James 1:17 - Every good and perfect gift is from above

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

James is contrasting God's nature with our nature in previous verses. Whereas we are fickle, God never changes. He gives good (earthly) and perfect (heavenly) gifts to us. Sometimes we see God giving only heavenly gifts - salvation, guidance, peace. But he also gives earthly gifts - prosperity, success, favor. James balances the earthly and the heavenly when He refers to God as the Father of the heavenly lights, which were seen as trustworthy navigation tools. We may want to exploit the earthly gifts, or only emphasize the heavenly gifts, but our heavenly guide will use all of these gifts to transform us. The God who does not change uses good and perfect gifts to mold us into the children that will change the earth.

Today's Commentary by:
Dave Whitehead, Senior Pastor, Grace NYC

What do you think? Discussion at: http://facebook.com/DailyBibleVerse

Psalm 119:28 - My soul is weary with sorrow

My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word.

How do we handle depression? Much of our advertising and media bombard us with images of happy people. This can become the unspoken "ideal life". So when we encounter emotions that may contradict this imagery we find ourselves unprepared. But the Scripture sees sorrow as a part of the human condition. Many of the Psalms deal with feelings of overwhelming depression. And as the Bible addresses these feelings we find that it gives us the guide to navigate through sorrow - the promises of Scripture itself. God's word assures us in our sorrow and gives us lighthouses of hope to help us navigate through the dark moments of our soul.

Today's Commentary by:
Dave Whitehead, Senior Pastor, Grace NYC

What do you think? Discussion at: http://facebook.com/DailyBibleVerse