I am a Christian, a retired teacher, a mother and a grandmother. I love to read and I love the Lord Jesus Christ! Unless otherwise specified ,all visual illustrations are from the YOU VERSION APP of the Bible.
I pondered these verses as I read this morning. I know that I am supposed to be producing wheat, or maybe I am wheat. Whatever, I am supposed to be a grain that feeds others. Wheat isn’t in a field just to look good and then die. Rather, it is harvested, ground up and used to make bread, cereal and other good things to nourish people. If I am not being useful to nourish others, then I cannot call myself wheat, can I?
Growing next to the wheat, and sowed by “the enemy” are the tares. What are tares? According to the New Oxford American dictionary, tares are a weed that resembles wheat. And I thought an important part of this scripture was that they are right next to the wheat, hard to discern which is which out in the fields. But when it is time for harvest, the reapers gather the tares first and prepare them for destruction. I don’t want to be a weed that is good for nothing except to be burned.
Instead, I want to be the wheat that can be used to feed others. My testimony is important. The way I grow and keep my life is important. It’s not just the reapers who are watching me; those who hunger for the Lord are watching, too, and if I am doing what I am supposed to, I will be able to feed them exactly what they need so that they can be part of God’s kingdom, too.
Isn’t it interesting that the tares are right beside the wheat, much like many who claim to know the Lord are in the world with us? By their fruits, we can know them. The Lord sends the reapers out and we need to make sure that we are the wheat and not the weeds.
What does unity mean to you? In a chaotic and divided world, sometimes the word “unity” can sound like something irrelevant, something that just can’t work in the broken world we live in. Division is nothing new. In fact, it was a challenge very early in church history and something the apostle Paul addressed head-on.
In 1 Corinthians 1, we see that Paul had received reports that believers in Corinth were segmenting themselves based on who shared the gospel with them. They said things like, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or, “I am of Christ.” Rather than being united as one body of Christ, they were dividing themselves into smaller groups and factions.
Paul was very moved by this. In 1 Corinthians 1:13 he asks them these simple questions: “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?” Paul didn’t want the believers of Corinth to get lost in comparisons and separations. He wanted them united under Christ: one King, one Gospel.
Paul brought them back to the only thing that matters: salvation is from Christ alone. Without Christ, there is no unity. But under Christ, we can be united in a way that the world has never seen or understood.
In a world of fighting and division, the body of Christ gets to show the power of the Gospel. We are united, focused on Christ and only Christ.
My Thoughts
On Saturday, the state of Virginia got a new slate of officers. The governor is now Spanberger, a liberal who says that Virginia is now a “sanctuary state.” The lieutenant governor is a Muslim who took her oath on the Quran, the first state-elected office ever of a Muslim. And the attorney general, well, he’s the one who said he would like to kill those who didn’t believe as he did. My thoughts? I shook my head in sorrow and disbelief and prayed for my state and our nation. This is all very divisive, isn’t it?
So I am glad to have this devotional this morning. We didn’t make it to church on Sunday because of wintry weather and because I wasn’t feeling well and had to spend much of the morning in bed fighting dizziness. Anyway, here I am, happy to report that I am united with other believers in Christ, and I firmly believe that as Christians, we will be tested in our unity in the days to come. I don’t want to focus on the differences between denominations but on the one thing we have in common if we call ourselves CHRISTians. We are saved because of His sacrifice and because of His great love, we are to love on another. Period. The divisiveness between Christians needs to end so that we can stand together against those in the world who do not believe and who would seek to destroy our faith. If you don’t believe that is where we are headed, then you haven’t read and clearly understood the book of Revelation. Yes, in the end, we win! Hallelujah! But check out the persecution and destruction before the victory at the end. Truly, united we will stand as Christians if we want to make it through the dark days of the creeping takeover of our nation by the forces of unbelieving evil doers. Stand for Christ or fall for all of the lies. The choice is ours…make a good one!
Observing Sabbath-rest allows us to step into the same rhythm God established in creating the world. Scripture tells us when God rested from His work, it was because His work was complete (Genesis 2:1). God took joy in His accomplishment.
In Hebrews 4:10, the writer draws a parallel between God’s rest and ours: “For anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his.” We’re invited to delight in His presence and share in God’s divine contentment.
This rest isn’t about taking a break from good works. It’s about surrendering the need to control by trusting in the completeness of God’s work. Our “rest” releases us from the burden of proving ourselves good enough to earn His love and approval. These things have been secured through Jesus’ finished work on the cross. When we step into this rhythm of rest, we can find contentment that spills over into every part of our lives.
Is God calling you to stop trying to do everything on your own and instead find peace in Jesus’ finished work on the cross?
Lay down your burdens, not out of laziness, but surrender. Believe that the One who made the world also takes care of you.
My Thoughts
I don’t know about you but I have trouble resting. I don’t mean falling asleep, although that is sometimes an issue, too. I mean “resting”, just letting go and being content with being in God’s presence and in a safe place in my life. I am always looking for the next thing that I need to do, the next appointment I need to go to, or the next person I need to call. Rest means that instead of looking around for what I need to do next, I am happy with what has already been accomplished and just rest. I am at peace and instead of having scatter thoughts all over the place, my mind is resting, too, as I consider my relationships with God and others as the blessing they are to me. Jesus has already done everything that needed to be done for me on the cross, so I don’t need to prove myself to God once I accepted Him as my Savior. Something in my mind, however, keeps wanting me to prove myself to others, and I need to work on getting to the point where I accept myself as I am and don’t strive so hard to please others. That way I can rest, whether they approve or not. That’s because deep in my heart and soul, I know that God approves and He is calling me to rest, to accept and to be content.
This verse was one of my memory verses for 2025. I still review it frequently, not because I don’t recall it but because I want to slowly read the encouragement there. I read one line at a time and pause after each one to think about what it means in my life.
“The Lord your God is in your midst” means that God is right there in the middle of the mess that is my life. He knows and understands all of my frustrations about my daily life. He doesn’t “hang up” and tell me to move on. She just stays there and comforts me with His presence.
“The Mighty One, will save” means that God is in the process of saving me every day. Salvation is not a once and done and then you are complete. God is constructing me to be more like Jesus and He doesn’t ever give up on me.
“He will rejoice over you with gladness” means that there is nothing I can do to make the Father turn away from me. He is rejoicing for my victories just as He is continuing to work on me in my defeats. That thought makes me more likely to continue to strive to be more like Him. He rejoices with gladness. He is happy that I am His child.
“He will quiet you with His love” helps me to calm down and listen to His voice. God has something to say in the middle of my chaos; I just have to get quiet and listen. He doesn’t get me quiet by saying, “Will you just shut up?” No, I feel His presence all around me and my heart and soul get quiet before Him.
“He will rejoice over you with singing” makes my heart happy when I think about God singing a song just for me because He loves me so much. During my rough childhood, I used to lock myself into the bathroom and sing “Jesus Loves Me” quietly to myself. If no one else acted as though they loved me, I knew that Jesus was right there. Now, as His adult child, all grown up and with a relationship with Him, I am glad that God rejoices over me. He doesn’t berate me or try to make me feel guilty. He rejoices over me, singing a song of love and acceptance, one which we all need sometimes.
I have shared this favorite verse with you as well as my thoughts about it. What is your favorite verse of encouragement? I want to know so that I can meditate on it, also.
One of the most important biblical topics is your own heart. Throughout the biblical story, God shows that He is not nearly as interested in your money, time, or service as much as He is your heart.
Why is this important? Jesus taught his disciples that the heart is the center of our lives. Our emotions and our desires flow from the condition of our heart. If God gets access to our heart, then the rest of our lives follow after.
In Matthew 6:21, Jesus says that where our treasure is, there our heart will be also. The things that we treasure in our life reveal where our heart truly is. The things that we think about, spend our money on, and use our energy to attain—that is where our heart is.
But it’s not enough to just not let our hearts dwell on those things. Instead, we need to train our hearts to dwell on Jesus. The apostle Paul encourages us to dwell on the things that are of God:
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Philippians 4:8 NIV
This type of thinking moves our heart to cherish Jesus as our treasure above everything else on earth.
If you’re honest with yourself, where would you say your treasure is currently? What are the things you devote your time to and spend your money on? Consider how those things reveal where your heart truly is. Spending time in God’s Word and in prayer are great ways to reorient our hearts back toward God.
My Thoughts
Today’s devotional hit me right where it hurts…in my heart and my conscience. I may seem to have everything together, but the truth is that I don’t. I have a lot of problems ordering my thoughts and getting myself motivated to do what I should do. Yes, I spend time in God’s word daily. But am I really focused? Sometimes, my phone is right next to me and when it lights up with a notification, I pause my devotional time and see who or what is calling my attention. Thus, my attention is divided. I need a “rerouting” on my heart and mind, so I am choosing to focus on God during the next hour of my devotional time, with my phone face down and away from me and my thoughts centered on the Lord. I cannot give God half of my attention when He deserves all of it. I want to treasure my time with Him and look forward to it, not see it as one more thing on my “to do” list to complete and check off. I confess that my busy days with medical appointments have led me to act more like my time with God is a chore and not a treasured choice. The appointments are still going to happen, but my time with God cannot wait. If I want to truly show Him how worthy He is to me, then I need to set aside other things and just focus on Him. He sees me and I want to see Him, high and lifted up on His throne and in my life.
Have you read harsh words from Jesus to any of His followers? Honestly, I haven’t. He rebuked, guided, cajoled, taught and spoke in parables. But harshness wasn’t his “go to” way to communicate. (I am not referring to Jesus with the money changers or the Pharisees. I am talking about when He was talking to those who followed Him.)
Have you ever had a harsh boss, someone who spoke in commands instead of leading by example? Having moved so many times and teaching in so many different states, I have experienced working with many principals who thought that they knew everything and were there to make sure that I knew that they already knew it all. How do you deal with harshness?
I am sad to confess that after years of dealing with one particular boss, I responded with snark and not a lot of respect. He absolutely got under my skin and knew it. I recall once he gave me a bad review on a lesson plan he came in to observe because I gave a test when he was there. What? When I met with him, I pointed out none too kindly that if he had bothered to read my lesson plans that were sent to him every Monday morning, he would have seen that the chapter test was planned for that day and I had no desire to change the date just because he came in to observe my teaching. Not the best side of me, I know, and I have repented since then. Nowadays, I am working on the whole gentle answer thing.
Responding with harshness makes the other person defensive and nothing is accomplished in the end. A gentle answer may or may not make the other person think about what they have said, but at least it gives me time to reflect on how I contributed to the situation and how I can best represent Jesus in it.
I recently had an altercation with a close relative. She lectured me about something I had not done, all online via a spoken text message. Lots of capital letters in there as she was shouting at me as she spoke and I could hear her in my mind. I could have defended myself and rightly pointed out that the accusation was unfounded, but instead, I responded something like, “I hope you have a good day.” I did not address the issue at all because I knew she was not ready to hear me.
Remember the old saying from your mom and grandmother? “If you don’t have anything nice to say, then don’t say anything.” I think that is sage advice when you are being attacked and know that you are defenseless against the assault of words coming your way. The best thing to do, I think, is not to defend. I recall that when Jesus was before the rulers, He did not defend Himself. He barely spoke a word, although He, of course, was right and they were deliberately accusing Him falsely. Instead, He let things play out, went to the cross and had the title over the cross “King of the Jews” as commanded by Pilate. The accusers wanted the title to say, “He says He is…” but Pilate shut that down with His authority and said it stood as he had decreed. Jesus didn’t have to defend Himself to be recognized as the Sovereign of the World.
Gentle answers are not easy to do. We want to rail at the person who is in our face, giving us “what for” and in no uncertain terms telling us what they think of us. Nevertheless, if we step back from the situation then we can reply gently and move on. Yes, our feelings are still hurt and we may be fuming on the inside. But it is up to us to control ourselves and not let anger take over.
Since the altercation, I have sent several texts sending holiday greetings and today I sent one asking about her health and telling her about new books coming out. She may/may not answer me at all. That has been my experience in the past. But it’s okay because I am keeping the door open in case she wants to come in and actually talk instead of attack.
I think about all of the problems going on in DC and throughout the nation. What would happen if one, just one person, decided to respond gently instead of with the same kind of vitriol that is being tossed their way? Maybe, just maybe, our leaders could go about the business of running the country instead of just their mouths. But I digress. This is not a political commentary but rather a social one.
I want to encourage my readers to think before you reply and to reply gently. That includes the whole “speaking with the fingers” thing that so many of us do daily. It is better, in my opinion, not to reply at all than to reply with harshness, even if what you were going to say is true. Truth doesn’t always make it kind, does it?
Vickie's Book Nook and Meditation Corner 