The Connection Corner

How We Used to Trust

Matthew 18:3 – “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

The best days started with a camper door swinging open and bare feet hitting dirt. Jimmy Davis State Park was our whole world in the summer, and we ruled it like royalty—with bike helmets too loose and hearts too full to care.

We rode fast, never cautious. We skidded through puddles at the boat ramp, climbed every tree we could reach, and made friends without asking names. No schedules, no screens, no fences. Just the sweet, wild space of being young and alive.

By evening, we’d gather around picnic tables, smelling like sun and lake water, drawn in by the scent of burgers on the grill. The stars blinked on overhead like they were proud of us.

Those days left a mark. Not just in the photo albums, but deep in my memory—because we weren’t just having fun. We were free. Fully alive, fully ourselves, and deeply certain that we were safe and cared for.

And I wonder… why did we stop living like that?

The world is louder now. More guarded. And yet I still catch myself longing for something I can’t quite name. Until I remember: that sense of freedom was never about the campground—it was about trust.

That’s what children do best. They trust. Fully. Freely. Without trying to control what’s next.

Jesus once said the kingdom belongs to people like that. People who still dare to believe before they see.

So maybe this isn’t just nostalgia. Maybe it’s a reminder. That childlike trust is not something we grow out of—it’s something we’re called back to.

And maybe it’s not too late to live like that again.

May 22, 2025/by David Hall

From Frustration to Fulfillment

Daily Devotional, Linda Meyers

Psalms 34:17-18 – “When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”

She hit send—and then just sat there, staring at the screen.

Adriene had filled out so many applications that the process felt mechanical. But this one broke her. She was tired of pretending she wasn’t falling apart.

The tears came before she could stop them. She buried her face in her hands.

Six months ago, her husband left. The silence he left behind was deafening. Her grief bled into her job until she lost that, too. And now she was trying—again—to piece something back together. But the trying felt pointless.

That night, something shifted. She didn’t talk herself out of the emotion. She didn’t tell herself to be strong. Instead, she walked to the side of her bed, knelt on the floor, and told the truth.

“God, I don’t know what to do. I need Your help. Please—just put me where I’m needed.”

It wasn’t eloquent. But it was real.

And something about that moment—raw, unfiltered surrender—opened the door to what came next.

Within weeks, Adriene got the call. A job that fit her perfectly. A schedule that let her care for her kids. A sense of purpose she hadn’t felt in months.

But the real turning point wasn’t the job.

It was the prayer.

The moment she stopped pushing and started trusting. The moment she stopped talking herself into hope and just brought her whole weary heart before God.

THAT IS WHAT CHANGED EVERYTHING!

If you are standing at the end of yourself, trying to hold the pieces, please hear this: You are not forgotten. The same God who met Adriene on the carpet can meet you right where you are. You do not have to prove anything. Just be honest. God’s might is matched only by His tenderness. He can carry what you cannot.

May 21, 2025/by Linda Meyers

Safe to be Honest

Andy Youso, Daily Devotional

Psalm 62:8 – Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.

Kara slammed her Bible shut and whispered under her breath, “I can’t do this anymore.”

From the outside, no one would have guessed she was struggling. She had been showing up—smiling, hosting Bible study, bringing snacks to the women’s retreat. But her heart had grown tired. Bitter, even. And underneath the surface, there was a kind of anger she did not want to admit.

She was not angry at people. Not even at herself. But at God.

Kara didn’t grow up in a home where you told God you were mad. No, you honored Him. You trusted Him. You got over it. So instead of admitting how she felt, she shoved it down and piled good works on top of it. But the weight of pretending started to wear her out.

She never said it out loud. Not until one evening, alone in her bedroom, when she snapped her Bible shut.

“I’m doing everything right,” She shouted. “So why do You feel so far away? God, I’m mad at you.”

For a moment, she braced herself—for guilt or for more of God’s silence. But no, that’s not what happened. She felt like God was saying, I know.

For the first time in a long time, she wasn’t pushing Him away with her pain. She was bringing her pain to Him. That small act—saying what she really felt—became the first step back toward trusting God.

And she realized something: God had never left. He was not disappointed in her for feeling human.

She did not forgive God because He was wrong. He wasn’t. But she let go of the silent resentment she felt toward Him that had built up between them.

Maybe you’re there, too. Maybe your prayers feel empty, and your faith feels thin. Maybe you’re carrying anger, confusion, or grief that you don’t know how to let go of. God is not afraid of your emotions—no matter how messy, no matter how raw. All you need to do is come as you are. He can take it.

May 20, 2025/by Andy Youso