Mothers of Nations, last week we started a discussion on the power of God’s TOUCH. If you did not read last week’s entry, please do that now before continuing with today’s conclusion of the topic. Not only is God’s TOUCH intimate, personal, and powerful, but it is also transforming.

The definition of the word transform is this: to alter the form or appearance of, to change the nature of, to make a thorough or dramatic change in the form, appearance, or character of.

Transform means to be changed completely. When Jesus TOUCHES or CONNECTS with people, how are they transformed? What are some of the ways that they are changed completely?

1. Jesus transforms the sick and the diseased.

Let’s look at Matthew 8: 1-4, 14-15 (NLT)  Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside. ² Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him. “Lord,” the man said, “if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean.” ³ Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” ...

We all know that we have five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. Each one of our senses is important and each serves specific purposes. But for our devotional entries over the next two weeks, I would like to focus on the sense of TOUCH.

The dictionary defines the verb TOUCH as coming into or being in contact with. The dictionary definition for the noun TOUCH is an act of touching someone or something.

So most simply, TOUCH is like a CONNECTION. Can you imagine not being able to connect or touch other people or other things? Just think about all the things we touch every day. We touch objects, clothes, phones, etc. We touch people with handshakes, an embrace, a pat on the back, a baby in our arms, etc. We can also “touch” people with compassion, help, encouragement, etc.

Mothers of Nations, TOUCH is part of our everyday life, isn’t it?

Looking back at the Old Testament for a moment, we find that God did not want the Israelites to touch certain things. For example, Scri...

Mothers of Nations, are you enjoying our current topic “Don’t Despise Small Beginnings?”  I certainly have gained much insight as I studied and prepared these weekly blog entries for you.

Today we will finish our discussion with several concluding thoughts. First, let’s look at several examples from the Word of others who faced small beginnings or took small actions.

•  The widow in the temple. Her sacrifice was the key to this small act being great. Mark 12: 41-44 -- ⁴¹ Jesus sat down near the collection box in the Temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Many rich people put in large amounts. ⁴² Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins. ⁴³ Jesus called His disciples to him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions. ⁴⁴ For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.”
•  Mary anointed the feet of Jesus. Her small desire to a...

As we continue our discussion of this topic “Don’t Despise the Small Things,” let’s look today at a few examples of “small things” that God used as part of His plans and purposes as found in the Scriptures.

DAVID:  David was a small guy who gave a big punch! As a teenager he faced the giant Goliath in battle with just five stones and a slingshot. 1 Samuel 17: 40 says about David, “He picked up five smooth stones from a stream and put them into his shepherd’s bag. Then, armed only with his shepherd’s staff and sling, he started across the valley to fight the Philistine.”

GIDEON: Gideon felt little, small. He was a man of low self-esteem, sensing he had no special heritage. Yet from his small beginning he learned that he wasn’t small at all and by following the Lord’s leading, he and his army defeated their enemy with only 300 soldiers.

Judges 6: 11-16 and 7: 1-7  -- ¹¹ Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abi...

Mothers of Nations, let’s continue with our topic “Don’t Despise Small Beginnings.”  If you did not read last week’s introductory entry, I would encourage you to do that first before moving on with today’s discussion.

Let’s start by looking at the lives of three Bible characters that all experienced “small beginnings” in their journeys of serving God.

MOSES: 

He was a little baby that was placed in a basket and floated on a river to save his young life. Yet from the experiences that followed that very small beginning, he became a leader of a nation, a deliverer to his people! God gave Him the 10 Commandments and Moses also imparted the wisdom he had gained through the years to Joshua so that Joshua could continue to lead God’s chosen people.

SAMUEL:

Through the small beginning of a woman praying for a child, the Lord answered that prayer and gave her a son named Samuel. That child then grew and learned to recognize the voice of the Lord. From that small beginning Samuel became a s...

As I was praying recently, the Lord gave me this thought:  Think about the small things.

I looked up Zechariah 4:10a (NLT) and read this:  Do not despise these small beginnings (small things in KJV) for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin…

Mothers of Nations, whatever your circumstances, whatever task the Lord has put before you, don’t despise today because your efforts seem small. They actually are not small at all in the grand plans of God!

In this portion of Scripture, God is telling Zechariah to not despise small beginnings. At that time in history the people were rebuilding the temple and the prophet was encouraging the nation as they worked to complete this huge task. Through their years of exile, the Israelites were:

• Low on money
• Low on morale
• Slow in progress
• Lacking in temple appearance (not as grand as former temple)

During the 70 years of captivity, we can only imagine how difficult starting a project like this must have been:  no builders, no craftsmen, no a...

Today we will conclude our discussion of the topic “Dealing with the Unexpected Challenges of Life.”  Have you experienced anything challenging and unexpected over the past few weeks? If so, I pray this content has been useful in helping you navigate those challenges. And now, some concluding thoughts on our topic.

One Scripture that reminds us that we are overcomers when unexpected challenges come is found in 1 John 5: 4-5 (ESV). “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

I find that Jesus puts our unexpected struggles into perspective when He states in 1 John 4: 4 (ESV) “…for He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” 

Paul as well assures us in Romans 8: 37 that “…in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”

Jesus also tells us that our relationship with Him bri...

As we continue with this series of devotional entries on the theme “Dealing with the Unexpected Challenges of Life,”  I pray that this content has been encouraging and even healing to you as you have read through each week’s entry.

Through the many unexpected “opportunities” I have experienced in my fifty plus years of serving the Lord, one basic foundational principle has stood out to me and it is this:  Jesus is our refuge as we navigate through all of our unexpected challenges.

I have always found that the words of Jesus and the words about Jesus were my greatest comfort in the times of unexpected trials. For example, in John 16:33 (ESV) Jesus says, “In this world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

Here Jesus is telling His disciples there is no doubt that they will experience trials and troubles in life (unexpected challenges). However, He also promises them that He is more powerful than anything they will face. And Mothers of Nations, t...

Today let’s look at two more ways that God can use unexpected challenges in our lives for His glory and for our utmost good.

Sometimes God uses unexpected challenges to get us back on track, back into His perfect will.

At times life becomes complicated and as circumstances unfold, we may ultimately find ourselves headed down a path that is less than God’s best for us. An abrupt unexpected, challenging interruption can force us to reevaluate where we are headed.

Basically, through circumstances we find the Lord saying, “No, you cannot go that direction any longer.”

I don’t know about you, but I pray that my steps are ordered of the Lord.  And sometimes God can make use of “the unexpected” to get those steps back on the correct God-ordained path.

Years ago our daughter was dating a young man that we thought was going to ask her to marry him soon. But unexpectedly, out of the blue, something happened and that relationship was terminated in one afternoon. Our daughter was devastated a...

Have these words ever come out of your mouth before? “Lord, why is this happening to me?”  Let’s be honest now. I can’t imagine that any of us have not cried out to God asking Him why we are being thrust into unexpected difficult situations!

Through my life journey with the Lord, I have found at least four possibilities of why unexpected things take place in our lives. Today let’s look at two of these and perhaps one or more of them will bring clarity or even comfort to you in your own challenges.

Sometimes God allows the unexpected to encourage us to trust and rely on Him more fully.

Paul writes this in 2 Corinthians 1: 8-9 (ESV). “For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.”

Mothers of Nations, we can’t ever star...