Recent Devotions
Growing up going to Sunday School, I remember being taught that the shortest verse in the Bible was found in John 11:35, “Jesus wept.” When called upon to recite Scripture, I always had that one in my memory bank! But there is so much meaning and depth in those two small words. As a child, I did not understand the significance, but as I read the passage now, it reveals so clearly the divinity and the humanity of Jesus. As we read John chapter 11, we are reminded of Jesus’ friendship with Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. When Lazarus became sick,…
“This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24 Happy New Year to all of you who have been so faithful in reading these things that the Lord has laid upon my heart. I pray that this will be a…
“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” Philippians 3:13-14. As…
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“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.” (II Peter 3:18, NKJV) Sometimes a little phrase in a single verse brings me to a halt in my Bible reading. One morning recently I stopped at the phrase “grow in grace.” I asked myself, am I doing that? And then I began to reflect on what it meant to grow in grace and knowledge. Growth is a process that leads to maturity. It is progressive. Think of the birth of a child. Cute and cuddly but…
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you . . . Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-44, 48, NKJV) When Jesus gave what we refer to as the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), He packed a lot into that one discourse. We are familiar with the Beatitudes, but Jesus talked about so…
James 1:22 NLT “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.” I have two young children, so speaking to them and not truly being heard is a frequent occurrence in my home. They are busy, active children who have their minds set on their current task and anything beyond that is unimportant. Usually I have to really fight for their attention, just to be sure that they have indeed heard the words I spoke. To be quite honest, sometimes I’m guilty of doing the exact same thing. I can…
“And David said to Solomon, My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God:……..Behold, a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest;…………..He shall build an house for my name.” I Chronicles 22:7-10 David felt he had been greatly blessed by God, and he desired to build a great building wherein the ark of God would dwell and where God could meet with His people. He started gathering materials suitable for such an undertaking. But God spoke to him and told him…
