MAY 28, 2026

 “If you're reading this...

Congratulations, you're alive.

If that's not something to smile about,

then I don't know what is.” 

― Chad Sugg

1 CHRONICLES 23-25

6All these men were under the supervision of their father for the music of the temple of the Lord, with cymbals, lyres and harps, for the ministry at the house of God.

Asaph, Jeduthun and Heman were under the supervision of the king. 7Along with their relatives—all of them trained and skilled in music for the Lord—they numbered 288. (25:6-7)

JOHN 11:1-17

9Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. 10It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”

11After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”

JOURNAL 

What strikes me most in these chapters of Chronicles is not simply David’s leadership, but the tenderness and intentionality behind it. As he nears the end of his life, he is not consumed with preserving his image or building monuments to himself. Instead, he is carefully establishing places for others. Priests, gatekeepers, musicians, servants, entire generations are being prepared for worship and service. Even the musicians are named, counted, trained, and valued. That says something profound about the heart of God. Love notices people. Love sees worth where the world often sees insignificance. The Kingdom of God is not built merely on power, achievement, or visibility, but on relationship, belonging, and participation. Every person matters because every person is loved by God.

The more I reflect on Scripture, the more I think salvation is not simply about escaping punishment, but about being brought out of hiding and back into relationship with the God who fully sees us. Sin introduced shame, and shame caused humanity to hide. Ever since Eden, people have been constructing identities, accomplishments, control, religion, and pride to avoid being truly known. But love calls us back into the light. That is why 1 John says if we walk in darkness while claiming fellowship with God, we lie. Darkness is not merely immoral behavior. Darkness is hiding. It is living disconnected from truth and refusing to believe we could actually be loved as we really are. Walking in the light means living honestly before God. It means surrendering the false self we keep trying to protect.

That is exactly what Jesus models in John 11. The disciples are terrified to return to Judea because of the threats against Him, but Jesus is not governed by fear. He walks forward calmly because He is fully aligned with the Father. He is walking in the light. What stands out to me is that Jesus never seems frantic about preserving Himself. Fear always turns inward. Fear obsesses over survival, reputation, control, and outcomes. But love frees a person from constantly protecting themselves because they already know who holds them. Jesus walks toward danger because He trusts the Father completely.

That is the invitation for all of us. To stop spending our lives trying to manufacture worth or secure love through performance, success, religion, control, or image management. To stop hiding in darkness. To believe that in Christ we are already fully seen and still deeply loved. That changes gratitude entirely. Gratitude is no longer just appreciation for circumstances. It becomes the response of someone who realizes they are alive, known, forgiven, and loved by God in the middle of all their imperfection.

That kind of gratitude creates light. It opens our eyes to the sacredness of ordinary moments: breath, conversations, music, service, today itself. That is why simply being alive matters so much. Every day is another opportunity to walk in the light instead of fear. Another opportunity to stop hiding. Another opportunity to trust the love of God enough to be honest. If you are alive, then grace is still reaching for you. Light is still calling you forward. And love has not given up on you yet.

5This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all^bsin. 

1 JOHN 1:5-7

MAY 27, 2026

 “Humility is nothing but truth, and pride is nothing but lying.” 

― St. Vincent de Paul

1 CHRONICLES 20-22

 6Then he called for his son Solomon and charged him to build a house for the Lord, the God of Israel. 7David said to Solomon: “My son, I had it in my heart to build a house for the Name of the Lord my God. 8But this word of the Lord came to me: ‘You have shed much blood and have fought many wars. You are not to build a house for my Name, because you have shed much blood on the earth in my sight. 9But you will have a son who will be a man of peace and rest, and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side. His name will be Solomon,^a and I will grant Israel peace and quiet during his reign. 10He is the one who will build a house for my Name. He will be my son, and I will be his father. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’11“Now, my son, the Lord be with you, and may you have success and build the house of the Lord your God, as he said you would. 12May the Lord give you discretion and understanding when he puts you in command over Israel, so that you may keep the law of the Lord your God. 13Then you will have success if you are careful to observe the decrees and laws that the Lordgave Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.

JOHN 10:22-42

 22Then came the Festival of Dedication^b at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. 24The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”25Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, 26but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. 27My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all^c ; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 30I and the Father are one.”31Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, 32but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”33“We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”34Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I have said you are “gods” ’^d ? 35If he called them ‘gods,’ to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be set aside— 36what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? 37Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. 38But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” 39Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp.

JOURNAL 

These three chapters of Chronicles show the humility of David and how he willingly admits his failures and seeks God with his whole heart. The way he prepares the way for Solomon is so touching. David completely checks his ego in obedience, even though building the temple was his great ambition. 

Again the way Jesus evades direct accusation while still speaking truth shows his brilliance but also his deep understanding of the hearts of the Pharisees. He understands what they are trying to do but also knows it is not yet time for him. Again the humility even though being the Messiah is further confirmation of his deity.

I am amazed by how both David and Jesus refuse to assert their power and authority simply in obedience to God...they both refuse to "show off". Their faith and trust in God in the face of intense pressure is humbling and reassuring. Seeking God and his way in humility is the path to the eternal. There is no room for arrogance. Again though, it goes back to being more concerned with the moments of today rather than the implications of the future.  They both lived their lives taking care to serve God in the moment rather than wringing their hands over the future.

18Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. 19For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.-  

ROMANS 5:18-19

MAY 26, 2026

    " I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life..."

― Henry David Thoreau

1 CHRONICLES 17-19

7“Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. 8I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like the names of the greatest men on earth. 9And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 10and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also subdue all your enemies.(17:7-10)

JOHN 10:1-21

14“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 17The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

JOURNAL 

Several things this past week hit me in ways that feel significant. The first was the death of Kyle Busch at only 41 years old. From the outside, his life seemed full. Intentional. Successful. A man with purpose, family, influence, and still so much ahead of him. Something about it caught me off guard because it was a reminder that none of us are promised some future moment where we finally start living fully. We only get today.

It made me think again about the tension I constantly fight within myself. There is a part of me that wants ease. Comfort. To coast a little. To avoid hardship and difficulty whenever possible. But I recently read the idea that our bodies and minds were not designed primarily for comfort and ease as much as they were designed for challenge, responsibility, hardship, and growth. When we spend our lives trying to escape difficulty, we slowly diminish our capacity to become who we were created to be.

That immediately brought me back to the spirit of what Henry David Thoreau wrote in Walden. He described the desire to truly live deeply and fully rather than sleepwalk through life in resignation and comfort. I have always resonated with that because deep down I think most people long for a life that feels awake and meaningful, not merely safe.

That same theme runs through the passages in 1 Chronicles and John.

In 1 Chronicles 17, God reminds David that He called him out of ordinary places and into purpose. David started as a shepherd in a field, yet God had been with him through every battle, every uncertainty, and every hardship. The struggles were not separate from the calling. They were part of what formed him into the man he was meant to become.

Then in John 10, Jesus describes Himself as the Good Shepherd who willingly lays down His life for His sheep. There is incredible intentionality in that image. Jesus was not drifting through life trying to avoid pain or preserve comfort. He lived with complete clarity of purpose and complete surrender to the will of the Father. Real life was found through sacrifice, love, courage, and surrender rather than self-protection.

I think that is part of why Dead Poets Society impacted me so deeply when I first watched it the summer before my senior year of high school. Something about that movie stirred this awareness in me that life was meant to be lived boldly and intentionally. It awakened this longing to not waste my life. To become something meaningful. To live courageously instead of passively drifting through the years.

And honestly, I believe that longing is from God.

In John 10, Jesus contrasts His mission with the work of the thief who comes to steal, kill, and destroy. The enemy wants distraction, numbness, fear, passivity, and comfort to slowly drain the life out of us. But Jesus says He came so that we could experience life to the fullest.

Not a shallow life.
Not merely an easy life.
A full life.

A life where we love deeply, risk greatly, create boldly, serve faithfully, and refuse to waste the time we have been given.

Because in the end, the goal is not simply to arrive at death safely and comfortably. The goal is to fully become who God created us to be before we get there.

 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

JOHN 10:10

MAY 25, 2026

  “The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes.” 

― Winston S. Churchill

1 CHRONICLES 14-16

 8Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name;

make known among the nations what he has done.

9Sing to him, sing praise to him;

tell of all his wonderful acts.

10Glory in his holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.

11Look to the Lord and his strength;seek his face always.34

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

35Cry out, “Save us, God our Savior;

gather us and deliver us from the nations,

that we may give thanks to your holy name

and glory in your praise.”

36Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,

from everlasting to everlasting.

JOHN 9:24-41

35Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

36“Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”

37Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”

38Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.

39Jesus said,^a “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”

40Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?”

41Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.

JOURNAL 

The Pharisees desperately sought to undermine Jesus, unable to conceive that someone outside their ranks could be chosen by God. Their resistance was rooted in arrogance and traditionalism, unable to see beyond their preconceived notions of who the Messiah should be (John 9:24-29).

This resonates deeply, reminding me that God often chooses the most unlikely individuals to achieve extraordinary things—overturning human expectations and norms. David, a shepherd boy turned king, or Peter, a fisherman chosen as an apostle (1 Samuel 16:7; Matthew 4:18-20). Reflecting on this, I recognize my frequent anxiety about future uncertainties. My mind tends to wander into the unknown, seeking comfort in imagined scenarios that have not occurred. Scripture clearly instructs us that worry achieves nothing and distracts from the joy and purpose of today (Matthew 6:34).

Too often, tasks—whether mundane or significant—are approached as obligations rather than opportunities for joy and thanksgiving. Whether reading scripture, exercising, or working, the objective is too frequently completion rather than embracing the moment itself. Yet each day, each moment, is a precious gift from God, worthy of gratitude and enjoyment (Psalm 118:24).

Therefore, the true challenge lies in cultivating gratitude and joy within every circumstance, recognizing God's presence and love in the everyday details of life. By living in this mindful state, I honor God and illuminate His grace in the ordinary moments. Indeed, as Christ said, “So the last will be first, and the first will be last,” underscoring the divine reversal of worldly expectations (Matthew 20:16).

16“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” 

- MATTHEW 20:16

MAY 24, 2026

 “I see a world on the edge of a blade. Without balance, it will fall.” 

― Victoria Aveyard

1 CHRONICLES 11-13

15Three of the thirty chiefs came down to David to the rock at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. 16At that time David was in the stronghold, and the Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem. 17David longed for water and said, “Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem!” 18So the Three broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out to the Lord. 19“God forbid that I should do this!” he said. “Should I drink the blood of these men who went at the risk of their lives?” Because they risked their lives to bring it back, David would not drink it.(11:31-33)

JOHN 9:1-23

1As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

6After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. 7“Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

JOURNAL 

These passages from Chronicles highlight the remarkable devotion and courage of David's mighty warriors. David was greatly blessed with skilled and committed individuals who supported him wholeheartedly, enabling him to become the celebrated king he was (1 Chronicles 11:10-14). Intriguingly, David's most profound failures often occurred when he acted in isolation or without proper accountability (2 Samuel 11-12).

In John's Gospel, Jesus healing the blind man illustrates spiritual illumination and the disruption it caused among religious leaders. Their inability to grasp Jesus’ identity as the Messiah stemmed from their rigid expectations focused solely on earthly deliverance rather than spiritual transformation (John 9:13-16).

Balance is a critical theme here—how can I achieve and maintain it in my life? Frequently, I struggle between overestimating my significance or underestimating my value. Scripture reminds me my life is precious, imbued with unique gifts and talents by God (Psalm 139:14), yet fleeting, a mere breath in the grand scheme of eternity (James 4:14). Maintaining proper perspective means continually honoring God while avoiding the pitfalls of pride or self-deprecation.

Achieving balance requires daily, intentional spiritual practices: scripture study, prayer, meditation, and surrendering every circumstance and decision to God (Romans 12:1-2). Without this discipline, I risk veering to unhealthy extremes—either inflated self-importance or diminished self-worth, both spiritually detrimental paths.

David himself struggled with this balance, yet scripture transparently portrays his life, allowing me to see both his failures and God's consistent, redeeming grace (Psalm 51). The apostles faced similar challenges, Peter notably exemplifying the balance between human error and divine restoration (John 21:15-19).

Ultimately, balance is found in closeness to God—relying on His guidance and grace through every trial and triumph. God's redemptive power assures that even my mistakes serve His purpose and bring about spiritual growth (Romans 8:28). This divine gift surpasses any worldly success, offering eternal peace and fulfillment.

1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

ROMANS 12:1-2