Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son. (Genesis 18:14, ESV) Even when it didn’t look like Sarah would get her promise of a son, God had a plan for her.…
And Hezekiah answered, “It is an easy thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees; no, but let the shadow go backward ten degrees.” So Isaiah the prophet cried out to the LORD, and He brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the sundial of Ahaz. (2 Kings 20:10-11, New King James Version)
Today, February 2, 2017 is a day in the United States that has been highlighted by Punxsutawney Phil, a groundhog who supposedly predicts the beginning of spring by his shadow. What began as a local fictitious fable in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania has continued about 130 years. But there is a true story of a time about 700 years before Christ when a shadow became a miraculous sign.
The prophet Isaiah came to King Hezekiah and told him to set his affairs in order because he was going to die. Hezekiah made things right, so God told Isaiah to go back and tell Hezekiah he would live. This time Hezekiah asked for a sign that God had extended his life. Isaiah asked the king which direction he wanted the sundial of Ahaz, the official timepiece of that day, to move. King Hezekiah asked for it to go backward by ten degrees. Based on scientific data, we know this backward shadow of ten degrees has affected time forty minutes since that day.
As you pass through life—one minute at a time—will you cast a shadow that will be a time changer for at least one person?
Prayer: Lord, I’m not asking You to change universal time for me. All I want is to make my life count so that something good I’ve done will overshadow others and bless them. Amen.
Devotion by Violet Carr Moore
“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV) My husband received an e-mail from his friend which really got my attention. The story was about a young man named Jack. His father died when he was young and his neighbor,…
They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as Eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31, Holy Bible, King James Version)
Long lines form at airport security, in motor vehicle offices, at pharmacies, grocers, and retail stores. Waiting extends to restaurants and gas pumps. Chairs are filled in reception areas of health providers. Waiting, waiting, waiting. Wasted minutes, sometimes hours.
Waiting on God is different. It renews strength to the weary. Pray, trust, and be refreshed while you wait.
Prayer: Lord, waiting in my daily routine has made me impatient for Your response to my prayers. Refresh me while I wait for your promises. Amen.
Devotion by Violet Carr Moore
A time to be born, and a time to die (Ecclesiastes 3:2, Holy Bible, King James Version)
“When is my baby due?” an expectant mother joyfully asks her physician. At the birth of her child, a new life is celebrated and treasured through the years. When the pendulum of life swings far to the other side, a different question might be heard from this aging mother. “How much time do I have, Doctor?”
As she relives special memories, she sees how her life has touched her family, friends and community. More importantly, she is content because she has invested her life toward shaping her own eternal destiny.
Prayer: Eternal God, You chose my birthday and have set my departure date from this earthly life. You have given me charge over using the rest of the time. I serve you, waiting for the day my earthly time clock stops and eternal life begins with You. Amen.
Devotion by Violet Carr Moore
Adapted from In the Right Place: A Gallery of Treasured Moments (Carr Twins & Co., 2006) © Violet Carr Moore
“But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” (Luke 11:1 in the King James Version of the Holy Bible.) I heard something that made me stop and consider what love is really all about. The question was asked, “How…
“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:16
Young or old, rich or poor, famous or unknown… each person is given exactly 24 hours per day. There is no way to stop the clock or to “buy time”. The minutes keep ticking away relentlessly.
As God’s stewards, we need to use our time wisely and in a way that furthers His kingdom. In today’s society, it is so easy to fritter away hours on social media or mindless entertainment. But we need to make our time count.
What can we do today with our time that will make an eternal difference? Are we setting aside time each day for the work that God has called us to do?
Prayer: Lord, help me to be conscious of eternity. I only have a limited amount of time to spend on earth and I want to make it count for You.
Devotion by Liane Grant
When Mary, the mother of Jesus, told Him the host at the marriage feast in Cana had run out of wine, Jesus said, “…that’s not our problem” (John 2:4,Holy Bible, New Living Translation). Mary brushed His comment aside and told the servants to follow His instructions, no matter what He told them to do. Later, when the timing was right, Jesus said “fill the jars with water”. Then He told the servants to dip a sample and take it to the master of the feast.
“A host always serves the best wine first,” he [the host] said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!” (Verse 10)
Jesus is never early. Never late. His timing is perfect.
Prayer: Lord, thank You for this example of perfect timing to produce a miracle. Amen.
Devotion by Violet Carr Moore
“When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” [John 5:6] You’ve heard of him; the man at the pool of Bethesda. No wonder Jesus asked him if he wanted to…