WALKING WITH GOD: 52 DEVOTIONALS

By Diane Johnson

A strange thing started happening to me a few months back. I found myself waking up around 5:00 a.m. or so several mornings with a strong need to study Bible on a particular subject or maybe a special scripture. I found myself pouring out my heart into written devotionals. I write about depression, anger, love, trust, finding new siblings, and a

• Language: English
• Publisher: Diane Johnson
• Release date: Mar 29, 2019
• ISBN: 9781948828666

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Walking with God

52 Devotionals

The Beginning

The journey I’m going to start with began sometime in late spring of 1961. Dorothy Newland found herself knocking on a door that would be opened by a nine-year-old boy who was taking care of three small children and an infant set of twins. That’s a scene that Dorothy will always remember. I was one of the twins. Dorothy and her husband, JC, became my twin brother Roger’s and my parents in September of 1961. Along with their two daughters, Karen and Barbara, we were raised in a Christian home, taught good values, and most importantly, shown the love of God in our everyday lives.

Were you adopted? Placed a child for adoption? Known someone adopted? If yes to any of these, this story might hit close to home.

For the next part of the journey, we advance on a few (okay . . .

a lot of) years. I’ve been married nearly thirty-five years. Gary and I have raised three children. We have struggled through challenges of life. I have been united with my biological siblings and most recently written and published my first book. The book tells the story of how God worked to bring thirteen siblings together after over fifty years of being separated, and turned this group of individuals into a family. I wrote about the first time I met my biological mother and two younger sisters, and a few months later met another sister. Then I met two aunts and two uncles on my biological father’s side. The story continues all the way to 2012 and our last United Sibling reunion, where, for the one and only time, thirteen strangers were brought together and became family. I titled the book How God Turned Strangers into Family: The Story of Us.

God seemed to have his timing planned out for this story to unfold. I met my Uncle Jessie just a few months before he died of cancer. He had wondered, after his brother, my biological father, had died, what happened to his nieces and nephews. I was able to share with him what information that I had.

My oldest brother, Woodrow, started treatment for hepatitis shortly after we met. He needed to know that he had family out here in order to fight through the treatment. Year 2010 seemed to be the year that God had planned for each one of the thirteen of us to be ready to meet. All our doors seemed to open that year. Some of the siblings began looking for family that might be out there; others were searched for and finally found. Genealogical websites were used to help us, as well as Facebook, and even snail mail. In one case, a neighbor down the street went and knocked on one brother’s door to tell him that he had family looking for him. Bottom line, God was the only reason that it all came together Labor Day weekend 2010. With every step that I took along the road, God continued to bless me more and more. I now have a very close relationship with several of my siblings. Without God’s watchful eye, some of those relationships may not have ever happened.

The book, now written, paperback copies in hand, I began to get feedback. I was asked several times, What made you write the book? The first few times I answered, I’ve been told that someone needed to write a book. The more I thought about that question, the more my answer changed. The answer now is more about how much God has blessed me in this journey, how much he blesses all of us, and how much I want to share his blessings with others. My brother, Jim, and I have discussed the book title several times. We were all strangers, and through God’s love, we have been turned into family.

God’s plan for his children is that they be part of a family . . . part of his family. He is the creator and the heavenly Father of all of us. In Psalms 133:1, it says, How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! In Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesians, he speaks primarily to non-Jewish Christians about the importance of the church and how the church must be united in working together for the cause of Christ. After sharing with them all the changes that have taken place in Ephesus, we read in Ephesians 1:3–6:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love, He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

After Paul shared with them all the changes that have taken place in Christ Jesus, he makes this monumental statement of belonging:

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. (Ephesians 2: 19–22)

By bringing us into his church, God is turning strangers into family. So now, in Christ, wherever we go, no matter whether we might be, strangers or not, in the church, we are God’s family.

I will end with this thought. None of us know what God has in store for us. Eight months ago, I had no idea that I would have ever sat down and written about finding a part of my family that was lost to me for so many years. Even after that, the positive feedback that I am getting for something that only God could have done still amazes me. And believe it or not, when I typed this out, I had no plans or ideas of who I might be sharing it with. I just knew that God wanted me to share it.

I pray that we will always be open to sharing the love of God with others.

Thoughts

•  Have you ever visited at another church when you are on a vacation?

•  Were you made to feel welcome?

•  Have you seen visitors at your home congregation?

•  Have you made them feel welcome?

Prayer

Dear God, thank You for being our heavenly Father and for making us Your children. Help us to treat others as family just as you would want us to do. In Jesus name we pray.

Praying Hands

I know that we all have turning points in our lives where something just clicks. Well, one of mine that I will always remember happened while I was sitting in front of my house, in a car, talking to my mom. My mom had come over to visit, and we had gone out to sit in her van for a few minutes. Our discussion was about how I was supposed to handle my two teenage boys.

My oldest was bipolar and wouldn’t take his medicine. His two-year-younger brother had his first girlfriend and had decided that parents in general and moms specifically were worthless. With tears in my eyes, I am pretty sure I looked at my mom and said, I just don’t know what else to do. I can’t handle anymore, Mom. What can I do? With all the love that my mom had for me and for her grandsons, she very calmly looked at me and said, It isn’t yours to handle. Give it to God. I looked confused and told her that I had, but it wasn’t working. Here’s what she had me do next: Diane, you know the ceramic hands that represent God’s hands that were in your kid’s nurseries? I answered that, yes, I did. "Well, hold your hands out like that. Okay, now, picture yourself putting James in those hands. Let go. Now put Casey in those hands. Let go. Now, turn around, walk away and let God take care of them. When they fall out, and they will, just pick them up . . .

put them back in His hands . . . and let go again. There will be things you have to do, but only God can take care and control of your boys."

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. (John 14:27)

I still use the praying hands symbol as a reminder that my job in life is to let go. God is the one to give peace to his children, if we simply slow down long enough to accept it.

Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. (Psalms 46:10)

As Gary and I raised our children, there was probably one biblical phrase I heard a lot and frankly didn’t like or understand it. God won’t give you more than you can handle. Sorry, as far as I was concerned, he had. The scripture is 1 Corinthians 10:13: No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able. And that is where most people stopped with the scripture. This did not provide the confidence that the full scripture intended. The scripture ends like this: But with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. The last part is the reassurance that He is there to support and help.

Philippians 4:13 tells us, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6–7)

It is hard to believe that it has been thirteen years (or so) since Mom and I had that conversation. She didn’t realize what an impact she made in my life. There are things that we do daily that affect others. That impact can be for the good or for bad. What opportunities have you had lately to make an impact for God? Did you affect for or against God? About a week ago, I found myself in a hospital waiting room. An elder from church was there with me, and we were just visiting till it was okay to see my daughter. A young man had been sitting across the room, watching TV. He came over to where we were and asked if we could help him out with some money for bus fare. He would be released soon and needed a couple of bucks to ride the bus home. My friend and I looked at each other. I guess we were trying to figure out who was going to help or how to say no . . . not really sure, but instead we asked him a few questions about him and why he was there. I don’t remember his name, so I will call him Roberto. As we were talking to Roberto, the subject of church came up. He told us that he used to go to church but didn’t anymore. As he shared some stories from his past with us, we sat and listened. He had done some things that had hurt family members. He had also been hurt by those same family members. With tears in his eyes, he spoke with love about his grandmother. She had passed away a couple of years ago, and I don’t think he had really had the chance to grieve her passing. We listened and answered his questions. We could have very easily given Roberto the little bit of money that he asked for and then left. That’s all he really wanted . . . right? Maybe, but he needed someone to just listen.

When you put your strength in the Lord, there isn’t anything that he gives you that you can’t handle. That phrase is no longer as frightening or misunderstood by me as it was then. When the devil attacks, and it is him that is doing the attacking, God does not leave us. He stands behind us and holds us up with the strength that only he has. So why do I have to be reminded of this so often? Maybe because I am human, maybe because the devil is alive and well in the world today. So for me, I will continue to use the praying hands as a symbol to remind me that God holds me in his hands and will continue to protect me as long as I let him.

Let God put you in his protective hands as well.

Thoughts

•  Are there worries that you are trying to hang on to and deal with yourself?

•  What is keeping you from turning them over to God?

•  Even if you turn them over, do you try to take them back?

Prayer

Dear God, You know our hearts and our lives. Please give us the wisdom to know that You are much better at taking care of problems than we are. Help us to turn our worries over to You and then to let go of them and not try to take them back. In Jesus name, we pray.

Friendship

I am a firm believer that God directly helps us throughout our lives. That direct help comes in lots of forms. One form is by who he puts in our lives. He puts people in our lives at certain times that can help guide us through the life lesson we are about to experience. And on the other side of that coin, he puts us in other people’s lives that might need our guidance through the life lesson they are about to experience and that we have already learned from.

Looking back over the big moves that my family made when I was growing up, those big moves were made the same year that somebody graduated from high school. My family lived out in Monahans, Texas, when I was adopted as a one-year-old baby. My two older sisters were eleven and nine. Well, Karen was married, and now Barbara was graduating from high school in 1970. She moved off to college, and the rest of the family packed, loaded up, and moved to Midland, Texas. We lived there until 1979, when the day after I graduated from high school, we were packed, loaded up, and moved to Arlington, Texas. The reason those two moves (or mostly the last one) proved to be so important has to do with friendship. My dad had already been working in Fort Worth for several months. Mom and I were waiting for graduation for us to make the move to join him. Dad had found a church in Arlington that he thought would work for us. So the first Sunday morning, we were in Arlington where we attended church. My dad had met a young lady that was my age, and he could picture us as friends. It has now been thirty-eight years. My parents still attend church at that congregation, and that young lady is still a very dear friend. As a matter of fact, we had supper together just a few weeks ago to catch up. We don’t get to spend a lot of time together anymore, but I know that God put her in my life for so many reasons. All three of my kids call her Mama Shell. Does that tell you how important she is in my life? It probably should.

Two are better than one because they have a good return for their work; if one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! (Ecclesiastes 4:9–10). Do you have that special friend or friends? Are you that special friend? Webster’s defines the word friend as "one attached to another by affection or esteem; or a favored companion."

Friendship is sharing the different times of our lives with others. It is usually easier to share the good times than the hard times, but it’s important to share both. The friends that we keep help to make us strong and help bring out the best in us. Romans 1:12 says, That is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine. And Proverbs 17:17 says, A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. God fully intended for us to have friendships on this earth that would withstand the test of time. The friendship between David and Jonathan is the perfect example. Over time, there are a lot of factors that can strengthen the bond of friendship or can destroy it. Let’s look at a couple of obvious factors that can affect friendship.

Trust: Know that whatever is said or done by someone is the truth. When you trust a person, you can count on them to keep their word to you and to always follow through with what they say. Luke 16:10 says, He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. And Psalms 40:4 says, How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust, and has not turned to the proud, not to those who lapse into falsehood. When trust is part of the friendship, then you know that the friendship will last. Trust is the foundation to any relationship. If it is broken, it is extremely hard to get back.

Love: Love is caring deeply about someone else. In 1 John 4:19 it says, We love, because He first loved us. That