The Connection Corner
A daily source of encouragement and inspiration to connect your heart to hope and faith.
Daily Devotional
Longing Less, Living MoreJune 2, 2026 - 7:00 am- Running Home to RestJune 1, 2026 - 7:00 am
- When Joy Fills RoomsMay 31, 2026 - 7:00 am
- The Dinner Table DiscoveryMay 30, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Love That Didn’t Look AwayMay 29, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Discipline, Desire, DelightMay 28, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Loved Louder than LabelsMay 27, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Rest for the RingmasterMay 26, 2026 - 7:00 am
- When Grief Keeps GoingMay 25, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Paddleboards and PraiseMay 24, 2026 - 7:00 am
Heart of the Artist
- When Joy Fills RoomsMay 31, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Paddleboards and PraiseMay 24, 2026 - 7:00 am
- When Silence Finds a SongMay 17, 2026 - 7:00 am
- The Blood-Bought Glow UpApril 26, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Peace is Still PreachingApril 19, 2026 - 7:00 am
Stories About Songs
- When Joy Fills RoomsMay 31, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Paddleboards and PraiseMay 24, 2026 - 7:00 am
- When Silence Finds a SongMay 17, 2026 - 7:00 am
- The Blood-Bought Glow UpApril 26, 2026 - 7:00 am
- Peace is Still PreachingApril 19, 2026 - 7:00 am
The Backseat Smoothie Sermon
Daily Devotional, Kirstie FordRushing out the door, I hurried all the way to my car—smoothie in one hand, tote bag and purse in the other. I was feeling the weight of the morning hustle and bustle. And because it’s me, I rarely leave any margin for time.
You know the feeling, right?
I drove less than a mile down the road when I heard a funny sound inside the car. I wasn’t sure where it came from until I glanced behind me and saw my smoothie splattered across the backseat. Oh no.
Raise your hand if you’ve ever been driven by your emotions like that? Pun intended. Well, you’re not alone.
I said, “It’s okay, Kirstie. It’s totally fine!”
My eye twitched as I continued, “No, my breakfast is just splattered across my entire back seat, and it will have to sit there all day. It will just smell like mildew later. No big deal. Really. It’s fine!”
Fast forward to that afternoon when I was using all my strength to remove the smoothie stain from my seat. Yet no matter how hard I scrubbed, the stain would not come clean.
But do you know what? Some stains don’t come out no matter how hard you try.
In that moment, I felt reminded that I too was once stained with sin. I could never scrub it away no matter how hard I tried. I needed God, in His mercy, to blot them out. Now my sin-stained heart has been washed white as snow by the precious blood of Jesus.
Still today, the stain from the smoothie is on the seat of my car. But guess what? That’s okay with me because every time I see it, I remember that no earthly effort can remove the stain of my sin either.
And maybe that’s where this meets you—in the places you’ve been scrubbing, striving, trying to make things right on your own.
There’s a better way… one that doesn’t depend on how strong you are but on how willing your heart is to be held in mercy. Only the blood of Jesus can cleanse and restore us completely. He can cover your sin, restore your heart, and make you new—not because you cleaned yourself up, but because you finally surrendered to the One who could.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Rainy Days to Redemption
Brenda Price, Daily DevotionalSeventeen years ago is when I hit rock bottom. I was addicted to drugs and far from Jesus. Those were my rainy days. And you know, rainy days… they have a way of doing something to you. They strip you down. They show you what’s real.
I was a crazy party girl. And somehow, that’s the very place where everything started changing. Not all at once—but enough for God to get my attention.
I heard someone say once that the valley of weeping is what we must pass through on our way to God. And oh boy… I lived there for a while. Long enough to know what it feels like when the tears don’t fix anything. Long enough to know what it feels like to be completely empty.
But when I look back now, I can see it—God was pursuing me the whole time.
People ask me if I would change anything. And it sounds crazy, but no… I wouldn’t. Because it was there—in that lowest place—that everything changed.
When I almost died from an accidental overdose, I was in a coma. The doctors said I wasn’t going to make it. I opened my eyes just long enough to see my brother saying goodbye to me.
But Jesus had other plans. And in that moment—somewhere between life and death—He came to me.
Clear, personal, and close.
He asked me, “Are you done?”
I knew exactly what He meant.
I said, “Oh yes. I am.” Because I was. Done running, done numbing, and surviving the very life that was killing me.
And I woke up. Not just physically. Something deeper than that. Something I can’t fully explain, but I know it when I see it now.
Ever since then, my life has been different. Not perfect, but different. There’s a gratitude in me now that I didn’t have before. There’s a kind of love in me now that runs deeper than emotion—like my whole life finally has direction.
And when I think about it, it’s like my heart learned how to thank God from the inside out because I was rescued from a place I couldn’t escape on my own.
And He can do that for you too.
Maybe things in your life aren’t as extreme as mine were… or maybe they are. Maybe something in you feels like it’s flatlining. But here’s what I know.
There is no place too far gone for Jesus to step in, no life too broken for Him to restore when you finally surrender it to Him. So, if there’s anything you’ve been trying to manage, numb, or outrun… you don’t have to carry it anymore.
Sometimes the simplest surrender looks like “I’m done.”
And right there—in that surrendered place—He meets you.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Faith in the In-Between
Brendan McClain, Daily DevotionalMy wife and I were standing on the highest peak of Tijuana, Mexico. There we experienced a breathtaking view of the city—and the gravity of deep disappointment settling in our chests.
We had spent the last year preparing to serve as missionaries in Central America. We met with teams and stepped forward, desiring to discern God’s call.
Yet despite our desire for the nations, doors closed in three different countries, leaving us in a season of waiting and uncertainty.
But how do you respond when a door shuts? What do you do when you’re trying to be obedient, and things don’t work out how you expected?
In the book of Nehemiah, we see a man burdened with vision. But in humility, he bowed low under the weight of God’s providence. Nehemiah’s conviction did not drive him to force outcomes; it drove him to his knees.
Just like Nehemiah, the calling of God is rarely the version we sketch in our minds. Instead, the calling is surrender—no matter the outcome. So, we pray. We fast, and we stay near to God as we walk with Him.
Because we don’t hold the vision—He does.
And here’s the comforting thing we were learning. God knows our dreams and passions. He has not ignored them or cast them aside. In His remarkable wisdom, He weaves His sovereign plans together with the desires He Himself put inside us.
So, when we sense a call, we remain faithful.
When a door closes, we remain faithful.
And we wait patiently for the Lord. We choose to be brave despite the outcome.
Because God is never confused.
He can redirect our future more beautifully than we could ever imagine.
In the words of a seasoned missionary, “God is faithful to finish the work He starts—not necessarily the works we start. So, stay obedient, my friend.”
A MOMENT TO REFLECT