Today's Reading: 2 Samuel 11:1-27This is certainly the low point of David's reign as king. He used his authority in order to commit adultery and murder in order to satisfy his own fleshly desires.The one thing that has always stood out to me in this account is that this all happened because David was not where he was supposed to be. According to verse 1, he should have been on the battlefield with...  Read More

Today's Reading: 2 Samuel 5:1-25The events in this chapter take place about 15 years after David was first chosen to be king of Israel. During that time, Saul had pursued David in order to try and kill him and keep him from becoming king. But David was patient, even when he had the opportunity to take things into his own hands and kill Saul and become king.I am reminded here of the times in my own...  Read More

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 16:1-23Once again the Holy Spirit is right at the center of this chapter. Because He has failed to obey God, the Holy Spirit "departed" from Saul. And once that happens Saul's life becomes miserable. But at nearly the same time the Spirit rushes on David (v. 13). But you'll notice a significant contrast to the way the Spirit came upon Saul. This time the Spirit rushed upo...  Read More

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 10:1-27Once again, we how the Holy Spirit operated differently in Old Testament times than He does today. In verse 10, we read that the Spirit of God "rushed upon him". But, as we'll see later, when Saul fails to bee the kind of king that God desires, God will remove His Spirit.Today, whenever anyone puts his or her faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell permanent...  Read More

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 9:1-27The next three days we will read about how God calls Saul to be the first king of Israel.What strikes me in this chapter is how God is sovereign over this entire process. He uses something as seemingly innocuous as some lost donkeys to cause Saul to end up in the presence of Samuel, who will anoint him to be Israel's first king. Saul seems to recognize how unlikely ...  Read More

Take some time today to think about how your desires may be influenced by the culture around us. Ask God to give you the desires that are important to Him....  Read More

Go ahead and catch up on your reading if you're behind. If you're all caught up, then take some time to reflect on what you've been reading this week....  Read More

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 8:1-22Although it was not God's plan, the people of Israel asked Samuel to appoint a king so that they would be just like all the nations around them. God told Samuel to go ahead and do what the people wanted, but not until the people were first warned of the consequences of their request.I am reminded here of Romans 1 where Paul writes that God's wrath is being poured ou...  Read More

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 2:1-36In spite of his surroundings, Samuel chooses not to follow in the path of Eli's wicked sons. In verse 21 and again in verse 26 we see that Samuel was growing in favor with the Lord and with man. Those same words are used to describe Jesus in Luke 2:52:And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.Samuel shows us that we can grow in our r...  Read More

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 1:1-28We begin a new section in our reading plan today. God installs a king over Israel as his vice-regent to bring security to the nation and build a temple where his manifest presence would be made known.The Bible contains frequent accounts of women who could not have children who are enabled by God to conceive in a miraculous way. In addition to Hannah, Sarah and Eliza...  Read More

Today's Reading: Hebrews 4:1-16Because the Israelites never fully obeyed God, they never entered into the rest that God intended for them to have in the Promised Land. So, as we've seen in the book of Judges, the people were constantly being conquered by the surrounding nations until they finally called out to God and God sent a deliverer.In Jesus, we can have full spiritual rest. Because our rela...  Read More

Today's Reading: Acts 13:1-52When Paul and Barnabas arrived at Antioch they went to the synagogue and used the Old Testament Scriptures to recount the history of Israel, including the period of the judges that we have been reading about. They revealed how that was all part of God's plan to bring salvation to all people through His Son, Jesus. And the people who heard the word begged them to come b...  Read More