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Daily Devotional

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Psalm 27:4

Posted on March 10, 2023

I have asked one thing from the LORD; it is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, gazing on the beauty of the LORD and seeking Him in His temple. – Psalm 27:4

Can you think of a time when you had a crush on someone? Maybe that person was in your math class, so instead of listening to your teacher you wonder what your crush is like. Perhaps you found out they were out for the band, so you decided to join too, just in case you got the chance to talk more with them. Because let’s be honest, when you like someone, you want to know all about them. You want to talk to them all you can.

That’s a lot like how we’re supposed to feel toward God. We should be desiring to be where God is. We should be thinking about Him and be wanting to know Him more. We get that when it comes to a crush, but it’s a bit harder with God, isn’t it?

How do we seek God and spend time with Him? One good place to start is by setting some time aside each day and talking with God and reading God’s word. You could begin by simply reading a scripture before bed and spend a couple of minutes praying. As you get comfortable, you could increase your time with the Lord. The more you spend time with Him the easier it gets.

Today’s Truth: Time spent getting to know God is never wasted.

Any time you spend getting to know God is not wasted. Knowing Jesus is the best decision you could ever make. So challenge yourself to go deeper with God and get to know Him better.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – James 1:19

Posted on March 9, 2023

Don’t you hate having to listen? I know I do. Sometimes having to wait my turn to talk can take all the self-control I have. As God’s children, however, we should be living our lives differently than everyone else.

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry – James 1:19 (NIV)

God says we should be quick to listen. That means that when we want to blurt out our ideas, and interrupt others, we have to challenge ourselves to listen instead. When we want to talk and share our point of view, we should be seeking to speak slowly instead. When we want to lose our cool and get mad, we should be slow to be angry instead.

That can seem overwhelming, can’t it. You might think, there’s no way you can remember to do these things and to be self-controlled.

Here’s the good news: you don’t have to. Instead, you can ask the Holy Spirit to be your helper. He can help you understand the tough things and also He can show you ways to make following God’s word easier. So today, don’t be discouraged. Don’t read things in the Bible and feel like you can’t do it. Instead realize that God has given you the help and empowerment you need to do good works for Him!

Daily Devotional and Bible Verse – Hebrews 8:12

Posted on March 8, 2023

And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins. – Hebrews 8:12 (NLT)

God has done something truly remarkable. Not only has He forgiven us of the sins that we have done, but He also states that He will not remember them ever again. God is so amazing that not only can He forgive sin, He can completely forget that we ever even sinned at all.

This fact is very freeing. You might believe God has forgiven you, but you feel like you need to keep bringing it back up to Him. You don’t. He’s forgiven you. You can move on.

If sin is still plaguing you with guilt realize that through Jesus, you are forgiven. There is no sin out there that God cannot and has not forgiven you of. In Jesus, you are completely forgiven and made new. Thank God for His forgiveness today! When those feelings of guilt come up today, speak out this scripture and remind yourself that you are forgiven.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Proverbs 8:13

Posted on March 7, 2023

What happens when you don’t do well for a grade at school? Do you shift the blame off yourself and onto someone or something else? It can be easy to want to do that. When you don’t get the grade you feel you deserve, it can be easy to want to defend yourself.

You might try to speak up and out to get attention and let everyone know why the grade you got was unfair. Now, it’s true, there might be a group project you worked on where someone didn’t do their part, and the grade you got was not fair. But for the most part, if you’ve got a good teacher, your grades reflect you and the work you did. (Or didn’t do)

Shifting the blame to someone else isn’t healthy. In fact, it’s a form of pride. Pride in our lives often shows up as needing to defend ourselves. We feel the need for justice, and so we go out of our way to let everyone know our situation.

To fear the Lord is to hate evil;
    I hate pride and arrogance,
    evil behavior and perverse speech. – Proverbs 8:13 (NIV)

Pride isn’t a good trait. When it comes down to it, pride lifts up our own interests and needs over those of others. It says I’m right and someone else is wrong. It often ignores the feelings and thoughts of others and of God.

God doesn’t want pride to become a part of our lives because of what it does to our heart and our relationship with Him. Pride will keep us from following God and His word. When run to the ultimate end, most sin begins with pride and thinking we know better than God.

So today, examine your heart. See if you’ve allowed pride to become a habit. If you have, just ask God for His help. He can show you what to change and what to do to not let pride rule your life today.

Proverbs 8:13

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – John 3:16

Posted on March 6, 2023

For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life – John 3:16

This verse is one of the most popular verses in the Bible. In fact, it’s used so much, it’s almost easy to read it and take it for granted. We are so used to everyone stating the fact that God loves us that we don’t really let it sink in.

So let’s think about this idea for a bit. God loves you. He doesn’t have to love you. But He does. You never did anything for God, but God went out of His way to love you. He pursued you when you didn’t deserve it. He loved you when you were unlovable.

He did this so that you could enjoy eternal life with Him. You can talk to Him, walk with Him, and enjoy eternity with Him.

So today, let this verse sink in. Don’t just read it and ignore it because you’ve heard it so many times. Instead, choose to think about the fact that God chose you. He chose to love you even when you didn’t deserve it.

Today’s Truth: God loves you!

John 3:16

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Proverbs 12:22

Posted on March 3, 2023

It’s just a little white lie. It doesn’t hurt anyone. You’ve probably thought or heard that before. So what’s the big deal about lying? Especially when no one really gets harmed in the process. Isn’t it ok to stretch the truth if it helps yourself out?

The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy. – Proverbs 12:22

This verse gives us a different idea about lying, doesn’t it? It shows us that the Lord detests lying lips. Wow. So maybe a little lie isn’t really not that big of a deal.

Why does it matter if you tell the truth? And why should we as Christians be telling the truth?

Well, first of all, God is truth. The Bible tells us that He can’t lie. And that’s great because when we read something in the Bible, we can just believe it, because we know that God is being totally honest with us. It is God’s nature to tell the truth, and as His followers, we should be doing the same.

Other people around us should be able to count on us to do what we say. If we say we’re going to be somewhere, we should be there. If we say that we’re going to do something, we should do it. As God’s children, we should be imitating Him. He doesn’t lie, and we shouldn’t either.

We should be known as people who tell the truth.

Here’s the good news. If you’ve struggled with lying in the past, there is hope. You can break free of lying because you’ve got God to help you. Go to Him. Ask Him to show you ways that you can break free. Keep taking small steps toward breaking free from lying. You’ll be glad you did!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Romans 8:37

Posted on March 1, 2023

No, in all these things we are more than victorious through Him who loved us. – Romans 8:37

Have you ever won something at school? Maybe it was winning a speech contest, getting a solo in choir, or making the winning shot in basketball. When you do well or win something, it is a really great feeling.

That feeling of victory is how we should be living our lives everyday. God tells us that He made us more than victorious. That means that you are a winner. You can walk around your school, job, and home with your head held high because you know that you’re a winner. You’ve got value to God because He placed value on you. It’s not about what you’ve done, but rather knowing that God loves you and has an awesome plan for your life.

So be encouraged today, you are a winner because of who God says you are. You can experience victory every day because of who God made you to be.

Today’s Truth: You are a winner.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Proverbs 19:20

Posted on February 28, 2023

One of the hardest things for me to do is accept correction. I don’t like admitting I’m wrong. That is especially true if I have to admit that in front of others. Can you relate to feeling that way?

Most likely correction isn’t something you’re going to love. However, if you’re corrected by your parents, teachers, or pastors, it’s usually good for you, and it helps you grow. To become wise and mature, it’s good to learn to accept correction.

Listen to advice and accept discipline,
    and at the end you will be counted among the wise. – Proverbs 19:20 (NIV)

There is wisdom in accepting correction and advice from people who are around us that are wise. Often, the pastors, parents, and teachers in our lives have gone through things that are similar to what we face. Their advice is good when it’s Biblical, because they have more life experience and wisdom that we do.

If we will be open to accepting advice and correction from others, it can help us grow, and make us wise.

Today, if you struggle with accepting correction, ask God to help you. He will show you strategies that will help you to take correction better. God wants good things for your life, just know that most of the people that gently correct you in your life love you, and want what’s best for you. Don’t be too proud to accept correction and learn from your mistakes.

Today’s Truth: Correction is good for you.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Matthew 5:37

Posted on February 27, 2023

Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one. – Matthew 5:37 (NLT)

Lying is something I have really struggled with. Sometimes it looks like stretching the truth. I often like to make myself seem better than I actually am. Sometimes, I’ve lied before to save myself from getting in trouble with my parents. How about you? Have you struggled with lying?

Here’s the truth about lying. Many times, lying comes from loving and wanting to preserve ourselves. We want people to think good things about us, and sometimes we stretch the truth to make ourselves look better. A lot of the time, we can justify lying because often it doesn’t really hurt anyone. And it helps us avoid trouble or look bad in front of other people.

Today’s Truth: Speak the truth in all you do!

Regardless of how we try to justify lying, the truth is that it’s sin. God is truth, and lying is not in His character. He tells us in the Bible that we should be keeping our word and speaking truth. So as children of God, we should not be lying. We should be known for speaking truth, and speak truth in all we do.

So if lying has been a struggle for you, decide today to ask God for His help. Ask Him to help you stop lying and speak truth in all you do. With His help, you can put lying aside and walk free from the habit of lying.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – 1 John 2:17

Posted on February 23, 2023

The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever – 1 John 2:17 (NIV)

Have you noticed how easy it is to get consumed by what’s going on around you? For you, it might be getting swept up into all gossip going on at school. Perhaps it’s simply spending too much time gaming or watching TV. Whatever it is for you, it’s really easy to lose focus on the things that are important.

God has a divine plan and purpose for your life. However, it’s easy to become too busy to take time to hear from Him.

Today’s Truth: Take Time to Hear From God

So today, challenge yourself to break out of the normal and do something different. Choose to take time to hear from God concerning your future. It might be spending a few minutes before you go to bed each night reading your Bible. It could possibly be getting up a little earlier or listing to a great podcast that challenges you to follow after God. Whatever the case might be for you, make getting to know God a priority in your life. Find out His plan and His will for your future.

Read: How to Discover Your God-Given Purpose in Life