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God, thank You for welcoming me into Your kingdom. Thank You for accepting me, even through I don't have it all together. Your power is sufficient for my needs, so help me lean on Your strength today. Please help me walk gently and humbly with those around me. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

God, how majestic is Your name! When I look at the sky I see glimpses of Your glory. When I spend time in nature. I am amazed by Your creativity. And when I talk to the people You place in my life, I see Your beauty reflected in their faces. You are so good, and so worthy of all my honor and praise. Amen.

PROVERBS 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

What do you need to trust God with today? Picture yourself bringing your concerns to God, and hand them to Him one by one.

ISAIAH 41:10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

What problems do you need God to handle right now? Re-read Isaiah 41:10 and talk to Him about what's on your mind, God's hand never shakes and His confidence never waivers.

DAILY BIBLE READING: JOB 3-4 ACTS 7:44-60 JOB LAMENTS HIS BIRTH ELIPHAZ SPEAKS: THE INNOCENT PROSPER STEPHEN'S SPEECH THE STONING OF STEPHEN full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

DANIEL 2:1-5, 13-19 NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S DREAM 1In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him. 2Then the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be summoned to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king. 3And the king said to them, “I had a dream, and my spirit is troubled to know the dream.” 4Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.” 5The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “The word from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins. So the decree went out, and the wise men were about to be killed; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them. 14Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. 15He declared to Arioch, the king’s captain, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the matter known to Daniel. 16And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king. GOD REVEALS NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S DREAM 17Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, 18and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 19Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. INSIGHT Daniel’s humility in giving God all the glory for the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream (Daniel 2:24-30) echoes Joseph’s experience with Pharaoh in Genesis 41. Having been summoned from prison to interpret Pharaoh’s dreams, Joseph replied to Pharaoh: “I cannot do it . . . but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires” (v. 16). In both cases, these young men refused to leverage their ability for their own advantage. In ancient times, dreams were seen as messages from the gods. So, to be able to interpret dreams would have been a status builder. Joseph and Daniel both preferred glorifying God—giving Him the credit—to advancing themselves. By: Bill Crowder

CREDIT WHERE DUE Hundreds of guests filled a golden ballroom to celebrate a nonprofit’s fiftieth anniversary and honor those who made it possible, especially those who’d been involved for decades. A founding member shared with gratitude how, despite thousands of volunteer hours and millions of dollars in grants, they would not have succeeded without God. He repeated that the organization had blossomed not because of human effort—although there was plenty of that too—but because God had provided for them. Daniel understood the importance of ascribing good gifts to God. When King Nebuchadnezzar received a dream of the future, he called for all the wise men of Babylon to retell his dream and then interpret it. Dismayed, they protested that no one on earth could do what the king asked; it would require a supernatural power (Daniel 2:10-11). Daniel agreed, “No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries” (vv. 27-28). In faith, he asked God to reveal the dream to him. When his prayer was answered, Daniel was humble and quick to attribute the interpretation not to his own wisdom but to his great God (vv. 30, 45). It’s right to celebrate accomplishments, but at the same time we should give glory to God. The praiseworthy things in our lives can ultimately be traced back to Him. By: Karen Pimpo

REFLECT AND PRAY Where have you noticed God’s provision lately? Why is it sometimes hard to acknowledge Him?

Dear God, thank You for being the giver of all good things. In Jesus' name, Amen.

STORYBOOK FAITH A STORY OF RESTORATION HOW SUFFERING CAN LEAD IN TRIUMPH Jesus’s death may have seemed like defeat to the outside viewer. In fact, someone who was oblivious to his authority over death might have thought it was the end of his story. In the same way we can sometimes mistakenly think disappointments in our lives are final, when often they are only the beginning of our most victorious chapter.

Hebrews chapter 2 teaches us that, for Jesus, it took death to overcome death. If he had not done this, we wouldn’t be able to say that He can overcome every challenge. Thus, we would not be sure that we could also overcome every challenge. This is what it means when it says in verse 10 that salvation was made perfect through what He suffered. Our salvation is not based on a Savior that only overcame some things for us, but rather a Messiah who overcame even the strongest, most unforgiving adversary: the grave.

When He did this, Jesus broke the power of the enemy (the one who brings death) over our lives (2:15) AND—here comes the best part—because He broke the enemy’s power, He set us free from being slaves to the fear of death. This means we no longer have to fear trials and tribulations, afraid that we will be defeated. Instead, we can face them boldly because we know that Jesus overcame the very worst of them. If even death could not stop Jesus from completing His purpose, what makes you think that He will allow the situations you are facing in your life to defeat you? Our sufferings will not destroy us; rather, they will awaken in us the resurrection power of Christ.

See what Paul says in Philippians 3:8-10. Paul understood by revelation of the Holy Spirit that his sufferings did not have the power to destroy him. In fact, he goes as far as to say he counts them as rubbish (silly, small, unimportant) in light of the power of the resurrection. He is not referring to a physical resurrection in which he would die and return, but rather the ability to overcome any earthly circumstance and remain whole enough to inherit God’s promises, including eternal life.

As you read this today, what situations are you facing that feel like they mark the end of your story? As you’ve cried and suffered through your predicament, does it seem as though you are being defeated by your enemy? If so, remember that Jesus’s death overcomes all death. He tasted death for all (vs. 10) so that he could be a perfect and complete savior for every area of our lives. He gives us the power to overcome death in our finances, our marriages, our dreams, our minds, and in our physical bodies.

Your God has designed your story to be better after you have conquered your greatest threats. As we close this chapter, meditate on what the Lord promises through His word in 1 Peter 5:10.

Today, as you meditate on these scriptures, ask yourself:

What part of my story seems like it has been destroyed by suffering or loss?

What victories could God be getting ready to give me when I overcome these trials?

Have I been held captive by the fear of death in any area of my life?