Judges 9, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Remember the Sabbath Day

Could you use a reminder on how to slow your life down? One of the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:8 says, “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day to the Lord your God.”

What did Jesus do on that last Sabbath of his life? Look in the Gospel of Matthew. Find anything? Try Mark. Nothing there? What about Luke? Hmm…it looks like Jesus was quiet that day.

Do you mean that with one week left to live, Jesus observed the Sabbath? Are you telling me that Jesus thought worship was more important than work? That’s exactly what I’m telling you. If Jesus found time in the midst of a racing agenda to stop the rush and sit in the silence, do you think we could, too?

From And The Angels Were Silent

Judges 9

Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal went to Shechem to his uncles and all his mother’s relatives and said to them, “Ask all the leading men of Shechem, ‘What do you think is best, that seventy men rule you—all those sons of Jerub-Baal—or that one man rule? You’ll remember that I am your own flesh and blood.’ ”

3  His mother’s relatives reported the proposal to the leaders of Shechem. They were inclined to take Abimelech. “Because,” they said, “he is, after all, one of us.”

4–5  They gave him seventy silver pieces from the shrine of Baal-of-the-Covenant. With the money he hired some reckless riffraff soldiers and they followed along after him. He went to his father’s house in Ophrah and killed his half brothers, the sons of Jerub-Baal—seventy men! And on one stone! The youngest, Jotham son of Jerub-Baal, managed to hide, the only survivor.

6  Then all the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo gathered at the Oak by the Standing Stone at Shechem and crowned Abimelech king.

7–9  When this was all told to Jotham, he climbed to the top of Mount Gerizim, raised his voice, and shouted:

Listen to me, leaders of Shechem.

And let God listen to you!

The trees set out one day

to anoint a king for themselves.

They said to Olive Tree,

“Rule over us.”

But Olive Tree told them,

“Am I no longer good for making oil

That gives glory to gods and men,

and to be demoted to waving over trees?”

10–11  The trees then said to Fig Tree,

“You come and rule over us.”

But Fig Tree said to them,

“Am I no longer good for making sweets,

My mouthwatering sweet fruits,

and to be demoted to waving over trees?”

12–13  The trees then said to Vine,

“You come and rule over us.”

But Vine said to them,

“Am I no longer good for making wine,

Wine that cheers gods and men,

and to be demoted to waving over trees?”

14–15  All the trees then said to Tumbleweed,

“You come and reign over us.”

But Tumbleweed said to the trees:

“If you’re serious about making me your king,

Come and find shelter in my shade.

But if not, let fire shoot from Tumbleweed

and burn down the cedars of Lebanon!”

16–20  “Now listen: Do you think you did a right and honorable thing when you made Abimelech king? Do you think you treated Jerub-Baal and his family well, did for him what he deserved? My father fought for you, risked his own life, and rescued you from Midian’s tyranny, and you have, just now, betrayed him. You massacred his sons—seventy men on a single stone! You made Abimelech, the son by his maidservant, king over Shechem’s leaders because he’s your relative. If you think that this is an honest day’s work, this way you have treated Jerub-Baal today, then enjoy Abimelech and let him enjoy you. But if not, let fire break from Abimelech and burn up the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo. And let fire break from the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo and burn up Abimelech.”

21  And Jotham fled. He ran for his life. He went to Beer and settled down there, because he was afraid of his brother Abimelech.

22–24  Abimelech ruled over Israel for three years. Then God brought bad blood between Abimelech and Shechem’s leaders, who now worked treacherously behind his back. Violence boomeranged: The murderous violence that killed the seventy brothers, the sons of Jerub-Baal, was now loose among Abimelech and Shechem’s leaders, who had supported the violence.

25  To undermine Abimelech, Shechem’s leaders put men in ambush on the mountain passes who robbed travelers on those roads. And Abimelech was told.

26–27  At that time Gaal son of Ebed arrived with his relatives and moved into Shechem. The leaders of Shechem trusted him. One day they went out into the fields, gathered grapes in the vineyards, and trod them in the winepress. Then they held a celebration in their god’s temple, a feast, eating and drinking. And then they started putting down Abimelech.

28–29  Gaal son of Ebed said, “Who is this Abimelech? And who are we Shechemites to take orders from him? Isn’t he the son of Jerub-Baal, and isn’t this his henchman Zebul? We belong to the race of Hamor and bear the noble name of Shechem. Why should we be toadies of Abimelech? If I were in charge of this people, the first thing I’d do is get rid of Abimelech! I’d say, ‘Show me your stuff, Abimelech—let’s see who’s boss here!’ ”

30–33  Zebul, governor of the city, heard what Gaal son of Ebed was saying and got angry. Secretly he sent messengers to Abimelech with the message, “Gaal son of Ebed and his relatives have come to Shechem and are stirring up trouble against you. Here’s what you do: Tonight bring your troops and wait in ambush in the field. In the morning, as soon as the sun breaks, get moving and charge the city. Gaal and his troops will come out to you, and you’ll know what to do next.”

34–36  Abimelech and his troops, four companies of them, went up that night and waited in ambush approaching Shechem. Gaal son of Ebed had gotten up and was standing in the city gate. Abimelech and his troops left their cover. When Gaal saw them he said to Zebul, “Look at that, people coming down from the tops of the mountains!”

Zebul said, “That’s nothing but mountain shadows; they just look like men.” Gaal kept chattering away.

37  Then he said again, “Look at the troops coming down off Tabbur-erez (the Navel of the World)—and one company coming straight from the Oracle Oak.”

38  Zebul said, “Where is that big mouth of yours now? You who said, ‘And who is Abimelech that we should take orders from him?’ Well, there he is with the troops you ridiculed. Here’s your chance. Fight away!”

39–40  Gaal went out, backed by the leaders of Shechem, and did battle with Abimelech. Abimelech chased him, and Gaal turned tail and ran. Many fell wounded, right up to the city gate.

41  Abimelech set up his field headquarters at Arumah while Zebul kept Gaal and his relatives out of Shechem.

42–45  The next day the people went out to the fields. This was reported to Abimelech. He took his troops, divided them into three companies, and placed them in ambush in the fields. When he saw that the people were well out in the open, he sprang up and attacked them. Abimelech and the company with him charged ahead and took control of the entrance to the city gate; the other two companies chased down those who were in the open fields and killed them. Abimelech fought at the city all that day. He captured the city and massacred everyone in it. He leveled the city to the ground, then sowed it with salt.

46–49  When the leaders connected with Shechem’s Tower heard this, they went into the fortified God-of-the-Covenant temple. This was reported to Abimelech that the Shechem’s Tower bunch were gathered together. He and his troops climbed Mount Zalmon (Dark Mountain). Abimelech took his ax and chopped a bundle of firewood, picked it up, and put it on his shoulder. He said to his troops, “Do what you’ve seen me do, and quickly.” So each of his men cut his own bundle. They followed Abimelech, piled their bundles against the Tower fortifications, and set the whole structure on fire. Everyone in Shechem’s Tower died, about a thousand men and women.

50–54  Abimelech went on to Thebez. He camped at Thebez and captured it. The Tower-of-Strength stood in the middle of the city; all the men and women of the city along with the city’s leaders had fled there and locked themselves in. They were up on the tower roof. Abimelech got as far as the tower and assaulted it. He came up to the tower door to set it on fire. Just then some woman dropped an upper millstone on his head and crushed his skull. He called urgently to his young armor bearer and said, “Draw your sword and kill me so they can’t say of me, ‘A woman killed him.’ ” His armor bearer drove in his sword, and Abimelech died.

55  When the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they went home.

56–57  God avenged the evil Abimelech had done to his father, murdering his seventy brothers. And God brought down on the heads of the men of Shechem all the evil that they had done, the curse of Jotham son of Jerub-Baal.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Saturday, February 07, 2026

by 

Adam R. Holz

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Philippians 2:1-4, 14-20

He Took on the Status of a Slave

1–4  2 If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care—then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.

14–16  Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night so I’ll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that Christ returns. You’ll be living proof that I didn’t go to all this work for nothing.

17–18  Even if I am executed here and now, I’ll rejoice in being an element in the offering of your faith that you make on Christ’s altar, a part of your rejoicing. But turnabout’s fair play—you must join me in my rejoicing. Whatever you do, don’t feel sorry for me.

19–24  I plan (according to Jesus’ plan) to send Timothy to you very soon so he can bring back all the news of you he can gather. Oh, how that will do my heart good! I have no one quite like Timothy. He is loyal, and genuinely concerned for you.

Today's Insights

Paul sets the context for his theme of humility early in this letter. Writing while imprisoned, he says, “All of you share in God’s grace with me” (Philippians 1:7). Being equal recipients of His grace ought to have motivated the Philippian church to “value others above [themselves]” (2:3). Key to this is the way they were to live before a watching world. By living blamelessly, they’d be “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation” (v. 15). As they lived lives of humble service to the world, they’d “shine among them like stars in the sky” (v. 15) and be fountains of encouragement.

Fountains or Drains?

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. Philippians 2:3

Sometimes a bit of wisdom drops in when we least expect it. That happened recently as I was reading an article about American football player Travis Kelce. A frustrated coach once told him, “Everybody you meet in this world is either a fountain or a drain.” You can probably figure out which one Kelce was being!

Perhaps all of us have a bit of both elements in us. But at any given moment, we’re likely behaving one way or the other. And our call to follow Jesus means becoming more fountain, less drain.

I hear a similar idea in Philippians 2, where Paul challenges us to imitate Jesus’ humility and focus on others. Paul contrasts what drains life from others with what fills them up: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others” (vv. 3-4). A bit later in this chapter, he adds bluntly, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing” (v. 14).

What does it look like to be a drain? Being self-focused and arrogant; complaining and arguing. And being a fountain? Paul says of Timothy, “I have no one else like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare” (v. 20).

Are we being more like a fountain or a drain? That’s a question worth pondering as we seek to bless others.  

Reflect & Pray

What can cause you to be more like a drain than a fountain in your relationships? How can you be more of a fountain to others?

Dear Father, please help me to be a fountain of life who pours encouragement and hope into everyone I encounter.

For further study, read A United Mindset.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Saturday, February 07, 2026

The Discipline of Dejection

But we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day. — Luke 24:21

The disappointment the disciples express in this verse points to an important truth: it’s possible to have the facts right and to come to the wrong conclusion. The disciples had the facts right about Jesus, but they’d grown impatient and dejected, replacing bright hope with dashed hope and a sense that Jesus had failed them.

Spiritual dejection is always wrong and always our fault—not God’s or anyone else’s. Dejection is often a sign of physical sickness, and spiritually it is the same. Spiritual dejection springs from one of two sources: either I’ve satisfied a lust, or I haven’t. To lust after something is to say, “I must have it at once.” Spiritual lust makes us go to God with demands, instead of seeking God himself.

What have I been hoping God will do? Am I irritated that it’s already the “third day” and he hasn’t done it? It’s easy to imagine that my feelings are justified; hasn’t God promised to answer my prayers (Matthew 21:22)? Whenever I find myself reasoning like this, insisting that God answers prayer, I can be sure I’m offtrack.

We look for visions from heaven, for earthquakes and thunder that “prove” God’s power, and we feel dejected when we don’t see them. We never dream that God is in the people and things around us. If we do the duty that lies nearest, we will see him. One of the most amazing revelations comes when we learn that it is in the commonplace things that the deity of Jesus Christ is realized. When we understand this, we are filled with wonder, and the spirit of dejection fades away.

Leviticus 1-3; Matthew 24:1-28

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The fiery furnaces are there by God’s direct permission. It is misleading to imagine that we are developed in spite of our circumstances; we are developed because of them. It is mastery in circumstances that is needed, not mastery over them.

The Love of God—The Message of Invincible Consolation, 674 R

Judges 8, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: FEAR OF INSIGNIFICANCE - February 6, 2026

Do we matter? We fear we don’t. In Luke 12:6 Jesus says, “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God” (ESV). One penny would buy two sparrows. Two pennies, however, would buy five. The seller threw in the fifth for free. Society has its share of fifth sparrows: indistinct souls who feel dispensable, disposable, worth little.

It’s time to deal with the fear of not mattering, the fear of insignificance. Why does God love you so much? You are his idea. And God has only good ideas. “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT).

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Judges 8

 Then the Ephraimites said to Gideon, “Why did you leave us out of this, not calling us when you went to fight Midian?” They were indignant and let him know it.

2–3  But Gideon replied, “What have I done compared to you? Why, even the gleanings of Ephraim are superior to the vintage of Abiezer. God gave you Midian’s commanders, Oreb and Zeeb. What have I done compared with you?”

When they heard this, they calmed down and cooled off.

4–5  Gideon and his three hundred arrived at the Jordan and crossed over. They were bone-tired but still pressing the pursuit. He asked the men of Succoth, “Please, give me some loaves of bread for my troops I have with me. They’re worn out, and I’m hot on the trail of Zebah and Zalmunna, the Midianite kings.”

6  But the leaders in Succoth said, “You’re on a wild goose chase; why should we help you on a fool’s errand?”

7  Gideon said, “If you say so. But when God gives me Zebah and Zalmunna, I’ll give you a thrashing, whip your bare flesh with desert thorns and thistles!”

8–9  He went from there to Peniel and made the same request. The men of Peniel, like the men of Succoth, also refused. Gideon told them, “When I return safe and sound, I’ll demolish this tower.”

10  Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with an army of about fifteen companies, all that was left of the fighting force of the easterners—they had lost 120 companies of soldiers.

11–12  Gideon went up the caravan trail east of Nobah and Jogbehah, found and attacked the undefended camp. Zebah and Zalmunna fled, but he chased and captured the two kings of Midian. The whole camp had panicked.

13–15  Gideon son of Joash returned from the battle by way of the Heres Pass. He captured a young man from Succoth and asked some questions. The young man wrote down the names of the officials and leaders of Succoth, seventy-seven men. Then Gideon went to the men of Succoth and said, “Here are the wild geese, Zebah and Zalmunna, you said I’d never catch. You wouldn’t give so much as a scrap of bread to my worn-out men; you taunted us, saying that we were on a fool’s errand.”

16–17  Then he took the seventy-seven leaders of Succoth and thrashed them with desert thorns and thistles. And he demolished the tower of Peniel and killed the men of the city.

18  He then addressed Zebah and Zalmunna: “Tell me about the men you killed at Tabor.”

“They were men much like you,” they said, “each one like a king’s son.”

19  Gideon said, “They were my brothers, my mother’s sons. As God lives, if you had let them live, I would let you live.”

20  Then he spoke to Jether, his firstborn: “Get up and kill them.” But he couldn’t do it, couldn’t draw his sword. He was afraid—he was still just a boy.

21  Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Do it yourself—if you’re man enough!” And Gideon did it. He stepped up and killed Zebah and Zalmunna. Then he took the crescents that hung on the necks of their camels.

22  The Israelites said, “Rule over us, you and your son and your grandson. You have saved us from Midian’s tyranny.”

23  Gideon said, “I most certainly will not rule over you, nor will my son. God will reign over you.”

24  Then Gideon said, “But I do have one request. Give me, each of you, an earring that you took as plunder.” Ishmaelites wore gold earrings, and the men all had their pockets full of them.

25–26  They said, “Of course. They’re yours!”

They spread out a blanket and each man threw his plundered earrings on it. The gold earrings that Gideon had asked for weighed about forty-three pounds—and that didn’t include the crescents and pendants, the purple robes worn by the Midianite kings, and the ornaments hung around the necks of their camels.

27  Gideon made the gold into a sacred ephod and put it on display in his hometown, Ophrah. All Israel prostituted itself there. Gideon and his family, too, were seduced by it.

28  Midian’s tyranny was broken by the Israelites; nothing more was heard from them. The land was quiet for forty years in Gideon’s time.

29–31  Jerub-Baal son of Joash went home and lived in his house. Gideon had seventy sons. He fathered them all—he had a lot of wives! His concubine, the one at Shechem, also bore him a son. He named him Abimelech.

32  Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age. He was buried in the tomb of his father Joash at Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Abimelech

33–35  Gideon was hardly cool in the tomb when the People of Israel had gotten off track and were prostituting themselves to Baal—they made Baal-of-the-Covenant their god. The People of Israel forgot all about God, their God, who had saved them from all their enemies who had hemmed them in. And they didn’t keep faith with the family of JerubBaal (Gideon), honoring all the good he had done for Israel.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, February 06, 2026

by Kirsten Holmberg

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Zechariah 4:1-10

Fifth Vision: A Lampstand and Two Olive Trees

1  4 The Messenger-Angel again called me to attention. It was like being wakened out of deep sleep.

2–3  He said, “What do you see?”

I answered, “I see a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top. Seven lamps, each with seven spouts, are set on the bowl. And there are two olive trees, one on either side of the bowl.”

4  Then I asked the Messenger-Angel, “What does this mean, sir?”

5–7  The Messenger-Angel said, “Can’t you tell?”

“No, sir,” I said.

Then he said, “This is God’s Message to Zerubbabel: ‘You can’t force these things. They only come about through my Spirit,’ says God-of-the-Angel-Armies. ‘So, big mountain, who do you think you are? Next to Zerubbabel you’re nothing but a molehill. He’ll proceed to set the Cornerstone in place, accompanied by cheers: Yes! Yes! Do it!’ ”

8–10  After that, the Word of God came to me: “Zerubbabel started rebuilding this Temple and he will complete it. That will be your confirmation that God-of-the-Angel-Armies sent me to you. Does anyone dare despise this day of small beginnings? They’ll change their tune when they see Zerubbabel setting the last stone in place!”

Going back to the vision, the Messenger-Angel said, “The seven lamps are the eyes of God probing the dark corners of the world like searchlights.”

Today's Insights

God is in the business of using small things to accomplish His purposes. He used a shepherd boy and a stone to slay a giant (1 Samuel 17:49-50). He used a boy’s five small barley loaves and two small fish to feed five thousand men (John 6:9). Jesus was born as a helpless baby into a poor man’s family to save the world from sin (Luke 2:7; John 3:16). He said to Zechariah, “[Do not] despise the day of small things” (Zechariah 4:10). God delights in using ordinary people like us to do great things for Him even when our tasks may seem insignificant.

Small Beginnings

Who dares despise the day of small things, since [God’s] eyes . . . will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel? Zechariah 4:10

In 1848, engineer Charles Ellet Jr. puzzled over how to begin the process of constructing the first bridge over the Niagara Falls gorge. How would they get a cable across the river? Prompted by a dream, Charles decided to host a kite-flying contest. American teenager Homan Walsh won five dollars when his kite landed on the American side of the river. Homan’s kite string was secured to a tree and used to pull a light cord back across the river, then progressively heavier cords until heavy wire cable was in place. This was the small beginning of the construction of the Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge.

The bridge’s challenges and inauspicious beginnings mirror those faced by those working to rebuild God’s temple after returning from captivity in Babylon. An angel awakened the prophet Zechariah with a message that nothing would thwart God’s work—it would all be accomplished “by [his] Spirit” (Zechariah 4:6). Some of those who’d seen the temple in its previous glory were fearful that the rebuilt version would pale in comparison (Ezra 3:12). The angel encouraged Zechariah that they shouldn’t “despise the day of small things” because God would “rejoice” in seeing the work begun (Zechariah 4:10).

Even though the tasks God has appointed to us may seem insignificant, we can be encouraged knowing He uses small things—like kite strings—to accomplish His great works.

Reflect & Pray

How does it encourage you to know that God’s works often start small? How might you trust His faithfulness?

Dear Father, thank You for being faithful to Your plans.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, February 06, 2026

Are You Ready to Be Offered?

For I am already being poured out like a drink offering. — 2 Timothy 4:6 (R. V. Marg.)

To be ready to be offered is a question of will, not feelings. If we always wait to act until we feel like it, we might never do anything at all. But if we take the initiative and decide to act, exerting our will, if we tell God that we are ready to be offered and that we will accept the consequences, whatever they may be, we will find that no matter what he asks, we are able to do it without complaint.

God puts each of us through crises we must face alone. These are trials intended just for us; no one else can help us with them. But if we prepare for these challenges internally first—if we say, “I will meet this challenge, no matter what”—then we’ll be able to rise to the challenge when it actually comes, taking no thought for the cost to ourselves. If we don’t make this kind of determined, private agreement with God in advance, we’ll end up falling into self-pity when difficulty arises.

“Bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar” (Psalm 118:27 kjv). The altar represents the purifying fire, the fire that burns away every attachment God has not chosen for us, every connection that isn’t a connection to him. We don’t choose what gets burned away; God does. Our job is to bind the sacrifice, and to make sure we don’t give in to self-pity when the fire starts. After we’ve traveled this way of fire, there is nothing that can oppress us or make us afraid. When crises come, we realize that things cannot touch us as they once did.

Tell God you are ready to be offered, and God will prove himself all you ever dreamed he was.

Exodus 39-40; Matthew 23:23-39

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

Friday, February 06, 2026

JOY LOOKS GOOD ON YOU - #10195

When our kids were living at home I couldn't believe people actually paid to go to the circus. We had a circus right there! It was free - a three-ring circus. Now the most exciting issue was usually, "What am I going to wear today?" And then that cry by various experiments with different combinations until some outfit finally looks right. Does that sound familiar? Of course it's always punctuated by these discussions of who's wearing whose shirt, or whose pants, or whatever. Actually, whether you go to school or to work, what to wear is kind of a challenging choice. Unless of course you're one of the lucky ones; you just wear a uniform. You don't have any decision to make; somebody else made it for you. You have to consider the weather, and what season it is, and what mood you're in, and what people you're going to see, and do the colors match, which is hopeless for me. Well, in the process, you might overlook the one item you have to wear to school or to work every day.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Joy Looks Good On You."

Now, there's some intriguing detail in the biblical saga of Nehemiah. You may remember he's the man that led the Jews back to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem in 52 days after they'd been away for 100 years. Now, he was cup bearer to the king, and that king by the way was the King of Persia. He was quite a ways from where he needed to end up in Jerusalem. But Nehemiah had a tremendous burden on his heart. And he had a desire to tell the king his burden, but he wasn't sure how to open the conversation.

Well, in our word for today from the Word of God, which is in Nehemiah 2, beginning in verse 1, it's interesting to see how the king actually initiates the discussion. And it ends with him giving Nehemiah everything he needs for this rebuilding project. And you know why the king initiated it? Because Nehemiah didn't wear to work what he usually did.

Here's our word for today. "When wine was brought for the king, I took the wine..." Nehemiah is speaking here. "...and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before. So the king asked me, 'Why does your face look so sad when you're not ill? This could be nothing but sadness of heart.' Well, I was very much afraid, but I said to the king, 'May the king live forever. Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire.' And the king said to me, 'What is it you want?'"

Well, the rest is history. From there it was the rebuilding of the wall of God's city. In essence the king is saying, "Nehemiah, where's your smile? You always wear it to work. Where is it today?" Nehemiah was known for his positive attitude on the job - his joy, his smile. So much so that it was an event for Nehemiah not to be smiling at work. Now, for many of us it would be an event that we were smiling when we're in the middle of our daily responsibilities.

But if you're a Christian, you get your joy from your invironment, not your environment - from Christ inside you. No one should ever ask you, "Hey, how come you're so happy today?" Like it's unusual? That should be routine. Maybe they might ask you why you're so down today, because that would be unusual. Most of us just plod mechanically through our school day, our work day, our household responsibilities. Sometimes we're like expressionless drones. And often we're complaining and whining like everybody else.

But consider Nehemiah's working wardrobe - a predictable smile, a contagious joy, and a consistent positiveness in the midst of daily drudgery. In our world, that is an attention getter, and that wardrobe is always in style.

Wear joy to your work place every day. You'll knock 'em dead!

Judges 7, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: WORSHIP OF A RISK FREE LIFE - February 5, 2026

When fear shapes our lives, safety becomes our god. We worship the risk-free life. The fear-filled cannot love deeply because love is risky. They cannot give to the poor because benevolence has no guarantee of return. The fear-filled cannot dream wildly. What if their dreams fail?

No wonder Jesus wages such a war against fear. In Matthew 8:26 “Jesus got up and gave a command to the wind and the waves, and it became completely calm.” The sea became as still as a frozen lake, and the disciples were left wondering, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” (vs. 27 NCV)  What kind of man, indeed. Turning typhoon time into nap time, silencing waves with one word.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Judges 7

Jerub-Baal (Gideon) got up early the next morning, all his troops right there with him. They set up camp at Harod’s Spring. The camp of Midian was in the plain, north of them near the Hill of Moreh.

2–3  God said to Gideon, “You have too large an army with you. I can’t turn Midian over to them like this—they’ll take all the credit, saying, ‘I did it all myself,’ and forget about me. Make a public announcement: ‘Anyone afraid, anyone who has any qualms at all, may leave Mount Gilead now and go home.’ ” Twenty-two companies headed for home. Ten companies were left.

4–5  God said to Gideon: “There are still too many. Take them down to the stream and I’ll make a final cut. When I say, ‘This one goes with you,’ he’ll go. When I say, ‘This one doesn’t go,’ he won’t go.” So Gideon took the troops down to the stream.

5–6  God said to Gideon: “Everyone who laps with his tongue, the way a dog laps, set on one side. And everyone who kneels to drink, drinking with his face to the water, set to the other side.” Three hundred lapped with their tongues from their cupped hands. All the rest knelt to drink.

7  God said to Gideon: “I’ll use the three hundred men who lapped at the stream to save you and give Midian into your hands. All the rest may go home.”

8  After Gideon took all their provisions and trumpets, he sent all the Israelites home. He took up his position with the three hundred. The camp of Midian stretched out below him in the valley.

9–12  That night, God told Gideon: “Get up and go down to the camp. I’ve given it to you. If you have any doubts about going down, go down with Purah your armor bearer; when you hear what they’re saying, you’ll be bold and confident.” He and his armor bearer Purah went down near the place where sentries were posted. Midian and Amalek, all the easterners, were spread out on the plain like a swarm of locusts. And their camels! Past counting, like grains of sand on the seashore!

13  Gideon arrived just in time to hear a man tell his friend a dream. He said, “I had this dream: A loaf of barley bread tumbled into the Midianite camp. It came to the tent and hit it so hard it collapsed. The tent fell!”

14  His friend said, “This has to be the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite! God has turned Midian—the whole camp!—over to him.”

15  When Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, he went to his knees before God in prayer. Then he went back to the Israelite camp and said, “Get up and get going! God has just given us the Midianite army!”

16–18  He divided the three hundred men into three companies. He gave each man a trumpet and an empty jar, with a torch in the jar. He said, “Watch me and do what I do. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly what I do. When I and those with me blow the trumpets, you also, all around the camp, blow your trumpets and shout, ‘For God and for Gideon!’ ”

19–22  Gideon and his hundred men got to the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after the sentries had been posted. They blew the trumpets, at the same time smashing the jars they carried. All three companies blew the trumpets and broke the jars. They held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands, ready to blow, and shouted, “A sword for God and for Gideon!” They were stationed all around the camp, each man at his post. The whole Midianite camp jumped to its feet. They yelled and fled. When the three hundred blew the trumpets, God aimed each Midianite’s sword against his companion, all over the camp. They ran for their lives—to Beth Shittah, toward Zererah, to the border of Abel Meholah near Tabbath.

23  Israelites rallied from Naphtali, from Asher, and from all over Manasseh. They had Midian on the run.

24  Gideon then sent messengers through all the hill country of Ephraim, urging them, “Come down against Midian! Capture the fords of the Jordan at Beth Barah.”

25  So all the men of Ephraim rallied and captured the fords of the Jordan at Beth Barah. They also captured the two Midianite commanders Oreb (Raven) and Zeeb (Wolf). They killed Oreb at Raven Rock; Zeeb they killed at Wolf Winepress. And they pressed the pursuit of Midian. They brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon across the Jordan.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, February 05, 2026

by Xochitl Dixon

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Hebrews 4:1-4, 6-7, 9-11

When the Promises Are Mixed with Faith

1–3  4 For as long, then, as that promise of resting in him pulls us on to God’s goal for us, we need to be careful that we’re not disqualified. We received the same promises as those people in the wilderness, but the promises didn’t do them a bit of good because they didn’t receive the promises with faith. If we believe, though, we’ll experience that state of resting. But not if we don’t have faith. Remember that God said,

Exasperated, I vowed,

“They’ll never get where they’re going,

never be able to sit down and rest.”

3–7  God made that vow, even though he’d finished his part before the foundation of the world. Somewhere it’s written, “God rested the seventh day, having completed his work,”

So this promise has not yet been fulfilled. Those earlier ones never did get to the place of rest because they were disobedient. God keeps renewing the promise and setting the date as today, just as he did in David’s psalm, centuries later than the original invitation:

Today, please listen,

don’t turn a deaf ear …

The promise of “arrival” and “rest” is still there for God’s people. God himself is at rest. And at the end of the journey we’ll surely rest with God. So let’s keep at it and eventually arrive at the place of rest, not drop out through some sort of disobedience.

Today's Insights

The book of Hebrews urges Jewish believers in Jesus not to abandon their faith in Him and revert to a form of Judaism that didn’t acknowledge Him as the Messiah. Hebrews emphasizes that Jesus is God’s ultimate revelation (1:1-3)—greater than the angels (2:5, 9) and greater than Moses (3:3)—and that Israel’s Scriptures point to the fulfillment God brought through Him. In chapter 4, this theme of fulfillment is explained as the ultimate Sabbath rest, made possible through Christ, the great high priest (vv. 8-11, 14-16).

Rejuvenating Rest

Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish. Hebrews 4:11

During a birthday party, five-year-old Mia enjoyed playing, singing “Happy Birthday,” eating cake, and watching her friend open gifts. When everyone went outside to play, Mia said, “Mom, I’m ready to go.” They thanked their host. Pulling out of the driveway, Mia’s mom asked her to share the best part of her day. “Leaving,” said Mia. Smiling, she fell asleep before they turned the corner.

Even if we don’t realize we’re exhausted, we all need physical, mental, and emotional rest. God also provides divine rest when we accept both the good news of salvation through Christ and daily spiritual rest as the Spirit enables us to live for Christ by faith. Those who place their trust in God can depend on His unending presence, unlimited power, and unchanging promises. Saved through Christ’s work on the cross, we can rest in the peace of His sufficiency (Hebrews 4:1-4). We can experience divine rest as a guarantee fulfilled eternally now and when Jesus comes again (vv. 5-8).

“Anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his” (v. 10). So, secured in Christ, we can enjoy a hope-filled life of surrender and loving obedience as we trust and rely on Him. Only He can provide rejuvenating rest yesterday and today and forever.

Reflect & Pray

How does believing God enable you to rest in the surety of your salvation and rest physically, emotionally, and mentally each day? What has kept you from resting in God’s promises in the past?

Faithful God, thank You for being my enduring resting place.

Learn more about abiding in God's peace by watching this video.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, February 05, 2026

Are You Ready to Be Offered?

I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith. — Philippians 2:17

Are you ready to be offered, to become broken bread and poured-out wine in the hands of the Lord? Or are you full of hesitation, saying to yourself, “I’m not going to be offered up just yet. I’m not going to let God choose my work or the setting of my sacrifice. I’ll only offer myself when the ‘right’ kind of people are watching, so they can congratulate me and say, ‘Well done’”?

It’s one thing to go about God’s business unnoticed, walking a lonely path and filled with dignified heroism; it’s quite another to become a doormat under other people’s feet. Sometimes, the role God wants you to play is the lowly role. He wants to teach you to say, “I know how to be humbled.”

Are you ready to be offered up like this? To be just a drop in the bucket, so hopelessly insignificant that no one even thinks of you in connection to the deeds you’ve done? Are you willing to spend and be spent, not seeking to be served but to serve (Matthew 20:28)?

Some saints are too holy for menial work. Are you one of them? Or will you decide that nothing God gives you to do is beneath you?

Exodus 36-38; Matthew 23:1-22

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

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

Biblical Ethics, 99 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, February 05, 2026

A BROKEN SAVIOR FOR BROKEN PEOPLE - #10194

Maybe it's because my father-in-law was a corrections officer for a while, and I've heard his stories about the wasted lives behind prison bars. Whatever the reason, I've always admired the men who minister as prison chaplains. That's a tough ministry, but it's a ministry so desperately needed.

My friend Bill works as a prison chaplain. This particular incident he shared with me touched me then and touches me now. Bill had been visiting this cell block and as chaplain, he went out to the exercise yard for some fresh air. Three tough young inmates walked up to him and one said, "Hey, mister, are you broke?" Bill kind of fished around in his pocket and didn't find any money in there. And the inmate said, "It doesn't matter, man. Your money's no good in here anyway. Now, are you broke?" This time the inmate was insistent about it. Here's what he said, "Mister, don't try to minister to people in here if you ain't broke, because we all are."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Broken Savior for Broken People."

You don't have to go inside a prison to find people who are, in the words of that inmate, broke. There's so much pain today and so much heartache from broken things: broken families, broken health, a broken heart, and broken trust. You may be "broke" perhaps even in spite of a life that's successful and an outward image that's looking fine.

Now, our word for today from the Word of God, Hebrews 4:14 - "Since we have a great High Priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess." Here Jesus is called High Priest. And we learn from the Old Testament that those are the ones who represented people to God. So Jesus is now our personal representative with God in heaven.

Let's say that young inmate could walk up to Jesus and ask, "Are you broke?" He would need to hear that next verse, verse 15. Here's what it says, "We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence." He's walked in our shoes. He's felt what we feel and we can come to Him with confidence.

We're coming to a Savior who has lived the feelings that we are bringing to Him. He knows what it is to be poor. He knows what it feels like to be turned on by your family; to be betrayed by someone very close. It all happened to Him. He knew what it was like to be lonely. He was all of those. This Savior knows our pain. He gets us! There are other people who could empathize. There are some counselors who can help you understand the pain, but only Jesus can carry your pain and begin to heal a lifetime of scars.

He says, "I came to bind up the broken hearted." But the great tragedy could be this: You're needlessly carrying all your hurt alone, because this Savior isn't your Savior, because you've never given yourself to Him. We're all the victims of people's sin, and we're sinners ourselves. Sin is our personal rebellion against our Creator saying, "God, you run the universe and I'll run me" because we're away from the One we were made by. We keep making choices that increase our pain.

But Jesus is saying to you today, "Why are you carrying that all alone? I died for you. Won't you let Me be your Savior? Let me pick up your pain. Let me begin to apply my love to your wounds."

Don't walk alone one more day. Let this be the day you let this Jesus start driving the life that He died for and that He made. You ready for Him to take over? Well, then, why don't you tell Him that right now, "Jesus, I'm yours."

Our website can help you get there. Please go there today. It's ANewStory.com. I hope you'll check it out.

If a person says, "Jesus, I'm broke." Someone who's been broke can help you. You see that mangled body of Jesus on that blood-stained cross, and you see that the Son of God was broken so you don't have to be broken any more.

Luke 9:18-36, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: FEAR LESS TOMORROW - February 4, 2026

In Matthew 8:26 Jesus asks, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” (NKJV). That’s a good question. Sometimes fear is healthy. Fear can keep a child from running across a busy road. It’s the appropriate reaction to a burning building or a growling dog.

Fear itself is not a sin.  But it can lead to sin. If we medicate fear with angry outbursts, sullen withdrawals, or viselike control, we exclude God from the solution. Fear may fill our world, but it doesn’t have to fill our hearts. It will always knock on the door.  Just don’t invite it in for dinner. The promise of Jesus is simple: we can fear less tomorrow than we do today.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Luke 9:18-36

Don’t Run from Suffering

18  One time when Jesus was off praying by himself, his disciples nearby, he asked them, “What are the crowds saying about me, about who I am?”

19  They said, “John the Baptizer. Others say Elijah. Still others say that one of the prophets from long ago has come back.”

20–21  He then asked, “And you—what are you saying about me? Who am I?”

Peter answered, “The Messiah of God.” Jesus then warned them to keep it quiet. They were to tell no one what Peter had said.

22  He went on, “It is necessary that the Son of Man proceed to an ordeal of suffering, be tried and found guilty by the religious leaders, high priests, and religion scholars, be killed, and on the third day be raised up alive.”

23–27  Then he told them what they could expect for themselves: “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat—I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you? If any of you is embarrassed with me and the way I’m leading you, know that the Son of Man will be far more embarrassed with you when he arrives in all his splendor in company with the Father and the holy angels. This isn’t, you realize, pie in the sky by and by. Some who have taken their stand right here are going to see it happen, see with their own eyes the kingdom of God.”

Jesus in His Glory

28–31  About eight days after saying this, he climbed the mountain to pray, taking Peter, John, and James along. While he was in prayer, the appearance of his face changed and his clothes became blinding white. At once two men were there talking with him. They turned out to be Moses and Elijah—and what a glorious appearance they made! They talked over his exodus, the one Jesus was about to complete in Jerusalem.

32–33  Meanwhile, Peter and those with him were slumped over in sleep. When they came to, rubbing their eyes, they saw Jesus in his glory and the two men standing with him. When Moses and Elijah had left, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, this is a great moment! Let’s build three memorials: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He blurted this out without thinking.

34–35  While he was babbling on like this, a light-radiant cloud enveloped them. As they found themselves buried in the cloud, they became deeply aware of God. Then there was a voice out of the cloud: “This is my Son, the Chosen! Listen to him.”

36  When the sound of the voice died away, they saw Jesus there alone. They were speechless. And they continued speechless, said not one thing to anyone during those days of what they had seen.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, February 04, 2026

by Kenneth Petersen

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

1 Timothy 6:6-12, 17-19

 A devout life does bring wealth, but it’s the rich simplicity of being yourself before God. Since we entered the world penniless and will leave it penniless, if we have bread on the table and shoes on our feet, that’s enough.

9–10  But if it’s only money these leaders are after, they’ll self-destruct in no time. Lust for money brings trouble and nothing but trouble. Going down that path, some lose their footing in the faith completely and live to regret it bitterly ever after.

Running Hard

11–12  But you, Timothy, man of God: Run for your life from all this. Pursue a righteous life—a life of wonder, faith, love, steadiness, courtesy. Run hard and fast in the faith. Seize the eternal life, the life you were called to, the life you so fervently embraced in the presence of so many witnesses.

17–19  Tell those rich in this world’s wealth to quit being so full of themselves and so obsessed with money, which is here today and gone tomorrow. Tell them to go after God, who piles on all the riches we could ever manage—to do good, to be rich in helping others, to be extravagantly generous. If they do that, they’ll build a treasury that will last, gaining life that is truly life.

Today's Insights

In Paul’s first letter to Timothy, he instructs him in how to deal with false teachers (1:3-4) and to teach believers in Jesus the right doctrines so they can live lives that honor Him (4:6-7). The apostle urges believers to pursue contentment to overcome greed and materialism (6:6-10). He also warns the rich not to be proud or to trust in their wealth, but to trust only in God, who richly gives us all we need “for our enjoyment” (v. 17). Echoing Christ’s instructions to store our treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:20), Paul says to use our wealth “to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share” (1 Timothy 6:18).

Treasure Stored in Heaven

We brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 1 Timothy 6:7

It’s common for those who are traveling overseas for the first time to pack a lot of stuff. The fear is being so far from home and needing something. But a recent article speaks of the problems of overpacking. It advises leaving behind shampoo and hair dryers (which most hotels have) and not bringing extra shoes and books, which are bulky and heavy. The writer notes that when you wind up lugging heavy luggage over Europe’s cobblestone streets, you’ll wish you didn’t bring so much with you. 

In a way, it’s an apt metaphor for the travel advice the apostle Paul provides: “We brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it” (1 Timothy 6:7). He ties this to the problem of possessing too much: “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation,” and he warns that extra baggage is “a trap” leading to “ruin and destruction” (v. 9). People of faith have a different travel destination where all that’s needed is provided by God—“everything for our enjoyment” (v. 17).

It might be good for us today to remember that what we accumulate in life is meaningless. We can’t take it with us. By being “generous and willing to share” (v. 18), Paul says we “lay up treasure . . . for the coming age.” This is the best travel tip of all, the secret to “life that is truly life” (v. 19).

Reflect & Pray

How might you “pack less” for eternity? What treasure might you store up for heaven?

Dear God, please help me to change anything unhealthy in my relationship with things and possessions. Help me to be generous with others.

Learn more about letting go of greed by reading this article.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, February 04, 2026

In God’s Grip

For Christ’s love compels us. —2 Corinthians 5:14

When Paul says that he is compelled by Christ’s love, he means that he is overruled, overmastered, held by an iron grip. Most of us have no idea what it means to be held in the grip of God’s love. We are held only by our experience. The one thing that held Paul was love. Whenever you see someone held like this, you know there is nothing standing in the way of the Spirit of God.

For some time after we are saved, our testimony tends to focus on what God has done for us. The baptism of the Holy Spirit takes our focus off ourselves, and places it on Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “You will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). He didn’t say “witnesses to what I have done for you.” It isn’t wrong to share personal testimony, but Christ wants us to pass on to a deeper, more profound kind of witness. He wants us to learn to view everything that happens to us as if it were happening to him—any praise we receive, any persecution we suffer. This is why we must be overruled by love and by the majesty of our Lord’s personal power. If we aren’t, we won’t be able to stand for him.

Paul lived to persuade people of the judgment seat of God and the love of Christ. Some called him insane, but Paul didn’t care. He understood the reason behind his actions: the love of Christ had him in its grip.

When we too are filled with this love, everything we do will give the impression of God’s holiness and power, never our own. Then we will truly be witnesses, and our lives will bear wonderful fruit.

Exodus 34-35; Matthew 22:23-46

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The great word of Jesus to His disciples is Abandon. When God has brought us into the relationship of disciples, we have to venture on His word; trust entirely to Him and watch that when He brings us to the venture, we take it.

Studies in the Sermon on the Mount

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, February 04, 2026

THE DEADLY SILENCE - #10193

Jack Phillips was a senior radioman on the maiden voyage of the ill-fated Titanic. On that fatal night when two-thirds of her passengers and crew would die, Phillips actually received a message from a ship called the Masaba. That ship was reporting on a major ice field ahead and the message gave the coordinates where the Titanic could expect to encounter those icebergs. It was the place where just two hours later, the Titanic would, in fact, hit one of those icebergs. The message with the warning of what was ahead - would you believe it - didn't get delivered. Jack Phillips was really busy at the time - a lot of radio traffic - and he stuck the message on a spindle to be delivered sometime later, and it never was. That one decision would cost the lives of 1,500 people and the life of the radioman himself.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Deadly Silence."

Life-saving information never delivered. That is a tragedy that has been repeated countless times, as followers of Jesus Christ fail to deliver the life-saving message God has given to them. The message of how His Son's death on the cross paid the penalty for our sin and made the way for our sin to be forgiven so we could go to heaven. But if those who know it never tell those who don't, lives are going to be lost forever. That is the deadly silence.

If you belong to Jesus, you may not fully realize the reason you are where you are and the incredibly important role you play in the plans of God and in the eternal destiny of people you know. There's a story in the Bible that wonderfully illustrates your position in the lives of your family, your coworkers, and your neighbors. It's found in 2 Kings 5:1-3, and it's our word for today from the Word of God.

The Bible says: "Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the Lord had given victory to Aram. Naaman was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy." Okay, highly successful, very famous leader suddenly facing something bigger than he is - the fatal disease of leprosy.

The story continues: "Now bands from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman's wife. She said to her mistress, 'If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria (that was Elijah) he would cure him of his leprosy.'" Ultimately, General Naaman acts on that information. His body is healed and he opens his heart to Jehovah God.

Someone close to him knew how he could be saved and she took the risk to point him to the only person who could help. Humanly speaking, she was working there because of something bad that had happened to her; she was captured by enemy soldiers. But she came to understand that she had been divinely positioned where she was to save a life there. So have you. God, not circumstances, has positioned you where you are so you can help save the lives of the people there by pointing them to your Jesus; the only one who can save them.

Like the girl working as a servant in the home of a very important man, it's a risk to tell them how they can be cured of the cancer of sin and how they can live forever. You won't take that risk if you're thinking about yourself. You will take the risk if you realize that the greatest risk of all is that they will die without the information that could have helped them go to heaven with you. We can't be this close to them for so long and never tell them the life-saving information we know.

Pray each day that God will give you natural opportunities to share what you know about Jesus. Ask God to show you how to approach each person, and even ask Him to give you the words to say. He's promised He would. Living a Christlike life in front of them is very important, but it's not enough. They'll never guess that Jesus died for them just cause you're a good person. You'll have to tell them that. You have the message that can save their life. To leave that message undelivered is unthinkable.

Judges 6, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: DISCOVER THE UNSTIRRED CHRIST - February 3, 2026

Christ-followers contract malaria, bury children, and battle addictions, and, as a result, face fears. It’s not the absence of storms that sets us apart. It’s whom we discover in the storm—an unstirred Christ.

Matthew 8:24 says, “Jesus was sleeping.” Now there’s a scene. The disciples scream, and Jesus dreams. “Do you not care that we are perishing?” (NKJV).  Fear corrodes our confidence in God’s goodness. It unleashes a swarm of anger-stirring doubts. Fear creates a form of spiritual amnesia. It makes us forget what Jesus has done and how good God is. Jesus takes our fears seriously. Don’t be afraid.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Judges 6

Gideon

1–6  6 Yet again the People of Israel went back to doing evil in God’s sight. God put them under the domination of Midian for seven years. Midian overpowered Israel. Because of Midian, the People of Israel made for themselves hideouts in the mountains—caves and forts. When Israel planted its crops, Midian and Amalek, the easterners, would invade them, camp in their fields, and destroy their crops all the way down to Gaza. They left nothing for them to live on, neither sheep nor ox nor donkey. Bringing their cattle and tents, they came in and took over, like an invasion of locusts. And their camels—past counting! They marched in and devastated the country. The People of Israel, reduced to grinding poverty by Midian, cried out to God for help.

7–10  One time when the People of Israel had cried out to God because of Midian, God sent them a prophet with this message: “God, the God of Israel, says,

I delivered you from Egypt,

I freed you from a life of slavery;

I rescued you from Egypt’s brutality

and then from every oppressor;

I pushed them out of your way

and gave you their land.

“And I said to you, ‘I am God, your God. Don’t for a minute be afraid of the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living.’ But you didn’t listen to me.”

11–12  One day the angel of God came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, whose son Gideon was threshing wheat in the winepress, out of sight of the Midianites. The angel of God appeared to him and said, “God is with you, O mighty warrior!”

13  Gideon replied, “With me, my master? If God is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all the miracle-wonders our parents and grandparents told us about, telling us, ‘Didn’t God deliver us from Egypt?’ The fact is, God has nothing to do with us—he has turned us over to Midian.”

14  But God faced him directly: “Go in this strength that is yours. Save Israel from Midian. Haven’t I just sent you?”

15  Gideon said to him, “Me, my master? How and with what could I ever save Israel? Look at me. My clan’s the weakest in Manasseh and I’m the runt of the litter.”

16  God said to him, “I’ll be with you. Believe me, you’ll defeat Midian as one man.”

17–18  Gideon said, “If you’re serious about this, do me a favor: Give me a sign to back up what you’re telling me. Don’t leave until I come back and bring you my gift.”

He said, “I’ll wait till you get back.”

19  Gideon went and prepared a young goat and a huge amount of unraised bread (he used over half a bushel of flour!). He put the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot and took them back under the shade of the oak tree for a sacred meal.

20  The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and unraised bread, place them on that rock, and pour the broth on them.” Gideon did it.

21–22  The angel of God stretched out the tip of the stick he was holding and touched the meat and the bread. Fire broke out of the rock and burned up the meat and bread while the angel of God slipped away out of sight. And Gideon knew it was the angel of God!

Gideon said, “Oh no! Master, God! I have seen the angel of God face-to-face!”

23  But God reassured him, “Easy now. Don’t panic. You won’t die.”

24  Then Gideon built an altar there to God and named it “God’s Peace.” It’s still called that at Ophrah of Abiezer.

25–26  That night this happened. God said to him, “Take your father’s best seven-year-old bull, the prime one. Tear down your father’s Baal altar and chop down the Asherah fertility pole beside it. Then build an altar to God, your God, on the top of this hill. Take the prime bull and present it as a Whole-Burnt-Offering, using firewood from the Asherah pole that you cut down.”

27  Gideon selected ten men from his servants and did exactly what God had told him. But because of his family and the people in the neighborhood, he was afraid to do it openly, so he did it that night.

28  Early in the morning, the people in town were shocked to find Baal’s altar torn down, the Asherah pole beside it chopped down, and the prime bull burning away on the altar that had been built.

29  They kept asking, “Who did this?”

Questions and more questions, and then the answer: “Gideon son of Joash did it.”

30  The men of the town demanded of Joash: “Bring out your son! He must die! Why, he tore down the Baal altar and chopped down the Asherah tree!”

31  But Joash stood up to the crowd pressing in on him, “Are you going to fight Baal’s battles for him? Are you going to save him? Anyone who takes Baal’s side will be dead by morning. If Baal is a god in fact, let him fight his own battles and defend his own altar.”

32  They nicknamed Gideon that day Jerub-Baal because after he had torn down the Baal altar, he had said, “Let Baal fight his own battles.”

33–35  All the Midianites and Amalekites (the easterners) got together, crossed the river, and made camp in the Valley of Jezreel. God’s Spirit came over Gideon. He blew his ram’s horn trumpet and the Abiezrites came out, ready to follow him. He dispatched messengers all through Manasseh, calling them to the battle; also to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali. They all came.

36–37  Gideon said to God, “If this is right, if you are using me to save Israel as you’ve said, then look: I’m placing a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If dew is on the fleece only, but the floor is dry, then I know that you will use me to save Israel, as you said.”

38  That’s what happened. When he got up early the next morning, he wrung out the fleece—enough dew to fill a bowl with water!

39  Then Gideon said to God, “Don’t be impatient with me, but let me say one more thing. I want to try another time with the fleece. But this time let the fleece stay dry, while the dew drenches the ground.”

40  God made it happen that very night. Only the fleece was dry while the ground was wet with dew.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Tuesday, February 03, 2026

by Karen Huang

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Haggai 2:1-9

This Temple Will End Up Better Than It Started Out

1–3  2 On the twenty-first day of the seventh month, the Word of God came through the prophet Haggai: “Tell Governor Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak and all the people: ‘Is there anyone here who saw the Temple the way it used to be, all glorious? And what do you see now? Not much, right?

4–5  “ ‘So get to work, Zerubbabel!’—God is speaking.

“ ‘Get to work, Joshua son of Jehozadak—high priest!’

“ ‘Get to work, all you people!’—God is speaking.

“ ‘Yes, get to work! For I am with you.’ The God-of-the-Angel-Armies is speaking! ‘Put into action the word I covenanted with you when you left Egypt. I’m living and breathing among you right now. Don’t be timid. Don’t hold back.’

6–7  “This is what God-of-the-Angel-Armies said: ‘Before you know it, I will shake up sky and earth, ocean and fields. And I’ll shake down all the godless nations. They’ll bring bushels of wealth and I will fill this Temple with splendor.’ God-of-the-Angel-Armies says so.

8  ‘I own the silver, I own the gold.’

Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

9  “ ‘This Temple is going to end up far better than it started out, a glorious beginning but an even more glorious finish: a place in which I will hand out wholeness and holiness.’ Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.”

Today's Insights

Centuries before Joshua the son of Jehozadak heard the command to “be strong” (Haggai 2:4), Joshua the son of Nun heard similar words when tasked with taking God’s people into the promised land (Joshua 1:6, 7, 9, 18). Though Moses was dead (vv. 1-2), God was alive and present. He declared, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (v. 9). People change and assignments change. But God’s plan and purpose for us doesn’t. When we’re discouraged, focusing on this truth can strengthen and embolden us for the tasks at hand.

Focus on God

My Spirit remains among you. Do not fear. Haggai 2:5

At least he passed, Jess thought, holding the test paper. He’d been helping his son with math, but with house chores and extra work from his boss lately, studying together had been tough. Discouraged, Jess thought of his wife, who’d passed away: Lisa, you’d know what to do. I’m not as good a keeper of the home as you were.

On a bigger scale, such discouragement may well have been what Zerubbabel felt. The governor of Judah had been called by God to lead the Israelites in rebuilding the temple after captivity in Babylon. When they’d laid the foundation, “many . . . who had seen the former temple, wept aloud” (Ezra 3:12). The memory of Solomon’s glorious temple lingered again now, as construction of a smaller structure resumed. Ours isn’t as good, everyone, including Zerubbabel, must’ve thought. 

“But now be strong, Zerubbabel,” God said, as He did to all involved: “I am with you . . . my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear” (Haggai 2:4-5). Zerubbabel could take heart in God’s guiding presence, bound by His covenant with them (v. 5). Also, “The glory of this present house will be greater,” God said (v. 9), pointing to when Jesus Himself would visit the temple (John 2:13-25). 

We may feel discouraged in a task God calls us to do, comparing our results with those of another season. Let’s focus on His plan for this season, because the work and its purpose are His, not our own.

Reflect & Pray

What task has God given you? How can You focus on Him while carrying it out?

Dear God, please help me as I embrace the task You’ve called me to do.

For further study, read Don’t Let Your Failure Stop You from Following Jesus.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Tuesday, February 03, 2026

The Demand of the Call

We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world. —1 Corinthians 4:13

Paul’s words here are not an exaggeration. If they are not true for us, it’s because we refuse to allow ourselves to become garbage. Our preference for the finer things of the world, and for our own place among them, prevents us from being “set apart for the gospel” in the way Paul describes (Romans 1:1). When he writes of using his own flesh to “fill up . . . what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions,” he means being willing to put himself, in person, anywhere Christ’s gospel is needed (Colossians 1:24).

“Do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening” (1 Peter 4:12). If we do find the things we encounter strange, it’s because we’re cowardly and pretentious. We allow our worldly affinities and aspirations to keep us out of the muck: “I won’t stoop,” we say. “I won’t bend.” God won’t force us. If we want, we can refuse to let Jesus count us as one of his servants.

A servant of Jesus is someone who is willing to become a martyr for the gospel. Martyrdom is a calling that lies beyond mere morality. When a merely moral man or woman comes in contact with baseness and immorality and treachery, they instinctively recoil. What they’ve seen is so desperately offensive to their sense of human goodness that their heart shuts up in despair.

But the marvel of the redemptive reality of God is that his love is bottomless: the worst and vilest can never exhaust it. Paul doesn’t say that God set him apart in order to make him a shining example. It was, Paul writes, “to reveal his Son in me” (Galatians 1:16).

Exodus 31-33; Matthew 22:1-22

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

Tuesday, February 03, 2026

SAYING GOODBYE TO THE GARBAGE IN YOUR LIFE - #10192

It used to be a lot simpler to take out the garbage. The only decision we had to make that day was to take it to the curb. Not so much anymore! Now you've got to make sure you don't put out any grass clippings or limbs with your regular trash. We recycle everything! And those items are supposed to be separated. When we lived in the Metropolitan New York area their rules about garbage disposal were even more complicated. My friend Craig had recently moved there and wasn't familiar with the regulations. He let his garbage pile up for the first few weeks with odoriferous results. He finally found the instructions on handling trash and he told me, "It wasn't that I didn't want to get rid of that garbage, I just didn't know how to."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Saying Goodbye to the Garbage in Your Life."

Some of us face a quandary similar to my friend's, only with the emotional and spiritual garbage of our lives. Things we've done that we wish we could undo. Things we hope no one ever finds out about. The guilty memories that keep replaying in our brain. Not to mention the pain we carry inside. We want to get rid of our garbage, we just don't know how to, and it continues to pile up in our soul. Well, there is a designated dumping ground for our lifetime of garbage. It's on a skull shaped hill with a rugged cross at the top.

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 1 Peter 2:24. Speaking of Jesus, it says, "'He Himself bore our sins in His own body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness.'" See, all the guilt of all the sins that you and I have ever done, God's Son absorbed when He was dying on that cross paying our death penalty for our sin.

In Isaiah 53, God graphically describes this dumping of all our sin garbage on His Son. It says, "He carried our sorrows, He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities, the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him." Just think! Every lie we've ever told, every angry, hurting word we've ever spoken, Jesus carried it on that cross. Every lustful thought, every immoral act, every adulterous act, every act of violence or selfishness, Jesus the sinless Son of God absorbed it into His soul on that cross.

Why? In the words of the Bible, "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son." And today this Jesus invites you to bring the accumulated garbage of your life to the cross where he died to forgive it. Jesus said of those who nailed Him to that tree, "Father, forgive them." If He could forgive that, there's nothing you've done that He cannot and will not forgive! But you have to come to Jesus willing to admit that you're a sinner, willing to tell Him that you're putting all your trust in Him to erase your sin from God's book and to give you life forever. You can trade in your guilt for His forgiveness. You can trade in your pain for His healing. You can trade in death for eternal life when you ask the One who died for you to be your own Savior.

Have you ever done that? If you're not sure you have; if you're ready to finally be forgiven and clean, let me encourage you to go to our website where we have laid out very simply how you can begin your personal love relationship with Jesus Christ. Go to ANewStory.com.

There is no reason to deal with the garbage of your life again. Not when Jesus Christ has shown you what to do with it. Bring all of that garbage of all of your life to Skull Hill where it was already dealt with by Jesus, and leave it there.

Judges 5, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily:IMAGINE LIFE WITHOUT FEAR - February 2, 2026

In Matthew 8:26, Jesus asks his disciples, “Why are you afraid?” At first we wonder if he’s serious, but he’s dead earnest. Here is how Matthew remembered the trip: “Jesus got into a boat, and his followers went with him. A great storm arose on the lake so that waves covered the boat” (Matthew 8:23-24 NCV).

The story sends the not-so-subtle and not-too-popular reminder that getting on board with Christ can mean getting soaked with Christ. Disciples can expect rough seas and stout winds. Jesus said, “In this world you will have tribulation” (John 16:33 NKJV). Not might, may, or could, but you will.

But what if faith, not fear, was your default reaction to threats? This is the possibility behind Jesus’ question. Imagine your life without fear.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Judges 5

 That day Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang this song:

2  When they let down their hair in Israel,

they let it blow wild in the wind.

The people volunteered with abandon,

bless God!

3  Hear O kings! Listen O princes!

To God, yes to God, I’ll sing,

Make music to God,

to the God of Israel.

4–5  God, when you left Seir,

marched across the fields of Edom,

Earth quaked, yes, the skies poured rain,

oh, the clouds made rivers.

Mountains leapt before God, the Sinai God,

before God, the God of Israel.

6–8  In the time of Shamgar son of Anath,

and in the time of Jael,

Public roads were abandoned,

travelers went by backroads.

Warriors became fat and sloppy,

no fight left in them.

Then you, Deborah, rose up;

you got up, a mother in Israel.

God chose new leaders,

who then fought at the gates.

And not a shield or spear to be seen

among the forty companies of Israel.

9  Lift your hearts high, O Israel,

with abandon, volunteering yourselves with the people—bless God!

10–11  You who ride on prize donkeys

comfortably mounted on blankets

And you who walk down the roads,

ponder, attend!

Gather at the town well

and listen to them sing,

Chanting the tale of God’s victories,

his victories accomplished in Israel.

Then the people of God

went down to the city gates.

12  Wake up, wake up, Deborah!

Wake up, wake up, sing a song!

On your feet, Barak!

Take your prisoners, son of Abinoam!

13–18  Then the remnant went down to greet the brave ones.

The people of God joined the mighty ones.

The captains from Ephraim came to the valley,

behind you, Ben-jamin, with your troops.

Captains marched down from Makir,

from Zebulun high-ranking leaders came down.

Issachar’s princes rallied to Deborah,

Issachar stood fast with Barak,

backing him up on the field of battle.

But in Reuben’s divisions there was much second-guessing.

Why all those campfire discussions?

Diverted and distracted,

Reuben’s divisions couldn’t make up their minds.

Gilead played it safe across the Jordan,

and Dan, why did he go off sailing?

Asher kept his distance on the seacoast,

safe and secure in his harbors.

But Zebulun risked life and limb, defied death,

as did Naphtali on the battle heights.

19–23  The kings came, they fought,

the kings of Canaan fought.

At Taanach they fought, at Megiddo’s brook,

but they took no silver, no plunder.

The stars in the sky joined the fight,

from their courses they fought against Sisera.

The torrent Kishon swept them away,

the torrent attacked them, the torrent Kishon.

Oh, you’ll stomp on the necks of the strong!

Then the hoofs of the horses pounded,

charging, stampeding stallions.

“Curse Meroz,” says God’s angel.

“Curse, double curse, its people,

Because they didn’t come when God needed them,

didn’t rally to God’s side with valiant fighters.”

24–27  Most blessed of all women is Jael,

wife of Heber the Kenite,

most blessed of homemaking women.

He asked for water,

she brought milk;

In a handsome bowl,

she offered cream.

She grabbed a tent peg in her left hand,

with her right hand she seized a hammer.

She hammered Sisera, she smashed his head,

she drove a hole through his temple.

He slumped at her feet. He fell. He sprawled.

He slumped at her feet. He fell.

Slumped. Fallen. Dead.

28–30  Sisera’s mother waited at the window,

a weary, anxious watch.

“What’s keeping his chariot?

What delays his chariot’s rumble?”

The wisest of her ladies-in-waiting answers

with calm, reassuring words,

“Don’t you think they’re busy at plunder,

dividing up the loot?

A girl, maybe two girls,

for each man,

And for Sisera a bright silk shirt,

a prize, fancy silk shirt!

And a colorful scarf—make it two scarves—

to grace the neck of the plunderer.”

31  Thus may all God’s enemies perish,

while his lovers be like the unclouded sun.

The land was quiet for forty years.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Monday, February 02, 2026

by Matt Lucas

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Matthew 18:1-4

Whoever Becomes Simple Again

1  18 At about the same time, the disciples came to Jesus asking, “Who gets the highest rank in God’s kingdom?”

2–5  For an answer Jesus called over a child, whom he stood in the middle of the room, and said, “I’m telling you, once and for all, that unless you return to square one and start over like children, you’re not even going to get a look at the kingdom, let alone get in. Whoever becomes simple and elemental again, like this child, will rank high in God’s kingdom.

Today's Insights

Companion passages in Mark 9:33-37 and Luke 9:46-48 shed light on today’s Bible reading from Matthew 18:1-4. Jesus and His disciples had been traveling to Capernaum on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. When they arrived, Christ asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” (Mark 9:33). His question was merely rhetorical. He knew full well what they’d been discussing. Mark tells us that “they had argued about who was the greatest” (v. 34). In so doing, the disciples showed how badly they misunderstood what Jesus’ kingdom was about. Hence, they asked an unhelpful question: “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” (Matthew 18:1). It was then that Christ “called a little child to him” (v. 2). Children wielded neither the power nor the influence the disciples valued and sought. Jesus’ mission inverts our natural understanding of what’s important. He calls and helps believers in Him to be humble, like little children (vv. 3-5).

Following Jesus in Humility

Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:3

Near our home is a famous garden where we often take walks with a young boy our family cares for. His favorite area is the Children’s Garden, which has a small door large enough for him to run through but small enough to force me to crouch. He laughs as I drop to my knees and wiggle through the small opening to chase him.

The small garden gate reminds me of Jesus’ object lesson in Matthew 18, where He calls a little child to His side to explain the type of person who will enter the kingdom of heaven (v. 2). It was a bold example, for in Christ’s day to be a child was to be inconsequential and overlooked. Unlike today, their opinions and desires didn’t matter. Jesus uses this description to highlight our human tendency to be noticed and seek power and influence. 

Of course, Jesus wasn’t asking His disciples to become children again but rather pointing to the traits that mark those who serve him. The biggest marker is humility—the person who “takes the lowly position” (v. 4) and serves others. 

The small garden door is a reminder that humility doesn’t come naturally to us. Believers in Jesus, however, are to be this way. We’re to follow our Savior, who modeled this way of living by making “himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant” (Philippians 2:7).

Reflect & Pray

In what areas of your life do you thrust yourself to the forefront and seek to be noticed? How can you learn to live more like Jesus?

Dear Father, please forgive me for my pride and self-interest. Help me to be a little child who runs to You.

Learn more about living like Christ by reading Going the Extra Mile.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Monday, February 02, 2026

The Constraint of the Call

Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! —1 Corinthians 9:16

Have you been called to preach the gospel as a disciple of Jesus Christ? If you have, beware of turning a deaf ear. The call to discipleship is a special kind of call. Everyone who is saved is called to testify to their salvation, but there is nothing easier than being saved. Salvation is God’s sovereign work; all we have to do is turn to him. “Turn to me and be saved” (Isaiah 45:22). Our Lord never says that the conditions of discipleship are the same as the conditions of salvation. We are condemned to salvation through the cross of Jesus Christ, but discipleship has an option with it: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23).

To become a disciple is to be made broken bread and poured-out wine in Jesus’s hands; it is to experience the pain of being constrained. In 1 Corinthians 9:16, Paul describes the distress that would seize him if he tried to break free. Having accepted the conditions of discipleship, he is now “set apart for the gospel,” entirely kept and bound for God (Romans 1:1).

To lead a set-apart life is to suffer agonies worthy of the name disciple. Every personal ambition is nipped in the bud; every personal desire is erased; every perspective apart from God’s is blotted out. Discipleship is not for everyone. But if you have felt God grip you for it, beware: woe to the soul who puts a foot in any other direction once the call has come.

Exodus 29-30; Matthew 21:23-46

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Am I becoming more and more in love with God as a holy God, or with the conception of an amiable Being who says, “Oh well, sin doesn’t matter much”? 

Disciples Indeed, 389 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Monday, February 02, 2026

THE LEADING OF A LIFETIME - #10191

If you're paying attention, a child will often tip you off very early as to what to expect from them later on in life. I've got movies of our daughter, and she was about five or six, maybe, singing for us using a spoon - a big wooden spoon - as a microphone and standing on something in the living room as a stage. Well, over the years, she's done singing, and a lot of speaking. It was really no great shock; we saw the first hints of that when she was little. When our son was five, he was tying our house together with string very imaginatively. I'd walk in, I'd open the back door, and it would open the drawer of my dresser in the bedroom. He had everything tied together. At the age of 13 he was the technician of the house, who loved to figure out how things work, how to take them apart, how to put them together, I hope - how to solve problems. You know what? He grew up to be a great planner and a very creative ministry technician. There's a pattern...a connective line from the past into the future in the life of every child; my child and God's child. In fact, that's true of you too.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Leading of a Lifetime."

Now, our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 37. I'm going to begin reading in verse 4, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this." Verse 23 says, "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he delights in His way." Don't you get the feeling as you hear about how God is leading in these passages that His leading in our lives is a consistent, long-term pattern - not just some sudden departure. God usually leads in a straight line. He doesn't just go "boing" off on some tangent. It's a straight line from what He's been doing in your past, into the present, and consistently into your future.

Now, maybe you're at one of those crossroads right now. It's decision time; you've got a major choice to make. Well, one guideline in determining what God wants for the future is to see where He's been leading you and how He's been leading you in the past. For example, here it talks about Him giving you the desires of your heart. Could you trust your desires in this decision? Well, if you've kept the first part of the verse you can. "Delight yourself in the Lord."

Have you been, over the last months and years, having daily time with Him, where you're just enjoying Him?

Then it says, "Commit your way to the Lord." I wonder if you've said to Him over and over again about this area of your life, "Lord, anything goes. Whatever You say is okay." I'm committing to obey you, sight unseen. I don't know what it is but I will follow You. You're not giving Him a contract to sign; you're giving Him a blank piece of paper that you've already signed.

Well, with those understandings when you're trying to decide, look at those desires you've felt for a long time, especially the ones you've felt when you've been close to Him. Not just things you've felt for a few days. And if they line up with God's Word and with good counsel, and with the facts, those desires are probably God-planted.

Now, keep a spiritual diary of what He says to you through the Bible. I've been doing that for years. I'm so glad I've got that. Don't make a major decision based on one verse, but look at the things God has been saying to you over and over. Look for the pattern. God's will for tomorrow will pull together all He's been doing in your life up until now: the experiences, the fulfilling achievements, the talents, the desires, the themes that He's unfolded to you in His Word.

So before you look ahead, look back at God's pattern in your life. His will is the natural next step of following Him daily up until now. He's leading you in a straight line. So, don't just grab the impulse of a moment. Look for the leading of a lifetime.