Honest Reflections

Two-minute read.

To follow Jesus, we must deny ourselves and pick up our cross. In other words, we surrender control, loosening our grip on our plans, preferences, and pride and choosing God’s way over our own. In a world that says, “follow your heart,” Jesus says, “follow Me.”

“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

Jeremiah 17:9

Our hearts deceive us; they carry bitterness, jealousy, false testimony, slander, and a myriad of other things in them. From our human perspective, we can get a distorted view of situations and circumstances. Because we only see in part, we only know in part. However, when we give our lives to Christ and allow Him to take up residence in our souls, He helps us rid ourselves of the negative and replace it with His love, grace, and mercy.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance (patience), kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

Galatians 5:22-23

As we learn to deny ourselves, pick up our cross, and follow Jesus, we will begin to produce different fruit in our lives. Instead of hurting people with our words and actions, we’ll encourage and uplift them as we begin to produce the fruit of the Spirit, which only comes when we give our lives to Christ.

Following Jesus turns our belief into movement. When we walk where Jesus walked, loving as He loves, forgiving as He forgives, trusting as He trusted, we will spur on the movement. We will choose humility over recognition, forgiveness over resentment, obedience over convenience, quiet, unseen decisions that no one applauds, but heaven notices.

In God’s upside-down economy, when we let go of self, we find life in abundance. The path of surrender leads to freedom, not loss.

Reflection:

Where is God asking you to release control or comfort so you can follow Him more fully?

Joy Thought:

Every step of surrender leads to a more abundant life.

Two-minute read.

Jesus came for all the people!

Imagine a quiet night near Bethlehem, the flocks have gone to sleep, the sun set hours before, and a cool breeze flows over the land. As the shepherds watch over their sheep, something unbelievable happens: an angel appears with a message. Immediately, the angel offers a word of comfort: “Do not be afraid,” recognizing that people feel fear when faced with the unknown, overwhelming, or divine circumstances. Before anything else, God wants the shepherd’s heart to have peace.

Once assuring them they had nothing to fear, the angel tells them why he has come: to bring good news. The divine being declares that God has already begun something life-changing. Salvation starts not with what we do, but with what the Lord has done.

Jesus’ arrival brought great joy to the world, the kind that holds steady, even when life doesn’t. The angel describes a joy that will overflow with abundance, unmistakable. Divine joy doesn’t come from circumstances tied to comfort, success, or ease. Instead, rooted in the Savior, we discover the joy only He can give.

God doesn’t exclude anyone.

Everyone receives an invitation to follow Jesus, but not all accept it. The Lord made his invitation to ordinary people on an ordinary night. God makes divine joy available to everyone, not just the elite. He has an endless supply of it, not limited by background, status, or past. He has joy for everyone, including you!

The Lord steps into fearful places with good news that changes everything. Don’t let fear weigh you down. Accept the joy Jesus offers, and the angel announced. Seek the Savior as the shepherds did and receive His divine gifts. Bask in God’s grace, live in His love, and experience the joy only He can give.

Reflection:

What fears do you carry right now, and how might your perspective change if you truly received God’s promise of good news and great joy in that place?

Joy Thought:

God gives us a message of joy.

Two-minute read.

When things fall apart, we run for cover and can find it in God. As our refuge, He gives us a place to run to when things fall apart. On the darkest nights, the Lord meets us in our misery, comforts us in our pain, and gives us the strength to persevere, all from the shelter of His wings.

We don’t serve a distant God, but One who knows us intimately. The Lord never said we wouldn’t have hardship; instead, He gives us a place to rest amid the storm. Our Father wants us to run to Him when life presses in on us. He wants us to trust Him despite the storm winds that blow. When we feel unstable, God becomes the place that keeps us standing.

Strength doesn’t come from within us. God supplies whatever we need:

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness… For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

2 Corinthians 12:9-10

God never said we wouldn’t have struggles in this world. Each of us has different battles that bring us to our knees. The Lord’s grace will sustain us, and in our weakness, He becomes our strength. Right now, today, God’s helping us. We may not see it, but we can count on it. “Ever-present help” means always near, always accessible. Already present, God never arrives late.

And when trouble comes, we can seek God in it, and we will find Him. Our situation doesn’t bar the Lord’s presence; instead, it becomes the place where we experience Him the most deeply. Trouble reveals God’s closeness to us.

Don’t search for stability in unstable places. Seek the Savior and take refuge in Him. He will provide the strength you need to withstand the storm. Jesus offers us a safe place, our constant help, not someday, today, right in the middle of whatever you face.

Reflection:

When life feels overwhelming, where do you tend to run first—and what would it look like to turn to God as your refuge in that moment?

Joy Thought:

God’s constant presence gives you peace in the middle of the storm.

Two-minute read.

Before Paul does anything else, he reminds us of God’s mighty power, the Father of compassion, who comforts us. The Lord has a tender heart towards us, intimately connected to us through Christ. God doesn’t watch our struggle from afar; He steps into it, like Jesus did when He came to earth in human form. Suffering for us, the Savior endured more than we ever will, His compassion knowing no bounds.

No grief too deep, no anxiety too overwhelming, no season too confusing, God steps in it all with us. When we seek Him, we will find Him. When Daniel and his friends entered the fire, Jesus entered with them. The men walked unbound and free as the flames tried to consume them, but they didn’t even get singed. We serve a Lord who chooses involvement in our lives. He gets in the pit with us, and He lifts us out.

Every time we need it, God provides comfort; it doesn’t run out. We can find comfort in His presence, in His Word, in other people, or in quiet peace amid chaos. Whatever the pain, the Lord ministers to our hearts. As we receive divine comfort, the Lord wants us to share it with others. When we allow God to use our experiences, we may become the bridge to someone else’s healing and a testimony to the Lord’s faithfulness.

Comforting others requires presence more than the right words or polished answers. Sharing what God has carried us through helps others persevere in their pain. Something deeply healing happens when someone understands your pain because they’ve walked a similar road.

God meets us in our hardest moments, stepping into our pain not just to carry us through, but to equip us to carry others. The comfort we needed may become the comfort someone else prays to receive.

Reflection:

How has God comforted you in a difficult season, and who in your life might need that same comfort through you right now?

Joy Thought:

God’s comfort not only heals our hearts, but also prepares us to help others.

Two-minute read.

Every day, when I finish my prayer journal, I finish with “In Jesus’ name I pray.” When I write devotionals, I abbreviate it to IJNIP. Either way, I’m doing what Jesus told the disciples on the eve of His crucifixion. Up until now, the disciples walked with Jesus and asked Him questions face-to-face. However, the Savior knew everything would change in the next 24 hours, and He wanted to prepare them for a new way of communication: through Him, not beside them.

Christ marks a transition from presence beside them to presence within them.

Praying in Jesus’ name means praying in alignment with His character and trusting His authority and access to the Father. Approaching God with confidence comes through a relationship with Jesus. The Lord cares less about how you say it and more about who you say it through.

Jesus doesn’t say you have a blank check to get whatever you want. Instead, the Savior points to a deeper reality that God hears, responds, and gives what aligns with His will and our good. Sometimes we get immediate answers, other times we wait, maybe even for years, but the Father does answer. Usually, He responds in ways we don’t expect, but Jesus promises the asking never goes to waste.

By asking in Jesus’ name, He gives us joy, steady and rooted in Him. Christ’s joy doesn’t depend on situations, but grows through trust and relationship. As we see God’s work in our lives, our faith deepens, and so does our joy. Answered prayers draw us into a closer relationship with the Savior, which produces real joy in our lives.

Jesus wants you to stop holding back. He wants you to bring your needs, questions, hopes, all of it, to the Father through the Son. Honest conversation matters most. Instead of focusing on getting answers, experience full, steady joy that comes from walking closely with Him.

Reflection:

Where in your life have you held back from asking God, and what might change if you brought that need to Him with trust?

Joy Thought:

You never bother God; He wants to hear from you.

Two-minute read.

Rejoicing in the Lord always refers to a heart posture. We choose to focus on the Savior’s promises and not on the circumstances around us. When Joshua and the Israelite army brought down the walls of Jericho, they did it with rejoicing. Facing the impossible job of breaching the city, they followed the Lord’s commands, and seven priests marched around the city with trumpets. On the seventh day, they shouted, and the walls came tumbling down. For six days, nothing happened, but on the seventh day God moved.

Laura Story wrote the song, “The Blessing,” in a dark valley of uncertainty over the future of her husband’s health and life. While in line at a grocery store, the thought occurred to her. What if your blessings come through raindrops? What if healing comes through tears? She wrote the lines on the receipt and threw it into her purse. Months later, it became a song that has ministered to many people, including me, in their darkest moments.

Sometimes, rejoicing comes with tears.

When Paul uses the word “always,” he means in seasons of waiting, times of loss, and moments of uncertainty, something we will all experience. Joy doesn’t deny hardship but coexists with it. And Paul wants us to get this point because he repeats it. Whenever scripture repeats something, we should pay attention.

Joy doesn’t come from perfect circumstances; it comes from the Savior. Because God doesn’t change, your joy can remain, despite the situation. Each day, we have a choice of where we will focus our thoughts. When we keep the Son in our eyes, we can rejoice always.

Choosing joy means deciding to trust God and focus on His promises. Knowing glory awaits us after we finish our time on earth helps us persevere through the heartache and rejoice despite our circumstances. As my pastor says, the first 100 years are hard, but after that, it’s all glory.

Reflection:

What would it look like for you to choose joy today—not because of your circumstances, but because of who God is?

Joy Thought:

Step into joy by spending time with God.

Two-minute read.

Despite bad circumstances, Habakkuk paints a picture of total loss and still chooses joy. Listing what represented security and survival, they lacked food, wine, oil, sustenance, and livelihood, not minor inconveniences but economic collapse, emptiness, and uncertainty about the future. The prophet describes a season where nothing worked, grew, or felt stable.

Seasons of utter despair happen to everyone.

Jesus never sugar-coated the struggles we would endure on earth; He endures them with us. We have a choice: we can say “yet” amid the turmoil. Three letters, one word, change the tone of Habakkuk’s message. He doesn’t ignore reality but anchors himself beyond it in joy, trusting in God. Defiant faith rejoices not because of an easy life, but because of a worthy Savior.

When we root our joy in God’s character, He provides it for us, not through circumstances, but through relationship. When external sources fail, Habakkuk declares that God remains His source of deliverance, identity, and hope.

Faith outlasts circumstances.

Today’s heartaches will pass away, but the joy of the Lord never will. Habakkuk represents one of the purest expressions of faith in scripture. He shows us faith without visible blessing, trust without immediate answers, and joy without present evidence. The prophet reminds us of the strength of real, enduring joy, not fragile but anchored in something unchanging.

Let Habakkuk’s words remind you that when everything around you feels empty, you can still feel joy because God has not changed. When you seek Him, you find His divine gifts of joy and peace that we can’t understand on a human level. Only when we commune with the Savior will we experience His blessings.

Enduring faith looks past circumstances and focuses on the Savior. Trusting in His promises, we can choose divine joy despite our circumstances.

Choose joy by connecting with the Lord and receiving it from Him.

Reflection:

What would it look like in your life to say “yet I will rejoice” in a situation that feels uncertain or lacking?

Joy Thought:

God remains when nothing else does.

Two-minute read.

God can and will restore what feels lost, wasted, or broken. When we go through seasons that don’t turn out the way we expected, we can trust that the Lord has a plan that will lead to restoration. Our heavenly Father doesn’t just promise to restore things, but He restores years.

Poor choices led me into a long period of singleness. As I followed the Savior, day after day, transformation occurred. One day, I discovered this verse in Joel, and the promise took root in my soul. The devastation I caused myself felt like time eaten away, opportunities gone in seasons I couldn’t relive.

But God declares I will restore.

And He did, transforming my life, healing my heart, and teaching me how to have healthy relationships that flourish. On my wedding day, I felt the fruition of God’s promise to restore the years the locusts stole, and He has.

The Lord redeems what remains and brings unexpected fruit to what seemed lost. He doesn’t ignore the damage, God names it: locusts. Naming the different types of locusts underscores the layers of devastation in seasons when everything feels lost: joy, stability, direction, even identity. First, the Lord acknowledges the depth of the loss, then promises to restore it.

God shifts us from scarcity to abundance, restoring deep satisfaction not only with resources but also with the fullness and peace we missed. The Lord fills our emptiness with more than enough, and we will praise Him for it. As the Father rebuilds the broken parts, it creates a testimony. We will feel gratitude because God reveals Himself to us, faithful, compassionate, and powerful.

Not only will the Savior give us external restoration, but internal healing, lifting the weight of regret, failure, or disgrace. God restores our dignity.

The Lord not only brings us through loss, but He brings restoration deeper than what we had before. God takes wasted years and turns them into a story of provision, healing, and renewed purpose.

Reflection:

What “lost years” or seasons feel hardest for you to release—and what would it look like to trust God with restoring them?

Joy Thought:

God brings beauty, abundance, and praise out of what once felt empty.

Two-minute read.

Psalm 126 reflects a time when God restored His people after their captivity, something that felt surreal to them, like a dream. After many tears, they experienced joy. A deeply human experience, the psalmist pairs sorrow in the present with a promise for the future, both tender and powerful, reminding us that the Lord doesn’t waste our pain.

On April 1^st, I began work on “Walking with Joy,” and the bottom fell out of my world. A life-long mentor passed away the very morning I began writing about joy. One event unfolded after another, bringing tears to my eyes and questions to my heart that had no answers. I spent nights wrestling with the Lord, crying out to Him in pain. And then, I would wake up and write about His joy that gives us strength.

Transformation occurs one day at a time.

Every morning, as I persevered through the valley, God met me in it. Sowing seeds of faith with my tears, I trusted that something unseen took place beneath the surface. I tried to consistently do the right thing, not taking it out on other people, but trusting the Savior in my pain, not passively suffering but actively trusting.

God promises a harvest will come, not just relief, but a joy that sings, expressive, full, and undeniable. The Lord doesn’t merely replace sorrow; He transforms it. The same ground that received tears becomes the place where joy rises. However, before the joy comes, we will have seasons of weeping and faithful endurance.

Tears don’t mark the end of a chapter; they plant the seeds of future joy. Our heavenly Father captures every tear, He honors every act of faith, and promises that what we sow in tears, we will harvest in joy.

Don’t give up. Keep doing the next right thing. Wait with anticipation for what the Lord will do.

Reflection:

Where are you “sowing in tears” right now—and what might it look like to trust God with that season?

Joy Thought:

God grows something beautiful from what feels broken.

Two-minute read.

We can rejoice in suffering not because of the pain, but because of what God produces through it. If we view suffering through a transformed lens, we don’t deny that the hurt exists; we have confidence that the Lord will work through the hardship. Our sufferings become something God uses more than just a means of survival, shifting from meaningless pain to a purposeful process.

When you place a tea bag in hot water, it immediately begins to affect the liquid, changing it into something new. Trials reveal our inner life. When life presses in on us, it reveals our character and shows who we become in difficult times. Over time, our sufferings shape our integrity and humility and deepen our dependence on God.

The older I get, the more I realize how little I control. We can only control our response; we can’t control people or circumstances, but we can decide how we will respond to them. In my latest valley, I had no options, feeling like the Israelites standing at the Red Sea. I had no choice but to trust God. Day by day, I persevered, doing what I knew to do, keeping my morning appointments with the Savior, and receiving strength for the day from Him. In my pain, the Lord comforted me and helped me persevere.

As we persevere, hope develops from the settled assurance that God will complete what He started. Past trials show us the Lord’s faithful character. Remembering what the Savior did for us allows hope to grow stronger. We begin to expect His goodness, even before we see it, knowing God never wastes a hurt.

Hope rooted in the Savior’s love doesn’t disappoint. Rooted in God’s love, not our circumstances, He doesn’t abandon us, but instead assures He loves, holds, and sustains us. Suffering produces perseverance, which develops our character and gives us hope. The Lord’s love never changes, no matter what we face.

Reflection:

Where have you seen God build endurance or character in your life through a difficult season?

Joy Thought:

Even in the hardest moments, God creates beauty from ashes and leads us to the hope that never fails.