God’s Agents; January 11, 2021

Posted on January 13, 2021 by jgarrott

Rev 1:4-5 John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

The first thing that struck me as I read this just now is that John, though a human being, is in a sense dispensing grace and peace on behalf of the Godhead. We take that responsibility and privilege too lightly! We are in the earth and our physical bodies are strictly temporary, but we can act as agents of the One who created everything and is eternal. That should absolutely blow our minds! Jesus was very specific when He said, “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” (John 20:23) There are countless other examples, including various miracles recorded in Acts, yet we forget this incredible reality all too often – or else we lapse into hubris and think whatever we say is the Word of God. We can indeed act as God’s agents in many ways, but we must never think that we can order God around. Where are many things going on in the world that are not as we would like. Actually, God spoke to me once to say that there are many things that are not as HE would like. However, He knows what will happen because He is outside of time and sees it all at once, and He’s got the final outcome totally under control. That He uses human instruments to do His will as His agents is a glorious mystery. (2 Corinthians 5:20) The second thing that struck me is that Jesus is here specified as “the ruler of the kings of the earth.” In other words, no government, in the US, in China, in Nigeria, in Russia, or anywhere else, is above Him. Totalitarian governments can’t stand that fact, which is why they oppress and persecute people of faith. The Chinese Communist Party saw the impact of believers on the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and they are frantic to keep that from happening in China. However, they don’t have the final say! Likewise, Leftists in the US rightly see people with a Biblical world view as standing in their way, and thus try to “cancel” them, but again, they don’t have the last word. Such believers need to hang onto their faith and act in consistent obedience to the Lord, whatever the immediate consequences.

This is certainly talking to me as much as it is to anyone. I have been aware of acting as Christ’s representative at times, at least ever since I memorized 2 Corinthians 5:20 as a Royal Ambassador when I was still in elementary school. I certainly haven’t always acted as an agent of the Lord, but I have at least known it was possible and desirable. It’s been close to 40 years now since I had a clear revelation in the area of speaking blessing on people. These days I exercise that privilege when Facebook notifies me of people’s birthdays, as well as at other times. I want to live my life appropriately as someone who has that privilege, just as Peter said. (1 Peter 4:11) Like John, I can extend the grace and peace of the Creator, and I must never take that lightly.

Father, thank You for this strong reminder. Today I will be saying farewell to some missionaries who are returning to their home country. Help me speak Your words to them, in encouragement and blessing. I can hardly imagine what it would be like for You to tell me to leave Japan, other than to come Home to You. May I be Your agent always, not because I’m qualified on my own but because You have cleansed and qualified me by the blood of Christ. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Humility; January 10, 2021

Posted on January 13, 2021 by jgarrott

Jude 1:1-2 Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James, To those who have been called, who are loved by God the Father and kept by Jesus Christ: Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.

Every time I read this I am struck by the way Jude refers to himself. He grew up in the same household with Jesus that James did, having been born from the same mother, but he didn’t claim his physical kinship with Jesus, but rather called himself Jesus’ servant and acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah of God. Growing up he was probably aware that Jesus was unusually good, but once Jesus started His ministry, John records that “Even his own brothers did not believe in him.” (John 7:5) However, once Jesus was crucified and then rose from the dead, James, Jude, and the others repented of their unbelief, and they were among those in the upper room at Pentecost. (Acts 1:14) Jude was therefore aware of God’s incredible grace toward him, and he was forever humbled by that awareness. It is with that humility that he addresses his readers as called and loved by God. The next phrase is open to various interpretations because of the vagueness of the Greek preposition. The NIV says “kept by Jesus Christ,” but it gives for and in as alternative readings in a footnote. The Japanese goes with for and says, “because of/for the sake of.” The point is that it all centers on Jesus. Jude had come a long way from when he was just Jesus’ kid brother! It is with that understanding that he speaks the blessing of abundant mercy, peace and love, because he had experienced exactly that himself. We need to understand Jude’s attitude as we read his following remarks about false teachers in the Church. It was precisely because he recognized God’s grace toward him that he was able to speak so strongly against those who were distorting the Gospel and twisting grace into a license for immorality. (verse 4) The minute we forget our own dependence on the grace of God we lose our authority to teach and admonish others.

I too grew up in a family that gave many spiritual advantages, though certainly not as Jude did, but my response to that was not as good. I somehow thought that my parents’ clear, close relationship with God meant that my status was automatic, and I fell into severe conceit. God pointing that out to me in November, 1972, was a shock similar in many ways to Paul’s experience on the road to Damascus. (Acts 9:1-19) That has given me the perspective that if God can forgive me, and He has, then He can forgive anyone, if they will repent. My message is one of salvation, but it cannot be divorced from repentance. I am concerned that at times I come across as privileged and entitled, and that is the last thing I want. Like Jude, (and Paul, and all the rest of the New Testament writers) I know that it all depends on the love of the Father and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I have so many blessings from You, and occasionally even now I am tempted to think I deserve them. I pray that I would be an effective tool in Your hands, destroying the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) and setting the captives free, (Luke 4:18-19) for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Rewards; January 9, 2021

Posted on January 11, 2021 by jgarrott

2 John 1:8 Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully.

I don’t think this is talking about losing salvation, but it is certainly talking about losing various rewards for faithfulness. Paul also cautioned believers in this area in a bit more detail in 1 Corinthians 3:10-15. The point is not to be uptight about what you’re going to get, but rather not to be stupid, distracted and deceived by the devil’s lies. The Bible talks about rewards in many places, but perhaps the most succinct is found in Hebrews: “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.” (Hebrews 10:35-36) That passage talks about perseverance, and that is a trait that seems to be in short supply these days. We want everything NOW, and seem to be averse to the long haul. That is yet another deception of our flesh and the devil. When we get impatient over our computer taking more than 10 seconds to boot, we are spoiled! We also have a poor definition of rewards. We get so used to what past generations would have considered incredible luxury and convenience that we somehow think we are deprived! That’s bad enough on the physical plane, but it’s even worse when it happens spiritually. In America, Bibles are available everywhere for anyone, and there are conferences and “holy convocations” at every turn. Not all are the same quality, but you have plenty to choose from. COVID put brakes on a lot of that, but now the online opportunities for receiving solid teaching are essentially limitless. As good as all that is, it doesn’t hold a candle to walking in daily, intimate fellowship with the Lord, filled and guided by His Spirit, and even that is just a reflection of what we will experience in heaven. In the next verse John talks about “running ahead.” That has obviously been a problem at least from the 1st Century, and it’s certainly a problem today. We have teachers even today who “proof text” teaching that “tickles our ears,” to use Paul’s expression. (2 Timothy 4:3) Following them will certainly lead to the kind of loss John is talking about.

I am grateful to have grown up with magnificent examples of perseverance in my parents. Arriving in Japan as missionaries in 1934 and ’35, respectively, they “hung in there” until God said it was time to come home, never deviating from the path God laid out for them. I can certainly do no better. As Jesus told us, my goals are to be God’s kingdom and His righteousness. (Matthew 6:33) If that is my focus, then the rewards that accrue to that pursuit are limitless. I have been tempted by various temporal rewards but none of them are worth the trouble, and many that the world encourages me to seek are actually negative in the long run, because they are distractions. My focus is to be on listening obediently to my Lord. Nothing else really matters.

Father, thank You for this reminder. The current political upheaval is certainly distracting. Help me truly rest, relax, and rejoice in You, whatever is going on around me, so that I won’t miss anything of what You have planned for me, for Your glory alone. Thank You. Praise God!

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Lawlessness; January 8, 2021

Posted on January 10, 2021 by jgarrott

2 Peter 3:13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

Today’s whole passage, from verse 8 through the end of the letter, seems spot-on to me right now in light of what is going on in America at this point. Yesterday Bill Whittle made the point that conservatives can’t understand Leftists because conservatives believe in laws, and Leftists obey laws at their convenience. It’s something the MMPI (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory) calls scrupulosity, that is, the tendency to do what is right even when no one is watching. It is no accident that the Bible frequently uses the term “lawless” in talking about those who rebel against God. That’s why this verse hits home so strongly right now: I want to live somewhere that is home to righteousness! The thing is, we all have a tendency to rebel, to want to do something the moment it is forbidden, and we get a thrill out of “crossing the line.” That started in Eden, and is certainly evident today. That means we must not despise those who ignore laws, by stealing elections, looting, or any other way, but rather be vigilant against them, even while praying for them. I would not want to have to answer for them before God’s throne, much less be in their shoes! The temptation to “fight fire with fire” is real, but very dangerous. As James said, we’ve got to be submitted to God before we can hope to have any success at resisting the devil. (James 4:7) As has been said in a secular context, “These are the times that try men’s souls.” Peter’s words in this chapter should be a comfort and an encouragement to all who seek to follow God.

As the news came in, from Georgia and Washington D.C., I went into a funk and stopped watching, period. Not knowing how to pray, I prayed in tongues for most of the day, and that’s not a bad thing at all. I mourn for America, but my citizenship is in heaven. (Philippians 3:20) As Peter says here, I have the home of righteousness to look forward to! Meanwhile, I am to be faithful and righteous as I live on this earth, however much or little righteousness I see around me. I am to proclaim the Gospel to all who will receive it, not in a holier-than-thou way but as someone who has received, and is dependent on, grace myself. I am to remember that everything in the physical world is temporary, both objects and systems, and look forward to the perfection that is promised me, just as Peter says.

Father, thank You for this Word, and for its timing. Help me not let events get me down, but rather keep looking to my Lord (Hebrews 12:2) to receive my instructions for each day, each moment, so that Your will may be done in and through me, on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Spiritual Growth; January 7, 2021

Posted on January 10, 2021 by jgarrott

2 Peter 1:8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Because verse 9 had such a liberating effect on me over 20 years ago, I tend to gravitate to that whenever I read this chapter. However, there’s a lot more good stuff here too! Verses 5-7 list qualities that should be practical, every-day goals for us. They are perhaps difficult to quantify but they are certainly recognizable, either to ourselves or to those around us. It can be difficult at times to make an objective evaluation of yourself, so it is very helpful, even essential, to have a brother or sister in faith who can be honest with you about how you’re doing. Even without that, however, we know what these things are and can press on to take hold of them in our lives. (Philippians 3:12) This verse gives the reason and motivation for doing that. If our ultimate goal is to receive the accolade of “Well done, good and faithful servant,” (Matthew 25:21, 23) and it should be, then we certainly don’t want to be ineffective and unproductive! The Japanese says, “unfruitful,” and that ties in exactly with something Jesus said in the Upper Room before His crucifixion: “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” (John 15:8) When God created us He didn’t want pets, much less stuffed toys, but when we fail to grow spiritually and apply the resources He has given us, we aren’t much better than that.

Spiritual growth is of great interest to me precisely because I was so bad at it for longer than I care to remember. I started out with great advantages, as I am reminded often. However, as Jesus said very clearly, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (Luke 12:48) I am grateful for my heritage, but I must not presume on it. That sort of pride can be disastrous, as the Lord was so gracious as to show me back in 1972. As a pastor, I am to seek to make full use of all that God has provided to me to lead others into full, obedient fellowship with Him. Anything less would be ineffective and unproductive.

Father, thank You for this strong reminder. Help me indeed be a faithful steward of all that You have poured out on me, so that all of Your purposes in giving it to me in the first place may be fulfilled, for the blessing of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Anxiety; January 6, 2021

Posted on January 8, 2021 by jgarrott

1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

This was one of the first Scriptures I memorized as a child, but it is still a very good one to meditate on. I like the NIV use of “anxiety” simply because “care” has such a wide range of meanings, but at the same time, the KJV double use of “care” has something to be said for it as well. In other words, “”You don’t have to care (be anxious) because God does it for you.” The Japanese likewise picks up on that, though it uses two distinctly different terms in the two locations. The first is a close analog of “anxiety,” but the second is a term that is most often used to mean “worry.” It seems strange, and even vaguely blasphemous, to say that God worries about us, but the actual characters used to write that term mean “distribute heart.” In other words, He isn’t casual about us; He really cares. In our finite humanity we have great trouble really grasping God’s infinite divinity. Human language often isn’t really up to the task of describing Him. As a result, we tend to think that He is like us, instead of His having created us to be like Him. God can’t be anxious, because He knows the end from the beginning, but He can “distribute His heart” to us. That’s what the Psalmist was talking about when he said, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” (Psalm 116:15) Whatever else you say about God, it is never accurate to say He doesn’t care. After all, Jesus said He even keeps track of how many hairs we have on our heads! (Luke 12:7) When God so cares about us, it is clearly absurd for us to be anxious about anything!

As I said, I memorized this verse as a youngster, but at the same time I’m still learning it. As I write, the political situation in the US is in turmoil, and the temptation to anxiety is great. However, God is still God, and that will never change. That is never to be an excuse for passivity; faith is to be active. However, my faith needs to be big enough to know that God is far greater and stronger than any possible problem or situation. Jesus spoke His famous words in Matthew 6:33 about God’s supply of our physical needs, but seeking God’s kingdom and His righteousness applies to absolutely every area of life. In reference to America’s political situation, seeking God’s kingdom and His righteousness would obviously lead to Biblical positions on every issue of public morality, but if I’m focused on a humanistic view of “my rights” I’m going to miss God’s kingdom. I am to be earnest in prayer, but it’s not to be anxious prayer. That distinction can be easy to miss! I am to be a good steward of the opportunities and the authority that have been entrusted to me, exercising them under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results entirely in God’s hands. He’s more than up to the task!

Father, thank You for this strong, timely reminder. I do pray that Your will would be done, not only in the US political situation but everywhere in every way, just as Jesus taught us to pray. I pray that those who know you who are involved in government, from voters all the way up to the very top, would be active in their obedience to You, and that those who don’t know You, whatever their purported “religious affiliation,” would repent and believe, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Prayer; January 5, 2021

Posted on January 8, 2021 by jgarrott

1 Peter 4:7 The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.

Peter’s first letter is so loaded with good, important stuff! I couldn’t count how many times I’ve used verses 10 and 11 in teaching, and the same can be said for verse 17. However, this verse jumped out at me just now. Believers have been feeling “the end is near” throughout Church history, obviously since the 1st Century. That said, there are ebbs and flows in that, and recently I have been hearing it increasingly from all sides. My position, for as long as I can remember having a position, has been that for everyone alive today, the end will come in less than 100 years. I do believe in Christ’s physical return, and I have a gut-level feeling that it’s not very far off. Actually, for a long time I have felt that it would come within my natural lifetime, but the longer I live and minister, the more I feel that is largely irrelevant, since each individual is going to have to appear before God in any case. All of that said, Peter’s “Therefore” here is very much to the point. If we have an awareness that things aren’t going to last forever, and we should, then we should do everything possible to be in a right relationship with our “faithful Creator” (as he says in verse 19) right here and now. We aren’t to let our minds be cluttered with everything under the sun. That has been a danger for as long as mankind has existed, but it is all the more intense in this Information Age. And then there’s the matter of self-control. The need for that goes without saying! Right now the very things that are making so many people feel “the end is near” tend to make us anxious and preoccupied, unable to focus even on daily tasks. Politics is of course a prime example here. In the middle of it all, we need to remember that God is still God and Jesus Christ is still Lord and the Holy Spirit is still available to all believers, and rest, relax, and rejoice in that assurance.

That last sentence contains what has become my trademark phrase ever since the Lord spoke it to me: rest, relax, rejoice. Since childhood, really, I have known as theory that my relationship with God was the most important thing in my life, but I certainly haven’t acted like it the whole time. That shows the importance of translating theory into practical reality. Just as James said, I must not deceive myself! (James 1:22) I am intensely interested in many things, and it is very easy to let my mind get cluttered with countless things, from politics to health issues to the latest science fiction book I was reading. None of those things are bad, but they aren’t the chief thing, and I must never forget that. Prayer, that is, an intimate, 2-way relationship with my Creator, has got to be my top priority. I don’t spend hours on my knees, either literally or figuratively, (though that’s certainly not a bad thing) but I do live my days with an awareness of Him “in whom we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17:28) Anything that interferes with that awareness needs to be dealt with, because my relationship with Him is the only thing that’s eternal.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for speaking, “Rest, relax, rejoice” to me back in 2010. Help me follow through indeed, delighting to be Your child and Your servant, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Evangelism; January 4, 2021

Posted on January 7, 2021 by jgarrott

1 Peter 3:1-2 Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.

In some circles this is a very controversial passage. Some male pastors have used it to counsel battered wives to stay with their husbands, and women have been killed as a result. That is certainly not what Peter meant! My own perspective has been greatly clarified in recent years because of an exemplary family in our church. The husband had an alcohol problem and the wife ended up with severe clinical depression, to the point that she couldn’t leave her house. The husband was a nice guy when he wasn’t drinking, but often became violent when he was. The wife had been baptized some time before I ever met them, but the situation never seemed to improve. For a period of about two years, while the wife was in the throes of depression, I would take a CD of our worship service to their home every week. Usually she would come to the door to receive it, we would talk a little and I would pray for her, but sometimes she couldn’t even bring herself to come to the door. She said later that she actually hardly ever listened to the CDs, but what made the difference was the fact that I came, as a concrete indication that God hadn’t abandoned her. Eventually they got a puppy, and the act of taking care of something else drew her out of her self-centered depression. (A majority of mental/emotional problems seem to stem from having a mirror stuck to the end of your nose, but that’s a different, and long, discussion.) As she became able to attend worship services, the worship itself opened her up to the full work of the Holy Spirit, and she blossomed. Meanwhile, her husband still had the alcohol problem and it got to the point that she made him move out, saying that he had to choose between alcohol and her. I’m not sure how long that went on, but he eventually dried up enough that she let him come back. Meanwhile, the husband’s older brother, who had been away working in another city for several years, retired and came back to town, and was astonished at the change in his sister-in-law, to the point that he earnestly sought the God she had, and was baptized. It was less than a year later that his younger brother followed suit, and both of them said that it was the demonstration of her changed life that convinced them that God was real and Jesus could save. Now, that family is central to this church, and the men also are growing in faith and knowledge of the Lord. To me, they are a magnificent example of the validity of this passage. The wife was not a doormat to her husband, but forced him to move out when that was appropriate. However, it was her life itself, far more than anything she said, that brought her husband and her brother-in-law into the family of God.

This is an illustration of the reality that as a pastor, I learn from those in my flock. Life is complicated, and being simplistic doesn’t fix things. However, the simple, basic truth that God loves enough that He sent His Son to die in our place, if accepted, will fix almost any situation. I need to keep growing, never thinking that I have all the answers but remembering that God does. I am to live as a demonstration of God’s love and grace, not being a pushover any more than Jesus was, or the woman I just wrote about, for that matter, but always speaking the truth in love. At the same time, even as a man of words (which I certainly am) I must remember that my actions speak louder than my words, and seek to present an undistorted picture of my Lord to those who watch me.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for that family, who mean so much to this church. Thank You for all You are continuing to do in each one of us. May this be a year of harvest indeed, so that many may be brought from darkness to light, from death to life, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Course of Action; January 3, 2021

Posted on January 7, 2021 by jgarrott

1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

To me this verse strikes a very good balance between the reality that all power is God’s, but we are involved in the success of our lives too. Here we have the mental aspect as well as the physical. (The Japanese is a little clearer that “self-controlled” refers to our bodies.) However, the desired outcome is grace, not something we have earned by our own efforts. We get all confused about that, thinking that if it is grace, then we don’t have to do anything at all. In a sense that’s true, but passivity means we have no real appreciation for the grace that Jesus died on the cross to provide. “Setting your hope fully” is an active exercise, and we must not take it lightly. Our ultimate reward comes at Christ’s return, and that is clearly nearer than it has ever been before. In the middle of the mess of life, we need to be active in our anticipation of the revelation that Peter speaks of here. We are to be faithful in our obedience, serving God in whatever ways He directs by His Word and His Spirit, just as Peter goes on to talk about in the following verses.

As with all other Biblical truth, this is something I continue to grasp more fully the longer I walk with the Lord. At this point I have a lot of my own failures to look back on, as well as overwhelming proof of God’s gracious faithfulness. It is much easier to set my hope on what God has promised, and in that I rejoice. As a pastor I long to impart this understanding to others, that they too may have such a joyous expectation. With the new year and the new decade we tend to have all sorts of thoughts about the future, but the major sentiment I’ve been hearing has been, “I hope it’s not as bad as last year.” I need to keep my own focus on the reality that, as God told Jeremiah, “His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23) I’ve had some low moments in the past few months, so I’ve got to remember that “Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” (2 Corinthians 4:17) That’s the hope that Peter was talking about.

Father, thank You for being God. Thank You for Your plans that far outweigh and overshadow anything I could imagine. I pray that You alone would be glorified by Your solution to every issue that confronts us now, in the short term and the long, so that indeed Your name would be acknowledged as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Living Hope; January 2, 2021

Posted on January 4, 2021 by jgarrott

1 Peter 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

I had to pray about what part of this magnificent section I was to write about, because this is so packed with good stuff. Actually there are many places in the Bible like that, because it is the living Word of God. This particular verse hit me just now because so many people are short on hope at this point. It has seemed that forces of evil have triumphed and lies rule the day, but God’s truth is always greater and stronger than any lie. Looking back over the past 2000 years there have been many dark moments in the history of the Church, but God has never been defeated, whatever it might have looked like “on the ground.” That’s still the case today, and the next week is going to be climactic in a number of ways. Exactly what method, and whom, God will use is something I cannot say, but the two divergent courses presented to America, and the world, today could hardly be more starkly different. God’s people need to fix their eyes on Jesus and be faithful in prayer, in speech, and in action, so that His name may be acknowledged as holy and His kingdom come as His will is done. Trials come to cleanse and strengthen us, and we need to accept the discipline and training the Lord is supplying. We can do that only as we hang onto the living hope that Peter speaks of here. The devil wants to kill and destroy our hope, through politics and pandemics and anything else he can use, but as the hymn says, “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.”

This is intensely personal for me. Over the past two months I have had some very low moments, envisioning a tsunami of filth, lawlessness, and rejection of God washing over the US, but God is still God. As I said, I have no idea how God is ultimately going to triumph, but He still has faithful children in every state, and even in Washington DC. From a completely different angle, about two years ago God gave Cathy the vision of an audio CD to help people who are feeling suicidal. We made progress on it, recording some tracks, but then it seemed to just die. Over the past two months God has resurrected that, and we are moving forward again. The title of the CD is to be Living Hope, just as it says in this verse. If I let go of the hope God has for me, how can I impart hope to others? I need to pay attention to the messages I preach, living out God’s truth in all its fullness and not deceiving myself. (James 1:22)

Father, thank You for this strong reminder. I pray that all of Your children would take firm hold of the hope You have provided in Christ and stand up, a mighty army to defeat the forces of falsehood and evil, for the deliverance of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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