Daily Encouragement

“A time to weep and a time to laugh” (Ecclesiastes 3:4).

The other day as Brooksyne and I were traveling to a company where we serve as chaplains we came across a most unusual site.  We’ve seen a number of Amish “trucks” over the years (a buggy with an open back for hauling stuff), but this was our first sighting of an Amish delivery truck with a piece of furniture on it along with a riding passenger!  The ladies were laughing as they were mounting the truck and during our exchange of conversation.  The sight reminded us of “The Beverly Hillbillies” with Granny riding on the Clampett truck in her rocking chair. 

One of the greatest blessings in life is hearing laughter. We begin to laugh from a very early age. One of the maturing milestones for babies is their first smile and then their verbal laughter.  The other day I was watching a video of babies laughing which brings out joy in all ages.  I considered how therapeutic this pleasurable sound would be in the room of a patient in a nursing home.  Just hearing the pleasant sound of laughter is uplifting to a downcast or lonely heart. 

Last night we had two babies in our home during our Small Group Bible Study. Nine month old David heartily laughed at the various laughter inducing-antics adults use to get babies laughing (making faces, goofy noises, playing peek-a-boo, and so forth).  Three month old Adoree now smiles and sure is laughing here.

“A time to laugh.”  Aren’t you glad the Lord gave us the capacity to laugh? There’s a lot to be serious about and there will sure be times in life when we weep. I’ve wept, but I’ve had far more occasions to laugh. I feel laughter is designed by God as a great stress reducer. The verbal expression for inward joy is first referenced in the Bible surrounding the events of Isaac’s birth.  In fact his name means “laughter.”

One of my favorite pictures of our Lord shows Him laughing as He embraces the little children. I recall many years ago a man who came to the Lord out of a drug background. He was quite intense and rather somber about the things of the Lord. In a conversation I had with him he made it clear that he was offended at the slightest notion that Jesus would have ever laughed.

Now it’s true that there is not a specific verse that states Jesus laughed but what would have been a more appropriate emotion or physical expression as “He took the children in His arms, put His hands on them and blessed them” (Mark 10:16). Would you prefer to picture Him with a scowl, frown or an emotionless expression?

Today I encourage you to be thankful for the God-given gift of laughter, and make use of it often, for the Scriptures remind us that there is “a time to laugh.” And I really hope you will have some good laughs today!

Be encouraged today,

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily Prayer:  Father, the day to day living can be so challenging and easily drain us of the pleasures in life if we’re not careful.  We thank you for our friends and family who pull us away from that mindset and add laughter to our lives.  Would you bring genuine laughter to the hearts of our readers today as they go about their daily duties.  May they hear laughter and may they make laughter, verbally, and in their hearts.  In the name of Jesus we pray, amen.

“We have different gifts, according to the grace given us” (Romans 12:6).

This weekend, as I was driving along, I spotted a nice looking riding lawn tractor at the end of a large lawn priced at $100.00 (as is).  I asked the owner what was wrong with it and he listed several mechanical problems and then dropped the asking price to $50.00. I called Chris, a mechanically proficient friend, to ask his opinion.  Then I providentially ran into Steve Parker, a friend I hadn’t seen for years, and asked his opinion.  They both agreed that it seemed like a good deal. Then I took Brooksyne to see the tractor and we agreed to make the purchase.

Last night three friends, Fred, Al, and Jay, came to the house and looked it over.  Fred is a mechanic who works in a company that sells and repairs large farm machinery.  The most obvious problem was that the tractor wouldn’t start. When I turned the key and tried to start it, it only made a whirring sound.

Fred immediately diagnosed the problem as some doo-hickey in the starter that was probably stuck (although he used the right name.) Then he asked me if I had a can of WD-40. He knew right where to spray it and after tapping the part with a hammer a few times the tractor started right up. Jay jumped on and mowed several rows of my lawn.  So far it looks like I got a very good deal!

It’s great to have friends like this and I sure appreciate people who are mechanically inclined. It’s a natural gift or acquired skill that is extremely important for our day to day needs.  After puttering around with the tractor for awhile I invited the men into my office where we visited. Our conversation turned to the Daily Encouragement site and I showed them what Brooksyne and I do each day using a giftedness quite different than their gifts.

I believe in many cases, particularly as we get older, we need to focus on the gifts God has given us and allow other members of the Christian body to fill in where we are ungifted.  I still try new things occasionally but through the years God has made clear to me what my giftings are so my greatest energy is devoted to developing myself in areas where I have an apparent giftedness.

In the reader survey last week I asked you, our readers, to list some of the ways you are serving Christ. Brooksyne and I enjoyed reading the variety of responses. We were especially blessed as we read about those being used in unconventional ways that went beyond the stereotypical giftings. One reader noted that he played the tuba in his church orchestra!  It’s an example of a very special gifting since few of us would play this unusual but very useful instrument.  

The Scripture says, “We have different gifts.”  What a blessing in the body of Christ to see the variety of gifts God has given us by His grace. Humanly we tend to esteem some gifts as more desirable and worthy than others, but this is a serious error. Gifts are distributed “according to the grace given us.”  If I complain because I can’t sing or because I’m not mechanically inclined I am really casting aspersions on God’s sovereign distribution of gifts.

I encourage readers today to discover the gifts God has given you, further develop them, and frequently exercise them. As Christ’s body let us find a place of ministry where we can use our gifts to impact others for His glory.  As we fervently pray for God’s leading and have a sincere desire to honor Him, He will lead us into effective service for Him.  That’s my desire and I trust that it is yours as well!

Be encouraged today,

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily prayer: Father, You have called us, Your servants, to exercise our gifts of prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, contributing to the needs of others, leading, and being vessels of Your mercy. Help us not to be fearful or timid in exercising our spiritual gift that flows from Your power within us, since it is not for our own glory but rather for the building up of the body of Christ.  We are inadequate within ourselves, but fully sufficient according to the grace given us through Your Holy Spirit.  We seek affirmation from You, the ministry opportunities You provide us, and other mature believers, to confirm our spiritual giftings.  In the name of Jesus we pray, amen.

See Romans 12:1-8

Fred is also one of our church cooks who had a creative way of dealing with his tearing eyes as he cut up hot peppers for a meal we had at our church last fall! Fred is also a children’s worker and sings bass in the choir.

Brooksyne’s Note:  The Oklahoma country girl comes out in me when I’m around farm animals. Our neighbors have three very colorful baby bunnies that I enjoy holding.  It takes me back to my childhood when my dad brushhogged during the summer months following his day job.  He would often bring home a family of bunnies that were nesting in the weeds that he mowed.  They got an unexpected haircut from the brushhog blade so I, along with my brother and sister, would try to nurse them back to good health.

Daily Encouragement Net Reader Survey I want to thank all of you who took a few minutes in taking our online survey. I am compiling the results but this is not my specialty at all and I can’t seem to get the results to chart in Excel!  Here’s a touching text response in regard to the question of how one of your fellow readers is serving the Lord: “Because I am in a wheelchair mostly and cannot get out I make my own greeting cards and send Get Well, Sympathy, Birthday, Anniversary Cards and Thinking of you Cards to church family, family or anyone I feel like needs to be encouraged. I use the phone to make contact also. I also send a card to first time visitors to back up the letter our church sends out. Mine is a hand written note.”  Lord, bless this reader richly in her endeavor to serve you!

If you haven’t taken the survey and would like to do so click here.

“At this, the administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent” (Daniel 6:4).

Several weeks ago I was talking to Don, a friend of mine who runs a small plumbing business.  Like many businesses his has had some struggles lately and he is seeking new business opportunities.  He told me a story of going to a very wealthy home that had an expensive water heating system that the owner had noticed was rusting around the top. The owner called Don and was prepared to replace the system, which would have been a three thousand dollar job.

But Don noted that the problem was a valve above the system that had been leaking and all that he needed to do was replace the valve to stop the leak and otherwise the water heating system was fine.  He replaced the valve and the owner paid a fraction of the cost of a new system.  As we were talking Don shared how “easy” it would have been to persuade the owner they needed a new system and in the process make a lot more money on the job. In fact he felt many of his competitors would have done just that.

I want to write a word of encouragement today to those seeking to maintain integrity in their personal life and in their workplace. The daily verse speaks of the integrity of Daniel in his service in the secular world. Read the rest of the chapter and you will see that this very demonstration of character landed him in the lion’s den. Similarly our commitment to character may be the actual cause of a trial or, as in the case of Don, making far less money on a job than we would have otherwise. It may be easier and more profitable in the short run to just go along with the downward flow.  

Many years earlier Daniel had developed this admirable character in his resolve to be faithful to God’s commands (Daniel 1:8). In the long run and particularly having an eternal, God-centered perspective in view, we will be blessed as we maintain our character and integrity. We may see the fruit of our blessing on this side, or we may not.  But we will certainly see them on the inside and on the other side.

Let us resolve, in regard to the business of life, that we will act with integrity. Accept this promise today: “The faithless will be fully repaid for their ways, and the good man rewarded for his” (Proverbs 14:14).

Be encouraged today,

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily Prayer: Father, I consider the extremely difficult choice Job made not to sin by charging You with wrongdoing.  I consider Joseph who withstood tremendous temptation by resisting the seduction of Potiphar’s wife.  And I consider Daniel who refused to stop the custom of praying to his Father in heaven though he knew it would land him in the lions’ den.  These three, among scores of other godly brothers and sisters throughout the centuries, chose to do the right thing knowing that doing so would cause them great suffering, terrible injustice, or martyrdom.  The ultimate example is Jesus, Your Son, who died in our stead though He was wholly innocent of sin.  Help me not to look for that which is easy, quick, or that which will avoid consequence.  I choose to deal with the consequence of obedience to You; whether or not it works out for my good in the short term.  May my greatest concern be for that which works for my good internally and eternally.  In the name of Jesus I pray.  Amen.

Yesterday afternoon, and well into the night, they harvested the hay across the road from us.  Then for several more hours we heard the loud hum of some type of machine that I assume was putting it into the silos even though they are over a mile away. This brought a recollection of my youth when I would work for local farmers in southern Missouri during hay time. At that time the baler would make small square bales and then we would pitch (buck) them up on a trailer or wagon and then load them into the barn. Several times I did this into the early morning and came home to my new bride tired to the bone.  I don’t suppose I could do that anymore!

As we were on our walk last night Jason, our neighbor’s son, met us on the trail riding on an old Ferguson tractor. We are blessed by the work ethic instilled in these young people.

“Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the LORD, until He comes and showers righteousness on you” (Hosea 10:12).

All across our area and throughout the northern hemisphere farmers are working the soil and preparing for seed-time. Yesterday my neighbor, Leon, was on a big John Deere tractor preparing his fields for planting. The equipment is sure different than they used in the Bible times or for that matter most of human history.  The tools and technology may change but the basic fundamentals of planting remain the same.

The daily verse from Hosea lists three verbs related to crop farming; sowing, reaping and breaking up.  It’s interesting to me that he doesn’t list them in the order we would expect, that is break up, sow and reap. As I considered and studied this passage I believe there is a reason.

“Sow for yourselves righteousness.”  In this case the interest is in personal or individual sowing which indicates a responsibility God has given to us regarding our own spiritual development and growth.  Jesus reinforces this in His Sermon on the Mount when He states: “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). The latter part of our daily reminds us that “it is time to seek the LORD, until He comes and showers righteousness on you.”  It’s always time to seek the Lord for “He rewards those who earnestly seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

“Reap the fruit of unfailing love.”  When farmers sow, regardless of how rewarding the sowing may be, they have a purpose and a goal in mind.  They want to reap a bountiful harvest!  I talked to my farming friend, Ken, this morning. He sowed corn yesterday and expressed that he enjoyed this aspect of planting mostly because, as he was sowing, he did so in confidence that he would reap an abundant harvest in September or October.  As a result of sowing righteousness our spiritual harvest will be “the fruit of unfailing love.”

“Break up your unplowed ground.”  Our lives get kind of like hard soil.  We need more than surface work; we need the Holy Spirit to do some heavy-duty renewing.  Hosea uses the metaphor of “unplowed ground.”  Farmers know that a well-prepared field is essential to a good crop.  Jesus taught in the Parable of the Sower about the seeds that fell on the hardened path.  These seeds never had a chance to take root because the birds came and devoured them. 

Finally today I want to consider a reason Hosea may have placed these three elements of planting in the order he chose. In a sense we need to work the soil in an ongoing way so that we keep our hearts soft and receptive to God’s truth. It’s a cycle that continues all through life since there are many ungodly forces at work in the changing seasons of our lives that contribute to spiritual hardness.

Today let’s allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives as we break up our unplowed ground, as we sow seeds of righteousness and as we enjoy the harvest of Your unfailing love!

Be encouraged today,

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily prayer: Lord, I confess to You that my heart can easily become like unplowed ground. Destructive attitudes that I justify rather than repent of remain in my heart and cause me to be hardened toward You and others that I love.   I invite the work of Your Holy Spirit to cleanse, renew and refresh me as I yield my heart to the searchlight of Your Word.  As I seek You, Lord, You will come and shower Your righteousness and blessing upon my life as the fruit of Your unfailing love flows out to those around me.  Amen.

“Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn” (John 21:11).

It seems anyone who likes to fish enjoys telling about their fishing adventures. Last week Brooksyne and I were enjoying lunch with our friend, Rick Steudler, and he shared about his recent fishing expedition.  He pulled out the above photo and told us about the size of his amazing catch (6#10oz, 24.5″.)  He was conveniently carrying the fish photo in his front shirt pocket.  He excitedly recounted his trout fishing experience in northern Pennsylvania the first day of fishing season.

In fishing stories we’re very specific about how big they were, how many fish we caught, and details about the catch.  And, by all means, we must get a photo of ourselves holding the largest fish! If we have email we can then send it to our friends like my friend, Bill Mosebarger, in northern PA does. We men especially like to tell our stories and share photos from our prizewinning catch of fish.  Wives pull out photos of their children and grandchildren while men pull out photos of their fish, turkey or deer.

The fish story recorded in today’s text took place sometime during the forty day period after Christ was resurrected and before His ascension back to heaven.  It is one of twelve specific post-resurrection appearances by the risen Lord recorded in the Scriptures.  Seven of the disciples led by the experienced fisherman, Peter, had gone fishing overnight and caught nothing. I know many will state, “I just enjoy going fishing whether I catch anything or not” but I believe most fishermen really want to catch fish, the bigger the better!

The next morning Jesus saw them from the shore and shouted out some good fishing advice.  They wisely followed his instructions which resulted in so many fish they were unable to haul the net in. They went on to join Jesus for the first recorded men’s breakfast.  They enjoyed a good meal together as Jesus shared some powerful teaching with them.

But I always enjoy a detail in this story that’s part of any real fish story. Peter had jumped into the water and trudged in to meet the Lord. Then he went back to the boat to assist the other disciples in getting the catch in. John, who wrote this account, was one of the disciples on the boat and shares this authenticating detail: “It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn.”

We have a description of the catch (full of large fish), specific number (153) and an interesting detail (even with so many the net was not torn).  I am glad, in the providence of God, that this story is in the Bible. It’s a great picture of the way God meets all of our needs.

Physically, the disciples were nurtured by the fish and bread Jesus prepared over the fire of burning coals.  Socially, they enjoyed the fellowship of one another as they talked about their miraculous catch over a warm breakfast. Financially, Jesus filled the net so full of large fish that the disciples could not even haul it in; it had to be towed by boat.  (Their wives would likely be treated to a “meal out” that evening.)  Spiritually, the disciples learned that obedience to the Lord’s instruction brought about great reward. It also laid groundwork for the important truths Jesus taught following their breakfast.

Not everyone reading our message today goes to a stream, river, lake or the ocean to catch fish.  But we are all called to be fishers of men.  Let’s cast out our faith in the sea of life and pray for a good catch of men and women, boys and girls who will decidedly follow the Lord Jesus Christ.  Now that’s a great story to share with others around the dinner table!

Be encouraged today,

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily Prayer:  Jesus, we’re reminded of Your watchful eye as we go about our daily routine.  As the fishermen needed a catch of fish You met their need, over and above what they could have anticipated.  Help us to listen to Your wise instruction, walk faithfully in Your righteous paths, and trust You to meet everyone of our needs;  physically, spiritually, socially, and financially.  We thank You in advance for interceding to the Father on our behalf and supplying all our needs.  Amen.

Yesterday in a field along our walk we saw these large machines cutting the hay and raking it into windrows in one step. Here’s a closeup photo of the machine from the John Deere site. Two were working the field at the same time. They were extremely fast and manuevered the tractors like a zero-turn lawn mower. I greeted the drivers after they were done and asked them some questions and commented “It sure looks like your were having a good time!”

“O LORD, be gracious to us; we long for you.  Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress” (Isaiah 33:2).

Today let us meditate on the richness of this Scripture verse, which is actually a prayer, and let us find renewed strength in our walk with Christ.  I particularly ponder the exclamation phrase which begins the prayer, “O Lord”, which is found about 385 times in the Scriptures.  Today this phrase or its cousin, “O my God”, is often used thoughtlessly or even as a swear word. 

However tracking its use all throughout Scriptures I find it has a sense of deep and earnest petition or praise.  It is never used in trite situations such as we hear it often spoken today.  It is first used in Scripture as an earnest prayer by Abraham’s servant when seeking a wife for Isaac.  “O LORD, God of my master Abraham, give me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham” (Genesis 24:12).

It is last used in the book of Revelation in a chorus sung at the throne of God. “Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages. Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed” (Revelation 15:3,4).

“Be gracious to us.”  The petition in this prayer is so simple and we have abundant promises of its fulfillment all through the Bible. Our Lord is always gracious toward us even though the critical problem at hand may overshadow our view of God’s gracious ways toward His children.  It’s always His nature to be loving and gracious.

“We long for you.” That’s such a key and yet I surely admit I don’t always long for the Lord as I should. There are so many distractions!  We need to be in a state of longing for God.  As Brooksyne and I prayed during our walk this morning even the surrounding beauty of God’s creation called for my attention and soon my mind was wandering off in another direction. 

Jim Gambini, my former pastor, writes: “The great danger the Christian faces is two-fold: because life on the planet is so ‘uncertain’ one temptation is to trust God to make us more secure through the accumulation of things or power/authority. The other temptation, if we have already accumulated plenty of this world’s goods, is to rest in what we have.”

“Be our strength every morning.” That is our ongoing need. Yesterday’s strength is inadequate for the challenges of this day. 

“Our salvation in time of distress.”  God is always our very present help in the time of any trouble or distress. Today, be encouraged by these truths as you join me in crying out “O Lord.”

Be encouraged today,

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily Prayer:  To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul; in You I trust, O my God.  Show me Your ways, O Lord, teach me Your paths; guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long.  O Lord my God, I called to You for help and You healed me.  Though weeping may endure for a night, I’m grateful that rejoicing will come with a new day.  O Lord my God, I will give You thanks forever.  Amen.  
(Prayer adapted from selected verses in Psalm 25 & Psalm 30)

 
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us”  (Hebrews 12:1).

Start of Boston Marathon in Hopkinton Massachusetts

Today is one day I would really rather be somewhere else. If I had my rathers I would sure be in the Boston area for the 112th running of the Boston Marathon. Twenty thousand runners will begin the race in Hopkinton, Massachusetts on this beautiful Monday morning. And approximately 500,000 spectators will line the 26.2 mile course all along the route and the finish line will be packed in downtown Boston.  I know that personally since Brooksyne, Ester and I have been there!  Although we didn’t know a single runner we could still honor them as they completed the race and really get the sense that each one was a winner, even those stumbling in hours later. 

Each of us is running in a race as well; life’s marathon. I am so thankful that there’s not just one winner in the race we are running.  Everyone who finishes is a winner.  As we run life’s race we are surrounded by scores of fellow runners who witness our endurance and persistence.  These are the ones who’ve gone before us and completed the race.

Heartbreak Hill in the the Boston Marathon

They are not like the vast majority who will view the Marathon today though they never ran in one.  Instead our witnesses could say, “Been there, done that!”  Joshua pronounces, “My family and I chose to serve the Lord!”  Daniel speaks up, “As a young man I purposed in my heart to live God’s way!”  Paul joyfully declares, “I counted all loss and I finished the race!”  Stephen, in perpetual rejoicing, sees the Lord on His Throne. And our Lord Jesus, who also ran this race victoriously proclaims, “I did all that my Father asked of me.”
 
Witnesses include completers throughout the history of the church; some well-known, so many, many others known only by their generational peers.  I gain spiritual inspiration by realizing my parents are among these witnesses, as is my first pastor as a born-again Christian, James Howard. I gain inspiration as I consider a growing group of brothers and sisters I’ve known personally who have crossed the finish line. Jim Lutton, a close friend of ours, who was called home early is among them. (If they have humor in heaven he’s right in the middle stirring it up.) In my spirit I can almost hear them all crying out, “Come on Stephen, you can make it, stay faithful, it’s incredible up here!”

 
We are also surrounded by scores of fellow runners still in the race. Look around you today! What a great blessing they are. Count me in as one of these runners. We’re not in competition; we are in this together and we need each other.  Let’s encourage one another as we run this spiritual marathon together.  Let’s keep running, believers!  Let us indeed run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
 

Be encouraged today,
 

Stephen C. Weber

Daily Prayer:  Father, we recognize that our endurance and persistence are attitudes derived from a faith-filled life with You. Our endurance is realized by continuing this race though others may drop out making us feel like we run alone.  Our persistence is marked by our determination to finish the race though struggles weigh us down and doubts cloud our vision of the finish line.  Thank You for marking the race out for us by showing us the great examples of those who cheer us on as we participate in this Christian race.  They finished their race on earth through their enduring faith, though they experienced opposition from sinful men.  We endure hardships and struggles as discipline from You, our loving Father, that we may share in Your holiness.  We look forward to the harvest of righteousness and peace that comes as a result of our persistence in this spiritual marathon.  Strengthen our feeble arms and weak knees as we repent of the sin that entangles us.  We lay aside everything that drags us down or tempts us to give up.  We persist in the name of Jesus Christ for the heavenly finish line, amen.

“But what are they among so many?” (John 6:9).

Many years ago I read an inspiring mission story that I have never forgotten and hope I never do. I wish I had my pastor’s clipping and filing disciplines as I sure would like to read the entire article again!

It was about a man who had a very severe disability that greatly limited his ability to function. Yet he had a love for the Lord and a giving heart toward missions. He was determined to do what he could to support the worldwide cause of Christ.

At his request he was positioned under a walnut tree where he sat on the ground. One by one he laboriously picked up walnuts that would then be sold and the proceeds given to missions.

Most every reader in this encouragement series has heard of Fanny Crosby. She died in 1915 but her songs have endured and are still sung in churches all around the world. When we lived in New England we often drove through Bridgeport, Connecticut on I-95 where Fanny Crosby’s body was laid to rest.  This simple inscription is written on her tombstone: “She hath done what she could.”

Fanny Crosby was blind from infancy.  But she allowed God to use her gift of words put to music and has impacted many generations for Christ. No trace of bitterness is evident in her song texts and I don’t believe they existed.  She didn’t live out her life wallowing in regrets or torment herself with the defeatist mind game, “What if?”  She indeed did what she could.

Do you recognize the daily Scripture portion? I purposefully selected a short phrase from the verse apart from the context.  The disciples were confronted with a great need of how to feed the multitude.”  Philip did some quick math and determined the immensity of the food deficit. I appreciate people that can do quick mental math calculation.

Andrew found a little lad with five small barley loaves and two small fish and brought him to the Lord.  As Andrew looked at the apparent inadequacy of the food resource he realistically observed: “But what are they among so many?”  I may not be quick at math like Philip but I realize that I am a lot like Andrew in my analytical approach to problems.

Jesus didn’t answer Andrew’s question but merely instructed: “Have the people sit down.” Then He commenced with the marvelous, miraculous feeding of the five thousand.  What little food supply the lad provided was more than enough since God was in it.

God purposes to use each of us for His cause regardless of our apparent limitations.  So what is the lasting answer to the question, “but what are they among so many?” It is always “absolutely adequate” when God is in it!  Stay faithful to your call and mission today.

Be encouraged today,

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily Prayer: Almighty God, help us not to look at the immensity of the task before us, but help us to look at the immensity of our all-powerful God.  With humankind many things are impossible but with You, our Father, nothing is impossible.  We want to trust You for supernatural workings in our lives and in the duties before us. In the name of Jesus we pray, amen.