Lori Hatcher's Blog: Refresh Blog, page 45

How Learning Someone's Name Can Change Everything -- Powerful Reasons to Study the Names of God

As I walk the streets of my neighborhood, I encounter others who exercise early in the morning. There’s the blonde lady with the big white dog, the runner who whizzes by, and the thin, dark-haired woman who walks her two Brittany spaniels. Sometimes I see a middle-aged man with a Jack Russell terrier, and other times I pass a young guy who huffs and puffs his way around the block.

I like seeing my neighbors, but our encounters have been superficial at best.

[image error] One day, however, I implemented an idea I read about in The Simplest Way to Change the World. The author, committed to impacting his neighborhood for Christ, set a goal to introduce himself to everyone he passed. In this way, he began friendships that might one day open doors for him to share the gospel. 

The first morning, I met Lisa. She’s a teacher at an alternative school in the district. And Bonnie, a physical therapist. Marcella, I discovered, works at a nearby hospital. Bruce (and his Jack Russell, Panda) manages a golf store in the mall, and Jeff is the father of four young boys. 

With a little effort and a friendly greeting, I went from nodding and smiling at strangers to beginning relationships with new acquaintances. Making the effort to learn their names was the first step in understanding more about them. 

The same has been true in my relationship with God. For years I walked with him, but really didn’t know him. I’d nod and smile, acknowledge him, and occasionally exchange words, but until I took the time to learn his names, our relationship was superficial at best. 

Then I read the story of Hagar in Genesis 21 and learned that one of God’s names is El Roi, the God Who Sees Me. This name helped me understand, in a deeper way, that God sees everything that happens in my life and will never abandon me. 

Then I read the story of Abraham and Isaac in Genesis 22, and I learned another of God’s names – Jehovah Jireh – God Will Provide. Because of this name, I realized I can trust God to supply my needs. 

When I encountered the name Jehovah Nissi, the Lord our Banner, in Exodus 17, I understood that God can bring victory in seemingly impossible battles. 

Every name I’ve learned has taught me something new about the personality, presence, and power of God. This knowledge has acted like a catapult, launching my relationship with him forward. 

The more I learn about his character, the more I trust him. The more I trust him, the bolder my faith steps become. The bolder my faith steps become, the more peace reigns in my heart. 

Someday I might meet a neighbor who doesn’t have a very good name or reputation. It might not be wise to form a friendship with them. 

But I never have to fear learning God’s names. 

Every one I encounter reinforces the fact that God is more wonderful than anything I could ever imagine. In his name is everything I need. 

If you struggle to trust God, or maybe you just want to learn more about him, I encourage you to study his names. But before you do, strap on your safety harness. You’re about to begin a trip that will launch you forward in your journey with God. 

And what a marvelous journey that will be. 

[image error]
One of my favorite resources to study God’s names is Kay Arthur’s devotional, Lord, I Want to Know You , but an internet search on Names of God will also yield much material to study. The article,
And if music inspires you, this Aaron Jeofrey music video, “He Is,” will make your heart soar. 

 
If you’re reading by email and can’t see the video, click here to be inspired: 

Now it’s your turn. What name of God is your favorite and why? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts.


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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Comfort When Life Mugs You

Trials often blindside us. Although some creep into our lives, others leap out and clobber us. One moment we’re strolling along happily, and the next, WHAM, we’re lying on the pavement wondering what just happened. 

Sometimes this happens literally, like the friend who stepped out onto her deck to water the plants and found herself at the foot of the stairs with a broken hip. Other times our trials come in the form of a job loss, family crisis, or sudden death. With no time to prepare, we’re left reeling, swaying from one emotion to the next. Fear, grief, and confusion pummel us until we’re emotionally and spiritually battered. 

In times like these, God’s sovereignty can be a mighty comfort. 

It can also be a stumbling block. People often struggle with God’s sovereign control when tragedy or trial enters their lives. Knowing God could prevent bad things from happening, we wonder why he allows hardship. 

But God is bigger than today. And even though I don’t like to acknowledge it, he has more in mind than just my comfort. His plan is grander, higher, and better than a pain-free, effortless life for us all. He tried that once, at the beginning of time, and humanity rejected it. 

Instead, he has one of two purposes for everything that happens in this world. First, he wants to reconcile all who would believe to himself. He often uses the trials of this life to help us realize how much we need a relationship with him. Many a soul has cried out to God for salvation when they’ve reached the end of themselves and discovered how much they need someone wiser and stronger to direct their lives. God uses trials to draw us to himself. 

But what if we already have a relationship with him? What if we’ve already surrendered our lives to his control? What merit is there then in suffering and hardship? 

This is where the second aspect of his purpose comes in. God allows difficulty to grow our faith. He uses scary times to prove that he will take care of us. He uses heartbreak to help us realize that when all seems lost, God remains. 

I’ve walked with God for more than 35 years. I’ve experienced heart-expanding joys and heart-breaking pain. The joyful times filled me with gratitude and worship to God. The gut-wrenching times flung me into his arms because I had nowhere else to go. 

The happy times have cemented my love and gratitude toward my heavenly Father, because every good gift comes from him. The hard times have anchored my trust in him. 

I’ve learned that whatever comes my way, God will walk through it with me. “Everyone deserted me,” the apostle Paul testified in 2 Timothy 4:16-17, “but the Lord stood at my side.” 

God wooed me with his mercy, then won me with his commitment. “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you,” he promises in Hebrews 5:15. The ultimate bridegroom, he has pledged to stand by me for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth. 

And he has kept his promise. No day begins without his steady presence beside me. No monster knocks on my door without him at my side. No need of mine goes unmet, although his superior wisdom often provides in ways far different than I expect. 

“In the day of prosperity, be joyful,” Solomon writes in Ecclesiastes 7:14, “but in the day of adversity consider; Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other.” 

Because we live in a fallen world, sickness, heartache, and pain will eventually enter our lives. Believers and unbelievers alike will experience their share of sorrow. But we get to choose – will we walk through these days alone or with the Lord by our side? 

Because of God’s faithfulness and character, we can trust him. Whether joy or pain comes our way, we can have piece, knowing that our loving Father promises to use everything in our lives for our ultimate good and his everlasting glory. 

That’s powerful comfort. 

Now it’s your turn. If you’re struggling with God’s sovereignty in the face of trial or loss, I want to pray for you. If you’ll leave a comment below, I promise to ask our Father to wrap his loving arms around you and carry you through. He is faithful. You can trust him. 

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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

What God Is Doing in Your Crazy, Frustrating Life

Do you ever wonder what in the world God is doing in your crazy, frustrating life? 

God, what good does it do to keep reaching out to difficult people when nothing every changes? 

God, why is that ministry thriving and mine just limping along? 

God, why did I spend half my life teaching my kids to love you only to have them turn their backs on faith? 

God, why should I keep praying when nothing happens? 

God, if I’m obeying your call, why is it so hard? 

God, what are you doing in this crazy life of mine???? 

If you can relate to any of these questions, there’s hope. Hope that comes, of all places, from the book of Job. 

Imagine that. 

God is laughing already. 

Who would think a man who had lost ten children in a tragic accident, went from millionaire to pauper in a day, and was married to a cruel, faithless woman would have any hope to offer? 

But in God’s upside down economy, it’s not surprising at all. 

My latest book project (sitting on editors’ desks right now, please pray) is a devotional that spotlights uncommon verses buried in the vast expanse of the Bible. Job 26:14 is one of them. In the twenty-sixth chapter of the book that bears his name, Job rehearses for his “miserable comforters” the might, power, and majesty of God. 

“He hangs the earth on nothing,” he says. “He binds up the water in His thick clouds . . . He stirs up the sea with His power . . . By His Spirit He adorned the heavens . . . (v. 7-13)” 

Then he concludes with this awe-struck realization: “Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways, And how small a whisper we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand?"  

The mere edges of his ways. 


I grew up on the rocky shores of Narragansett Bay in Bristol, Rhode Island. I’d often sit at the shoreline, wade in the shallows, or swim out until my feet barely touched the bottom. Because I had lived around the sea all my life, I thought I knew it well. 

Then one day I boarded a ship that took me hundreds of miles off shore, where the water stretched from horizon to horizon and the ocean floor lay miles beneath me. Only then did I begin to understand the true nature of the ocean. 

Before that, I had experienced the mere edges – and how small a whisper they had been. 

After pointing out our nearsighted perspective, Job lifts the fog on the ocean of God’s ways: “But the thunder of his power, who can understand?” 

Paul, in First Corinthians, says it like this: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (2:9). And, “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror” (13:12). 

As Christians bound to the earth by our mortality, we glimpse only the mere edges of His ways. And hear only small whispers of Him. But one day we’ll sail out into the vast expanse of no-time life. We’ll hear the clarion call of his mighty voice. We’ll witness the thunder of his power. And we will understand. 

Every Bible verse you taught your children? Seed for the harvest. 

Every hour spent responding patiently to difficult people? Sandpaper smoothing the edges of your soul. 

Every late night and early-morning prayer time? A fragrant offering. 

Every kind deed done in Jesus’ name? Stepping stones on the journey toward righteousness. 

Job can speak into our angst and impatience because he, too, wondered what in the world God was doing. How could anything good be happening when he saw so few results? 

But Job clung to his integrity, remained faithful to God, and never stopped believing that somehow, somewhere, God would use his suffering to accomplish something good. 

“I know that my Redeemer lives,” he declared triumphantly, “and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God” (19:25-26). 

Because of the gift of Scripture, we know what Job did not – that God was using the panorama of his life – the pain and the pleasure – to script a faith story so genuine that it would encourage believers for millennia. We know none of Job’s heart wrenching experiences were wasted. 

Even today, thousands of years later, God continues to use his insight and example to encourage us along our journey. 

Perhaps God will use (is using?) our lives to do the same. 

“God is not unjust;” the writer of Hebrews promises, “he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them” (Heb. 6:10). 

Today, if you’re wondering what in the world God is doing in your crazy, frustrating life, be encouraged. These are only the edges of his ways. The vast ocean lies before you. 

Now it’s your turn. What encourages you when you feel discouraged? Leave a comment and encourage us all.

EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT
[image error] Lighthouse Publishing, utilizing the amazing vocal talents of Sarah Rohlbacker, have teamed up to create an AUDIO version of my 5-minute devotional, Hungry for God ... Starving for Time.

For a limited time, LPC is offering a limited number of FREE codes. This means if you have an Audible subscription through Amazon, you can take Hungry for God with you and listen wherever you go. If you have an Audible subscription and would like a code, please email me at LoriAHatcher (at) gmail.com.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

When Life Hammers Its Way into Your Quiet

I can’t see the roofers, but I can hear them. Their noises intrude on my early-morning quiet. Eager to get started before the merciless sun fries them like eggs in a cast iron skillet, they scurry around on an ageing black roof just out of my sight. I hear their shovels scrape as, piece by piece, they chisel the old shingles off. One worker calls to another in a language I don’t understand. Hammers punctuate his words like exclamation points. 

I resent their intrusion. 

I was drawn outside by silence of the morning and the low clouds that shroud the sun today. The stifling heat will come, but for now, the clouds act like a beach umbrella, shielding me. Bible in hand, I envisioned a peaceful time with the Lord before the noise of the day elbowed its way in. 

But life thought otherwise. 

Oh, how we long for stretches of quiet and calm. Yet, inevitably, the noise of relationships, needs, and responsibilities intrude. 

Worry hammers around us, and voices call from every direction. The sounds of work in progress echoes in the distance. We try to retreat, but there’s no escape. This is our reality, until the work is finished. 

As I open my Bible, defying the distraction, I drop into another noisy scenario, one that took place not on a rooftop in suburbia, but on a sea in Israel. 

“That day when evening came, (Jesus) said to his disciples, ‘Let us go over to the other side.’ Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat.” 

Isn’t this just like our lives? We do our best to follow Jesus, leaving the crowd of the world and its favor behind. Then one day he says, “Let’s go,” and we follow him – right into a storm. 

“A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.” 

Lord, I’m following you – shouldn’t you keep me from the storm? 

“Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion.” 

Yup, that’s what it feels like, Jesus. I’m about to drown, and you’re sound asleep. 

“The disciples woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, don't you care if we drown?’” 

Thanks, guys, for asking the question that we all want to ask. 

“He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down, and it was completely calm.” 

You alone have the power, Lord Jesus, to quiet the storms that rage around us. 

“He said to his disciples, ‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’” 

Why, indeed? Even the wind and the waves obey him. 

I don’t know where this day finds you. Perhaps you’re seeking quiet and calm while worries hammer in the distance. Or maybe you’re in the boat, terrified, while waves threaten to drown you. Either way, you can have peace, because Jesus is near. 

“Why are you so afraid?” he asks us. “Do you still have no faith?” 

We believe, Lord. Help our unbelief. 

In my little corner of suburbia, despite the sound of hammers and voices in the distance, peace descends on my soul. I pray it will for you as well. 

Peace. 

Be still. 

Jesus is near. 


This devotion is based on a true story found in Mark 4:34-41.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Why You Don't Have to Understand Everything to Believe

“Daniel’s a good man,” Catherine said, her dark eyes filling with tears. “He takes good care of his family, he works hard. But he doesn’t believe. Says it isn’t logical.” 

This mother’s heart was breaking for her adult son, and as we talked, I watched it crack open. Years of prayers, bucket-loads of tears, and nightly fears that her precious son would one day die and spend eternity separated from God spilled out in one frantic, slobbery, heart-breaking conversation. 

“He says it isn’t logical. . .” 

Tim, a college student at our Wednesday night Bible study, peppered my husband, our pastor, with questions—archaeology, science, biblical history. My husband is well educated and was able to present a sound defense of the Bible and its truths, but it was apparent that the young man’s questions were limitless.

“Faith doesn’t require us to set aside our intellect,” he finally said to Tim. “There are volumes of good, sound reasons and evidence for what we believe. But you’re never going to get all your questions answered. Ultimately, you’re going to have to exercise faith.” 

“Without faith,” the writer of Hebrews said, “it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Heb. 11:6). 

The thought that we should be able to understand everything about God is ludicrous. And presumptuous. And prideful. 

Daniel and Tim would never expect to fully understand everything about Einstein, or DaVinci, or Aristotle. 

“It’s impossible,” they’d respond. “They’re geniuses. There’s no way we could even begin to get inside their heads.” 

Yet they and others like him expect to be able to fully grasp the breadth and depth of God? 

"As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts,” says the Lord (Isa. 55:9). 

If you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you know I am a passionate student of God and his Word. I believe God calls us to dig deep and ponder long in our pursuit of him. Yet the hammock in which our lives must rest is trust—even when we don’t fully understand. 

Lord, we pray with the psalmist, my heart is not haughty, 

Nor my eyes lofty. 

Neither do I concern myself with great matters, 

Nor with things too profound for me. 

Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul. 

Like a weaned child with his mother; 

Like a weaned child is my soul within me (Psa. 131:1-2).

Quiet trust. Believing faith. 

What about you? Do you struggle with what you don’t understand about God, or is it easy for you to rest in faith? Do you think acknowledging the limits of our ability to understand God means we’re setting our intellect aside? Leave a comment below and join the conversation. If you’re reading by email, CLICK HERE to visit Hungry for God online, scroll down, and leave a comment at the bottom.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

How to Banish the Dark Night of the Soul

Freedigitalphotos.netSaint John of the Cross first coined the phrase “dark night of the soul” in his poem, “The Dark Night.” Others, ranging from Mother Teresa, to F. Scott Fitzgerald, to the heavy metal band Fear Factory have all used the term to describe various degrees of spiritual struggle. Even soap opera stars Bridget Forrester and Brooke Logan discussed “spirituality and the purpose of human existence” in an episode of The Bold and the Beautiful  by quoting lines from the poem.*
Most of us fall somewhere between Mother Teresa and the soap opera stars, but what we have in common is the experience of spiritual struggle. Dark nights of the soul sometimes strike us unaware. They descend in all their inky blackness like the rapid onset of an eclipse. Other times they creep into our lives subtly, as lengthening shadows across a lawn, slowly stealing the light from our days.
Dark nights of the soul wear different faces, too. Death is a common one, with Disappointment and Depression competing for second place. Financial loss hangs in Dark Night’s wardrobe next to Illness and Infidelity. Fear and Hopelessness dangle like accessories to complete the outfit.
We reach a crisis of faith, and we doubt we can hold on another moment.
What are we to do?
King David experienced the dark night of the soul. “Save me, O God,” he writes, “for the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in the miry depths where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters; the floods engulf me. I am worn out calling for help” (Psalm 69:1-3).
The apostle Paul did too. “We were under great pressure,” he writes, “far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death” (2 Corinthians 1:8-9).

These men point us to the light that has the power to banish the dark night of the soul:
“Unless your law had been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction,” testifies David in Psalm 119:92.   Here are 6 ways God’s Word banishes the dark night of the soul:   1.  It reminds us of God’s character. “You, O Lord, are good,”(2 Chronicles 7:30).
2.  It reminds us of God’s love. “. . .  and your love endures forever” (2 Chronicles 7:3).
3.  It reminds us that our trials are temporary. “Weeping endures for a night, but joy comes in the morning”(Psalm 30:5).
4.  It reminds us that our trials have purpose. “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17).
5.  It reminds us that we are not alone. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever” (John 14:16).
6.  It reminds us of our future. “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

If you are experiencing a dark night of the soul, I encourage you to fill yourself with God’s Word. The Psalms are a beautiful place to begin. The more light you bring into your heart and life, the less room there is for darkness. Even a tiny candle bids the darkness flee.
And if your life is sunny, without even a shifting shadow, I encourage you to also fill yourself with God’s Word. The time to build spiritual muscle is not in the midst of trial. The healthier your spirit is, the stronger you will be to weather the dark nights that come to every believer.
What are some ways God’s Word has ministered to you during dark nights? Join the conversation by leaving a comment below:
For more encouragement, please visit this link: Reasons to Keep Climbing
*http://www.ask.com/wiki/Dark_Night_of_the_Soul?o=2801&qsrc=999



If you enjoyed this devotion, may I tell you about my new book, Hungry for God … Starving for Time, 5-Minute Devotions for Busy Women?

 Today's women want to connect with God, but in the craziness of life, it’s just not happening. You want practical, biblical answers to situations you face every day, but you don’t have hours to pore over Scripture.

You need a resource that answers the questions you’re afraid to ask out loud. Questions like:

• Is my situation hopeless?
• If God already knows what he’s going to do, why bother to pray? 
• Why have you allowed this to happen to me? 
• No one appreciates what I do. Why shouldn’t I quit? 

Each devotion begins with a Facetime question and ends with a biblical answer wrapped in a modern day parable. Like a spiritual power bar, Hungry for God … Starving for Time is packed with enough scriptural nutrition to get you through the day. Wherever you are—in break rooms, carpool lines, or wherever you can snatch five minutes of quiet reflection—Hungry for God … Starving for Time, 5-Minute Devotions for Busy Women is for you. 

 
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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

What Happened When I Prayed this 9-Word Prayer

Have you ever watched someone with the gift of evangelism share their faith and wished you were so bold? Have you heard people talk about spiritual conversations they’ve had with coworkers, friends, and family and wondered, why doesn’t God give me opportunities to share my faith like that? 


I’m not a fearless evangelist, nor do I have the spiritual gift of evangelism, but years ago I learned a prayer that has opened up more opportunities to share my faith than I can count.

Lord, show me where you are at work today. 

This simple prayer is part of D. James Kennedy’s Evangelism Explosion training that teaches people how to share their faith clearly and boldly. It’s based on Jesus’ words in John 5:17,

"My Father is always at his work . . . ."

When I ask God to show me where he’s working in the world, it reminds me that God is always drawing people to himself. There’s never a lack of opportunities to share my faith; I’m just usually too self-absorbed to see them. I bumble past people every day whose hearts are tender and receptive to spiritual things because I’m just not looking for them.

Praying this prayer and believing God will answer it keeps me alert for spiritual signs that God is using my neighbors’, friends’, and family’s life circumstances to open their hearts to him. This happened recently with one of my dental patients.

When I asked him what was going on in his life, his eyes filled with tears.

“My wife’s been battling cancer, and it’s not looking good.” 

“That must be very scary,” I said. My statement unleashed a flood of words, and for the next ten minutes we set aside his dental needs to talk about his greater need—to know that whether his wife lived or died, he would one day see her again. By the end of his appointment, I knew God had answered my prayer to show me where he was working in the world.

Maybe God had answered my prayer by bringing the man to our office that day. Or arranged for me to be assigned to him instead of another hygienist. He might have led me to ask the question that unlocked the deepest concern of his heart. Or perhaps it was all three. One thing I know for sure, asking God to show me where he was at work in the world encouraged me look for his answer. 

God is at also work in your world today. Will you have eyes to see it and be a part of what he’s doing in someone else’s life? I encourage you to begin your day with the simple nine-word prayer, “Lord, show me where you’re at work today.” Then be ready to join him.

 Father, I pray for the people reading this post. Help them care enough about this sad, sick world to share the hope they have in Christ. Give them eyes to see where you’re at work around them and courage to come alongside you. Give them tender hearts and gentle words. Use them to draw men and women, boys and girls to a saving knowledge of you. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

How Stop, Drop and Roll Helps Me Stay Positive When I Feel Negative

Some days I bounce out of bed. Other days I drag. 

Some days my prayers soar to the heavens. Other days I struggle to ask in faith. 

Some days I speak encouraging words that build others up and inspire their faith. Other days I speak fearful, worrisome words that direct their eyes to circumstances and trouble their faith. 

Some days I focus on every good and perfect gift God has given me. Other days I catalog everything I don’t like about my life and my circumstances. 

I suspect I’m not alone. You struggle too. Staying positive when we feel negative is easier some days than others, and it’s almost always a battle. 

But it’s a battle we must fight. 

Negativity comes when we take our eyes off God and focus instead on our circumstances or feelings. Like a kitchen fire, it starts small but can quickly burn a house down. To tolerate or ignore it is to invite our own destruction. 


So how do we quench the fires of negativity? 

Here’s my three-step formula: 

1. STOP. As soon as your brain starts walking down the path of negativity, put the brakes on. Reign in those thoughts and don’t allow them to run away with your happiness.  
Negativity is sneaky. Like a looter during a power outage, it gathers everything that makes you happy and spirits it away. Then it heaps up everything bad it can find and presents the pile to you with a flourish and an evil grin. 

As soon as we recognize this sneaky joy thief, we must take action. Sometimes this is as simple as saying aloud, “NO, I’m not going to think negatively, fret, or grumble.” 

2. DROP. Drop the woe and replace it with wow. It’s not easy just to stop thinking negatively. We have to fill the void with something else. Philippians 4:8 tells us what that “something else” is: “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-- think about such things.” 

Choosing to replace our negative, pessimistic, gloom and doom thoughts with positive, hope-filled, upward-looking thoughts is an act of self-discipline. If we practice, it will become easier and eventually become our default setting. 

3. ROLL. Roll your cares off your frail, weak shoulders and onto God’s big, strong ones. As the old hymn says, “Have a little talk with Jesus.” It sounds simplistic, but praying about what we’re struggling with is amazingly powerful in at least three ways. 

First, it moves us from powerlessly spinning our wheels to tapping into the greatest force for change available. Second, it forces us to acknowledge our helplessness and our need of God’s help. Finally, it opens the door for peace to enter our hearts. 

Philippians 4:6-7 commands us, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” 

So the next time negativity threatens your happiness, I encourage you to stop, drop, and roll. By tapping into the strength of self-discipline, the truth of God’s word, and the power of prayer, you can quench the fire of negativity and embrace the peace and joy God intends for you.

What about you? Do you struggle with negativity? How do you fight it? I'd love it if you'd share your thoughts in the comment box. If you're reading via email, CLICK HERE to visit Hungry for God online, then scroll down to the bottom of the post to comment.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Why You Don’t Have to Fear the Future – Profundity from Winnie-the-Pooh

Profundity appears in unusual places, but this source didn’t catch me completely by surprise. As philosophers go, Winnie-the Pooh has long been known for wise-beyond-his-years serendipity. Disney’s latest version of Pooh’s adventures, a movie called, Christopher Robin, provides an ample supply of the short, fat, and proud-of-that bear’s snippets of wisdom. 
My well-loved copy from my childhood.
Here are some of my favorite lines from the movie: 

"I always get to where I'm going by walking away from where I've been." 

“Doing nothing often leads to the very best kind of something.” 

“There's always time for a smackeral of wonder.” 

But the quote that has reverberated in my heart since the last whispers of the movie finds its origin in Scripture. 

In one scene, an adult Christopher Robin awakens to discover he’s slept the night away. He’s late for a very important meeting. “Oh no!” he says. “It’s tomorrow.” Panicked, he rushes into a day filled with pressure, problems, and hopeless scenarios. A day devoid of joy and fun. 

Pooh remembers this exchange as the sun sets on the movie. “What day is today?” he asks. 

“It’s today,” Christopher Robin replies. 

“Oh, that’s my favorite day. Yesterday, when it was tomorrow, it was much too much day for me.” 

I have often felt Pooh’s angst. Standing on the precipice of Today peering through the thin veil into Tomorrow, I sometimes feel overwhelmed by what the future might hold. Cold fear clutches my heart. Will my resources be enough to handle what comes my way? 

Will my marriage go the distance? 

Will our money be enough to pay the bills? 

Will my children love God? 

Will my body be ravaged by some cruel disease? 

Will my retirement account last through my old age? 

Like Pooh, tomorrow is much too much day for me. 

Thankfully, Jesus knows the frailties of our hearts. This is why he cautioned, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Mat. 6:34). 

Don’t peer into the veil, he warns. One day’s challenges are enough. 

Isaiah, in the book of Lamentations, tells us why each day must stand on its own. 




“(God’s) mercies never end. They are new every morning” (Lamentations 3:23).

Like the manna he supplied to the Israelites every day, God’s supply is inexhaustible – but the quantities are limited. Today’s mercies are only enough to feed Today’s growling stomach. There are no leftovers to vacuum seal and set aside. Tomorrow’s mercies remain safely stored in the warehouse of God’s supply until the new day arrives, and we cannot raid the stash. 

Yet we want to. Oh, how we want to. 

We want to stockpile a lifetime’s supply of mercy so we’ll only have to ask once. We long to shed our mantle of fear and uncertainty forever. We want to walk into our future with our mercy cloaks wrapped tightly about us, impervious to the fiery darts of our uncertain futures – the same darts that drive us to seek shelter in the shadow of the Almighty. 

But it doesn’t work that way. “Yesterday’s mercies are for yesterday’s burdens,” John Piper said, and it’s true. Today’s mercy check is payable to the bearer on demand, but it can’t be post-dated. 

Every day God invites us to sit at his feet and obtain all the mercy we need – but only for that day’s challenges. 

“Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence,” the writer of Hebrews says, “so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” 

This daily portion of grace and mercy tethers us to his side, where we are safe, instead of releasing us to the dangers of spiritual independence. 

God knows our hearts. He knows we’d jerk the coat of adequacy off the rack, shove our arms into its sleeves, and march off into the future with nary a backward glance. Clothed in our self-sufficiency, we’d have no reason to sit at his feet, learn from him, and allow him to work through us. We’d have no need for a relationship with him if he provided all we needed to live without him. 

Knowing our willful bent toward independence, God tethers us to himself by his grace. There we experience the freedom of knowing he’ll provide everything we need, exactly when we need it. 

What a gift. 

If you feel overwhelmed and frightened by the what ifs of the future, take heart. If you can’t bear the thought of tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow, rest easy. As Pooh so wisely observed, tomorrow is much too much day for you. 

But today isn’t. Today you have God’s mercies – and they are new every day, abundantly sufficient for everything you will encounter. 

Today is all you have to face. And God’s mercies are already here.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

How to Help a Hurting Friend

Someone you care about is struggling. Perhaps they're sick, or angry, or discouraged. Maybe a child has broken their heart or their marriage is in shambles. Maybe it’s not one big ugly, but a lot of little uglies that have them down. They've lost their perspective, and their faith is flickering. You know you can’t fix the situation, but you love your friend, and you want to help. What can you do? 

Here are four steps to take when someone you care about is hurting: 


1. Pray 

We are in a battle, and the enemy of our souls prowls around, seeking whom he can destroy. Thankfully, we have powerful weapons in our arsenal. Jesus, at the Last Supper, knew he would soon be arrested and separated from his disciples. He warned Peter of the coming trial. 

“Peter, Satan desires to sift you as wheat.” Then he said something profound and powerful. “But I have prayed for you.” 



The forces of evil in this world want to discourage and defeat Christians. But Jesus, the Lover of our souls, who is infinitely more powerful than Satan, is praying for his children. When we add our prayers to Jesus’, we join forces to support those we love.

Every time I pray for my loved ones, I can be confident that Jesus has gone ahead of me and is interceding on their behalf. And while prayer, on the surface, seems passive, it is the most dynamic thing we can do. 

2. Love them, even when they’re not very loveable. 

Hurting people hurt people. It’s sad, but it’s true. Ironically, those who are hurt and angry often direct their negative emotions toward those who love them most. When this happens, our natural response is to pull back and distance ourselves from them. Well if that’s the way they’re going to act, fine. I’ll leave them alone. 

Instead, ask God to enable you to love them even more. Try to see life through their eyes. Imagine how you’d feel if you were in a similar situation. Share those thoughts with them. If I had just lost my job, I’d be feeling pretty scared right now. This may open channels of helpful communication and direct them into healthier ways of expressing their feelings. 

Determine in advance that no matter what they say, you'll respond with love. Conflict doesn’t start with the first person. It is the second person’s response that determines the course of the conversation.  

3. Look for practical ways to serve them. 

Kathy, a patient of mine, lost her husband to cancer after an ugly seven-month battle. He was admitted to a hospital 90 miles away the week after Christmas. Shortly after they arrived, she received a series of text messages. When she opened them, she saw pictures of her three best friends--at her house. 

What are you doing in my house? she texted back. 

We’re taking down your Christmas decorations was their reply. 

Kathy’s friends couldn’t stand vigil at the hospital, but they wanted to support and encourage her. Instead of fretting about what they couldn’t do, they did what they could—something practical that still brings a smile to Kathy’s face years later. 

4. Leave room for the Holy Spirit to work. 

The Lord may give you the opportunity to share scriptural truths, promises to claim, or comforting Bible verses. Do it. 

But don’t be surprised if your friend isn’t ready to receive your words. If they respond negatively, take a step back. The Holy Spirit will continue to work, even if your friend appears to have closed the door. 

Watching a loved one struggle is hard. We feel helpless, because we want to fix their problem and lift their burden. Sharing words of faith from your own experience, praying, and listening when they feel like talking will help them heal. Continue to love them, and look for ways to serve them. Finally, trust the Holy Spirit to speak to your loved one’s heart and restore their joy. 

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5). 

What about you? What do you find helpful when a loved one is struggling? Leave a comment in the comment box below. And if you’re reading by email, CLICK HERE and scroll down to the end of the post to share your thoughts.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher