Posts with the tag “robin”

Daily Devotional from Isaiah 42—Verse 1Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.What an incredible prophecy. When I read the Bible, I am blown away by the number of prophecies in it. Many prophecies are hundreds and some over a thousand years older than Jesus. The book of Isaiah was written abou...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Exodus 32--Verse 14Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.For many of us, the idea of an angry and fuming God is all we can imagine. God is angry at sin. Sinners are to stand before a righteous God and be judged for their evildoing. God’s judgment will come to the unrighteous. All of this is true. But what we see here, is that th...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Exodus 14--Verse 14The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.The Israelites were in the midst of a tricky situation. Their backs were against the Red Sea. In front of them was the entire Egyptian army. They had nowhere to go. Can you imagine the anxiety? Did God deliver them from Egyptian oppression--just to be annihilated by their hands? Yet, God had someth...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Genesis 46--Verses 2-4aAnd God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you into a great nation. I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again…”Sometimes when we make ourselves available f...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Genesis 28-- Verses 16 & 18“When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it….” Early in the morning Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker. He poured oil on top of it and named the place Bethel…” I wonder how often after this moment Jacob stopped and looked at this marker. Did his children know ...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Genesis 12Verse 4So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran.  (NIV)My Great-Grandmother was 90 years old when she became a Christian. She loved Jesus with everything she had during the last year of her life. Before she passed away, she loved reading the Bible and praying, and donating her croche...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Revelation 19--Verse 20And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.The blessed hope of Jesus is knowing that he has already defeated the beast. Satan w...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Revelation 14--Verse 12Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.In the film “Facing the Giants,” there’s a scene where a high school football coach is trying to motivate the team captain. While blindfolded, he has to plank walk across the field with another student on his back. The entire time, the coach e...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Revelation 9--Verse 20The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. Sometimes, we feel as if God’s judgment would help people turn to him. But what we see in scripture is that God’s judgment d...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Revelation 4--Verses 10b-11They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”I love the picture Revelation 4 paints for us. This image of heaven is far beyond what our minds can imagine. But in verse 10, it says that the 24 elder...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 3 John--Verse 11aBeloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good.So many things that are good for us don’t necessarily come naturally. Many times, our default is to do what is unhealthy, bad for us, or just not right. In order to form good habits or make healthy choices, we have to do the work of re-wiring our brain. It takes time, effort, and intention. Eventually the good hab...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 1 John 2--Verse 2b (CSB)But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ the righteous one.If this were a court room, we would be the defendant and Jesus would be our defense attorney. The enemy would be prosecuting, naming all of our sin, all of the reasons we deserve eternal punishment. Jesus is defending us, proving that our sins were already covere...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 1 Peter 5--Verse 8 (CSB)Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour. Animals have keen senses. They intuitively know when a predator is around. Their ears perk. They start paying attention to their surroundings. And if the situation calls for it, they run. Peter is encouraging us to be aware of a...  Read More

Daily Devotional from James 5--Verse 16aTherefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed.Confession of sin is an important part of walking with the Spirit. We don’t confess our sins to God only, it is equally important to confess to each other. When we confess our sins to each other, walls of tension, division, and strife melt away. Confession of sin ...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Hebrews 13--Verse 8Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.It is so comforting that Jesus never changes. He isn’t loving one day and angry the next. He is faithful to remain gentle and lowly, loving and compassionate, a King of Kings. We can trust Jesus because he is the same yesterday, today and forever. We can count on him in peaceful times and turbulent ti...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Hebrews 8--Verse 12For I will forgive their wrongdoing, and I will never again remember their sins.Isn’t it so deeply wonderful that God is faithful? He forgives our sins. He can’t even recall them. Through our faith in the work of Jesus, his death and resurrection, our sins cannot be counted against us. They are forgotten, dismissed, as if they had never happened. Because of...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Hebrews 3--Verses 13-14a…encourage each other daily, while it is still called “today”, so that none of you is hardened by sin’s deception. For we have become participants in Christ…Encouragement is so essential. We all long for encouragement from those around us. When we don’t get the encouragement we need from our faith community, we tend to seek it elsewhere, which can lead...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Titus 2--Verse 13…we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. The life of a believer is one that is marked by hope. And it’s not a kind that is defined as a deep wish—it is the kind that is confident of what is to come. As believers, we hold on to the hope that The faithful God who kept his promise to Israel will also ke...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 2 Timothy 1--Verse 6For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands…I recently started my very first fire (in a fire pit)! Now, I didn’t set up the logs or the kindling, that was done for me. All I needed to do was to give the fire the right environment. I lit the kindling and placed it in a good spot—-and…noth...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 1 Timothy 2--Verses 1-2First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, for kings and all those who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.The heart of God for us is to love people well. The best way to love others well is to pray for them. It is very difficult to h...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 1 Thessalonians 5--Verses 16-18Rejoice Always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Have you ever wondered what God’s will is for your life? You don’t need to wonder anymore! God longs for us to trust him alone. When we deeply trust the Lord, we rejoice, pray, and give thanks no matter what the circumstan...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Colossians 4--Verse 6Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you should answer each person.How we respond to others, especially in conflict, reveals much about our character. I’m so glad that Jesus offers us grace because all of us fail in being gracious in our speech. Here, Paul is encouraging us to let our words be like salt, bringin...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Philippians 3--Verse 2Watch out for the dogs, watch out for the evil workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh.Due to the very nature of our technological world, we have access to so much information and teaching about Jesus. We have access to sermons and teachers all over the world at the push of a button. It is really crazy. Because of the ease of access, false te...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Ephesians 4--Verses 26-27 (CSB)Be angry and do not sin. Don’t let the sun go down on your anger, and don’t give the devil an opportunity. Anger is a powerful emotion. It signals that something is wrong. It is a needed emotion. Anger helps us see when a relationship needs some care. Like any emotion, if left untreated, unspoken, or uncared for, anger can open our hearts to sin...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Galatians 5--Verse 2 (CSB)Take note! I, Paul, am telling you that if you get yourselves circumcised, Christ will not benefit you at all. During this time, there were Jewish leaders who were coming into the Galatian Church and telling believers that they had to get circumcised in order to be truly saved—without circumcision, their salvation wasn’t in full effect. Sometimes we ...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 2 Corinthians 13--Verse 11 Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Paul’s final greeting consists of an exhortation to “aim for restoration.” As a community of believers, restoration and reconciliation should be our bread and butter. We are a ragtag bunch of od...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 2 Corinthians 8--Verses 14-15 …your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. As it is written, “Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.”If 2 Corinthians 8 were to be given a main topic, it would be “generosity”. As believers, Paul urged the Co...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 2 Corinthians 3--Verses 18We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.When Moses spent time in God’s presence on Mt. Sinai, he had to cover his face because he reflected the glory of God so much that the Israelites physically couldn’t...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 1 Corinthians 14-- Verse 12So also you—since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, seek to excel in building up the church.The entirety of this chapter is summed up in this verse. Paul wants the Corinthian church to utilize the gifts of the Spirit—especially tongues and prophecy. BUT, they must be used to build up and edify the church, not an individual believer’s status. Seek...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 1 Corinthians 9--Verse 26So I do not run like one who runs aimlessly or box like one beating the air.Paul’s metaphor in this chapter discusses the importance of being sharp and ready to share the gospel. He compares it to running a race to receive a prize. There is an end goal—it’s not some aimless life.The Church has an end goal—to make heaven crowded— so as part of the Chur...  Read More

Daily Devotional from 1 Corinthians 4--Verse 5 (NIV)Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.The presence of God will be filled with those we won’t expect. And we must come to it with the attitude that WE are one of th...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Romans 15--Verses 1-2We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.We all know people who drive us crazy with the choices they make. Often these people can be other believers, people who are part of our community. This is inevitable when living in commun...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Romans 10--Verse 1 (CSB)Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God concerning them is for their salvation.Has there ever been someone you really hoped got what was coming to them? I think we all have. When we are working through our negative feelings toward someone, this verse really cuts right to the heart. Paul was severely persecuted by Jewish leaders that d...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Romans 5--Verse 6For while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly.Have you ever felt ungodly? Like, nothing you do is good enough for God? Maybe you feel as if there was no way that God could ever be pleased with you or that maybe you’ve been a disappointment one too many times?Paul is making a bold statement here. Those whom Jesus died for are...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Acts 28--Verse 24 (CSB)Some were persuaded by what [Paul] said, but others did not believe.Isn’t it encouraging that it tells us that not everyone agreed with Paul? When we think about him, we sometimes think he’s some sort of Spiritual superhero that convinced everyone about Jesus. But here it tells us that some people still didn’t believe what he was saying. Even Paul could...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Acts 23--Verse 11 (CSB)The following night, the Lord stood by [Paul] and said, “Have courage! For as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so it is necessary for you to testify in Rome.”Paul has been in a very precarious situation over the last few chapters (and will continue through the rest of Acts). He is consistently on trial for preaching and teaching the good news o...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Acts 18--Verse 9And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent…Sometimes we can get really discouraged when we feel we are not being heard when we talk about the goodness of God. We think “what’s the point?… no one is listening anyway.” Paul came up against a lot of opposition everyplace he went! But Jesus encourage...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Acts 13--Verses 38-39Therefore, let it be known to you, brothers and sisters, that through this man [Jesus] forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you. Everyone who believes is justified through him from everything that you could not be justified from through the law of Moses.What good news! Paul, as a recent convert, is standing tall in the Synagogue and proclaiming the ...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Acts 8—Verses 30-31When Philip ran up to it, he heard [the Ethiopian man] reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you’re reading?” “How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.The Ethiopian man was intrigued by the Jewish scriptures. He was reading them aloud, trying to understand them, but couldn’t. ...  Read More

Daily Devotional from Acts 3--Verses 9-10All the people saw [the lame beggar] walking and praising God, and they recognized that he was the one who used to sit and beg at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. So they were filled with awe and astonishment at what had happened to him.Our testimony of what God has done in our lives is the best witness of Jesus in our lives. Everyone knew who this man was...  Read More