Devotionals

Acts 8:26–28, 30–31, 35

Can there be anything more exasperating than calling a customer service number and getting an electronic answer? You know how it goes:

Press one for English. Press two for technical support. Press three for directions and hours of operation. Press four for a callback. Press five to return to the main menu.

It ought to add: press six if you give up!

Why isn’t anyone available?!

Matthew 5:1–5

I love reading biographies of great individuals. I’ve said for years that all of us should be students of great people. I’ve read several volumes in my lifetime on the life and character of Abraham Lincoln. Tucked away in one story of Lincoln and his home life is a wonderful piece of knowledge that few perhaps would guess: Lincoln was a gentle father. Though strong in temperament, determined in his vision for freedom, and often fiery in his leadership style, he carried the mantle of gentleness into his home. I love that!

Hebrews 4:12–13

I recall learning as a boy a little Sunday school song that went something like….

Oh, be careful little eyes what you see,
Oh be careful little eyes what you see!
For the Father up above is looking down in love,
Oh, be careful little eyes what you see!

After all these years, that simple ditty has stayed with me. And so has its message. Be careful where you go and be careful what you look at, because God cares too. He is pleased when your whole life remains pure before Him.

2 Timothy 1:16–18

The virtues God desires to form in us are best modelled in some of the obscure characters in Scripture. In fact, the virtue of generosity is often mentioned but rarely seen or experienced.

Romans 2:2–4

It was a shocking display of all-out defiance. Minutes before his execution, convicted Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh, gave a handwritten copy of William Ernest Henley’s poem “Invictus” to the prison warden. The final lines of that ominous ode of defiance still send shivers up my spine:

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

Jeremiah 22:18–21

When you boil life down to the bare bones, the name of the game is change. Those who flex with the times refuse to be rigid. They resist the mould, and reject the rut—ah, those are the souls distinctively used by God. To them, change is a challenge, a fresh breeze that flows through the room of routine and blows away the stale air of sameness.

Acts 2:43–44, 46–47

Shortly after his conversion in 1929, C.S. Lewis wrote a letter to a friend, and in the letter, he included these words:

“When all is said (and truly said) about divisions of Christendom, there remains, by God’s mercy, an enormous common ground.”

Proverbs 22:6

Ephesians 4:1–3

I’ve never run a marathon. I’ve never even wanted to. I admire those who have, and I’m always amazed at the intense training marathon runners endure before they strap on their race-day shoes and head to the starting line. Interestingly, when it comes to running the marathon of faith that God has called us to run, He encourages us to begin with a “walk.”

Romans 15:4

When I’m reading an obscure passage in the Old Testament, I sometimes think of Paul’s words to the believers in Rome:

“Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.” (Romans 15:4)