Tag: trust

June 6, 2025

June 6th, 2025

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Jeremiah 1-3

Highlight Verse:

““I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.””
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭1‬:‭5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Jeremiah was called before He was conceived.

Let that sink in.

Does that mean that God has a calling for each of us?

I think so.

I believe I have the choice of whether or not to follow that calling. But that doesn’t make the calling less valid.

Jeremiah followed his calling faithfully.

As a result, the people of Israel were given a chance to repent.

Eventually most did, largely because Jeremiah’s prophecies gave them hope for life after the exile.

I pray that when I follow my calling, people will find hope.

And faith.

And love.

What do you know about the calling God has for you?
How closely have you followed that calling?
June 4, 2025

June 4th, 2025

Wednesday – History

Reading – 1 Samuel 5-6

Highlight Verse:

“That is why to this day neither the priests of Dagon nor anyone who enters the temple of Dagon in Ashdod will step on its threshold.”
‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭5‬:‭5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This verse had to make me think, “How did he know?”

I’m sure the author wasn’t a Philistine so he must have heard a rumor of the superstitions of those who worshipped Dagon.

He knew better.

That empty idol had no power.

But he might not have realized that the ark had no power either.

The power was not in the ark but in the God that it represented.

He brought the plagues on the towns that hosted the ark for two reasons:
• To make the Philistines realize that their idols were powerless and
• To bring the ark back to Israel keep the Israelites from backsliding further.

God may have used the ark to encourage His people, but God is not found in any object no matter how beautiful.

The ark carried reminders of God’s Commandments and His faithfulness, but God is found in the hearts of His people.

Have you ever been tempted to put your faith in things that you can see and touch rather than the God who touches hearts?
What keeps your faith strong in those times that nothing you see or touch seems to point to God?
May 29, 2025

May 29th, 2025

Thursday – Letters

Reading – 1 Corinthians 11-12

Highlight Verses:

“Now, dear brothers and sisters, regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don’t want you to misunderstand this. You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols.”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I’m not sure why this is such controversial chapter.

Perhaps it is because we tend to focus on only parts of the chapter.

Dispensationalists tend to focus on these first two verses and a verse in the next chapter. They say the gifts are no longer needed and only lead people astray.

Pentecostals tend to focus on the gifts themselves. In my experience (as a long time Pentecostal) people can sometimes confuse emotions with spiritual gifts. That is an excellent reason to get to know the Bible well, because God will never contradict the Bible with a spiritual gift.

If you look at the whole chapter, the main point is how all the parts of the body of Christ work together. The gifts of the Spirit are the different functions of those parts that work together to make for a whole and healthy body.

We are still the functioning body of Christ so, yes, the gifts of the Spirit are still valid for today.

We do well to practice them as parts of the body of Christ.

Have you had difficulty making yourself available to the Holy Spirit to practice the gifts of the Spirit?
Have you ever found yourself so focused on the gifts of the Spirit that you lost sight of their place in the Body of Christ?
May 27, 2025

May 27th, 2025

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Genesis 35-36

Highlight Verses:

“Now that Jacob had returned from Paddan-aram, God appeared to him again at Bethel. God blessed him, saying, “Your name is Jacob, but you will not be called Jacob any longer. From now on your name will be Israel.” So God renamed him Israel.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭35‬:‭9-10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This is the second time God told Jacob this (see ch 32).

That either indicates that God is emphasizing the name change or the fact that Jacob/Israel didn’t do anything about it the first time.

The name came about because Jacob had struggled with God.

Off-hand that sounds like it should have a negative connotation.

Think about it, though.

Would you rather have a relationship with someone who struggles to understand you, or with someone who doesn’t really care to understand you.

God chose the struggle.

Our relationship with God has been a struggle from the beginning.

• We struggled with and failed to keep His commands.
• We struggled to make enough sacrifices to atone for our sins.
• Even now, we often struggle to accept the totality of His love for us.

But He does love us – not just in spite of our struggles but because of them.

Do you struggle in your relationship with God?
Does that struggle cause you to try to learn more about Him?
May 25, 2025

May 25th, 2025

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Psalms 62-65

Highlight Verse:

“My victory and honor come from God alone. He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭62‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

David was a poet.

David was a King.

But here, in this Psalm, David was a warrior.

His battles were fought for the Lord alone.

He accepted honor from God alone.

Yet we do well to honor him still as he laid the groundwork for our Messiah to come and bring us spiritual freedom.

This weekend we honor those who gave their lives for us in the US military.

Many, if not most fought for God.

All fought to win and maintain our freedom.

We do well to honor them!

As you enjoy the weekend with your family, traveling or relaxing at home, take some time to honor those who gave everything that we may be a free nation under God.

If there is someone you know of that gave their life in military service for our country, feel free to name them here.

I’ll start with Staff Sargent Howell Thompson, USMC, my great uncle (Grandma Clarey’s brother). Lost over the Bermuda Triangle on December 5, 1945 along with 26 other Marines and Navy airmen.
May 18, 2025

May 18th, 2025

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Psalms 59-61

Highlight Verse:

“for you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭61‬:‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

David was serious when he wrote this Psalm.

God offers impenetrable protection for His children.

We need not fear the enemy!

Over the years of teaching kids and youth about God, I’ve found that many fear demons and the devil.

I always reassure them that as long as we dwell in the shelter of God, we have no need to fear evil.

The powers of darkness may attack but they have no power against me unless I give it to them.

I choose not to.

How do you deal with the attacks of the enemy?
Do evil things inspire fear in you? How do you deal with that fear?
May 17, 2025

May 17th, 2025

Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – Psalm 112

Highlight Verse:

“They do not fear bad news; they confidently trust the Lord to care for them.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭112‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Bad news.

We’ve all had our share.

The expensive repair.
The painful diagnosis.
A friend’s betrayal.
The loss of a loved one.

Sometimes the news is saddening.
Sometimes devastating.

To say it will all work for the better is misleading and hurtful at best.

How can we live out this verse?

Trust that God is sovereign and compassionate before the bad news comes.

Know that terrible news comes to each of us.

The feelings of grief and anger and hopelessness are inevitable.

But so is the faithfulness of God that will outlast every feeling and doubt no matter how strong.

Trust and love Him with all your heart soul mind and strength and He will see you through it.

How have you gotten through bad news in the past?Are you in the midst of bad news now? Let us share in your struggle.
May 12, 2025

May 12th, 2025

Monday – Gospels

Reading – John 20-21

Highlight Verse:

“Simon Peter said, “I’m going fishing.” “We’ll come, too,” they all said. So they went out in the boat, but they caught nothing all night.”
‭‭John‬ ‭21‬:‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

There’s not a lot of detail before this story. We know that Jesus already appeared to the disciples. Apparently, some time had passed, and the disciples had been waiting.

Peter got impatient.

Maybe they were running out of food or money.

Maybe they were just bored.

But Peter said I’m fishing, and the others followed his lead back to their old profession.

It might have been the wrong thing to do.

They probably should have had more faith and patience.

But Jesus met them where they were, though He had to get their attention through the fish.

He then went out of His way to make sure that Peter felt forgiven from his denials (ch 18) and that knew he was to lead Jesus’ followers.

Sometimes we miss the path that God set before us.

We may not be doing anything bad, but God might have a better path for us.

Rest assured that He will meet us where we are and guide us to where we should be.

We have only to listen and trust.

What course corrections has God made in your life?
What did it take to get your attention?
May 8, 2025

May 8th, 2025

Thursday – Letters

Reading – 1 Corinthians 5-6

Highlight Verse:

“It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning.”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I glance at this verse and wonder if it gives me license to start preaching “hell-fire and brimstone” to those in the church acting sinfully.

Tempting, but I honestly don’t think that’s the point here.

Knowing the heart of God in the context of the New Testament and Paul and the church he is writing to, I see the Father using every means possible to guide His children to the best life possible.

I also see His heart wanting to save people from hell.

It should also be noted that the first readers of this letter would be the leaders of the church. It urges them to lead.

The leaders of the church at Corinth were doing a terrible job of guiding people away from sin. For the sake of those people, the leaders needed to recognize sin and warn them of it.

While the people’s sin would not cause them to directly lose their salvation, when they wander too far down the path of sin, they were in real danger of losing their trust in God, thereby losing salvation.

Quite often people that far off the path pull others down that path with them, prompting Paul’s warning not to associate with them.

The point is, stay as far away as possible from the path that leads to losing faith and encourage other to stay of the path of faith.

Have you seen people pull others with them down a path away from faith? (I have, multiple times).
Have you ever started down that path yourself? What brought you back?
May 5, 2025

May 5th, 2025

Monday – Gospel

Reading – John 19

Highlight Verse:

“When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.”
‭‭John‬ ‭19‬:‭30‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“¡Todo se ha cumplido!” in Spanish (in honor of Cinco de Mayo).

“Tetelestai” (τετελεσται) in Greek.

“It is finished!”

The original Greek word implies an action that has been completed but has lasting effects.

In that moment, on the cross, the work for our salvation was completed.

No more work is needed. It is complete.

You don’t have to make sacrifices, do good works, or complete religious acts to be saved.

You don’t even have to behave.

It is finished!

Of course, there are good reasons to live a righteous life including gratitude to God and the positive effects it will have on your life.

Also, turning from sin and doing good things are usually the first evidence that you have accepted that salvation.

But your salvation is a done deal. All you need to do is accept it.

Does that make you breathe a sigh of relief?
Are you tempted to do good deeds out of guilt or duty? Have you tried doing good things just for the joy of it?

Tag: trust

Jeremiah was called before He was conceived.

As a result, the people of Israel were given a chance to repent.

I pray that when I follow my calling, people will find hope.

And faith.

And love.

He knew better.

The power was not in the ark but in the God that it represented.

Perhaps it is because we tend to focus on only parts of the chapter.

We do well to practice them as parts of the body of Christ.

The name came about because Jacob had struggled with God.

God chose the struggle.

But He does love us – not just in spite of our struggles but because of them.

But here, in this Psalm, David was a warrior.

We do well to honor them!

David was serious when he wrote this Psalm.

The powers of darkness may attack but they have no power against me unless I give it to them.

I choose not to.

Bad news.

How can we live out this verse?

But so is the faithfulness of God that will outlast every feeling and doubt no matter how strong.

Peter got impatient.

But Jesus met them where they were, though He had to get their attention through the fish.

Rest assured that He will meet us where we are and guide us to where we should be.

Tempting, but I honestly don’t think that’s the point here.

The leaders of the church at Corinth were doing a terrible job of guiding people away from sin. For the sake of those people, the leaders needed to recognize sin and warn them of it.

The point is, stay as far away as possible from the path that leads to losing faith and encourage other to stay of the path of faith.

The original Greek word implies an action that has been completed but has lasting effects.

No more work is needed. It is complete.

But your salvation is a done deal. All you need to do is accept it.