TU’APULELULU SUNE 11, 2026

SAAME 21-25; HEPELU 4:14-16

The Bible graphically depicts the hardships of life in this fallen world, assuring us that God sees, knows, and understands our suffering.

‘Oku fakamatala kakato ‘e he Tohitapu ‘a e faingata’a ‘o e mamani ‘oku uesia ‘e he angahala, ka ‘oku ne fakamo’oni mai, ‘oku fofonga mai ‘a e ‘Otua, mo ne tokaima’ananga ‘a ‘etau faingata’a’iaa.

When suffering enters our door when we are weakened and distressed by the unexpected, the unplanned, the unwanted-we are susceptible to listening to the lies of the enemy. One lie is that we have been singled out; that is, that our suffering is unique. This is the lie that God has favorites, and we are not one of them. Another lie comes in the form of a question: "Where is your God now?" This is the lie that God has abandoned us and doesn't always keep his promises. In our moments of weakness, the enemy wants us to doubt the love, goodness, and covenant faithfulness of the Lord. The enemy knows that when we begin to doubt God's goodness, we stop going to him for help, because we seek help only from someone whom we know we can trust. If we doubt the love of God, then we won't follow him by faith.

In its honesty about the dangers, hardships, and trials of life in our broken world, the Bible silences these lies. Over and over, the Bible shows us the struggles of people like you and me. Scripture doesn't give us a sanitized depiction of life, one free of disappointments and hardships. This assures us that God sees, knows, understands, and cares about what we are going through. He reminds us that his promises do not depict some unreal world that none of us live in. Rather, he gives us hope in the middle of the real world of hardship. One place where the cries of the sufferer are graphically depicted is Psalm 22:

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,

and by night, but I find no rest....

I am poured out like water,

and all my bones are out of joint;

my heart is like wax;

it is melted within my breast;

my strength is dried up like a potsherd,

and my tongue sticks to my jaws;

you lay me in the dust of death. (Ps. 22:1-2, 14-15)

Psalm 22 not only accurately depicts our struggles in times of hardship; it also welcomes us to take our cries to our Lord. Jesus applies this psalm to himself, reminding us that he is one with us in our suffering (Matt. 27:46; Heb. 5:7), But there is more. Jesus came to earth, willing to suffer on our behalf, to purchase for us the guarantee that someday we would suffer no more. In him we find comfort as we suffer now and hope for a future when we will be free from suffering forever.

 PULELULU SUNE 10, 2026

SAAME 17-20; SIONE 15:16-17

You can pray that, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the thoughts and desires of your heart would be completely acceptable to your Lord.

‘Oku malava ke ke lotu, ‘i he ivi ‘o e Laumalie Ma’oni’oni, ke hoa ‘a e fakakaukau mo e holi ‘a ho loto pea mo e finangalo ‘o e ‘Otua.

Prayer can be a fickle and deceptive thing. Though prayer appears to be a pure act of faith in God - speaking words to one you cannot see or hear - it can also be an occasion for our idols to rear their ugly heads. Prayer empty of praise and worship, lacking confession of sin, devoid of an attitude of surrender, and dominated by a list of wants and desires is shaped by something other than devotion to God. Prayer is not about bringing your list of wants or perceived needs to God and asking him to sign off. No, prayer is surrendering all your wants and desires to the perfect plan and will of your heavenly Father. Often in prayer, worship and service of the Creator battle with worship and service of the creation. In prayer, do you sit in restful awe of your Lord, gazing upon his beauty and placing your life in his hands? Does a surrender to his perfect will shape the way you bring your requests to him? Do you long for his kingdom to come and his will to be done right here, right now-in your marriage, at work, in your friendships, with your money, in your children, and in your home-as it is in heaven?

Because prayer is spiritual warfare, we do well to echo the words of Psalm 19:14:

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

be acceptable in your sight,

O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. (Ps. 19:14)

This simple prayer goes right to the core of our spiritual battles. We live out of the heart. That which rules your heart exercises inescapable influence over your thoughts, desires, choices, words, and actions. A God-honoring life does not begin with acts of obedience. Godward living results from a heart captured by love for and worship of God. Your mouth goes where your heart has already gone. Your choices are the result of the desires and decisions of your heart. We honor God when we ask him to recast every meditation of our heart so that they will be acceptable to him, by his grace.

We pray this because, on our own, we cannot create hearts that are acceptable to God. We pray for rescuing, forgiving, transforming, and delivering grace. But something more needs to be said about Psalm 19:14. This prayer cries out for and has its perfect fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus. His heart was perfectly acceptable to his Father all of the time and in every way. And he lived this way for us. In the perfection of Jesus, we are made perfectly acceptable to our heavenly Father. So, as you pray for a heart that is acceptable to God, rest in the acceptance that is yours because of the perfect life, acceptable sacrifice, and victorious resurrection of his son, Jesus.

 TUSITE SUNE 9, 2026

SAAME 9-16; ‘EMOSI 5:18-24

The Lord, who rules over everything, is perfectly just all the time and in every way. Therefore, justice and righteousness will never end.

Ko e ‘Otua ‘oku pule ki he me’a kotoaa, ‘oku haohaoa ma’u pe ‘ene tu’utu’uni ‘i he tapa kotoa pe. Pea ko ia ai, ko ‘ene faitotonu mo ‘ene haohaoa ‘e ‘ikai ngata.

In the heart of every human is a desire for justice. All of us have felt the pain of injustice. A child sees someone cheat in a game on the school playground and "That's not fair." A worker gets accused by his boss of doing something he says, did not do. A person is rejected because of his skin color and wonders how he will ever escape racial injustice. An elderly woman is cast aside because of her age. A family arrives home from vacation to discover that they've been robbed. A man living in poverty feels as though everything is against him, making success impossible. A family attends the funeral of a dad and husband who lost his life because of a drunk driver. A wife watches her unfaithful husband build a new life that seems much easier and better than the one she's left with. A criminal system is too light on crime, and the bad guys seem to win while the good guys struggle.

We all have moments when we cry out for justice. We all wish that right would win more often. When you read the Psalms, you find your cries for justice there. I often think that the book of Psalms is in the Bible to keep us honest about the true nature of faith between the "already" and the "not yet." The grittiness of faith - its doubts and fears, its battles and enemies, and its dark valleys and mountain peaks - is graphically depicted in the Psalms Here we are confronted with the fact that a life of faith isn't easy; it's more of an arduous journey than a paid vacation. But the book of Psalms, with all of its stark realism, doesn't leave us discouraged, depressed, or hopeless. It doesn't ask you to deny reality, nor does it allow you to let the fallenness of this sin-scarred world dominate your meditation, because in the middle of all the realism is a God of righteousness, justice, and grace. Psalm 9:7-9 makes this very clear:

The LORD sits enthroned forever;

he has established his throne for justice,

and he judges the world with righteousness;

he judges the peoples with uprightness.

The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed,

a stronghold in times of trouble.

Justice can be found, because the Lord of lords has established his throne for justice. Even if we can't always see his justice, he judges his world in righteousness and, because he does, he is a stronghold of safety for his people. Your cries for justice are heard, and there will be a glorious day when righteousness will win. Don't give up. God will act in righteousness on behalf of the children of his love.

 MONITE SUNE 8, 2026

SAAME 1-8; SAAME 150:1-6

God is never too busy, distracted, or distant to hear our cries.

‘Oku ‘ikai ha taimi ‘e femo’uekina, ta’etokanga pe mama’o ai ‘a e ‘Otuaa, te ne ta’e ongona ‘etau tangi ange kiate Iaa.

Everybody sings. Even the most tone-deaf person sings. We sing songs of praise, songs of wonder, songs of hope, songs of love, songs of protest, songs of joy, songs of sorrow, and songs of anger. We sing birthday songs, Christmas and Easter songs, children's songs, political songs, folk songs, advertisement jingles, and national anthems. Human beings are always singing. Songs are a window into our hearts. They reveal what is important to us, what our hearts resonate with, what group we identify with, and what grabs our attention and emotions at a given moment. That which captures our hearts comes out in our songs. It makes sense, then, that the Bible talks a lot about singing. In fact, right in the middle of the Bible is a songbook, the Psalms. The Psalms portray all kinds of songs, from exultant anthems that celebrate the awesome power of the Lord to laments that mourn the sadness of life on this fallen earth.

I have a particular affection for the Psalms, because they exalt someone who hears each and every one of our cries. And the one who hears all of our cries happens to be the King of kings and Lord of lords, who sits on the throne of the universe ruling with almighty power, incalculable wisdom, and transforming grace. He not only is able and willing to hear the cries of his children whenever they cry out, whoever they are, and wherever they are, but he also has the power to answer. He listens not because we deserve his attention, but because he is good, faithful, loving, and kind. We can have hope when we cry not because we have cleaned ourselves up enough to get his hearing, but because he has boundless compassion and limitless mercy.

See how the psalmist's tone turns from grief to hope in Psalm 6:

I am weary with my moaning;

  every night I flood my bed with tears;

I drench my couch with my weeping.

My eye wastes away because of grief;

it grows weak because of all my foes.

Depart from me, all you workers of evil,

for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.

The LORD has heard my plea;

the LORD accepts my prayer. (Ps. 6:6-9)

Why can you have hope in the middle of grief? You can have hope because someone is listening. God hears your weeping, even when it's without words. God hears each and every one of your pleas for help. God never closes his ears to your prayers.

Today you do not have to suffer in silence. Say to yourself, "My Lord hears, my Lord hears." God never shuts his heart to your weeping, and he never closes his ears to your prayers. From his throne he will hear and, with wisdom and grace, he will answer.

 SAPATE SUNE 7, 2026

SIOPE 40-42; FAKAHA 22:6-21 

The story of God's grace is about new beginnings. In fact, what seems like the end of the story is actually a new beginning that lasts forever.

Ko e talanoa ‘o e kelesi ‘a e ‘Otua, ko e tala ‘o e kamata fo’ou. ‘Io, ko e me’a ‘oku ha ngali ko e faka’osi ia ‘o e talanoaa, ta ko ee ko e kamata fo’ou ia ‘e tu’u loa ‘o ta’engata. 

As you walk through God's great redemptive story, you see that it is a story of fresh starts and new beginnings. The sin of Adam and Eve seems like the end of a very short story, but God promises that a fresh start is coming. The global flood seems like the end of the earth, but God makes a covenant with Noah, and God's plan marches on. The enslavement of the children of Israel in Egypt seems like the end of the people of God, but God exercises his power to give them freedom and a land of promise. David's sins of adultery and murder seem like the end of David's line, from which the Messiah was to come, but God forgives and restores his king. The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, along with the captivity of Judah, seem like the end of God's people once again, but God leads a remnant back, restores his people, and rebuilds the temple. The crucifixion of Jesus seems like the final end of all hope, but then comes the resurrection, Christ's ascension, and the growth of his church. This fallen world will someday be burned up, but it will not be the end, because the new heavens and earth will rise and peace and righteousness will reign forever. This is what powerful redeeming grace does. It cannot and will not be defeated. God's grace will have its way. God's grace will win. You are wise to build your life, hope, and dreams on the sure foundation of God's amazing grace.

So it is with the story of Job. He loses so much, including his own health. It is clear that he and his friends don't fully understand what is going on. As you read Job's sad story, you realize that he is not going to dig himself out of his mess and regain all that he has lost. But this is what is so important to remember: Job's future is not in his hands. It is in the hands of his Lord, and his Lord is the definition of wisdom, power, love, and grace. Why does Job have a future? Because God exists and he is gloriously good. Why is there any hope for this poor suffering man? Because God's grace is restorative grace.

So the story of Job doesn't end with suffering. It ends with God's restoring to Job more than he lost: "And the LORD restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before" (Job 42:10). 

How lavishly generous is God's grace. Job lives to see four generations of his family bloom and grow.

What seemed like the end for Job was not the end, because God had a plan for him. Your struggles today are not the end either. Your Lord has a plan for you. His grace guarantees a future for you. Rest in his grace, trust, and obey. His plan marches on.

 TOKONAKI SUNE 6, 2026

SIOPE 38-39; SAAME 19:1-11

God willingly and generously reveals himself to us. What a gift!

‘Oku finangalo lelei mo tau’ataina ‘a e ‘Otua ke ne fakahaa Ia kiate kitautolu. Ko ha taha’i koloa funga ni mo’oni!

I remember the theological questions our children would ask. The concept of a God who was in charge of everything, but whom you couldn't see, touch, or hear, amazed them. Our family devotions were freewheeling question-and-answer times. What is God like? Where does he live? Is he nice? Why is he invisible? How can we trust him? Does he really hear us when we pray? I loved the natural inquisitiveness of our children, and I loved that I had answers for their questions. I had loads of things that I could, with confidence, say about God, because he says so much about himself in his grand self-revelation, the Bible. 

We should never underestimate the spiritual importance of God's willing and generous revelation of himself to us in his word. The Bible is his autobiography, penned by the hands of those he directed by his Spirit. God wants to be known. He does not hide from his creatures-the opposite is true. He goes to great extents over long periods of time, through many situations, and through many spokesmen, to reveal to us his existence, character, grandeur, rule, and plan for the world he has made. He lavishly reveals himself in his creation, defines himself in his word, and breaks through our spiritual blindness, by his Spirit, so that we can "see," understand, and come to know and love him. The fact that God shows himself to people who naturally worship anything in creation but him is a sure sign of the magnitude of his love for us.

In Job 38-39 we find one of Scripture's most expansive descriptions of God's glory, power, and rule. Employing beautiful word pictures and focusing on his own creation and rule of the natural world, God rips back the curtain so that Job can experience the magnitude of who God is and what he does. There is uncomfortable grace in this self-revelation, as God lets Job know that, given who God is and who Job is, Job has little cause to question or debate one of such glory.

We, too, find comfort and confrontation in this awesome self-description God has preserved for us. Our ruler and Creator is also our rock of salvation. What comfort! But God's revelation of himself also confronts us with the fact that everything in life is not about our glory - it's about his.

Celebrate today that God has made himself known to you, and that this changes everything about you now and forever. God's grace in your life began with his willing and generous self-revelation.

 FALAITE SUNE 5, 2026

SIOPE 35-37; SAAME 63:1-8

Few things are more spiritually revitalizing than getting off the treadmill of life and taking time to meditate on the wondrous works of the Lord.

‘Oku kau ‘a e taimi ‘oku te mavahe ai mei he ngaahi me’a ‘oku nau puke hotau taimi, ‘o fakalaulauloto ‘i he ngaue fakaofo ‘a e ‘Otuaa, ‘i ha taimi langahake mo fakafo’ou ki hoto laumalie.  

We are addicted to distraction. We seem to be unable to resist the next hit. Accustomed to endless information, entertainment, and controversy, we hate even a few moments of silence. We get anxious after we've been disconnected for a while. I remember when the cell phone was a new and seemingly unneeded novelty. I said that there was no way I would ever carry a phone around with me. But the device we carry with us now is not primarily a phone. When Steve Jobs gave us a portable touch screen, life began to change. Now we can access any form of entertainment or information - no matter how healthy or spiritually dark - wherever we go and whenever we want. We all feel the need to be connected, but our digital connectivity keeps us constantly distracted. Many of us spend hours a day on our devices, but less than twenty moments in personal devotion and prayer. We leave ourselves little time to stop, think, consider, and meditate.

Why does this matter? It matters because the central fact of human existence - that which gives understanding and purpose to everything we encounter - is the existence, character, purpose, and glory of God. The truth of the existence of God is the lens through which you and I need to look to properly understand everything in our lives. God's existence and glory give us identity, meaning, moral boundaries, and lasting peace. His will should guide every one of our thoughts, desires, choices, words, and actions. His glory can rescue us from living for our own glory. His holiness can expose our sin and cause us to seek and celebrate his grace. We need time every day to stop and gaze upon the glorious glory of the Lord. Consider these words from Job 37:

Hear this, O Job;

stop and consider the wondrous works of God.

Do you know how God lays his command upon them

and causes the lightning of his cloud to shine?

Do you know the balancings of the clouds,

the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge,

you whose garments are hot

when the earth is still because of the south wind?

Can you, like him, spread out the skies,

hard as a cast metal mirror?

The Almighty-we cannot find him;

he is great in power;

justice and abundant righteousness he will not violate.

Therefore men fear him;

he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit.

(Job 37:14-18, 23-24)

We need to heed these words. We need to silence our devices and stop to consider, gaze upon, and meditate on the wondrous works of God. When we do so, we find life, hope, and help. May the Lord's majesty supersede everything else in our lives, and may it give shape to how we live.