Monday James 3:3-8; Matthew 15:11, 18-19; Proverbs 10:19-20 This week’s Ash Wednesday initiates Lent, the 6½-week period of prayer and preparation for Easter. The 40 days of Lent—each Sunday is excluded—correspond to Jesus’ 40-day fast and temptations in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11) preceding His public ministry. This week’s featured Scripture, James 3:3-12, was penned...
Monday James 3:2-10; Acts 26:15-19 The Bible says the tongue is like a rudder. Words steer our lives for good or for ill. Once a grammar school teacher told my father he could not sing, and he almost never did. He did marry my mother who had a beautiful alto voice—good enough to sing in...
Monday 1 Peter 1: 9-17 Our theme this week is “Respect Differences.” As Christians we must treat everyone with honor, especially those who are disrespected and dishonored in the world. We are to live this way because we are different from the world. We are “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a...
Monday Ephesians 2:14-18; Exodus 20:8-11; Hebrews 4:1-11 “He Himself is our peace … [having] broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility … [to] reconcile us … to God … thereby killing the hostility.” (Ephesians 2:14, 16 ESV) If you asked the average person, “Are you God’s enemy? Are you antagonistic toward Him?”...
Monday Genesis 9:6; 1 Corinthians 15:42-53; 1 Corinthians 6:19 Bodies Matter: Do Not Devalue Them Despite having understood what it means for humans to be created in the image of God, we often find ourselves confronting people who feel that, since this body is just a temporary vessel until we die and “return to dust,”...
Monday Philippians 2:5-10; Mark 6:1-6 Jesus joined the human race. Is equality a value in the kingdom of God? Does equality matter? To answer these questions, let’s start with Jesus. If we were to have visited Nazareth in Jesus’ time and asked about Him, the reply might well have been: “You mean the carpenter’s son,...
Monday 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 In Sunday’s message from Tim Peck, we learned that all humans, without exception, are created in the image of God. We are different from all creation, including animals. Our identity, value of life, and purpose come from being “Created in God’s Image.” Our lives are to reflect God’s nature, care for...
Monday Genesis 1:18-26; Psalm 8:3-9 In transitioning from a taxing 2020 into 2021, this week’s devo explores the theme “Created in God’s Image.” Hopefully, you are encouraged to know that God created us to be in loving relationship with Him; in His perfection, however, God possessed no unmet needs that we satisfy. Humankind’s creation—the pinnacle...
Monday Colossians 4:7-18 When we come to the end of Colossians and these verses, many are inclined to skip over them as not being relevant today. In this time of global pandemic, chaos, tensions and increased anxieties, Paul’s words to the Colossians refocus our thoughts again to Christ’s supremacy and our valued place in the...
