Just Continue That Thought...

A thought by Max Lucedo, from his book, God Will Carry You Through (p. 95).  Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.   (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) And the story of Joseph from the Old Testament is such a story. Max says, “In the chaos called ‘Joseph’s life,’ I count one broken promise, at least two betrayals, several bursts of hatred, two abductions, more than one seduction, ten jealous brothers, and one case of poor parenting. Abuse. Unjust imprisonment. Twenty-four months of prison food. Mix it all together and let it sit for thirteen years, and what do you get? The grandest bounce back in the Bible! Jacob’s forgotten boy became the second most powerful man in the world’s most powerful country. The path to the palace wasn’t quick; it wasn’t painless, but wouldn’t you say that God took this mess and made it into something good?” He goes on, “And wouldn’t you think he can do the same with yours? Tally up the pain of your past. Betray...

A thought by Max Lucedo, from his book, God Will Carry You Through (p. 70).  Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.   (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Thanks, Max, that’s good news! The Bible in Jeremiah 30:24 (NIV) says, “The LORD will not turn back until he fully accomplishes the purposes of his heart.”  Max says, “There is nothing trite about your wheelchair, empty pantry, or aching heart. These are uphill, into-the-wind challenges.  But nor are they random. God is not sometimes sovereign. He is not occasionally victorious. He does not occupy the throne one day and vacate it the next. This season in which you find yourself may puzzle you, but it does not bewilder God. He can and will use it for his purpose. “God is in all days.  Stay focused on God.  ‘Be still and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46:10 NKJV) reads the sign on God’s waiting room wall. “You can be glad because God is good. You can be still b...

A thought by Max Lucedo, from his book, God Will Carry You Through (p. 61).  Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.  (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) And this that we are going through right now is a struggle. Max says: “• My e-mail today contains a prayer request for a young mother just diagnosed with lupus. Incarcerated by bad health.  • I had coffee yesterday with a man whose wife battles depression. He feels stuck (chain number one) and guilty for feeling stuck (chain number two).  • After a half-century of marriage, a friend’s wife began to lose her memory. He had to take her car keys away so she wouldn’t drive. He has to stay near so she won’t fall. They had hopes of growing old together. They still may, but only one of them will know the day of the week.” And so many of us feel imprisoned in our homes by this virus that we are facing.  He goes on, “Each of these individuals wonders, Where is heaven i...

A thought by Max Lucedo, from his book, God Will Carry You Through (p. 18).  Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.  (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) So, what is it? Max says, “Your destiny. Can we talk about it?” Max then says, “ You are God’s child.   He saw you, picked you, and placed you. ‘You did not choose me; I chose you’ (John 15:16). Before you are a butcher, baker, or cabinetmaker; male or female; Asian or black, you are God’s child. Replacement or fill-in? Hardly. You are his first choice. “… He chose you. The choice wasn’t obligatory, required, compulsory, forced, or compelled. He selected you because he wanted to. You are his open, willful, voluntary choice. He walked onto the auction block where you stood, and he proclaimed, ‘This child is mine.’ And he bought you ‘with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot’ (1 Peter 1:19 NKJV). You are God’s child.” Max goes on, “Y...

A thought by Max Lucedo, from his book, God Will Carry You Through (p. 9). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.  (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Look at this verse in Genesis 50:20 NASB, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.” Max says, “Joseph tied himself to the pillar of this promise and held on for dear life. Nothing in his story glosses over the presence of evil. Quite the contrary. Bloodstains and tearstains are everywhere. Joseph’s heart was rubbed raw against the rocks of disloyalty and miscarried justice. Yet time and time again God redeemed the pain. The torn robe became a royal one. The pit became a palace. The broken family grew old together. The very acts intended to destroy God’s servant turned out to strengthen him. “God, the Master Weaver. He stretches the yarn and intertwines the colors, the ragged twine with the vel...

A thought by Max Lucedo, from his book, God Will Carry You Through (p. vii).  Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.   (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) And we need this today, don’t we? Max reminds us, “Isaac’s last-minute reprieve from certain death at the hand of obedient Abraham. The children of Israel rescued from the brick-pits of Egypt. Saul became Paul, liberated from a path of hatred and violence. And all the redeemed, delivered from destruction by the gift of a Savior. “Again and again, stories of heavenly oversight and divine rescue capture our imagination and help build our trust that the same God will do the same for us. In stories of old, our heavenly Father demonstrated his might with divided seas, guiding clouds, blinding lights, miraculous healings, unquenchable fires. “The same God who stepped in and rerouted history cares about our own struggles, fears, tears, and hopes. Facing financial woes, relationship dead end...