Life for Leaders is our free, digitally delivered devotional, sent to your inbox every morning.
Reflecting on God’s Word
According to Psalm 119, if we hide God’s Word in our hearts we will be enabled not to sin. Psalm 1 expands considerably on the rewards of meditating on God’s Word. Not only are those who do so happy, but also, “They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper” (Psalm 1:3). When we reflect on God’s Word, letting it fill our hearts and minds as it guides our lives, we will live fruitfully and resiliently.
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Reflecting on God’s Creation
Psalm 8 invites us to reflect on God’s creation of all things, including human beings. Compared to the grandeur of the universe, we are small and seemingly insignificant. But God has created us in God’s own image and entrusted to us the care of creation. The more we reflect on what God has created, the more we are led to exult, “O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!”
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Leadership Wisdom – Solidarity with the Poor
It’s easy to forget that all of us live lives rooted in gift.
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Leadership Wisdom – The Upward Spiral of Thanksgiving
Gift is the wellspring of our gratitude.
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Sharing Your Gratitude with Others Makes a Big Difference
Yes, it’s right and good to thank God for the people who mean so much to us. But it’s also right and good to let them know of our gratitude. May this season of thanksgiving be a time for you to thank the people in your life who have been a blessing to you, whether at work or home, in partnership or friendship.
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Thanks Helps You Think!
Our gratitude is a fitting response to who God is – a God of steadfast love – and what God has done – wonderful works. Yet as we focus on God and express our thanks in prayer, we receive even more grace. Our brains are strengthened. Our thanks helps us think!
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It’s Time for Thinksgiving
If you can make time on Thanksgiving Day for reflection and gratitude, that’s great. By all means do it. But if you’re anticipating a busy Thursday, let me suggest that you find another time this week for reflection. Think about your life and your blessings. Think about how God has been gracious to you, especially during this past year. Let your thinking lead you to thanking. By all means, thank God for the gifts you’ve received. But you may also want to thank people who have made a difference in your life. Nothing warms the heart on Thanksgiving Day more than expressions of gratitude. Yes, gratitude brings even more joy than steaming turkey!
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Well Done?
Responding to what we have been given by sending it out to multiply flourishing in the world is a much better posture than the posture of fear.
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Like a Thief in the Night
We have no control over when Christ is coming back. Let’s live a life of faith, hope, love, and building each other up while we wait.
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Reflecting on God’s Wonders in Difficult Times
In times of crisis and suffering, our reflections will not be easy. Sometimes we may even doubt God’s faithfulness. But Psalm 77 teaches us to reflect, not only on our difficulties but also on God and God’s wonders. Sometimes we’ll sense a tension between our current experience and what God has done in the past. That tension may even seem irreconcilable at times. But remembering God’s gracious actions in the past will reassure us even when our questions remain.
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Reflecting in Difficult Times
Psalm 77 is one of the most intensively reflective of all the psalms. It is also stunningly honest in expressing the psalm writer’s pain, doubt, and lament. This psalm reminds us that honest reflection will sometimes take us to unsettling places. But, as we’ll see tomorrow, it doesn’t leave us there. Still, the example of Psalm 77 encourages us to reflect honestly about all of life, even the difficult parts.
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Reflection, Confession, New Creation
The Psalms invite us into prayerful self-reflection. Sometimes they help us to see ourselves as “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). At other times, however, the Psalms reveal the less-savory parts of ourselves. They summon us to reflect upon our sinfulness. But that’s not the end result. Rather, such honest reflection leads to confession and then to new creation based on God’s steadfast love and mercy.
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