Elevate Your Day with Andi and Brian Hale

God was with Joseph (Finding God Faithful)

We can get through just about any pain or suffering if we know the Lord is in it with us. But when we feel forsaken or abandoned, our pain becomes unbearable. In Genesis 39, you see the recurring phrase, “The Lord was with Joseph.” Joseph’s entire story rests on these five words. They will prove to be an anchor in turbulence and reconciliation in what seems irreconcilable.
Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. – Genesis 15:13-14 ESV
Think about how Joseph’s forced trip to Egypt was linked to the prophecy God gave Abraham.
Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had. From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field. So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. – Genesis 39:1-6 ESV
Many years before Joseph’s descent into Egypt God foretold that the Israelites would be enslaved in a foreign land. We don’t know if Joseph was aware of this revelation, but it shows us that God’s hand was on Joseph’s steps even though his journey must have felt fully to the contrary. (Note: I’m not suggesting that the evil plan of the brothers or being sold into slavery were somehow good things because God’s plan was being worked out. Joseph later refers to his brothers’ actions as plainly evil.) The interplay between God’s sovereignty and human evil is a mystery for the ages, but I’m hoping you’ll see that what must have felt entirely out of God’s will for Joseph (arriving in Egypt) was actually part of God’s plan (Israel enslaved in Egypt for four hundred years so that she might grow into a great nation whom God would deliver).
The fact that the God of Israel was with Joseph in the far away and pagan land of Egypt is so profound and comforting, there’s no way to overstate it. We simply can’t imagine God’s reach.
In our western culture, we tend to think of God’s blessing and our suffering as mutually exclusive. We think of blessings as all the good things happening in the middle of all the good times. But in Joseph’s story we discover something that challenges our mind-set, even as believers: Certain blessings can only come in the midst of our suffering. In Egypt, Joseph was rising in power and position. He had found favor with his master, and his work was prospering. Still, all these blessings fell upon Joseph in a land far away from his family and in a culture that didn’t worship his God. The blessings were abounding in the midst of His suffering.
Are you refusing God’s blessings in the midst of your trial? Take some time to surrender your pain to the Lord. Tell Him you’re willing to receive His blessings even if they look different than what you’re hoping for. Thank Him for His presence with you and ask Him to manifest that presence so that it brings you peace, comfort, and joy.
For more of this study by author Kelly Minter, visit LifeWay.com/FindingGodFaithful.

When We Don't Understand (Finding God Faithful)

As you read today’s passage, be on the lookout for God’s providential hand throughout the narrative. It’s easy for us to think of God as being “way up there” in the heavens on His end of the universe while we plod along in our daily lives with little intervention from Him. But here in Genesis, long before the incarnation of Jesus, we see God at work on earth. We see Him moving in specific locations on the map, guiding people, orchestrating events, and working out His covenant promises.
Now his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near Shechem. And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “Here I am.” So he said to him, “Go now, see if it is well with your brothers and with the flock, and bring me word.” So he sent him from the Valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem. And a man found him wandering in the fields. And the man asked him, “What are you seeking?” “I am seeking my brothers,” he said. “Tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock.” And the man said, “They have gone away, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan. They saw him from afar, and before he came near to them they conspired against him to kill him. They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. Then we will say that a fierce animal has devoured him, and we will see what will become of his dreams.” But when Reuben heard it, he rescued him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” And Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hand to restore him to his father. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the robe of many colors that he wore. And they took him and threw him into a pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it. Then they sat down to eat. And looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing gum, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him. Then Midianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. They took Joseph to Egypt. – Genesis 37:12-28 ESV
Little did Jacob know when he sent his beloved son Joseph on a journey to find his brothers, Jacob wouldn’t see Joseph again for more than twenty years. And he would never again see Joseph in the land of Canaan.
Joseph was sold for twenty pieces of silver and trafficked to the land of Egypt. What could seem more contrary to God’s sovereign plan than Joseph being sold to a godless nation far away from Canaan, the land of Promise?
After reading today’s portion of Joseph’s story it seems as though God has lost control. It appeared Joseph was being kicked around the landscape like a rubber ball on an elementary playground. His father sent him to Shechem, a mysterious man redirected him to Dothan, and then his brothers, after deciding not to kill him, secured him a one-way ticket to Egypt by way of Ishmaelite traders.
The story appears senseless. Reckless. Out of control. Could God’s providential hand still be at work in Joseph’s life? Is it possible that what appears to be nothing but a tangle of other people’s agendas will somehow be the very ball of yarn God will use to weave one of the most redemptive masterpieces in human history? Could it be that God has not abandoned Joseph but has actually gone with him?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? – Isaiah 58:7 ESV
We won’t solve the problem of why a good God allows suffering, nor will we fully understand God’s sovereignty. But my prayer is that we’ll better understand both suffering and sovereignty from the perspective of God’s Word, so that we’ll see His hand more clearly and trust His heart more deeply. Our God is good.

Favoritism and Jealousy (Finding God Faithful)

Today we step onto the soil where Joseph grew up. We find him as a seventeen-year-old tending sheep with his brothers in the midst of complex family dynamics, many of which stemmed from the favoritism of his father and the jealousy of his brothers. If you’d hoped we could ease into Joseph’s story with a cup of chamomile and a “once upon a time” opening line, the author of Genesis gives us no such luxury. Instead he takes the more direct approach of immediately plunging us into the middle of a dysfunctional family. If you need that cup of tea, you’ll have to pour it yourself or come over to my house.
If nothing else, many of us will find these pages of Genesis relatable. Despite the cultural differences of wardrobe choice, empty cisterns, and bizarre dreams involving bowing sheaves, the longings of the human heart appear to have stayed the same. Thankfully, the God who transforms our hearts hasn’t changed either.
Jacob lived in the land of his father’s sojournings, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colors. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him. Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more. He said to them, “Hear this dream that I have dreamed: Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf.” His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. Then he dreamed another dream and told it to his brothers and said, “Behold, I have dreamed another dream. Behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” But when he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves to the ground before you?” And his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind. -Genesis 37:1-11 ESV
Think about the strong words of animosity used to describe the brothers’ feelings toward Joseph. Because of Joseph’s dreams and Jacob’s partiality toward Joseph, the brothers allowed jealousy to overtake their hearts and determine their decisions.
I’ve often wondered why Joseph shared his dreams with his brothers. Did he do it out of excitement or spite? Did he hope they might start showing him respect? We’re not told Joseph’s motives in the biblical narrative, but the effects of his confession on the brothers are obvious. I’m reminded here of the importance of pure motives and wise timing when we talk about the good and exciting things in our lives—even the things God is doing. While we can’t make others jealous, we don’t want to unwisely foster it.
The beauty of Joseph’s story is that in the midst of favoritism, jealousy, and anger, God is working out His purposes. His covenant promises will prevail despite the sin and brokenness of the people to whom the promises were made. God is faithful. This story would have been much less tumultuous if everyone could have recognized at the time that while God does choose different people for different things, He is altogether good and doesn’t show favoritism.
“Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, – Acts 10:34b ESV
I wish Jacob and the brothers could have known that Joseph’s dreams would prove to be good news for them, that they were part of God’s story, as well.

Remembered (Finding God Faithful)

From Finding God Faithful by Kelly Minter
Now Laban had two daughters. The name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance. Jacob loved Rachel. And he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her. Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” So Laban gathered together all the people of the place and made a feast. But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and he went in to her. (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” Laban said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” Jacob did so, and completed her week. Then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years.
When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the Lord has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.” She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon. Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she ceased bearing.
And now the competition starts:
When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” Then she said, “Here is my servant Bilhah; go in to her, so that she may give birth on my behalf, that even I may have children through her.” So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob went in to her. And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. Then Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan. Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. Then Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed.” So she called his name Naphtali.
When Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. Then Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. And Leah said, “Good fortune has come!” so she called his name Gad. Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. And Leah said, “Happy am I! For women have called me happy.” So she called his name Asher.
In the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found mandrakes in the field and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” But she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” Rachel said, “Then he may lie with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.” When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night. And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. Leah said, “God has given me my wages because I gave my servant to my husband.” So she called his name Issachar. And Leah conceived again, and she bore Jacob a sixth son. Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good endowment; now my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she called his name Zebulun. Afterward she bore a daughter and called her name Dinah.
Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb. She conceived and bore a son and said, “God has taken away my reproach.” And she called his name Joseph, saying, “May the Lord add to me another son!”
Genesis 29:16-35, 30:1-24 ESV
In ancient Hebrew culture, a woman’s worth was bound up in her family. Her legacy was based on her ability to bear children, especially sons, who would carry on the family name. Given this cultural insight, how do you think Rachel might have felt when she held Joseph in her arms, knowing that God Himself had reached down and taken away her disgrace by providing her a son?
Remembered is an important word in 30:22, “Then God remembered Rachel” (emphasis mine). By using the word, remembered, the narrator is signaling to us that God’s upcoming work in Rachel’s life is significant to His covenant with Abraham and the future nation of Israel. Rachel is part of a grander story.
The word remember in the Old Testament also indicates God’s action. This might be confusing for us because our modern usage of remember gives the impression that for all these years God had forgotten Rachel. It sounds almost as if after having divinely arranged Rachel and Jacob’s meeting and after a lovely wedding reception, God plumb forgot to put her pregnancy on His calendar. Fortunately, this is not what the word means here at all.
God’s remembering us will never be separated from His divine activity and His perfect timing in our lives. While Rachel was waiting on the Lord for a child, He was preparing to give her a son who would have a profound effect on the future of God’s chosen people. Though Rachel had prayed for many years, seemingly to no avail, God heard her prayers and had a far greater plan than she could have imagined.
While it’s good to wait on God for the things we long for, how we wait on Him is just as important. In your waiting, tell the Lord you trust His timing and believe in His power to achieve your heart’s desire. Surrender your agenda to Him. And where your faith lacks, pray these words from Mark 9:24, “I do believe; help my unbelief!” (CSB).
Today we welcomed our study’s main character, Joseph, into the world. We learned that his birth was a profound joy to Rachel and that through it, Almighty God had taken away her disgrace. We also discovered that Joseph’s birth came about because God keeps His promises. He was faithful to remember Rachel because He remembered His covenant with Abraham that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through his family.

God is Faithful (Finding God Faithful)

Joseph’s story welcomes us with open arms, summons us into the living room, and invites us to sit down awhile and listen. So many have found a dear companion in Joseph because his life displays much of the human experience. We all “get” Joseph on some level. We can relate to him. We’ve probably never owned a multicolored robe that nearly cost us our lives or traveled as a slave by camel to a foreign land, but we patently understand difficult family relationships. We’ve experienced betrayal. We know unfair. Broken dreams have nearly sunk us. And almost every one of us has wondered at some point in our lives, Where is God?
Genesis 37–50 (Joseph’s account) reveals how deeply God loves us and wants us to love others—even those most difficult to love. (No matter who in your life is a challenging personality, just wait until you meet Joseph’s brothers. They’ll make your irritable Aunt Jane look like she’s up for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.) On a very practical level, Joseph’s life will encourage us to run for our lives from temptation, to serve when we’re suffering, and to serve when we’re prospering. And if you’ve ever wondered when to protect yourself from the people who have wounded you or when to lay down your defenses, throw your arms around your foes, and weep, Joseph’s story can help. It doesn’t give us a manual, but boy does it offer us an epic scene.
This is to say nothing of what Joseph’s story teaches us about how God can take the stones thrown at us with evil intent and use them as the bedrock of His good plans for our lives.
As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. – Genesis 50:20 ESV
Which brings us to another quite practical theme of Joseph’s story: forgiveness. If Joseph could forgive his brothers, I imagine there’s no one we can’t learn to forgive.
For those of you who have ever wondered if your dark nights and crushing heartbreak were sure signs that God had forgotten or abandoned you, Joseph’s story confidently tells us otherwise. In a faraway land, and later in a dismal prison, what more hopeful truth could be written than “God was with Joseph”? Whether in prison or in palace, His presence changes everything. Perhaps above all, in this study, I hope you will gather a richer understanding of God’s promises, His faithfulness to His people, and the person of Jesus toward whom Joseph’s entire story is aimed.

Delicate Not Fragile (Seeing Beautiful Again)

As we end our time together, I want to share a powerful picture God showed me when I was walking through one of the most difficult seasons of my life.
I’m not really a “see some sort of vision” kind of girl. So at first, I thought it was just my imagination wandering off for a minute. But then I felt an impression on my heart that this really was from God.
What I saw inside my mind was a beautiful flower made from paper-thin glass. I looked at it from all sides and admired the way it was formed. Then I saw a hand reaching out and wrapping itself around the glass flower. But as the hand closed around it, the glass popped and shattered. The glass was delicately beautiful but too fragile to be worked with.
Next, I saw the same flower formed out of shiny metal. The hand reached out and wrapped itself around the flower and held it for a few seconds. But then once again the hand closed around it. Only this time nothing happened to the flower. It didn’t change in any way. And I could tell the harder the hand-pressed, the more pain the steel flower was causing the hand. The steel was strong but not moldable. The metal flower was too hard to give way to the hand’s desired working.
But the last time I saw the same flower, it was made from a white clay. Every detail was the same except now when the hand reached out and closed around it, the flower moved with the hand. The clay squeezed and moved between the hand’s fingers. The hand-worked with the clay until an even more beautiful flower emerged.
As I asked God about these flowers, I felt the Lord say to my heart, Lysa, I want you to be delicate, but I don’t want you to be fragile. If you’re like that piece of glass, when I press into you and try to make you something new, you’ll just shatter. I also want you to be strong, but I don’t want you to be unmoldable. That steel flower will always just be a steel flower. No matter how hard My hand presses, I can’t make something new from something so hard. You’re already beautiful, but if you’ll surrender to My shaping, I can do a new and beautiful work in you.
I cried as I finally began to understand.
Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity. – Proverbs 28:14 ESV
God wanted me to be like clay. The white clay flower was delicately beautiful but not too fragile. It was strong enough to hold its shape but soft enough to allow the hand to reshape it as needed. And in the end, the clay flower wound up being the most beautifully shaped of them all.
It gives a whole new meaning to one of my favorite verses found in Isaiah 64:8:
“You, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.”
Oh, friend, God isn’t ever going to forsake us, but He will go to great lengths to remake us.
We don’t have to be afraid of how He’s going to shape our lives. He is the God who somehow makes everything beautiful in its time.
But seeing the beauty in life again will require us to stay moldable by Him. And it’s only in trusting the gentle but powerful hands of the Potter and allowing Him to remold and remake us that our hurts are able to be shaped into something beautiful.
RESPOND:
Which kind of flower would you say you are most like right now – glass, metal, or clay? Look back at the attributes of God you wrote down yesterday. How can remembering those truths about Him help you keep your heart moldable?
That aching pain we feel in the midst of our heartbreak is proof there’s a beautiful remaking already in process … but we can’t give up. Find hope in the midst of the most painful chapters of your story as you read about how Lysa Terkeurst survived her own season of heartbreak in her devotional book, Seeing Beautiful Again. Find out more at SeeingBeautifulAgain.com

Suspicious of God (Seeing Beautiful Again)

Yesterday we talked about trusting God in the midst of both sorrow and celebration.
But I think we can all admit that it’s hard not to feel suspicious of God when our circumstances don’t seem to line up with His promises. And it’s difficult not to doubt the light of His truth when everything around us looks dark.
That’s why I want us to look at Psalm 57 – a passage penned by David in the midst of a season when his circumstances and God’s promises appear to be in complete and total opposition.
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by. I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me. He will send from heaven and save me; he will put to shame him who tramples on me.  God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness! My soul is in the midst of lions; I lie down amid fiery beasts— the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth! They set a net for my steps; my soul was bowed down. They dug a pit in my way, but they have fallen into it themselves.  My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody! Awake, my glory! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn! I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth! -Psalm 57 ESV
At this point David had already been anointed as the future king of Israel and had faithfully served King Saul. Sadly, though, Saul “rewarded” David with persecution and death threats. David was left to run for his life and then hide out in a cave.
David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men. – 1 Samuel 22:1-2 ESV
And David wasn’t hiding alone. The four hundred men under David’s leadership were in distress, in debt, and discontented. I wouldn’t judge David for one second if he had cried out to God in utter defeat.
But the words he wrote in Psalm 57 are neither exclusively a psalm of lament nor a psalm of thanksgiving. David didn’t deny the darkness of his situation, but he also refused to allow his soul to get stuck in a place of despair. Instead, David chose to declare praises about the true nature and character of God. He reminded his soul of who God is—a God who fulfills His purposes (v. 2), a God who saves (v. 3), a God known for His faithfulness and steadfast love (vv. 2, 10).
Even though David’s soul was “bowed down” by his circumstances (v. 6), he allowed what he knew to be true about God to steady him. This enabled David to declare: “My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!” (v. 7).
In a cave that surely felt like an end to all he hoped and dreamed, David acknowledged his distress, but he also lifted his eyes to praise God. David’s praise wasn’t in vain. It steadied his heart. And his painful circumstances weren’t wasted. God used those hardships to mature David. Yes, David had already been anointed to eventually become king. But it was in the womb of the earth where God met him and birthed in him a heart ready to lead.
Darkness was the perfect training ground for David’s destiny. And those difficult places we so desperately want to be done with can become good training ground for us as well. But we must decide, will we see our dark times as a womb or a tomb? Will we fix our eyes on the truth of God’s goodness, or will we give in to hopelessness and despair?
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. – Isaiah 43:2 ESV
Oh, friend. I know the dark places are scary. But let’s choose to believe there is purpose in every season, even the ones that don’t seem to make any sense. Let’s ask God to birth something new inside of us, allowing Him to do a work in us that will better prepare us to walk out His promises. And instead of being suspicious of Him, let’s lift up our praises to Him.
Praise may not shift our circumstances, but it will definitely begin to change our hearts.
RESPOND:
What have you been fixing your eyes on more recently – the enormity and difficulty of your circumstances or the character of our good and faithful God? Take some time to read through Psalm 57 and Psalm 36. Write out the attributes of God you find that bring your heart peace and hope.

When Joy Seems Unrealistic (Seeing Beautiful Again)

There’s no part of me that wants sorrow to be a part of my story.
There isn’t any plan God could present where I would willingly agree to heartbreak and pain.
But the longer I walk with the Lord, the more I see what a tragedy that would be. Picking and choosing what gets to be part of my story would keep me from the ultimate good God has in mind.James 1:2–4 reminds us;
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
These words are easy to pull out when our worst issue is the drive-through getting our coffee order wrong. But what about those things that hurt too long? Or disappoint too deeply? Or feel devastatingly permanent?
To slap some “we should be joyful about this” verses on top of those hard things feels cruel. Like a bad joke about something excruciatingly painful.
That’s why I’m glad these verses don’t say “feel the joy” but instead “consider where some glimpses of joy might be even in the midst of all the hurt.”
Our understanding of joy rises and falls on whether we truly trust God in the middle of what our human minds can’t see as good at all. It’s hard. So I like to think of it in terms of baking.
Imagine we go to the store to buy all of the ingredients we need to make a cake, but then we feel too tired to mix it all together. Instead, we decide to just enjoy the cake one ingredient at a time. The thing is that sometimes we don’t like some of the individual ingredients, so we’d rather leave them out.
The flour is too dry—leave it out. The sugar, butter, and vanilla are all good—leave them in! The eggs are just gross when raw—definitely leave those out! And then our cake would never be made “mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. – Hebrews 12:2 NASB1995
We are so quick to judge the quality of our lives and the reliability of God based on individual events, rather than on the eventual good God is working together. We must know that just like the master baker has reasons to allow the flour and eggs in right measure into the recipe, Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, will do the same with dry times and hard times.
We can make peace with the fact that sorrow and celebration can coexist together in a heart quite authentically. Mixing them together is part of the recipe of life.
We can sit with and tend to all that still needs to be healed and at the same time laugh, plan for great things ahead, and declare this a glorious day.
To have both sorrow and celebration in our heart isn’t denial.
It’s deeming life a gift—even if it looks nothing like we thought it would right now.
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. – Romans 8:28 NASB1995
Our sorrows make our hearts more tender and allow us to grieve. Our celebrations tend to our heart’s need to recognize what is beautiful about our life, get back up, and go on.
Let’s embrace the mix of all that’s worthy of celebration while fully allowing sorrow to add what it brings as well—knowing we can trust Jesus’ recipe of purpose in both the pain and joy.
RESPOND:
What “ingredients” in your life do you wish God would remove? How could God actually be using these things for good? Ask Him to help you see glimpses of joy even in the midst of your pain, and then write down what you see over the next week.

Denying Jesus (Seeing Beautiful Again)

I don’t doubt God is real and that God is good. But I often pray, “God, give me relief from my unbelief.”
I pray this when what He allows into my life does not feel good or seem good to me. When we assume we know what a good God would do, and He doesn’t do it? That’s the complicated place where doubts are formed and we can be tempted to distance ourselves from God.
I’m reminded of Peter—a man who boldly declared to Jesus, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you” (Mark 14:31), but then found himself doing the exact opposite.
While Mark 14 shows us Jesus remaining faithful in the midst of the pain and turmoil of a beloved friend’s betrayal (vv. 43–45) and the high priest’s interrogation (vv. 53–65), we find Peter with faltering faith as he stood waiting in a courtyard (vv. 66–72).
Afraid. Cold. Forgetful. Peter soon denied the One who loved him most.
Once. Twice. Three times. A rooster’s shrill cry ushered in the shocking realization that the very thing Peter swore he’d never do, he did.
And as much as we might want to shake our head at Peter, I think we all know fear, pain, and insecurities really can do a number on the human heart.
They certainly did a number on Peter’s, as he watched Jesus, the One he had seen perform miracles, allow Himself to be bound and arrested. Jesus was supposed to be the King who would deliver the Jewish people from the oppression of the Romans. How could this be happening? Peter didn’t realize this was the only way he or anyone else could experience Jesus reigning as King in eternity.
So, in a moment of doubt and disappointment, Peter chose to distance himself from Jesus. Distancing himself to the point of complete denial.
To deny something is to declare it’s untrue. To deny Jesus is to say with our words, thoughts, or actions that we don’t really believe the truth of who Jesus says He is or what He says He’ll do.
How heartbreaking. For us. For Jesus.
But before we give in to feelings of shame, let’s look at Luke 22:61–62:
“The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: ‘Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.’ And he went outside and wept bitterly.”
The look that passed between Jesus and Peter wasn’t one of condemnation. It wasn’t an “I told you so” moment. I believe Jesus’ eyes were filled with compassion for Peter. The same compassion He has for us today. A look that invites us to trust Him and draw near to Him once again.
Oh, friend. Let’s ask ourselves where we’re denying Jesus’ truth in our lives. Denying His healing. Denying His redemption and hope.
Nothing is beyond the reach of our Jesus. No matter what we’ve done. No matter what the enemy or our life’s circumstances may say.
Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. – Romans 8:1 NASB1995
We can draw near to Him today and pray, “Lord, I don’t want to deny Your power just because I’m afraid and I don’t see evidence of You working now. Give me relief from any and all unbelief. And help me watch for evidence of all You are doing, big and small. I don’t have to understand this to trust You with this.”
RESPOND:
Prayerfully ask the Lord to reveal any places you’ve been denying Jesus and to give you relief from your unbelief. Consider reaching out to a friend to help hold you accountable in these areas of your life.

The Next 86400 Seconds (Seeing Beautiful Again)

Part of what makes healing so hard is the deep ache left behind after the trauma.
Loss envelops us with a grief that comes in unpredictable waves. It’s hard to know if you’re getting better when a string of good days suddenly gives way to an unexpected emotional crash. It’s in those moments where I find myself whispering…
Am I going to feel like this forever? Is it always going to hurt this much?
I want healing to be as neat and predictable as a checklist. I don’t want to be inconvenienced by it, and I most certainly don’t want to be caught off guard by the emotions that can go along with it.
But of course, if you’ve ever had to heal from having your heart broken in excruciating ways, you know you can’t schedule healing. You can’t hurry it up. And you can’t control how and when it will want to be tended to.
Trust me when I say I understand all of these feelings. I know what it’s like to wish someone would please just tell you how in the world you’re supposed to make it through all 86,400 seconds of the day when you’re in so much pain.
But I’ve discovered those days where a fresh wave of tears hit us all over again don’t have to be setbacks. They can be evidence we’re moving through the hardest parts of healing. The new tears over old wounds are proof we’re processing the grief and wrestling well with the ache in our soul.
Feeling the pain is the first step toward healing the pain. And all those emotions that keep bubbling up and unexpectedly spilling out? They’re evidence you aren’t dead inside. There’s life under the surface. And while feelings shouldn’t be dictators of how we live, they are great indicators of what still needs to be worked through.
When we love deeply, we hurt deeply. This is why we have to learn how to trust the process of healing. We have to let it ebb and flow around, in, and through us. We have to grant it access to our heart.
And when we start to see healing as unfolding layers of unexpected strength and richly revealed wisdom, it doesn’t feel so unfair. It starts to feel like a secret wisdom God is whispering into the depth of our soul.
Psalm 34:18 – The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
Then one day we realize the future feels stunningly appealing. Not because circumstances have changed but because we have embraced reality, released control, and found this healed version of ourselves is what we’d been looking for all along.
I don’t know what kind of pain or heartbreak you may be processing right now. But I do want to point you toward the hope found in 1 Peter 5:10:
“The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”
I’m praying this week reminds you that our God is a God of restoration. And all that aching within you is proof there’s a beautiful remaking in process.
Don’t give up, friend.
God loves you. You are not alone. Healing is possible.
RESPOND:
Have you ever walked through a long season of suffering that actually resulted in God building a strength in you that you never expected to have? How might He be strengthening you right now in the midst of that hard situation? Spend some time journaling about this today.