Walk in the Light

November 6, 2024

November 6th, 2024

Wednesday – History

Reading – Nehemiah 9-10

Highlight Verse:

“On October 31 the people assembled again, and this time they fasted and dressed in burlap and sprinkled dust on their heads.”
‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭9‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I admit that when I first read this, I thought, “What a great use for Halloween.”

Of course, this had nothing to do with Halloween other than the date specified in the Hebrew calendar that year corresponded with October 31 that year in our calendar.

If the events of that day sound familiar, that’s because just three weeks earlier was the Day of Atonement. People had started to weep because of their sin.

At that time, Nehemiah, Ezra, and the priests and Levites told the people to not weep as that was a day of celebration.

Here, three weeks later, people were allowed to show their true repentance through mourning.

As they had heard the Book of the Law recently, they would have understood more clearly. With that clearer understanding, they saw the need to mourn their sins.

And they did.

Have you ever repented in tears?
What effect did the grief in repentance have on your life?
November 5, 2024

November 5th, 2024

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Deuteronomy 19-20

Highlight Verse:

““When you go out to fight your enemies and you face horses and chariots and an army greater than your own, do not be afraid. The Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you!”
‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭20‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Remember this verse the next time you face horses and chariots.

Okay, I think this could apply to other situations when the odds are against you.

I’ve seen it in action. God provides for a need just in time. Or He protects you from certain unforeseen circumstances.

When you take it in context of the rest of the Old Testament, especially the Pentateuch (first 5 books of the Bible) you must realize that

it only applied when facing battles that God called the Israelites to fight.

In other words, if you keep fighting a losing battle, are you sure that it is one you were called to fight?
If the battle is against sin, are you fighting that battle wholeheartedly?
November 4, 2024

November 4th, 2024

Monday – Gospels and Acts

Reading – Acts 21

Highlight Verse:

“When we returned to the ship at the end of the week, the entire congregation, including women and children, left the city and came down to the shore with us. There we knelt, prayed,”
‭‭Acts of the Apostles‬ ‭21‬:‭5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

What struck me here was the fact that the entire congregation came down to the shore.

It wasn’t just the elders.

It wasn’t just the most involved people.

The entire congregation.

When was the last time you saw an entire congregation come together for anything outside of Sunday service?

I can’t think of a single time.

When I attended a tiny country church in the hills of southwest Virginia, we came close for picnics and such.

And I was impressed with the hundreds of volunteers at our Harvest Fest last week.

But these people were seriously dedicated to each other and to God and the teachers God brought to them.

What would it be like everyone in our congregations showed the same level of commitment to each other and God?
Where have you seen that level of commitment?
November 3, 2024

November 3rd, 2024

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Job 27-28

Highlight Verse:
“Wisdom is more valuable than gold and crystal. It cannot be purchased with jewels mounted in fine gold.”
‭‭Job‬ ‭28‬:‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I love the country song “Buy Dirt” by Jordan Davis.

One line says “You can’t buy happiness but you can buy dirt.”

The simple wisdom is that if you buy a place where life and love can happen, and then spend your time living it with the ones you love, that’s one of the best ways to find happiness.

I would add to that the last verse of this chapter, highlighting that the fear of the Lord is true wisdom.

Faith and family; sounds like a good combination to bring about wisdom.

How much time and money are you investing in your family?
Are you investing time and money in your faith as well?
November 2, 2024

November 2nd, 2024

Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – 1 Samuel 30:1-20

Highlight Verses:

“When David and his men saw the ruins and realized what had happened to their families, they wept until they could weep no more.”
‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭30‬:‭3‬-‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Can you imagine the grief David and his men must have felt when they found out all their wives and children and been captured into slavery?

That was probably nothing compared to the pain and terror that the wives and children felt.

I just read a novel that gave a tiny peek into the mental torture of human trafficking.

It wasn’t set 3000 years ago.

It was set in current day.

And it only scratched the surface of the real problem.

In case you didn’t read it, David and his men did succeed in rescuing their families.

Like them, we should be doing everything in our power to stop the horror that is human trafficking.

For most of us, that means staying aware of those around us and looking for signs of entrapment.

What can you do to help?

Here’s a good starting point.
November 1, 2024

November 1st, 2024

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Zechariah 1-2

Highlight Verse:

“In November of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the Lord gave this message to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah and grandson of Iddo:”
‭‭Zechariah‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In researching today’s verse, I was reminded that Zechariah means “the Lord remembers.”

(Thanks to enduringword dot com).

November is just after a couple of Hebrew holidays in which God’s people celebrated specifically remembered their roots.

For us, it is going into a season full of special memories.

For me, the holiday season is full of the best memories of my childhood.

For many, the season carries some very sad or hurtful memories.

For the Lord, the word “remember” takes on a deeper meaning.

He remembers our hurts and pain and brings healing.

He didn’t forget the Hebrew people.

He won’t forget us.

Does it help you to remember how much God remembers you?
What traditions do you observe to help remember what God did for us?
October 31, 2024

October 31st, 2024

Thursday – Letters

Reading – Revelations 14

Highlight Verse:

“And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of mighty ocean waves or the rolling of loud thunder. It was like the sound of many harpists playing together.”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭14‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Why do I picture Skillet on stage here?

Before you point out that it says harpists, John would not know what an electric guitar looks like so he could have confused them for harps.

Okay, they’re probably not electric guitars. From the description of the sound, they might not be classical harps either.

No matter what they are, it’s clear that music will be prominent in heaven. And it will be amazing.

Despite multiple attempts, I’ve never fully learned how to play an instrument (unless you count an audio mixer).

None the less, music plays a prominent role in my life.

Music calms me or gives me energy. It keeps me awake on road trips. It gives me encouragement.

Great music moves me emotionally.

More importantly, when I need it – which is often – it directs my thoughts toward God and living my life to please God.

I imagine that music in heaven will be moving beyond words.

What do you think music in heaven will be like?
Just for fun, what band or singer do you hope will be there? (You already know I hope to see Skillet).
October 30, 2024

October 30th, 2024

Wednesday – History

Reading – Nehemiah 7-8

Highlight Verse:

“And Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!””
‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭8‬:‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Yep, I picked another party verse.

There’s lots of them.

It’s almost as if God loves a good party.

The twist here is that this party comes with a command not to be sad.

It started with the reading of the Law. That made people sad because of how short they had fallen from obeying the Law.

The celebration comes from the provision for sin through sacrifice.

Our celebration should be far greater than theirs since our redemption is permanent through the sacrifice of Jesus.

Yes, our sin should sadden us.

But our repentance and redemption should bring about an awesome celebration.

Have you celebrated your redemption lately?
How can we make that celebration greater?
October 29, 2024

October 29th, 2024

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Deuteronomy 17-18

Highlight Verse:

“The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will turn his heart away from the Lord. And he must not accumulate large amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself.”
‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭17‬:‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

King Saul had only one wife. But his heart was never really with God in the first place.

King David had 8 wives. Despite that, he was “a man after God’s own heart.”

King Solomon? – 700 wives and 300 concubines. And he became the wealthiest man alive.

He went from being the wisest man on the planet to compromising his faith to please his wives.

It’s easy to avoid having 700 wives today. That wouldn’t quite be legal, at least here in the US.

But wealth can turn people.

As the Apostle Paul instructed his protege Timothy, “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil” (1 Timothy 6:10 NLT)

While I’ve been able to avoid amassing large sums of money (at least by American standards)

I still have to be on my guard against the love of money.

Has money (or lust) been a stumbling block in your life?
In what ways can we actively avoid the “love of money?”
October 28, 2024

October 28th, 2024

Monday – Gospels and Acts

Reading – Acts 20

Highlight Verse:

“As Paul spoke on and on, a young man named Eutychus, sitting on the windowsill, became very drowsy. Finally, he fell sound asleep and dropped three stories to his death below.”
‭‭Acts of the Apostles‬ ‭20‬:‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Our pastor is an excellent speaker.

Despite that, I have the amazing talent of nodding off during his or anyone’s sermons.

I can definitely relate to Eutychus.

I could make a point about God’s amazing healing and even resurrecting power shown after Eutychus’ fall.

But what really stands out to me in this chapter is the great hunger that the people had to listen to Paul for hours on end.

They were desperate to learn everything they could from the man whom God had sent to them.

No matter what his preaching style Paul taught truth that they were eager to here.

That eagerness to learn would help us get a lot more out of sermons (and might help me stay awake through them).

How hungry are you for learning more about God?
What lessons have you heard lately that impact the way you live?

I admit that when I first read this, I thought, “What a great use for Halloween.”

Here, three weeks later, people were allowed to show their true repentance through mourning.

And they did.

Remember this verse the next time you face horses and chariots.

it only applied when facing battles that God called the Israelites to fight.

The entire congregation.

But these people were seriously dedicated to each other and to God and the teachers God brought to them.

One line says “You can’t buy happiness but you can buy dirt.”

Faith and family; sounds like a good combination to bring about wisdom.

That was probably nothing compared to the pain and terror that the wives and children felt.

And it only scratched the surface of the real problem.

Like them, we should be doing everything in our power to stop the horror that is human trafficking.

In researching today’s verse, I was reminded that Zechariah means “the Lord remembers.”

He remembers our hurts and pain and brings healing.

He won’t forget us.

Why do I picture Skillet on stage here?

No matter what they are, it’s clear that music will be prominent in heaven. And it will be amazing.

I imagine that music in heaven will be moving beyond words.

It’s almost as if God loves a good party.

The celebration comes from the provision for sin through sacrifice.

But our repentance and redemption should bring about an awesome celebration.

King Solomon? – 700 wives and 300 concubines. And he became the wealthiest man alive.

He went from being the wisest man on the planet to compromising his faith to please his wives.

I still have to be on my guard against the love of money.

But what really stands out to me in this chapter is the great hunger that the people had to listen to Paul for hours on end.

That eagerness to learn would help us get a lot more out of sermons (and might help me stay awake through them).