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Devotional “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.” We’ve mentioned the book of Romans three times over the life of our blog already. Honestly, that’s far fewer times than we could have. This is our 35th blog post, and I could have spent the last 34 posts discussing Romans alone. This exc

Devotional “The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s charge, because the LORD was with him. And whatever he did, the LORD made it succeed.” My favorite story in the Bible, outside of the grand story of Jesus Christ, is the story of Joseph. Unfortunately, when I originally started reading the Bible, I would struggle to make it past Leviticus. I’m sure many can relate. This caused me to reread Genesis half a dozen times, giving me more time in

Devotional “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” Have you ever learned something you knew would improve your life, only to never put it into practice? We do this more often than we’d like to admit. We collect information, but information alone doesn’t change us. Just because someone owns a workout program or researches the best exercises for muscle growth doesn’t mean they are going to be fit. In the same way, just because someone reads the B

Devotional “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.” Growing up, we used to watch a show called Bibleman. For those who grew up in the church, you’re likely familiar, but for those who don’t know, Bibleman was a superhero designed to be a role model for Christians. He was often described as a Christian version of Batman, and got his powers from the Armor of God. He had the Waistbelt of Tr

Devotional “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:” One of the hardest lessons to learn is that wisdom isn’t just knowing what to do—it’s knowing when to do it. That’s the message Solomon begins with in Ecclesiastes 3. Since we finished our last month of conditioning following a month of strength training, we decided it would be best to take a week off. But not a traditional week off, rather we took a “deload” week. If you’ve ever played s

Devotional “‘But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? Man does not know its worth, and it is not found in the land of the living.” As we wrap up the final week of this program, it’s worth recognizing the limitations of our own understanding. As much as I appreciate everyone that visits our blog, in my posts, I am by no means claiming to have all the answers. Just as Job reminds us, human knowledge can only take us so far. We can learn a great

Devotional “For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” Paul’s letter to the Galatians is a passionate defense of the gospel. After confronting false teaching about salvation, he ends the letter by showing what it looks like to live by the Spirit each day. That’s where today’s verse finds us. In Galatians 6, Paul urges believers to bear other’s burdens as a means of lovi

Devotional “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” We often want to understand why God allows certain things to happen, but Scripture reminds us that His wisdom far exceeds our own. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts and we need to trust Him in every aspect of our life. A couple verses later, it says that His words will not return empty, for all that he says will succeed in its purpose. Go

Devotional “They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.” The Bible is a profound book that rewards careful study. But if we misunderstand its meaning, we can misapply God’s Word and miss what He intends to teach us. Without guidance, we could easily wander off into our own thoughts and overlook the core message of the gospel. In Nehemiah 8:8, Ezra and the other leaders read from the Book of the Law

Devotional “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 6 begins with Jesus warning His followers against performing acts of righteousness just to be seen by others. The motive behind actions matters much more than the action itself. Jesus calls those who perform acts of righteousness for praise hypocrites and notes that the only reward they will receive i

Devotional “Not one word of all the good promises that the LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.” The book of Joshua is a beautiful lesson in God’s commitment to His people. In many of our devotionals, we stress the importance of faithfulness. The book of Joshua reminds us that God is faithful to keep every promise He makes. God has the ability to do whatever He chooses, but He will always do what He says He will do. So when Jesus says that no one

Devotional “But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, ‘Why have you made me like this?’” In Romans 9:20, Paul compares us to clay and God to a potter. Christ is the creator of all things, and He made each of us with care for a purpose. No two people are the same, but He loves each one of us as a Father would his children. God does not make mistakes, so when we question His choices, we question His wisdom and sovereignty. Most of us

Devotional “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.” Ezekiel was a priest taken captive during the first Babylonian Exile that was known for his prophesies of God. His book is split into four parts: the call of Ezekiel, a warning to Israel, a warning to surrounding nat

Devotional “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” One of the more popular verses in the Bible, and one of my favorite verses, is Matthew 6:34. This is a quote from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount reminding us not to carry tomorrow’s burdens today. Most people take this verse out of context, which makes sense given the weight of the words, but the context takes it even further than Jesus tell

Devotional “Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense.” Like many Proverbs, this verse stands as a lesson on its own. It highlights the difference between one who is diligent and hard-working and one who pursues unrealistic dreams. In all my verses so far, I have used the ESV translation, but for this verse I like the NIV. Rather than the use of “worthless pursuits”, it uses the word “fantasies”: “Those who work their

Devotional “And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.” In our last devotional, we discussed Isaiah 12:2 and where our lasting strength comes from. Today I wanted to talk about what our next step must be when we recognize God as our strength. Just a couple verses later, in Isaiah 12:4, Isaiah says that we must give thanks and make God’s acts known to all people. He doub

Devotional ““Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”” Isaiah 12:2 is one of the most popular verses in the Bible. It comes during a time shortly after the judgement of Israel, and provides praise to the Lord for His salvation. This verse represents a transition from the Lord’s anger to mercy and gives hope to the people of future deliverance. When we say God is our salvati

Devotional “But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the Lord his God and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.” Uzziah was the 10th king of Judah who reigned 52 years, making him one of the longest reigning kings of Judah. Starting at the age of 16, Uzziah did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He was instructed in the fear of God, and as long as he followed the Lord, the Lord brought prosperit

Devotional “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’” This quote comes directly from Jesus, who at the time was answering the question of which commandment is the most important. This line of questioning was with the leaders of Israel and was a large part of what caused Jesus to be killed. One thing we know about Jesus is that he chooses his words carefully; he is the ultimate teacher a

Devotional “Is not your fear of God your confidence, and the integrity of your ways your hope?” On my current yearly read-through of the Bible, I find myself in the middle of Job as we transition from strength training to overall fitness. Job was a man tested by the devil and was forced through many challenges and obstacles to test his faith. His story is one of my favorites and teaches us a memorable lesson of where to find our confidence during challenges. Job lost his fami