"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." — Galatians 5:22-23
 
What if God slowed you down on purpose?
 
We live in a drive-thru culture. We want what we want, and we want it now. We get frustrated when our order takes too long, when traffic backs up, when progress stalls. We've been trained to believe that faster is always better.
 
But God doesn't operate a drive-thru.
 
Sometimes He allows detours in your life specifically to slow you down. Not because He's punishing you, but because He's developing something in you that can only grow at a slower pace: patience.
 
You see, we often rush so fast that we miss God's plan for our lives entirely. We're moving, but we're not maturing. We're busy, but we're not growing. And God, in His kindness, puts a stop sign in front of us.
 
"Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him" (Psalm 37:7).
 
Those seasons when life gets redirected or slowed down are often the seasons when God does His deepest character work. He builds in you what speed would never allow. He cultivates patience, endurance, and trust that can only develop when you're forced to wait.
 
Don't fight the slowdown. Embrace it. God is building something in you that can't be rushed.

"To answer before listening—that is folly and shame." — Proverbs 18:13
 
Have you ever noticed that God gave you two ears and only one mouth?
 
Maybe that's His way of telling you to listen twice as much as you talk.
 
Most of us have the ratio backwards. We're so eager to share what we know, offer our opinion, or fix the problem that we barely let the other person finish a sentence. We're already formulating our response before they've gotten to the point.
 
But that's not how encouragement works.
 
Men are especially guilty of this. We're wired for action, not processing. When someone brings us a problem, we want to solve it. We want to offer the three steps, the Bible verse, the practical solution. What we don't want to do is just sit there and listen.
 
And yet that's often exactly what people need.
 
"Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues" (Proverbs 17:28).
 
Here's what I've learned after fifty years of marriage: sometimes people don't want you to fix it. They just want you to hear it. They want to know that someone cares enough to be present without an agenda.
 
Listening says, "I care about what's going on in your life more than I care about you knowing what's going on in mine."
 
That's ministry. That's discipleship. That's love in action.
 
Close your mouth. Open your ears. You might be surprised what you hear.

"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds." — Hebrews 10:24
 
Do you know how to break a horse without a rodeo?
 
Years ago, I had a leopard Appaloosa named Pete's that needed to be broken. I was expecting a fight, bucking, rearing, the whole wild west experience. But instead, I tried something different. I saddled him up, snubbed him to a friend's mature horse, and we began to ride side by side together around the corral.
 
Then we went out and rode together some more. When it was finally time to release the snubbing, you know what happened? No rodeo. Not one buck, not one rear, not one problem. Because he had learned to walk with another horse first, he knew how to carry a rider when it was time to go alone.
 
That's how discipleship works.
 
You don't throw new believers into the deep end and hope they figure it out. You walk alongside them. You let them learn the rhythm of following Christ by watching you follow Christ. You stay snubbed together until they're ready to ride on their own.
 
"Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ" (1 Corinthians 11:1).
 
The Greek word for the Holy Spirit is paraclete, which means "one who comes alongside another." That's the model. Not standing above people and shouting instructions. Not throwing information at them from a distance. Walking beside them, step by step, until they find their footing.
 
Who are you snubbed to right now? And who is snubbed to you?
 
That's how spiritual maturity happens. Side by side, learning to walk together.

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves." — Philippians 2:3
 
Have you ever been talking to someone who was looking past you the whole time?
 
You know the feeling. They shake your hand, they nod at the right moments, but their eyes keep drifting over your shoulder. They're scanning the room, working the crowd, looking for someone more important or more interesting than you.
 
It stings, doesn't it?
 
And yet we do it to others all the time.
 
To be a great encourager, you have to focus on one person at one moment in time. Even when other people are vying for your attention. Even when you're busy. Even when you'd rather be somewhere else.
 
"Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others" (Philippians 2:4 ESV).
 
When someone is standing in front of you, they are who God has planted you next to for that moment. Not the person across the room. Not the text that just came in. Not the task waiting on your desk. The person right in front of you.
 
Looking over their shoulder while they're talking tells them they don't matter. Making eye contact and being fully present tells them they do.
 
Your wife needs that focus. Your husband needs it. Your children definitely do. Because if you're not focused on them, someone else will be, and that person will become the voice that shapes their life.
 
Stop scanning the room. Look them in the eye. Be all there.

"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves." — Matthew 7:15
 
Have you ever been targeted by a religious scam?
 
You've probably seen it. Someone on television or online says, "God told me that if you give $777, because seven is the perfect number and three sevens together represent the trinity of perfection, then God will bless you beyond measure. But make sure you write that check to my ministry."
 
It sounds spiritual. It uses Bible language. It promises divine reward.
 
And it's a lie.
 
There are connivers and deceivers out there who speak to the greed and desperation of people looking for hope. They twist Scripture to manipulate. They exploit the vulnerable. And they do it all while wearing the mask of ministry.
 
"For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people" (Romans 16:18).
 
Here's what you need to know: God will hold them responsible for their error. You don't have to be their judge, but you do need to be discerning. Biblical generosity is never about paying for a blessing. It's never about a formula that guarantees return. It's about honoring God with a grateful heart, not feeding someone else's greed.
 
Give generously. Give joyfully. Give to your local church and to needs God puts in your path.
 
But don't let anyone con you into thinking your financial seed unlocks God's hand. His grace isn't for sale.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." — Romans 8:28
 
Where is God when life feels like an interruption?
 
Many of us think God is primarily concerned about getting us from point A to point B so we can arrive at point C. We focus on destinations, achievements, and arrivals. We want to get somewhere.
 
But God often does His deepest work in the parenthesis.
 
Those detours you didn't plan for, those unexpected pauses between where you were and where you thought you were going, that's often where God's hand becomes most visible. It's in the in-between seasons that He shapes your character, deepens your faith, and prepares you for what's next.
 
Think about Joseph. He wasn't just enduring the pit, the slavery, and the prison as obstacles to overcome on his way to the palace. God was actively working in every one of those places, forming him into the man who could eventually save nations.
 
"The LORD was with Joseph so that he prospered" (Genesis 39:2). Not after prison. In prison.
 
If you feel like your life is stuck in a parenthesis right now, caught between chapters, paused in the middle of a sentence, take heart. God is not waiting for you to arrive somewhere before He starts working. He is working right now, in the middle of the interruption.
 
The parenthesis is not wasted time. It's holy ground.

"The purposes of a person's heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out." — Proverbs 20:5
 
Are you listening to what people aren't telling you?
 
If you want to be an encourager, you have to learn to listen. Not just to the words coming out of someone's mouth, but to the silence between them. Sometimes what someone is not saying speaks volumes more than what they are saying.
 
People don't always tell you what's really going on. They give you the surface version, the polished answer, the "I'm fine" response. But if you listen carefully, with discernment, you'll pick up on the hesitation, the things they skipped over, the topics they avoided.
 
That's where the real conversation is hiding.
 
"My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry" (James 1:19).
 
A good discipler doesn't just wait for their turn to talk. They ask probing questions and then get quiet. They create space for someone to open up. They pay attention to body language, tone, and timing.
 
I've watched my wife do this for over fifty years. She would lay down beside our kids at night, rub their backs, and just be present. And they would tell her everything. Why? Because she wasn't trying to fix anything. She was just listening.
 
Some of the people who have made the deepest impact in your life are those who loved you by listening to you, without judgment, accepting where you were but loving you enough not to let you stay there.
 
Listen deeper. Hear more.

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves." — Philippians 2:3
 
Have you ever needed a Band-Aid you couldn't get to?
 
I had a cut on my foot the other day and grabbed a Band-Aid, but I couldn't get into the packaging. I'm standing there bleeding, and the thing I need is wrapped up so tight I can't access it.
 
That's what happens when someone is full of themselves. There's too much packaging around to get to the help they could actually provide.
 
The best Band-Aid carriers rarely feel like they're the best. They don't walk around announcing their qualifications or making sure everyone knows how spiritual they are. They're just available, accessible, and humble enough to show up without fanfare.
 
If you run across someone who feels like they're the best, you might want to keep your distance. People who are full of themselves have a hard time making room for anyone else's needs.
 
"God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble" (James 4:6).
 
Paul didn't send Timothy to the Thessalonians with a press release about how amazing he was. He sent him to strengthen and encourage. That was it. No ego. No agenda. Just service.
 
If God has given you something to offer, don't wrap it in so much self-importance that nobody can get to it. Strip away the packaging. Be accessible. Let people see the help without having to fight through your pride to find it.
 
The best ministry happens when you get out of the way.

"Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds." — Proverbs 27:23
 
Do you know where you actually stand?
 
There are a lot of people who live as if having checks in the checkbook means having money in the bank. They keep writing, keep swiping, keep spending, without ever stopping to look at what's really there.
 
That's not faith. That's denial.
 
God wants you to know your condition. This isn't just financial advice; it's a spiritual principle. You cannot steward what you refuse to see. You cannot manage what you won't measure. And you certainly cannot give generously when you're lying to yourself about your resources.
 
"Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won't you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?" (Luke 14:28).
 
Knowing your condition isn't a lack of faith. It's wisdom. It's taking an honest look at where you are so you can make faithful decisions about where you're going. It means opening the statements, tracking the spending, and facing the numbers even when they're uncomfortable.
 
Some of us avoid the truth because we're afraid of what we'll find. But you can't fix what you won't face. And God isn't honored by ignorance.
 
If you don't know where you are financially, that's your problem. And it's a problem you can solve today.
 
Take inventory. Face the facts. Then let God show you the next step.

"Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." — Galatians 6:2
 
Which one are you right now?
 
My grandson Sagey was telling us about his imaginary friends at breakfast. He said he had ten brothers and five sisters. When asked what happened to some of them, he explained that three of the sisters got poison ivy and didn't put a Band-Aid on it, so they died. But a couple of the brothers got poison ivy too, put a Band-Aid on it, and lived.
 
Out of the mouth of a five-year-old comes a powerful picture of the church.
 
There are two kinds of people in the body of Christ. There are people who have poison ivy, and there are people who are Band-Aid carriers. Sometimes you're the one who needs help. Sometimes you're the one who brings it. And if you walk in the woods long enough, you're going to need both at different times.
 
Here's the beautiful part: the best Band-Aid carriers are usually the ones who have had poison ivy themselves. They know what it feels like. They know where it hurts. They don't judge because they've been there.
 
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God" (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).
 
If you've got poison ivy right now, don't hide it. Let someone help. And if you're a Band-Aid carrier, keep your eyes open. Someone near you is itching and doesn't know where to turn.
 
The church works when both show up.

"As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." — John 20:21
 
Do you know what you are to the people God has placed in your life?
 
When Paul needed someone to check on the believers in Thessalonica, he didn't send leftovers. He sent Timothy, his son in ministry, his right-hand man, his best. And in doing so, Paul was mirroring what God Himself had done. God didn't send second-string help to rescue humanity. He sent His Son. He sent His best.
 
Now here's the part that might surprise you: you are God's best for someone right now.
 
If God has opened a door for you to be involved in someone's life, you are exactly who they need at this moment in time. Not because you're perfect or because you have all the answers, but because God has placed you there. You are His chosen instrument for that person in that season.
 
"For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (Ephesians 2:10).
 
You might not feel like the best. Good. The moment you start feeling like you're the best is usually the moment you become the least helpful. But your feelings don't change the truth: God has selected you, positioned you, and sent you.
 
Stop waiting to feel qualified. Stop waiting until you have more training or more experience or more confidence. If God has put someone in your path who needs what you have, then you are His best for them right now.
 
Go. Be sent.

"Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." — 1 Corinthians 11:1
 
Have you ever thought about why you're sitting where you're sitting?
 
You're here today as a follower of Jesus because someone invested in your life. Maybe it was a Bible study teacher who took extra time with you. Maybe it was a vacation Bible school leader who made the gospel real when you were seven years old. Maybe it was a neighbor who invited you to church when you were going through a hard time. Maybe it was a parent who prayed for you every single day.
 
Somewhere along the way, someone decided you were worth their time, their energy, and their attention. They didn't just hand you information. They gave you their life.
 
That's how the gospel has always moved forward. Not through programs or institutions alone, but through people investing in people. Paul invested in Timothy. Timothy invested in faithful men. Those men invested in others. And the chain has continued for two thousand years, all the way down to you.
 
"And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others" (2 Timothy 2:2).
 
Now it's your turn.
 
Someone brought you along. Someone believed in you before you believed in yourself. Someone carried a Band-Aid when you had poison ivy. The question isn't whether you've received that kind of investment. The question is whether you're passing it on.
 
Who are you investing in? Who will be here twenty years from now because you took the time?
 
You're here for a reason. Now be that reason for someone else.

"Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it." — 1 Corinthians 12:27
 
What kind of thing is the church?
 
Most organizations on this planet run on structure, systems, and programs. They have org charts and policies and procedures. They function like machines: input goes in, output comes out. If a part breaks, you replace it and keep moving.
 
But the church is not an organization. It’s an organism.
 
An organism is alive. It breathes. It grows. It adapts. It heals. And most importantly, it’s made up of interconnected parts that depend on each other to survive.
 
Paul understood this. When he wrote to the Thessalonians, you could feel his heart beating through the letter. He wasn’t managing a franchise from a distance. He was connected to living people whose faith and love mattered deeply to him. "How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?" (1 Thessalonians 3:9).
 
That’s not organizational language. That’s family language.
 
"From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work" (Ephesians 4:16).
 
When you invest in someone’s life at church, you’re not filling a slot on a volunteer roster. You’re becoming connected tissue in a living body. When they hurt, you feel it. When they rejoice, you celebrate. When they grow, the whole body gets stronger.
 
Programs come and go. Buildings rise and fall. But the life of the church flows through the relationships between its people.
 
You’re not a cog in a machine. You’re a living part of a living body.
 
Act like it.

"The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him." — Psalm 37:23
 
Have you ever wondered why God allowed something to stop you in your tracks?
 
There’s a story about Dr. Arthur Pierson, a great preacher and theologian, who found himself alone in the study of George Muller, that legendary man of faith who built orphanages through prayer alone. Pierson decided to look through Muller’s personal Bible. When he came to Psalm 37:23, which says that the steps of a godly man are ordered by the Lord, he noticed something Muller had written in the margin: “And the stops too.”
 
That simple phrase changes everything.
 
We love the idea of God ordering our steps. We want movement, progress, forward motion. We want God guiding us from point A to point B. But what about when He brings us to a standstill? What about when the door closes, the opportunity disappears, or the path suddenly ends?
 
Those stops are ordered too.
 
"Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10).
 
Sometimes we are more concerned about motion and activity than we are about trusting God in the middle of a pause. We think something has gone wrong when life grinds to a halt. But maybe the stop is exactly what God intended. Maybe the delay is part of the design.
 
God is in charge of your steps and your stops. The detours that frustrate you, the delays that confuse you, the doors that close in your face, they are all under His sovereign control. Nothing has gone wrong. The stop is ordered just as much as the step.
 
Rest in that today.

"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?" — Isaiah 43:18-19
 
Do you believe your best days are behind you?
 
When a detour hits, it's easy to start looking backward. You remember when things were easier, when opportunities were open, when life made sense. The past starts to look golden compared to the uncertain road ahead.
 
But here's what God wants you to understand: your best days are not behind you. They're ahead.
 
Life is a journey, and nothing stays the same. Though you and I would love for things to stay the same, they simply don't. Seasons change. Circumstances shift. What worked yesterday may not work tomorrow. And that can feel disorienting.
 
But if you will realize that God has a plan for your life, that He is still in charge, that He has taken hold of your right hand and will guide you step by step, it will produce greater optimism as you look forward to the days to come.
 
"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).
 
The detour isn't the end of your story. It's a plot twist. God isn't finished writing, and the best chapters may be ones you haven't even imagined yet.
 
Stop mourning what was. Start trusting what will be. Your best days are ahead.

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding." — Proverbs 3:5
 
Are you trying to make God's will match yours?
 
There's a story about an old woman in Scotland who traveled from village to village selling thread and small household items. Whenever she came to a fork in the road, she would take a stick, throw it up in the air, and whichever direction it pointed when it landed, that's the way she would go.
 
One day, someone saw her throwing the stick, watching it land, picking it up, and throwing it again. And again. And again.
 
They asked, "What are you doing?"
 
She said, "I'm trying to figure out which road to take. This one over here looks very rough. I don't want to go down that road, so I'm throwing the stick until it points in the direction I want to go."
 
That's the real problem with many of us. We say we want to be in the will of God, but if God would lead us down a difficult path, we'd probably say, "God, is there another direction? Is there another way?"
 
We want God's will to align with us rather than for us to align with the will of God.
 
"Many are the plans in a person's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails" (Proverbs 19:21).
 
Stop throwing the stick until it points where you want to go. Stop praying until you hear what you want to hear. Stop seeking counsel until someone agrees with what you've already decided.
 
God's will isn't a multiple-choice test where you keep guessing until you get the answer you prefer. It's a path to walk—even when the road looks rough.
 
Put the stick down. Follow His direction. Even when it's not the way you wanted to go.

"For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, 'Do not fear; I will help you.'" — Isaiah 41:13
 
Do you feel like you're walking through this alone?
 
Many of us just need to meditate on this scripture, especially when we're going through difficult seasons. When we're wondering, "God, what are you doing? Why am I here? Why are you allowing this to happen—or not happen—in my life?"
 
Picture what this verse describes. God doesn't just walk beside you. He doesn't just watch from a distance. He takes hold of your right hand.
 
Think about when you were a child crossing a busy street. Your parent didn't just point you in the right direction and wish you luck. They grabbed your hand. They held on tight. They guided you through the danger.
 
That's what God does in your detours.
 
And notice what He says while He's holding your hand: "Do not fear; I will help you."
 
Not "Figure it out yourself." Not "Good luck with that." Not "You should have seen this coming."
 
"Do not fear. I will help you."
 
As a believer, we need to always remember that God is in charge. He hasn't abandoned you in the detour. He hasn't left you to navigate the confusion alone. He's right there, hand in yours, speaking courage into your fear.
 
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you" (Isaiah 43:2).
 
Whatever detour you're facing today—whatever confusing, frustrating, painful redirect has happened in your life—remember this: Someone is holding your hand. Someone who knows the way through. Someone who will not let go.
 
You're not walking this alone. He's got you.

"Jesus answered, 'It is written: Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" — Matthew 4:4
 
What do you really need to survive?
 
Ask any expert, and they'll give you a list: air, water, food, shelter, sleep. These are the basics for physical existence. And they're not wrong. Your body needs these things to function.
 
But your soul needs something more.
 
You need faith more than you need food. You need hope more than you need shelter. You need love more than you need oxygen. Because you can have all the physical necessities covered and still be dying on the inside.
 
The disciples had access to food and water and shelter. They had each other. But after Jesus was crucified, they were empty. They had lost the three things that actually mattered: faith, hope, and love. Without those, all the bread in the world couldn't satisfy them.
 
"I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10).
 
Jesus came to give you more than survival. He came to give you abundant life, and abundant life requires more than calories and a roof over your head. It requires the ability to believe, the capacity to hope, and the power to love.
 
These three essentials are found only in Christ. Without Him, you can exist, but you will never truly live. With Him, you can face anything, endure anything, overcome anything.
 
Don't settle for mere survival. Don't mistake physical comfort for spiritual health. Pursue the One who offers what food and shelter never could: faith, hope, and love that endure forever.

"Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.'" — Matthew 16:24
 
What's standing between you and God's will for your life?
 
Most of the time, the answer is simpler than we want to admit. It's not the circumstances. It's not other people. It's not even the enemy. The biggest obstacle between you and God's will is you.
 
We struggle with surrender because surrender means loss of control. It means saying yes before we know all the details. It means following a path we didn't choose down a road we didn't map. And everything inside us resists that.
 
We want God's will, but we want it to look like our plan. We want His direction, but only if it leads where we were already hoping to go. We want His blessing, but not His breaking.
 
In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed the hardest prayer any of us will ever face: "Father, if there's any way you can take this away... nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done."
 
That's the picture of submission to the Father's hand. Not negotiating. Not bargaining. Not throwing conditions on your obedience. Just surrender.
 
Are you fighting the Father's hand right now? Are you upset with His timing or His methods? Are you at odds with the plan He's unfolding in your life?
 
Then you don't get it yet.
 
"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6).
 
God's will isn't hard to find. It's hard to accept. The problem isn't clarity. The problem is surrender.
 
Get over yourself. Get under His authority. And watch what He does when you finally stop fighting.

"And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you." — Genesis 45:5
 
Could you say that to the people who wronged you?
 
You talk about somebody whose life didn't go according to plan—Joseph's story is a masterclass in detours. Sold into slavery by his own brothers. They told their father he was killed by a wild animal. He ended up in Egypt as a slave, then was falsely accused and thrown into prison.
 
From prison, through a series of God-orchestrated events, he eventually became Vice Pharaoh—in charge of the entire country during a famine that brought his brothers crawling to Egypt for help.
 
If anyone could be justified in holding a grudge, it was Joseph. If anyone had earned the right to bitterness, he had. If anyone could say, "Look what you did to me," he could.
 
But instead, he says, "Don't be angry at yourselves because God had a plan."
 
That's a positive perspective that only comes from years of watching God work in the detours.
 
Joseph didn't minimize what happened. He didn't pretend it didn't hurt. But he chose to see God's hand in it all. "God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance" (Genesis 45:7).
 
What if the detour you're in right now is God sending you ahead?
 
What if the pain you're experiencing is preparation for someone else's preservation?
 
What if years from now, you'll look back and see that every twist and turn was part of a rescue plan you couldn't see at the time?
 
Find the positive perspective. It's there. God is working—even through the people and circumstances that hurt you most.

"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." — 1 Corinthians 13:13
 
Why is love the greatest?
 
Paul doesn't leave us guessing. Of the three essentials for life, love stands above the rest. But have you ever wondered why? Faith is powerful. Hope is essential. Why does love get top billing?
 
Here's the answer: Love is the only one of these three that you can give to others.
 
Think about it. You can give people facts, but you can't produce faith in them. Only God can do that. You can offer encouragement, but you can't manufacture hope in someone's heart. That's God's territory too. Faith and hope are God-initiated gifts that He alone can supply.
 
But love? Love is something you can actually give away.
 
That's why Jesus told His disciples behind those locked doors, "As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." He was commissioning them to be conduits of His love to a world that desperately needed it. Not conduits of information. Not conduits of religious programming. Conduits of love.
 
"Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another" (1 John 4:11).
 
God wants to use you as His go-between, connecting His heart to the hearts of people around you. The love that flowed from the cross, the love that was validated by the empty tomb, that same love is meant to flow through you to everyone you encounter.
 
You can't give people faith. You can't hand them hope. But you can love them, and in doing so, you become the hands and feet of the One who loved them first.

"The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." — Psalm 34:18
 
When do you hear God most clearly?
 
Here's something that might surprise you: Sometimes you can be more in the will of God going through a difficult time in your life than at any other time.
 
In fact, it is in the difficult times that you and I become more sensitive to the Spirit of God and His voice than any other time.
 
Think about that. When everything is going well, we tend to coast. We get comfortable. We stop listening as carefully because we don't feel the urgency.
 
But when the storm hits? When the diagnosis comes? When the job ends? When the relationship crumbles?
 
Suddenly, we're on our knees. Suddenly, we're in the Word. Suddenly, we're crying out to God with everything we have. Suddenly, we're listening—really listening—for His voice.
 
"Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word" (Psalm 119:67).
 
God knows this about us. Maybe that's why He allows the storms. Not to punish us, but to position us. To get us to the place where we'll actually hear Him clearly.
 
If you're in a difficult season right now, don't waste it. Your spiritual sensitivity is heightened. Your ears are more tuned to His frequency. Your heart is more open to His direction.
 
The storm isn't blocking God's voice. It might be the very thing that helps you hear it.
 
Listen closely. He's speaking.

"Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him." — Job 13:15
 
Have you expressed your trust in God lately—out loud?
 
You know the story of Job. Blessed by God with a great family, great fortune, great security. Then he lost his children. Lost his wealth. Lost his health. And his wife came to him with these encouraging words: "Curse God and die."
 
That was his spouse.
 
Job's response to his condemning friends and his bitter wife? "Though he slay me, yet will I trust him."
 
Here's what I've learned: Sometimes expressing your trust in God is more for you than it is for others. Though it does impact others when they hear you verbalize your faith in the middle of a detour or difficult circumstance.
 
There's something powerful about saying it out loud.
 
"God, I don't understand this, but I trust You." "Lord, this hurts, but I believe You have a plan." "Father, I can't see the way forward, but I know You can."
 
Words shape belief. What you speak reinforces what you think. When you verbalize trust, you strengthen trust.
 
"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful" (Hebrews 10:23).
 
Don't just think your trust. Speak it. Declare it. In your car. In your prayer closet. To your friends. To your family.
 
Express your trust in God—especially when circumstances scream at you to doubt.
 
Say it out loud: "Yet will I trust Him."

"But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil." (Hebrews 5:14)
 
We are very susceptible to counterfeit preaching and teaching from the Word of God today. It is amazing to me how large numbers of people embrace churches whose preaching and teaching are a mile wide and an inch deep!
 
There is a lack of theological, doctoral teaching today. It is all about how you feel. It feels good there and it appears to be great. Some people say, “My kids love it. That has to be very powerful. At least they're going to church.” You might wonder, when they go to church, what are they getting? Are they getting Kool-Aid and milk, or are they getting the One? We need to realize that this is the day we are living in right now. Many churches will not stand for the truth, because it will offend the masses. Instead, they cloak a very lightweight Gospel message with words that are not offensive. Counterfeiting does this. It makes things look good and acceptable, but inside there is not much substance at all.
 
This is why we need to be a student of God's Word. As parents of millennials and whatever comes around in the days to come (Gen-X and the others), you need to be mature in wisdom, and be able to unfold the Scripture to teach your family what is right and what is wrong. Too many people choose where they go to church based upon friendships, rather than the Word of God. Although there is an important aspect of community involvement, the depth of teaching the Word of God is very important. Satan comes from something that looks right and feels good, but it is counterfeit.
 
“It sounds good. Let's love everyone. That's what Jesus would do.” Jesus gets blamed for a lot of things that Jesus wouldn't do. Remember, He turned over the tables of the money changers at the temple. (Matthew 21:12-13) They were on the steps leading up to the temple area. With many of us, we allow people to literally desensitize us because we don't want to offend anyone. The evil one has a plan, and part of that plan is counterfeit; so be aware. Know God's Word!

"Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (Romans 10:9)
 
Whether we admit it or not, the end times are not very far away. Jesus is coming back soon and we need to be prepared.
 
We might not be here when the events of the end times arrive. This is the pathway that will unfold during the Great Tribulation, those seven years which will take place following the Rapture of the Church. What is the Rapture of the Church? It is the secret coming of Jesus for His saints. The Bible tells us that the dead in Christ will rise first. Those of us who are still alive will get airborne! You need to realize that Jesus is coming.
 
There is nothing left for God to fulfill before Jesus will come again, except to save the last few people in this Gentile period of time. Quite possibly, the last person to be saved could be someone who is reading this devotional right now. You need to give your life to Christ today! Maybe you realize in your heart that you have never turned from sin and placed your faith in Christ. I pray that today you would do that, because Jesus is ready to come for His church.
 
Even though you attend church every single Sunday, you don't have everyone fooled. You haven't fooled yourself and you definitely haven't deceived God! You may be religious, but you have never been converted. There has never been an inward change where you admitted your sin, turned from sin, and placed your faith in Jesus Christ. He shed His blood on the cross and came alive; and He is coming again! If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I pray that you would turn from your sin and place your faith in Christ right now.