Put Away and Incline
He said, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD, the God of Israel.” (ESV) Joshua 24:23 At the end of Joshua’s life and ministry he is recounting to the people of Israel all the goodness and kindness that the Lord God bestowed upon them by fulfilling each and every promise that he had made to them through the years. This recounting of the faithfulness of their loving God was given with a call to serve the Lord. The people with one voice committed to serving the Lord alone, but Joshua…
Weak and Fearful
January 03, 2026 Saturday Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9 (ESV) I have been spending a lot of time this past week reading, studying, and meditating on Joshua 1 as I prepare to teach a lesson about the key themes found in that chapter. As I have been thinking throughout the week, I keep coming back to verse 9. It puzzled me for a while as to why this verse kept pricking me at various…
Creator and Heir
December 04, 2025 Thursday Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. Hebrews 1:1-2 (ESV) The incarnation of Jesus is the signifying moment of history being ushered into “these last days.” This is the final epoch of revelation from God being displayed and culminated in the life and death of Jesus Christ, the very Son of God. Whereas he previously spoke and revealed…
Grace of Affliction
We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 2 Corinthians 8:1–2 (ESV) Paul wants the Corinthian believers to know about the grace of God in a tangible way, so he gives testimony to the pouring out of God’s grace among the churches of Macedonia. He wants the church of Corinth to know about this grace of God by giving a tangible, real life…
Effective Confirmation
for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. 1 Corinthians 16:9 (ESV) What I find fascinating about the Apostle Paul is that his view of this life and the world around us is oftentimes counterintuitive to how I view life as I journey through my time in this world. In this verse from 1 Corinthians 16:9, Paul changes his established plans and commitments because the Lord had opened a door for effective ministry, and he was seeing the visible fruits increasing and multiplying. This time of ministry was so effective that he…
Scum and Refuse
We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things. 1 Corinthians 4:13 (ESV) The heavenly mindset of Paul is always a helpful barometer to examine my heart and soul. Paul encourages me to not just focus on the surface level appearance of presentation but to dig deeper and examine the cracks and crevices that are open within my heart. This passage from 1 Corinthians 4 is a good example of this. Paul is challenging the thinking and mindset of the Corinthian believers to move away from their pride, arrogance, and sense of…
Faith Proceeding
But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. Romans 14:23 (ESV) Honestly, I have mixed feelings about the book of Romans. On the one hand, I find it so incredibly helpful in understanding the truths of the gospel and how to integrate faith into life. Yet, there are some statements and ideas that trouble me. These statements trouble me because they are like a double-edged sword, piercing my very heart and soul. Romans 14:23 is one of these statements. In this long passage…
Vain Satisfaction
He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. Ecclesiastes 5:10 (ESV) Satisfaction and contentment are the cornerstone of our natural desires. We have an innate drivenness to seek out satisfaction and contentment. We all desire to satiate this inner drive and determination. Where we look for that satisfaction and the level of determination in that pursuit is different in each person, but make no mistake… we all seek satisfaction and contentment. The Preacher in Ecclesiastes is pointing to one object that we all struggle with in…
Patient Beauty
He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. Ecclesiastes 3:11 (ESV) There are moments in life where everything seems to working against you. Moments where chaos, agony, suffering, hardship, and trials seem to be so overwhelming that it is difficult to see an end to the pain. These times of walking through the deep darkness of the valley where confusion, fear, and doubt are continually pressing in on you. It is in these moments of…
Mind of a Fool
Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered. Proverbs 28:26 (ESV) What is it about our minds that we put complete faith and trust in them? I had never really thought about this before, but as I read through Proverb 28 this morning, it resonated with me. “Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool.” That’s a difficult saying to digest and process. It’s difficult because that is not only exactly what I am continually doing, but something that is a source of pride. I find myself trusting my…
Teach Me
Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground! Psalm 143:10 (ESV) “Teach me to do your will.” This is a prayer request full of faith, trust, and humility. David is inviting the God of the universe to come and teach him obedience. For to do the will of the Lord is to be obedient to the Lord. In this prayer of David we see the heart of Jesus at work. Jesus learned obedience through suffering and David is setting the same example before us. David is acknowledging that…
Work of Art
Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. John 9:3 (ESV) As Jesus and his disciples are walking, Jesus saw a man who had been blind since birth and he focused his attention on this man. This man who was an outcast of the community, someone who was ignored or pitied at most, becomes the focal point of attention in the life of Jesus. The disciples obviously noticed the attention of Jesus being focused on this man and asked the question that was at the…
Lesson 1: Wisdom
This is a lesson I prepared for a Sunday School class series on Ecclesiastes in the Spring of 2025. The lessons are meant to be a mix of teaching and interactive discussion in the group. This is an outline of my presentation that guided the teaching and discussion. It was adapted from the Gospel-centered life in the Bible Series – Ecclesiastes: Life in the Light of Eternity. View Ecclesiastes Lesson Series Ecclesiastes 1:1-11 Preacher (v. 1) Ecclesiastes 1:1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Author Purpose Key Themes of the Book Our Deep Longings…
Refreshed Hearts
For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you. Philemon 7 (ESV) This is a tremendous testimony from Paul about the outworking of the Holy Spirit in the life of one man. A man that was known for his love and faith toward Jesus and all the saints. Paul is in prison and has only heard stories about the love and faith of Philemon. Here is a man whose reputation preceded him and his godly character went before him. His character and reputation was such…
Merciful Neighbor
But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Luke 10:29 (ESV) Here is a lawyer who has asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Not because he was sincere in his question, but for the sole reason to test Jesus. He was seeking to put Jesus to the test and determine if he had the right doctrine and religious understanding. Jesus answers the lawyer by asking him to provide a summary of the law, which the lawyer easily does by restating the phrase to love God and love people. Jesus simple…
Treasure and Ponder
But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. Luke 2:19 (ESV) There are two different occasions in Luke chapter 2, where the heart of Mary is revealed to us, and we are able to see a glimpse of the special relationship she had with her son, the Son. Mary was given the announcement of her coming pregnancy and birth of a son by an angel. To which, she simply inquired about how this was to be and then accepted her role in the eternal story of God. For the most part, I think we just take…
Cold Love
And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. Matthew 24:12 (ESV) Our world is continuing its journey of descent into lawlessness. Little by little we are pulled further along the path toward lawlessness. You can see it every day when you read or listen to the news. You can see it both locally, regionally, nationally, and on a global scale. We are all offended at the notion of our descent, and we all want to point the finger and shift the blame to some person or group of people that we deem inferior or antagonistic.…
Morning Hope
Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning. Psalm 30:5b (ESV) Hope is such a beautiful thing and yet it is often the one thing we forget about in the midst of trials, hardships, and sufferings. When we are struggling, it often feels like we are alone in the dark, isolated from the rest of the world. We are apt to just sit in our pain and bemoan our situation, letting the roots of despair take hold. The darkness often feels so incredibly strong and oppressive. So much so that we lose hope. We lose hope…
Life Again
Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Psalm 85:6 (ESV) Revive us. Bring life to us. Cause us to live once again. Psalm 85 is a prayer to the Lord to once again bring revival to the people of God. A prayer to our steadfast and faithful God to once again meet with us, to be among us, and to restore us again. This psalm calls for us to remember the past restorations that our God has brought into our lives. It challenges us to not get caught in the trap of saying, “What…
Discerning Love
And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, Philippians 1:9–10 (ESV) This morning I started reading through Warren Wiersbe’s book on Philippians called “Be Joyful.” Mainly because I want to concentrate and be intentional about seeing joy in my life, but also because the book of Philippians is my go-to book of the Bible. In this first section of Philippians 1, I was intrigued by the prayer of Paul for the…
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