Corona Devotionals

God loves us so much that even though He has righteous anger toward His people's sin, He still has a soft-spot for His kids. It's like when our children run us ragged all day...but then when it's time to tuck them in and say prayers at night...there is a melting-of-the-mad, and agape love shines through.   God has that forever-love for us. Not romantic love, but "agape" love: a willful love/a selfless love/a love that goes deeper than superficial levels and allows us to love-past faults.   That (multiplied by about a million) defines God's love for us. And so, when God saw sees His people (of Israel in the following passages) rebelling against Him, ignoring Him, worshiping other gods/idols, and completely disregarding His Word and Law (both of which He established for their benefit and well-being)...God was upset, and He told His prophet, Jeremiah that He was done with them:   “Jeremiah, I have made you a tester of metals, that you may determine the quali...

Life is sometimes hard.  Very hard.  Situations, limitations, injustices, and a lack-of-hope can make life almost unbearable.   And sometimes we simply can’t bear it.   Whether it happens over time with the drip, drip, drip of misfortune, or if it occurs in a hellish instant wrapped in a tidal wave of shock and disbelief: life can sometimes be very hard. We feel that there is nothing we can do, and God….seems…gone. Psalm 77  (1)  I cry out to God; yes, I shout.   Oh, that God would listen to me!   ( 2)  When I was in deep trouble,  I searched for the Lord.   All night long I prayed, with hands lifted toward heaven,  but my soul was not comforted.  ( 3)  I think of God, and I moan,  overwhelmed with longing for his help.   ( 4)  You don’t let me sleep.   I am too distressed even to pray!   ( 5)  I think of the good old days,  long since ended, ( ...

A friend of our family just had a birthday... her spiritual birthday.   She asked Jesus to come into her heart and her life, and she acknowledged Him as her Lord and Savior.   The Bible calls that being "born again". Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.  ( 2)  This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.”   ( 3)  Jesus answered him,  “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is  born again  he cannot see the kingdom of God.”   ( 4)  Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?”   ( 5)  Jesus answered,  “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  ( 6)  That w...

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.     ~Galatians 6:7 God can   not be mocked. Man makes his selfish boasts, but do not be fooled, or else you will be shocked...because God cannot be mocked. The opening ceremonies of our recent Olympics made a mockery of more than one Biblical accounts, including the Last Supper.     Let the reader be reminded of Who created the world:   The earth is the   Lord ’s,   and everything in it,  the world, and all who live in it... (Psalm 24:1).   The earth is the Lord's, and we are too. We will answer to God Almighty one day in judgment.  We will reap what we  sow. Those who have put their faith into Christ Jesus have not one iota to fear.  In Christ we have received forgiveness and been absolved of our sins.  And if we are serving  God, then we are not mocking God. But what about those who are  mocking H im? Do not be deceived:...

Sometimes life seems so full of work and struggle.   This week has been that way for me, (anyone else?).   So much work... and so much struggle .  And it's not that I (even) have "so-much" work to do... just that everything I do is so much   work.    It's almost like sometimes and some days we seem to be moving against a gravitational force. And it's not that we  can't complete things, but rather, it's more like everything seems to be such a  struggle  to complete, or to accomplish, or to even try. I work and struggle so hard ( Colossians 1:29).   If this sentence summarizes your situation, I get you. I picture the trudge of walking through a deep drift of wet snow, or the chaos of trying to wrangle-up a group of toddlers:  I work and struggle so hard  ( Colossians 1:29).   But... God gets us.    He sees us as we work and struggle so hard .  I am convinced of that, and we even have...