I was an Army Drill Sergeant for Basic Training during Vietnam, a time when you could still be a, well…Drill Sergeant. No political correctness. No feelings to worry about. We were at war, and boys needed to become men in a hurry. One of the things that fed my ego the most was walking into my trainees’ barracks and having someone yell, “Atten-shun!” and see everybody scramble to their feet. In many ways, this book shares my journey about God getting my attention and turning me from a boy into a man of God.
On this journey, I’ve been down many rabbit trails that led to disappointment, frustration, and eventually back to forgiveness. I’ve lost jobs, been cheated out of money, accused wrongly, buried two of my children, and spent almost three years on disability from a motorcycle accident that wasn’t my fault.
But through it all, God has been patiently wooing me, correcting my thinking, and slowly putting to death my pride. I say slowly because I fight Him at every turn. I’m comfortable with my pride. And that puts me at odds with surrendering my will to really become the man God intends. I can relate to the Apostle Paul when he talks about doing the things he doesn’t want to do (Romans 7:14-25). Don’t misunderstand. I’m not there yet, and sometimes it seems more like a forced march with a 50 lb. pack than a Sunday afternoon stroll around the lake, but I am on the right road.
What will it take for God to get your attention? I’m not implying that God awaits your wrong turns with glee and a big hammer. Quite the opposite. God’s patience is legend. Look at how long he suffered the complaining and insubordination of Israel yet still loved them. But even God’s patience has limits. Try to imagine yourself in God’s shoes time after time, dealing with the rebellion, grumbling, and disbelief hurled at Him by the Israelites. The thing I’m amazed about is that God didn’t zap them sooner. But you and I are the recipients of that same patience and grace. If I got zapped every time I deserved it, there’d be nothing left of me.
The goal of this book is to share with you some of the things I’ve learned and to point your attention to the only answer—the only anchor—we have in our sin-corrupted world and encourage you that no matter your trials, you have a faithful companion (Deut. 31:6) who will never forsake you. Will you come with me? This book is about character, and I define it this way: “Character is that which is developed through the exercise of my spiritual muscles in trials and prosperity, amid throngs or alone, realizing that growth is a process—not an event—which continues as long as I do; the ultimate measure of which is, ‘how much am I like Jesus?’”
“This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psa. 118:24
Today. It’s the only day we have. Yesterday is a memory. We can’t spend tomorrow. This is about living in the moment, not presuming on the future. That’s not to say we shouldn’t have a plan if God grants us one more day. But too often, we live in our plan and not in the present. Jesus asks us a pointed question: “Who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?”[1] Before we are born, God assigns a certain number of days to each of us.[2] Thankfully, we don’t know how many. But here’s the point. Live each day as if Christ will call you home that day. What will you be doing when He calls? Will He be able to say, “Well done”?
The idea for this book was born over 25 years ago when, for a period of several days, I arose each morning with a new thought about Christ’s character qualities. As I jotted them down, I wondered if this could be the making of a daily “devotional.” I hesitate to use that word because it smacks of routine drudgery and discipline. But think of the root: devotion. Isn’t that what God would have of us? Hasn’t He said, “You shall have no other gods before Me?”[3] I don’t know about you, but I prefer “rubber hits the road” stuff that I can relate to. It’s been said, “A message prepared in the mind reaches another mind. A message prepared in the heart reaches another heart.” I’ve tried to share thoughts from my personal journey to a deeper walk with Christ and, in many ways, I’ve written this book for myself, to be an encouragement on those days I succumb to the temptation to throw myself a pity party. You’re welcome to read along. Hopefully, you don’t have any of those days.
My prayer as you begin this book is that it will challenge you to draw close to the one true God, creator of heaven and earth, from whom we receive all that we need for this world and the next. Please take time to look up the footnotes and read the context.
As we begin our journey together, may I offer you one piece of advice? Say you live in Oregon and want to drive to Florida, but you’ve never been there. One of the things you’ll do is consult an atlas. You’ll choose where to stop along the way, whether you want the fastest or most scenic route. The fact is that you trust completely in the Mapmaker to get you to your destination. The Christian walk is exactly like that. The Bible is the atlas, and God is the Mapmaker. The question to consider is, “Where do you want to go as your final destination?” The way is clearly marked; Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”[4] There are only two final destinations: heaven and hell. Choose wisely; eternity is a long time.
A common denominator for a life of fear, stress, and uncertainty is the need for spiritual peace, to know that your eternal future is secured with a title deed in the right place. There is ONLY ONE way to find that…in Jesus Christ. Each week is a different character quality modeled by Jesus in His life on earth. Each character quality has one week’s worth of daily writings intended to encourage a life of righteousness, faithfulness, and purpose.
The reaction to the coronavirus has shown everyone how quickly life on earth can change for the worse. And this isn’t even God’s (final) judgment yet. But suppose a day, actually a moment, is coming when, like the flip of a light switch, God calls timeout. At that second, everyone will be in one of two camps: those who believed God’s warnings and prepared, and those who didn’t. That day IS coming…soon, and there won’t be any additional warnings.
If you’re not sure which camp you’re in, or if you think that you’ve “been good enough,” then this book is for you. The most important decision you will ever face is how you answer the question when God asks, “What did you do with my Son Jesus?”
Please take time to read these daily words of truth. Your eternal future is at stake. If, after reading, you’d like to learn more about how you can know for sure that you’ll be in the right group, turn to page 368 or email us and let us know how we can help. Someone will get back to you right away.
If you’d like prayer for yourself or someone else, email us and give us the prayer request. We welcome your comments. We WILL pray. “Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Heb. 4:16
Mike Thornton
[1] Matt. 6:27
[2] Psa. 139:16
[3] Ex. 20:3
[4] John 14:6