Devotionals
Here you will find Monday - Friday Daily Devotionals to help you along your journey courtesy of Wisdom Hunters.
12-8-2022
12-7-2022
A faith community gathers around the communion table to come alive to love and bring healing.
12-6-2022
He gives us just enough information to help us move forward one step at a time.
12-5-2022
Humble restraint tempers anger with patient love and seeks to see another’s hurt with empathetic eyes.
12-2-2022
11-30-2022
Resurrection power is experienced in the sweet intimate fellowship of your pain and in the sufferings of your Savior Jesus.
11-29-2022
The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
When asked what the greatest command is, Jesus responded, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12:30-31). Jesus didn’t say He wants us to obey Him with all our hearts because He knows that when we love Him, we will naturally obey Him. Obedience flows from genuine love.
11-28-2022
The Holy Spirit instructs us on how to run our race with God, while Jesus inspires us by modeling the way. Mount up with prayer, run with grace, and walk in love and obedience. Eagles are fearless, graceful, beautiful, and beloved. And…so are you!
11-15-2022
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts
Authentic connection can only come from authenticity.
11-14-2022
11-11-2022
11-10-2022
Jesus gave his entire self upon the cross so that nothing less than your entire self could be healed.
11-9-2022
Remember the Lord your God. He is the one who gives you power to be successful.
Success from seeking first the Kingdom of God is the success where we experience divine pleasure.
11-4-2022
So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?
11-3-2022
God’s grace works, not simply by helping us to forget, but by restoring hope and healing our deep wounds.
11-2-2022
Love initiates in a way that finds a way for both parties to grow closer to the Lord and closer to each other.
11-1-2022
But will God indeed dwell with mankind on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You; how much less this house which I have built!
God’s plan is constant and unfolding. It’s for now. It’s for tomorrow. It’s for next week, next year and the years to come. When we remember God is always at work, we will be able to rest in the Lord’s sovereign love and care, knowing that His plan is always for our good and His glory. He is always at work to make us into who He has created us to be through the easy times, the hard times, the times that make us laugh and the times that make us cry.
10-31-2022
The one who gets wisdom loves life; the one who cherishes understanding will soon prosper.
The discipline to gain wisdom takes patience and additional time to discover and discern.
10-27-2022
Our transformation in Christ is not complete until it spills over into love and sacrificial giving for the sake of others.
10-26-2022
Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him.
Out of the overflow of your relationship with perfect love, seek to be perfect. Love empowered living is the essence of living in Christ!
10-24-2022
Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
Your job is to make others successful, not to make yourself successful.
10-21-2022
When you bear your share of hardship for the gospel, with strength from God, you point people to God.
10-20-2022
These are hard words to hear, for they cut to the heart of our own sense of entitlement and personal need. Yet this is the way of the cross, dying to ourselves so that we may discover the way that truly leads to life. And as difficult as it surely is, in these moments of faithfulness, large and small, we learn to find our life and true source of identity, not in what we own or the power we possess, but in the fact that we are known and loved by our Lord. Only then can we bless those who curse us and give to everyone who asks.
10-19-2022
Ordinary miracles on earth come from heaven with extraordinary love and beauty!
10-18-2022
Trust can be rebuilt in broken relationships.
10-17-2022
Make your life a memorial of God’s faithfulness, so those who follow won’t forget.
10-13-2022
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
“Belief in Jesus is not an academic exercise but is the lived experience of the life of God.”
10-12-2022
Now therefore, give me [Caleb] this mountain of which the Lord spoke in that day; for you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. It may be that the Lord will be with me, and I shall be able to drive them out as the Lord said.”
Be a joy bomb that explodes over your relationships in a manner that makes life more enjoyable to those in your path. As you approach ripe old age, luxuriate in the fruit of contemplation and gratitude, let your ego shrivel and your soul expand. As your life’s fruit ripens, taste and see that the Lord is good and taste how growing old is good.
10-11-2022
God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.”
10-10-2022
Then Peter approached him with the question, Master, how many times can my brother wrong me and I must forgive him? Would seven times be enough? No, replied Jesus, not seven times, but seventy times seven!
Forgiveness embraces gratitude and joy. A generous forgiver rests in her security in Christ as His beloved child in whom He is extremely pleased. A lifestyle of forgiveness bypasses self-absorbed obsessing while modeling selfless service. Relational repair takes time, but forgiveness applies ointment for the healing to begin.
10-07-2022
Mark 1:30-31
Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they immediately told Jesus about her. So, he went to her, took her hand and she began to wait on them.
Hospitality is where Christ’s love prevails. It heals and frees the healthy to serve.
10-06-2022
For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
David, by no means a model of perfection, still understood something of the true nature of God’s heart towards humanity. “A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise” (Psalm 51:17). Though we are called to be like God in our words and actions, our Lord knows that we are weak and frail creatures who will daily fail to live the lives we long to live. This is not a surprise to God! Yet the true failure is found in our inability to see our sickness and call it by name.
10-05-2022
The best way to be a Christian is to model the life of Christ. A life inspired by the Holy Spirit’s power, the Father’s wisdom and the Son’s love.
10-04-2022
I will restore to you the years that the locust has eaten.
We have been given grace upon grace, not just when we are good. Not just when we do all things right, but even when we mess up, even when we sin. This is the essence of the beautiful heart of our loving Father.
10-03-2022
The last shall be first and the first last.
Just as salvation is a gift of God, so a life of blessings is a gift from God. Jesus Christ rewards those who serve out of grateful humility, not in demanding pride to be first in His kingdom.
9-30-2022
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
9-29-2022
Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.
Generosity sets us free from the curse of self-centered living. Our failure to live generous lives that seek to dignify the humanity and worth of others leaves us under the curse from which Christ came to set us free. The Lord does not curse you or shame you when you fail to respond to an opportunity to be generous. Yet he does in his goodness give us these opportunities in order to set us free!
9-28-2022
If you don’t have all the wisdom needed for this journey, then all you have to do is ask God for it; and God will grant all that you need. He gives lavishly and never scolds you for asking.
James addresses this poverty of wisdom, “if you lack,” accesses an unlimited resource that only involves asking. And for a proud, independent, self-reliant heart…asking is anathema! Yet, James the brother of Jesus (God in the flesh), who modeled wise living, reminds his readers of the loving, generous heart of the Lord. He lavishly gives wisdom to those who ask, never scolding, only affirming His beloved with affirmation for approaching with a humble, teachable heart. Notice the promise…and God will grant all you need. He gives according to your needs.
9-27-2022
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
God’s grace provides an answer. Grace is more than forgiveness; it’s about receiving His redemption, acceptance, and restoration in our imperfection. It’s about thanking God for filling in the gaps for all that we are not. It’s embracing the truth that we will not do everything perfectly, but that God will perfect what we do. It’s about embracing life’s imperfections and being okay with them.
9-26-2022
Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.
“Obstacles have a way of getting in the way of what you want, but cannot stop what God wants.”
Those who flow with the Spirit are prepared to overcome all obstacles.
9-23-2022
Acts 20:32-33, 35
Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance…I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing… remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’.
“Giving and receiving love is the foundation of a life blessed to bless others.”
9-22-2022
2 Corinthians 10:4-6
For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.
Paul acknowledges that there is a war that rages inside every human heart, a battle between good and evil, order and chaos, light and darkness. This is a war that every follower of Christ must willingly engage, for it is truly a life and death matter, and we ignore it to our own demise.
9-21-2022
Ephesians 5:21
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
“Relational well-being comes when those who follow Jesus—submit to Jesus—and to each other.”
9-20-2022
Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
“Conflict can be the reason for greater intimacy.”
9-17-2022
James 5:16
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with.
“You keep hurt at bay when say what you feel in a safe place. The repentant sinner receives love and healing.”
9-16-2022
For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep [died] and was laid with his fathers.
“Live your life on purpose for God and you will inspire people to God.”
9-15-2022
“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”
“Any intentional steps toward maturity in your faith must result in a disposition defined by trust and gratitude for the great mercies of our God.”
9-14-2022
And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”
Not all service is led by the Spirit, but if we are led by the Spirit we will serve. And the source of our Spirit led service is contemplation with Christ— heart and mind charged by love, before we charge ahead in our own strength. Clarity comes through contemplation with Jesus, as the mind reflects on how He loved, “God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit… to do good and to heal” (Acts 10:38). In these quiet moments the heart experiences the deep affection of abiding in Christ’s love, so when the noise of the flesh tries to take over, the Spirit calms our spirits. Now, as an overflow of being loved by the Lord, the Spirit leads us to love others like Jesus loves.
9-13-2022
John 15:16
You did not choose Me [Jesus], but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.
“God’s perfect love is the safest of safe places, available for you to seek comfort, forgiveness, wisdom and yes…the opportunity to ask.”
9-9-2022
Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
9-7-2022
Whoever believes in me [Jesus], as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
“Unnoticed influence has the most profound influence, since it is the quiet work of the Holy Spirit.”
9-6-2022
What you focus on expands. The more you focus on fear and fearful thoughts, the more they will expand. And the more you focus on Jesus and focus on choosing to trust Him, the more that will grow too. When you choose trust, you will experience more peace.
9-2-2022
For we which have believed do enter into rest.
“Rest can become elusive and rare without continuing to trust in and follow Jesus.”
9-1-2022
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.
“When we ignore the inevitability of our own death, we place an inordinate amount of focus and attention upon the passing pleasures and momentary successes of this life, and fail to live with eternity in mind.”
8-31-2022
Ephesians 6:5-6
Servants, respectfully obey your earthly masters but always with an eye to obeying the real master, Christ. Don’t just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily, as Christ’s servants doing what God wants you to do.
Then peace and joy will join you in your job. The secret of life in all situations is not finding contentment in your circumstances, but in Christ.
8-30-2022
James 1:2-4
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
“Many times, there cannot be shifting into the new without sifting out the old.” Sent from my iPhone
8-29-2022
Acts 20:36-37
When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.
“Physical embrace is a divine gift that connects one needy heart with another needy heart.”
8-26-2022
Psalm 34:18
He is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Lean into The One who made you. Jesus is walking alongside us, and when we need it, he will carry us through the valley of the shadow of death. What a wonderful comfort to know we are truly never really alone.
8-24-2022
Luke 7:38
Then she begins to cry, she kneels down so her tears fall on Jesus’ feet, and she starts wiping His feet with her own hair. Then she actually kisses His feet, and she pours the perfumed oil on them.
“Joyful tears cannot be contained where the warm presence of God is so strong that eyes of faith are almost blinded by His bright light of love.”
8-23-2022
James 1:2-4
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Troubles and trials are blessed opportunities. If you are going through something today, what opportunity is there for you in it? Ask the Lord to give you his perspective and to show you what He wants to teach you.
8-22-2022
This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.
As you submit your whole being and all you have to Almighty God, you are in a fruitful position to be trusted with His blessings. Be a follower of Jesus who stays faithful on the long road of love and obedience. And, along the way and at the end of a fruitful life, no sweeter words will you hear than for Jesus to say, “Well done my good and faithful servant…enter into my joy!”
8-12-2022
James 1:19
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.
“Compassionate listening makes room for differences without ignoring or dismissing the other person’s ideas.”
8-11-2022
“Upon the rock foundation of Jesus Christ a wise builder uses bricks of love and obedience, not the straw and sticks of sinful living.”
8-10-2022
Moses answered the people, Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.
“Fear is forceful, it attempts to bully you into unhealthy reactions, while love is patient, bidding you to be still.”
8-9-2022
“Sometimes the only way to live in victory and not defeat is to be obedient to God where we were previously disobedient.”
8-5-2022
Those who wait on the Lord…shall walk and not faint.
“A hurried life will catch up with you, resulting in relational neglect that requires professional help to repair.” It’s not enough to recognize the necessity for walking with Christ, but you must go a step further to understand and develop a lifestyle of being in step with your Savior Jesus. When life seems like a walk in the park, praise and thank Him.
8-4-2022
“In our life with Christ, we have been given instruments that will faithfully guide us in the way we should go.”
8-3-2022
That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.
“Keep walking with and toward Jesus in your storm, and the Holy Spirit will give you eyes to see the work He is doing around you.”
8-2-2022
For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
8-1-2022
1 Corinthians 9:14-15
And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
“Creating a space for grace grows a heart of trust use your prayers to make space for grace!”
7-29-2022
But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
Intentional families seek to emulate the lifestyle of Jesus.
7-28-2022
Psalm 40:1
I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry.
Rewarding careers, intimate relationships, and lifelong friendships are forged in the fire of faithfulness.
7-27-2022
I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly. Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father. When their message came to him, Joseph wept.
Love is patient; love is kind. Love isn’t envious, doesn’t boast, brag, or strut about. There’s no arrogance in love; it’s never rude, crude, or indecent it’s not self-absorbed. Love isn’t easily upset. Love doesn’t tally wrongs [forgives] or celebrate injustice; but truth yes, truth is love’s delight!
7-26-2022
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
Love working together with truth transforms the human heart.
None of us can transform our own hearts, but if you are in relationship with Christ, you will know Him and as a result you will seek Him and experience transformation. Knowing how to do what is right is not equal to being in a love relationship with Christ. But in knowing Him, you will want to obey.
7-25-2022
So God said to Noah…Make yourself an ark of cypress wood…Noah did everything just as God commanded him.
“Obedience is the very best way to show you believe and love God.”
7-22-2022
Proverbs 31:10
A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.
Cherish your wife, love her in such a way she feels like your most valued blessing from God His beloved daughter.
7-21-2022
John 13:1
Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
It is so important for us to remember that God’s vision for intimate relationships is not based simply on the feeling of love or the emotion of the moment, but is in fact the glorious celebration of God’s commitment to us as the people he loves! Love will never be swept away because the love of God can never be quenched. God gives himself fully to his people, loving them even when they fail to love in return, loving them, we could say, even when the feeling is long gone.
7-20-2022
Proverbs 30:8
Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty or riches, but give me only my daily bread.
Leverage your dependency on the Lord as a model to lead others to love the Lord more than their life.
7-19-2022
Psalm 9:1
I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
When we choose to ‘make it easy’ by being grateful, we experience hope as we shift our perspective from an earthly one to a heavenly one.
7-18-2022
Proverbs 25:16-17
If you find honey, eat just enough too much of it, and you will vomit. Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house too much of you and he will hate you.
Your heavenly Father wants you to enjoy good things, but not to the determent of your physical, emotional, mental or spiritual health.
7-15-2022
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
When hope is deferred, avoid rejecting God and giving up. Wait on the Lord and hope in Him. He helps you when you feel helpless. He empowers you when you feel powerless. He encourages you when you feel discouraged. He gives joy when you feel joyless. Hope never disappoints. It gives life and a reason to live. If you let go of hope, your gracious Lord doesn’t let go of you. Like Mount Everest, your hope is unmovable, so hold unswervingly to your living hope: Jesus!
7-14-2022
Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
Activity for the Lord can only be sustained by extended times of prayer and communion with the Lord.
7-13-2022
When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.
Humility opens the floodgates of God’s faithful release of wisdom. He trusts the humble to use wisdom for His purposes and not their own. Humility can handle wisdom, because it becomes a tool to lead others to trust Jesus. The truly wise understand that the more you grow as a follower of Jesus—the less you really know of what’s known. The Lord grows wisdom in a humble heart and teachable mind—so stay true to both.
7-11-2022
How many are my iniquities and my sins? Make me know my transgression and my sin.
“Your own sins and struggles are more than enough to focus on without adding the shortcomings of others to the list!”
7-8-2022
This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: ‘A voice of one calling in the desert, “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him."
How is your heart? Is it tender to the things of God? Is the Scripture sustenance for your soul? The weeds of unbelief can create confusion, but the luscious, green grass of God’s grace gives you an inviting place to practice His presence. His presence is your shelter in the wilderness of man’s unseemly ways. Thus, prepare the way for the Lord, and you will travel well together.
7-7-2022
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
In times of volatility and uncertainty one finds a persistent invitation into a life of self-reflection and change. Today, take a deep breath and look around you. Who are the people that the Lord has placed in your path today? What meetings do you have that present an invitation to listen to and respect someone else’s story? Who will you share a meal with, and how can you be fully present to them in body and soul? What concerns and challenges does this day present, and how has the Lord equipped you to meet these challenges with wisdom, courage, and trust?
7-1-2022
For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.
In Acts 15, we encounter the chasm that existed between Jewish and Gentile culture. More specifically, how were Gentiles, whose lives and customs were wildly different than those of the Jewish world, meant to faithfully follow the way of Christ as his disciples? They longed for the whole of their lives to be conformed to his ways, yet confusion abounded on what that in practice looked like. Did they need to become Jewish in every way, taking on every aspect of Jewish identity and practice?
The Church in her wisdom followed the lead of the Holy Spirit and sought to create a way forward for these converts that gave them clarity in the essentials without overwhelming them to the point of exhaustion and despair. Over time, their stories would likely come to be more and more shaped by the story of Israel, learning the countless ways in which these people carried the covenant promises of God upon the earth. And yet, God is not in a hurry. And so they could be entirely at peace as beloved members of the family, focusing on just a few key areas that were essential – dietary, ritual, and sexual purity – and let the other details be sorted out over time as they lived in relationship and love with one another.
6-30-2022
You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal?
Before you and I are quick to share our opinions and positions with the wider world, let us today first take St. Paul’s words to heart and teach these truths to ourselves in quiet humility and intimate communion with our Lord.
6-29-2022
Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.
The quality of our life is determined by the quality of our relationships. Who we spend time with is who we become. If we spend time with those wise in their finances, and if we pay attention, we can become wise in our finances. If we are intentional in our faith, we will worship with those of great faith. Our life is a reflection of our relationships.
6-28-2022
It is more blessed to give than to receive.
The practice of living a life of generosity can begin by looking for small opportunities to give. When we live in an abundant mindset, rather than believing the lie that we have nothing to share, we begin to see how good God has been to us, and we notice the ways He has blessed us, which creates an attitude of gratitude and excitement for living.
6-27-2022
When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns.
When we disconnect, we trust God to get things done through others in spite of our absence. Your break from work and home is an opportunity for a colleague to step up and be blessed with a new opportunity to be stretched. Why keep all the challenging circumstances to yourself? Let go so others can gain invaluable experience. Once you have truly disconnected from your phone, enjoy your soul reconnecting with Christ.
6-24-2022
Very truly I [Jesus] tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
In the moments preceding His passion, Jesus had the disciples’ undivided attention. So He took time to remind them how to pray powerful prayers in His name. To pray in Jesus’ name was to pray representative of the person Christ. Pray peace, because Jesus represented peace. Pray love, because Jesus represented love. Pray meekness, because Jesus represented meekness. Pray forgiveness, because Jesus represented forgiveness. Prayers in Jesus’ name also meant alignment with His heart. Prayers consistent with God’s will, further God’s will. By faith ask in Jesus’ name.
6-23-2022
You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the Lord of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house.
The Lord longs to see his house built up and radiant with the light of his love. It is a beacon of hope and light to the entire world, inviting each of us into the joy and freedom that comes from dying to our own self-absorbed loves and discovering the life that is found when we orient our hearts and lives around his story, not ours. And as we do, not only are we healed, but those around us begin to encounter the transforming love of God in and through us.
6-22-2022
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.
The prayer of Jesus is as much about the spirit of the prayer as it is the words of the prayer. Indeed, the Lord spoke about prayer having just prayed. Only minutes before He bowed in humble worship seeking the face of His heavenly Father. He gloried in the glory of the One from heaven who sent Him to earth to save the world. Oh, what a privilege to pray in the presence of our all-wise God. Our spirits are expunged of all selfish pride and replenished with selfless humility. The reverent and submissive spirit of our Lord’s prayer is the navigator for our prayers.
6-21-2022
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.
When a man stands up for God, stands up for what is right, stands up for His family, stands for righteousness, there may be those who mock him, shame him, or tell him that he is not a true man. But a man’s true identity is not in who the world tells him to be, but who God calls him to be . . .free from fear and rooted in the courage that comes from knowing God has his back. .
6-17-2022
Galatians 6:9
As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
In the same way your heavenly Father cares for His children, so He cares for you and your child. Be a father like God is to you.
6-16-2022
Commentary by Shondrick Hill
Galatians 6:9
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
Lord, I’m weary. My energy is sagging, and my motivation is lagging. And I am so in need of you. I need your strength and your fresh touch to get back on track again. Your Word says the joy of the Lord is my strength. If that's true, then I need your joy to replace all the bone-tired parts of my mind, body, and soul.
The pressures of life sometimes push me into a corner, rendering me helpless to move forward. A hundred voices call my name, and I feel paralyzed at times to answer, not knowing where to turn. Lord, help me not to quit, to keep running the race faithfully, and to find strength in that safe, secret place of yours, under the shadow of the Almighty.
I need your strength to say no when I'm tempted to surrender to harmful things, or when selfishness clings to my clothes and won't let go. I need your strength to say yes, when cowardice and fear nudge me to deny the convictions of my heart. I need your strength to reach out in love to those both close to me and all around me. When don't I need your strength, God?
You are my rock, and I run to you today, believing that you will lift up my heavy arms, that you will fuel me for the tasks you've given me, and that your joy will completely consume the weakness of my life and make me strong again. I don't want to stay grounded, crippled by limitations and failed attempts. I'm tired of feeble efforts. Lord, I want to mount up with wings like an eagle and not just fly. I want to soar.
Renew my strength, Lord. Fill me with your supernatural power to overcome each obstacle in my path. With my eyes on you, Lord, with you walking beside me, working through me, I can make it. Thank you, Lord!
In Jesus' name. Amen
6-15-2022
For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.
Out of an overflow of being comforted and loved by Christ, fathers show affection to their children.
6-15-2022
For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.
Out of an overflow of being comforted and loved by Christ, fathers show affection to their children.
6-13-2022
Luke 15:11-12
Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.” So he divided his property between them.
Above all, as imperfect earthly fathers, we lean into our perfect heavenly Father. He takes our best efforts and carries out His will. He takes our mistakes and teaches us humility. Imperfect fathers who trust the Lord will bring about His perfect plan.