The Sweetness of Patience Have you ever plucked fruit prematurely? Perhaps you were drawn in by its vibrant color or sweet scent moving through the air. But when you took the first bite, you realized it lacked the ripeness you anticipated. Everything seemed right at first glance, but there wa

Yes, I do lol

Be Strong and Courageous When Paul wrote his first letter to the Corinthian church, he was writing to believers experiencing intense division. Power and politics within the church community were causing Christians to stray from Jesus’ teachings and compete with each other. Because of this, th

Called to Love You’ll never fully agree with another person—because there’s not a single person just like you. That means there won’t be anyone with your exact viewpoint on life, politics, money, relationships, or religion. You are unique, and so is the person next to you. But even though

Walking in the Light Have you ever walked in darkness? Maybe your power went out during a storm, or you were stranded on the road with car trouble. Walking in darkness can be scary, and it can be dangerous. Having a light makes everything better, and the same is true in our spiritual journeys

Keep Doing Good Do you remember the last time you were completely exhausted? Maybe you spent your entire day or week working on a hard project. Maybe you felt depleted after helping other people in your life. Or maybe hard situations and setbacks made you feel like giving up. All of us grow tire

Here’s What Mercy Really Looks Like… What would you do if you ran into someone who offended, upset, or greatly wronged you?  The Pharisees in Jesus’ time taught that it was excessive to forgive someone more than three times. But Jesus’ teachings set a standard for extravagant forgiveness. He

The Three Figs: Prayer, Belief, and Forgiveness Have you ever heard of an object lesson? If you’ve ever taught children — in school or in ministry — the chances are high that you have, or that you’ve at least done one without knowing. If you haven’t, an object lesson is a teaching metho

Living in God’s Love Have you ever met someone who was exceptionally kind and caring? Good friends are like this—welcoming, eager to know how you’re doing, giving their undivided attention. A good friend reminds us who we are. They listen to everything, the good and the bad, with compassion and

(It didn't come with a devotional)

What Living Well Looks Like If you’re a good athlete, it shows every time you compete. If you’re a fantastic cook, the truth comes out in the kitchen. If you have a brilliant mind, you can’t help but solve problems. If you have a stunning voice, such talent can’t stay hidden. We might present

Always Dependable Do you ever feel like life has knocked the breath out of you? If so, you’re not alone. In fact, it’s no secret that this world is full of both beauty and trouble—of good things and hard things. King David, whose life was recorded in various parts of the Old Testament, was hi

Immeasurably More What’s the boldest prayer you can think to pray? Or the most incredible thing you can dare to imagine? Did you know that God can top it? Paul said it like this:  “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is

The Power of Life and Death Think of a time you said something you regret, or were the target of undeserved gossip. Now, reflect on a situation where you encouraged a friend who was hurting, or felt the life-giving effects of someone else’s words. Words matter. Your words matter. And God has

Pursue What Matters Most In the book of Romans, Paul begs Christians to give their entire lives over to God because God sacrificed everything for them. Jesus gave up His life so that we could experience His unending love and grace. We cheapen His gifts if we refuse to align our lives with the

Promises of Comfort One of the hardest truths to reconcile in the Christian life is the presence of evil in the world God created. Whether we’ve seen evil, or evil has been done to us, it is hard to make sense of why God would allow evil things to happen. The truth is: the world we live in i

Practice Makes Progress When we’re in difficult situations, it isn’t easy to stay calm or hold our tongues for very long. But in James 1:19, we learn how we should respond… Be quick to listen. Be slow to speak. Be slow to anger.  The world is more like the opposite: Be slow to hear

Now is the Time to Reprioritize As much as the world around us tries to lure us into self-dependency, God created us for each other. For community. For a life that’s not lived alone. The author of Proverbs said it like this: “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of

Love in Action Scripture has a lot to say about the way we treat people. If we have been saved by God, and have been shown the mercy and goodness of God, then we ought to show mercy and goodness to other people. Essentially… What we believe should determine how we act. All of us who have

Finding Margin in God's Presence I passed a wall of magazines at an airport—one headline stopping me in my tracks. It said, “Why We Are More Exhausted Than Ever.” That day I was so fatigued I could feel it in my soul. Like many, I had embraced a lifestyle of long hours, chronic stress, c