BATTLE PRAISE

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

Battle Praise

Read:  2 Chronicles 20:1-22

When they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against

the people…who had come against Judah.  2 Chronicles 20:22

Visitors to the Military Museum in Istanbul, Turkey, can hear stirring music that dates back to the early years of the Ottoman Empire.  Whenever their troops marched off to war, bands accompanied them.

Centuries earlier, worship singers led the people of Judah into battle, but there was a big difference.  Whereas the Ottomans used music to instill self-confidence in their soldiers, the Jews used it to express their confidence in God.

Threatened by huge armies, King Jehoshaphat of Judah knew that his people were powerless to defend themselves.  So he cried out to God for help (2 Chronicles 20:12).  The Lord’s answer came through Jahaziel, who said, “Do not be afraid nor dismayed…for the battle is not yours, but God’s” (v.15).

Jehoshaphat responded by worshiping and then  by appointing singers to lead the army (vv.18, 21).  As the people sang, “Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever,” God confused the invaders and they killed one another (vv.22-24).

No matter what battles we may face today, the Lord will help us when we cry out to Him.  Instead of retreating in fear, we can march ahead with confidence in God’s power and sing praise to Him.                         JAL

Praise is the voice of faith.

GOD WITH SKIN ON

God with Skin On

Read: Romans 12:9–18
Bible in a Year: 2 Chronicles 1–3; John 10:1–23

Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.—Romans 12:13

My husband left for a month-long trip, and almost immediately I was overwhelmed by the needs of my job, our house, and our children. A writing deadline loomed. The lawn mower broke. My children were on school break and bored. How would I take care of all of these things on my own?

I soon realized I wasn’t on my own. Friends from church showed up to help. Josh came over to fix my lawn mower. John brought me lunch. Cassidy helped with the laundry. Abi invited my kids over to play with hers so I could get my work done. God worked through each of these friends to provide for me. They were a living picture of the kind of community Paul describes in Romans 12. They loved sincerely (v. 9), considered the needs of others rather than just their own (v. 10), shared with me when I was in need, and showed hospitality (v. 13).

Because of the love my friends showed to me, I remained “joyful in hope” and “patient in affliction” (v. 12), even the mild affliction of solo parenting for a month. My brothers and sisters in Christ became what one friend calls “God with skin on” for me. They showed me the kind of sincere love we ought to show to everyone, especially those in our community of faith (Galatians 6:10). I hope to be more like them. —Amy Peterson

God, thank You for placing us in communities. Help me to look out for others’ needs and to show hospitality.

Share your ideas of hospitality at odb.org.

To whom do I need to be “God with skin on” today?

INSIGHT: The practice of hospitality is a key teaching in the New Testament. Jesus told His disciples to depend on the hospitality of those they ministered to (Matthew 10:11; Luke 10:7-8). Jesus also received hospitality from others (Mark 2:15; 14:3; Luke 7:36). Mary and Martha opened their home to Jesus (Luke 10:38), and this is probably where He stayed each time He came to Jerusalem (see Matthew 21:17). Luke mentioned a group of women who “were helping to support [Jesus and the twelve disciples] out of their own means” (Luke 8:3). The apostle John commended Gaius for his cheerful generosity and loving hospitality because he provided itinerant Bible teachers a place to stay (3 John 1:5-8).

When we lovingly support ministry workers in practical ways, we are their partners in ministry (v. 8). Therefore, Paul urges us, “When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality” (Romans 12:13 nlt). Peter echoed the same sentiment: “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other . . . . Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay” (1 Peter 4:8-9 nlt). K. T. Sim

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

GIVING AWAY HAPPINESS

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

GIVING AWAY HAPPINESS

Read:  Proverbs 11:16-26

The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters

will also be watered himself.  Proverbs 11:25

A U.S. News & World Report cover story explored the subject of happiness.  According to the article, scientists have found that “strong marriages, family ties, and friendships predict happiness, as do spirituality and self-esteem.  Hope is crucial, as is the feeling that life has meaning.”  But what if some of these elements are missing in our lives?  Researchers say that “helping people be a little happier can jump-start a process that will lead to stronger relationships, renewed hope, and general upward spiraling of happiness.”

What we give, more than what we get, produces joy in our lives.  The Bible says, “There is one who scatters, yet increases more….The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself” (Proverbs 11:24-25).

Is there some small way you can help someone else be happier today?  Perhaps it’s sending a card, making a phone call, or giving yourself in friendship.  Hoarding never produces happiness.  It comes as we seek the good of others and give away what God has given us.

The source of such an attitude is found in our relationship with Christ and his Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).  From Him grows the fruit of generosity, happiness, and love.

What will you give away today?                                                 DCM

It is more blessed to give than to receive.

NOBODY LIKES ME

Nobody Likes Me

Read: Psalm 142
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 28–29; John 9:24–41

No one is concerned for me. I have no refuge; no one cares for my life.—Psalm 142:4

As a child, when I felt lonely, rejected, or sorry for myself, my mother would sometimes attempt to cheer me up by singing a popular ditty: “Nobody likes me, everybody hates me. I think I’ll go eat worms.” After a smile came from my downcast face, she’d help me see the many special relationships and reasons for gratitude I truly did have.

When I read that David felt no one cared for him, that ditty rings in my ears. Yet David’s pain wasn’t at all exaggerated. Where I had feelings of loneliness typical for my age, David actually had good reason to feel abandoned. He wrote these words in the dark depths of a cave where he hid from Saul, who pursued him with murderous plans (1 Samuel 22:1; 24:3-10). David had been anointed as Israel’s future king (16:13), had spent years in Saul’s service, but now he lived “on the move,” always fearing for his life. In the midst of the loneliness David felt, he cried out to God as his “refuge” and “portion in the land of the living” (Psalm 142:5).

Like David, we can cry out to God when we feel alone, giving voice to our feelings in the safety of His love. God never minimizes our loneliness. He wants to be our companion in the dark caves of our lives. Even when we think no one cares for our life, God cares! —Kirsten Holmberg

Lord, You are my friend when I feel alone. Thank You for being with me in the dark caves of life.

God is our friend in seasons of loneliness.

INSIGHT: The heading to Psalm 142 says, “A maskil of David. When he was in the cave. A prayer.” But we might also call this song “David’s cry.” The poetic imagery woven into the lyric rings with authenticity because it flows out of David’s actual experiences. Twice he fled to a cave in fear for his life. Few of us can identify with that situation literally, but nearly all of us can relate to David’s metaphorical cave of loneliness and despair. When he uses words like “cry” (v. 1) and “complaint” (v. 2), we know how he feels. His “spirit grows faint” (v. 3), a “snare” has been set for him (v. 3), and “no one is concerned” (v. 4). David even sees his dilemma as “my prison” (v. 7). Yet he knows the trustworthiness of the One he cries out to, and he anticipates a day when “the righteous will gather about [him]” (v. 7). He will not always be desperately lonely.

Does an emotional cave imprison you today? Consider writing out your thoughts in raw honesty and giving them to God. How might that kind of honesty change your prayers? Tim Gustafson

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

HOW TO FAIL SUCCESSFULLY

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

How to Fail Successfully

Read:  1 John 1:5-2:2

If anyone sins we have an Advocate with the Father,

Jesus Christ the righteous.  1 John 2:1

Inventor Charles Kettering has suggested that we must learn to fail intelligently.  He said, “Once you’ve failed, analyze the problem and find out why, because each failure is one more step leading up to the cathedral of success.”

Kettering gave these suggestions for turning failure into success:  (1) Honestly face defeat; never fake success.  (2) Exploit the failure; don’t waste it.  Learn all you can from it.  (3) Never use failure as an excuse for not trying again.

Kettering’s practical wisdom holds a deeper meaning for the Christian.  The Holy Spirit is constantly working in us to accomplish “His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13), so we know that failure is never final.

We can’t reclaim lost time.  And we can’t always make things right, although we should try.  Some consequences of our sins can never be reversed.  But we can make a new start, because Jesus died to pay the penalty for all our sins and is our “Advocate with the Father”(1 John 2:1).

Knowing how to benefit from failure is the key to continued growth in grace.  According to 1 John 1:9, we need to confess our sins-it’s the first step in turning our failure into success.                                          DJD

Onward and upward your course plan today,

Seeking new heights as you walk Jesus’ way;

Heed not past failures, but strive for the prize,

Aiming for goals fit for His holy eyes. -Brandt

Failure is never final for this who begin again with God.

ACCIDENTAL WISDOM

Accidental Wisdom

Read: Philippians 4:4–9
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 25–27; John 9:1–23

Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable . . . think about such things.—Philippians 4:8

A few years ago, a woman shared with me a story about finding her preteen son watching news coverage of a violent event. Instinctively, she reached for the remote and changed the channel. “You don’t need to be watching that stuff,” she told him rather abruptly. An argument followed, and eventually she shared that he needed to fill his mind with “whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely . . .” (Philippians 4:8). After dinner, she and her husband were watching the news when suddenly their five-year-old daughter burst in and turned off the television. “You don’t need to be watching that stuff,” she declared in her best “mom” voice. “Now, think about those Bible things!”

As adults, we can better absorb and process the news than our children. Still, the couple’s daughter was both amusing and wise when she echoed her mother’s earlier instructions. Even well-adjusted adults can be affected by a steady diet of the darker side of life. Meditating on the kind of things Paul lists in Philippians 4:8 is a powerful antidote to the gloom that sometimes settles on us as we see the condition of our world.

Making careful decisions about what fills our minds is an excellent way to honor God and guard our hearts as well. —Randy Kilgore

Father, open our eyes today to what’s beautiful. Teach us to meditate on You.

What we let into our minds shapes the state of our souls.

INSIGHT: The virtuous life described in Philippians 4:8 is to be the believer’s focus. What is “true” refers to basing one’s life on reality according to God’s Word. “Noble” means honest or worthy of respect. “Right” corresponds to a moral sense of what is fair. “Pure” indicates a character that is not polluted by sin. “Lovely” means expressing love toward others in relationships. Finally, “admirable” carries with it the idea of a positive reputation and reliable Christian character.

What are some specific ways you can display these virtues this week?

For further reading, see Kingdom Living: Embracing the Virtues of the King at discoveryseries.org/hp091. Dennis Fisher

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

DEALING WITH SELF-DOUBT

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD MINISTRIES

Dealing with Self-Doubt

Read:  Psalm 26

I will walk in my integrity; redeem me and be merciful to me.

My foot stands in an even place.  Psalm 26:11-12

Sometimes, when I’ve been falsely accused, I have found myself questioning my sincerity.  When I do, I follow the example of David in Psalm 26 as he responded to his critics.

Appealing directly to the Lord, he expressed his firm conviction that he had walked in “integrity” (the Hebrew word means sincerity, not faultlessness).  He asked God to vindicate him, for he had renounced the ways of the wicked, declared his love for God’s temple, and pleaded for deliverance from the fate of the ungodly (vv.1-10).  Finally, he reaffirmed his resolve to live with sincerity, humbly asked God to redeem him and acknowledged his need for mercy (v.11).

What happened next?  God gave David the assurance that he stood in  “an even place” (v.12), a symbolic way of saying he was in a place of safety, accepted and protected by the Lord.  As a result, he closed his psalm on a note of confidence and anticipation.

Have the painful barbs of critics or the accusations of your conscience filled you with fear and self-doubt?  Talk to the Lord,  If you need to confess sin, do it.  Then put your hope and trust in God.  He will replace your insecurity and doubt with His supernatural peace.  He has done that for me.  He will do the same for you.                                           HVL

When you live every hour by the grace of His power

And you know He will guide you aright,

Then day in and day out faith is stronger than doubt,

And faith puts your worries to flight. -Gilbert

Feeding your faith will starve your doubts.

TOSSING AND TURNING

Tossing and Turning

Read: Psalm 4
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 22–24; John 8:28–59

In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.—Psalm 4:8

What keeps you awake at night? Lately I’ve been losing sleep, tossing and turning on my bed, trying to work out a solution to an issue. Eventually I begin fretting about not getting enough rest to handle the challenges of the next day!

Sound familiar? Troubled relationships, an uncertain future, whatever it is—we all give in to worry at one point or another.

King David was clearly in distress when he penned Psalm 4. People were ruining his reputation with groundless accusations (v. 2). And some were questioning his competency to rule (v. 6). David probably felt angry for being treated so unfairly. Surely he could have spent nights stewing about it. Yet we read these remarkable words: “In peace I will lie down and sleep” (v. 8).

Charles Spurgeon explains verse 8 beautifully: “In thus lying down, . . . [David] resigned himself into the hands of another; he did so completely, for in the absence of all care, he slept; there was here a perfect trust.” What inspired this trust? From the start, David was confident that God would answer his prayers (v. 3). And he was sure that since God had chosen to love him, He would lovingly meet his needs.

May God help us to rest in His power and presence when worries threaten. In His sovereign and loving arms, we can “lie down and sleep.” —Poh Fang Chia

Dear Father, thank You for hearing me when I call. I surrender my worries to You and rest in Your power and presence.

We can entrust our cares to a wholly trustworthy God.

INSIGHT: David’s confident assurance of God’s care was the source of his ability to rest, and this theme of rest winds its way throughout the psalms. In Psalm 46:10 the psalmist says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” The phrase be still can be translated “relax.” It’s as if God is counseling the psalmist, “I’ve got this. Take it easy.” In the shepherd’s psalm, David reminds us, “He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters” (Psalm 23:2). What a wonderful picture of rest—and the source of that rest is the God in whom we confidently trust. This enabled one psalmist to share: “Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you” (Psalm 116:7). Our ability to rest is directly related to our confidence in the Father’s love, care, and concern for us. So in times of anxiety and stress the child of God can look to the Father and know He’s got this. We can be at rest!

What can you entrust to God’s care? Bill Crowder

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

FOR BETTER OR WORSE?

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

For Better or Worse?

Read:  Ephesians 5:22-33

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the

Lord….Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ

also loved the church.  Ephesians 5:22, 25

Within a chip shot of our house is a golf course.  When I stand in my backyard, I see ponds waiting hungrily for my next errant shot.  At times I can imagine sand traps and trees joking about my bad days. 

I mention the sport with mixed feelings.  I like to golf occasionally, but living so close to the course reminds me of my failures in playing the game, which has its disadvantages.

A similar problem can occur in marriage.  Sometimes a husband and wife can lose sight of the hopes and dreams they once shared.  Then the very presence of the other becomes a source of irritation, a reminder of past failures and disappointments.

When the apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Ephesians, he asked husbands and wives to turn their thoughts to their relationship with the Son of God (5:22-33).  In Him we find undying love and forgiveness for our failures.  In Him we find Someone who loves to forget the worst and bring out the best.  He reminds us not of what we’ve lost but of what we have yet to find.

“Forgive us, Father, for focusing on our flaws and failures rather than on the love of Your Son, Jesus Christ.  Help us to rediscover our spouse in the light of our Lord’s great love for us.”                                                                   MD

REFLECTION ON MARRIAGE

As a couple, recall the hopes and dreams you had when

you were first married.  Name some that have come true.

Share with each other your hopes for the future.

Marriages may be made in heaven, but they have to be

worked out on earth.

THE BABUSHKA LADY

The Babushka Lady

Read: Acts 2:22–36
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 19–21; John 8:1–27

Let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.—Acts 2:36

The “Babushka Lady” is one of the mysteries surrounding the 1963 assassination of US President John F. Kennedy. Captured on film recording the events with a movie camera, she has proven to be elusive. This mystery woman, wearing an overcoat and scarf (resembling a Russian babushka), has never been identified and her film has never been seen. For decades, historians and scholars have speculated that fear has prevented the “Babushka Lady” from telling her story of that dark November day.

No speculation is needed to understand why Jesus’s disciples hid. They cowered in fear because of the authorities who had killed their Master (John 20:19)—reluctant to come forward and declare their experience. But then Jesus rose from the grave. The Holy Spirit soon arrived and you couldn’t keep those once-timid followers of Christ quiet! On the day of Pentecost, a Spirit-empowered Simon Peter declared, “Let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah” (Acts 2:36).

The opportunity to boldly speak in Jesus’s name is not limited to those with daring personalities or career ministry training. It is the indwelling Spirit who enables us to tell the good news of Jesus. By His strength, we can experience the courage to share our Savior with others. —Bill Crowder

Lord, please give me the strength and boldness to talk to others about You.

Speak of the matchless love of Christ to those who need to hear.

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

TOUGH TREES

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

Tough Trees

Read:  Romans 5:1-5

Tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance,

character; and character, hope.  Romans 5:3-4

Bristlecone pines are the world’s oldest living trees.  Several are estimated to be 3,000 to 4,000 years old.  In 1957, scientist Edmund Schulman found one he names “Methuselah.”  This ancient, gnarled pine is nearly 5,000 years old!  It was an old tree when the Egyptians were building the pyramids.

Bristlecones grow atop the mountains of the western United States at elevations of 10,000 to 11,000 feet.  They’ve been able to survive some of the harshest living conditions on earth; arctic temperatures, fierce winds, thin air, and little rainfall.

Their brutal environment is actually one of the reasons they’ve survived for millennia.  Hardship has produced extraordinary strength and staying power.

Paul taught that “tribulation produces…character” (Romans 5:3-4).  Adversity is part of the process that God uses to produce good results in our lives.  Trouble, if it turns us to the Lord, could actually be the best thing for us.  It leaves us wholly dependent on Him.

So we should pray not just for relief from our affliction, but for the grace to turn it into greater openness to God and to His will for us.  Then we can be strong in calamity, and at peace in the place where God has planted us.                                                                                    DHR

THINKING IT OVER

What trial in your life is making you wonder

why God is allowing it?

God uses our difficulties to develop our character.

UP A TREE

Up a Tree

Read: Jonah 2:1–10
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 16–18; John 7:28–53

In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.—Jonah 2:2

My mother discovered my kitten Velvet atop the kitchen counter, devouring homemade bread. With a huff of frustration, she scooted her out the door. Hours later, we searched our yard for the missing cat without success. A faint meow whistled on the wind, and I looked up to the peak of a poplar tree where a black smudge tilted a branch.

In her haste to flee my mother’s frustration over her behavior, Velvet chose a more precarious predicament. Is it possible that we sometimes do something similar—running from our errors and putting ourselves in danger? And even then God comes to our rescue.

The prophet Jonah fled in disobedience from God’s call to preach to Nineveh, and was swallowed up by a great fish. “From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. He said: ‘In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me’ ” (Jonah 2:1-2). God heard Jonah’s plea and, “commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land” (v. 10). Then God gave Jonah another chance (3:1).

After exhausting our efforts to woo Velvet down, we summoned the local fire department. With the longest ladder fully extended, a kind man climbed high, plucked my kitten from her perch, and returned to place her safely in my arms.

Oh the heights—and the depths—God goes to in rescuing us from our disobedience with His redeeming love! —Elisa Morgan

Dear God, how we need Your rescue today!

Jesus’s death on the cross rescued us from our sins.

INSIGHT: The story of Jonah is a story of the unexpected. The only character in the story who doesn’t obey God is the one the reader would expect to be obedient, the one who told the sailors, “I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land” (Jonah 1:9). In contrast to the fugitive prophet, the pagan sailors turn to God (v. 16); the fish did as the Lord commanded (2:10); the Ninevites (a blood-thirsty and pagan people) repented (3:5-10). But the unexpected doesn’t stop there. God goes to great lengths to teach Jonah who He is. Rather than punish the disobedient prophet who is angry at God’s mercy, God invites Jonah (and us) to contemplate the depths of His love and mercy.

When have you experienced the love and mercy of God? J.R. Hudberg

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

"GOD MAKES NO MISTAKES"

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

“God Makes No Mistakes”

Read:  Romans 12:14-21

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome

evil with good.  Romans 12:21

A few days after arriving on the campus of Texas A&M University in 1984, Bruce Goodrich was awakened at 2:00 a.m.   Upperclassmen roused him out of bed to initiate him into the Corps of Cadets, a military-style training program.

Bruce was forced to exercise and run several miles in hot and humid conditions.  When he eventually collapsed, he was told to get up and keep going.  He collapsed again, went into a coma, and died later that same day.  The students who mistreated Bruce were put on trial and charged with causing his death.

Bruce’s father wrote a letter to the administration, faculty, and student body.  He didn’t excuse the cruel injustice of what happened to his son, but he said:  “I would like to take this opportunity to express the appreciation of my family for the great outpouring of concern and sympathy from Texas A&M University and the community over the loss of our son Bruce…We harbor no ill will…We know our God makes no mistakes…Bruce is now secure in the celestial home.  When the question is asked, ‘Why did this happen?’ perhaps one answer will be, ‘So that many will consider where they will spend eternity.’”

Trusting in the sovereignty of God can turn outrage into compassion and hatred into concern.                                                                           HWR

The Lord can turn a tragedy 

Into an opportunity

To show us that eternity

Must never be ignored. -Sper

No tragedy is beyond God’s sovereignty.

A PRAYER OF FORGIVENESS

A Prayer of Forgiveness

Read: Luke 6:27–36
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 13–15; John 7:1–27

Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.—Luke 6:27-28

In 1960, six-year-old Ruby Bridges was the first African-American child to integrate an all-white public elementary school in the American South. Every day for months, federal marshals escorted Ruby past a mob of angry parents shouting curses, threats, and insults at her. Safely inside, she sat in a classroom alone with Barbara Henry, the only teacher willing to instruct her while parents kept their children from attending school with Ruby.

Noted child psychologist Robert Coles met with Ruby for several months to help her cope with the fear and stress she experienced. He was amazed by the prayer Ruby said every day as she walked to school and back home. “Please, God, forgive them because they don’t know what they’re doing” (see Luke 23:34).

The words of Jesus spoken from the cross were stronger than the hatred and insults hurled at Him. In the most agonizing hours of His life, our Lord demonstrated the radical response He taught His followers: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you . . . . Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:27-28, 36).

This remarkable approach is possible only as we consider the powerful love Jesus has given us—love stronger than even the deepest hatred.

Ruby Bridges helped show us the way. —David C. McCasland

Father, You have so graciously forgiven us. Help us today to forgive others who have wronged us.

Bless those who curse you and pray for those who mistreat you.

INSIGHT: Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive [someone] who sins against me? Up to seven times?” (Matthew 18:21). In that day, if you forgave a person three times, you were considered magnanimous. So Peter must have thought he was a super saint to forgive an offender seven times. Jesus corrected him, “Not seven times, but seventy-seven times” (v. 22). Jesus is saying that when it comes to forgiving another, you can’t keep score. We never reach a limit when we can say we have forgiven enough. Although forgiveness doesn’t excuse an offense, we can choose to “be kind and compassionate to one another, [forgive] each other, just as in Christ God forgave [us]” (Ephesians 4:32).

Is there someone who needs your forgiveness today, yet again? K. T. Sim

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

PRAYER'S EFFECTS

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

Prayer’s Effects

Read:  James 5:13-20

The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous

man avails much.  James 5:16

For many years, researchers have tried to determine if prayer has any effect on physical healing.  An assistant professor at George Washington University School of Medicine says that “trying to scientifically determine prayer’s effect on health is nearly impossible.”

Even Christians who agree that God heals may differ widely on how, when, and why He does.  We struggle to understand why the Lord restores some to health while others suffer and die.

James addressed the matter in a way that is worthy of careful study and attention.  He discussed healing in the context of a fellowship of believers and said: “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.  The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:16).

James’s purpose was not to stir up controversy or to prove a scientific point.  Instead, he focused on the privilege and power of prayer.  While speaking of physical healing, he also included a call for restoration to spiritual health through repentance and confession (v. 15).

Science tries to prove cause and effect.  Faith directs us to call on the power of our loving God, whose ways we can rarely understand but can always trust.                                                                                  DCM

My prayer is a simple one, Lord:

Whatever is best for me, do;

In sickness, in health I desire

What brings the most glory to you -Fasick

Prayer is the soil in which hope and healing grow best.

A NEW COMMUNITY

A New Community

Read: Acts 2:1–12, 42–47
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 10–12; John 6:45–71

All the believers were together and had everything in common.—Acts 2:44

My friend Carrie’s five-year-old daughter, Maija, has an interesting approach to playtime. She loves mixing together dolls from different playsets to come up with a new community. In the world of her imagination, everything belongs together. These are her people. She believes they are happiest when they’re together, despite being different sizes and shapes.

Her creativity reminds me of God’s purpose for the church. On the day of Pentecost, Luke tells us, “Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven” (Acts 2:5). Though these people were from different cultures and spoke different languages, the Holy Spirit’s arrival made them a new community: the church. From then on, they would be considered one body, unified by the death and resurrection of Jesus.

The leaders of this new body were a group of men Jesus brought together during His time on earth—His disciples. If Jesus hadn’t united them, more than likely they would never have come together. And now more people—“about three thousand” (2:41)—had become Christ-followers. Thanks to the Holy Spirit, this once divided group “had everything in common” (v. 44). They were willing to share what they had with each other.

The Holy Spirit continues to bridge the gaps between people groups. We might not always get along, nor readily understand one another. But as believers in Christ, we belong together. —Linda Washington

Jesus, thank You for dying for us and uniting us as one people in the church.

The Holy Spirit turns “us” and “them” into “we.”

INSIGHT: The brand-new church God established in Acts 2 demonstrated a sense of unprecedented community across ethnic and national lines (vv. 5-11). This life included teaching by the apostles, fellowship with each other, sharing meals, and praying together (v. 42).

How do we live out the community life God calls us to? Tim Gustafson

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

SUCH A HOPE

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

Such a Hope

Read:  Romans 8:18-27

This hope we have as as anchor of the soul,

both sure and steadfast.  Hebrews 6:19

Two women.  One a former coworker I had known for twenty years.  The other, the wife of a former student from my days as a school teacher.  Both dedicated moms of two young children.  Both missionaries.  Both incredibly in love with Jesus Christ.

Then suddenly, within the space of a month-both were dead.  The first, Sharon Fasick, died in a car accident, attracting little attention though deeply affecting family and friends.  The second, Roni Bowers, died with her daughter Charity when their plane was shot down over the jungles of Peru-a situation that thrust her story into the international spotlight.

Their deaths filled many people with inexpressible sorrow.  But there was something else-hope.  Both women’s husbands had the confident expectation that they would see their wives again in heaven.  What happened after they died demonstrate that the Christian faith works.  Both men, Jeff Fasick and Jim Bowers, have spoken about the peace God has given them.  They have testified that this kind of hope has allowed them to continue on in the midst of the unspeakable pain.

Paul said that our present suffering “are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed” (Romans 8:18).  Such a hope comes only from Christ.                                                                         DB

When peace like a river attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,

“It is well, it is well with my soul.” -Spafford

The hope of heaven is God’s solution for sorrow.

EVEN IF

Even If

Read: Daniel 3:8–18
Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 7–9; John 6:22–44

The God we serve is able to deliver us from [the fire] . . . . But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods.—Daniel 3:17-18

Sometimes life deals us a tremendous blow. Other times the miraculous happens.

Three young men, captives in Babylon, stood in front of the fearsome king of that land and boldly proclaimed that under no circumstances would they worship the giant image of gold towering above them. Together they declared: “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know . . . we will not . . . worship the image” (Daniel 3:17-18).

These three men—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—were hurled into the fiery furnace; and God miraculously delivered them so that not a hair of their head was singed and their clothing was smoke-free (vv. 19-27). They had been prepared to die but their trust in God was unwavering—“even if” He had not saved them.

God desires that we cling to Him—even if our loved one isn’t healed, even if we lose our job, even if we are persecuted. Sometimes God rescues us from danger in this life, and sometimes He doesn’t. But the truth we can hold firmly is this: “The God we serve is able,” loves us, and is with us in every fiery trial, every even if. —Alyson Kieda

Dear Lord, we love You! Please give us unwavering faith—and strength and hope for each day—no matter the circumstance.

God is able.

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.