May 17 I Samuel 8-10 Psalm 61 Proverbs 13:24-25 John 7 The Rock That Is Higher Than I “From the end of the Earth I call to You when my heart is faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a refuge for me, a tower of strength before the enemy. Let me sojourn in Your tent forever; let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings.” Psalm 61:2-4 LSB I like the beach, but my happy place is definitely the mountains. The beach at sunset is peaceful

May 16 I Samuel 6-7 Psalm 60:6-12 Proverbs 13:22-23 John 6 God Looks At The Heart “But God said to Samuel, ‘Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but Yahweh looks at the heart.” I Samuel 16:7 LSB There are many instances in the Bible where God chooses people to use in mighty ways that men would have overlooked. In this passage, God sent Samuel to

May 15 I Samuel 4-5 Psalm 60:1-5 Proverbs 13:19-21 John 5 Witnesses “But the witness I have is greater than the witness of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish—the very works that I do—bear witness about Me, that the Father has sent Me. And the Father who sent Me, He has borne witness about Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. And you do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent. You

May 14 I Samuel 1-3 Psalm 59:14-17 Proverbs 13:17-18 John 4 Hannah’s Prayer “And she, bitter of soul, prayed to Yahweh and wept despondently. And she made a vow and said, ‘O Yahweh of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a seed amongst men, then I will give him to Yahweh all the days of his life and a razor shall never come on his head.” I Samuel 1:10-11 LSB

May 13 Ruth 3-4 Psalm 59:6-13 Proverbs 13:15-16 John 3 Whoever Believes “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son o

May 12 Ruth 1-2 Psalm 59:1-5 Proverbs 13:13-14 John 2 Loyalty And Faithful Service “But Ruth said, ‘Do not press me to forsake you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may Yahweh do to me, and more, if anything but death separates you and me.’” Ruth 1:16-17 LSB This passage is often read at weddings because it gives us the per

May 11 Judges 19-21 Psalm 58:6-11 Proverbs 13:11-12 John 1 Right In His Own Eyes “In those days there was no king in Israel, everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” Judges 21:25 LSB “And men will say, ‘Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on Earth!” Psalm 58:11 LSB Our reading today in Judges is very disturbing. The treatment of women in this period of history is shocking, and this happened among the children of Israel,

May 10 Judges 17-18 Psalm 58:1-5 Proverbs 13:9-10 Luke 24 The Divine Plan “And He said to them, ‘O foolish ones and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He interpreted to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.” Luke 24:25-27 LSB The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus was not a mista

May 9 Judges 15-16 Psalm 57:7-11 Proverbs 13:7-8 Luke 23 The Thief On The Cross “But the other answered, and rebuking him said, ‘Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for what we have done; but this man has done nothing wrong.’ And he was saying, ‘Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!’ And He said to him, ‘Truly I say to you, today you shall be w

May 8 Judges 12-14 Psalm 57:1-6 Proverbs 13:5-6 Luke 22:47-71 Righteousness “A righteous man hates a lying word, but a wicked man acts odiously and is humiliated. Righteousness guards the one whose way is blameless, but wickedness subverts the sinner.” Proverbs 13:5-6 LSB I believe 2025 is the year of exposure. Everywhere we turn lies are being exposed. In the political realm we are finding out about government fraud, waste and abuse, coverups, backroom deals, and a

May 7 Judges 10-11 Psalm 56:8-13 Proverbs 13:3-4 Luke 22:24-46 God Sees My Tears “You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?” Psalm 56:8-11. ESV In ancient times, there was a practice of relatives collectin

May 6 Judges 8-9 Psalm 56:1-7 Proverbs 13:1-2 Luke 22:1-23 In Remembrance Of Me “And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is My body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.’ And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.’” Luke 22:19-20 LSB The word communion comes from the Latin word, communio, which means s

May 5 Judges 6-7 Psalm 55:16-23 Proverbs 12:27-28 Luke 21:20-38 As For Me “As for me, I shall call upon God, and Yahweh will save me…Cast your burden upon Yahweh and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.” Psalm 55:16, 22 LSB We are not told the exact events that led David to write this psalm, but it is clear that he was struggling with the pain of the betrayal of a close friend. This was a passionate prayer asking God for help and streng

May 4 Judges 5 Psalm 55:9-15 Proverbs 12:25-26 Luke 21:1-19 Perfect Timing “The peasantry ceased; they ceased in Israel, until I, Deborah, arose, until I arose, a mother in Israel. God chose new leaders; then war was in the gates. Not a shield or a spear was seen among forty thousand in Israel.” Judges 5:7-8 LSB Yesterday, we read how God used Deborah to defeat the enemy of Israel. Judges 5 gives us more information. Hazor was one of the cities that Joshua had conq

May 3 Judges 3-4 Psalm 55:1-8 Proverbs 12:22-24 Luke 20:27-47 God Uses Those Who Listen And Obey “Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time.” Judges 4:4 LSB Deborah sat under a palm tree and the Israelites came to her for judgment. They would bring their problems to her and she would give them wisdom and knowledge from God. She must have been highly respected. In addition to being a judge, Judges 4:4 tells us that she was also

May 2 Judges 1-2 Psalm 54 Proverbs 12:19-21 Luke 20:1-26 Know Your Audience “So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, so that they might catch Him in some statement, in order to deliver Him to the rule and the authority of the governor… And they were unable to catch Him in a word in the presence of the people; and marveling at His answer, they became silent.” Luke 20:20, 26 LSB Twice in the passage in Luke today, we find Jesus in interactions

May 1 Joshua 24 Psalm 53 Proverbs 12:17-18 Luke 19:28-48 Corrupt “The wicked fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God,’ They act corruptly, and commit abominable injustice; there is no one who does good. God looks down from Heaven upon the sons of men to see if there is anyone who has insight, anyone who seeks after God. Every one of them has turned back; together they have become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Psalm 53:1-3 LSB It is becom

April 30 Joshua 22-23 Psalm 52 Proverbs 12:15-16 Luke 19:1-27 The Ignorant Fool “The way of an ignorant fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel. An ignorant fool’s anger is known at once, but a prudent man conceals disgrace.” Proverbs 12:15-16 LSB Today’s passage in Proverbs clearly contrasts the wise person and the fool. Solomon makes this comparison throughout Proverbs outlining many characteristics that differentiate between som

April 29 Joshua 20-21 Psalm 51:16-19 Proverbs 12:13-14 Luke 18:24-43 Son Of David “And he called out, saying, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And those who went ahead were rebuking him so that he would be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And Jesus stopped and commanded that he be brought to Him, and when he came near, He questioned him, ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ And He said, ‘Lord, I want to regain my sig

April 28 Joshua 19 Psalm 51:11-15 Proverbs 12:11-12 Luke 18:1-23 Childlike Faith “But Jesus called for them, saying, ‘Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.’” Luke 18:16-17 LSB In American culture, children hold a lot of status. Family life revolves around children’s activities and we place a lot of emph