But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. 1 Peter 5: 10, 11, NKJV. Gracious God, how thankful we are to You for the grace that sustains us in times of affliction. Teach us how to remain close to Your side until all our sufferings are past. In the name of our Savior Jesus Christ we pray. Amen. As I pondered the words of our Scripture for today,...

Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary with my crying; my throat is dry; my eyes fail while I wait for my God. Psalm 69: 1-3, NKJV. Most Holy God, we thank You for the promises that are to be found in Your Word! The fires cannot burn Your children, neither can the waters drown them. We thank You for the certainty of these promises in the blessed name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Have you ever...

As for the saints who are on the earth, "They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight." Psalm 16: 3, NKJV. Merciful God, IWe have put our trust in you, and we thank you for delighting in Your people. In the name of Your Son, the Messiah, we give You thanks. Amen.  One basic mistake I find many Christians making is to shy away from the designation "saint." Somehow we feel that if we respond to the title or accept it as a "given" we are being proud. I am finding out, that, quite to the contrary, the title or...

After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him. Now the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. His brothers therefore said to Him, “Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing. For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” For even His brothers did not believe in Him. Then Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet...

And the LORD said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.” Exodus 33: 21-23, NKJV. Heavenly Father, As we come into Your presence, we come expecting to see Your glory as it passes by. May this revelation change us forever. We ask this...

For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For in fact the body is not one member but many. 1 Corinthians 12: 12-14, NKJV.  Dear LORD, as we study Your Word today, please help us, by Your grace, to see each other as all part of the "Perfect One," Christ Jesus our Savior. In...

Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Romans 16: 19, 20, NIV. Dear Heavenly Father and God of our salvation, please help us to know that truth and righteousness will triumph at last. When it does, may we also triumph with it. This we ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Today we will conclude our study on this...

I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. Romans 16: 17, 18, NIV. Dear God, as we continue in the study of Your Word we ask that You open our minds to all that is happening around us, and give us divine wisdom to deal with it. This we ask in...

I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. Romans 16: 17, 18, NIV. Merciful God, please open our eyes and make us aware of the voices that we are listening to. Then by Your grace, give us the strength to avoid those who would lead us astray. In the precious name...

But Esther had kept secret her family background and nationality just as Mordecai had told her to do, for she continued to follow Mordecai’s instructions as she had done when he was bringing her up. Esther 2: 20, NIV. Our Father in heaven, please teach us that no matter how high we ascend in the world's eyes, we are still Your children. May we obey You as such. This we ask in the precious name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Our Scripture for today, speaks more eloquently of Esther's character than anything else we read about her. She was young, beautiful, covered...