Daily Devotionals

Luke 7:12–15

Tact graces a lifelike fragrance graces a rose. One whiff of those red petals erases any thought of the thorns.

Tact is like that. It’s remarkable how peaceful and pleasant it can make us.

Its major goal is avoiding unnecessary offence ... and that alone ought to make us desire it. Remember the teacher you had who lacked tact? Learning was sacrificed daily on the altar of fear. You wondered each session if that was the day you’d be singled out and embarrassed through some verbal put-down in front of the class.

1 Peter 2:9

There are few things more frustrating than encountering individuals content to remain living in the status quo. I call those folks people with a “No” face! Many are so fearful of change, they cocoon themselves in well-guarded shelters of skepticism, doubt, rigidity, and even fear.

Even worse are those who for unknown reasons choose to remain in bondage to their sin—huddled in dark shadows of unbelief. But as followers of Christ, none of that ought to describe you or me.

1 Kings 17:21–24

Ever wonder if God has gotten hard of hearing?

I know my kids and grandkids tease me about noticing the inevitable signs of ageing. A minor stumble now and then, a little forgetfulness, a pinch of grumpiness.

Thankfully, my hearing may be one of the last things to wane.

But you need to know, God’s hearing is perfect—and it’s especially tuned to the voice of His children.

Prayer is the act of faith that believes God is not deaf. That He lovingly and graciously hears our voices and attends to the cries of our hearts.

Psalm 100:5

Psalm 78:1–7

These days, with all the emphasis on godly parenting, too many omit the significance of “grandparenting.”

But God never ignored grandparenting. Consider the emphasis on grandparenting from the pen of the psalmist:

Philippians 2:6–11

Late springtime is the season of yard sales and moving vans. People are on the move and wrestling with what to do with all the accumulated stuff, jammed into garages, shoved into closets, and packed into attics. And how about those storage spaces?

The same can be true of the rest of our lives. We hoard our time, keep our gifts and talents and resources for ourselves, and spend the choicest of our days investing in our possessions and guarding our priorities.

How different from Jesus who ...

Psalm 90:12–17

Isaiah 30:15

We are living in a “too much” culture.

Too much empty talk. Too much rich food. Too much emphasis on success, winning, being the biggest, and having the best. Too much comparison, commercialism, and competition. Too many meetings. Too much social media. Too many making the extreme the standard. Periods are fast being replaced by exclamation points. “Nice” is no longer sufficient. Now it’s got to be “fantastic” or “incredible.” And, of course, “awesome!!”

Proverbs 23:12

Can't and won't. Christians need to be very careful which one they choose. It seems that we prefer to use "can't."

"I just can't get along with my wife."

"My husband and I can't communicate."

"I just can't discipline the kids as I should."

"I just can't give up the affair I'm having."

"I can't stop overeating."

"I can't find time to pray."

Any Christian who takes the Bible seriously will have to agree the word here really should be "won't." 

Why?

Proverbs 10:12

"I accept you as you are."

"I believe you are valuable."

"I care when you hurt."

"I desire only what is best for you."

"I erase all offenses."

We could call that the ABCs of love. And I don't know of anybody who would turn his back on such magnetic, encouraging statements. 

There is nothing shallow about authentic love. Nor is it a magic wand we whip out and wave over a problem with a whoosh, hoping all the pain will go away.