Daily Archives: August 29, 2026

Turning Point

Turning Point; David Jeremiah – Fives: Five Smooth Stones

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Then [David] took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had.
1 Samuel 17:40

Recommended Reading: 1 Samuel 17:40-47

The story of David—especially his epic face-off with Goliath—speaks to every generation. Even recently, a television series and a major animated feature film have brought the story of David to life for modern audiences. When we read the Bible story, we cannot help but notice the number five.

Why five stones? The Bible doesn’t say. Some suggest David anticipated more than one opponent since Goliath had relatives. Others point out that a skilled slinger would naturally carry several stones. Most simply, David was prepared. His faith in God didn’t eliminate wise action. Like an old Revolutionary War adage—“Trust in God, but keep your powder dry.” David trusted the Lord fully, but he was also well armed.

Here is an application for us. We face many giants in life. Some are problems that we must try to solve, and others are temptations that we must overcome. The Bible has more than 31,000 verses. So when a giant problem or temptation confronts you, gather into your mental pouch five smooth Bible verses. God’s Word is rock solid when it comes to our victory.

The Bible was given not to increase our knowledge but to change our lives.
D. L. Moody

 

 

 

https://www.davidjeremiah.org

NEW!Listen Now

Then [David] took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had.
1 Samuel 17:40

Recommended Reading: 1 Samuel 17:40-47

The story of David—especially his epic face-off with Goliath—speaks to every generation. Even recently, a television series and a major animated feature film have brought the story of David to life for modern audiences. When we read the Bible story, we cannot help but notice the number five.

Why five stones? The Bible doesn’t say. Some suggest David anticipated more than one opponent since Goliath had relatives. Others point out that a skilled slinger would naturally carry several stones. Most simply, David was prepared. His faith in God didn’t eliminate wise action. Like an old Revolutionary War adage—“Trust in God, but keep your powder dry.” David trusted the Lord fully, but he was also well armed.

Here is an application for us. We face many giants in life. Some are problems that we must try to solve, and others are temptations that we must overcome. The Bible has more than 31,000 verses. So when a giant problem or temptation confronts you, gather into your mental pouch five smooth Bible verses. God’s Word is rock solid when it comes to our victory.

The Bible was given not to increase our knowledge but to change our lives.
D. L. Moody

 

 

 

https://www.davidjeremiah.org

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread – God’s Breath of Life

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The Lord God . . . breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Genesis 2:7

Today’s Scripture

Genesis 2:1-7

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Today’s Devotion

Researchers discovered that the water anole can stay underwater for twenty minutes without a fresh gulp of air. The tiny lizard has water-repelling skin, and after taking a deep dive it exhales a bubble of air that sticks to its snout. The clever creature then rebreathes the bubble again and again—something scientists believe is the recycling of the trapped air supply. Although water anoles possess this special ability, like many creatures, they must breathe to live.

In Genesis 2, we read that God “breathed into [Adam’s] nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being” (v. 7). As He created all things in “the heavens and the earth” (v. 4), He also created man from “the dust of the ground” (v. 7). But it took God’s breath of life to make His creation fully alive. He transformed the first human into a living being—a living soul. Later, He formed Eve from Adam’s rib (v. 22). As spiritual beings, we’re able to enjoy fellowship with Him by belief in Christ. Jesus “breathed on” the disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22). One commentator writes that this “‘inbreathing’ of the Holy Spirit is essential in order for people to enjoy fellowship with God.”

Each breath we take is God’s gift of physical life. As believers in Jesus, it’s also a reflection of our eternal life and being indwelt by the life-giving Spirit (Romans 8:11).

Reflect & Pray

What does God’s breath of life mean to you? How has the Spirit made you spiritually alive?

Loving God, thank You for eternal life and Your breath of life.

Today’s Insights

Ancient Hebrew literature often conveyed meaning through intentional wordplays. In Genesis 2, the Hebrew word translated “man”—’adam (Genesis 2:7) is very similar to the Hebrew word translated “ground” (vv. 5-7)—’adamah. If a modern translation attempted to capture this wordplay, it might translate “man” (adam) as “earthling” and “ground” (’adamah) as “earth.” By pairing these words, the passage communicates key insights into human nature. Humanity was formed from the earth or ground (v. 7) and so is intimately connected to it. But humanity was also given a unique relationship to God, who gave human beings “the breath of life” (v. 7). Each breath we take is a reminder of God’s gift of physical life.

God is loving and merciful, and He chose to give us new life. God simply gives it to us. And once we’re alive in Him, He gives us the privilege of walking in this new life and serving Him. Read more on this: Alive with Christ

 

 

http://www.odb.org

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – Will we soon be living in a Terminator movie?

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“This is a risk for the whole world. In a few years, we will be living in a Terminator movie. It’s no joke. Machines are making decisions to strike.” This is how Col. Serhiy Minaiev responded to a Russian drone strike that killed three civilians in southeastern Ukraine last month.

The New York Times reports that the drone was guided by an experimental artificial intelligence system, not a human pilot. It had been programmed by human operators to fly toward a particular gas station, but when it got close, it chose its exact target, most likely propane tanks, on its own.

According to the Times, this development was long watched for in the war in Ukraine, “presaging a dystopian future in which killer robots roam the skies making life-or-death decisions that reduce targets to data points.” (For more, see Dr. Ryan Denison’s latest Focus article, “Russia launches AI-piloted drones in Ukraine. What comes next?”)

“The only Foundation of Republics”

From the time the first human used the first tool to kill another human, our ethics have struggled to keep up with our technology. Today, genetic engineering can alter the DNA makeup of an organism in ways that change the species with unforeseeable consequences. Autonomous robots and weapons systems can make life-and-death decisions without human accountability. AI agents can “hallucinate,” producing errors that result in patient suicides and generating misinformation as much as 51 to 79 percent of the time.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Will we soon be living in a Terminator movie? →

Greg Laurie

Harvest Ministries; Greg Laurie – One Mouth, Two Ears

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 Take control of what I say, O LORD, and guard my lips. 

—Psalm 141:3

Scripture:

Psalm 141:3 

It’s been said that God gave us one mouth and two ears for a reason: He wants us to listen more and to speak less. Think of how often we jump to conclusions or pass judgment in a situation. The writer of Proverbs warned, “Spouting off before listening to the facts is both shameful and foolish” (Proverbs 18:13 NLT). Nevertheless, when we hear something damaging about another person, our first instinct is to conclude immediately that the person is guilty as charged. And instead of saying, “Let’s go to that person and find out the truth,” we start to spread the news as if it were fact.

In the old days when you went to a doctor, he would ask you to stick out your tongue. Then he would pull out a tongue depressor and tell you to say, “Ahhh.” Why? Because the tongue can be an indicator of what’s going on inside you. By observing your tongue, a doctor could tell what was wrong with the rest of you.

The principle applies in a spiritual sense as well. Our tongue—or, more specifically, our words—are the table of contents to our lives. What we say gives away who or what we really are.

That’s why David wrote, “Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips” (Psalm 141:3 NLT). In essence, he was saying, “Lord, set a watch over my mouth. I can’t stop other people from speaking evil about me, but I will not do the same to them. I will not be guilty of it, Lord. But I need your help. I can’t do this in my own strength.”

Keep in mind that David faced off against a lion, a bear, the murderous King Saul, and a host of other enemies. He stepped onto a battlefield with the warrior giant Goliath with no fear and barely a second thought. Yet he knew what he was up against with the tongue.

We need to follow his lead. We can accomplish some important work with our words. The apostle Paul wrote, “Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone” (Colossians 4:5–6 NLT). He also wrote, “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them” (Ephesians 4:29 NLT). And the writer of Proverbs advised, “Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit” (Proverbs 15:4 NLT).

But we can’t do those things on our own. Like David, we must pray that the Lord will set a guard over our mouths and keep a watch over the door of our lips.

 

Reflection question: In what areas do you need the Lord to help you guard your lips? Discuss this with believers like you on Harvest Discipleship!

 

 

 

Harvest.org | Greg Laurie

Days of Praise

Days of Praise – The Weight of the Wind

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by Henry M. Morris, Ph.D.

“For he looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven; to make the weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure.” (Job 28:24–25)

It was only discovered by scientists in modern times that air actually has weight. This passage in Job, however, written 35 or more centuries ago, indicated that the two great terrestrial fluids of air and water forming Earth’s atmosphere and hydrosphere are both “weighed” by God’s careful “measure” to provide the right worldwide balance of forces for life on Earth.

Another remarkable “weighing” act of God is noted in Job 37:16: “Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?” Clouds are composed of liquid drops of water, not water vapor, and water is heavier than air, so how are they “balanced” in the sky? “For he maketh small the drops of water: they pour down rain according to the vapour thereof: which the clouds do drop and distill upon man abundantly” (36:27–28).

Meteorologists know that the weight of the small water droplets in the clouds is “balanced” by the “weight of the winds”—air rushing upward in response to temperature changes. Eventually, however, the droplets coalesce to form larger drops that overcome these updrafts and fall as rain. “By watering he wearieth the thick cloud” (37:11). The coalescence is probably triggered electrically in the clouds themselves, “when he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder” (28:26).

Although these verses are not couched in the jargon of modern science, they are thoroughly scientific and up to date. “Lo, these are parts of his ways: but how little a portion is heard of him? but the thunder of his power who can understand?” (26:14). HMM

 

 

 

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

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – God Forgives Our Sins and Heals Our Diseases

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Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases.

Psalm 103:1–3 (NKJV)

It is important that we do not forget all the benefits with which the Lord blesses us. Praise Him for them regularly and thank Him often. Even in the midst of other activities, we can praise God in our innermost being, thanking Him for everything He does for us.

He forgives all our sins, and that is marvelous. He also heals all our diseases. This does not mean that He heals all of them miraculously, but I do believe that all healing comes from God. God still does miracles today, but He also uses medical technology and medicine, which I believe He gave human beings the wisdom to create.

Sometimes we pray for healing, and it comes quickly. At other times it takes much longer than we would like. In December 2017, I became very sick. I was diagnosed with severe adrenal fatigue and told to rest for 18 months. The recovery actually took longer than 18 months, but thankfully I now feel very well. Over the years, God has healed me from many different things, and I trust Him for healing no matter how long it takes or how it comes.

Prayer of the Day: Father, I believe You are the Creator of all healing, and I trust You for healing. I am grateful that You forgive all my sins, and I praise and thank You.

 

 

 

http://www.joycemeyer.org