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“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16–17).

“You put your suitcase in the car. Right, honey?” TJ’s mom asked as she pulled out of the driveway.

TJ was going to camp for the first time, and he was excited. “Yes,” he called from the back seat.

“Okay, just checking,” she smiled as she said it. For about a week, she had been packing TJ’s suitcase for camp. She kept it open in his room so she could add necessary items as she thought of them. TJ didn’t really know what all was in there, but he knew she had been to Walmart four times just to buy things for his trip.

TJ enjoyed his week at camp. But when he got home, he admitted to his mom that parts of his week hadn’t been the best. “I got really hungry in the afternoons, Mom, and I wanted to buy some snacks and souvenirs but didn’t have any cash.”

“Oh, TJ,” his mom replied. “I put your wallet in your suitcase. It had $30 in it for you to spend. Did you eat all the snacks I sent you?”

“What snacks?” TJ asked.

“Oh, honey. It was all in your suitcase. Did you even open it?”

“Not really, Mom,” replied TJ “I didn’t want to take the time. Were there clean clothes in there too?”

You’re probably thinking, TJ wasn’t very smart to hardly open his suitcase all week! But believe it or not, you actually make a similar choice when you don’t open your Bible. Here’s why: You’ve probably heard people compare the Christian life to a journey. Throughout this trip you need encouragement, food and supplies for each day, wisdom in dealing with various situations, and correction when you’re going the wrong way. God has packed everything you need into His Word, according to 2 Timothy 3:16–17. It is your “suitcase” for the “journey” of life. Just as it would be dumb to barely open your suitcase during a trip to camp, it isn’t wise to neglect opening God’s Word from day to day. And God promises that His Word can make you “perfect,” which means “complete.” It’s all there for you; you just have to open it.

God has packed everything you need for life into His Word.

My response:

» Am I spending time in God’s Word every day to get what I need for my journey through life?

» When I’m reading His Word, am I looking for truths about Him?

“He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3).

Today I was praying for several people. Many were sick, injured, or recovering from surgery. At the same time, my back was hurting.

I have noticed that most prayer requests between Christians and in the church are related to healing the body. We are shown multiple times in the Bible that God heals. Jesus healed the sick. God healed kings, lepers, nations. We pray for healing.

If you have studied the science of how our bodies work, you can see that from the beginning, God had a plan for healing. Take the eye for example. Tears wash dirt from the eyes. Then there is how God designed our skin to heal cuts and scrapes. Even our blood clots so wounds can heal. And of course our white blood cells attack infections.

So, with healing come tears, pain, and even scars. Healing takes time. Sometimes it is not how we expect it. But God heals according to His will. Some people are made whole, while others are allowed to keep their illnesses. And some are healed through death, because they’re taken to Heaven where there isn’t any more sickness, disease, pain, or suffering. Whether the body is whole, sick, or dying, it is to glorify God. We can depend on Him.

God chooses to heal, or not to heal, according to His plan.

My response:

» Will I pray and then wait for God to heal according to what He knows will be the best to bring Him glory?

» Will I pray for others who need God’s healing?

» Will I write down the answers to those prayers?

“For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments” (Ezra 7:10).

God’s people were not doing well. They had fallen into sin and were facing many enemies. They were discouraged and needed help. So God sent a man named Ezra to help His people (Ezra’s name means “help”). There is a reason that God used Ezra in such a great way. That reason is found in Ezra 7:10, “Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.”

The word “prepared” tells us that sometime in Ezra’s life, probably when he was a boy, he decided about his direction in life. He set his heart. Did you know that it is never too early to decide in your heart that you want to serve the Lord? Most missionaries around the world gave their lives to Christ when they were young people.

But what did Ezra prepare his heart to do? He decided to do three things. First, he wanted to “seek the law of the Lord.” That means he wanted to become an expert at knowing the Word of God! Have you ever decided to become an expert at something? When I was a boy, I spent a lot of time playing a game called foosball or table soccer. I remember playing against teenagers as a six year old and making them look very foolish. I became an expert at foosball. But how much better would it be for a young person to decide to become an expert at God’s Word? There is nothing more worthwhile than that!

Second, Ezra decided “to do” the Word of God. Whenever God said something, Ezra wanted to obey right away. Have you ever met a picky eater? (Maybe you are one yourself!) Some kids will poke at their food and say, “I don’t want peas,” or “I don’t like spinach.” They won’t eat it even though it is good for them. Some people are picky about God’s Word. They say, “I don’t want to do that command,” or “I don’t like this.” God doesn’t like it when we are picky eaters of His Word.

Last, Ezra decided “to teach in Israel statutes and judgments.” This means that Ezra decided early in life that he wanted to teach others about the Word of God. Maybe God would allow you to someday be a missionary or a pastor or a Sunday School teacher. Then you could teach others about the Lord, just like Ezra did!

God wants your heart!

My response:

» Am I preparing, or setting, my heart to serve the Lord?

» Do I do, or obey, God’s Word, the Bible?

» Who can I teach about what the Bible says?

“But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive” (Genesis 50:20).

Joseph’s brothers had wronged him. They had stripped him of his one prized possession—a coat his father had given him—and sold him into Egypt as a slave. He had spent years and years in a foreign land, away from his family. When he met up with his brothers again after many years, he was second in command over all Egypt. He was in a position to take revenge if he wanted to, and it might seem to us that he had a right to be angry and to get back at them for what they had done.

But Joseph did not take revenge on his brothers. Joseph understood two important things about God. First, Joseph knew that revenge is something we should leave up to God, not something we should take for ourselves. Joseph also understood that God has higher purposes in the wrongs others do to us. God’s higher purposes are always good. Joseph saw that God had used his brothers’ sin against him to bring him to Egypt, where he had a special plan to carry out. Joseph’s rise to power in Egypt put him in a position to save his entire family from dying in a famine. God had brought something good out of evil.

Has anyone wronged you? Purpose (“decide”) in your heart that you will have a correct view of God in the situation. Leave revenge up to Him, and have faith that God’s purpose is to bring about something good—even if you don’t see the good right away. God can see infinitely farther than we can. We need faith in Him and love for Him to have a farsighted vision of His ways. He is planning to bring good out of evil—either in this life or in eternity. We can be sure of that.

We can be confident that God will bring good out of evil.

My response:

» If someone has wronged me, have I told God about my hurt and anger and left them with Him?

» Have I left revenge to God?

» Do I believe God will in some way bring good out of a bad situation?