Walk in the Light

April 28, 2025

April 28th, 2025

Monday – Gospels

Reading – John 18

Highlight Verse:

“Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” he asked.”
‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Jesus was not surprised at what was going to happen to Him.

Even though He knew He was going to be tortured and killed in the worst way possible,

He stepped forward.

He stepped forward into the judgement set for us.

He stepped forward into the worst pain possible – separation from His Father for 3 days.

He stepped forward into the greatest act of love for all time.

May we at least step forward into accepting that sacrifice and trusting the one who loves us beyond all comprehension.

Have you considered the incredible depth of Jesus love for us starting in that step in the garden that night?
How should we react to such an act of love?
April 27, 2025

April 27th, 2025

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Psalms 25-27

Highlight Verses:

“God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭46‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I grew up in California.

I’ve felt my share of earthquakes.

Most were no big deal.

Then there was that evening in 1989.

It felt like the whole world was moving.

I was in a room with giant plate glass windows. Stuff was falling from the ceiling.

The world rumbled on as I dove under a row of chairs.

I was afraid. Very afraid. This was many times larger than anything I had been through before.

I wish I had memorized this Psalm then.

I would have been reassured of God’s power over the Earth, not to mention my eternal destiny in heaven.

I came through that quake just fine, though not all did.

When the Sons of Korah use the imagery of an earthquake here, they were talking about extreme confidence in an extreme situation.

God can protect us in our long-term difficulties and here we see that he can protect us in catastrophes.

He is strong enough for any situation.

What catastrophes has God brought you through?
How did He protect you?
April 26, 2025

April 26th, 2025

Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – 1 John 4:7-21

Highlight Verse:

“We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I just finished reading a novel about a “Christian” group that had isolated themselves from the rest of the world in order to stay pure. (The Girl Behind the Red Rope by Ted Dekker and Rachel Dekker)

They concentrated on purity and following the rules to the letter that they had lost sight of love.

It could be said that they lost sight of God.

I’m not trying to criticize any particular group.

I do want to point out that when we put rules before love, we miss the point.

Parents set rules because they love their kids and want the best for them.

Ideally, kids obey their parents out of love and respect.

God gave us the BIBLE (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth) because he knows what’s best for us and loves us enough to tell us. In fact, He loves us even when we don’t follow the rules, though His heart breaks because of the way we harm ourselves.

The bottom line is this – God is love.

Let’s put love first.

What motivates you to follow God’s commands?
If you are a parent, what motivates you to set rules for your kids?
April 25, 2025

April 25th, 2025

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Isaiah 49-51

Highlight Verse:

“I replied, “But my work seems so useless! I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the Lord’s hand; I will trust God for my reward.””
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭49‬:‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Isaiah was what Bible scholars call a Major Prophet.

He not only spoke out against the enemies of Israel; he advised kings and gave numerous Messianic predictions that came true with Jesus.

Yet here he testifies that he felt useless.

There are times that I can relate, though I certainly can’t compare to the likes of Isaiah.

But, if I make myself available to the Holy Spirit, I do believe that I can be effective to bring people closer to God.

A famous TV chef in the 80’s, Martin Yan, used to always say, “If Yan can cook, so can you!”

With that in mind I think Isaiah would say, “If God can use me, He can use you!”

Have you ever felt discouraged especially in how effective your ministry is?
Have you ever left the real work up to the Holy Spirit?
April 24, 2025

April 24th, 2025

Thursday – Letters

Reading – 1 Corinthians 1-2

Highlight Verse:

“The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭1‬:‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I can teach a clear, eloquent lesson on the Gospel and have it completely misunderstood.

I can have a deep, emotional conversation about the Gospel and still be thought a fool for believing.

For some, there is a brick wall that no amount of convincing argument can even chip.

Is there no hope?

There’s always hope.

It may not be visible but the Holy Spirit is always at work. Sometimes He works through His people, sometimes directly.

For each wall I’ve seen stand hard against the Gospel, I’ve seen another knocked down through the power of the Holy Spirit at work through His people.

1st Corinthians is a great study on working in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. I’m looking forward to the lessons ahead for us.

In the meantime, I continue to pray for those whose wall I desperately want to see come down.

Are there people in your life who need the Holy Spirit to break down the wall separating them from the Good News of Jesus?
Did you have a wall separating you from understanding the Gospel? What was it like when that wall came down?
April 23, 2025

April 22nd, 2025

Wednesday – History

Reading – Judges 17-19

Highlight Verse:

“so they stopped there to spend the night. They rested in the town square, but no one took them in for the night. That evening an old man came home from his work in the fields. He was from the hill country of Ephraim, but he was living in Gibeah, where the people were from the tribe of Benjamin.”
‭‭Judges‬ ‭19‬:‭15‬-‭16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

If you read this whole chapter, you know it’s messed up in so many ways.

It starts with a Levite in an unofficial marriage.

When the concubine gets mad at the Levite and goes home, he doesn’t go after her for 4 months.

When he does bring her back, he stops for the night at an Israelite town in Benjamin’s territory.

You’d think that would be a smart move but not this town. As we see in the highlight verses, the only person to help them is an older field laborer from Ephraim, which happens to be where the Levite is from.

The people of Gibeah are so bad, I won’t dare repeat what they did here.

Why did they act like that?

They lived in a time when there was no good leadership in Israel.

Without proper guidance, the people of Gibeah gave into their basest desires to the expense of everyone who wasn’t one of them.

I am certain there were people there who could have made good leaders. They just did not step up to lead.

As a result, sin was allowed to thrive, and God was dishonored. Ultimately, Benjamin was nearly wiped out as a result.

Has God called you to be a leader or an encourager to leaders?
What are you doing about it?
April 22, 2025

April 22nd, 2025

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Genesis 25-26

Highlight Verse:

“Immediately, Abimelech called for Isaac and exclaimed, “She is obviously your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” “Because I was afraid someone would kill me to get her from me,” Isaac replied.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭26‬:‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Isaac must have learned from his dad Abraham.

It didn’t really work for Abraham. Why did Isaac think it would work for him?

I think Isaac trusted his own wits more than he trusted God’s protection.

God chose to protect Isaac and Rebekah anyway.

So did it make any difference that he lied?

I’m sure it didn’t do wonderful things for the relationship between Isaac and Rebekah.

It could also have been a root of the bitterness between Israel and the Philistines.

That, of course, is something we will never know for certain.

What is certain is that lying because we don’t trust God to keep us safe won’t do us any favors. It may help us in the moment but in the long run, it will cause us more grief than it saved.

If we can trust God for our salvation, we can Him to protect us for eternity.

Have you had times when you lied to try to protect yourself?
Have you trusted God to protect you in a difficult situation?
How did either of those work out for you?
April 21, 2025

April 21st, 2025

Monday – Gospel

Reading – John 17

Highlight Verse:

“I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.”
‭‭John‬ ‭17‬:‭23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I’ve said before how important unity in the church is.

This verse implies one way to work toward that unity.

The closer we get to God, the closer we get to each other.

The closer we get to God, the more the essential parts of the Gospel grow in importance.

The closer we get to God, the less important our differences become.

I believe that when we finally see God in person, our differences will not matter at all.

Let’s get started on that unity before we leave this world by seeking the presence of God and each other.

What do you do to bridge the gaps between different parts of the Church?
As you’ve grown closer to God, have you gotten closer to others or further? Why do you think that is?
Sunday – Poetry

April 20th, 2025

Reading – Psalms 43-45

Highlight Verses:

“Send out your light and your truth; let them guide me. Let them lead me to your holy mountain, to the place where you live. There I will go to the altar of God, to God—the source of all my joy. I will praise you with my harp, O God, my God!”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭43‬:‭3‬-‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This Psalm was written with the intention of singing it as you travelled to the temple to worship.

Think of that. They didn’t just have worship songs – they had “on your way to worship” songs.

They were full of joy because going to the temple meant giving an offering that wiped the debt of your sin clean so you could start anew (with new sins that you would make an offering for next time).

If they had that much joy in anticipation of a fresh start, how much more should we celebrate the day we were set free from sin for good.

When Jesus rose from that grave, He defeated sin and death once and for all.

Whether you’re going to a sunrise service, an Easter service, or just attending online – celebrate the resurrection that paved the way for our relationship with God.

And sing a joyful song on the way too.

What is your favorite worship song?
What is your favorite way to celebrate Easter?
April 19, 2025

April 19th, 2025

Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – Matthew 27:62-66

Highlight Verse:

“The next day, on the Sabbath, the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭27‬:‭62‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I checked all four Gospels and today’s reading was all I could find about the Saturday between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection.

Nothing about disciples mourning or hiding.

Apparently they were busy observing the Sabbath.

The priests and Pharisees were not.

Why?

My theory is the power they witnessed at the Cross made them realize that Jesus spoke the truth. That scared them to death.

They could see that He was likely to rise from the dead. That would mean the end of their power unless they could find a way to stop the resurrection or at least stop people from believing it.

Despite their efforts, Jesus did rise from the dead.

He disciples saw and believed.

The Holy Spirit and the Word bear witness to us today and we believe.

That’s something to celebrate!

What do you think the disciples were doing on Resurrection Eve?
How do you plan to celebrate the Resurrection this weekend?

Jesus was not surprised at what was going to happen to Him.

He stepped forward.

He stepped forward into the greatest act of love for all time.

It felt like the whole world was moving.

I wish I had memorized this Psalm then.

He is strong enough for any situation.

I do want to point out that when we put rules before love, we miss the point.

The bottom line is this – God is love.

Let’s put love first.

Yet here he testifies that he felt useless.

With that in mind I think Isaiah would say, “If God can use me, He can use you!”

For some, there is a brick wall that no amount of convincing argument can even chip.

There’s always hope.

1st Corinthians is a great study on working in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. I’m looking forward to the lessons ahead for us.

If you read this whole chapter, you know it’s messed up in so many ways.

The people of Gibeah are so bad, I won’t dare repeat what they did here.

I am certain there were people there who could have made good leaders. They just did not step up to lead.

It didn’t really work for Abraham. Why did Isaac think it would work for him?

So did it make any difference that he lied?

If we can trust God for our salvation, we can Him to protect us for eternity.

The closer we get to God, the closer we get to each other.

I believe that when we finally see God in person, our differences will not matter at all.

Let’s get started on that unity before we leave this world by seeking the presence of God and each other.

Think of that. They didn’t just have worship songs – they had “on your way to worship” songs.

If they had that much joy in anticipation of a fresh start, how much more should we celebrate the day we were set free from sin for good.

When Jesus rose from that grave, He defeated sin and death once and for all.

I checked all four Gospels and today’s reading was all I could find about the Saturday between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection.

Despite their efforts, Jesus did rise from the dead.

That’s something to celebrate!