Enlightenment; January 26, 2026

Posted on January 27, 2026 by jgarrott

Psalm 32:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
    I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

Sometimes in David’s Psalms the speaker switches, and I think that is the case here. To me, this is clearly the Lord, speaking to David and to us. This and the next verse follow very logically what David has been saying up to this point, if you look at them that way. This assurance of God’s guidance, His instruction, is very comforting for anyone who wants to live their life right, to the fullest. Interestingly, the Japanese says, “teach you and enlighten you,” using the same term the Buddhists use for their goal in life. The problem with Buddhism is that it is based on human effort, and has no concept of a Savior. We do need to be enlightened, but we can’t achieve that by our own effort. However, God in His mercy reveals Himself to those whose hearts are tender before Him. That is satori, enlightenment! As Paul so rightly proclaimed, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) It is only by trusting in the God who created us that we can get things right. However, if that is the desire of our heart, He is more than faithful to bring it about.

My IQ has been a problem for me all my life, because I have tended to trust in my own understanding instead of seeking God. That directly violates one of the wisest things in the whole book of Proverbs: “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) I have liked the Proverbs passage for as long as I can remember, but the problem has been in living it out. I distinctly remember the moment when it finally hit me, all the way down to the depths of my being, that it wasn’t that God was smarter than I was, it was that God’s smart and I’m not. That was enlightenment! I’m a bit embarrassed to say, it only happened within the last 25 years, because I was in the sanctuary of this building, and we only started using it in 1999. Now, I at least recognize when I’m being stupid! I need to be active in my humility, grateful for the intellect God has given me but not trusting in it, knowing that only God has all the right answers. That lets me know that “Trust the science” is a smoke-screen for deception. I rejoice at things God allows us to discover, but I know that the final answer always lies with Him, and not with man.

Father, thank You for Your incredible patience with us, not to mention Your grace and mercy. Help me listen to You more and more accurately, just as You had me say in the message yesterday, so that I may indeed do Your will on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Patience; January 25, 2026

Posted on January 26, 2026 by jgarrott

Psalm 27:14 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong and take heart
    and wait for the Lord.

I can’t read this Psalm without music rising in my heart and mind, because of all the wonderful songs that have been created from it. The Japanese translation of this last verse is no exception, having been put to music by Makoto Iwabuchi, whom I am honored to call a friend. English translations didn’t fit his music very well, so I re-wrote the lyrics. “Be strong, and wait for God. Take heart, and wait for Him. Know that the Lord your God will answer, and be strong and wait for Him.” Living in the flow of time as we do, patience is not our strong suite. The Psalms are filled with expressions like, How long? That is very human! Probably our biggest problem is perspective. Geologists operate on a very different time scale than molecular biologists, for example. We are told of imminent potential geologic disasters, like earthquakes and tsunami, but they are generally in terms of “any decade now.” We tend to operate more on the basis of how many beats per minute our hearts are taking. This is where faith comes in. We are called to trust God’s timing, when our emotions are screaming that things aren’t happening on our desired schedule. I keep coming back to the awareness that we are generally limited to no more than 100 years in the flesh, but God is outside of time and sees everything at once. As Peter rightly pointed out, “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” (2 Peter 3:8) When our hearts are fixed on Him, we can both enjoy the moment and look forward to eternity.

I have friends and relatives right now who are very much in the middle of this. For the most part, all I can do is pray for them, but that is no small thing, because I can pray to the Creator who is outside of time! There are things in my own life right now that seem to progress either too fast or too slowly, in my perception. I need to remember that’s no big deal. As David encourages me, I need to be strong in faith and trust my God. I need to do that not only for myself, but also as an example to others, because many are watching me. Recently we have been contacted by numbers of people who were here in the past, sometimes decades ago, and they are grateful for the impact the Lord had on them through us. God’s plans and His schedule are perfect. I need to trust that, both for myself and for those I love, for our blessing and His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the news we got on Saturday, and getting to see my new great-granddaughter “in the flesh,” so to speak. Thank You that You are in charge of what is happening with my brother, and that I can look forward to contact with him. Thank You for the message You’ve given me for this morning. May I express it in Your words by the power of Your Spirit, so that all who hear it may be transformed according to Your plan, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Listen! ;January 24, 2026

Posted on January 25, 2026 by jgarrott

Psalm 25:4 Show me your ways, Lord,
    teach me your paths.

This theme is repeated many times in David’s Psalms, and God granted his request at least as many times. David had no education, as we think of it, but God taught him throughout his life. Sadly, sometimes he wasn’t listening! David was Israel’s greatest king, but one of the distinguishing episodes in his life was the mess with Bathsheba. He wasn’t listening to God there! God speaks to us in many ways throughout our lives, but we need to keep our hearts tuned to hear Him. We might start with good intentions, but over time we let other things get in the way. As Jesus said, “For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.” (Matthew 13:15) That was said right after He told the parable of the seed and the soil, and His explanation of that parable drives that point home. (Matthew 13:18-23) We should ask God to guide us, certainly, but what is equally, or even more, important is paying obedient attention when He does what we ask. God is the perfect Teacher, but we are far from perfect students!

I have said many times that God seldom if ever speaks to me through dreams, but He did so last night. I was walking along talking with another minister of some sort, and I was telling him in rather impassioned fashion, “We get all tied up about how to pray, but what is more important is how we listen to God.” He responded, “Wow. I think you just gave me my next message.” With that ringing in my heart, now I need to change my notes for tomorrow’s sermon! The message I had prepared was on “God our Teach-er,” so this really isn’t a departure from that, but I need to change the title and rearrange the points, as well as the song for after the message. That’s a lot easier than what I thought I would need to do when I first woke up! In any case, the point for me is to not just speak God’s truth, but to hear and obey it myself. I very frequently quote James 1:22, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” Every time I open the Bible I need to be expecting God to speak to me, and more than that, I need to be committed to do whatever He says to me. On top of that, He also speaks to me in many other ways, and there too I need to be sensitive and obedient. My physical hearing has deteriorated with age, but there is no reason my spiritual hearing can’t keep improving, if I will do everything He says to me.

Father, thank You for this experience. Thank You for that dream, and for teaching me to listen. I pray that I would hear You accurately as I modify the notes for tomorrow’s message. Thank You that You’ve very seldom had me write out messages in full! May I not only hear You accurately, may I do faithfully everything You say to me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Being Heard by God; January 23, 2026

Posted on January 24, 2026 by jgarrott

Psalm 6:9 The Lord has heard my cry for mercy;
    the Lord accepts my prayer.

I think it’s important to notice that this Psalm is attributed to David. At first, he seems like a bit of a drama queen, talking about how much he cries at night. However, God gave him assurance that he was being heard, and that was what mattered. I think we miss a lot of what God says to us, the assurances of His love, because we try to tough it out, to power through, when God is totally aware of our weaknesses. If we were omnipotent, we wouldn’t need God! In His merciful grace He allows us to experience our weakness, precisely so that we will turn to Him. We indeed have no qualifications in ourselves to come before God, but in His incredible grace He tells us to ask, seek, and knock, (Matthew 7:7-8) because He has dealt with our sins through the blood of His Son, allowing us to come boldly before Him. (Hebrews 4:16) God is aware of everything that goes on, so we can’t hide anything from Him, but when our hearts and words are directed toward Him, He hears us. Words, and indeed, human logic, don’t express that very well, but the thing to remember is that when we humbly come before Him in the name of His Son, He does hear us, and He responds in the way that is very best for us, whatever it might feel like in the moment.

As I have written many times, in the home where I grew up, prayer was as natural as breathing. I couldn’t be more grateful! Over the years I have learned that my human expectations are sometimes dashed, but God always has a better plan. I don’t expect to know the why of some of the things in my life, but I cling to the assurance that God has a plan, and it’s very, very good indeed. My task, my goal, is to get with that plan, to cooperate and not fight it, and certainly not complain. He has been incredibly gracious toward me, and the better I respond to that, the more blessings I will see. As the song says, “The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows.”

Father, thank You again for Your grace toward me. Thank You for enabling me to record some of that grace as I write my autobiography. So far I’m only into my 20s, so I have over 50 more years to write about! Help me leave an accurate record of Your grace, so that others will be encouraged and drawn to faith in and fellowship with You, for their eternal salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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God our Teacher; January 22, 2026

Posted on January 23, 2026 by jgarrott

Job 36:22 “God is exalted in his power.
    Who is a teacher like him?

God is called many things in the Bible, but to my awareness, this is the only place He is called a teacher. However, titles aside, the Bible speaks countless times of God teaching things to mankind, His children, either individually or as a group. This actually only stands to reason, because God is omniscient and we are born ignorant. On top of that, as Ronald Reagan famously said, it’s not that we don’t know anything, it’s that so much of what we know simply isn’t true. If we were genuinely smart, that would make us eager to know more of Him, more than knowing anything else. However, we prove our stupidity by chasing after all sorts of other things. It’s not that the pursuit of knowledge is bad, it’s that we need to base it on the awareness of our Creator, and that we are created beings. The ultimate stupidity is striving to prove God doesn’t exist. In the first place, proving a negative is logically impossible, and in the second place, we don’t think out the unavoidable consequences of either side of that question being true. People try to deny the existence of God in order to avoid accountability, but they don’t think out the absolute nihilism that would result if He didn’t exist. Recently a famous British atheist admitted publicly that he would rather live in a Christian nation than in any other kind, because of all the moral and ethical things that attach to Christian faith. Some people think they want to be free from such moral and ethical “constraints,” but they don’t think out how life would be for them if the people around them didn’t have such constraints. God is indeed the ultimate Teacher, but we aren’t very good students!

As someone with Teacher gifting, this is naturally an important topic for me. God is my perfect example, but the same thing may be said for every one of the other gifts mentioned in Romans 12. My focus needs to be first of all on being a better student, allowing Him to show me how much of what I “know” is incorrect, and molding me more and more into the likeness of His Son. (2 Corinthians 3:18) I am to be a teacher, counselor, and coach, but I can’t do any of it right without Him. (John 15:5) I must never forget that I am no “better” than the people around me, however much information I might possess. I am to share what God has given me, not from an attitude of superiority but in gratitude that we have such a gracious and loving God. In myself, I am never the authority, but God has given me the privilege of speaking and acting as His agent, as He has done for every believer. I am to lead those around me, by word and by example, to submit and listen to Him more and more consistently and accurately, so that His will may be done in and through us for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I ask for clear guidance as to what I am to speak from the pulpit this Sunday. You say so much to me, and I only stand in the pulpit once a week. Help me be Your agent on every level, never in pride but always in humble gratitude, so that Your name may be acknowledged as holy and Your rule and reign be established as Your will is done, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Rewards for Following God; January 21, 2026

Posted on January 22, 2026 by jgarrott

Job 36:11-12 If they obey and serve him,
    they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity
    and their years in contentment.
But if they do not listen,
    they will perish by the sword
    and die without knowledge.

Elihu is here talking about kings, but this essentially applies to anyone. It’s actually very simple: if we listen to God and obey Him, things go well for us, but if we don’t, they don’t. This of course doesn’t guarantee easy street for anyone. As Solomon noted, “The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11) As Jesus noted, even to His closest disciples, “In this world you will have trouble.” (John 16:33) However, the general rule of thumb is expressed here: following God gives a better outcome. The thing is, our reward for faithfulness doesn’t necessarily come in this life. I spoke again just recently on the fact that the Bible speaks of martyrdom as victory. (Revelation 12:11) We aren’t to follow God because of the perks in this life, but because He is more than worthy of our total devotion. And as has been said, His “retirement benefits” are out of this world!

I have had a general idea of heaven for as long as I can remember, but the older I get, the sharper that comes into focus. I have learned the hard way that failing to listen obediently results in unnecessary “skinned knees” and “black eyes.” However, I have also learned the joys of fellowship with my Lord, of experiencing Him speaking and acting through me, lifting people up and drawing them to Him. That is plenty of reward right there! It is my awareness of Him in the here-and-now that gives me such an anticipation of being with Him for eternity. I have plenty of “missed cues” in this world, but that won’t be an issue in heaven. I am totally on board with Paul’s statement that, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21) God’s rewards for faithful obedience are sure, and more than worth working toward!

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for all You’re doing in and around me. Thank You for the time online last night with my clinical psychologist/pastor friend, talking and praying about another friend who is in the middle of quite a trial. I do pray for Your perfect resolution to that situation. Thank You also for the interdenominational prayer meeting that will be here this morning. Thank You for the honor of being given responsibility for it. I didn’t have time for sufficient preparations for today, but guide us through it, and guide me in being fully prepared for next month. May all of Your plans for today, not just for here but around the world, be fulfilled as You desire, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Being Taught by God; January 20, 2026

Posted on January 21, 2026 by jgarrott

Job 32:8 But it is the spirit in a person,
    the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding.

This immediately brings to mind what Jesus said in the Upper Room: “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:26) Likewise, John said in his first letter: “As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.” (1 John 2:27) God wants to teach us, and His Spirit is up to the job, but we’ve got to be willing to listen and learn. Sadly, there are also many lying spirits running around, and they can do real damage to those who listen to them, and to others through them. That’s why John cautions us: “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1) That’s why not everyone who seems very “spiritual” is to be trusted or believed. In recent years such spirits have often masqueraded as “science,” “psychology,” or “logic.” None of those things are necessarily bad in their pure form, but the devil loves to twist them and use them to deceive. We’ve got to remember that Jesus Himself is the truth, (John 14:6) and so judge everything by Him. That’s not always easy, because we encounter many situations we don’t find in the Bible, but familiarity with the Bible will give us the right frame of reference.

As a pastor, I am constantly dealing with people who have listened to lying spirits, and it can be heartbreaking. Only the Holy Spirit is to be listened to and believed! That should teach me to seek more and more of God’s Spirit myself, so that, filled with Him, I may accurately represent my Lord to the people around me. I have listened to lying spirits from time to time myself, and the result is never good. In my case, the devil always tries to push me toward pride, and spiritual pride is the worst kind. I must operate in humility, or I will deceive myself and hurt others. I have recently been given a responsibility for which I feel quite inadequate. I am to thank God and learn to ask for the help I need. My biggest problems for the task are in reading, and especially writing, Japanese. The job is an important one and I’m not to run away from it, but I’ve got to have God’s guidance to be able to do it properly. That said, He is faithful, and His Spirit will indeed teach and guide me.

Father, thank You for this Word this morning. Thank You for pushing me out of my comfort zone! Help me not avoid anything You have for me to do, but rather submit everything to You and apply everything You have placed in me, for the blessing of the Body of Christ and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Learning; January 19, 2026

Posted on January 20, 2026 by jgarrott

Job 12:7 “But ask the animals, and they will teach you,
    or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you.”

Here Job is responding to the intellectual conceit of his friends, but this verse and those following express an important truth that Paul expressed to the Romans: “Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20) Yogi Berra put it another way: “You can observe a lot by looking.” God is constantly teaching us, if we have hearts to learn, and His “teaching tools” surround us. This is a major part of being a disciple. I like the fact that the Japanese word for disciple also means apprentice, because apprentices should be constantly learning, even if not in formal teaching situations. Too often our attitude is, “My mind is made up; don’t confuse me with the facts.” That is said as a joke, but we see examples all around us, sadly with tragic consequences. It’s not that we can’t learn things that are absolutely true, it’s just that there’s always more to learn. We shouldn’t let that paralyze us; we have to operate on the basis of what we know at any given moment. However, we must operate in humility, or the pride of Satan will be our downfall. As Paul said, “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:12) If we have that fundamental awareness, we will not only keep learning ourselves, we will be useful to God in leading others into His truth as well.

As someone with Teacher gifting, this is very close to my heart. I desire to learn and generally delight in doing so, but I have noticed that sometimes I get tired of learning, and that is risky. I want to stay sharp, to keep learning for as long as I’m in this body, so I must never think that I know enough, much less everything. I’m delighted when my children express constant curiosity, and I’m inspired by my biochemist uncle, who was still learning when he graduated to heaven at 93. Some of the most tragic situations I run into are people who have believed a lie of the devil and are too proud to accept anything that counters that. There is of course a difference between information and truth, though there is overlap. I have seen people who have been so obsessed with information that they lost sight of truth, and I have been in that boat myself. That’s what Paul was talking about when he said, “Knowledge puffs up while love builds up.” (1 Corinthians 8:1) Jesus is both love (1 John 4:8) and truth (John 14:6). I’ve got to operate in His love and truth if I am to keep learning as He intends.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for the events of yesterday that laid the foundation for this. Thank You that I could teach the first session on Motivational Gifts, and for how it was received. I pray that my gifting would be exercised as You intend, building others up for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Application; January 18, 2026

Posted on January 19, 2026 by jgarrott

Ezra 7:10 For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.

Ezra was a teacher’s teacher, someone who was totally focused on what he saw as his calling. That said, I think the most important line in this verse is where it says, “observance.” (Other translations render that, “to do it,” or “put it into practice.”) The point is, it wasn’t just an academic, theoretical study for Ezra, and that made all the difference. The theme of our readings is discipleship training, and follow-through is one of the most important parts of that. We can get a perfect score on a “paper test” about something, but if we don’t, or can’t, apply that knowledge, it essentially means nothing. This is why James 1:22 is so important: “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” It’s also the point of the A section, Application, of the SOAP system of devotional Bible reading (that I’ll be preaching on this morning). It’s also the resolution of the perennial conflict between “faith” and “works.” As has been said many times, real faith works! As Jesus said, “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46) Ezra didn’t know Jesus, but he was determined to do everything he believed God had said to him. That made him a teacher worthy of the name.

As someone with Teacher gifting, this is of immense relevance to me. I tend to feel that just getting the truth out there should be sufficient, but I need to walk alongside people to show them how to put it into practice. The biggest problem in that is that I’m not perfect in my own application of the truth I know. Also, truth without love is meaningless, as Paul expounded on in 1 Corinthians 13. I don’t think I’ve taught much if any heresy, but I have certainly dumped truth on people without having enough love to soften the blow. Telling someone they’re immature – which I have done – seldom if ever really helps them. Doing such things demonstrates my own immaturity! Right now we’re trying to recover from just such a mistake of mine, and I won’t even venture a guess as to how many times this sort of thing has happened in the past. It’s very important that Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” (John 13:34) I’ve got to filter everything I say and do through the love of God in Christ Jesus. Only if I do that will I accurately present and teach His truth, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You that You can, do, and will use even my mistakes for good. May all of Your plans be fulfilled on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Teaching; January 17, 2026

Posted on January 18, 2026 by jgarrott

2 Chronicles 17:7 In the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel and Micaiah to teach in the towns of Judah.

Jehoshaphat had the authority and he knew what needed to be done, so he delegated. He started with trusted officials, named here, and added to their number “professional staff,” so to speak, Levites and priests who were very familiar with the Law of the Lord they were assigned to teach. I know that names are seldom unique to specific individuals, but Obadiah and Zechariah jump out at me as the names of two of the prophets who have books in the Bible. It seems improbable that they were the same individuals, but not impossible. In any case, Jehoshaphat recognized the need for his people to know the Word of the Lord, and he did all he could to enable that to happen. We tend to forget that it would be well over a thousand years before the printing press would be invented, so even if the people could read, they couldn’t exactly have their own personal copy of the Bible. These days, we have no excuse! Today we don’t have a government requiring us to know the Bible, but we do have a God who says we need to! So from this passage we have the two lessons of needing to know the Bible, and delegation to get it done widely.

As a pastor with Teacher gifting, I would fit into this either as a Levite or a priest, but the question comes in the people’s reception of the information. It is exciting to me to teach when people are hungry to learn, but that isn’t always the case. Tomorrow we will be having the first class on Motivational Gifts, as previously taught by Don and Katie Fortune. I interpreted for their teaching many times, but I don’t know how much appetite the believers here have for it. All I can do is be faithful in presenting the material accurately and as interestingly as possible, and pray that the Holy Spirit will take that and work it into the hearts and lives of the believers. My desire, and, I believe, God’s desire, is that each person would recognize how God has gifted them and then actively submit their gifts to Him, to be used by Him to build up the Body of Christ. If that happens, it will be glorious indeed!

Father, You know the problems I’ve had with delegation over the years, and for the drag it has been on this church. I pray that tomorrow would be a point of breakthrough, with people rejoicing to discover their gifting and delighting to find ways to exercise that gifting in Your service, building up the Body of Christ for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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