Page 64 – Guideposts Articles

Bible Verses to Live By: ‘This Is the Day the Lord Has Made’

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Rick Hamlin

Some mornings I wake up and wonder, “How will I find time for You, today, God?” There’s a slew of emails and texts to respond to, not to mention checks to write, and the anxious, overwhelming feeling that we’re not going to have enough to get through the month, let alone the year. Where’s God in all of that?

Then I remember: this is exactly where God wants to meet us and where we can meet the Lord. In the very midst of our busyness. As the Psalmist said, “This is the day the Lord has made: we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). Every day is worth celebrating, even ones when you get up on the wrong side of the bed. Here’s how to keep your day focused on God:

1) Put God at the top of the list. Before you pick up the paper (or log on) and read fear-making headlines or before you send that text or email or become immersed in social media, FaceTime with God. With Jesus. Sit for a moment in silence (while the coffee’s brewing). “God,” you say, “I’m here.”

2) Pick a word. Give yourself an inspiring word you can call on throughout the day: hope, love, compassion, courage, understanding, forgiveness, faith, goodness. It’ll be your message to yourself. It’s a reminder that as you cross off the little things on your to-do list, big things have not been forgotten.

3) Stay in the present. Circle back to what you are doing now. Emptying the dishwasher, pouring yourself some coffee, reading a message from a friend. Feel the joy of now. After all, this is the day the Lord has made.

4) Forget about multi-tasking. We like to think we’re being efficient, doing two things at once. The risk is that we do neither of them well as our mind wanders in a million different directions. Don’t try to read that article (or this one!) while listening to your friend on the phone. Your friend needs and deserves all your attention, one hundred percent of it. So does that dish you need to wash.

5) Find joy in little things. Like washing that dirty dish. Feel the splash of the water under your fingers, watch the soap bubble up from the sponge, note the smudges that disappear, watch the clear water circle into the drain. You might put it in a drying rack, letting the air breathe through it, or wipe it with a towel. Either way, think what you have accomplished. What was dirty is clean.

6) Give thanks. To give thanks to God, even for the smallest things, is to remind ourselves of the primary relationship in our lives. What we have comes from God. What we share belongs to God. What we fear, what overwhelms us, can be given to God.

7) “Make each day your masterpiece.” Those words aren’t mine. They come from legendary basketball coach John Wooden. All the elements are at your fingertips. No need for buckets of silver and gold. Paint with the joy from your heart. Today, this will be your masterpiece. This is the day the Lord has made.

3 Biblical Prayers for Gratitude

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Rick Hamlin

How can we be more grateful in our every day lives? Use these 3 powerful Biblical prayers for gratitude throughout your day to focus on the positives in your life and remember what is most important.

1. Morning Prayer of Gratitude

Pray this: Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! (Psalm 95:2)

Thankfulness is a great way to establish a relationship. When you thank God for something, you’re giving credit where credit is due. Start your day by going around the breakfast table and having each person talk about something they’re grateful for.

2. Short Prayer of Gratitude

Pray this: Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances…. (1 Thessalonians 5:16–18)

Sometimes I want to call the apostle Paul “Impossible Paul.” He gives us one short sentence with three commands that seem impossible. Until I try them. Rejoicing, praying, giving thanks. Could prayers for gratitude really work?

I have found it helpful at times not only to “give thanks” but to write down what I am grateful for. Make a list. Be specific. One time, when I feared I was sinking into a bottomless pit of depression, I took out a pen and paper and wrote. And wrote. By the time I looked up, I had almost filled the page. I was going to be okay.

3. Evening Prayer of Gratitude

Pray this: Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:6)

How can we give up worrying? It never works to tell myself, “Don’t worry, Rick, don’t worry.” Instead, I need to move my mind and spirit into a more positive realm, as this verse reminds me. I let God know where and what my needs are, praying with the assurance that I am heard and my prayers for gratitude will be answered.

For more inspiring stories, subscribe to Guideposts magazine.

READ MORE ABOUT FEELING GRATITUDE:

Bible Verses to Live By: Lent Is a Time for Renewal

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Rick Hamlin

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time. 1 Peter 5:6

Lent is here, those 40 days leading up to Easter (not counting Sundays). It has traditionally been a time of fasting, of giving up something mundane to focus on something bigger. I’ll never forget when my wife gave up worrying for Lent—just as our two college-aged sons set out on a trip through some dangerous areas. Now that was challenging. And humbling.

Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free…? Isaiah 58:6

A Lenten fast, as this verse reminds us, doesn’t have to be about forgoing chocolate and sweets. You can reach deeper. I have friends who don’t “give up” for Lent but instead “take on”: dedicating themselves to a charitable cause or praying for a specific need in the world—working to make positive change happen. Whether their goal is achieved or not, they have changed and grown, and are ready to greet Easter.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21

Putting God first in our lives can be a challenge. There are so many distractions around us. I’m grateful for Lent and the opportunity to recharge and refocus spiritually. Some might ask, “Shouldn’t you be doing all those good things anyway?” Perhaps, but it’s so much easier when you have it prioritized on your calendar and know that others are doing the same. Thanks, God, I can pray, for this chance to grow closer to you, as I share a greeting to one and all: “Happy Lent.”

For more inspiring stories, subscribe to Guideposts magazine.

Bible Verses to Live By: ‘In All Things, Give Thanks’

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Rick Hamlin

It was the Apostle Paul who wrote in his letter to the Thessalonians, “Give thanks in all circumstances,” or as it’s put in other translations, “In all things, give thanks.”

Every time I hear or read it, I want to say, “Really, Paul? In ALL things?” How to give thanks after that scary diagnosis? Why am I supposed to give thanks when I’m scrounging around for money to pay taxes or the rent or even the food for dinner? Is it even possible to give thanks after the death of a loved one or the dissolution of a marriage?

The part of that verse that’s easy to forget is the end. “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1Thessalonians 5:18). What on earth is Paul saying?

Is it that thankfulness—in all things—is a way to stay close to God?

On Saturday mornings, whenever possible, I like to volunteer at our church’s soup kitchen. It’s a grab-and-go meal with an added bag of food. No questions asked. We give food to whoever shows up. Last Saturday we served 350 people.

When I come home afterwards, I’m always exhausted. I want to just lie down on the couch with my legs up. All those needy souls. From near and far, including some of those Venezuelan refugees that have been in the news recently.

My favorite task is pouring them hot cups of coffee, a blessing on a cool day. “Cream?” we ask. “Sugar? Sweet’N Low?” We hand out the packets of sugar and the Sweet’N Low and point to the stirrers. Also point out the juice and water if they want them.

I love talking to the guests, going around and chatting with them as they wait patiently in line, and sometimes the line stretches around the block. “How are you today?” “Is there anything you need?” “Can we pray for you?”

In addition to the offer of prayers, there’s a table where clothes are handed out, warm jackets and sweaters for the approach of winter. Last Saturday there was a table of volunteers, offering them help for housing and other needs.

But in all of this I don’t want us to sound like smug do-gooders. Although we might feed them, they always feed my soul. Why is that?

It is their sense of gratitude, their attitudes of thanks in all circumstances. I can hear stories of struggle, continuous struggle, but in the midst of it I will hear of thankfulness. “I am blessed,” many will say. Blessed by God,

The stories they tell, the things that have happened to them dwarf any misfortunes I might have endured. And so often, so does their spirit. Perhaps it is for this very reason that Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor.” “Poor in spirit” in one version, just “the poor” in another version. But the message feels the same.

It can be a lot of work to give thanks in all circumstances. “Even in this, Paul?” Yes, in this. Because that thankfulness will always bring you closer to God, and what greater blessing could there be?

Bible Verses to Live By: ‘Be Still and Know That I Am God’

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Rick Hamlin

“Be still and know that I am God,” Psalm 46:10. Such a popular passage, it’s easy enough to take for granted. But how do we live it? How do we get really still?

I think of something my mom used to say to us kids. “Listen to me. You’ve got to get quiet to listen to me.”

There it is. We’ve got to get quiet to listen to God. And that’s a precious practice I make every day. Here are some simple steps as you, too, get still and know that God is God.

Take time out of your day, every day. If it was hard in biblical times to get quiet and listen to God, think how much harder it is these days. We’ve got emails screaming at us, not to mention our phones buzzing in our pockets. Whenever I stand waiting for the subway, I notice how nobody is looking around. Everybody’s staring at their phones. And I’m just as guilty.

Give yourself some time every day where you’re not going to pay any attention to those texts or emails. Be quiet. Sit still to listen to God.

I said, “every day.” You want to make it a habit—a good habit—and habits are things you do every day. I stay connected to my wife by making sure we have time together, listening to her. If we get too distracted, we lose touch. We use that phrase “a comfortable silence” in a marriage. Why not seek it with the Lord?

Find a time for being still. Stick with it and discover the joy it will bring.

Make a place for it. My time of stillness is first thing in the morning. I go into what we still call the TV room (although that old TV disappeared years ago) and sit on the lumpy sofa, closing my eyes. Twenty minutes is okay. Half an hour is better.

A regular place helps you get connected to God in the silence. A chair, a corner of your room, sitting up in your bed. That familiar place—at that special time —will remind you: “I’m here getting silent, listening to the Lord.”

How do you quiet the noise inside your head? It’s noisy outside. It can even be noisier in our heads. I’ll start thinking of checks I need to write, meetings to attend, emails to send. “Wait, wait, didn’t I want to get silent with God?” I ask.

As great spiritual masters have taught us, notice the thought. Then let it go. Catch and release. All those worries and concerns you’re releasing back to God. They’re in good hands. That’s what the stillness has let you do.

Use a holy word. Take a word, a single word and use it to pull you back from distracting thoughts. As the anonymous writer of the 14th-century text The Cloud of Unknowing suggests, a single syllable word can work best, like “God,” “peace,” “love.”

Every morning in this time of stillness, in the midst of anxieties and worries, stillness comes to me. Even if it’s just a moment, that moment is precious. Soon enough I’ll get up from the sofa and face the day. But I won’t do it alone.

Don’t think you have enough time? Think again. Being still helps you prioritize what’s most important. God gives you the time.

Write Your Worries Away

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by sciancanellis

What’s wrong with worry? Well…pretty much everything! But perhaps the worst thing about worry is that it can bring on failure, that it can draw the very things you wish to avoid.

The word “worry” comes from an ancient German word meaning strangle or choke, and that is what worry does: it applies a mental strangling that leads to desperation. Jesus tells us to “take no thought” for what we eat or wear (Matthew 6:25). The Greek word for “take thought” is merimnate, which means literally to have a divided mind or to be torn in different directions, stifling constructive action.

New Every Morning Journal In Article Ad A

Like pessimism, worry can harm the body as well as the mind and will. It has been clinically documented that people who worry have more fractures than those who don’t. And doctors have acknowledged the role of worry in many of their patients’ problems. No wonder the Bible tells us again and again not to worry. Proverbs 12:25 says, “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down.”

How can you overcome worry? Some people get help from a “worry diary.” Often the simple act of writing down your fears can help you begin to feel that you’re more in control—and that in turn can help you deal with what’s worrying you. After you have listed your worries, go back and—one by one—form a mental image picturing a positive solution or outcome. Make these pictures as detailed as possible. Then, pray with that image in your mind, claiming Jesus’ promise: “Everything is possible for one who believes” (Mark 9:23).

Why Praising God Is a Gift for Us

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Rick Hamlin

As a kid I used to wonder why we praised God. Was God so insecure He needed to hear our words of praise all the time? Not at all.

What I’ve come to understand is that praising God is a gift for us. A golden opportunity to be reminded of God’s power, magnificence and all the blessings we have received and often forget to acknowledge. Until we launch into praise.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! (Psalm 150:6) It’s so easy to take the gift of breath for granted, but it came directly from God. At the beginning of time God breathed into us—and all living creatures—the breath of life. Wow. When you take a deep breath and praise God, you’re giving thanks for that.

Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord! (Psalm 117:1-2) Look at all those exclamation points. I loved typing them. It goes against all editorial conventions. You’re supposed to use exclamation marks sparingly.

Not when it comes to praising God. Verses like this give us a chance to access the enthusiastic part of our souls. Praise puts us in touch with the godly part of our being, buoyed by God’s steadfast love and faithfulness.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! (Psalm 100:4) When I’m feeling out of sorts, burdened and weary, I’ll take out a piece of paper or notebook and write down the things I’m grateful for.

There is healing in that simple exercise. I rediscover peace of mind. You think you’d run out of things to be thankful for. Not a chance. At last count, one notebook of mine lists 162 things I’m grateful for. And I’m only just starting.

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God…and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. (Acts 16:25-26)

Miracles come about through praise, even the simple act of singing hymns and praying. Of course, I’m drawn to this story because it involves Paul’s friend Silas. Silas is the name of our new grandson, born this summer. (Talk about an event worthy of praise!) I expect to be singing hymns with him very soon.

Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre! (Psalm 149:3) Praise isn’t something you just do with your voice. You can get your whole body involved. Raise your arms, clap your hands. Dance!

I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. (Psalm 145:1) I was feeling kind of glum when I started writing this blog. Not anymore. Praise put me back in good spirits. Back in touch with our Maker.

—Need a Lift? Try Our Gratitude Challenge

—Learn More About Our Thanksgiving Day of Prayer

What the Bible Says About Getting Along with Others

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by sciancanellis

“Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34). It sounds so simple, but it’s the biggest challenge we face. Not everyone is easy to love. A friend complained the other day, “My boss should have been a porcupine. She prickles at every little thing!” But every encounter we have with another member of God’s creation gives us new opportunities to draw closer to Him.

My friend doesn’t have to be fond of her “porcupine” to love her. Biblical love is about compassion, about what we do and how we treat others. “If you love me, you will obey what I command,” Jesus tells us (John 14:15). “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me” (John 14:21). Fortunately, God understands that loving others isn’t always easy. He stands right behind us, giving us all the support we need. When we don’t know how to love, He who is love can teach us how to win against fear, anger and hate.

Prickly people like my friend’s boss bring out a lot of surprising feelings in us. Anger, frustration, envy and resentment are just a few of the things that get in the way of living out our faith. Experts tell us not to ignore these feelings, or our neglected emotions will fester in a dark corner of our hearts. We need to acknowledge how we feel—and then let go of our feelings and move on.

No matter how difficult others may be, we’re responsible for how we act and react. Jesus tells us to pluck the plank from our own eye before we focus on the sawdust elsewhere (Matthew 7:3). But what if all we can see is sawdust? How can we see the plank? My quick ‘vision test’ of what’s in my heart is to turn to 1 Corinthians 13:

Have I been patient? Really patient? Patient the way Jesus would be?
Was I kind?
Do I envy this person? If so, why?
Am I boasting in any way, even silently in my heart? Do I look down on this person?
Is my pride getting in the way of loving this person?
Was I rude, or did I speak sharply?
Am I seeking the best for this person, or is there an element of self-seeking in my heart?
Do I find myself easily angered by this person? Why?
Do I keep a record of the person’s wrongs?
Do I secretly delight when evil happens to her?
Do I continue to trust and hope that God’s will for this person will prevail?

None of us wants to see our own faults…especially when we think 99 percent of the blame lies with someone else. But that’s what Christ asks of us. Humility is the first step we have to take if we’re going to love others as Christ loved us.

What Jesus Left Behind to Come Here

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Neeraj Rai

Jesus’ leaving heaven is like a painter becoming a brushstroke on his painting, or a playwright becoming a character in his own play. For some people, it is easier to imagine putting all the oceans in a teacup or trapping the atmosphere in a bottle than it is to understand that God would take on human form and walk this planet.

Jesus left behind many things to visit this world. First, he left the glory of heaven. We know very little about what heaven looks like. We know it is inhabited by God, his angels, and believers who have died. Revelation describes it as a beautiful place (21:1–22:7). Trying to describe it properly is beyond human language.

By coming to earth as a human, Jesus took on certain limitations and weaknesses. For example, the timeless One became bound by time, by the passing of day and night. Formerly, he was above time, unaffected by its passing. On earth, time ticked by for him as it does for all of us.

God is described as being omnipresent—present everywhere at all times (Psalm 139:7–12). There is no place in heaven or on earth a person can go where God is not. During his earthly ministry, Jesus was bound by our three spatial dimensions.

He also took on basic human needs for food, rest, warmth, shelter, and more. In heaven he had no such needs, but on earth he felt hunger and thirst, weariness, and emotional and physical pain.

Take It to Heart
“Christ uncrowned himself,” William Dyer wrote, “to crown us, and put off his robes to put on our rags.” Jesus made great sacrifices for us. He left behind glorious things so he could take us in. There is much to admire about our planet; there is much to look forward to in heaven.

Check Your Understanding
When we think of Jesus’ sacrifices we usually think of the cross, but he made many others. What do those sacrifices teach us?
His sacrifices show the length of his love for humanity. The highest sacrifice is the cross, but we shouldn’t overlook all that he left behind.

If someone said, “Love isn’t defined by what we give, but by what we give up,” would you agree?
There is certainly some truth in that. Love is expressed in giving of ourselves, but it is also demonstrated by what we’re willing to give up for someone else.

Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion. (Philippians 2:5-8 MSG)

What Does ‘Salt of the Earth’ Mean?

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by sciancanellis

It was while preaching the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus proclaimed, “You are the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13). On the simplest level, Christ’s words are about salt as a flavor enhancer. He is telling us that as Christians we are to bring out the flavor of God in the world.

When we are true to being the people God created us to be, when we are true to His calling, we bring out the essence of His goodness and make it more evident to ourselves and to others. When I am the salt of the earth “my soul glorifies the Lord” (Luke 1:46), magnifying His presence so that others can sing, “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103).

Yet this requires purity on our part. We cannot be the salt of the earth unless we “draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings” (Hebrews 10:22). We must rid ourselves of all that interferes with our love of God, and follow the command, “Do not love the world or anything in the world” (1 John 2:15).

We must separate out our worldly desires to keep from losing our flavor: The only time salt loses its flavor is when other minerals are mixed in with the sodium chloride. Thus the first step we can take toward being “one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god” (Psalm 24:4) is to examine the elements mixed in with the salt in our lives.

Cultivating these three traits will help make your life a little “saltier.”

1. Transparent.
The person who is truly salty is one through whom the light of Christ can shine easily and about whom Jesus would say, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit” (John 1:47). We can pray, Lord, help me rid my heart of all guile.

2. Trustworthy.
The person worth his salt is one who has followed the command to “rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind” (1 Peter 2:1). We can pray, Christ, open my eyes to the envy and hypocrisy of my heart, and keep my lips from unkind words.

3. Encouraging to others.
To be the salt of the earth means to see in others what Christ sees in them. “Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace” (2 Corinthians 13:11). We can pray, Jesus, help me be an example of all that you want us all to be, in word and deed.

Why not begin this very day to live a life full of the flavor of God, so that through us others can “Taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8)?

Walking the Path of Holiness

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by sciancanellis

Some Bible verses seem more demanding, more challenging than others. Perhaps none more so than 1 Peter 1:15-16: “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”

How can we mere humans be holy? Seems an impossible feat, yet that is what we are called to be. In Hebrews 12:14, Paul writes that we must “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” It sounds like a deal breaker, doesn’t it?”

Isaiah gives us a particularly helpful perspective on holiness. “A highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness; it will be for those who walk on that Way” (Isaiah 35:8).

Turns out holiness isn’t about how you appear to others, but rather where you are headed. There is a path to holiness, and it is up to us to walk that path. Every day!

To make sure you are progressing on the Way of Holiness—and not simply marching in place—look for these “road markers” in your life.

1. You are moving toward being more fully centered on God’s will.
You yearn to serve Him in all things, at all times, to “live and move and have [your] being in Him” (Acts 17:28).

2. You are increasingly aware of what keeps you from Him.

3. You grow more “eager to serve” (1 Peter 5:2).
You pray more, help the poor and needy more and accept more readily the crosses God has given you.

Godspeed as you walk this holy highway!

Waiting on the Lord: The Power of Silent Prayer

Posted on March 11, 2026March 12, 2026 by Sabra Ciancanelli

God is always with us, but in our busyness, we don’t often allow ourselves to experience His presence. One way—a challenging but very rewarding way—to become more aware of God’s presence in our lives is to wait on the Lord.

By just being still and focusing your thoughts on God, you can make a space for contemplation in the midst of your obligations and duties. Martha and Mary provide the perfect examples of how we’re often unaware of the presence of the Lord and how to wait for Him. When Jesus visited the sisters at their Bethany home, Martha began to try to get everything ready to pro- vide hospitality to Jesus. She had wonderful intentions—she was ready to “wait on the Lord”in the sense of serving Him. Luke tells us that Martha had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying.

A Journey of Faith In Article Ad - Avail Now

But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.” —Luke 10:39–42

Poor Martha! Was she wrong to try to serve Jesus? Of course not. But Martha was so intent on serving the man that she failed to recognize the Messiah.

On one day each week, I say no verbal prayers except for the prayers my husband and I start and end our day with. Recognizing my tendency to be like Martha—busy and distracted—I use my once-a-week silence to be quiet in the presence of the Lord.

For me, that silence requires trust. Like Martha, I’m not one to wait—my prayers are often a barrage of pleas and praise—and so by making myself wait on the Lord in stillness, I’m expressing my faith in the most challenging way I can: in silence and patience. My day of silence, my prayer Sabbath, restores my sense of unity with the Lord. The day before my day of silent prayer, I pray like this:

Dear Lord, Tomorrow let me pray to You without words and images. Let my prayer to You be the living of my life in the knowledge and awareness of Your constant presence, love, forgiveness, mercy, healing. And by so living, let my life itself become a prayer to You, without the need for words or images.

If you’d like to prepare for a weekly prayer Sabbath, take comfort from Jesus’ assurances about waiting on and trusting the Lord