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Even when [Abraham] reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in tents.” Hebrews 11:9 (NLT) In the Bible, God made more than 7,000 promises to us—but he has not guaranteed that he’ll fulfill every one of them instantly. As a follower of Christ, you can expect that God sometimes will test your faith. And one of those tests comes when God’s promises are delayed. You know you’re facing the When Test when you’re asking, “When, Lord? When are you going to answer my prayer? When am I going to get well? When am I going to graduate? When am I going to have a baby? When am I going to get that promotion?” Abraham followed God in faith to a place he didn’t know. But once he got there, he couldn’t even settle down. For three generations, Abraham and his family were basically nomads. Even though God had promised to give Israel to Abraham, he was going to do it on his own timetable. But Abraham continued to obey because he was confident in God’s

“It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.” Hebrews 11:8 (NLT) Sometimes, when God wants to grow your faith, he gives you the “Where Test.” If you’re asking, “Where, Lord?” and feel like God isn’t answering, you’re probably in the middle of a Where Test. God wants to see if you’ll follow him where he leads—even when you don’t understand, don’t want to go, or don’t know where you’re going. God used the Where Test with Abraham from the Bible. Hebrews 11:8 says, “It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going” (NLT). Abraham was living in a big city called Ur, which is in modern-day in Iraq. God told Abraham that he was going to make him into a great nation. But he wasn’t going to do it in Ur. He wanted Abraham to go to P

It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise.” Hebrews 11:11 (NLT) When God is growing your character, he sometimes will test you with what seems like an unsolvable problem. It’s when you ask, “How in the world am I going to solve this one?” God gave Abraham what seemed like an unsolvable problem. God promised Abraham that he was going to move him to a new country, give him the land in that country, and make him the father of a great nation. He also promised that Abraham would have so many children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, that they would populate the whole land. In other words, he was going to give Abraham, as his heritage, a great nation. But Abraham was 75 years old and childless when God gave him this promise. He moved him to the land of Canaan, which would eventually be called Israel. While he was there, he kept waiting for his wife to get pregnant. By age 99, he still

[Moses] kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible.” Hebrews 11:27 (NLT) Many people suffer from prolonged pain, whether it’s chronic physical, emotional, spiritual, relational, or financial pain. Maybe you’re experiencing extended suffering, and you feel like you might have to endure it for the rest of your life. The Bible tells how Moses had incredible persistence. He put up with enormous pain in his life. He endured significant criticism and conflict. He had every right to say, “How long, Lord?” Hebrews 11:24-26 says, “It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward” (NLT). Moses gave up everything that many people spend their lives trying to achieve—fame, fortune, pleas

Use the truth to make them holy. Your words are truth.” John 17:17 (GW) If you want to be transformed, you can’t be conformed. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 3:18-19, “Don’t fool yourself. Don’t think that you can be wise merely by being relevant . . . What the world calls smart, God calls stupid” (The Message). If you want God to transform your life, then you have to choose not to conform to what society and culture say you should be or do. But you can’t make this life change on your own power. Changing your life starts by changing the way you think, and that’s not something you can do by yourself. Ephesians 4:23 says, “Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes” (NLT). How does the Holy Spirit do that? Real change requires learning the truth. You may already know these famous words of Jesus: “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32 NLT). But did you know that the night before Jesus went to the cross, he prayed, “Use the truth to make them holy. You

No more lying, then! Each of you must tell the truth to the other believer, because we are all members together in the body of Christ.” Ephesians 4:25 (GNT) Real change requires honest community. There are some things that you will never be able to change on your own. You’re going to need people in your life for support—specifically, a small group of people who will be transparent and authentic with you. Sometimes in a football game, a player is so big that no opposing player can pull him down on his own. In the same way, some of the challenges in your life have to be team-tackled. That’s when you need a small group—but not just any group of people. Your small group should be made up of a few people you can talk with about your weaknesses and problems—all your hurts, habits, and hang-ups. That kind of intimacy doesn’t happen right away. When you first start a small group, you get together regularly. Then, over time, you begin to trust each other and develop a safe environment. Those pe

“You have heard me teach . . . Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.” 2 Timothy 2:2 (NLT) Even superstars need coaches. The top singers in the world have voice coaches, and the top Olympic athletes have coaches. The top CEOs have business coaches. Coaches help you maximize your strengths and minimize your weaknesses. This principle of coaching or mentorship is found throughout the Bible. Joshua was mentored by Moses. Elisha was coached by Elijah. Solomon was mentored and coached by David, and David was mentored by Samuel. The Paul mentored and coached Timothy and many other people. Paul says in 2 Timothy 2:2, “You have heard me teach . . . Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others” (NLT). Paul mentored Timothy, and then he expected Timothy to go and mentor faithful men who would then mentor and coach other faithful men. God expects the same of faithful men and women today, becau

We must get rid of everything that slows us down, especially sin that distracts us. We must run the race that lies ahead of us and never give up.” Hebrews 12:1 (GW) Real change requires cleaning house. If you’re one of those people who can’t find the motivation to get your physical house clean, then cleaning your spiritual house may seem like a bigger task. But this is where you need to use your best energy—because God wants you to spend your life becoming more like him. And becoming more like him sometimes requires you to make difficult changes. The Bible says it like this: “We must get rid of everything that slows us down, especially sin that distracts us. We must run the race that lies ahead of us and never give up” (Hebrews 12:1 GW). To decide what you need to clean in your spiritual house, you just have to figure out what needs to change in your life. Ask yourself questions like: What is slowing me down? If you want a healthy body, then maybe you need to keep healthier food in you

“Now glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of—infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes.” Ephesians 3:20 (TLB) Real change requires knowing God’s truth, cleaning your spiritual house, and honest community. And, like anything to do with spiritual growth, real change requires faith. In other words, you have to believe that you can change, with God’s help. How does God help you to change? There are two primary ways. He can transform you by his Spirit living in you and with his Word, the Bible. Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of—infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes” (TLB). What is the biggest thing you want to change in your life? No matter how big it is, it’s not too big for God. Maybe you’ve tried and failed to make the change

“I think you ought to know, dear brothers, about the hard time we went through in Asia. We were really crushed and overwhelmed, and feared we would never live through it. We . . . saw how powerless we were to help ourselves; but that was good, for then we put everything into the hands of God, who alone could save us, for he can even raise the dead.” 2 Corinthians 1:8-9 (TLB) Everyone experiences problems at work. But sometimes those problems keep growing to the point that they become overwhelming, and you feel like they’re about to swallow you up. What do you do then? You do what Paul did when he was overwhelmed. Remember, Paul was an apostle of Jesus Christ, and he traveled to share the good news. He says in 2 Corinthians 1:8-9, “I think you ought to know, dear brothers, about the hard time we went through in Asia. We were really crushed and overwhelmed, and feared we would never live through it. We . . . saw how powerless we were to help ourselves; but that was good, for then we put

Do all your work in love.” 1 Corinthians 16:14 (GNT) Why do you do what you do? If you’re just working so you can survive, then you are wasting your life. There is more to life than working just to live! The highest motivation for any kind of work is love. When you do anything in love, that pleases God. You can run through checklists all day and please God. You can pick up garbage and please God. You can look at a computer screen and please God. You can clean a hospital or hotel room and please God. How? By doing it in love. You can do anything in love. Sometimes you do the right thing but for the wrong motivation—and God says you don’t get any credit for that. God is more interested in why you do what you do than he is in what you do. The Bible says, “Do all your work in love” (1 Corinthians 16:14 GNT). People ask me, how have you stayed motivated being a teacher for over 40 years?” The answer is simple: I do it out of love. I love God, and I love people. Love is what keeps you going

The quality of each person’s work will be seen when the Day of Christ exposes it. For on that Day fire will reveal everyone’s work; the fire will test it and show its real quality.” 1 Corinthians 3:13 (GNT) God wants to use your job to make you more like Jesus. But learning Christ-like qualities such as responsibility, character, and love is never easy. To learn those things, you have to respond to people the way Jesus would—and that can be particularly difficult at work. So why should you make such an effort to become like Jesus in your job? First, because God is going to evaluate your work one day. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 3:13, “The quality of each person’s work will be seen when the Day of Christ exposes it. For on that Day fire will reveal everyone’s work; the fire will test it and show its real quality” (GNT). Everything you’ve done in your career eventually will be seen—because Christ is going to inspect it on the day of judgment. On that day, everyone’s work will be test

There is only one God, and Christ Jesus is the only one who can bring us to God. Jesus was truly human, and he gave himself to rescue all of us.” 1 Timothy 2:5 (CEV) The Bible says that every single person is lost without God. Without God, you’re directionless. Your potential eternal impact upon the world is unrealized. You’re without real joy. Your eternity in heaven isn’t secure. But the Good News is that God sent Jesus to seek and save the lost. The Bible says, “There is only one God, and Christ Jesus is the only one who can bring us to God. Jesus was truly human, and he gave himself to rescue all of us” (1 Timothy 2:5 CEV). If you’ve ever spent time in church, you’ve likely heard the word “salvation” many times. But you may not know what the Bible means when it uses that word. The word salvation is like a diamond. You can look at it from many different angles. Here are just a few: • Jesus came to rescue you. You can’t solve all your problems on your own. Without Jesus you’re trapp

Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ. God sacrificed Jesus on the altar of the world to clear that world of sin.” Romans 3:24-25 (The Message) The greatest gift you’ve ever been given wasn’t bought in a store. No cash exchanged hands. It wasn’t even wrapped. Yet it cost the Giver everything. The Bible says God sent his Son to Earth to give you the greatest gift ever. He came to Earth to die—so that you could be made right with God. Romans 3:24-25 says, “Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ. God sacrificed Jesus on the altar of the world to clear that world of sin” (The Message). So why did Jesus have to die? Let’s go back to the basics of people’s problem

“The LORD is good to everyone.” Psalm 145:9 (NLT) Many people think you only get good gifts from God if you are good. But that’s not how God works. He doesn’t keep a naughty list and a nice list when it comes to his blessings. The Bible says in Matthew 5:45, “[God] makes the sun rise on both good and bad people. And he sends rain for the ones who do right and for the ones who do wrong” (CEV). God doesn’t play favorites with his grace and his goodness. God offers his grace to everyone—even to people who don’t believe he exists. Whether or not you follow him, God gives you his grace every moment of your life. You wouldn’t even draw your next breath if it weren’t for the grace of God. As Psalm 145:9 says, “The LORD is good to everyone” (NLT). This is very different from what the world teaches. The world teaches that you get what you deserve in life. Hindus call it karma. It’s the belief that there is a cause and effect for everything you do. Good things happen to you because of the good

“What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if all you have is from God, why act as though you are so great, and as though you have accomplished something on your own?” 1 Corinthians 4:7 (TLB) We’ve talked about how trusting in God’s goodness helps you face life’s struggles. But what happens when you start thinking you earned the good things in your life, forgetting goodness comes from God? In Luke 12, Jesus tells the story of a rich man who was very successful but didn’t give God any of the credit for his prosperity. And so God tells the rich man, “You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?” Jesus finishes the story by saying, “Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God” (Luke 12:20-21 NLT). That’s warning! Prideful ingratitude is the sin that got Satan kicked out of heaven, and it’s the source of all sins. When you stop being grateful to God, you get into trouble: “Yes, they knew God, but

“Protect me, God, because I trust in you. I said to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord. Every good thing I have comes from you.'” Psalm 16:1-2 (NCV) Not everything that happens in your life is good. But God is good—and he is pouring his goodness into your life. Sometimes, circumstances may be very difficult, but God can take the bad and bring good out of it. Even in the worst times, you can trust this: God has a good purpose, a good plan, and a good reason. Psalm 16:1-2 says, “Protect me, God, because I trust in you. I said to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord. Every good thing I have comes from you’” (NCV). No matter where you are in life right now, you could use a reminder of God’s goodness. And sometimes the best way to remember something is to talk with God about it through prayer The greatest example of God’s goodness is Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. You won’t fully experience his goodness until you experience his salvation. If you don’t know Jesus as Savior, you can pray this right

Where is God When You Are In Pain “The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:18 (ESV) God shares the pain of every single person. When you’re hurting, he isn’t distant, aloof, or unfeeling. He is aware of your pain, and he cares. And he even shares the pain with you. God the Father shares your pain so naturally because he created you. The Bible says, “The one who formed their hearts understands everything they do” (Psalm 33:15 GW). In other words, God is never shocked by your emotions or your thoughts. He understands why you do what you do better than even you understand. He is more than capable to share your pain. Jesus, God’s Son, shares your pain because he suffered it on Earth. Hebrews 4:15 says: “Jesus understands every weakness of ours, because he was tempted in every way that we are” (CEV). He understands emotional pain, like abandonment, loneliness, criticism, discrimination, rejection, and betrayal. Jesus also understands physical pain. C

“Christ Jesus . . . gave himself to redeem the whole human race. That was the proof at the right time that God wants everyone to be saved.” 1 Timothy 2:5-6 (GNT) When Mary and Joseph took baby Jesus to be dedicated at the temple, an old man named Simeon was there. Simeon had been waiting his whole life to see the Messiah. He took one look at baby Jesus and said, “I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared for all people. He is a light to reveal God to the nations” (Luke 2:30-32 NLT). Jesus was a gift for all people. The Bible says in 1 Timothy 2:5-6, “Christ Jesus . . . gave himself to redeem the whole human race. That was the proof at the right time that God wants everyone to be saved” (GNT). One day, while John the Baptist was baptizing people in the Jordan River, Jesus came to him to be baptized. Here’s what happened: “John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’” (John 1:29 NIV) If Jesus hadn’t died for our sins,

“Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee.” Matthew 28:5-7 (ESV) If Jesus had not come back to life, then nobody in the world would have celebrated Christmas. Why? Because Jesus would’ve been a liar and a fake. Jesus claimed to be God, which a lot of people in history have done—but only Jesus proved it. He defeated death by raising himself back to life. The resurrection is the most important event in history—so significant that every other event in history is dated in relationship to it. On that first Easter morning, several women who loved Jesus came to his tomb to anoint his body with spices. A large stone had been placed at the opening of Jesus’ tomb. Suddenly there was an earthquake as an angel of the Lord came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone, sat o

“The Lord is always good. He is always loving and kind, and his faithfulness goes on and on to each succeeding generation.” Psalm 100:5 (TLB) If you grew up in a Christian home, you may have learned this childhood prayer: “God is great. God is good. Let us thank him for our food. Amen.” While simplistic, that prayer covers one key characteristic of God: his goodness. Is it really true that God is good all the time? Absolutely! But many people don’t live like they believe it. It can be hard to believe in God’s goodness for many reasons, including when you’re in pain. When you’re in conflict, you forget about it. When you’re depressed, you think his goodness is for everyone except you. And when you’re worried or stressed out, you can’t seem to find—much less think about—God’s goodness, even when it’s right in front of you. So how can you trust in God’s goodness when you don’t feel it? God’s Word, the Bible, reminds you of his goodness over and over. Psalm 100:5 says, “The Lord is always