” The best predictor of future behavior, is past behavior” -Dr. Steve Wilke

I walk by the empty rooms on a regular basis. Most of the time I’m able to focus on the happy memories of days filled with children’s voices and laughter, but other times are more difficult for me. On those days I miss our boys’ presence in our home as well as all the seasons Steve and I enjoyed with them.

Of course we’d never change where they are in life and what they’re accomplishing, but these realities don’t fill up those empty rooms. Perhaps you can relate. Indeed, I know far too many people who are dealing with vacant spaces in their lives. A dear friend’s youngest child has left for college, and while she’s excited for her daughter, she is also mourning the change in life now that her kids are on their own. Others are facing tremendous sorrow because of a spouse who left, a loved one who succumbed to cancer, or a baby who never came home from the hospital.

Friends, there’s no way to face these kind of losses alone! That’s why I ‘m so thankful that we have a Heavenly Father who knows what we are going through and how to fill up the empty spaces in our lives. Look at these comforting verses from Psalm 147:

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.
(verses 3-5, NIV)

The One who positioned the stars in our universe knows exactly what each of us is dealing with-every day, throughout the day. In the verses above, the psalmist reminds us that He is the God who heals, including hearts that feel like they are breaking.

And if this isn’t enough, we have the security of a future without sadness, loss, and emptiness. One day soon we’ll be in the presence of Jesus who gave us this promise:

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
(John 14:1-4a, NIV)

That’s right-Jesus is preparing a place for everyone who believes in Him! Notice that He tells of a home with lots and lots of rooms, and God’s greatest desire is to fill them up with His forever family.

This promise for our future helps comfort me in those sad, lonely times. So does telling my Heavenly Father about what’s on my heart and mind. Somehow this humble act of crying out to Him heals me in a way nothing else can. My prayer is that you will find the Lord’s loving comfort today, and may you be filled with His peace and joy in all the seasons yet to come.

Thought of the Month

I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done. I will be filled with joy because of you. I will sing praises to your name, O Most High.
Psalm 9:1-3 (NLT)

Is it time for you to have a new beginning? It’s never too late for a fresh start!

Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!

Psalm 32:11

Sometimes joy seems like an elusive sensation, even in the midst of a beautiful summer day. Why is that? For each of us the reasons vary. It can depend on the burdens that we’re currently carrying. Often we feel that no matter how hard we try to live joyful lives, the world around us always pops the bubble of our happiness. And for some of us, past history or behavior patterns tend to make us drift toward a negative, even gloomy way of thinking.

The good news is that God can help us overcome these very real forces that we deal with, day-in and day-out. In John 10:10 we find an awesome insight into the Lord’s plans for us: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” Jesus didn’t hide the fact that we would experience problems in our lives. Actually, He describes the existence of our enemy, Satan, who like a thief wants to harm us-including robbing us of the joy we can experience throughout life’s journey. Yet I’d like you to concentrate on the second half of that verse: the Lord wants us to experience a full, satisfying life!

Notice Jesus didn’t say “One day in Heaven you’ll get to have a great life.” That will happen for all who believe in Him, but He also promises an amazingly abundant life that starts in the here and now.

I spent the last several years studying the topic of joy, partly because I found myself drifting back into some patterns of sadness that I’d experienced in my past. Through my research and time in Scripture, the Lord helped me find His path toward a more joyful life. I wrote about this personal journey in my recent book, I Choose Joy! I also discuss some of the 300-plus verses where God specifically entourages everyone to enjoy the life He has given them. This new journey with the Lord has dramatically changed the way I look at circumstances, other people, and my purpose here on Earth. I’m convinced that no matter what your current situation may be, God can help you discover a more joy-filled, satisfying life too.

Summer seems like a perfect time to focus on something positive, so why not work on adding more joy to your life? I’d urge you to spend time each day reading the Bible, especially looking for many of the passages that talk about joyful living. If you’d like a copy of I Choose Joy! for yourself or someone you care about, please check out our Sonkist Resources section. It can also be found at Amazon in print and Kindle form.

Most of all, as we are reminded in Psalm 32:11, joy is a choice. Your choice. My choice. So, let’s rejoice and be glad in the Lord-and choose joy this summer!

Thought for the Summer

Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,

that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

Psalm 90:14

Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression.
May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Psalm 19:13-14

I have a confession to make: I just stopped recording a television program-and it was painful! Painful because I really didn’t want to do it. Painful because I enjoyed the cast, the writing, and having something mindless to watch each week. I spent days agonizing over what should have been an easy process, even coming up with a list of reasons why I deserved to watch this show.

The bottom line, however, was the program was spiritual garbage for me, and I knew it. Even though it involved storybook characters and a “good versus evil” theme (can you figure out which show it was yet?), it wasn’t really adding value to my life. And, when I took a closer, more honest look, the light versus dark aspect of the program was growing greyer week by week.

These are times when verses like the ones above help in making decisions about so many aspects of life. The author, King David, began this psalm by praising God, and then he explained the blessings of being guided by His Word:

The precepts of the Lord are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
(verse 8)

The Lord’s ways are good, right, and pure. As we try to live by His guidelines, we will see things differently-His way. When we seek to really be like the Lord, we’ll have the same cry as David: “Keep your servant also from willful sins.” And, most of all, we’ll want to speak, think, and act in ways that please Him and give Him glory-all the time.

In order to live in this manner, we need to get rid of anything that’s basically rubbish. Remember the old adage: garbage in, garbage out? It’s all too true. If we’re filling our eyes, ears, and minds with less-than-worthy things, then what’s likely to fill our thoughts and impact our actions?

Last month, I realized I had some garbage that needed to go. And after a few withdrawal pains from my former favorite program, I’m surprisingly okay. I’ve actually been able to read the books I never seemed to have time for before!

How about you? What “garbage” would you like to clear out today? Maybe it’s a magazine you wish you hadn’t bought, or a video game you realize is distracting you from family and other priorities. Perhaps your choices in movies, friends, or hangouts need some reconsideration. Or it could simply be whatever you keep meditating on and ruminating about must go – now. Pray and ask for wisdom about how the Lord is calling you to live.

Like King David, let’s strive more than ever to do what we can to be blameless for our Redeemer. Let us delete the garbage, whatever it is. When we do, we’re promised we will experience a joy that nothing on earth could ever provide.

Thought of the Month

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God-this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Romans 12:1-2