Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place, – Psalm 91:9

Where do you go when you’re upset? Do you have a place you like? When I was a little kid, I loved going into my closet where it was dark to hide when I was upset. It helped me calm down and it was nice to just have a place where I felt no one could find me.

In this Bible verse, we are encouraged to think of God as a refuge. We are to think of Him as a safe place, where we can get away from our problems and find peace. Its interesting though how often we forget about God’s ability to be our shelter in tough times. We often turn to friends, our room, a TV show, or even over eat when we’re upset. The best place we can turn in tough times is to God.

God is willing to be your refuge from the troubles of life. Will you make Him your safe place? The next time you experience trouble, take a moment to think about God. Give Him a chance to be your safe place, your refuge from your trouble.

God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. – Psalm 46:1 (NLT)

What are you struggling with right now? Are the subjects at school difficult and you’re finding it’s hard to keep up without being distracted? What is it that you struggle with?

God wants to be the answer to every struggle you face. He wants to be your refuge when things are hard. Life is hard, but God wants to help you stay encouraged through life’s challenges.

So today, determine to spend some time in God’s word. Stop scrolling through endless videos and start spending some time in prayer. Talk to God about what you struggle with. Dare to ask Him to help when things are tough. He desires to be your help and refuge in every situation you face.

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. – Romans 5:8 (NLT)

I was unnoticed in school. I was insecure and rather than saying the wrong thing and getting made fun of, I chose not to talk. Day after day, I hoped that someone would talk to me and want to be my friend. Day after day, I stressed out because again and again I’d have to sit at a lunch table with no one that wanted me to be there.

After awhile, I began to believe there was something wrong with me. No one talked to me. No one even acted like I existed. I began to think my life didn’t really matter.

And then one day, I began to realize my value to God. I realized that what others thought of me wasn’t the opinion that really mattered. What mattered was my value to God.

I was worth so much to God. He loved me and knew everything about me. I began to develop a deep relationship with God. I realized that my worth was found in Him, not in what others thought about me.

The same is true for you. You matter. Your life has purpose and value. Don’t be lied to that because of how your friends treat you, you’re not important. Friends can be fickle, but God is always faithful.

Reach out to God and spend time letting Him show you your true value and worth.

I don’t know about you, but I’m running hard for the finish line. I’m giving it everything I’ve got. No SLOPPY living for me! I’m staying alert and in top condition. I’m not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself” – 1 Corinthians 9:26 (Message)

I ran cross country when I was in middle school. I wasn’t that good of a runner, but a few of my friends went out for it, so I decided to go out too. During practice, I remember my coach always strategizing with us. One of the things he always stressed to us was finishing strong. He wanted us to run as fast as we could to the finish line.

This was hard for me. By the time the race was almost over, running harder and faster was the farthest thing from my mind. I just wanted to go slower, give up, or take a break.

Today’s Truth: Don’t Give Up, Finish Strong

In the same way, in life you should be finishing strong in every area of your life. Whether it’s doing chores at your house, working on homework, or in any other area.

Today’s Bible verse talks about finishing strong. In life, it takes character to finish strong. You may want to give up when things get hard, but today’s verse challenges us to do the opposite. Instead of quitting when things get tough, we are challenged to keep running hard. This is difficult to do when you’re tired, frustrated, and just want to give up. However, true character is pushing past what seems difficult. Its when you push past what is comfortable that you really see great results.

How do you feel right now? Are things at school overwhelming? Do you feel overloaded and upset? Maybe the pressures at home just feel too much. Here’s the truth, even though things might be hard right now, as Children of God, He doesn’t want us to live our lives discouraged and upset. Instead, God has come to give you hope.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. – Romans 15:13 (NIV)

God wants you to have hope, and not just a little hope, but hope that is overflowing. Many times, it’s easier though to look at how wrong everything feels right now.

The truth is, if you look to Jesus, spend time in the Word, you’ll begin to get hope. To be filled with hope, you have to turn away from what you’re seeing in the world around you, and turn to Jesus.

Practically speaking, it might mean turning off your TV before bed and spending time reading your Bible and praying. It might mean saying no to chatting with friends that cause you to fear and be upset.

God wants you to be at peace, but you might have to make a few adjustments to get there. However, it’s worth it. Living a life at peace is always a good thing.

Pray: Jesus, I love you. I purpose today to walk in your hope and peace. I choose to set aside time to spend reading the Bible and get to know you better today. In your name, I pray, Amen.

Do you look to others for approval? I know I certainly have been guilty of that. I’ve wanted the approval of other people so bad, I’ve given in to peer pressure, made bad decisions, and many other things hoping to have other people like me.

What I discovered was this, when I lived to please other people, I wasn’t really making better friends. I couldn’t keep everyone happy at the same time, and when I tried, I was exhausted and stressed out. I realized that God describes a better way in today’s Bible verse.

For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts. – 1 Thess 2:4 (NLT)

If we make pleasing God, rather than people our purpose, we will be less stressed out. God is who we should be living to please. When we make living for God and knowing Him our goal, it will bring much more happiness than we could ever find living our lives to please others.

So today, choose to get to know God. Make pleasing Him your goal in everything you do. As you choose this, you’ll be less stressed out and more fulfilled than living to please others.

Today’s Truth: Live to Please God, not people.