Who is someone that you would want to meet face to face? Is it a sports athlete, a movie star, a business guru, or some other person that would make you excited to meet? If we get excited and even intimidated by meeting people we admire, imagine how we will feel when we see God, the Creator of the ends of the earth, face to face! 1 Corinthians 13:12 “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully

I know I had said that I was done talking about peace, but I'm not done talking about peace! There is at least one more lesson that I think we can draw on peace, so here it is. The lesson about peace today is that as Godly men, it is important for us to try and find a wife that brings us peace or is a peaceful person. Being peaceful is something specific and special to wives that I think is overlooked a lot of times in the Bible. “Your beauty should not come from outward ador

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Last week we looked at being kind to others, and that kindness is shown in our speech and in our actions. This week we will discuss what it means to be tenderhearted and forgiving. Having a heart that is tender means a heart that is full of compassion and quick to be merciful to others. Christ is the perfect example of this. Often, we see the phrase, “He had compassion

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” God’s Word has much to say about our relationship to other believers and to those who do not know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. In this devotional let us look at what it means to be “kind to one another.” What ways can we be kind or show kindness in our lives? There are two ways we can demonstrate kindness: speech, whether spoken or written, and actions. In

Psalm 117 says “Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord!” What an amazing Savior we have! So often we are carried away by the business of life, consumed with the attractions of this world, and nullified by the effects of sin in our own lives. Yet, we must make the conscious choice to turn our attention and adoration to Christ. Isaiah 26:3-4 says “You keep

Productivity is essential for the christian life. We aren’t made to sit around all day spending our time on nothing of value. God wants us to be working, building, creating, and ultimately imitating His character. God gave us values of creativity, artistic abilities, physical strength, mental strength, and all these things are meant to be used. Whether that’s at a 9-5 job, DIY projects, building a ministry, investing in your church, or anything else, God wants us to work like

I believe this will be my last devotional wrapping up peace. So far I have addressed the need for peace in our lives and the reason we should be peacemakers. Today you will hear about the enemy of our peace and how we can fight back. “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” - 1 Peter 5:8 Being devoured doesn’t sound very peaceful to me. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come t

Many Christians likely remember the song Man of Sorrows. The lyrics go like this: Man of sorrows what a name for the Son of God, who came ruined sinners to reclaim: Hallelujah, what a Savior! This phrase Man of Sorrows is seen in the prophecy of Jesus’ death on the cross in Isaiah 53:3-6 which reads: “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he

I was given a plaque at Christmas by a family member. It sits on my mantel as a reminder to “Choose Joy.” Sometimes when life’s trials come our way, we need to be reminded of this. That doesn’t mean we don’t have tears and grief, but it is a reminder that through life’s difficulties we can still have joy! What is Biblical Joy? “Biblical joy is a deep, abiding sense of contentment rooted in a relationship with God, transcending circumstances and sustained by faith in His promi

My last devotional touched on peace, where we can find it, and how we can receive it. In this devotional I will be addressing the need to be peaceful people as Christians. Romans 12:18 says, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” So God wants us, as much as we can without going against His will, to live peacefully with others. This looks like sharing the gospel with someone, but not forcing them to believe. Offering someone help, but ma

Jesus was the best example of how we should live. As His followers, we must look to His example and imitate His character. When we look at the heart of Jesus, we see that His ambition was to serve others, not Himself. In the same regard, we must be willing to serve others. In fact, Romans 12:13 says “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” To be hospitable means to be friendly and welcoming to strangers or guests. Our hearts should always be seeki

It is so easy in hard times to forget what God has promised. When we are overwhelmed with everything that is going on around us, it is time to remember the works of God. Psalm 77:11 “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.” In Isaiah 60, the Bible tells us about when God promised to restore Israel. It tells us that the sun and moon will no longer be what brightens the sky; it will be the glory of God. The LORD will be their everlast

Peace is defined in the Oxford dictionary as “the freedom from disturbance.” Freedom is defined as “the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved,” and disturbance means “the disruption of healthy functioning.” So peace means “the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved from the disruption of healthy functioning.” This is a negative definition, so let’s look at what this would mean positively. I think a great definition of peace would be “the mental and emotional state of b

As a human characteristic, there’s a tendency to put hope, strength, and/or trust in the things and people around us. We are able to see these things, we’re able to touch them, smell them, and understand that they are real! However, it is not correct to put ALL of our hope, strength, and/or trust in these things. In 1 Samuel 8, the Israelites demanded that Samuel appoint a king for them. 1 Samuel 8:6 “But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, ‘Give us a king to judge us

Psalm 18:2 “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Sometimes in the middle of the bustle of life, we forget to slow down and listen for the voice of God. Sometimes in the middle of sadness, we forget that God sits with us. Sometimes in the middle of fear, we forget to let go and trust Him. But the thing is, Jesus never forgets to sit with us, hold us, carry us, or s

“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” - 1 Peter 5:5b Last week we talked about pride and its consequences, but this week we are talking about how God gives grace to the humble. 1 Peter 5:5 talks about clothing ourselves in humility towards others. The Blue Letter Bible says this about how the Greek word, egkomboomai, is used in the Bible: “This was the white scarf or apron of slaves, which was fastened to the belt of the vest and distinguished slaves from free

“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” - 1 Peter 5:5b Those are some powerful words! At first glance you might think, “Well of course God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” But it’s not until you realize the pride in your own heart, where the truth found in this passage hits deep. The first half of that first says “Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another for ‘God opp

Luke 2:8-11 "8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." When others think of Ch

Many times in life we find ourselves asking, “Why God”? If You are so good, why is this happening to me? If You are truly in control, why would allow this to happen? If I have truly been redeemed, why do I so often fall back into the sin I have been set free from? Why Lord would you allow all of this if you truly love me? Why? If you are wrestling with these questions, you are not alone. In fact, you are wrestling with questions that even the most admired men in the Bible hav

Genesis 1:27–28 — “27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Have you ever looked at the sky and thought, “Wow, that is beautiful”? Or maybe you watched the grass flowing in t