Author: Kerry

Shout for joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious. Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you. All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing the praises of your name.”
Psalm 66:1-4

Let the Earth Now Praise the Lord

Daily Devotion – December 9, 2024

Devotion based on Psalm 66:1-4


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Do you enjoy Christmas carols? What about those music stations that play Christmas songs twenty-four hours a day?

Christmas carols began as expressions of humble praise to God. But many of the songs we hear today are about red-nosed reindeer, snowmen, and sleigh rides. Sure, those songs can be fun, and there is nothing wrong with innocent fun. But they are empty of praise.

Real praise joyfully responds with humble adoration to God’s powerful work. At Christmas, we rejoice that God came to earth. Through his humble life, God demonstrates the awesome power of sacrificial love.

In giving us his Son, God was gifting us something we could never pay for and definitely do not deserve—forgiveness for all our sins, victory over our spiritual enemies, and eternal life.

Our God wants everyone to benefit from his gracious gift. So, keep singing those carols! Make his praise glorious! Sing with joy and enthusiasm! And if you can’t make music, listen with a heart tuned to praise that Christ came to earth. Let everyone know about the perfect gift we have been given—God with us! God for us!

Prayer: (Christian Worship: Hymnal – 315, vs 4)
Savior, hear my welcome cry—loud hosannas lifted high! King of glory, enter in; cleanse my soul of every sin. Amen.

“Then suddenly the LORD you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.
Malachi 3:1-4

A Time to Prepare

Daily Devotion – December 8, 2024

Devotion based on Malachi 3:1-4


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Have you ever gotten soap in your eye or accidentally rubbed some sanitizer into a recent paper cut. That really stings, doesn’t it? Something like that causes discomfort. It is often bad enough to make us cry out in pain. It can be a very painful few seconds or even minutes. That’s why children don’t want dad or mom to clean out a recent cut or scrape.

Repentance works the same way. It is painful to admit sin. Admitting that we have sinned also brings discomfort. We don’t like to admit greed, apathy, lust, or hatred. Like the child with the skin cut, we try to hide our sin. We try to avoid the painful but necessary cleansing process.

Failing to clean out a wound allows it to fester. It can lead to infection, illness and even ultimately death. In that case, a little discomfort in getting cleaned up is a good thing. Similarly, sin that is not cleansed through repentance is dangerous for our souls. Repentance prevents sin from festering and infecting our faith. Sin that is not addressed can ultimately lead to unbelief and eternal death in hell.

The season of Advent is a time to prepare our souls for Jesus’ return. Use the time to humbly repent of your sins and let the gospel heal you. Like a launderer uses soap, let God’s Word do its important work of cleansing your soul in Christ. He alone purifies us from all sin. Put your faith in him.

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, use your law and gospel to prepare my heart to meet you. Purify me from sin and wash me clean in your blood. Amen.

“The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will fulfill the good promise I made to the people of Israel and Judah.”
Jeremiah 33:14

A Fulfilled Promise Brings Hope

Daily Devotion – December 7, 2024

Devotion based on Jeremiah 33:14


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When a dog hears you say outside or walk, you better be taking that dog for a walk! Even if it’s something that only sounds like one of those words, he’s hearing you make a promise, “We’re going for a walk!”

When a child hears the hint or suggestion of doing something or going somewhere exciting, don’t they react with similar enthusiasm? What a thrill when a child hears a parent announce, “Pack a bag. We are leaving for grandma and grandpa’s house tomorrow!” Oh my, what excitement. From a child’s perspective, they just can’t wait!

Sadly, there are times when promises made become promises broken. Someone did not keep their word. The let-down is huge. The disappointment is real. When that begins to happen too often, we question if the promise is real. We stop believing.

Not so with our Lord. “The days are coming…,” he promised. Although the wait seemed long to God’s people of the Old Testament, God’s promises remained with them. God had made and fulfilled many promises to his people.

Those fulfilled promises were preludes to a greater promise—or as Jeremiah called it in today’s Bible passage, “the good promise.” All God’s promises gave people hope in God’s greater promise yet to be fulfilled. This promise was so good that God repeated it over and over to his people throughout history. People believed in it. Why? Because God was the promise-maker. The Lord always keeps his promises!

The season of Advent before Christmas is so exciting—Christ is coming! It means God kept his “good promise” that he made to us! God’s fulfilled promises give us the certain hope—that when God makes a promise, he will always keep it!

Prayer:
God of fulfilled promises, make good of your promise to return to me. Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen.

May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.
1 Thessalonians 3:13

He Comes to Make Us Blameless and Holy

Daily Devotion – December 6, 2024

Devotion based on 1 Thessalonians 3:13


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“Do you think of yourself as more of a sinner or a saint?” This was the question that the pastor asked his Bible Study group. The response was unanimous. Everyone agreed they thought of themselves as more sinner than saint.

Maybe it was the power of group dynamics talking. No one wanted to be seen as prideful. Or perhaps it was simply the truth. As we conduct our lives on this earth, we realize that there are many ways to stumble along the path of following our God in faith. Experience tells us, “I am a sinner.”

Of course, the Bible tells us that both are true. We are sinners—because we are weak and possess a sinful flesh that always wants to follow its own path. And we are saints—completely forgiven, washed clean by the precious blood of Christ.

The sinner part we seem to accept more easily. But in today’s Bible passage, the apostle Paul calls us to believe the other truth as well. You are a saint!

How can this be? Don’t look to yourself for the proof. Honest reflection would only leave you feeling even more like a sinner.

Instead, trust God’s promises in the Bible. In his Word, God shows you how sinners become saints. The Savior came to a world of sin and overcame it. Jesus met sin at the cross where your sin became his, and his holiness became yours. Through faith, God has changed your heart to know the love of Christ and the promise of eternal life.

Many days, we will struggle to believe it. How can this sinner be a saint? Go to the Word. There, God strengthens your heart. There, God will again convince you of the truth. Through the blood of Jesus, you are blameless and holy.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank you for taking on my sin and giving me your holiness. Help me to believe that I am washed clean, a saint. Strengthen me to live as one. Amen.

May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.
1 Thessalonians 3:12

He Comes to Grow Us in Love

Daily Devotion – December 5, 2024

Devotion based on 1 Thessalonians 3:12


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There is universal agreement that the world needs more love. Politicians proclaim that we need to show more love to each other. Law enforcement is dismayed by the lack of love in their communities. Families struggle where there is a lack of love.

If we all agree that the world needs more love, why isn’t there?

There’s nothing wrong with the concept. Showing genuine love to others and receiving it from others is always a blessing.

The problem lies in the execution. We don’t carry out what we proclaim. The entertainer who walks off the stage with an “I love you” doesn’t even know your name. And if you showed up at her house to get an autograph, likely the response would be less than an embrace and a dinner invitation.

More seriously, we all struggle to do what’s needed—more love. Because what is fighting us constantly in showing more love is a sinful nature that inherently will always put itself first.

But there is one who came in perfect love. Only love could cause the purity and perfection of God to clothe himself with flesh. Jesus humbled himself so that he could move from the manger to the cross and to the tomb. Every step that he took on this frail planet was taken in love.

And it is his love that inspires our love. Since God loved us, we have the motive and the example to show God’s love to others in how we speak and act.

More love? Absolutely. We all need it. And Christians have the best reason and the best way to show it. Point to the perfect love of Jesus.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, help me always see and appreciate your sacrificial love in being my Savior. And then strengthen me to show and share that love in my life. Amen.

Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you.
1 Thessalonians 3:11

He Comes to Clear the Way

Daily Devotion – December 4, 2024

Devotion based on 1 Thessalonians 3:11


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Sometimes people take on obstacles just for the challenge. They will run a race filled with mud pits, climbing walls, and cargo nets to test themselves and hopefully overcome the challenges. At other times, obstacles just appear. Traffic comes to a standstill. The computer crashes. Progress comes to a sudden stop. And at other times, our obstacles are self-inflicted. Like leaving a phone nearby whose noises and messages distract from the work that needs to get done.

The apostle Paul had an obstacle that kept him away from the Christians in Thessalonica. Because of persecution, Paul had had to flee in the middle of the night. Now, writing to them later, he longed to be able to see them again. He prayed that God would clear the way to make a visit possible so that souls might be strengthened, and the love of Christ proclaimed.

While we may not face an obstacle keeping us from visiting Thessalonica, we do sometimes face spiritual obstacles keeping us from being closer to the Lord. Sometimes, these obstacles appear out of nowhere—a temptation or a trial we never expected. Sometimes, our spiritual troubles are self-inflicted. We keep ourselves from God’s Word or worship. We pursue a temptation rather than turning from it.

When the path to God seems difficult, take comfort in knowing that Jesus cleared the way for you. Every trial that was thrown at him, he endured. Every temptation, he overcame. Every distraction that kept him from his path to come to you to save you, he ignored. Jesus let nothing get in the way of winning your salvation.

Obstacles will come. But Advent is a great time to re-focus and re-prioritize your relationship with Jesus. Fix your eyes on him and the path to heaven that he has cleared for you.

Prayer:
Lord, help me clear my life of obstacles that get in the way of growing in you. Amen.

Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.
1 Thessalonians 3:10

He Comes to Increase Our Faith

Daily Devotion – December 3, 2024

Devotion based on 1 Thessalonians 3:10


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You are missing something. As you are preparing dinner for your family you realize that one key ingredient is missing. Do you try to find a substitute? Do you just ignore it and hope for the best? Or do you drop everything and run to the store because you know that it just will not taste the same without it?

The world is missing something. Every day, a different “secret sauce” is marketed to make me happier and healthier, look younger, lose weight, get richer, live longer—the list goes on and on. But even if I can shed those stubborn pounds and smooth out a few wrinkles, how long before the next chocolate chip cookie or the newest line in my skin sends me looking for the next “something” that will fix all my problems?

You and I possess far greater problems than the externals that people can see and judge us by. There is One who sees the internal—our hearts and our souls. He knows our lives and what we do and say and think. And he, our God, has every right to judge us by our deeds and words.

Jesus came to give us what we lack. The perfect obedience that God demands he gives to us through faith in his Son. Jesus came to take away the sins that we commit. And then he gives us the ingredients to build us up in faith.

The Bible. Baptism. The Lord’s Supper. They seem so simple. We might want something more dramatic. We might expect we have to sacrifice or somehow do something to deserve to receive his message. We might think we have to do something drastic to find the secret sauce.

But this is how he builds us in faith. Through a steady diet of his Word, God comes to us, builds us up in faith, and keeps us strong to handle the problems that life throws at us. And through his Word, we have all that we need.

Prayer:
Lord, make me glad to worship you and seek out your Word so that I may grow in you. Amen.

How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?
1 Thessalonians 3:9

He Comes to Receive Our Thanks

Daily Devotion – December 2, 2024

Devotion based on 1 Thessalonians 3:9


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Have you ever waited excitedly for someone’s arrival? Maybe your spouse who was away on a trip. A son or daughter or grandchild that you have not seen for far too long. A friend separated from you over the years. But now the time has come, and they will arrive any moment. You feel joy. Excitement. Expectation.

When the apostle Paul wrote the words of today’s Bible passage, he was writing to a group of people he had only met briefly. Persecution forced him to move on from their city. But an amazing thing happened. The gospel changed hearts. People came to faith. Paul could have been tempted to pat himself on the back for the great work he accomplished in a short amount of time. Instead, he thanked God. While the gospel had brought joy to these new believers, Paul received joy in return for their faith. And he thanked God for it.

There is much excitement in our world as Christmas approaches. And much of that excitement also has little or nothing to do with the arrival of the Savior. Let Paul’s words be our guide this time of year: “How can we thank God enough?”

The answer to that is, we can’t. Not really. How can we truly thank God enough for sending us a Savior? For bringing us the joy of forgiveness? The hope of eternal life? For a Son born to take on our sins so that he can save us? No, we can’t ever thank God enough.

But what we can do, is take some time to thank God for all the joy we have as we prepare our hearts for the birth of the Christ.

Prayer:
Father in heaven, thank you for the gift of your Son. During this busy time of year, keep my head and heart focused on my Savior. Amen.

May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.
1 Thessalonians 3:12

Hope That Increases Love

Daily Devotion – December 1, 2024

Devotion based on 1 Thessalonians 3:12


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The weeks before Christmas are called Advent—a Latin word that means “coming.” Advent invites us to wait—quietly and patiently for Jesus to come this Christmas. But do you know how hard it is to wait? Holiday times are hectic and stressful. We sing “Joy to the World,” but family fighting, overspending, and physical exhaustion steal our joy and drain our love. When we get impatient or speak sarcastically, it shows our supply of love is running on empty.

But what if God could give the kind of holiday love that increases your love and patience in the coming days before Christmas? Would that help as you wait? Would that make it easier for others to be around you? God wants to fill you up with his love. Every day before Christmas, we remember why we look forward to celebrating Jesus’ birth. His tiny hands and feet born at Christmas were the same hands and feet that died on the cross. Now, the living Jesus is the proof we need that “God will always love me!”

As you head into the first weekend of December, hear the voice of Advent encourage, “Wait, slow down a bit! Don’t get entangled in the hustle and bustle of the season. Get focused instead on what really matters. It’s Jesus.” Love is God’s gift to you. Christ’s love makes it possible for our hearts to brim over with love and patience for others like our children or spouse, our siblings or coworkers, our friends and neighbors.

While you patiently wait for Christmas to come, pray that God would fill our hearts, souls, and minds that we want to share this love with someone who is empty inside and desperately in need of love. No outside love can fill that void. Only Jesus and his love can!

Prayer:
Dear Lord, as I wait for your coming, supply what you know is lacking inside me. Deepen my faith and fill me with your love so that my love increases for you and for others. Amen.

[Jesus said] “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. . . What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”
Mark 13:32,33,37

The End Will Come

Daily Devotion – November 30, 2024

Devotion based on Mark 13:32,33,37


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In the 2nd Century, a self-proclaimed prophet by the name of Montanus taught that the end of the world was close at hand. In 1499, a German mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, and professor claimed that a deluge would bring about the end in 1524. In the early 19th Century, a 60-year-old woman named Joanna Southcott claimed she was pregnant with the next Christ and would give birth to him on Christmas of 1814. She claimed the second coming would follow soon after.

With all these false and failed prophecies, we might wonder if the end is really coming. The first disciples had their own reasons for wondering, but Jesus proclaimed the truth to them. The end will come; the Lord will return. The fact that we don’t know exactly when doesn’t make it any less certain.

So, what should we do? Instead of wondering and worrying about the day and the hour, Jesus tells us to keep watch. We keep watch by fixing our eyes on Jesus, repenting of our sins, and finding forgiveness in his precious sacrifice on the cross. We can keep watch by clinging to God’s Word and promises. We can be ready by faithfully carrying out the tasks that God has given us and joyfully looking forward to our Lord’s return because he has promised to take all of his followers to be with him forever.

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, we do not know the day or the hour of your return. Give us faith that is fixed on you as our Savior and make us always ready for your coming. Help us to live each day with the confidence of your love and mercy and to faithfully go about our daily tasks as we joyfully await your return. Amen.