Paul’s words in Romans 8:28-39 are the most compelling on the subject of preservation anywhere in Scripture. I say this for two reasons. First, their purpose is to teach preservation. Second, this is the most extensive biblical passage teaching that God keeps his saints. Familiar words lead off: And we know that in all things…
Why Are You So Angry?
The LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast?” — Genesis 4:6 The first sin recorded for us in the Bible outside of the garden of Eden is the sin of Cain killing his brother, Abel. We’re told that Abel kept the f locks and Cain worked the soil (Genesis…
Walking with God: Winter
Finding God in Our Losses, in the Mundane, and Sustaining Our Hearts Over What Can Feel Like the Long Path of Obedience The Passing of Scout Our family is grieving. Our beloved golden retriever, Scout, has died. It’s hard to describe this loss, because you would have to have known Scout and what he meant…
Jesus’ Tears Give You Permission to Shed Your Own
Martha sat in a damp world, cloudy, tearful. And Jesus sat in it with her. I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in Me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again. — John 11:25 NLT Hear those words in a Superman tone, if you like. Clark Kent descending from…
Finding Hope in the Valleys
I will always remember the year the shyest boy in kindergarten was chosen to star in the school musical. Old MacDonald was the show, loosely based on the favorite song “Old MacDonald Had a Farm”, and Old MacDonald himself was played by none other than my little brother. Looking back, it’s hard to not think…
“Even If He Doesn’t” Faith
Editor’s Note: It’s Sit & Listen Saturday at Devotionals Daily. Enjoy reading as well as listening to this devotion from The Story Devotional. Listen on the blog or on your Alexa device by enabling the skill and then prompting, “Alexa, ask devotionals to read today’s devotion.” Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do…
Crazy Prayers
This woman is driving me crazy. – Luke 18:5 I love the parable of the persistent widow. I don’t mean any disrespect, but I think persistent is a nice word for crazy. This woman is crazy, but when the cause is a righteous one, it’s a holy crazy! We aren’t told what injustice took place, but she was on a mission.…
Giving Hope to the Hopeless
My husband, Rich, lost his dad unexpectedly when he was eight. When father and son functions happened through the years, men from church and his friends’ dads always included him. Perhaps that’s why my husband has such a heart for Little League baseball and is known throughout our community as a caring coach. When our next door neighbor and…
The Making of Us: Marrying Your Trial with Your Talent
Listen to author Sheridan Voysey read this devotion aloud in the video below. But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. — Ephesians 4:7 I made a number of discoveries while writing The Making of Us — one of them being that the trials of life can actually release our greatest gifts into…
Satan Stalked Him
He faced all of the same temptations we do. — Hebrews 4:15 You and I know what it is like to endure a moment of temptation or an hour of temptation, even a day of temptation. But forty days? That is what Jesus faced. The Spirit led Jesus into the desert where the devil tempted Jesus for forty…