Posts with the category “advent-devotional”

READING:2 Samuel 5: 1-5KEY VERSE:King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel.REFLECTION:King and shepherd seem like opposites. A king sits on a throne wearing expensive clothes. A shepherd stand on the hillsides wearing dirty clothes. David was both. He was a shepherd God chose to be king. A shepherd is humble and cares more about people...  Read More

READING:1 Samuel 17: 1-54 KEY VERSE:David said, “The Lord, who saved me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine.”REFLECTION:There was an epic standoff between two armies, the Israelites and the Philistines. The Philistines offered a challenge, if anyone can defeat our giant, Goliath, in a battle, then we will declare Israel the winner. B...  Read More

READING:Isaiah 11: 1-9 KEY VERSE:Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot - yes, a new branch bearing fruit from the old root.REFLECTION:Did you know that Jesse was the father of David, Israel’s greatest king. In these verses Isaiah prophesies the lineage of Jesse with the eventual coming of Christ. Did you know that God has a plan for each of us? No matter how big or small you are, we...  Read More

READING:Joshua 1: 1-9, 5:13 - 6:20KEY VERSE:When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.REFLECTION:After Moses dies, God appoints Joshua to be the new leader of Israel. Joshua is to bring the people to the land God had promised them. The first city they arri...  Read More

READING:Joshua 2: 1-21KEY VERSE:Then, since Rahab’s house was built into the town wall, she let down by a rope through the window.REFLECTION:In the story about Rahab a rope is significant as the means of salvation and deliverance. A rope is used to allow the Israelite spies to escape. Similarly, a rope hanging from Rahab’s upper window also signifies salvation for Rahab and her family when Jericho...  Read More

READING: Exodus 1:1 ‐ 2:10 KEY VERSE: When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him. “This must be one of the Hebrews’ children,” she said. REFLECTION: When the Israelites came into Egypt, they multiplied and grew strong. Pharaoh was afraid the Israelites were becoming so numerous that they would organize and threaten his kingdom, so he enslaved them. But the Israe...  Read More

READING:Genesis 37: 1‐36 KEY VERSE:And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.REFLECTION:Jacob had twelve sons, but he has not treated them all the same. He had one son Joseph that was his favorite. The other brothers were jealous and took an opportunity to sell Joseph as a slave and pretend to their f...  Read More

READING:Genesis 28: 1‐17KEY VERSE:“I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you un􀆟l I have done what I have promised you.”REFLECTION:God continues His plan through Isaac’s son Jacob. We find Jacob travelling alone, not expec􀆟ng to see or hear anything of God. He thinks God is back at home with his parents. In his dream, he lea...  Read More

READING:Genesis 21: 1‐7, 22: 1‐19KEY VERSE:“God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham answered. And they both walked on together.REFLECTION:God keeps His promise to Abram and Sarai, and their son, Isaac, is born. Their names change, too, to Abraham and Sarah. Abraham still trusts God, even when it seems that God wants him to kill his son Isaac, but what God wants is not the...  Read More

READING:Genesis 12: 1‐7KEY VERSE:I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.REFLECTION:God told Abram and his wife Sarai to take journey to an unknown land. Abram obeys when God tell him to move, and he believes God’s promise that he will have many grandchildren, even though so far he has no children. Abram’s cooperation with ...  Read More

READING: Genesis 6:11 ‐ 8:19, 9:8‐17KEY VERSE: Then God said to Noah, “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. REFLECTION: After Adam and Eve, people continue to try to do things their own way instead of ...  Read More

READING:Genesis 2:8 ‐ 3:23 (TEXT) (VIDEO)KEY VERSE:And the Lord God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.”REFLECTION:God gave Adam and Eve responsibility for the place in which God put them and told them to care for it in obedience to his instruc􀆟ons. ...  Read More

READING:Genesis 1:1 ‐ 2:4 (TEXT VERSION) (VIDEO VERSION)KEY VERSE:In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.REFLECTION:God was there before anything else. God spoke everything into existence. He made the world of nature, fitting it together so that every creature would have its own place and the things it needs to live. Because God made them, they are good and valuable. God also made ...  Read More