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The way maker

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As the heavens are higher than the Earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.  Isaiah 55:9 NIV

We all have problems that keep us up at night. 

Some issues are difficult to figure out and seem very overwhelming.  God is our ‘way maker’.  Are you hungry to be fed the answer?  “God says, ‘Come to me and listen and eat what is good.’  Give ear to me; listen that you may live.” V 2-3

As the heavens are higher than the Earth

How much higher is the universe than what we see on Earth?  It is beyond our scope to understand.  I think of the mighty forces of gravity between planets and galaxies,  the power of the invisible black holes that also play a role in the balance of the universe’s paths. God set them in place, and through His power today, they obey His instructions.

One lightning bolt. A memory from the Holy Spirit.

When I was a teenager, I played basketball in a church league.  I remember driving one night after practice as a storm was coming in.  I drove by a power plant and saw the transformers and other equipment that produced lights for the city and electricity for all the town’s needs.  I began to think how wise man was to create this power.  What a display of our understanding and abilities. Then suddenly, one lightning bolt, just one, mind you, lit up the whole sky and completely drowned out the power station.  Just that one lightning bolt out of many that night revealed to me how much greater is God’s power and understanding than man’s. That vision strengthened my faith in God’s wisdom and power. It established that I am in good hands if I trust the one who controls the lightning bolts. 

So My ways are higher than your ways

God had planned your life before you were born.  He sees your needs and paths.  How many times in your life did you suddenly see a path or door open for you that came from nowhere?  It did not come by accident; God’s ways are higher than yours.  Let us increase our trust in the Lord that He sees us and guides us.

My thoughts vs God’s thoughts

Are you worried about tomorrow?  Are you worried about the hows and ways of a project?  Do you think about failure and disaster?  Rest in God.  Meditate before Him and ask for wisdom without doubting.  Recognize your enemy; the devil is at work to discourage you and cast fear on the plan God called you to do.  Usually, the fear comes in the darkness of the night.  Rebuke the night terrors and remind your heart about God’s wisdom.   

James 1:5-6  

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

Trust in the Lord.   Read Isaiah 55. Meditate on each verse.  Take time to worship God.  Take time to ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in the day. Believe God is leading you.  Expect to see revelations and miracles take place in your path. Look at nature and see God’s power and wisdom at work. Rejoice that God is for you and not against you. Let your heart burst into songs of Joy. Trust in the Lord and rest in His presence.

Let your LightNside seek God’s ways and be filled by God’s wisdom and revelations.

Listen to The Way Maker by Leeland.

Plain, suffered, finished!

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He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, and there was nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering and familiar with pain.  Isaiah 53:2-3
 
 


 Not attractive
 Jesus was not a superstar, rich, or popular growing up.  He was not an influencer, nor did he have any entertaining dance or songs. He was plain, no beauty.  Nothing in His appearance attracted people to him.  People would hide their faces from him.  Jesus was avoided, despised, rejected, and familiar with pain.  This description is found in Isaiah 53:1-3.
  
Shunned
This was my devotion this morning.  We have all seen people rejected because they did not fit our style.  We tend to walk the other way.  I was thinking about all the rejection Jesus received growing up.  He did not fit into most families.  Jesus was plain, no beauty.  We all see pictures and paintings of a manly man with chiseled features.  The scriptures state there was nothing in his appearance that attracted people.  It pains my heart to think about the creator being shunned.  Just the rejection Jesus experienced broke my heart.
 
 Innocent yet silent
 He was innocent of all sin, yet He took mine.  He did not speak about the unfairness of it all.  He just bore the punishment and the increasing pain. Pilot asked someone to stand up for Jesus, but no one would.  They were silent except for the lies and demands of his death.   Jesus knew why, even though he asked God to see if there was another path. His emotional pain was beyond anything man had experienced.  God was also…. silent.
 
God crushed his Son
 The Father of Jesus took all our sins from our desires and sinful attractions and laid them upon Jesus. No one stood up for Jesus, protested his treatment, or even noticed or cared. Jesus alone took our punishment and did not complain.
It was God’s will to crush Jesus and cause Him to suffer.  God and Jesus decided this plan before man was born.
Yet the pain, both physical and emotional, was laid upon Jesus.  Why?  For you and I.  For the world.
 
Finished – Righteousness for all!
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was like a sheep led to the slaughter.  No one protested.  Life went on around Him. Everyday life revolved around our suffering savior, unaware of the holy sacrifice that was taking place close by.  Jesus suffered alone, quietly.  Until He said, “IT IS FINISHED.”  Then, the curtain in the temple separating us from God was torn from top to bottom.  From God to man.  From Jesus for me.
 
Thank You Jesus
 Thank you, Jesus.  Oh, the Blood of Jesus, shed for me and you.  Oh, what a savior who died for me! Isaiah 53:12b: “Jesus bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressor.”
 I encourage you to read Isaiah 53 sometime today, letting your heart break into pieces and rejoice for our mighty savior’s sacrifice for you, for me, for all.
 
Let you, LightNSide, be forever grateful for His sacrifice.

Between the times

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Luke 22:31-32   “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat.  But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers.”

I

Not everything can be accomplished quickly.  There is an illusion of quick answers, of drive-through solutions.  This frustration has turned many of us into watchers rather than warriors.  We find ourselves between times of focus and times of floundering.  We wonder when we stopped marching, too busy with life’s issues.

Satan has asked to sift you like wheat.

I have found myself existing ‘between the times’ of faithfully writing a weekly Biblical Devotion to rest with excuses and reasons why I gave the devotions up.  There have been issues in my family, from age to major medical problems I could point to, but in reality, I found myself living ‘between the times’ of duty and excuses.   I faithfully created a weekly Biblical Thought from  2018 to 2023 and began to slow down.  I was no longer faithfully writing devotions from my heart to whoever was listening.  This decline of obedience slowed me down to living in a world between the passion of ministry and a frustrated observer of time filled with guilt.

Maybe you are living “between the times” of launching a new ministry but wrestling with its unknowns and insecurities.  Maybe you are living between an uncomplicated marriage, and now a child is born with its fears, tears, and unknown futures. Perhaps you are at a setback in your life.  Pain and frustration have replaced passion. Perhaps you are lost in a time of struggling with faith, God, and desires.  You remember the strong and secure times, but now you are “living between”  faith and feelings,  strength and searching. 

I have prayed for you that your faith would not fail.

Repent and turn again to Christ.

I am writing today for the first time in 2025. I am again taking up the challenge of this calling. The first thing I must do is repent to God.

Revelation 2:4-5 ” 4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent. “

Nothing happens unless we take responsibility for our actions, even if we face valid issues. We must again become warriors and pilgrims, obedient servants who trust God and allow the Holy Spirit to strengthen and guide us.

Strengthen your brothers

Monuments or Footprints

William Faulkner speaks of the place in our duty to God where we stopped moving forward.  That place where you last left your mark can become a monument or a footprint.   A monument only says, ‘At least I got this far,’ while a footprint says, ‘This is where I was when I moved again.’

I encourage you to once again take on the challenge of God’s calling. Break out of living ‘between the times’ of faith and frustration. Join me in repenting for the idle times and let that place I stopped become a footprint of renewed passion, not a monument to where I stopped.

Let your LightNSide shine in 2025 and forward.

Shush, shush…listen…

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Psalms 81:13 Oh, that my people would listen to me

What makes you stop and listen?

Is it the thunder of a coming storm? Is it the giggle of a baby? Or the laughter of a popular TV show? Is it political news or news of violence?  Is it the call of Social Media with something new to hear? What is your ear tuned to?   The Bible says in Psalms 115:6: “They have ears but do not hear.” Mark 8:18: “Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear?” 

We all have two sets of ears. 

Our physical ears and spiritual ears. Our spiritual ears hear from our hearts.   Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice” John 10:27

How do you hear with your spiritual ears? Take the time to sit still and listen with your heart.  I love the morning or evening when the sun rises or goes down.  If I take the time to push away all the distractions and just be quiet,  I listen to God’s creation. It has beautiful sounds.  The animals, the wind, the movement of tree branches. The sounds of nature.  They all share the sound of a mighty creator.   In this process, as I listen to nature,  I hear God speak to me.  Not with my physical ears but with my spiritual ears.  With my heart. I need to do this more!

Fight Distraction  

There is a world trying to get your attention all the time.  I encourage you to be still, push away the noises, and hear God. Hear nature. Wonder at God’s creation. See its beauty. As you are still, your spiritual ears will begin to hear God.  You will start to listen to Him whisper to you. 

God also whispers to you through His word. Take the time daily to read it, then sit still and meditate on the living words. The most remarkable chapter on this process and its effect is Psalms 1.  “…blessed is the man who meditates on God’s word… whatever they do will prosper…”

I encourage you to take time daily to hear God in a noisy and demanding world.   Listen to the rest of Psalms 81 and what God says to you in these verses.

Psalms 81:13-16

13 Oh, that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways! 14 I would soon subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes. 15 Those who hate the Lord would cringe toward him, and their fate would last forever. 16 But he would feed you with the finest of the wheat, and with honey from the rock, I would satisfy you.”

Take the time to let your LightNside hear God’s voice.

Why the hatred for Israel?

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Genesis 17:6-8 

 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

God Chose Israel to be His Nation

God chose Israel to be His people. From that very promise, Satan put Israel in the bull’s eye of his rage. Satan has always tried to destroy Israel, even from Adam and Eve. From that very first attempt to destroy God’s greatest creation to the very last battle in Revelation, the focus from the devil is to kill Israel as a nation and the Jews as a people.

The illustrated explanation of Revelation 12

Verse 1-2: A woman with a crown of twelve stars on her head – (Israel and the twelve tribes. She was about to give birth—the birth of Jesus by a virgin descendant of the tribe of Judah, the Son of God.) Verse 3-5 The dragon (Satan) stood in front of the woman to kill her son (Jesus) – (Matthew 2:13-18 – King Herod tried to kill Jesus when he demanded all baby boys two and under be killed. ) Her child was snatched up to God and to his throne – (Jesus’ death and resurrection, the defeat of Satan’s plan to kill Jesus. ) Verses 7-17 Satan has been defeated, and He is outraged. His vengeance is toward Israel, Jews, and anyone who follows Jesus.

For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work 2 Thess 2:7

The secret power of lawlessness is the hatred given to people who rage against peace, justice, and authority. We see the news where lawlessness is the rule of our country. The courts have no teeth, and prisoners are released to continue lawlessness. Our college campuses and larger cities are destroyed by anger, crime, and a lack of authority.

The same rage that came from satan toward Jesus is at work in our nation against righteousness, authority, holiness, and God’s chosen nation, Israel.

Don’t get caught up in anger. Choose peace, choose faith, and pray for our nation.

God is in control

God’s plan is perfect. He wins in the end, and all who follow Him win an eternity of great peace, love, and freedom from anger, violence, and death. 

Revelation 21:3-5  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” 5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”

Be wise in these last days. Read your Bible. Pray for Israel. Have faith in God. “Lord, I pray you will send a revival to this nation and our  hearts.” 

 Be strong in the Lord and keep your LightNside holy and pure.

Giving and Forgiving = Joy

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Hebrews 12:2 …” For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame…

I am reading a book for devotions.  Renovation of the Heart by Dallas Willard. It is a classic in its 20th edition. Reading a portion as part of my morning devotion has brought me to the subject of “Giving and Forgiving.” 

We live in a society where we know what we have and what others have. We see the poor and needy, and we give as we desire. Jesus calls us to a life of increased  Giving and Forgiveness to all, a life that brings a sense of duty to the Holy Spirit and a deep feeling of joy and contentment.

Giving and Forgiving.

One has to do with our assets and treasures; the other has to do with releasing hurts and pain that have collected in our hearts and minds.  We think these negative thoughts are some kind of treasure that one day will bring justice or deserved pain to those who have hurt us.  When, in fact, it becomes a weight that is heavy to carry even though it feels unfair. To restore the soul, we must follow Jesus’ path to the cross, be able to say, “Father, I forgive them,” and be carried into the tomb by Christ’s teaching. As you feel the negative thoughts replaced by forgiving them, you begin to feel joy as God resurrects you to life anew. 

Quote from the book: “Jesus was not some harsh ascetic who practiced or imposed pain for its own sake. He did not choose death because it was good in itself, but for the joy that was set before Him, He endured the cross and despised the shame. Hebrews 12:2

Giving is the highest expression of potency. In the very act of giving, I experience my strength, my wealth, my power. The experience of heightened vitality fills me with joy.  I experience myself as overflowing, spending, alive, and joyful.  Giving is more joyous than receiving because it is an expression of my aliveness.”

Only through surrendering to Christ’s teaching and example can we begin to take on our assignment to give and forgive. “Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, they will pour into your lap.” Luke 6:38

Jesus gave and forgave by surrendering to the cross.

Jesus gave His life and forgave our sins. Jesus experienced extreme joy as His life was given for all, and His righteousness was available to all because His giving and forgiveness took all our sins upon Him. 

As we celebrate Holy Week, let our LightNside choose to Give and Forgive often.  God will respond by sending you His joy.

John 1:14 The Word became Flesh

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Became vs Pretend!

Four simple words contain more wonder and truth than all the world’s books could capture.  God became man- Emanuel with us. The God of the universe came to earth as one of the poorest of man.  Born in poverty and suffering, He revealed God’s grace and love in ways we could observe.

While some translations say “put on” flesh, it is not a performance from an actor.  On stage, an actor will put on an outfit to portray a character.  We understand he is not really that character but one who puts on a unique costume that can be quickly changed out of when the play is over.  Christ, the Word (Logos) was not acting in a divine play costumed as a man.  He became human the same way you did.

How can this be?

Mary spoke these words to the angel. The angel told Mary the seed was from God instead of a physical man.  Christ became a man at conception and grew for nine months, as all babies do.  The almighty who spoke the world into existence from nothing limited himself to grow slowly through the design He created in mankind.  It is like the potter becoming the cup.  The builder becomes what was built to experience the real pressures on the structure. The programmer becomes the program and experiences the purpose of the programmer.

Man needed a savior.

Because of sin, the darkness of men could not comprehend or observe God enough to live as God intended.  While God sent us samples of Himself through the prophets and events of the Old Testament, we needed more.  We needed to see and feel God.  John 1:17-18.  Since we could not go to God, He came to us.  He became one of us. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

CS Lewis -Miracles (Chapter 14 – The Diver)

“One may think of a diver, first reducing himself to nakedness, then diving in mid-air, then going with a splash, vanishing rushing down through green and warm water into black and cold water, down through increasing pressure into the deathlike region of ooze and slime and old decay; then up again, back to color and light, his lungs almost bursting, till suddenly he breaks the surface again, holding in his hand the dripping, precious thing he went down to recover. He and it are both colored now that they have come up into the light: down below, where it lay colorless in the dark, he (the diver) lost his color too”.

Thank Christ for His sacrifice so you could be rescued and live with His LightNside.

That Day…

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There have been days that changed the world. The last event that changed the world was 9/11. I knew we were at war when those planes flew into the Twin Towers in New York and the Pentagon. Most Americans could not look away from the TV coverage. It affected a large part of the world.

There will be an event coming soon that will change the whole world. The day when God comes into Earth’s atmosphere with a loud command and with the trumpet sounds. Then, the dead in Christ will instantly have their glorified body and begin to rise to meet Jesus in the air. Also, those still alive and Christians will be transformed from our earthly body into our glorified body and begin to rise.  

My Grandmother’s picture is now hanging in my office.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 NLT

And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. 15 We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died.[b] 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died[c] will rise from their graves. 17 Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the Earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. 18 So encourage each other with these words.

1 Corinthians 15:50-52

 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

READ Mathew 24 – about the last days

This day will begin the final days of God’s judgment and transformation of this Earth. No one on 9/11/2001 had any thought this day would be their last day on this Earth. No one knows the day of the rapture of the church, but Jesus did say in Matthew 24:32-34 “when you see these things, you know it is near, right at the door. “This generation will not pass away until all these things have happened.”

I BELIEVE WE ARE IN THE LAST GENERATION…

 THIS DAY WILL COME… ARE YOU READY?

Let you LIGHTNSIDE look forward to the day Jesus calls us home.

Jesus led captivity captive.

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 Ephesians 4:8 …He (Jesus) led captivity captive… NKJV

 

When Christ died on the cross, what the devil thought was a victory for darkness was instead its defeat. Christ gave his life as a sacrifice for all mankind, and through His sacrifice, a mighty victory took place in the supernatural that forever provided hope for all. This passage of Christ’s victory comes from a quote in the Old Testament. Psalms 68:17-19 A Praise of God’s power and victory. God took captivity captive.

What is this captivity in this scripture that Christ took captive?

Captivity of the Old Testament saints.

When the saints died before Christ’s perfect sacrifice, they did not go to heaven. They went to a place of peace and comfort, a holding place possibly on lower earth. The righteous would be sent to “Abraham’s Bosom or side. The evil was taken to Hades, where there was the torment of flames. Read about this in Luke 16:19-26, the story of Lazarus and the beggar who died and awoke in this place. In the Old Testament, as the saints died, it says they were “gathered to their fathers” or “slept with their people” When Christ died on the cross for all sins, His blood provided the perfect sacrifice to cleanse hearts for God. Jesus took the saints who had died in Christ with him to heaven.

Read Matthew 27:50-54; as the temple veil was torn, some of the dead saints Christ had freed from Abraham’s Bosom appeared to many and preached in the temples. Today, when Christians die, they are with God. 2 Corinthians 5:5-8 ” Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord.  For we live by faith, not by sight.  We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.”

 Captivity – of death and the power of sin

When Christ died on the cross and paid the perfect sacrifice for all sins. Christ descended into all creation. Christ moved freely over all places Satan and his demons claimed. Colossians 2:15 “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” Satan tried to kill Jesus at birth, wanted to kill him when preaching, tried to destroy Him in Gasthemene, and tried to keep Him in the grave by a large rock and Roman guard. But Christ arose, and nothing could stop him. He went through all of Satan’s domains of death, sin, and hopelessness and defeated them with His blood.

Captivity – Personal bondages

Christ did ascend into heaven. But He also descended to us. The Blood of Christ and the Power of the Holy Spirit has descended from heaven to take captive what is captivating us. He has come to set us free. Christ wants to set us free and lift us to heavenly places, as described in Ephesians 1. 

Satan’s influence in the world and our desires puts us into bondage. We are captivated by anger, pride, unforgiveness, abuse, pain, depression, and other bondages. We are bound. If we could set ourselves free, we would. But the power of sin is too strong for us to overcome. Jesus died on the cross and was resurrected in power. He has ascended in great glory to the heavens, but he has also come down to you. He has come to offer to take captive what has captured you. 

Steps of freedom:

  1. Accept Jesus as Lord – Faith in him
  2. Learn about Jesus – Read about Jesus
  3. Trust in Him. Ask for strength.
  4. The Holy Spirit and the Blood of Christ will strengthen you and set you free.

Let Christ set you free, so your lightnside can shine in victory.

Psalms 5: From sighing to soaring

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Give ear to my words, O Lord; consider my meditation.
Give heed to the voice of my cry, My King and my God,
For to You, I will pray.

Sighing and crying

Psalms 5 reveals a man who sighs and cries out to God. There is a difference between a sigh and a cry.
Different versions of the Bible use the word “groan,” “meditation,” or “lament” instead of the word “sigh.” A “sigh” is like a tired, unending expression of dealing with life. It is like a heavy weight you carry around as the pressures of the day begin. The struggles you are fighting seem to be unchanging, and there is that expression of frustration.

All the versions of the Bible use the word “cry.” Crying is not sighing; this is deep pain. The whole weight of the problem is center-focused. David asks God to answer his prayers. Crying out in deep passion, David prays his request to God. Why does he pour out his feeling to God? Because David has experience in being honest with God. He knows God is big enough to take any words of pain and frustration. David even asks God, “Why are You taking so long?”

I will lift my head

As David begins his talk with God, David says in verse 3, “I will look up.” I will lift my head off the earth and its problems to focus on my God. Other versions of the Bible state, “I will wait expectantly” or “I will be on the watch.” David empties his troubled heart to God. He declares God’s character. David asks for direction as he walks through troubling times. He asks God to intervene against those who are against him.

A change in David’s tone

Notice the change of tone in David’s words as he moves from sighing and crying to rehearsing God’s goodness. David’s heart speaks of the joy of trusting God. “Let all those rejoice who trust in You.” “Let them ever shout for joy because You defend them.” Other versions say to protect or cover them.

A change in David’s heart

Notice the change in David’s heart. It is normal to have seasons of sighing and crying out to God. Let’s not stop there. Begin to declare God’s character and power. Empty your heart and your frustrations to God. Then KNOW that God hears and will defend. It will be on God’s timing and method but rejoice in knowing God is faithful.

Declare that God WILL BLESS THE RIGHTEOUS.

It is much better to blow off steam to God than to take it out on your family, work, or even the one causing you pain. Trust in the Lord and “lift up your head.” Let your lightnside reflect your confidence in God.