“Stop seeking validation in a world that crucified a perfect person.”

Hannah had a huge problem. Elkanah had two wives – Hannah and Peninnah. While Peninnah was pushing out children left and right, Hannah was barren.

We all live in broken bodies. And like us, Hannah didn’t get to choose her body either. Yet, there was an interesting twist to her story: “The LORD closed her womb” (1 Sam. 1:6).

The LORD was behind her lack of children. Maybe He was turning chaos, a broken body that couldn’t produce children, into one that could. Or, she was perfectly healthy but He was holding back children for a specific purpose and time.

We don’t know. But what we do know is that during this entire story, she only sought validation from the One who could do something about it – the LORD. After much patience and prayer, she gave birth to Samuel, a great Israelite prophet and leader, who made the Faith Hall of Fame (Heb.11:32).

Like Hannah, Jesus also only sought validation from the Father (Matt. 3:17) and never from men (Jn. 2:23-25).

We were born into a chaotic world where we didn’t get to choose the family we were born into or the bodies we have. We do have control, however, over the choices we make in the moment. We can either listen to and follow Jesus, the healer of brokenness, validator of existence and giver of a worthwhile purpose to pursue or we can listen to and follow broken people.

You know Who to listen to. Keep choosing wisely.

It’s not about doing your best, but asking the Spirit to empower you to follow the best – Jesus.

The same Spirit who brought Jesus into the world gave Him the power to live in that world. The same Spirit who gave Jesus victory over Satan gave Him power over death.

It is the same Spirit who gives us life in Jesus and gives us the power to live in this world. It is the same Spirit who gives us victory over Satan and will give us power over death.

Yet, how often throughout our day do we ask for His power in struggle to overcome our enemy and make the choice to follow Jesus?

He starts the life-changing process by pointing us to Jesus. And then He will empower us to follow Him. All we have to do is ask – not just at the beginning of the day, but through the day.
He did it for Jesus (Jn. 8:27-29), and He will do it for you. Don’t you think it’s time to ask?

Your heavenly Father knew you before the foundation of the world.

I love being in the High Sierras during the fall. I’ve only been there a few times, though. Yet, when I am, I get to see the Aspen trees put on quite a show – the bright yellows, deep oranges, and gorgeous reds are visually spectacular!

Right now, you can see the show just beginning with only a small clump of leaves turning yellow. All the leaves will eventually go through this process as the tree continues to shut down for the winter.

As God does this with the trees, He does it with His children. Our Father knows exactly what area of our lives needs to be put through the life-change process, as well as the when and in what order. He sees the big picture; we can’t.

Quite frankly, the older I get, the more I sometimes doubt His wisdom. I’ve just recently asked, “Why didn’t You change this area of my life years…no, decades ago?! It sure would have saved me a lot of heartache along the way if You had.”

His response? Silence. It’s His way of saying, “Be still and know that I am God. I know what exactly I’m doing and the why of the when.”

The beauty is that Jesus covered all my sin, all the areas of my life that offend my Father, on the cross. And because of this, I can be a peace no matter what stage of life-change I’m encountering. I’m okay because Jesus already made me okay.

Your Father knows best. So, be at peace as the Spirit continues to do His job in your life.

Jesus became what we are so that He can make us into Who He is.

This is a picture of a hotel in Bodie, CA. Bodie was once a booming gold town, until it played out. Afterward, the people abandoned the buildings to the elements.

The State of California eventually made it a State Historic Park in an arrested state of decay. The park decided which buildings would be preserved and which would be left to deteriorate.

In the hotel’s case, the building couldn’t handle the wind and snow and began to lean. Thus, it was propped up, though it remains unstable and unusable for visitors. When it came to the Methodist Church, however, a generous donation came in through a company that will reinforce it, making it stable and usable for visitors to walk inside and worship, if they so desire.

Micah 3 compares Israel’s leadership to the hotel. The leaders claimed they were leaning on the LORD (the supporting pole), when in fact they were not (Micah 3:11). They also claimed to hear from the Lord when all their decisions were actually based on what they wanted. Consequently, they became unusable by God and hurt the people they were meant to serve.

The Father of Truth doesn’t play that game. He changes us from the inside out by rooting out any lies – even those we may not know we are acting upon. Remember, we only know what we know when we know it. Thus, we may think we are leaning on God when we are not.

Let the Spirit of Truth go as deep as He deems best. He doesn’t rebuild your house. He builds Jesus’ house in you instead. He doesn’t provide a leaning pole, but puts in new materials to provide support under the heaviest of winds and snow that life can throw at you (1 Cor. 3:11-13).

Share with Him what you’re feeling and thinking. Then be open to the Spirit of Truth doing His job – change your life through changing from the inside out.

Praise God when you’re at the end of your rope. It makes room for Him to give you His.

Samson is one interesting character. As one reads his story, you find him making one bad decision after another. Each woman he encounters was not an Israeli, whom God commanded him not to marry, let alone have sex (Deut. 7:3-4; Ex. 20:14). Each woman he chose ended in trouble. You’d think he’d have learned.

We too make our share of bad choices in the process of becoming like Jesus. These choices can lead to head noise from the accuser, “You are not good enough. You are incapable of walking with God let alone being changed by Him. Just give up. He does.”

God’s Word, the truth that sets one free, tells us exactly the opposite. The Spirit wrote that Samson made it to the Faith Hall of Fame (Heb. 11:32). Life change is possible.

The Spirit also wrote “That is what some of you were.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 gives a laundry list of what some of them did or were, notice the past tense. Again, life change is definitely possible.

Why? Because “you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Cor. 6:9-11).

Be encouraged. This is how God sees you and me today while in the process of becoming more like Jesus. Life change is definitely possible.

See yourself as God does, but make sure praise is part of your shield of faith when the accuser slings out lies. Choose to believe and make choices based on the truths the Spirit gives you. And if you fall, choose to get up using those same truths.

My friends, your life can and will be changed!