Today's Verse: So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city. ~Jonah 4:5   A western idiom that we use is the term “sitting duck.” This is a way of saying that a person is vulnerable to attack or other sources of danger. The term comes from hunting, where it is much easier to hit ducks when they are sitting on the water than when they are in fligh

Today's Verse: And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. ~2 Samuel 9:7   It is very special to sit at the table with dignity. It is very humbling when someone of great prominence and importance invites me to sit at his table with him. His table is preeminent of all the tables in the room. Everyone watches the he

Today's Verse: And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. ~1 Kings 19:3   Fear is when we are afraid of someone or something that we think will cause serious harm to us. Fear will quickly take over every aspect of our life. Fear is the opposite of faith. Everyone has a fear that can overcome them. I believe that fear is one of the devil’s biggest lies that he uses to sideline us from the

Today's Verse: For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice, ~Psalm 95:7   One of the blessed metaphors that the Bible uses to describe our relationship to God is that of a shepherd and his sheep. Shepherding is one of the most arduous occupations. It is a very demanding work that is 24/7 in nature. A shepherd must be vigilant at all times. A shepherd must be concerned for the entire flock, and especially

Today's Verse: But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil. ~Psalm 92:10   Oil is a necessity of life. It is used for medicinal purposes. It is used to provide relief during the intense heat of the day. It is used for cooking. It was also used to indicate the approval of God upon a new king or a prophet of God. Oil is made by applying strong pressure to olives until all the oil has been extracted. Many olives must be crushed to

Today's Verse: And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down. ~1 Kings 18:30   When you are in major trouble, you are relieved to get out of it. We refer to this as "getting out of a fix." The word "fix" also has the idea of repairing and restoring. King Ahab made an unholy alliance when he married Jezebel of Zidon. Through her influence, Baal worship permeated the land

Today's Verse: As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. ~Joshua 14:11   Caleb was an amazing man. At 85 years of age, he told Joshua, “I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now....” The typical conversations of men who live to be octogenarians go something like this: “When I was y

Today's Verse: As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honour is not seemly for a fool.  ~Proverbs 26:1 A con man is a cheater who is deceitful and fraudulent. He takes advantage of other people for his personal gain. Proverbs 26 speaks to us about three types of con men. There is the conceited man who is proud and full of himself. There is the contemptuous man who despises God, goodness, and righteousness. There is the contentious man who is a troublemaker. Each of the

Today's Verse: And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. ~Judges 7:4 Has anyone ever told you that you have “too much” or “too many”? “Too many” implies more than necessary or more than is required. The Isr

Today's Verse: Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the LORD stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand. And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the Lord, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more: ~Amos 7:7-8 If you have ever tried to make a straight line, you probably realized that you need a measuring device to help you make sure the line was truly

Today's Verse: Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came! ~Amos 6:1 I love the ministry and serving the Lord. The role that I serve in involves a multiplicity of tasks, responsibilities, and many people who need to be ministered to. The fast pace and large workload require me to be highly inspired and on the edge when it comes to completing tasks. I purposely try to plan a

Today's Verse: I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart. ~Psalm 119:32 A few years ago, a missionary that we support indicated that she was diagnosed with an enlarged heart. This condition led to several other life-threatening health developments. Mayo Clinic says the following about an enlarged heart: “An enlarged heart (cardiomegaly) isn't a disease, but rather a sign of another condition. The term 'cardiomegaly' refers to an enlarged heart s

Today's Verse: And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth. ~1 Kings 17:24 Do you know anyone who is a skeptic? Are you someone who is a skeptic? The Jews tend to be skeptical people. Jesus said about them, “Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.” After crossing the Red Sea, the Hebrews saw and then believed. However, faith means believing first and then seeing. Faith is belie

Today's Verse: Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. ~1 Kings 17:9   Have you ever been at the place in life where you had to “scrape the bottom of the barrel”? Have you ever been completely depleted in energy, emotion, patience, savings, or ability, and you couldn’t see how you were going to make it? It is during these moments that our faith in God and ability to trust in Him is

Today's Verse: Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad. ~Proverbs 12:25   Everyone gets discouraged. Whenever events in our life result in a setback, or we experience a serious challenge that leaves us feeling weak and vulnerable, we can find ourselves becoming discouraged. A heavy heart is when we are sad, lonely, defeated, and lacking a desire to go on. However, God in His infinite love for us brings us encouragement when we need it the

Today's Verse: Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me: for I am poor and needy. Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee. ~Psalm 86:1-2   A man prayed this prayer one morning: “Dear Heavenly Father, So far, today, I've done all right. I haven't gossiped or lost my temper. I haven't been greedy, grumpy, nasty, or self-centered. I'm really happy about that so far. But in a few minutes I'm going to be getting out of bed and then I'm goi

Today's Verse: Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images. ~Hosea 10:1   I enjoy eating grapes, especially the seedless black and red ones. Grapes are good for your health as they have rich anti-oxidants and fiber. The grape industry in the U.S. is very big. According to the National Agricultural Statistic Services in 202

Today's Verse: And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Bethhoron, that the LORD cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword. ~Joshua 10:11   Hail is formed when the temperature of the upper air reaches a point that transforms rain or water particles into ice. Basically, water is turned into ice, and ice pe

Today's Verse: But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: ~ Malachi 3:2   Have you ever done a load of white laundry only to be disappointed that the white clothes did not come out as clean as you had anticipated? Perhaps you tried applying a stronger detergent or more bleach to get the effect you wanted. At His Second Coming, our Lord Jesus is described as a refiner’s fire and a ful

Today's Verse: He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it. ~Matthew 10:39   Have you ever left an important personal article like clothing, sunglasses, or an electronic device at a store while shopping, on public transportation, or even at church and could not find it where you thought you left it? If you have, you have most likely gone to the “lost and found” hoping that someone honest had found it and turned it in. “Lost an