Editor's note: Enjoy this devotion from Max Lucado's Calm Moments for Anxious Days.
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More Like Him
God is kind to you so you will change your hearts and lives. — Romans 2:4 NCV
Here’s God’s agenda for your day: to make you more like Jesus.
God... decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love Him along the same lines as the life of His Son. — Romans 8:29 MSG
Do you see what God is doing? Shaping you “along the same lines as the life of his Son.”
Jesus felt no guilt; God wants you to feel no guilt.
Jesus had no bad habits; God wants to do away with yours.
Jesus knew the difference between right and wrong; God wants you to know the same.
Jesus served others and gave His life for the lost; you can do likewise.
Jesus dealt with anxiety about death; you can too.
Jesus faced His fears with courage. God wants us to do the same.
But the question has to be asked: How? How, Lord? Isaiah offers the answer. The Lord is the potter, and we are His clay (Isaiah 64:8). But being molded and shaped is not always a comfortable experience. And it takes time. Whether it’s worries and fears — or finding the courage to face them — that have you stretched out of shape, trust the One who is shaping you. Remember this:
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. — Galatians 2:20
God’s Promise to Me
God holds me in His hand. He uses every experience to make me more like Jesus. I can trust Him.
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A Reason to Dance
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth. — Psalm 145:18 NKJV
God’s present is His presence.
God’s greatest gift is Himself. Sunsets steal our breath. Caribbean blue stills our hearts. Newborn babies stir our tears. Lifelong love bejewels our lives. But take all these away — strip away the sunsets, oceans, cooing babies, and tender hearts — and leave us in the Sahara, and we still have reason to dance in the sand. Why? Because God is with us.
- God wants us to know. We are never alone. Ever.
God loves you too much to leave you alone, so He hasn’t. He hasn’t left you alone with your fears, your worries, your disease, or your death. So kick up your heels for joy.
He is a personal God who loves and heals and helps and intervenes. He looks for reverence, obedience, and God-hungry hearts. And when He sees them, He comes! And when He comes, let the band begin. Let the worries fade. And yes, a reverent heart and a tapping foot can belong to the same person.
We look out at the vastness of the ocean and the endlessness of the night sky, and we wonder, How could the God who created all that even notice me? But He does. When we call to Him, He promises to guide us from mourning to dancing. When anxiety has you in its grip and you need a reason for joy, remember this:
You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to You and not be silent. — Psalm 30:11–12 NLT
God’s Promise to Me
God knows me. Personally. His presence is with me. Personally. He is bringing to my life reasons for joy. Personally.
Excerpted with permission from Calm Moments for Anxious Days by Max Lucado, copyright Max Lucado.
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Your Turn
God is holding you in His hands right now. He knows you and loves you personally. He is your Potter and you are His clay. He will always give you His presence! That’s reason to dance! ~ Devotionals Daily