On the Couch With God - Daily Devotional

" But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well " (Matthew 6:33) Read: Matthew 6:33-34 “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33). This is the positive side of don’t worry. Jesus is trying to help his listeners understand that living the way God created them to live, actually doing the things Jesus said, will help them find real life. It’s a life built around God and others instead of a life focused on ourselves. We can know what we are trusting based on what we are saying. We seek first God’s kingdom when we put into practice the teachings of Jesus. Seeking God’s kingdom requires a change in our hearts, not just our actions. It’s a daily commitment to God’s values and not the values of our culture. This week we’ve been challenged to find our security in God's Word. We’ve looked at the Bible. ON THE COACH WITH GOD Read Matthew 7:...

" When your words came, I ate them " (Jeremiah 15:16) Read: Jeremiah 15:15-21 Billy Graham, the renowned American evangelist, once described his struggle to accept the Bible as completely true. One night as he walked alone in the moonlight at a retreat center in the San Bernardino Mountains, he dropped to his knees and placed his Bible on a tree stump, able only to “stutter” a prayer: “Oh, God! There are many things in this book I do not understand.” By confessing his confusion, Graham said the Holy Spirit finally “freed me to say it. ‘Father, I am going to accept this as thy Word—by faith!’ ” When he stood up, he still had questions, but he said, “I knew a spiritual battle in my soul had been fought and won.” The young prophet Jeremiah fought spiritual battles too. Yet he consistently sought answers in Scripture. “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight” (Jeremiah 15:16). He declared, “The word of the Lord . . . is in my heart like...

" All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work " (2 Timothy 3:16-17) Read: 2 Timothy 3 The apostle Paul was writing to a younger bishop named Timothy and giving him instructions on how to lead his church. In today’s verses in 2 Timothy, Paul highlights the importance of every passage of Scripture. Timothy probably read his Bible even more carefully after receiving this message from his mentor. The same should be true of us. Three thoughtful questions can guide us to a deeper understanding of each passage we read. What did it mean for them? We should ask this question first as we read a passage. To answer, we need to try to get into the reader’s shoes and grasp why the writer said what he said. How might they have felt or responded to this passage? A study bible is an excellent resource for this step. What does it mean for us tod...

" [They] examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. " (Acts 17:11b) Read: Acts 17 Consistent study of Scripture brought many to faith in Jesus in Berea. We have access to study God’s Word now in more ways than ever. We too can read the Bible for ourselves and understand it with the Holy Spirit’s help. As we do, the Gospel will shape our lives, families and communities. Three thoughtful questions will help guide us into a deeper understanding of the Bible. What did it mean for them? Think about what people were going through at the time. How might they have felt? How do they respond? An CSB Study Bible provides more insight for hard-to-understand sections. Read a passage in multiple versions to help with confusing passages. (Try the New Living Translation, NIV, or English Standard Version in an online Bible.) What does it mean for us today? Think about similar situations, challenges or struggles we face. Discuss the passage in a small group ...

" All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work " (2 Timothy 3:16-17) Read: 2 Timothy 3:16-17 The Bereans studied the Scriptures every day for understanding. Because they didn’t have copies of the Scriptures at home, their study required going to the synagogue to read the scrolls together. This wasn’t a five-minute, quick read-through in the morning before running off to their day. They read and discussed the Scriptures at length, asking God for help to understand Paul’s teaching. Their study took commitment and dedication. They submitted their lives to the authority of God’s Word and ordered their lives around it. We face complex, confusing and challenging decisions every day. We also anchor our lives in something. Maybe we scroll our news feed to understand the world. We might text friends for help with a tough decision. Perhaps ...