Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer; for he said, “Till now the Lord has helped us.” 1 Sam 7:12 (ESV) Come, Thou Fount of every blessing, Tune my heart to sing Thy grace; Streams of mercy, never ceasing, Call for songs of loudest … More Here I raise my Ebenezer; Here by Thy great help I’ve come
Look for statements about God’s promises as we read 2 Cor 1:17-22 in our reading plan today: Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans according to the flesh, ready to say “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? As surely as God is faithful, our word to you … More Better Promises
“Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it at all.” “Like a child.” What does Jesus mean? Coty Pinckney on Mark 10:13-16, “Childlike Faith, Childlike Giving” Does He mean: (1) Children are perfect? If you believe that, I welcome you to spend one … More How do we “receive the kingdom of God like a child”?
Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness, tremble before him, all the earth! Psalm 96:9 (on our reading plan today) Spurgeon, from the Treasury of David: Beauty of architecture and apparel he does not regard; moral and spiritual beauty is that in which his soul delighteth. Worship must not be rendered to God in … More Spurgeon: A sacred trembling which is quite consistent with joy
1 Samuel 3-5 describes a very dark period in the history of Israel. In 1 Samuel 4:10-11 we read, “ So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and they fled, every man to his home. And there was a very great slaughter, for there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. And the ark of God was … More Draw near in the dark days
In Him we have set our firm hope, that he will deliver us, as you join in working for us by prayer, so that the blessing that comes to us from the prayers of many persons might result in thanksgiving to God by many as they see our deliverance. —2 Corinthians 1 Pastor Coty Pinckney asks: … More What is prayer? Is prayer effective?
And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” —Mark 9:35 Pastor Kim Riddlebarger, at the Riddleblog: From these sayings of Jesus, three important themes emerge. First, membership in the kingdom of God is bestowed upon us, we don’t earn it. The very idea that membership … More As he denied himself, so must we.
For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.—Psalm 95:3 Charles Spurgeon, from the Treasury of David: No doubt the surrounding nations imagined Jehovah to be a merely local deity, the god of a small nation, and therefore one of the inferior deities; the psalmist utterly repudiates such an idea. Idolaters … More A great King above all gods
And Hannah prayed and said, “My heart exults in the Lord; my strength is exalted in the Lord. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. “There is none holy like the Lord; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God. As we begin our readings of 1 & 2 Samuel this month, … More Hannah’s Psalm
Love in the body of Christ is a message proclaimed loud and clear in 1 Corinthians, and especially in chapter 15, which we come to in our read-through-the-Bible plan today: Verse 14: “Let all that you do be done in love.” Verse 22: “If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed.” … love must … More Loving like God. Sometimes having hard things to day.
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 