds us or we find it, God is an always present God. In Psalm 139, David considers the truth that his God, who is our God, is present everywhere, and there is no corner or dark space hidden from Him. Click here to read what David wrote about this ever-present, everywhere God.

When Joshua needed a boost of confidence, taking over the reins upon the death of Moses, probably wondering if trouble (or how much) was ahead, Yahweh said this to him – “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). This was the third time Joshua was challenged by God to be strong and courageous (see vv. 6 & 7).

We find these words in Isaiah 41:10 – “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Zephaniah, one of the twelve minor prophets, said this amid his warning Judah and encouraging the people to repent – “The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (3:17).

And now the very familiar words of Psalm 23, in which we find our Good Shepherd caring for us day in and day out, in life or in death, in times of plenty or want, in times of trouble or safety, in and though every situation that comes our way. Here I have broken down the six verses of this beautiful psalm into seventeen digestible pieces. I encourage you to read one at a time. Pause after each one, sit quietly, asking God to reveal the promise offered to you in and through the words you just read. Then move on to the next one. Maybe do one a day for seventeen days.   

The LORD is my shepherd

I shall not want

He makes me lie down in green pastures

He leads me beside quiet waters

He restores my soul

He guides me in paths of righteousness

For his name’s sake

Even though I walk through the valley of death

I will fear no evil

 For you are with me

Your rod and your staff, they comfort me

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies

You anoint my head with oil

My cup overflows

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life

And I will dwell in the house of the LORD

Forever

So, today, and every day, even when it seems like all you do is flee from a bear only to be confronted by a lion, have comfort, have assurance, that God is right there with you, ready to fight with you and for you. Let me end by sharing these words of hope found in Deuteronomy 20:1-4. 

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Think back to time in your life when something in your life, maybe without warning, dried up. Everything was running smoothly, then suddenly, the wheels fell off.

Your doctor delivers the news none of us ever want to hear; “You have cancer.” You find yourself in the neurotrauma ICU after suffering a stroke, leaving you wondering what lies ahead. Your until death do us part marriage ends in divorce. Or that marriage ends when your spouse unexpectedly dies. The police show up at your door and tell you, “There’s been an accident.” One day your boss walks in and informs you that your job has been eliminated. After gathering up your personal belongings you quietly leave by the back door, saying to yourself, “didn’t see that coming.” A natural disaster wipes out your entire community, leaving nothing but devastation in its wake. Uncertainty in world financial markets suddenly eats away at your investment portfolio, just months you plan to retire.     

Whatever the suddenly was for you, it probably left you gasping for air, with more questions and answers. If you are like me, you not only asked the why question, but you likely also wondered where God was in that moment. However, in my journey with God, I have found it more beneficial to ask, “God, what are You doing in and through this situation? What are You teaching me?” rather than simply asking “Why?” He is always at work in and through every situation, wanting to build something good, something of eternal value, in us.  

Let’s look at a story found in the Old Testament. 1 Kings Chapter 17 begins with the prophet Elijah announcing that because King Ahab “did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him” (16:33), a severe drought would come upon the land. God instructs Elijah to leave town and hide in the Kerith Ravine. The word “kerith” means hidden. Elijah was cut off from the rest of the world. Sometimes God has us in a hidden place, cut off from life so we can rely solely on Him.

God also tells Elijah that the ravens will bring him food and the brook will supply his drinking water. I don’t know about you, but if God told me that birds would bring me my food, and that I was to get my thirst quenched from a little ol’ brook, well, I would have more questions for Him. The text (v.6) tells us that he had plenty to eat and drink.

However, shortly thereafter, the wheels begin to fall off. We read this in v.7, “And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.” I am sure that Elijah questioned God. But God had a plan. In v.8, we find this – “Then the word of the LORD came to him (Elijah).” He sent Elijah to the town of Zarephath; and it was there that he had an encounter with a poor widow in which the LORD turns what appeared to be not enough into not just enough, but rather, more than enough, not only for Elijah but also for woman and her son. Last year I wrote about this encounter. Click here to read that post.

What nugget of truth can we take away from Elijah’s Kerith Ravine experience? It was in that secluded place that Elijah had to rely solely on God’s provisions. And it was in his time of solitude, cut off from the world around him, that Elijah received divine instructions.

So, today, when your brook dries up, when the wheels fall off, know that your faithful and loving God is using it to grow you and make you more like His Son, Jesus, fully dependent on Him. And it might also just be in those moments that you hear His voice more easily.  

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“You can dress him up, but you can’t take him anywhere.” You’ve probably heard that statement used to describe someone, or maybe it has been used to describe you. It is a reference to the fact that no matter how fancy someone looks on the outside, they are still the same “messy” person on the inside. Do you really think behavior or attitudes change simply because someone is wearing a tuxedo or a lovely gown?

When our daughters were younger, every year I looked forward to coloring eggs. First the eggs were hard boiled and then they got painted and dyed fancy colors. Sometimes the girls had more dye on them than on the eggs. The dull white shell was transformed into an array of bright colors. But the “inside” anatomy of the egg, the yolk, albumen, chalazae, air cell, and membranes has not changed. The egg is still an egg, only the “outside” has changed.

Now we enjoy that same activity with our two granddaughters.

When we commit our lives to Jesus, He is not interested in changing us on the outside, simply dressing us up. Instead, He wants to change us on the inside. Real change only happens from the inside out, not the other way around. And no matter how hard we try, we cannot really change ourselves. Sure, we can tweak here and there, but because of our inherited sin nature (Ecclesiastes 7:20, 1 John 1:8), the real change we need can only come through a relationship with Jesus Christ. It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we become “cleaned up and dressed up on the inside.”

The Old Testament prophet Ezekiel shared these words of the LORD to the people – “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26).

And God, speaking through the prophet Jeremiah, said this – “I will give them a new heart to know me, that I am the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart” (Jeremiah 24:7).

David, in Psalm 51:10, asked this of God – “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”

In Isaiah 64:8 we are told that God is the potter and we are the clay.

Jesus died on the cross to give you new life, both eternally and also while you still have breath in your lungs. (Romans 6:4, John 3:16) So, today, if you want to be more than dressed up in fancy clothes or more than a brightly decorated Easter egg, then ask Jesus to change you on the inside. Ask Him to give you a new heart, a pure heart, and put a new spirit in you.

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Do you eat a healthy and well-balanced breakfast? Many doctors and nutritionists consider breakfast to be the most important meal of the day because it breaks the overnight fasting period and replenishes your body with essential nutrients to give you energy throughout the day. What you eat, or don’t eat, for breakfast often affects what and how much you eat the rest of the day.

A little trivia – do you know why it is called breakfast? The word breakfast literally means “breaks the fast” that occurred during your period of sleep.

Are you the least bit curious as to why the noontime meal in called lunch? Lunch is a relatively new concept, and it is an abbreviation of the word “luncheon,” which is derived from the Anglo-Saxon (Old English) word nunchin, meaning “noon drink.”

Okay, your interest is piqued, so how about the origin of supper, or it is dinner? During the 18th and 19th centuries when society was primarily an agrarian (agricultural) society, the main meal, called dinner (“to dine”) was eaten at midday, which would give the farmers a boost of energy for the afternoon. A smaller evening meal, called supper, meaning “to sup,” often consisted of light soup that had cooked throughout the day. As societal norms changed, and as people began working away from home and on the farm, it became hard to have the main meal at midday, so a smaller meal became the norm for midday and the main meal shifted to the evening.      

At our house, a typical weekday breakfast usually consists of some mix of the following – bagels and cream cheese, English muffin and butter, cereal, milk, juice, fruit, banana, water, hot tea or coffee. Just as eating a healthy breakfast fuels our body up for the day, spending time with God each morning is also critical to fueling up our soul for the day. In Psalm 5:3 we read, “In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and expectantly wait.”

Elsewhere in Psalms we find these words – “Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days” (Psalm 90:14). To my knowledge, this is the only psalm uniquely attributed to Moses. 

Jesus knew the importance of spending time alone with God in the morning – “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed” (Mark 1:35).

So, today I ask – Are you starting your day off on a good note, eating healthy and spending time with God? To borrow the tagline from the General Mills cereal Wheaties, now that is “The Breakfast of Champions.” 

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Do you find yourself in a situation that has you feeling dry and dehydrated? A job that has unrealistic demands. An aging parent that requires constant care. A kid that has flown off the rails. You or a loved one with an ongoing health issue. The death of a spouse that created a crater-sized hole in your soul. An addiction. Finances. Maybe it is trying to process the ever-changing uncertain world around us.    

You feel exhausted. You feel lost. You might have even lost a sense of who you are. The joy of life is only wishful thinking. Whether or not you find yourself in one of those situations, maybe today for whatever reason you are desperately in need of a drink to quench your thirst.

Dehydration is the absence of sufficient fluid (water) in our body. It occurs when we lose more fluid than we take in. We usually associate dehydration with excessive heat, but cold air can also lead to dehydration. When our body is dehydrated, it cannot function properly and causes serious health problems. Severe dehydration (15-25% loss of body water) can even lead to death. Some symptoms of dehydration are headaches, dizziness, tiredness, lack of appetite, flushed skin, high heart rate but low blood pressure, dark-colored urine.

Life, even when things are not necessarily hard, has a way of leaving our soul feeling dehydrated. Soul (spiritual) dehydration tends to leave us feeling fatigued, lonely, irritable. In those times we often fill our lives with busyness or noise, often simply to “hide” the empty feeling, the restlessness, the decreasing sense of peace.

There are a number of things we can change, begin doing, or stop doing, to hydrate our soul. But, for me, in those times of dehydration, before anything else works, I first need to take Jesus up on his invitation to come and drink. In John 7, Jesus travels to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles. He faces the possibility of arrest and there is much debate as to the legitimacy of his true Messiahship. It is in that context where Jesus offers this great invitation – On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink” (v.37).

Side note: The earliest Greek manuscripts do not have John 7:53-8:11. Using textual criticism, it is believed by many biblical scholars that these verses were inserted into John’s Gospel at some later date. The writing style of those verses differs from John’s typical style and the text flows well without those verses (meaning 7:52 then picked up at 8:12).

The invitation to drink comes freely to us, every time we need a drink. In Isaiah 55, the prophet describes the invitation of God to receive, among other things, restoration. We find these words in the first two verses – “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.”

And near the end of the Bible, in Revelation 22:17, we are invited to “drink freely from the water of life.” 

Today, when you feel dehydrated, when you are physically thirsty, pour yourself a glass of cold water and drink from it. And when your soul is thirsty, take Jesus up on His invitation, then drink and drink and drink from His cool and refreshing spring. It is at that peaceful stream that you will find life-giving hydration! 

If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.