Today's Verse: And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: ~Zechariah 6:12 Zechariah 6 speaks of the temple of the Lord during the Millennium. It will be a literal temple where the people of the earth will worship the Lord. Waters will flow out from under that great temple and give life where things were formerly barren or lifele

Today's Verse: He poureth contempt upon princes, and causeth them to wander in the wilderness, where there is no way. ~Psalm 107:40 What comes to your mind when you hear the word "wilderness"? For me, I have foreboding thoughts of barrenness, uncharted territory, wild animals, and a place where you can die for lack of supplies and resources. The psalmist described it as a place where there is no way. The wilderness is not a place that you would choose for an adventurous vaca

Today's Verse: For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. ~Psalm 22:16 The story is told of a boy who was trapped by a fire on the second floor of his house. The rest of his family had perished in the fire. A man, seeing the boy’s desperate situation, climbed his way into the boy’s bedroom by way of a metal pipe attached all the way to the roof of the house. The man was successful in reaching and rescuing the b

Today's Verse: Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Jerushah, the daughter of Zadok. And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah did: howbeit he entered not into the temple of the LORD. And the people did yet corruptly. ~2 Chronicles 27:1-2 A core principle about leaders and followers is that “people do what people see.” Dr. Lee

Today's Verse: She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness. ~Proverbs 31:26 On page 2 of the December 1989 issue of "Bits and Pieces," it tells the following story. Mamie Adams always went to a branch post office in her town because the postal employees there were friendly. She went there to buy stamps just before Christmas one year and the lines were particularly long. Someone pointed out that there was no need to wait in line because there wa

Today's Verse: There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother. ~Proverbs 30:11 Sociologists have identified seven generational groups that are present in our society. There are the Traditionalists, who were born before 1945. There are the baby boomers, who represent everyone born between 1946 and 1964. There is Generation X, which includes those born between 1965 and 1976. There are the millennials, which include everyone born between 1977 a

Today's Verse: Eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved. ~Song of Solomon 5:1b Are you someone who enjoys eating at buffet restaurants? Buffet restaurants have a large variety of food, dessert, and beverages that you can choose from to eat. Basically, you pay one price and eat as much as you want of anything. There is no limit on the amount you can eat. There are some people who have incredibly voracious appetites who get more than their money's worth at a buf

Today's Verse: And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. ~1 Samuel 3:19 One of our core responsibilities is the raising up of leadership for the future. It is vitally important that we are focusing on mentoring men who will be the next generation of leaders. At the time when Samuel was just a very young lad, there was a void in leadership. The sons of Eli abused their office as priests and discouraged the hearts of the peop

Today's Verse: The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. ~Zephaniah 3:17 Zephaniah 3:17 is an incredibly encouraging verse of Scripture. It was a word of comfort and promise given to God’s people during a dark moment of affliction and suffering. In our darkest moments, God never fails to come alongside of us when we need Him and give us words of encouragement

Today's Verse: And the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and did work in the house of the LORD of hosts, their God ~Haggai 1:14 When someone is stirred up, he is aroused to action. He is moved from a state of inactivity to activity. He is motivated to get something done. We are highly motivated when we a

Today's Verse: Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst. ~Nehemiah 9:20 God has given every believer many remarkable gifts that we are not worthy of. James 1:17 tells us that the gifts of God are fail-safe. They are perfect and from above; they are favorable and good; they are fatherly and from God our Father, Who gives us His best. One of the supernatural gifts we overlook is th

Today's Verse: Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. ~Proverbs 30:5 During the hot summer months, most people know that extended time in the sun can put them at risk of developing skin cancer. Sunscreen is a protective lotion that can be applied to the parts of the body that will be exposed to the ultraviolet rays of the sun. The stronger the SPF factor, the greater the protection. Thus, sunscreen serves as a shield from the damagin

Today's Verse: Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: ~Ezekiel 37:5 All of us recognize the importance of breathing. Breathing is a sign of life. When we stop breathing, we stop living. Sometimes after running or doing vigorous exercise, we might say that we are out of breath or need to catch our breath. Someone who is in need of CPR is someone who needs to breathe again. Our Scripture this morning contains

Today's Verse: For of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. ~2 Peter 2:19b Addiction is when something has power over the desires and willpower of an individual. Addiction is controlling, enslaving, and overpowering. When a person realizes he is addicted to a desire or substance, he is under its control. He has been overcome. It is sad to say, but the true reality is that even a Christian can be under a controlling power that has made him its slave.

Today's Verse: Now therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways. Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes. ~Haggai 1:5-6 The San Francisco Bay Area is one of the most expensive places in the country to live in. Many people work long hours in their primary employment, and many ot

Today's Verse: And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed. ~2 Kings 13:18 One of the greatest virtues we need in our lives is the virtue of persistence. Persistence is staying at something for a long time. It is not throwing in the towel and giving up early. It is staying in the race even if you are in agony. It is doing what you do with maximum effort until it is complete. Spurg

Today's Verse: So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. ~Ezekiel 33:7 Have you ever had a neighbor ask you to watch their house while they were away? If so, they had an expectation that you would be observant of any suspicious activity and that you would help circumvent problems by getting law enforcement involved. On the other hand, if something happened when you were s

Today's Verse: I sought him, but I found him not. ~Song of Solomon 3:2b A few years ago, I had the privilege of being part of a panel of pastors who were interviewed about current topics. I left later that afternoon to return home to the San Francisco Bay Area. About two hours into my drive back, one of the secretaries at the host church where I had been called me and said, “Bro. Fong, we found an iPad that was left behind. Is this yours?” I immediately thought, “How did I l

Today's Verse: They made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept. ~Song of Solomon 1:6b We live very busy lives! Living in the San Francisco Bay Area places many demands upon working adults. Working people need to make time for commuting, attending classes, taking their children to school and after-school events, household chores, cooking, cleaning, and outside volunteer activities. In addition, those of us who are actively serving the Lord in o

Today's Verse: Fulfil your works, your daily tasks.... ~Exodus 5:13b Pharaoh told the Hebrews that they needed to do their daily tasks—we would call this the daily grind. Like it or not, the daily grind is what we must do each day in order to be productive. There are things we must accomplish that are essential for our work, school, and church. Even more important are the daily things we must do for a strong spiritual life. We must be daily in the getting of wisdom. “Bles