Anchor

User-friendly devotionals with audio

  • 6 May

    The Adventurous Climb

    A compilation

    Audio length: 11:56
    Download Audio (10.9MB)

    Habakkuk 3:17–19 expresses the faith of the prophet in the face of troubled times: “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.”

    When we run with hinds’ feet on high places, treading “on the heights,” we live above our circumstances. God gives us the grace, courage, and inner strength we need to press on to attain new heights and experience new vistas. … And like a deer on a mountain slope, we step boldly into whatever God has called us to do. …

    God is the Solid Rock that never fails (Psalm 144:1–2). With God’s promises as our strong foundation, we can walk in freedom and courage, as unafraid and undaunted as a deer leaping on high places.—GotQuestions.org1

    *

    I recently climbed Table Mountain, here in South Africa, and what a wonder it is! A flat-topped mountain smack-dab in the middle of a city, overlooking two oceans, and with a mountain range dubbed “The 12 Apostles” right behind it. It’s over 3,500 feet (1,066 m) high and teeming with gorgeous vegetation, birds, wild animals, rocks, and cliffs, but my favorite thing about it is the breathtaking view!

    We set out for the climb in the early morning and arrived at the starting point just before dawn. As we walked up, we watched the sun rise and the city begin to wake. We encountered others also making their way to the top, equally determined to take advantage of an early start.

    At first, the climb felt grueling. I was out of breath and had to make a few stops to rest and drink water. The rest of the group kept going, and I felt as if I were being left behind. My husband (a Table Mountain veteran) stayed by my side, giving me encouragement and reassurance that I was doing well. A couple of times, we even caught up with the rest of the group at a rest stop before they went on.

    With aching limbs and much laughter in good company, we, the slow ones, made it to the top in just under two hours. And there it was: the view!

    From the top, you can see the whole city of Cape Town, the surrounding mountains, both oceans, valleys, fields and plains beyond the city, and—even farther in the distance—the next mountain range. The sense of being amidst God’s beautiful creation overwhelmed me and I was enthused with a feeling of achievement.

    The summit was my goal, and I had to take many steps to get there—over 10,000 according to my pedometer—but there were also psychological steps, like planning, overcoming fears and apathy, and persevering when I didn’t feel like it. These are similar to the steps to reaching personal goals: calculate, plan, execute, and keep moving forward, even when the going gets tough. There will always be the temptation to give up along the way, but with my goal in mind and with the help of like-minded people, my goals become achievable.

    Table Mountain isn’t the only mountain there is to climb, just as there are many goals waiting to be achieved and many views waiting to be seen. So, we tackle one at a time, gaining experience along the way. With good company and lots of encouragement, taking it one step at a time, and not giving up, we can all reach our personal “summits.”—Ester Mizrany

    *

    Our knowledge of Christ is somewhat like climbing one of the Welsh mountains. When you are at the base, you see but little: the mountain itself appears to be but one-half as high as it really is.

    Climb the first rising knoll, and the valley lengthens and widens beneath your feet.

    Go higher, and you see the country for four or five miles round, and you are delighted with the widening prospect.

    Mount still, and the scene enlarges; till at last, when you are on the summit, and look east, west, north, and south, you see almost all England lying before you. Yonder is a forest in some distant county, perhaps two hundred miles away, and here the sea, and there a shining river and the smoking chimneys of a manufacturing town, or the masts of the ships in a busy port.

    When we first believe in Christ, we see but little of Him. The higher we climb, the more we discover of His beauties. Paul, when grown old, sitting grey-haired and shivering in a dungeon in Rome, could say with greater emphasis than we can, “I know the one in whom I trust” (2 Timothy 1:12), for each experience had been like the climbing of a hill, each trial had been like ascending another summit, and his death seemed like gaining the top of the mountain, from which he could see the whole of God’s faithfulness and love.—Adapted from a text by Charles Spurgeon (1834–1892)

    *

    If in climbing a mountain you keep your eyes on each stone or difficult place as you ascend, seeing only that, how weary your climb. But if you think of each step as leading to the summit of achievement from which glories and beauties will open before you, then your climb will be so different.—A. J. Russell

    *

    In life, we all experience overwhelming circumstances. If we let them, these moments remind us how dependent we are on God. There’s hope in recalling where our help comes from:

    “I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 121:1–2).

    Psalm 121 is a “psalm of ascent,” a type of prayerful song that ancient Israelites would sing as they journeyed to Jerusalem to worship God at His temple. They faced uncertain terrain and dangers on the way. Yet as they lifted their gaze toward the holy city, they preached courage to their hearts, proclaiming their help was found in their Creator, not in creation nor in a destination.

    After confidently declaring who was their help, they reminded themselves of how He would help them:

    The Lord would ensure their feet wouldn’t slip (Psalm 121:3).

    He would protect and preserve His people (Psalm 121:7–8).

    He never sleeps, so His vigilant eye would always be on them, guarding them from evil (Psalm 121:4).

    No matter what “help me” moment we find ourselves in, God is ever-present, supremely interested and personally vested. We, too, can look beyond what is made to behold our Maker, reminding ourselves that Jesus has unlimited power to save, keep, and carry us safely home.

    Our journey won’t always be easy. But the God who created the mountain before us is far greater than the dangerous climb. He’s enthroned on high but journeys with us down low, sovereignly watching over every shaky step. …

    The Lord may not eliminate every problem on this side of heaven, but He walks with us through it all and hears our every cry.—Beth Knight2

    *

    Be willing to keep climbing this high mountain with Me. Sometimes you look back nostalgically. At a long-ago stage of your journey. You yearn for that easier, less complicated time in your life. But I want you to recognize it for what it was: a base camp. It was a time and place of preparation for the arduous adventure ahead of you.

    The mountain you are climbing is exceedingly high; the top of it is hidden in clouds, so it’s impossible for you to know how far up those heights you have come—and how far you have yet to go. However, the higher you go, the better view you have.

    Although each day is a challenge and you often feel weary, take time to enjoy the magnificent scenery! This journey with Me is training you to see from a heavenly perspective that transcends your circumstances. The higher up the mountain you climb, the steeper and more challenging your path becomes—but the greater your adventure as well. Remember that the higher you go with Me, the closer you get to your ultimate goal—the heights of heaven!—Jesus3

    Published on Anchor May 2025. Read by Jerry Paladino. Music by Michael Fogarty.

    1 “What does it mean that God makes our feet like the feet of a deer (Habakkuk 3:19)?” GotQuestions.org, January 4, 2022, https://www.gotquestions.org/feet-like-a-deer.html

    2 Beth Knight, “If All You Can Pray Is ‘Lord, Help Me,’” Proverbs31.org, February 29, 2024, https://proverbs31.org/read/devotions/full-post/2024/02/29/if-all-you-can-pray-is-lord-help-me

    3 Sarah Young, Jesus Today (Thomas Nelson, 2012).

  • May 1 Better Days Ahead—Part 1
  • Apr 30 The Man Who Changed the History of a Nation
  • Apr 24 Making Time for the Things That Matter
  • Apr 22 Heavenbound
  • Apr 21 The Two Builders
  • Apr 17 The Glory of Easter
  • Apr 16 The Son Must Rise: What Made Easter Inevitable
  • Apr 14 Lessons from the Cross
  • Apr 11 A Bruised Reed He Will Not Break
   

Directors’ Corner

Faith-building Bible studies and articles

  • 22 Apr

    1 Corinthians: Chapter 10 (verses 16–33)

    In the second half of 1 Corinthians 10, Paul begins by emphasizing to the Corinthians the incompatibility of participating in meals in pagan temples and participating in the Lord’s Supper.

    The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 10:16).

    Paul’s first question addressed the cup of thanksgiving and the bread that they ate, using words similar to the accounts of the Lord’s Supper (Matthew 26:26–28; 1 Corinthians 11:23–26). Drinking from the cup is a participation in the blood of Christ and eating the bread is a participation in the body of Christ. The word “participation” is also used in the New Testament to refer to our fellowship and communion with Jesus (1 Corinthians 1:9) and with one another (1 John 1:7).

    Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread (1 Corinthians 10:17).

    Paul noted that though believers are many, they are one in body, and that this is true because there is one loaf of bread, representing the body of Christ, in which all partake. In Paul’s writing, one body is a technical phrase that refers to the spiritual union, both of members with Christ and with one another in Christ. In Romans, Paul wrote so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another (Romans 12:5). Since believers are in spiritual union with Christ, all believers share spiritual union with one another in Him.

    Consider the people of Israel: are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar? (1 Corinthians 10:18)

    When giving thanksgiving or peace offerings in the Old Testament, the altar was a table on which food was sacrificed to God, and the priests ate from the offerings (Leviticus 6:17–18). Paul emphasized that those who ate such sacrifices took part in the spiritual significance of the altar of the temple. In the same way, those who partake of the Lord’s Supper fellowship with God.

    What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons (1 Corinthians 10:19–20).

    Paul had already argued earlier in this epistle that pagan religions are false and that their sacrifices aren’t made to true gods, as “an idol has no real existence,” and “there is no God but one” (1 Corinthians 8:4).At the same time he had qualified that statement by saying that there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords” (1 Corinthians 8:5–6). In this verse Paul explained his meaning more fully. He implied that something supernatural is at work in pagan sacrifices, and these are ultimately offered to demons and not to God. Thus, when people sacrifice to idols, it cannot be assumed that they are engaging in a meaningless activity.

    Paul pointed out that pagans do not sacrifice to gods that Christians should fear, and in this sense, an idol is nothing and the food offered to idols is nothing. Yet, Paul affirmed that the sacrifices of pagans were made to demons, and he insisted that the Corinthian believers should not be participants with demons.

    You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21).

    Paul speaks again of the incompatibility of Christianity and idolatry. The “cup of the Lord” represents the communion that believers have with Christ through His sacrifice on the cross. It symbolized the blood of Christ, which was shed for the forgiveness of sins. This cup is a symbol of salvation. There were cases where Christians might eat what had been offered to idols without sin, such as when meat was sold in the marketplace. But this is not to be understood as extending to participation in pagan religious festivals involving idolatrous worship.

    Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he? (1 Corinthians 10:22)

    Paul made this point clear when he proceeded to question if the Corinthians were seeking to provoke the Lord to jealousy, and if they considered themselves stronger than the Lord. God is portrayed in the Bible as a possessive husband (Jeremiah 31:32; Hosea 2:1–13). He requires loyalty of His people. The Corinthians were to stop the practice of idolatry as they risked incurring the wrath of God even as the Israelites did under Moses.

    “All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful,” but not all things build up. Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor (1 Corinthians 10:23–24).

    Here Paul begins with a popular slogan among the Corinthians of the time that he has already mentioned in 1 Corinthians 6:12: All things are lawful. There is some truth in this slogan, as Christians have much freedom in Christ. However, the saying must be balanced, which Paul did when he added that not all things are helpful or beneficial. Paul limits the use of freedom here to things that benefit or build up the Christian community, and one’s actions to that which seeks the good of his neighbor. Earlier on, Paul had highlighted the principle that believers should not seek their own good but the good of others and the furtherance of the gospel (1 Corinthians 9:19–23).

    Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience. For “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof” (1 Corinthians 10:25–26).

    Paul taught that Christians may eat any meat they purchase in the market as long as the question of idolatry doesn’t come up. If the matter of sacrifice to idols came up, then believers should refrain from eating for the sake of others. In the meat markets of Greece, some meat was sold after being dedicated to an idol, while other meat had never been dedicated. This difference was not always made evident by the shopkeepers.

    The rabbis put restrictions on Jews who lived in pagan cities like Corinth, and they had to be sure that they bought meat only from shops that adhered to Jewish laws regarding food. But this was not Paul’s policy. His view was that believers could eat any meat without raising questions of whether it had been sacrificed to an idol. He quoted Psalm 24:1, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof,” to assert that God is the only true God of all things and that idols are insignificant. Believers could eat meat without being concerned with the meat’s history.

    If one of the unbelievers invites you to dinner and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any question on the ground of conscience. But if someone says to you, “This has been offered in sacrifice,” then do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for the sake of conscience—I do not mean your conscience, but his (1 Corinthians 10:27–29a).

    After speaking of the marketplace, Paul turned to situations in which believers were guests in the homes of unbelievers. Christians may eat whatever they are served without being concerned about questions of conscience. However, if someone were to say that the meat had been offered in sacrifice to an idol, believers were not to eat on the ground of conscience—for the sake of the person who had told them. To eat under such circumstances could appear to be accepting of idolatry. According to this advice of the apostle, Christians should take care not to use their liberty to the detriment of others, or to their own reproach. In eating and drinking, and in all we do, we should aim at the glory of God, at pleasing and honoring Him.

    For why should my liberty be determined by someone else’s conscience? If I partake with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of that for which I give thanks? (1 Corinthians 10:29b–30)

    Paul asks why he should do something that would allow his freedom to be judged by someone else’s conscience. Christians have the freedom to eat meat sacrificed to idols, but they shouldn’t use this freedom when it hurts the conscience of another. If an unbelieving host doesn’t mention the meat’s history, Christians are free to eat. Paul says Christians may give thanks for and eat meat which may have been sacrificed to idols. They can take part in the meal with thankfulness.

    So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, (1 Corinthians 10:31–32)

    Paul now summarizes his argument in this chapter. First, whether or not believers partake in food or drink, they must do it all for the glory of God. The main purpose of human beings is the glory of God; His honor should be the main concern of those who love Him. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might (Deuteronomy 6:5).1

    Second, whether believers partake or not, they should not cause others to stumble or sin, nor should they hinder someone’s receptivity to the gospel. This concern for others applies to Jews, Greeks, and the church. Paul likely mentioned these groups because each of these raised different considerations. Both Jews and Greeks were unbelievers in Christ’s teachings, but each group had different standards and expectations. Moreover, the principle of love for neighbors must also extend to the church for yet other reasons.

    just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved. Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:33–11:1).

    Paul brought this section to its close by reminding his readers that he didn’t expect something from them that he himself was unwilling to do. He reminded them that he sought to please everybody in every way. He sought to serve others, not because he was seeking his own good, but rather he sought the good of many, or more specifically, that they may be saved. Paul’s commitment to the salvation of the lost led him to minimize his personal preferences and freedoms for the good of others.

    As a result of the consistency with which Paul fulfilled this service, he felt qualified to encourage the Corinthians to follow his example, even as he followed the example of Christ. Christ gave up His freedom and honor, humbling himself to the point of death on a cross, in order to save others (Philippians 2:5–8). Paul encouraged the Corinthians to remember Christ’s sacrifice as the model of love and concern for others. “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children” (Ephesians 4:32–5:1).

    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.

    1 See also Matthew 22:37.

     

  • Apr 8 1 Corinthians: Chapter 10 (verses 1–15)
  • Mar 25 1 Corinthians: Chapter 9 (verses 18–27)
  • 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
   

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