Daily Bible Verse

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Ephesians 4:2 KJV
With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;


Coffee Breath

I was sitting in my chair one morning years ago when my youngest came downstairs. She made a beeline for me, jumping up onto my lap. I gave her a fatherly squeeze and a gentle kiss on the head, and she squealed with delight. But then she furrowed her brow, crinkled her nose, and shot an accusatory glance at my coffee mug. “Daddy,” she announced solemnly. “I love you, and I like you, but I don’t like your smell.”

My daughter couldn’t have known it, but she spoke with grace and truth: she didn’t want to hurt my feelings, but she felt compelled to tell me something. And sometimes we need to do that in our relationships.

In Ephesians 4, Paul zeroes in on how we relate to each other—especially when telling difficult truths. “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love” (v. 2). Humility, gentleness, and patience form our relational foundation. Cultivating those character qualities as God guides us will help us “[speak] the truth in love” (v. 15) and seek to communicate “what is helpful for building others up according to their needs” (v. 29).

No one likes being confronted about weaknesses and blind spots. But when something about us “smells,” God can use faithful friends to speak into our lives with grace, truth, humility, and gentleness.


Reflect & Pray
When has someone gently confronted you? What do you think is most important when you lovingly address a weakness you see in others?

Father, help me to humbly receive correction, and help me to offer it with love, grace, and gentleness.


Insight
On his third missionary journey, Paul spent three years teaching the believers in Ephesus (Acts 19; 20:31). Some six years later, concerned for their spiritual well-being and maturity, he wrote from a Roman prison (Ephesians 3:1; 4:1; 6:20) reminding them how God had so richly and graciously blessed them (1:3). After extolling the privileges, position, and possessions they had because of Jesus (chs. 1–3), the apostle instructed them to “live a life worthy of [their] calling” (4:1), an exhortation that Paul similarly made to the Philippian (1:27), Colossian (1:10), and Thessalonian believers (1 Thessalonians 2:12; 2 Thessalonians 1:11). The Ephesian believers were to be like Christ in how they treated one another—humble, gentle, patient, forbearing, loving, encouraging, kind, compassionate, and forgiving (Ephesians 4:2, 29–32).

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Psalm 18:16 KJV
He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters.


Reaching Out

In a recent post, blogger Bonnie Gray recounted the moment when overwhelming sadness began to creep into her heart. “Out of the blue,” she stated, “during the happiest chapter in my life, . . . I suddenly started experiencing panic attacks and depression.” Gray tried to find different ways to address her pain, but she soon realized that she wasn’t strong enough to handle it alone. “I hadn’t wanted anyone to question my faith, so I kept quiet and prayed that my depression would go away. But God wants to heal us, not shame us or make us hide from our pain.” Gray found healing in the solace of His presence; He was her anchor amid the waves that threatened to overwhelm her.

When we’re in a low place and filled with despair, God is there and will sustain us too. In Psalm 18, David praised God for delivering him from the low place he was in after nearly being defeated by his enemies. He proclaimed, “[God] reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters” (v. 16). Even in moments when despair seems to consume us like crashing waves in an ocean, God loves us so much that He’ll reach out to us and help us, bringing us into a “spacious place” of peace and security (v. 19). Let’s look to Him as our refuge when we feel overwhelmed by the challenges of life.


Reflect & Pray
When have you felt overwhelmed by trials? How did God sustain you?

Heavenly Father, there are times when my burdens become too much to carry. Thank You for continuously reaching out to me, sustaining me, and granting me Your peace, strength, and wisdom.


Insight
Because of David’s success and popularity (1 Samuel 17; 18:15–16), the jealous King Saul tried to kill him (18:10–11). On the run for his life, David sought refuge in mountains and caves (22:1; 23:26; 24:3). But David was mindful that it was God who delivered, protected, and kept him safe. Out of his experience as a fugitive, he wrote Psalm 18 as a thanksgiving song, as noted in the superscription: “Of David the servant of the Lord. He sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.” This song is also found in 2 Samuel 22. David used various metaphors to describe who God was to him: a rock, fortress, deliverer, refuge, shield, horn of salvation, stronghold, and savior (Psalm 18:2–3)—all pictures of protection, security, deliverance, and safety.
 

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Luke 15:6 KJV
And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.


Lost, Found, Joy

“They call me ‘the ringmaster.’ So far this year I’ve found 167 lost rings.”

During a walk on the beach with my wife, Cari, we struck up a conversation with an older man who was using a metal detector to scan an area just below the surf line. “Sometimes rings have names on them,” he explained, “and I love seeing their owners’ faces when I return them. I post online and check to see if anyone contacted lost and found. I’ve found rings missing for years.” When we mentioned that I enjoy metal detecting as well but didn’t do it frequently, his parting words were, “You never know unless you go!”

We find another kind of “search and rescue” in Luke 15. Jesus was criticized for caring about people who were far from God (vv. 1–2). In reply, He told three stories about things that were lost and then found—a sheep, a coin, and a son. The man who finds the lost sheep “joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me’ ” (vv. 5–6). All the stories are ultimately about finding lost people for Christ, and the joy that comes as they’re found in Him.

Jesus came “to seek and to save the lost” (19:10), and He calls us to follow Him in loving people back to God (see Matthew 28:19). The joy of seeing others turn to Him awaits. We’ll never know unless we go.


Reflect & Pray
What joy have you seen when people turn to God? How will you point others to Jesus’ love today?

Thank You, Jesus, for finding and loving me! Please send me in Your joy to another who needs You today.


Insight
Tax collectors were seen as betraying their people by colluding with the Roman government. Many tax collectors abused their role by taking more money than required for taxes and keeping the surplus for themselves (Luke 3:12–13). Scholars aren’t sure what specifically caused people to be labeled “sinners” (15:1), but these persons too would have been excluded from the religious community.

Luke portrays these social and religious outcasts sympathetically. Tax collectors came to John the Baptist eager to know how to repent (3:12). Jesus called Levi the tax collector to follow Him, and Levi immediately did, then hosted a banquet for Him (5:27–30). A woman the Pharisees described as a sinner (7:39) is praised by Christ for her faith (v. 50). Luke argued that those who know they’re sinners are most likely to hear and follow Jesus (5:31–32; 15:1).
 

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Matthew 13:44 KJV
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.


No Loss

My friend Ruel attended a high school reunion held in a former classmate’s home. The waterfront mansion near Manila Bay could accommodate two hundred attendees, and it made Ruel feel small.

“I’ve had many happy years of pastoring remote rural churches,” Ruel told me, “and even though I know I shouldn’t, I couldn’t help but feel envious of my classmate’s material wealth. My thoughts strayed to how different life might be if I’d used my degree to become a businessman instead.”

“But I later reminded myself there’s nothing to feel envious about,” Ruel continued with a smile. “I invested my life in serving God, and the results will last for eternity.” I’ll always remember the peaceful look on his face as he said those words.

Ruel drew peace from Jesus’ parables in Matthew 13:44−46. He knew that God’s kingdom is the ultimate treasure. Seeking and living for His kingdom might take various forms. For some, it might mean full-time ministry, while for others, it may be living out the gospel in a secular workplace. Regardless of how God chooses to use us, we can continue to trust and obey His leading, knowing, like the men in Jesus’ parables, the value of the imperishable treasure we’ve been given. Everything in this world has infinitely less worth than all we gain by following God (1 Peter 1:4−5).

Our life, when placed in His hands, can bear eternal fruit.


Reflect & Pray

What have you had to live without for the sake of following God? How does Matthew 13:44–46 encourage you?

Father, let each day of my life be a celebration of the treasure I’ve found in You.


Insight
The two brief parables in Matthew 13:44–46 appear amid the telling of seven parables on the kingdom of heaven (vv. 1–52). After Jesus told the first parable (the farmer scattering seed, vv. 3–9), His disciples asked why He always spoke in parables (v. 10). His answer was telling: “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them” (v. 11). He told the disciples, “Blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear” (v. 16). Then He explained the parable (vv. 18–23). The disciples desired to know the true meaning of Jesus’ words, and their desire was rewarded. They’d left everything to follow Him. In essence, they were living out the parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl (vv. 44–46) because they were receptive to the message of the gospel. They’d found the treasure.
 

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Proverbs 22:6 KJV
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.


Fighting “Flashy” Things

In the 1960s-era TV series The Andy Griffith Show, a man tells Andy he should let his son Opie decide how he wants to live. Andy disagrees: “You can’t let a young’un decide for himself. He’ll grab at the first flashy thing with shiny ribbons on it. Then, when he finds out there’s a hook in it, it’s too late. Wrong ideas come packaged with so much glitter that it’s hard to convince them that other things might be better in the long run.” He concludes that it’s important for parents to model right behavior and help “keep temptation away.”

Andy’s words are related to the wisdom found in Proverbs: “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it” (22:6). Although many may read these words as a promise, they're really a guide. All of us are called to make our own decision to believe in Jesus. But we can help lay a biblical foundation through our love for God and Scripture. And we can pray that as the little ones under our care mature, they choose to receive Christ as Savior and walk in His ways and not “in the paths of the wicked” (v. 5).

Our own victory over “flashy things” through the Holy Spirit’s enabling is also powerful testimony. Jesus’ Spirit helps us to withstand temptation and molds our lives into examples worth imitating.


Reflect & Pray
Why is it helpful to remember that Proverbs 22:6 isn’t a promise but a wise principle? Who can you help to “train up”?

Dear Father, help me to instill Your values into the hearts of the children You’ve placed in my life.


Insight
The book of Proverbs frequently emphasizes the importance of adults providing wise guidance and discipline for children. In Proverbs 29, parents are warned that “a child left undisciplined disgraces its mother” (v. 15), but if they discipline their children, “they will give you peace; they will bring you the delights you desire” (v. 17).

But these general principles on the wisdom and necessity of adults providing children guidance don’t imply that parents carry all the responsibility for their children’s choices. Other sections of the book nuance the picture. Proverbs is addressed to the young (1:4–7), emphasizing the importance of every person choosing to humbly listen to the voice of wisdom (v. 20; 2:2–5) and to rely on God for the wisdom only found in Him (2:5–6). Ironically, the man who wrote those words, Solomon, would stray from the paths of wisdom as an adult (1 Kings 11:9–11).
 

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Colossians 3:13 KJV

Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.


Love That Forgives

Eighty years of marriage! My husband’s great-uncle Pete and great-aunt Ruth celebrated this remarkable milestone on May 31, 2021. After a chance meeting in 1941 when Ruth was still in high school, the young couple were so eager to get married that they eloped the day after Ruth graduated. Pete and Ruth believe God brought them together and has guided them all these years.

Reflecting on eight decades of marriage, Pete and Ruth both agree that one key to sustaining their relationship has been the decision to choose forgiveness. Anyone in a healthy relationship understands that we all regularly need forgiveness for the ways we hurt each other, whether through an unkind word, a broken promise, or a forgotten task.

In a section of Scripture written to help believers in Jesus live together in unity, Paul refers to the essential role forgiveness plays. After urging his readers to choose “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12), Paul adds the encouragement to “forgive one another if any of you has a grievance” (v. 13). Most importantly, all their interactions with each were to be guided by love (v. 14).

Relationships that model the characteristics outlined by Paul are a blessing. May God help all of us work to cultivate healthy relationships characterized by love and forgiveness.


Reflect & Pray
How have you experienced healing through forgiving or being forgiven? How are relationships strengthened through practicing both forgiveness and accountability?

Jesus, help me to forgive others just as You’ve forgiven me.


Insight
Compassion is kindness for people in need. More than just feeling pity, compassion moves you to relieve the misery of a person. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the Samaritan “had compassion” on the injured man (Luke 10:33 esv), which moved him to come to his rescue. The Greeks and Romans valued courage, strength, wisdom, power, and revenge. For them, compassion was a weakness, not a virtue. But for believers in Jesus, compassion is what marks us out as God’s children. Jesus tells us to imitate our heavenly Father: “You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate” (6:36 nlt.) Compassion is God’s very person. In one of the greatest self-revelations in the Bible, He described Himself as “the compassionate and gracious God” (Exodus 34:6). We’re most like our Father when we’re compassionate, kind, and gracious to others.
 

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Psalm 103:9 KJV
He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.


Mercy for You and Me

One of consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic was the docking of cruise ships and the quarantining of passengers. The Wall Street Journal featured an article that included interviews of some of the tourists. Commenting about how being quarantined provided more opportunities for conversations, one passenger joked how his spouse—who possessed an excellent memory—was able to bring up every transgression he ever had and sensed she wasn’t done yet!

Accounts like this might make us smile, remind us of our humanness, and serve to caution us if we’re prone to hold too tightly to the things we should release. Yet what helps us to be kindly disposed to those who hurt us? Glimpses of our great God, as He’s portrayed in passages like Psalm 103:8–12.

The Message’s rendering of verses 8–10 is noteworthy: “God is sheer mercy and grace; not easily angered, he’s rich in love. He doesn’t endlessly nag and scold, nor hold grudges forever. He doesn’t treat us as our sins deserve, nor pay us back in full for our wrongs.” Asking for God’s help as we prayerfully read Scripture can cause us to have second thoughts about ill-conceived payback or plans to punish. And it can prompt prayers for ourselves and for those we may be tempted to harm by withholding grace, mercy, and forgiveness.


Reflect & Pray
Who have you been tempted to harm because of the hurt they’ve caused you? Who can you ask to pray for you?

God of mercy, kindness, and forgiveness, please help me to extend grace and mercy to those who’ve caused me pain.


Insight
Psalm 103:8 recalls how God revealed Himself to Moses during the exodus from Egypt. After Moses pleaded with God to “show me your glory” (Exodus 33:18), God promised to let His glory pass by Moses. In Exodus 34, we’re told that God “passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin’ ” (vv. 6–7).

Psalm 103 elaborates on God’s endless compassion, mercy, and grace as the only hope for His sinful people. He is a forgiving God who “does not treat us as our sins deserve” (v. 10) but removes our sin “as far as the east is from the west” (v. 12). God’s willingness to forgive is rooted in His deep love for His children and compassionate understanding of their struggles (vv. 11, 13).
 

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2 Corinthians 9:7 KJV
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.


The Pink Coat

Brenda was walking toward the mall exit when a flush of pink from a display window caught her eye. She turned and stood spellbound before a “cotton-candy-colored coat.” Oh, how Holly would love it! Finances had been tight for her coworker friend who was a single mother, and while Brenda knew Holly needed a warm coat, she was also confident that her friend would never lay down cash on such a purchase for herself. After wavering ever so slightly, Brenda smiled, reached for her wallet, and arranged for the coat to be shipped to Holly’s home. She added an anonymous card, “You are so very loved.” Brenda practically danced to her car.

Joy is a by-product of God-nudged giving. As Paul instructed the Corinthians in the art of generosity, he said, “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7). He also noted, “Whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (v. 6).

Sometimes we slip cash into the offering plate. At other times we donate online to a worthy ministry. And then there are moments when God leads us to respond to the need of a friend with a tangible expression of His love. We offer a bag of groceries, a tank of gas . . . or even the gift of a perfectly pink coat.


Reflect & Pray
Who might you show God’s love to today? How can your generosity bubble up in joy as a return gift to you?

Loving Father, You gave me the gift of Your Son, and so I want to give to others. May I respond to Your gentle nudge to meet the needs of another.


Insight
This small segment of Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth (2 Corinthians 9:6–9) appears amid a much larger section on giving. The apostle had introduced the theme in chapter 8, where he held up the much poorer but very generous Macedonian church as a model to emulate (vv. 1–5). Throughout his appeal, he asked the Corinthian church to keep their original commitment to give (vv. 10–12) and to do so willingly and cheerfully (9:5, 7). As Paul often did, he referenced other Scriptures to build his argument. Here he quoted Psalm 112, which outlines the characteristics of the righteous (“those who fear the Lord,” v. 1). The psalmist noted how they’re “gracious and compassionate” (v. 4), and that “good will come to those who are generous and lend freely” (v. 5). It’s not that generous giving makes one righteous; rather, the one who is righteous will give generously.
 

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Hebrews 4:16 KJV
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.


Seven Minutes of Terror

When the Mars rover Perseverance landed on that red planet on February 18, 2021, those monitoring its arrival endured “seven minutes of terror.” As the spacecraft ended its 292-million-mile journey, it went through a complex landing procedure it had to do on its own. Signals from Mars to Earth take several minutes, so NASA couldn’t hear from Perseverance during the landing. Not being in contact was frightening for the team who had put so much effort and resources into the mission.

Sometimes we may experience our own times of fear when we feel we’re not hearing from God—we pray but we don’t get answers. In Scripture, we find people getting answers to prayer quickly (see Daniel 9:20–23) and those not getting answers for a long time (see Hannah’s story in 1 Samuel 1:10–20). Perhaps the most poignant example of a delayed answer—one that surely struck terror in the hearts of Mary and Martha—was when they asked Jesus to help their sick brother Lazarus (John 11:3). Jesus delayed, and their brother died (vv. 6–7, 14–15). Yet four days later, Christ answered by resurrecting Lazarus (vv. 43–44).

Waiting for answers to our prayers can be difficult. But God can comfort and help as we “approach [His] throne of grace with confidence, . . . [that] we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).


Reflect & Pray
What are you praying for, but the answer doesn’t seem to be coming? How can God increase your faith as you wait on Him?

Loving God, You know what’s on my heart. Please help me trust You as I await Your answer.


Insight
In the gospel of John, Jesus begins His ministry with the miraculous sign of turning water into wine. As the book progresses, Jesus continues to validate His message with miracles—the last of which is raising Lazarus from the dead.

The author of John argues throughout his gospel that Jesus is the only way to life (see 1:4; 14:6). And here, He proves it inescapably by returning His friend to the land of the living (11:38–44). Ironically, Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead sets off the chain of events that would result in Christ’s own death. But it’s that very death and later resurrection that would secure life for not just Lazarus but all who believe in Jesus. As John states, “By believing you may have life in his name” (20:31).
 

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Deuteronomy 8:18 KJV
But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.


Sustainer of Blessings

On January 15, 1919, a huge molasses tank burst in Boston. A fifteen-foot wave of more than two million gallons of molasses careened through the street at over 30 mph, sweeping away railcars, buildings, people, and animals. Molasses might seem harmless enough, but that day it was deadly: 21 people lost their lives with more than 150 injured.

Sometimes even good things—like molasses—can overwhelm us unexpectedly. Before the Israelites entered the land God promised them, Moses warned the people to be careful not to take credit for the good things they’d receive: “When you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase . . . , then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God.” They weren’t to attribute this wealth to their own strength or capabilities. Instead, Moses said, “Remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:12–14, 17–18).

All good things—including physical health and the skills needed to earn a living—are blessings from the hand of our loving God. Even when we’ve worked hard, it’s He who sustains us. Oh, to hold our blessings with open hands, that we may gratefully praise God for His kindness to us!


Reflect & Pray
What kindnesses from God are you thankful for today? Who can you help with a blessing you’ve received?

Thank You, Father, for sustaining me every moment. Please help me to recognize Your kindness, so I may share it with others.


Insight
As Deuteronomy opens, the Israelites are preparing to enter the promised land. In this final book attributed to Moses, he recounts the law and reminds the people to remember all God has done for them. In today’s passage, the Israelites are called to remember and obey God when they settle in their new land, for He was and will be the source of their blessings (Deuteronomy 8:17–18). God miraculously delivered them from slavery and the Egyptians, led them through the desert, provided manna, and even kept their clothes from wearing out (5:15; 7:18; 8:2–4; 15:15; 16:3, 12; 24:18, 22).