Hope Unswervingly

Daniel 10:15-19 When he was visited by the messenger of the Lord, Daniel was physically and emotionally overwhelmed. He describes himself as speechless, anguished, and powerless. Breathless. Daniel asks this powerful question that continues to echo in my mind. “How can someone like me, your servant, speak with someone like you, my lord?” Indeed, how can someone like me approach Almighty God and speak with Him? To be in His presence would leave me speechless in awe, anguished in my sin, and powerless to do anything for myself. How grateful I am that God does His best work when we are in this state of weakness! When we humble ourselves at the feet of Jesus, acknowledging our sins and weaknesses, that is precisely when Jesus will reach down, take our hand, and respond in the way the messenger did to Daniel. “Don’t be afraid, you who are treasured by God. Peace to you; be very strong.” Fear flees and strength grows. With the burden of our sins removed and the assurance of God’s...

Read John 11:5-6 Here we continue the story of Lazarus that we began last time.   We read two sentences that do not seem to go together. “Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus. So when He heard that he [Lazarus] was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.” Wait. What? Shouldn’t that read, “He loved them, so He immediately got up and ran to Bethany to save the day?”