Devotion Archive
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Devotion for January 4, 2022
“Anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” (Matthew 10:38) Does the scandal of Christmas 2021 follow us into 2022? Unlocking the scandal, the King’s coming doesn’t fit our definitions of royalty. Poverty, scorn, gossip, even murder surrounded Jesus’ birth. All these scandals are hints that the way…
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Devotion for January 3, 2022
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” (Hebrews 12:1-2) Hebrews 11 provides an interesting list of faith-heavyweights in biblical history. These are people who were able to see living possibilities where others only saw dead ends, who saw victory where…
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Devotion for January 2, 2022
“No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame.” (Psalm 25:3) It is New Year’s Day, and we look forward with hope to a new year filled with potential, but we also know there is uncertainty. A review of 2021 reminds us of the changes a year can bring — some good,…
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Devotion for January 1, 2022
“I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11) I don’t blame people for missing what happened in the small town of Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago. Who would have thought that the Lord…
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Devotion for December 31, 2021
“He answered, ‘I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.’” (Genesis 3:10) We tend to think that successful people are exempt from fear. Nothing could be further from the truth. Every generation in history has experienced fear. The first person God created was Adam, and the…
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Devotion for December 30, 2021
“The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man’s inmost parts.” (Proverbs 18:8) Gossip can be a “choice morsel” that’s hard to resist. So what’s the solution? Catch yourself before you indulge in it! Ask yourself why you’ve decided to be a bearer of bad news. Is this the…
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Devotion for December 29, 2021
“… who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:5) If our salvation is assured when we place our trust in Christ, might not some people take advantage of this assurance? Yes, they might, for a time.…
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Devotion for December 28, 2021
“The LORD gives strength to his people; the LORD blesses his people with peace.” (Psalms 29:11) Increasing our pace has decreased our peace. There’s an old joke about a stressed-out personal assistant who told her boss, “When this rush is over, I’m going to have a nervous breakdown. I’ve earned it, I deserve it, and…
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Devotion for December 27, 2021
“The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me;…