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“The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord” (Lamentations 3:25–26).

“Wait.” Most of the time we don’t like to hear that word, do we? Sometimes we are looking forward to something, like a vacation or a birthday, because we know that something fun or exciting is going to happen. When we have to wait for this type of event, it seems like forever before it comes. But it’s just as hard to wait for something to be over as it is for something that we want to happen. For example, when we are in the dentist chair getting a tooth drilled to fill a cavity, it seems to take a very long time, doesn’t it? No matter what, it’s hard to wait!

Lamentations 3:25 and 26 were written by a prophet named Jeremiah. A prophet was called by God to bring God’s people a special message from Him. Sometimes the people the prophet spoke to were not nice, because they did not want to hear what God had to say. They wanted to keep living the way they wanted to live, instead of living God’s way. That’s what happened to Jeremiah. One time, people threw him into an empty cistern (“a pit that can hold water”). Jeremiah did not have an easy life, but in these verses he writes, “The Lord is good unto them that wait for him.” Jeremiah understood that sometimes waiting, even though it’s hard to do, is really God’s way of showing good to us.

How can waiting be good? We must remember that God is always working for our good, even if we must wait for something that we really want, or even when we must wait for a hard time to be over. If God is always working for our good, then what should we do as we wait for Him? Lamentations 3:25 and 26 say we should first seek God. That means we need to talk to Him through prayer. Don’t be afraid to tell God how hard it is to wait. Ask Him to give you the faith you need to trust Him while you wait. These verses also tell us we should wait quietly and expect God to help us. Waiting quietly means that we don’t complain or fight against what God is trying to do for us. That’s sometimes very hard, but God’s timing is different from our timing. As we wait for Him quietly and with faith that He will work things for our good, our faith will grow. This pleases the Lord. So, the next time you must wait for something, remember that God is working for your good, even though it may be hard to wait.

When God makes us wait, waiting is what’s best for us.

My response:

» When I must wait for something, will I seek God by praying to Him?

» When I must wait for something, I will not complain. I will trust God instead!

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness” (Isaiah 41:10).

Mountain climbers love heights. Roller coasters are nothing to them; they want to be up really high. But climbing mountains can be incredibly dangerous. Oftentimes, experienced mountain climbers (mountaineers) will hang by a single rope off the side of a cliff. Dangling thousands of feet above the ground below them, climbers must be able to trust the rope that is holding them. If the rope breaks, they will die.

Mountaineers describe a good rope as their lifeline. In August 2011, Hans Bauer learned just how important it is to have a reliable rope. While climbing Cathedral Ledge, a cliff over three hundred fifty feet tall, Bauer unhooked a piece of his climbing gear by accident, causing him to free-fall for a hundred feet. He would have died, but his rope stopped his fall before he hit the ground. When his rope was examined later, it was barely still in one piece, but it had saved his life.

If you think putting that much trust in a rope is crazy, most people would agree with you. But while you may not want to put that much trust in a rope, God wants you to put that much trust in Him. In Isaiah 41:10 God promises to “uphold” us. For mountain climbers, there is nothing more important than having a rope they can absolutely trust to hold them up if they fall. God gives Christians that same confidence for daily life. When we come to the most difficult parts of our lives, just as mountaineers can trust the strength of their rope, we can trust that God is in control of everything that happens and that He will help us through even the most difficult circumstances if we trust Him.

We can trust God in even the most difficult situations of life because He has promised to uphold us.

My response: When bad things happen in my life, do I trust God’s promise to uphold me?

“For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him” (Psalm 103:11).

“Look Dad, I see Orion’s Belt,” said Sarah. She pointed to three stars in a row right above them. Sarah and her dad were lying on a blanket on the porch, trying to find the constellations she had learned about in school.

“You’re right,” her dad said. “Do you see that bright star by his left foot? That one’s called Rigel.”

“That’s a nice name,” said Sarah. “How far away is Rigel?”

“I don’t know exactly. But if you traveled your whole life, you couldn’t get there.”

“It’s hard to imagine something being that far away,” said Sarah.

Sarah was right. It is hard to imagine traveling for a whole lifetime and never getting to the stars. But do you know something else that is hard to imagine? God’s mercy, or kindness. Psalm 103:11 says, “For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.” That means that if we could stack up all the things God gives people in His mercy, the pile would be so high that it would not fit under the stars. God’s mercy allows Him to forgive us and to give us good things that we do not deserve. Aren’t you glad that God has so much mercy?

God’s mercy is greater than I can imagine.

My response:

» How has God showed me mercy?

» Have I thanked God for His mercy today?

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness” (Genesis 1:1–4).

The Bible tells us that God created the heavens and the earth. It’s something we read and reread from the time we are kids. As we grow up, we hear people talking about different ways in which the world and its inhabitants came into being. While some people teach evolution, many questions remain; for example, Did life come from another world?

As time has gone by, we have been learning that an increasing number of scientists are questioning their theories of evolution. The more they dig deep into the origins of the universe, the more they are becoming convinced that the universe and everything in it were not caused by an accident or by the work of human hands. There has to be a master planner behind all this.

If we go back to Genesis, that great old book of the Bible, we will see how clearly it defines how God made the heaves, the earth, light, darkness, the seas, the grass, the herbs, the fruits, the sun, the moon, the stars, and much, much more. All of creation shouts out one enormous, life-changing truth: there is a God! He is the creator behind the creation and the designer behind this beautiful place, our world.

Do you want to know something more awesome that that? This God, this Creator, this Wonderful Designer wants you to have a personal relationship with Him because He loves you unconditionally. After all, He created you as well, in His own image!

Many people in the world may say one thing, but creation speaks for itself. It tells of the existence of God, Who is none other than our God revealed to us in the Bible.

My response:

» What is my first thought for the day? Do I breathe the fresh air and thank God for the day?

» What do I think of when I look at a simple flower? Do the flower’s detail and beauty speak to my heart?

» What do I feel when I know I believe in the God Who created the heavens and the earth?

“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6–7).

Reid picked up the box of herbal tea sitting on the table. “‘One sip will whisk you away to a new world of peace,’” he read out loud. “Mom, did you know this peppermint tea was supposed to give you peace?”

Mom took a sip of her tea and smiled. “I don’t need tea to give me peace,” she said. “God is much better at doing that than any old cup of tea is.”

“Why does this box say the tea will give you peace?” Reid asked, sniffing the box. “How can a cup of brown flavored water do that?”

Mom set her cup back in the saucer. “I think many people in this world are willing to try anything to find a little peace,” she said. “Some think being with lots of fun people will help them forget their worries. Others think going out into nature and getting alone will help them find peace. People try partying, drugs, strange music, and exercises—anything to find peace. I suppose some people even think they might find it in a cup of tea.”

“But we can’t really get it from anyone but God, right?” asked Reid.

“That’s right,” said Mom. “Remember the verse in Philippians 4 that tells us not to be worried and anxious? What does it say to do instead?”

“Pray about everything,” said Reid.

“And then what happens?”

Reid thought for a minute, trying to remember the verses he’d memorized. “You get peace,” he said.

“Yes—God’s peace. Unexplainable peace. Even though your problems don’t go away, God puts His peace in your heart as a guard against worry and anxiety.”

“That sure sounds better than drinking tea,” said Reid. “It tastes terrible anyway.”

Mom laughed. “Well, that’s a matter of opinion,” she said. “But God’s Word is the absolute truth. I’d believe it over the tea box any day.”

God is the only One Who gives true peace.

My response:

» Am I taking my problems to God in prayer, or am I worried and anxious?

» Am I experiencing God’s unexplainable peace?