“Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your
faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23 (NIV)
Isaiah 55:8, 9 has stuck out to me throughout the years. It really helps me put in perspective how great and wonderful and all-knowing God is. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (NASB)
These verses have taught me not to question what happens, but to ask God to show me what He wants me to learn. The reason I chose the title is because when child killer Clifford Olsen let the world know he had found God through Jesus, our neighbor Monty was outraged and asked me how God could forgive Clifford and take him in? “What kind of God is that?” he demanded to know. My answer was, “One true to His Word. Wouldn’t you want that?”
It was amazing that this same child killer had stayed in the home of my husband’s supervisor who had two daughters around the age of Olsen’s victims. The father was a believer and prayed every night that God would protect his girls, not even suspecting that the man he was showing God’s love to was a murderer. There were times Olsen was left with the girls while their parents went to take care of something. He behaved as an ordinary man, playing with the girls, taking care of them. There was no reason for the father to suspect Clifford to be a danger to his daughters. God protected them through this time!
Heavenly Father, thank You that You are never changing, the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I can trust You every minute, every
hour, every day.
– Loretta Oppenheim
Council Fire is a collaboration with Intertribal Life Ministries and Native Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.
The Council Fire Daily Devotional Book Set is available on the Intertribal Life Ministries website.
Learn more about Council Fire at councilfire365.org