September 11

Haggai 2:1-9; Zechariah 1:1-6; Haggai 2:10-19; Ezra 5:2; Haggai 2:20-23; Zechariah 1:7-5:11

How do you respond to new opportunities? Are you filled with excitement, anxiety, concern, joy, or a mix of all these things? The Israelites have started returning to the Promised Land and are resettling. Amid this new opportunity, God speaks. He speaks through Haggai, Zechariah, and others. God's command for his people is to "be strong" (Haggai 2:4). He wants them to have confidence and peace in their current situation. They can respond this way because: 1) God is with them, 2) God has made a covenant with them, and 3) God's Spirit is with them. God's presence and God's word was to bring them comfort and should do the same for us. No matter how out of control we may feel our circumstances or culture is, the same God who was with the Israelites is with us. The same truths he spoke then, he is speaking today. Therefore, we can approach everything new with strength and fearlessness. Everything may seem to be in upheaval, but with God nothing is uncertain or unsure.

Father God, help me to have confidence in you and in what you are doing in my life and the world. Help me to approach each day with the peace and joy your presence and truth gives. Amen. 

How can you be more reliant on God in the face of new things?

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