It was said that King David was a man after God’s heart; yet Gods plan did not include David building God a temple.  David had the desire and means to build God’s temple, but God had other plans.  The same is often true in our lives.  We have plans to do something for God; however, God may have other plans for you.  In order to ensure we are following God’s plan, we need to be connected to Him through prayer and His word.  (John 15:4)

Questions for further thought:
1. When have you had an idea to serve or build God’s kingdom and possibly God had another plan?
2. What were the results?

​Challenge: Talk to God about how you can serve Him or build His kingdom.  If you already have an idea, talk to Him about it.

How often are we going through something and instead of waiting for God’s direction or answer, we take matters into our own hands?  In these verses, we see Sarai taking things into her own hands.  It would only result in more problems for her. This happens to us as well.  Although it is not easy to wait on God or trust God when we are struggling or really want something, we need to remember and rely on stories like this.  In the end, God kept His promise to Abram and Sarai and He will keep His promise to you too. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Questions for further thought:
1. When have you taken things into your own hands versus trusting/waiting on God?
2. What were the results?

​Challenge: Locate a few of God’s promises in your Bible that resonate with you.  Write them on index cards or post-it notes and put them in key places at home and work to help remind you of God’s love and plan for you.  Some examples are Isaiah 41:10, Deuteronomy 31:8, Matthew 11:28-29, and Isaiah 40:31.

For anyone who’s gone through very tough times, even ones that seem “no win” situations, it’s hard to persevere. That’s the theme we’ve been discussing this week. But we can. And we can win. Why? Because He did. Through the worst trial of them all in human history, He conquered. He is with us. And we are His. So, persevere we must!

Questions for further thought:
1. How do you feel about Jesus’ pain and suffering on the cross for us?
2. When you remember His ultimate perseverance for the entire world, how does your perspective on your own situation change?

​Challenge: Lord Jesus. With just ourselves, not everything is possible, but with you, all things are. We know that we’re not defeated - not really. We’re just down, but we need you to come pick us up, dust us off, give us a little more strength, and help us to persevere and claim the victory that we have in you. Thank you, Lord Jesus, and let it be so today! Amen.

One of the amazing things about Jesus (among everything else) is that He really did become fully human at the same time as being sinless God. He, too, understood how human it is to avoid pain. Obviously, He didn’t avoid it, and we are so thankful that He followed through! This should underscore how He does, in fact, understand our all too human ways of just wanting to “give up” when it looks hopeless. 

Questions for further thought:
1. Do you ever wish pain would just “go away” from you, and your family and friends?
2. How do you deal with that feeling, knowing most times, it won’t? 

​Challenge: Lord, we realize that we don’t like pain. We realize, though, that you also endured worse pain than we ever will, and you didn’t even deserve it. Help us in the midst of what “looks” like no-win situations and help us to persist in the midst of them, with your help, strength, and presence. Thank you, Lord Jesus. Amen.

It’s often said that we are our own worst enemies (next to Satan). When we’ve disappointed ourselves or others, or even THINK we have, we’re far harder on ourselves than almost anyone could be. Maybe sometimes we even develop a bit of self-loathing, as Peter did. Those were dark times for him, and we’ve certainly had our own. How do we get through those?

Questions for further thought:
1. Have you ever felt like you’ve hit “rock bottom?”
2. During those times, did you feel like you’d ever emerge out of it?

​Challenge: Lord, we know that we’ve felt like Peter, and we’ve been so disappointed and even disgusted with ourselves that we don’t even know how to look in the mirror. But help us to remember that YOU love us even so. And help us to ask for your forgiveness and love at our weakest moments so that we don’t start hating ourselves. For we are your masterpieces, even amidst our own sinful natures. Thank you, Father. Amen.

As mentioned yesterday, we all feel pretty confident, so long as there are no problems, hiccups, delays, and the world runs “as it should” for us. But the minute it doesn’t, we get disappointed, upset and, often, we say (or do) rash things. We are fearful, so we lash out to cover where we feel weak. Though we know this is us at our weakest, we often struggle to recognize these emotions and actions before they happen, and often deny they’re there, just like Peter. So why can’t we see them clearly beforehand?

Questions for further thought:
1. What happens when someone or something shakes our confidence?
2. How do you think Peter felt when his own loyalty was questioned by Jesus Himself?  

​Challenge: It’s not a question of “if,” but “when” troubles and tribulations come, and those will shake us (sometimes to the very core). Remember to pray to Him who, as pastor Doug often says, “Never changed and never moved.” He knows we’ll need Him in those times and He’s waiting. Let’s not keep Him waiting, even today. Pray to Him for whatever you need (strength, endurance, or just a sense of Him with you) and don’t delay! 

We all know how great we feel when we feel confident of ourselves and our situation. It’s great, isn’t it? We feel like we can “take on the world” and do anything we set our minds to. But, honestly, in our lives: how long has that confidence lasted once we’ve run into real opposition, or challenges? Peter felt very confident. How long would that last?

Questions for further thought:
1. Have you ever felt a twinge of doubt with all of that confidence?
2. How did you deal with the doubt that, maybe, everything (at the moment) might be “too good to be true?”

​Challenge: Lord, it is good to feel confident, particularly in your will and goodness and love for us. But, Lord, help us to deal with doubts that come in, and also help us to not feel overconfident, as that will lead us into trouble. In your name, Amen.

Christians look forward to the day we will be with Christ in heaven where the great street of the city is made of gold. It can be hard to wait until that time, especially as we live in a fallen, sinful world. We might wonder why it’s taking God so long to bring all believers home. But His waiting means that more people have time to be brought into His family. His love is so great that He gives unbelievers time to repent and come to a saving faith in Him.

Questions for further thought:
1. What do you most look forward to about heaven?
2. Who in your life needs to know the Good News of Jesus? 

Challenge: Pray for God to show you practical ways you can demonstrate His love to those who don’t know Him. Maybe it’s having coffee with a co-worker and sharing something God has done in your life. Maybe it’s reading Bible storybooks to young children in your extended family who have never heard of Jesus.

There are many storms in life and if you haven’t gone through one yet, you will. Some of the big storms include relationships that go south, job losses, loved ones dying, and serious health concerns. Storms are challenging to live through. We can wonder what the purpose is and have trouble waiting for God to help us. We know from reading John 12 that Jesus was troubled thinking about His impending death on the cross, but he also knew that God’s name would be glorified because of it.

Questions for further thought:
1. In what ways did you wait (or are you waiting) on God during a storm in your life?
2. How has God proven faithful to carry you through the storms of life?

Challenge: Are there ways you have been able to glorify God due to a hardship you’ve experienced? Think about someone you can help support and show God’s love to who may be going through something hard that you went through in the past.

Waiting can often be difficult, but do we ever consider that God makes us wait to protect us? Think about the times when you’ve wanted to do something or say something, but it didn’t work out. Maybe you became sick or technology didn’t work to send a text or email. These roadblocks that caused us to wait might very well have been God protecting us from the wrong people and wrong situations.

Questions for further thought:
1. When was a time when you didn’t want to wait but God caused you to wait anyway for your own protection? 
2. What have you learned about waiting and God’s protection? 

Challenge: Pray for the awareness to know that sometimes having to wait means that God is protecting you.