What is life? What are we here for? What will bring us true satisfaction and lasting happiness? In this companion to Life Is ___ , New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Judah Smith takes readers on a forty-day devotional journey through Scripture to find the answers to these and others of our deepest questions. In forty daily readings, Judah helps readers understand that the meaning of life is found in loving and being loved, in enjoying God to the fullest, in trusting Him in every moment, and remaining at peace with God, others, and ourselves. This thought-provoking and inspiring collection of meditations is sure to reveal new and illuminating truths about what God intends for every person's life. Judah Smith is the lead communicator of Churchome, a thriving community with multiple locations and a global app, known for its cultural relevance, commitment to biblical integrity, and love for Jesus. Judah is the author of the New York Times bestselling book Jesus Is ___ . He and his wife, Chelsea, live in Seattle, Washington. Life Is___. Forty-Day Experience A Devotional Journey Through God's Illogical Love By JUDAH SMITH Thomas Nelson Copyright © 2015 Judah Smith All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-0-7180-3266-1 Contents Introduction, vii, SECTION 1: LIFE IS TO BE LOVED AND TO LOVE, 1. Amnesiacs (Romans 8:38–39), 3, 2. TMI (Luke 15:11–32), 7, 3. Exaggerating Infinity (Romans 8:1–2), 11, 4. Pet Troubles (1 John 4:8–10), 17, 5. Fixer-Uppers (Romans 2:4), 23, 6. He Likes Me (1 John 4:16), 29, 7. Emotional Kites (Ephesians 3:16–19), 33, 8. God Doesn't Do Stereotypes (Psalm 139:13–14, 17–18), 39, 9. Idiosyncratic You (Psalm 103:12–14), 45, 10. Loving Failure (John 21:1–25), 49, SECTION 2: LIFE IS TO TRUST GOD IN EVERY MOMENT, 11. Feed Me (Hebrews 13:8–9), 57, 12. Revenge of the Kitchen Appliances (Psalm 91), 61, 13. Jesus Is Beast Mode (John 11:1–44), 67, 14. Cops and Robbers (Romans 8:31–39), 71, 15. When Sharks Fly (Mark 4:35–41), 77, 16. Superhero Status (Hebrews 7:18–28), 83, 17. Math Fail (1 Corinthians 1:18–31), 89, 18. Just Say Thank You (Romans 15:13), 93, 19. Boogey Boy (Psalm 61:1–4), 99, 20. Breaking News (Psalm 46:1–11), 105, SECTION 3: LIFE IS TO BE AT PEACE WITH GOD AND YOURSELF, 21. The Principal's Office (Hebrews 4:16), 113, 22. Dirt Ninja (Philippians 3:3–11), 119, 23. Dodging the Question (Psalms 42–43), 125, 24. Why Are You Not Freaking Out? (Psalm 127:1–2), 131, 25. The Road Not Taken (Philippians 4:6–7), 137, 26. Peace and Pebbles (Romans 5:1–5), 143, 27. Lights Out (John 14:27), 149, 28. Wait for It (Psalm 130), 153, 29. What's Your Point? (Matthew 5:17–20), 159, 30. Stop Staring at That (2 Corinthians 12:8–10), 165, SECTION 4: LIFE IS TO ENJOY GOD, 31. Uh. May. Zing. (Psalm 36:7–9), 173, 32. Just Wait (1 John 4:13–19), 179, 33. Road Trip (Psalm 139:7–10), 185, 34. The Secret of Living (Philippians 4:10–19), 191, 35. The Struggle Is Real (Matthew 11:28–30), 197, 36. Bedtime Stories (Numbers 6:24–26), 203, 37. I Don't Know (Romans 12:3–21), 209, 38. Multitasking Times Infinity (Matthew 10:29–31), 215, 39. Look at the View (Psalm 103:1–12), 221, 40. The Most Important Thing (Luke 10:38–42), 227, About the Author, 232, CHAPTER 1 Amnesiacs Bible Reading: Romans 8:38–39 Have you ever been tempted to use sarcasm when responding to your kids? I'm thinking in particular of confrontational situations, where you need to correct something and you'd like to inject a bit of humor. Preferably at their expense. In hindsight, that is not a good motivation. It never works, either. At least with kids under age twelve, which is the limit of my firsthand knowledge. Usually what you say goes over their heads, and they look at you like you're from an alternate universe. The rest of the time they take what you say literally, and consequently they feel hurt — which makes you loser dad of the year. One of the phrases that I've found myself tempted to use is this one: What part of no do you not understand? For example, we're at the store, and I've just told them for the sixty-seventh time we are not going to buy candy. I've explained the reasons why: It's unhealthy. It will torpedo their immune systems. And their mom is watching. Logical reasons. Spoken with love and patience and longsuffering. But childhood amnesia strikes, conveniently and repeatedly. So they ask, with eyes wide in angelic and totally fraudulent innocence: "Can we buy candy, Dad? Please?" And that's when the sarcasm tries to creep out. "What part of no do you not understand?" Believe it or not, there are a few instances of divine sarcasm in the Bible, especially in the prophetic books of the Old Testament. So I feel slightly justified. But I still wouldn't recommend it as a discipline technique with literal-minded children. Sometimes I suspect God gets just a little frustrated with our ongoing resistance. Our recurrent amnesia. Our hesitancy to belie