Recent Devotions
God’s appointments cannot be cancelled—only postponed. The book of Nehemiah provides a beautiful chronicle of the reconstruction of the nation of Israel after the exile—the rebuilding of the walls and the people. We read in Chapter 9 that the Levites led the reformed citizens of Israel, cloaked in sackcloth and ashes, as they together repented and recalled the faithfulness of God. The first fifteen verses of that chapter are a prayer of thanksgiving as they praised God with a loud voice, reciting the awesome accounts of Creation, their forefathers’ Exodus out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, and God’s miraculous…
We all love the story of “The Good Samaritan” … the uber-compassionate “certain Samaritan” in the parable of Jesus, found in Luke 10—on Page 1095 of my Thompson Chain Reference KJV. There he was, traveling along, minding his own business, when he—BY CHANCE—saw another poor traveler who had been stripped,…
But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1, ESV) The world’s population now exceeds 8 billion people, each of whom has a name.…
Readers Loved
“Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!” (II Corinthians 13:5, ESV). We are now just over one week into the new year. Many use this as a time for reflection and resolution. They consider it a fresh start, a blank page, a new leaf, or a new chapter. For many, however, those resolutions begin to wain after just a few days or weeks. Their resolve to exercise more, eat healthier, budget better, or manage…
It has been stated that the Bible tells us to “fear not” 365 times—one for every day of the year. I have not verified it myself, but I know there are many Scriptures that tell us not to be afraid and to not let fear reign in our lives. How often have we had a dark cloud of fear try to overshadow us? It could be fear of illness, fear of death, fear of not having enough, fear for our children, fear for our families, fear of the future, or fear of the unknown. I have had friends tell me…
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end” Life is uncertain. The winds and waves of everyday situations and experiences can leave us struggling to cope with the changes that occur daily. Sickness, financial troubles, children struggling at school, a rocky marriage, the list is endless! The word of God is filled with promises though, and Jeremiah 29:11 lets us know that God knows exactly where He wants to take us. When we are able to look beyond the day…
“Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop.” (II Corinthians 9:6, NLT) Two men. Two different philosophies of life. I was a teenager at the time, but I doubt I was perceptive enough at that age to realize the significance of each man’s attitude. The first man’s philosophy was, “The more you learn, the more you have to do.” His ambition was to do the least amount of work possible without getting fired. Or maybe he didn’t even care about that. Even…
