JULY 9, 2026

   “I do the very best I know how, the very best I can, and I mean to keep on doing so until the end.” 

― Abraham Lincoln

“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.” 
― Martin Luther King Jr.

JOB 40-42

7“Brace yourself like a man;

I will question you,

and you shall answer me.

8“Would you discredit my justice?

Would you condemn me to justify yourself?

9Do you have an arm like God’s,

and can your voice thunder like his?

10Then adorn yourself with glory and splendor,

and clothe yourself in honor and majesty.

11Unleash the fury of your wrath,

look at all who are proud and bring them low,

12look at all who are proud and humble them,

crush the wicked where they stand.

13Bury them all in the dust together;

shroud their faces in the grave.

14Then I myself will admit to you

that your own right hand can save you. (40:7-14)

ACTS 15:22-41

Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” 37Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. 41He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

JOURNAL 

The thread that keeps emerging throughout Scripture is sacrifice. From the first sacrifices in the Old Testament to the cross of Christ, the pattern is the same. Something must be surrendered to make room for something greater. Sacrifice is not God taking from us for the sake of loss. It is God inviting us to let go of what keeps us from fully receiving Him.

Job sacrificed something few of us would ever choose. He lost his possessions, his health, his reputation, and those he loved. Yet in the end, the greatest sacrifice was not any of those things. It was his need to understand. Standing before the greatness of God, Job surrendered his demand for an explanation. He accepted that God is God and that His wisdom stretches far beyond anything a human mind can comprehend. In that surrender, he found peace.

Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice for sin, removing forever the need to earn God's forgiveness. But that does not mean sacrifice disappeared from the life of a believer. It simply changed. My sacrifice is no longer an animal on an altar. It is my pride, my fear, my control, my desire to justify myself, my obsession with outcomes, and everything that keeps me from living fully in God's Spirit. Every day I choose to surrender those things, I make room for His power, His love, and His discipline to shape my life.

Even Paul and Barnabas demonstrate this reality. Their disagreement was painful, but each willingly sacrificed personal preference for the sake of continuing the mission. God used what appeared to be a setback to expand His kingdom even further. God continually brings life out of surrendered lives.

The call for me is simple. Stop trying to hold on to everything. Sacrifice whatever keeps me from becoming the man God created me to be. Lay down my need for certainty. Lay down my need for recognition. Lay down my fear of failure. Then take whatever opportunities God places before me and pour myself completely into them. Whether I am teaching, coaching, leading my family, or simply mowing the yard...let each task become an offering of gratitude.

That is what it means to fix my eyes on Jesus. He sacrificed everything to make room for life. I honor that sacrifice by surrendering myself each day, trusting that whatever I place in God's hands will always be exchanged for something far greater than I could ever hold onto myself.

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

HEBREWS 12:1-3

JULY 8, 2026

 “I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had no where else to go. My own wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for that day.” 

― Abraham Lincoln

JOB 38-39

1Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said:

2“Who is this that obscures my plans

with words without knowledge?

3Brace yourself like a man;

I will question you,

and you shall answer me.

4“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?

Tell me, if you understand.

5Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!

Who stretched a measuring line across it?

6On what were its footings set,

or who laid its cornerstone—

7while the morning stars sang together

and all the angels^a shouted for joy? (38:1-7)

ACTS 15:1-21

19“It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. 21For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”

JOURNAL 

God finally answers Job, and what strikes me most is that He never gives Job the explanation he has been demanding. Instead, He asks question after question about the foundations of the earth, the stars, the oceans, the weather, the animals, and the countless mysteries that sustain creation every moment. It is as if God is saying, "If you cannot comprehend how I hold together what you can see, how could you possibly understand everything you cannot?"

The more I think about that, the more humbled I become. We live in a universe so vast and intricate that even the greatest scientific minds only scratch the surface of how it all works. Every heartbeat, every sunrise, every law of physics, every living creature operates because God continually sustains it. If I cannot explain even a fraction of that, why do I so often believe I am capable of judging God's purposes in my own life?

Job's friends made the mistake of believing they understood how God rewards and disciplines people. Job made the mistake of believing that because he could not understand his suffering, God must have become distant or unconcerned. Both were trying to fit an infinite God into the limits of human understanding.

Acts 15 reveals a different spirit. The apostles recognize that following God is a process. They refuse to place unnecessary burdens on new believers, choosing instead to help them take faithful steps forward. They understand that God is at work in ways larger than any one person can fully comprehend.

As I read these passages together, I realize that my calling is not to understand everything. My calling is to trust the One who does.

That realization exposes something in me. For years I have rightly rejected the idea that God's blessing is measured by comfort, success, or recognition. But somewhere along the way I allowed that truth to become an excuse for lowering my standard. I convinced myself that since outcomes are not what matter, it was acceptable to coast at times, to mail it in, or to settle for "good enough." God's response to Job removes that excuse.

If the Creator of galaxies is worthy of my worship, then every task deserves my best. Every conversation deserves my attention. Every lesson I teach, every athlete I coach, every problem I solve, every moment with my family becomes an opportunity to reflect His excellence. I cannot control the outcome, but I can surrender fully to the work He has placed before me today.

The beauty is that this pursuit is no longer driven by fear of failure or the need to prove myself. It is inspired by awe. The God who governs stars, oceans, and galaxies has invited me to walk with Him today. That is enough. His Spirit is enough. His presence is enough.

Whether today's work leads to applause or criticism, prosperity or hardship, success or apparent failure is secondary. My responsibility is simply to live inspired by His greatness and empowered by His Spirit, offering Him my very best in whatever He has entrusted to me today.

Humility is not thinking less of the work before me. Humility is realizing that because I serve such an extraordinary God, even the smallest act of obedience becomes sacred. I don't need to understand the whole universe. I simply need to faithfully steward this day.

12Before a downfall the heart is haughty,

but humility comes before honor.

PROVERBS 18:12

JULY 7, 2026

  “My dreams are worthless, my plans are dust, my goals are impossible.

All are of no value unless they are followed by action.” 
― Og Mandino, The Greatest Salesman in the World

JOB 35-37

11If they obey and serve him,

they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity

and their years in contentment.

12But if they do not listen,

they will perish by the sword^a

and die without knowledge.(36:11-12)

ACTS 14

8In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. 9He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed 10and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.

11When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” 12Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. 13The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.

14But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: 15“Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. 16In the past, he let all nations go their own way. 17Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” 18Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

19Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. 20But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

JOURNAL 

Avoidance is deceptive because in the moment it can feel like safety. It can feel like wisdom, like patience, like waiting for the right time, or like protecting myself from something that feels too big to face. But the truth is that avoidance rarely removes the problem. Most of the time, it only moves the problem into the future and allows it to grow. That is where procrastination becomes so dangerous. It offers temporary relief, but it often creates greater pressure later. What I avoid today can become overwhelming tomorrow. What feels manageable now can become massive when I refuse to engage it. In that way, avoidance is not really peace. It is borrowed comfort that eventually demands repayment with interest.

This connects deeply to the way fear works in me. When I feel out of control, when I face authority, when I face uncertainty, when I feel the possibility of failure or exposure, something in me wants to check out. I do not always run in obvious ways. Sometimes I delay. Sometimes I distract myself. Sometimes I convince myself I will deal with it later. But underneath, there is often a deeper fear that facing the problem will threaten my identity, my security, or my sense of peace. But action is where faith becomes real. Dreams, plans, intentions, and goals have no weight unless they are followed by obedience. It is easy to think about the person I want to become. It is easy to write about courage, discipline, and surrender. But the truth is revealed in the next step. The truth is revealed when I engage the thing I would rather avoid.

In Job, Elihu presents a view of life that sounds simple. If someone obeys and serves God, they will prosper and live in contentment. If they do not listen, they will perish without knowledge. There is truth in the call to obedience, but the danger is turning obedience into a transaction. Job’s life does not fit that formula. Paul’s life does not fit that formula either. Faithful action does not always lead to ease. Sometimes obedience leads straight into resistance, misunderstanding, pain, and suffering.

Paul shows this clearly in Acts 14. He speaks boldly in Lystra, and a man who had never walked is healed. The crowd is amazed, but they misunderstand the miracle and try to worship Paul and Barnabas as gods. Paul immediately redirects the glory back to the living God. He does not exploit the moment. He does not hide from the confusion. He steps into it and tells the truth. Then the crowd turns. The same people who wanted to worship him are persuaded against him. They stone Paul and drag him outside the city, thinking he is dead. That kind of rejection and suffering would be enough to make most people retreat permanently. But Paul gets up. He rises. Then he goes back into the city.

That is the opposite of avoidance. Paul does not go back because it is comfortable. He does not go back because the outcome is guaranteed. He goes back because his life is anchored in something deeper than self-protection. He is not living to avoid pain. He is living to obey God. He is living as a conduit of God’s power, love, and discipline.

That challenges me because I can see how often I want faith without engagement. I want peace without facing the thing that is stealing it. I want growth without discomfort. I want breakthrough without the first step. But that is not how perseverance is formed. James says to consider it joy when we face trials because the testing of faith produces perseverance, and perseverance must finish its work so that we may be mature and complete.

Avoidance interrupts that work. It keeps me immature. It keeps me circling the same fears. It allows small problems to become large ones. It allows fear to sit on the throne while I wait for a perfect moment that may never come. I do not need to solve everything at once. I do not need to control the outcome. I do not need to command success. But I do need to take the next honest step. I need to open the bill, make the call, have the conversation, start the work, tell the truth, ask the question, or face the thing I have been delaying.

That is where freedom begins. Not in dramatic gestures, but in faithful movement. One honest step breaks the loop. One act of obedience interrupts avoidance. One moment of engagement proves that fear does not get to rule me. I want to live that way. I want to stop mistaking avoidance for safety. I want to stop allowing temporary relief to create future chaos. I want to become the kind of man who can feel anxiety and still act with power, love, and discipline. I want to rise when I am knocked down, return when obedience calls me back, and trust God with the outcome.

Because avoiding the hard thing does not create peace. Surrendering to God and taking the next faithful step does.

2Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^a whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

JAMES 1:2-4

JULY 6, 2026

    “What is success? It is being able to go to bed each night with your soul at peace” 

― Paulo Coelho

JOB 33-34

7Is there anyone like Job,

who drinks scorn like water?

8He keeps company with evildoers;

he associates with the wicked.

9For he says, ‘There is no profit

in trying to please God.’(34:7-9)

ACTS 13:24-52

38“Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses.

49The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. 51So they shook the dust off their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium. 52And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

JOURNAL 

Watching Young Washington and the documentary on Thomas Jefferson reminded me that history has a tendency to expose the contradictions of every person. Washington wrestled with fear, Jefferson lived with contradictions that continue to be debated centuries later, Paul was persecuted, Job questioned everything, and yet God's purposes continued. None of their failures or imperfections diminished who God was. If anything, they revealed that God's faithfulness has never depended on human perfection.

I realized that much of my own fear of failure has been rooted in something that sounds spiritual but actually isn't. Somewhere deep inside I have believed that if I fail, then I somehow misrepresent God, as though His reputation depends upon my performance. But that gives me far too much importance. God's identity is not fragile. His goodness does not rise and fall with my successes or failures. He was God before me, He will be God after me, and His love remains constant regardless of whether I reflect it well today.

A light bulb does not create electricity. It simply receives it and turns it into light. When the room is dark because the bulb has burned out, no one concludes that electricity has ceased to exist. The problem is not the source but the connection. In the same way, I do not generate God's love, wisdom, power, or goodness. I receive them. My calling is simply to remain connected so that His life shines through mine.

That realization takes an enormous burden off my shoulders. Failure is no longer evidence that God has abandoned me or that His work has ended. Sometimes failure simply reveals that something in me needs repair. Maybe fear has interrupted the connection. Maybe pride has clouded the lens. Maybe exhaustion has weakened the reflection. The answer is not to manufacture more light through greater effort but to reconnect to the Source.

This is exactly what Acts proclaims. Forgiveness and justification are gifts received, not achievements earned. Through Jesus I am set free from the impossible burden of proving myself worthy. That freedom allows me to stop protecting my image and start pursuing faithfulness. Paul and Barnabas could be rejected, persecuted, and driven from a city, yet still leave filled with joy and the Holy Spirit because their identity was never anchored to public approval. Their peace came from remaining connected to God, not from controlling the outcome.

Even Job, in all of his confusion, ultimately reminds me that understanding is not the goal. Trust is. I will never see the entire picture. I cannot measure God's faithfulness by today's circumstances any more than a broken light bulb can measure the power station supplying it. My responsibility is not to defend God's reputation through flawless performance. My responsibility is to surrender, receive His love, and faithfully reflect whatever He gives me today.

Perhaps success really is what Paulo Coelho described. It is not going to bed having accomplished everything I planned. It is laying my head down with my soul at peace because I remained connected to the One who never changes. I trusted Him instead of myself. I received instead of manufactured. I reflected instead of performed.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." That is the invitation every morning. Stay connected to the Source. The light will take care of itself.

5Trust in the Lord with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

6in all your ways submit to him,

and he will make your paths straight.^a

PROVERBS 3:5-6

JULY 5, 2026

   “Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty… I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life. I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well.” 

― Theodore Roosevelt

JOB 31-32

16“If I have denied the desires of the poor

or let the eyes of the widow grow weary,

17if I have kept my bread to myself,

not sharing it with the fatherless—

18but from my youth I reared them as a father would,

and from my birth I guided the widow—

19if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,

or the needy without garments,

20and their hearts did not bless me

for warming them with the fleece from my sheep,

21if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,

knowing that I had influence in court,

22then let my arm fall from the shoulder,

let it be broken off at the joint.

23For I dreaded destruction from God,

and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things.(31:16-23)

ACTS 13:1-23

9Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10“You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? 11Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.”

Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

JOURNAL 

Taking personal inventory is a good and necessary step in the journey of following Christ. To go through my actions and see if I have hurt anyone or done something that would have wronged another is good and healthy and keeps me humble. It also has a way of helping me to not take on things that are not my responsibility. 

To see Job go through his inventory of actions...weighing each as he searches for possible reasons for his current circumstances is both encouraging and discouraging. For Job never knew the reasons behind his fall and suffering. We as the reader, know it had nothing to do with the wrongs and actually was about all the good he did. We get to see behind the scenes but Job never does. Yet in the end it draws him closer to God.

To understand and know the depth of human darkness is to understand that there are those that will oppose God and anything good. Yet in all honesty it also reveals that I am no innocent bystander.  I have erred again and again, yet I am forgiven, redeemed and given all the joys of life. This is God's gift and too often I take it for granted. Too often I see life through the lens of what I don't have, didn't get, or how difficult my circumstance is rather than all the ways I have actually been blessed. It's mostly subtle but if I am really honest...it's always there.

However, seeing my life in terms of the blessings flips that switch in my brain and fuels me to want to make the most of this gift, make the most of this day. .

23Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 

 2 CORINTHIANS 6:3-10