Max Lucado Daily: AFRAID OF WHAT’S NEXT? - February 27, 2026
Life comes with surprises. On our list of fears, the fear of what’s next demands a prominent position.
In John 14:27, on the eve of his death, Jesus promised his followers, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
Heaven’s message is clear. When everything else changes, God’s presence never does. As Jesus sends you into new seasons, you journey in the company of the Holy Spirit. So make friends with whatever’s next. Embrace it. Change is not only a part of life; change is a necessary part of God’s strategy. To use us to change the world, God makes reassignments.
Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear
Ruth 2
It so happened that Naomi had a relative by marriage, a man prominent and rich, connected with Elimelech’s family. His name was Boaz.
2 One day Ruth, the Moabite foreigner, said to Naomi, “I’m going to work; I’m going out to glean among the sheaves, following after some harvester who will treat me kindly.”
Naomi said, “Go ahead, dear daughter.”
3–4 And so she set out. She went and started gleaning in a field, following in the wake of the harvesters. Eventually she ended up in the part of the field owned by Boaz, her father-in-law Elimelech’s relative. A little later Boaz came out from Bethlehem, greeting his harvesters, “God be with you!” They replied, “And God bless you!”
5 Boaz asked his young servant who was foreman over the farm hands, “Who is this young woman? Where did she come from?”
6–7 The foreman said, “Why, that’s the Moabite girl, the one who came with Naomi from the country of Moab. She asked permission. ‘Let me glean,’ she said, ‘and gather among the sheaves following after your harvesters.’ She’s been at it steady ever since, from early morning until now, without so much as a break.”
8–9 Then Boaz spoke to Ruth: “Listen, my daughter. From now on don’t go to any other field to glean—stay right here in this one. And stay close to my young women. Watch where they are harvesting and follow them. And don’t worry about a thing; I’ve given orders to my servants not to harass you. When you get thirsty, feel free to go and drink from the water buckets that the servants have filled.”
10 She dropped to her knees, then bowed her face to the ground. “How does this happen that you should pick me out and treat me so kindly—me, a foreigner?”
11–12 Boaz answered her, “I’ve heard all about you—heard about the way you treated your mother-in-law after the death of her husband, and how you left your father and mother and the land of your birth and have come to live among a bunch of total strangers. God reward you well for what you’ve done—and with a generous bonus besides from God, to whom you’ve come seeking protection under his wings.”
13 She said, “Oh sir, such grace, such kindness—I don’t deserve it. You’ve touched my heart, treated me like one of your own. And I don’t even belong here!”
14 At the lunch break, Boaz said to her, “Come over here; eat some bread. Dip it in the wine.”
So she joined the harvesters. Boaz passed the roasted grain to her. She ate her fill and even had some left over.
15–16 When she got up to go back to work, Boaz ordered his servants: “Let her glean where there’s still plenty of grain on the ground—make it easy for her. Better yet, pull some of the good stuff out and leave it for her to glean. Give her special treatment.”
17–18 Ruth gleaned in the field until evening. When she threshed out what she had gathered, she ended up with nearly a full sack of barley! She gathered up her gleanings, went back to town, and showed her mother-in-law the results of her day’s work; she also gave her the leftovers from her lunch.
19 Naomi asked her, “So where did you glean today? Whose field? God bless whoever it was who took such good care of you!”
Ruth told her mother-in-law, “The man with whom I worked today? His name is Boaz.”
20 Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “Why, God bless that man! God hasn’t quite walked out on us after all! He still loves us, in bad times as well as good!”
Naomi went on, “That man, Ruth, is one of our circle of covenant redeemers, a close relative of ours!”
21 Ruth the Moabitess said, “Well, listen to this: He also told me, ‘Stick with my workers until my harvesting is finished.’ ”
22 Naomi said to Ruth, “That’s wonderful, dear daughter! Do that! You’ll be safe in the company of his young women; no danger now of being raped in some stranger’s field.”
23 So Ruth did it—she stuck close to Boaz’s young women, gleaning in the fields daily until both the barley and wheat harvesting were finished. And she continued living with her mother-in-law.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Friday, February 27, 2026
by Elisa Morgan
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE
2 Kings 4:31-35
But Gehazi arrived first and laid the staff across the boy’s face. But there was no sound—no sign of life. Gehazi went back to meet Elisha and said, “The boy hasn’t stirred.”
32–35 Elisha entered the house and found the boy stretched out on the bed dead. He went into the room and locked the door—just the two of them in the room—and prayed to God. He then got into bed with the boy and covered him with his body, mouth on mouth, eyes on eyes, hands on hands. As he was stretched out over him like that, the boy’s body became warm. Elisha got up and paced back and forth in the room. Then he went back and stretched himself upon the boy again. The boy started sneezing—seven times he sneezed!—and opened his eyes.
Today's Insights
Elijah’s actions show the intensity of his prayer (2 Kings 4:33). Prayer is a spiritual activity that engages the human mind, heart, soul, and spirit. Since we’ve been commanded to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 nkjv), we know that prayer can happen any place, at any time, under any condition. The life of Jesus illustrates that the place and posture of prayer may vary. Mark 1:35 pictures an early-rising Jesus going to “a solitary place” to pray. The prelude to selecting the twelve apostles was an all-night prayer meeting on a mountain (see Luke 6:12). When faced with the horrors of crucifixion, Christ prayed in the garden of Gethsemane. Matthew describes the back-and-forth movements of Jesus between His prayer spot and His weary disciples (26:36-46). Even as He encouraged Peter, James, and John to watch and pray with Him, it’s likely that prayers to His Father continued to reverberate in His heart. Today, we can be assured that God hears our prayers and will help us.
Prayer Walk
Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room. 2 Kings 4:35
I was stuck. I’d written half of a devotional article when my thoughts dried up. “God, what should I do?” I prayed. Remembering research that found that our creative output is boosted by an average of 60 percent when we walk, I headed out to the trail behind my house and continued my conversation with God. Thirty minutes later I was refreshed. I returned to my keyboard and finished the entry.
In 2 Kings 4:18-35, we read that Elisha and his servant, Gehazi, responded to a Shunammite woman’s plea to help her dead son. At Elisha’s instruction (v. 29), Gehazi laid his staff on the child (v. 31). Elisha prayed. Then he laid on top of the boy. At last, “Elisha . . . walked back and forth in the room and then got on the bed and stretched out on him once more. The boy . . . opened his eyes” (v. 35).
Scripture doesn’t tell us why Elisha “walked back and forth,” nor does it say what he was thinking. What we do know is that when Elisha’s prayers weren’t answered, he didn’t give up. It’s not difficult to picture him talking to God in this urgent situation.
What do you do when you’re stuck at a dead end and don’t know what to do? Perhaps a “prayer walk” is in order. Whether we head out to a trail for a walk or pace back and forth in our home, connecting to God when we’re in need brings answers that address our circumstances.
Reflect & Pray
Where are you stuck? How might you communicate with God in this situation so that He can direct you?
Dear God, when I find myself in stuck spots, please help me to walk with You.
Not sure about God's calling for your life? Check out this 7-story Bible study to find out more about where God
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Friday, February 27, 2026
The Almighty God
“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep.” — John 4:11
“The well is deep”—indeed! The well of human nature is even deeper than the Samaritan woman knew. Think of the depths inside you, the depths of your thoughts and your feelings, of your hopes and your fears. Do you believe that no depth is too deep for Jesus?
Imagine that there is a fathomless well of trouble inside your heart. Then Jesus comes and says, “Do not let your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1). Do you reply, “But, Lord, the well is too deep. You’ll never draw quietness and comfort up from it”? It’s true; he won’t. Jesus doesn’t bring anything up from the wells of human nature. He brings it down from God above.
If we’re looking inside ourselves for the answers, diving into the wells of our incompleteness, we’ll only succeed in placing limits on God. Sometimes, we limit God by forgetting what he’s done for us; sometimes, we limit him by remembering. We remember how far we’ve allowed him to go for us in the past, and we think that he can never go any further. But God has no limits; God is almighty. As disciples, we must believe this fully. To believe in God’s almightiness means believing in the very thing that seems to challenge it. We find it easy to believe that God can sympathize with us, but when it comes to something we’ve already decided is impossible, we shrug and say, “God can’t do everything.” God’s ministry is infinitely rich; we impoverish it when we talk like this.
The reason some of us are such poor specimens of discipleship is that we don’t believe in an almighty God. We have Christian attributes and experiences, but we aren’t abandoned to our Lord. Beware of the satisfaction that comes from sinking back and saying, “It can’t be done.” You know it can, if you look to Jesus.
Numbers 17-19; Mark 6:30-56
WISDOM FROM OSWALD
We must keep ourselves in touch, not with theories, but with people, and never get out of touch with human beings, if we are going to use the word of God skilfully amongst them.
Workmen of God, 1341 L
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Friday, February 27, 2026
HOPE WHEN THE WATER IS RISING - #10210
This was a Fourth of July where there would be no fireworks. Just a lot of tears.
It was raining when the campers went to sleep that night. But no one knew that the Guadalupe River would turn into a raging flood while they slept.
The girls at Mystic Camp were awakened by that flood smashing into their cabins. Some were able to escape. Twenty-four could not.
A few days ago, the President recalled that awful night. In the middle of his State of the Union address. He told the story of one of the Mystic Camp girls. Her name, Milly Cate. Eleven years old.
In the midst of the surging flood, she prayed for God to save her.
And a man who seemed to come out of nowhere, did.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Hope When The Water Is Rising."
He was Scott Ruskan. Coast Guard rescue swimmer. You know those guys who come down from a chopper to rescue people from oceans and housetops.
Now Scott had gone to college to major in accounting. But Somewhere along the way, he decided his calling was to rescue. But this was his first mission.
And he was the answer to Milly Cate's prayer.
We know that because the President of the United States told us told the story. He said, "As the waters threatened to sweep her away, 11-year-old Milly Cate McClymond closed her eyes and prayed to God she thought she was going to die. Those prayers were answered when Coast Guard rescuer Scott Ruskan descended from a helicopter above."
You know Milly Cate was one of 164 people that he rescued that awful night. He was the only first responder around.
The President introduced him and then honored him on the spot with the prestigious Legion of Merit medal for "exceptionally meritorious conduct."
But his real "award," well that was the young girl next to him. Milly Cate.
Who, facing almost certain death, had one hope that night. A rescuer from above. Thank God, he came.
You know in a way, that's my story, too. And, no doubt, the story of many who are hearing this.
I want you to hear our word for the day from the Word of God. It tells the greatest rescue story of all.
Galatians 1:4: "Jesus gave His life for us... to rescue us."
Now with Good Friday approaching, that's what that middle cross at a place called Skull Hill was all about. The greatest act of love in the history of mankind. As the Bible explains, "He carried our sins in His own body on the tree" (1 Peter 2:24).
And that's because instead of living for the One who gave us our life, we have raised our fist and said, "You run the universe, God - I'll run me." And spiritual hijacking carries an unspeakable, eternal death penalty.
So there I was, I stood facing the onrushing flood of the judgment of Almighty God. Nothing I could do could pay that death penalty.
And here is the stunning rescue story that captured my heart forever. I did the sinning. God's Son did the dying! That's how much He loves me, and you.
The Rescuer from above didn't just risk His life to save us. He gave His life.
And like a camper facing death that tragic night, my only hope was a Rescuer from above. And I'm compelled to say this today. And get to you with this message, because I don't want you or anybody to miss Him. God says, "I have set before you life and death. Now choose life" (Deuteronomy 30:19).
I pray you will do that this day. If you have never reached out to the Rescuer to be your rescuer from your sin take care of that now. Say, "Jesus I am yours from this day forward."
Check out our website would you, because there you will find what you need know to be sure you belong to Him. It's ANewStory.com.
Because when Jesus comes to rescue you, you ought to grab His hand. Because Hope has come.
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