Devotional

Read the Word: 1 Samuel 24:1-22 Meditate on the Word: I’m certain that David’s handling of this situation made no sense to the men that were with him. He had the chance to permanently end this threat on his life, but instead, simply showed Saul that he could have killed him. But David’s trust in God was… Read More »

Read the Word: Genesis 33:1-17 Meditate on the Word: Jacob had good reason to fear his twin brother Esau. The last time they had been in the same place, Jacob had tricked their dying father into blessing him instead of Esau. This was after Jacob had taken advantage of Esau’s hunger and sold him some… Read More »

Read the Word: 1 John 2:15-17 Meditate on the Word: On the surface, the command found here to “not love the world or anything in the world” can seem at odds with idea that “God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but… Read More »

Read the Word: Psalm 37:7-11 Meditate on the Word: Part of being made in the image of God is having a sense of justice. We want to see evil punished and good rewarded. Of course, as humans, we often operate with a flawed sense of what “good” is and what “evil” is. We like to think… Read More »

Read the Word: Luke 11:37-44 Meditate on the Word: I remember as a child being excited over the very large chocolate bunnies that appear in the stores every Easter. They were so large and looked so delicious. I could imagine all the chocolatey goodness that I would enjoy. And it was great until I broke… Read More »

Read the Word: Psalm 120:1-7 Meditate on the Word: We live in a time and place where there is an abundance of distress. Bad news bombards us from everywhere day and night without end. We live in a time when many claim truth, and few actually speak it. The bad news from all corners of… Read More »

Read the Word: 1 Peter 1:17-2:1 Meditate on the Word: We are commanded in several places in scripture to have love for each other. Our first love is to be to God, who is love, then to our neighbor. There is no ambiguity on the topic; we are required to love each other. While most of us… Read More »

Read the Word: Psalm 1:1-6 Meditate on the Word: Yesterday, we observed that Matthew (Levi) gave up a lucrative career in tax collecting to follow Jesus. Then he gave a dinner where he introduced Jesus to his tax collector friends. We have to assert that this dinner was not sinful because Jesus attended. But what… Read More »

Read the Word: Luke 5:27-32 Meditate on the Word: During the first century, there were few people who were more despised than tax collectors. These Jewish sell-outs worked for the Roman government collecting taxes because the Romans knew that Jews would know where the money was hidden. Tax collecters got rich by extorting their Jewish… Read More »

Read the Word: 1 Timothy 3:1-7 Meditate on the Word: Many who have gone into ministry, or been considered for ministry, have been evaluated using these words. This list that Paul writes to Timothy as the qualifications of the office of elder (or overseer) is very interesting in one way. There is only one requirement… Read More »