Devotions With Daryl

Worshiping God

Exodus 25:1-2

Children want to know where God is.

Honestly adults have trouble answering that questions also.

He is bigger than everything, yet the Bible usually speaks of God dwelling, acting and speaking with humanity in a single location because of our limitations to time and space.

I can be here now and somewhere else later, but God is always in both places simultaneously.

Eventually God sent Jesus as a baby in a manger, a sacrifice on the cross, and a victor over the grave.

Ultimately, though He did not come...

Retrieving Information

Exodus 20:8

Spiritual Royalty

John 1:9-13

Collateral

Exodus 22:26-27

Rules of Harvest

Leviticus 19:9-10

Widows and Orphans

Exodus 22:22-24

Image Bearers

Exodus 22:21

Bible Study-Protection

Exodus 22:21-27

Leviticus 19:9-10

As parents, we are always pleased when we see our children imitate our strengths. When they show us our weakness we have the opposite reactions. Realistically we have no concept of the influence that we have over our kids.

Consider that God does not shape His children without their consent. He does everything possible to reproduce His holy character in us, but we still fall short because of sin.

Thankfully we know that He will succeed in time. Until the He teaches us...

Keeping Up With the Neighbors

Exodus 20:17

Relating to Others

Exodus 20:12-16

The Sabbath

Exodus 20:8-11

Do Not!!!

Exodus 20:3-7

Jesus Remains

Matthew 16:18

God's Identity

Exodus 20:1-2

God's Commands

Exodus 20:1-17

God's commands are the standard for our lives. They also point broken people to the God who will redeem and restore them by His grace. That's why Psalm 19 promises that His statutes are not a burden, but sweeter than honey.

The Ten Commandments distill all of God's statutes into our responsibilities toward God and toward others. So, the very character of God is expressed in the Torah's demand to love God and love others.

Frustration During the Journey

Exodus 17:3-6

Complaining

Exodus 17:1-2

All of Our Needs

Exodus 16:16-19

Manna

Exodus 16:13-15

God Meets Our Needs

Exodus 16:11-12

God's Miraculous Power

Exodus 14:29-31

Provision Given

Exodus 16:11-19; 17:1-6

Thos who come to Christ and experience His redeeming love and forgiveness might expect God to swoop in and carry them to heaven like Elijah in the chariot of fire. But when we are born again, God's work in our life has just begun. After God's miraculous rescue of the Israelites at the Red Sea, they found themselves in the harsh wilderness, exactly where they needed to be. It was a place where they had to rely on the Lord.

After we come to Christ, we often find...

Eyewitnesses

Exodus 14:26-38

Right Here, Right Now

Matthew 25:34-40

This is from the archives, but I think it has a powerful message that we all need to recall as we begin a new year.

Positive Attitudes

Proverbs 17:22

Hope Today

John 12:2-3

Walls of Water

Exodus 14:21-22

God Goes in Front of Us

Exodus 14:19-20

God Delivers

Exodus 12:31-32

Permanent Celebrations

Exodus 12:26-28

Passover

Exodus 12:24-25

Merry Christmas!

Matthew 1:18-24

Luke 2:15-20

Celebrate Advent- Joy

Luke 2:1-16

Celebrate Advent- Love

Matthew 1:20-21

Isaiah 7:24

The coming of God's kingdom will mean the overthrow of the wicked and the vindication of the righteous. The historical events described in Exodus 7-14 foreshadow the inauguration of God's kingdom with Christ's first coming and its consummation with His second coming.

These chapters also proclaim God's powerful and compassionate character. Pharaoh declared that he didn't know God and God noted that even the patriarchs didn't know Him fully. But Israel would come to know Him by His personal name. The Egyptians and all the would know him through His actions on behalf of His people.

Celebrating Advent- Peace

Isaiah 9:6

Missing In Action

Isaiah 40:30-31

I have returned after a near-death illness.

We all have longings and expectations. Without them our love would be empty and pointless. The Bible affirms looking to the future, and God may use our longings to prepare us for a future He has planned for us. They help us recognize God's work in us. But we must fight against creating in our minds where it doesn't result in being bitter against God when things don't fit our plans.

Exodus 5:1-4

Exodus 6:2-9

Coping With Difficulty

Acts 27:9-12