Daily Archives: June 21, 2026

Today in the Word

Today in the Word – Moody Bible Institute – Final Words

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Read 2 Peter 1:1–2

While the Bible does not record how the apostle Peter died, early church tradition says he was martyred in Rome. It is said he requested to be crucified upside-down because he was not worthy to die in the same way as Jesus. This church tradition aligns well with Jesus’ prediction about Peter’s death (John 21:18–19).

Near the end of his life, Peter wrote the letter we now call 2 Peter. It seems his audience was the same as that for his first letter: a group of churches in Asia Minor (2 Pet. 3:1). Peter’s opening is typical for a New Testament letter, yet it contains important truths. Peter asserts his authority as an “apostle of Jesus Christ” (v. 1). This is important in a letter where he will rebuke his audience for embracing some false teaching. He also affirms that his audience has “received a faith as precious as ours” (v. 1). Most of the believers he was writing to would have been second generation Christians. They might have felt a bit inferior, or at least less blessed because they did not get to see Jesus in the flesh. Peter assures them that their faith was just as precious as his own. The same is true today. Some people may think that they are less valuable as a Christian because they came to faith later in life. That is not the case! All believers are sons or daughters of God (1 John 3:1–2).

Peter also affirms that Jesus is God, “to those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (v. 1). He holds a high view of Jesus! He also knows that true knowledge of Jesus brings “grace and peace…in abundance” (v. 2).

Go Deeper

When did you come to faith in Christ? Share your story with someone today. And if you do not know Jesus as your Savior, we invite you to learn more. Go to moodybible.org/knowing-christ.

Pray with Us

Father, thank You for sending Jesus Christ to die for our sins. We praise You for Your plan of salvation that stretches from creation to the cross. You are worthy of our worship!

Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.2 Peter 1:2

 

 

 

https://www.moodybible.org/

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread – The Gift of Prayer

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Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people. Ephesians 6:7

Today’s Scripture

Ephesians 6:1-8

Listen to Today’s Devotion

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Today’s Devotion

I trudged into the grocery store to buy a Father’s Day card. I had forgiven my father. I’d tried reconciling over the years—prayerfully processing the hurts inflicted before and after I’d left home at fifteen. Sadly, decades later, I still couldn’t relate to the cards that had messages gushing with gratitude for the “greatest” dads. So, desperate to honor my heavenly Father, I stood in that card aisle and prayed for my earthly father.

From Adam and Cain to David and Absalom to my father and me, sin has caused multigenerational strife and heartbreak. Still, the apostle Paul encouraged children to obey their parents “in the Lord, for this is right” (Ephesians 6:1). Honoring parents is a command that comes with a promise and a reward (vv. 2-3). In turn, fathers were meant to raise children to know and love God (v. 4). God’s people are designed to serve each other “wholeheartedly, as if [we] were serving the Lord, not people” (v. 7). Unfortunately, sin can destroy these relationships.

No matter what our relationship status with our parents is, we can thank God for the people He chose to use when He gave us life, and we can pray they enjoy a life-transforming relationship with Christ. Prayer that leads to Jesus is a gift of love and honor that can lead to changed relationships and lives.

Reflect & Pray

How can you honor God when a relationship is difficult? How will you pray for someone who is estranged from you?

Good Father, please show me how I can honor You in and through both healthy and strained relationships.

Today’s Insights

Family relationships aren’t exempt from challenges of various kinds. In Ephesians 5:21-6:9, Paul spoke to the households of believers in Jesus in the first century. The form of his teaching was similar to how the ancient Greco-Roman world usually structured their households. Several features, however, are noteworthy and distinct for believers in the context of the family (6:1-8). The apostle’s teaching regarding how to relate to each other is preceded by the command to “be filled with the Spirit” (5:18). Dynamics of Spirit-filled living include singing (v. 19), thanksgiving (v. 20), and “[submitting] to one another out of reverence for Christ” (v. 21). Prayer is another essential dimension of Spirit-filled living: “Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” (6:18). Today, when we’re confronted with difficult family relationships, the Spirit can help us pray for them as we seek to honor God.

Watch this video to learn about repairing broken relationships.

 

 

http://www.odb.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Who owns your stuff?

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Materialism, greed, generosity, and stewardship

Last week we examined the sin of idolatry and concluded by asking if every square inch of your existence was submitted to God. Before we start, take a moment to think back to that question and ask the Lord once again to show you any areas of your life that you’ve kept back from him.

All of us have blind spots; areas of our lives where we see our sin a little less clearly. For many in our country, materialism is perhaps the most blatant blind spot. After all, we live in a culture that prizes independence and the idea of pulling yourself up by your bootstraps.

And there’s nothing inherently wrong with either concept. In many ways, much of America’s greatness is tied to those impulses. However, they come with a downside, and that’s where we’re going to spend our time today.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Who owns your stuff? →

Days of Praise

Days of Praise – The Peace of Thy Children

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by Henry M. Morris, Ph.D.

“And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children.” (Isaiah 54:13)

This verse has its primary fulfillment still in the future. Nevertheless, it states a basic principle that is always valid and is especially relevant on Father’s Day. The greatest honor that children can bestow on a father is a solid Christian character of their own, but that must first be his own gift to them. Before sons and daughters can experience real peace of soul, they must first be taught of the Lord themselves. The heavenly Father has delegated this responsibility first of all to human fathers.

The classic example is Abraham, “the father of all them that believe” (Romans 4:11). God’s testimony concerning Abraham was this: “For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment” (Genesis 18:19). This is the first reference in Scripture to the training of children, and it is significant that it stresses paternal instruction in the things of God. Furthermore, the instruction should be diligent and continual: “When thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” (Deuteronomy 6:7).

The classic New Testament teaching on child training has the same message: “Ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).

Instead of wrath, fathers should bring peace, as our text suggests. Great shall be our children’s peace when they know the Lord and keep His ways. Great, also, is the joy of a godly father when he sees the blessing of the Lord on his children and then on his grandchildren. “Children’s children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers” (Proverbs 17:6). HMM

 

 

 

https://www.icr.org/articles/type/6

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Find Peace in Quiet Time

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…Return [to God], that your sins may be erased (blotted out, wiped clean), that times of refreshing (of recovering from the effects of heat, of reviving with fresh air) may come from the presence of the Lord.

Acts 3:19 (AMPC)

We all need times of blessed quiet because we can find physical, emotional, and spiritual refreshing in those times.

We live in a noisy world, and if we are not careful we can become addicted to noise and constant activity. Make sure you find time in your life to just be quiet and listen.

Are you asking God to speak to you, but you never take the time to get quiet and just listen? It honors God when we give Him regular time. Sit with Him and enjoy His presence—it will be refreshing to your entire being.

Time is one of the most important things we can give God. It tells Him He is important to us and that we realize we cannot manage life properly without Him.

Prayer of the Day: Lord, help me slow down and spend quiet time with You. Teach me to listen, rest in Your presence, and find peace and strength for each day, amen.

 

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http://www.joycemeyer.org