Scripture Reading — Isaiah 8:19-22If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn.— Isaiah 8:20God’s people did not always walk in God’s way. At times, the leaders of God’s people even consulted with mediums (1 Samuel 28:3-25). Here Isaiah notes the consequences of trying
Scripture Reading — Psalm 119:105-112Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.— Psalm 119:105The psalmist describes God’s word as a lamp and a light. There is a sense of movement here with the emphasis of the psalmist’s feet on a path. We don’t know where the psalmist is going, but it’s n
Scripture Reading — Psalm 80:1-19Make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.— Psalm 80:3Today’s Bible passage addresses a deep-down concern: Is peace with God ever possible after God decides to hold us accountable for our sins? As the psalmist pointedly cries out: “How long, Lord God Almighty,
Scripture Reading — Psalm 27:1-14Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.— Psalm 27:14Today’s Scripture reading describes how the psalmist has faced real threats from wicked people, enemies, armies, oppressors, and false witnesses—all bent on destroying him. The psalm inclu
Scripture Reading — Numbers 6:22-27“The Lord make his face shine on you. . . .”— Numbers 6:25I always marvel at this passage. The Israelites were not a shining example of faithfulness while they wandered in the desert. They grumbled and complained, threatened to go back to Egypt, and even made idols
Scripture Reading — Exodus 10:21-29Yet all the Israelites had light in the places they lived.— Exodus 10:23Have you ever encountered a darkness that can be felt? I recall hiking in the woods when dark storm clouds suddenly billowed overhead. The wind whipped around in all directions, and the tempera
Scripture Reading — Exodus 3:1-14Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”— Exodus 3:3After fleeing Egypt in fear for his life (see Exodus 2:11-15), Moses settled in Midian. He got married and had children. He became a shepherd and learned the wilderne
Scripture Reading — Genesis 15:1-6“Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.”— Genesis 15:5I wonder how many times Abram had looked into that sky, asking God to fulfill his promise from years earlier to give Abram children of his own. I also wonder if Abram had stopped pra
Scripture Reading — Genesis 1:14-19He also made the stars.— Genesis 1:16For several summers, our family spent time near a lake where we would lie on the dock at night, watching for shooting stars. We would point and laugh with excitement when we saw one. In between those flashes of light, we would g
Scripture Reading — Genesis 1:3-5God saw that the light was good. . . .— Genesis 1:4Sometimes we need to slow down and ask good questions. Genesis 1 starts by showing that God’s creative work takes place in the deepest darkness that people could imagine. That reality invites us to wonder, “What woul
Scripture Reading — Genesis 1:1-2Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.— Genesis 1:2Beginnings are important. Backgrounds about characters in novels and movies help us see the situations that have shaped th
Scripture Reading — Psalm 23:1-6Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.— Psalm 23:4In some translations of the Bible, the “darkest valley” in Psalm 23:4 is called “the valley of the shadow of death.” Regardless of the translation, the idea of a shadow
