Daily Devotion

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Love God. Love Others.


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July 22
Rhythms of Joy
Bible in a Year :

• Psalms 31-32
• Acts 23:16-35

You turned my wailing into dancing.
Psalm 30:11

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Today's Scripture & Insight :
Psalm 30:4-12
A scientific study—which sought to explore how much of people’s musical sensitivity is cultural and how much of it is instinctual—played drum rhythms for newborn babies while monitoring their brain wave activity. Occasionally, the researchers would omit a beat from the rhythm. Amazingly, they found the infants’ brain waves spiked right when the note was left out—showing their young minds were already anticipating that beat and reacting to its absence.
The study brings to mind the amazing way that God has created us. He’s even wired us to embrace the wonderful gift of music and respond to it with joy and, as the psalmist David writes in Psalm 30, to respond to God’s grace with music of our own—songs of “praise [to] his holy name” (v. 4).
Yet pain, exhaustion, regret, or grief can sometimes weigh our hearts down and threaten to silence our songs of praise. Experiencing despair, even fearing death, David pleaded with God to deliver, asking “What is gained if I am silenced? . . . Will the dust praise you?” (v. 9).
David did experience God’s faithfulness as joy was restored once more, as God turned his “wailing into dancing” and “clothed [him] with joy” (v. 11). As God heals our hearts and fills them with the rhythms of joy we were born to dance to, we too can testify: “Lord my God, I will praise you forever” (v. 12).
By: Monica La Rose



Reflect & Pray
How has music helped you to experience God’s grace? How has He turned your mourning into dancing?
Gracious God, thank You for breathing hope, joy, and new life into my days.

 

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Love God. Love Others.


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July 23
Prepared to Help
Bible in a Year :

• Psalms 33-34
• Acts 24

We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works.
Ephesians 2:10

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Today's Scripture & Insight :
Ephesians 2:1-10
My friend needed to practice parallel parking before her driving test that was coming up soon. I was prayerfully looking for a safe place to teach her when the idea came to go to a neighborhood church with an ample parking lot. After we set up what turned out to be a less-than-ideal practice parking space using folding chairs, she made her first attempt to back into the spot between the chairs.
Then the pastor came out with orange cones in hand, similar to the kind used in a driving test. He introduced himself and asked, “Could you use these cones?” He explained that just last week their church family had discussed ways to help neighbors new to the community. “We talked about letting people use these cones in our parking lot for parking practice.” They had prepared to help others, and what a blessing they were for my friend.
Prepared to help others. That’s exactly what God did for us and in us. He “prepared in advance” for us to do good works and care for others (Ephesians 2:10). The apostle Paul says, “We are God’s handiwork” (v. 10), so we serve under His direction and for His purposes. Salvation is a gift from God (v. 8), who is “rich in mercy” (v. 4). Our good works are a work of God through us. He’s prepared us and will give us the compassion and wisdom we need to reach out to others.
By: Anne Cetas



Reflect & Pray
How has God gifted you? In what ways could you join with others to serve people in your community?
Dear God, please help me to see others’ needs and know what You want me to do so You may be seen.

 

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Love God. Love Others.


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July 24
Anchored in God
Bible in a Year :

• Psalms 35-36
• Acts 25

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul.
Hebrews 6:19

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Today's Scripture & Insight :
Hebrews 6:17-20
It’s morning, so my husband opens his phone to select his favorite gospel song, “My Soul Is Anchored.” The lyrics express hope in God in turbulent times. Dan sings along, the words warning of billows rolling and breakers dashing. But we don’t sway, the song says, because God holds us fast.
The words perfectly describe the work of a ship’s anchor. An anchor steadies a vessel by sinking its “arms” into the seabed, keeping the ship from drifting or getting tossed about during a violent squall.
The anchor has become a classic symbol of the Christian faith—reflecting our hope in Christ, to whom we hold tightly, even in life’s chaos. As the writer of Hebrews said, “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Hebrews 6:19). This hope is Jesus, whose “unchanging nature” (v. 17) is a trusted holding ground for those who believe in Him. Moreover, what God promised He confirmed with an oath, and in these “two unchangeable things . . . it’s impossible for God to lie” (vv. 17-18). That’s why we who hold on to His promises “may be greatly encouraged” (v. 18).
Some may anchor in unreliable things—their own ambition, unhealthy friends, or negative habits. How much better to anchor in the one whom we know we can trust and depend on. When the waves crash around us, we’ll be held fast. Our soul is anchored in God.
By: Patricia Raybon



Reflect & Pray
In what stormy sea of life have you held tightly to God? Why is He a trustworthy holding ground?
I’m holding tight to You, dear God. Thank you for anchoring my soul amid all of life’s currents.

 

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Love God. Love Others.


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July 27
Words That Honor God
Bible in a Year :

• Psalms 43-45
• Acts 27:27-44

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.
James 1:19

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Today's Scripture & Insight :
James 1:19-21
My friend, Alex, a book editor, checked his inbox, anticipating an angry email from an author. He’d been working with a prominent business leader on the client’s manuscript for months. Unexpectedly, the publisher had decided to halt the publication of the book due to company problems. After emailing the author the bad news, Alex braced himself.
A week later a reply came. “I didn’t answer right away because I wanted to think first about my words and how to respond,” the author wrote. He expressed disappointment, then calmly stated how he thought the publisher could’ve handled the issue.
The author’s wise, measured response left a deep impression on me. His behavior reflected what the Bible says our communication should be like, especially when we’re angry. The apostle James tells us to keep “a tight rein on [our] tongues” because it’s easy to sin with our words (James 1:26; see 3:5-6). We’re to prioritize listening to others so we can understand them, choose our words, and consider whether it’s necessary to get angry (1:19).
Not only does restraint in speech help us to avoid sin and allow the Scriptures to change us (v. 21), but it also reflects who God is to others: “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love” (Psalm 103:8). Let’s model our loving God with our words—and our silences.
By: Karen Huang



Reflect & Pray
When angered, how can you restrain your communication? How do your words reflect your faith?
Wise Father, please help me to be quick to listen, and slow to speak and become angry.