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Daily Devotionals
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The Hand of God
Dec 31, 2024Tap to summarizeAmy Boucher Pye Isaiah 48:12-19 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens. Isaiah 48:13 In 1939, with the recent outbreak of war for Britain, King George VI sought in his Christmas Day radio broadcast to encourage citizens of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth to put their trust in God. Quoting a poem that his mother found precious, he said: “Go out into the darkness, and put your hand into the Hand of God. / That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way.” He didn’t know what the new year would bring, but he trusted God to “guide and uphold” them in the anxious days ahead. The image of God’s hand appears in many places in the Bible, including in the book of Isaiah. Through this prophet, God called His people to trust that He as their Creator, “the first and . . . the last” (Isaiah 48:12), would remain involved with them. As He says, “My own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens” (v. 13). They should put their trust in Him and not look to those less powerful. After all, He’s their “Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel” (v. 17). Whatever we face as we look toward the new year, we can follow the encouragement of King George and the prophet Isaiah and place our hope and trust in God. Then, for us too, our peace will be like the river, our “well-being like the waves of the sea” (v. 18). As you consider the new year, what situations or relationships could you entrust to God? How does the image of His hand speak to you? All-powerful God, You created the heavens and the earth and yet You cherish me. I place my trust in You. Malachi 1-4; Revelation 22 Isaiah warned that God would discipline the Israelites for their idolatrous unfaithfulness. He prophesied about one hundred years before the destruction of Jerusalem, their temple, and their seventy-year exile in Babylon (Isaiah 39:6-7; see Jeremiah 25:11-12). Isaiah also prophesied that God would bring His people back, restore them, and bless them (chs. 40-66). In Isaiah 48, the prophet affirmed that whatever God had purposed for His people, He would bring to pass. For He’s the only true, everlasting God—the almighty Creator who chose them to be His people (vv. 12-15). He’s also the “Redeemer” (v. 17) who will teach and guide them (vv. 18-19). K. T. Sim https://odb.org/yjw
Transcribe →Why Me, God?
Dec 30, 2024Tap to summarizePoh Fang Chia Psalm 13 How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? Psalm 13:1 Jim has been battling a motor neuron disease for more than a year. The neurons in his muscles are breaking down, and his muscles are wasting away. He’s lost his fine-motor skills and is losing his ability to control his limbs. He can no longer button his shirt or tie his shoelaces, and using a pair of chopsticks has become impossible. Jim struggles with his situation and asks, Why is God allowing this to happen? Why me? He’s in good company with many other believers in Jesus who have brought their questions to God. In Psalm 13, David cries out, “How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart?” (vv. 1-2). We too can take our confusion and questions to God. He understands when we cry out “How long?” and “Why?” His ultimate answer is given to us in Jesus and His triumph over sin and death. As we look at the cross and the empty tomb, we gain confidence to trust in God’s “unfailing love” (v. 5) and rejoice in His salvation. Even in the darkest nights, we can “sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to [us]” (v. 6). Through our faith in Christ, He’s forgiven our sins, adopted us as His children, and is accomplishing His eternal good purpose in our lives. What questions do you need to bring to God? How has He shown His goodness to you, even in your darkest night? Loving Father, thank You that You care for me. Please help me to trust that You’re making something beautiful of my life. Zechariah 13-14; Revelation 21 Psalm 13 is an urgent prayer for God’s aid (vv. 3-4) as well as a lament of the psalmist’s long period of suffering, which is experienced as if God is absent and hiding His face (v. 1). When the psalm asks, “How long?” (vv. 1-2), the point isn’t asking for a specific end date but lamenting how long something has been endured and urging God to end the long wait—to act and make things right. Yet despite Psalm 13’s intense desperation, it’s also a psalm of deep trust (vv. 5-6). Through our bond with a God who we know to be good and faithful, we have the confidence and trust to honestly voice our lament. The reformer Martin Luther called prayer like that expressed in Psalm 13 the “state in which hope despairs, and yet despair hopes at the same time.” Monica La Rose https://odb.org/yjv
Transcribe →Building What Lasts
Dec 29, 2024Tap to summarizeMatt Lucas Genesis 11:1-8 They said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, . . . so that we may make a name for ourselves.” Genesis 11:4 When I was a young boy in Ohio, we lived near several construction sites. Inspired by them, my friends and I gathered leftover scraps to build a fort. Borrowing tools from our parents, we hauled wood and spent days trying to make our material serve our purposes. It was fun, but our attempts were poor reflections of the well-constructed buildings around us. They didn’t last long. In Genesis 11, we encounter a major building construction project. “Let us build ourselves a city,” said the people, “with a tower that reaches to the heavens” (v. 4). A big problem with this effort was that the people did it to “make a name for ourselves” (v. 4). This has been a recurring issue for humans; we build monuments to ourselves and our achievements. Later in the biblical narrative, this story is contrasted with Solomon’s motivation for building God’s temple: “I intend, therefore, to build a temple for the Name of the Lord my God” (1 Kings 5:5). Solomon understood that what he built needed to point to God and not himself. This was such an important lesson that he even wrote a psalm about it. Psalm 127 opens with “unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain” (v. 1). Like my childhood fort-building, what we build will not last, but God’s name and what we do for Him has lasting significance. What are you building with your life? How is your life bringing honor to God? Father, please forgive me for the times I’ve focused on myself and not on what You’re doing in the world. Zechariah 9-12; Revelation 20 The Hebrew word rendered “build/building” in Genesis 11 is banah (vv. 4, 5, 8). This term can refer to a physical building—whether rebuilding or establishing something—and metaphorically to building a family. Both usages occur in 2 Samuel 7 (see vv. 5, 7, 13, 27). Psalm 127:1 includes the word twice: “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain.” Daniel 4:30 includes the Aramaic counterpart to banah from Nebuchadnezzar: “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” In the New Testament “to build” is a metaphor for the work of Christ in establishing His church (see Matthew 16:18; Ephesians 2:19-22). Building plans that fail to consider Jesus as the master builder (see Hebrews 3:4) are subject to fail. Arthur Jackson https://odb.org/yju
Transcribe →Step in Faith
Dec 28, 2024Tap to summarizeKaren Pimpo Exodus 2:1-10 By faith Moses’ parents hid him . . . and they were not afraid. Hebrews 11:23 John was devastated when he lost his job. Closer to the end of his career than the beginning, he knew it would be hard to start over somewhere new. He started praying for the right job. Then John updated his resume, read interview tips, and made a lot of phone calls. After weeks of applying, he accepted a new position with a great schedule and an easy commute. His faithful obedience and God’s provision had met at the perfect intersection. A more dramatic instance of this occurred with Jochebed (Exodus 6:20) and her family during the time of Israel’s enslavement in Egypt. When Pharaoh decreed that all newborn Hebrew sons must be cast into the Nile (1:22), Jochebed must have been terrified. She couldn’t change the law, but there were some steps she could take to obey God and try to save her son. In faith, she hid him from the Egyptians. She made a little, watertight papyrus basket and “put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile” (2:3). God stepped in to miraculously preserve his life (vv. 5-10) and later used him to deliver all of Israel from slavery (3:10). John and Jochebed took very different steps, but both stories are marked by faith-filled action. Fear can paralyze us. Even if the result isn’t what we expected or hoped for, faith empowers us to keep trusting in God’s goodness regardless of the outcome. When do you find yourself frozen in fear or worry? How can you faithfully take the next God-honoring step? Dear God, please help me faithfully take each step on the path You have for me. Zechariah 5-8; Revelation 19 Scripture offers two reasons why Moses’ parents, Amram and Jochebed (Numbers 26:59), protected Moses. First, Jochebed saw that “he was a fine child” (Exodus 2:2); she saw something special in him. He’s described as “no ordinary child” (Acts 7:20; Hebrews 11:23). A second reason is that his parents “were not afraid of the king’s edict” (Hebrews 11:23). Like the two Hebrew midwives Shiphrah and Puah (Exodus 1:15, 17), his parents feared God more than they feared Pharaoh. Hebrews 11:23 commends Amram and Jochebed as people of great faith. K. T. Sim https://odb.org/yjt
Transcribe →Acts of Grace
Dec 27, 2024Tap to summarizeSheridan Voysey 2 Kings 6:18-23 Do not kill them . . . . Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink. 2 Kings 6:22 In the novel About Grace, David Winkler longs to find his estranged daughter, and Herman Sheeler is the only person who can help him. But there’s a hitch. David’s daughter was born from David’s affair with Herman’s wife, and Herman had warned him never to contact them again. Decades pass before David writes to Herman, apologizing for what he’s done. “I have a hole in my life because I know so little about my daughter,” he adds, begging for information about her. He waits to see if Herman will help him. How should we treat those who’ve wronged us? The king of Israel faced this question after his enemies were miraculously delivered into his hands (2 Kings 6:8-20). “Shall I kill them?” he asks the prophet Elisha. No, Elisha says. “Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink and then go back to their master” (vv. 21-22). Through this act of grace, Israel finds peace with its enemies (v. 23). Herman replies to David’s letter, invites him to his home and cooks him a meal. “Lord Jesus,” he prays before they eat, “thank You for watching over me and David all these years.” He helps David find his daughter, and David later saves his life. In God’s hands, our acts of grace toward those who’ve wronged us often result in a blessing to us. Whose acts of grace have inspired you in the past? What act of grace could you offer someone today? Dear Jesus, please give me the wisdom and power today to offer grace to those who’ve wronged me. Zechariah 1-4; Revelation 18 Author Ray Stedman draws an intriguing comparison between the prophets Elijah and Elisha. Elijah first appears in 1 Kings 17. He displays God’s power and judgment, calling down fire from heaven as he faced 450 prophets of the false god Baal (18:30-39). Then in 2 Kings 1:9-12 he did it again, killing the soldiers sent by evil King Ahaziah to arrest him. Then Elisha “took the mantle” (2 Kings 2:14 nkjv), or role, of Elijah. He had a powerful yet less fiery ministry than did Elijah. Stedman notes that Jesus’ ascension into heaven after His resurrection (Acts 1:8-9) was foreshadowed by Elijah, who ascended into heaven in a chariot of fire (2 Kings 2:11-12). Similarly, he also points out that Elisha foreshadows the ministry of the Holy Spirit—the Helper Jesus promised to send us after He returned to His Father. Again and again, we see the Scriptures pointing to Christ. Tim Gustafson https://odb.org/yjs
Transcribe →Face Time with God
Dec 26, 2024Tap to summarizeArthur Jackson Psalm 27:7-14 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek. Psalm 27:8 The year 2022 was very special for my wife and me. That’s the year our granddaughter, Sophia Ashley, was born—the only granddaughter among our eight grandchildren. Sophia’s grandparents haven’t stopped smiling! When our son calls via video, the excitement gets ramped up even more. My wife and I may be in different rooms, but her joyful holler reveals that she’s getting a glimpse of Sophia. Seeing those we love from afar is now only a call or click away. The ability to see the person we’re talking to on the phone is relatively new, but face time with God—prayer with a conscious awareness of being in His presence—is not. David’s prayer in Psalm 27—voiced in the midst of opposition that required assistance beyond the capability of the closest human allies (vv. 10-12)—includes these words: “My heart has heard you say, ‘Come and talk with me.’ And my heart responds, ‘Lord, I am coming’ ” (v. 8 nlt). Difficult times rightly compel us to “seek his face” (v. 8). But that’s not the only time we can or should be in face-to-face fellowship with the one in whose “presence is fullness of joy”; at His “right hand are pleasures forevermore” (16:11 nkjv). If you listen closely, at any time you may hear Him say, “Come and talk with me.” At what time in your day do you find your heart most attuned to God? How can regular communion with Him prepare you for a “day of trouble”? Heavenly Father, I praise You for the privilege of face time with You. Please help me to always be ready to spend time with You in prayer. Haggai 1-2; Revelation 17 David’s anxious prayer in the second half of Psalm 27 (vv. 7-12) must be read against his unwavering proclamation at the beginning of the psalm: “The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life” (v. 1). David chooses to focus on God rather than on his difficult circumstances. He speaks of Him as his light, which guides him safely into God’s presence and goodness. God is also his salvation, delivering him from dangers and death. He’s his stronghold, providing a strong, fortified place for his refuge and security. Knowing who God is, David rhetorically asks, “Of whom shall I be afraid?” (v. 1). The psalmist needn’t fear, for God won’t abandon him. Rather, “the Lord will hold me close” (v. 10 nlt). David invites us to “be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord” (v. 14). K. T. Sim https://odb.org/yjr
Transcribe →Welcome Baby Jesus
Dec 25, 2024Tap to summarizeLisa M. Samra Luke 2:8-20 You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. Luke 2:12 It felt like we’d been waiting forever for news that our pregnant neighbor had welcomed her first baby. When a sign declaring “It’s a Girl!” finally appeared on their front lawn, we celebrated the birth of their daughter and texted friends who might not have seen the outdoor display. There’s great excitement awaiting the arrival of a baby. Before Jesus’ birth, the Jewish people hadn’t just been waiting a few months, they’d longed for the birth of the Messiah, Israel’s expected rescuer, for generations. I imagine that over the years faithful Jews wondered if during their lifetime they would see the fulfillment of this promise. One night the long-anticipated news was displayed in the heavens when an angel appeared to shepherds in Bethlehem announcing that the Messiah had finally been born. He told them, “This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). After the shepherds saw Jesus, they praised God and “spread the word” (v. 17) about the baby. God wanted the shepherds to know that the long-awaited baby had arrived so they could tell others about Jesus’ birth. We still celebrate His birth because His life provides rescue from the brokenness of the world to anyone who believes. We no longer have to wait to know peace and experience joy, which is good news worth announcing! How do you think the shepherds felt hearing the news that Christ was born? How might you share the good news of Jesus’ birth? Dear Jesus, I want everyone to know that Your birth is good news. Zephaniah 1-3; Revelation 16 Luke’s record of Jesus’ birth includes several paradoxes: people—humble, nightshift-shepherds (2:8); place—Bethlehem “the town of David” (v. 11; see also Micah 5:2); and setting—a cloth-wrapped child “lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). At first, these seem to be an incongruent mismatch with the coming of one hailed as “a Savior . . . the Messiah, the Lord” (v. 11). Yet, as we soberly reflect on this Christmas Day, pondering turns to praise of the God who “chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; . . . the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27). Arthur Jackson https://odb.org/yjm
Transcribe →The Light of Christ
Dec 24, 2024Tap to summarizeKirsten Holmberg Matthew 2:1-2, 9-12 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. Matthew 2:10 My husband and I have always enjoyed attending the Christmas Eve service at our church. In the early years of our marriage, we had a special tradition of bundling up in warm clothing after the service to hike up a nearby hill where 350 glowing lights were strung from tall poles in the shape of a star. There—often in the snow—we’d whisper our reflections on Jesus’ miraculous birth while we gazed out over the city. Meanwhile, many people in the town were looking up at the bright, string-light star from the valley below. That star is a reminder of the birth of our Savior. The Bible tells of magi “from the east” who arrived in Jerusalem seeking “the one who [had] been born king of the Jews” (Matthew 2:1-2). They’d been watching the skies and had seen the star “when it rose” (v. 2). Their journey took them onward from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, the star going “ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was” (v. 9). There, they “bowed down and worshiped him” (v. 11). Christ is the source of light in our lives both figuratively (as the one who guides us) and literally as the one who created the sun, moon, and stars in the sky (Colossians 1:15-16). Like the magi who “were overjoyed” when they saw His star (Matthew 2:10), our greatest delight is in knowing Him as the Savior who came down from the heavens to dwell among us. “We have seen his glory” (John 1:14)! How has Jesus brought light to your life? With whom might you share that today? Thank You, Jesus, for being the light of my life. For further study, read Jesus or Herod? The Choice of the Magi. Habakkuk 1-3; Revelation 15 We see an interesting connection between the genealogy in Matthew 1 and some key characters in Matthew 2. In the genealogy, several gentiles are listed among the ancestors of Jesus, including Rahab and Ruth (1:5). Rahab heard of the miracles God performed on behalf of the Israelites and decided she’d rather join God’s people than be destroyed along with her pagan city of Jericho (Joshua 2). Ruth left her country of Moab to follow her mother-in-law Naomi’s God—the one true God (Ruth 1:16-17) and became King David’s great-grandmother. In Matthew 2, the magi from the east came to search for “the one who has been born king of the Jews” (v. 2). They too were gentiles pursuing the one true God. John the apostle wrote: “[Jesus] is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2). Tim Gustafson https://odb.org/yji
Transcribe →Friendly Ambition
Dec 23, 2024Tap to summarizeSheridan Voysey Hebrews 10:19-25 Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Hebrews 10:24 Gregory of Nazianzus and Basil of Caesarea were celebrated leaders in the fourth-century church and also close friends. They first met as philosophy students, and Gregory later said that they became like “two bodies with a single spirit.” With their career paths so similar, rivalry could’ve arisen between Gregory and Basil. But Gregory explained that they avoided this temptation by making a life of faith, hope, and good deeds their “single ambition,” then “spurring each other on” to make the other more successful in this goal than themselves individually. As a result, both grew in faith and rose to high levels of leadership without rivalry. The book of Hebrews is written to help us stay strong in faith (Hebrews 2:1), encouraging us to focus on “the hope we profess” and to “spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (10:23-24). While this command is given in the context of a congregation (v. 25), by applying it to their friendship, Gregory and Basil showed how friends can encourage each other to grow and avoid any “bitter root,” such as rivalry that might grow between them (12:15). What if we made faith, hope, and good deeds the ambition of our own friendships, then encouraged our friends to become more successful in this goal than ourselves individually? The Holy Spirit is ready to help us do both. What qualities do you see in Gregory and Basil’s friendship? How could you encourage your friends to grow in faith, hope, and good deeds? Dear Jesus, please make my friendships rich in faith, hope, and good deeds. Nahum 1-3; Revelation 14 The words priest/high priest occur nearly forty times in the book of Hebrews. The priestly ministry of Jesus comes into view in the earliest verses of the book: “After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven” (Hebrews 1:3). Accolades for Jesus as high priest include words like “merciful and faithful” (2:17) and “great” (4:14; 10:21). The chorus of praise in 7:26 is of note: “Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.” What are the implications for believers in Jesus that He occupies this role? The “therefore” and “let us” phrases help us. “Therefore, . . . since we have confidence . . . and since we have a great priest . . . let us draw near to God . . . let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess . . . let us consider how we may spur one another on” (10:19-24). Arthur Jackson https://odb.org/yjh
Transcribe →Tangible Love
Dec 22, 2024Tap to summarizeAmy Boucher Pye 1 John 4:13-21 We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19 As I sat next to my friend Margaret, who was lying in her hospital bed, I took in the bustle and activity of the other patients, medical staff, and visitors. A young woman sitting nearby with her ailing mother asked Margaret, “Who are all the people who keep visiting you?” She responded, “They’re members of my church family!” The young woman remarked that she’d never seen anything like it; she felt as if the many visitors were “like tangible love poured out.” Margaret replied, smiling, “It all comes down to our love of God through His Son Jesus Christ!” In her response, Margaret echoed the disciple John, who in his final years wrote three letters brimming with love. In his first letter, he said, “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them” (1 John 4:16). That is, those who acknowledge “that Jesus is the Son of God” (v. 15) have God living in them through “his Spirit” (v. 13). How can we lovingly care for others? “We love because he first loved us” (v. 19). Because of the gift of God’s love, visiting Margaret hadn’t felt like a hardship to me or others in our church. I received more than I gave, not only from Margaret, but through observing her gentle witness about her Savior, Jesus. How might God love others through you today? When have you been surprised by someone noticing God’s love in your life? How does His love spur you on to serve others? Loving God, I love because You first loved me. Please keep increasing my love so Your Spirit will shine through me. Micah 6-7; Revelation 13 The night before Jesus was betrayed, He commanded His followers to “love one another” (John 13:34) as He had loved them. Such sacrificial and unconditional love would be the irrefutable proof that they were truly His disciples (v. 35). The author of 1 John (traditionally believed to be the same John who wrote the fourth gospel), says that Christ’s disciples must “live as Jesus did” (2:6)—living a life of loving God and loving others. John reminds us that “God is love” and we must “rely on the love God has for us” (4:16). Reminiscent of the language of John 3:16, the author reminds us that God loves us in this way: “He sent his one and only Son into the world . . . as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9-10). “He has given us of his Spirit” to help us live and love (v. 13). K. T. Sim https://odb.org/yjf
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