Day 17

09 Feb Day 17

Scripture: ‭‭1 Daniel 9:4 NLT – “I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: ‘O Lord, you are a great and awesome God! You always fulfill your covenant and keep your promises of unfailing love to those who love you and obey your commands.’”

Observation: No matter what we walk through in life, we are never alone. We serve a God who loves us through our good and bad days. He doesn’t judge us or hold our missteps against us. All he asks for is that we keep striving to love him and love those around us. 

Application: Do you remember the children’s book “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” by Judith Voirst? You may recall that this literary icon narrates the story of Alexander and how from the moment he woke up and stepped in bubblegum, the day just went downhill from there. Do you ever have any days like that? As a child, you probably found this story as comical as I did; as an adult, however, it seems all too familiar some days!

Today, for example, was one such day for me. I woke up (no bubble gum on the shoe, thankfully), but during a twelve hour shift, it just seemed like EVERYTHING went wrong. You see, I’m a supervisor in a 9-1-1 Center, so I’m pretty familiar with days going sideways; yet this one just seemed to top them all. If you’re anything like me, you probably care deeply about what you do – whether that is your career, as a parent, student, or in ministry. So, when things go wrong, as they undoubtedly will (we’re human after all), it’s common to blame yourself and go home feeling frustrated, angry, or burnt out.

Let’s be honest, everything is out of our control. It makes me uncomfortable just saying that out loud, by the way. However, there is someone in control, and he is SO much better at it than us. When I am standing in our church on a weekend, or gathering online, belting out worship music at the top of my lungs, he is loving me through every bad note.

Our dreadful day may seem like a game changer to us. I mean, I was literally updating my resume by 9:00am this morning… while at work (don’t tell my boss). Here’s the kicker – we serve a God who has every detail of every second of every day already planned out. So why are we obsessing? He sees us. He knows us. And he loves us. Through every bad second of every bad day that we feel we’re walking alone in. We’re never alone. That is the beauty of being a follower of Jesus. No matter what you’re experiencing, you can run to your Father in heaven, he will wrap his love around you, and you can sit in his presence. Does that mean that tomorrow will be better? Maybe. Maybe not. But here’s what I know. I will start the day with my Bible open, my worship will be loud, and my heart full. (And I’ll try not to step in bubble gum).

Prayer: Father, thank you for loving me through every single imperfect day. When I stumble, I know you will catch me. When I feel alone, I know that you are by my side. Lord, I know that I never have to do anything to earn your love, but knowing you makes me want to pour that love out to others. As I go about my day, Lord, please show me who needs to hear this. In Jesus name I pray, amen.

Going Deeper:

• Are you holding on to something in your life (a circumstance or situation) that you need to let go of? Relinquish to God?
• Jesus sacrificed himself because he loved us so much, he wanted to take on all the sin of the world.  Read Hebrews 10 for more clarity.
• Is there someone in your life you could show more grace and love to even though they may not deserve it?  

Jayme Rollo/Communications Writing Director, JLI Evening Program Graduate 2021

Jayme Rollo currently serves as a leader for overseeing the written communications throughout The Journey and has been gathering since 2017. She loves to attend church with her husband Brian who serves on the Impressions Team, and her 5 year old daughter who loves to gather with Journey Kids. She is a 2021 graduate of the JLI Evening Program that has refined her leadership skills.