Walk in the Light

June 8, 2026

June 8th, 2026

Monday – Gospels

Reading – Luke 23

Highlight Verse:

“As they had requested, he released Barabbas, the man in prison for insurrection and murder. But he turned Jesus over to them to do as they wished.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭23‬:‭25‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Barabbas was a murderer and insurrectionist.

And literally the first person to benefit from Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

True, we don’t know if he repented and trusted Jesus.

In fact, we have no idea what happened to him after the crucifixion.

It seems likely that he would have been moved to repentance by the sacrifice of Jesus.

Some early sources say that his first name was Jesus. And “Barabbas” translates to son of the father.

So, Pilate substituted one Jesus for another, both of whom were known for their relationships with their fathers.

Coincidence?

Probably.

What isn’t coincidence is the fact that Jesus directly took the place of someone who needed redemption.

And if that first sacrifice could be made for someone who clearly did not deserve it,

there is no one for whom Jesus would not die.

Is there anyone you know who doesn’t deserve to be forgiven?
If Jesus can forgive them (He can), is there any reason why you couldn’t forgive that person?
June 7, 2026

June 7th, 2026

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Ecclesiastes 3-4

Highlight Verses:

“So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.”
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Some consider Ecclesiastes to be rather hedonistic, emphasizing pleasure over eternity.

I don’t know about you, but

I don’t see anywhere in this book where it says to go out and sin because there are no consequences.

I also don’t see anywhere in the Bible where it tells us to have a miserable life.

Today’s highlight verses have nothing to do with sinning. Instead, they tell us to be happy and enjoy the gifts God has given.

These gifts include:

Food.
Employment to be able to afford the food.
Water and other beverages to drink.
And the very life that makes enjoyment possible.

The world around us has pushed the lie that you have to have sin to enjoy life.

Sin is like a greedy lender that lets you buy something you want right now but takes away the opportunity to buy stuff later because of the high cost of interest.

Sin may offer temporary pleasure now, but it steals pleasure and joy later.

Life lived in joyous relationship with God brings daily joy and pleasure in everything you do.

What brings you the most enjoyment in this life (remember to keep this family friendly)?
Have you ever had a time when your joy was robbed by the consequences of sin?
Did you get that joy back? How?
June 6, 2026

June 6th, 2026

Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – Hebrews 5:11 – 6:12

Highlight Verse:

“Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭5‬:‭14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

As I mentioned before, my youngest daughter graduated high school last Monday.

For her, that was a big step into adult life.

Granted, she will be living at home while she furthers her education, but she is taking on more and more responsibilities herself.

I am happy to report that, in many ways, she is far more mature than I was at that age.

So how do you know when you are spiritually mature?

You might think that it is the hidden teacher and pastor in me that motivates me to write these daily devotions.

That might factor into it a little bit, but my main motivation is so that I keep learning and going deeper in my faith.

Frankly, you guys are here to hold me accountable.

By the way – thanks for that.

No matter how many times I’ve read through the Bible, I am constantly learning new things.

Maybe I’m just slow and miss a lot of stuff every time I read a passage so there’s more to learn next time through.

But, when I go into my studies prayerfully with a mind open to what God wants to show me but rooted in the essential truths of the Word,

there is always another lesson to learn.

Faith should be rooted in the spiritual milk of the basic truths of the Gospel and deepened daily at we dig into the solid food of the Word of God.

Are you well rooted into the basic truths of the Gospel?
What fresh lessons has God taught you lately?
June 5, 2026

June 5th, 2026

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Joel 1-2

Highlight Verse:

“After the cutting locusts finished eating the crops, the swarming locusts took what was left! After them came the hopping locusts, and then the stripping locusts, too!”
‭‭Joel‬ ‭1‬:‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I learned something I didn’t know before while studying for this.

It wasn’t about the Bible but about insects – grasshoppers to be exact.

The word “locust” has more to do with the behavior of certain grasshoppers than with a biological distinction.

It is the swarming behavior that sets apart certain grasshopper species as locusts.

The four types of locusts mentioned in today’s highlight verse point to different types of behavior of different swarms, not necessarily biological distinctions.

That would explain why there is primarily one type of locust in the Middle East. The same species behaves differently in different swarms.

Regardless of what type of locust did what, they all caused great damage and destruction.

The grasshoppers we have here in North American do not usually swarm.

The ones described in today’s verse cut, swarm, hop and strip.

Not something I would like to witness.

While we may not have a lot of locusts, we have plenty of things that try to invade and attack in several different ways.

They all come down to one enemy trying to mess up our lives in many different ways.

That enemy may attack our bodies, our wealth, our mental health, etc.

This book will give us ways to fight the enemy regardless of its methods. Stay tuned for more.

What “locusts” have you seen used against you in this life?
How do you defend against such attacks?
June 4, 2026

June 4th, 2026

Thursday – Letters

Reading – 1 John 1

Highlight Verse:

“We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭1‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Read that verse again and realize that this was John.

The John who wrote the Gospel and three letters and Revelation.

Good friend to Jesus.

If anyone tries to tell you, “The New Testament was written long after Jesus was around,” just point them to the books written by John, and Peter.

They didn’t just see Him, they hung out with Jesus!

John reclined into Him at the Last Supper.

When he wrote about Jesus, he knew what he was saying.

As we read through these letters, keep your eyes open for the personal insight that John had into the life, teaching, and character of Jesus.

What stood out in this chapter to you?
Did you realize that the Gospel and letters of John were written by a close friend of Jesus’?
How does that change your perspective on John’s books?
June 3, 2026

June 3rd, 2026

Wednesday – History

Reading – 1 Chronicles 28-29

Highlight Verse:

““And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.”
‭‭1 Chronicles‬ ‭28‬:‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I like the way the NLT translated this verse.

The Hebrew word יָדַע or “yah-DAH” goes way beyond just knowing someone.

It implies a close trusting personal relationship.

David’s charge to Solomon was to go beyond religious head knowledge about God’s history and character.

David had personal history with God and knew God’s character through personal interaction.

He knew the power, mercy, and wisdom of the Father through his interactions with God.

For this reason and for his love of the nation of Israel, he strongly desired this same type of relationship with God for Solomon.

Is your knowledge of God personal and intimate or just head knowledge?
How do you interact with God to get to know Him better?
June 2, 2026

June 2nd, 2026

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Numbers 9-10

Highlight Verses:

“Now the Lord said to Moses, “Make two trumpets of hammered silver for calling the community to assemble and for signaling the breaking of camp.”
‭‭Numbers‬ ‭10‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

My youngest daughter graduated from high school yesterday.

There were several airhorns present, despite them being expressly prohibited.

They were nothing like Israel’s horns.

They brought disunity as the people who obeyed the rules got annoyed at those who blasted out the ears of anyone in front of them.

Israel’s horns brought unity.

They coordinated their movements through the wilderness.

They called the leaders together for meetings.

They called the people to gatherings.

And they announced the sacrifices that served to cleanse the people from sin.

So, if air horns are not the equivalent of Israel’s great horns, what is?

I thought and prayed about that and came to the obvious conclusion that we don’t have a modern equivalent.

We have Pastors and worship leaders who coordinate the efforts of local bodies of Christ.

Some areas have ministerial associations that help coordinate the efforts of local churches.

Denominations coordinate the efforts of their own groups of churches throughout the world.

But the is no clarion call to bring all the bodies of Christ together.

Or is there?

We are not perfectly coordinated as a world-wide body of Christ, but we have a perfect coordinator.

The Holy Spirit.

When we listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit, we work as a unified body.

While it is true that we are not always great listeners when it comes to the Holy Spirit (or even half-way decent listeners), when we follow the Spirit’s guidance, there is no limit to what God can do through us.

How do you know when you are hearing the leading of the Holy Spirit?
When has God used you in coordination with others by the leading of the Holy Spirit?
June 1, 2026

June 1st, 2026

Monday – Gospels

Reading – Luke 22

Highlight Verse:

“Jesus sent Peter and John ahead and said, “Go and prepare the Passover meal, so we can eat it together.””
‭‭Luke‬ ‭22‬:‭8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Passover involved a good amount of work.

This was often divided among the servants and the women of the extended families.

The heads of the families presided over the meals but rarely helped with the preparation.

Jesus was certainly the head of the group of Apostles but if they were ranked below him, the next in line would be Peter and John.

No one would expect them to be tasked with Passover meal prep.

Except Jesus.

To their credit, Peter and John didn’t complain. They obeyed. Their only question was “where?”

Their willingness was rewarded with seeing Jesus’ words being miraculously fulfilled.

Has God ever asked you to do something that could be considered to be below your status?
How did you react?
If you obeyed, did you see a reward for your actions?
May 31, 2026

May 31st, 2026

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Ecclesiastes 1-2

Highlight Verse:

“So I decided there is nothing better than to enjoy food and drink and to find satisfaction in work. Then I realized that these pleasures are from the hand of God.”
‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭2‬:‭24‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Solomon went on a quest to find meaning in all the different things this world could offer.

And he found the world lacking.

What little meaning he found in this life was only because those things were from God.

He recognized that even the pleasures of this world are gifts from God.

We do well when we recognize that fact and show God gratitude for even the simple parts of life.

What part if everyday life are you the most thankful for?
How do you show your gratitude and obedience to the Lord.
May 30, 2026

May 30th, 2026

Saturday – Open Topic

Reading – Philippians 2

Highlight Verse:

“And he certainly was ill; in fact, he almost died. But God had mercy on him—and also on me, so that I would not have one sorrow after another.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭27‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Confession time – after a very long busy Friday, I neglected to write this last night. To make the writing easier this morning, I am borrowing the topic from our small group Bible study last night. We had a good discussion, so I thought it would be good to share it with you.

Epaphroditus was a Greek convert to Christianity who had become a close friend and helper to Paul.

From the way Paul wrote about him, it was clear that he was very important to Paul.

We know that God worked through Paul to heal quite a few people.

Yet nowhere in this chapter does it say that Epaphroditus was healed.

In fact, it is strongly implied that his illness had to run its course. Epaphroditus seems to have recovered through the natural healing process of the body.

During that process, he came close to death.

I’m sure Paul prayed for him.

Why wasn’t he miraculously healed?

First of all, at least in Pentecostal circles, we tend to ignore the amazing creation of the immune system.

God gave our bodies the incredible ability to fight off viral and bacterial attacks as well as to self-repair injuries.

I love it when God bypasses that process to bring immediate healing.

But I believe He still deserves the credit for the natural healing process.

Also, there are times when that healing is eternal; granted through entering eternal life in heaven.

Finally, one abuse of faith that I have seen far too often is people treating God like a genie.

Healing is not magic. It is God’s decision how to bring healing.

I still believe that we should pray with absolute faith in the power of God to heal.

But we should never command God.

He is in charge. He is all powerful and all knowing.

I pray for healing in faith, acknowledging that it is His choice, and I will accept what He chooses.

Have you seen miraculous healings? Tell us about them.
Have you ever been sadly disappointed that someone was not healed?
How did you deal with that disappointment?

And literally the first person to benefit from Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

What isn’t coincidence is the fact that Jesus directly took the place of someone who needed redemption.

there is no one for whom Jesus would not die.

I don’t see anywhere in this book where it says to go out and sin because there are no consequences.

The world around us has pushed the lie that you have to have sin to enjoy life.

Life lived in joyous relationship with God brings daily joy and pleasure in everything you do.

So how do you know when you are spiritually mature?

there is always another lesson to learn.

Faith should be rooted in the spiritual milk of the basic truths of the Gospel and deepened daily at we dig into the solid food of the Word of God.

The word “locust” has more to do with the behavior of certain grasshoppers than with a biological distinction.

While we may not have a lot of locusts, we have plenty of things that try to invade and attack in several different ways.

This book will give us ways to fight the enemy regardless of its methods. Stay tuned for more.

Good friend to Jesus.

They didn’t just see Him, they hung out with Jesus!

As we read through these letters, keep your eyes open for the personal insight that John had into the life, teaching, and character of Jesus.

I like the way the NLT translated this verse.

It implies a close trusting personal relationship.

He knew the power, mercy, and wisdom of the Father through his interactions with God.

They were nothing like Israel’s horns.

Israel’s horns brought unity.

When we listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit, we work as a unified body.

No one would expect them to be tasked with Passover meal prep.

Their willingness was rewarded with seeing Jesus’ words being miraculously fulfilled.

And he found the world lacking.

We do well when we recognize that fact and show God gratitude for even the simple parts of life.

Why wasn’t he miraculously healed?

But I believe He still deserves the credit for the natural healing process.

I pray for healing in faith, acknowledging that it is His choice, and I will accept what He chooses.