Judges 14, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: A Little Over a Lifetime

Will I learn what God intends?  If I listen, I will.  A little girl returned from her first day at school. Her mom asked, "Did you learn anything?" "I guess not," the girl responded.  "I have to go back tomorrow and the next day and the next day. . ."

Such is the case with learning. And such is the case with Bible study.

Understanding comes a little at a time over a lifetime. James said:  "The man who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and makes a habit of doing so is not the man who hears and forgets.  He puts that law into practice and wins true happiness." (James 1:25).

The Bible is not a newspaper to be skimmed but rather a mine to be quarried.  Proverbs 2:4 says to "search for it like silver, and hunt for it like hidden treasure."

And we need to do it today, and the next day, and the next….

From Just Like Jesus

Judges 14

 Samson went down to Timnah. There in Timnah a woman caught his eye, a Philistine girl. He came back and told his father and mother, “I saw a woman in Timnah, a Philistine girl; get her for me as my wife.”

3  His parents said to him, “Isn’t there a woman among the girls in the neighborhood of our people? Do you have to go get a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?”

But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me. She’s the one I want—she’s the right one.”

4  (His father and mother had no idea that God was behind this, that he was arranging an opportunity against the Philistines. At the time the Philistines lorded it over Israel.)

5–6  Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother. When he got to the vineyards of Timnah, a young lion came at him, roaring. The Spirit of God came on him powerfully and he ripped it open barehanded, like tearing a young goat. But he didn’t tell his parents what he had done.

7  Then he went on down and spoke to the woman. In Samson’s eyes, she was the one.

8–9  Some days later when he came back to get her, he made a little detour to look at what was left of the lion. And there a wonder: a swarm of bees in the lion’s carcass—and honey! He scooped it up in his hands and kept going, eating as he went. He rejoined his father and mother and gave some to them and they ate. But he didn’t tell them that he had scooped out the honey from the lion’s carcass.

10–11  His father went on down to make arrangements with the woman, while Samson prepared a feast there. That’s what the young men did in those days. Because the people were wary of him, they arranged for thirty friends to mingle with him.

12–13  Samson said to them: “Let me put a riddle to you. If you can figure it out during the seven days of the feast, I’ll give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of fine clothing. But if you can’t figure it out then you’ll give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of fine clothing.”

13–14  They said, “Put your riddle. Let’s hear it.” So he said,

From the eater came something to eat,

From the strong came something sweet.

14–15  They couldn’t figure it out. After three days they were still stumped. On the fourth day they said to Samson’s bride, “Worm the answer out of your husband or we’ll burn you and your father’s household. Have you invited us here to bankrupt us?”

16  So Samson’s bride turned on the tears, saying to him, “You hate me. You don’t love me. You’ve told a riddle to my people but you won’t even tell me the answer.”

He said, “I haven’t told my own parents—why would I tell you?”

17  But she turned on the tears all the seven days of the feast. On the seventh day, worn out by her nagging, he told her. Then she went and told it to her people.

18  The men of the town came to him on the seventh day, just before sunset and said,

What is sweeter than honey?

What is stronger than a lion?

And Samson said,

If you hadn’t plowed with my heifer,

You wouldn’t have found out my riddle.

19–20  Then the Spirit of God came powerfully on him. He went down to Ashkelon and killed thirty of their men, stripped them, and gave their clothing to those who had solved the riddle. Stalking out, smoking with anger, he went home to his father’s house. Samson’s bride became the wife of the best man at his wedding.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Sunday, February 15, 2026

by Marvin Williams

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

John 13:31-38

A New Command

31–32  When he had left, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is seen for who he is, and God seen for who he is in him. The moment God is seen in him, God’s glory will be on display. In glorifying him, he himself is glorified—glory all around!

33  “Children, I am with you for only a short time longer. You are going to look high and low for me. But just as I told the Jews, I’m telling you: ‘Where I go, you are not able to come.’

34–35  “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”

36  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.”

Today's Insights

John 13 forms the prelude to Jesus’ Upper Room Discourse (ch. 13-17)—His final teaching time with His disciples before going to the cross. Throughout the discourse, He speaks of the need for those who believe in Him to love one another (13:34-35; 15:12, 17). But before speaking about that important truth, He modeled it by taking upon Himself the place of the lowliest servant and washing His disciples’ feet (13:2-12). He went on to explain that this act was to set an example to them of humble sacrificial service (vv. 12-17). This humble service found its fullest expression when Christ said, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (15:13). Those powerful words would be enacted in a few short hours as Jesus would lay down His life on the cross to take away the sins of the world. Because of His sacrificial love for us, He can help us sacrificially love others.

Learn how to care for others like Jesus.

Handle with Care

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34

Stradivarius violins, cellos, and guitars are among the most treasured musical instruments in the world. Crafted during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the pieces are rare and invaluable. Something so precious deserves the utmost care. So when a Stradivarius cello—worth more than $20 million—fell off a table during a photo shoot, it was truly shocking!

Just as a Stradivarius must be handled carefully, so must our relationships. We’re to love others because Christ demonstrated His love toward us. In John 13:34, Jesus gave His disciples a command that requires careful attention: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” Why did Christ call it a new command? It was new because it was rooted in the way Jesus loved people. This new command to love wasn’t careless or casual but intentional, precious, and sacrificial. Loving this way would lead to discipleship, self-denial, and possibly even death for the disciples. This care for one another would be how they survived in a difficult and hostile world after Christ’s departure. And Jesus told them, “Everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (v. 35).

Let’s carefully and sacrificially love others—reflecting Jesus’ precious and priceless love.

Reflect & Pray

Why is it difficult to show love to some people? What can help you love them in a way that reflects the love Jesus revealed?

Dear Jesus, thank You for sacrificially loving me. Please help me love others the same way.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Sunday, February 15, 2026

Am I My Brother’s Keeper?

For none of us lives for ourselves alone. — Romans 14:7.

Has it ever dawned on you that you are spiritually responsible for other souls? If you ever find yourself turning away from God, even in private, watch out: you will cause harm to everyone around you. “There are many parts, but one body,” Paul wrote. “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it” (1 Corinthians 12:20, 26).

If we care about our friends, families, and communities, we must set a close guard on our hearts and minds. To give in to physical selfishness, intellectual laziness, or spiritual stubbornness is to put everyone around us at risk. “But who is strong enough to meet a standard like that?” you say. Our strength comes from God, and God alone.

When Jesus called us to be his witnesses, he meant that we should spend every bit of our mental, moral, and spiritual energy for him (Acts 1:8). When we embrace this calling, we will find that we’ve been made entirely useless from every viewpoint but his. It takes time; we must be patient with ourselves. But we must also remember why we are here: not to be saved and sanctified but to give our all for his sake. This is how we say thank you to God for the unspeakable gift of our salvation.

Leviticus 17-18; Matthew 27:27-50

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Beware of bartering the Word of God for a more suitable conception of your own. 

Disciples Indeed, 386 R

Judges 13, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Come to Me

Invitations are special.

         "You're invited to a gala celebrating the grand opening of. . ."

         "Mr. and Mrs. John Smith request your presence at the wedding of their daughter. . ."

To be invited is to be honored-to be held in high esteem! The most incredible invitations aren't found in envelopes, but rather, they are found in the Bible. God invited Eve to marry Adam, the animals to enter the ark, and Mary to give birth to His son.

"Come," he invited, "Come to me all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28)."

"Come," he would say.  God is the King who invites us to come, who prepares the palace, sets the table, and invites his subjects to come in. His invitation for you, however, is not just for a meal, it's for life!

From And the Angels Were Silent

Judges 13

Samson

1  13 And then the People of Israel were back at it again, doing what was evil in God’s sight. God put them under the domination of the Philistines for forty years.

2–5  At that time there was a man named Manoah from Zorah from the tribe of Dan. His wife was barren and childless. The angel of God appeared to her and told her, “I know that you are barren and childless, but you’re going to become pregnant and bear a son. But take much care: Drink no wine or beer; eat nothing ritually unclean. You are, in fact, pregnant right now, carrying a son. No razor will touch his head—the boy will be God’s Nazirite from the moment of his birth. He will launch the deliverance from Philistine oppression.”

6–7  The woman went to her husband and said, “A man of God came to me. He looked like the angel of God—terror laced with glory! I didn’t ask him where he was from and he didn’t tell me his name, but he told me, ‘You’re pregnant. You’re going to give birth to a son. Don’t drink any wine or beer and eat nothing ritually unclean. The boy will be God’s Nazirite from the moment of birth to the day of his death.’ ”

8  Manoah prayed to God: “Master, let the man of God you sent come to us again and teach us how to raise this boy who is to be born.”

9–10  God listened to Manoah. God’s angel came again to the woman. She was sitting in the field; her husband Manoah wasn’t there with her. She jumped to her feet and ran and told her husband: “He’s back! The man who came to me that day!”

11  Manoah got up and, following his wife, came to the man. He said to him, “Are you the man who spoke to my wife?”

He said, “I am.”

12  Manoah said, “So. When what you say comes true, what do you have to tell us about this boy and his work?”

13–14  The angel of God said to Manoah, “Keep in mind everything I told the woman. Eat nothing that comes from the vine: Drink no wine or beer; eat no ritually unclean foods. She’s to observe everything I commanded her.”

15  Manoah said to the angel of God, “Please, stay with us a little longer; we’ll prepare a meal for you—a young goat.”

16  God’s angel said to Manoah, “Even if I stay, I won’t eat your food. But if you want to prepare a Whole-Burnt-Offering for God, go ahead—offer it!” Manoah had no idea that he was talking to the angel of God.

17  Then Manoah asked the angel of God, “What’s your name? When your words come true, we’d like to honor you.”

18  The angel of God said, “What’s this? You ask for my name? You wouldn’t understand—it’s sheer wonder.”

19–21  So Manoah took the kid and the Grain-Offering and sacrificed them on a rock altar to God who works wonders. As the flames leapt up from the altar to heaven, God’s angel also ascended in the altar flames. When Manoah and his wife saw this, they fell facedown to the ground. Manoah and his wife never saw the angel of God again.

21–22  Only then did Manoah realize that this was God’s angel. He said to his wife, “We’re as good as dead! We’ve looked on God!”

23  But his wife said, “If God were planning to kill us, he wouldn’t have accepted our Whole-Burnt-Offering and Grain-Offering, or revealed all these things to us—given us this birth announcement.”

24–25  The woman gave birth to a son. They named him Samson. The boy grew and God blessed him. The Spirit of God began working in him while he was staying at a Danite camp between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Saturday, February 14, 2026

by Karen Pimpo

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Jeremiah 31:1-4, 7, 9

 “And when that happens”—God’s Decree—

“it will be plain as the sun at high noon:

I’ll be the God of every man, woman, and child in Israel

and they shall be my very own people.”

2–6  This is the way God put it:

“They found grace out in the desert,

these people who survived the killing.

Israel, out looking for a place to rest,

met God out looking for them!”

God told them, “I’ve never quit loving you and never will.

Expect love, love, and more love!

And so now I’ll start over with you and build you up again,

dear virgin Israel.

You’ll resume your singing,

grabbing tambourines and joining the dance.

7  Oh yes, God says so:

“Shout for joy at the top of your lungs for Jacob!

Announce the good news to the number-one nation!

Raise cheers! Sing praises. Say,

‘God has saved his people,

saved the core of Israel.’

Today's Insights

God disciplined His chosen people because of their unfaithfulness. Jerusalem was destroyed and the Israelites exiled to Babylon (Jeremiah 1:14-16; 5:15-19; 6:22-23; 25:9-11). But once the discipline was complete, God brought them back from exile (30:8-17), restored their privileges as His chosen nation (vv. 18-24), and, most important, restored the people to Himself (ch. 31). He did this because of His special love and unmerited mercy. God is “Israel’s father and [Israel] is [his] firstborn son” (v. 9). He assured them, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness” (v. 3). God’s discipline isn’t inconsistent with His love, for “the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in” (Proverbs 3:12). We can be assured that God loves us and pursues us with His everlasting love.

God’s Eternally Beloved

I have loved you with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3

One of the most dramatic and mysterious love letters of all time was penned by composer Ludwig van Beethoven and was only discovered after his death in 1827. The hastily handwritten letter is full of passionate lines like, “My eternally beloved . . . I can only live either wholly with you or not at all.” Tragically, it appears the letter was never sent, and his intended recipient remains unknown. 

Beethoven’s letter is treasured by readers who can identify with his desperate yearning for love. We seek love and fulfillment in many people, things, and experiences that cannot fully satisfy. But far greater than a fleeting romance is the love of God for His covenant people, to whom He showed great love for the sake of all people. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God declared, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness” (Jeremiah 31:3). Because of His great love, God promised a future of rest and favor (v. 2) and the restoration of anything that was broken (v. 4). Despite their repeated rejection and rebellion, God vowed to bring them back to Himself (v. 9).

Many years later, that same everlasting love motivated Jesus to endure death for sinners, even before we ever returned His love (Romans 5:8). We don’t have to search for love or try to earn it. We’re already loved with an everlasting love!

Reflect & Pray

In what ways do you look for love on earth? How has God demonstrated His eternal love to you?

Loving God, I’m so grateful for the way You pursue me with an everlasting love.

How can we love each other the way God calls us to? Find out more by watching A Different Kind of Love.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Saturday, February 14, 2026

The Discipline of Darkness

What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight. — Matthew 10:27

At times, God puts us into the shadow of his hand, holding us in darkness so that we might be still and learn to listen. Songbirds are taught to sing in the dark; we are taught to hear our Lord.

Are you in the dark right now, confused about your circumstances or your life with God? If you are, keep quiet: darkness is the time to listen. If you talk in the dark, you will talk in the wrong mood. Don’t consult other people about your problem; don’t seek the answers in a book. Other people’s voices and opinions will drown out what God is trying to tell you. Listen to God in the dark, and he will give you a precious message for someone else when you get back into the light.

After every time of darkness, there comes a mixture of delight and humiliation. There is delight at finally hearing God, and humiliation at how long it took to listen. “How slow I’ve been in understanding!” you’ll say. “And yet, God has been saying it all these days and weeks.” If you feel only delight, it is doubtful you have heard him at all.

Learn to welcome the humiliation as a gift: it is God’s way of teaching you how to listen better in the future. If you do, you will develop the softness of heart that always hears God now.

Leviticus 15-16; Matthew 27:1-26

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Sincerity means that the appearance and the reality are exactly the same.

Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, 1449 L

Luke 14:25-35, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: TAKE PARENTING FEARS TO CHRIST - February 13, 2026

Parenting comes loaded with fears. Dangers buzz in the background. No parent can sit still while his or her child suffers.

Luke 8 tells us Jairus couldn’t. “Then a man named Jairus, a leader of the local synagogue, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come home with him. His only daughter, who was about twelve years old, was dying” (Luke 8:41-42 NLT).

Jesus heeded his fears. He still does. Jesus heeds the concern in the parent’s heart. After all, our kids were his kids first.  Even as they are ours, they are still his. We forget that fact. Wise are the parents who regularly give their children back to God. Parents, we can be loyal advocates, stubborn intercessors. And we can take our parenting fears to Christ.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Luke 14:25-35

Moses Teaches Israel on the Plains of Moab

1  5 Moses called all Israel together. He said to them,

Attention, Israel. Listen obediently to the rules and regulations I am delivering to your listening ears today. Learn them. Live them.

2–5  God, our God, made a covenant with us at Horeb. God didn’t just make this covenant with our parents; he made it also with us, with all of us who are alive right now. God spoke to you personally out of the fire on the mountain. At the time I stood between God and you, to tell you what God said. You were afraid, remember, of the fire and wouldn’t climb the mountain. He said:

6  I am God, your God,

who brought you out of the land of Egypt,

out of a house of slaves.

7  No other gods, only me.

8–10  No carved gods of any size, shape, or form of anything whatever, whether of things that fly or walk or swim. Don’t bow down to them and don’t serve them because I am God, your God, and I’m a most jealous God. I hold parents responsible for any sins they pass on to their children to the third, and yes, even to the fourth generation. But I’m lovingly loyal to the thousands who love me and keep my commandments.

11  No using the name of God, your God, in curses or silly banter; God won’t put up with the irreverent use of his name.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, February 13, 2026

by Alyson Kieda

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

James 4:1-10

Get Serious

1–2  4 Where do you think all these appalling wars and quarrels come from? Do you think they just happen? Think again. They come about because you want your own way, and fight for it deep inside yourselves. You lust for what you don’t have and are willing to kill to get it. You want what isn’t yours and will risk violence to get your hands on it.

2–3  You wouldn’t think of just asking God for it, would you? And why not? Because you know you’d be asking for what you have no right to. You’re spoiled children, each wanting your own way.

4–6  You’re cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and his way. And do you suppose God doesn’t care? The proverb has it that “he’s a fiercely jealous lover.” And what he gives in love is far better than anything else you’ll find. It’s common knowledge that “God goes against the willful proud; God gives grace to the willing humble.”

7–10  So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet.

Today's Insights

In addition to the admonitions of Peter (1 Peter 5:8) and James (James 4:7) regarding spiritual vigilance in resisting temptation, Paul also had something to say about it. After noting how the Israelites had succumbed to temptation in the wilderness (1 Corinthians 10:1-11), he warned the Corinthians: “If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful . . . . When you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it” (vv. 12-13). The apostle lists two examples of how the “way out” can sometimes involve fleeing. He says we’re to “flee from idolatry” (v. 14) and “sexual immorality” (6:18). The Holy Spirit helps us to succeed in overcoming temptation.

Be Careful!

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7

After years of struggle and crying out in prayer, Frank quit drinking. He attributes his continued sobriety to God’s work in his life. But he also made some important changes. He no longer kept alcohol in the house, watched for warning signs in his thinking and moods, and was wary of certain situations. He leaned on God and knew not to leave an opening for temptation or sin.

“Be alert and of sober mind,” the apostle Peter warned. “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). Peter knew we needed to be watchful because the devil’s attacks are often unexpected—when it seems like our life couldn’t be better, or we think we’d never be tempted in a certain area.

James too warned his readers to submit to God and “resist the devil.” When we do, our enemy “will flee” (James 4:7). The best way to resist him is to stay close to God through prayer and time in Scripture. When we do, God comes near to us (v. 8) through His Spirit (Romans 5:5). James also offered this encouragement: “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” (James 4:10).

We all face challenging moments in life when we’re tempted and struggle. We can rest knowing that God wants us to succeed and overcome. He is with us in our troubles.

Reflect & Pray

When do you seem to be more susceptible to temptation? How has God helped you in those times?

Dear God, please help me draw near to You instead of pulling away. I need Your daily guidance to keep me on the right path.

Learn how the Spirit fights on your behalf.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, February 13, 2026

The Devotion of Listening

Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” — 1 Samuel 3:10

Am I hearing what God is saying? Perhaps I’ve listened well to one of his commands, but I’ve turned a deaf ear to the rest. This is how I show God that I don’t love or respect him: I act like I can’t hear him, even though he is speaking to me clearly. Samuel deliberately turned his attention to God, and assured God that his ears were open.

Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14). Am I being a friend to the Lord, or am I disobeying his commands? If I’d been listening, I wouldn’t have consciously disobeyed. Most of us don’t care enough to listen. Our Lord might as well have said nothing at all.

The goal of my spiritual life is to be so closely identified with Jesus Christ that I always hear God and I know that he always hears me (John 17). When I am identified with the Lord like this, my ears are attuned to his voice at every moment and in every situation. A lily, a tree, the words of one of his servants: all may convey God’s message. If I haven’t cultivated this devotion of listening, his voice comes through to me only at certain times. Most of the time, caught up in serving or in my convictions, I pretend I’m too busy to listen. Serving is a good thing, but if it drowns out God’s voice, I know my devotion is running in the wrong direction.

Have I heard God’s voice today, or have I become deaf to him?

Leviticus 14; Matthew 26:51-75

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

For the past three hundred years men have been pointing out how similar Jesus Christ’s teachings are to other good teachings. We have to remember that Christianity, if it is not a supernatural miracle, is a sham. 

The Highest Good, 548 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Friday, February 13, 2026

LOVING GOD BACK - #10200

I thought she was the cutest little thing in junior high. She didn't think I was the cutest little thing in junior high, though. See, I decided to make an all-or-nothing play for her. I went downtown and I spent all my allowance money on this necklace for her; the finest rhinestones you have ever seen. Then I wrote this eloquently mushy note to go with it and I sealed them both in an envelope which I proceeded to hand her one day as she passed by my desk in study hall. The next day, she passed by my desk again, and I looked down and there was a familiar looking envelope with the note and the necklace in it. Ouch!

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Loving God Back."

I'll tell you, it hurts to spend a lot on someone you care about and basically have them not care. It's a feeling Jesus Christ knows all too well. In fact, without even knowing it, you may have been responding to His love that way.

That love, and the response Jesus should get from us, is clearly described in 1 John 4:10, and then verse 19, our word for today from the Word of God. Here's what it says, "This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." And what a sacrifice - the sinless Son of God taking the filth of your sin and mine so we could be forgiven. God's one and only Son, the Prince of Heaven, abandoned by Father God because He was carrying your sin and mine. The One angels worship, with nails driven angrily through His hands and feet, a spear thrust into His side, absorbing your hell so you would never have to go there. Amazing love - unspeakable love - love which demands a verdict from you and me. Will you give yourself to the man who gave His life for you? Or will you, however politely or religiously, withhold your life from Him?

1 John 4:19 explains the only response worthy of the sacrifice. "We love Him because He first loved us." As actor-director Mel Gibson immersed himself in the suffering and crucifixion of Jesus in preparation for his movie, "The Passion of the Christ," here's how he described its impact. "The full horror of what Jesus suffered didn't really strike me. But when you finally see it and understand what He went through, it makes you feel not only compassion, but also a debt. You want to repay Him for the enormity of His sacrifice. You want to love Him in return."

It's possible to appreciate Jesus' death on the cross, to respect Him for doing it, even to be grateful for it and still miss the only response that really matters to Him - the only response that makes what He did for you on the cross really yours. The incredible Bible verse that says, "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son" says He did that so that, "whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16). "Believe" means you grab Jesus like He's your only hope. You're abandoning every other hope you might have clung to for getting to God.

You say to Jesus, "I cannot resist this love, not any longer. Your death for me is my only hope of being forgiven and going to heaven. So Jesus, I'm giving you what you paid for. You paid for my life and my future and my eternity. Jesus, I'm Yours."

If you want that, I want to help you be sure you've got it and that's why our website is there. So I urge you, at your first opportunity, to visit me there at ANewStory.com. Come and be sure that you belong to Jesus from this day on.

After all God's Son gave for you, I can assure you of this, God is never going to forget what you do with His Son.

Judges 12 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: EIGHT WORRY STOPPERS - February 12, 2026

Here are eight worry-stoppers, found in the letters of the word P-E-A-C-E-F-U-L:

Pray, first.  “Casting the whole of your care upon Him …”

Easy, now.  “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.”

Act on it.  Be a doer, not a stewer.

Compile a worry list.  Keep a list of things that trouble you.  How many have turned into a reality?

Evaluate your worry categories.  Pray specifically about them.

Focus on today.  God meets daily needs daily.

Unleash a worry army.  Ask a few loved ones to pray with you and for you.

Let God be enough.  “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else

P-E-A-C-E-F-U-L. Peaceful!

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Judges 12

 The men of Ephraim mustered their troops, crossed to Zaphon, and said to Jephthah, “Why did you go out to fight the Ammonites without letting us go with you? We’re going to burn your house down on you!”

2–3  Jephthah said, “I and my people had our hands full negotiating with the Ammonites. And I did call to you for help but you ignored me. When I saw that you weren’t coming, I took my life in my hands and confronted the Ammonites myself. And God gave them to me! So why did you show up here today? Are you spoiling for a fight with me?”

4  So Jephthah got his Gilead troops together and fought Ephraim. And the men of Gilead hit them hard because they were saying, “Gileadites are nothing but half breeds and rejects from Ephraim and Manasseh.”

5–6  Gilead captured the fords of the Jordan at the crossing to Ephraim. If an Ephraimite fugitive said, “Let me cross,” the men of Gilead would ask, “Are you an Ephraimite?” and he would say, “No.” And they would say, “Say, ‘Shibboleth.’ ” But he would always say, “Sibboleth”—he couldn’t say it right. Then they would grab him and kill him there at the fords of the Jordan. Forty-two Ephraimite divisions were killed on that occasion.

7  Jephthah judged Israel six years. Jephthah the Gileadite died and was buried in his city, Mizpah of Gilead.

Ibzan

8–9  After him, Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. He had thirty sons and thirty daughters. He gave his daughters in marriage outside his clan and brought in thirty daughters-in-law from the outside for his sons.

10  He judged Israel seven years. Ibzan died and was buried in Bethlehem.

Elon

11–12  After him, Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel. He judged Israel ten years. Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried at Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.

Abdon

13–15  After him, Abdon son of Hillel the Pirathonite judged Israel. He had forty sons and thirty grandsons who rode on seventy donkeys. He judged Israel eight years. Abdon son of Hillel the Pirathonite died and was buried at Pirathon in the land of Ephraim in the Amalekite hill country.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, February 12, 2026

by John Blase

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Psalm 4

A David Psalm

1  4 When I call, give me answers. God, take my side!

Once, in a tight place, you gave me room;

Now I’m in trouble again: grace me! hear me!

2  You rabble—how long do I put up with your scorn?

How long will you lust after lies?

How long will you live crazed by illusion?

3  Look at this: look

Who got picked by God!

He listens the split second I call to him.

4–5  Complain if you must, but don’t lash out.

Keep your mouth shut, and let your heart do the talking.

Build your case before God and wait for his verdict.

6–7  Why is everyone hungry for more? “More, more,” they say.

“More, more.”

I have God’s more-than-enough,

More joy in one ordinary day

7–8  Than they get in all their shopping sprees.

At day’s end I’m ready for sound sleep,

For you, God, have put my life back together.

Today's Insights

Psalm 4 expresses David’s quiet confidence in God amid distressing circumstances and slanderous attacks (vv. 1-2, 8). Affirming that God had set him apart to live a life that honored Him (v. 3) and acknowledging his propensity to seek revenge on those who’d attacked him, the psalmist reminded himself, “Don’t sin by letting anger control you. Think about it overnight and remain silent” (v. 4 nlt). Instead of angry retribution, he chose silent reflection on God’s goodness and faithfulness (vv. 4-8). In another psalm, David similarly wrote, “Be still before the Lord . . . . Do not fret—it leads only to evil” (37:7-8). Today, when we’re anxious, we can ask God to help us and to remind us of His presence and faithfulness.

Discover the secret to lasting peace in Christ.

A Nonanxious Presence

In peace I will lie down and sleep. Psalm 4:8

In his 1985 book Generation to Generation, family therapist and Rabbi Edwin Friedman introduced the phrase “a nonanxious presence.” Friedman’s thesis, later articulated in A Failure of Nerve, is that “the climate of contemporary America has become so chronically anxious that our society has gone into an emotional regression that is toxic to well-defined leadership.” Friedman focused on how chronic anxiety spreads within a system—a family, a workplace, a congregation. Yet in the same way, a leader can offer a nonanxious presence that will spread through a system, becoming a person of peace in the middle of a storm.

Psalm 4 is a psalm of David, written in the middle of one of life’s storms. David was in the grip of anxiety. So he cried out to God, “Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer” (v. 1). While he was fearful for his life, he was also aware that his followers were fearful too: “Many, Lord, are asking, ‘Who will bring us prosperity?’” (v. 6).

David’s decision to trust God created a nonanxious presence in the presence of anxiety! “In peace I will lie down and sleep,” he said. David could rest because “you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety” (v. 8).

We too can rest in the nonanxious presence God provides. We can spread His peace wherever we go.

Reflect & Pray

What’s a current situation causing you anxiety? What would it look like to lead with a nonanxious presence?

You alone, God of peace, are my safety. May my trust in You encourage others to do the same.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, February 12, 2026

Must I Listen?

They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.” — Exodus 20:18-19

There are times when we’re not consciously disobeying God; we’re just not paying attention. God has given us his commandments: there they are, set down in Scripture, along with a clear directive that we should follow them. “If you love me, keep my commands” (John 14:15). And still, we look the other way. We don’t do this out of willful disobedience. We do it because we don’t love and respect God.

“Speak to us yourself,” the Israelites told Moses. “But do not have God speak to us.” We show God how little we love him when we prefer to listen only to his servants. We’ll listen to personal testimonies, but we won’t listen to God himself. Why are we so terrified of him speaking directly to us? Because we know that if he does, we’ll have a choice to make: obey or disobey. If it’s only a servant’s voice we hear, we feel free to disregard it. “Well, that’s just your own idea,” we say. “Even though I don’t deny it’s probably God’s truth.”

Am I putting God in the humiliating position of having treated me as his child, while I’ve been ignoring him? When I do finally listen, the humiliation I’ve been putting on him comes back on me, and my delight at hearing him is tempered by the shame of having shut him out for so long.

Leviticus 13; Matthew 26:26-50

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

It is impossible to read too much, but always keep before you why you read. Remember that “the need to receive, recognize, and rely on the Holy Spirit” is before all else.

Approved Unto God, 11 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, February 12, 2026

One day when our daughter was a teenager, I heard an interesting variety of emotions coming from her room. First, I'd hear her laughing, then sniffling, then she'd let out an occasional "I can't believe it!" Finally, my curiosity got the best of me; I had to know what she was doing. She said, "I'm reading my diary, Dad." Well, as she was reading that diary, she was reliving a lot of great moments, some hard times, and a number of lessons learned. I've often wished I could go back and enter into how I felt at some key moments in my life. The problem is I didn't write it down.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Power of Journaling God."

Now, it really is true: if you want to keep something, write it down. Like a friend once told me, "The weakest ink is stronger than the strongest memory. In fact, when it comes to some of life's experiences - some of life's most eternally important experiences - writing it down shouldn't be optional.

Your most important experiences in life are your personal times with Jesus Christ. They are what shape your life here. They're a foretaste of what your eternity is going to be about - being with Jesus. And this side of heaven, the primary place where you meet your Lord is in His Word - the Bible. But it won't change you if you don't remember what He says to you.

Which is what God is saying in our word for today from the Word of God in James 1:22-25. God says, "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it - he will be blessed in what he does."

Like a person looking in the mirror in the morning, you're supposed to look into God's Word to see what needs to change. First, God says to reflect on what He's saying to you in His Book, "looking intently" into it. Then He says to remember what He's said to you, and that's usually the problem. Even a few hours later, we probably can't remember what He said or what we read. And these verses in James imply that we will only make spiritual progress if we are "not forgetting" what we heard from the Lord.

That's why I tried something many years ago; keeping a daily spiritual journal. If I gave it a title, I'd just call it "My Times with Jesus." I never kept a personal diary about how I was feeling but I did start a journal of my times with Jesus. And I started doing it and I haven't stopped, including this very morning. Those entries in a notebook have turned out to be the tangible proof of God at work in my life - an album literally showing my growth in Jesus Christ.

I really want to strongly recommend this spiritual journaling to you. As you browse back through it later on, you'll be able to see the pattern of God's leading as it's unfolded and you'll find in it an incredible faith-builder in the crunch times.

Write down the date and where you're reading. Then read a few verses two or three times. Then write down two things: first, what did you read? Summarize what God was saying in your own words, not Bible words. Secondly, write down what you're going to do differently that day because of what God said. (1) What did God say? (2) What am I going to do differently because of it?

It's really exciting to keep a record of what God says and what He does in your life. That diary will be filled with the power and the presence of your Lord. And when you're feeling discouraged or confused or alone, reach for the record and experience again the wonderful power of a journal that is glowing with your personal experience of God.

Luke 14:1-24, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: LOAVES, FISH, AND JESUS - February 11, 2026

In Matthew 6:25 Jesus says, “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough.”

On one occasion, Jesus had taken the disciples on a retreat.  Then came the hungry crowd.  Then the disciples issued a command to Jesus. “Send the crowds away so they can go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus issued an assignment, “You give them something to eat.” Do you suppose Jesus was hoping someone would count all the possibilities: “we have five loaves, two fish, and … Jesus!” (Matthew 14: 15-17 NLT)

Standing next to the disciples was the solution to their problems … but the disciples stopped their counting and worried. What about you? Are you counting your problems or are you counting on Christ?

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Luke 14:1-24

One time when Jesus went for a Sabbath meal with one of the top leaders of the Pharisees, all the guests had their eyes on him, watching his every move. Right before him there was a man hugely swollen in his joints. So Jesus asked the religion scholars and Pharisees present, “Is it permitted to heal on the Sabbath? Yes or no?”

4–6  They were silent. So he took the man, healed him, and sent him on his way. Then he said, “Is there anyone here who, if a child or animal fell down a well, wouldn’t rush to pull him out immediately, not asking whether or not it was the Sabbath?” They were stumped. There was nothing they could say to that.

Invite the Misfits

7–9  He went on to tell a story to the guests around the table. Noticing how each had tried to elbow into the place of honor, he said, “When someone invites you to dinner, don’t take the place of honor. Somebody more important than you might have been invited by the host. Then he’ll come and call out in front of everybody, ‘You’re in the wrong place. The place of honor belongs to this man.’ Red-faced, you’ll have to make your way to the very last table, the only place left.

10–11  “When you’re invited to dinner, go and sit at the last place. Then when the host comes he may very well say, ‘Friend, come up to the front.’ That will give the dinner guests something to talk about! What I’m saying is, If you walk around with your nose in the air, you’re going to end up flat on your face. But if you’re content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself.”

12–14  Then he turned to the host. “The next time you put on a dinner, don’t just invite your friends and family and rich neighbors, the kind of people who will return the favor. Invite some people who never get invited out, the misfits from the wrong side of the tracks. You’ll be—and experience—a blessing. They won’t be able to return the favor, but the favor will be returned—oh, how it will be returned!—at the resurrection of God’s people.”

The Story of the Dinner Party

15  That triggered a response from one of the guests: “How fortunate the one who gets to eat dinner in God’s kingdom!”

16–17  Jesus followed up. “Yes. For there was once a man who threw a great dinner party and invited many. When it was time for dinner, he sent out his servant to the invited guests, saying, ‘Come on in; the food’s on the table.’

18  “Then they all began to beg off, one after another making excuses. The first said, ‘I bought a piece of property and need to look it over. Send my regrets.’

19  “Another said, ‘I just bought five teams of oxen, and I really need to check them out. Send my regrets.’

20  “And yet another said, ‘I just got married and need to get home to my wife.’

21  “The servant went back and told the master what had happened. He was outraged and told the servant, ‘Quickly, get out into the city streets and alleys. Collect all who look like they need a square meal, all the misfits and homeless and wretched you can lay your hands on, and bring them here.’

22  “The servant reported back, ‘Master, I did what you commanded—and there’s still room.’

23–24  “The master said, ‘Then go to the country roads. Whoever you find, drag them in. I want my house full! Let me tell you, not one of those originally invited is going to get so much as a bite at my dinner party.’ ”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, February 11, 2026

by 

Arthur Jackson

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Matthew 26:6-13

When Jesus was at Bethany, a guest of Simon the Leper, a woman came up to him as he was eating dinner and anointed him with a bottle of very expensive perfume. When the disciples saw what was happening, they were furious. “That’s criminal! This could have been sold for a lot and the money handed out to the poor.”

10–13  When Jesus realized what was going on, he intervened. “Why are you giving this woman a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me. You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your lives, but not me. When she poured this perfume on my body, what she really did was anoint me for burial. You can be sure that wherever in the whole world the Message is preached, what she has just done is going to be remembered and admired.”

Today's Insights

In Matthew 26:10, Jesus described a woman’s act of devotion as a “beautiful thing.” It was selfless, thoughtful, and costly. What a contrast with the selfish, ugly actions recorded by Matthew on either side of this account. Plotting religious leaders devised a murderous plan to kill Christ (vv. 3-5). And, from within the band of His own disciples, Judas Iscariot’s plan to betray Him was set in motion (vv. 14-16). Given these circumstances, the woman’s act of honor shines even more brightly.

In a world that includes misguided and unflattering sentiments toward Jesus, those who believe in Him can show how precious He is by honoring Him through thoughtful, caring actions that may cost us time, money, or things we value. Honoring Christ by loving others is still a beautiful thing.

Honoring Jesus

She has done a beautiful thing to me. Matthew 26:10

A twenty-dollar bill and two leaflets with messages about Jesus. That’s what was inside an envelope labeled “John Daniels Sr, Random Act of Kindness Day.” A woman gave it to me while I was on my walk at the community college campus. A year earlier, John had been fatally struck by a car after helping a homeless man and sharing words about Christ’s love with him. John’s legacy of witnessing through words and deeds lives on through the woman I met that day, along with John's other family members.

In Matthew 26:13, one woman was memorialized by Jesus with these words: “Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” The woman’s tender heart for Christ compelled her to anoint Him with expensive ointment (v. 7). What was misunderstood and criticized by others as wasteful (vv. 8-9) was commended by Jesus as “a beautiful thing” (v. 10). The woman’s costly devotion was used by God in a unique way, just as He uses our deeds today for His purposes.

The envelope I received reinforced my desire to distribute resources to those on the street corners in my city, but honoring Jesus can happen in a variety of ways. Let’s tell others about Him and demonstrate His love practically.

Reflect & Pray

Who has inspired you to honor Jesus in practical ways? What acts of kindness might your love for Him compel you to do?

Heavenly Father, the lives of other believers in Jesus inspire me to love You more. Please help me to see ways to share my love for You.

Jesus teaches us how to be in right relationship with Him. Check out Joy to the Full to learn more.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, February 11, 2026

Is Your Hope in God Faint and Dying?

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. — Isaiah 26:3 (kjv mg)

Is your imagination stayed on God, or is it starved? A starved imagination is one of the greatest sources of exhaustion in a disciple’s life. To attain the perfect peace Isaiah describes, we must set our minds steadfastly on God, trusting entirely in him.

If you have never used your imagination to put yourself deliberately before God, begin to do it now. It is no use waiting for God to come to you: you must go to him, turning your gaze away from the faces of idols. Imagination is the greatest gift God has given us, and it ought to be devoted entirely to him. If you learn to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, it will be one of the greatest assets to your faith when the time of trial comes, because your faith and the Spirit of God will work together.

“We have sinned, even as our ancestors did. . . . They did not remember your many kindnesses” (Psalm 106:6–7). If you find that your mind is not steadfastly set on God, if you cannot remember his kindness and love, drive a stake through the heart of your forgetfulness. Remember whose you are and whom you serve. If you do, your affection for God will increase tenfold, your imagination will be quick and enthusiastic, and your hope will be inexpressibly bright.

Leviticus 11-12; Matthew 26:1-25

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

To those who have had no agony Jesus says, “I have nothing for you; stand on your own feet, square your own shoulders. I have come for the man who knows he has a bigger handful than he can cope with, who knows there are forces he cannot touch; I will do everything for him if he will let Me. Only let a man grant he needs it, and I will do it for him.”

The Shadow of an Agony

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, February 11, 2026

EVERY DAY, EVERY PLAY MATTERS - #10198

As a longtime New York Giants football fan, it's hard for me to tell a story where a Dallas Cowboys player is the hero, but this one I couldn't resist. Charles Lowery tells the story of a visit by then Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman to visit this young patient's ward in a children's cancer hospital. T.J. was one of those patients, a young boy who was dying of cancer. After visiting with him, Troy promised that he would score a touchdown in that boy's honor. As he was leaving, T.J.'s mom took the quarterback aside and told him that the boy didn't have long to live. Well, the promise stood. The following week was the Cowboys' first preseason exhibition game, and they didn't even play Troy that week. But T.J., of course, was glued to that whole game hopefully.

The next week the Cowboys played in Mexico City, putting starters like Troy Aikman in for only the first quarter. The Cowboys had driven to their opponents' 20-yard line where Troy dropped back to launch a pass - only to tuck the football and, much to everyone's surprise, run the ball in for a touchdown - and then to be tackled in the end zone by these two monster defenders. Well, some Dallas sports writers were all over Aikman because he did what he's not supposed to do as a quarterback. He risked injury like that in what they called a meaningless game. They should have talked to T.J.'s mom. She said, "Troy knew it wasn't a meaningless game; not when he was playing for someone who was dying."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Every Day, Every Play Matters."

You know, it really is true. There is no such thing as a meaningless anything when you do it for someone who's dying, which in terms of God and eternity, many of the people all around us are doing. The Bible clearly says that anyone who "does not have the Son of God does not have life" (1 John 5:12) and that they are "without God and without hope in this world" (Ephesians 2:12). That includes anyone in your personal world who has not had their sins forgiven by faith in the Christ who died for them: coworkers, neighbors of yours, fellow students, people at the gym, at the club, teammates, family members.

But Jesus has placed you where you are, right next to those folks, so they could have a chance at Him, a chance at heaven. And He's depending on you to tell them - to play your position each day as if you were playing for someone who's dying. You are. The Biblical story of Esther is, in a way, the story of everyone who belongs to Christ. She is the Jewish girl who, by God's design, became the Queen of Persia with no one knowing she was a Jew. Then, through the treachery of an anti-Semitic aide to the king, a decree was issued that mandated the death of every one of her people.

For Esther to appeal to the king would mean the very real risk of her own life. But her godly cousin gives her this haunting challenge, "Who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" That's Esther 4:14, and it's our word for today from the Word of God. And she realizes she is in that position to save dying people, and she risks everything to rescue them.

Now, something very exciting, very enlarging happens to your life when you realize that what you do every day doesn't have to be "everyday stuff." It's relationships and opportunities to point someone where you are to life in Christ. So nothing you do is meaningless, not when you do it to help someone who's spiritually dying. And the life of a church or a ministry is suddenly electrified when the leaders and the members there decide to do what they do, not just to make themselves comfortable and blessed, but to rescue the dying people all around them in their community. It changes everything.

There's a lot at stake in whether you are a silent follower of Christ or one who breaks your silence to tell them about the Jesus who is their only hope. My friend, this is life-or-death. And it means that the way you play really, really matters.

Judges 11, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: GRACE CAN SET YOU FREE - February 10, 2026

Do you know God’s grace? Then you can live boldly, live robustly. Nothing fosters courage like a clear grasp of grace. And nothing fosters fear like an ignorance of mercy.

May I speak candidly? If you haven’t accepted God’s forgiveness, you are doomed to fear. Only God’s grace can remove it. Have you accepted the forgiveness of Christ? If not, do so. Your prayer can be as simple as this: Dear Father, I need forgiveness. I admit that I have turned away from you. Please forgive me.  I place my soul in your hands and my trust in your grace. Through Jesus I pray, amen.

Having received God’s forgiveness, live forgiven! When Jesus sets you free, you are free indeed. (John 8:36).

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Judges 11

Jephthah the Gileadite was one tough warrior. He was the son of a whore, but Gilead was his father. Meanwhile Gilead’s legal wife had given him other sons, and when they grew up, his wife’s sons threw Jephthah out. They told him: “You’re not getting any of our family inheritance—you’re the son of another woman.” So Jephthah fled from his brothers and went to live in the land of Tob. Some riffraff joined him and went around with him.

4–6  Some time passed. And then the Ammonites started fighting Israel. With the Ammonites at war with them, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. They said to Jephthah: “Come. Be our general and we’ll fight the Ammonites.”

7  But Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead: “But you hate me. You kicked me out of my family home. So why are you coming to me now? Because you are in trouble. Right?”

8  The elders of Gilead replied, “That’s it exactly. We’ve come to you to get you to go with us and fight the Ammonites. You’ll be the head of all of us, all the Gileadites.”

9  Jephthah addressed the elders of Gilead, “So if you bring me back home to fight the Ammonites and God gives them to me, I’ll be your head—is that right?”

10–11  They said, “God is witness between us; whatever you say, we’ll do.” Jephthah went along with the elders of Gilead. The people made him their top man and general. And Jephthah repeated what he had said before God at Mizpah.

12  Then Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites with a message: “What’s going on here that you have come into my country picking a fight?”

13  The king of the Ammonites told Jephthah’s messengers: “Because Israel took my land when they came up out of Egypt—from the Arnon all the way to the Jabbok and to the Jordan. Give it back peaceably and I’ll go.”

14–27  Jephthah again sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites with the message: “Jephthah’s word: Israel took no Moabite land and no Ammonite land. When they came up from Egypt, Israel went through the desert as far as the Red Sea, arriving at Kadesh. There Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom saying, ‘Let us pass through your land, please.’ But the king of Edom wouldn’t let them. Israel also requested permission from the king of Moab, but he wouldn’t let them cross either. They were stopped in their tracks at Kadesh. So they traveled across the desert and circled around the lands of Edom and Moab. They came out east of the land of Moab and set camp on the other side of the Arnon—they didn’t set foot in Moabite territory, for Arnon was the Moabite border. Israel then sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites at Heshbon the capital. Israel asked, ‘Let us pass, please, through your land on the way to our country.’ But Sihon didn’t trust Israel to cut across his land; he got his entire army together, set up camp at Jahaz, and fought Israel. But God, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his troops to Israel. Israel defeated them. Israel took all the Amorite land, all Amorite land from Arnon to the Jabbok and from the desert to the Jordan. It was God, the God of Israel, who pushed out the Amorites in favor of Israel; so who do you think you are to try to take it over? Why don’t you just be satisfied with what your god Chemosh gives you and we’ll settle for what God, our God, gives us? Do you think you’re going to come off better than Balak son of Zippor, the king of Moab? Did he get anywhere in opposing Israel? Did he risk war? All this time—it’s been three hundred years now!—that Israel has lived in Heshbon and its villages, in Aroer and its villages, and in all the towns along the Arnon, why didn’t you try to snatch them away then? No, I haven’t wronged you. But this is an evil thing that you are doing to me by starting a fight. Today God the Judge will decide between the People of Israel and the people of Ammon.”

28  But the king of the Ammonites refused to listen to a word that Jephthah had sent him.

29–31  God’s Spirit came upon Jephthah. He went across Gilead and Manasseh, went through Mizpah of Gilead, and from there approached the Ammonites. Jephthah made a vow before God: “If you give me a clear victory over the Ammonites, then I’ll give to God whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in one piece from among the Ammonites—I’ll offer it up in a sacrificial burnt offering.”

32–33  Then Jephthah was off to fight the Ammonites. And God gave them to him. He beat them soundly, all the way from Aroer to the area around Minnith as far as Abel Keramim—twenty cities! A massacre! Ammonites brought to their knees by the People of Israel.

34–35  Jephthah came home to Mizpah. His daughter ran from the house to welcome him home—dancing to tambourines! She was his only child. He had no son or daughter except her. When he realized who it was, he ripped his clothes, saying, “Ah, dearest daughter—I’m dirt. I’m despicable. My heart is torn to shreds. I made a vow to God and I can’t take it back!”

36  She said, “Dear father, if you made a vow to God, do to me what you vowed; God did his part and saved you from your Ammonite enemies.”

37  And then she said to her father, “But let this one thing be done for me. Give me two months to wander through the hills and lament my virginity since I will never marry, I and my dear friends.”

38–39  “Oh yes, go,” he said. He sent her off for two months. She and her dear girlfriends went among the hills, lamenting that she would never marry. At the end of the two months, she came back to her father. He fulfilled the vow with her that he had made. She had never slept with a man.

39–40  It became a custom in Israel that for four days every year the young women of Israel went out to mourn for the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Tuesday, February 10, 2026

by Jasmine Goh

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Romans 6:4-12

When we are lowered into the water, it is like the burial of Jesus; when we are raised up out of the water, it is like the resurrection of Jesus. Each of us is raised into a light-filled world by our Father so that we can see where we’re going in our new grace-sovereign country.

6–11  Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer at sin’s every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ’s sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That’s what Jesus did.

12–14  That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don’t give it the time of day.

Today's Insights

In Romans 1-3, Paul shows that all human beings are sinners in need of salvation. In chapter 4, he writes about our redemption and justification. Through faith in Jesus, who died for our sins and was raised from the dead (vv. 24-25), God has given us a right relationship with Him. In chapters 5-8, the apostle describes this new life. He writes metaphorically of our former life as something old which has been replaced by something new (see 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:9-10). In Romans 6, the apostle likens our sinful nature to the “old self” (v. 6) that was crucified and buried with Christ. Believers in Jesus are no longer the same but are now “dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus” (v. 11 nlt). Those who accept God’s offer of new life through faith in Christ can now live in a way that honors Him because sin is no longer their master (vv. 11-14).

The Exchange

Our old self was crucified with [Christ] so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. Romans 6:6

Elijah had accidentally ripped a ten-dollar bill while playing with his friends. But instead of admonishing him, his father offered to exchange the torn bill with a fresh one from his wallet.

“Why would you do that?” Elijah asked, confused. “For one, you’re my son,” his father explained. “It’s also a reminder of what Jesus did for us. Because Jesus came and gave His life in exchange for ours, we can now live new lives.”

Every human life is valuable to God because He created each of us. But our sinful nature—“the body ruled by sin” (Romans 6:6)—keeps us from living a life worthy of God’s holiness. So God, in His great love for us, willingly gave up His Son to pay the price of our sin. Our old self was put to death, and in exchange, He offers us a new one—“no longer . . . slaves to sin” (v. 6). When we accept God’s offer of new life, we can be assured that even though our old self was sinful and broken—“corrupted by its deceitful desires” (Ephesians 4:22), we are now being perfected “to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (v. 24).

Elijah’s father was willing to offer him something of his own because he loves him. But the even better offer is the one God extends to us: the redemption of our lives. When we accept His offer of new life, we aren’t the same as we were before.

Reflect & Pray

What was your life like before you received Jesus as your redeemer? How would you describe it now?

Dear God, thank You for offering me new life, set free from sin, through faith in Christ.

Get to know the basics of the doctrine of salvation.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Tuesday, February 10, 2026

Is Your Imagination of God Starved?

Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. — Isaiah 40:26

In Isaiah’s day, God’s people had starved their imaginations by looking on the faces of idols. Isaiah told them to look to God, to the author of everything created and imagined. He made them lift their eyes to the heavens, so that they might begin to use their imaginations aright.

Nature to a child of God is sacramental. In every wind that blows, in every night and every day, in every sign of the sky, in every blossoming and withering of the earth, there is a real coming of God to us, if we will only use our starved imaginations to realize it. If we learn to associate ideas worthy of God with all that happens in nature—with the sunrises and the sunsets, with the moon and the stars, with the changing seasons—our imaginations will never be at the mercy of our impulses but will always be at his service.

Is your imagination looking on the face of an idol? Is the idol yourself? Your work? Your experiences of salvation and sanctification? If your imagination is God-starved, you will have no power when difficulties arise. When you need strength, don’t look to your own experience or understanding; it is God you need. Go out of yourself—away from your idols, away from everything that has been starving your imagination. Take Isaiah’s words to heart: lift your eyes to the heavens and deliberately turn your mind to God.

Leviticus 8-10; Matthew 25:31-46

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The measure of the worth of our public activity for God is the private profound communion we have with Him.… We have to pitch our tents where we shall always have quiet times with God, however noisy our times with the world may be.

My Utmost for His Highest, January 6, 736 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Tuesday, February 10, 2026

NEEDING TO HEAR WHAT YOU DON'T WANT TO HEAR - #10197

Many years ago I shocked my kids. I told them I could remember life without television! Yeah, I know you can't believe the reaction to that. It's inconceivable to them that there was ever life before TV. Well, I was there I'm afraid to say.

Now, I've seen a lot of changes since we got our first tv. I think I was about five or six years old, and my dad brought home this little box with a seven-inch screen. My mother and I would, like, burn out our eyes, sitting next to it trying to find whatever was on in that little box. And if you didn't like what was on, there wasn't a lot of choice; there were not very many channels.

Over the years independent networks began to develop and they began to have more choices. And then, cable TV, and then you got like hundreds of choices. And finally, along comes the remote switch and you don't even have to get up if you don't like what's on the screen. You just push a button! I'm really good at that thing! You just change the channel or turn it off. Of course, you might just be turning off a message you need.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Needing to Hear What You Don't Want to Hear."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Chronicles 26. It's about a Jewish king, King Uzziah, who was a legend in his own time. He was blessed by God. He defeated the ancient enemies of Israel. He built these impressive towers. He had the most advanced army of his day. But, 2 Chronicles 26, beginning in verse 16, says this: "But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the Lord his God, and he entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense." Now, you might remember that only a High Priest, a consecrated High Priest could enter into the Holy Place of God and do that. But, this is a proud, arrogant, spiritually insensitive act on the king's part.

"Azariah, the Priest," it says, "with eighty other courageous priests of the Lord followed him in. They confronted him and said, 'It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is for the priests - the descendants of Aaron - who have been consecrated to burn incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you've been unfaithful and you will not be honored by the Lord God.'" Well, it says, "Uzziah had a censor in his hand ready to burn incense, but he became angry.

While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the Lord's temple, leprosy broke out on his forehead." And we go on to read that he had leprosy until he died, and had to live in a separate house.

Here's a story of a powerful man, and courageous priests. He didn't like what he heard from them, so he just changed channels. He didn't get angry at what he had done; he got angry at the people who cared enough to confront him with what he'd done. Now, the important exhortation in this story is this: listen to your confronters. The more successful we get, the more we need them and the less we want them. The best friends you have are the ones who are willing to tell you the unpleasant truth about you; who hold up a mirror.

So, how do you react to your critics, your confronters, your correctors? Think about your reaction to the suggestions of the corrections that you've gotten say from your parents, or from your spouse. Did you blow up? Did you walk away? Or did you honestly consider whether there might be at least some truth in what they said?

Right now, God is probably assigning someone to be your confronter. He does that because He loves you. You need one. Who is it? Are you listening even if the news is hard to take? Or do you leap to the defensive and you shut down if you don't like what you're hearing? Your confronters may or may not say it well. They may or may not have the right attitude. But they may have a point. Listen to your confronters. They may help you avoid a crash later.

I know you want to tune it out or turn it off when your confronters are broadcasting. But you need that news. Don't switch channels.

Judges 10, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: FEAR OF FAILING GOD - February 9, 2026

“A person can request forgiveness only so many times,” contends our common sense. If the devil can convince us that God’s grace has limited funds, we’ll draw the logical conclusion. The account is empty. No access to God.

“Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.” Jesus spoke these words to a paraplegic as recorded in Matthew 9:2. Jesus was thinking about our deepest problem—sin. He was considering our deepest fear—the fear of failing God. God keeps no list of our wrongs. His love casts out fear because he casts out sin. 1 John 3:20 says,“If our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things” (NKJV).

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Judges 10

Tola

1–2  10 Tola son of Puah, the son of Dodo, was next after Abimelech. He rose to the occasion to save Israel. He was a man of Issachar. He lived in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. He judged Israel for twenty-three years and then died and was buried at Shamir.

Jair

3–5  After him, Jair the Gileadite stepped into leadership. He judged Israel for twenty-two years. He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys and had thirty towns in Gilead. The towns are still called Jair’s Villages. Jair died and was buried in Kamon.

6–8  And then the People of Israel went back to doing evil in God’s sight. They worshiped the Baal gods and Ashtoreth goddesses: gods of Aram, Sidon, and Moab; gods of the Ammonites and the Philistines. They just walked off and left God, quit worshiping him. And God exploded in hot anger at Israel and sold them off to the Philistines and Ammonites, who, beginning that year, bullied and battered the People of Israel mercilessly. For eighteen years they had them under their thumb, all the People of Israel who lived east of the Jordan in the Amorite country of Gilead.

9  Then the Ammonites crossed the Jordan to go to war also against Judah, Ben-jamin, and Ephraim. Israel was in a bad way!

10  The People of Israel cried out to God for help: “We’ve sinned against you! We left our God and worshiped the Baal gods!”

11–14  God answered the People of Israel: “When the Egyptians, Amorites, Ammonites, Philistines, Sidonians—even Amalek and Midian!—oppressed you and you cried out to me for help, I saved you from them. And now you’ve gone off and betrayed me, worshiping other gods. I’m not saving you anymore. Go ahead! Cry out for help to the gods you’ve chosen—let them get you out of the mess you’re in!”

15  The People of Israel said to God: “We’ve sinned. Do to us whatever you think best, but please, get us out of this!”

16  Then they cleaned house of the foreign gods and worshiped only God. And God took Israel’s troubles to heart.

Jephthah

17–18  The Ammonites prepared for war, setting camp in Gilead. The People of Israel set their rival camp in Mizpah. The leaders in Gilead said, “Who will stand up for us against the Ammonites? We’ll make him head over everyone in Gilead!”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Monday, February 09, 2026

by Winn Collier

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Proverbs 18:1-12

Words Kill, Words Give Life

1  18 Loners who care only for themselves

spit on the common good.

2  Fools care nothing for thoughtful discourse;

all they do is run off at the mouth.

3  When wickedness arrives, shame’s not far behind;

contempt for life is contemptible.

4  Many words rush along like rivers in flood,

but deep wisdom flows up from artesian springs.

5  It’s not right to go easy on the guilty,

or come down hard on the innocent.

6  The words of a fool start fights;

do him a favor and gag him.

7  Fools are undone by their big mouths;

their souls are crushed by their words.

8  Listening to gossip is like eating cheap candy;

do you really want junk like that in your belly?

9  Slack habits and sloppy work

are as bad as vandalism.

10  God’s name is a place of protection—

good people can run there and be safe.

11  The rich think their wealth protects them;

they imagine themselves safe behind it.

12  Pride first, then the crash,

but humility is precursor to honor.

Today's Insights

These dozen verses weave the strands of pride, speech, and foolishness into a cohesive idea. A proud person “pursues selfish ends” (Proverbs 18:1) and refuses to seek “understanding” (v. 2). Our words can be “deep waters” (v. 4), but “wisdom” provides “a rushing stream” (v. 4) if we will drink from it. The speech of a fool creates “strife” (v. 6), and the very words of fools “are their undoing” (v. 7). Similarly, gossip poisons everyone affected, as it’s “like choice morsels” (v. 8) that tempt the naïve while damaging the target of the rumors. And it’s “the righteous” who find that “the name of the Lord is a fortified tower” (v. 10).

How the Proud Fall

Before a downfall the heart is haughty. Proverbs 18:12

John Taylor was a British eye surgeon in the 1700s who, driven by arrogance, fabricated a prestigious reputation. He pursued celebrities and became the personal eye doctor for King George II. Taylor traveled the country performing medical shows that promised miracle cures, often escaping towns under the cover of night carrying bags overflowing with villagers’ cash. However, records suggest Taylor was a charlatan and likely blinded hundreds of patients. History remembers him not as a medical luminary but as the man who destroyed the eyesight of two of the century’s greatest composers: Bach and Händel.

Taylor craved reputation and acclaim, but his legacy declares his lies, and the embarrassment and hurt he caused. Proverbs explains how egotistical addictions lead to devastation. “Before a downfall,” we read, “the heart is haughty” (18:12). Taylor’s disgrace warns us of how arrogance can ruin our lives, but one’s foolishness often harms others too (vv. 6-7). The “downfall” is great indeed.

While a proud heart destroys us and others, a humble heart leads toward a life of meaning and joy. “Humility comes before honor,” the proverb says (v. 12). If we selfishly pursue only self-interests (v. 1), we’ll never find what we crave. If we yield our heart to God and serve others, however, we honor Him and reflect His goodness.

Reflect & Pray

How have you seen pride lead to a downfall? How have you seen humility lead to honor?

Dear God, please give me a humble heart and help me reject a haughty, arrogant spirit.

Sin keeps us from being in union with Christ. Find out how to overcome sin by reading Walking Free.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Monday, February 09, 2026

Are You Spiritually Exhausted?

The everlasting God . . . will not grow tired or weary. — Isaiah 40:28

When we are physically exhausted, it’s as though all our strength and vitality have left us. Spiritual exhaustion is similar: we feel as though we’ve come to the end of our ability to be of service to God. This kind of tiredness never arises through sin, always through service, and it happens when we’re getting our supply from the wrong source.

Jesus told Peter, “Feed my sheep” (John 21:17), but he didn’t give Peter anything to feed them with. The nourishment was Peter himself. He had to be made broken bread and poured-out wine for souls who hadn’t yet learned to draw directly on God. We must offer ourselves like this as well, because other souls must draw from us before they draw directly on the Lord. But we must be very careful about where we find our own nourishment. If we don’t get it from God, before long we will be completely exhausted.

Have you betrayed yourself into exhaustion by the way you’ve been serving God? Continually go back to your motivations and examine the source of their power. If you find yourself saying, “Oh, God, I’m so exhausted,” remember that he saved and sanctified you in order to exhaust you. Exhaust yourself in service for God, but remember to take your supply from him: “All my fountains are in you” (Psalm 87:7).

Leviticus 6-7; Matthew 25:1-30

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

Monday, February 09, 2026

SEX AND THE INVENTOR - #10196

Years ago, we had this 1998 Oldsmobile, and it had behavior problems. You could say it was acting up again. I was thinking about this one time that it seemed to be having lots of problems at the same time. So my wife and I looked at each other and said, "It's time to take it to Mr. Oldsmobile." So, we dropped it off at the local Oldsmobile dealer's garage. Of course, they knew exactly what was wrong and exactly what had to be done. Of course! That shouldn't be a big surprise. They represented the manufacturer. And the manufacturer knows how it runs best. Right?

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Sex and the Inventor."

In our lifetime, our culture has gone through a culturequake that probably registers about a 9.5 on the Richter scale. One area that has been severely shaken is our beliefs about sex. So much so, that our culture is just rapidly redefining what's normal, including sexual relationships outside of marriage, sexual relationships with the same sex, sex where the only deciding factor is whether you can do it safely.

But sex is just too powerful; it's too beautiful to risk messing it up. I'd like to think that this bombardment of sexual ideas has left God's people untouched, but you know better than that. That's why it's time to take this wonderful invention called sex right back to the Manufacturer to see how it's supposed to run. Because the quake has left too many victims scarred, and lonely, and devalued, and struggling with guilt, and shame, and brokenness.

Remember, no one knows more about sex than the Inventor. So let's go to the Manufacturer's manual - you may know it as the Bible - and we'll see what the Manufacturer of sex says about His invention in our word for today from the Word of God. It begins with Mark 10:6. Jesus is talking. "At the beginning God made them male and female." Okay, so God thought up this whole thing. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore, what God has joined together, let man not separate."

Now the Inventor of sex says He designed it to be an exclusive language of love with only one person in your life - the person of the opposite sex to whom you are committed in a lifetime covenant called marriage. Anything else is abnormal sex - sex as it was never meant to be, sex that can never deliver the fulfillment and love and excitement that belongs only to those who wait for and limit themselves to Designer Love.

The debates over abstinence and safe sex, living together, and same-sex relationships tend to be a clash of human values and viewpoints. What we're talking about here is the Inventor's word on sex. The user doesn't have the final word. The Inventor does. His word is final. It doesn't matter what percent of any group believes differently or what the culture says is normal or what your glands or rationalizations say is okay. The Creator of sex has spoken. He's never changed His mind. Sex is for one man with one woman, committed to each other for life. And the Creator of sex is also the Judge of all mankind - the One to whom we will give account for what we have done with His powerful gift of sex.

You may very well say, "You know, I have crossed the boundaries of God more than once." And the Bible says, in fact, we will stand before Him in judgment for all of our actions that have violated His boundaries - outside of His fence...His laws. But I have wonderful news for you. The very things you're thinking about right now that may have brought shame and guilt and great concern about the judgment you may face are the very things Jesus was nailed to a cross to die for, pay for, and forgive you for.

This very day He could give you a brand new beginning. The Bible says you can be clean and forgiven when you grab Him to be your Rescuer from your sin. If you want that, tell Him that today. Go to our website and find there the information you need to confirm a relationship with Him. That's ANewStory.com.

Sex at its best is for those who keep it inside the Manufacturer's boundaries. Anything else is a lie that promises excitement, but yields loneliness and scars. The Inventor knows best.

Luke 13:23-35 , Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Connected But Not Altered

When you give your life to Christ, He moves in, unpacks his bags and is ready to change you into His likeness. So why do I still have the hang-ups of Max?

Part of the answer is in the story of a wealthy but frugal lady living in a small house at the turn of the century. Friends were surprised when she had electricity put in her home. Weeks afterward, a meter reader appeared. “Your meter shows scarcely any usage,” he said. “Are you using your power?”  “Certainly,” she answered.  “Each evening I turn on my lights long enough to light my candles; then I turn them off.”

She’s tapped into the power but doesn’t use it. Her house is connected but not altered. Don’t we make the same mistake? God is willing to change us into the likeness of the Savior.  Shall we accept His offer?

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.” (Ephesians 1:18-19a).

From Just Like Jesus

Luke 13:23-35

 A bystander said, “Master, will only a few be saved?”

He said, “Whether few or many is none of your business. Put your mind on your life with God. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires your total attention. A lot of you are going to assume that you’ll sit down to God’s salvation banquet just because you’ve been hanging around the neighborhood all your lives. Well, one day you’re going to be banging on the door, wanting to get in, but you’ll find the door locked and the Master saying, ‘Sorry, you’re not on my guest list.’

26–27  “You’ll protest, ‘But we’ve known you all our lives!’ only to be interrupted with his abrupt, ‘Your kind of knowing can hardly be called knowing. You don’t know the first thing about me.’

28–30  “That’s when you’ll find yourselves out in the cold, strangers to grace. You’ll watch Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets march into God’s kingdom. You’ll watch outsiders stream in from east, west, north, and south and sit down at the table of God’s kingdom. And all the time you’ll be outside looking in—and wondering what happened. This is the Great Reversal: the last in line put at the head of the line, and the so-called first ending up last.”

31  Just then some Pharisees came up and said, “Run for your life! Herod’s on the hunt. He’s out to kill you!”

32–35  Jesus said, “Tell that fox that I’ve no time for him right now. Today and tomorrow I’m busy clearing out the demons and healing the sick; the third day I’m wrapping things up. Besides, it’s not proper for a prophet to come to a bad end outside Jerusalem.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killer of prophets,

abuser of the messengers of God!

How often I’ve longed to gather your children,

gather your children like a hen,

Her brood safe under her wings—

but you refused and turned away!

And now it’s too late: You won’t see me again

until the day you say,

‘Blessed is he

who comes in

the name of God.’ ”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Sunday, February 08, 2026

by James Banks

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Deuteronomy 15:7-11

 When you happen on someone who’s in trouble or needs help among your people with whom you live in this land that God, your God, is giving you, don’t look the other way pretending you don’t see him. Don’t keep a tight grip on your purse. No. Look at him, open your purse, lend whatever and as much as he needs. Don’t count the cost. Don’t listen to that selfish voice saying, “It’s almost the seventh year, the year of All-Debts-Are-Canceled,” and turn aside and leave your needy neighbor in the lurch, refusing to help him. He’ll call God’s attention to you and your blatant sin.

10–11  Give freely and spontaneously. Don’t have a stingy heart. The way you handle matters like this triggers God, your God’s, blessing in everything you do, all your work and ventures. There are always going to be poor and needy people among you. So I command you: Always be generous, open purse and hands, give to your neighbors in trouble, your poor and hurting neighbors.

Today's Insights

As the Israelites prepared to enter the promised land, they were to demonstrate God’s love by giving “generously to [the needy]” (Deuteronomy 15:10). Today, believers in Jesus also have the honor of making God and His love visible to the world by loving others. “No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us” (1 John 4:12 nlt). God demonstrated His love for us in the person and work of Christ: “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us” (3:16). But loving others has a price tag. It may involve giving time, money, or material goods. The key word is giving: “As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers” (Galatians 6:10). And as we do, others can see God’s love and compassion through us.

When Love Shows Up

Give generously to [the needy] . . . and do so without a grudging heart. Deuteronomy 15:10

“Why are you crying?” The question was asked by a volunteer for a Christian relief ministry helping those whose homes had been destroyed by Hurricane Helene. The woman (who had burst into tears in the previous moment) replied, “I’m not crying because I lost everything. I’m crying because love just showed up.”

God’s heart shows itself in His desire that we help those in need. When Moses gave the people of Israel God’s instructions before they entered the land He’d promised them, he told them, “Do not be hardhearted or tightfisted” toward the poor. “Rather, be openhanded and freely lend them whatever they need” (Deuteronomy 15:7-8). Their hearts toward the poor were to reflect God’s own: “Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart” (15:10).

Whether in disastrous situations or everyday life, when we give to those in need out of the blessings God has kindly given us, we make evident the love of His Son, who came “to proclaim good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18). In fact, God promises He “will bless” those who share His unselfishness with others (Deuteronomy 15:10), both in this life and the next (see Luke 14:14). We can’t see God yet, but others may catch a glimpse of Him when we emulate His compassion for them. May His love show up as kindness through us today.

Reflect & Pray

How has God shown you kindness when you were in need? How might you show Jesus’ love to someone in need today?

Merciful, generous Father, please help me give to others with an open heart, so that they may see Your love in me.

Dig deeper into understanding God's heart by reading The Meaning of Compassion.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Sunday, February 08, 2026

One with Him

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. — 1 Thessalonians 5:23

When we pray to be sanctified, are we praying for the standard Paul sets here—the “through and through”? We take the term sanctification much too superficially. Sanctification means an intense narrowing of our earthly interests and an immense broadening of our interests in God. It means an intense concentration on God’s point of view—every power of body, soul, and spirit bound and kept for him. Are we prepared to let God do his work in us? And when his work is done, are we prepared to set ourselves apart, as Jesus set himself apart?

God wants us to be sanctified entirely. The reason some of us haven’t entered into the experience of entire sanctification is that we haven’t understood the meaning of it from God’s viewpoint: “For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified” (John 17:19). Sanctification means being made one with Jesus, so that the mindset which ruled him will also rule us. Are we prepared for what that will cost? It will cost everything that is not of God in us.

To be caught up in the swing of Paul’s prayer, the “through and through,” means asking God to make us as holy as he can make sinners saved by grace. Jesus prayed that we might be one with him as he is one with the Father (v. 21). The sanctified soul has one defining characteristic: a strong family resemblance to Jesus, a freedom from everything that doesn’t resemble him. Are we prepared to embrace this freedom by setting ourselves apart? Will we agree to let Jesus make us one with him, as he is one with the Father?

Leviticus 4-5; Matthew 24:29-51

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The great point of Abraham’s faith in God was that he was prepared to do anything for God.

Not Knowing Whither