A Wise Father

By Carin LeRoy –

One afternoon the doting father of a new piano student walked in to observe his daughter’s piano lesson. Since I inherited her from another teacher, I asked her to play a few songs to assess her skills. Along with missing several notes, she also lacked counting and rhythm skills. To get a better grasp of the fundamentals, I asked the father if he’d let me put her into a different book for review.

“But she does very well, and she’s learned every song in that book. I’m not sure we should do that,” he said. “Do you really think that’s necessary? I’m just sure she will blow right through the other book.”

I had my doubts.

Our discussion went on for several minutes as he showed full confidence in his daughter’s knowledge and abilities. He questioned why I felt she needed review. The love and pride he had for his daughter and his belief in her talent was evident as we carried on our conversation. Reluctantly he agreed that we could go back and review.

As I began to think about how much that father loved his little girl and the confidence he had in her skill, I was reminded of how our view of truth can sometimes be flawed. Our perspective can be different from reality, and our love and lack of understanding can skew truth. I am thankful that we have a Father in heaven that never lets His love for us get in the way of what He knows we need. As He desires change in our lives and growth in our spiritual walk, He purposes to help us learn those lessons—even if we perceive it as unnecessary or painful at the time. As we gain understanding of what He teaches, we will emerge as stronger, more confident and mature Christians that He can use to impact others.

Let’s be thankful today that we have a wonderful and wise Father who knows exactly what is needed in our lives.

PRAYER: Thank You, Lord, that You are my Father and I am Your child. The truth of what is needed in my life to grow and mature is never skewed by Your love for me. Thank You that You have full understanding to teach me. Help me to learn all that You desire for me.

“Show me Your ways, O Lord, teach me Your paths; guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long” (Psalm 25:4, 5 NIV).

Eyes of Faith

By Carin LeRoy –

I love thinking, reading and learning about faith. It must be because I lack so much of it in my spiritual life, and God keeps trying to teach me. The word “believe” and “faith” are used over 4,000 times in the King James Bible, so He must have thought it a pretty important concept for us to grasp! If I can put faith in my fellow man and society each day, I wonder why I have such a problem trusting God?

Driving on the road takes faith. We hope that people aren’t drunk and are going to obey the traffic laws. We believe that the traffic lights are working correctly as we drive through them. Stepping into an elevator, I trust it’s not going to break down and trap me inside. Walking into a restaurant, I have faith it has clean sanitary food that won’t make me sick. I go to a doctor believing he made a correct diagnosis and prescribed the right medicine for me. These are ways we put trust in our world each day.

If we can believe in an imperfect and flawed society, why do we struggle to trust in a perfect and all-knowing God?

We like to be in control. We want to plan our own future, to believe in what we see as tangible and to hold on to things dear to us. How can we trust God with our lives if we want to control our own destiny? How can we believe if don’t trust in the promises in His Word? How do we let go of things that are important to us?

Eyes of faith see God for who He is. The vastness of His power and the greatness of His love are the foundation upon which our faith must rest. His purposes are far bigger than mine and His knowledge and love for me is more than I can understand. When my faith becomes blurry and I can’t see God with a clear focus, I put on those eyes of faith. One lens focuses on His great love; the other on His limitless power.

PRAYER: Thank You for Your great love and vast power. Keep my heart focused on that as I learn to trust You. Give me eyes of faith that will see You.

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith,” (Hebrews 12:2 NIV).

Abundantly Blessed

By Carin LeRoy –

Shortly after our second anniversary, my husband and I found out we were expecting a new addition to our family. As we anticipated the birth of our baby, I was excited to prepare and get ready. At the time we lived on a remote station in the jungle as missionaries, so I could not go shopping or prepare a nursery like most mothers. A friend purchased some material in a local town and sent it to me, and I began sewing a blanket and some nightshirts. As I worked I wondered how to get the necessary things needed to care for our little one. As my tummy began to grow, so did my concern. I figured when I flew into the capital city, Port Moresby, to await the delivery that I’d race around hoping to find things I needed.

Months later I received a letter from my mother that our church in South Carolina had given us a baby shower. My mom was the guest of honor and opened all the gifts. She listed all the items that were given for our new baby—clothes of every size for a baby boy or girl, shoes, diapers (Yes, cloth ones!), bottles, playpen, foldable crib, toys, blankets. You name it, they had given it. While reading my mom’s letter, I burst into tears. God had more than provided for this baby; He had abundantly blessed her with provision.

Short term missionaries coming for the summer brought everything to the capital city. When I arrived in town preparing for the baby’s delivery, a trunk, suitcases and duffel bags full of all the items awaited me. Overwhelmed, I sorted through the gifts. I had everything I needed—and more.

If God sees the sparrow fall and knows the number of hairs on our head, then doesn’t He know our needs? Let’s claim the scripture “and my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19 NIV). God’s provision that day showed me that God loves to bless us with His abundance and to show us His love and care. Whether He provides for us in unexpected and copious ways or chooses not to, we need to trust that whatever He chooses for us is what we need. He is a God that is active in our lives and will meet our needs according to His desires for us.

PRAYER:  Father, thank You for Your promise to supply my needs. Keep me mindful that You are a faithful God who loves to bless me with Your provision. Help me keep my eyes on You for meeting what need I have today.

“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20, 21 NIV).

Turn on the Music!

By Carin LeRoy –

Listen to any song and you will get multiple responses from all of us. We clap, tap our feet, dance, sing along—sometimes all of the above! Music has a way of engaging our emotions and bringing out our rhythm. When my 18-month-old grandson, Logan, hears music he starts shaking his shoulders and dancing around in little circles. The sound of music puts a little jig in his heart, and his body demonstrates his pleasure. We watch in delight at his cuteness.

The Institute of Creation Research recently had an article on their website which states we are uniquely designed for music. They said, “Humans have a unique capacity to experience music. Dogs, for instance, hear the sounds of music but do not recognize them as music, and do not derive a similar pleasure from listening to them. This solely human characteristic…makes sense if people were originally intended to enjoy their Creator through pleasurable activities ordained by Him.”

Although I love all types of music, I prefer to listen to Christian music. To me, it keeps my mind focused on something positive and helps me to worship God as I listen. My heart is encouraged and uplifted through hymns, praise and contemporary songs. I listen and am reminded of God’s greatness. Discouragement, depression, fear and any number of emotions dissipate as we listen to words of encouragement and praise through music.

The pleasure we derive from music is God’s gift. It’s one of His ways to connect with us. Many Scriptures express how His people need to worship Him with song and music. Feeling down or discouraged? Turn on Christian music to praise and worship God. It will do wonders with your outlook on life.

PRAYER: Thank You for the gift of music and that through music, I can praise and worship You—for You truly are a great God!

“Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before Him with thanksgiving and extol Him with music and song. For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all else” (Psalm 95: 1-3 NIV).

Today’s devotional is by Carin LeRoy, wife to Dale, mother of three grown children and one high school teenager. She has served as a missionary with PIONEERS since 1982. Her passions are family, playing and teaching piano, missions, and writing stories that show glimpses of God.

The Power of Encouragement

By Carin LeRoy –

Encouragement is important in everyone’s life. While living as missionaries overseas, my husband and I went through some discouraging trials in our earliest years on the field. During those difficulties, the director of Pioneers, Ted Fletcher, wrote us letters of encouragement. His words gave us the boost we needed. He even came to where we lived for a visit. Without his inspiration and support, I wonder if we would have made it through the obstacles we faced.

One of my favorite Bible characters (among many!) is Barnabas. His name means “son of consolation,” or “comfort.” In Acts 13-15, we read the story of Paul and Barnabas and their missionary travels to spread the gospel. On the first part of their journey they took John Mark along as a helper. But during the trip, he deserted them. Later when planning other places to visit, Barnabas wanted to give John Mark a second chance and take him along. Paul disagreed. Their sharp argument separated them, and they departed for different areas of ministry. Barnabas took John Mark, and Paul left with Silas.

Both were great men of God, but Barnabas was a mentor. He saw something in John Mark that he deemed valuable and worthy of his time and effort. After spending time working with John Mark in ministry, he soon became an important asset, even to Paul. Later he said, “Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is a great help to me in ministry” (2 Timothy 4:11 NET). I wonder if Paul would have said that had it not been for the encouragement and mentoring that Barnabas invested in John Mark’s life.

It is interesting to know that in Acts 9, the disciples rejected Paul because they feared he wasn’t a believer and might persecute them. Barnabas became his advocate and supported him. He not only mentored John Mark, but also Paul! Both became great missionaries in spreading the gospel.

We underestimate the power of encouragement. Each day we encounter people who need a word of praise, a kind word, or time from us. Who are they? Maybe they are within our own family, in the work place, or a neighbor across the street. Let’s also take heed of God’s reminder to “encourage one another and build up each other” (I Thessalonians 5: 11 NET). Be a Barnabas in someone’s life today.

PRAYER: Father, help me learn to be a person of encouragement. Keep me mindful that people are more important than my goals and schedule. Show me today how You can use me to build up and show kindness to others.

“And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, and be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else” (I Thessalonians 5: 14, 15 NIV).

Today’s devotional is by Carin LeRoy, wife to Dale and mother of three grown children and one almost-grown teenager. She has been a missionary with Pioneers since 1982. Her passions are family, missions, piano, and writing to challenge others to live faithful lives for God.

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