BY LARA GOVENDO

"How precious are your thoughts about me, O God! They are innumerable! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up in the morning, you are still with me!"
Psalms 139:17-18

"Be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
Matthew 28:20

As I type this, I’m questioning if I do actually believe that loneliness is a gift. How can something be a gift when it’s so… painful? Some of the most painful moments in my life have been when I was the loneliest. But there’s something magical that happens when we surrender EVERYTHING to God. Even the minuscule details of our lives, like our loneliness.

I’ve felt just about every loneliness there is to feel. Lonely in my illness. Lonely during the darkest seasons of depression. Lonely in romantic relationships, in friendships and family too. Lonely in not living a typical life. Lonely in being single and living alone. Lonely during the deepest heartaches and grieving seasons. Lonely in being misunderstood and left out. Lonely in the quiet battles I face that nobody knows about.

There is loneliness lurking around every corner we turn on the journey of our lives. Even though we’re in community, have wonderful family and friends, there are still lonely moments to be had. No human will ever truly understand the depths of our hearts. And that can feel pretty lonely when we’re going through trials and tribulations.

What matters, though, is what we do with our loneliness. We can choose to turn to distractions, addictions, busyness, the internet (social media, youtube, etc) – filling every waking moment with something. But none of these things take away the ache of loneliness.

BUT God does. Every time.

That still small voice spoke to me this week when I was feeling this and said: your lonely times are when you seek Me.
……………
Ok God. I hear you – I whisper.

And He was right. When I’m lonely in whatever circumstance it is, I get alone with God and take my loneliness to Him. He’s the only One that can fill that space of loneliness with complete wholeness. I can’t find the answer in other people, books, music, tv… because God IS the answer. He’s always with us, and never forsakes us (paraphrased from Deuteronomy 31:6).

And loneliness IS a gift because I’m reminded to seek Him.

When I bring my loneliness to Him, He reveals the root of it. In this sacred space with God, I’m able to heal on a soul level from whatever is bringing this feeling of loneliness. When we fully surrender our loneliness over to God, He truly does give us the peace that surpasses all understanding.

The pandemic has brought its own level of loneliness to everyone’s life in some capacity. I’m not negating the magnitude of this heaviness. But I can encourage you that when God calls us into loneliness, we are given the space and opportunity to become all that God created us to be apart from human influence and everything that’s distracting us.

It’s hard to drown out the noise of the world and get alone with God. But when we do, there is beautiful re-creation within us. After all, we are new creations in Christ, called to die to ourselves (give Him our loneliness) on the daily and follow Him.

​Thank you, God, for the gift of loneliness.

BY JEFF DAUGHERTY

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Proverbs 3:5-6

Do you ever feel like God has you running in circles? Can’t he just tell us what the plans are for our lives? Truth be told, if we knew the path and the trials that lay ahead, we would be likely to choose another path. 
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When God spoke to Moses he did so through the burning bush and a pillar of fire, among many other ways. I wish it were that simple for me. But simple is not God’s style. Hearing God’s voice is something that has to be learned and practiced. Scripture tells us in Proverbs 2:4 “…if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures…”  and Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” You must actively seek Him and listen for his voice. We have to work at it.
God is speaking to you. But are you really listening?

Let me illustrate it this way. Have a friend enter the location of a restaurant at least thirty minutes from your home. Make sure it requires several twists and turns, and it is someplace you do not go to very often. Make sure the voice directions are on but cover up your phone or GPS so you can’t see the map. All you have are the directions that are being spoken to you. Turn on the radio in your car and hit the road. Most of us need to see what the map shows ahead of us. But God doesn’t work that way. No matter how much we may pray otherwise, God is not going to show us a map with all the twists and turns our journey will be taking. He gives you what you need, when you need it. One step at a time. It is a lot harder than it sounds. The noise of people in the car or the radio, or things going on around us all distract us from what we are trying to hear. If God speaks to you, you can’t lean toward the person next to you and ask, “what did He just say?” Chances are you will end up driving in circles as the GPS tells you, “recalculating.”

So, now God’s directions are starting to make more sense, aren’t they? How many times has God had to redirect us? Was He not speaking to us, or were we just not listening? 

Try reading scripture and meditating in a place that is quiet and peaceful. That may be harder for some of you, but you can do it. We have to put ourselves in the best position to hear him. Try sitting outside at a park. Focus on the sounds of the birds and nature around you. Soon the sounds of the cars and the people begin to fade. Same principle. Do not get frustrated if you do not hear anything at first. It takes time and practice. And most of all it happens in God’s time, not ours. I would tell you to be patient, but that is a different devotional entirely.

God Bless.

BY JORDAN MAYER

“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God”
1 Corinthians 10:31

No other verse in the Bible has had more of an impact on my life than this one. I “discovered” this verse in college, and ever since then, it continues to challenge and transform the way I live.

It’s always important when reading Scripture that we begin with the context that it was written in, so let's start there. Paul is clearing up some issues with the Corinthians in regards to food and drink offered to idols. To eat or not to eat, to drink or not to drink - that was the question. Or was it?

Paul goes on to give a number of great lessons on idol worship, Christian liberty, and loving your neighbor; but it's what's in the middle of verse 31 that truly struck me. Paul begins with the eating and drinking, but then makes a striking addition. Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Really Paul, all things? I'm convinced that when Paul says all things, he means all things!

At the time, classes, homework, exams, and projects dominated my life and frankly, was a total drag at times. But this verse made me realize something extraordinary: that my life has less to do with what I'm doing and far more to do with why. If I can do all things to the glory of God, then it doesn't matter so much what the "what" is, but rather the "why" behind it. In the moment, it empowered me to go to every class, write every note, and take every test with a renewed sense of purpose: the glory of God.

Since then, it has reminded me that every moment of our lives is an opportunity to give Him glory. Not simply the time spent at church, reading His Word, or preaching the Gospel, but every minute of every day. The hills and valleys. The extraordinary and the ordinary. The magnificent and the mundane.

When I wrote the title for this post, although a bit tongue in cheek, it was meant to illustrate a point. When I stumble out of bed at 5AM during the week and take a sip of that sweet nectar from the Arabica bean, can I glorify God in that? Absolutely! I can be thankful for the strength He has provided to get up that morning (Isaiah 40:29). I can be grateful for His creation and the caffeine that gives me the energy to start my day (Psalm 104:24-25). And I can rejoice that today is a new day that has been given to me (Psalm 118:24). It may seem silly, but every situation - both big and small - is an opportunity to thank our Creator and give glory to His name.

So whether you are cleaning the house for the umpteenth time, confined to your bed because of chronic illness, reading a good book, or headed out the door to your 9 to 5; use these moments as opportunities to worship.

BY JOYCE PELLETIER

“During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverent submission. He learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.”
Hebrews 5:7-9

I’m a light sleeper. I can take a 5-minute nap and go on for the rest of the day like I had slept for 8 hours. The body is an amazing alarm clock. Its routines are hard to break. The older I get, the more I recognize routine has its good and challenging points.

In my last devotional it spoke about using the word “hard days” in place of “bad days.” This was a new perspective for those sleepless nights. When you think of "bad", ugliness seems to lurk its head. When you think of "hard days", there is a vein of hope. Like a doctor operating on a patient and finding all sorts of unrevealed illness. The thoughts going through his mind is let’s get this patient well again. It becomes a battle of "hard decisions", but in the end good results smooth that rugged pathway to find the way to the beautiful valley of healing.

Many years ago I fell prey to a really difficult night. I was wrestling with something I had done that was not a good choice for my actions. The night became a valley of tears and anxiety until one night it caused me to take notice. I got out of bed and retrieved my Bible. Then I prayed and found a passage that brought me to a place of peace. God’s word impacted my negative thinking.

I put the Bible and journal away, look at the clock and take a deep breath, as I snuggle back under the blanket of peace, sleep overtakes me. The next thing I hear is the alarm clock. I had finally fallen back to sleep and felt much better about things. The passage that often comes to mind is from Hebrews 5:7-9.

“During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverent submission. He learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.”

 You see during those stressful times, when I’m wrestling with anything, God is present with me. He is soothing my soul. He is talking to my heart. Peace and sometimes resolution helps me to let it go.

So many resolutions come from my early morning encounters. So often the next day, my life has spun back to where God wants me to be.

When I think that Jesus had to learn obedience for what He suffered, so much more do I need to learn obedience for my life. This concept has made me more conscious to be quick to find resolution and surrender my sin to God. The human side of Jesus convicted Him to follow His Father’s guidance and will. The early morning encounters bring rise to a beautiful sunrise in the morning. It’s a new day to start fresh.