You and I have stumbled in life. We’ve done our best, only to trip and fall. The distance between where we are and where we want to be is impassable. Where do we turn?

I suggest we look to one of God’s precious promises: “For our high priest [Jesus] is able to understand our weaknesses. He was tempted in every way that we are, but he did not sin. Let us, then, feel very sure that we can come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we can receive mercy and grace to help us when we need it.” Hebrews 4.15-16.

When we stumble we aren’t abandoned. The stunning idea is simply this: God, for a time, became one of us. God became flesh in the form of Jesus Christ. Jesus, therefore, was undiluted deity “for in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Colossians 2.9. No wonder no one argued when he declared: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Matthew 28.18.

Jesus has authority over everything. And he has it forever! Yet in spite of this lofty position, Jesus was willing for a time to forgo the privileges of divinity and enter humanity. Despite this, neither the humanity of Jesus nor his deity were compromised in the Incarnation.

Jesus is so human he could touch us; so mighty he could heal us; so heavenly he spoke with all authority; so human he could blend in unnoticed for thirty years; so mighty he could change history and be unforgotten for two thousand years.

Are you overwhelmed with grief? He was too (John 11.35). Are you troubled in spirit? He was too (John 12.27). Are you so anxious you could die? He was too (Matthew 26.38). Jesus went through all this and much more because He is human, and that's why he understands you; but He is also God, and that’s why He can help you.

There's no one like Jesus!

Children have a tendency to say, “Look at me!” On the tricycle: “Look at me go!” On the trampoline: “Look at me bounce!” On the swing set: “Look at me swing!” Such behavior is acceptable for children.

Yet many adults spend their grown-up years saying the same thing. “Look at me drive this fancy car!” “Look at me make money!” “Look at me wear provocative clothes, or use big words, or to get fans on the social network. Look at me!”

Isn’t it time we grew up? We were made to live a life that says, “Look at God!” People are to look at us and see not us, but the image of our Maker. This is God’s plan, the we be “…transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3.18.

Brother, friend: let us mature to reflect Jesus.

“Go… and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you.” Mark 5.19.

World War II had ended. Peace had been declared. But young Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda of the Japanese Imperial Army, stationed on an island in the Philippines, didn’t know the war had ended. Attempts were made to track him down. Leaflets were dropped over his location, telling him the war was over. But Onoda, whose last order in 1945 was to stay and stand, dismissed these attempts and leaflets as trickery or propaganda from the enemy. He did not surrender until March 1974—nearly 30 years after the war had ended—when his former commanding officer traveled from Japan to the Philippines, rescinded his original order, and officially relieved Onoda of duty. Onoda finally believed the war was over.

When it comes to the good news about Jesus Christ, many still haven’t heard or don’t believe that He has “destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” 2ª Timothy 1.10. And some people who have heard and believed still live defeated lives, trying to survive on our own in the jungle of life.

Someone needs to tell them the glorious news of Christ’s victory over sin and death. Initially, they may respond with skepticism or doubt, but take heart. Imagine the freedom they’ll find when Jesus illumines their mind with the knowledge that the battle has been won.

Will you tell someone the good news today? So pray: Lord, help me to keep an open heart to listen to others and to share about what You have done —and you still do.

One of my favorites pieces of wisdom is: “Good friends are one of life’s greatest treasures.” How true! With good friends, we are never alone. They’re attentive to our needs and gladly share life’s joys and burdens.

Before Jesus came to Earth, only two individuals were called friends of God. The Lord spoke to Moses “as one speaks to a friend.” Exodus 33.11; and Abraham “was called God’s friend.” James 2:23; 2 Chronicles 20.7 and Isaiah 41.8.

It’s amazing that Jesus calls those of us who belong to Him friends: “I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” John 15.15. And His friendship is so deep that He laid down His life for us. John says too: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (15.13).

What a privilege and blessing to have Jesus as our friend! He is a friend who will never leave us or forsake us. He supplies all our needs. He forgives our sins; understands our sorrows and gives us sufficient grace in times of trouble.

He is indeed our best friend, forever!

It’s tempting to think of faith as a kind of magic formula. If you muster up enough of it, you’ll get rich, stay healthy, and live a contented life with automatic answers to all your prayers. But life does not work according to such neat formulas. As proof, the author of Hebrews presents a stirring reminder of what constitutes “true faith” by reviewing the lives of some Old Testament giants of faith (Heb. 11).

“Without faith”, the author says bluntly, “it is impossible to please God” (V. 6). In describing faith he uses the word persevered (V. 27). As a result of their faith, some heroes triumphed: They routed armies, escaped the sword, survived lions. But others met less happy ends: They were flogged, stoned, sawed in two.

The chapter concludes: “These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised.” V. 39. The picture of faith that emerges does not fit into an easy formula. Sometimes it leads to victory and triumph. Sometimes it requires a gritty determination to “hang on at any cost.” Of such people, “God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” V. 16.

Dear friend, what our faith rests on is the belief that God is in ultimate control and will indeed keep His promises—whether that happens in this life or the next.

O Lord, give us a faith that trusts!