“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” (Psalm 32:8 NIV)

Susan and I once took a short vacation with our daughter and her two, five-year-old, twin girls. As we walked along together at the busy airport, the girls stayed between their mother and us, and they continually looked up to make sure we had our eyes on them. And, of course, we did because we love them! We made sure they knew where to go at all times, and that they we’re always safe.

In the same way, God has “His loving eye” constantly on you. He will “instruct you in the way you should go!” And, that’s a powerful and comforting promise that you can take with you wherever you go!

“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled.” (John 14:27 KJV)

A wonderful tool!

God gives you peace and it is a wonderful tool to help you in your decision making. It has saved me many times from making wrong decisions.

Check your heart for peace!

When I have to make a big decision, I check my heart to make sure I have God’s peace about it. Sometimes, everything looks perfectly fine on the surface; I can’t see anything wrong, yet I don’t have peace about the decision. When this happens, I stop and wait. Often, the answer becomes clear later and I am then very glad that I didn’t move forward without peace.

Let the peace of God rule!

“Let the peace of God rule in your hearts.” (Col. 3:15 KJV) This is good counsel to follow!

It could even save your life!

I have a friend who was scheduled to fly to Africa for a speaking engagement. He was very excited about going and everything was arranged and looked good. But, just before he was to leave, he felt a sudden heaviness in his heart about going and no peace about it. So, even though he had already purchased his ticket, he decided not to go.

Soon after, he was very glad he had decided to “let the peace of God rule in his heart,” and not go on the trip to Africa, because the airplane he was scheduled to be on crashed and all passengers perished!

“If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31 KJV)

The answer to that question, of course, is “No one!”

Because God is God and no one, or anything else, is greater than Him! He paid a lot to redeem you (John 3:16), and He will not allow anyone to take what is His (which is you!)

That is made very clear in the very next few verses.

“He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” (Rom. 8:32-34 KJV)

In other words, He has your back, and that’s a huge promise!

“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.” (Eph. 1:4 NIV)

Did you know that God chose you to be adopted into His family? It’s true, and that was His plan all along!

And wait, there’s more!

And, on top of that, He has made you “holy and blameless in his sight!” When he looks at you, He looks right past any kind of blemish and only sees you as His perfect child, made that way through the cleansing blood of His Son, Jesus Christ!

And why did He do this?

Because he loves you! (John 3:16). You are chosen and loved by God! And he backs it up, not simply with words, but with His power, with His Holy Spirit, and with His deep conviction!

“For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.” (1 Thess 1:4-5 NIV)

So, hold your head up high with complete confidence! After all, look who your adoptive father is!

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” (James 1:5 NIV)

The Bible says that God WILL “generously give you wisdom” if you simply ASK Him for it without wavering (James 1:5-6).

That is a very important promise for you to take advantage of!

Just look at all of its benefits listed in Proverbs 3:13-19

“Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed. By wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place.” (Proverbs 3:13–19 NIV)

To recap:

1) Better returns than silver and gold!

2) More precious than rubies!

3) Nothing you desire compares with it!

4) Long life!

5) Riches!

6) Honor!

7) Pleasant ways!

8) Paths of peace!

9) A “tree of life”

10) You’re blessed!

Wow! Wow! Wow! That’s why the next verse says …

“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” (Proverbs 4:7 KJV)

Therefore, make getting wisdom your principle thing! It’s just that important! ASK God for it, and then you will get to enjoy the many wonderful promises that come along with it!

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16 NKJV)

This is undoubtedly the best-known promise in the Bible. You see John 3:16 posted prominently in many places, such as on billboard signs, on the sides of buses, on bumper stickers, and even painted on people’s faces and bodies, at televised sporting events.

But, sadly, most people don’t understand what it means!

Let’s define the words within the verse

– For God (the creator, Himself)

– So loved (cared for deeply and affectionately)

– The world (the whole of human civilization)

– That He gave (He freely transferred the possession of)

– His only (the only one He had)

– begotten Son (born son)

– that whosoever (whoever, anyone, any person)

– believes (truly accepts, wholeheartedly trusts, puts confidence in)

– In Him (the Savior, Jesus Christ)

– should not perish (not destroyed, not permanently lost)

– but have everlasting (eternal, endless)

– Life (intimate relationship with the living God)

Make it your personal promise!

John 3:16 is a very wonderful and personal promise! You can personalize it and apply it to your life this way:

Add YOUR NAME everywhere you see an asterisk * below

“For God so loved * that He gave

His only begotten Son, that if *

believes in Him. * should not perish

but * shall have everlasting life.”

Signed in His Blood, Jesus Christ

Why God did this wonderful thing

Most people have heard John 3:16, but not the very next verse, John 3:17, which explains clearly why God sent His Son into the world.

“For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” (John 3:17 NKJV). God sent Jesus to save the world!

You must receive Him for yourself

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” (John 1:12 KJV)

It changed my life!

I received Jesus Christ into my life many years ago while driving down a busy road! I had just read a little gospel booklet that I had found in a glove compartment. It explained to me how to pray a simple prayer of faith to ask Jesus for forgiveness and to be my Savior.

I prayed, “Jesus, I believe in you and need you! Thank you for dying on the cross for me! Please forgive me of my sins and come into my life. I invite you to be my Savior! In Jesus Name, Amen!

That simple prayer changed my life dramatically forever that day!

“Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8 ESV)

An old saying you often hear is, “Forgive and forget!” But, when someone hurts you deeply, it’s impossible to do! You just can’t do it no matter how hard you try. In fact, the very act of trying to forget an offense only brings it up again and actually reinforces it. So, what do you do?

Don’t forget it, just forgive it!

You choose to do what’s right no matter how you feel, because it is the correct and loving thing to do! “Love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8b ESV).

That’s what Jesus did for you and all humanity on the cross! He did not feel like doing the right thing. In fact, He felt just the opposite! He sweat great drops of blood in anguish about it (Luke 22:44). He had a way out, too, He could have called thousands of angels to rescue Him, (Matt. 26:53), yet, He didn’t! He chose to do the right thing because of love (John 3:16).

Look beyond the offense

You choose to do the correct thing because you look beyond the fault to see the bigger picture on the other side of it.

When Jesus was on the cross he cried out, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do!” (Luke 23:34 KJV). He chose to look beyond their fault and see their need!

“When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.” (Is. 53:11 NLT)

Expect God to make good come out of it

Keep in mind that God always sees the big picture of things. He has all the facts, and can make good come out of any situation no matter how it looks to you. Expect Him to!

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Rom. 8:28 NIV) And yes, this is another wonderful promise!

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:5 NIV)

A very important truth

When you compare light with darkness you discover a very important truth, darkness does not exist. Darkness is only the absence of light. Think of it this way, you can have a flashlight but you cannot have a flash-dark. You cannot shine darkness because it does not exist. Put another way, you cannot bring darkness into a room full of light and extinguish light, but you can, however, bring light into a dark room and extinguish darkness.

Light and darkness are metaphors for good and evil

“This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:5-7 NIV)

Jesus is the light of the world

There is another Light, a Light so important that Jesus, the Son of God, came to both declare and impart it to men. John 8:12 (NIV), records, “When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, ‘I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but have the light of life.’” The allegory used by the Lord in this verse speaks of the light of His Truth, the light of His Word, the light of eternal Life. Those who perceive the true Light will never walk in spiritual darkness.

Jesus Christ brings light to the darkness of any heart. It is the Good News about the truth of God’s love that is capable of overcoming any obstacle, no matter how dark.

God’s light is shed upon the darkness of all sin, allowing human beings the opportunity to escape the dark grip of sin for the light of God’s love. This is why (and how) “the blood of Jesus purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7 NIV)

You, too, have a light to shine

Jesus tells is to keep our light out in the open where it can do good.

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matt. 5:16 NKJV)

“Come near to God and he will come near to you.” (James 4:8 NIV)

Want God to be “near to you”?

Notice the order of things described in this promise. It tells YOU to come near to God, and then, if you do, He will come near to you!

Many Christians have it backwards!

They spend a lot of time asking God to “come”, “bless” and to “hear their prayers,” when He has already made those things, and much more, freely available to “whosoever” will simply reach out to Him and receive them by faith!

Come boldly

The Bible says to “come boldly” to God and receive what you need. (Heb. 4:16) Another passage says to “seek Him first” and then all that you need will be added to you. (Matt. 6:33) Notice, in each verse, you are instructed to take the initiative. And, that’s because God has already done His part! You just need to act on it with faith!

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” (2 Peter 1:3 NIV)