• Even a single candle can make a difference in the darkness.

  • Seeking first His kingdom.

  • The future is as bright as God’s promises.

  • Pray without ceasing. Give thanks always.

  • God so loved the world. Every person.

Anchor

User-friendly devotionals with audio

  • From One Friend to Another

    Words from Jesus

    Audio length: 11:08
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    And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness—secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.—Isaiah 45:3

    When you feel alone, always remember that I love you with an everlasting love. I am touched by everything you experience, and I understand how you feel. I am moved with compassion for you. This stage of your life won’t last forever, and if you cast every burden you are carrying on Me, you will find the strength to continue onward and stay faithful to Me (Psalm 55:22).

    You may feel small and insignificant at times and wonder how the God of the universe and Creator of all things could possibly understand you and the things you go through in life. But I understand you completely because I made you! I created every part of you—your body, mind, and soul, down to the tiniest cell in your brain.

    I understand every thought and every worry and fear that you have. I created your spirit, and I gave you life. I experienced life as a human being and I understand loneliness, pain, loss, suffering, and struggle (Hebrews 4:15).

    Maybe you are tempted to ask, “If You know what I’m going through, why don’t You help me out of it or change this situation?” Trust Me that I know the situation you’re in and I understand how difficult the struggle is. But as you commit your ways to Me and trust Me to guide and direct the path of your life, I will work every single thing you experience together for your good. I care for you, and every hair on your head is counted—along with every aspect of your life (Luke 12:7).

    Trust that these times are part of My work in your life, as they draw you closer to Me. Don’t worry or be discouraged about your present situation—this time won’t last forever. Make the best of the situation while you’re in it. Things will change, and there’ll come a time when you’ll look back and realize the treasures in the darkness that you mined during this time, and how I used this time to draw you close to Me.

    Choosing the right perspective

    The prospect of the righteous is joy.Proverbs 10:28

    If you had a choice, would you rather live somewhere where the sun never shines, and where it’s always cloudy and gray, where the people never seem to find anything to be happy about or celebrate? Or would you rather live where it’s bright and sunny, where the cool breezes blow, and the people are happy and smiling?

    Whenever you choose to look at things from a negative or hopeless perspective, you’re walking right into that dreary gray world of negativity, where the sun doesn’t show its face from behind the clouds and there is no hope for a brighter tomorrow. Negativity is like a dark cloud that covers up the beautiful blue skies and makes everything look sad and gray and joyless.

    But whenever you adopt a positive perspective that’s full of faith, it’s as if you have chosen to reside in a place that’s bright and filled with hope and promise. In that place, no matter what happens, I am with you, and your future will be a glorious one for all eternity. It’s a place where the clouds can’t stop the sun from shining through; they seem to only make the blue skies even more beautiful. Even the clouds and storms of life that do arise are sure to ultimately rain down blessings of love and greater faith and understanding.

    Faith is the evidence of the things hoped for and written in My Word—and the promise of a beautiful life to come, filled with joy and promise (Hebrews 11:1). Choose a faith-filled perspective on life and you will experience My joy.

    Great victories

    Blessed are those who find strength in you. Their hearts are on the road that leads to you. … Their strength grows as they go along until each one of them appears in front of God in Zion.—Psalm 84:5–7

    When you call out to Me when you are weary or downcast, I can help you to dispel the giants of discouragement. When you are struggling with fear and feelings of failure, I am your ever-present help and place of refuge (Psalm 46:1).

    Whenever you come to Me when you are weary and heavy laden, I give you rest. I watch over you every step of your life’s journey, whether it is uphill or downhill, or whether you feel like you’re on target or you’ve strayed off the path. My rod and staff always guide and comfort you (Psalm 23:4).

    My Spirit always watches over you, and with each step, each test, I have always been at your side. I see the future and all the great things that I have in store for you. I see the past and all the lives that have been touched and helped and led to Me because of your faithfulness to follow Me and allow Me to work in and through you.

    I see the prayers that you have prayed and the fruit that has been borne through your commitment to Me. I see the great victories that have been won because of your love and your perseverance, and because of your fervent prayers and faithfulness to My cause and mission.

    Let patience have its perfect work

    But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.—Romans 8:25

    Patience is one of the greatest lessons that My servants learned in times past when life moved a lot slower. It’s a difficult lesson to learn, and the same advice that was given to My children thousands of years ago applies as well today: “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage and He will strengthen your heart” (Psalm 27:14).

    Everything that you experience in this life is preparation for the future, as you grow in your walk with Me and are transformed more and more into My likeness. It may not seem to you that you’re learning, growing, or accomplishing much as you continue to be faithful to Me day after day and year after year. It certainly didn’t seem that way to Moses when he was in the wilderness tending sheep, but that was part of My plan.

    That time was necessary to teach him the things that he would need in his service to Me in later years. I was able to instruct him and speak to his heart in the quiet hours that he spent with Me. I was able to work in his life to make him into the kind of vessel that he needed to be for the special calling I had for him.

    When it feels like your life is in a waiting pattern, trust that I have a plan for you. Hold on to Me through this time, and I’ll bring you forth as fine gold, fit for My use (1 Peter 1:7). I’ve entrusted you with a very important job. It’s not one that necessarily has a title to go with it that will be recognized and appreciated by the world. But My great commission and calling to share My truth, hope, and salvation with others is an important job, because the eternal destiny of people depends on it.

    Walk a mile

    Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.Romans 12:15

    The saying “walk a mile in their shoes” is commonly quoted, but have you ever paused to think about what it really means? If you have tried walking in someone else’s shoes, you’ve probably discovered that it can be quite uncomfortable. But putting yourself in someone else’s place helps you to better understand what they are going through and how to love your neighbor as you love yourself (Matthew 22:39).

    Learning to walk in someone else’s shoes is one of the most important keys to truly empathizing with others. So whenever there’s someone you have a hard time relating to, remind yourself that they may be carrying a load of secret sorrows, confusion, or struggles that you cannot see. Make a conscious effort to put yourself in their shoes and it will help you to treat them with kindness and consideration and to offer encouragement and hope.

    Even small gestures of love and appreciation can go a long way for someone who feels unnoticed, left behind, or overwhelmed. You’ll see that if you try to understand what they are going through and walk alongside them, you can make a difference in that person’s life. They will know that someone cares and ultimately that I care for them.

    Originally published in 1999. Adapted and republished March 2025. Read by Jon Marc. Music by John Listen.

  • Mar 28 The God of All Comfort
  • Mar 27 The Sermon on the Mount: An Introduction
  • Mar 26 A Question of Loyalty (Acts 3–5)
  • Mar 21 God Knows What You Don’t Have
  • Mar 20 Overcoming Loneliness
  • Mar 17 Love at Work
  • Mar 13 Fighting the Good Fight of Faith
  • Mar 10 The Day of the Lord
  • Mar 7 Is God Real?
   

Directors’ Corner

Faith-building Bible studies and articles

  • 1 Corinthians: Chapter 9 (verses 18–27)

    This article will cover the second half of 1 Corinthians 9.

    What then is my reward? That in my preaching I may present the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel (1 Corinthians 9:18).

    Many scholars have interpreted this passage as Paul stating that his preaching was a reward in itself, that to preach the gospel free of charge and not make use of his rights for pay was sufficient reward. But in light of the previous verse, where Paul affirmed that if he did so of his own will, he would have a reward, and if not, he was still entrusted with a stewardship (1 Corinthians 9:17), it seems helpful to look at Paul’s words in a different way. The second interpretation of this passage is that Paul knew he would one day receive a reward for having preached without pay. Christ would reward him for not seeking his own benefit.

    For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them (1 Corinthians 9:19).

    Living in the Mediterranean world, Paul was used to engaging with many different cultures. In these varying situations, he committed himself not to exercise his right to pursue the norms of his own cultural preferences, and not to insist on his freedoms under the gospel.

    He started with a strong assertion: I am free from all. By claiming his free status, Paul declared that he did not have to conform himself to the preferences of others. Even so, Paul voluntarily made himself a servant to all. He gave up his rights to his own preferences so that he could serve other people. He did this to win as many as possible, to spread the kingdom of Christ.

    To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law (1 Corinthians 9:20–21).

    To show how far he was willing to follow his policy, Paul described the two different aspects of his multicultural ministry: He ministered to both those under the law (the Jewish people under the Mosaic Law) and to those not having the law—the Gentiles. At that time, the differences between these two groups could be huge. Religious beliefs, moral practices and cultural customs, family practices, legal systems, clothing, holidays, and eating habits were very different between the Jews and Gentiles. This diversity required great flexibility from Paul, which he embraced because he wanted to win people from both groups and bring them to Christ.

    The term “under the law” referred to the Jewish way of life under the Mosaic Law. Paul himself was ethnically Jewish, but he understood that through Jesus’ sacrifice and death on the cross, God had created a new people, His church, where there was no distinction between Jew and Gentile (Galatians 3:28). The old covenant had been nullified, and believers were now under what Paul referred to here as the law of Christ. In order to reach Jewish people, Paul was willing to temporarily adopt aspects of the Jewish way of life and customs as needed to be able to share the gospel.

    Paul knew that these practices had been annulled by Jesus’ death on the cross, with God canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands, by nailing it to the cross (Colossians 2:14). But Paul cared so much about the Jewish community that he observed their customs and laws when he was with them so that the gospel might take root in them.

    On the other hand, being outside the law meant that the Gentiles were “excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12 NIV). They didn’t have the guidance of Scripture teaching them to worship God, but followed pagan rituals and lifestyles without the restrictions of the Jewish law and customs. While Paul didn’t approve of pagan lifestyles, he observed their customs and laws when he was among them, so that the gospel could be spread among the Gentiles.

    He was flexible as he went from one community to another, but he knew when to draw the line. When he was with religious Jews, he remembered that he was no longer subject to the law (though I myself am not under the law). Likewise, when with Gentiles who did not observe the laws of Scripture, Paul conformed his outward behavior to theirs in many ways, but he did not stray into paganism, as his goal was to bring people to the knowledge of the one true God. While he was free to observe local cultural customs and ways of life, he was bound to keep the law of Christ (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law).

    “Christ’s law” does not stand in opposition to the Mosaic Law. Jesus himself said, “Do not think I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets: I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17). When Paul refers to Christ’s law, he is referencing the moral teachings of all the Scriptures as they were taught by Christ and His apostles. Paul often affirmed that God’s law was designed as a guide for Christians (Romans 2:25–29; 1 Timothy 1:8). Yet, here he made it clear that God’s law for Christians is interpreted in the light of Christ’s coming and thus had become Christ’s law.

    To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some (1 Corinthians 9:22).

    Paul added another group of people besides the Jews and Gentiles, one that drew attention to his concern for the Corinthian church—the weak. The strong and knowledgeable people in the Corinthian church refused to make allowances for the people they deemed to be weak among them. The strong contended that they had the freedom to eat meat sacrificed to idols, since idols have no real existence, but in doing so, they sinned against weaker brothers and sisters who were stumbled by this practice (1 Corinthians 8:4–7).

    In contrast, Paul became weak by willingly conforming his behavior to that of the weak. In limiting his freedom, he made certain that he didn’t cause weaker brothers and sisters to fall into sin. The strong and knowledgeable at Corinth understood their rights, but they had forgotten the importance of love for others. Disregarding the weak in the Corinthian church would eventually bring about the judgment of God.

    Paul went on to state that he had become all things to all men. He gave up his rights to pursue his own preferences and submitted to others so that he might bring them to salvation. His main concern was to build the kingdom of Christ through reaching the lost and bringing them to faith and new life in Christ. He didn’t allow his own freedoms to interfere with leading others to follow the way of Christ, whether it was those under the law or those outside the law.

    I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings (1 Corinthians 9:23).

    Paul’s purpose and calling was sharing the good news of salvation through Christ with people. He wanted the kingdom of God to come in full, and he made himself a servant of all in order to reach these goals. Paul knew that God would reward him and he sacrificed his own rights so that he might share in God’s blessings.

    Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable (1 Corinthians 9:24–25).

    Paul uses an analogy of an athletic race to highlight the seriousness of exercising self-control in order to pursue the goal of bringing as many people as possible to Christ. Due to the Corinthians’ sponsorship and connection with the Isthmian Games, the reference to a race would be a fitting metaphor that the Corinthians could relate to. Paul went on to draw several comparisons between the Christian life and a race, using himself as an example.

    First, not everyone will win the prize, just as not everyone who begins the Christian life endures to the end. Christians must pursue their race single-mindedly and be “eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:14 NIV). They express their faith by striving to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:10).

    Second, every athlete goes into strict training and learns to exercise self-control in all things to reach their goal and finish their race. Christians are to devote themselves to following Christ, choosing actions that will build up the body of Christ, His people, and promote their spiritual development and self-discipline (Ephesians 4:12).

    Third, unlike athletes who strive to get a ceremonial wreath that will not last, Christians will receive a crown that will last forever (2 Timothy 4:8; 1 Peter 5:4). Paul was referring here to eternal rewards such as everlasting life and eternal glory that Christians “who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality” will receive (Romans 2:7; 2 Timothy 2:10).

    So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified (1 Corinthians 9:26–27).

    Paul drew some moral implications for his life from the analogy. First, he did not live his Christian life like someone running aimlessly. He had a definite goal—winning the prize—and he ran to achieve it.

    Second, Paul commented that he didn’t fight like a man beating the air. Later, in a letter to Timothy, Paul again metaphorically wrote of running and boxing with the purpose of gaining a crown (2 Timothy 4:7–8). Here, he pointed out his care not to miss with his “spiritual punches.”

    Third, he disciplined his body. This is a metaphor showing the rigor of his spiritual life. He conditioned himself spiritually, denying himself as athletes deny themselves for the sake of winning the contest.

    Paul concluded this athletic analogy by restating his goal. He worked hard to make sure that after he had preached to others, he would not be disqualified from the prize. He was not speaking of losing salvation, but he was aware that even he could fall away from Christ. He knew that the prize is received only by those who endure to the end (James 1:12).

    Paul was speaking generally about his entire spiritual life, and his single-minded focus on the goal of reaching the world with the gospel. In order to do so, he exercised self-control like an athlete in every area of his life. But in this chapter Paul also focused on how he gave up his rights and freedoms for the sake of others, and made himself a servant to all, so that he might win more people to Christ (1 Corinthians 9:19). Denying oneself in service to others was a sacrifice, but Paul knew that it was necessary. He used himself as an example for the Corinthians to follow. Since he, an apostle, had been willing to make such sacrifices, the Corinthians should be willing to do the same.


    Note
    Unless otherwise indicated, all scriptures are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

     

  • Mar 11 1 Corinthians: Chapter 9 (verses 1–17)
  • Feb 25 1 Corinthians: Chapter 8 (verses 1–13)
  • Feb 11 1 Corinthians: Chapter 7 (verses 17–40)
  • Jan 28 1 Corinthians: Chapter 7 (verses 1–16)
  • Jan 8 1 Corinthians: Chapter 6 (verses 1–20)
  • Dec 10 Practicing All the Virtues
  • Nov 26 Virtues for Christ-Followers: Self-control
  • Nov 12 1 Corinthians: Chapter 5 (verses 1–13)
  • Oct 29 Virtues for Christ-Followers: Gentleness
   

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