Donna is a wife, mother, grandmother, writer, and Biblical counselor. She has been blogging through the Bible each year since 2012. She loves God's Word and sharing how freeing and practical it is. She is certified through the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors.
In today’s readings, we will once again look at Noah and his family. God called Noah a righteous man, yet we’ll see that he was barely off the ark before he sinned. The result was shame and loss of respect within his own family.
And when it comes to God, shame can cause us to avoid prayer, Bible reading, and going to church in a foolish attempt to run from God. But there is a better way!
We’ll, also, talk about being made in the image of God, the quality of our “salt,” the danger of dishonoring our parents, and responding to the sins of others.
Today, we’ll look at Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness and how He responded because the same principle can help us when we are fighting temptation or spiritual attacks. We will also look at how memorizing Scripture fits into all this and how the devil can, actually, use Scripture against us.
Also, did you know that every major civilization has a “flood story” as part of its oral or written history? What does the biblical account of the flood teach us about God, His character, and His sovereign control of world events? And why should this be so comforting to us in the sometimes dangerous times in which we’re living?
I don’t have to tell most of you that life can get messy. Much of that messiness is the result of our own choices. Those messes and the consequences are often what God uses to get our attention. As a result, we experience sorrow and regret. But is sorrow or regret what God requires? Rather than regret, He calls us to repentance. But what exactly is that? Is sorrow, depression, or something more?
And on a wider scale, have you taken some time to think about your plan to grow spiritually this year? We are never standing still with God. We are either growing or slipping backward. Let’s always be growing.
It started right there in the garden. The serpent tempted Eve with a thought, “Did God really say …?” The first step in his deception was to get her to doubt God, and he’s still whispering the same question today. What is he tempting you to doubt?
But God didn’t give up on mankind. His response provides hope to us all. And in the next chapter of Genesis, He counseled a young man. Could that counsel be something you need to hear?
Also read about the murder of dozens of innocent babies by a jealous, paranoid king, the danger of thinking we’re smarter than God, the importance of honoring parents, and some examples of fulfilled prophecy.
Why a fresh start through the Bible? And why “through” the Bible? Why not just read here and there, perhaps finding a subject that interests you? Or how about a short devotional? As long as you read something every day, isn’t that good enough? Today’s reading from the Book of Psalms gives us a very good illustration of why it’s so important to read God’s Word in context.
The psalmist in Psalm 1 talks about a man who is like a tree planted on a riverbank where it gets plenty of water and is always fruitful. The psalmist goes on to say that God prospers whatever this man does.
I don’t know about you, but I want my life to be like that. But despite some who teach that God wants to make every believer prosperous, there are requirements for this prosperity. There are things we must do and other things we are to avoid. We also need to understand what the psalmist meant when he wrote about prosperity. If we don’t, we may find ourselves disillusioned, even angry, with God.
But this is just one example of the importance of understanding God’s Word in context, in its entirety. One of the biggest problems I find among believers is a failure to know God, to know His character, and to know how He works through our tests and trials. As a result, far too many lead faithless defeated lives.
Or whatever is left after everything else has taken its share?
That’s the uncomfortable question Malachi places before us.
The people were still bringing sacrifices.
They hadn’t abandoned worship completely.
But instead of bringing God their best, they offered animals that were lame, sick, or otherwise undesirable.
In other words, God was getting what they didn’t particularly want themselves.
And that raises some searching questions for us.
Does God get intentional time in our schedules—or whatever minutes are left over?
Does generosity come before our wants—or after them?
Does our marriage reflect the seriousness of a covenant made before God?
If we’re single, are we using that season purposefully for His glory?
Are we offering Him our abilities, resources, attention, and obedience—or simply fitting Him around the life we’ve already planned?
As another year approaches, perhaps one of the most important questions we can ask isn’t:
“What do I want to accomplish next year?”
but:
“How can I give God my best in the year ahead?”
Then Proverbs 31 gives us a fascinating picture of an excellent wife whose life is marked by wisdom, diligence, generosity, and the fear of the Lord.
And Revelation 21 and 22 take us somewhere even greater—to the new heaven and new earth and the glorious future awaiting everyone who belongs to Christ.
So today we’ll look backward, inward, and forward—
and ask what kind of life makes sense in light of the God we serve and the eternity that awaits us.
Have you ever wondered how books of the Bible written hundreds of years apart can fit together so perfectly?
Zechariah prophesied more than five centuries before Christ.
The Apostle John received the Revelation near the end of the first century.
Different men.
Different centuries.
Different circumstances.
Yet when you read Zechariah alongside Revelation, you begin seeing the same King, the same coming kingdom, the same final victory, and the same unfolding plan of God.
That’s because the Bible isn’t merely a collection of religious books about God.
It is one unfolding story authored by God.
The more you read it, the more the pieces begin fitting together.
Prophecies connect with their fulfillment.
Old Testament pictures point forward to Christ.
New Testament passages reach back and illuminate what came before.
And eventually, the story carries us all the way to the end.
Today’s reading in Revelation 20 brings us to one of the most sobering scenes in Scripture:
the great white throne judgment.
Scripture also speaks of the judgment seat of Christ for believers.
That means every one of us should ask a very personal question:
When the story reaches its final chapter, where will I stand?
Have you ever reached the point where you thought, “I just don’t know how much longer I can do this”?
Maybe you’re exhausted from dealing with a strong-willed child.
Maybe your marriage has become a source of constant hurt and discouragement.
Perhaps you’ve experienced a devastating loss, and the holidays only made the empty place more noticeable.
Maybe you’ve lost a job, suffered a financial setback, received a frightening medical diagnosis, or you’re simply weary from one problem after another.
You’ve prayed.
You’ve tried.
You’ve kept going.
But now you’re tired.
What do you do when you don’t feel as though you have enough strength for one more day?
The people in Zechariah’s day knew something about discouragement.
They had returned to Jerusalem with a job to do. But sixteen years later, the temple still wasn’t finished. Opposition and difficulty had worn them down until the work had nearly stopped.
So God sent Zechariah with a message for Zerubbabel.
It wasn’t:
“Try harder.”
It wasn’t:
“You should be stronger by now.”
Instead, God reminded him where the strength to continue would come from:
“Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the LORD of hosts.
Perhaps that’s exactly the reminder some of us need today.
Because sometimes God allows us to reach the end of our own strength so we’ll stop depending on it.
So how do we keep going when we’re discouraged, worn down, and tempted to give up?
