READ: PSALMS 23:5-6; 34:8; HABAKKUK 3:17-19; JAMES 1:17 In the goodness of the Lord I will rejoice!He has given Life to me—His sinless sacrifice set me free.In the goodness of the Lord I will rejoice!In the grave His body lay—Sin’s ransom fully paid.In the goodness of the Lord I will rejoice!On the third day Hell [...]

READ: EXODUS 15:13; PSALM 36:7; ISAIAH 54:10 Unfailing love of Jesus,unending mercy renewed,Unfailing strength in my weakness—for your name is Faithful and True.Unceasing comfort in sorrow,untold delight in my heart,Unceasing hope for tomorrow—for your mercy I see from afar.Jesus, my Savior, I praise You,Jesus, the One I adore,Jesus, the face of the Father—my God, my [...]

READ: EXODUS 16:4; MATTHEW 6:9-11, 31-34; JOHN 6:25-51 Father, we come, we kneel, we pray.As You have commandedwe ask bread for today.Bread for today and today alone—Your grace we needfor tomorrow’s unknown.Tomorrow’s unknown looms ahead—We fear it, Lord!We confess our dread.Ah, dark dread—may you forever beforbidden and crushedby His wounds on the Tree.His wounds run [...]

READ: REVELATION 5:9-14; 12:10-11; 17:14; 22:1-5 Worthy, worthy is the Lamb,Worthy is the great I am.He was slain in my stead,Bruised and buried, He rose from the dead.Ruling now in majesty,Day and night He pleads for me.Clothed in robes of purest light,The Lamb returns, dispels the night.King of kings upon His throne,High and holy is [...]

READ: LUKE 1:26-56; 2:1-35; 1 TIMOTHY 4:12 In Luke 1, when the angel Gabriel suddenly appeared out of nowhere, Mary was probably no more than sixteen. As if the angel wasn’t terrifying enough, he also brought distressing news: she—still a virgin and engaged to be married—would soon become pregnant with the Son of the Most [...]

READ: PSALM 42; ZEPHANIAH 3:17; HEBREWS 12:2; REVELATION 19:6-9 My twelfth-grade English teacher taught me to love Haiku, a form of poetry that originated in Japan. These short, three-line poems are traditionally drawn from nature, and they’re only seventeen syllables long. He described Haiku as transforming a visual image into a “word snapshot.” For example, [...]

READ: JOHN 1:18; ROMANS 12:19; REVELATION 21:3-4 Do you have a favorite place to think or pray? I do. Most mornings I grab my coffee and head to the back porch. There, I meet with God in prayer, asking to be led by His Spirit and asking for grace to face the day. This is one way [...]

READ: JOHN 16:33; ROMANS 8:17-39; 1 PETER 1:6-7 I once saw a bowling team that called themselves, "It’s All Good." Wouldn’t it be awesome if the saying "it’s all good" were true? Sadly, troubles abound on earth. But even as we acknowledge these troubles, let’s also explore a promise that offers real hope for truly good endings. In Romans [...]

READ: PSALMS 73:28; 119:67-71; 2 CORINTHIANS 1:4-7; HEBREWS 12:5-12 Let’s continue our study on suffering. Suffering exists because God’s good world has been broken by sin. Today, we’ll talk about how, for believers, suffering has significance—or meaning—for our lives, both in the present and for eternity. Scripture reveals this in a couple of ways. First, [...]

READ: PHILIPPIANS 4:6-8, HEBREWS 4:14-16; 1 PETER 5:7 When I was thirteen, I attended my first church camp. I experienced life-changing things, like when I encountered 1 Peter 5:7, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.” I’d never noticed this verse before, but that week 1 Peter 5:7 sank into [...]