Daily Devotional: Wednesday, Feb 17

Speaker: Ben Sigman

Theme: Goodness & Faithfulness

Weekend Music links on iTunes: Just the Same by Northwest College; Run by Hillsong United; To the Ends of the Earth by Hillsong United; From the Inside Out by Hillsong United; Love Never Fails by Brandon Heath.

Read: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; Philippians 4: 11-13

Think: This Sunday Pastor Ben talked about the kind of love that remains faithful. Many times that can be more easily found when we realize "I won't be happier if..."

In the book The Hiding Place the story of Corrie Ten Boom is told. She was a Christian who was sent to a concentration camp for hiding Jews during Hitler‘s reign in Germany. While imprisoned there as a young girl, she and her sister Betsie were able to hold bible studies in their small hut using a bible they had smuggled in. These times with other prisoners served as the only source of encouragement or hope in terrible circumstances. Even so Corrie found it hard to bear due a terrible infestation of fleas in her hut. Her sister thanked God for them while Corrie struggled seeing other huts with no fleas. Years later, long after her sister had died in that hut, Corrie met a former guard who told her this: His squadron was supposed to go into the hut and stop the studies but didn't because of the amount of fleas. The very thing that upset Corrie so was the thing God used to ensure their biggest blessing.

For most of us the situation we are looking at longingly will not be flea-free bedding thankfully. But the feeling is the same: A longing for something that is not ours or not what we want. It may be a relationship, money, job, car or maybe even a specific person. God wants us to learn to be happy and content and to value where we are and what we have. Right here and right now.

In a classroom I once saw a sign saying "Eeyore or Tigger - choose!" Sometimes it is not easy to choose to be content with our situation but perhaps that's why God combines "be joyful always" with "pray continually". One of the phrases that Ben shared continues to come to mind, "the grass is always greener where you water it". If a situation is looking more inviting let's water where we are with prayer.

Do: Write down a few things you are happy with in your life and thank God for them. Be sure to include the people you care about, signs of God‘s provision and blessing.

Pray: Lord, thank you that you have the best plan for MY life. Please help me to see how You have blessed me and help me to remain faithful especially when I see what I think to be better elsewhere. Give me the strength to accept things that are difficult for me in this life and to recognize all the blessings I do have. Thank you Lord for how good you are to me. Amen

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