Daily Devotionals

Read Genesis 17:1

Thirteen years passed, and Abram didn’t hear anything from God. There was no vision. There was no voice. There was no visit. Only silence. Try to imagine: complete silence on God’s part for 13 years.

Read Genesis 16:2

Read Genesis 13:10, 12-13

When Lot was making a decision about which land to choose, he didn’t consider God as a factor in shaping his future. He made all his calculations based upon the potential influences of nature and humanity, never considering that God might alter the world on his behalf. He looked in the Jordan River Valley and saw only lush, green vegetation for his flocks and rich, wholesome soil for his crops.

Read Genesis 13:8-9

Most of us rise to meet adversity with our best character. However, our true character comes out when things go really well. It’s easy to become arrogant, self-sustaining, conceited, greedy, and condescending at such times.

Read Genesis 12:18-20

Abram lied to Pharaoh to save his own skin, telling him that Sarai was his sister. In doing so, he put her in jeopardy. But where he failed to protect his wife, theLord overwhelmingly succeeded in doing so. He afflicted Pharaoh and his household with plagues (see Genesis 12:17).

Read Genesis 12:10-13

For Abram, this season of hunger represented a major test. While God didn’t cause the famine, He certainly used it as an instrument in the development of Abram’s faith.

You can expect more than one divine test in your own faith journey, but God doesn’t use difficult circumstances to find out what we’ll do. He already knows us better than we know ourselves. He uses tests to reveal us to ourselves! He often uses a test to show us where we need improvement.

Read Genesis 12:5

After spending much of his life — perhaps from birth — in Ur of the Chaldeans, Abram was instructed by God to go to a place to be disclosed later. Sadly, he didn’t respond with complete obedience; he obeyed only in part. When he left Ur, Abram brought along his father, Terah, and his nephew Lot.

Read Genesis 12:1

God’s call of Abram began with an imperative — a clear command. God told him to leave his country for a land that He would show him ... sometime later. To receive the promised blessings, Abram had to leave behind everything he relied on for safety and provision — homeland and relatives — and trust that God would honour His commitment. The call he received as a nomad for the Lord was a call to move, a call to go, a call to leave behind the comfortable and the familiar.

Read 1 Samuel 15:1-35

ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL

Read 1 Samuel 13:1-15

ABRAHAM | SAMUEL | SAUL

Saul's disobedient actions involved at least three major errors.

First, kings weren't supposed to offer sacrifices on behalf of the community. Kings could offer sacrifices for themselves, but never for the nation. That was done only by priests.