Daily Devotion
December 11, 2025
Matthew 6:22-23 “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness.”
Jesus’ words remind us that the direction of our inner life determines the condition of our whole life. The “single eye” He speaks of is a heart fixed on one aim—pleasing God. A divided gaze always becomes a divided heart, and a divided heart inevitably leads to spiritual confusion. It is no accident that today’s verses come just before His warning that no man can serve two masters. We cannot cling to the world’s treasures and still walk in the full light of Christ. God has called His people to a wholehearted devotion that has no rival. Hosea lamented that “their heart is divided,” and every believer knows how easily distraction, lesser loves, and competing loyalties can steal our focus. In any relationship, a divided heart leads to disaster. But from the beginning, the Lord has asked for what only love can give: “Choose you this day whom ye will serve” (Joshua 24:15). The psalmist answered that call with a steady resolve: “With my whole heart have I sought thee” (Psalm 119:10). Scripture paints this whole-heartedness with many examples: A clean heart (Psalm 51:10), a pure heart (2 Timothy 2:22), an honest and good heart (Luke 8:15). Each expression points to the same truth: God delights in a people whose affections are gathered toward Him. This is not something we produce by willpower alone. The eyes of the Lord “run to and fro” seeking those whose hearts are turned toward Him (2 Chronicles 16:9), and He Himself works to make that possible. He calls, draws, and reveals His Word by His Spirit so that we may know Him. As our understanding deepens, grace grows, and as grace grows, so does our love for Christ. Jeremiah spoke of a day when God would give His people “an heart to know me… for they shall return unto me with their whole heart” (Jeremiah 24:7). Though spoken to Israel, the principle reaches into our lives as well. We love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). And the more we behold His love, the more single our gaze becomes. A single eye is a settled, steady heart—one that looks to Christ without competing loyalties. Ask the Lord today to unite your heart to fear His name, to clear your inner gaze, and to renew your affection for Him. Matthew 17:8, “And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only”.
__________________________________
December 10, 2025
Psalms 126:3 “The LORD hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.”
These words ring with a joyful certainty: the Lord really has done great things for us. And when we pause long enough to remember them, gladness rises almost on its own. Our salvation alone is enough to fill a lifetime of praise. Psalms 103:3 says, “Who forgiveth all thine iniquities,” reminding us that the greatest “great thing” God ever did was to cleanse our sin and make us His own. How could we ever grow quiet about that? But the Lord’s goodness stretches back even farther—before we were born, before the world stood, He knew us and planned our redemption in Christ. His kindness toward His people has always been woven into their story. Think of Israel on the far shore of the Red Sea in Exodus 15. Delivered from bondage, rescued from an enemy they could not outrun, they took their testimony and turned it into a song. And they taught that song to their children so the next generation would never forget what God had done. Maybe that’s a good place for us to look today. Do our children and grandchildren know the great things the Lord has done for us? Do they hear from our lips the stories of answered prayer, unexpected provision, quiet rescues, and mercies too numerous to list? We often think of God as our Helper in trouble, and He certainly is, but He is more than that. He does not treat us as our sins deserve. He gives favor we did not earn and blessings we could never repay. He has been better to us than we can imagine. If only we had kept a journal from the day we were saved, recording every comfort in grief, every moment of Spirit-given peace, every providence that arrived just in time, every deliverance that carried us through when we had no strength of our own. Perhaps then we would see in ink what is already true in our hearts: the Lord has done great things for us. Yet sometimes abundance dulls our memory. Like a child with too many gifts to appreciate, or a person so surrounded by good things that nothing feels special, we forget. And forgetting can quiet our praise. Maybe today is the day to start remembering again. To whisper thanks in private and speak His goodness openly. You may think others don’t want to hear it, but most people have heard plenty of the other stories, the worn-out ones we’ve repeated for years. What they rarely hear is a fresh testimony of God’s kindness. And when you share it, you may find they remember blessings of their own and begin to rejoice with you. So, shout it loudly! The Lord has done great things for me, and I’m glad!
_________________________________
December 9, 2025
2 Corinthians 11:24-25, 27 “Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; (27) In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.”
Some teach that believers should never face hardship, as though faith were a shield against all pain. But these verses stand as a clear and sobering reminder that God’s servants are not exempt from suffering. Paul—chosen before his birth, filled with the Spirit, steadfast in obedience—endured a lifetime of trials that would break most men. If we read his list without context, it almost appears as though God had abandoned him rather than called him. This is not a list of times when people spoke evil of him, laughed at him, or called him names. He wasn’t getting his feelings hurt or having a hard time coming up with money to pay his cell phone bill. People were beating him to a pulp with whips, beating him with wooden rods, and stoning him in an attempt to kill him at Lystra (Acts 14) until he passed out, unconscious, and left for dead. He was shipwrecked and exposed to hunger, cold, and exhaustion. The punishment of “forty stripes save one” alone is almost beyond imagination. According to Jewish practice recorded in the Mishna, the victim’s hands were tied to a post, his upper body stripped bare. The attendant stood on a raised stone with a leather whip divided into four lashes. One third of the blows struck the chest, one third the right shoulder, and one third the left. Each one was delivered with full force while the man receiving them stooped forward. This happened to Paul not once, but five separate times, simply because he obeyed Christ and preached the gospel. Most believers will never endure the severity of Paul’s sufferings. Yet his testimony teaches us that hardship is not a sign of God’s displeasure, nor is suffering proof that faith has failed. Trials, whether fierce or mild, are woven into the Christian journey. But so are God’s promises. In 1 Corinthians 10:13, we are assured that no trial will ever exceed what God will enable us to bear, and that He will always make a way for us to stand, endure, and come through with victory. The Lord who sustained Paul will sustain us as well. Paul’s sufferings remind us that obedience does not exempt us from adversity, but it does guarantee God’s presence in the midst of it. His trials did not weaken his faith: they proved it. Whatever you face today, the Lord has already measured it, limited it, and provided strength for it. Lean on His promise, walk in His grace, and trust that He will bring you through.
___________________________________
December 8, 2025
Luke 2:30 “For mine eyes have seen thy salvation.”
Joseph and Mary brought the newborn Lord Jesus into the temple when He was eight days old, fulfilling the command of the Law that every firstborn male be presented to the Lord. What should have been a quiet ceremony became a moment filled with divine purpose, for God had directed a Spirit-filled man named Simeon to the temple that very day. The Holy Ghost had revealed to Simeon that he would not see death until he had seen the Lord’s Christ. When Joseph and Mary entered, Simeon recognized the Child immediately. He took Jesus in his arms, blessed God, and uttered the words in today’s verse. In that moment, he testified that he was ready to depart this life because he had finally seen God’s salvation. But notice that he did not say he had seen a plan, a system, or a path. He said he had seen thy salvation. In Simeon’s aged arms lay the truth that salvation is not a philosophy, a religion, or a lifestyle. It is a Person. We can easily list what salvation is not: it is not religion, moral reformation, or striving to live better than those around us. It is not faith in a guru, a teacher, or a spiritual trend. It is not self-improvement or turning over a new leaf. Simeon held in his hands God’s one and only way of eternal salvation, and that way is Jesus Christ alone. As we enter the Christmas season, much of our attention goes to Bethlehem, the manger, and the beauty of that holy night. Yet the marvel of that night is not merely that a child was born, but that salvation was lying in the manger. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Salvation is a Person, and salvation is also a gift. Scripture says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). Our Lord said, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish” (John 10:28). He does not sell eternal life or ask us to earn it. He gives it freely. Salvation is also a birth. Jesus told Nicodemus that he must be born again, and without this new birth, no one can see the kingdom of God. The Bible says that this new birth is produced not by human effort but by the power of the eternal Word of God (1 Peter 1:23). Simeon’s part in the Christmas story is small in length but great in meaning. He stands in the temple as a herald of truth, announcing to the world that Jesus Christ—this Child, this Messiah—is God’s salvation embodied in human form. Christ Himself is God’s gift to us: our salvation, our new birth, and our eternal life.
________________________________
December 7, 2025
Psalm 31:4 — “Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength.”
The psalmist pictures himself caught. His feet are tangled, and he is ensnared. Scripture often uses the image of a net to describe a hidden trap set to capture the unsuspecting. David knew what it was to feel bound and helpless, but he also knew where to look: “for thou art my strength.” When we are tangled up in a mess, our eyes must turn upward. There are times when life feels exactly like this, and it’s frustrating. Sometimes the net is woven by our own poor choices. We step where we shouldn’t, confident we can handle what lies ahead, only to discover we have walked directly into the consequences of our decisions. Other times, the net is laid by the intentions of others: Those who oppose us, misunderstand us, or purposely work against us. Scripture speaks often of enemies “laying wait” or trying to catch the righteous in their words, as they attempted with our Lord (Mark 12:13; Luke 11:54). Still other nets come from circumstances beyond our control. Responsibilities multiply, pressures rise, and the path narrows until we feel pinned between walls we did not build. And there are times when the trap is clearly the work of our adversary, the devil, who has had long practice crafting snares meant to derail, discourage, or distract God’s people. It all can feel like whirlpools pulling us downward or like quicksand tightening with every struggle. But the same Lord who watched over David watches over us. This is the pattern of our God. He sees every snare long before we step into it. He knows how to pluck our feet out of every trap, whether self-made or enemy-laid. He calls us to lift our eyes and fix our expectation on the One who is strong enough to rescue. “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2). And He delivers. The promise stands sure: “The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles… Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all” (Psalm 34:17, 19). The believer can say with confidence, “Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers… our help is in the name of the LORD” (Psalm 124:6-8). Even more, God turns the enemy’s own devices upside down: “The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken” (Psalm 9:15). The very plans meant to harm us often become the means by which God displays His protection, His power, and His amazing grace.
____________________________________________
December 6, 2025
Isaiah 12:3 “Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.”
For the most part, the Middle East is a dry, arid land. It’s amazing how people have lived there since time began—farmed, and tended sheep and cattle. Sometimes I like to look at Google Earth and zoom in on the rivers that flow through those countries, marveling at how it’s only on the banks of the rivers that vegetation flourishes. Check out the Nile as it slices its way through Africa and see how it’s a strip of fertile ribbon with miles of desert on both sides. That’s why stories about wells appear so many times in the Scriptures: they were essential to sustaining life. In John 4, Jesus met the woman at the well and spoke words that have been used in the gospel message ever since: “Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” This is the picture of today’s verse. In the deserts of the Bible lands, if someone had a well that never went dry, it meant life for their family and their livestock. It was a priceless treasure. The night Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the angels who appeared announcing His birth were not a group of somber-faced, sad, melancholy messengers. They were praising and glorifying God because they knew something had just happened that was unspeakable: God had become a baby. He was human. It is the essence of 1 Timothy 3:16, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels.” I love the way the AV states that: “God was manifest in the flesh”. It’s plainly and unashamedly declared in the face of the devil and all those who deny Christ’s combined humanity and deity. Even while I’m typing this devotion, joy is swelling up in me. Tears are forming in my eyes because there’s a well of the Holy Spirit—the water Jesus promised—within me that’s in full agreement with Emmanuel: God with us! That might appear as emotion to some, but if you’ve ever known the power of the Holy Spirit coursing through your body, quickening it with heaven’s water of salvation, you know exactly what I mean! By the time the shepherds had heard the angels, traveled to Bethlehem, and looked upon God in the flesh lying in a manger, the Bible says they went back home “glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.” It is good tidings of great joy!
_____________________________________
December 5, 2025
Psalms 66:19-20 “But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.”
What things are you praying about in this season of your life? What are you asking the Lord to do, to provide, or to consider for you, your family, or someone heavy on your heart? The hurried pace of life—the constant motion we sometimes can’t escape—can interfere with our prayer time. Days slip by, and before we realize it, we’ve gone too long without earnestly seeking the Lord or simply resting in His presence. And even when we’re busy with church activities or serving in some ministry role, it is surprisingly easy to move through spiritual responsibilities with a prayerless heart. But these verses point us back to the importance of prayer. The Psalmist makes a confident declaration: God has heard me. He hasn’t turned away. That assurance rests especially in the phrase, “Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.” It follows verse 18, which warns, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” We know the struggle of that verse all too well. Our ongoing battle for purity of heart often exposes our weakness. But that next phrase, “nor his mercy”, stands like a strong tower over our failures. Mercy meets us where our strength ends. Through Jesus Christ, we approach the throne of grace boldly, not because we are flawless, but because His mercy covers us. So let’s return to the first question: What are you praying about? We can pray bold prayers because our Lord already knows our needs. “Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him” (Matthew 6:8). Before a word forms on our lips, God knows. He sees the need, the burden, the fear, the confusion—and He knows exactly what is in our best interest. That’s why the Scripture urges us, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). The Bible is filled with stories of ordinary believers who prayed, and God answered. For generations, God’s people have clung to Jeremiah 33:3 as a promise revealing God’s heart toward His praying children: “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” Some argue that we pull that verse out of context, but they have not read Ephesians 3:20, which says our God is “able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.” Did you get that “above all that we ask or think” part? Truly, God is hearing us. He is listening to the voice of our prayers! Keep praying!
_____________________________________________
December 4, 2025
1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”
Fear rises in us whenever we are uncertain, overwhelmed, or unsure of where things are heading. Scripture makes no attempt to hide that even God’s strongest servants wrestled with fear. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 7:5 that he was “troubled on every side… without were fightings, within were fears.” If the apostle who saw the third heaven still faced inward fear, we shouldn’t be surprised when our own hearts tremble. But the Lord shows us why fear loses its grip: perfect love casts it out. John is not talking about our love for Christ—imperfect, fluctuating, and often weak. He’s talking about the perfect, unwavering love that Christ has for us. When we become convinced of His love, fear begins to lose its authority. The disciples faced this lesson on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus was asleep in the boat when a sudden, violent storm sent seasoned fishermen into panic. They shook Him awake, certain they were going to die. Before calming the wind and waves, the Lord asked a searching question: “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?” He wasn’t scolding them for waking Him. He was inviting them to examine why they believed any storm could overpower the One who created the waters beneath them. They had seen miracles, walked with Him daily, and watched His power displayed again and again, yet this storm felt different. And that is how our storms often feel. We’ve weathered trials before, trusted God before, and seen Him work before—but then a circumstance arises that feels bigger, darker, or more threatening than anything before. Our confidence wavers; fear whispers louder. But the Lord brings us back to the same truth: if He loves us—and He does—then no storm can destroy us. Even before Jesus calmed the sea, the disciples were never in danger. The boat carrying the Son of God was not going to sink. And the life hidden in Christ will not be lost to any circumstance. When He finally spoke, “Peace, be still,” the calm that followed was not just on the water. Heaven-sent peace flowed into the hearts of the men who had panicked moments before. The same peace comes to us when we remember that His perfect love—steadfast, eternal, unchanging—stands between us and every fear. Fear grows wherever we doubt the love of Christ, but it shrinks when we rest in it. The same Savior who stilled the storm is with us in every circumstance. His love assures us that no threat can undo what He holds secure. When we know His heart toward us, we learn to trust, and little by little, fear loses its voice.
_______________________________
December 3, 2025
Isaiah 1:3 “The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider”.
The opening of Isaiah is striking because the Lord speaks as a Father grieving over His own children. In Isaiah 1:2, He reminds heaven and earth that He had nourished and raised them, yet they rebelled against Him. Then, in today’s verse, God uses two simple animals—creatures we would never consider wise—to expose the spiritual dullness of His people. An ox knows its owner. A donkey knows where its food comes from. But Israel refused to acknowledge either their Father or their Provider. They had grown so calloused that even basic spiritual instinct was gone. This same rebuke appears again in Malachi 1:6: “A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? And if I be a master, where is my fear?” The enemy has always worked to keep people from honoring God as their Creator and Lord. In Israel’s day, that deception took the form of turning toward the false gods of the Canaanites, crediting idols with the very things God Himself had given. It is the same satanic strategy he tried with Jesus in the wilderness when he offered Him the kingdoms of the world in exchange for worship. Today, the form looks different, but the heart of the lie is the same. When the voices most celebrated as “the smartest people on the planet” insist that existence itself is nothing more than random chance and accidental mutation, our generation reveals a deeper blindness than the ox or the donkey. It is exactly what Romans 1:28 describes: “And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient”. One paraphrase of this is, “And because they thought it was worthless to acknowledge God, God allowed their own immoral minds to control them”. But the believer stands in a different place entirely. You know who you belong to. You know your Creator. And you know that every good thing in your life has a Source far greater than chance or nature. Aren’t you glad that you know who you belong to? And, aren’t you glad that you know and believe the Lord, the Creator of all things, is your source? The Book of Isaiah reminds us that true wisdom begins with recognizing God as Father, Creator, and Provider. The world may dismiss Him, but the child of God treasures the knowledge of who He is and gladly honors the One to whom we belong.
_____________________________________
December 2, 2025
Mark 7:37 “And (the people) were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.”
The verse closes an unusual and very personal miracle. The people had brought to Jesus a man who could not hear and who struggled to speak. Throughout the Gospels, the Lord met human need in different ways. At times He simply spoke the word. Sometimes He touched the afflicted. And in other cases—like the woman with the issue of blood—His healing power flowed to those who reached out to Him in faith. But this miracle unfolds differently. Mark 7:33-35 tells us, “And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.” It makes us stop and ask why. Why did Jesus spit? Why not just speak the healing word or place His hand upon the man? It brings to mind another scene in Mark 8:23, where He led a blind man out of the town, spit on his eyes, touched him, and then asked what he could see. Adam Clarke wrote that the man’s eyelids may have been matted together and only needed moisture to be separated—no miracle required for that part. One preacher once remarked, “I’d rather have Jesus spit on me than have the devil cozy up,” and though said lightly, it makes a point. The Messiah did not restrict Himself to a single method. He healed in the way that pleased the Father and served the moment. That truth still speaks loudly today. When we pray and wait for the Lord to work, we are often tempted to expect Him to move in the way we already imagined. But He is the God of the impossible, and He reserves the right to accomplish His will in whatever manner glorifies Him most. And when He does, we can join the testimony of the people in today’s verse: “He hath done all things well.” Look back over your own life. Think of the mercies that met you, the deliverances you never deserved, the prayers He answered when you could hardly pray, the strength He gave in dark places, and the faithfulness He has shown at every turn. He may have answered in unusual ways. He may have provided by unexpected means. And He may have worked quite differently than you assumed He would. Yet if your experience is like mine, you can say with confidence and gratitude: He does all things well.
____________________________________________
December 1, 2025
Psalms 91:2 “I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.”
For the past several days, I’ve been writing these devotions with a particular burden on my heart—to encourage anyone walking through a season of trouble. For many, Thanksgiving and Christmas are anything but joyful. While others sing carols, decorate the house, and gather with family, some sit in the quiet ache of loss, loneliness, or discouragement. Many secretly whisper, “I’ll be glad when this season is over.” If you belong to Jesus Christ and have given Him your heart and life, today’s verse gives you something powerful—something you can say. This psalm has comforted believers for centuries because it names the very things that confront us: hidden traps, sickness, unseen fears, the enemy’s assaults, real danger, and every form of evil that stalks us in a fallen world. Yet against this long list of threats, Scripture places one decisive action into the mouth of the believer: “I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” The battle shifts the moment you open your mouth in faith. You don’t merely think it, or hope it, or wish it. You say it. And you say it because it is true. Not only can you declare this over your own life, but you can also encourage others to speak it boldly. The enemy wants us muttering defeat: “I can’t make it. Everything is against me. I’m worn out. I’m giving up.” But the language of surrender weakens our faith and casts shadows of doubt over the God who has promised to deliver us. He is our refuge. He is our fortress. He has not forgotten you just because others seem to be celebrating with no cares at all. The Lord is faithful and true, and the Holy Spirit urges us to speak with confidence that our God is for us, that He is with us, and that He will bring us through the storm into a place of joy. So by faith, I will say many things about my Savior even when nothing around me hints at victory. Even when the night remains dark and the way looks uncertain. I will say that in Him I am more than a conqueror. I will say that I am redeemed and blessed. I will say that I am a child of God, and my Heavenly Father loves me. I will say that I am strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. I will say that I have His peace and His joy. And I will keep saying it, because what God has spoken is truer than anything my eyes can see.
______________________________________