Joshua 20, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: LISTEN FOR HIS VOICE - January 21, 2026

Wait on the Spirit. If Peter and the apostles needed his help, don’t we? They walked with Jesus for three years, heard his preaching, and saw his miracles. They saw the body of Christ buried in the grave and raised from the dead.  They witnessed his upper room appearance and heard his instruction. Had they not received the best possible training? Weren’t they ready? Yet Jesus told them to wait on the Spirit. “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised…the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4-5).

Learn to wait, to be silent, to listen for his voice. Cherish stillness; sensitize yourself to his touch. And just think—you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all. All God’s gifts right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene.

God's Story, Your Story

Joshua 20

Asylum-Cities

1–3  20 Then God spoke to Joshua: “Tell the People of Israel: Designate the asylum-cities, as I instructed you through Moses, so that anyone who kills a person accidentally—that is, unintentionally—may flee there as a safe place of asylum from the avenger of blood.

4  “A person shall escape for refuge to one of these cities, stand at the entrance to the city gate, and lay out his case before the city’s leaders. The leaders must then take him into the city among them and give him a place to live with them.

5–6  “If the avenger of blood chases after him, they must not give him up—he didn’t intend to kill the person; there was no history of ill-feeling. He may stay in that city until he has stood trial before the congregation and until the death of the current high priest. Then he may go back to his own home in his hometown from which he fled.”

7  They set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hills of Naphtali, Shechem in the hills of Ephraim, and Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the hills of Judah.

8–9  On the other side of the Jordan, east of Jericho, they designated Bezer on the desert plateau from the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan from the tribe of Manasseh. These were the designated cities for the People of Israel and any resident foreigner living among them, so that anyone who killed someone unintentionally could flee there and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood without a fair trial before the congregation.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, January 21, 2026

by 

Anne Cetas

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

2 Kings 4:8-10, 14-17

One day Elisha passed through Shunem. A leading lady of the town talked him into stopping for a meal. And then it became his custom: Whenever he passed through, he stopped by for a meal.

9–10  “I’m certain,” said the woman to her husband, “that this man who stops by with us all the time is a holy man of God. Why don’t we add on a small room upstairs and furnish it with a bed and desk, chair and lamp, so that when he comes by he can stay with us?”

14  Elisha conferred with Gehazi: “There’s got to be something we can do for her. But what?”

Gehazi said, “Well, she has no son, and her husband is an old man.”

15  “Call her in,” said Elisha. He called her and she stood at the open door.

16  Elisha said to her, “This time next year you’re going to be nursing an infant son.”

“O my master, O Holy Man,” she said, “don’t play games with me, teasing me with such fantasies!”

17  The woman conceived. A year later, just as Elisha had said, she had a son.

Today's Insights

Elisha usually takes a back seat to the more celebrated Elijah, yet Elisha’s ministry was both powerful and profound. He experienced a divine interruption when Elijah abruptly cast his cloak upon him—signifying he was being called to follow and be trained for service (1 Kings 19:19-21). In the midst of plowing his family’s fields, the trajectory of Elisha’s life was changed as he not only followed Elijah, but he used the yoke and oxen to make a sacrificial offering, apparently as a statement of his commitment to follow the prophet. He enjoyed a much longer ministry than Elijah, and by the power of God performed more miracles than that of his mentor. Today, we can ask God to help us be open to His plans for us as we look for ways to serve others.

Divine Interruptions

A well-to-do woman . . . urged [Elisha] to stay for a meal. 2 Kings 4:8

Up early, Sara wrote her to-do list for the day. But she was interrupted with a request from a young, struggling family. They desperately needed a gas card from church to be delivered to them. Sara was busy but knew God wanted her to do this. So she agreed to drop it off at the hotel where the church was having them stay for a few weeks. She got the card and checked the address—the drive was farther than she’d anticipated, so she complained to God, It’s going to take too much gas to get this to them!

Sara sensed these words in her spirit: Haven’t I provided for you? She replied, Yes, God, You have. Forgive my attitude. When she arrived, she found the couple, gave them the card, and held their baby. Sara thanked God on her drive home for blessing her with this simple, yet joyful opportunity.

In Elisha’s travels to Shunem in Israel, he found a woman who had a servant’s heart toward him. She urged Elisha “to stay for a meal,” so he often “stopped there to eat” (2 Kings 4:8). She and her husband even built him a room so whenever he came to their town, he’d have a place to stay (vv. 9-10). God graciously chose to bless them through Elisha’s prophecy of a child (v. 16).

Whether serving a prophet of God or a homeless family, when we’re open to God’s plan and defer to His to-do list, God delights to bless our hearts with joy.

Reflect & Pray

What interruption might be God’s plan for you? How can you serve in ways that are best for others?

Dear God, please open my heart to hear Your voice and serve as You lead.

For further study, read When He Was Gone.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, January 21, 2026

What God Remembers

I remember the devotion of your youth. —Jeremiah 2:2

Am I as spontaneously kind to God as I used to be, or am I only expecting God to be kind to me? Am I full of the sort of small, simple actions and thoughts that cheer his heart? Or am I constantly irritated, obsessed with the idea that things aren’t going my way?

There is no joy in the soul that has forgotten what God loves and needs. Think on this: God needs you. Do you know that? It is a great thing. “Will you give me a drink?” Jesus asked the Samaritan woman, counting on the spontaneous spark of goodness and charity that might lead someone from a different people, a different tribe, to offer help (John 4:7). We too must act in spontaneous joy and love for his sake—the sake of his reputation with others.

Do I remember how it was in the beginning of my relationship with him? God does: “I remember the devotion of your youth.” God remembers when I cared for nothing but him, when I had an extravagance of love for Jesus, when I would have gone anywhere, done anything, to prove my love.

Am I still so in love that I take no consideration for myself? Or have I grown calculating, always watching for the respect I think I deserve, weighing how much service I should give, asking if it’s worth it?

Remember as God remembers. And if you find that he is not what he used to be—your soul’s beloved—let it produce shame and humiliation. The shame will bring the goodly, godly sorrow that works repentance.

Exodus 1-3; Matthew 14:1-21

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The root of faith is the knowledge of a Person, and one of the biggest snares is the idea that God is sure to lead us to success.

My Utmost for His Highest, March 19, 761 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, January 21, 2026

BEAUTY FROM BROKENNESS - #10183

Our daughter-in-law grew up in the desert. So, the first time she saw the ocean, and the seashells that are all over the beach at low tide, she said, "Can you keep them?" She did! I mean, the good news is, "Yes, you can." And we've loved collecting seashells when we've had opportunity to spend time along the coast. Some of those shells make it to the shore totally intact. Others, well you know, are broken, sometimes by the surf, sometimes by seagulls who've peck them open to get at their yummy tenants. Occasionally, I've found a particularly striking treasure, though, like the conch shell that I picked up a few years ago. It was badly broken. But inside there was some amazing beauty - beautiful swirls in white and blue and pearl, and it made an incredible design to behold. Outside, that shell was just like rough and plain - just another shell - but not on the inside. I never would have seen its unforgettable beauty if it hadn't been broken.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Beauty From Brokenness."

God displays some of His most beautiful creations through broken things. Maybe broken is a word that in some way describes you right now. Then it's possible He could show folks some of His beauty through you.

As hard as that might be for you to believe right now, you need to hear what your Creator has promised to broken people in our word for today from the Word of God. It's in Isaiah 61, beginning with verse 1. Speaking of Jesus, the Bible says, "The Sovereign Lord has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners...to comfort all those who mourn...to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair." God says that, through His Son, He wants to unleash in your soul healing for the pain of your past, and a freedom from the darkness that has brought you down. He wants to turn what's been something ugly into something beautiful and something life-giving.

He goes on to say of the broken people He touches that "they will be called oaks of righteousness...for the display of His splendor. They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated...All who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the Lord has blessed." So, God says He wants to do a powerful restoring, hope-giving work in broken people, so He can use them to do a powerful, hope-giving work for Him in a broken world.

I know He does that. I've seen it in a team of young Native Americans who have lived the despair of the highest rates of alcohol and drug abuse, and sexual abuse, and suicide on this continent. They are broken! But with Christ now in their lives, they go on our On Eagles' Wings team to the heart of North America's reservations telling their hope stories. And a generation that hasn't listened to anyone, that's written off Jesus as the white man's God, listens to them. And they have led literally thousands of Native Americans to Christ, because the light shines more brightly through broken vessels...a broken vessel like you and me.

They will listen to you because of your scars. They can see through your wounds the amazing beauty of a joy and a hope that only a Savior like Jesus can give. If you'll turn away from your despair, and maybe your bitterness, anger, self-pity, and give your brokenness to Him, He can do that miracle for you.

The songwriter was right when he said this, "All I had to offer Him was brokenness and strife. But He made something beautiful of my life."

Joshua 19, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: WAIT FOR GOD - January 20, 2026

To walk in the Spirit, respond to the promptings God gives you. Don’t sense any nudging? Just be patient and wait. Jesus told the disciples, “wait for the gift my Father promised—the Holy Spirit“ (Acts 1:4-5). Abraham waited for the promised son. Moses waited forty years in the wilderness. Jesus waited thirty years before he began his ministry.

God instills seasons of silence in his plan. Winter is needed for the soil to bear fruit. Time is needed for the development of a crop. And disciples wait for the move of God. Wait for him to move, nudge, and direct you. This beautiful promise in Isaiah 30:21 where God says, “This is the way; walk in it.” It’s nice to be led by a master. Won’t you let your Master lead you?

God's Story, Your Story

Joshua 19

Simeon

1–8  19 The second lot went to Simeon for its clans. Their inheritance was within the territory of Judah. In their inheritance they had:

Beer-sheba (or Sheba), Moladah,

Hazar Shual, Balah, Ezem,

Eltolad, Bethul, Hormah,

Ziklag, Beth Marcaboth, Hazar Susah,

Beth Lebaoth, and Sharuhen—

thirteen towns and their villages.

Ain, Rimmon, Ether, and Ashan—

four towns and their villages—plus all the villages around these towns as far as Baalath Beer, the Ramah of the Negev.

8–9  This is the inheritance of the tribe of Simeon according to its clans. The inheritance of Simeon came out of the share of Judah, because Judah’s portion turned out to be more than they needed. That’s how the people of Simeon came to get their lot from within Judah’s portion.

Zebulun

10–15  The third lot went to Zebulun, clan by clan:

The border of their inheritance went all the way to Sarid. It ran west to Maralah, met Dabbesheth, and then went to the brook opposite Jokneam. In the other direction from Sarid, the border ran east; it followed the sunrise to the border of Kisloth Tabor, on to Daberath and up to Japhia. It continued east to Gath Hepher and Eth Kazin, came out at Rimmon, and turned toward Neah. There the border went around on the north to Hannathon and ran out into the Valley of Iphtah El. It included Kattath, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem—twelve cities with their villages.

16  This is the inheritance of the people of Zebulun for their clans—these towns and their villages.

Issachar

17–21  The fourth lot went to Issachar, clan by clan. Their territory included:

Jezreel, Kesulloth, Shunem,

Hapharaim, Shion, Anaharath,

Rabbith, Kishion, Ebez,

Remeth, En Gannim, En Haddah, and Beth Pazzez.

22  The boundary touched Tabor, Shahazumah, and Beth Shemesh and ended at the Jordan—sixteen towns and their villages.

23  These towns with their villages were the inheritance of the tribe of Issachar, clan by clan.

Asher

24  The fifth lot went to the tribe of Asher, clan by clan:

25–30  Their territory included Helkath, Hali, Beten, Acshaph, Allammelech, Amad, and Mishal. The western border touched Carmel and Shihor Libnath, then turned east toward Beth Dagon, touched Zebulun and the Valley of Iphtah El, and went north to Beth Emek and Neiel, skirting Cabul on the left. It went on to Abdon, Rehob, Hammon, and Kanah, all the way to Greater Sidon. The border circled back toward Ramah, extended to the fort city of Tyre, turned toward Hosah, and came out at the Sea in the region of Aczib, Ummah, Aphek, and Rehob—twenty-two towns and their villages.

31  These towns and villages were the inheritance of the tribe of Asher, clan by clan.

Naphtali

32  The sixth lot came to Naphtali and its clans.

33  Their border ran from Heleph, from the oak at Zaanannim, passing Adami Nekeb and Jabneel to Lakkum and ending at the Jordan.

34  The border returned on the west at Aznoth Tabor and came out at Hukkok, meeting Zebulun on the south, Asher on the west, and the Jordan on the east.

The fort cities were:

35–38  Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Kinnereth,

Adamah, Ramah, Hazor,

Kedesh, Edrei, En Hazor,

Iron, Migdal El, Horem, Beth Anath, and Beth Shemesh—

nineteen towns and their villages.

39  This is the inheritance of the tribe of Naphtali, the cities and their villages, clan by clan.

Dan

40–46  The seventh lot fell to Dan. The territory of their inheritance included:

Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir Shemesh,

Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Ithlah,

Elon, Timnah, Ekron,

Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Baalath,

Jehud, Bene Berak, Gath Rimmon,

Me Jarkon, and Rakkon, with the region facing Joppa.

47  But the people of Dan failed to get rid of the Westerners (Amorites), who pushed them back into the hills. The Westerners kept them out of the plain and they didn’t have enough room. So the people of Dan marched up and attacked Leshem. They took it, killed the inhabitants, and settled in. They renamed it Leshem Dan after the name of Dan their ancestor.

48  This is the inheritance of the tribe of Dan, according to its clans, these towns with their villages.

49–50  They completed the dividing of the land as inheritance and the setting of its boundaries. The People of Israel then gave an inheritance among them to Joshua son of Nun. In obedience to God’s word, they gave him the city which he had requested, Timnath Serah in the hill country of Ephraim. He rebuilt the city and settled there.

51  These are the inheritances which Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun and the ancestral leaders assigned by lot to the tribes of Israel at Shiloh in the presence of God at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. They completed the dividing of the land.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Tuesday, January 20, 2026

by Marvin Williams

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

1 Peter 4:12-19

Glory Just Around the Corner

12–13  Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.

14–16  If you’re abused because of Christ, count yourself fortunate. It’s the Spirit of God and his glory in you that brought you to the notice of others. If they’re on you because you broke the law or disturbed the peace, that’s a different matter. But if it’s because you’re a Christian, don’t give it a second thought. Be proud of the distinguished status reflected in that name!

17–19  It’s judgment time for God’s own family. We’re first in line. If it starts with us, think what it’s going to be like for those who refuse God’s Message!

If good people barely make it,

what’s in store for the bad?

So if you find life difficult because you’re doing what God said, take it in stride. Trust him. He knows what he’s doing, and he’ll keep on doing it.

Today's Insights

For gentile converts, the experience of being persecuted would’ve been a new and likely shocking experience. The Jewish people had experienced generations of suffering as a minority culture group and had therefore developed ways of understanding suffering and even dying for their faith. But the gentiles had been completely at ease with and accepted in their culture before their conversion to belief in Jesus. Experiencing suffering might have even caused them to doubt the truth of the gospel if they thought God’s favor should lead to their prosperity. To address this, the apostle Peter emphasizes that there’s nothing “strange” (1 Peter 4:12) about suffering for Christ. Instead, those who bear His name could view suffering for Him as a way of participating in His own suffering and could eagerly wait for the day they’d share in His glory too (vv. 13-14). As believers in Jesus, we belong to Him, and God will help us live in a way that brings honor to His name.

Our Birthright in Christ

The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. Acts 11:26

The owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks offered a Chicago sports-talk host $100,000 to legally change his name to "Dallas Maverick." In addition, he said he would donate $100,000 to the man’s favorite charity. After some soul-searching, the radio host held firm and told the owner no. He explained, “I'd be saying I'd do anything for money, and that bothers me. My name is my birthright. I’d like to preserve my integrity and credibility.” 

Just as the radio host’s name is his birthright, early believers in Jesus took on the name “Christian” as their spiritual birthright. Barnabas and Saul ministered a year in Antioch, and through the preaching of the good news, the church grew. The early believers in Antioch lived so much like Christ that people who didn’t believe in Jesus—called them “Christians” (Acts 11:26). So “Christians” were those who belonged to Christ. Bearing that name ultimately became a source of persecution. But Peter encouraged believers to “not be ashamed” of their birthright and of suffering for bearing that name (1 Peter 4:16).

For those who believe in Jesus, “Christian” is our birthright, and no amount of money, suffering, or abuse should cause us to compromise that name. We have a responsibility, as God provides what we need, to live every day to bring honor to the name of Christ.

Reflect & Pray

When people hear the name “Christian,” what do you think fills their thoughts? What does it mean for you to be called a Christian?

Dear Jesus, please help me to live in a way that honors Your name.

Learn more about Jesus' teachings by reading Echoes of the Sermon on the Mount.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Tuesday, January 20, 2026

Are You Fresh for Everything?

No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again. —John 3:3

Being born again of the Spirit is an unmistakable work of God, as mysterious as the wind, as surprising as God himself. We do not know where it begins; it is hidden away in the depths of our personal lives.

Being born again from above is a perennial, perpetual, and eternal beginning. It is a freshness all the time in thinking and talking and living, the continual surprise of the life of God. Sometimes, we are fresh for a prayer meeting, but not for cleaning boots! If this is the case, it’s a sign that something isn’t right between our souls and God. If we’ve ever found ourselves grumbling, “I have to do this thing or it will never get done,” we’ve let staleness creep in.

Consider the moment you are in right now: Do you feel the spark of eternity, of life itself, lighting you from within? The spark never comes from our own efforts. Obedience keeps us in the light, but it doesn’t fill us with vibrant, vital, untiring life. This can only come from the Spirit. To keep in touch with the Spirit within, we must jealously guard our relationship to God. Jesus prayed that we would be one as he and the Father are one—with absolutely nothing in between (John 17:21).

Keep every area of your life continually open to Jesus Christ. Don’t pretend with him. Are you drawing on any other source than God himself? If you’re depending upon anything but him, you will never know when he is gone. Being born of the Spirit means much more than we generally take it to mean. It gives us a new vision and keeps us absolutely fresh for everything, thanks to the perennial supply of the life of God.

Genesis 49-50; Matthew 13:31-58

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The attitude of a Christian towards the providential order in which he is placed is to recognize that God is behind it for purposes of His own. 

Biblical Ethics, 99 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Tuesday, January 20, 2026

LIVING WHERE IT'S SAFE - #10182

The Lakota Sioux call them the Paha Sapa. We call them the Black Hills. The people who live in Keystone, South Dakota, call them their backyard. If you have ever visited Mt. Rushmore and the Black Hills, you probably drove by or through Keystone. But the Keystone you drive through now isn't where Keystone used to be - not since the flood of 1972. It was devastating. Back then, Keystone was in the valley by a lazy little creek which suddenly became a raging flood one day in 1972, roaring through that valley, destroying the town, and claiming many lives in the area. Well, it was then that the folks of Keystone decided to make a change. When they rebuilt their business district and many of their homes, it wasn't on the ground they had always been on. No, the flood changed all that. They moved up the mountain to higher ground.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Living Where It's Safe."

Life's floods come in many forms; those major crises or disasters that carry away a lot of what we had been depending on. An illness, or maybe a death can do that, a divorce can do it, a disaster, a broken relationship, the loss of your job. There are a lot of upheavals that come rushing in and they change the landscape of our life forever. And they make you think, maybe for the first time, about where is the best place to build the rest of my life.

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 46: "God is our refuge and strength; an ever present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea" - here come the floods - "though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging" (verses 1-3). We're talking here about life's major upheavals - everything you used to count on getting washed away.

But remember, "God is our refuge and strength," so we don't have to fear those things. Why? Because when you've lost everything, you haven't lost everything! Not if you have a deep, personal love relationship with the God who never leaves, never lets go of those who belong to Him.

The Psalm goes on to say, "The Lord Almighty is with us, come and see the works of the Lord" (verses 7-8). And then a simple statement that may explain the reason the flood was allowed to happen, so you would finally, "Be still and know that I am God" (verse 10). Maybe, for all practical purposes, you've been "God" in your life. You've been controlling things; you've been living life your way. And you've been building your life around someone or something here on earth - something or someone that the flood may be washing away, or maybe it already has.

God's message to you through all of your stress and your pain is, "It's time to move to higher ground." Having seen how fragile, how losable all your earth stuff is, are you ready to build on something you can never lose, no matter what hits you? You were created to build your life on the One who gave you your life - God Himself. But the Bible says we've built it on ourselves. And it took the brutal death of God's Son, Jesus on the cross, to pay the death penalty for all of our "I'll be God" choices.

The folks in Keystone, South Dakota, would never have considered moving to higher ground until that flood hit. And maybe you would have never considered turning your life over to Jesus Christ, but now the floods have hit. And you now know that nothing earth can offer you will give you what your heart is so hungry for. Isn't it time to move up the hill? It's the hill where Jesus died for you so you could finally have something that's called "ever-lasting"?

If that's what you want, would you tell Jesus you're done running your life and you want to put your trust in the One who died for your sin? Check out our website today, it will help you know how to be sure you belong to Jesus. It's ANewStory.com.

The flood has done its damage, and maybe it's sent its message. The ground you've been on is not where you were meant to live. It's time to move to the higher ground that you were made for. And, Jesus is the higher ground. And you, my friend, will be safe. Safe forever.

Luke 11:1-28, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: SPIRITUAL DASHBOARD - January 19, 2026

Is there anything in your life that needs to be removed? Any impediment to the impression of God’s Spirit? We can grieve the Spirit with our angry words and resist the Spirit in our disobedience. We can test or conspire against the Spirit in our plottings. We can even quench the Spirit by having no regard for God’s teachings.

But here’s something that helps us stay in step with the Spirit. It’s in Galatians 5:22: “We know that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” These are indicators on our spiritual dashboards. So whenever we sense them, we know we are walking in the Spirit. Whenever we lack them, we know we are out of step with the Spirit. Keep in step with the Spirit.

God's Story, Your Story

Luke 11:1-28

Ask for What You Need

1  11 One day he was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said, “Master, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”

2–4  So he said, “When you pray, say,

Father,

Reveal who you are.

Set the world right.

Keep us alive with three square meals.

Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.

Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.”

5–6  Then he said, “Imagine what would happen if you went to a friend in the middle of the night and said, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread. An old friend traveling through just showed up, and I don’t have a thing on hand.’

7  “The friend answers from his bed, ‘Don’t bother me. The door’s locked; my children are all down for the night; I can’t get up to give you anything.’

8  “But let me tell you, even if he won’t get up because he’s a friend, if you stand your ground, knocking and waking all the neighbors, he’ll finally get up and get you whatever you need.

9  “Here’s what I’m saying:

Ask and you’ll get;

Seek and you’ll find;

Knock and the door will open.

10–13  “Don’t bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This is not a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we’re in. If your little boy asks for a serving of fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? If your little girl asks for an egg, do you trick her with a spider? As bad as you are, you wouldn’t think of such a thing—you’re at least decent to your own children. And don’t you think the Father who conceived you in love will give the Holy Spirit when you ask him?”

No Neutral Ground

14–16  Jesus delivered a man from a demon that had kept him speechless. The demon gone, the man started talking a blue streak, taking the crowd by complete surprise. But some from the crowd were cynical. “Black magic,” they said. “Some devil trick he’s pulled from his sleeve.” Others were skeptical, waiting around for him to prove himself with a spectacular miracle.

17–20  Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, “Any country in civil war for very long is wasted. A constantly squabbling family falls to pieces. If Satan cancels Satan, is there any Satan left? You accuse me of ganging up with the Devil, the prince of demons, to cast out demons, but if you’re slinging devil mud at me, calling me a devil who kicks out devils, doesn’t the same mud stick to your own exorcists? But if it’s God’s finger I’m pointing that sends the demons on their way, then God’s kingdom is here for sure.

21–22  “When a strong man, armed to the teeth, stands guard in his front yard, his property is safe and sound. But what if a stronger man comes along with superior weapons? Then he’s beaten at his own game, the arsenal that gave him such confidence hauled off, and his precious possessions plundered.

23  “This is war, and there is no neutral ground. If you’re not on my side, you’re the enemy; if you’re not helping, you’re making things worse.

24–26  “When a corrupting spirit is expelled from someone, it drifts along through the desert looking for an oasis, some unsuspecting soul it can bedevil. When it doesn’t find anyone, it says, ‘I’ll go back to my old haunt.’ On return, it finds the person swept and dusted, but vacant. It then runs out and rounds up seven other spirits dirtier than itself and they all move in, whooping it up. That person ends up far worse than if he’d never gotten cleaned up in the first place.”

27  While he was saying these things, some woman lifted her voice above the murmur of the crowd: “Blessed the womb that carried you, and the breasts at which you nursed!”

28  Jesus commented, “Even more blessed are those who hear God’s Word and guard it with their lives!”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Monday, January 19, 2026

by Amy Boucher Pye

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Acts 10:30-35, 39-43

 Cornelius said, “Four days ago at about this time, mid-afternoon, I was home praying. Suddenly there was a man right in front of me, flooding the room with light. He said, ‘Cornelius, your daily prayers and neighborly acts have brought you to God’s attention. I want you to send to Joppa to get Simon, the one they call Peter. He’s staying with Simon the Tanner down by the sea.’

33  “So I did it—I sent for you. And you’ve been good enough to come. And now we’re all here in God’s presence, ready to listen to whatever the Master put in your heart to tell us.”

34–36  Peter fairly exploded with his good news: “It’s God’s own truth, nothing could be plainer: God plays no favorites! It makes no difference who you are or where you’re from—if you want God and are ready to do as he says, the door is open.

39–43  “And we saw it, saw it all, everything he did in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem where they killed him, hung him from a cross. But in three days God had him up, alive, and out where he could be seen. Not everyone saw him—he wasn’t put on public display. Witnesses had been carefully hand-picked by God beforehand—us! We were the ones, there to eat and drink with him after he came back from the dead. He commissioned us to announce this in public, to bear solemn witness that he is in fact the One whom God destined as Judge of the living and dead. But we’re not alone in this. Our witness that he is the means to forgiveness of sins is backed up by the witness of all the prophets.”

Today's Insights

In Acts 10, Peter’s response to God’s command contrasts with that of the prophet Jonah. God commanded both the wayward prophet and Peter to take His words to non-Jewish people. Jonah fled by way of Joppa so that he didn’t have to obey (Jonah 1:3), but Peter, while in Joppa, listened and headed straight to Cornelius (Acts 10:23-24). Jonah responded to God’s outpouring of compassion with anger (Jonah 4:1), but Peter allowed his heart and mind to change in light of God’s acceptance of the outsider (Acts 10:34, 44-48). Believers in Jesus are called to love everyone without favoritism, for we’re all made in the image of God.

From Every Nation

God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. Acts 10:34-35

London is a cosmopolitan city, with people from many nations living side by side. This coming together of people from around the world can bring richness—including amazing food—but also challenges. For instance, I was saddened that friends from one European country felt they were the least respected in London because their country had been admitted to the European Union more recently. They felt overlooked, blamed for problems, and resented for the jobs they secured.

Since God doesn’t show favoritism, neither should we. He breaks down barriers between people. We see His Spirit at work in Peter’s vision while praying on the rooftop, and how Peter was called to minister to Cornelius, a God-fearing gentile. God helped Peter evaluate the Jewish regulations about not associating with gentiles. The apostle listened and went to Cornelius’ home to share the good news of Jesus. He said, “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right” (Acts 10:34-35).

Those who follow Jesus are called to love and serve all those who are made in the image of Christ. Part of that mission is to not to show favoritism for people from certain nations or with particular skin colors. May we learn to seek justice and to defend the oppressed as God guides us (Isaiah 1:17).

Reflect & Pray

Why do you think God breaks down barriers between people of different nations? How could you speak out for the oppressed?

Dear God, please help me make a difference for You in my community.

God longs to use us to reach the nations. Learn more by reading The Impact of Obedience on God’s Administration of Grace.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Monday, January 19, 2026

Vision and Darkness

A thick and dreadful darkness came over him. —Genesis 15:12

When God gives us a vision, he puts us, so to speak, in the shadow of his hand. There is a darkness that comes from too much light, and this is the time to listen. Thirteen years of silence passed between visions God sent Abraham, but in that time Abraham’s selfishness and self-sufficiency were destroyed and he was transformed into the man God wanted him to be, a man worthy of being called the father of many nations (Genesis 17). Those years of silence were a time of discipline, not punishment.

Whenever God sends you a vision and darkness follows, wait. God is remaking you in the image of what he has shown you: “Let the one who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on their God” (Isaiah 50:10).

Am I trusting entirely in the name of the Lord, or is my confidence in myself and other people? Is it in books and prayers and ecstasies, or is it in God himself? The one thing for which we are all being disciplined is to know that God is real. Until we know this, the vision will not come to pass. After we know it, everything that seemed so real to us before—books and prayers, other people’s words and actions—will become as shadows. Nothing can disturb the one who is built on God.

Genesis 46-48; Matthew 13:1-30

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

“When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?” We all have faith in good principles, in good management, in good common sense, but who amongst us has faith in Jesus Christ? Physical courage is grand, moral courage is grander, but the man who trusts Jesus Christ in the face of the terrific problems of life is worth a whole crowd of heroes.

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Monday, January 19, 2026

KNOWING HIS VOICE - #10181

My wife, my son and I were walking across a parking lot talking. All of a sudden the people who were walking in front of us whirled around and the lady said, "I know that voice!" Well, I'm always afraid when somebody says that to me; I wonder if it's like somebody I like, you know, I owe money to. But this does happen every once in a while, and sometimes it's someone I do owe money to, but more often than not it's someone who somehow has come into contact with this particular voice over the radio, and usually on a lot of occasions.

In fact, in the past, my son has said to me, "Dad, would you please talk in a different voice today? We just don't want anybody to know who it is." So I considered talking like this sometimes. Hello, how is this? But they weren't interested in that. No, it's not that bad.

It's really nice to meet some people who are friends by way of radio. People say to me, "Oh, I know that voice." Well, of course, they happen to tune in to the radio the same time every day, they happen to hear this voice a lot. In fact, one person came up to me and right in the middle of a Christian book store and they said, "Hey, you sound just like yourself." Uh...right, I always have! Actually I'm not the only one.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Knowing His Voice."

Our word for today from the Word of God - John 10:4-5. Jesus is speaking of himself as the Good Shepherd, and He says "His sheep follow him because they know his voice, but they will never follow a stranger. In fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice." Then He goes on to say to us later in the chapter, "I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They, too, will listen to My voice." He keeps saying that over and over again, "Listen to my voice."

And then in John 10:27 Jesus says, "My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me." Jesus says here that the strategic issue in the life of one of His sheep (and that's you and me if you've given your life to Christ) is that they be able to recognize their shepherd's voice. And they can. The sheep do, because they hear the shepherd's voice all the time; they're used to listening to it.

Someone who is involved in the ministry asked me the other day, "Ron, how can you really know God's will when you're making a major decision?" You have to be able to recognize Jesus' voice saying, "Follow Me this way" in the middle of all the other voices. You can't recognize Jesus' voice in the major decisions if you haven't been listening to His voice every day. See, God's will for your life isn't three or four major decisions, it's a thousand daily obediences. "Lord, what's Your will for today?" You open His Book; you seek personal daily orders for today. You apply that verse to something you're facing today, and then you obey the Lord consciously in that particular area. You do what His voice said to do.

So you have a God's will day and then seven of those make a God's will week. After 30 times it becomes a God's will month, and then eventually those months become a "God's will" year. And through each daily obedience He is making you into the right person, who will be at the right place, at the right time, with the right people. So, you walk naturally into His will for your future one day at a time. But you cannot skip His daily broadcasts; His daily "I want to have a word with you today." You follow your Lord on a 24-hour basis. He will lead you where you ought to be, because He's just a good leader. You have to be able, though, to recognize His voice, and God sounds just like Himself.

Listen to Him regularly. And when you're looking for His special leading for a special decision, you'll sense His pull, and you know what you're going to say? "I know that voice."

Joshua 18, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Grace Makes All the Difference

If life is…  "because I have to"-where's the joy in that?  Too often I hear folks rejecting Christ because they think the Christian life is all about rules and regulations-all about stifling and suffocating ritual.

This happens when we confuse Christ with legalism.  Legalism is joyless because it's endless.  There's always another class to attend.  Inmates incarcerated in self-salvation find work, but never joy!

Grace!  It makes all the difference.  I like this quote: "Gone are the exertions of law-keeping, gone the disciplines of legalism, the anxiety that having done everything we might not have done enough.  We reach the goal, not by the stairs, but by the lift-God pledges his promised righteousness to those who will stop trying to save themselves!"1

Grace offers rest.  Legalism?  Never!

From GRACE

Joshua 18

The Shiloh Survey

1–2  18 Then the entire congregation of the People of Israel got together at Shiloh. They put up the Tent of Meeting.

The land was under their control but there were still seven Israelite tribes who had yet to receive their inheritance.

3–5  Joshua addressed the People of Israel: “How long are you going to sit around on your hands, putting off taking possession of the land that God, the God of your ancestors, has given you? Pick three men from each tribe so I can commission them. They will survey and map the land, showing the inheritance due each tribe, and report back to me. They will divide it into seven parts. Judah will stay in its territory in the south and the people of Joseph will keep to their place in the north.

6  “You are responsible for preparing a survey map showing seven portions. Then bring it to me so that I can cast lots for you here in the presence of our God.

7  “Only the Levites get no portion among you because the priesthood of God is their inheritance. And Gad, Reuben, and the half-tribe of Manasseh already have their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan, given to them by Moses the servant of God.”

8  So the men set out. As they went out to survey the land, Joshua charged them: “Go. Survey the land and map it. Then come back to me and I will cast lots for you here at Shiloh in the presence of God.”

9  So off the men went. They covered the ground and mapped the country by towns in a scroll. Then they reported back to Joshua at the camp at Shiloh.

10  Joshua cast the lots for them at Shiloh in the presence of God. That’s where Joshua divided up the land to the People of Israel, according to their tribal divisions.

Ben-jamin

11  The first lot turned up for the tribe of Ben-jamin with its clans. The border of the allotment went between the peoples of Judah and Joseph.

12–13  The northern border began at the Jordan, then went up to the ridge north of Jericho, ascending west into the hill country into the wilderness of Beth Aven. From there the border went around to Luz, to its southern ridge (that is, Bethel), and then down from Ataroth Addar to the mountain to the south of Lower Beth Horon.

14  There the border took a turn on the west side and swung south from the mountain to the south of Beth Horon and ended at Kiriath Baal (that is, Kiriath Jearim), a town of the people of Judah. This was the west side.

15–19  The southern border began at the edge of Kiriath Jearim on the west, then ran west until it reached the spring, the Waters of Nephtoah. It then descended to the foot of the mountain opposite the Valley of Ben Hinnom (which flanks the Valley of Rephaim to the north), descended to the Hinnom Valley, just south of the Jebusite ridge, and went on to En Rogel. From there it curved north to En Shemesh and Geliloth, opposite the Red Pass (Adummim), down to the Stone of Bohan the son of Reuben, continued toward the north flank of Beth Arabah, then plunged to the Arabah. It then followed the slope of Beth Hoglah north and came out at the northern bay of the Salt Sea—the south end of the Jordan. This was the southern border.

20  The east border was formed by the Jordan.

This was the inheritance of the people of Ben-jamin for their clans, marked by these borders on all sides.

21–28  The cities of the tribe of Ben-jamin, clan by clan, were:

Jericho, Beth Hoglah, Emek Keziz,

Beth Arabah, Zemaraim, Bethel,

Avvim, Parah, Ophrah,

Kephar Ammoni, Ophni, and Geba—

twelve towns with their villages.

Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth,

Mizpah, Kephirah, Mozah,

Rekem, Irpeel, Taralah,

Zelah, Haeleph, the Jebusite city (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath Jearim—

fourteen cities with their villages. This was the inheritance for Ben-jamin, according to its clans.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Sunday, January 18, 2026

by Tom Felten

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Nehemiah 6:1-9

“I’m Doing a Great Work; I Can’t Come Down”

1–2  6 When Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies heard that I had rebuilt the wall and that there were no more breaks in it—even though I hadn’t yet installed the gates—Sanballat and Geshem sent this message: “Come and meet with us at Kephirim in the valley of Ono.”

2–3  I knew they were scheming to hurt me so I sent messengers back with this: “I’m doing a great work; I can’t come down. Why should the work come to a standstill just so I can come down to see you?”

4  Four times they sent this message and four times I gave them my answer.

5–6  The fifth time—same messenger, same message—Sanballat sent an unsealed letter with this message:

6–7  “The word is out among the nations—and Geshem says it’s true—that you and the Jews are planning to rebel. That’s why you are rebuilding the wall. The word is that you want to be king and that you have appointed prophets to announce in Jerusalem, ‘There’s a king in Judah!’ The king is going to be told all this—don’t you think we should sit down and have a talk?”

8  I sent him back this: “There’s nothing to what you’re saying. You’ve made it all up.”

9  They were trying to intimidate us into quitting. They thought, “They’ll give up; they’ll never finish it.”

I prayed, “Give me strength.”

Today's Insights

Nehemiah was serving as cupbearer to King Artaxerxes of Persia when he learned that the Jewish remnant who’d returned to Jerusalem was in trouble. The wall of Jerusalem had been broken, and the gates burned (Nehemiah 1:3). Nehemiah fasted and prayed to God (v. 4), and the king graciously allowed him to return to Jerusalem to rebuild (2:1-6). When Nehemiah arrived and announced his plans, the Jewish leaders replied, “Yes, let’s rebuild the wall!” (v. 18 nlt). Opposition began almost immediately (v. 19), but Nehemiah wasn’t discouraged by the false accusers. He declared, “The God of heaven will give us success” (v. 20). As with Nehemiah, when we trust in God, He’ll give us strength to stand even against those who falsely accuse us.

Faith and False Accusation

I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.” Nehemiah 6:9

Driven by powerful winds, the fire raged for days. The historian Tacitus describes a chaotic scene filled with screams and citizens running for their lives. In the end, nearly two-thirds of Rome had been destroyed. The Roman emperor Nero falsely accused believers in Jesus of starting the fire. He hated Christians and selected them to be the scapegoat for the disaster—one that was rumored to have been ordered by Nero himself!

Nehemiah also faced the blistering heat of false accusation. He’d been a servant to the king of Persia but had been allowed to return to Jerusalem with other Israelites to repair its walls (Nehemiah 2:1-10). When the wall was repaired, however, enemies accused the Jews of “planning to rebel” and making Nehemiah “their king” (6:6 nlt). How did they respond to false accusations? By declaring and living out their innocence (v. 8), courageously standing in God’s power (v. 11), and praying fervently to Him (v. 14). Their enemies were ultimately “frightened and humiliated” as they “realized [the wall reconstruction] had been done with the help of . . . God” (v. 16 nlt).

At times, we’ll be falsely accused by others. But as God provides the strength we need, we can forgive our accusers and “live such good lives” that, though “they accuse [us] of doing wrong, they may see [our] good deeds and glorify God” (1 Peter 2:12).

Reflect & Pray

Why are believers in Jesus sometimes falsely accused? How can you live out a courageous faith?

Loving God, thank You for helping me when I’m falsely accused.

Check out this article to learn more about standing firm with the Lord.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Sunday, January 18, 2026

Unbribed Devotion

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” —John 4:7

When Jesus asked the Samaritan woman for water, he indicated the proper form our devotion should take. How many of us spend our lives begging Jesus to satisfy our thirst, when we should be satisfying him? To be a witness for the Lord is to lead a life of unsullied, uncompromising, and unbribed devotion. It is to make ourselves a satisfaction to him wherever he places us.

Beware of anything that competes with loyalty to Jesus Christ. Sometimes, the greatest competitor of devotion to Jesus is service for him. Instead of losing ourselves in love for our Savior, we busy ourselves with work, allowing it to distract us from our relationship with him. Recall how Jesus admonished Martha, as she rushed about doing chores while her sister, Mary, sat devotedly at his feet: “Martha, Martha,” Jesus said, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better” (Luke 10:41–42).

It is easier to serve than to be drunk with love and devotion. But the one aim of the call of God is the satisfaction of God. It is not a call to keep busy, or to rack up accomplishments, or to keep a running tally of how many souls we’ve saved. All of that is God’s concern, not ours, and we must leave him to it. We are not called to battle for God but to be used by God in his battles. Are we allowing ourselves to be used in this way?

Genesis 43-45; Matthew 12:24-50

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

There is no allowance whatever in the New Testament for the man who says he is saved by grace but who does not produce the graceful goods. Jesus Christ by His Redemption can make our actual life in keeping with our religious profession.

Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, 1465 R

Joshua 17, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: True Courage

Are you timid?  Cautious?  Could you use some courage?  Scripture says, "There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1).  "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God" (Colossians 3:3). If you're in Christ, these promises are not only a source of joy, they are the foundations of true courage!

When God looks at you, he doesn't see you; He sees the One who surrounds you. Failure's not a concern for you; your victory is secure. How could you not be courageous?  In Hebrews 10:22, the writer says, "Since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus-let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith."

The point is clear. The Father of Truth will win, and the followers of Truth will be saved. The prize is yours. Applaud the victory!

From The Applause of Heaven

Joshua 17

 This is the lot that fell to the people of Manasseh, Joseph’s firstborn. (Gilead and Bashan had already been given to Makir, Manasseh’s firstborn and father of Gilead, because he was an outstanding fighter.) So the lot that follows went to the rest of the people of Manasseh and their clans, the clans of Abiezer, Helek, Asriel, Shechem, Hepher, and Shemida. These are the male descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph by their clans.

3–4  Zelophehad son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Makir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, only daughters. Their names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. They went to Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the leaders and said, “God commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our kinsmen.” And Joshua did it; he gave them, as God commanded, an inheritance amid their father’s brothers.

5–6  Manasseh’s lot came to ten portions, in addition to the land of Gilead and Bashan on the other side of the Jordan, because Manasseh’s daughters got an inheritance along with his sons. The land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the people of Manasseh.

7–10  The boundary of Manasseh went from Asher all the way to Micmethath, just opposite Shechem, then ran southward to the people living at En Tappuah. (The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself on the border of Manasseh belonged to the Ephraimites.) The boundary continued south to the Brook Kanah. (The cities there belonged to Ephraim although they lay among the cities of Manasseh.) The boundary of Manasseh ran north of the brook and ended at the Sea. The land to the south belonged to Ephraim; the land to the north to Manasseh, with the Sea as their western border; they meet Asher on the north and Issachar on the east.

11  Within Issachar and Asher, Manasseh also held Beth Shan, Ibleam, and the people of Dor, Endor, Taanach, and Megiddo, together with their villages, and the third in the list is Naphoth.

12–13  The people of Manasseh never were able to take over these towns—the Canaanites wouldn’t budge. But later, when the Israelites got stronger, they put the Canaanites to forced labor. But they never did get rid of them.

14  The people of Joseph spoke to Joshua: “Why did you give us just one allotment, one solitary share? There are a lot of us, and growing—God has extravagantly blessed us.”

15  Joshua responded, “Since there are so many of you, and you find the hill country of Ephraim too confining, climb into the forest and clear ground there for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim.”

16  But the people of Joseph said, “There’s not enough hill country for us; and the Canaanites who live down in the plain, both those in Beth Shan and its villages and in the Valley of Jezreel, have iron chariots.”

17–18  Joshua said to the family of Joseph (to Ephraim and Manasseh): “Yes, there are a lot of you, and you are very strong. One lot is not enough for you. You also get the hill country. It’s nothing but trees now, but you will clear the land and make it your own from one end to the other. The powerful Canaanites, even with their iron chariots, won’t stand a chance against you.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Saturday, January 17, 2026

by  Arthur Jackson

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

John 13:36-38; 21:18-19

 Simon Peter asked, “Master, just where are you going?”

Jesus answered, “You can’t now follow me where I’m going. You will follow later.”

37  “Master,” said Peter, “why can’t I follow now? I’ll lay down my life for you!”

38  “Really? You’ll lay down your life for me? The truth is that before the rooster crows, you’ll deny me three times.”

I’m telling you the very truth now: When you were young you dressed yourself and went wherever you wished, but when you get old you’ll have to stretch out your hands while someone else dresses you and takes you where you don’t want to go.” He said this to hint at the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And then he commanded, “Follow me.”

Today's Insights

In John 13:36-38, Jesus is focused on Simon Peter and his need for courage in the hours and days ahead. The gracious warning He gives to him (v. 38) should’ve gotten the fisherman’s attention, but rather than leaning into the strength of the Master, Peter sought to face those hours in his own strength. Even in the moment when he seemed to be desperately trying to keep his promise to “lay down [his life] for” Christ” (v. 37)—by cutting off the ear of Malchus, servant of the High Priest (John 18:10)—his attempt failed, and he ran away with the other disciples (Mark 14:50). Only in God’s strength can we stand firm and have courage in difficult times and places. Peter would exhibit that courage when confronted by the religious leaders for preaching in Jesus’ name. At that moment, even they had to acknowledge the influence of Christ on His once-fallen, now-restored disciple (Acts 4:13). His influence in our life can also help us face life’s challenges with courageous faith.

Courage to Stand for Jesus

Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Matthew 10:38

In ad 155, the early church father Polycarp was threatened with death by fire for his faith in Christ. He replied, “For eighty and six years I have been his servant, and he has done me no wrong. And how can I now blaspheme my king who saved me?” Polycarp’s response can be an inspiration for us when we face extreme trial because of our faith in Jesus, our King.

Just hours before Christ’s death, Peter boldly pledged His allegiance to Him: “I will lay down my life for you” (John 13:37). Jesus, who knew Peter better than Peter knew himself, replied, “Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!” (v. 38). However, after Jesus’ resurrection, the same one who’d denied Him began to serve Him courageously and would eventually glorify Him through his own death (see 21:16-19).

Are you a Polycarp or a Peter? Most of us, if we’re honest, are more of a Peter with a “courage outage”—a failure to speak or act honorably as a believer in Jesus. Such occasions—whether in a classroom, boardroom, or breakroom—needn’t indelibly define us. When those failures occur, we must prayerfully dust ourselves off and turn to Jesus, the one who died for us and lives for us. He’ll help us be faithful to Him and courageously live for Him daily in difficult places.  

Reflect & Pray

When do you need extra doses of courage to stand for Jesus? What do you find helpful in your witness for Him?

Heavenly Father, please give me Your strength to live boldly as a believer in Your Son.

Learn about being on guard against persecution here.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Saturday, January 17, 2026

God’s Nature and Ours

But when God . . . was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles . . . —Galatians 1:15–16

If the call of God is an expression of his nature, and not our own, how are we to answer it? Paul writes that he went out to preach the gospel when God called. The call was God’s; the preaching was Paul’s interpretation of it, an action fitted to Paul’s own nature. Paul had always been able to preach, but now, having received the Holy Spirit, he began to use his gift for God’s purposes.

This is what service means: God’s nature awakening and filtering through our own. God’s own nature is supernatural, but our acts of service to him are always part of our natural lives. We may be called to serve him in big ways or in small, through the seemingly unimportant tasks that fill our days. The size of the act doesn’t matter. If we perform it as an act of service, it becomes a sacramental expression. To serve God is the deliberate love gift of a nature that has heard his call.

If I have received God’s nature, if the Holy Spirit dwells inside me, I will hear the most beautiful echo when God calls, the voice from outside resounding on the inside, the two joining together to help me do his work. When the life of Jesus is revealed in me in this way, I will serve God’s purposes all the time, pouring myself out in superabounding devotion to him.

Genesis 41-42; Matthew 12:1-23

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

We have no right to judge where we should be put, or to have preconceived notions as to what God is fitting us for. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us, our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.”

My Utmost for His Highest, April 23, 773 L

Joshua 16, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: TO SAVE AND SUSTAIN - January 16, 2026

I believe we make the mistake the Welsh woman made. She lived many years ago in a remote valley and felt it worth the cost to have electricity installed in her home. Several weeks after the installation, the power company noticed she’d barely used any electricity. A meter reader went to see her. “Is there a problem?” he asked. “Oh no, we’re quite satisfied. Every night we turn on the electric lights to see how to light our lamps.”

We’re prone to do likewise. Depend on God’s Spirit to save us but not sustain us. We turn to him to get us started and then continue in our own strength. It is possible to have the Spirit, but not let the Spirit have us. Scripture urges us “keep in step with the Spirit.” Plug in to his power, and leave the switch turned on.

God's Story, Your Story

Joshua 16

Joseph

1–3  16 The lot for the people of Joseph went from the Jordan near Jericho, east of the spring of Jericho, north through the desert mountains to Bethel. It went on from Bethel (that is, Luz) to the territory of the Arkites in Ataroth. It then descended westward to the territory of the Japhletites to the region of Lower Beth Horon and on to Gezer, ending at the Sea.

4  This is the region from which the people of Joseph—Manasseh and Ephraim—got their inheritance.

5–9  Ephraim’s territory by clans:

The boundary of their inheritance went from Ataroth Addar in the east to Upper Beth Horon and then west to the Sea. From Micmethath on the north it turned eastward to Taanath Shiloh and passed along, still eastward, to Janoah. The border then descended from Janoah to Ataroth and Naarah; it touched Jericho and came out at the Jordan. From Tappuah the border went westward to the Brook Kanah and ended at the Sea. This was the inheritance of the tribe of Ephraim by clans, including the cities set aside for Ephraim within the inheritance of Manasseh—all those towns and their villages.

10  But they didn’t get rid of the Canaanites who were living in Gezer. Canaanites are still living among the people of Ephraim, but they are made to do forced labor.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, January 16, 2026

by Monica La Rose

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Psalm 119:30-41

I choose the true road to Somewhere,

I post your road signs at every curve and corner.

I grasp and cling to whatever you tell me;

God, don’t let me down!

I’ll run the course you lay out for me

if you’ll just show me how.

33–40  God, teach me lessons for living

so I can stay the course.

Give me insight so I can do what you tell me—

my whole life one long, obedient response.

Guide me down the road of your commandments;

I love traveling this freeway!

Give me a bent for your words of wisdom,

and not for piling up loot.

Divert my eyes from toys and trinkets,

invigorate me on the pilgrim way.

Affirm your promises to me—

promises made to all who fear you.

Deflect the harsh words of my critics—

but what you say is always so good.

See how hungry I am for your counsel;

preserve my life through your righteous ways!

41–48  Let your love, God, shape my life

with salvation, exactly as you promised;

Today's Insights

The image of “walking” is one of Scripture’s most common metaphors for describing someone’s lifestyle—whether in close fellowship with God (see Genesis 5:24; 6:9; Psalm 1:1; 15:1-2) or in opposition to Him (Proverbs 4:14; 1 John 1:6). Psalm 119 begins with this metaphor, emphasizing that “those . . . who walk according to the law of the Lord” are blessed (v. 1). The psalm paints a vivid picture of what it looks like to walk closely with God through immersion in and obedience to Scripture. In verse 32, this imagery intensifies as the psalmist shifts from describing walking to running—suggesting not just steady obedience but an eager pursuit of God’s ways. Unlike those whose feet “rush into evil” (see Proverbs 1:16; 6:18), the psalmist in Psalm 119:32 runs in joyful freedom down the path of God’s commands, liberated by His grace and captivated by His beauty.

An Enlarged Heart

I will run the course of Your commandments, for You shall enlarge my heart. Psalm 119:32

In his Confessions, Augustine wrestled with how it was possible for God to be in relationship with him. How could the one who created the universe come into something as small and sinful as his heart? But he pleaded with God to make it possible, praying, “The house of my soul is narrow. Enlarge it, so that you may enter it. It’s in ruins! Repair it! It has things in it that would offend your eyes. I confess and know it. But who will cleanse it, or to whom will I cry, but to you?”

Today we know Augustine as Saint Augustine, a revered philosopher and theologian. But he saw himself simply as someone transformed by the wonder of a God who wanted to know him.

In Psalm 119, the psalmist is also in awe of God’s revelation of Himself, particularly through Scripture (v. 18). “You shall enlarge my heart” (v. 32 nkjv), the psalmist celebrated. It’s only because God is graciously willing to enlarge our hearts that we can joyfully walk the path He shows us (v. 45). He turns our hearts away from what is corrupt (vv. 36-37) to the “path of [His] commands,” where we find His infinite “delight” (v. 35).

We are small, and our hearts are fickle. But when we turn our longing hearts to God (vv. 34, 36), He guides us down the paths of joy and true freedom.

Reflect & Pray

How has God “enlarged” Your heart? Where might you need to ask Him to bring growth?

Dear God, thank You for opening my heart to Your greatness. Please enlarge my heart today and every day.

Despite being the creator of the whole universe, God also desires to be in relationship with us. Learn more by watching this video.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, January 16, 2026

Tuned In to God

I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?” —Isaiah 6:8

What does the call of God sound like? There is the call of the sea, the call of the mountains, the call of the great ice barriers. These are calls heard only by the few—by those who have the sea or the mountains or the ice in their blood. So it is with the call of God. His call is the expression of his nature, and only those with the same nature inside them can hear it.

Have we ever heard God calling? His call always comes intimately, through the circumstances of our lives. There is no point asking anyone else about these circumstances; they are strands of our existence that God has woven specially for us.

It is easy—too easy—to miss the call. We have to maintain the profound relationship between our soul and God if we are to hear it. Isaiah was able to hear because, after the tremendous crisis he had been through, his soul, open and raw, was tuned in to God.

Most of us are tuned in only to ourselves; we hear nothing of what God is saying. I have to realize that the call of God is not an echo of my own nature. My likes and dislikes are not part of it. Neither is my temperament. As long as I place concern for myself at the center of my life, all I’ll hear are my own thoughts, echoing back at me.

To be brought into an intimate conversation with God is to be profoundly changed. It is to see with our eyes, hear with our ears, and understand with our hearts all that God is saying (Isaiah 6:10).

Genesis 39-40; Matthew 11

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

“When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?” We all have faith in good principles, in good management, in good common sense, but who amongst us has faith in Jesus Christ? Physical courage is grand, moral courage is grander, but the man who trusts Jesus Christ in the face of the terrific problems of life is worth a whole crowd of heroes.

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Friday, January 16, 2026

NO BLOOD, NO LIFE - #10180

There were only two words in the headline in USA Today, but most of us understand the urgency of those two words: "Blood needed!" They were talking about an alarming shortage of blood available in blood banks due to a severe winter, a holiday season, and a bad flu season. One spokesman for the Association of Blood Banks said, "If you've had a bad car accident or a couple of gunshot wounds, you're in a world of trouble." I guess so. There is no fact more basic to human life - without the blood you need, you die.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "No Blood, No Life."

We understand the need for blood physically. But if God didn't explain it to us, we'd never understand our need for blood to live spiritually and to live eternally after we die. Our word for today from the Word of God tells us about it and it's a good thing. It's in Hebrews 9:22. It says, "Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness." That's pretty straight up isn't it?

The reason forgiveness is so critical is because that's the only way to have the sins of your life removed from God's book. There's no chance of heaven for you or me if we try to go there with our sin, and there's no way to get rid of our sin without God's forgiveness. And here God tells us there's no way to get that forgiveness without blood - blood that is shed for the death penalty that sin carries.

For God's ancient people, the Jews, that meant a system of regular animal sacrifices where the shedding of a substitute's blood - the blood of that animal - could provide a way to be forgiven. But it was only temporary and it was very incomplete because, as God says later in Hebrews, "It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins" (Hebrews 10:4). But then God sent to earth the only One who was perfect enough to be the substitute for all of us, shedding His blood for us. "We have been made holy" the Bible says. That means acceptable to God, "through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all" (Hebrews 10:10).

Now, there are some people who don't like all this talk about blood. But this isn't about gore. It's about love. We just don't understand the seriousness of our condition with God. We're lifelong rebels against His rule over us. We're under an eternal death penalty that can only be paid by someone dying! If you want to see the horror of all of our lies and our selfishness and our lust and our pride and our sexual sins and all the hurting we've done, just walk up to the Cross of Jesus and look at the mangled form of the Son of God. Listen as He cries out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" That's what our sin looks like. That's what it took to pay for my sin. It took the blood of the Son of God.

If you're depending on anything else, no matter how spiritual or how religious to get you to God, you're not going to make it. God provided this way for you to be forgiven, for you to live forever. The question is, have you ever been to Jesus' cross in your heart and put all your trust in the One who died there in your place? There's no reason you have to pay for your sin. Not when Jesus, in His love, already paid it for you as your substitute. The Bible says, "He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world"... and yours.

Have you ever put your total trust in Jesus to be your Savior, your Rescuer, your Forgiver? If not, why not begin your relationship with Him today? Just say, "Jesus, I've been running my own life. I resign. Today, I'm abandoning all trust in everything else and putting all my trust in You.

I'd love to help you make that commitment to Christ and understand it better. That's why our website's there. Please check it out today. It's ANewStory.com.

For you to have a relationship with your creator, for you to ever go to heaven, there's blood needed - the blood of Jesus Christ covering the sin of your life. Without the blood, we die. But life is within your reach right now, right where you are. Jesus is there.

Luke 10:25-42 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: GOD’S POWER IN US - January 15, 2026

We look at other believers and ask, “Why is her life so fruitful and mine so barren? Why is his life so powerful and mine so weak? Aren’t we saved by the same Christ?”

The answer may be found in the first chapter of the book of Acts where Jesus told Peter and the other followers, “Wait here to receive the promise from the Father. John baptized people with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4-5 NCV).

During Jesus’ earthly ministry Jesus lived near the disciples. The Holy Spirit, however, would live in the disciples. Jesus taught; the Spirit teaches through us. Jesus comforted; the Spirit comforts through us. The Holy Spirit is a year-round resident in the hearts of God’s children. As God’s story becomes our story, his power becomes our power.

God's Story, Your Story

Luke 10:25-42

Defining “Neighbor”

25  Just then a religion scholar stood up with a question to test Jesus. “Teacher, what do I need to do to get eternal life?”

26  He answered, “What’s written in God’s Law? How do you interpret it?”

27  He said, “That you love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and muscle and intelligence—and that you love your neighbor as well as you do yourself.”

28  “Good answer!” said Jesus. “Do it and you’ll live.”

29  Looking for a loophole, he asked, “And just how would you define ‘neighbor’?”

30–32  Jesus answered by telling a story. “There was once a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho. On the way he was attacked by robbers. They took his clothes, beat him up, and went off leaving him half-dead. Luckily, a priest was on his way down the same road, but when he saw him he angled across to the other side. Then a Levite religious man showed up; he also avoided the injured man.

33–35  “A Samaritan traveling the road came on him. When he saw the man’s condition, his heart went out to him. He gave him first aid, disinfecting and bandaging his wounds. Then he lifted him onto his donkey, led him to an inn, and made him comfortable. In the morning he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take good care of him. If it costs any more, put it on my bill—I’ll pay you on my way back.’

36  “What do you think? Which of the three became a neighbor to the man attacked by robbers?”

37  “The one who treated him kindly,” the religion scholar responded.

Jesus said, “Go and do the same.”

Mary and Martha

38–40  As they continued their travel, Jesus entered a village. A woman by the name of Martha welcomed him and made him feel quite at home. She had a sister, Mary, who sat before the Master, hanging on every word he said. But Martha was pulled away by all she had to do in the kitchen. Later, she stepped in, interrupting them. “Master, don’t you care that my sister has abandoned the kitchen to me? Tell her to lend me a hand.”

41–42  The Master said, “Martha, dear Martha, you’re fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing. One thing only is essential, and Mary has chosen it—it’s the main course, and won’t be taken from her.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, January 15, 2026

by James Banks

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

2 Kings 6:9-10, 13-17

The Holy Man sent a message to the king of Israel: “Watch out when you’re passing this place, because Aram has set an ambush there.”

10  So the king of Israel sent word concerning the place of which the Holy Man had warned him.

This kind of thing happened all the time.

13  The king said, “Go and find out where he is. I’ll send someone and capture him.”

The report came back, “He’s in Dothan.”

14  Then he dispatched horses and chariots, an impressive fighting force. They came by night and surrounded the city.

15  Early in the morning a servant of the Holy Man got up and went out. Surprise! Horses and chariots surrounding the city! The young man exclaimed, “Oh, master! What shall we do?”

16  He said, “Don’t worry about it—there are more on our side than on their side.”

17  Then Elisha prayed, “O God, open his eyes and let him see.”

The eyes of the young man were opened and he saw. A wonder! The whole mountainside full of horses and chariots of fire surrounding Elisha!

Today's Insights

In addition to the angels described in 2 Kings 6:9-17, other Scriptures speak of the protection and ministry of angels. Nebuchadnezzar saw a fourth man who looked “like a son of the gods” in the blazing furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (Daniel 3:25). After successfully overcoming Satan’s temptations, angels came and “took care of” Jesus (Matthew 4:11 nlt). As Christ agonized over His impending crucifixion, “an angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him” (Luke 22:43). Jesus reminds us of God’s providential protection and care when He says that He could’ve called on “more than twelve legions of angels” to come to His rescue (Matthew 26:53). Angels are God’s “servants—spirits sent to care for people who will inherit salvation” (Hebrews 1:14 nlt). No matter what we encounter in life, we can be assured that God is watching over us. Nothing can separate us from His love.

Kindness Unseen

Those who are with us are more than those who are with them. 2 Kings 6:16

The face was there all along, but no one knew. When Sir Joshua Reynolds painted The Death of Cardinal Beaufort in 1789, he put a demon’s face in the darkness behind the dying man. Reynolds was accurately depicting a scene from a Shakespearean play that mentions the presence of a “busy, meddling fiend,” but some didn’t like his literalism. After Reynolds’ death in 1792, the face was painted over and forgotten. Art conservation work recently revealed it under layers of paint and varnish.

The Bible tells of a spiritual reality around us that the eye can’t see, where God reigns supreme. When Elisha was surrounded by a “strong force” of enemy soldiers and chariots, his servant was frightened and asked, “What shall we do?” Elisha told him that “those who are with us are more than those who are with them,” and “prayed, ‘Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.’ ” Suddenly the servant “saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2 Kings 6:14-17).

The horses and chariots of fire indicate angelic beings there for Elisha’s protection. This is one of many places where Scripture underscores the comforting truth that in a world where danger lurks and spiritual warfare rages, God still watches over us. No matter what we face, how good it is to know that nothing “will be able to separate us” from His love (Romans 8:39).

Reflect & Pray

In what ways does God take care of you? How will you thank Him?

Dear Father, nothing can separate me from Your love for me in Jesus, and I praise You for it!

Learn more about expressing gratitude to God here.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, January 15, 2026

Do You Walk in White?

We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that . . . we too may live a new life. —Romans 6:4

No one enters into the experience of entire sanctification without going through a “white funeral,” a burial of the old life. If this crisis has never taken place, if you’ve never put your old life to death, sanctification is nothing more than a vision. It is a death followed by one resurrection—a resurrection into the life of Jesus Christ. Nothing can upset such a life. It is one with God for one purpose: to be a witness to him.

Have you come to your last days really? You may have come to them many times in your thoughts and dreams; you may have grown excited at the thought of being baptized into death with your Lord. But have you actually done it? You cannot die in excitement. Death means you stop being, stop striving. Do you agree with God to stop being the kind of striving, eager Christian you’ve been up to now? We circle the cemetery all the time, refusing to actually go to our deaths.

Are you ready to be buried with Christ, or are you playing the fool with your soul? Is there a moment you can identify as your last? Can you go back to it in your memory and say, with a chastened and grateful spirit, “Yes, it was then, at that ‘white funeral,’ that I made an agreement with God”?

“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified” (1 Thessalonians 4:3). When you realize that sanctification is what God wants, you will enter into death naturally. Are you willing to do it now? Do you agree with God that this day will be your last? The moment of agreement depends on you.

Genesis 36-38; Matthew 10:21-42

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The sympathy which is reverent with what it cannot understand is worth its weight in gold. 

Baffled to Fight Better, 69 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, January 15, 2026

NOT MORE THAN YOU CAN BEAR - #10179

One of the temporary after effects of my wife's bout with hepatitis years ago was some memory loss. Now, I forget a lot of things and I don't have an excuse. Well, for a while, my wife had a great excuse for forgetting some things, because that memory loss had some real effects. Like the day she left the pot of water on the stove to boil. She promptly moved away from the kitchen and forgot all about it. She told me she even forgot about it after she smelled something burning. So, she went all through the house; checked the dryer, checked the furnace. "What in the world is that burning smell?" Well, when she finally decided to check the kitchen, you can probably guess what the scene was. Oh yeah, there was no more water left in that pot; it had boiled dry. The burner was red hot; the pan had become part of the burner. It was bonded to the burner. It literally had to be broken off. Yeah, she needed some heat to do her job, but not that much heat!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Not More Than You Can Bear."

By the way, lest you be too concerned, that was a temporary memory loss, and she got it all back. Let's look at our word for today from the Word of God. Because it's a promise for people who are in the oven, you might say, who are suffering in some intense heat right now. 1 Corinthians 10:13. Listen to these familiar words: "No temptation (or testing it could be translated) has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted (or tested) beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted (or tested), He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."

Don't you love the promise of those words, "Not beyond what you can bear"? Those are words with your name on them maybe today because of what you're having to bear today. God promises He will not take you beyond what you can handle.

I've always found potters to be intriguing. When we go to colonial villages I always enjoy watching them. I saw an interview with a potter, and she talked about how they take this formless lump of clay. And with their skilled hands on that wheel, they're able to make it into something beautiful and useful, and then the oven. They cook that piece of pottery that they've molded. They cook it at temperatures of up to 2,200 degrees to make sure that the shaping will last. It actually takes extreme heat to make the beauty and the usefulness permanent.

The interviewer said, "Well, is it possible to get the oven too hot for the pottery?" She said, "Oh, yeah. For example, if you get it up to say 3,000 degrees it will just melt down." But then she said, "The potter always knows the melting point." So does yours. God's bottom line in Romans 8:29 - "He has predestined that you would be conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus." He wants you to be like Jesus, so He uses the heat in your life to burn off the junk that might otherwise never come off. And God has been building in you lately a new love, a new patience, new purity, a new hunger for His word, new faith to trust Him, new character. But if it's never tested, it won't last. You have to take that new you into some intense heat for it to become tough and permanent. If the new you can get through this heat, you'll have a powerful new confidence in God's work in you.

Right now, maybe all you know is it's just really hot. Well, you have a guarantee from the Master Potter, "not beyond what you can bear." Oh, He might take you to the edge, but He'll never allow you to go over. God will let the heat make you stronger, but He'll never leave His masterpiece in the oven too long.

Joshua 15, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: NOT THE FINAL CHAPTER - January 14, 2026

Death is not the final chapter in your story. John 11:25-26 assure us that in death we will step into the arms of the One who declared, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die” (NIV).

Winston Churchill believed this. The prime minister planned his own funeral. Two buglers were positioned in the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral. At the conclusion of the service, the first played Taps, the signal of a day completed; the second played Reveille, the song of a day begun. Death is no pit but a passageway, a corner turn. Isaiah wrote, “Your dead will live…All you dead and buried, wake up! Sing!…The earth is bursting with life, giving birth to the dead” (Isaiah 26:19 MSG).

So play on, bugler, play on!  

God's Story, Your Story

Joshua 15

Judah

1  15 The lot for the people of Judah, their clans, extended south to the border of Edom, to the wilderness of Zin in the extreme south.

2–4  The southern border ran from the tip of the Salt Sea south of The Tongue; it ran southward from Scorpions Pass, went around Zin and just south of Kadesh Barnea; then it ran past Hezron, ascended to Addar, and curved around to Karka; from there it passed along to Azmon, came out at the Brook of Egypt, ending at the Sea. This is the southern boundary.

5–11  The eastern boundary: the Salt Sea up to the mouth of the Jordan.

The northern boundary started at the shallows of the Sea at the mouth of the Jordan, went up to Beth Hoglah and around to the north of Beth Arabah and to the Stone of Bohan son of Reuben. The border then ascended to Debir from Trouble Valley and turned north toward Gilgal, which lies opposite Red Pass, just south of the gorge. The border then followed the Waters of En Shemesh and ended at En Rogel. The border followed the Valley of Ben Hinnom along the southern slope of the Jebusite ridge (that is, Jerusalem). It ascended to the top of the mountain opposite Hinnom Valley on the west, at the northern end of Rephaim Valley; the border then took a turn at the top of the mountain to the spring, the Waters of Nephtoah, and followed the valley out to Mount Ephron, turned toward Baalah (that is, Kiriath Jearim), took another turn west of Baalah to Mount Seir, curved around to the northern shoulder of Mount Jearim (that is, Kesalon), descended to Beth Shemesh, and crossed to Timnah. The border then went north to the ridge of Ekron, turned toward Shikkeron, passed along to Mount Baalah, and came out at Jabneel. The border ended at the Sea.

12  The western border: the coastline of the Great Sea.

This is the boundary around the people of Judah for their clans.

13  Joshua gave Caleb son of Jephunneh a section among the people of Judah, according to God’s command. He gave him Kiriath Arba, that is, Hebron. Arba was the ancestor of Anak.

14–15  Caleb drove out three Anakim from Hebron: Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, all descendants of Anak. He marched up from there against the people of Debir. Debir used to be called Kiriath Sepher.

16–17  Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kiriath Sepher and takes it, I’ll give my daughter Acsah to him as his wife.” Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s brother, took it; so Caleb gave him his daughter Acsah as his wife.

18–19  When she arrived she got him

to ask for farmland from her father.

As she dismounted from her donkey

Caleb asked her, “What would you like?”

She said, “Give me a marriage gift.

You’ve given me desert land;

Now give me pools of water!”

And he gave her the upper and the lower pools.

20–32  This is the inheritance of the tribe of the people of Judah, clan by clan.

The southern towns of the tribe of Judah in the Negev were near the boundary of Edom:

Kabzeel, Eder, Jagur,

Kinah, Dimonah, Adadah,

Kedesh, Hazor, Ithnan,

Ziph, Telem, Bealoth,

Hazor Hadattah, Kerioth Hezron (that is, Hazor),

Amam, Shema, Moladah,

Hazar Gaddah, Heshmon, Beth Pelet,

Hazar Shual, Beer-sheba, Biziothiah,

Baalah, Iim, Ezem,

Eltolad, Kesil, Hormah,

Ziklag, Madmannah, Sansannah,

Lebaoth, Shilhim, Ain, and Rimmon—

a total of twenty-nine towns and their villages.

33–47  In the Shephelah (the western foothills) there were:

Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah,

Zanoah, En Gannim, Tappuah, Enam,

Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah,

Shaaraim, Adithaim, and Gederah (or Gederothaim)—

fourteen towns and their villages.

Zenan, Hadashah, Migdal Gad,

Dilean, Mizpah, Joktheel,

Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon,

Cabbon, Lahmas, Kitlish,

Gederoth, Beth Dagon, Naamah, and Makkedah—

sixteen towns and their villages.

Libnah, Ether, Ashan,

Iphtah, Ashnah, Nezib,

Keilah, Aczib, and Mareshah—

nine towns and their villages.

Ekron with its towns and villages;

From Ekron, west to the sea, all that bordered Ashdod with its villages;

Ashdod with its towns and villages;

Gaza with its towns and villages all the way to the Brook of Egypt.

The Great Sea is the western border.

48–60  In the hill country:

Shamir, Jattir, Socoh,

Dannah, Kiriath Sannah (that is, Debir),

Anab, Eshtemoh, Anim,

Goshen, Holon, and Giloh—

eleven towns and their villages.

Arab, Dumah, Eshan,

Janim, Beth Tappuah, Aphekah,

Humtah, Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron), and Zior—

nine towns and their villages.

Maon, Carmel, Ziph, Juttah,

Jezreel, Jokdeam, Zanoah,

Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah—

ten towns and their villages.

Halhul, Beth Zur, Gedor,

Maarath, Beth Anoth, and Eltekon—

six towns and their villages.

Kiriath Baal (that is, Kiriath Jearim) and Rabbah—

two towns and their villages.

61–62  In the wilderness:

Beth Arabah, Middin, Secacah,

Nibshan, the City of Salt, and En Gedi—

six towns and their villages.

63  The people of Judah couldn’t get rid of the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem. The Jebusites stayed put, living alongside the people of Judah. They are still living there in Jerusalem.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, January 14, 2026

by Alyson Kieda

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

2 Corinthians 1:3-11

The Rescue

3–5  All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.

6–7  When we suffer for Jesus, it works out for your healing and salvation. If we are treated well, given a helping hand and encouraging word, that also works to your benefit, spurring you on, face forward, unflinching. Your hard times are also our hard times. When we see that you’re just as willing to endure the hard times as to enjoy the good times, we know you’re going to make it, no doubt about it.

8–11  We don’t want you in the dark, friends, about how hard it was when all this came down on us in Asia province. It was so bad we didn’t think we were going to make it. We felt like we’d been sent to death row, that it was all over for us. As it turned out, it was the best thing that could have happened. Instead of trusting in our own strength or wits to get out of it, we were forced to trust God totally—not a bad idea since he’s the God who raises the dead! And he did it, rescued us from certain doom. And he’ll do it again, rescuing us as many times as we need rescuing. You and your prayers are part of the rescue operation—I don’t want you in the dark about that either. I can see your faces even now, lifted in praise for God’s deliverance of us, a rescue in which your prayers played such a crucial part.

Today's Insights

Second Corinthians 1:3-7 includes a cluster of “comfort” words. The word translated “comfort” (vv. 3, 4, 5, 6 [2x]) is paraklesis, a compound word meaning “to call alongside to assist.” Before His departure, Jesus used the related word parakletos, translated “advocate” to speak of the Holy Spirit: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever” (John 14:16; see also 14:26; 15:26; 16:7). Other English versions render it “helper,” “comforter,” “counselor.” Through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, believers in Christ experience God’s comfort and in turn can extend it to others.

Comfort of God

The God of all comfort . . . comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort [others]. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

I couldn’t wait. My husband and I had just returned from the grocery store; and as we unloaded the groceries, I frantically searched—but couldn’t find the donut bag. Then I checked the receipt. No donuts. Frustrated, I cried out, “All I wanted from the store was a donut!” Fifteen minutes later, my husband handed me a bag of donuts. He’d braved the snow again and snuck out to buy them. After squeezing him tightly, I sheepishly said, “I’m glad you didn’t get into an accident just to appease my craving!”

I don’t usually get that worked up about a donut! But it had been an emotionally draining week, and so I sought solace in a donut—and I experienced a much deeper joy through the love and compassion of my husband.

The kind of comfort we may get from satisfying our cravings is always short-lived. As the apostle Paul shared with the Corinthians, true—and lasting—comfort comes from the “God of all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3).

Paul understood his readers’ deep struggles and needs. Like them he faced daily trials, including persecution for his faith. And because God had comforted him, he was able to comfort them (v. 4).

When we’re hurting, we can turn to Jesus, who abounds in compassion and comfort (v. 5). There we find solace. And when we’ve experienced His comfort, we can extend it to others.

Reflect & Pray

When and how have you been comforted by God? How might you comfort others experiencing a shared trial?

God of all comfort, thank You for giving me solace, and please help me to share it with others. 

Learn more about how God is the God of all comfort by reading All Means All.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Called by God

I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” —Isaiah 6:8

God didn’t call Isaiah by name; he called for anyone willing to go. Isaiah simply heard and answered.

The call of God isn’t reserved for a special few; it’s for everyone. Whether or not we hear it depends on us. Are our ears open? Is our temperament in line with Christ’s? “For many are invited, but few are chosen,” Jesus said (Matthew 22:14). He meant that few prove themselves chosen. Chosen ones are those who, through Jesus Christ, have come into a relationship with God that has changed their temperament and opened their ears. All the time, they hear God asking, “Whom shall I send?”

God’s call leaves us free to answer or not to answer. When Isaiah answered the call, it wasn’t because God commanded him to. Isaiah was in God’s presence and, when the call came, realized that there was nothing for him to do but to answer, consciously and freely, “Send me.”

We have to get rid of the idea that if God really wants us to do something, he will come at us with force or pleading. When Jesus called the disciples, there was no irresistible compulsion from the outside. Instead, Jesus came with a quiet, passionate insistence, speaking to men who were wide awake, with all their powers and faculties intact. If we let the Spirit bring us face-to-face with God, we too will hear what Isaiah heard—“Whom shall I send?”—and we will say, in perfect freedom, “Here am I. Send me.”

Genesis 33-35; Matthew 10:1-20

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Am I learning how to use my Bible? The way to become complete for the Master’s service is to be well soaked in the Bible; some of us only exploit certain passages. Our Lord wants to give us continuous instruction out of His word; continuous instruction turns hearers into disciples. 

Approved Unto God, 11 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, January 14, 2026

RESCUE - NO GREATER HONOR - #10178

For any of us who were alive at the time, we'll never forget those images of the World Trade Center attacks and those heroic rescue efforts that followed them. One moment still sticks with me. It hit me. It was this interview with a big guy who was helping the rescuers. He was sitting on a curb at Ground Zero, talking with a reporter from a cable news network. He told how he had been delivering food to the rescuers, and then he was making his way back through the rubble when he decided to reach into that rubble just on the chance someone might be there. Unbelievably he suddenly felt this warm hand grabbing his arm. Immediately, he went and got helpers who pulled a firefighter out of there alive! And then that's when he lost it in that interview, and he choked out these words, "He touched me first."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Rescue - No Greater Honor."

That man at Ground Zero had been part of one of the most moving experiences a human being can have - being involved in the rescue of someone who otherwise would have died. It's an experience that God intends for every one of His children to have, except the rescue isn't the physical kind that might give a person 30 or 40 more years on earth. No, it's a spiritual rescue that will give a person heaven!

Wherever you live, wherever you work or go to school, wherever you shop or wherever you recreate, you've been assigned as God's rescuer in your circle of influence. Listen to the incredible position God has entrusted to you. It's described in our word for today from the Word of God in 2 Corinthians 5:19-20. "God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation." Translation: it's up to you whether or not the people in your personal world find out that what Jesus did on the cross was for them. Verse 20: "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us."

So you are Jesus' personal representative to the people you know. Yes, to show them Jesus by your life, what Jesus is and how real He can be in a life. But that's not enough. They can only get God's message about Jesus if you tell them about Him. And it's life-or-death information that you've got locked up inside you. You're going in for the spiritual rescue of someone whose only hope may be what you know about Jesus!

Now, how do you begin your rescue work? By praying by name, faithfully, for people who don't know Christ. Pray for God to open up natural opportunities for you to explain your relationship with Jesus. Look for an opportunity to pray with them about something that's bothering them. Invest some time in being with them, doing things with them, building bridges into their life. Don't just spend all your time with people who are already going to heaven!

D. L. Moody, the great evangelist once said, "There is no greater honor than to be the instrument in God's hands to lead one person out of the kingdom of darkness and into the glorious light of heaven." And may I add, there is no greater thrill. Just ask a man who has been the first to touch someone who otherwise would have died.

When it's rescue - when it's life-or-death, you drop everything, you risk everything, you do whatever it takes to bring that person out. For some person you know, you are that rescuer. You are their chance!