This day with God, be encouraged and live with a heart on fire because we can trust Him. Live each day knowing He is with you always and with passion knowing the future with Him will be beyond what you could imagine. Reading today in John 20:11-18, we discover the reason to be encouraged. 

Mary Magdalene thought someone had taken Jesus’ body. She looked inside the tomb and saw two angels. She talked to them and was crying. She then turned around and saw Jesus but did not recognize that it was Jesus. She thought he was the gardener (v. 15). When Jesus spoke her name, she recognized it was Jesus. Full of excitement, she went to the disciples to tell them about the wonderful news (v. 18).

When Jesus calls out our name and reveals himself to us, we are to do the same. Respond with excitement and be ready to share with others the Good News. With enthusiasm, we capture everyone’s interest and they join in to change the world for the better.

If you have a passion for what you do, it isn’t work at all because you enjoy what you do. Many times, I think back and smile at the memories of years ago. I remember picking dewberries in an area near the railroad tracks near our house. If I found enough, mom would make a dewberry pie.

Knowing Jesus is alive reminds us that the future and present are exciting too! God is with us and it’s exciting to think about what He’s going to do in the future. With God, we can get through anything, we can patiently grind out difficulties, and we can celebrate because of the victory we will always have with Him.

This day Lord, we remember the joys of the past and look forward with excitement to the days ahead. With excitement and enthusiasm, we work together to tell others about the Good News that Jesus is alive and with us. With us to build up our faith, have peace, and internal joy even when circumstances are not all that pleasant. Because of Jesus, we are not limited by the impossible but have a future beyond our imagination with great possibilities. In His name we pray, amen.