By your hand save me from such people, Lord, from those of this world whose reward is in this life.

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭17‬:‭14‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Impatience, immediate gratification, lacking stamina and endurance, living for the short term, these are the weaknesses that separate the sheep from the goats.

Most admired are those whose vision sees far enough beyond the day’s difficulties, setbacks and inconveniences to maintain a fresh forward motivation.

They inspire and compel us to not give up or lose hope and to push past self imposed limits towards rewards we know but cannot yet see.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

Hebrews 12:1-2

Be tenacious.

Weather every storm.

Break the arm of the wicked man; call the evildoer to account for his wickedness that would not otherwise be found out.

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭10‬:‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

A lot of disclosures are on our country’s horizon.

From Epstein to Diddy and USAID to Ukraine, the people of America are about to find out who and what has corrupted our country which would not otherwise be found out.

A national call to conscience and accountability, with an opportunity for repentance lies in wait in what may be a pivotal end times event that unmasks the evils and evildoers responsible for so much wrong in this country.

I recall my own personal disclosure events that brought about repentance, reparations, and eventual forgiveness and freedoms that would otherwise not be found out nor appreciated.

It’s too easy to categorically deny evildoers the same redemption we were afforded by God. Nobody’s sin is irredeemable.

The most evil of all acts is, in fact, to consider sins of others irredeemably incomparable to your own.

The most compassionate of all acts is to welcome the repentant into the family of God from which you, yourself, had also been estranged until your disclosure brought your own sins into the light.

In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice.

In the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭5‬:‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Quiet. Still. Undistracted.

These are gifts of the early hours.

Peace. Calm. Unredacted.

Our words yearn for God in silence.

We listen, hear, and attend to every nuance of darkness succumbing to the business of daylight.

Guard your early morning.

Set a fortress around the time of holy meeting with your creator.

Then wait expectantly and see his handiwork unfold all day.

The patience of Job paid off.

I have sinned, I have perverted what is right, but I did not get what I deserved. God has delivered me from going down to the pit, and I shall live to enjoy the light of life.

‭‭Job‬ ‭33‬:‭27‬-‭28‬ ‭NIV‬‬

It was no easy ride by a long shot, but his longsuffering produced some of the most telling verses about the human condition.

But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction.

‭‭Job‬ ‭36‬:‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

It isn’t over until it’s over.

If anyone deserved a happy ending, it was Job.

After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.

All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought on him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.

The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part.

‭‭Job‬ ‭42‬:‭10‬-‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The Bible teaches us lessons we need to hear in ways we least expect.

A loving and righteous God may allow your suffering for a time and a purpose you do not know nor understand.

But as with Job, it’s never over until it’s over.

If God is anything at all, he is merciful and restorative.

Like a 5th grade ‘compare and contrast’ essay, Job juxtaposes the wicked man from the righteous:

You demanded security from your relatives for no reason; you stripped people of their clothing, leaving them naked.

You gave no water to the weary and you withheld food from the hungry, though you were a powerful man, owning land— an honored man, living on it.

And you sent widows away empty-handed and broke the strength of the fatherless.

That is why snares are all around you, why sudden peril terrifies you, why it is so dark you cannot see, and why a flood of water covers you.”
‭‭Job‬ ‭22‬:‭5‬-‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Reflecting on the life he’d lived:

Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me commended me, because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist them.

The one who was dying blessed me; I made the widow’s heart sing.

I put on righteousness as my clothing; justice was my robe and my turban.

I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. I was a father to the needy; I took up the case of the stranger.

I broke the fangs of the wicked and snatched the victims from their teeth.”
‭‭Job‬ ‭29‬:‭11‬-‭17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Over 30 chapters of Job are devoted to a dialogue between Job and his friends about God’s judgment and God’s righteous omnipotence.

When your own circumstances seem like a godless doldrum, this is a good read.

If not perspective, it will provide you humility, patience and the power to persevere and endure during tests and hard times.

But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you.

Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?

In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.”

‭‭Job‬ ‭12‬:‭7‬-‭10‬ ‭

Creation itself reveals truths about God and His workings in the world with full knowledge of God’s sovereignty.

Job’s search for answers and explanations of his circumstances always comes back to this.

When nothing makes sense, God’s omnipotence must be the answer. And as unsatisfying as it may seem, it is the truest of all truths for the man of faith whose mission and purpose is to exalt his name.

When you seek answers and God reveals little to nothing in return, he will not leave you nor forsake you.

Its arrival at the place of God’s sovereignty, accepting that it alone is answer enough and evidence of our faithfulness.

Job 1: The Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.

What to do with the pain of another?

Thoughts and prayers?

Send flowers?

Offer too many words and advice with good intentions but bad timing?

When Job’s three friends heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him.

When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads.

Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights.

No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.

‭‭Job‬ ‭2‬:‭11‬-‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The pain and suffering of those we love makes us uneasy at best and ineffectual at worst.

Job’s circumstances were so horrific there was literally no consolation to be given.

His three friends agreed on a plan.

They joined him in his grief and sat together with him in silence.

Ask anyone whose episode of grief left them at such loss to know what they needed at the time, just the company of a compassionate friend would be their first choice.

Struggling for the right words to speak, grasping for answers and explanations, believing that enjoining obligates you to solving the mystery of why or how…these are all YOUR issues that will only complicate another’s grief.

They sat with him for as long as he needed because that’s what friends do.

One of the great OT songs of worship…

Stand up and praise the Lord your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.” “Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise.

You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.

‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭9‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

…Was followed by great truths given not to constrain but to explain how we can truly live:

You gave them regulations and laws that are just and right, and decrees and commands that are good.

‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭9‬:‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Yet still, time after time, we rebel, repent, and eventually return to you:

But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight. Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time.

‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭9‬:‭28‬ ‭NIV‬‬

It’s the pattern of our lives on repeat isn’t it?

God’s mercies to us are new every morning and his patience with us is eternal.

Cycles of living out our faith as believers aren’t pretty, but are ageless and timeless reminders that our stories always end at the feet of a graceful and loving God.

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭139‬:‭23‬-‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

How I know I’m drifting is when I suspect I’m hiding.

Once I think I’m self aware, it’s time for a Godly peel of my onion.

True self awareness is recognizing that growth is painful and yet still running there at full gallop.

Self awareness is unbridled humility riding complete trust in the path and outcome.

Your best intentions are undoubtedly those which come under an attack of lies:

Sanballat sent his aide to me with the same message, and in his hand was an unsealed letter in which was written: “It is reported among the nations—and Geshem says it is true—that you and the Jews are plotting to revolt, and therefore you are building the wall. Moreover, according to these reports you are about to become their king and have even appointed prophets to make this proclamation about you in Jerusalem: ‘There is a king in Judah!’ Now this report will get back to the king; so come, let us meet together.”

Meet the attack with truth despite who believes it.

Nehemiah sent him this reply: “Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head.”

Unmask their plan then pray through the attack.

They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.”

But I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.””

‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭6‬:‭5‬-‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

When doing the Lord’s work you can always expect one thing: opposition.

People and politics are pawns moved in a game you are not obliged to play.

Stay your course. Embrace your goal. Pray your path forward. Keep the faith.

James 4:7: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you”

Distractions are subtractions.