Genesis 23, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Resentment

Resentment is a prison.  When you’ve put someone in your jail cell of hatred, you are stuck guarding the door.  If you’re out to settle a score, you are never going to rest.  How can you?  For one thing, your enemy may never pay up.

As much as you think you deserve an apology, your debtor may not agree.  The racist may never repent.  The chauvinist may never change. As justified as you are in your quest for vengeance, you may never get a penny’s worth of justice.  And if you do, will it be enough?

You see, resentment is a prison.  Jesus doesn’t question the reality of your wounds.  He just doubts whether resentment is going to heal you.  What are you going to do?  Spend your life guarding the prison jail cell?  Or entrust your wounds to Jesus?

from The Great House of God

Genesis 23

Sarah lived 127 years. Sarah died in Kiriath Arba, present-day Hebron, in the land of Canaan. Abraham mourned for Sarah and wept.

3–4  Then Abraham got up from mourning his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites: “I know I’m only an outsider here among you, but sell me a burial plot so that I can bury my dead decently.”

5–6  The Hittites responded, “Why, you’re no mere outsider here with us, you’re a prince of God! Bury your dead wife in the best of our burial sites. None of us will refuse you a place for burial.”

7–9  Then Abraham got up, bowed respectfully to the people of the land, the Hittites, and said, “If you’re serious about helping me give my wife a proper burial, intercede for me with Ephron son of Zohar. Ask him to sell me the cave of Machpelah that he owns, the one at the end of his land. Ask him to sell it to me at its full price for a burial plot, with you as witnesses.”

10–11  Ephron was part of the local Hittite community. Then Ephron the Hittite spoke up, answering Abraham with all the Hittites who were part of the town council listening: “Oh no, my master! I couldn’t do that. The field is yours—a gift. I’ll give it and the cave to you. With my people as witnesses, I give it to you. Bury your deceased wife.”

12–13  Abraham bowed respectfully before the assembled council and answered Ephron: “Please allow me—I want to pay the price of the land; take my money so that I can go ahead and bury my wife.”

14–15  Then Ephron answered Abraham, “If you insist, master. What’s four hundred silver shekels between us? Now go ahead and bury your wife.”

16  Abraham accepted Ephron’s offer and paid out the sum that Ephron had named before the town council of Hittites—four hundred silver shekels at the current exchange rate.

17–20  That’s how Ephron’s field next to Mamre—the field, its cave, and all the trees within its borders—became Abraham’s property. The town council of Hittites witnessed the transaction. Abraham then proceeded to bury his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah that is next to Mamre, present-day Hebron, in the land of Canaan. The field and its cave went from the Hittites into Abraham’s possession as a burial plot.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Saturday, April 19, 2025

by Kirsten Holmberg

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Isaiah 61:4-11

They’ll rebuild the old ruins,

raise a new city out of the wreckage.

They’ll start over on the ruined cities,

take the rubble left behind and make it new.

You’ll hire outsiders to herd your flocks

and foreigners to work your fields,

But you’ll have the title “Priests of God,”

honored as ministers of our God.

You’ll feast on the bounty of nations,

you’ll bask in their glory.

Because you got a double dose of trouble

and more than your share of contempt,

Your inheritance in the land will be doubled

and your joy go on forever.

8–9  “Because I, God, love fair dealing

and hate thievery and crime,

I’ll pay your wages on time and in full,

and establish my eternal covenant with you.

Your descendants will become well-known all over.

Your children in foreign countries

Will be recognized at once

as the people I have blessed.”

10–11  I will sing for joy in God,

explode in praise from deep in my soul!

He dressed me up in a suit of salvation,

he outfitted me in a robe of righteousness,

As a bridegroom who puts on a tuxedo

and a bride a jeweled tiara.

For as the earth bursts with spring wildflowers,

and as a garden cascades with blossoms,

So the Master, God, brings righteousness into full bloom

and puts praise on display before the nations.

Today's Insights

Isaiah 61 speaks of redemption and restoration of God's people as “the year of the Lord’s favor” (v. 2). They will experience God’s grace when He sends them the “anointed” one—Jesus (see Luke 4:18-19)—to rescue and deliver them from their captivity to sin (Isaiah 61:1-3). God will bless them as His covenant people, and they will rejoice in His faithfulness, grace, goodness, and glory (vv. 4-11). In thankfulness for God’s salvation, the prophet Isaiah declared on behalf of the redeemed people: “He has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness” (v. 10 nlt). God’s redeemed people will be a witness to the world that God has blessed His people with new life (v. 9).

Clothed in Christ

He has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness. Isaiah 61:10

Rose Turner, a fashion psychologist at the London College of Fashion, studies the impact clothing has on how people think, how they behave, and even how clothes affect their mood. As the closest thing to our bodies, clothing forms a type of “second skin” and girds us for whatever the day might hold. For example, donning professional attire can “help with motivation and concentration” at work, and wearing vintage pieces with sentimental value can bring comfort during stressful situations.

This psychological phenomenon offers an insight into Isaiah’s prophetic words about Jesus’ sacrificial act. He records the future deliverance of the Jews from their captivity in Babylon, assuring them they would one day “rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated” in their absence (Isaiah 61:4). In that day, they would wear “a robe of his righteousness” (v. 10).

Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled first in the nation’s return to Jerusalem and then fully when “God made [Jesus] . . . sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Righteousness describes our right relationship with God when we trust in Christ’s sacrifice. God doesn’t see us outfitted in shame or disgrace because of our sin; instead, He sees us clothed in Jesus’ enduring righteousness—a “second skin” that girds us with joy today and for eternity.

Reflect & Pray

What shame do you “put on” every day? How can you better remember your robe of righteousness?

Thank You, Jesus, for clothing me in Your righteousness.

Learn to move past shame by reading Accepting God's Forgiveness.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Saturday, April 19, 2025

Is It Unlikely?

Joab . . . had conspired with Adonijah though not with Absalom. — 1 Kings 2:28

Joab passed the big test: he remained loyal and true to David for nearly four decades, and he resisted the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. It might seem unlikely that a man of such proven integrity would ever turn his back on God. And yet, when David was on his deathbed, Joab conspired to help the scheming Adonijah seize the throne (1 Kings 1:1–7).

Always remain alert to the fact that where one has turned back, any may turn back. “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind” (1 Corinthians 10:13). Have you recently passed a big test of loyalty to God? Now is the time to pay attention to the details. “But,” you protest, “it’s not at all likely that I’ll turn back now—not after everything I’ve been through.” Don’t try to predict how temptation will come; peril lies in the least likely thing. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual transaction that the sphere of the small and seemingly insignificant begins to exert itself. It doesn’t become dominant, but if we don’t remember that it is there, if we don’t remember to warn ourselves about it, it will trip us up.

If you’ve remained true to God under great and intense trials, now is the time to watch out for the undertow. Don’t become morbidly introspective, looking toward the future with dread. Just remain alert, keeping your memory bright before God. Unguarded strength is double weakness. The Bible characters fell on their strong points, never on their weak ones. “Shielded by God’s power” (1 Peter 1:5): that is the only safety.

2 Samuel 6-8; Luke 15:1-10

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

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

Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, 1465 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Friday, April 18, 2025

The Battle In Your Soul - #9985

A listener shared a story with me that's just too powerful not to share with you. A man named George Thomas was a pastor in a small New England town. One Easter Sunday morning, he got up to speak and he set a rusty, bent-up, old bird cage next to the pulpit. You could tell by people's faces that the pastor had some explaining to do. He said, "Well, I was walking through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me, swinging this bird cage. On the bottom of the cage were three little birds who were shivering with cold and fear. So I asked the boy, "What you got there?" He said, "Just some old birds." The pastor then asked, "What are you going to do with them?" The boy said, "Well, I'm gonna tease 'em and pull out their feathers to make 'em fight. Then I'm gonna have a real good time." The pastor pointed out that the boy would soon get tired of those birds and he said, "What are you going to do with them then?" "Oh, I've got some cats," the boy said. "They like birds." What happened next is what puts you and me into this picture.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Battle In Your Soul."

The pastor had a question for the boy who had nothing but hurtful plans for those little birds. "How much do you want for them, son?" The boy couldn't believe it. These were just plain old field birds who weren't very pretty and they couldn't sing. When the pastor pressed his question, the boy finally answered, "Uh, ten dollars?" The pastor reached into his pocket and pulled out a $10 bill, and the boy took his money and ran off.

The pastor picked up the cage, he gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree and a grassy spot. He opened the cage door, softly tapped the bars to persuade the birds to come out, and you know what happened. He set them free.

Now the folks at church understood at this point why there was an empty cage on the pulpit. Then the pastor began to tell a story of a conversation between Jesus and Satan, who had just come from his victory with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The devil was boasting, "Yes, sir, I just caught me a world full of people down there. I set me a trap and they fell for the bait. Got 'em all!" Jesus asked him, "What are you going to do with them?" "I'm gonna have some fun with them," Satan replied. "I'm gonna teach them how to marry and divorce each other, how to hurt and hate each other, and how to get hooked on habits that will destroy them. I'm going to teach them to deceive each other, abuse each other, and even kill each other."

When Jesus asked what he would do when he was done with them, Satan said, "Oh, I'll kill them." "How much do you want for them?" Jesus asked. The devil said, "You don't want them. They'll just spit on you. They'll just curse you. They'll kill you!" Jesus asked again, "How much?" Satan sneered, "All your tears and all your blood!" "Done!" Jesus said, and then He paid the price. Now our word for today from the Word of God in John 10:10, "The thief (that's Satan) comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep."

This very day the life-taker, the devil himself, is trying to hold onto you. He wants to keep you away from Jesus until your last heartbeat, and then you'll be his forever. But the Life-Giver, Jesus Christ, is fighting for your soul this very moment where you are. He paid the price for your sin on the cross. And now you are in the middle of a tug-of-war on which your eternity depends, Satan trying to keep you on his path to kill you, and Jesus inviting you to give yourself to Him so He can give you life. They won't decide whether you go to heaven or hell though - you will.

You want to belong to this Jesus? I mean, nobody has ever loved you like He does. No one has the power to walk out of his grave and give eternal life but Him. Go to our website, please. Many people have gone there and found there the assurance that they belong to Jesus Christ from that day on. It's ANewStory.com.

For 2,000 years, Jesus has been unlocking that cage door of sin and letting its captives go free. He's waiting to do that for you this very day, this Good Friday.

Matthew 16, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Six Hours, One Friday

Six hours, one Friday. Mundane to the casual observer. A shepherd with his sheep, a housewife with her thoughts, a doctor with his patients.  But to a handful of awestruck witnesses, the most maddening of miracles is occurring. God is on a cross. The creator of the universe is being executed.

It is no normal six hours. It is no normal Friday. Far worse than the breaking of his body is the shredding of his heart. And now his own father is beginning to turn his back on him, leaving him alone. What do you do with that day in history? What do you do with its claims? They were the most critical hours in history.

Nails didn't hold God to a cross. Love did. The sinless One took on the face of a sinner so that we sinners could take on the face of a saint!

"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21).

From Six Hours One Friday

Matthew 16

Some Bad Yeast

1–4  16 Some Pharisees and Sadducees were on him again, pressing him to prove himself to them. He told them, “You have a saying that goes, ‘Red sky at night, sailor’s delight; red sky at morning, sailors take warning.’ You find it easy enough to forecast the weather—why can’t you read the signs of the times? An evil and wanton generation is always wanting signs and wonders. The only sign you’ll get is the Jonah sign.” Then he turned on his heel and walked away.

5–6  On their way to the other side of the lake, the disciples discovered they had forgotten to bring along bread. In the meantime, Jesus said to them, “Keep a sharp eye out for Pharisee-Sadducee yeast.”

7–12  Thinking he was scolding them for forgetting bread, they discussed in whispers what to do. Jesus knew what they were doing and said, “Why all these worried whispers about forgetting the bread? Runt believers! Haven’t you caught on yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves of bread and the five thousand people, and how many baskets of fragments you picked up? Or the seven loaves that fed four thousand, and how many baskets of leftovers you collected? Haven’t you realized yet that bread isn’t the problem? The problem is yeast, Pharisee-Sadducee yeast.” Then they got it: that he wasn’t concerned about eating, but teaching—the Pharisee-Sadducee kind of teaching.

Son of Man, Son of God

13  When Jesus arrived in the villages of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “What are people saying about who the Son of Man is?”

14  They replied, “Some think he is John the Baptizer, some say Elijah, some Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”

15  He pressed them, “And how about you? Who do you say I am?”

16  Simon Peter said, “You’re the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

17–18  Jesus came back, “God bless you, Simon, son of Jonah! You didn’t get that answer out of books or from teachers. My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am. And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

19  “And that’s not all. You will have complete and free access to God’s kingdom, keys to open any and every door: no more barriers between heaven and earth, earth and heaven. A yes on earth is yes in heaven. A no on earth is no in heaven.”

20  He swore the disciples to secrecy. He made them promise they would tell no one that he was the Messiah.

You’re Not in the Driver’s Seat

21–22  Then Jesus made it clear to his disciples that it was now necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, submit to an ordeal of suffering at the hands of the religious leaders, be killed, and then on the third day be raised up alive. Peter took him in hand, protesting, “Impossible, Master! That can never be!”

23  But Jesus didn’t swerve. “Peter, get out of my way. Satan, get lost. You have no idea how God works.”

24–26  Then Jesus went to work on his disciples. “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 kind of deal is it to get everything you want but lose yourself? What could you ever trade your soul for?

27–28  “Don’t be in such a hurry to go into business for yourself. Before you know it the Son of Man will arrive with all the splendor of his Father, accompanied by an army of angels. You’ll get everything you have coming to you, a personal gift. This isn’t pie in the sky by and by. Some of you standing here are going to see it take place, see the Son of Man in kingdom glory.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Friday, April 18, 2025

by Bill Crowder

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Luke 23:32-34, 39-43

Two others, both criminals, were taken along with him for execution.

33  When they got to the place called Skull Hill, they crucified him, along with the criminals, one on his right, the other on his left.

34–35  Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them; they don’t know what they’re doing.”

Dividing up his clothes, they threw dice for them.

39  One of the criminals hanging alongside cursed him: “Some Messiah you are! Save yourself! Save us!”

40–41  But the other one made him shut up: “Have you no fear of God? You’re getting the same as him. We deserve this, but not him—he did nothing to deserve this.”

42  Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you enter your kingdom.”

43  He said, “Don’t worry, I will. Today you will join me in paradise.”

Today's Insights

As Jesus hung on the cross, He made several statements that are now referred to as “The Seven Last Words (Sayings) from the Cross.” Three are found in Luke 23: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (v. 34); “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise” (v. 43); “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (v. 46). The other four sayings are found in Matthew 27:46 and John 19:26-27, 28, 30. Jesus didn’t lose perspective during His distress, pain, and agony. He remained focused on His Father and His mission. Though the voices around the cross were many, including the criminals crucified with Him (Luke 23:39-42), Christ’s words were clear, focused, and intentional. His conduct under duress remains the standard for those called to endure suffering. “Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps” (1 Peter 2:21).

Lament to Praise

He said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Luke 23:42

Several legends surround the naming of the beautiful five-petaled flower the forget-me-not. Among those stories is one from a German legend. According to the story, as God named all the plants He’d created, one little flower worried that it would be overlooked. So the flower called out, “Forget-me-not, O Lord.” And that’s the name God gave to it.

Though this is only a story, the forget-me-not has become a symbol of love and remembrance. Yet all of us have experienced what it feels like to be forgotten. To be remembered—especially to be remembered by our God—is our heart’s true desire. We find just such a story in the account of the crucifixion of Jesus. Luke tells us, “Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with [Jesus] to be executed” (23:32). As they were being crucified, one criminal next to Christ suddenly understood. He said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” (v. 42). Christ’s response was unforgettable: “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise” (v. 43).

What an amazing moment! In his darkest hour, that criminal learned what it meant to be remembered by the Son of God.

We too are remembered in our hour of need. The God who loved us enough to die for us will never forget us.

Reflect & Pray

When have you felt forgotten? How will you turn to Jesus today and permit Him to turn your lament into praise?

Dear Father, in those moments when I may feel forgotten, please remind me of Your abiding, loving presence in my life and encourage me with Your grace.

Dig deeper into the book of Luke by checking out Good News that Divides.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Friday, April 18, 2025

Readiness

God called to him. . . . And Moses said, “Here I am.” — Exodus 3:4

When God calls, many of us are lost in a fog. We don’t know where we are; we don’t answer. Readiness means having not only a right relationship to God but also a knowledge of where we are at the present moment. Often we are so busy telling God where we’d like to go that we don’t bother to notice where we are. Moses knew where God had placed him, and when God called on him, Moses clearly said: “Here I am.”

The person who is ready for God’s work is the one who will win the prize when the call comes. Too often we wait to take action, held back by the idea that some amazing opportunity is just around the corner. If a great opportunity does happen to arrive, we’re quick to cry, “Here I am!” But if the duty God calls us to is small and obscure, we aren’t there.

Readiness for God means being ready to do the tiniest thing or the grandest thing. Whatever God’s program, we’re there. We hear the Father’s voice as the Son heard it; we’re ready with all the alertness of our love for the Father. Jesus Christ expects to do with us exactly as the Father did with him: to put us where he likes, in pleasant duties or in unpleasant duties.

Be ready for the surprise visits of God. A ready person never needs to get ready. Think of the time we waste trying to get ready when God has called! The burning bush is a symbol of everything that surrounds the ready soul—ablaze with the presence of God (Exodus 3).

2 Samuel 3-5; Luke 14:25-35

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

We begin our Christian life by believing what we are told to believe, then we have to go on to so assimilate our beliefs that they work out in a way that redounds to the glory of God. The danger is in multiplying the acceptation of beliefs we do not make our own.

Conformed to His Image, 381 L

Job 42, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: GREAT JOY - April 17, 2025

When the angels announced the arrival of the Messiah, they proclaimed “good news of a great joy” (Luke 2:10 RSV). They did not proclaim “bad news of a great duty.” Where did we get the notion that a good Christian is a solemn Christian? May I state an opinion that could raise an eyebrow? I think Jesus went to the wedding in Cana to have fun.

Think about it. This wedding occurred after he had just spent forty days in the desert—a standoff with the devil. It hadn’t been easy. A good meal with some good wine and some good friends sounded pretty nice.

His purpose wasn’t to turn the water into wine. That was a favor for his friends. His purpose wasn’t to show his power. The wedding host didn’t even know what Jesus did. His purpose wasn’t to preach. There is no record of a sermon. This leaves only one reason: fun.

Jesus, the God Who Knows Your Name

Job 42

JOB WORSHIPS GOD

I Babbled On About Things Far Beyond Me

1–6  42 Job answered God:

“I’m convinced: You can do anything and everything.

Nothing and no one can upset your plans.

You asked, ‘Who is this muddying the water,

ignorantly confusing the issue, second-guessing my purposes?’

I admit it. I was the one. I babbled on about things far beyond me,

made small talk about wonders way over my head.

You told me, ‘Listen, and let me do the talking.

Let me ask the questions. You give the answers.’

I admit I once lived by rumors of you;

now I have it all firsthand—from my own eyes and ears!

I’m sorry—forgive me. I’ll never do that again, I promise!

I’ll never again live on crusts of hearsay, crumbs of rumor.”

GOD RESTORES JOB

I Will Accept His Prayer

7–8  After God had finished addressing Job, he turned to Eliphaz the Temanite and said, “I’ve had it with you and your two friends. I’m fed up! You haven’t been honest either with me or about me—not the way my friend Job has. So here’s what you must do. Take seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my friend Job. Sacrifice a burnt offering on your own behalf. My friend Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer. He will ask me not to treat you as you deserve for talking nonsense about me, and for not being honest with me, as he has.”

9  They did it. Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite did what God commanded. And God accepted Job’s prayer.

10–11  After Job had interceded for his friends, God restored his fortune—and then doubled it! All his brothers and sisters and friends came to his house and celebrated. They told him how sorry they were, and consoled him for all the trouble God had brought him. Each of them brought generous housewarming gifts.

12–15  God blessed Job’s later life even more than his earlier life. He ended up with fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand teams of oxen, and one thousand donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters. He named the first daughter Dove, the second, Cinnamon, and the third, Darkeyes. There was not a woman in that country as beautiful as Job’s daughters. Their father treated them as equals with their brothers, providing the same inheritance.

16–17  Job lived on another 140 years, living to see his children and grandchildren—four generations of them! Then he died—an old man, a full life.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Thursday, April 17, 2025

by Kenneth Petersen

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

John 12:20-27

A Grain of Wheat Must Die

20–21  There were some Greeks in town who had come up to worship at the Feast. They approached Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee: “Sir, we want to see Jesus. Can you help us?”

22–23  Philip went and told Andrew. Andrew and Philip together told Jesus. Jesus answered, “Time’s up. The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

24–25  “Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal.

26  “If any of you wants to serve me, then follow me. Then you’ll be where I am, ready to serve at a moment’s notice. The Father will honor and reward anyone who serves me.

27–28  “Right now I am storm-tossed. And what am I going to say? ‘Father, get me out of this’? No, this is why I came in the first place.

Today's Insights

The gospel of John uses words for “life” more often than any other gospel, yet almost half of his gospel is devoted to the passion of Christ—the events of His final week on earth, including His suffering and death. It was only by His death and resurrection that new life became available to us. And that new life would follow a death to our old life. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die” (John 11:25). The paradox of the life of the believer in Christ is that our spiritual “dying” is what produces the fruit of spiritual living (12:24-25).

The day of Jesus’ resurrection occurred on the very day during Passover when the first sheaf of the grain harvest was waved in the temple. It was the sign of a coming harvest only possible because each seed first dies its necessary death.

Life and Death in Christ

Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. John 12:24

Facing a firing squad, Fyodor Dostoevsky quietly counted the last moments of his life. Dostoevsky, a believer in Jesus, is considered one of the greatest writers in all of literature. His monumental novel The Brothers Karamazov explored themes about God, life, and death. It was said of Dostoevsky, “He spoke about Christ ecstatically.” The rifles raised. “Ready! . . . Aim . . .”

Jesus, alluding to His own execution, speaks to His disciples and to us of the eternal value of life and death when He said, “The hour has come” (John 12:23). The image is a seed (our life), which produces a great harvest through its own sacrifice (v. 24). Jesus tells us not to love this life too much, for it is those who are willing to sacrifice this present life who will find “eternal life” (v. 25).

Being His disciple requires sacrifice. But we find our hope in His words, “My Father will honor the one who serves me” (v. 26).

Fyodor looked death in the face. But a letter from the Czar was delivered at the last second. A reprieve. Dostoevsky’s life was spared, yet this experience would infuse all his later works. Indeed, the epigraph of The Brothers Karamazov is this verse, John 12:24: “Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.”

Reflect & Pray

How does your faith affect your thoughts about life and death? What’s your joy for the future?

Father God, please help me accept the challenge of discipleship and understand the meaning of life through death.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Thursday, April 17, 2025

Abandoning All

As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him . . . and jumped into the water. — John 21:7

Have you ever had a crisis in which you deliberately, emphatically, and recklessly abandoned everything to God? It is a crisis of will. You may come to the crisis many times in your outward experience, giving up worldly things and behaviors. But giving up external things amounts to nothing. The real crisis of abandonment happens within. Giving up external things may be a sign of being in total bondage, not to God but to your own idea of holiness.

Have you deliberately committed your will to Jesus Christ? It is, truly, an act of will, not of emotion. Emotion is just the gilded edge of action. If you expect the emotion to come before you act, you will never get to the act itself. Don’t keep asking God what you should do. Reflect on what he is already showing you—in the simple place or in the profound place, in the small thing or the great thing. Then act on what you see.

“Jesus stood on the shore… He called out to them, ‘Friends, haven’t you any fish?’” (John 21:4–5). If you’ve heard the voice of Jesus Christ calling to you across the waves, let your creeds and convictions go to the wind; let your consistency go to the wind. Dive in and head toward the shore. Maintain your relationship with him.

2 Samuel 1-2; Luke 14:1-24

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Is He going to help Himself to your life, or are you taken up with your conception of what you are going to do? God is responsible for our lives, and the one great keynote is reckless reliance upon Him.

Approved Unto God, 10 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Thursday, April 17, 2025

THE PROMISE KEEPER - #9984

You know, a hand shake just isn't what it used to be. It used to be all that you needed to guarantee an agreement between two people. There aren't very many deals done today on just a hand shake. If someone says they'll do something, out come the papers, the contract, the warranties, the fine print, the lawyers, the notary public. I've learned from following my wife around antique stores, where we've mostly just looked, that the less there are of certain objects the more valuable that one is. That's true of people too. In a world where words are cheap, you can be one of a rare and priceless breed.

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

Now, our word for today from the Word of God is coming from Psalm 15 - a very interesting psalm. It's a description of what it takes to be a person who is really close to God; to get God's best, to be respected by heaven and earth. What determines all this is how a person handles his tongue, his neighbor, his money, the people around him; actually five solid gold traits. I want to focus on one today. It's our word for today from the Word of God, Psalm 15:4.

The beginning of this psalm says, "Lord, who may dwell in Your sanctuary; who may live on Your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous." Then it defines that, and this characteristic of that person is this: "One who keeps his oath, even when it hurts." Wow! That's a good one, isn't it? "Keeps his oath when it hurts?" He's a promise keeper, no matter how expensive it is to keep that promise." Hey, that's a rare kind of person.

People today just get through the moment by promising whatever they have to promise and then forgetting it. Well, now, if promise keeping and commitment keeping were common, a lot of lawyers would probably be out of work today. But it's very important to God.

That's what this psalm says. It's important to God whether you keep your promises. You may forget your promises, but God doesn't. You may minimize your commitment, but God doesn't. You make it a top priority to promise only what you can do, and then to do what you promise.

See, the follower of Christ is bound to keep his promise, not by a contract but by his character. God remembers our promises, and someone else who remembers them is our children. If you've promised your child time, or help, or an answer, you deliver on that promise even if it hurts. No matter what you have to rearrange; you move heaven and earth to keep a promise you've made to your son or daughter. The issue is trust, and you've got nothing with that child if you don't have their trust.

Now, this affects every area. Meet the deadlines you said you would, deliver what you said you would in your business, even if things don't go as you thought they would, keep a commitment even if. Especially if something better comes along. Give what you said you'd give; go where you said you'd go. And then just really try to be what you said you would be. Maybe it's your marriage oath, your marriage commitment. It's hurting right now to keep it. Don't even consider quitting as an option. Put all your energy into fighting for her, fighting for him. Most important, stay true to that commitment you made to your Lord Jesus, even if it's costing you right now in some ways you've never anticipated.

God richly rewards the one who keeps his oath even when it hurts. He rewards the promise keepers. Oh, yeah, they're rare, but they are priceless.

Job 41, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

 

Max Lucado Daily: JOY AND ABUNDANCE - April 16, 2025

Jesus was accused of much, but of being a grump, sourpuss, or self-centered jerk? Nope! People didn’t groan when he appeared. They didn’t duck for cover when he entered the room. He called them by name, he listened to their stories, he answered their questions. He visited their sick relatives and helped their sick friends. He fished with fishermen and ate lunch with the little guy and spoke words of resounding affirmation. He went to enough parties that he was criticized for hanging out with rowdy people and questionable crowds.

People were drawn to Jesus. Thousands came to hear him. Hundreds chose to follow him. They shut down their businesses and walked away from careers to be with him. His purpose statement read: “I came to give life with joy and abundance” (John 10:10 VOICE). Jesus was happy, and I think he wants us to be the same.

Jesus, the God Who Knows Your Name

Job 41

I Run This Universe

1–11  41 “Or can you pull in the sea beast, Leviathan, with a fly rod

and stuff him in your creel?

Can you lasso him with a rope,

or snag him with an anchor?

Will he beg you over and over for mercy,

or flatter you with flowery speech?

Will he apply for a job with you

to run errands and serve you the rest of your life?

Will you play with him as if he were a pet goldfish?

Will you make him the mascot of the neighborhood children?

Will you put him on display in the market

and have shoppers haggle over the price?

Could you shoot him full of arrows like a pin cushion,

or drive harpoons into his huge head?

If you so much as lay a hand on him,

you won’t live to tell the story.

What hope would you have with such a creature?

Why, one look at him would do you in!

If you can’t hold your own against his glowering visage,

how, then, do you expect to stand up to me?

Who could confront me and get by with it?

I’m in charge of all this—I run this universe!

12–17  “But I’ve more to say about Leviathan, the sea beast,

his enormous bulk, his beautiful shape.

Who would even dream of piercing that tough skin

or putting those jaws into bit and bridle?

And who would dare knock at the door of his mouth

filled with row upon row of fierce teeth?

His pride is invincible;

nothing can make a dent in that pride.

Nothing can get through that proud skin—

impervious to weapons and weather,

The thickest and toughest of hides,

impenetrable!

18–34  “He snorts and the world lights up with fire,

he blinks and the dawn breaks.

Comets pour out of his mouth,

fireworks arc and branch.

Smoke erupts from his nostrils

like steam from a boiling pot.

He blows and fires blaze;

flames of fire stream from his mouth.

All muscle he is—sheer and seamless muscle.

To meet him is to dance with death.

Sinewy and lithe,

there’s not a soft spot in his entire body—

As tough inside as out,

rock-hard, invulnerable.

Even angels run for cover when he surfaces,

cowering before his tail-thrashing turbulence.

Javelins bounce harmlessly off his hide,

harpoons ricochet wildly.

Iron bars are so much straw to him,

bronze weapons beneath notice.

Arrows don’t even make him blink;

bullets make no more impression than raindrops.

A battle ax is nothing but a splinter of kindling;

he treats a brandished harpoon as a joke.

His belly is armor-plated, inexorable—

unstoppable as a barge.

He roils deep ocean the way you’d boil water,

he whips the sea like you’d whip an egg into batter.

With a luminous trail stretching out behind him,

you might think Ocean had grown a gray beard!

There’s nothing on this earth quite like him,

not an ounce of fear in that creature!

He surveys all the high and mighty—

king of the ocean, king of the deep!”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

by Winn Collier

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Ecclesiastes 7:3-9

Crying is better than laughing.

It blotches the face but it scours the heart.

4  Sages invest themselves in hurt and grieving.

Fools waste their lives in fun and games.

5  You’ll get more from the rebuke of a sage

Than from the song and dance of fools.

6  The giggles of fools are like the crackling of twigs

Under the cooking pot. And like smoke.

7  Brutality stupefies even the wise

And destroys the strongest heart.

8  Endings are better than beginnings.

Sticking to it is better than standing out.

9  Don’t be quick to fly off the handle.

Anger boomerangs. You can spot a fool by the lumps on his head.

Today's Insights

Solomon, the author of Ecclesiastes, asks: “Who knows how our days can best be spent? Our lives are like a shadow” (6:12 nlt). The book contains some odd and morbid advice about life’s brevity, adversity, and festivity (7:1-14). One’s death is better than one’s birth (v. 1); attend funerals, not parties (v. 2); and think about life’s pains, not pleasures (v. 3). Since “death is the destiny of everyone” (v. 2), Solomon advises us to live life with our end in mind, pondering life’s brevity instead of pursuing festivity, “for sadness has a refining influence on us” (v. 3 nlt). In light of life’s brevity and adversity and death’s reality, we’re to decide how to wisely spend our time. Even as we experience the uncertainties of life—adversity and prosperity, good times and bad times—God is in control (vv. 13-14).

Visit ODBU.org/OT022 and dive deeper into the wisdom of Ecclesiastes.

Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. Ecclesiastes 7:9

Of all the foolish things that have led to nations going to war, could a pastry be the worst of all? In 1832, amid tensions between France and Mexico, a group of Mexican army officers visited a French pastry shop in Mexico City and sampled all the baker’s goods without paying. Though the details get complicated (and other provocations compounded the troubles), the result was the first Franco-Mexican War (1838-39)—known as the Pastry War—in which more than three hundred soldiers died. It’s sad what a moment of anger can incite.

Most human conflicts—shattered marriages and ruined friendships—are likely rooted in some form of unmanaged anger. Selfishness and power plays, unresolved misunderstandings, slights and counter-aggression—it’s all foolishness. So often, our ill-advised perceptions or reactions lead to destructive anger. Yet Ecclesiastes offers wisdom: “Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools” (7:9).

It’s foolish to have a short fuse and be easily provoked to anger, especially when God offers a better way—perhaps through “the rebuke of a wise person” (v. 5). Pursuing wisdom, we can “let the peace of Christ rule in [our] hearts” (Colossians 3:15). We can live in wisdom and forgiveness as He helps us.

Reflect & Pray

Where have you given in to foolish anger? How did it hurt you or others?

Dear God, I don’t want to allow foolish anger to control me or harm others. Please help me release my anger and receive Your peace.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Can You Come Down?

Believe in the light while you have the light. — John 12:36

We all have moments when we feel better than our best, moments when we’re up for anything. “If only I could always feel like this!” we say. We aren’t meant to. Moments of inspiration are moments for us to live up to after the moment has passed. Many of us are no good for this workaday world when we’re not inspired. We have to learn that God wants us to bring our workaday life up to the standard revealed to us on high.

Never allow a feeling stirred in you on the mountaintop to evaporate when you descend into the valley. Don’t sit back, put up your feet, and say, “What a wonderful state of mind to be in!” Instead, act immediately, if only because you’d rather not. If you are praying and God shows you something he wants you to do, don’t says, “I’ll do it.” Get up and do it. Take yourself by the scruff of the neck and shake off your laziness.

Laziness is always seen in cravings for the mountaintop experience. We talk about “working toward” the great experience or “working up to” the moment of glory. We have to learn to live in the gray day according to what we saw on the mount. Don’t cave in because your experience has failed to live up to your expectations. Get at it again. Burn your bridges behind you. Stand committed to God; stand as an act of your own free will. Never go back on your decisions—but be sure to make them in the light of the vision you received on high.

1 Samuel 30-31; Luke 13:23-35

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Crises reveal character. When we are put to the test the hidden resources of our character are revealed exactly. 

Disciples Indeed, 393 R

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Laser Giving - #9983

We were far from home in Phoenix, Arizona, living in New Jersey, when my wife had a gallbladder crisis. In fact, she was going to have to have her gallbladder removed. Well, I wasn't too happy about that happening so far from home, but God was in it. Because our friend who we were there with at a conference said, "Well, I just had this surgery not long ago, and our doctor here is one of the few in the country (at that time anyway) who is an expert at doing gallbladder surgery with lasers. Really? Well, instead of the six weeks that I thought my wife was going to have to recuperate in Arizona, why she was up and around in a very few days, because of the amazing power of a laser. Think about that. I mean, lasers can penetrate steel. They can help you get better eyesight, or take care of a gallbladder that needs to come out. It's pretty amazing power. Now, diffused light can't do that; only the focused light can do it. If my wife had been under just diffused light all that time, it wouldn't do anything about her gall bladder. But it took the focused light - that powerful energy - to really change things. There's awesome power when you focus the energy on one thing.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Laser Giving."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Philippians 1 beginning in verse 4, where Paul says, "In all my prayers for you I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now." Imagine being partners with the spread of the Gospel through a dynamo like the Apostle Paul.

At the end of his letter in chapter 4 and beginning at verse 13, he writes about their support. He says, "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength, yet it was good of you to share in my troubles. Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only: for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account."

Now these people found a piece of God's work, the Apostle Paul, and they invested heavily in it and they received great dividends. They lasered their giving on this one missionary. All of his fruit, all the people Paul reached; all that was credited to their eternal account. See, you and I live in a world that hits us with more causes than you could ever support. Think of that stack of mail you get from Christian organizations. Now, there's a pattern. You're like, "I don't know how I can possibly support all these things." Well, you can't. Isn't it a better idea to get a lot of stock in a few eternal investments?

I remember when my wife's grandmother went home to be with the Lord. Her Grandma had all these records that we went through and we found her list of "Giving and Praying." It was all about the organizations she really believed in. It started out in real tiny script. That list probably went back to the 1940s and then the print got larger as her eyes began to fail, and at the age of 99 she was still praying for and giving to the same ministries. God laid that on her heart and here was 50 years of praying and 50 years of canceled checks to match. She was a partner in the Gospel.

Now in our self-focused generation, we've lost that excitement of sharing stock in Eternity, Inc. My friend, Jeff said, "I have decided I am drawing a line in my checkbook and that's all we really need to live on and from thereon I'm putting it into the work of God."

Would you ask the Lord for a piece of his broken heart for this broken world, for a particular need, for some group, for some area of the world? I encourage you to ask God for a few spiritual works or people who you could really believe in, and pray for them and stick with them and give to them. Laser your giving!

The way to have a winning part of God's work on earth is to have a lot of stock in a few eternal investments. See, diffused energy doesn't make much of a difference, but lasered energy changes everything. You know what? You laser your giving, you'll be reaping dividends forever.

Matthew 15:21-39, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

 Max Lucado Daily: NO ORDINARY NIGHT - April 15, 2025

Only one word describes the night that Jesus came—ordinary. No reason to expect a surprise. An ordinary night with ordinary sheep and ordinary shepherds. And were it not for a God who loves to hook an extra on the front of the ordinary, the night would have gone unnoticed. But God dances amid the common, and that night he did a waltz.

The black sky exploded with brightness. Trees that had been shadows jumped into clarity. Sheep that had been silent became a chorus of curiosity. One minute the shepherd was dead asleep, the next he was rubbing his eyes and staring into the face of an angel, who declared, “There is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11 NKJV). The night was ordinary no more. God had entered the world as a baby.

Jesus, the God Who Knows Your Name

Matthew 15:21-39

Healing the People

21–22  From there Jesus took a trip to Tyre and Sidon. They had hardly arrived when a Canaanite woman came down from the hills and pleaded, “Mercy, Master, Son of David! My daughter is cruelly afflicted by an evil spirit.”

23  Jesus ignored her. The disciples came and complained, “Now she’s bothering us. Would you please take care of her? She’s driving us crazy.”

24  Jesus refused, telling them, “I’ve got my hands full dealing with the lost sheep of Israel.”

25  Then the woman came back to Jesus, went to her knees, and begged. “Master, help me.”

26  He said, “It’s not right to take bread out of children’s mouths and throw it to dogs.”

27  She was quick: “You’re right, Master, but beggar dogs do get scraps from the master’s table.”

28  Jesus gave in. “Oh, woman, your faith is something else. What you want is what you get!” Right then her daughter became well.

29–31  After Jesus returned, he walked along Lake Galilee and then climbed a mountain and took his place, ready to receive visitors. They came, tons of them, bringing along the paraplegic, the blind, the maimed, the mute—all sorts of people in need—and more or less threw them down at Jesus’ feet to see what he would do with them. He healed them. When the people saw the mutes speaking, the maimed healthy, the paraplegics walking around, the blind looking around, they were astonished and let everyone know that God was blazingly alive among them.

32  But Jesus wasn’t finished with them. He called his disciples and said, “I hurt for these people. For three days now they’ve been with me, and now they have nothing to eat. I can’t send them away without a meal—they’d probably collapse on the road.”

33  His disciples said, “But where in this deserted place are you going to dig up enough food for a meal?”

34–39  Jesus asked, “How much bread do you have?”

“Seven loaves,” they said, “plus a few fish.” At that, Jesus directed the people to sit down. He took the seven loaves and the fish. After giving thanks, he divided it up and gave it to the people. Everyone ate. They had all they wanted. It took seven large baskets to collect the leftovers. Over four thousand people ate their fill at that meal. After Jesus sent them away, he climbed in the boat and crossed over to the Magadan hills.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

by Karen Pimpo

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Ruth 1:6-17

One day she got herself together, she and her two daughters-in-law, to leave the country of Moab and set out for home; she had heard that God had been pleased to visit his people and give them food. And so she started out from the place she had been living, she and her two daughters-in-law with her, on the road back to the land of Judah.

8–9  After a short while on the road, Naomi told her two daughters-in-law, “Go back. Go home and live with your mothers. And may God treat you as graciously as you treated your deceased husbands and me. May God give each of you a new home and a new husband!” She kissed them and they cried openly.

10  They said, “No, we’re going on with you to your people.”

11–13  But Naomi was firm: “Go back, my dear daughters. Why would you come with me? Do you suppose I still have sons in my womb who can become your future husbands? Go back, dear daughters—on your way, please! I’m too old to get a husband. Why, even if I said, ‘There’s still hope!’ and this very night got a man and had sons, can you imagine being satisfied to wait until they were grown? Would you wait that long to get married again? No, dear daughters; this is a bitter pill for me to swallow—more bitter for me than for you. God has dealt me a hard blow.”

14  Again they cried openly. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye; but Ruth embraced her and held on.

15  Naomi said, “Look, your sister-in-law is going back home to live with her own people and gods; go with her.”

16–17  But Ruth said, “Don’t force me to leave you; don’t make me go home. Where you go, I go; and where you live, I’ll live. Your people are my people, your God is my god; where you die, I’ll die, and that’s where I’ll be buried, so help me God—not even death itself is going to come between us!”

Today's Insights

Throughout Scripture, we find statements declaring the necessity of commitment to God or Jesus (Deuteronomy 6:5; Mark 8:34). Ruth’s statement of commitment is remarkable, however, because in addition to a commitment to her mother-in-law Naomi, she includes a commitment to Israel’s God: “Your people will be my people and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16). This is surprising because she’s a Moabitess and a foreigner. Her declaration echoes that of Rahab (Joshua 2), the Roman centurion (Matthew 8:5-13), and the Canaanite woman (15:21-28). All these foreigners expressed confidence in or a commitment to God. Their acceptance shows hints of His love for the whole world.

Going with God

Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Ruth 1:16

In The Courier, a film inspired by true events, the main character, Greville, is confronted with a difficult decision. He learns that a close friend is going to be arrested and will likely face a grueling imprisonment. Greville can save himself from the same fate if he flees the country immediately and denies association with his friend. Moved with compassion, Greville loyally refuses to leave and is imprisoned, suffering the same agony as his friend. Neither man betrays the other. In the end, Greville is released a broken, but true and faithful companion.

Naomi needed a friend like that. When her husband and sons died, Naomi faced destitution and a long journey to her homeland. Naomi told her widowed daughter-in-law Ruth to remain in Moab and find a new life for herself (Ruth 1:8-9). Ruth responded, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go” (v. 16). Ruth loyally accompanied Naomi to a foreign land and helped provide for their family. Ruth’s faithfulness transformed their broken family into an incredible legacy. Much later, her great-grandson David would become king of Israel and was called a man after God’s own heart.

Facing suffering with others is daunting. But if we surrender our own will and seek God’s strength, He enables us to love people in extraordinary ways. In His power, we can choose to say, “Where you go, I will go.”

Reflect & Pray

Who around you is walking a difficult road? How can you choose to walk alongside that person?

Thank You, Jesus, for never abandoning me.

Learn more about Ruth's connection to Jesus' genealogy by reading Scandalous Details and an Unexpected Hope.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Taking Down the High Places

Although he did not remove the high places from Israel, Asa’s heart was fully committed to the LORD all his life. — 2 Chronicles 15:17

Beware of the thing you shrug at and say “Oh, that doesn’t matter very much.” The fact that is doesn’t matter to you may mean that it matters a great deal to God. Asa was mostly right with the Lord, but he was incomplete in his outward obedience. Although he loved God and was a good king in many respects, he didn’t rid Israel of the high places, the places where gods were worshipped.

Are there any “high places” in your life? Take an inventory. Look at the life of your body and the life of your mind. Is there something you should be concentrating on that you’ve let slid? Are there protesting that your heart is right with God, and yet there is something he has caused you to doubt? Whenever you begin to doubt that God would approve of what you are doing, quit it immediately. Nothing is a mere detail to a child of God. Nothing is a light matter. How long will you make God try to teach you the same lesson? God never loses patience; he will keep trying until you learn.

You no more need a holiday from spiritual concentration than your heart needs a holiday from beating. You can’t have a moral holiday and remain moral; you can’t have a spiritual holiday and remain spiritual. God wants you to be entirely his, and this means you have to keep yourself spiritually fit. It takes a tremendous amount of time to learn how to do this. Some of us expect to scale the mountain in two minutes flat.

1 Samuel 27-29; Luke 13:1-22

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

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

Baffled to Fight Better, 69 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

PRAYER - ALWAYS CONNECTED - #9982

Our oldest son was only two years old when our neighbor's daughter, Kim, broke her leg. Now, on the scale of world disasters, Kim's leg wouldn't even move the needle. But it was a very big disaster to our two-year-old son. We got the news, and when we did we stopped, and as a family we prayed for Kim. We were done, but my son wasn't. All day that day he kept coming up to Mom while she was at the sink or the stove, cleaning the bedroom, or whatever. And he tugged on her pant leg, and she would say, "Yes?" And he would say, "Pray for Kim."

So they stopped and prayed for Kim once, twice, ten times. I think they prayed 20 times for Kim that day. A couple of days later we got word that Kim was doing pretty well and we told our son. He pulled Mom over to a picture of Jesus that we had hanging next to the refrigerator, and he pointed at Him and just said, "Jesus make Kim better." We had smiled only at the way a little boy wanted to pray for Kim all day long. Maybe instead of smiling we should have been taking notes.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Prayer - Always Connected."

Well, our word for today from the Word of God, Nehemiah 2:4. The situation: Nehemiah is cupbearer to the king. He has just received word that the walls of Jerusalem are down, his native city really needs rebuilding. He knows the king has the resources to make it happen, but Nehemiah is going to use his position to get to the king and he is scared.

Well, he goes before the king, "And the king said to me," the Bible says, "'What is it you want?' Then I prayed to the God of heaven and I answered the king." Now, here's Nehemiah in his big pressure moment, and he quietly plugs into the Throne Room in heaven before he gives his answer. He prays, then he answers.

Now, as you read, you find that Nehemiah was a spiritual champion, because all through this book it says he prayed about everything as it came up. When he got some bad news at the beginning of the book, he says, "I sat down, wept and prayed." When he heard vicious things being said about him, he instinctively begins and says, "Hear us, O Lord," and starts talking. When an attack was imminent, it says, "We prayed to our God and posted a guard." And now here in the big meeting with the king he prays before he answers.

See, Nehemiah believed that prayer was a lifestyle, not a compartment. We tend to put praying into certain time slots in our life: I'm having my devotions, I'm in church, I'm in a crisis, it's bedtime. But life is happening all day long. We need to be talking with our Father and listening to Him throughout the day, entering a class, praying as we do that, praying as we answer a question, an email, as we make a stand, as we buy something, as we start a meal, pick up the phone, praying as we do our homework, as we take out the garbage, as we're running those thousand and one errands we've got to do.

Prayer isn't a religious exercise; it's your declaration of dependence on God. To look up and say throughout the day, "This piece of my day is Yours, Lord." You don't have to drop to your knees or close your eyes, especially if you're driving. It's just a quiet recognition of Christ's presence in your need. That's how you carry out what the Bible says, "In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." Integrate prayer into your everyday life. Wherever possible, stop and pray with someone else when they bring a need to you. Let that be your response.

I can go back and see this little boy insisting on praying for Kim throughout the day and then the simple worship that resulted as he pointed to a picture of Jesus, who had answered his prayers.

That could happen to you all day long if you make prayer more than just a compartment. Prayer is a lifestyle.

Job 40, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: A GREAT DESCENT - April 14, 2025

Gabriel had his orders: take the message to Mary. Must be a special girl, he assumed. But Gabriel was in for a shock. Mary was a Jewish peasant who’d barely outgrown her acne and had a crush on a guy named Joe. But Gabriel followed through on his assignment. He wasn’t about to rebel against his boss, who also happened to control the universe. He visited Mary and told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus” (Luke 1:30–31 NKJV).

The story of Jesus begins with the story of a great descent. The Son of God became the child of Mary. He became one of us so we might become one with him. He entered our world in the high hope that we will enter his.

Jesus, the God Who Knows Your Name

Job 40

 God then confronted Job directly:

“Now what do you have to say for yourself?

Are you going to haul me, the Mighty One, into court and press charges?”

JOB ANSWERS GOD

I’m Ready to Shut Up and Listen

3–5  Job answered:

“I’m speechless, in awe—words fail me.

I should never have opened my mouth!

I’ve talked too much, way too much.

I’m ready to shut up and listen.”

GOD’S SECOND SET OF QUESTIONS

I Want Straight Answers

6–7  God addressed Job next from the eye of the storm, and this is what he said:

“I have some more questions for you,

and I want straight answers.

8–14  “Do you presume to tell me what I’m doing wrong?

Are you calling me a sinner so you can be a saint?

Do you have an arm like my arm?

Can you shout in thunder the way I can?

Go ahead, show your stuff.

Let’s see what you’re made of, what you can do.

Unleash your outrage.

Target the arrogant and lay them flat.

Target the arrogant and bring them to their knees.

Stop the wicked in their tracks—make mincemeat of them!

Dig a mass grave and dump them in it—

faceless corpses in an unmarked grave.

I’ll gladly step aside and hand things over to you—

you can surely save yourself with no help from me!

15–24  “Look at the land beast, Behemoth. I created him as well as you.

Grazing on grass, docile as a cow—

Just look at the strength of his back,

the powerful muscles of his belly.

His tail sways like a cedar in the wind;

his huge legs are like beech trees.

His skeleton is made of steel,

every bone in his body hard as steel.

Most magnificent of all my creatures,

but I still lead him around like a lamb!

The grass-covered hills serve him meals,

while field mice frolic in his shadow.

He takes afternoon naps under shade trees,

cools himself in the reedy swamps,

Lazily cool in the leafy shadows

as the breeze moves through the willows.

And when the river rages he doesn’t budge,

stolid and unperturbed even when the Jordan goes wild.

But you’d never want him for a pet—

you’d never be able to housebreak him!”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Monday, April 14, 2025

by Arthur Jackson

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Romans 1:8-17

I thank God through Jesus for every one of you. That’s first. People everywhere keep telling me about your lives of faith, and every time I hear them, I thank him. And God, whom I so love to worship and serve by spreading the good news of his Son—the Message!—knows that every time I think of you in my prayers, which is practically all the time, I ask him to clear the way for me to come and see you. The longer this waiting goes on, the deeper the ache. I so want to be there to deliver God’s gift in person and watch you grow stronger right before my eyes! But don’t think I’m not expecting to get something out of this, too! You have as much to give me as I do to you.

13–15  Please don’t misinterpret my failure to visit you, friends. You have no idea how many times I’ve made plans for Rome. I’ve been determined to get some personal enjoyment out of God’s work among you, as I have in so many other non-Jewish towns and communities. But something has always come up and prevented it. Everyone I meet—it matters little whether they’re mannered or rude, smart or simple—deepens my sense of interdependence and obligation. And that’s why I can’t wait to get to you in Rome, preaching this wonderful good news of God.

16–17  It’s news I’m most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God’s powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else! God’s way of putting people right shows up in the acts of faith, confirming what Scripture has said all along: “The person in right standing before God by trusting him really lives.”

Today's Insights

Romans opens with Paul identifying himself as “an apostle . . . set apart for the gospel of God” (1:1). His letter is written “to all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people” (v. 7). Yet he singles out the gentiles for special mention (vv. 5-6), perhaps because their inclusion in the family of faith was still a radical concept. Paul reiterates this cross-cultural unity later in the chapter: “The power of God . . . brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile” (v. 16). His example inspires us to reach out to people in new places with the love of Christ.

Sharing Gospel Resources

I am not ashamed of the gospel. Romans 1:16

The venue and accommodations for our leadership meeting in downtown Chicago were in stark contrast with the neediness I encountered on my way there—neediness that included individuals who lacked the basics of food and shelter. The differences helped me picture and articulate things we needed to include in our vision planning for serving in the city and elsewhere: to get gospel resources (anything given by God to help spread the message of His love and salvation) to places where they’re needed most.

At the time Paul wrote to the Roman believers in Jesus, he hadn’t visited them yet—but wanted to: “I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith” (Romans 1:11-12). The apostle was looking forward to a “gift exchange” that would benefit him and others as they sought to live for Jesus and serve others.

The resources we possess include the spiritual gifts and material resources given to us by God. May we allow Him to use us to compassionately reach out to people with the gospel message. And, as God empowers us, let’s open our hearts, hands, and lips to serve others. May we do so “[un]ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes” (v. 16).

Reflect & Pray

How will you share the good news of forgiveness that you’ve received? How can you meet others’ physical needs while sharing the love of Christ?

Dear Jesus, please help me to unashamedly share the good news of Your forgiveness.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Monday, April 14, 2025

Inspired Invincibility

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me. — Matthew 11:29

“The Lord disciplines the one he loves” (Hebrews 12:6). How petty is our complaining! Our Lord begins to discipline us, bringing us to a place where we can have communion with him. We should be

delighted. Instead, we whine and say, “Oh, Lord, let me be like other people.” Jesus wants us to be unlike everyone but him. He is asking us to take one side of his yoke so that we can learn to bear our burdens lightly: “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:30).

“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (Isaiah 40:29). When we fully identify ourselves with Jesus, taking up one side of his yoke, our complaining will turn into a psalm of praise. The only way to know the strength of God is to know the yoke of Jesus.

“The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). If we didn’t know some saintly people personally, we might be tempted to think that their pleasant and peaceful demeanor means they have nothing to bear. Lift the veil. The fact that the peace and the light and the joy of God are there is proof that the burden is there too.

If your burden is weighing on you just now, remember that no power on earth or in hell can defeat the Spirit of God inside a human spirit. To be born again in the Spirit is to gain an inner invincibility. Recall this to your mind whenever you find yourself beginning to grumble. If you have the whine in you, kick it out. It is positively a crime to be weak in God’s strength.

1 Samuel 25-26; Luke 12:32-59

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

Jesus Christ is always unyielding to my claim to my right to myself. The one essential element in all our Lord’s teaching about discipleship is abandon, no calculation, no trace of self-interest.

Disciples Indeed, 395 L

A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft

Monday, April 14, 2025

MAKING SURE YOU'RE SECURE - #9981

"Office of Homeland Security" - I suppose there are some younger people that didn't know that wasn't always part of the United States government. It's a pretty new thing. The fact that we have, and that we need, an Office of Homeland Security pretty much tells the story of the kind of world we're in right now. I mean, we've got enhanced security at our airports, sometimes tours are curtailed at many public utilities, your bags get searched at sporting events, and business is booming at security companies.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Making Sure You're Secure."

Security is on a lot of our minds these days. We feel a lot more vulnerable, probably, than we ever have. I mean, when we think about security for here and now. Unfortunately, we tend to neglect the largest security concerns of all - our security beyond this life, beyond our last heartbeat. It's eternally important to know that you're safe then. Whether it's the awful toll we've seen in terrorist attacks, or just the death of someone in our personal world, there are constant reminders that eternity can come so close, so quickly.

I once heard about a medieval king who was on his deathbed. He called for the court jester; they called him the court fool back then. He wanted him to come and make him feel better. At one point, the king said, "Fool, I am going on a long journey from which I will not return." The court fool asked if the king had made preparations for his journey, to which the king answered "no." The jester answered, "Then, sire, I fear that you are a greater fool than I."

That sounds like a conversation God had with a very rich man in our word for today from the Word of God in Luke 12, beginning in verse 19. The man is totally involved in managing his success, protecting his financial security. He says, "I'll say to myself, 'You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.' But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then you will get what you have prepared for yourself.'" Tragically, this man who had made such elaborate preparations for his earth-security had made no preparations for eternity.

That man made the mistake of thinking he had many years - a mistake many have made. Frankly, we never know how much longer we have. And you're not secure until you know that you're ready for eternity...which you can be today. 1 John 5, beginning in verse 11, tells us that "God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know you have eternal life." Now that is security! Knowing for sure. Knowing right now that when you die you are going to heaven.

And it all depends on whether you have Jesus. Why? Because He's the One, the only One, who died to remove what will keep you out of heaven - your sin. It can't be repaid by doing good. There's a death penalty for the sin. It can only be erased by putting your trust in the One who took your death penalty for you. When you commit yourself to Jesus, what's between you and God is gone and you "have eternal life"!

That is a choice you can make this very day, right where you are. Don't you want to belong to this Jesus? You can from this day on. You just tell Him you're putting your total trust in Him, you're done running your life. You are His, beginning this day, based on His dying for you.

If you'll go to our website as soon as you possibly can today, I'd love to show you, there, how to be sure you belong to Jesus Christ. It's ANewStory.com.

With eternity so close, does it make any sense to wait? Ultimate security is knowing you're going to heaven, no matter what happens here. Jesus made His move to get you to heaven when He died on the cross for you. It's your move now.

Job 39, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: What’s Separating You From Joy?

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 2 Peter 1:3”

How would you finish the statement: “I’ll be happy when….” With your answer firmly in mind, answer this question. “What’s the one thing separating you from joy?”

What if your ship never comes in, if your dream never comes true? If the situation never changes, could you be happy? If not, then you’re sleeping in the cold cell of discontent. You’re in prison. And you need to know what you have in your Shepherd!

You have a God who hears you; the power of love behind you; the Holy Spirit within you; and all of heaven ahead of you. If you have the Shepherd, you have grace for every sin, direction for every turn, a candle for every corner, and an anchor for every storm.

Job 39

“Do you know the month when mountain goats give birth?

Have you ever watched a doe bear her fawn?

Do you know how many months she is pregnant?

Do you know the season of her delivery,

when she crouches down and drops her offspring?

Her young ones flourish and are soon on their own;

they leave and don’t come back.

5–8  “Who do you think set the wild donkey free,

opened the corral gates and let him go?

I gave him the whole wilderness to roam in,

the rolling plains and wide-open places.

He laughs at his city cousins, who are harnessed and harried.

He’s oblivious to the cries of teamsters.

He grazes freely through the hills,

nibbling anything that’s green.

9–12  “Will the wild buffalo condescend to serve you,

volunteer to spend the night in your barn?

Can you imagine hitching your plow to a buffalo

and getting him to till your fields?

He’s hugely strong, yes, but could you trust him,

would you dare turn the job over to him?

You wouldn’t for a minute depend on him, would you,

to do what you said when you said it?

13–18  “The ostrich flaps her wings futilely—

all those beautiful feathers, but useless!

She lays her eggs on the hard ground,

leaves them there in the dirt, exposed to the weather,

Not caring that they might get stepped on and cracked

or trampled by some wild animal.

She’s negligent with her young, as if they weren’t even hers.

She cares nothing about anything.

She wasn’t created very smart, that’s for sure,

wasn’t given her share of good sense.

But when she runs, oh, how she runs,

laughing, leaving horse and rider in the dust.

19–25  “Are you the one who gave the horse his prowess

and adorned him with a shimmering mane?

Did you create him to prance proudly

and strike terror with his royal snorts?

He paws the ground fiercely, eager and spirited,

then charges into the fray.

He laughs at danger, fearless,

doesn’t shy away from the sword.

The banging and clanging

of quiver and lance don’t faze him.

He quivers with excitement, and at the trumpet blast

races off at a gallop.

At the sound of the trumpet he neighs mightily,

smelling the excitement of battle from a long way off,

catching the rolling thunder of the war cries.

26–30  “Was it through your know-how that the hawk learned to fly,

soaring effortlessly on thermal updrafts?

Did you command the eagle’s flight,

and teach her to build her nest in the heights,

Perfectly at home on the high cliff face,

invulnerable on pinnacle and crag?

From her perch she searches for prey,

spies it at a great distance.

Her young gorge themselves on carrion;

wherever there’s a roadkill, you’ll see her circling.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Sunday, April 13, 2025

by Elisa Morgan

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Luke 19:37-40

 Right at the crest, where Mount Olives begins its descent, the whole crowd of disciples burst into enthusiastic praise over all the mighty works they had witnessed:

Blessed is he who comes,

the king in God’s name!

All’s well in heaven!

Glory in the high places!

39  Some Pharisees from the crowd told him, “Teacher, get your disciples under control!”

40  But he said, “If they kept quiet, the stones would do it for them, shouting praise.”

Today's Insights

Some scholars believe that Jesus’ statement in Luke 19:40 that “if [the crowds] keep quiet, the stones will cry out” is a reference to Habakkuk 2:11: “The stones of the wall will cry out, and the beams of the woodwork will echo it.” Others suppose that the stones in view are the stones of the very gates themselves, as seen in Psalm 118:19-20: “Open for me the gates of the righteous . . . the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter.” Whether Luke 19:40 echoes an Old Testament text or not, it’s an example of poetic imagery where inanimate objects praise God (see also Psalm 114:6; Psalm 148; Isaiah 55:12). Jesus had often refused praise during His earthly ministry. Now He not only accepted it but encouraged it. When humans fail to praise the Creator, the creation itself will praise God.

Listen to the Stones

“I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” Luke 19:40

After our family held a riverside memorial service for my father, we each selected a stone to help us remember him. His life had been a checkerboard of wins and losses, but we knew his heart had been for us. My fingers traced my stone’s smooth surface and helped me remember to hold him close.

In Luke 19, Jesus made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem while the crowds waved palm branches, shouted Hosannas, and cheered, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” (v. 38; see John 12:12-13). In the Pharisees’ disdain of what they perceived to be a blasphemous claim of messiahship, they ordered Jesus to tell the disciples to be quiet. Jesus replied, “If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out” (Luke 19:40).

The stones do cry out—in many ways. God has used stones throughout the story of His love for us. Two rough-hewn stones carried ten chiseled commandments to tell us how to live (Exodus 34:1). Stones of remembrance piled by the Jordan River and in the middle of the river reminded generations of Israelites of God’s provision and faithfulness (Joshua 4:8-9 nlt). The one rolled into place to contain Jesus’ body is the same one that rolled away to show He had risen (Matthew 27:59-66; Luke 24:2). We “hear” this stone as it reminds us of Jesus’ words: “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).

Listen to the stones and lift your own voice along with them in praise to our loving Father.

Reflect & Pray

How have the stones of God’s work in our world “cried out” to you? What message might God intend for you to take to heart?

Dear Father, thank You for using even stones to speak of Your love.

For further study, read Give Me a Sign

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Sunday, April 13, 2025

You Who Are Weary and Burdened

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. — Matthew 11:28

Are you weary and burdened? The Lord says to come to him, and he will give you rest. Just make sure the burden you are bearing is the right kind of burden. We should never bear the burden of sin or doubt, but at times God places other burdens on us he doesn’t intend to lift. He gives them to us so that we will give them back to him: “Cast your cares on the Lord” (Psalm 55:22).

If we take on work for God and then get out of touch with him, the sense of responsibility is crushing. But if we roll back onto God the burden he’s placed on us, he takes away our sense of responsibility, removing it by bringing in a strong realization of himself.

Many who do God’s work start out with high courage and fine intentions. But if they aren’t in intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ, they are soon overwhelmed. Their cares exhaust them, and their fine beginning comes to a bitter end.

“For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:30). You have been bearing it all. Jesus wants to ease the strain. Deliberately put one end of the yoke on his shoulders. Commit to God the burden he has given you. Never disassociate yourself from it; never fling it carelessly away. Instead, put the burden over on God, and yourself beside him. If you do, the sense of companionship you’ll find with your Lord will immediately lighten your load.

1 Samuel 22-24; Luke 12:1-31

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

It is perilously possible to make our conceptions of God like molten lead poured into a specially designed mould, and when it is cold and hard we fling it at the heads of the religious people who don’t agree with us.

Disciples Indeed, 388 R

Job 38, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Three Cookie Days

Every day, God prepares for us a plate of experiences.  Some days are “three cookie days.” Many are not!  Sometimes our plate has nothing but vegetables, twenty-four hours of celery, carrots, and squash.  Apparently God knows we need some strength, and though the portion may be hard to swallow, isn’t it for our own good?  All are important and all are from God. Romans 8:28 says, “We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love Him.”

The next time your plate has a portion you find hard to swallow, talk to God about it.  Jesus did. In the garden of Gethsemane His Father handed Him a cup of suffering so sour, so vile, that Jesus handed it back to heaven.

“My Father,” He prayed, “if it is possible may this cup be taken from Me.  Yet not as I will, but as You will.” (Mark 14:36).

from The Great House of God

Job 38

GOD CONFRONTS JOB

Have You Gotten to the Bottom of Things?

1  38 And now, finally, God answered Job from the eye of a violent storm. He said:

2–11  “Why do you confuse the issue?

Why do you talk without knowing what you’re talking about?

Pull yourself together, Job!

Up on your feet! Stand tall!

I have some questions for you,

and I want some straight answers.

Where were you when I created the earth?

Tell me, since you know so much!

Who decided on its size? Certainly you’ll know that!

Who came up with the blueprints and measurements?

How was its foundation poured,

and who set the cornerstone,

While the morning stars sang in chorus

and all the angels shouted praise?

And who took charge of the ocean

when it gushed forth like a baby from the womb?

That was me! I wrapped it in soft clouds,

and tucked it in safely at night.

Then I made a playpen for it,

a strong playpen so it couldn’t run loose,

And said, ‘Stay here, this is your place.

Your wild tantrums are confined to this place.’

12–15  “And have you ever ordered Morning, ‘Get up!’

told Dawn, ‘Get to work!’

So you could seize Earth like a blanket

and shake out the wicked like cockroaches?

As the sun brings everything to light,

brings out all the colors and shapes,

The cover of darkness is snatched from the wicked—

they’re caught in the very act!

16–18  “Have you ever gotten to the true bottom of things,

explored the labyrinthine caves of deep ocean?

Do you know the first thing about death?

Do you have one clue regarding death’s dark mysteries?

And do you have any idea how large this earth is?

Speak up if you have even the beginning of an answer.

19–21  “Do you know where Light comes from

and where Darkness lives

So you can take them by the hand

and lead them home when they get lost?

Why, of course you know that.

You’ve known them all your life,

grown up in the same neighborhood with them!

22–30  “Have you ever traveled to where snow is made,

seen the vault where hail is stockpiled,

The arsenals of hail and snow that I keep in readiness

for times of trouble and battle and war?

Can you find your way to where lightning is launched,

or to the place from which the wind blows?

Who do you suppose carves canyons

for the downpours of rain, and charts

the route of thunderstorms

That bring water to unvisited fields,

deserts no one ever lays eyes on,

Drenching the useless wastelands

so they’re carpeted with wildflowers and grass?

And who do you think is the father of rain and dew,

the mother of ice and frost?

You don’t for a minute imagine

these marvels of weather just happen, do you?

31–33  “Can you catch the eye of the beautiful Pleiades sisters,

or distract Orion from his hunt?

Can you get Venus to look your way,

or get the Great Bear and her cubs to come out and play?

Do you know the first thing about the sky’s constellations

and how they affect things on Earth?

34–35  “Can you get the attention of the clouds,

and commission a shower of rain?

Can you take charge of the lightning bolts

and have them report to you for orders?

What Do You Have to Say for Yourself?

36–38  “Who do you think gave weather-wisdom to the ibis,

and storm-savvy to the rooster?

Does anyone know enough to number all the clouds

or tip over the rain barrels of heaven

When the earth is cracked and dry,

the ground baked hard as a brick?

39–41  “Can you teach the lioness to stalk her prey

and satisfy the appetite of her cubs

As they crouch in their den,

waiting hungrily in their cave?

And who sets out food for the ravens

when their young cry to God,

fluttering about because they have no food?”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion

Saturday, April 12, 2025

by Xochitl Dixon

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

John 14:15-17, 25-31

The Spirit of Truth

15–17  “If you love me, show it by doing what I’ve told you. I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!

“I’m telling you these things while I’m still living with you. The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. I’m leaving you well and whole. That’s my parting gift to you. Peace. I don’t leave you the way you’re used to being left—feeling abandoned, bereft. So don’t be upset. Don’t be distraught.

28  “You’ve heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away, and I’m coming back.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I’m on my way to the Father because the Father is the goal and purpose of my life.

29–31  “I’ve told you this ahead of time, before it happens, so that when it does happen, the confirmation will deepen your belief in me. I’ll not be talking with you much more like this because the chief of this godless world is about to attack. But don’t worry—he has nothing on me, no claim on me. But so the world might know how thoroughly I love the Father, I am carrying out my Father’s instructions right down to the last detail.

“Get up. Let’s go. It’s time to leave here.”

Today's Insights

On the night of His arrest, Jesus celebrated Passover together with His closest followers, which was a commemoration of their ancestors’ liberation from slavery in Egypt (John 13; see Exodus 12:1-12). Christ reminded His disciples that they were special in the world (John 14:16-18, 22), just as God had reminded the Israelites of this through Moses in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 4:5-8; 7:7-9; 10:14).

Jesus’ disciples won’t be removed from this world, but they’re to be distinct or set apart from it. Following God’s commands is what set Israel apart from the rest of the world, and it’s the thrust of Christ’s commands to those who believe in Him.

The Spirit’s Helpful Reminders

The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, . . . will remind you of everything I have said to you. John 14:26

One year, I agreed to sing a song before one of my son’s sporting events. I practiced for weeks, but I knew the song by heart already. So when I walked onto the field with the teams lined up on both sides of me, I closed my eyes and prayed. I started singing the first few lines. Then, I froze. In that moment I couldn’t remember the next line. A man behind me whispered the words I’d forgotten. As soon as I heard the helpful reminder, I belted out the rest of the lyrics with confidence.

We all need a little help sometimes. In John 14, Jesus explained that we love Him by obeying Him (v. 15), and He promised to ask the Father to give us a Helper—“the Spirit of truth” (v. 17). Jesus said, “The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (v. 17). Though Jesus taught the disciples a lot while with them (v. 25), He said “the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (v. 26).

As we prayerfully read the Bible, the Holy Spirit helps us interpret, understand, and apply God’s wisdom. His leading always aligns with Scripture—guiding, comforting, and transforming us in love, one helpful reminder at a time.

Reflect & Pray

What can you do to better recognize the Holy Spirit’s voice? How do you acknowledge Him daily?

Holy Spirit, please help me recognize Your voice and submit to You as You make me more like Jesus, one helpful reminder at a time.

What does it mean that "God is with us"? Find out more by reading The Promise of Presence.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

Saturday, April 12, 2025

Moral Dominion

Death no longer has mastery over him. . . . The life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. — Romans 6:9-11

When Jesus Christ walked among us, the life he exhibited was eternal life. Eternal life is not a gift from God. It is the gift of God—the gift God makes of himself to his children. This same life, not a copy of it, is manifested in us when we are born of God.

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” (Acts 1:8). The power we receive isn’t a gift from the Holy Spirit; the power is the Holy Spirit. The energy and the power which were manifested in Jesus will be manifested in us by the sheer sovereign grace of God once we’ve made the moral decision about sin. The life that was in Jesus is made ours by means of the cross when once we make the decision to be identified with him. As soon as we do make the decision, we receive the full life of God.

Jesus came to give us endless supplies of life: “That you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19). Eternal life has nothing to do with time. It isn’t life but Life, and its only source is the Lord Jesus Christ. The weakest among us can experience the power of Jesus Christ if we are willing to let go. If instead we cling to our own power, we will blur the life of Jesus inside us. We have to keep letting go, keep identifying with him. Slowly and surely, the great full life of God will invade us in every part of our being, and those we meet will sense that we have been with Jesus.

1 Samuel 19-21; Luke 11:29-54

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

The life of Abraham is an illustration of two things: of unreserved surrender to God, and of God’s complete possession of a child of His for His own highest end.

Not Knowing Whither, 901 R