Devotionals

Acts 2:46-47

Yesterday I told you a story about an amazing feat by Harry Houdini in which he escaped from locked handcuffs before a roaring crowd—incredible stuff! He later admitted that he stopped repeatedly to address the crowd because he needed their applause to keep up his enthusiasm!

Two things set Houdini free: (1) his knowledge of what he knew to be true and (2) the cultivation of his own enthusiasm. 

Hebrews 12:1–3

Erich Weiss was a remarkable man. 

By the time of his death he was famous around the world. 

Never heard of him, huh? 

Maybe this will help. He was born of Hungarian-Jewish parentage at Appleton, Wisconsin, in 1874. He became the highest-paid entertainer of his day. 

That still doesn’t help much, does it? This will. 

1 Peter 2:9-12

Though in time we may laud their boldness and radical qualities, in their day most progressive dreamers are seen as permissive, wild-eyed extremists. 

1 Kings 17–19

Progress seems like a two-headed giant, doesn’t it? 

Looking back on it, it is admirable, almost heroic. We salute visionaries of yesteryear. They emerge from the pages of our history books as men and women of gallant faith. We shake our heads in amazement as we imagine the herculean courage it took to stand so confidently when the majority frowned so sternly. Yesterday’s progress earns for itself today’s monuments of stone. 

Philippians 3:7–11

Jonah 2:1–9

I remember it well. Almost as clearly as if it happened last month. But it didn’t. It happened deep in the summer of ’58. I was a Marine. Almost eight thousand miles of ocean between me and my wife. One-word descriptions of my condition? Disillusioned. Stretched. Learning. Lonely. Determined. Sincere. Uncertain. Afraid.

Psalm 100:3–5

Psalm 78:1–7

Numbers 6:24-26

My darling...

The familiar tune and lyrics from “Fiddler on the Roof” keep me company these days. I hum them to myself in the car and repeat the lines as I jog. Nostalgia nuzzles its way into my heart:

Is this the little girl I carried? 
Is this the little boy at play? 
I don’t remember growing older. When did they? 

When did she get to be a beauty? 
When did he grow to be so tall? 
Wasn’t it yesterday when they were small? 

Proverbs 16:3–9

In Part One, I presented you with your own (round) tuit—the solution to those procrastination problems you’ve been having. Yep, no longer will you need to say: 

“I should take care of that—and I will as soon as I get a (round) tuit.” 

You’ve got it! 

Now, let’s take a look at what the Bible says about this. I’ll bet Solomon had a (round) tuit. Maybe he got his from Moses, who once wrote: