Category: <span>Devotions</span>

Fourth Week of Lent “A gift of Lent is that its focus on sin, darkness, and death is an antidote to any lingering sentimentality that we seek to bring into Easter. This season of Lent insists, emphatically, that we—each and all—are sinners. We are victimizers, not just victims; hedonists, not just heroes. If themes of...

Thy Will Be Done When reciting the Lord’s Prayer, we pray: “Thy will be done.” But do we mean it? “Today we find ourselves a bit offended by what God seems to be requiring of us. His will—which requires self-denial—has come into conflict with our will that is bent on self-preservation. We’ve begun to wonder...

Second Week of Lent What one says at the end of one’s life is often of great importance. The last night Jesus was with His disciples Jesus revealed what was most important to Him. It all began with what He prized most: servanthood. Jesus got up from the table, took off His robe of authority...

Lent Each week during Lent we will be taking time to wait on God. Use some of the material below to direct your prayers and time of confession. You might use some of the space to jot down your reflections and answers to the questions. As I continue my Lenten practices, I have noticed …...

Monday Genesis 16 This week we begin a new sermon series, “Finding God in the Wilderness.” This week’s sermon is titled: “The God Who Sees.” We are told in today’s passage that God sees. How we long to be seen, to be noticed. How often we put our best foot forward, hoping someone will see....

Monday Galatians 5:13-26 “You, my brothers and sisters, are called to be free” (v. 13). That is how the passage on the fruits of the Spirit begins, and I think that is significant. Many times I have read this passage and skipped over this part, turning to the fruits that I want to see in...

Monday Philippians 4:1-4 The disagreement between two Christian women was serious enough to be addressed in a public letter to the Philippians. Paul does not take sides. He urges the two who are at odds to be of the same mind in the Lord. He asks those close to the situation to encourage reconciliation and...

Monday  Philippians 3:12-21; Hebrews 5:12-14 As we consider Philippians 3:15-21 this week, our theme being “joy despite adversity,” let’s step back three verses today for context. Paul writes about “pressing toward the goal” (Philippians 3:12-14), calling for Christian growth. In verse 15, he challenges, “Let those of us who are mature think this way.” Each...

Monday Philippians 3:1-3; Colossians 2:8-23; Romans 14:10 After one of her volleyball matches years ago, my daughter complained about several referees’ calls that favored the opponent. This prompted another parent to observe, “She seems to have an overdeveloped sense of justice.” If you’re inclined toward being judgmental, as I am, and/or self-righteous, you can tend...

Monday John 15:12-17; Philippians 2:19-30 “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”  (John 15:13) The Bible has a lot to say about friendship, more than you may have thought. The subject of friendship is woven throughout the whole storyline of Scripture. It reaches its climax at...