FAITHFULNESS IN EVERYTHING

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

Faithfulness in Everything

Read:  Colossians 3:12-17

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.  Colossians 3:17

In August 2007, a major bridge in Minneapolis collapsed into the Mississippi River, killing thirteen people.  In the weeks that followed, it was difficult for me not to think about that tragedy whenever crossing a bridge over a body of water.

Some time later, I was watching a episode of Dirty Jobs on the Discovery Channel.  Host Mike Rowe was talking to an industrial painter whose work he was trying to duplicate.  “There’s really no glory in what you do,” he said.  “No,” the painter agreed, “but it’s a job that needs to be done.”

You see, that man paints the inside of the Mackinac Bridge towers in Northern Michigan.  His unnoticed job is done to ensure that the steel of the magnificent suspended structure won’t rust from the inside out, compromising the integrity of the bridge.  Most of the twelve thousand people who cross the Straits of Mackinac each day aren’t even aware that they are depending on workers like this painter to faithfully do their jobs well.

God also sees our faithfulness in the things we do.  Though we may think our deeds-big and small-sometimes go unnoticed, they are being observed by the One who matters most.  Whatever our task today, let’s “do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17).       CHK

Whatever task you find to do,

Regardless if it’s big or small,

Perform it well, with all your might,

Because there’s One who sees it all.-Sper

Daily work takes on eternal value when it is done for God.

HIDDEN BEAUTY

Hidden Beauty

Read: 1 Samuel 16:1–7
Bible in a Year: Job 32–33; Acts 14

People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.—1 Samuel 16:7

Our children needed a little coaxing to believe that it was worth putting on snorkeling gear to peer beneath the surface of the Caribbean Sea off the shore of the island of Tobago. But after they dove in, they resurfaced ecstatic, “There are thousands of fish of all different kinds! It’s so beautiful! I’ve never seen such colorful fish!”

Because the surface of the water looked similar to freshwater lakes near our home, our children could have missed the beauty hidden just below the surface.

When the prophet Samuel went to Bethlehem to anoint one of Jesse’s sons to be the next king, Samuel saw the oldest son, Eliab, and was impressed by his appearance. The prophet thought he had found the right man, but the Lord rejected Eliab. God reminded Samuel that He “does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).

So Samuel asked if there were more sons. The youngest boy wasn’t present but caring for the family’s sheep. This son, David, was summoned and the Lord directed Samuel to anoint him.

Often we look at people only on a surface level and don’t always take the time to see their inner, sometimes hidden, beauty. We don’t always value what God values. But if we take the time to peer beneath the surface, we may find great treasure. —Lisa Samra

Heavenly Father, thank You for not valuing people based on outward appearances but instead by looking at our hearts. Help me to take the time to see beyond simply what my eyes can see in order to discover true and lasting beauty.

God can help me to see the inner beauty in others.

INSIGHT: Who taught you how to think about yourself and others?

Long before Samuel looked for a king among the sons of Jesse, God was teaching His children to see below the surface of our skin. From the days of Eden, He has been showing people like us that what happens in our hearts is more important than our outward appearance.

How has God’s interaction with the men and women of the Bible helped you to think about yourself and Him? Mart DeHaan

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

IN ALL KINDS OF WEATHER

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

In All Kinds of Weather

Read:  Acts 18:9-11

Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Matthew 28:20

When Jesus sent His disciples out, He gave them this promise:  “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).  Literally, the word always means “all the days,” according to Greek scholars Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown.

Jesus didn’t simply say, “always,” but “all the days.”  That takes into account all our various activities, the good and bad circumstances surrounding us, the varied responsibilities we have through the course of our days, the storm clouds and the sunshine.

Our Lord is present with us not matter what each day brings.  It may be a day of joy or of sadness, of sickness or of health, of success or of failure.  No matter what happens to us today, our Lord is walking beside us, strengthening us, loving us, filling us with faith, hope, and love.  As He envelops us with quiet serenity and security, our foes, fears, afflictions, and doubts begin to recede.  We can bear up in any setting and circumstance because we know the Lord is at hand, just as He told Paul in Acts 18:10, “I am with you.”

Practice God’s presence, stopping in the midst of your busy day to say to yourself, “The Lord is here.” And pray that you will see Him who is invisible-and see Him everywhere.                          DHR

God’s unseen presence comforts me,

I know He’s always near;

And when life’s storms besiege my soul,

He says, “My child, I’m here.”-DJD

Seek the Lord while He may be found, call

upon Him while He is near. -Isaiah 55:6

GOD'S GREAT CREATION

God’s Great Creation

Read: Psalm 104:1–6, 10–23
Bible in a Year: Job 30–31; Acts 13:26–52

The birds of the sky nest by the waters; they sing among the branches.—Psalm 104:12

On a recent visit with some of our grandchildren, we enjoyed watching a web cam that focused on an eagle family in Florida. Every day we would check in on the mom, the dad, and the baby as they went about their daily routine in their nest high off the ground. Each day the parent birds would keep a constant, protective vigil over the eaglet, bringing it fish from a nearby river for nourishment.

This little eagle family depicts for us one image the psalmist gave us of God’s magnificent creation in Psalm 104—an array of creation images, of scenes from the work of God’s creative hand.

We see the majesty of God’s creation as it relates to the universe (vv. 2-4).

We experience the creation of the earth itself—waters, mountains, valleys (vv. 5-9).

We enjoy the glory of God’s gift of animals, birds, and crops (vv. 10-18).

We marvel at the cycles God created in our world—morning/night, darkness/light, work/rest (vv. 19-23).

What a glorious world God has fashioned with His hands for our enjoyment—and for His glory! “Praise the Lord, my soul!” (v. 1). Each one of us can say thank You to God for all He has given us to appreciate and enjoy. —Dave Branon

Praise God! Praise You, Lord, for the wonder of the earth You created.

Share a photo of your favorite place at Facebook.com/ourdailybread.

The beauty of creation reflects the beauty of our Creator.

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

THUNDERSTORM THOUGHTS

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

Thunderstorm Thoughts

Read:  Matthew 8:23-27

The God of peace will be with you.

Philippians 4:9

I laugh every time I hear the radio commercial that has a woman shouting to her friend in conversation.  She’s trying to talk above the sounds of the thunderstorm in her own head.  Ever since a storm damaged part of her home, that’s all she hears because her insurance company isn’t taking care of her claims.

I’ve heard thunderstorms in my head, and maybe you have too.  It happens when a tragedy occurs-to us, to someone close to us, or to someone we hear about in the news.  Our minds become a tempest of “what if” questions.  We focus on all the possible bad outcomes. Our fear, worry, and trust in God fluctuate as we wait, we pray, we grieve, and we wonder what the Lord will do.

It’s natural for us to be fearful in a storm (literal or figurative).  The disciples had Jesus right there in the boat with them, yet they were afraid (Matthew 8:23-27).  He used the calming of the storm as a lesson to show them who He was-a powerful God who also cares for them.

We wish that Jesus would always calm the storms of our life as He calmed the storm for the disciples that day.  But we can find moments of peace when we’re anchored to the truth that He’s in the boat with us and He cares.                                                                          AC

Fierce drives the storm, but wind and waves

Within His hand are held,

And trusting His omnipotence

My fears are sweetly quelled. -Brown

To realize the worth of the anchor, we need to feel the strew

of the storm.

A PERFECT WORLD

A Perfect World

Read: Revelation 21:1–5
Bible in a Year: Job 28–29; Acts 13:1–25

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”—Revelation 21:5

Katie was given a school assignment to write an essay entitled “My Perfect World.” She wrote: “In my perfect world . . . ice cream is free, lollipops are everywhere, and the sky is blue all the time, with only a few clouds that have interesting shapes.” Then her essay took a more serious turn. In that world, she continued, “No one will come home to bad news. And no one will have to be the one to deliver it.”

No one will come home to bad news. Isn’t that wonderful? Those words point powerfully to the confident hope we have in Jesus. He is “making everything new”—healing and transforming our world (Revelation 21:5).

Paradise is the place of “no more”—no more evil, no more death, no more mourning, no more pain, no more tears (v. 4)! It is a place of perfect communion with God, who by His love has redeemed and claimed believers as His own (v. 3). What marvelous joy awaits us!

We can enjoy a foretaste of this perfect reality here and now. As we seek to fellowship with God daily, we experience the joy of His presence (Colossians 1:12-13). And even as we struggle against sin, we experience, in part, the victory that is ours in Christ (2:13-15), the One who fully conquered sin and death. —Poh Fang Chia

Lord, thank You that You are making all things new. Help us to live in the hope of the day we will live with You, pure and blameless, on a new earth in Your presence forever and ever.

God’s perfect world is for all who believe in Jesus.

INSIGHT: What can we learn about the perfect world to come—the new heaven, the new earth, and the new Jerusalem? In Isaiah 65 we read (as in Revelation 21:4) about the absence of pain and sorrow: “The sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more. Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days.” In this place we will “not labor in vain, nor . . . bear children doomed to misfortune . . . . The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, and dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain” (vv. 19-25). Isaiah 66:22-23 declares that in the new heaven and the new earth all the redeemed “will come and bow down before [the Lord].”

Righteousness will dwell in this new heaven and new earth (2 Peter 3:13). In this delightfully perfect place, we will worship our holy God who dwells with us. Alyson Kieda

Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU

GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS

OUR DAILY BREAD DEVOTIONS

I Will Never Leave You

Read:  Deuteronomy 31:1-8

I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Matthew 28:20

One of my earliest memories of hearing good music was when a male quartet rehearsed at our home.  I was about ten years old, and I was especially attentive to my dad, who sang first tenor.  One of the quartet’s favorites was titled “I Am with You.” Even at that tender age, I not only appreciated the music but I “got the message.”

Those words of Jesus to His disciples just before He ascended-“I am with you always”-became precious to me as the quartet sang, “In the sunlight, in the shadow, I am with you where you go.”

One of the first references to God’s unfailing presence was spoken by Moses in Deuteronomy 31:6-8, when he instructed his successor about leading God’s people into the “land of promise.” And Joshua himself heard the same word from the Lord, “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you.  I will not leave you nor forsake you” (Joshua 1:5).

That promise is repeated in the New Testament, where the writer of Hebrews gave this assurance:  “He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’” (13:5).

Wherever you may be today, you are not alone.  If you’ve placed your trust in Jesus for your eternal salvation, you can be certain that He will never leave you.                                                     ODB

Jesus whispers “I am with you”

In the hour of deepest need;

When the way is dark and lonesome,

“I am with you, I will lead.” -Morris

First make sure you are with Im, then you can be sure

He’ll be with you.