My husband is a gadget and tool guy. I have joked with him many times that if he died before me, I could sell his tools and travel the world with the proceeds! If you need a drill, we have several. If you need big screwdrivers, little screwdrivers, Phillips head screwdrivers, or flat head screwdrivers, we have them in many sizes! Need a wrench? We have scores from which to choose!

In our garage sits a brand-new power washer that will soon be used for spring cleaning. We have quite a bit of driveway space and patio space that needs a good power wash. It’s not that we went outside and intentionally made it a point to dirty the driveway and the patio.  The fact that those spaces are in the world affords the opportunity for things to accumulate on them, and it takes power to make them clean. It takes time for the gunk to accumulate. It happens over a period of time when regular washing does not occur.

Recently in our neighborhood, I noticed a wood fence that was being power washed. The owner of the home did not go out and throw dirt, mold, and mildew on the fence.  The fence simply existed in this world, and the filth attached itself to the structure. The owner finally decided one day that it was time to stop neglecting what the atmosphere had done to his fence. Once aimed at the fence, the power washer stripped away years of grime, gunk, mildew, mold, and dirt. The difference was amazing.

Because we live in this world, we can find that the world tries to attach itself to us. We do not live in a bubble. It is so easy for worldly attitudes to seep into our minds, attitudes that do not line up with the Word of God. We are challenged on an almost-daily basis to accept the world’s view instead of the Word’s view.

There have been too many people in the Body of Christ that have allowed the world’s influence to change what they believe. Sadly, many leaders have compromised the truth so they can be acceptable to the world. A pastor and I were discussing a hot-button topic, and he literally said to me, “I know that is what the Bible teaches, but I don’t agree with it.” 

God’s word is our final authority. Scripture is the authoritative record that our Holy God has given His people. When I take a good look at my life, I must ask, “Has anything ungodly attached itself to me?”

We all need the “power washing” of the Holy Spirit from time to time. It is not necessarily that we have intentionally decided to walk in the filth of the world. The truth is that we are bombarded by ways that are contrary to God’s ways.

We need the Holy Spirit to power wash us. Like the Psalmist we need to pray, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” Holy Spirit, I ask you to power wash me. It will not be easy or painless, but if you ask the Lord to “power wash” your soul, get ready for the gunk to start flying away.

I am a problem solver. When I see situations that require a solution, I immediately set my brain into action to produce a solution. There is a very good side to that, but it sure can affect my prayer life. When solutions are needed, I will go to God with the problem … AND THE SOLUTION!

There are many concerns on my mind these days – my family, our country, the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, the rise of evil. I was recently praying for my family which was heavy on my heart that day. I prayed and presented God with some really good ideas about how to change the situation and the time limit in which it needed to be done. Okay, God, here are multiple choices. Just sign off on one of them, okay?

Having walked with the Lord for fifty-five years, I know not to tell God how to do it. It is something that I still must guard against doing.

God has given us a reminder in His Word that neither His thoughts nor His ways are like ours. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” – Isaiah 55:8-9

• For My thoughts are not your thoughts: God does not think the way we do.
• Nor are your ways My ways: God does not act the way we do. He does things His way, and His ways are often not our ways.
• For as the heavens are higher than the earth: How far is the distance between God’s thoughts and ours? How far is the distance between His ways and ours? The distance is as great as the heavens are higher than the earth.

One of the greatest demonstrations of Isaiah 55:8-9 is found in Joshua chapter six, which we know as the walls of Jericho falling. Joshua and the Israelites had a major problem. There was an enormous wall impeding their journey to the promised land. What were they going to do?

There were tens of thousands of Israelites present, so I wonder how many ideas there were to get around or over those walls? Yet, not one of them produced the idea to march around the walls once each day for six days and seven times on the seventh day. And not one of them said and while we are at it, let’s not say a word. No one added, and at the conclusion of the seventh march on the seventh day, shout loudly, and the walls will crumble.

No one came up with that plan. But God did. They walked in obedience with God’s plan, the walls fell flat, and victory belonged to God’s people.

God was certainly capable of waving His hand over Jericho and collapsing the wall. I would have told God to do it that way. This miracle was beyond normal expectation; no other city had been conquered this way. Israel could not depend on their prior experiences. All they had was God’s promise that the city would be theirs, and that promise was enough. God’s thoughts and ways were higher than any thoughts the Israelites managed to think.

The victory of God’s people never hinged on their ability or any of their well-thought-out plans. It was solely dependent on their unwavering obedience to their mighty God. They could have stopped after day two or day five or at any point. Instead, they chose to trust God when His ways and thoughts were higher than theirs.

What situations are you facing that seem insurmountable? I have some that are way beyond my problem-solving skills. I know that God can instantly change things, but if He chooses to do it in a way beyond my wildest thoughts, so be it. He is God, and He is good.

Let us not stop short of our victory with God. As we surrender to His plan, we set aside our earth-bound thoughts and allow His higher thoughts to direct our paths. He is working even when we do not see Him working. He is present in our situations. His plan is still good, and He can still be trusted.

As God writes the story of our lives, it is not just an ordinary story. He is writing the masterpiece of all masterpieces. We might not see it clearly now, but we can trust Him because His thoughts are not like our thoughts and His ways are not like our ways. They are higher. They are better. Infinitely so.

I plan to trust God’s higher ways. How about you?

With so much going on in our lives, I let my emails mount up something ferocious. I kept saying I will deal with this later. Finally, several weeks ago, I sat down to go through them. I had hundreds of emails in my inbox folder, my deleted folder, my spam folder, and my trash folder. Some dated back years. It took me hours to clean up the mess.

I sat down and clicked and clicked and clicked until all things were in order, and I learned a lesson. Since that time, I deal with things as they come. I get rid of things that don’t need to be on my computer, the junk that is taking up space. I spend time keeping the valuable things, the things that are important. I plan for this to be the pattern of my computer life! Now that I am doing it faithfully, I am not overwhelmed.

The thing that seems to plague Christians more than anything else is busyness. “How are you doing?” our friends ask us. “Busy!” we reply, waiting for the gold medal we think we will receive as a result our busyness.

Yes, we are busy with family, busy serving and leading, but the mad-dash schedule of one thing after the next does not leave us with any room to rest or be restored. We find ourselves running on empty and have the frazzled nerves to prove it.

Psalm 39:6 sums up one of my greatest fears for us Christians in our hectic world: “We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing” (Psalm 39:6 NLT). Doesn’t that almost give you chills? Merely moving shadows. Busy rushing that ends in nothing.

Too often we are too busy to take time daily to sit with God and get rid of the things that have accumulated, things that do not need to hang around. We are also too busy to take time for the valuable things like sitting in God’s presence, reading scripture, singing songs to Him, and allowing the Holy Spirit to impart strength for the day.

I know this is not a “barnburner” devotion and yet it is one of the most important you can read and heed. If we do not do this, we become overwhelmed with life, and miss the very One who gives life and that more abundantly. Don’t miss the main thing because of busyness.

The Bible teaches us another way to live: to keep our hearts and our minds focused on the things that really matter in our lives. The Psalmist said, “LORD, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered – how fleeting my life is.” (Psalm 39:4).

Busyness by itself is not wrong, but busyness doesn’t satisfy. Pray that God will guard you from the busyness that leaves no time for Him. You can feel so overwhelmed if you look at all you are facing over the next few weeks. Take even a few minutes to pray, ask God’s peace and wisdom, and invite God into each day. It’s time to stop being too busy for what really matters. We experience much greater joy when we realize that busyness is not a spiritual gift.

As I sit in Hickory, NC, I have been reminiscing about our life here. Gaylon was a pastor in Hickory for eight years. We still have friendships that have lasted more than thirty years. I am talking about the kind of friendships where you stay in touch regularly, sometimes travel together, and lean on each other. When you find those friendships, they are a treasure.

Gaylon and I are in Hickory visiting our grandson Tucker who is eleven going on twenty-one! Tucker is such a joy. As I watch his laughter, it makes me think of his father Bryan. Bryan was a jovial, humorous, larger-than-life personality. Tucker is definitely a chip off the old block.

Many of you reading this know that Bryan passed away three months before Tucker was born. To say that was a challenging time would be an understatement. Bryan was so thrilled that he was having a son, and he even put together Tucker’s crib, not knowing he would never see his boy sleep in that crib. The pain of that period was close to unbearable for all of our family, especially for Bryan’s wife.

Were there tears and sorrow? Boatloads. I would not have chosen this path, but today, I came to testify of the goodness and sustaining power of God. Our faith in God remained strong even though our pain was great. We had no idea what the future would look like, but we knew God was holding us. Faith was not a feeling, but a choice.

Walking with God through deep pain and heartaches has taught me more about his faithfulness than any sermon or Bible verse. He has used that grief for good. I did not say grief is good, or that God caused death to bring good, but without hesitation I can say that God has used grief for good. He is the God of redemption. He is the God who brings beauty from ashes.

So often we hear the phrase “God is good” in the context of a wonderful event that took place. “God is good” is often an amen to everything going our way. But God is good even when times are bad. The truth is, God is good because that is His character, not because of anything good that I may be experiencing now. God’s goodness is independent of my circumstances. His goodness is not dependent on my health, wealth, or prosperity. One will be sorely disappointed if they think serving God means only good circumstances will flow. He is simply good. In fact, twelve years after Bryan’s death, I see how God has been with us, how He has strengthened us, how He has used us. Yes, even after catastrophic, unexplainable events in life, God is good.

Is the path before you hard today? God is good. He will not let you walk it alone. God is not absent, and He will not forsake you. He is fully aware of what is happening to you. Choose faith. Accept the treasure of Emmanuel – God is with us!

I look at Mr. Tucker Bryan Benton and say, “God is good! God is faithful! Blessed be the name of the Lord!”

“Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!”-Psalm 34:8.