Daily Bible Verse

[nanny]

Proverbs 3:11 KJV
My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction:


Love That Disciplines

When I took a family studies class in college, we were asked to write a “family history”—a record of the key events that make up one’s childhood. This included the patterns that characterized typical family life and the methods of discipline we experienced. We all had at least one instance of a parent misapplying discipline and leaving an emotional or physical scar. Understandably, traumatic experiences like these may affect the way we interpret our heavenly Father’s discipline.

In Proverbs 3:11–12, the wise teacher invites readers to accept God’s discipline. The word discipline could be translated “correction.” As a good and loving Father, God speaks through His Spirit and the Scriptures to correct self-destructive behavior. God’s discipline is relational—rooted in His love and His desire for what’s best for us. Sometimes it looks like consequences. Sometimes God prompts someone to point out our blind spots. Often, it’s uncomfortable, but God’s discipline is a gift.

But we don’t always see it that way. The wise man cautioned, “Do not despise the Lord’s discipline” (v. 11). Sometimes we fear God’s discipline. At other times we misinterpret bad things in our lives as God’s discipline. This is far from the heart of a loving Father who disciplines because He delights in us and corrects because He loves us.

Instead of fearing God’s discipline, may we learn to accept it. When we hear God’s voice of correction in our hearts or experience conviction when reading Scripture, may we thank God that He delights in us enough to lead us to what’s best.

Reflect & Pray
How do you recognize God’s discipline? How do you sense the love of God in the midst of it?

God, help me to recognize Your discipline so that I can discover the freedom You offer.

Insight
The book of Proverbs is a collection of wise sayings, advice, instructions, and warnings. It’s structured as a life manual from a father to his son—an encouragement to live wisely and in a way that obeys and honors God. Solomon, who “spoke three thousand proverbs” (1 Kings 4:32), is the main author (see Proverbs 1:1–6; 10:1; 25:1). Other authors include unnamed Jewish wise men (22:17–24:34), Agur (ch. 30), and Lemuel (ch. 31). In chapter 3, Solomon admonishes us not to neglect the wisdom of God but to obey it (v. 1). A wise person is faithful (v. 3), trusts and depends on God (vv. 5–6), isn’t proud and avoids evil (v. 7), puts God first in everything (v. 9), and learns from His discipline (v. 11).
 

[nanny]

Matthew 7:14 KJV
Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.


Accessible to All

From a manmade bridge on the small Caribbean island of Eleuthera, visitors can admire the stark contrast between the roiling dark blue waters of the Atlantic and the calm turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea. Over time, storms washed away the original strip of land once marked by a natural stone arch. The glass window bridge that now serves as a tourist attraction on Eleuthera is known as “the narrowest place on earth.”

The Bible describes the road that leads to eternal life as narrow “and only a few find it” (Matthew 7:14). The gate is considered small because God the Son is the only bridge that can reconcile fallen man and God the Father through the power of the Holy Spirit (vv. 13–14; see John 10:7–9; 16:13). However, Scripture also says that believers from every people, nation, and societal rank can enter heaven and will bow before the King of Kings and worship together around His throne (Revelation 5:9). This phenomenal image of contrast and unity includes all of God’s beautifully diverse people.

Though we’re separated from God by our sin, every person God created is invited to enter eternity in heaven by walking this narrow path of reconciliation through a personal relationship with Christ. His sacrifice on the cross, resurrection from the tomb, and ascension to heaven is the good news, accessible to all and worth sharing today and every day.


Reflect & Pray
How did you respond after hearing the good news? How can you be more intentional about sharing it with others?

God the Father, please empower me through Your Holy Spirit so I can show others the accessible path that leads to Your approachable Son, Jesus.


Insight
Today’s passage (Matthew 7:13–14) begins the last section of the Sermon on the Mount. Over the centuries, these words of Jesus have become foundational, but when we slow down and absorb the imagery Jesus paints, we begin to feel their true weight. The words Jesus uses to describe the gates and roads (wide and broad/small and narrow) bring with them comfort and challenge. The first pair gives the hearer a sense of comfort and ease. There’s no challenge to crossing through a broad gate, and a wide path leaves plenty of room for exploration and wandering. Those who walk the wide path don’t need to focus or be deliberate. The small gate and narrow path, on the other hand, express intentionality. Choosing this door and path requires a choice and a focus on one’s actions.



 
 

[nanny]

Don't know whats going on but the site won't let me post a picture. Tried several times.


Psalm 85:8 KJV
I will hear what God the Lord will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.


Listening Matters

“Come at once. We have struck a berg.” Those were the first words Harold Cottam, the wireless operator on the RMS Carpathia, received from the sinking RMS Titanic at 12:25 a.m. on April 15, 1912. The Carpathia would be the first ship to the disaster scene, saving 706 lives.

In the US Senate hearings days later, the Carpathia’s captain Arthur Rostron testified, “The whole thing was absolutely providential. . . . The wireless operator was in his cabin at the time, not on official business at all, but just simply listening as he was undressing. . . . In ten minutes maybe he would have been in bed, and we would not have heard the message.”

Listening matters—especially listening to God. The writers of Psalm 85, the sons of Korah, urged attentive obedience when they wrote, “I will listen to what God the Lord says; he promises peace to his people, his faithful servants—but let them not turn to folly. Surely his salvation is near those who fear him” (vv. 8–9). Their admonition is especially poignant because their ancestor Korah had rebelled against God and had perished in the wilderness (Numbers 16:1–35).

The night the Titanic sank, another ship was much closer, but its wireless operator had gone to bed. Had he heard the distress signal, perhaps more lives would have been saved. When we listen to God by obeying His teaching, He’ll help us navigate even life’s most troubled waters.

Reflect & Pray
In what ways will you stay attentive to God and the Scriptures today? How can doing so help you to help others?

Father, help me to stay close to You in my thoughts, words, and actions. Please use me as Your servant to bring Your hope to others.

Insight
When the book of Psalms was being collected, it was organized into five books: 1–41; 42–72; 73–89; 90–106; and 107–150. Each book concludes with a statement of praise or blessing to God Himself. For example, Book III ends with Psalm 89:52: “Praise be to the Lord forever! Amen and Amen.” David is the most well known of the psalmists and most (though not all) of his psalms are found in Books I and II.

Each book is gathered around a particular theme. Book III, which contains Psalm 85, is one of the shorter books but is heavy with psalms of lament—many of which were composed by Asaph or the sons of Korah. With its emphasis on lament, Psalm 85, written by the sons of Korah as a cry for God’s rescue and renewal, fits very well in Book III.
 

[nanny]

2 Corinthians 8:3 KJV
For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves;


The True Nature of Love

During the pandemic lockdown, Jerry was forced to close his fitness center and had no income for months. One day he received a text from a friend asking to meet him at his facility at 6:00 p.m. Jerry wasn’t sure why but made his way there. Soon cars started streaming into the parking lot. The driver in the first car placed a basket on the sidewalk near the building. Then car after car (maybe fifty of them) came by. Those inside waved at Jerry or hollered out a hello, stopped at the basket, and dropped in a card or cash. Some sacrificed their money; all gave their time to encourage him.

The true nature of love is sacrificial, according to the apostle Paul. He explained to the Corinthians that the Macedonians gave “even beyond their ability” so they could meet the needs of the apostles and others (2 Corinthians 8:3). They even “pleaded” with Paul for the opportunity to give to them and to God’s people. The basis for their giving was the sacrificial heart of Jesus Himself. He left the riches of heaven to come to earth to be a servant and to give His very life. “Though he was rich, yet for [our] sake he became poor” (v. 9).

May we too plead with God so that we might “excel in this grace of giving” (v. 7) in order to lovingly meet the needs of others.


Reflect & Pray
How might sacrificial service or giving fit into your life this week? Who needs your encouragement?

Loving God, You are so good. Please give me opportunities to bless others for You in Your power and wisdom.


Insight
Most of Paul’s epistles are bookended with greetings and benedictions that include the word grace. We see this in 2 Corinthians: “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:2) and “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ . . . be with you all” (13:14). What’s in view is “favor or kindness of some sort that’s freely given.” Grace is a translation of the Greek word cháris. Next to the book of Romans, this word appears in 2 Corinthians more than any other book in the New Testament. In 2 Corinthians 8, cháris occurs seven times. In the NIV in verses 1, 6, 7, and 9, it’s translated as grace. However, it can also be translated “the privilege” (v. 4), “thanks” (v. 16), and “the offering” (v. 19).
 

[nanny]

Job 2:10 KJV
But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.


When We Don’t Understand

“I don’t understand His plan. I turned my whole life over to Him. And this happens!” Such was the message of a son to his mother when his dream to succeed as a professional athlete was temporarily derailed. Who among us hasn’t had some kind of unexpected, disappointing experience that sends our minds into overdrive with exclamations and questions? A family member cuts off communication without explanation; health gains are reversed; a company relocates unexpectedly; a life-altering accident happens.

Job 1–2 records a series of tragedies and setbacks in Job’s life. Humanly speaking, if there was anyone who qualified for a life free from trouble, it was Job. “This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil” (Job 1:1). But life doesn’t always work out the way we’d like it to—it didn’t for Job, and it doesn’t for us. When his wife counseled him to “curse God and die!” (2:9), Job’s words to her were wise, instructive, and fitting for us as well when things happen—big or small—that we’d rather not face. “ ‘Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?’ In all this, Job did not sin in what he said” (v. 10).

By God’s strength, may our trust in and reverence for Him remain, even when we can’t understand how He’s at work during life’s difficult days.

Reflect & Pray
When has your faith in God been tested? What has He used during tough circumstances to help your reverence for Him to remain intact?

Father, help me to trust You and honor You when I can’t see Your hand or understand Your plan.

Insight
In the book of Job, Job and his friends discuss the causes behind the good and the bad that befall us all. Part of the conclusion is that the God who’s in control is bigger than the systems we use to think about Him. In the end, God does indeed confirm to Job that He is, after a manner of speaking, responsible for the events in our lives. In Job 38:1–40:2, God shows that it’s His power and wisdom that run the cosmos, not Job’s.

Job seems to know this when he asks his wife, “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” (2:10). Though the reader knows God has given Satan permission to afflict Job (vv. 3–6), Job himself sees his troubles as originating from God (v. 10). Certain events in our lives may have an immediate cause, but they all fall under His sovereignty.
 

[nanny]

Acts 4:33-34 KJV
33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.

34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold,


Extending Grace to Others

Our son spent the early years of his life in a children’s home prior to our adopting him. Before leaving the cinderblock building together to go home, we asked to collect his belongings. Sadly, he had none. We exchanged the clothes he was wearing for the new items we’d brought for him and also left some clothing for the other children. Even though I was grieved by how little he had, I rejoiced that we could now help meet his physical and emotional needs.

A few years later, we saw a person asking for donations for families in need. My son was eager to donate his stuffed animals and a few coins to help them. Given his background, he might have (understandably) been more inclined to hold tightly to his belongings.

I’d like to think the reason for his generous response was the same as that of the early church: “God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all” that nobody in their midst had need (Acts 4:33–34). The people willingly sold their own possessions to provide for one another’s needs.

When we become aware of the needs of others, whether material or intangible, may God’s grace be so powerfully at work in us that we respond as they did, willingly giving from our hearts to those in need. This makes us vessels of God’s grace as fellow believers in Jesus, “one in heart and mind” (v. 32).


Reflect & Pray
How’s God’s grace at work in you? What could you share with others as a manifestation of His grace?

Thank you, God, for all You’ve given to me, including Your grace. Help me to extend Your grace to others.


Insight
Twice Luke mentions the willingness of believers in Jesus to sell property and share possessions (Acts 2:41–47; 4:32–35). The Holy Spirit had come to Jerusalem as the city swelled with visitors for the Jewish feast of Pentecost. Overwhelmed by the apostles’ assurance that God was willing to forgive them, those who stepped forward to believe in Christ saw one another’s needs and felt one another’s pain. It was then, after again mentioning their mutual care, that Luke describes a husband and wife who tried to leave a false impression of generosity. Ananias and Sapphira were caught lying about the details of their gift, and suddenly both died (5:1–10). The generosity Luke emphasized was the result of those whose hearts had been changed by the Spirit of Jesus.
 

[nanny]

James 1:27 KJV
Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.


Active Faith

Sam’s father had to flee for his life during a military coup. With the sudden loss of income, the family could no longer afford the crucial medicine that kept Sam’s brother alive. Seething at God, Sam thought, What have we done to deserve this?

A believer in Jesus heard about the family’s troubles. Finding he had enough money to cover the medicine, he bought a supply and took it to them. The life-saving gift from a stranger had a profound impact. “This Sunday, we will go to this man’s church,” his mother declared. Sam’s anger began to subside. And eventually, one by one, each member of the family put their faith in Jesus.

When James wrote about the necessity of a lifestyle of integrity accompanying a profession of faith in Christ, he singled out the need to care for others. “Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food,” James wrote. “If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?” (2:15–16).

Our actions demonstrate the genuineness of our faith. Significantly, those actions can influence the faith-choices of others. In Sam’s case, he became a pastor and church-planter. Eventually he would call the man who helped his family “Papa Mapes.” He now knew him as his spiritual father—the one who showed them the love of Jesus.


Reflect & Pray
How have you experienced the love of Jesus extended to you? What can you do to help someone in need?

Faithful God, help me to live out my faith in You. I want the way I serve others to honor You.


Insight
James was the half-brother of Jesus (Mark 6:3). While Jesus’ siblings were slow in coming to faith, Paul tells us that Jesus appeared to James after the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:7; Galatians 1:19). As a result, James and his brothers are listed among the believers in the upper room in Acts 1:14. Following the execution of James the son of Zebedee and the brother of John (Acts 12:2), Christ’s brother James would become a leader in the church (v. 17; 15:13–29). Sometimes called “James the Just,” he was martyred for his faith around ad 60.
 

[nanny]

Psalm 139:23 KJV
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:


God Knows Your Story

As I drove home after lunch with my best friend, I thanked God out loud for her. She knows me and loves me in spite of things I don’t love about myself. She’s one of a small circle of people who accept me as I am—my quirks, habits, and screw-ups. Still, there are parts of my story I resist sharing even with her and others that I love—times where I’ve clearly not been the hero, times I’ve been judgmental or unkind or unloving.

But God does know my whole story. He’s the One I can freely talk to even if I’m reluctant to talk with others.

The familiar words of Psalm 139 describe the intimacy we enjoy with our Sovereign King. He knows us completely! (v. 1). He’s “familiar with all [our] ways” (v. 3). He invites us to come to Him with our confusion, our anxious thoughts, and our struggles with temptation. When we’re willing to yield completely to Him, He reaches out to restore and rewrite the parts of our story that make us sad because we’ve wandered from Him.

God knows us better than anyone else ever can, and still . . . He loves us! When we daily surrender ourselves to Him and seek to know Him more fully, He can change our story for His glory. He’s the Author who’s continuing to write it.


Reflect & Pray
What assurance do you have that God will always love you unconditionally? How can you make yielding to Him a daily practice?

Precious Father, thank You for loving me as Your child despite the times I’ve disappointed You. Help me to yield all of myself to You in full assurance that You’re faithfully walking beside me.


Insight
Psalm 139 echoes three different types of psalms: praise, lament, and wisdom. However, one key theme throughout is indicated by verses at the beginning and end of the psalm: God searches us, and He knows us (vv. 1, 23). The word used for “search” is a term that could be used in a legal case when someone is cross-examined; in other words, it involves God’s diligent probing. The word used for “know” means to know someone intimately and personally. It’s a word that’s sometimes used to refer to sexual relations. Used here, it shows that God knows the depths of our very being, which is pointed out by the psalmist who notes that God knit us together (v. 13). When the psalmist invites God to search his heart and “anxious thoughts” (v. 23), however, he’s vulnerably asking Him to know him on an even deeper level.
 

[nanny]

Luke 22:19 KJV
And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.


Remember and Celebrate

On December 6, 1907, explosions rocked a small community in the US state of West Virginia, producing one of the worst disasters in the history of the coal-mining industry. Some 360 miners were killed, and it’s been estimated that this horrific tragedy left behind about 250 widows and 1,000 children without fathers. Historians maintain that the memorial service became the seedbed from which the celebration of Father’s Day in the US would eventually grow. Out of great loss came remembrance and—eventually—celebration.

The greatest tragedy in human history occurred when human beings crucified their Creator. Yet, that dark moment also produced both remembrance and celebration. The night before He would go to the cross, Jesus took the elements of Israel’s Passover and created His own memorial celebration. Luke’s record describes the scene this way: “And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me’ ” (Luke 22:19).

Still today, whenever we take communion, we honor His great, unflinching love for us—remembering the cost of our rescue and celebrating the gift of life His sacrifice produced. As Charles Wesley said in his great hymn, “Amazing love! How can it be that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?”


Reflect & Pray
How often do you find yourself just going through the motions when taking communion? What are some ways to keep your focus on the cross?

Father, when I come to the memorial table, help me to remember why my forgiveness was so costly, and help me to celebrate Your great, awesome love.


Insight
The Passover meal commemorates the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt. A lamb is eaten with bitter herbs symbolizing the bitterness of slavery in Egypt, while unleavened bread symbolizes their hasty departure. Jesus, however, shockingly altered the Passover meal ceremony, indicating that this particular meal was a covenant-making one in which God’s covenant with humanity would be renewed through Jesus’ sacrificial death. In this way the Passover would find “fulfillment in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:16).

The transformation of the Passover meal’s significance occurs through Jesus’ decision to become the Passover lamb in order to deliver the world from sin, evil, and death. The fulfillment of the Passover is the messianic banquet (14:15–24) celebrating God’s deliverance of all creation. At Jesus’ second coming, this banquet will celebrate the complete fulfillment of this deliverance, though Christ’s victory is already won and celebrated now.
 

[nanny]

Psalm 121:2

My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.Peace in the ChaosSomething that sounded like firecrackers roused Joanne from sleep. Glass shattered. Wishing she didn’t live alone, she got up to see what was going on. The dark streets were empty and the house seemed to be okay—then she saw the broken mirror.

Investigators found a bullet only a half-inch from the gas line. If it had struck the line, she probably wouldn’t have made it out alive. Later they discovered it was a stray bullet from nearby apartments, but Joanne was afraid to be at home. She prayed for peace, and once the glass was cleaned up, her heart calmed.

Psalm 121 is a reminder for us to look to God in times of trouble. Here, we see that we can have peace and calm because our “help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (v. 2). The God who created the universe helps and watches over us (v. 3)—even while we sleep—but He Himself never sleeps (v. 4). He watches over us day and night (v. 6), “both now and forevermore” (v. 8).

No matter what kind of situations we find ourselves in, God sees. And He’s waiting for us to turn to Him. When we do, our circumstances may not always change, but He’s promised His peace in the midst of it all.

Reflect & Pray

When have you experienced God’s peace in a troubling situation? How have you seen Him help others?Loving God, thank You for Your peace. Please continue to calm my heart in the areas of my life that feel chaotic.


Insight

Three times a year, all male Israelites were to come to the temple in Jerusalem to observe the three annual national feasts (Deuteronomy 16:16): Passover (Unleavened Bread), Pentecost (Weeks), and Tabernacles. As the pilgrims walked the mountain paths to Jerusalem, they sang from an anthology of fifteen songs known as the “Pilgrim Psalms,” characteristically titled “A song of ascents” in the superscription.Psalm 121, known as “The Traveler’s Psalm,” is a prayer for journeying mercies, addressing safety and security concerns as we journey through life. This psalm is dominated by the Hebrew verb šāmar, rendered watches/watch (vv. 3, 4, 5, 7, 8) or keep (v. 7), meaning “to preserve, to guard, to watch carefully over.” Even as the psalmist speaks of unknown dangers, he confidently affirms that God—our Helper (vv. 1–3) and Keeper (vv. 4–8)—will continually watch over us.