VERSE OF THE DAY:
PSALM 68:5
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in His holy habitation.
A FATHER TO THE FATHERLESS
The word "father" can evoke a wide range of emotions in each of us. Maybe you smile when you hear the word because it brings up memories of your own father. Or perhaps your heart feels torn-because you're missing your father, or grieving the loss of a relationship that never met your expectations.
Whether you had an engaged, caring, and dependable father or a distant, nedglectful, or mean one, you have a Heavenly Father who care deeply for you and is always near. He sent His Son to earth to rob our brokenness and replace it with a hope-filled eternity.
And the best news is: we don't have to fear being separated from Him. There is no death, fear of the future, or anything else that can separate us from our Everlasting Father. He existed before time began, and He exists without the assistance of anyone. He draws near to us because He loves us. And His love isn't something we can earn- it's a free gift from Him that He longs for us to accept.
He sufficiently sets the bar for any earthly father to strive for. And He cares for us in a tender, fatherly way. We may not know what lies ahead, but we can trust Him fully.
Lean back and rest in your Heavenly Father's comfortable arms. Spend time talking to Him and listen for His guidance as you bring Him the concerns and joys on your heart. He is worthy of your trust.
SHARE YOUR FAITH
God cares for those who are hurting and vulnerable, and we should too.
Who do you know that could use extra love and support? Whether it's a physical, emotional, or financial, make an effort to help-in Jesus' name, Amen.
God, You care for those who might struggle to feel like they belong. Thank You for welcoming everyone into Your Kingdom and Your family. Please make me aware of the people who need extra love and care today. Show me how to offer the same hospitality that You give to others. In Jesus' name, Amen.
DAILY BIBLE READING:
PSALMS 132-134
1 CORINTHIANS 11:17-34
THE LORD HAS CHOSEN ZION
Remember, O Lord, in David’s favor,
all the hardships he endured,
2how he swore to the Lord
and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,
3“I will not enter my house
or get into my bed,
4I will not give sleep to my eyes
or slumber to my eyelids,
5until I find a place for the Lord,
a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”
9Let your priests be clothed with righteousness,
and let your saints shout for joy.
The Lord swore to David a sure oath
from which he will not turn back:
or the Lord has chosen Zion;
he has desired it for his dwelling place:
14“This is my resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
15I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16Her priests I will clothe with salvation,
and her saints will shout for joy.
17There I will make a horn to sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.
18His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on him his crown will shine.”
WHEN BROTHERS DWELL IN UNITY
Behold, how good and pleasant it is
when brothers dwell in unity!
2It is like the precious oil on the head,
running down on the beard,
on the beard of Aaron,
running down on the collar of his robes!
3It is like the dew of Hermon,
which falls on the mountains of Zion!
For there the Lord has commanded the blessing,
life forevermore.
COME, BLESS THE LORD
Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
2 Lift up your hands to the holy place
and bless the Lord!
3May the Lord bless you from Zion,
he who made heaven and earth!
THE LORD'S SUPPER
For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged.But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.3So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another— 34if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home—so that when you come together it will not be for judgment. About the other things I will give directions when I come.
MARK 1:40-45
CLEANSES A LEPER
And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” 41Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” 42And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43And Jesus sternly charged him and sent him away at once, 44and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” 45But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter.
INSIGHT
After Jesus showed compassion and healed the man with leprosy, He gave him “a strong warning: ‘See that you don’t tell this to anyone’ ” (Mark 1:43-44). He gave similar warnings in Mark 1:34; 3:12 (these commands were to evil spirits); 5:43; 7:36; 8:30; and 9:9. Why wouldn’t Christ want people to know He was the Messiah? Because it wasn’t yet time for His identity to be fully revealed. Jesus was still establishing His authority over our enemy the devil with His miracles and teaching. Christ understood how seeing these miracles might cause people to jump to the wrong conclusion about His mission and purpose. Regardless, He never sought publicity. In Mark 1, because the man spread the news of his healing despite Jesus’ warning, He chose to remain “outside [the towns] in lonely places. Yet the people still came to Him from everywhere” (v. 45). We’re always drawn to this one who lovingly removes our shame as we believe in Him.
By: Tim Gustafson
JESUS REACHES FOR YOU
Letty, a cleaner in an office building, was known for walking fast—really fast. In doing so, she could easily avoid people. Wounded by poverty and accustomed to condescension, she passed others with one hand reflexively covering part of her face. Her shame, in her words, over not being “like normal, beautiful, educated people,” was profoundly deep. When a woman at work extended her friendship, Letty began to heal.
A man with leprosy lived with a shame perhaps deeper than Letty’s. His disease rendered him revolting and ceremonially unclean by standards of the Mosaic law, separating him from mainstream society. The man’s wounds weren’t just physical; they were also lesions of the soul and spirit. With this woundedness, the leper approached Christ, begging, “If you are willing, you can make me clean” (Mark 1:40). Heal me, he was saying, but also remove my shame.
Jesus responded not with repulsion but with compassion. “I am willing,” He said, “Be clean!” as He reached out and touched the man (v. 41). Just like the friendship extended to Letty by a coworker, Jesus’ gesture was one of understanding all that the man had suffered and of acceptance despite it all.
We may walk through life hiding what we feel separates us from “normal, beautiful, educated people.” May we allow Jesus to touch and redeem these things that cause us shame. May we know that as God's children, we’re accepted and loved.
By: Karen Huang
REFLECT AND PRAY:
What makes you feel shame? How can you entrust this to Christ’s redeeming love?
Dear Jesus, thank You for reaching out to me. In Jesus' name, Amen.
SABBATH IN THE PSALMS
GOD WANTS YOUR HEART
The Bible tells us that God provides for those He loves, but we often forget that we don’t have to work to prove ourselves to God. We don’t have to earn His affection and can’t give Him anything He doesn’t already have. Yes, we respond to His love by living in alignment with His desires and His commands. But His worth and value are not dependent on our activity. When we get this backward, we resist the idea of rest. If God’s waiting on us and our lives to validate His greatness, then we can’t stop. We can’t slow down. We have to keep striving, keep sacrificing, keep upholding the law. Our activity becomes a performance of pride rather than us embracing a position of humbly depending on a God who has it all, who owns it all, but who still loves us and invites us into a relationship with Him. He doesn’t need you to strive for Him in your serving; He wants your heart so that you would sit with Him in surrender.
REFLECT AND APPLY
Are there ways that you try to earn God’s favor or grace with your actions? Take those to Him and release them. Let His goodness overwhelm your heart and remind you that He loves you just as you are.
PRAYER
God, You love me not because of what I can do for You but because of who You are. Thank You for the freedom to come to You as I am. In Jesus' name, Amen.
PSALM 50:10
For every beast of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
SEPTEMBER 10, 2025, WEDNESDAY
Entry: 7:30am, Hemady QC
VERSE OF THE DAY:
COLOSSIANS 3:1
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
LOOK UP
It's normal-and even understandable- to spend our time, energy, and attention focusing on the here and now. We're busy, after all. We're preoccupied. And when we stop to really think about it, it's difficult to perceive something that's beyond out five senses. But in his letter to the Colossians, Paul encourages his fellow believers to look up:
So as you think about Paul's words and realities of heaven, here are four things to consider:
First, heaven isn't some vague, dream-like state. it's a real place, with real people, where God is the true King.
Second, there will come a day when we will all meet God face to face. We will no longer need faith or hope, because that which we've hoped for will finally be revealed.
Third, our troubles and our heartbreaks and even death itself are temporary! Scripture tells us that, eventually, god will do away with pain and death and sickness and suffering -forever.
Lastly, and most importantly, God is still on His throne, with Jesus beside Him in the place of honor. No matter how crazy, senseless, or heartbreaking the world can seem, we can have confidence knowing that nothing is outside of God's sovereign plan.
So when you're tempted to look around at others or look inward at yourself, look up instead. Heaven is wherever God is, and that's the truest reality of all.
BE ENCOURAGED
You don't have to add anything to the finished work of the cross. All you have to do is put your faith in Jesus Christ!
SHARE YOUR FAITH
When we keep eternity in mind, we'll see the world differently. We'll see people differently.
Who do you know that needs to hear that God loves them? That He dies to save them? Reach out to them today.
God, eternal life begins the moment I choose a relationship with You. As I follow You, please help me to have an eternal mindset. Guide me, Give me the wisdom to know how to prepare for eternity in my daily life. In Jesus' name, Amen.
God, when I look at the world around me, I'm amazed by what You've created. Help me to never lose the wonder of what You are able to accomplish. In Jesus' name, Amen.
JOHN 14:14
If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.
What do you need God to do for you today?
Bring your requests to God, and add some of them to your Prayer list
Lord, thank you for helping me carry the burdens, big and small, that threaten to weigh me down. You know all my troubles, yet you promise they will not overtake me, Please give me strength and hope when I feel overwhelmed. In Jesus' name, Amen.
God, all mt hope is in You. Thank You for being my protector and the source of my strength. In every situation I face, I ask for Your courage and endurance to face it and handle it well. Please guide me with Your wisdom as I make decisions, and fill me with peace as I do what You've called me to do, In Jesus' name, Amen.
EXODUS 15:2
The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise Him, my father's God, and I will exalt Him.
Reflect on what it means to make God your salvation, and spend a few moments praising God for Who He is.
NUMBERS 6:24-26
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
DAILY BIBLE READING:
PROVERBS 8-9
2 CORINTHIANS 3
THE BLESSINGS OF WISDOM
Does not wisdom call?
Does not understanding raise her voice?
O simple ones, learn prudence;
O fools, learn sense
They are all straight to him who understands,
and right to those who find knowledge.
Take my instruction instead of silver,
and knowledge rather than choice gold,
11 for wisdom is better than jewels,
and all that you may desire cannot compare with her.
The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
I have counsel and sound wisdom;
I have insight; I have strength.
15By me kings reign,
and rulers decree what is just;
by me princes rule,
and nobles, all who govern justly.
17 I love those who love me,
and those who seek me diligently find me.
Riches and honor are with me,
enduring wealth and righteousness.
I walk in the way of righteousness,
in the paths of justice,
21granting an inheritance to those who love me,
and filling their treasuries.
When he established the heavens, I was there;
I was beside him, like a master workman,
and I was daily his delight,
rejoicing before him always,
31 rejoicing in his inhabited world
and delighting in the children of man.
blessed are those who keep my ways.
33 Hear instruction and be wise,
and do not neglect it.
34 Blessed is the one who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates,
waiting beside my doors.
35For whoever finds me finds life
and obtains favor from the Lord,
36but he who fails to find me injures himself;
all who hate me love death.”
THE WAY OF WISDOM
Wisdom has built her house;
she has also set her table.
3She has sent out her young women to call
from the highest places in the town,
4 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
Leave your simple ways, and live,
and walk in the way of insight.”
reprove a wise man, and he will love you.
Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser;
teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
For by me your days will be multiplied,
and years will be added to your life.
THE WAY OF FOLLY
The woman Folly is loud;
she is seductive and knows nothing.
to him who lacks sense she says,
17 “Stolen water is sweet,
and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
18But he does not know that the dead are there,
that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.
MINISTERS OF THE NEW COVENANT
You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, on tablets of human hearts. our sufficiency is from God, 6who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory. we have such a hope, we are very bold, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away.But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
2 CHRONICLES 20:2-4, 6-12, 15
JEHOSHAPHAT'S PRAYER
2Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, “A great multitude is coming against you from Edom, from beyond the sea; and, behold, they are in Hazazon-tamar” (that is, Engedi). 3Then Jehoshaphat was afraid and set his face to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4And Judah assembled to seek help from the Lord; from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord. and said, “O Lord, God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. In your hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand you. 7Did you not, our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel, and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? 8And they have lived in it and have built for you in it a sanctuary for your name, saying, 9‘If disaster comes upon us, the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before you—for your name is in this house—and cry out to you in our affliction, and you will hear and save.’ 10And now behold, the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom you would not let Israel invade when they came from the land of Egypt, and whom they avoided and did not destroy— 11behold, they reward us by coming to drive us out of your possession, which you have given us to inherit. 12O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” And he said, “Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the Lord to you, ‘Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s.
INSIGHT
The temple in Jerusalem is where the Israelites sought God in prayer during national crises (2 Chronicles 6:18-40). When Israel was threatened by a large enemy military coalition, Jehoshaphat assembled the nation at the temple and prayed for God’s help (20:1-12; see 6:34-35). Responding to the people’s faith, God assured them of victory: “Do not be afraid or discouraged . . . . For the battle is not yours, but God’s. . . . Stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you” (20:15, 17). Prayer is where powerless people offer petitions to an almighty God.
By: K.T. Sim
POWERLESS BUT NOT PRAYERLESS
Anita Bailey’s heart was warmed when she got this social media message about her son Jalen: “I was a greeter today at [church] and a young man with a child in his arms came up to me and put his arms around me. . . . I stared for a second, then I recognized him and said, ‘Jalen!' We embraced and chatted briefly. What a fine young man!” The greeter knew Jalen in his rebellious days when Anita and her husband, Ed, had felt powerless to save their son from the consequences of his unwise choices, which had resulted in twelve years in prison for him.
Though the Baileys felt powerless, they were not prayerless. And neither was King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20. When harassed by a menacing coalition of enemy forces, he called a prayer meeting (vv. 1-4). “Our God, will you not judge them?” he prayed. “For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you” (v. 12).
Have you ever felt powerless or clueless in the face of circumstances that were out of your control? Why not call a prayer meeting—either alone or with others? That’s what Jesus did in the face of His coming crucifixion (Luke 22:39-44). Prayer space is the sacred place where the petitions of powerless people are offered to our almighty God in the name of Jesus.
By: Arthur Jackson
REFLECT AND PRAY
What’s keeping you from bringing your challenges to God in prayer? How can you partner with others in prayer for mutual support?
Almighty God of resurrection power, please help me in my powerlessness today as I fix my eyes on Jesus. In Jesus' name, Amen.
GRACE + GLORY: EXPERIENCING GOD'S ASTOUNDING GENEROSITY
GLORY AND HONOR
Imagine the shepherd David out in the fields at night, tending his flock by starlight. Though he's gazed on these stars a thousand times, this evening is different. He's hit with a powerful and life-changing thought: "What is man that You are mindful of him … that You visit him?"
This is the biggest question of all time, isn't it?
Why would God be mindful of us? David was looking up into the immensity of God's creation, yet he still knew he had a relationship with the One who made it all-the sun, the moon, the stars, and the heavens. He was blown away by God's indirect answer.
All this, yet the God of the universe knows his name. And He knows your name too. He cares for you and loves you and invites you into His family.
Amid the beauty of this world, God cherishes you above it all.
The psalm then talks about how God has crowned mankind with "glory and honor" (v. 5). When you feel low or lonely, think back to those words, take a look at nature's expanse, and breathe in God's affection for you.
Prayer
Holy God, You love me immensely and intimately. I have no other response but gratitude for Your magnificent love toward me. in Jesus' name, Amen.
PSALM 8:4
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?
