Jesus cried out while on the cross, “Father, why have You forsaken me?” It’s as if He felt singular, alone and without understanding why He was suffering. Nevertheless, when the suffering was concluded, the reason and message of His suffering became increasingly clear.

Usually, it’s after our suffering that we begin seeing reasons and benefits of what we’ve just been through. If we don’t, we can become bitter and negative in our outlook. To prevent this, we must keep in God’s Word to keep our heart soft in God’s hands.

“Into Thy hands I commit My Spirit.”

DAILY PRAYER: Lord Jesus, You are our perfect example of how to live and suffer. We trust You for eternal results when we go through trials.

DAILY READING: Matthew 27,28

Christ foreknew the events leading up to His crucifixion including His betrayal by Judas. How difficult it must have been to carry on with this knowledge. Yet He was faithful to His Heavenly Father by continuing to perform His earthly mission sustained by His love for the people of earth who needed a savior.

It’s noble and wise to continue conducting your mission in spite of resistance you encounter. In fact, it reveals your endurance, an admirable quality.

“For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” [Heb. 12:2]

DAILY PRAYER: Jesus, thank You for the example you left us by suffering, enduring, yet triumphing over all resistance by being obedient to Your mission.

DAILY READING: Matthew 25,26

On the Mount of Olives, a favorite place for Jesus and His disciples, they asked Him what would signal His return and the end of the world.  At the conclusion of His discourse, He challenged them to simply BE READY by faithfully carrying out the commands He had already given … preach the Gospel and evangelize the world, and maintain their personal spirituality. (He goes on to give the simile of the ten virgins … 5 prepared and 5 unprepared)

Those found being faithful to the mission God gave them will be greatly rewarded.

DAILY PRAYER: Lord, You know all things, and we don’t. We want to simple be faithful to You and the mission You gave us to finish here in our lifetime. Grace us today to keep being good workers in Your Kingdom.

DAILY READING: Matthew 23,24

Some are relieved, and some are disappointed, but Jesus made it clear that there is no marriage in Heaven. EXCEPT, we will be married to Him.

Through marriage, we get an earthly object lesson of the Heavenly truth that Christ is the Groom and we are His Bride. God teaches eternal values and skills to us through the marriage relationship. Even when we fail, He shows us what true love is by never failing us.

Focus on the elements of this life that have eternal value rather than temporal.

DAILY PRAYER: Lord, give us the wisdom to invest our lives in eternal things. Our neighbors, our loved ones, sin-sick souls who don’t know You, the hurting, the disappointed …

DAILY READING: Matthew 21,22

In Matthew 19, Jesus said God the father created male and female. It was not their decision, it was His creation. However, Jesus did say that a person could choose to be a eunuch, which means a person who declines to marry or enter into a sexual relationship.

God has a role for each of us to fulfill. It’s His plan, not ours. Why do we always think we are wiser than God?

DAILY PRAYER:  Lord, You know best. When we take a stand to support Your Word an Your ways, give us favor, wusdom, and protection.

DAILY READING: Matthew 19, 20

To illustrate how important forgiveness is, Jesus told a story of a man who had his debt forgiven, yet did not forgive someone else who owed him. As God has provided forgiveness to each of us, so we must, in turn, forgive when we are sinned against. God’s forgiveness is limitless, so therefore must our forgiveness be limitless.

If we don’t, Jesus warned that we would thereby be shutting off God’s forgiveness to us. That would be disaster.

DAILY PRAYER: Father in Heaven, we desperately need Your forgiveness to go on living. By Your grace, we will extend forgiveness to those who offend us. We are so grateful to You for cleansing us from our unrighteousness.

DAILY READING: Matthew 16-19

Miracles happened whenever Jesus was around. He walked on water to the boat where His disciples were fishing, He took bread and fish and fed thousands with a small portion, He healed all diseases and infirmities of those who asked Him. He generated faith in His hearers with the words and deeds He issued. Peter, too, took some miraculous steps on the water when he exercised his faith in God.

“The just shall live by their faith,” is what the Old Testament prophet said. [Hab. 2:4] You and I can live a miraculous existence by being full of God’s Word and acting on the faith He has infused into us. With God, all things are possible.

DAILY PRAYER: Lord, lift us above our doubts. We want to see Your power displayed through our faith. Build Your Kingdom as we pray and believe in Jesus name.

DAILY READING: Matthew 13-15

Jesus spoke to the people of His day in parables. These short stories had a moral or spiritual principle He wanted to communicate. They were intriguing and compelling. They were practical. He must have been a very interesting person to hear speak.

He broadcast His stories like a farmer sowing his seed. He just put them out there. He was like a broadcast spreader we would use on our lawn. He walked along throwing the seed out.

We should broadcast our stories more.

DAILY PRAYER: Lord, we take our example from You. Give us boldness to proclaim the Good News of Your Kingdom through interesting stories.

DAILY READING: Matthew 12,13

The Gospel of God’s Kingdom is simply about coming to the person of Jesus Christ. The attraction is not about music, light shows, eloquent oratory, impressive architecture, or any other substitute for the essence of our faith. It all happens when a sin-sick soul meets a loving, compassionate savior who can transform a life from pain and weariness to rest and true significance.

Our lives then become meaningful, have purpose, and fit into a marvelous master plan that promises an eternal existence with the Maker of the universe, Who started it all by simply inviting us to come to Him.

DAILY PRAYER: Lord, may we never lose sight of Your love and mercy that drew us to Yourself. Give us the abiding concern for those around us who have yet to experience Your salvation.

DAILY READING: Matthew 10,11

Jesus told His disciples to … “teach … proclaiming the good news of the kingdom … heal every disease and sickness.” [Matt. 9:35] He looked with compassion upon the crowds of people and saw them harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.  Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

In my responsibility as a Christian School educator, I see this as a mission for our students. I’m asking the Lord to send them out as the workers He needs.

DAILY PRAYER: Heavenly Father, use Trinity Christian School to equip and train workers to be sent into Your harvest. The eternal value of a life lived to please You is certainly a worthy goal.

DAILY READING: Matthew 7-9