Today’s Walk in the Word

I know you by name and you have found favor with me.         —Exodus 33:12 “Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord” (Gn 6:8). Noah was a farmer, not a carpenter. Building a boat chewed up decades of his life. Saying “Yes” to God’s plan meant saying “No” to his […]

At the name of Jesus every knee will bow.                           —Philippians 2:10 Real-time coverage and constant reruns made it impossible to escape the coronation of King Charles III. Thousands of soldiers, elaborate carriages, clerical regalia, Royal Air Force flyover—and Charles’ five-pound solid gold […]

I will set out and go back to my father.                            —Luke 15:18 In his book Sky Pilot, Ralph Connor tells of a young man who deserted his Christian home in Scotland and strayed to a far country of sin and shame. As […]

In him we have redemption through his blood.                                   —Ephesians 1:7 In his mid-twenties, William Cowper was so conscience-stricken that he twice attempted suicide. “My sin! My sin!” lamented Cowper. “Oh, for some fountain open for my cleansing.” Reading […]

You will shine among [a crooked generation] like stars in the sky.           —Philippians 2:15 You—yes, you—are the salt of the earth and light of the world (Mt 5:13, 14). Without salt, food is bland. Your life—as salt—should present Christianity as desirable, not distasteful; as delightful, not disagreeable. Leaving people with […]

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.    —Ecclesiastes 9:10 Author John Erskine’s music teacher counseled him to grab a few minutes of practice whenever he could rather than waiting for big blocks of time. Erskine made it a lifetime habit. He allegedly wrote his best-known work, The Private Life […]

My soul is crushed with grief.                    —Mark 14:33 In Gethsemane, Jesus “began to be filled with horror and deep distress. ‘My soul is crushed with grief,’” he told his three best friends. Bible scholar R.C.H. Lenski wrote, “We should not think that the rapid approach of […]

According to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.               —Psalm 51:1 Biblical portraits of its characters are pictured just as they were: no stumble, scar, or sin is airbrushed out. There they are, failing and falling in full view of all future generations. But their get-up-and-get-back-on-track deeds are […]

[God] is able to do immeasurably more than all [you] ask or imagine.              —Ephesians 3:20 You are living well when . . . You don’t let a failure define you, refusing to allow “I failed” (an event) to become “I’m a failure” (an identity). You learn from the past […]

He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion.           —Philippians 1:6 You are living well when . . . You embrace today as a new beginning, mindful that yesterday died last night. You control your emotions, understanding that your mood is not determined by circumstances […]