Month: January 2026

AI and all things artificial

Posted on by Grace Day

I can’t stop thinking about artificial vs. real after writing yesterday’s post. I mean, the Israelites had a relationship with an all wise, all powerful, loving, good God. And they traded all that in for a golden calf? That calf hadn’t sustained them with manna or “bread from heaven” new every morning BUT God did. That calf hadn’t rescued them from their oppressors BUT God did. That calf didn’t know them personally, didn’t even know their names BUT God did. Our God is a personal God. His word says this about Him –

“He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of HIs great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.” (Isaiah 40:26)

I think it’s safe to say if God knows the name of every star in the sky, He also knows the name of every person He has created in His image. Actually, we are told He knows more than just our names. Our Heavenly Father knows every hair on our heads. He knows when a sparrow falls to the ground. He knows the way that I take. So I can be sure that God knows not only my name, but each and every one of our names.

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” (Matthew 10:29-31)

“But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold.” (Job 23:10)

I can’t say as much for that golden calf, however. The calf knew nothing about anything. But God knew and knows everything, including the names of all the rebellious Israelites who chose a golden calf over Him. This battle between what is real and what is artificial has been raging long before AI came into existence. It is as old as the battle between good and evil. God is the author of light and of life and of all that is real, which He created. Enter satan, the deceiver, the counterfeiter, the one whose only option is to attempt to copy God’s original work. In Corinthians we read this about satan –

“And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.” (2 Corinthians 11:14-15)

Masquerading. That says it all, doesn’t it? Pretending, deceiving, impersonating. Today, sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference between what is real and what is artificial. Take counterfeit money and real money, for example. It’s often hard to tell the difference. But one has value in that you can buy needed stuff with it, the other has no real value but could land you in jail. With money, it is important to be able to discern the difference between what is real and what is fake or counterfeit.

How about artificial plants and flowers? It’s sometimes hard to tell the difference between the real and the artificial from a distance. Ever wonder why the artificial is so popular? Could it be that artificial plants need no care, therefore nothing is required of me or of you? I don’t have to water artificial plants. They don’t grow, so I don’t have to prune them or repot them into bigger pots. I don’t have to clean up their dead leaves. I don’t have to interact with artificial plants or flowers at all.

Artificial requires nothing from you and me, no relationship, no care. Of course, artificial plants and flowers produce no food for us to eat or pollen for bees to gather to make honey or lovely flower fragrances. We have a symbiotic relationship with real plants – we take care of them and they produce food for us to eat. In this case, artificial just isn’t able to provide a relationship or a relationship’s life-giving results.

But what if I mistake the artificial for the real? What if I water my artificial plants in hopes that they will grow and prosper and produce food? I am going to be very disappointed. No matter how often or how much I water my artificial plants, they will never grow bigger, they will never bloom or produce food. Artificial plants can’t produce anything. They are not alive. They will not grow and bloom and reproduce like real plants do, no matter how diligently I care for them.

I wonder if the Israelites ever figured this out with the golden calf that they made and then proceeded to worship? Did they not notice that the calf they were bowing down to and sacrificing to remained unmoved and unresponsive to even their most fervent gestures? God, Himself, said this to Moses about the Israelites –

“They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’ ” (Exodus 32:8)

Are you kidding me? What short memories the Israelites had! Had they forgotten their daily miracle manna or the water from the rock? They clearly had forgotten this commandment of God –

“You shall have no other gods before Me. . . . Do not make any gods to be alongside Me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold.” (Exodus 20:3 & 23)

Why would they trade in the living for the non-living? the real for the artificial? the divine for the man-made? Of course, with the calf they were in control, they made the rules. The calf didn’t have commandments or rules like their living Creator God did. There was no discipline from the calf for their wayward actions. The calf also offered them no protection nor provision nor guidance nor wisdom nor purpose nor life. They were pretty much on their own with the calf as their object of worship. However, this artificial idol would never satisfy their innate longing to be in relationship with their loving Creator.

Time and again God would draw them back to Himself and time and again they would turn to other things in place of the very real and living Heavenly Father who was right there with them. How often do I do that today? How often do I substitute the artificial for the real? Cyberspace and AI make it increasingly easy to do just that. Artificial is much easier to control than real. Real people are unpredictable and multi-faceted. Artificial is predictable, controllable – man made it, man controls it.

BUT – I want the real adventure of walking with my real Heavenly Father rather than giving my attention and allegiance to artificial things of my own invention. Being in a relationship with my Creator requires of me trust, submission, obedience, courage – lots of courage to follow where He leads because it is almost always counter cultural and not what my human nature would choose. That’s where trust and courage come in handy.

Something else just occurred to me. That real life is painful – joyful but also painful. If I deal only with the artificial, there is no pain (ie. artificial plants never die) but there is also no joy.

Oh Lord, I don’t want to waste my time building and bowing down to artificial golden calves of my own making, when I could be walking with and worshiping You, the only real and living God.

“I am the Lord; that is My name! I will not give My glory to another or My praise to idols. . . . This is what God the Lord says – He who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it: I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.” (Isaiah 42:8 & 5-7)

sincerely, Grace Day

does AI really know?

Posted on by Grace Day

I have some concerns about artificial intelligence. Today, I came face to face with these concerns in the car wash. Yes, you read that correctly. It was in the car wash that I was confronted with one of the many facets of AI, all of which I try to avoid if possible. I mean, just the name should be a red flag, right? “Artificial intelligence” as opposed to real or genuine intelligence. Since when do we prefer artificial anything over the real version of that same thing?

Coca-Cola was marketed as “the real thing.” Phrases such as “keeping it real” or “get real” or “he’s the real deal” are popular for a reason. Chefs prefer and use real ingredients over artificial substitutes. In the world of fashion, only the real thing is of value. Imposters or copycats of designer footwear, handbags and clothing are called knockoffs. They are mere imitations of the real thing and have no value of their own. We can have real relationships in person but online it is hard to know if we are communicating with a real person or if we are chatting with AI. Can “artificial” aka “fake” people really satisfy our need for connection and community? I think not. But back to my car wash experience.

I am driving a new car which has many features that my old car of many years did not have. Just fyi – I was happy with my old car, but it gave out. So my new car and I are going through the car wash and my car becomes alarmed, thinking I am too close to the car in front of me as we move forward through the wash. My car starts beeping, signaling me that I am in danger because I am too close to the car in front of me. But there is nothing I can do. Once my car is on that conveyor belt like thing, it is put in neutral, and I have no control over our progress as we proceed through the wash. Every time we would move forward, my car would panic and start beeping frantically, assuming we were going to hit the car in front of us. I guess my car didn’t know that the car in front of us was moving forward at the exact same speed as we were moving forward.

I and my car were in no danger, but my car did not know this was the case. I attempted to reassure her, but to no avail. After all, my car’s intelligence is “artificial” not “real.” I can’t reason with her or point out to her that we are not out on the road but in a car wash. We are not on a collision course but riding on a conveyor belt for cars. My car has no wisdom or understanding or adaptability. She has only pre-programed instructions for how to interpret the world around her. I guess I should be glad her windshield wipers didn’t start up automatically in the car wash because she thought it was raining. Her wipers would have gotten entangled with those car wash tentacles that come down out of nowhere and clean your windshield.

At any rate, I was relieved when we finally exited the carwash and my car’s frantic beeping ceased. Now I’m wondering – is this what will happen every time I take my car through the car wash? She has no “real” intelligence, no ability to learn or to change behavior based on past experiences, no memory. I don’t think I can ask the car wash workers to allow an empty space between me and the car ahead. That would not be good for their business, as the lines are usually long and they need to keep cars moving to get as many people through the wash as possible during their hours of operation.

I must resign myself to the fact that my car’s intelligence is “artificial.” My car is not going to learn new behaviors, nor is she going to listen to reason or be able to “read the room” and adjust her behavior accordingly. She will do only what she’s programed to do – nothing extra or spontaneous. Maybe that’s the draw of AI, its predictability. But I like the spontaneity, flexibility, adaptability, tenacity, courage, kindness and humor of real people. You just can’t get any of that with “artificial” intelligence or pretend people. And why do we even call it “intelligence”? Isn’t intelligence the ability to learn and grow and change as we interact with those around us in meaningful ways?

But you know, even in Old Testament times, people preferred the artificial to the real. Remember the Israelites? Their very real, living God led them out of slavery in Egypt into a land He had promised to them. God parted the Red Sea right in front of their eyes. He traveled with them through the wilderness in a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day. The fire lit their way at night, the cloud protected them from the hot sun by day. And yet, first chance they got, while Moses was up on the mountain, the Israelites made a golden calf for themselves and proceeded to worship it. Why?

God was and is real. The calf was artificial. It was man made. It was not alive. That golden calf could not hear them or see them. It could not watch over them or care for them. In fact, the calf didn’t care about them at all. They couldn’t have a relationship with the calf like they had with their Heavenly Father, Creator God – a living God who knew them by name and watched over them faithfully. Why would they trade in that very real relationship for one-sided worship of a lifeless statue they made themselves? Who gives up a real relationship with a living Being only to replace it with a non-living statue substitute? Who prefers the artificial to the real?

Apparently sometimes we real humans do. We prefer the unreal – aka – the artificial to the real thing. Why? Is it because we think this gives us control? Interacting with a golden calf, or any man-made statue or object for that matter, provides no surprises and puts us in charge. The inanimate object cannot challenge its maker or do anything on its own. Actually, “interacting” is too strong a word. An inanimate object provides no reciprocity. It does not “interact” with anything or anyone. It is not capable of forming relationships because it is not alive.

But just as today we are dealing with man-made AI, our ancestors, centuries before us, dealt with their own artificial inventions, much to their detriment. We read about how this played out in Romans –

“For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.” (Romans 1:21-23)

The result of their decision?

“Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator – who is forever praised. Amen.” (Romans 1:24-25)

They exchanged truth for lies, a relationship with a Living God for worship of an inanimate object – a statue that couldn’t talk back or reciprocate their feelings in any way. They exchanged the real for the artificial. And it left a void that needed to be filled. We continue to try to fill that void today with things of our own making BUT – nothing we make for ourselves, nothing artificial, can ever fill that space in us which is designed specifically for our Creator to inhabit. Only the real thing will do. My Heavenly Father is the real thing.

“He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” (‘Ecclesiastes 3:11)

My heart longs for the real thing and will be satisfied with nothing less. God has made it clear there are no substitutes for Himself.

“I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say; My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.” (Isaiah 46:9-10)

“I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from Me there is no God.” (Isaiah 45:3)

“It is I who made the earth and created mankind upon it. My own hands stretched out the heavens; I marshaled their starry hosts.” (Isaiah 45:12)

there is no substitute for the real thing – I don’t want the artificial/man-made version of anything – I want the real thing – we all do and that’s what our Heavenly Father wants to give us – something real and lasting – a reconciled relationship with Him through His Son, Jesus, who said as much when He said –

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)

I don’t fully trust AI – but then it’s not real – it’s artificial. It’s man made. I desire only what is real, what is eternal.

“My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.” (Psalm 84:2)

“O God, You are my God, earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” (Psalm 63:1)

no artificial substitutes will do

sincerely, Grace Day

post Advent ponder

Posted on by Grace Day

Most everything is packed away by now. There are just a few vestiges of our recent Christmas celebration still evident in my home. There’s a stained glass wreath in a window and also a stained glass candy cane in another window. The candy cane will be replaced with a heart in that window. Time to get ready for the next holiday, right? Decorations that display the words “hope”, “peace”, and “joy” are still in my kitchen windowsill. They will get packed away too BUT – are those words really relegated to just one month of the year? I don’t know about you, but I desire peace and joy and hope every day, not just at Christmas.

The angel who announced Jesus’s birth brought good news of “great joy.” Additionally, the angel proclaimed, “on earth peace and goodwill to men.” Jesus’s birth brought great joy, peace and goodwill, and something else that all mankind had long been without – hope. Jesus’s birth brought hope to the world in the form of a Savior who would pay the price for our sin, offering us mercy and eternal life instead of what our sins deserve. Jesus’s birth brings me hope today, even in the midst of my current circumstances. I have hope because of His promise –

” ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’ ” (Jeremiah 29:11)

The gift of hope is a wonderful, life-giving gift that God gave to us when He sent us His Son. Jesus’s birth brought peace, joy and hope into a weary world, a world that was in dire need of all three. But not everyone was ready or willing to receive what Jesus was offering.

“He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him.” (John 1:11)

Must be why today peace, joy and hope are still desperately desired, yet in seemingly short supply – as we continue to reject Jesus, the One whose very Presence brings these gifts of peace, joy and hope with Him, freely given to anyone who will receive Him.

I guess that’s why I still have these three words displayed in my windowsill. I need God’s peace, joy and hope in my life every day, not just at Christmas. Translation – I need my Heavenly Father’s presence abiding with me daily, not just during the season of Advent.

Advent was all about preparing room, preparing space, to let God’s Son have a dwelling place in my heart and in my life. Now that Advent is over, I don’t want to turn around and kick Him out of that space, and with Him the peace, joy and hope that I want in my life. Knowing myself as I do, I would end up replacing those things with lesser things that do not last and do not satisfy.

I think I’ll leave these words in my windowsill awhile longer to remind me that although Advent (the arrival of a very important person – Jesus) is over, the celebration ceased, the decorations packed away – Jesus is still here with me in the after party let down and so are His gifts of peace, joy and hope.

Perhaps that’s what this is all about – this post Advent ponder is just me experiencing post party syndrome. Packing away the last of my decorations makes it real. The celebration is officially over. No more presents to open, no more parties to attend, no more fun foods to eat. After all the busyness and hype of the Christmas season, the realities of everyday life return. BUT – Jesus is still here with me unless of course I choose to pack Him away too, along with my decorations, not giving Him another thought until next year.

However, I want His presence to be permanently with me. And God has promised that He will “never leave me nor forsake me.” I have this hope as I begin another new year – hope, one of God’s best gifts of Advent –

“And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” (Romans 5:5)

God gave you and me the gift of hope when He sent us His Son, Jesus. You and I received the hope of forgiveness, the hope of reconciliation, the hope of eternal life with our Heavenly Father. Hope – best gift ever! Hang onto it!

“but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)

sincerely, Grace Day

unfathomable faith

Posted on by Grace Day

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1)

One of the two criminals hanging on the crosses on either side of Jesus must have had that kind of faith (certain of what he did NOT see) because what he did see certainly wouldn’t have prompted him to say to the man hanging on the cross next to him these words –

“Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” (Luke 23:42)

This would seem to be a ridiculous request given that the current circumstances of both men (all three men actually) were identical at the moment those words were uttered. Both the one asking the favor and the one to whom his request was addressed, appeared to be suffering the same fate. Their situation is described by Luke –

“Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with Him (Jesus) to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified Him, along with the criminals – one on His right, the other on His left. . . . The people stood watching and the rulers even sneered at Him. They said, ‘He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.’ ” (Luke 23:32-33)

These three men, each one nailed to a cross, were suffering a slow, agonizing death. There was no escape. If the man hanging on the cross next to Jesus was going to ask for help, why didn’t he appeal to one of the bystanders in the crowd, or better yet to one of the guards or to one of the rulers in charge. Any one of them was in a much better position to rescue him than the man nailed to the cross beside him.

In fact, to all appearances, the man next to him, who was Jesus, appeared to be powerless to alter His own fate, let alone anyone else’s. This unnamed criminal hanging next to Jesus heard the conversations surrounding them –

“The soldiers also came up and mocked Him (Jesus). They offered Him wine vinegar and said, ‘If You are the king of the Jews, save Yourself.’ There was a written notice above Him, which read: This is the King of the Jews. One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at Him: ‘Aren’t You the Christ? Save Yourself and us!’ ” (Luke 23:36-39)

And yet, despite these seemingly irrevocable, dire circumstances, the other criminal said this –

“But the other criminal rebuked him. ‘Don’t you fear God,’ he said, ‘since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.’ ” (Luke 23:40-41)

How did he know this? This man hanging on the cross next to Jesus had bold, unreasonable faith. He had a faith that didn’t depend on his current circumstances or on what he could see. Instead, his faith was “sure of what he hoped for.” He believed Jesus was indeed God’s Messiah, who would reign over God’s eternal kingdom, and so he made his outrageous request of Jesus – that Jesus would “remember him” when Jesus “came into His kingdom.”

His simple request showed that this man on the cross next to Jesus had a bold, unexplainable faith in the person who hung on the cross next to him, who was none other than Jesus Himself, God’s gift to the world of a Savior. Otherwise, why would he say to the guy hanging on the cross beside him, a man obviously suffering the same fate that he was currently suffering, someone in the same predicament as he was in – someone with no apparent way of escape – why would he say to Him –

“Lord, remember me when you come into Your kingdom.”

unless he believed that Jesus was going to inherit an eternal kingdom and that Jesus had the power and the authority to grant him a place in this eternal paradise. Well, as it turns out, his bold faith was rewarded immediately with these words –

“Jesus answered him, ‘I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise.’ ” (Luke 23:43)

I think this unnamed man on the cross should have been included in Hebrews chapter 11, which names many people of great faith, such as Abraham and Noah and Joseph. Just as the criminal on the cross believed Jesus for a seemingly impossible outcome of his situation, so too, Abraham believed God for the seemingly impossible. Abraham was old and his wife, Sarah, was barren, unable to conceive and bear children. So they had remained childless their entire marriage. And yet, God said this to Abraham –

“Then the word of the Lord came to him: (Abraham) ‘This man will not be your heir, but a son coming from your own body will be your heir.’ He took him outside and said, ‘Look up at the heavens and count the stars – if indeed you can count them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ ” (Genesis 15:4-5)

What was childless Abraham’s response to God’s incredible promise to make Abraham’s descendants as numerous as the stars?

“Abraham believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6)

Abraham believed that God would make good on His promise even though he had no children at the time. (faith – “the evidence of things not yet seen.”) Noah had faith to obey God and build that very large boat despite the fact that it had never rained on the earth and he was landlocked. Noah’s obedient faith paid off. He and his family survived the great flood that covered all the earth because they took refuge in the ark God told him to build.

The criminal on the cross next to Jesus was no different. He had faith enough to ask the impossible of Jesus and faith enough to believe that Jesus would make good on His promise despite the apparent hopelessness of their shared current situation. I want faith like that – faith that believes God for the impossible every day of my life. Why? because God’s word says this about faith –

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

and because –

“We live by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7)

I want to have faith that dares to obey the Living God – faith like Daniel in the lion’s den, faith like his three friends in the king’s furnace, faith like Rahab defying the king and hiding the spies, faith that walks on water and soars on wings like eagles – obedient, courageous faith like the man hanging on the cross next to Jesus. Everyone there was mocking Jesus, taunting Him, ridiculing Him with scorn and derision. BUT – the criminal on the cross boldly called upon Jesus in faith to save him and he was not disappointed! He was rewarded with Jesus’s promise that he would be with Jesus that very day in paradise.

In this life, I too often find myself in tough, excruciatingly painful, scary, grievous, seemingly impossible and inescapable situations with no apparent way of escape or good outcome – much like the criminal on the cross next to Jesus. In my “hanging on my cross” moments, when I feel powerless, unable to change my circumstances or to rescue myself from the situation – I want to remember the bold, unfathomable faith of that man on the cross who knew he could do nothing to save himself, but believed that Jesus could rescue him from his otherwise certain sad ending.

And I have something in common with this man. He had Jesus right next to him. How fortunate for him! Well, dear readers, you and I have Jesus with us twenty-four/seven. How fortunate for us! Like the man on the cross, I can cry out to Jesus anytime and He will answer me. I just have to have faith bold enough to ask, faith trusting enough to believe that God will answer. After all, God promised in Jeremiah –

“Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3)

and the apostle Paul says this about God’s response to my bold faith requests –

“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, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)

“immeasurably more” – that’s God’s response to my bold faith cries for help – that’s His response to yours too, dear readers

sincerely, Grace Day

happy new year?

Posted on by Grace Day

Well, 2025 is drawing to a close even as I write these words. The old year is ending with or without my permission. Either way, time is moving forward whether or not I am ready to begin the new year. I don’t feel ready, perhaps because meeting the challenges of this past year leaves me at a disadvantage as I enter the new year. Does this describe you as well, dear reader? Do you feel drained and depleted, needing a respite and a refueling of your body or your mind or your spirit – or all three before embarking on the journey awaiting you in the coming year? I often identify with the apostle Paul’s description of life as he describes it in Corinthians like this –

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-10)

Those words describe how I feel too often – “hard pressed but not crushed”, . . . “struck down, but not destroyed.” Why? Why am I not crushed, in despair, abandoned, or destroyed? Because I am never alone. My Heavenly Father is always with me, always watching over me. God was with Daniel in the lion’s den. He was with Daniel’s three friends when they were put into King Nebuchadnezzar’s furnace. God was with the Israelites while they wandered through the desert. He was the pillar of fire by night and the cloud by day that protected and guided them on their journey. You and I have the promise of God’s presence too, just as they did –

“The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” (Deuteronomy 31:8)

Those words are both comforting and encouraging to me as I enter into this new year – a year of unknowns and of uncertainty, a year of hopes and of dreams, a year that will most certainly contain both grief and joy, a year that I can face with courage rather than fear because there is Someone who walks with me through all of it.

“My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip – He who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you – the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm – He will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:2-8)

Even when I feel alone and overwhelmed with life’s circumstances, I can know that I am most certainly NOT alone. I am reminded of the story of Elisha and his servant –

“When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. ‘Oh, my lord, what shall we do?’ the servant asked. ‘Don’t be afraid,’ the prophet answered. ‘Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ And Elisha prayed, ‘O Lord, open his eyes so he may see.’ Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” (2 Kings 6:15-17)

Did you catch that? There are more with you and with me than there are with the enemy of our souls who seeks to destroy us. My prayer for the new year? Lord, open my eyes to see – to see You – to see those who need to hear about You and how much You love them – to see that I am not alone but am surrounded by You and by those with You. I will take to heart these words in this new year –

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Hebrews 12:1)

I don’t know what lies ahead in 2026 for me BUT – I do know that I am ready to continue running the race marked out for me because I do not run alone and I do not face the future alone. My Heavenly Father is always with me through it all – lions’ dens, fires, floods, unmovable mountains and deep valleys – God is there with me. I have His word on that.

“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in the depths, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to You; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to You.” (Psalm 139:7-12)

“But now, this is what the Lord says – . . . ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.’ ” (Isaiah 43:1-2)

God’s presence abiding with me, brings me comfort and gives me much needed courage as I face whatever lies ahead. I need not fear the fires, the deep waters. any deserts, mountains or any other treacherous terrain that lies ahead of me in the new year. I am not promised an easy journey, but I am promised that my Redeemer will be with me every step of the way. And that’s more than enough for me. Jesus told His disciples –

“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Knowing that God has the victory in my life and in yours too, dear readers, gives me the courage to keep walking forward in faith every day, knowing that in the end good overcomes evil, light overcomes darkness and love overcomes hate. When I am going through the trials of this life, which come unbidden and inevitably, when I am feeling “hard pressed on every side”, I remember these words –

” ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’ ” (Isaiah 29:11)

I am entering this new year already bruised and battle weary from the past year. Maybe you are too? BUT – let these words remind us that we do not run this life race in vain nor do we run it alone.

“If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all – how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died – more than that, who was raised to life – is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? . . . No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:31-39)

So, take heart! You and I are “more than conquerors” and nothing will separate us from God’s love given to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. I can enter into this new year with confidence and courage and hope and purpose because my Creator God, my Heavenly Father, walks with me (and with you, too) every step of the way as I follow where He leads.

so walk on into this new year with God, walk in faith with purpose, with perseverance and with joy!

sincerely, Grace Day