one step: water break

When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he fathered Lamech. Methuselah lived after he fathered Lamech 782 years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Methuselah were 969 years, and he died.

Genesis 25:25-27

The One Step Daily Devotional is intended to provide just one step each day for your journey with God. Every journey requires water breaks. Here is a water break for you.

---

What kind of legacy are you leaving?

When you think of legacy, perhaps you think of finances, belongings, or property. As we age, we begin to ask more and more “what is my legacy?” It’s easy to feel that we don’t have enough time in this life to accomplish all that we wish that we could. I know that I feel that way often.

Methuselah had 969 years to build a legacy (Genesis 5:25-27).* Can you imagine what you could accomplish in that amount of time? Can you imagine the things that he could build and leave to his family!?

Interestingly, there is almost no biblical record of the acts and deeds of Methuselah. A handful of verses give us little story on the many years of Methuselah (Genesis 5:21–27; 1 Chronicles 1:3).* His writings are not found in the Bible, deemed critical for the people of God to read over the generations. There is no mention of his wealth, his wisdom, or his financial investments.

Here’s what we know about Methuselah: he was the son of Enoch, the father of Lamech, and the grandfather of Noah.* In these few facts, we see an amazing legacy!

Enoch was so close to God that he did not die; God brought him up to heaven Himself (Genesis 5:24). Methuselah, having observed that, lived longer than any other human recorded in Scripture.* Methuselah then grandfathering Noah.*

Noah, as you recall, built an arch as God’s provision of salvation during God’s judgement on humanity.* In a culture of sin and wickedness, Noah chose God.

In the 969 years of Methuselah’s life, God only chooses to include this in His Word: Methuselah was raised by a man so close to God that death did not take him, and he somehow influenced his grandson in a culture of corruption that lead Noah to choose God over everything and everyone else. Methuselah saw that faithfulness in Noah (Methuselah lived until the year of the flood).* The Arc took 100 years to build, and Methuselah witnessed its building.* Methuselah got to see that his legacy included faithfulness to God, intimacy with God, and salvation.

What more could we ask for?

I don’t know Methuselah, but I know that his son Lamech was only recorded as doing one noteworthy thing: naming Noah.* Should Methuselah be disappointed in his legacy? Should he feel like a failure? Sometimes the most powerful details of life and legacy are not recorded as great feats, but as simple faithfulness. Methuselah somehow walked out his life for 969 years in a way that influenced his son Lamech to think that naming his son Noah might bring about the salvation that the world needed. Lamech looked at the world, and said, “this world needs God.” In the words of Lamech, Noah received his name because, “out of the ground that the Lord has cursed, this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the painful toil of our hands.”*

This desire was fulfilled as God said, “Never again will I curse the ground because of man” (Genesis 8:21).*

Legacy is not always grand (Lamech simply named his son). Legacy is not always visible (Methuselah died before seeing the flood and the salvation of the Lord through Noah). Legacy is sometimes a seed (all of this came from Enoch’s intimacy with God).

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to realize that there is more to your legacy than you realize. Perhaps today God wants you to see past what you want for your legacy to see what He is doing in and through your legacy. Perhaps today God would ask you to pray new prayers for your legacy. Maybe today He wants you to focus on intimacy with Him.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a water break… we all get thirsty.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Easton, M. G. (1893). In Illustrated Bible Dictionary and Treasury of Biblical History, Biography, Geography, Doctrine, and Literature (p. 461, 505-506). Harper & Brothers.
Walton, J. H. (2001). Genesis (p. 280). Zondervan.

one step: water break

The Lord your God is in your midst,
    a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
    he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.

Zephaniah 3:17

The One Step Daily Devotional is intended to provide just one step each day for your journey with God. Every journey requires water breaks. Here is a water break for you.

---

In your current life situation, where is God? Can you see Him?

It’s natural to feel the difficulties of life with all of their pain and difficulty and wonder, “God, where are you?”

Zephaniah, speaking to the people of Israel going through a difficult season in their history, encourages telling them by reminding them of where God is: in their midst. And what is He doing? He’s waiting for the opportunity to sing and rejoicing over them.

While Zephaniah let Israel know that God wanted to sing over them and was in their midst, we know that because of Christ, the song has already begun and He is with us now!*

We must not lose the profound simplicity of the words that change everything: God is with you, and He is singing a song of joy over you.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to sit quietly and hear His song. Perhaps today God wants you to pause long enough to feel His presence even in the midst of difficulty. Maybe today God wants you to remember that because He is with you, you are with Him. Perhaps today God wants you to join in the singing.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus. Take a water break… we all get thirsty.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Bruckner, J. (2004). Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah (p. 334). Zondervan Publishing House.
Baker, D. W. (1988). Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah: An Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 27, p. 118). InterVarsity Press.

one step: James 1.5

But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

James 1:6-8

How much have we gotten wrong for how long? How many times have we had doubts about something and kept it quiet because doubting wasn’t “the right thing to do”? How many people have had doubts, didn’t feel that they could talk about it, and then silently walked away from the body of Christ?

One of the things that we might have gotten wrong is some of the interpretations of James 1:6-8.

James 1:6-8 has lead some well-meaning believers to wrongly place their faith in the strength of their own believing.* Additionally, they have believed that hardship or deprivation in life can be escaped.* This has been known in some circles as “name it and claim it.” It sounds like, “if you believe enough, you will get what you want.”

Other well-meaning believers have sought to avoid doubt by attempting to evacuate their souls of anything but positive thinking.* This positive-thinking can become an unwitting effort to manipulate God with positive thoughts.* This error leaves many living in fear that God will use their doubts against them to withhold wisdom or other good things.* It may sound like, “don’t question that or God won’t be good to you.”

God is clear that life is hard and that He gives wisdom freely to those who ask.* The doubt that God invites us to avoid is not a surface-level doubt of the soul.* James is not referring to honest intellectual doubts.* For example, David speaks openly about his doubts about God in Psalm 6, wondering if God rejected him.*

The doubt we are to avoid is a swaying between self-reliance and God-reliance, not a questioning of His will.* Trust in God is a heart issue that is birthed from experience.* One we experience the character of God who gives wisdom freely, we must not move from it.* We must not let go of the trust in the character of God and who He claims to be.* We must not have divided loyalty.* While we may not always be sure of what He wants for our lives in a given moment, we must continue to rely upon Him for what we need.

To have questions is human; to be unsure is natural. Ask questions, seek answers. Seek God. He is good. Don’t waver… He is the source of what we need.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to come to God with the questions that you’ve been ignoring. Perhaps today God would have you commit to holding tight to Him as your source of wisdom and all that is good. Maybe today God would have you repent for attempting to manipulate Him and your life through the strength of your faith or positive thinking. Perhaps today God is asking you to trust Him. Maybe today God wants to permission you to see yourself as human.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Blomberg, C. L., & Kamell, M. J. (2008). James (Vol. 16, pp. 52-55). Zondervan.
McCartney, D. G. (2009). James (pp. 90-92). Baker Academic.
Stulac, G. M. (1993). James (Jas 1:5-8). IVP Academic.
Guthrie, G. H. (2006). James. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, p. 215). Zondervan.
Nystrom, D. P. (1997). James (pp. 52-53). Zondervan Publishing House.

one step: James 1.4

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

James 1:5

Have you ever avoided asking a question in class because you didn’t want to be made to feel stupid? Have you ever refused to ask for directions though you were lost because you didn’t want to appear helpless? Have you ever gone to great lengths to avoid being shamed? I know I have.

In our day and age, it’s easy to think that if we don’t know what to do, we should search about it online. The top 10-15 search results serve as the guiding light through our world of darkness. Maybe, if we are brave, we have a go-to-person who seems to know more than us, so we go to them first when we don’t know what to do. Many prefer to find out things on their own for fear of being exposed as naïve or ignorant. Unfortunately, in these times of uncertainty and rapid communication, we find ourselves in this position quite often. This was never God’s plan.

While God encourages us to seek input from others, and while searching for answers is a vital part of His invitation to “seek,” God wants us to go to Him first.

Wisdom is not earned.* Wisdom is not produced from suffering.* You are not born into wisdom, nor does it fall into your lap. Wisdom is a gift from God.* He does not shame us for not having it; nor does He give us just enough to get by.* James tells us that God gives us wisdom generously and does not shame us for needing it… when we ask for it.*

Wisdom is often what allows us to make it through trials and leads to wholeness.* Wisdom is not just knowing things, but it involves the practical living out of the things of God that we know to be true.* Wisdom is the ability to discern and walk out how God wants us to live.* In this, God gives us what He asks of us.* Isn’t He good? Wisdom… we just have to ask.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to recognize that you need only ask Him for wisdom. Perhaps today God wants you to stop trying to make yourself wise enough. Maybe today God wants you to know that He will give you what He is asking of you. Perhaps today God wants you to see how good He is.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Blomberg, C. L., & Kamell, M. J. (2008). James (Vol. 16, pp. 50-52). Zondervan.
McCartney, D. G. (2009). James (pp. 88-90). Baker Academic.
Stulac, G. M. (1993). James (Jas 1:5-8). IVP Academic.
Guthrie, G. H. (2006). James. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, p. 214-215). Zondervan.
Nystrom, D. P. (1997). James (pp. 50-51). Zondervan Publishing House.

one step: James 1.3

And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

James 1:4

Can you ever be perfect and complete? Can you ever lack nothing? According to James 1:4, you can! What does it take? It takes patience through trials.* The patience that may be seen as a virtue is actually a means to a greater end: maturity.* The perfection and completion to which James refers can actually be understood as maturity.*

Said another way, patience through trials brings you to a place of maturity.* Perfection will be obtained one day, through the coming of Christ as we receive new bodies, free of this world.* In the mean time, we move toward this perfection, growing into a place of maturity.* What does this maturity look like?

A baby tree looks like a shrub worth mowing with a lawn mower - little roots and not much height or width. An immature tree looks like a tree, but has no fruit. A mature tree has deep roots, a strong trunk, and produces fruit… it lacks nothing. It’s doing what it was created to do.

The maturity and lacking in nothing to which James refers is a full equipping to do and be who God created you to be.* Want to be who God created you to be? He made you to be more like Him. The maturity that He seeks for you is becoming more and more like the character of God.*

Who doesn’t want that?! Absent of impatience, impulsiveness, laziness, jealousy, selfishness, or self-pity, your soul will one day cling so close to the person of God that you will be complete.* Intimacy with God does not have to wait for Heaven, however. God has freedom in mind for you today!

God wants to seal up the cracks in who you are, making things as they should be: integrous (uniform throughout).* This is the completeness God promises through Jesus, and wants you to receive today. He wants to see your roots deep, your trunk thick, and your fruit plentiful.

Today, take a step.

Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to have patience through your trial, knowing that you will become more like the character of God in the end. Perhaps today God wants you to take one more step, even when you don’t feel like it any more. Maybe today God wants you to look through the trial and set your eyes on Him.

Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.

Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.

Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page! We would love to hear from you!

*Blomberg, C. L., & Kamell, M. J. (2008). James (Vol. 16, pp. 50). Zondervan.
McCartney, D. G. (2009). James (pp. 87–88). Baker Academic.
Stulac, G. M. (1993). James (Jas 1:2–4). IVP Academic.
Guthrie, G. H. (2006). James. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, p. 213). Zondervan.
Nystrom, D. P. (1997). James (pp. 48–50). Zondervan Publishing House.