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Daily Devotions
Romans 7:21-25a…“Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” vss. 24-25a Paul had concluded that there was absolutely nothing that he could do to help himself. No matter how hard he tried, no matter what kind of self-talk he used, no matter how many self-help books he read, there was no way he could escape his addiction to sin. It was impossible! And after a…
Daily Devotions
Romans 7:15-20…“I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” vs. 15 It’s not likely that the Apostle Paul played golf, yet his description of his own actions sounds very much like the lament of an addicted golfer. It’s probably one of the most frustrating sports ever invented, precisely because it mirrors the human experience. Even though we know exactly how life should be lived, we…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 145:11-14…“The LORD upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down.” vs. 14 According to the scriptures, our world is both good and broken at the same time. That’s a truth we experience every day of our lives, And the psalmist tells us here that the One who brought this world into existence and who continues to sustain it, has a particular love for lifting up all who are falling and raising up all who…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 145:8-12…“The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The LORD is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.” vss. 8-9 There are several passages in scripture that refer to the anger and the judgment of God. In some verses the Lord is even portrayed as being cruel and vindictive, particularly to the enemies of Israel. For example, again and again the armies of Israel were ordered by…
Daily Devotions
Zechariah 9:9-12…“Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” vs. 9 When the Babylonian exiles returned to Judea, they were full of hope and anticipated that this might be the beginning of a new era for Israel, but their dreams quickly dissipated as old rivalries surfaced and the different factions began jockeying for…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 10:42…“and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.” vs. 42 Often when we take Jesus’ call to reach out to the helpless and the harassed seriously by offering them shelter, clothing, water, or food, we discover that they want to help us too. They will offer hospitality in whatever way that they can, and they’ll do it…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 10:40-41…“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.” vs. 40 In Matthew’s account Jesus’ instructions to the disciples that he sent out in mission are lengthy and precise. He emphasizes the cost of discipleship and lets them know that there will be difficult sacrifices, but he ends his little sermon with some words of reassurance and hope. As insignificant as they may feel, they have an important role, and whoever welcomes them…
Daily Devotions
Romans 6:17-23…“For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness for sanctification.” vs. 19b Paul tells the Romans that their choice isn’t between being a slave and being free. Not at all! The choice is between being a slave to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, or being a slave to righteousness for sanctification. No matter which way we turn, we’re…
Daily Devotions
Romans 6:12-16…“No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness.” vs. 132 As we live in this good and broken world, we will have daily encounters with brokenness, both in ourselves and in the world around us. Paul describes that brokenness as sin, a cancer that infects the whole creation, and says that…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 89:15-18…“Happy are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O LORD, in the light of your countenance; they exult in your name all day long, and extol your righteousness.” vss. 15-16 Every year there are surveys of people living all around the world to determine which country is the happiest. While the results vary, the Nordic countries generally rank in the top two or three. And when the ratings come out social scientists attempt to give some…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 89:1-4…“I declare that your steadfast love is established forever; your faithfulness is as firm as the heavens. “ vs. 2 In this world of social media influencers and ubiquitous YouTube channels we can find thousands of conflicting testimonies about the nature of God and God’s relationship to humanity. Occasionally what we see and hear in these videos sounds vaguely scriptural, like it could even conceivably be true. But most of the time the information is bogus, a kind of…
Daily Devotions
Jeremiah 28:5-9…“As for the prophet who prophesies peace, when the word of that prophet comes true, then it will be known that the LORD has truly sent the prophet.” vs. 9 There were other prophets in Jerusalem at the time of Jeremiah, all claiming to have a word from the Lord for the people. One of them, Hananiah proclaimed that within two years the yoke of Babylon would be broken and the exiles and the temple treasures would return to…