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This is what the LORD says — your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "I AM the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go." — Isaiah 48:17 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Don't you sometimes long for the pillar of fire at night and the cloud by day to guide us as we make our way through life? God gave these blessings to the Israelites during their wilderness wanderings ( Exodus 13:21-22 ; Nehemiah 9:19-21 ). They never had to doubt God's presence was with them and his care was over them. Then I remember God's promised and abiding presence with us as followers of Jesus. This abiding presence is the Holy Spirit ( John 7:37-39 ; Romans 8:14 ). The Spirit's presence is coupled with the promise that God will never leave or forsake us ( Romans 8:38-39 ; Hebrews 13:5-6 ). As we seek God's presence and honor his character, he will get us where we need to be to do his will. We can be assured that he will work in ou...

The earth is filled with your love, O LORD; teach me your decrees. — Psalm 119:64 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Sometimes we get so caught up in the loving wonders of God's creation and the marvelous blessings of "the work of his hands" ( Psalm 19:1 , 111:7 ) that we forget to ask him to teach us his truths, help us understand his will, and give us the grace to live out his word in our daily lives. Let's not only worship God in awe for his majestic creation; let's also worship him by learning his will and living it in our daily lives ( Romans 12:1-2 ). My Prayer... Holy and Precious Father, please teach me your truth. Lead me to your will. Guide me in your wisdom. I want my life and my choices to reflect your plan for me when you made me in my mother's womb.* I desire for my life to display your righteous character, gracious compassion, and faithful lovingkindness. In the name of Jesus I ask these things. Amen. * Psalm 139:13-16 . The Thoughts and Prayer...

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. — Proverbs 22:6 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Children don't just need to be taught facts, truth, and school subjects; they need to be trained and prepared for life in the grace of God, the way of Jesus, and the leading of the Holy Spirit. This training should come from their parents and other faithful adults in their lives. Deep down, we know that life is not just about intellectual lessons and information. Authentic life and productive living are about integrating God's truth into the fabric of our daily lives as we teach them and model them before our children and the children God places under our influence. Our Father in heaven calls us to move our children and their training to the top of our list of priorities. Our children are forever; other things we invest our time in are temporary. So, let's recommit to training up children and living as examples before them so that they will...

Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. — Psalm 95:6-7 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Worship is more than our hearts, souls, and words offered to God. It also necessarily involves our physical bodies, our strength, and our posture ( Mark 12:29-30 ). When we understand the grace God has given us to be called his children, what else can we do but bow down or kneel before him in his majesty and loving grace? We come to him, a conquering ruler, offering ourselves in full submission. God chooses, however, to treat us tenderly like a loving shepherd who longs to care for us, and our Abba Father who is full of tender love for us. We must not forget the parable of the lost sheep ( Luke 15:3-7 ) and the lost sons ( Luke 15:11-32 ) as we pray this truth! Such grace leads us to bow and kneel in heartfelt worship before the LORD, our maker. My Prayer... Shepherd of my soul, my lo...

"You are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household." — Ephesians 2:19 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Those of us who have been Christians a long time sometimes forget that we have no claim or right to the grace that we have received. God offered his grace freely to all people who are willing to call on Jesus as LORD and Savior, then live for him wholeheartedly ( Titus 2:11 ; Acts 2:21, 41 , 16:22 ; Romans 10:13 ). When we feel we deserve our place in "God's household" , that it is ours by right, we are no longer living under grace. To be a part of God's family is a gift. The Holy One who spoke into existence the universe - and we are a submicroscopic speck in comparison - has given us grace to be adopted into his family. Being part of God's people, God's household, is simply and magnificently a gift from the One who knows how to share grace in ways we can't even imagine. My Pra...

There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. — Galatians 3:28 Thoughts on Today's Verse... Wouldn't it be great if we could tear down all the walls that divide us - racial, social, economic, gender, and political. The apostle Paul spent his entire life trying to do just that: to tear down the walls that divided people by bringing them to Jesus and the cross. In fact, Paul emphatically proclaimed that Christ "has made us ... one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility" ( Ephesians 2:13-14 ESV ). There are no positions of superiority or inferiority at the foot of the cross; only a place for those who discover God's might displayed in sacrifice and God's love displayed even when under attack at the hands of human cruelty. While the forces of culture and human selfishness are always trying to divide us, we can remember that in Jesus, and only in Jesus, we can all be truly one. My Pra...