Read: Hebrews 13:20–21 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 22–23; John 4:31–54

May he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ. Hebrews 13:21

“How have you seen God at work lately?” I asked some friends. One replied, “I see Him at work as I read the Scriptures each morning; I see Him at work as He helps me face each new day; I see Him at work when I know that He has been with me every step of the way—I realize how He has helped me to face challenges while giving me joy.” I love his answer because it reflects how through God’s Word and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, God stays near to, and works in, those who love Him.

God working in His followers is a wonderful mystery that the writer to the Hebrews refers to as he draws his letter to a close in what’s known as a benediction: “. . . and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ” (Hebrews 13:21). With this conclusion, the writer reinforces the essential message of his letter—that God will equip His people to follow Him and that God will work in and through them for His glory.

May he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ. Hebrews 13:21

The gift of God working in us can take us by surprise; perhaps we forgive someone who wrongs us or show patience to someone we find difficult. Our “God of peace” (v. 20) spreads His love and peace in and through us. How have you seen God at work lately?

Lord Jesus Christ, You equip me to do Your works for Your glory. Open my eyes today, that I might understand how You are calling me to follow You.

God works in and through His followers.

By Amy Boucher Pye

INSIGHT

In Hebrews 13:20 Jesus is called the “great Shepherd of the sheep.” We see the shepherd metaphor used throughout the Bible. In Psalm 23, one of the most beloved of all Scripture passages, the Lord is referred to as “shepherd.” In Genesis 48 the term is used to describe the God of Israel: “May the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked faithfully, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the Angel who has delivered me from all harm—may he bless these boys” (vv. 15–16).

The book of Revelation, with its breathtaking apocalyptic imagery, includes a reference to the combined shepherding care of God who sits on the throne (see 7:15) and the Lamb: “For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes’ ” (v. 17).

In between Genesis and Revelation, poets (Psalm 80:1), prophets (Isaiah 40:11), and apostles (1 Peter 5:4) employ this great metaphor to emphasize God’s gracious, caring work on behalf of those who belong to Him.

Arthur Jackson

http://www.odb.org

Read: 2 Kings 19:29–37 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 19–21; John 4:1–30

Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. 1 John 4:1

“Listen!” my wife said to me over the phone. “There’s a monkey in our yard!” She held up the phone so I could hear. And yes, it sounded just like a monkey. Which is weird, because the nearest wild monkey was 2,000 miles away.

Later, my father-in-law burst our bubble. “That’s a barred owl,” he explained. Reality was not what it had seemed.

His hand is on those who follow Him, and He will never abandon us.

When King Sennacherib’s armies had Judah’s King Hezekiah trapped inside Jerusalem’s walls, the Assyrians thought victory was theirs. Reality proved different. Although the Assyrian field commander used smooth words and pretended to speak for God, the Lord had His hand on His people.

“Have I come to attack and destroy this place without word from the Lord?” the commander asked (2 Kings 18:25). As he tried to entice Jerusalem to surrender, he even said, “Choose life and not death!” (v. 32).

That sounds like something God would say. But the prophet Isaiah told the Israelites the true words of the Lord. “[Sennacherib] will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here,” God said. “I will defend this city and save it” (19:32–34; Isaiah 37:35). That very night “the angel of the Lord” destroyed the Assyrians (v. 35).

From time to time, we’ll encounter smooth-talking people who “advise” us while denying God’s power. That isn’t God’s voice. He speaks to us through His Word. He guides us with His Spirit. His hand is on those who follow Him, and He will never abandon us.

Teach us to discern Your voice, Lord.

God is always trustworthy.

By Tim Gustafson |

http://www.odb.org

Read: Matthew 6:19–21 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 17–18; John 3:19–36

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21

When I was growing up, my two sisters and I liked to sit side-by-side on top of my mother’s large cedar-lined chest. My mom kept our wool sweaters in it and handiwork that was embroidered or crocheted by my grandmother. She valued the contents of the chest and relied on the pungent odor of the cedar wood to discourage moths from destroying what was inside.

Most earthly possessions can easily be destroyed by insects or rust, or can even be stolen. Matthew 6 encourages us to place a special focus—not on things that have a limited lifespan but on those that have eternal value. When my mom died at fifty-seven, she had not accumulated a lot of earthly possessions, but I like to think about the treasure she stored up in heaven (vv. 19–20).

Dear Father, help me to choose to invest my life in things that are eternal.

I recall how much she loved God and served Him in quiet ways: caring faithfully for her family, teaching children in Sunday school, befriending a woman abandoned by her husband, comforting a young mother who had lost her baby. And she prayed. . . . Even after she lost her sight and became confined to a wheelchair, she continued to love and pray for others.

Our real treasure isn’t measured in what we accumulate—but in what or whom we invest our time and our passions. What “treasures” are we storing up in heaven by serving and following Jesus?

Dear Father, help me to choose to invest my life in things that are eternal.

Our real wealth is what we invest for eternity.

By Cindy Hess Kasper

INSIGHT

According to Jesus in today’s passage, we are to “store up for [ourselves] treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). What are these treasures? They’re the blessings that will be ours in heaven (1 Peter 1:4) but that we get a preview of in this life when we follow Christ. William Hendriksen, in his commentary on Matthew, lists many of those Jesus Himself described: “Our standing with God as being fully pardoned (Matt. 6:14), answered prayer (7:7), the enrolment of our names in heaven (Luke 10:20), the Father’s love (John 16:27), a welcome not only to the ‘mansions’ of heaven but to the Savior’s own heart (14:2, 3). [We also have a] life that will never end (John 3:16) . . . a hand out of which the Good Shepherd’s sheep will never be snatched (John 10:28) . . . [and] a love from which we shall never be separated (Rom. 8:39).”

Alyson Kieda

http://www.odb.org

Read: Luke 19:1–10 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 15–16; John 3:1–18

Come down immediately. I must stay at your house today. Luke 19:5

Rima, a Syrian woman who had recently moved to the United States, tried to explain to her tutor with hand motions and limited English why she was upset. Tears trickled down her cheeks as she held up a beautifully arranged platter of fatayer (meat, cheese, and spinach pies) that she had made. Then she said, “One man,” and made a swishing sound as she pointed from the door to the living room and then back to the door. The tutor pieced together that several people from a nearby church were supposed to visit Rima and her family and bring some gifts. But only one man had shown up. He had hurried in, dropped off a box of items, and rushed out. He was busy taking care of a responsibility, while she and her family were lonely and longed for community and to share their fatayer with new friends.

Taking time for people is what Jesus was all about. He attended dinner parties, taught crowds, and took time for interaction with individuals. He even invited Himself to one man’s house. Zacchaeus, a tax collector, climbed a tree to see Him, and when Jesus looked up, He said, “Come down immediately. I must stay at your house today” (Luke 19:1–9). And Zacchaeus’s life was changed forever.

The best gift you can give to others may be your time.

Because of other responsibilities, we won’t always be able to take the time. But when we do, we have a wonderful privilege of being with others and watching the Lord work through us.

How have others taken time for you? How might you show Jesus’s love to someone this week?

The best gift you can give to others may be your time.

By Anne Cetas

INSIGHT

Jesus’s ministry is a remarkable contrast to our tendency to live a fast-paced life pulled in countless directions. Even though everyone needed Him, Jesus never seemed to rush. In Luke 8, while on the way to a dying child, Jesus lingers to heal a woman in the crowd (vv. 43–48), even though the child dies in the meantime (v. 49). Similarly, in John 11, after hearing His beloved friend was sick (v. 3), Jesus lingers (vv. 5–6). And in Luke 19, Jesus notices and takes the time to reach out to a man who had climbed a tree just to see Him (v. 4).

Jesus’s example reminds us that we don’t love others best through harried attempts to meet everyone’s needs, but rather when we’re fully present to those around us.

Monica Brands

http://www.odb.org

Read: Psalm 3 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 13–14; John 2

I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me. Psalm 3:5

As I continue trusting God through my struggles with chronic pain, even the simplest setback can feel like a fierce enemy attacker. Problem One jabs me from the right. Problem Two shoves me from behind. Problem Three punches me square in the nose. During these times, when my strength wanes and immediate relief evades me, running and hiding can seem like a good idea. But since I can’t escape my pain, change my circumstances, or ignore my emotions, I’m learning slowly to rely on God to carry me through.

When I need encouragement, comfort, and courage, I prayerfully read through the songs of the psalmists, who honestly bring their situations to God. In one of my favorite psalms, King David flees from Absalom, his son who wanted to kill him and take his kingdom. Though David lamented his painful situation (Psalm 3:1–2), he trusted God’s protection and expected Him to answer his prayers (vv. 3–4). The king didn’t lose sleep worrying or fearing what could happen, because he trusted God to sustain and save him (vv. 5–8).

God offers us peace as He holds us up and carries us through every trial.

Physical and emotional pain can often feel like aggressive adversaries. We may be tempted to give up or wish we could escape when we’re weary and can’t see the end of our current battle. But, like David, we can learn to trust that God will hold us up and help us rest in His constant and loving presence.

Lord, thanks for giving us rest in the peace of Your constant presence and assuring us of the victory You’ve already won.

God offers us peace as He holds us up and carries us through every trial.

By Xochitl Dixon

INSIGHT

In addition to the Psalms, the New Testament has a lot to say about perseverance through trials. The book of Acts tells the account of the apostle Peter who was preparing to stand trial after being unjustly imprisoned by King Herod for eight days. Undoubtedly he would be executed. But Peter didn’t lose any sleep over his impending death. In fact “the night before Peter was to be placed on trial, he was asleep” (Acts 12:6 nlt). Peter experienced peace—peace that can come only through trusting God—because the church was earnestly praying for him (vv. 5, 12).

The apostle Paul wrote about tranquility in his letter to the Philippians: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6–7).

When we can’t sleep because we’re troubled by the trials of life, instead of counting sheep we can talk to our Good Shepherd. Jesus promised, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you” (John 14:27).

What worries keep you awake at night? Ask God to help you find the peace you need.

1. T. Sim

http://www.odb.org

Read: Isaiah 33:17–22 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 10–12; John 1:29–51

Your eyes will see the king in his beauty and view a land that stretches afar. Isaiah 33:17

Amy Carmichael (1867–1951) is known for her work of rescuing orphaned girls in India and giving them a new life. In the midst of this exhausting work there were times she called “moments of vision.” In her book Gold by Moonlight, she wrote, “In the midst of a crowded day we are given almost a glimpse of ‘the land of far distances,’ and we stand still, arrested on the road.”

The prophet Isaiah spoke of a time when God’s rebellious people would turn back to Him. “Your eyes will see the king in his beauty and view a land that stretches afar” (Isaiah 33:17). To view this “land of far distances” is to be lifted above the circumstances of the immediate present and to gain an eternal perspective. During difficult times, the Lord enables us to see our lives from His viewpoint and regain hope. “For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; it is he who will save us” (v. 22).

The Lord is our king; it is he who will save us. Isaiah 33:22

Each day, we can choose to look down in discouragement or lift our eyes to “the land of far distances,” to the Lord who is “our Mighty One” (v. 21).

Amy Carmichael spent more than fifty years in India helping young women in great need. How did she do it? Each day she fixed her eyes on Jesus and placed her life in His care. And so can we.

Lord, today we lift our eyes from the circumstances that discourage us to see You in Your splendor, and find peace.

Fix your eyes on Jesus.

By David C. McCasland 

INSIGHT

In today’s reading (Isaiah 33), King Hezekiah mourns the Assyrian oppression of Judah. Yet the promise Isaiah the prophet gives is that those who trust in God can see past their present reality to a time of triumph in which the promised Messiah will be victorious over all enemies. Jerusalem is where God’s kingdom will be realized (Jeremiah 3:17; Revelation 21:1–2, 10).

Today we may not be oppressed by a foreign power, but each of us can think of someone who has treated us unjustly. It’s comforting to know that our ultimate destiny is a place of peace and joy.

In what ways does recognizing you have a future heavenly home give you grace to face the challenges of life?

For further study see OT Survey: Ecclesiastes–Isaiah at christianuniversity.org/OT224.

Dennis Fisher

http://www.odb.org

Read: James 3:1–12 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 7–9; John 1:1–28

The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body. James 3:6

It wasn’t as simple as just crossing another river. By law, no Roman general could lead armed troops into Rome. So when Julius Caesar led his Thirteenth Legion across the Rubicon River and into Italy in 49 bc, it was an act of treason. The impact of Caesar’s decision was irreversible, generating years of civil war before Rome’s great general became absolute ruler. Still today, the phrase “crossing the Rubicon” is a metaphor for “passing the point of no return.”

Sometimes we can cross a relational Rubicon with the words we say to others. Once spoken, words can’t be taken back. They can either offer help and comfort or do damage that feels just as irreversible as Caesar’s march on Rome. James gave us another word picture about words when he said, “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell” (James 3:6).

When words become weapons, our relationships soon become casualties.

When we fear we have crossed a Rubicon with someone, we can seek their forgiveness—and God’s (Matthew 5:23–24; 1 John 1:9). But even better is to daily rest in God’s Spirit, hearing Paul’s challenge, “Let your conversation be always full of grace” (Colossians 4:6), so that our words will not only honor our Lord, but lift up and encourage those around us.

Lord, please guard my heart and my words today. May I speak only words that please You and bring health and healing to others.

Read What Do You Do with a Broken Relationship? at discoveryseries.org/q0703.

When words become weapons, our relationships soon become casualties.

By Bill Crowder

INSIGHT

The very practical book of James contains much instruction about the wise use of our words:

“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry” (1:19). “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless” (1:26). “Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another” (4:11).

Why is James’s teaching to watch our words crucial for honoring God and people?

Arthur Jackson

http://www.odb.org

Read: Exodus 3:7–14 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 4–6; Luke 24:36–53

At once they left their nets and followed him. Matthew 4:20

In August 2015, when I was preparing to attend a university a couple of hours from home, I realized I probably wouldn’t move back home after graduation. My mind raced. How can I leave home? My family? My church? What if God later calls me to another state or country?

Like Moses, when God told him to go “to Pharaoh to bring [His] people the Israelites out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:10), I was afraid. I didn’t want to leave my comfort zone. Yes, Moses obeyed and followed God, but not before questioning Him and requesting that someone else go instead (vv. 11–13; 4:13).

No matter how difficult it may be, following Jesus is worth it.

In Moses’s example, we can see what we shouldn’t do when we sense a clear calling. We can instead strive to be more like the disciples. When Jesus called them, they left everything and followed Him (Matthew 4:20–22; Luke 5:28). Fear is natural, but we can trust God’s plan.

Being so far from home is still difficult. But as I continually seek God, He opens doors for me that confirm I am where I’m supposed to be.

When we are led out of our comfort zone, we can either go reluctantly, like Moses, or willingly like the disciples—who followed Jesus wherever He led them. Sometimes this means leaving our comfortable life hundreds or even thousands of miles behind us. But no matter how difficult it may be, following Jesus is worth it.

Lord, help me to follow You wherever You lead.

We are not called to be comfortable.

By Julie Schwab

INSIGHT

Do events from our past make it hard to go forward? The first time Moses tried to stand up for his people, he ended up killing an Egyptian slave master and had to run for his life (Exodus 2:11–15). That moment may have prepared him for what he was about to experience. He’d seen how badly he had messed up on his own. Now he was about to see what God could do.

What about us? Have we tripped over ourselves enough, even in trying to help others, that we’re ready to see what God can do through us as we respond to His lead?

Mart DeHaan

http://www.odb.org

Read: Ephesians 2:1–10 | Bible in a Year: 2 Kings 1–3; Luke 24:1–35

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10

Lygon Stevens loved to climb mountains with her brother Nick. They were experienced climbers and both had summitted Mt. McKinley (Denali), the highest point in North America. Then, in January 2008, they were swept off a Colorado mountain by an avalanche, injuring Nick and killing twenty-year-old Lygon. When Nick later discovered his sister’s journal in one of her satchels, he was deeply comforted by its contents. It was filled with reflections, prayers, and praise to God as seen in this entry: “I am a work of art, signed by God. But He’s not done; in fact, He has just begun. . . . I have on me the fingerprint of God. Never will there ever be another person like me. . . . I have a job to do in this life that no other can do.”

Although Lygon is no longer physically present on earth, through the legacy of her life and her journal she inspires and challenges those she left behind.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works. Ephesians 2:10

Because we are made in God’s image (Genesis 1:26), each person is a “work of art, signed by God.” As the apostle Paul says, “We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).

Praise God that He uses each of us, in His own time and way, to help others.

How would You like to use me, Lord? I am open and willing.

Each person is a unique expression of God’s loving design.

By Dennis Fisher

INSIGHT

Genesis 1:26–27 says we were created in God’s image. Similarly, Genesis 5:1 and James 3:9 tell us we were made in His “likeness.” What does it mean to be made in God’s image? We were created with characteristics that set us apart from other creatures. We have the capacity to reason, to make moral choices, and to be in relationship with others. We also have the capacity to do good works, and Jesus set the precedent: He “went around doing good” (Acts 10:38). Ephesians 2:10 tells us we were not only created “to do good works” but “God prepared in advance” the good works we would do. Our task is to stay near to God (Hebrews 10:22), be alert for opportunities, and rely on the Spirit for strength and help.

Alyson Kieda

http://www.odb.org

Read: John 15:5–8 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 21–22; Luke 23:26–56

Ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. John 15:7

My friend’s brother (when they were both children) assured his sister an umbrella had enough lift to hold her up if she would only “believe.” So “by faith” she jumped off a barn roof and knocked herself out, suffering a minor concussion.

What God has promised, He will do. But we must be sure we stand on God’s actual word when we claim a promise, for only then do we have the assurance that God will do or give what He’s promised. Faith has no power in itself. It only counts when it’s based on a clear and unambiguous promise from God. Anything else is just wishful thinking.

This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit. John 15:8

Here’s a case in point: God has promised, “Ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit” (John 15:7–8). These verses are not a promise that God will answer every prayer we utter, but rather a promise that He will respond to every longing for personal righteousness, what Paul calls “the fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22–23). If we hunger and thirst for holiness and ask God for it, He will begin to satisfy us. It will take time; for spiritual growth, like human growth, is gradual. Don’t give up. Keep asking God to make you holy. In His time and at His pace “it will be done for you.” God doesn’t make promises He doesn’t keep.

Dear Lord, thank You for Your many promises to us in Your Word. And thank You for sending Your Holy Spirit who gives discernment.

Read about the promises of God at discoveryseries.org/q0105.

We have a promise-keeping God.

By David H. Roper

INSIGHT

The context of abiding in the vine (John 15:1–8) is vital to understanding this passage, but it’s even more helpful to take a step back and look at the entire scene. It’s the night before Christ will be crucified. Judas has already gone to betray Jesus (John 13:30). Jesus and His disciples have just departed the upper room where they shared the Last Supper. As they walk, the Lord refers to two metaphorical groups: branches that bear fruit and those that don’t. The good branches abide in the vine and are pruned (disciplined). Unfruitful branches don’t abide and are cut off.

Bible scholar William Hendriksen points out the significance of Judas’s recent departure in light of Jesus’s words here. Judas did not abide in the vine. Jesus encouraged the remaining disciples to abide and “bear much fruit” (v. 8). Significantly, the eleven who remained were all persecuted for defending the faith. Ten of them died for it (tradition says John died peacefully in his old age after returning from Patmos). Yet God kept His promise to them. Although He did not deliver them from physical attacks, He gave them boldness to proclaim the truth.

We who “abide in the vine” will be “pruned.” What might that mean for us?

Tim Gustafson

http://www.odb.org

Read: Deuteronomy 6:1–9 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 19–20; Luke 23:1–25

Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Deuteronomy 6:8

My mile-long walk home from dropping off my daughter at her school gives me the opportunity to memorize some verses from the Bible—if I’m intentional about doing so. When I take those minutes to turn over God’s Word in my mind, I often find them coming back to me later in the day, bringing me comfort and wisdom.

When Moses prepared the Israelites to enter the Promised Land, he urged them to hold close to God’s commands and decrees (Deuteronomy 6:1–2). Wanting them to flourish, he said they should turn these instructions over in their minds and discuss them with their children (vv. 6–7). He even said to tie them to their wrists and bind them to their foreheads (v. 8). He didn’t want them to forget God’s instructions to live as people who honored the Lord and enjoyed His blessings.

Surround yourself with God’s Word.

How might you consider God’s words today? One idea is to write out a verse from Scripture, and every time you wash your hands or take a drink, read the words and turn them over in your mind. Or before you go to sleep, consider a short passage from the Bible as the last act of the day. Many are the ways of keeping God’s Word close to our hearts!

Lord God, thank You for giving us the Bible, which is a wellspring for life. Help us to read and digest it today.

Surround yourself with God’s Word.

By Amy Boucher Pye

INSIGHT

Today’s reading contains the Shema—the centerpiece of Israel’s belief in one God. It’s based on the Hebrew word for hear: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4). Verses 6–9 emphasize how we are to make the Scriptures a vital part of our lives so they will affect what we do and what we think about. It’s the meditation of the mind and application of the heart that translates divine truth into transformed living.

Dennis Fisher

http://www.odb.org

Read: Matthew 3:13–17 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 16–18; Luke 22:47–71

You loved me before the creation of the world. John 17:24

“But if God has no beginning and no end, and has always existed, what was He doing before He created us? How did He spend His time?” Some precocious Sunday school student always asks this question when we talk about God’s eternal nature. I used to respond that this was a bit of a mystery. But recently I learned that the Bible gives us an answer to this question.

When Jesus prays to His Father in John 17, He says “Father, . . . you loved me before the creation of the world” (v. 24). This is God as revealed to us by Jesus: Before the world was ever created, God was a trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit)—all loving each other and being loved. When Jesus was baptized, God sent His Spirit in the form of a dove and said, “This is my Son, whom I love” (Matthew 3:17). The most foundational aspect of God’s identity is this outgoing, life-giving love.

God, thank You for Your overflowing, self-giving love.

What a lovely and encouraging truth this is about our God! The mutual, outgoing love expressed by each member of the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—is key to understanding the nature of God. What was God doing before the beginning of time? What He always does: He was loving because He is love (1 John 4:8).

God, thank You for Your overflowing, self-giving love.

We are created in the image of a God who is loving and relational.

By Amy Peterson

INSIGHT

Love has always defined God; it is at the core of everything He does, now and in eternity. But today’s text urges us to think about an aspect of God’s love we might not typically consider.

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit spend eternity in a perfect relationship—giving and receiving love. It’s important to remember that genuine love not only gives love but also receives it. It wouldn’t be loving of the Father not to accept the love of the Son and the Spirit. It’s easy to say we love someone and to show it with what we do for them, but part of loving them is receiving their expressions of love too. That takes humility and trust.

Do you need to receive the love of someone else today? Or do you need to receive the love of God again and remember the reason we love Him is because He first loved us.

J.R. Hudberg

http://www.odb.org

Read: Psalm 73:12–28 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 14–15; Luke 22:21–46

It troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God. Psalm 73:16–17

My hometown had experienced its heaviest winter in thirty years. My muscles ached from hours of shoveling the unrelenting snow. When I stepped inside after what felt like a fruitless effort, weary as I kicked off my boots, I was greeted by the warmth of a fire and my children gathered around it. As I gazed out the window from the shelter of my home, my perspective of the weather shifted completely. Instead of seeing more work to do, I savored the beauty of frosted tree branches and the way the snow blanketed the colorless landscape of winter.

I see a similar, but much more poignant, shift in Asaph when I read his words in Psalm 73. In the beginning, he laments the way the world seems to work, how wrongs seem to be rewarded. He doubts the value of being different than the crowd and living for the good of others (v. 13). But when he enters the sanctuary of God, his outlook changes (vv. 16–17): he remembers that God will deal with the world and its troubles perfectly and, more importantly, that it is good to be with God (v. 28).

Lord, help me to see the way You do.

When we’re chilled by the seemingly ceaseless problems in our world, we can enter God’s sanctuary in prayer and be warmed through by the life-altering, perspective-changing truth that His judgment is better than ours. Though our circumstances may not change, our perspective can.

Lord, I admit I quickly become frustrated with the way things appear. Help me to see the way You do.

God gives us the right perspective.

By Kirsten Holmberg

INSIGHT

In Psalm 37 David addresses the same perplexing issue Asaph writes about in Psalm 73—the wicked prosper while the godly suffer unjustly. David tells those who suffer unjustly not to fret or be envious, for God is just and will one day make all things right (Psalm 37:7–11, 35–38). Instead, those who fear the Lord are to rest fully in God and to continue to live holy lives (vv. 3–6). For the Lord “will not forsake his faithful ones” (v. 28).

Are you weighed down because of injustice? How can the hope expressed in these psalms encourage and strengthen you?

1. T. Sim

http://www.odb.org

Read: 1 John 4:13–16 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 12–13; Luke 22:1–20

My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. Psalm 84:2

One day my daughter was visiting with our one-year-old grandson. I was getting ready to leave the house on an errand, but as soon as I walked out of the room my grandson began to cry. It happened twice, and each time I went back and spent a moment with him. As I headed out the door the third time, his little lip began to quiver again. At that point my daughter said, “Dad, why don’t you just take him with you?”

Any grandparent could tell you what happened next. My grandson went along for the ride, just because I love him.

Loving Lord, thank You for Your compassion for me.

How good it is to know that the longings of our hearts for God are also met with love. The Bible assures us that we can “know and rely on the love God has for us” (1 John 4:16). God doesn’t love us because of anything we have or haven’t done. His love isn’t based on our worthiness at all, but on His goodness and faithfulness. When the world around us is unloving and unkind, we can rely on God’s unchanging love as our source of hope and peace.

Our heavenly Father’s heart has gone out to us through the gift of His Son and His Spirit. How comforting is the assurance that God loves us with love that never ends!

Loving Lord, thank You for Your compassion for me, proven at the cross. Please help me to obey and love You today.

God longs for us to long for Him.

By James Banks

INSIGHT

Do you have a hard time relating to the love of God? Many of us think more with our heads than our hearts. John, a disciple of Jesus, is remembered as the apostle of love and referred to himself as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23).

John wrote more on love than any New Testament writer. But he wasn’t always so inclined. The gospel writer Luke remembers the day John and his brother James wanted to see Jesus call down fire from heaven on a Samaritan village that had turned Jesus away (Luke 9:51–56). Jesus let the two brothers know that their lack of empathy didn’t reflect His heart. Yet Jesus probably wasn’t surprised. Early on, and maybe with a smile, He had affectionately called them “sons of thunder” (Mark 3:17).

Yet John is the one who ends up being overwhelmed with the love of God and writes about the importance of loving others (1 John 3:16; 4:8, 16). What happened? Did he recognize the coldness of his own heart? Did he learn from Jesus that our ability to relate to the love of God may depend on our readiness to admit—and to be forgiven for—our lack of love? (John 3:16; Luke 7:37–50).

Mart DeHaan

http://www.odb.org

Read: Psalm 130:1–6 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 10–11; Luke 21:20–38

I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning. Psalm 130:6

Every May Day (May 1) in Oxford, England, an early morning crowd gathers to welcome spring. At 6:00, the Magdalen College Choir sings from the top of Magdalen Tower. Thousands wait in anticipation for the dark night to be broken by song and the ringing of bells.

Like the revelers, I often wait. I wait for answers to prayers or guidance from the Lord. Although I don’t know the exact time my wait will end, I’m learning to wait expectantly. In Psalm 130 the psalmist writes of being in deep distress facing a situation that feels like the blackest of nights. In the midst of his troubles, he chooses to trust God and stay alert like a guard on duty charged with announcing daybreak. “I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning” (v. 6).

God can be trusted in the light and in the dark.

The anticipation of God’s faithfulness breaking through the darkness gives the psalmist hope to endure even in the midst of his suffering. Based on the promises of God found throughout Scripture, that hope allows him to keep waiting even though he has not yet seen the first rays of light.

Be encouraged if you are in the middle of a dark night. The dawn is coming—either in this life or in heaven! In the meantime, don’t give up hope but keep watching for the deliverance of the Lord. He will be faithful.

Please bring light to my darkness. Open my eyes to see You at work and to trust You. I’m grateful that You are faithful, Father.

God can be trusted in the light and in the dark.

By Lisa Samra

INSIGHT

In Psalm 130:5–6 the word wait(s) appears five times. In the Lord’s development of our personal faith, He often delays an answer to prayer to deepen our trust in Him. At times this can be perplexing. Asking for His intervention for a wayward child or for healing of a painful illness often carries a sense of urgency. We pray, “Lord, I need your help now!” But “waiting on the Lord” takes discipline and develops a perseverance in our faith that only steadfastness can yield. Abram waited years for Isaac, the child of promise, to finally be given to him. And this was through Sarah’s unlikely conception when she was advanced in years and beyond the age of childbearing. Yet God’s sovereign hand was orchestrating these events. Abram waited on God in prayer, and eventually God granted him offspring too numerous to count (Genesis 12; 16:10; 17:1–19).

What prayers are you waiting for God to answer? In what ways might your heavenly Father be developing your faith as you wait?

Dennis Fisher

http://www.odb.org

Read: Ephesians 1:3–14 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 8–9; Luke 21:1–19

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins. Ephesians 1:7

We found our visit to Christ Church Cathedral in Stone Town, Zanzibar, deeply moving, for it sits on the site of what was formerly the largest slave market in East Africa. The designers of this cathedral wanted to show through a physical symbol how the gospel breaks the chains of slavery. No longer would the location be a place of evil deeds and horrible atrocities, but of God’s embodied grace.

Those who built the cathedral wanted to express how Jesus’s death on the cross provides freedom from sin—that which the apostle Paul speaks of in his letter to the church at Ephesus: “In him we have redemption through his blood” (Ephesians 1:7). Here the word redemption points to the Old Testament’s notion of the marketplace, with someone buying back a person or item. Jesus buys back a person from a life of slavery to sin and wrongdoing.

Jesus redeems us from the slavery of sin.

In Paul’s opening words in this letter (vv. 3–14), he bubbles over with joy at the thought of his freedom in Christ. He points, in layer after layer of praise, to God’s work of grace for us through Jesus’s death, which sets us free from the cords of sin. No longer do we need to be slaves to sin, for we are set free to live for God and His glory.

Lord God, through the death of Your Son, You have given us life forever. Help me to share this gift of grace with someone today.

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Read: Hebrews 3:1–6 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 6–7; Luke 20:27–47

But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory. Hebrews 3:6

If there ever was a faithful person, it was Brother Justice. He was committed to his marriage, dedicated to his job as a postal worker, and each Sunday stood at his post as a leader in our local church. I visited my childhood church recently, and perched on the upright piano was the same bell that Brother Justice rang to notify us that the time for Bible study was about to end. The bell has endured the test of time. And although Brother Justice has been with the Lord for years, his legacy of faithfulness also endures.

Hebrews 3 brings a faithful servant and a faithful Son to the readers’ attention. Though the faithfulness of Moses as God’s “servant” is undeniable, Jesus is the one believers are taught to focus on. “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters . . . fix your thoughts on Jesus” (v. 1). Such was the encouragement to all who face temptation (2:18). Their legacy could come only from following Jesus, the faithful One.

Father, through Your Spirit, empower us to courageously love, honor, and follow the Lord Jesus Christ.

What do you do when the winds of temptation are swirling all around you? When you are weary and worn and want to quit? The text invites us to, as one paraphrase renders it, “Take a good hard look at Jesus” (3:1 The Message). Look at Him again—and again and again. As we reexamine Jesus, we find the trustworthy Son of God who gives us courage to live in His family.

Father, through Your Spirit, empower us to courageously love, honor, and follow the Lord Jesus Christ.

Looking to Jesus can give us courage to face the challenges in our lives.

By Arthur Jackson

INSIGHT

The book of Hebrews was written to encourage Jewish Christians who were facing persecution and hardship for their faith and who were now in danger of drifting away and reverting back to Judaism. The writer warns them against abandoning Christ (2:1–3; 3:7–15; 6:4–6; 10:26–31) and presents the absolute supremacy of Jesus as Savior. Jesus is superior to the angels (chs. 1–2), to Moses (chs. 3–4), and to the Aaronic priesthood (chs. 5–7), and He is the perfect High Priest (chs. 8–10). In today’s passage Moses is compared with Christ. While Moses was one of God’s most faithful servants, Jesus is far greater than Moses because Jesus is God’s Son (3:5–6).

How does reflecting on the supremacy of Jesus encourage you to trust Him in your trials?

1. T. Sim

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Read: 2 Timothy 1:6–14 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 3–5; Luke 20:1–26

Of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. 2 Timothy 1:11

When my son’s teacher asked me to serve as a chaperone for their science camp, I hesitated. How could I be a role model when mistakes littered my past, when I still struggled, stumbled, and slipped into old bad habits? God helped me love and raise my son, but I often doubted He could use me to serve others.

Sometimes I still fail to recognize that God—the only perfect One, the only One who can change hearts and lives—transforms us over time. Then the Holy Spirit reminds me how Paul encouraged Timothy to embrace his on-the-job training, persevere in faith, and use the gifts God had given him (2 Timothy 1:6). Timothy could be courageous because God, his power source, would help him love and be disciplined as he continued to grow and serve those within his sphere of influence (v. 7).

We can persevere with confidence when we know our role is to simply love God and others.

Christ saves and empowers us to honor Him with our lives, not because we have special qualifications but because we’re each valuable members of His family (v. 9).

We can persevere with confidence when we know our role is to simply love God and others. Christ’s role is to save us and give us a purpose that extends beyond our small vision of the world. As we follow Jesus daily, He transforms us while using us to encourage others as we share His love and truth wherever He sends us.

Lord, thanks for affirming we can depend on You completely as we share You cheerfully, confidently, and courageously.

Knowing our Power-Source personally gives us confidence in our role as servants to the King.

By Xochitl Dixon

INSIGHT

In today’s reading Paul notes how God has “called us to a holy life” (2 Timothy 1:9)—a life set apart for Him. Such a life involves God’s calling and our obedience. So Paul urged Timothy to “fan into flame” his spiritual gift (v. 6).

What does it mean to “fan into flame” our gift? One key is to acknowledge God in everything. Perhaps we need to trust Him in a big trial. We may need to acknowledge Him in “trivial” matters. As we give Him our huge challenges and the aggravating details, He completes His work in us. He loves us enough to work on us for a lifetime.

Tim Gustafson

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Read: Proverbs 8:10–21 | Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 1–2; Luke 19:28–48

Wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her. Proverbs 8:11

Malcolm Muggeridge, the noted British journalist and social critic, came to faith in Christ at the age of sixty. On his seventy-fifth birthday he offered twenty-five insightful observations about life. One said, “I never met a rich man who was happy, but I have only very occasionally met a poor man who did not want to become a rich man.”

Most of us would agree that money can’t make us happy, but we might like to have more so we can be sure.

God offers the true riches of wisdom to all who seek and follow Him.

King Solomon’s net worth has been estimated at more than two trillion US dollars. Although he was very wealthy, he knew that money had great limitations. Proverbs 8 is based on his experience and offers “Wisdom’s Call” to all people. “I raise my voice to all mankind. . . . My mouth speaks what is true” (vv. 4–7). “Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her” (vv. 10–11).

Wisdom says, “My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver. I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice, bestowing a rich inheritance on those who love me and making their treasuries full” (vv. 19–21).

These are true riches indeed!

Lord, thank You for the riches of Your wisdom that guide our steps today.

God offers the true riches of wisdom to all who seek and follow Him.

By David C. McCasland

INSIGHT

In the Old Testament the word most often translated “wisdom” (hokmah) refers to persons having an exceptional degree of “skill” in a given area—a speaker’s use of words or a composer’s skill in putting notes together to make music, for example. In Exodus 31:6 the skill of a craftsman is the focus.

In Proverbs the dominant word for wisdom is also hokmah. Wisdom in Proverbs is not simply one who possesses a masterful mind. It’s also a matter of the heart; it’s a moral quality. Wise persons are those who fear the Lord and subsequently make choices that honor God, oneself, and others. The wise person is one who is skilled in godly living. Wisdom (a feminine noun) is personified as a woman (see Proverbs 9). Her virtues are many and she pursues and rewards those who pursue her (3:13–18).

How attentive to the riches of wisdom are you in this season of your life?

Arthur Jackson

http://www.odb.org

Read: 2 Kings 4:1–7 | Bible in a Year: 2 Samuel 23–24; Luke 19:1–27

The pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. Matthew 6:32

It is pitch dark when Ah-pi starts her day. Others in the village will wake up soon to make their way to the rubber plantation. Harvesting latex is one of the main sources of income for people living in Hongzhuang Village, China. To collect as much latex as possible, the trees must be tapped very early in the morning, before daybreak. Ah-pi will be among the rubber tappers, but first she will spend time communing with God.

Ah-pi’s father, husband, and only son have passed away, and she—with her daughter-in-law—is providing for an elderly mother and two young grandsons. Her story reminds me of another widow in the Bible who trusted God.

We may face situations beyond our reserves, but never beyond God’s resources.

The widow’s husband had died and left her in debt (2 Kings 4:1). In her distress, she looked to God for help by turning to His servant Elisha. She believed that God cared and that He could do something about her situation. And God did. He provided miraculously for the dire needs of this widow (vv. 5–6). This same God also provided for Ah-pi—though less miraculously—through the toil of her hands, the produce from the ground, and gifts from His people.

Though life can make various demands on us, we can always draw strength from God. We can entrust our cares to Him, do all we can, and let Him amaze us with what He can do with our situation.

Father, thank You for Your patience when I trust in my own resources and turn to You only as a last resort. Teach me to seek Your help in all I do.

We may face situations beyond our reserves, but never beyond God’s resources.

By Poh Fang Chia

INSIGHT

Can you remember a time when you thought that without a miracle you might not make it?

The Old Testament story of Elijah and Elisha speaks to such fears and the need for faith. Through signs and wonders Elijah called a nation back to its God (1 Kings 18:21, 38–39). Elisha, in turn, inspired hope by miraculously purifying water, multiplying food, and raising the dead.

This is the backstory that according to the New Testament was preparing the way for Jesus. With echoes of Elisha, Jesus filled the stomachs of more than 5,000 hungry people with a little boy’s lunch (Matthew 14:15–21).

Are you troubled by overwhelming needs that keep you awake at night? How does reflecting on God’s miraculous power give you hope?

Mart DeHaan

http://www.odb.org