Serious about Serving - Martin Wiles

All night long I search for you; earnestly I seek for God. Isaiah 26:9 NLT

After nine years of floundering around in the work world, I became serious about an education and serious about serving.

From first to eighth grade, I was serious about school and enjoyed learning. Then the teenage-don’t-care bug bit. Joining in the movements of the time, I found myself rebelling against society and education. Why did I need it? Jobs were plentiful. 

After quitting my senior year and then returning six months later, I finally graduated a semester later than my peers and entered the workforce. The first few years went well, but then the economy turned sour, and so did my employment. After being laid off from the plant where I had worked since graduation, I found myself holding a string of unfulfilling jobs. Nine years after graduation, I finally succumbed to God’s earlier direction and went to college, but now as a married man with a small child. Doing so after graduation would have been easier, but I wasn’t serious at the time.

In the prophet Isaiah’s song of praise to the Lord, he expresses his sincere devotion to serving God. Though I doubt he actually stayed up all night every night seeking God, his word choice relates how much he needed God in his life.

Perhaps there was a time when Isaiah, too, wasn’t serious about serving God. After all, it took a hot experience to set him on fire for God (Isaiah 6). While God didn’t have to touch my lips with live coals to convince me I needed to get serious about serving him, he did use a series of disappointments to get me pointed in the right direction.

Through the payment Jesus made on Calvary’s cross, God demonstrated how serious he was about humanity’s salvation. He wasn’t under obligation to deliver us from our sins, but he didn’t want us to be a lost cause. Christ went all the way for us, and we should do no less for him.

Getting serious about serving God is a decision we can make through an act of our free will. God desires this decision and gives everyone the power to make it. 

Decide today to be serious about serving God.

Father, focus my heart, mind, and will on serving you to the best of my ability. 

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When God Gives Extra Time - Martin Wiles

So the sun stood still and the moon stayed in place until the nation of Israel had defeated its enemies. Joshua 10:13 NLT

What could I do with an extra day or on other occasions when God gives extra time? 

Almost every four years, February gets an extra day. More than two thousand years ago, Roman general Julius Caesar introduced Leap Years into the Roman world, which at that time used the Julian calendar. Every year that was divisible by four was classified a Leap Year. This practice produced too many Leap Years but wasn’t corrected until the introduction of the Gregorian calendar.

Leap Years are necessary to sync the Gregorian calendar with the earth’s revolutions around the sun. The earth requires 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds to make one revolution. Since the Gregorian calendar year only has 365 days, failing to add one day every four years would mean losing six hours annually and a total of 24 days over 100 years.

Joshua needed extra time, too. Daylight was waning, and he hadn’t finished defeating God’s enemies. He decided to pray and ask God for more time. God answered by allowing the sun to stand still.

I’ve often wished for more than an extra day. A few more hours in every day would do nicely.

Joshua’s reason for needing extra time was admirable; mine doesn’t always fall into the same category. I suppose when God gives extra time I need to reflect on why I have it. Is it because I’m lazy? Are there things I should do? Does God have plans I’m not following? Does he want me to rest?

Of course, the opposite may also be true. God might withhold extra time because I’m not using his allotted time judiciously. Jesus tells several parables demonstrating the necessity of using wisely what God gives along with warning about what can happen when I don’t.

Leap Year gives us an extra day for meditation—and perhaps action. A day that won’t surface for another four years. A day to meditate on some crucial questions: “What have I done with Jesus?” and “What am I doing for him?” A day to contemplate his goodness in spite of our badness as well as his undeserved unconditional love and forgiveness even when we don’t meet his expectations.

Leap Year re-aligns the calendar with the earth’s rotation, preventing the loss of time. Taking advantage of the extra time God gives can re-align priorities, decisions, relationships, and life in general.

Let God reveal extra time in your calendar and how he wants you to use it.

Father, enable me to always use the time you give wisely. 

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Stopping for a Recharge - Martin Wiles

Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat. Mark 6:31 NLT

After two hours, she heads for her docking station to recharge.

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 put millions out of work. The government issued stimulus checks to individuals and families to stimulate the economy. Yes, they wanted us to use the money to help pay our bills, but they also hoped we’d spend some for unnecessary things to jump-start the economy.

And my wife had an idea about how we could use some of ours to contribute. She had had her eye on a robotic vacuum cleaner before COVID hit. Not the one that costs $500, but a cheaper version sold by America’s favorite retailer. I had ignored her hints for months, but now, since we had extra money—and since Mother’s Day happened to come along simultaneously—I gave her the okay to order one.

Having both grown up when The Jetsons’ was a popular kids’ show, we decided to name our new addition Rosie—after the household robot the Jetsons owned. My wife loves Rosie. I suppose because my wife is the one who does the sweeping and vacuuming. I, on the other hand, tolerate her. She’s a little noisy, and she always seems to be cleaning in the exact spot where I need to walk.

Not being the most expensive kind of robot. Rosie can’t map out our house, so she plunders around from room to room until her battery drains. When I hear her noise level lower, I know she’ll soon be heading for her recharging dock. I must admit, I’m amazed she knows when she needs a recharge—when things are about to stop working if she doesn’t do something. Like a heat-guided missile, she aims for the recharge station, where she stays until we press the “clean” button again.

What builders have programmed Rosie to know, Jesus also knew: we need time to relax. Crowds regularly thronged Jesus and His disciples. So much so that they didn’t even have time to eat on this one occasion. Jesus invited them to join Him in leaving the crowds—and the work—so they could rest. In His earthly body, even Jesus needed downtime.

God demonstrated the need for rest at the beginning of time by resting for a day after He had created. God, of course, is God and didn’t need physical rest. Instead, He gave an example. Later, when issuing the commands to Moses, God designated one day as the Sabbath and instructed the listeners to rest and worship on that day. After Jesus’ resurrection, early believers changed the day of worship from Saturday to Sunday. But the day is not as important as the ideas behind it. We need downtime, and we need worship time.

God did not create our bodies with the capacity to run continuously without rest, which includes more than getting adequate sleep. Jesus and His disciples may have slept during their rest time—perhaps they even took a power nap—but they more likely just relaxed.

My grandmother once warned me I was burning the candle at both ends and setting myself up for trouble. She was right. Not long afterward, I contracted a bleeding ulcer. A week in the hospital gave me time to rest and reflect.

Without proper rest—including sleep and downtime—our bodies break down, and things go haywire. We can also become legalistic about the one-day worship thing and forget that our worship can occur anywhere, but should occur daily.

God has work for us, and taking care of our bodies properly allows us to do His work and do it for a longer period than we could if we didn’t nurture our bodies. Our world is a busy place. To get the proper rest requires following Jesus’ example. He determined to rest, planned to incorporate it into His schedule, and then did it. He didn’t let the crowds—or their needs—stop Him. He knew the benefits of rest would far outweigh what the crowds perceived as urgent needs. Rest would allow Him and His disciples to do more later, and for a longer period.

God didn’t create our bodies to run continuously. Plan to incorporate rest into your daily schedule.

Father, guide me to those times when I can rest and reflect on my priorities and my relationship with You. 

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A Family Tradition - Martin Wiles

Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? But your ancestors did, and so do you! Acts 7:51 NLT

My family had many traditions. One was at Christmas. Mom either cooked a meal or prepared finger foods. When we all finished eating, we circled chairs among the furniture in the living room, and everyone sat. The younger members of the family busied themselves, passing out gifts. After the last gift was distributed, we selected someone to begin. They retrieved a gift, told whom it was from, opened it, and showed everyone what it was. Then, this same action was repeated in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction.

Our family has grown and changed. Some members are no longer with us because of divorce or death. Though the gathering is smaller, we continue the tradition, although in a modified form. For me, this tradition builds up our family. Since it is a slow process, it gives us time to tell stories and reflect on memories—especially when Mom takes ten minutes to open a present.

But not all traditions are healthy. Steven was a servant leader in the early church. When arrested for preaching about a resurrected Jesus, whom he claimed was God’s Messiah, he addressed the high council and gave them a history lesson. What brought down their wrath and resulted in his death was his accusation that they were repeating the traditional unbelief of their ancestors. Both had and were resisting God’s Spirit, who was pressing them to believe.

We had other traditions in my immediate home, along with the above Christmas tradition. Dad thought reading the Bible was important. We had family devotions, and I saw him and Mom read their Bibles daily as well, even down to the boring genealogical tables. My parents also thought praying was a good tradition. We boys were taught to pray before meals and before we went to bed. Talking to God was imperative. And even if Dad had not been a pastor, he and Mom would have made us attend church regularly and often. Any time the doors were open, we had to be there.

We should pass traditions that draw us closer to God down to our families but discard the ones that hinder the process.

Consider what family traditions you are establishing and passing along.

Father, guide me to godly traditions I can pass down through the generations. 

Tweetable: What family traditions are you establishing? 

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First Things First - Martin Wiles

On November 21, 2015, I experienced another first.

Firsts are important. On this day, two cousins brought a mahogany china cabinet to our home. The reason it was a first is not because it's the first one I've ever owned but because it was the first piece of furniture my mom ever bought with her money. She purchased it to hold China, which she planned to purchase as a part of setting up housekeeping with my dad.

But Uncle Sam called Dad. He and Mom would be going to Oklahoma. So, Mom gave the China cabinet to her sister for safekeeping because she had no room for it in Oklahoma. Somehow, my aunt never returned the cabinet to Mom.

Many years later, my aunt died, and her children, knowing the piece belonged to Mom, called to see if she wanted it. Having now remarried—and now possessing several more China cabinets—Mom told them she wanted it but to give it to me. My wife and I had less room than Mom, but not wanting to forego the chance to own a "first," we squeezed it in.

Knowing the human heart's tendency toward selfishness, Jesus spoke several times about firsts. When asked what the greatest commandment was, He said to put God first.

"Jesus replied: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind'" (Matthew 22:37 NIV).

On this occasion, Jesus corrected his disciples, who argued about which one of them was the greatest. Jesus said it was the one who was willing to serve.

My most important first was August 31, 1960—the day I sucked my first breath of outside air and entered this world. The second came nine years later—the day I recognized I was a sinner and needed Jesus' forgiveness.

Putting first things first entails recognizing our sinful bent, asking Jesus to forgive our sins, and committing our lives to him. With this first, other firsts will hold more value.

This first first should lead to a second first: humility. Jesus' disciples wanted to rule, but Jesus reminded them firstness came from serving, not lording. Pride gets us nowhere with God—or others. On the other hand, God praises humility—and others usually do, too.

Serving becomes much easier when we love God above all other people and things--adopt a servant mindset, although it might not appear we're first at all. Jesus says he will reward us if we offer a mere cup of cold water to someone in his name.  

Amid the many things that clamor for your attention, ask God to help you put first things first.

Father, as I set priorities in life, guide me to put first things first: You, my family, my church, and others.

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Perspectives on Possessions - Martin Wiles

Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven. Matthew 6:19-20 NLT

Extravagant beyond imagination was all that ran through my mind.

George Vanderbilt created Biltmore in 1895 for family and friends as an escape from everyday life. His descendants still own this magnificent display of wealth that rests beautifully on eight thousand acres of land. After six years of construction, George officially opened the estate on Christmas Eve for himself, his wife Edith, and their daughter Cornelia.

As my wife and I and hundreds of others toured selected rooms of this immaculate estate, we witnessed opulence at its best. A banquet hall that once sat 38 people around a large oak table, a Billiard Room, a library where nearly half of Mr. Vanderbilt's 23,000-volume collection lines the walls in floor-to-ceiling bookcases, guest bedrooms with private bathrooms, a bowling alley, and a 70,000-gallon indoor swimming pool.

I couldn't help but wonder what George Vanderbilt thought about Jesus' warning against storing up wealth on earth. But then again, was Jesus really saying it was a sin to do so? Perhaps his warning was only against the dangers of what wealth can do to our focus.

Earthly possessions may pretend to grant happiness—as they did for the Vanderbilt's, their family, and their many guests—but if our happiness disappears when the possessions do, then happiness was never genuinely experienced in the first place.

We can use possessions foolishly or for God's purposes. Many people still enjoy the elegance of the Vanderbilt Estate. King Solomon was the wealthiest man ever to live, but he divided his loyalties and possessions between the one true God and the false gods of his many wives. God gives us our possessions, and we should use them to advance his Kingdom.

Nor can we take our possessions with us when we die. Mr. Vanderbilt left all his behind at 51. He undoubtedly ensured through a will that his family inherited what he had labored for. Wills are essential, but we'll still leave what we've amassed behind. Jesus says we should store our goods in heaven. We do this by serving him and others.

Possessions are temporary, but they have eternal implications. We can use them selfishly and be poor eternally or use them to benefit others and God's work and be rich eternally. The choice is ours.

Father, guide me to understand that all I have comes from you and should be used for your honor and glory. 

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God’s Plunder Room - Martin Wiles

My ancestor Jacob was a wandering Aramean who went to live in Egypt. Deuteronomy 26:5 NLT

We called it the plunder room because that’s what we did there.

My maternal grandmother’s home had a large room built on the back—a room once a bedroom for a father who stayed with them. Sometime after that relative died, my grandfather tore away a part of the large farmhouse’s back porch, but he left what we called the plunder room.

My cousin and I often spent time there, sorting through the many discarded items to see if we could use anything as we tried to entertain ourselves on the farm. Technology hadn’t inundated our lives. Restlessness drove us there when we had nothing else particular to do.

Many of the Middle Eastern biblical characters were nomadic. Various occurrences caused them to change locations. For Jacob, it was learning his youngest son, Joseph, wasn’t dead after all. A desire to see him and escape the famine that ravaged his land made him leave his homeland and travel to Egypt, where his descendants eventually spent four hundred years in slavery.

Restlessness is a taxing feeling. As a teen and even a young adult, I felt it hanging over my head more than once. The desire to get away … to escape. I couldn’t pinpoint any reason; I just wanted to leave. Hop on an empty railroad box car and see where it took me. Walk a power line and see where it led.

Looking back, I suppose my running from God caused my restlessness. I knew what he wanted from me, but my lifestyle warred against it like water against oil. Only when I stopped plundering in the wrong places and with the wrong people did I finally settle down.

I still periodically fight the restless spirit—the desire to return to what once was. Paul calls this battling the flesh, the part of us that wants to rebel against God and all we know to be right.

God wants us to plunder in his plunder room. Rather than discarded valueless items, God’s plunder room holds his purpose and plan. It houses the strength to do his work. He doesn’t want us to live aimlessly and purposelessly but to discover and follow his plan diligently.

Rather than plundering aimlessly, plunder around in God’s plunder room. There, you will find his plan and purpose for you.

Father, guide me to pursue those things of spiritual value that will enable me to accomplish your will. 

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Loving the Right Things - Martin Wiles

Stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love the world, you show that you do not have the love the Father in you. 1 John 2:15 NLT

Growing up, I never doubted what my parents loved.

First and foremost, Dad was a pastor, so he loved doing what made him good at it. He spent hours in his office at home and church studying the Bible, reading commentaries, praying, and listening to God.

Dad also enjoyed hobbies, including squirrel hunting. As soon as I was old enough, he bought me a small shotgun, and we began hunting. Several Saturdays during the month, we found ourselves in the woods waiting for the tree runners to appear.

Later in life, Dad took up woodworking. By his death, he had become very proficient at it. He built items for his children and grandchildren. He even left Mom with an oak bedroom set that still adorns her room.

Mom also demonstrated what she loved: music. In every church my father pastored, she led the music. If she didn’t when he first went to the church, she did soon after that. It wasn’t uncommon to find her at the piano on Saturday nights practicing what she or the choir would sing on Sundays.

John cautioned first-century Christians to make what they loved evident. He instructed them not to love the evil world or its things but rather God and the things he loved.

My actions shout my priorities. They shouldn’t reflect a love for the evil world but only the world minus all its evil manifestations. I can love nature but shouldn’t worship it—only its Creator. I can love animals but not at the expense of other humans—or even to the degree where I place them on the same scale as another human being.

The evil world only offers physical pleasure but can’t penetrate our spiritual frame or satisfy our deepest needs. Only God can dwell there. God created every person for a connection to the Holy and to the holy things he represents. Only when we love him and what he loves can we be all he created us to be. Things may bring temporal enjoyment, but they’ll never bring eternal satisfaction.

Let God teach you to love the things he loves—the pure, lovely, true, honorable, right, excellent, and worthy of praise things.

Father, create in me a love for those things you love so that I can enjoy living life to the fullest.

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Too Fast, Too Furious - Martin Wiles

Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes. Psalm 37: 7 NLT

Despite his actions, I did what I always do.

Driving to the school where I teach takes about ten minutes. It would take less time, but around seven stoplights litter my path—and most of them usually catch me. One morning as I puttered along, I noticed a snazzy Range Rover behind me. It didn’t take long for the person who drove it to figure out they didn’t want to follow me, and they zoomed around.

I’ve been driving since I was fifteen and have never had a ticket. I’m not a slow driver—at least by the law’s standards—but I am by those who don’t enjoy going the speed limit, or five miles over. Which is my norm. The only time I’ve ever been stopped was when I had a pickup with oversized tires. They threw my speedometer off by five miles an hour. Fortunately, the nice highway patrolman understood and only gave me a warning. From then on, I adjusted my speed accordingly.

But back to the Range Rover. As it rocketed around me, I watched it speed off to the next stop light. As it waited for the light to turn green, I pulled up beside it and stopped. The tortoise and hare story came to mind. I wondered if the person in the Rover looked over and saw that the SUV they had shot around and left in the dust was sitting at the same light they were. Probably not. They were in a hurry, no doubt.

When the light turned green, they peeled off again. I proceeded in my normal manner. They came to the next light, which turned red just before they arrived. Once again, I pulled up beside them. I smiled to myself and again wondered whether they looked over to see who sat next to them. After the light changed, we repeated the same thing one more time. As I turned to go to my school, they sped off down the highway. They were too fast and too furious. I did what I do anytime I drive: obey the speed limit.

This isn’t the first time I’ve experienced such a scenario. I’ve learned fast cars don’t necessarily get you anywhere sooner if lights or stop signs abound. All the hurry-up does is burn more gas and take rubber off the tires. Getting in a hurry doesn’t mean we’ll accomplish more or even get somewhere sooner. In fact, if a policeman stops us for speeding, we might get there later than the person who obeys the speed limit.

But enough about driving. The psalmist didn’t have a car, and I doubt he could speed if he rode a camel or a donkey. Each of those animals seems to have a somewhat casual attitude toward moving along. The psalmist’s advice: be still and wait on God. Don’t worry about those who seem to plow ahead at breakneck speed or do evil things to get what we might desire.

Life has taught me that someone will always try to get ahead of me. Greed and selfishness drive them. People who think life is all about them and no one else are the ones the psalmist classifies as wicked. Maybe not to the degree they could be, but wicked nonetheless. But he gives good advice: don’t worry or fret about them. God has our back, not theirs.

Yet, the more important aspect is being still. Busyness often tempts us to get ahead—to speed—at other’s expense. To focus only on us, neglecting or not thinking about the needs of others. It also prevents us from hearing God’s Spirit—the person of the godhead who keeps us going at the right speed and in the right direction. The one who gives wisdom and direction. The one who keeps us from speeding from one light to the next and having to stop at each one in the process.

As bad as COVID-19 was, it forced many people to slow down. In certain fields, some had to speed up to help temper the spread, treat the sick, and produce needed supplies. But others slowed down and spent more time with friends and family—important things.

When we slow down . . . build silent times into our life’s schedule . . . we give ourselves an opportunity to hear God. And this is essential if we’re to proceed through life’s lights at the speed God wants us to travel. He has a path marked out—a path that includes a certain timing. If we peel out on our own and at our own speed, we’ll catch lights he doesn’t want us to, or we’ll arrive too late or too early. God’s plan not only includes the goal but also the steps involved to get there at the right time. The static of busyness keeps us from comprehending the plan.

Slowing down also builds our health so we can enjoy the plan—and the journey to the goal. Busyness often brings with it things that lead to poor health—such as not eating right, getting enough rest, or getting enough of the right exercise. No wonder the fast-food industry is spiking. Grabbing a takeout pizza proves much easier and faster than cooking a healthy meal at home. Although we often have no control over the schedules our employers encumber us with, we can possibly make the hard choice of choosing the employer during normal healthy economic times. Sometimes, lower pay is not a bad thing.

As we build downtime into our schedules, we have the opportunity to consider our priorities and revamp them if necessary. After all, we only have one life and a limited time to love and serve God, our families, and others.

If life has become too fast and too furious for you, stop and ask God for wisdom to revamp some things.

Father, when the hurry of life overwhelms me, show me how to slow down. 

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When the Unimportant Becomes Too Important - Martin Wiles

But all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced. Mark 4:19 NLT

Sometimes, the unimportant becomes too important.

Marcin Muchalski was taking a morning stroll along the Williamsburg Bridge when a mugger surprised him, took out a gun, and requested his cell phone. Thinking the robber would not shoot him in the middle of the Williamsburg Bridge at seven in the morning, Muchalski dared the robber to pry the gun off his cold, dead hands. The robber obliged by shooting Muchalski in the leg. Instead of handing over the phone, Muchalski limped away as fast as he could with phone in hand. The robber, who had more sense than Muchalski, decided not to chase the man. The phone wasn’t worth a murder charge.

Or take Marie Murphy, a New Jersey teacher who got a call saying her house was on fire. She rushed home, not fearing anyone was in danger. She knew her husband--and her mother, who had been staying with them--was not in the blazing house. So what drove Murphy to run into a blazing house and risk her life? Baseball tickets. More specifically, her season tickets to see the Phillies.

She ignored all her other possessions—even the certificate of fire insurance—to save her tickets. Luckily, she made it out before everything else—the house included—went up in flames. Although she and her husband had to live in a motel for a while after the fire, they were able to settle with the insurance company. Murphy was also surprised at school one day when a Phillies fanatic tossed a bunch of Phillies merchandise to her, including a framed World Series ticket. Perhaps around this time, she thought about how foolish her actions had been, especially when she learned the Phillies would have reprinted her tickets because they burned in a fire.

And then there was Guita Sazan Silverstein. She left her two-year-old son in her car on a hot summer day while shopping. When she returned to her car, she discovered she had locked herself out. With temperatures in the upper 80’s, her child was at risk of heat stroke. She called for help. When the firefighters arrived, they told her they would need to break one of her car windows. Silverstein told them no. After all, the car was an Audi.

Silverstein came up with a compromise. She would drive more than a mile to her home and retrieve her spare keys—even though her son had already been in the car for twenty minutes. After borrowing a car to drive home, firefighters broke the window anyway and rescued the child—who by this time was unresponsive but luckily revivable. When the mother returned, authorities arrested her for reckless endangerment and risk of injury to a minor (source).

I’ve never made the same mistakes as Marcin, Marie, or Guita, but I have made more than my share of other poor choices. And I have let the not-so-important become important on more occasions than I care to mention.

Jesus tells the story of a farmer scattering seeds. The seed fell on various types of soil, some infested with thorns. As the seed sprouted and grew, the thorns choked out the plants. According to Jesus, this represents those who let the worries of life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desire for things distract them. Those who hold too tightly to a cell phone. Those who rush into a burning home for sporting tickets. Or those who let a shopping excursion put a child in danger.

A regular diet of God’s Word reminds us what the thorns of unimportance are. Prayer for strength we don’t have helps us distinguish between the unimportant and the important.

Father, give me wisdom to know the difference between the unimportant and the important.

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This Is the Day - Kayla Leinbach

This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24 KJV

The first few notes of my alarm clock jarred me awake.

7:08 a.m. Another day to get through. I was exhausted and didn’t want to go anywhere. Life was too busy. Getting up and going to work or classes only weighed me down a little more each day.

My fingers hovered over the snooze button—my spirit unwilling and my flesh content with weakness.

“I hate Wednesdays,” I growled, flinging back the sheets and rolling off the bed.

Most people can relate. We have things to do and should do them for God’s glory. But a weight keeps us flattened on the ground—exhaustion, anxiety, depression, loneliness, or inexplicable things that annoy or discourage us.

On days like this, I blame the day itself—as if it’s the earth’s fault for rotating around the sun. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday—it doesn’t matter what our schedule is or what day it is. There’s always something about every day that we hate. Monday, because the weekend is over. Wednesday, because there’s still half the week left. Thursday, because it’s not Friday. I could continue.

As I whirl through the vicious cycle of racing time and crushing work, it’s easy to let myself fall into the trap of blaming the day for my problems. But God made each day and said they were good. Each day is a gift and another opportunity to serve and glorify Him. After all, He didn’t have to give us another day.

The Bible does not say, “We will rejoice if good things happen today.” We will rejoice because today is God’s perfect creation. When we take time to serve God and make the most of each day, He will bless us.

What are some ways you can thank God for the gift of today?

Tweetable: Are you thanking God for the gift of today? 

Kayla Leinbach is a college senior majoring in professional writing. She loves her dog, music, coffee, snow, and a cozy book on a rainy day. Her goal with writing is to bring glory to God and give a little enjoyment to anyone who reads it.

 

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