Manna for Your Morning

O LORD, how long shall I cry, and You will not hear? Even cry out to You, “Violence!” And You will not save. Why do You show me iniquity, and cause me to see trouble? For plundering and violence are before me; There is strife, and contention arises. — Habakkuk 1:2-3 (NKJV) Habakkuk 1:3 (NLT) says, “I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight.” When strife and contention arises, let us continue to call upon the LORD and abide in His perfect peace. Check out the LORD’s reply to Habakkuk’s plea, “Look among the nations and watch— Be utterly astounded! For I will work a work in your days which you would not believe, though it were told you.” (Habakkuk 1:5 NKJV) No matter how circumstances appear, may we remember that the LORD is doing a work in our midst, and He is faithful to complete it. The LORD's purpose and His plan will prevail. We have Jesus, the Prince of Peace and Savior of the world. “ Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, becau...

And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. — Matthew 11:12 (NKJV) I often wondered about these violent people who take the kingdom by force. I’m sure one of them was the woman in Mark 5:25-30, who suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. This woman has always intrigued me, more than the other people Jesus healed. She didn’t wait for her friends to carry her to Jesus on a cot. She didn’t lay by the pool waiting for an angel to stir up the water. Jesus didn’t find her laying in bed or hiding in a barn. No. She actively pursued her Healer, the great Physician. She believed the word she had heard about Jesus, and her belief compelled her to take action. She said to herself, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” This woman had spent everything she had on doctors and her condition only grew worse. The people who take the kingdom by force, probably gave everything to the world, at one ti...