365 Days of Grace

January 17

Genesis 45:1647:27

So Jacob set out for Egypt … During the night, God spoke to him … “Do not be afraid to go.” Genesis 46:1a, 2a, 3b

Joseph’s brothers return to their father Jacob and convince him that Joseph is alive. Jacob’s spirit revives and he prepares to leave immediately. Jacob and his family reach the border of the Promised Land; Jacob halts and worships God. God appears to Jacob in a vision and tells Jacob that he will go with him to Egypt, and that when Jacob dies in Egypt Joseph will be with him.

How gracious of God to appear to Jacob and reassure him that God has a plan. God himself will go with Jacob, increase his descendants into a great nation, and then bring them out again.

This was not the first time God appeared to Jacob, but it will be the last.

We learn in Psalm 139 that God knows all things. He knows our fears. He knows when we are unsure if we have heard him correctly. He knows exactly how to reassure us, to lead us, and to guide us especially when the path leads us out of the familiar and into the foreign.

Does it revive your spirit to know that you are always in God’s presence and that he is guiding you? Will you walk wherever God leads you, abandoning your fear at the border of the familiar, and courageously follow God?

God, please open my eyes to see where you are leading me and tune my ears to hear your voice. Guide me each day so that I move forward  unafraid  toward the wonderful things and places you have prepared for me.

August 27

Lamentations 24

I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The unfailing love of the LORD never ends! Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day.

Lamentations 3:2022a, 23

Jerusalem is totally destroyed. No house stands. There is no food, no walls, no protection, no temple, and no presence of God. The people sit in sorrow and despair. The children starve. The women eat their own offspring. The dead lay in the streets young and old, boys and girls. Jeremiah, Jerusalem’s pastor, grieves the loss of Jerusalem; his only comfort is found in the character of his God.

How gracious of God that he is always good, always faithful, always trustworthy.

How awful it would be to experience heartache if we were not able to trust that God is at work in the devastation. He is always at work (John 5:17). He is always good (Psalm 25:78; 52:9). He is always at work for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28). It’s not always easy to see God’s goodness in the midst of destruction and that is when, like Jeremiah, we must hold unswervingly to his character (Hebrews 10:23).

Have you lost sight of God’s goodness in the devastation that surrounds you? What is the most horrific thing in your life right now? Will you believe that God is big enough, good enough, trustworthy enough, and faithful enough to be working for good in that situation?

O Lord God, in the midst of my devastation, I cry out to you. When the darkness overwhelms me, I choose to look for your light. When life seems hopeless, I put my hope in you.

November 2

Matthew 26:57-27:10; Mark 14:53-15:1; Luke 22:54-71; John 18:25-27

At that moment the Lord turned and looked at Peter …

And Peter left the courtyard, crying bitterly. Luke 22:61a, 62

On the testimony of false witnesses, the high priests convict Jesus of blasphemy. They blindfold Jesus, hit, and spit on him. As Peter warms himself by a fire, a servant girl asks if he is with Jesus. Peter quickly denies being with Jesus. Others ask and Peter swears by God that he does not know the man! They lead Jesus past the courtyard. Jesus makes eye contact with Peter. Peter remembers what the Lord said and he leaves the courtyard crying bitterly.

How gracious of God to allow Peter an intimate moment with Jesus in the middle of the night, in the middle of a crowd, in the middle of sin.

What did Jesus convey to Peter in that glance? Was it a look of forgiveness and compassion, or conviction? Was Peter overwhelmed with the reality of his sin, weakness, and betrayal? In a few hours Peter’s sin will be laid upon Jesus’s shoulders (1 Peter 2:24). Is Jesus reminding Peter that though he has failed, his faith is still intact? What did Jesus see? What did Peter see, hear, and feel?

Is Jesus looking at you: in the middle of the night? in a crowd? in your loneliness? in your sin? in your denial? in your heartache? in your worry? or in your fear? What is he trying to communicate to you? What are you seeing, hearing, and feeling?

Father, I know that your penetrating look upon me is not condemnation but conviction that leads me to repentance (John 3:1718; Romans 8:1). Thank you for the forgiveness and redemption that was purchased for me at the cross.