Tag Archives: Lisa C. Gant

A Daily Purpose

Bible Study, Teen Bible Study, , , ,

Bible Study & Devotional (Day 209)

By: Lisa C. Gant

Guiding Scripture: Psalm 42:1-2 “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” 

 

🔴Do You Know How Thirsty You Are?

When is the last time you’ve been thirsty?


Not just a little parched. I’m talking really, really thirsty for an ice-cold drink of water.
If you’re privileged enough to live in a developed nation where water is plentiful, you may have to think for a while. However, if you live in a developing country or one that’s facing a severe drought, that question takes on a lot more weight. Even in the United States where I live, many states are in the middle of the most intense droughts we’ve had in years, even decades.

It’s humbling how important water becomes when rivers start to dry up.
That extra bit of context puts the psalmist’s words in Psalm 42 in a different light.

  • How many of us long for the presence of God the way we do for the water that sustains us?
  • More importantly, how many of us are even aware of how much our souls need Him?

 

Water isn’t optional for any human being; it is essential. Short or tall, rich or poor, black or white, we each need water every day of our lives. It doesn’t matter how much we drank yesterday or the day before that.

Today, we still need water. The need never goes away.

How fitting, then, that the psalmist chooses to compare his spiritual need for God to his physical need for water. It’s even more interesting that he compares that longing to that of a deer, an animal who spends most of its life on the run from predators. Think about that for a second.
That’s a whole different level of thirst. It’s not casual; it’s desperate.

I have found that the more time I spend with God, the more I become aware of my need for Him. The demand itself never changes, but my awareness of it does. I’ve noticed how my mood is off when I haven’t been in His presence, how cranky and lethargic and unfocused I feel when I haven’t heard His voice.


Even when we don’t understand our need for God, our soul knows. It longs for Him and cries out for Him. And that part of us is never truly satisfied until we are in beautiful communion with Him.
May we never forget how much our soul thirsts for God’s presence.

May we never stop coming to Him to be refilled.

 

LISA C. GANT: CEO & Founder of Purpose Without Apology, the Podcast. She is a writer and book editor working with others to publish their stories. Tune in for uplifting Bible teaching podcasts and connect with Lisa on Instagram. Visit www.lisacgant.com for more information and how you can work with Lisa.  

 

 

 

This devotional was submitted by Lisa C. Gant, a loving contributor to Our Given Purpose. Edited by Torrie Slaughter the founder of Our Given Purpose® in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

 

🔴 The Bible In A Year Daily Reading Plan

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

2 Chronicles 21:1-23:21, Romans 11:13-36, Psalm 22:1-18, Proverbs 20:7

Download or Print the One Year Bible Reading Plan  

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A Daily Purpose

Bible Study, Teen Bible Study, , , , , , , ,

Bible Study & Devotional (Day 190)

By: Lisa C. Gant

Guiding Scripture: Psalm 56:3 “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” 

 

🔴 It Starts with Trust: Winning the Battle Against Fear

When we’re small children, fear is easy enough to identify, often taking the form of invisible monsters who lurk under the bed or hide in dark closets. Over time, however, we learn that those fears usually aren’t based on reality. The monsters that we imagined with sharp claws, shaggy fur, and vicious fangs aren’t real, and nothing is waiting in the dark to grab us while we sleep.

But what do we do when our fears are real, terrible things that can happen?

As adults, fear becomes menacing in a different way. Instead of ghosts, monsters, or werewolves that fill our nightmares, our fears take the form of a cancer diagnosis, a sudden job loss, or the death of a loved one. Each day, we battle these larger-than-life fears that seek to rob us of peace. At the same time, we also face a myriad of little fears that swarm in our minds like gnats: Will I be able to meet my sales quota at work this quarter? Is my spouse satisfied with our marriage? What should I do about my child who’s struggling in school? And don’t even get me started on fears triggered by our modern, toxic, ever-present news cycle.

Over the past several months, I’ve fought my own battle with fear as my life has gone through an intense period of transition. Not only is my family in the process of moving to a new home, but like many of you, we are finding a new normal as society opens up after enduring a pandemic for the past year. None of these things is easy to navigate on their own, let alone all at once.

Fortunately, we serve a God who reigns over fear and has given us the tools we need to fight back. Psalm 56:3 is a simple verse that shows us where to start: “When I am afraid, I will put my trust and faith in You.” (Amplified Version) Trust is a powerful thing, especially in the hands of a child. Childlike trust is firm and unyielding; it does not waver. It is pure and undiluted by doubt. That’s what Jesus meant when he said that anyone who wants to enter the kingdom of heaven must become like a child (Matthew 18:3).
And that’s the kind of trust that we need to place in God. Trust is a choice, one that is separate from our feelings.

We may feel discouraged, overwhelmed, and confused, but we can choose to place our trust in God despite those feelings. We can choose to acknowledge that God knows the plans He has for us and that they are good plans that will give us a future filled with hope (Jeremiah 29:11). Finally, we can choose to cast all of our fear and anxiety on Him, knowing that He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7).

Trusting God can be challenging, especially if we’re used to figuring everything out for ourselves. However, if we want to have any hope of winning the battle against fear, we have to start by putting our trust in the Lord. It’s the safest place in the world for our confidence to be.

LISA C. GANT: CEO & Founder of Purpose Without Apology, the Podcast. She is a writer and book editor working with others to publish their stories. Tune in for uplifting Bible teaching podcasts and connect with Lisa on Instagram. Visit www.lisacgant.com for more information and how you can work with Lisa.  

 

 

 

This devotional was submitted by Lisa C. Gant, a loving contributor to Our Given Purpose. Edited by Torrie Slaughter the founder of Our Given Purpose® in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

 

🔴 The Bible In A Year Daily Reading Plan

Friday, July 9, 2021

1 Chronicles 7:1-8:40, Acts 27:1-20, Psalm 7:1-17, Proverbs 18:22

Download or Print the One Year Bible Reading Plan  

Join us on the YouVersion App

 

WANT TO HEAR MORE FROM LISA C. GANT? SUBSCRIBE AND DOWNLOAD The PURPOSE WITHOUT APOLOGY Podcast TODAY!

Christians Behaving Badly: Exposure in the Church – Purpose Without Apology

  1. Christians Behaving Badly: Exposure in the Church
  2. Back to the Basics: It's Time to Rebuild
  3. Keeping it in the Family: Building Generational Blessings

A Daily Purpose

Bible Study, Teen Bible Study, , , , , , , ,

Bible Study & Devotional

By: Lisa C. Gant

Guiding Scripture: “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (Psalm 73:26 NIV).

 

🔴 Finding Strength in an Unchanging God

Have you ever had one of those days (or weeks, or months!) that made you feel weary in your soul? Maybe there wasn’t a major crisis you could point to as the source of your stress, but you felt drained from what seemed like a hundred more minor struggles.

Whether it was pressure from looming project deadlines at work or ongoing strife at home, you had a long list of problems to solve and issues to address, to the point where you were just plain worn out at the end of each day.

That’s the kind of week I had recently. There was no major crisis to stop me in my tracks, but I felt weighed down by many small frustrations that left me running on empty. Most of them came in the form of nonstop bickering between my two kids while my husband and I juggled working from home.

For about a week straight, it seemed like they couldn’t even breathe without irritating each other, and by the end of the week, both my husband and I were ready to pull out our hair. I think we’ve all been there at one time or another, especially during the past year.

The beautiful thing about the God that we serve:

Is His goodness toward us is never dependent on our circumstances. No matter how often we tremble under the weight of our human frailty, our Heavenly Father is always right beside us. He is a constant source of strength, ready to hold us up in our time of need. The Bible makes it very clear that God is intimately acquainted with our weakness and takes it into account in His dealings with us.

Psalm 103:14 says, “for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.” The struggles we have in our emotions and behaviors may surprise us, but they are hardly a surprise to God.

So, how do we access the unchanging strength of God in our moments of weariness?

Psalm 73:26 gives us a glimpse at the answer by saying that God is “[our] portion forever.” What does that mean? The word “portion” here can be defined as “share” or “inheritance.” In other words, we have an inheritance of strength in God our Father through salvation in Jesus Christ.


He makes His strength available to help us overcome the challenges of everyday life, and that strength is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

If you’re feeling the weight of the world on your shoulders right now, remember that God’s presence is your portion forever. He is constant and unchanging. He will strengthen your heart when it fails, and His spirit will guide you when your flesh wants its own way.

All you have to do is ask Him for help.

~Lisa C. Gant

LISA C. GANT: CEO & Founder of Purpose Without Apology, the Podcast. Tune in for weekly podcasts and connect with Lisa on Instagram. Visit www.lisacgant.com for more information. 

 

 

 

This devotional was submitted by Lisa C. Gant, a loving contributor to Our Given Purpose. Edited by Torrie Slaughter the founder of Our Given Purpose® in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

 

🔴 The Bible In A Year Daily Reading Plan

Wednesday, May 26, 2021

2 Samuel 9:1-11:27, John 15:1-27, Psalm 119:49-64 , Proverbs 16:1-3

Download or Print the One Year Bible Reading Plan  

Join us on the YouVersion App

 

WANT TO HEAR MORE FROM LISA C. GANT? SUBSCRIBE AND DOWNLOAD The PURPOSE WITHOUT APOLOGY Podcast TODAY!

 

Christians Behaving Badly: Exposure in the Church – Purpose Without Apology

  1. Christians Behaving Badly: Exposure in the Church
  2. Back to the Basics: It's Time to Rebuild
  3. Keeping it in the Family: Building Generational Blessings

A Daily Purpose

Bible Study, Teen Bible Study, , , , , , , ,

Bible Study & Devotional

Guiding Scripture: “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain, you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to[a] those he loves.” (Psalm 127:1-2, NIV)

 

🔴 Who’s Building Your House?


At the time of this writing, my family is in the process of building our first home. So far, the whole thing has been an exciting and rewarding—albeit slightly overwhelming—process. Even though I’ve done my fair share of research about what to expect, I continue to be amazed by how many details are involved in every step of the journey.


Recently, we met with our loan processor, who went over what felt like a neverending list of documents that we needed to submit before our closing date. A day later, we met with the field manager who will be overseeing construction, and she reviewed the blueprints of our home with us in painstaking detail. While those of you who have built a home before know that these types of meetings are par for the course, this is all new for us, and I have to admit that at times it feels like my head is spinning.


Now that I’ve given you some context, imagine for a second how devastating it would be if we went through the entire building process, only to have the house fall apart on closing day.

Perish the thought, right?

Imagine all the excitement of choosing your layout, lovingly picking out the finishings, and getting the keys, all to wind up with nothing but a pile of rubble by the end. All that hard work and money spent for nothing but frustration and bitter disappointment.


It sounds like a nightmare, yet thousands of Christians worldwide live their lives just like that. We build careers, bank accounts, and entire families without any input from the Master Builder, our Heavenly Father. Then we wonder why our lives seem to amount to little more than a heap of rubble. The sad reality is that many of us have built our houses in vain, without seeking our spiritual “blueprints” for direction (the Bible) or consulting with God about His perfect design.


Fortunately, we don’t have to make these mistakes over and over. We can turn back to God at any time, repent, and ask Him for help. Proverbs 3:5-6 gives us clear directions for what we should do: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Although we may be tempted to cling to our plans, we must continuously align them with God’s, trusting that His plans are always better than ours. It is only when we allow Him to direct us that we find true rest and peace.


Who’s building your house? Is it God, or is it you?

~Lisa C. Gant

LISA C. GANT: CEO & Founder of Purpose Without Apology, the Podcast. Tune in for weekly podcasts and connect with Lisa on Instagram. Visit www.lisacgant.com for more information. 

 

This devotional was submitted by Lisa C. Gant, a loving contributor to Our Given Purpose. Edited by Torrie Slaughter the founder of Our Given Purpose® in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

🔴 The Bible In A Year Daily Reading Plan

Tuesday, March 9, 2021

Numbers 11:24-13:33, Mark 14:22-52 Psalm 52:1-9, Proverbs 11:1-3

Download or Print the One Year Bible Reading Plan  

Join us on the YouVersion App

 

WANT TO HEAR MORE FROM LISA C. GANT? SUBSCRIBE AND DOWNLOAD PURPOSE WITHOUT APOLOGY TODAY!

 

Christians Behaving Badly: Exposure in the Church – Purpose Without Apology

  1. Christians Behaving Badly: Exposure in the Church
  2. Back to the Basics: It's Time to Rebuild
  3. Keeping it in the Family: Building Generational Blessings

A Daily Purpose

Bible Study, Teen Bible Study, , , , , , , , ,

Bible Study & Devotional

Guiding Scripture: “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” (Matthew 16:24, NIV)

 

🔴 Are You Ready to Pay the Price for Purpose?

At the time of this writing, there is a great deal of political upheaval in the United States. The past weeks, months, and years have been difficult and painful for most Americans, if we’re honest. I’ve noticed many people, including Christians, complaining that they feel pressure to choose a side. But this shouldn’t come as a surprise. Jesus told us that if we followed Him, the time would come when we would have to draw a line in the sand.

In Matthew 10:34 and 10:36, Jesus says, “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword…Your enemies will be right in your household!” (NLT)

Now, this certainly doesn’t mean that we should go around picking fights and causing trouble, far from it. However, it does mean that whenever we take a stand for Jesus, we should expect opposition. And whenever we pursue God’s purpose for our lives, we should be prepared to pay the price.
Sometimes the cost is popularity, for example:


1. You may be the only one in your group of single friends who believes in waiting until marriage to have sex.
2. The only person in your office who truthfully reports your time off.
3. The only one who calls out your family member who makes racist comments.

It’s never fun to be the only person who stands for righteousness, but as Paul says in Galatians 1:10, “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (NIV).

Other times, the cost is much higher, forcing us to give up personal comfort, financial resources, or in the most extreme cases, our lives. With John’s exception, we believe all 12 disciples died violent deaths, many as martyrs for the Christian faith. Even today, thousands of Christians worldwide pay the ultimate price for their loyalty to Jesus every year. It’s a difficult thing to think about, but as tensions grow, we must ask ourselves:

Would we be willing to do the same if the situation called for it?

Jesus tells us repeatedly throughout Scripture that the life of a Christian isn’t an easy one, but the good news is that He also gives us hope. He promises that “Everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life.” (Matthew 19:29, NLT). Not only that, but He also assures us that when we acknowledge Him before men, He will do the same before His father in heaven (Matthew 10:32).


We must remember that Jesus has paid the price for us that we can never repay, and we honor that sacrifice by living for Him. If we want to live our lives with purpose, bringing glory to God and expanding His kingdom on the earth, we must serve Him wholeheartedly, knowing that we will reap tremendous blessings in return.


Are you ready to pay the price for purpose today?

~Lisa C. Gant

LISA C. GANT: CEO & Founder of Purpose Without Apology, the Podcast. Tune in for weekly podcasts and connect with Lisa on Instagram. Visit www.lisacgant.com for more information. 

 

This devotional was submitted by Lisa C. Gant, a loving contributor to Our Given Purpose. Edited by Torrie Slaughter the founder of Our Given Purpose® in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

🔴 The Bible In A Year Daily Reading Plan

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Leviticus 4:1-5:19, Mark 2:13-3:6, Psalm 36:1-12, Proverbs 10:1-2

Download or Print the One Year Bible Reading Plan  

Join us on the YouVersion App