October 9, 2020 | Psalm 51 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Seventeenth-century pastor John Donne was also a celebrated poet. In one of his Holy Sonnets reflecting on the Second Coming, he wrote, “When we are there; here on this lowly ground / Teach me how to repent; for that’s as good / As if thou […]
October 8, 2020 | Psalm 50 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Why do you pray? Read your Bible? Tithe? Do you do these things to earn God’s favor? Today’s psalm explores the difference between the things we do that truly honor God and the things we do which are a thinly disguised attempt to impress God […]
October 6, 2020 | Psalm 55 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue When Hezekiah was king of Judah, the powerful nation of Assyria marched into their land and threatened Jerusalem. The commander of the Assyrians taunted the Judean king, even offering to give him 2,000 horses for their upcoming battle (2 Kings 18:23). Hezekiah went into the […]
October 5, 2020 | Psalm 47 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue C. S. Lewis noticed that when people find something they love, they naturally want other people to join them in praising it. “Isn’t the painting beautiful?” “Wasn’t that play magnificent?” He reflected upon the reason for this: “I think we delight to praise what we […]
October 4, 2020 | Psalm 46 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue In October 1527, Martin Luther’s life looked bleak. He had been hiding for years because of his commitment to salvation by faith alone. In August, the bubonic plague swept the area where he lived. It must have felt like the world was falling apart. In […]
October 3, 2020 | Psalm 45 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue The Battle of Gettysburg was costly. In just three days of fighting, there were more than 50,000 casualties. The nation was weary of war and wondered if it would ever end. In his famous Gettysburg address, Abraham Lincoln presented a vision for the future: “[T]hat […]
October 2, 2020 | Psalm 44 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue On average, eleven Christians a day were killed for their faith in Jesus last year. In May 2019, the BBC reported that persecution of Christians was reaching “near genocide levels” in some parts of the world. This can lead us to ask “Why?” and […]
October 1, 2020 | Psalms 42–43 MONTHLY ISSUES This Month’s Issue “There are two easy ways to die in the desert: thirst and drowning,” says naturalist Craig Childs. We depend on water for life! In the second “book” of Psalms, our longing for God is compared to thirst. Chapters 42 and 43 were originally one […]
September 30, 2020 | 1 Samuel 31:1–13 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue Although this Old Testament book gets its name from Samuel, one of its main characters, its primary focus is the contrast between Saul and David. Saul’s story unfolds like a great tragedy. His failure is foreshadowed at the outset, and all subsequent events move […]
September 29, 2020 | 1 Samuel 30:1–31 DEVOTIONS This Month’s Issue “Out of the frying pan and into the fire” describes the feeling when you pass from one trouble only to find yourself in another difficult situation. Just when you breathe a sigh of relief that your troubles are over, you find yourself in a […]