Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Philippians 4:6

Posted on June 2, 2023

Rejoice in the Lord always- delight, gladden yourselves in Him: again I say, rejoice! – Philippians 4:4

Have you ever had a really bad day? You know, the one where everything seems to go wrong? Then to top it off, your brother is mean to you, your mom asks you to do extra chores, and you feel like no one gets you.

When you’re having a bad day, one of the hardest things to do is keep rejoicing. However, today’s Bible verse tells us to rejoice always, even if your day is going badly.

What does that look like? A good way to delight or gladden yourself in God would be to remind yourself of things that God has done for you. Has He ever provided something for you? Has He ever helped you when things were tough? Has He comforted you when you didn’t think you could go on? Remind yourself of the good things that God has done in your life.

When you remember what God has done for you, it helps you keep a smile on your face. It doesn’t matter what you’re facing or what you’ve been through, you can make yourself happy by choosing to think about the good things God has done for you. Don’t let your situation or circumstances keep you down. Make the decision today to rejoice in the Lord always!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – 1 Peter 2:8

Posted on June 1, 2023

 “He is the stone that makes people stumble,
    the rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they do not obey God’s word, and so they meet the fate that was planned for them. – 1 Peter 2:8 (NLT)

What value do you place on God’s word? Do you use it to form the basis for your thinking? Here’s an example. Let’s say that you’re trying to decide what you believe about an issue. Where does God’s word fit into that? Do you consult what the Bible says to come to a decision about the issue?

Today’s verse says that people stumble because they don’t obey God’s word. Isn’t that true? I know many times in my life, I’ve put what I wanted to do over what God’s word said. I often cared more about what other people thought about me, and made choices to get approval from people rather than choices that would have lined up with God’s word.

However, making choices that way can cause you to stumble. Instead, we should be building our thinking, and our lives upon God’s word. When faced with a decision, issue or choice, we should be thinking what does God say about this issue? Then we should choose His word over what we feel or think.

So today, challenge yourself to make the word of God a priority in your life. Determine that it will be more important to you than the approval of others or what might sound or feel good. Make God’s word the most important in your life and you’ll find that you’ll be less likely to stumble.

Today’s Truth: Make God’s Word Most Important in Your Life

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – 1 John 4:9

Posted on May 31, 2023

O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. – Psalms 63:1

Have you ever been really hungry or really thirsty? Maybe you wanted a drink so bad you would have paid a lot of money for a bottle of water. Or perhaps you were so hungry you would have eaten almost anything. That’s a little like what this Bible verse is talking about.

Today’s verse is a neat way of looking at your relationship with God. Just like you wouldn’t go long without eating or drinking, you shouldn’t go a long time without spending time with God. You should be longing to spend time with God just like you’d long to eat or drink.

Spending time with God shouldn’t be a chore or something you do only if you have to or if you have questions that you need to be answered. Spending time with God should really be that thing that gets you excited and refreshes you. Just like you’d feel refreshed after drinking when you’re really thirsty, you should pursue God in the same way. You should be letting him refresh you and fill you with the things you need.

Today’s Truth: Let God refresh you and fill you with the things you need.

Read: How to Have An Awesome Quiet Time

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – 1 Peter 1:14

Posted on May 30, 2023

As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. – 1 Peter 1:14 (NIV)

If you’ve been a Christian for awhile, you’re probably pretty aware of the fact that you should be trying to live in ways that are Christ-like. But doing that isn’t always easy. It’s easier to do what comes natural and what feels good. But instead of doing those things, we should be putting those desires away.

How do we do that? One of the best ways is simply by spending more time with God. As we spend time in prayer, and praising God, we become more aware of Him in our lives. And the more we do that, the more our desires line up with His.

The more you get to know Jesus, the more you want to be like Him. So instead of conforming to your old desires before you knew Him, you want to be more and more like Him.

So today, if you’re struggling with sin, and living your life to be like Christ, take a look at how much time you’re spending with Jesus. If you’re spending most of your time hanging out with friends or watching TV, Jesus isn’t going to be the one you want to live to please most. If you want to live to please Jesus, simply begin to spend time with Him. As you do, your evil desires will become less important and you’ll want to live in ways that please Him.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Deuteronomy 31:6

Posted on May 26, 2023

Be strong and courageous; don’t be terrified or afraid of them. For it is the LORD your God who goes with you; He will not leave you or forsake you.” – Deuteronomy 31:6 (HCSB)

Do you feel like God is calling you to do something for Him? What is stopping you from doing it? Fear is one of the most common things that holds people back from doing things for God.

Some people fear what others will think, others fear the consequences of a decision or stand for God. Regardless of what the fear is, if left unchecked, fear will stop you from doing what God is calling you to do.

One of the best ways to combat fear in your life is to push past the fear. What does that look like? It’s telling your friend that seems depressed about Jesus even when you feel scared. It’s going on that missions trip even though you’ve never been that far away from home. When you push past your fear and step out you’ll find that God will always come through for you. God never leaves you alone and without help.

Today’s Truth: God never leaves you alone or without help.

Even if you’re afraid, choose to step out and do what God is calling you to do. If you do even while feeling afraid, you’ll see that God will come through for you.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Proverbs 14:4

Posted on May 25, 2023

Without oxen a stable stays clean, but you need a strong ox for a large harvest.
– Proverbs 14:4

Sometimes, it can be easy to want to do big things alone. Maybe you’ve got a group project at school you’re working on and it’s just really difficult to want to involve the help of others. However, if you are wanting to do something truly significant, you’ll need the help of others to get it done. The problem with including others is that it often can get messy. Dealing with others can be challenging. It’s tempting to just decide to do it yourself. Today’s Bible verse is letting us know that a wise person will get help to accomplish something bigger than he or she could on their own. Including others can be tough because you have to get along and clean up messes along the way. However, getting help from others is worth the mess!

Today’s Truth: A wise person will get help to accomplish something bigger than he could do on his own

Isn’t it awesome that God shares with us wisdom like this? Today, think about the project that is in your heart to accomplish. Who could you invite to help you? What resource do you need to invest in to help with your project? Realize that including resources from others will bring much more increase in your endeavors than trying to accomplish it all by yourself.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Isaiah 41:10

Posted on May 24, 2023

Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.  – Isaiah 41:10

Have you ever been afraid? I remember a time when I watched a really scary movie at a friend’s house and it made me so afraid I couldn’t sleep at night. After a few sleepless nights, I realized that my fear needed to be dealt with.

The same is true for you. If left unchecked, fear will stop you from doing really important things. Fear cripples you and keeps you from sleep, peace and the good things God has for your life.

Fear is a tool the enemy tries to use to stop you and distract you from what God has for your life. In John 10:10 it says that the thief is there to steal, kill and destroy. That’s what fear does. It steals your peace and joy. It makes you unable to do things that you want to do.

If fear has stopped you in the past, choose today to take a stand against it. Don’t let fear hold you back. Choose instead to replace your fear with truths from God’s word. Determine that fear doesn’t have the last word in your life.

5 Devotions to Defeat Fear

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – James 4:17

Posted on May 22, 2023

If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them. – James 4:17 (NIV)

James talks in today’s verse about how when we know to do something that’s good, but don’t do it, it’s sin. Ouch! That verse is intense, isn’t it? How many times do you know that you should speak up at school and don’t? How many times do some people talk badly about someone else, and you don’t stick up for them? Or how often do you not correct someone to avoid you looking bad or getting into trouble?

If you’re honest, it’s probably a lot. And each of those things are sins. As Christians, we should be striving to do good in all areas of our lives.

The good news is that God’s grace is there for when we mess up. So even though you’re not perfect, you’re forgiven in Jesus. So today, try to strive to do what’s right and what you know to do. But when you’re not perfect, don’t beat yourself up. Learn from it, and know that God forgives you!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – James 4:7

Posted on May 19, 2023

Who likes to submit? Not me! I hate the idea. It’s just against our nature as humans to want to have someone tell us what to do and how to live our lives.

However, despite not always liking it, it’s something that as Christians we are told to do. Today’s verse encourages us to submit ourselves to God.

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. – James 4:7 (NIV)

Submitting isn’t easy. Our flesh doesn’t like the idea of someone telling us what to do and how to live our lives. But here’s the thing. God created us. He knows us, and He loves us more than we even love ourselves. So when He tells us how to live, it’s not because He’s mean or controlling. Instead, it’s because He really loves us. He wants to the best for us.

When we submit our lives to Him, we find fulfillment. God knows what will really bring us peace. And when we live our lives for Him, we will be more at peace than living without Him.

So today, think about this truth. God has good things for us. We aren’t living our lives for ourselves but for Him, and when we do, things will go better for us.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – James 4:6

Posted on May 18, 2023

Have you noticed all the issues pride can cause? Pride usually comes when you feel good about something you did or you accomplished. 

Did you see the issue there with that statement? Something you did, or you accomplished. That’s the problem with pride. It leaves God out of the equation. Pride is something God opposes because it removes the need for Him in your life. When you think that you can do it all yourself, and you don’t seek God or His help, that’s pride.

But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble. – James 4:6 (NIV)

Pride isn’t something that we should be running after as Christians. Instead, we should be seeking relationship with God. We should be seeking to know Him more, and seek His opinion, advice and help in each area of our lives.

We weren’t built to face life on our own. And if we try, we often feel depressed, helpless and alone. It’s including God in your life that brings you the fulfillment that your heart seeks.

So today, decide to seek after God. Don’t try to live your life for yourself and on your own. Instead, seek God. Involve Him in your life and follow His plan for you each day.

Today’s Truth: Don’t Try to Live your life only for you.

Today's Truth: Don't Try to Live your life only for you.