Today’s Verse: And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; ~John 2:15 Does the sight of an unkempt house bother you? I think most people desire and strive for a clean house. However, we can become occupied with many other things and neglect our household needs. Jesus entered into the temple at Jerusalem and was appalled by what He saw in the court

Today’s Verse: Great are thy tender mercies, O LORD: quicken me according to thy judgments. ~Psalm 119:156 Psalm 119 teaches us that trials, afflictions, and problems teach us about God and His attributes. Times of difficulty are God’s gift to us. Without these troubles, we would be lacking in our faith and grasp of God’s power and love in our life. This morning, we see where the psalmist speaks of the tender mercies of God. In a society where a bravado spirit, retaliation, a

Today’s Verse: And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. ~Genesis 2:7 Breathing is a vital and necessary part of life for us. We inhale air so that we can take in oxygen. We exhale air so that carbon dioxide is released out of us. Breathing is a necessity for living. When CPR is administered to someone unconscious, we seek to breathe air into their lungs to restore their breathing. W

Today’s Verse: And let us arise, and go up to Bethel; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went. ~Genesis 35:3 Jacob made a costly mistake in moving down to Shechem. From the moment he pitched his tent there, one mishap after another happened. The final blow was when Simeon and Levi took swords and killed all the incapacitated men of Shechem. Jacob told his sons, “Ye have troubled me to make me

Today’s Verse: Ye shall have a song, as in the night when a holy solemnity is kept; and gladness of heart, as when one goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the LORD, to the mighty One of Israel. ~Isaiah 30:29 The Assyrians were the mighty world power during the days of King Ahaz. Israel would be overtaken by them. King Ahaz made an alliance with them, only to have them turn against him and Judah. The Lord intervened and delivered Ahaz and Judah. In is deliverance, G

Today’s Verse: And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. ~Ezekiel 37:3 As a kid, I was very skinny and thin. My uncles and aunts used to tell me that I needed to eat more because I was “too bony.” Telling someone that they are bony is not considered polite. However, it does describe someone who appears to be physically declining, malnourished, emaciated, and, even, near death. In our passage this morning, Ezekiel is taken

Today’s Verse: O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! ~Habakkuk 1:2 I believe that every person has a breaking point. This is when a situation becomes so unbearable that you let off the steam that has been building up inside of you. You might let it out through shouting, punching a bag, or taking a long walk. Habakkuk records for us a prayer that he prayed. In this prayer, he speaks of crying out to Go

Today’s Verse: And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. ~Genesis 2:7 The COVID pandemic has caused all of us to focus on its impact on an affected person’s breathing. More serious cases of COVID have caused some patients to require breathing assistance including oxygen and, in very severe circumstances, intubation. Breathing assistance is meant to help a person until he is able to b

Today’s Verse: Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south. ~Psalm 126:4 The psalmist described the return of the Jews to Jerusalem as the streams in the south. The riverbeds are dependent upon the melting of snow in late spring. After a summer and an early fall of the hot sun, the streams that move southward have diminished in size and strength, even to the point that streams and riverbeds become completely dried up. However, once the rain season returns, t

Today’s Verse: Ask ye of the LORD rain in the time of the latter rain; so the LORD shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field. ~Zechariah 10:1 Jesus defined prayer as simply asking God. "Ask, and ye shall receive." Dr. John R. Rice authored a book entitled Prayer: Asking and Receiving on how to get our prayers answered by God. Unanswered prayer is because we do not ask God. “Ye have not, because ye ask not.” When we ask, we must a

Today’s Verse: For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her. ~Zechariah 2:5 The last several weeks, our state of California has been engulfed in major fires. Millions of acres have burned, structures have been destroyed, and billions of dollars in losses have been incurred. Firefighters in the wilderness will sometimes set up fire walls to cut off an approaching fire. It serves as a “wall’ to stop the advance of

Today’s Verse: And there sat in a window a certain young man named Eutychus, being fallen into a deep sleep: and as Paul was long preaching, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the third loft, and was taken up dead. ~Acts 20:9 Falling out of a window is a scary thing. Serious injury or death is very likely. Most situations of someone falling out of a window would be considered accidental but avoidable. This morning, we see a young man named Eutychus, who fell out of a

Today’s Verse: When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple. ~Jonah 2:7 Fainting is a physical condition when a person becomes very light headed and passes out. Sometimes, a person faints because of extreme hunger and low blood sugar. Sometimes it is because of low blood pressure. Other times, it is because of being overwhelmed by a situation that he is in. Jonah, the runaway prophet, speaks of an unforgettable

Today’s Verse: And he was sore athirst, and called on the LORD, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised? ~Judges 15:18 Have you ever been at a place in life where you were literally dying of thirst? I mean, where you have not had any water to drink for a very long, extended period of time. You feel dried up on the inside, your mouth and throat are very dry, your

Today’s Verse: Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. ~1 Kings 18:38 Fire is one of the four natural elements needed in life. The other three are earth, wind, and water. Fire has many essential uses: heat, cooking, light, and controlled burning. Fire can be dangerous as well. Uncontrolled fire can burn and destroy. A raging fire leaves behind ashes, rubble, a

Today’s Verse: After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: ~Acts 15:16 Earthquake-prone areas of the world are very keen on the fact that a major earthquake can happen at any time. The people who live in area hit hard by an earthquake know that, in spite of the ruin they have experienced, they must build again. While speaking at an important gathering of the churc

Today’s Verse But Peter put them all forth, and kneeled down, and prayed; and turning him to the body said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes: and when she saw Peter, she sat up. ~Acts 9:40 Most hotels have a service that gives its patrons a wakeup call in the morning. Wakeup calls are very helpful for people who are very heavy sleepers or for travelers in a different time zone who want to make sure they are awakened at a certain time. A wakeup call also has a special m

Today’s Verse: Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay. ~Jeremiah 20:9 Have you ever experienced a burning sensation in your bones, body, or organs? If you have, you have felt very uncomfortable and restless. Jeremiah was at a very low point in his life. However, he was greatly victorious at a time when he felt that h

Today’s Verse: And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. ~ Luke 7:14 Many parents get perplexed with their teens: teen pushback, teen peer pressures, teen performance, and teen perspective. Mark Twain said that when a child turns age 12, put him into a barrel, cap it, put a hole large enough on the top of the cap to feed him, and keep him in there until he turns age 18. Kidding aside, teens are a chal

Today’s Verse: And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage. ~Ezra 9:8 The word “little” implies something very small and, possibly, insignificant. When the word is used, we are indicating not very much in quantity. However, we know that little is much when God is in it. Jesus blessed a few small