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On occasion we all experience some less than great days. These were perhaps times when our best intentions were misunderstood, or someone we encountered along our day was hurtful or insensitive. We may have received some bad news, faced crisis, or found our long-held dream was going to be more challenging. We will encounter trials, but we don’t address those challenges alone. We can seek comfort in prayer and in the promises from a loving Father.

Consider the scriptural passages that remind us that we are children of God and never forgotten. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.1

I took you from the ends of the earth,
   from its farthest corners I called you.
I said, ‘You are my servant’;
   I have chosen you and have not rejected you.
10 So do not fear, for I am with you;
   do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
   I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:9- 10.

God has a plan for each of us and walks with us each step on our faith journey. I confess that I am fiercely independent spirit and often have a difficult time allowing God to guide my life. I want to navigate on my own somewhat like the precocious three-year old that shouts, “Let me do it!”  I am challenged each day to stop and pray for direction, and especially to pray for the strength to listen and follow. In a prelude to a country song, Robert Earle Keen once compared bull riding to driving a car 80 mph and throwing the steering wheel out the window. I draw the conclusion that Christianity is equally unnerving and uncertain when we allow God to drive and take us to places we never imaged serving our Lord Jesus.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11.

For many years my job required extensive travel across South Carolina with ample windshield reflection time. In those days when I faced a crisis or a challenge, I would begin in prayer seeking direction then thank God for my many blessings. As I drove, I would begin to count the places of worship that frequent our towns and countryside. The churches ranged from massive downtown complexes encompassing several blocks to store fronts with a name and a cross painted in the window. I became keenly aware that we live in God’s world and that these churches across our state represent thousands of families who worship and serve Christ.  Despite our concern for our seemingly important crisis, these churches confirm that we are children of God and surrounded by congregations of faithful in His world. We find comfort in the words God spoke to Moses and Joshua on the eve of leading the Israelites into battle to claim Canaan promising His everlasting guidance and presence. 6” Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”2

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6.

The peace of our Lord Jesus is offered by accepting the teachings of Christ, loving the Lord with all of our hearts, and in following His commandments. We are children of a loving God each day  seeking His grace and blessings and …come what may; we are always in the care of the

Father forever and ever.

PRAYER: Father in times of crisis we pray for Your presence and seek Your guidance. We pursue Your peace and comfort discovered in the acceptance and understanding that we are children of a loving God. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!3 We make this prayer in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.

1 Lamentations 3:22-23.

2 Deuteronomy 31:6.
3 Psalm 34:8.

The Wesleyan Bridge is written by K.B. Kelly with the Reverend Valerie Mireb and Pastor Hank Brooks as Theological Editors with Debbie Kelly as Text and Content Editor.