Friday, November 28, 2025

New Testament Reading Plan: Luke 5

Since I have a child with Down’s Syndrome (who is now enjoying his best life in the presence of Jesus), I was captivated by last weekend’s movie, The Peanut Butter Falcon!

My son, Marcus, was quite the actor himself, a smart, stubborn young man, and a crunchy peanut butter lover. I could see him in Zack, the young man stuck in place by a label.

Although I grew up in church, when Marcus was born, I was not a Christ follower. I couldn’t understand how a loving God could condemn an innocent child to a life of difficulty. As he grew, he became a living lesson in hard work, determination, overcoming challenges, and laughter! He was such a character!

When I came to know Jesus, Marcus was old enough and smart enough to know that he wanted to as well. I began to understand that Marcus was perfect in God’s eyes, and that his supposed handicap was actually a gift. This gift was that God sees differently than we do, not judging by performance, perfection, or pretending, and he wastes nothing.

Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

As we follow Zack and Tyler’s journey in the movie, this verse comes to life - they accept what God has given them and view it through a different lens. As they reach their destination, where they thought their dreams would come true, they face the reality that we all do when we pursue something other than Jesus: There is no gold at the end of the rainbow.

So where does that leave us? We must stop running from what is holding us back and start running toward the purpose God created us for.

When Marcus died suddenly, he had fulfilled God’s purpose. He filled our lives with love, laughter, frustration, and tears. We learned a different kind of love, one without condition or exception, one that we only find in Jesus.

Jesus calls us forgiven, restored and free - no matter who we are or where we’ve been. That is the true pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Romans 3:22
We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

Questions:
What dream have you been holding onto? Will its fulfillment bring you closer to Jesus?

Next Steps:
As you pray about your dreams, give them to Jesus. His plan for you is more amazing than you could ever imagine! Pray about what next step God might have for you in the fulfillment of that dream. Then be still and pray (Psalms 46:10).

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, you tell me to be still and to know that you are God. It’s hard to be still in our world, but I want to hear your voice. Help me reduce the noise and focus on you and your plan for my life. I trust that your plan is better than anything I could ever imagine. I want my life story to bring glory to you - to point people to your power, goodness, and holiness. I choose to believe you are writing a better story, and I trust you to fulfill it! Amen.

Series Theme Verse:

Romans 1:20
For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

This post was written by Lauri White, an Oregon attendee, and a regular contributor to the Daily LivingItOut.