READ: PSALM 115:1-13; MATTHEW 6:7-8, 19-34; 1 CORINTHIANS 8:4-6 There is no one like God. There is nothing that could replace Him. Yet, all throughout history, people have been trying to make other gods. Even the Israelites, God’s chosen people, made idols for themselves to worship. We have tried to replace God. But nothing we [...]

READ: PSALMS 16:9-11; 94:17-19; JOHN 15:1-12 Rejoice, delight, jubilation, glee, ebullience, exhilaration…all of these words mean to have joy. Not only are there lists of words about joy, but there are also hundreds of Bible verses about joy. Yet, so often we overlook or even avoid the joy of the Lord. Instead, we should be [...]

READ: ISAIAH 43:1-7; MATTHEW 10:29-31; JOHN 10:1-18; 1 CORINTHIANS 12:27 Have you ever felt invisible? Like no one knew who you were? Sometimes it seems like other people have really great relationships and a bunch of people to hang out with. There are some people who fit into groups with ease, and there are others [...]

READ: ROMANS 8:1; HEBREWS 4:14-16; 1 JOHN 1:8–2:2 I’d just arrived in a new-to-me country on the other side of the world. I had left a sweltering summer in Florida, where I lived…and landed in a blustery New Zealand winter to begin a year of ministry. A missionary couple offered their home for my first [...]

READ: PSALMS 6; 42; JOHN 11:1-44 When was the last time you had a good cry? I’m not talking about letting a few tears go and moving on with your day, but an all-out, feels like your heart is breaking, flooding your couch with tears kind of cry. I recently allowed myself to weep like [...]

READ: PSALM 34:18; ISAIAH 41:10; MATTHEW 5:4; 2 CORINTHIANS 1:3-4 Editor’s note: Today’s devotional reading discusses sexual abuse. As an eleven-year-old, I was shy and awkward. My father moved out that year. Everything felt embarrassing. One day, my father came to school unannounced. He took me on a weekend trip and molested me. Then he [...]

READ: EPHESIANS 4:11-32; JAMES 3:2-10 Picture this. You’re on your favorite social media app, and you come across someone saying blatantly untrue things. You’re understandably frustrated. How could someone have this much disregard for the truth? You feel anger and fear. And just like that, it feels like a tornado has taken over your thumbs. [...]

READ: PSALM 46:1-11; LUKE 19:10; JOHN 8:12; 2 CORINTHIANS 1:3-11 Feeling so downLaying on the groundTears fall from my eyesThen I get a surpriseA hand on my backComforting, not an attackSomeone to dry my tearsBe with me in my fearsHelp me get up againWalk where I’ve never beenJesus, there for meIn ways I never knew [...]

READ: ISAIAH 53; ROMANS 12:15; HEBREWS 4:14-16 Have you ever met someone who just gets what you’re going through? It can be so comforting. I experience this often with my friends who are parents. I have two young kids, and I really appreciate my friends who do have kids, as well as my friends who [...]

READ: MATTHEW 6:25-33; EPHESIANS 3:14-21; 1 PETER 5:7 Have you ever been walking or driving along and noticed a cluster of colorful flowers just off the road? No one planted them there, but they’re just as beautiful as any of the flowers planted on purpose. Wildflowers come up in the most random places, even between [...]