The Plumbline

God’s loyal love couldn’t have run out, his merciful love couldn’t have dried up. They’re created new every morning. How great your faithfulness! I’m sticking with God (I say it over and over). He’s all I’ve got left. (Lamentations 3:22-24 MSG) Do you ever feel like you have nothing or no one left? We can all get to the end of our day, a particularly challenging season in our lives, or some moment of panic and drama, feeling like we have no one else with us as it all comes to an end. What we must never forget is that Jesus is still with us - he hasn't abandoned us. In fact, he brings new levels of his mercy and kindness just when we need it most. His love never runs out, even when ours falters a bit more than we'd like. His loyalty toward us isn't lessened just because our loyalty to follow him in full obedience and trust has faltered. His mercy draws us back in - his love embraces us even when we think ourselves unlovable or unworthy of his care. Faithfulness on our part ...

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. (Thomas A. Edison) We must not get tired of doing good. We will receive our harvest of eternal life at the right time. We must not give up. (Galatians 6:9) It is easy to grow weary, much harder to regain momentum when we have been stagnant way too long! We will face trials - challenges beyond our 'natural' reasoning, ability, or strength. What we do when we stand face-to-face with those challenges makes all the difference! Will we turn and run? Will we stand up and fight in our own strength? Or will we turn to Christ for wisdom, renewal, and increased capacity? Sometimes we think the only thing we need when facing a hard challenge is to have more strength. More 'ability' to handle it. More 'intel' about the situation. The truth is that we might just need more capacity! Old wine skins were never meant to hold new wine. Why? As time passed, the new wine wou...

Salty snacks - do you consume them from time to time? I do, but I probably shouldn't. Whenever I consume them I usually end up drinking a lot of water - because they make me very, very thirsty. In the end, they leave me thirsty for a long time, not just while I am taking them in or because I chugged a few glasses of water along with them. Our bodies simply cannot process all the sodium in the salty treats without a whole lot of water. In fact, whenever we find ourselves in the midst of the "excesses" of life, we often crave what we most need to help us deal with the excess. God—you're my God! I can't get enough of you! I've worked up such hunger and thirst for God, traveling across dry and weary deserts. (Psalm 63:1) God made us in such a way that we crave what we most need to deal with what we find ourselves enduring! Sometimes we are "enduring" stuff because of our own doing - like when I eat a huge bowl of Cheez-its or other salty snack. T...