Jeremiah 33:1-3 Click here to listen to today's devotional We don't say it aloud, but there is a strange temptation many of us have. We quietly assume that we have finished learning God’s word. We scan through familiar passages. Maybe we memorize verses that carried us through harder seasons. But our comfy approach to scripture only allows us to imagine truths that feel useful, comforting, or even manageable. And, whether we realize it or not, we start believing that we have heard all God has to say. The Bible, though, is a living invitation to life. Not a closed-book discussion. Listen again to what the prophet Jeremiah heard: “Call to me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” The promise was not that everything would become so obvious all of a sudden to God's people in that moment. The promise is that God is still speaking, still revealing, still unfolding mercy and wisdom in ways you have not imagined yet. There is ...
Ephesians 4:25-32 Click here to listen to today's devotional Whether it's right or wrong, it’s too easy to lose someone’s trust and too hard to regain it, so be careful with your words. Your words are not just sounds that come from air pushed through your teeth and tongue. Often, the emotions attached to them carry entire worlds. That's why a careless sentence or single word can live much longer than the moment you spoke it. How many times have you replayed over and over something someone said? Paul’s instruction in Ephesians is supposed to lead us to holiness. “Let no evil, or corrupting, talk come out of your mouths but only what is good for building up.” Now, some of us take that to mean we need to be loud and pressing in the way we tell the truth. But I see it as a call for spiritual responsibility. In a sense, grace is not only something we speak, but it's also the grammar of our living. You and I live in a world that profits from corrupt talk. Social media rward...