Posts from October 2025
Daily Devotions
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;” vss. 1-2 Psalm 46:1-2 Most people have had occasions to be frightened over their years in this world. Danger lurks, and we never know when a storm will hit with an unimaginable fury and force. And even though we’ve gotten used to a comfortable and predictable environment, it…
Daily Devotions
But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” vs. 33 Jeremiah 31:31-34 During the first part of his ministry Jeremiah had a message of doom for the rulers of Judah, saying that if they continued the course they were following, destruction…
Daily Devotions
And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them?” vs. 7 Luke 18:6-8 When Luke wrote these words of Jesus, he understood many disciples were having a tough time remaining faithful. In some places they were being persecuted (and sometimes being put to death), by agents of the Empire, and they were naturally looking for help from God. The parable Jesus told implied that if…
Daily Devotions
Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart.” vs. 1 Luke 18:1-5 When things aren’t going our way, we will regularly turn to prayer to get our lives straightened out. In those moments we are looking for almost any source of relief, and there is always the hope that God can make things right. But then when the problem doesn’t go away and in fact the situation worsens, it’s easy to…
Daily Devotions
For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires…” vs. 3 2 Timothy 4:1-5 Early Christian leaders were aware of how fickle their congregations could be. Charismatic preachers traveled from city to city with messages that were confusing and misleading. Often their teaching undermined the centrality of Christ and provided alternate perspectives on the way of salvation. Only by focusing…
Daily Devotions
All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness…” vs. 16 1 Timothy 3:14-17 Each part of the Hebrew scriptures has a different origin story. Some came via oral traditions, stories of the ancestors passed on through generations, others came from the court histories of both Judah and Israel, many were preserved and edited by scribes working in the temple. A large number were worked and reworked during the…
Daily Devotions
The Lord will keep your going out and you’re coming in from this time on and forevermore.” vs. 8 Psalm 121 According to Jesus the greatest commandment of the Law was “Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and strength.” This verse is known as the Shema and in Deuteronomy the Israelites were told to write its words on parchment and post…
Daily Devotions
Then the man said, ‘You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.’” vs. 28 Genesis 32:26-31 The wrestling match by the ford of the Jabbok was a turning point in the life of Jacob. He had reached maturity, and his Gen-X days were over. He had his wives and his children. His beloved Rachel was pregnant with Benjamin. There would be no more sons or daughters. He…
Daily Devotions
He took them and sent them across the stream, and likewise everything that he had. Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.” vss. 23-24 Genesis 32: 22-26 This night was a turning point for Jacob. He remembered the great wrong he had done to his brother, Esau, how he had tricked him in a moment of weakness and stolen his birthright. The incident had taken place in his youth, probably as a teenager, and a…
Daily Devotions
Then he said to him, ‘Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.’” vs. 19 Luke 17:15-19 Sometimes the details in the gospel’s healing stories are important. In this instance we note that Jesus never touched the lepers. Nor does he offer any prayer for their healing. He simply told them to go and show themselves to the priests which was the standard prescription in the book of Leviticus for dealing with any kind of…
Daily Devotions
As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’” vss. 12-13 Luke 17:11-14 There were several skin diseases endemic to the Holy Land, and those who suffered from them were known by the generic term “lepers.” It was believed that these diseases were spread by contact, and so anyone with a rash of any kind was considered contagious and subject to quarantine. Lepers evidently traveled in groups…
Daily Devotions
Remind them of this and warn them before God that they are to avoid wrangling over words, which does no good but only ruins those who are listening.” vs. 14 2 Timothy 2:14-15 It’s true that words are important and that the meaning of an entire sentence can be changed by the omission or addition of just a word or two. And sometimes it’s fun to debate the precise meaning of sentences, and even wrangle over which words should be…
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