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“Enter Title Here”

By July 24, 2012August 30th, 2022Devotional

At least several times each week, people ask me how I come up with the ideas for these posts. And when I spend time with folks who know that I write 5 nights each week, invariably I always get asked what my topic is for that particular day. The answer I give is always the same – I have no idea what I am going to write about until I sit down at the computer, stare at the keyboard, enter the TBTB website and click on the words “Add New Post.” And that’s the truth…

I then stare at a line that reads “Enter Title Here” and I just wait. Sooner or later, I either come up with an idea, or perhaps God nudges me to some topic that I should address, or I recall some memory or story that pops into my head. From there, my fingers fly across the keyboard and the rest, as they say, is history. I write “on the fly” – no notes or outlines and the verse that I should use for the evening eventually comes to me as I am writing the post. Every once in a while, I will have several ideas and will write ahead a day or two. But that never feels right and so I do better when I just write each evening before I go to bed.

I also have certain ground rules that I will not compromise. For example, if you read a story here, it really happened. Nothing made up… And while I tell a number of stories that include Janet, other family members or friends, I never want to embarrass anyone and cause them any angst. Now Janet will tell you that I have come close several times, but she knows that I love her and in all honesty, on occasion, she does provide me with great material. In fact, several of our friends tell us that they already know all about our lives so it doesn’t take very long to get caught up when we get together.

More and more, I run into people in grocery stores or the pharmacy or even friends of friends who let me know that they read my daily posts. And that does my heart good – in the beginning, I wondered if I would run out of ideas and every once in a while I have to wait a while until a topic pops into my head. But so far, each day I have been prompted to write about some ordinary occurrence that is inextricably connected to faith and God in my life. And I hope that gives you encouragement as well. Because God is all around us and it would be a terrible thing to go through life without Him.

Tonight, for example, is a typical night. It’s 10:05 pm and until a little while ago, I had no idea what I was going to write about. And then, I just knew… And unless I really get stuck, I like to post by about 11:00 pm. Because I know some of you read before you go to bed, while others like to wake up and read first thing in the morning. Regardless of your pattern, my fervent desire is that God will speak to you in some way through these writings. For I have found that God uses different times in our lives to give us different applications of His word. So wherever you are in your personal journey, God has a special message for you if you will look for it.

Sometimes, we try too hard to predict what God wants for us. We suffer anxiety and try to guess what God wants from us. But it is important to remember that God knows our need – better than we do. And God knows what perfect timing is – better than we do. So when we suffer because we are anxious and don’t receive an answer to prayer, or we want to know NOW what we are supposed to do, God doesn’t usually succumb to our pleas for a speedy answer. God waits – and waits – and waits – and waits…

Then, just when we can’t stand it any longer, God, in His infinite wisdom, provides His answer in accordance with His will for our lives. And God is rarely early, but never late when it comes to attending to the needs of His children.

So, tonight, after sitting here wondering what tonight’s topic would be about, I find myself patiently waiting for God to provide the verse. And it just came to me – from Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God.” Perfect… That’s what I need to hear each evening before I write. I need to clear my head and wait for the Creator of the universe to reveal His will for my life.

Come to think of it – that’s good advice for all of us. Because too many times we try to do things in our own power, and that just thwarts the plans of God. So my encouragement this evening is that you will wait patiently for God to lead your life. I promise that he’ll do a much better job of it that you or I are capable of doing. My prayer is that your patience will be rewarded and that God will deliver whatever message you need to hear today – just in time… Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…

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