Devotional
A daily turn toward the text
RSS for DevotionalClothe yourselves with humility
Peter tells elders and young people alike to put on the same garment, and he had seen it worn once.
Love covers
Peter says the end is near and then tells us to keep our heads and love each other deeply.
Repay with blessing
Peter asks for something that goes against every instinct, and he says it is the reason we were called.
He did not retaliate
Peter watched Jesus be insulted and stay silent, and thirty years later he still could not get over it.
Craving what is good for you
Peter tells grown adults to be like newborns in one specific way, and it is about appetite.
Gold in the fire
Peter says trials prove faith the way heat proves gold, and he does not pretend the heat is pleasant.
Three Days From the Song to the Bitter Water
The chapter that begins with the greatest hymn in the Old Testament ends with grumbling.
The Long Way Round
God deliberately leads Israel away from the short road, and tells us why.
This Month Shall Be Your First Month
Before the last plague falls, God resets the calendar.
No One Like the LORD Our God
Even a plague of frogs becomes an occasion for Pharaoh to learn the incomparability of God.
When Obeying Makes Things Worse
Moses does exactly what God says, and the immediate result is more suffering for everyone.
Who Am I? The Wrong Question
Moses' first objection at the burning bush is one we still make, and God still answers it sideways.
The More They Were Oppressed
Exodus opens with a king who tries to shrink a people and finds he cannot.
Whose Are the Motives
Proverbs 16 opens with a cluster of sayings about how far human control really extends.
A Good Name and a Common Maker
Proverbs 22 puts rich and poor in the same room and reminds both who made them.
Better a Small Meal With Love
Proverbs 15 keeps saying that less with God is more than plenty without him.
Two Invitations to Dinner
Proverbs 9 sets two houses on the high places of the city, and both are sending out invitations.
Two Roads and a Brightening Sky
Proverbs 4 pictures the life of wisdom as a road that grows lighter the further you walk.
The Discipline of a Father Who Delights
Proverbs 3 connects two things we usually keep apart: being disciplined and being loved.
Wisdom Is Shouting in the Street
In Proverbs 1 wisdom is not hidden in a library; she is calling out where the traffic is.
Groaning With Hope
Romans 8:18-39 holds together present suffering and future glory without denying either.
What the Law Could Not Do
Romans 8:1-17 fills the gap that chapter 7 left open, and fills it with the Spirit.
The Good Law and the Bad Result
Romans 7:7-25 defends the law while describing the war it cannot win.
Everyone Serves Someone
Romans 6:15-23 says freedom is not the absence of a master but the presence of the right one.
August: Living Under Grace
The theme for the month is the difference between being ruled by sin and being ruled by grace, drawn from Romans 5 to 8.
Two Men, Two Histories
Romans 5:12-21 tells the whole human story through the actions of two people.
The Order of Suffering
Paul traces a line from hardship to hope, and the order of the steps is the whole point.
Overheard: Jesus Praying for You
The longest recorded prayer of Jesus ends with those who will believe through the disciples' message, which includes anyone reading this.
It Is for Your Good That I Am Going Away
Jesus makes a claim the disciples could not have believed that night and the church has proved since.
The Gardener's Knife
Being pruned is not the same as being cut off, though it can feel the same.
Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled
Jesus addresses the fear in the room before he addresses anything else.
Where I Am Going You Cannot Follow Now
Peter's confidence and Jesus' foresight sit side by side, and grace holds both.
Knowing Where You Come From and Where You Are Going
The security that let Jesus kneel is the same security offered to everyone who belongs to him.
When the Word of the Lord Was Rare
The chapter begins in silence and ends with all Israel knowing that God is speaking again.
The Song Mary Learned From Hannah
Hannah's prayer of praise sets a pattern that runs all the way to Bethlehem.
Pouring Out a Soul
Hannah's prayer is misread by the priest, and her answer to him is a lesson in itself.
The Genealogy at the End
The book of Ruth ends with a list of names, and the list is the point.
Sit Still Until You Know
After the boldest act of her life, Ruth is told to wait, and it is good advice.
As It Turned Out
Ruth picks a field at random, and the narrator lets us see the hand behind the accident.
Call Me Mara
Naomi comes home empty and says so, and the book of Ruth does not scold her for it.
Elijah Was Like Us
James ends his letter with a call to prayer and reminds us that the prophet who stopped the rain was an ordinary man.
Come Near
In the middle of his sharpest rebuke, James offers the gentlest invitation in the letter.
Fresh Water and Salt From the Same Spring
James points out that we bless God and curse people with the same mouth, and he says it should not be so.
Even the Demons Believe
James takes the most basic Jewish confession and shows that agreeing with it is not the same as trusting it.
Mercy Wins
After the warning about favoritism, James ends with a short sentence that describes the whole shape of the Christian life.
The Mirror You Walk Away From
James pictures a man who looks at himself, walks off, and forgets his own face, and he says that is what hearing without doing looks like.
Ask, and Do Not Argue With Yourself
James promises wisdom to anyone who asks, but he attaches one condition that most of us quietly fail.