A Beloved Community
Read: Romans 8:26-36 For I am sure that neither death nor life . . . nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (vv. 38-39) I sat next to her with a tissue for her tears. Others had left the Good Friday service in […]
Created for Community
Read: Genesis 1:26-2:3 God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. (v. 27) In early spring, before leaves come out on trees, the woods around my home fill with short-lived wildflowers. So intricate and tiny, looking fragile, yet tough enough to keep their […]
He Will Be Our Light
Read: Revelation 22:5-16 I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star. (v. 16) In this devotional series and throughout the story of Scripture, we encounter a God who speaks in the darkness of night. He created the stars as symbols that proclaim his faithfulness. He speaks to Job in the darkness […]
The Starry Covenant Fulfilled
Read: Matthew 2:1-12 We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him. (v. 2) The longest journey I ever made was from my home in Seattle, Washington, to the island nation of the Philippines. It was a trip of blind faith. I went not knowing anyone, not knowing the culture or language, […]
Lift Up Your Eyes
Read: Isaiah 40:1-5; 21-31 Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? (v. 26) Have you ever struggled to believe that God sees you, loves you, and has goodness in store for you? There was a season in my life when I experienced deep depression. It felt as if all the lights had […]
Crowned with Glory
Read: Psalm 8 When I look at your heavens . . . what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? (vv. 3-4) In an 1888 letter to his brother Theo, artist Vincent Van Gogh wrote, “For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of […]
A Basic Plan for Daily Devotions
Spending time with God doesn’t have to be complicated. This basic plan for daily devotions will teach you how to communicate with God. Communication involves two basic elements—sending messages and receiving them. We share our life with God by speaking to him in prayer, and he speaks to us through the Bible. Prayer is like […]
A Dream Deferred
Read: Genesis 37:1-11 Behold, I have dreamed another dream. (v. 9) Several years ago, I watched a long-cherished dream of mine becoming a reality: my husband and I were accepted to go to the mission field. The day after we partnered with a ministry and applied for an upcoming trip, we received an unexpected check in […]
The Ladder to Heaven
Read: Genesis 28:10-22 This is the gate of heaven. (v. 17) Do you ever struggle to see God’s hand at work in dark and difficult seasons? I certainly do. When life gets hard, my vision shrinks from seeing God’s bigger purpose and plan to fixating only on my problems and distress. Yet it is precisely in […]