Head: Know God's Word | Heart: Love God | Hands: Follow God's Way 

Read James 1

Head

James 1 is full of a lot of hard truths. Facing suffering and troubles with a positive attitude; enduring hardships and burdens without giving in to temptation; being quick to listen and slow to speak and slow to become angry; not just hearing and reading the Word of God but doing what It says; keeping control of our tongues; taking care of one another; and keeping ourselves from being dirtied by the world are just a few of the ways James tells us we should be living.

I don’t know about you, but trying to remember just one of these things takes a great deal of effort for me! The good news, though, is our Heavenly Father knows we are not perfect. He knows we cannot meet Jesus’ level of goodness and righteousness. But that doesn’t give us a “free pass” for sin! While we will never be perfect, we are expected to follow Jesus’ example.

Heart

It has taken me longer than I'd like to admit, but I’ve finally realized that since God never expects perfection from me, it gives me the freedom to rely on Him and His grace and mercy rather than relying on myself. What I mean is when I’m facing something that’s just not very fun to deal with, I know God doesn’t look for me to handle the situation perfectly, so I don’t try. Instead, I’ve learned to go to Him and ask for guidance, wisdom, strength, and whatever else He knows I need in that particular moment. And do you know what? He’s never failed me yet!

Hands

Come up with some different things you can use as your family’s “go-to” prayer response in difficult circumstances. Once you have them written on paper, write them on your heart so in times of trouble you know exactly what and how to pray when the situation arises.

Prayer: Father God, thank You! Thank You for giving us Jesus and the perfect example of how we should live. Thank You for Your grace and mercy and forgiveness when we are far less than perfect. We love You! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.