2026 Daily Affirmation #181

“He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake” (Psalm 23:2–3, MEV). Jesus loves us enough to guide us. He makes sure we get rest. He makes sure we have sustenance (spiritual and physical). He makes sure we can access His restoring power and presence. For the sake of God’s glory He leads us into conversations and situations where we can champion Him. Where we can be an example to others. Where we can speak into the lives of those around us. He is a GOOD God. He is MERCIFUL. He is GRACIOUS. He is LOVING. And He leads us so that we can talk about those things, model those things, and explain those things to everyone we come across. It isn’t always about us. It can be scary, in a sense. Moving out of our comfort zone. Reaching out to someone. Talking about God in a world in which God doesn’t get a lot of respect. Maybe being led to speak to people we see regularly around our mostly private moments — like neighbours. These are uncomfortable conversations at times. Not because sharing Jesus is uncomfortable, but because we know the reaction people have to Jesus. They lump Him as a religious thing. A doctrine of dos and donts that have no meaning to those who don’t follow Him. You can find MANY people talking about how sin doesn’t exist outside Christianity. How there is no objective moral code of conduct outside theology. That you can’t be a sinner if you aren’t believing in God. It’s hard to talk to people like that. It’s hard to put yourself out there when you might have to deal with people like that. Or those who’ve had a bad experience with ‘church people’ in the past. Or people who feel guilty when they think about God and don’t like that feeling. Jesus loves us. He doesn’t want to harm us or put us into situations that will harm us. That is NEVER His goal. His goal is to reach the lost. To give everyone the opportunity to hear, understand, and accept His grace and mercy. His salvation. If we lean into Him, we’ll always have the right thing to saw on our tongues. If we follow Him and allow Him to guide us, we’ll be well prepared to share His goodness to those around us. It might not always go well, but the right seeds will get planted so that there is a possibility of a beautiful harvest. We can’t manage that without Him leading us because only He knows people’s hearts. Only He knows what will touch them. Only He loves them enough to keep coming back with His offer. We can cooperate with that, but only when He is guiding us. But what a great thing to partner on! What a journey of needing, utilizing, and sharing His love for us.