Scripture Reading — Psalm 4:1-8In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety.— Psalm 4:8We sleep, but the Holy Spirit and the demons do not. So even our subconscious can be a battleground of spirituality.C. S. Lewis recommended the following steps in prayer before
Scripture Reading — James 1:12-18Each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.— James 1:14Temptations are thoughts. We see things or people that appeal to us, and we want them for ourselves, even though we know that would be wrong.Humans will always have sen
Scripture Reading — Romans 12:1-2Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.— Romans 12:2Notice the big contrast in this text. We can follow the “pattern”— or the behaviors, standards, and customs—of the world. Or we can follow the will of God. And t
Scripture Reading — Genesis 6:5-8Every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.— Genesis 6:5Wow! The people in those days must have been really, really bad. Look at all those totalizing terms: every, only, all the time. And all of this troubled God deeply.Some peopl
Scripture Reading — Matthew 6:25-34“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”— Matthew 6:33Did you play hide-and-seek as a child? I did, and I play it now with my grandchildren. (They are easy to find when they’re under a blanket on the couch.)
Scripture Reading — Mark 12:28-34“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’”— Mark 12:30As Jesus answers a question about the greatest commandment, he quotes from Deuteronomy 6 in the Old Testament. He emphasizes that lovin
Scripture Reading — 1 Peter 2:4-10You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession. . . .— 1 Peter 2:9We are often our own worst critics. I find that many of my inner thoughts tend to be negative about myself. “Kent, what were you thinking?” “You keep doing that.
Scripture Reading — 1 Peter 2:4-10You are a chosen people . . . a holy nation, God’s special possession. . . .— 1 Peter 2:9While God is busy preparing the new creation, he is working on a special project. He is building a chosen people, a holy nation, the “special possession” that Peter talks about
Scripture Reading — Revelation 6:9-11“How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”— Revelation 6:10Are you waiting for anything these days? Maybe a longplanned vacation or an important birthday? Or maybe you’re waiting for healing after
Scripture Reading — Romans 16:13Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.— Romans 16:13Today let’s look at one more set of people whom Paul mentions in Romans 16: Rufus and his mother.First, Rufus: Paul’s comment about Rufus is that he is “chosen in the Lord.
Scripture Reading — Romans 16:12Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord. . . . [And] Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.— Romans 16:12For the past few days we’ve looked through Paul’s greetings to helpers, coworkers, and other saints here in Romans
Scripture Reading — Romans 16:7Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me . . . are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.— Romans 16:7The text that has shaped our month’s devotions (2 Corinthians 5:17) has an important, little phrase that sho
