MONITE ME 25, 2026

‘ESETA 6-10; ‘AISEA 64:1-5

The Bible never presents the sovereignty of God in a way that erases human responsibility.

‘Oku ‘ikai ke tau ma’u ‘i he Folofola ha fakamatala ki he tu’unga pule aoniu ‘o e ‘Otua, pea to’o ai ‘a e fatongia kuo tuku ki he fa’ahinga ‘o e tangata.

If someone told you, "I am just trusting God to reconcile my broken relationship with my brother," how would you respond? The person's statement reveals flawed and unbiblical thinking. God's absolute sovereignty over everything and everyone all of the time never excuses me from doing the things he has called me to do. If I am in an unreconciled relationship with my brother, I am to go to him with the hope of reconciliation. The Bible presents the truth of the interrelationship between the sovereignty of God and his people's responsibility. God often exercises his sovereign will through the means of the true validity of the choices and actions of secondary agents (people). Our actions and choices are means by which God works out his sovereignty. He is in control not only of the final end of things, but also of the means to the end. This means that our choices and actions matter. God's absolute rule in every situation and location never lets us off the hook. He is sovereign and we are responsible; these truths work in cooperation and never in opposition.

The crucial importance of human responsibility is the second great theme of the book of Esther. In the last devotional I wrote that Esther presents to us a God who works not only in the light but also in the shadows. He always works to ensure that what he has ordained - for his glory and the good of his people - will come to pass. He is never distant or uninvolved. He never takes a vacation or sleeps on the job. The hope of the universe rests in the fact that God's rule is universal and unstoppable.

But Esther presents us with another theme. The way God often works his will, assuring that what he has ordained actually comes to fruition, is through the choices and actions of real people, who have actual power to choose, decide, and act. This is illustrated clearly and powerfully in the faith, courage, and actions of Mordecai and Esther. Through their brave and wise choices, God's plan - to preserve his people so that out of them would come the Savior of the world - continues undeterred. God's people are preserved and God's plan marches on. This is exactly what God has ordained, but everything comes to pass because of the crucial decisions and actions of Mordecai and Esther.

So today you can rest in the fact that God's will will be done. His perfect plan will march on to completion. But you must also understand that resting in his rule is not an excuse to be passive or inactive. The one who rules everything calls you to believe, obey, fight, proclaim, repent, love, and follow. He works his rule through your work. So rest and work; this is the lifestyle of the redeemed. 

 SAPATE ME 24, 2026

‘ESETA 1-5; ‘EKISOTO 3:7-9

The God who works in the light also works in the shadows. If you do not see his hand, don't conclude that he isn't working.

Ko e ‘Otua ‘oku ngaue ‘i he maamaa, ‘oku ne toe ngaue pe ‘i he malumaluu. Kapau ‘oku ‘ikai te ke sio ki hono nimaa, ‘oua te ke pehee ‘oku ‘ikai te ne ngaue.

When I counseled people, they would tell me their stories. Often they would recount their lives and express no sense of God's presence or influence. I found this jarring. So I would act as a tour guide, walking them back through their stories and pointing out evidence of God's presence, care, provision, and grace. Sometimes God works in the bright light. His hand is obvious, and his care is clear. But sometimes it is hard to "see" God. In these moments, it's tempting to wonder whether he is near and whether he is doing anything. So it is important to understand that the God who works in the light also works in the shadows. His sovereign power and redeeming care are not always clear, but we ought not think he is absent, distant, inactive, or uncaring. God never forsakes his own, and he never fails to deliver what he has promised. The assumption that we can't see evidence of his presence or care does not mean he is not present and at work.

I think one of the reasons the book of Esther is in the Bible is to teach us this lesson. Esther is one book of the Bible that does not mention God's name. This has troubled many people, but it shouldn't because there are evidences of God's power, presence, and care for his people throughout this little Old Testament book. God works in the shadows to cause Esther to rise to prominence in order to preserve his people. In so doing, God gives hope to the world, because out of those people the Savior would come and ultimately make new again everything broken by sin. Without Esther, the Jewish people would have been destroyed, and there would have been no birth of the Messiah in Bethlehem, no righteous life of Jesus, no substitutionary death, no victorious resurrection, and no ascension to the Father to intercede for his own. The world would have been trapped in sin and doomed with no hope.

The amazing outcome of the story of Esther cannot and should not be attributed to human initiative, wisdom, and ingenuity alone. Behind everything, God is controlling circumstances, working in people's hearts, and determining outcomes. We should be thankful for Mordecai and Esther, but God is the ultimate hero of this portion of Scripture. His providential care guarantees that his people and his work of redemption will have an eternal and glorious Future.

You may not always see God's hand, but you can rest assured that your Lord never ceases working for your good and his glory. Remember that the God who is active in the light is just as active in the shadows. Even though his name might not appear to be plastered all over your story, he is with you, in you, and for you - and that is reason to rest in his care and give yourself to his work.

 TOKONAKI ME 23, 2026

NEHEMAIA 12-13; MATIU 6:31-33

A life well lived is a life lived for the glory and the kingdom of God. Will that be your legacy?

Ko e mo’ui ‘oku fai ki ai ‘a e lauu, ko e tokotaha ‘oku mo’ui ki he langilangi mo e pule’anga ‘o e ‘Otua. Ko e me’a eni ‘e manatu’i ai koe?

My new acquaintance was very successful according to the world's standards. He was admired. He had wealth and acclaim. He had power and position. From a distance it appeared he had done everything right. But he had lived for himself. He was obsessed with the accoutrements of success. He was preoccupied with image and control. He made sure that no matter the occasion or endeavor, he was in the center and in charge. But in his selfishness he lost his way. He lost all that he had worked for, and eventually he even abandoned his faith. He had gotten it all wrong. Life wasn't designed to be about us. We were created to live for something vastly bigger than us. My friend claimed to be a believer, but functionally God wasn't his focus. The only glory he lived for was his own, and the only kingdom he sought to build was his kingdom of one. What looked like success was actually massive personal, moral, relational, and spiritual failure.

What, right now, are you living for? What gives you your highest joy and has the power to produce your deepest sadness? How do you define personal success? What gets you up in the morning and motivates you throughout the day? What is the grand vision behind the choices and decisions you make? Do God's glory, purpose, and kingdom shape the way you live, work, relate to others, and invest your time, energy, and resources? Is your life an expression of the two Great Commandments? What really do you live for?

Nehemiah's final prayer reflects the zeal he had for the Lord throughout his life: "I cleansed them from everything foreign, and I established the duties of the priests and Levites, each in his work; and I provided for the wood offering at appointed times, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, for good" (Neh. 13:30-31).

Nehemiah had dedicated his life to one central thing: the worship of God. God's children had abandoned this very thing, and that abandonment had led to their demise. They had pursued the gods of the surrounding nations, to their shame and destruction. But, after disciplining them, God, in mercy, had restored them to their home, where they rebuilt the temple. Nehemiah had focused on removing all the foreign spiritual influences, reestablishing the priesthood, and providing everything needed for the worship of God to continue. Nehemiah's labor of love had been not just for his people but, more importantly, for his Lord. And he had one final request: that God would remember.

At the end of your life will you ask God to remember all that you have done in his name, or will you hope he forgets the life you have lived? A life well lived is a life lived for the glory and kingdom of God. Is that what you're living for?

 FALAITE ME 22, 2026

NEHEMAIA 8-11; PALOVEPI 3:11-12

God responds to the sin of his children with the discipline of a Father and the restorative mercy of a Savior.

‘Oku ngaue mai ‘a e ‘Otua ki he angahala ‘a ‘ene fanau ‘aki ‘a e tautea kinisi ‘a e Tamai pea ‘oku ne fakafoki mo fakafo’ou ‘aki ‘a e meesi ‘a e Fakamo’ui.

The summary of God's love for his children, their sin and rebellion, and his discipline and mercy that is recorded for us in Nehemiah 9 is both convicting and encouraging:

And you gave them kingdoms and peoples and allotted to them every corner. So they took possession of the land of Sihon king of Heshbon and the land of Og king of Bashan. You multiplied their children as the stars of heaven, and you brought them into the land that you had told their fathers to enter and possess. So the descendants went in and possessed the land, subdued before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and you and gave them into their hand, with their kings and the peoples of the land, that they might do with them as they would....

Nevertheless, they were disobedient and rebelled against you and cast your law behind their back and killed your prophets, who had warned them in order to turn them back to you, and they committed great blasphemies. Therefore you gave them into the hand of their enemies, who made them suffer. And in the time of their suffering they cried out to you and you heard them from heaven, and according to your great mercies you gave them saviors who saved them from the hand of their enemies.... And you warned them in order to turn them back to your law. Yet they acted presumptuously and did not obey your commandments, but sinned against your rules, which if a person does them, he shall live by them, and they turned a stubborn shoulder and stiffened their neck and would not obey. Many years you bore with them and warned them by your Spirit through your prophets. Yet they would not give ear. Therefore you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. Nevertheless, in your great mercies you did not make an end of them or forsake them, for you are a gracious and merciful God. (Neh. 9:22-24, 26-27, 29-31)

God was faithful in his defense of and provision for his people. Yet they consistently rebelled against him and gave their hearts to other gods. Even in the face of his people's repeated betrayal, God was astoundingly patient, sending prophet after prophet to give warning. But because the people did not heed God's warnings, he responded by exiling them from their land. Their suffering and captivity were not God's final condemnation, but rather the grace of a Father's disciplinary hand. God was not done with his people, so after his discipline, in mercy he restored them again.

God's discipline and his mercy do not oppose one another. They are both tools of grace in the hands of a Redeemer, to draw his children close and keep them near.

Confess today that you too have a wandering heart and, because you do, that you too need both God's discipline and his mercy. Be thankful for both his uncomfortable grace and the tender mercies that follow. He is willing and able to do what you can't do for yourself.

 TU’APULELULU ME 21, 2026

NEHEMAIA 4-7; ‘EFESO 6:10-20

When you're doing the Lord's work, the best defense against opposition is prayer.

‘I ho’o fai ‘a e ngaue ‘a e ‘Otua, ko ho malu’i lelei taha mei he filii ko e lotu.

They were exciting days. God had returned his people to Jerusalem and restored them to himself; they were rebuilding the city wall. It was a powerful victory for God and an enormous fresh start for his people. But whenever God works in these ways, evil opposition rears its ugly head. Sanballat and Tobiah the Ammonite mocked and taunted God's people as they worked on the wall. When you are ridiculed for your faith, mocked for doing what is right, or taunted because of a moral stand that you have taken, how do you respond? Do you wallow in discouragement? Do you abandon your calling? Do you lash out in anger? Or do you run to God in prayer? There is no better defense against opposition to the work of God than prayer. Nehemiah's response is prayer: "Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives" (Neh. 4:4).

May these words be your prayer:

Lord, when I am about your work, giving my heart and hands to your calling, when your way is more important than my way and when opposition comes, please give me the grace to resist fear, to not return evil for evil, to fight discouragement's darkness, to not forsake your work, but to run to you in confidence and hope. You are my refuge. You are my defender. You are my confidence. You defeat what I cannot. You give power when I am weak. You quiet my fears. You comfort and encourage. I never do your work alone. You are always with me in power, with grace, fulfilling your promises. Help me to remember that though the opposition is great, in the glory of your glory you are infinitely greater. I run once more to you, my Lord and defender, asking you to do in me and for me what I cannot do for myself, and to do to my opposers what you in your holiness know is right to do.

 PULELULU ME 20, 2026

NEHEMAIA 1-3; MATIU 6:5-13 

It is important to know that the power of prayer is not in the beauty of the words you pray, but in the character of the one to whom you pray.

‘Oku mahu’inga ke tau mahino’i, ko e ivi ‘o e lotus, ‘oku ‘ikai ‘i he faka’ofo’ofa ‘o e ngaahi lea ‘oku tau ngaue’aki, ka ‘oku makatu’unga ‘i he ‘ulungaanga ‘o e Tokotaha ‘oku tau lotu ki ai.

You might think that the better your theology and phraseology in prayer, the better chance you have of getting a hearing. Prayer is not about proving yourself to God. It is not about establishing worthiness. Prayer is about what the Puritans called "importunity," that is, poverty of spirit. It is coming to God acknowledging that he has every right not to hear me, that my only hope is found in the bounty of his love and the extent of his mercy. The power of prayer is not in the beauty of my language or in my track record of righteousness, but in the character of the one to whom I pray. He hears me with ears of redeeming love-love that I could never earn, achieve, or deserve. We are not called to clean ourselves up so we can pray. No, we are called to pray, asking God to continue his work of cleaning us up.

Hear the words of Nehemiah's prayer in the face of the destruction of Jerusalem:

As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, "O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father's house have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses. Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there. They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man." (Neh. 1:4-11)

Nehemiah knows he cannot commend God's people to God based on their righteousness, so he confesses sin on their behalf and appeals to God's character and covenant promises. When we pray, may we do the same, knowing that the power of prayer is found in the glory and grace of the one to whom we pray.

 TUSITE ME 19, 2026

‘ESELA 6-10; SIONE 21:15-17

Our God of unrelenting grace always offers us fresh starts and new beginnings.

Ko hotau ‘Otua mohu kelesi, ‘oku ne ‘omi ma’u pe ‘a e faingamalie ke toe kamata mei mu’a mo e kamata fo’ou.  

You get angry with a coworker; you need a fresh start and a new beginning. You are needlessly impatient with one of your children; you need a fresh start and a new beginning. You are unlovingly critical of your spouse; you need a fresh start and a new beginning. You view internet material that you never should have seen; you need a fresh start and a new beginning. Success has become your functional idol; you need a fresh start and a new beginning. You allow yourself to fight with your neighbor; you need a fresh start and a new beginning. You cheat on a university exam; you need a fresh start and a new beginning. You are wrongly dismissive of your pastor; you need a fresh start and a new beginning.

It is wonderful to know that, if you are God's child, no sin is spiritually fatal. God's grace is more powerful than any compelling sin. So, in the bounty of his mercy, God offers to each of his children the grace of fresh starts and new beginnings. This is the truth that gets me up in the morning. I am aware that I have never lived a perfect day. My actions are influenced by both my desire to please God and the presence of remaining sin. So it is precious to me that every morning I am greeted with new mercies, and with those new mercies comes the promise of fresh starts and new beginnings. I am not encased in the concrete of my sin, because I am in Christ and his grace lives with power in me.nl to med This theme of fresh starts and new beginnings runs throughout the biblical narrative. The Bible is a record of God's again and again picking up his failing followers, dusting them off, blessing them with forgiving grace, and granting them new beginnings. For every human failure there is plentiful restoring grace. The Bible is honest about the powerful tragedy of sin, but it doesn't leave you there. It consistently points you to restorative grace.

After all of Israel's sin, idolatry, and rebellion, God calls his children back from captivity to participate in the fresh start and new beginning of rebuilding and refurnishing the temple. I find the following words so encouraging: "The people of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the returned exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. They offered at the dedication of this house of God 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 lambs, and as a sin offering for all Israel 12 male goats" (Ezra 6:16-17). When you read of the burning of Jerusalem and the captivity of God's people, it seemed as though the end had come. But it was not the end, because of the loving mercy of the God of Israel. 

God offered his people a brand-new physical and spiritual start in Jerusalem, not because they earned it but because he is a God of grace.

God offers the same to you today. Come to him in confession and hope. He will dust you off with his grace and grant you a new day in which to love and serve him.