NOVEMBER 2, 2025

   “We are always falling in love or quarreling, looking for jobs or fearing to lose them, getting ill and recovering, following public affairs. If we let ourselves, we shall always be waiting for some distraction or other to end before we can really get down to our work. The only people who achieve much are those who want knowledge so badly that they seek it while the conditions are still unfavorable. Favorable conditions never come.” 

― C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

JEREMIAH 33-35

1While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the Lord came to him a second time: 2“This is what the Lord says, he who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it—the Lord is his name: 3‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ (33:1-3) 

TITUS 3

1Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, 2to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.

3At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

9But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. 10Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them. 11You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful; they are self-condemned...14Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives.

JOURNAL 

It is so easy to become distracted, so easy to concern myself with things that I have no part in changing. That, I think, is the essence of Paul’s message here. We are saved by grace and called to live within that salvation... to take joy in the reality that God loves us and has placed us in this exact moment for a purpose. We are here to do good, to love well, and to remain focused on what He has entrusted to us... not to be consumed by useless arguments or distant concerns that steal our peace.

Often, my distractions feel like relief. It is oddly comforting to debate things that don’t touch my real life, to analyze what others are doing wrong, to immerse myself in problems beyond my reach. But all that does is keep me from the real work—the work within me, the work before me. It is easier to discuss the storms in someone else’s life than to face the rain falling on my own roof. Yet God’s joy isn’t found in avoidance, it’s found in engagement. His presence meets me not when I flee my circumstances, but when I enter them fully.

When Jeremiah was confined, God still spoke. When Paul was writing from prison, he still encouraged others to do what is good. Joy isn’t something waiting beyond hardship; it is something born within it. Every difficulty, every routine moment, every unseen act of obedience—these are sacred spaces where God whispers, “Call to me, and I will answer you.”

By engaging my present circumstances with humility and faith, I affirm that God wants me here, in this time, with these people, in this situation. He has given me specific abilities and graces for this season. When I live from that place, I can love authentically, serve joyfully, and move purposefully. That is where true joy lives—not in distraction, but in devotion.

13Now all has been heard;

here is the conclusion of the matter:

Fear God and keep his commandments,

for this is the duty of all mankind.

14For God will bring every deed into judgment,

including every hidden thing,

whether it is good or evil.

ECCLESIASTES 12:13-14