On Rounds with Jesus

Tag: Christian encouragement

  • God’s Show

    God’s Show

    Scripture reading: John 6:1-14

    You can listen to this devotional via Spotify or YouTube.

    Today’s scene opens with a large crowd, a real need, and no obvious solution.

    Thousands have gathered around Jesus Christ, following Him and listening to His teaching. But now, they are hungry. What began as a moment of ministry has become a logistical problem.

    Then Jesus does something unexpected. He turns to His disciples and asks for a solution, not because He doesn’t know what to do, but because He is about to reveal something deeper.

    As usual, logic speaks first. Philip calculates: “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” (John 6:7). It’s a reasonable response – thoughtful, practical, and sensible. But it is also limited. Philip sees the problem through the lens of human capacity and arrives at a natural conclusion: This is impossible.

    Andrew speaks next. He sees something, but his vision is short-sighted: “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” (John 6:9). His faith is present, but it doesn’t stretch far enough. There is a resource, yet it feels insignificant. Almost not worth mentioning. A boy. A lunch. Five loaves. Two fish. In any serious plan, it doesn’t count. But they forget: this is God’s show!

    In God’s economy, the pattern is different. The problem is allowed to be too big. The resource is allowed to be too small, so that the outcome will be undeniably divine.

    Jesus takes the loaves, gives thanks, breaks them, and has His disciples distribute them. And suddenly, what was insufficient becomes abundant. What was overlooked becomes central.
    What seemed foolish becomes the answer.

    Everyone eats until they’re satisfied, and there are still leftovers.

    This moment is not just about provision; it is a revelation. God is not limited by the size of your resources, the scale of your problem, or the logic of your calculations. He is looking for something else: Are you available? Are you willing to surrender what you have to Him? Will you trust Him a little more?

    The boy didn’t have much, but he had something. And in the hands of Jesus, that was enough.

    Reflection

    1. What situation in your life currently feels “too big” for you to handle?
    2. What do you have in your hands right now that you may be dismissing as “not enough”?
    3. What would it look like to place that small thing fully in God’s hands?

    Prayer

    Heavenly Father, thank You that You are not limited by what limits me. Where I see lack, You see possibility. Where I see insufficiency, You see an opportunity for Your power to be revealed.

    Lord, I bring before You the areas of my life that feel overwhelming—the needs I cannot meet, the problems I cannot solve, and the questions I cannot answer.

    Teach me to trust You. Help me not to despise what I have, even if it seems small. Give me the faith to place it in Your hands, believing that You are able to do more than I can imagine.

    Let my life be a testimony that when You are at work, “not enough” becomes more than enough.

    In Jesus’ name, Amen.

    Thank you for joining us for today’s encouragement. If this message blessed you, kindly share it with someone who may also be encouraged by it.

    Until next time, stay blessed.

  • Newton’s Second Law

    Newton’s Second Law

    Scripture readings: Matthew 4:18 – 22; Mark 10:17 – 22

    You can listen to this devotional here:

    Last week, we explored spiritual inertia, the tendency to stay at rest or continue in the same direction unless acted upon by an external force. Many of us experience a sense of spiritual “stuckness,” feeling unable to move toward God’s purpose even when we know His will.

    Newton’s Second Law of Motion teaches that acceleration is produced by a force acting on mass. The greater the mass, the more resistance to movement. Growth is not limited by the strength of God’s call, but by the weight we carry when responding to it.

    Jesus’ invitation in the Gospels is clear and consistent: “Follow me.”  (Matthew 4:19). This call is decisive, directional, and full of authority. Yet not all respond equally. Some accelerate immediately, like Peter, Andrew, James, and John, who left their nets at once. Others, like the rich young ruler, hesitated and walked away. Same call. Different weights. (Mark 10:17–22)

    Think of a shopping cart. An empty cart moves easily with a gentle push. Fill it with heavy groceries, and the same push produces little movement. Spiritually, the cart is our heart, the groceries are our fears, pride, and distractions, and God’s call is the push. Until we unload these weights, acceleration toward God is slow.

    Hebrews 12:1 reminds us: “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” Weight slows motion. Release it. Fix your eyes on Jesus, and acceleration follows. Hebrews 12:2 urges: “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” Direction. When we lay off the weight, and accelerate in the direction of His call, we gain true spiritual momentum.

    Reflection Questions

    1. What weight is slowing your movement toward Jesus?
    2. How would obedience look if you released that weight today?
    3. Are you keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus, or are distractions pulling your direction off-course?

    Prayer

    Lord Jesus,
    You call me to follow with clarity and love.
    Forgive me for the weight I carry that slows my obedience
    Teach me to lay aside what hinders, fix my eyes fully on You, and move immediately when You speak.
    Strengthen my heart to release all that resists Your call.
    Amen.

    Closing Thoughts

    Acceleration is possible, but only when we release what slows us and move in the direction of Christ. God’s call is strong enough. The path is clear. The question is: are you willing to let go, and move?

  • Stuck

    Stuck

    Scripture reading: John 5:1-15, NKJV

    Sometimes in difficult deliveries, a baby’s head is born, but the shoulders become lodged behind the mother’s pubic bone. It’s an obstetric emergency called shoulder dystocia. In that moment, every second matters. The longer the baby stays stuck, the worse the outcome. It can feel like hell – frantic, helpless, and desperate.

    Being stuck is never easy.

    In John 5, we read about a man who had been “stuck” for thirty-eight years — lying beside a pool said to have healing powers, but he could never make it in. Every time the water stirred, someone else got there first. He had no one to help him.

    Then one day, Jesus shows up and asks him, “Do you want to be healed?” Instead of a clear yes, the man gives excuses.

    Maybe you know what that’s like. Perhaps you’ve been stuck in sin, in sickness, in cycles of frustration and mediocrity. Maybe, like the man, your mind has grown weary, your hope paralysed. But today, grace stands before you and asks, “Do you want to be made whole?”

    Then comes the call: “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” And immediately, the man was healed.

    Friend, it’s your turn. Grace is here – for your healing, your salvation, your breakthrough. All it takes is surrender. Lay down your excuses. Hand over your helplessness. He is sufficient – He is all the help you need.

    And just like in that delivery room, the first thing to do when a baby is stuck… is to call for help. Oh, what a friend we have in Jesus — a very present help in time of need.

    Let’s pray

    Lord Jesus, I come to You just as I am — tired, stuck, and hopeless.
    Like the man by the pool, I’ve waited, I’ve watched, and I’ve withered. Too long I have depended on others or on my own strength. Too long I’ve believed that healing was for someone else, that breakthrough had passed me by.

    But today, You stand before me. You ask, “Do you want to be made whole?” Yes, Lord. I do.

    I surrender my excuses. Lift me from this place of paralysis — in my heart, in my mind, in my spirit.

    Speak Your word again: “Rise up and walk.” I receive Your grace — grace to walk, grace to believe, grace to become all You created me to be.

    Thank you for Your salvation, Your healing and Your deliverance, in Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

    Reflections

    1. Stuck. Not anymore.

    Just like the man by the pool who had been immobilized for 38 years, we too can feel trapped in sin, sickness, or stagnation. But Jesus meets us in our helplessness, offering healing and hope. When He speaks, even long-standing situations can shift in an instant.

    2. Excuses versus obedience

    The man had reasons for remaining where he was, but none of them could save him. It wasn’t until he responded to Jesus’ command to “Rise and walk” that he experienced healing. Likewise, we must choose faith over excuses and respond when grace calls.

  • Ankwanoma

    Ankwanoma

    Scripture reading: Luke 7:11-17

    Death is such a painful thing. In this week’s scripture reading, we witness the heartbreaking scene of a burial procession, the only son of a widow being carried to his grave. You can feel the weight of it.

    Then came news of Daddy Lumba’s passing this weekend, the beloved Ghanaian highlife legend, who died on the morning of Saturday, July 26, after a short illness. The same morning, I was grappling with my own ‘personal’ loss. Life is so short. Indeed, how brief and fleeting it is.

    Jesus sees the mourning crowd and is deeply moved. He approaches, touches the coffin, and the dead young man rises.

    Death scorches. And there are things we may never understand, like why we lose someone despite doing everything possible to prevent it. Or why the ones who go are those we feel didn’t deserve it — too young, too kind, too full of promise. Yet even though death feels mysterious and final, it is not the end.

    It may feel like the end, stirring deep grief and sharp stabs of guilt, but as Jesus shows us today, it isn’t. There is more. There must be. Jesus Himself had to die, but He rose again. And He promises the same for all who believe:

    “I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” (John 11:25)

    This life isn’t all there is.

    Still, we must make every moment count. Grieve, yes. Count the losses. But don’t stay down too long. Rise. Shake off the dust. Go after the next win. Because, like Charles Kwadwo Fosu (Daddy Lumba) once sang, a time will come when each of us will have to ‘fly’ away. Like the bird…

    Ankwanoma

    Mede me kra abɔ afɔreɛ o
    Mereyɛ nea mɛtumie
    Me mmerɛ so a, na mekorɔ o
    Ankwanoma, anoma ei, boo, na anoma ei
    Mm, Ankwanoma ei
    Me mmerɛ so a, na mekorɔ o

    Translation

    Lonely bird
    I have laid down my life as an offering,
    Doing all I can while I can.
    And when my time comes, I will go.
    Lonely bird, bird ei, dear birdie,
    Mm… lonely bird,
    When my time comes, I will go.

    Until then, we press on.

    “As long as it is day, we must do the works of Him who sent us. Night is coming, when no one can work.” (John 9:4)

    Let’s pray

    Lord Jesus,
    You are the Resurrection and the Life.
    You looked upon a grieving mother and brought her son back to life.
    You entered into our sorrow, and You overcame it.

    Today, we bring before You the ache of our losses —
    The people we’ve loved and had to let go,
    The dreams that died too soon,
    The questions we still carry in our hearts.

    Yet in the midst of pain, we declare our hope:
    Death is not the end.
    Because You rose, we too shall rise.
    Because You live, we can face tomorrow — with courage, with peace, with purpose.

    Lord, breathe new strength into our weary souls.
    Help us live with meaning —
    To love deeply, to give generously,
    To rise from our grief and walk boldly in our calling.

    Teach us to number our days and make each one count.
    Let our lives be offerings poured out in service to You.
    May we press on, even through the tears,
    Knowing that a time will come when we too will take flight —
    Not into emptiness, but into eternal joy with You.

    Until then, we will live fully,
    Love deeply,
    And walk faithfully in the light You’ve given us.

    Amen.

    Reflection

    Grief whispers that death is final, that everything beautiful is now buried and gone. But Jesus shows us otherwise. He steps into funeral processions and rewrites stories. He doesn’t just comfort the grieving, He conquers the grave.

    Loss hurts. It confuses. It breaks. But it does not win.

    Because Jesus rose, there is hope beyond the grave. Because He lives, we can face even the darkest days with the confidence that this — this pain, this ending, this goodbye — is not the end.