Jesus’ heart goes out to the gathered crowd that day, all those famished people. But He has only a couple of barley loaves and two fish. That’s it. However, from that meager food basket, He manages to fill the gullets of over 5000 people until their tummies are about to explode. Much to my liking (and others in my family!), there’s a ton of leftovers. Really? Absolutely, for in Jesus’ hands, a little goes a long way. Take that as a hint. Give Him whatever you have. He can do more with it than you can.

Later in John 6, we discover that the crowd hangs around looking for Jesus. They want more. Of Him and His teaching? Yeah, right. Not quite. Rather, to munch away at Jesus’ overflowing freebie feedbag of goodies. After all, grub satisfies for only a few hours. Their gratitude lasts only as long as Jesus’ prior blue-plate special.

Fear not, the Lord knows what they’re up to. No fooling Him, then or now–‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for food that perishes…’ (John 6: 26-27).

Without skipping a beat, the crowd bellows and howls like this–‘Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness…'(John 6: 30-31). Can you believe them? These are the same blokes Jesus recently fed. And now they come after Him for more. A twenty-four-hour, open daily, holidays included, don’t have to buy-one but still get-one-free, endless buffet with an unnecessary senior discount thrown in for good measure!

Their stomachs growl for blessings beyond measure. What Jesus did last time was not enough. That’s yesterday’s miracle. What about today? Why not every day, Jesus? All the time. More and more, or we won’t believe you, let alone follow. You’d better put up, or else.

They’re in it for the goodies. For His blessings. What He can and must give them. Uh oh, I sense someone looking over my shoulder. A nudge to my conscience? An unwelcome glance in the mirror? A ‘gotcha’ from on high? For am I any better than the crowd that day? In it for all I can get. Ungrateful and spoiled rotten.

All this gives me pause. Too important to just shrug off. So, I’m taking this seriously, thinking about it hard and long. I least want to be a fairweather follower of Jesus. Rather, I want to be all in, with both feet planted solidly in His corner. No matter if all God’s earthly blessings dry up and blow away. Yes! Always His and His alone. But am I?

Lord Jesus, forgive me when I’m greedy and selfish. Amen.

Why would the miracle of Jesus’ healing the paralyzed man by the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem be my favorite? Aren’t they all the best? Well, for sure. Slap my wrist to say otherwise, but still, this one rings my bell louder than others. Why? Well, let me explain.

It’s not because I had paralytic polio as a toddler. Well, maybe a little bit. But it has more to do with how much this man knew about Jesus when he was healed. Any guesses? Right. Not much. Perhaps sketchy rumors were circulating about a miracle worker from Nazareth, who was in the area that day. All the Bible says is that someone spoke words that this invalid wanted desperately to hear–‘…Get up, take up your bed, and walk’ (John 5: 8).

Do what? Get up? Walk? After 38 years, unable to work those infirm legs, after all the failed attempts to be healed by the spirited waters of this Pool, when no one would help him, that’s when Jesus mosies by and calls out to him–‘get up, walk.’ Hey, why not? Costs nary a shekel. And guess what?–‘…at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked’ (John 5: 9). Bingo. Presto. Healed and well. Who’d a thunk?

The reaction of the religious elite? Those who snobbishly know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they themselves are closest to God? Arrogant so-and-so’s, who have little time for any down-and-out? They reek of spiritual superiority. And go ballistic at Jesus’ effrontery, daring to heal on the Sabbath.

Couldn’t he wait a measly couple of hours until after sundown when Sabbath is over? Oy vey, what a schlemiel. So, they confront the newly healed man about who has performed such a dastardly deed. Who? ‘Fess up, already. The healed man hadn’t a clue–‘Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn…’ (John 5: 13).

Here’s something else that’s unexpected–“Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, ‘See, you are well! Sin no more…'” (John 5: 14). Who found whom? Jesus waits in the wings, goes down the back alleys of Jerusalem, looking for this very man. He seeks him until he’s found. Never giving up until the lost one is found.

That’s what happened to me. Jesus found me. He was after me from way back when, until one Sunday evening, listening to the radio in my bedroom, I heard about Jesus loving me and wanting to be in my life. Really? Is He that desperate? Jesus wants me? A nobody from nowhere? Is this for real?

By the way, how come I never heard this before? I was confirmed in my home church. A member in good standing. Whatever. Who cares? All I know is that I prayed that night, asking Jesus into my life, and He came and has never left, even though I’ve given Him plenty of reasons to do just that. Too many, really. He’s here to stay, despite myself.

Jesus sought me. He knocked on my front door. Who’s there? I knew so little about Him. Almost nothing. But it didn’t matter. He loves me. So, I opened my heart to Him. How about you? Time for some company, the best kind?

You’ll discover that the longer we hang around Him, the more time we spend in prayer and in our Bibles, and following what He wants, then we’ll get to know Him like never before.

See why this is my favorite miracle? Puts salvation, first and foremost, in God’s court. His serve. His point. Aced by Jesus! That’s a miracle, par excellence. Still my favorite!

Lord Jesus, I love you for finding me and placing me in your family. Amen.

Some have wondered how many devotional books I’ve sold, hinting that they’d like to know how much money I’ve made. Nosey Parkers! Since these weekly devotionals, which I’ve written and published for over 11 years, cost you nothing and me just a modest annual charge from the web organizer, I assume they refer to royalties from my two published books, which are still very available on Amazon and would make marvelous Christmas presents! Shame on me! But, to be painfully honest, those book purchases have put me in a lower tax bracket! Get it? Satisfied? Prying buttinskies!

It’s also true that people from over sixty countries have discovered my website. All right, already, maybe only three to five new people every day. Add that up, and it’s still but a drop in the bucket. It could have more readers. I pray for such. To be a blessing. To make my contribution to God’s Kingdom.

Yes, I’m a small fish in a big pond. Wee potatoes. A bit player. Chump change. And? You’re point? Should I quit? Pack it up and call it a day? Stop fighting the rip tide and come to shore? Well, since I can’t swim, I’ll keep doing what I’m doing for my Lord Jesus.

You must know that the idea for all this devotional writing comes from God. Okay, I never heard an audible voice. No skywriting or colossal sign, either. Just an impression in my mind of a mission from my Lord. To write devotionals. For Him. For others. Never for personal gain. Not to advance a career. But, again, for Him and for others. Does it make me sound like a goody two-shoes? If so, too bad, so sad!

Like God’s people in Zechariah 4, when they eyeball the modest sight of their newly rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem and hear stories about the magnificence of Solomon’s original worship complex, they break down in tears, grieving this ‘day of small things’ (v. 10). How the mighty have fallen, so they think.

That’s when God encourages them to keep on keeping on–“Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you'” (Zech. 4: 8-9). It’s about God’s plans and not merely your own. You’re disappointed? Embarrassed? Let down? Get over it and get with it.

Whatever you do for Jesus, please, keep at it. Maybe it’ll be in a new place. Doing something somewhat different. Or you need to dig in your heels and not give up. I don’t know. But ask Jesus what He wants you to do. Wait on Him. Watch for little hints and signals. Don’t be in such a blasted hurry as I usually am. Wait, while you’re at it. And then, that’s right, do it!

Hudson Taylor, the 19th-century missionary to China, said this–‘Little things are little things. But faithfulness in little things is a big thing.’ Read that again and let what he said over a century ago sink in. Certainly grabs my attention. Just mine?

Lord Jesus, I love doing what you call me to do. What an honor. Always for your sake. Amen.

My daily shower is a must. A habit of cleanliness. Actually, the only ones missed were when I was in the hospital a few years back. Otherwise, I need that everyday spotless feeling from head to toe.

Spiritually, we need God’s cleansing power even more so. He’s Mr. Clean par excellence. The old hymn asks, ‘Have you been washed in the blood, in the soul cleansing blood of the Lamb?’ A strange image, when you first hear this. Somewhat off-putting and bizarre. Washed by blood?

But when you realize what it cost God to disinfect us of sin and make us right with Him, then the fog clears. Jesus loves us so much that He’s willing to shed His very blood and die on the cross to make us His own. Clean as a whistle. Pure as the driven snow. Spotless, forgiven, and, best of all, a member of God’s family.

In the Old Testament book of Zechariah, chapter 3, we see the High Priest of the Temple. He’s not dressed in amazing, eye-catching, and immaculate garb. On the contrary–‘ Now Joshua (the High Priest) was…clothed in filthy garments’ (v. 3). Cruddy. Mucky. Grungy and yucky. What a sight. And this is the High Priest, no less?

Now I’m no High Priest, but on the inside, I resemble the one in Zechariah, much to my shame. Sin has wreaked havoc in my life, most willingly. Some due to others, but the vast majority lie in my column.

So, what’s our escape route? Is there a way to get free from the mess we’re in? Of course, it’s Jesus. What He did on the cross. The love and forgiveness He passes our way if we’d only seek Him out, ask, and believe in Him. He has so much to give. And the longer you’re a follower of Jesus, the more you come to appreciate His goodness and faithfulness. For Jesus is our hope. There is no other. We need no other.

Later in Zechariah 3, we read about when sin is wiped away once for all. Hear what’s said–‘…and I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day’ (v. 9). A single day? Can you imagine? When was that? The day Jesus died on the cross. That very day. To take away our sins. Forever. What a day!

Let’s thank Him all this week. By the way, it’s now my shower time!

Thank you, Jesus, for all you’ve done for me on the cross. Amen.

A pastor friend maintains that God in the Old Testament is one of wrath. More judgment than love. Less easy to be around, I guess. We’ve had rip-roaring debates, but he remains unmovable. He’s not alone in categorizing God in the Old Testament as different from the way Jesus acts in the New. God’s Son comes across as more accepting, more flexible than His Father. Or so it seems to some. But not to me.

For God is the same in both testaments. He’s consistent from Genesis to Revelation. Forget that stuff about the wrathful One here and the forgiving One there. As if we worship two separate but not equal gods. God forbid.

Here’s what Jesus says–‘For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him’ (John 3: 17). Note that when the Nazarene, our Lord, says this that none, underscore none, of the New Testament has been written. Only the First Testament, the old one, which was Jesus’ Bible, may I add. The Father sends His own Son as our Savior. Can you imagine such love?

For Jesus yearns for us to know Him. To be forgiven and given a new life. A new name, so to speak. Second, third, and fourth chances to start over for Him. On top of that, He makes a home for us in heaven. A security found nowhere else.

But if someone thumbs their nose at God and wants nothing more to do with Him, He’ll honor that and remove Himself from their lives. What remains is a handful of ashes. Disappointment forever. Regrets unending. An unsavory nothing-burger.

Does God in the Old Testament relish such a final judgment? That wrathful God who tosses salt willy-nilly in their wounds? Here’s a verse from that part of the Bible as found in Ezekiel–‘But if the wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions that he has committed shall be remembered against him; he shall not die. Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?’ (Ez. 18: 21-23). Chew on that for a while.

Our God yearns, most of all, to save, help, and love us. It’s a seamless story, fixed and unchanging all through your Bible.

P.S.–My concordance lists more words for ‘love’ in the Old Testament than in the New!

Thank you, God, for your consistent love and forgiveness. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

How I love it when God’s blessings flow my way. Those goodies from above. When extra money lands in my wallet. Legally. The latest health report alleviates my fears. For the moment. My political party dominates, this time around, and I feel so smug that others, those roustabouts, get smattered. When our children and grandchildren are on top of the world in every way. As more and more people, from over 60 countries, read these devotionals. God’s blessings–how sweet they are!

But what about those other times? You know what I mean. Not blessings but troubles, downturns, and hellish moments that inevitably find me hiding and terrified, hoping beyond hope that the hot seat where I’m mistakenly parked will soon correctly accommodate somebody else. How cowardly can I be?

Shame on me when I also scowl at God, putting blame squarely on His shoulders. Why me? What gives? Answer up, God. Or else. Or else what? That you’ll have one less follower? Such a threat causes harm only to me.

You may be familiar with the conclusion of the Old Testament book of Habakkuk. The part about trusting God no matter what. When God’s blessings go on vacation in the desert where they dry up and blow away.

Habakkuk doesn’t require God’s freebies to trust Him. This Old Testament prophet’s faith shines even in the dark. Especially there. An ‘in spite of’ confidence and hope, which allows him to cling to his Lord, even as troubled winds blow his way.

How about you? And me? Only true blue when the good times roll? A ‘Real McCoy’ follower, if I get exactly what I want from Jesus? And while He’s at it, how about lots more and nothing less!

Here’s what Habakkuk says–‘Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herds in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation’ (Hab. 3: 17-18).

Oy veh, what a dyed-in-the-wool believer. I’m far from being in Habakkuk’s league. I need to trust Jesus, not only for the blessings, but when some vile calamity hits me square in the face. Not a fairweather Christian, but an all-weather one. That’s the prayer of my heart. Join me?

Thank you, Jesus, for loving me just as I am, helping me grow in my faith, and making me more like you. Always for your sake. Amen.

War has been declared. Battle lines drawn. Armaments ready and terribly able. Troops on highest alert. To fight who? Where? What’s its cause?

No, not traditional warfare, but something with spiritual roots. It’s a battle we Christians can sense heading to our shores. Other earthly regions have been in the thick of it as if forever. I’m referring to the fight to follow faithfully our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and God’s Word, as found in the Bible.

It’s never easy to take an unpopular stand for our Lord. And you know what those issues are at the moment. Where we could compromise to better fit in. To avoid criticism and ostracism from family, friends, and even the church. In many ways, we are up against a wall. Either take a stand or be pushed over it.

St. Paul in 2 Corinthians makes a bold statement that we need to hear–‘We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ…’ (2 Cor. 10: 5). Is this too out of reach? Impossibly unrealistic? To put Christ at the forefront?

If so, hotfoot it to boot camp. Open your Bible and dig in. Deep, deeper, deepest. And when you note something that’s contrary to modern culture (and it won’t take you very long to land on some doozies!), then decision time knocks at your door. Who will you let in? The Lord Jesus? Or an ungodly society? Which will it be?

Take every thought captive. Make a prisoner of what has violated God’s ways. Lock it up and throw away the key. Now I know that this is no easy-peasy business, and that I fail as much as the next; but, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the fact remains that we’re in a battle. Christian author C. S. Lewis says that we believers have been parachuted behind enemy lines. Hostile territory requires us to be on high alert. Dangers lurk everywhere, even in the safest of places.

This is no Mickey Mouse business. It’s real. Get ready. Take sides. Battle on. Weary not. Read the last book in your Bible to see how tough life can become, but also note who wins the final battle and war. Any guesses?

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for victories in your name. And all for your sake. Amen.

The line snaked out the door at one of our local supermarkets. Some big grocery sale? Not quite. It was for the ‘Imagination Lottery Machine’ of our state’s gambling association. All lucky winners, I’m sure! Me? I’ve never, ever bought a lottery ticket.

The only lottery I’ve won was one I was forced into. Against my will. Pushed and shoved to take a chance. In the late ’60s (1960s that is, wise guy; and no, not the 1860s!), the federal government instituted a lottery system for the military draft. Ugh! Uh oh! I’ve got a 1 in 365 chance of winning based on my birthday. Pretty good odds, or so I figure.

How’d I do? As I looked down the list of birthdays, I didn’t find mine. I’ve won! Off the chart? An oversight? Hardly. Fat chance of that. So, I go back over the register and discover that the first few birthdays are fully printed out with lots of flowery words to soften the blow for those who’ve won. The first and second picks would be the first and second ones to go off to war. My birthdate? Number two. Oh no. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. I’ve won. Or lost. It all depends.

Jonah wins his lottery, too. For he’s the one who’s causing all kinds of trouble for the ship he’s on and for those sailors, all in grave danger of losing their lives in tumultuous seas. As they draw lots, good old Jonah wins. Picks the short straw. All eyes are glued on him. The culprit. This runaway prophet of the Lord wishes he could go back to sleep, hoping beyond hope that all this is but a bad dream. Sorry, Charlie! It isn’t.

In Jonah’s case, he’s turned his back on the call of the Lord. Told to go here, he heads off there. What does God want? Well, He can just take a heavenly hike. Get someone else, while you’re at it. I’m out of here on the first boat to anywhere else. And he succeeds. Sort of. Until.

Well, you probably know the rest of Jonah’s story. If not, it’s only four chapters. Can cover it in less than an hour. Go for it. Maybe, just maybe, the Lord will bring to mind something He’d like you to do for Him that you’ve been putting off. An idea pops into your craw? A nagging thought or two? Your conscience tugs more His way for a change?

Ask for God’s help while being determined to follow through and obey His instructions. Not like Jonah, hightailing it out of Joppa. But there’s more to his story…

Lord Jesus, I want to serve you. Help me to do just that. For your sake. Amen.