“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” -2 Timothy 4:7

There’s something steady and strong about those words. They don’t sound rushed. They don’t sound panicked. They sound like a man looking back over his shoulder with peace in his heart.

The apostle Paul wasn’t sitting in comfort when he wrote that. He was in a prison cell. Chains on his wrists. Uncertain days ahead. But his spirit was unchained. Why? Because he knew he had given his life to something that mattered.

“I have fought a good fight.”

Friend, the Christian life is not a playground—it’s a battleground. There are days you’ll have to fight discouragement. Fight doubt. Fight temptation. But it’s a good fight when you’re standing for the right things.

“I have finished my course.”

God has marked out a lane just for you. You don’t have to run my race, and I don’t have to run yours. Just stay in your lane. Keep putting one faithful step in front of the other. Slow and steady still wins when you refuse to quit.

“I have kept the faith.”

That’s the goal. Not fame. Not applause. Not comfort. Faithfulness.

One day, when the dust settles and the race is done, may it be said of us—not that we were perfect—but that we were faithful.

So keep fighting.

Keep running.

Keep believing.

The finish line is worth it.

“For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” -Habakkuk 2:14

Let me encourage you with this today.

Habakkuk looked around and didn’t see glory. He saw corruption. Violence. Pride. It felt like evil was loud and righteousness was quiet. Sound familiar?

But right in the middle of confusion, God gave him a promise.

“The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.”

Not partially filled.

Not occasionally sprinkled.

Filled.

As the waters cover the sea. Think about that. You can’t separate water from the sea. It saturates every inch. God said one day His glory will saturate this earth the same way.

That means darkness does not get the final word.

Sin does not get the final word.

Bad headlines do not get the final word.

God’s glory does.

And here’s the part that blesses me: we get to live as previews of that coming glory. Every time you forgive, you reveal His glory. Every time you choose integrity, you reveal His glory. Every time you love someone who is hard to love, you reflect His glory.

The world may look chaotic, but the promise still stands.

The earth will be filled.

So lift your head today. Stay faithful. Keep shining. What God promised, He will perform. And one day, what we believe by faith now will cover the earth like the waters cover the sea.

“And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.” -2 John 1:6 (KJV)

Let me tell you something simple and steady this morning.

We live in a world that talks a lot about love. We print it on shirts. We post it on social media. We say it easily.

But John brings love down off the billboard and puts it on the sidewalk.

He says love is not just something you feel.

Love is something you walk.

“And this is love, that we walk after his commandments.”

That means love has shoes on.

Love moves.

Love obeys.

You see, Jesus never separated love from obedience. If I love Him, I will follow Him. If I love people, I will treat them the way His Word teaches me to treat them.

Love isn’t proven in big emotional moments.

It’s proven in daily steps.

It’s walking in patience when you’d rather snap.

Walking in forgiveness when you’ve been hurt.

Walking in truth when compromise would be easier.

John says, “as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.”

In other words, don’t complicate it.

Stay steady. Keep walking the same path.

Love God.

Obey His Word.

Treat people right.

That’s not flashy.

But it is powerful.

And if you’ll just keep walking in love today, step by step, you’ll find that obedience isn’t a burden.

It’s freedom.

Keep walking.