Loving Jesus Style

Scripture: Psalm 138:3 (NIV) When I called, you answered me; you greatly emboldened me. Devotion: There are moments in every believer’s life when calling on God is not a polished act of worship but a cry rising out of need. David knew those moments well. Psalm 138:3 captures one of them with striking simplicity: It is a testimony, a reminder, and an invitation all at once. David does not say that God merely heard him. He says God answered him. The difference matters. Hearing acknowledges the sound; answering acknowledges the heart. God does not simply register our cries as background noise. He responds. He engages. He moves toward us with intention. When David called, God acted. And the answer God gave was not always a change in circumstances. Sometimes the answer was strength — not around David, but within him. This is the kind of strength that does not depend on outward stability. It is the kind of strength that rises in the middle of uncertainty, fear, or pressure. I...

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:5 (NIV) Therefore, judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God. Devotion: Paul’s words in this verse remind us of something we often forget: our perspective is limited, but God’s is perfect. We see fragments of people’s lives, moments of their behavior, glimpses of their motives. God sees the whole story. He sees the hidden places of the heart, the quiet intentions, the unseen struggles, and the secret faithfulness. Because of this, Paul urges us to resist the impulse to judge prematurely. Judgment belongs to the Lord alone. “Therefore, judge nothing before the time.” This is not a call to abandon discernment; it is a call to humility. We do not know enough to render final verdicts. We do not see deeply enough to weigh motives. We do not understand fully enough to declare outcomes. O...

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 29:11 (NIV)  Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Devotion: This verse lifts our eyes. It reminds us that before we speak of our needs, before we consider our plans, before we measure our strength, we must first remember who God is. “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty.” These are not abstract qualities; they are the living reality of God’s nature. Everything that exists, everything that unfolds, everything that rises or falls — all of it rests under His sovereign hand. David speaks these words at a moment of profound generosity and worship. The people have given freely, but David knows the deeper truth: everything they offered already belonged to God. “All that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine.” This is not meant to dimi...

  Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 (NIV) Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones. Devotion: Paul’s words in this passage feel like a gentle pastoral hand on the shoulder. He prays not for success, not for comfort, not for ease — but for God to direct His people, to increase their love, and to establish their hearts in holiness. It is a prayer that assumes something essential: we cannot become what God desires by our own strength. We need Him to guide us, grow us, and steady us. “May the Lord make you increase and abound in love.” Love is not merely an emotion here; it is the evidence of God’s active work within us. Paul imagines a love that spills ove...

  Scripture: 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV) But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. Devotion We live in a culture that demands constant self‑sufficiency, urging us to project an image of unshakeable strength and flawless execution. Everywhere we turn, the message is the same: hold it together, push through, never let them see you crack. When we carry that performance‑driven mindset into our spiritual lives, we naturally assume that following Jesus means trying harder, doing more, and masking our flaws. But the gospel of Jesus Christ introduces a radical, upside‑down economy where human exhaustion is not an obstacle to God — it is the very staging ground for His glory. When the Apostle Paul begged the Lord to remove his agonizing thorn in the flesh, he did not receive an exemption from suffering or a boost of personal grit...

Scripture: Romans 15:13 (NIV) May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Devotion: Paul’s prayer in Romans 15:13 is one of the most beautiful benedictions in the New Testament, and it comes at the end of a section where he has been urging believers toward unity, endurance, and encouragement. It’s striking that Paul doesn’t simply tell the church to be hopeful — he points them to the God of hope. Hope isn’t something we manufacture; it’s something God gives. Paul begins with a request: “May the God of hope fill you…” The language is intentional. Hope isn’t sprinkled; it’s poured. God doesn’t give His people a small measure of encouragement to help them limp through the week. He fills. He saturates. He overflows. And He fills us not with vague optimism but with joy and peace in believing. Joy and peace are not emotions we chase; they are fruits that grow when our hearts rest in Chr...

Scripture: Colossians 3:1-4 (NIV) Since then, you have been raised with Christ; set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Devotion: Paul doesn’t begin this passage by telling us what to do; he begins by reminding us who we are. “If then you have been raised with Christ…” Everything that follows grows out of that reality. The Christian life is not an attempt to climb our way up to God — it is the daily practice of living out what God has already done. We have been raised. We belong to Christ. Our lives are hidden in Him. Because of that, Paul calls us to seek the things that are above. This isn’t escapism. It’s not withdrawing from the world or ignoring the responsibilities God has given us. It’s reorienting our desires. It’s learning to ...

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (ESV) Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Devotion: This passage from the famous “Love” chapter from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians explains what love is. Paul has just finished explaining in the previous verses that all the gifts and talents in the world are worthless if they are not practiced in love. So, he continues in these verses by explaining what this love he has been talking about looks like in practice. Let’s take a look at what the Holy Spirit, through the pen of Paul, has to say about this most misunderstood word, love. Paul starts by explaining that love is patient. Our society is not known for its patience. We have microwaves to cook our food in the shortest time po...

Scripture: Jeremiah 6:26 (NIV) This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’ Devotion: There are moments in the Christian life when we realize we’ve been walking fast but not well. Our schedules are full, our minds are crowded, and our hearts feel strangely thin. Jeremiah’s words arrive in that hurried place like a divine interruption. God tells His people to stop, look, ask, and walk — four movements that lead to one destination: rest for the soul. The first movement is to stand. Before God directs our feet, He slows them. Israel was rushing headlong into idolatry, trusting in alliances, rituals, and their own wisdom. The Lord calls them to stop long enough to see where they are. We need that same pause. Spiritual clarity rarely comes while we’re sprinting. Second, God says, look not at the newest ideas or the...

  Scripture: Numbers 6:24-26 (NIV) “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” Devotion: In our society today, people often seek blessings, protection, and peace from many different sources. These things may bring temporary results but fail in the long run. In today’s scripture, we find Israel requesting these things from God. Blessings from God are eternal and bring us true blessedness that doesn’t fade or change with time. God gives us blessings, protection, and peace that never change or fade. Let’s explore these three gifts of God. First, let’s look at how God blesses and keeps His people. When we hear the word blessed, we may think of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus declares blessings over a wide variety of situations. Jesus was explaining how God seeks to bless us in many ways. God seeks to provide for us, sustain us, and care for us. We can be certain of Go...

  Scripture: Psalm 92:4 (NIV) For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord; I sing for joy at what your hands have done. Devotion: This verse reminds us that the deepest joy in the Christian life doesn’t come from circumstances but from recognizing God’s hand at work. The psalmist celebrates with gladness because God’s works are good, purposeful, and personal. We often rush through life without pausing to notice the ways God sustains, protects, and blesses us. Let us slow down and reflect on the kindness, goodness, and mercy that God has wrought in our lives today. The psalmist in this psalm is expressing his joy in what God has already done and will continue to do in his life. While God may allow us to encounter difficulties, God works all things together for good if we will but trust in Him. We have so much to be thankful for. We can rely on what God has done in Scripture and in our lives to give us hope for the future. We need to anchor our lives and our joy in the fact th...

Scripture: Isaiah 26:12 (NIV) Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished, you have done for us. Devotion: With these words, Isaiah points out that all our accomplishments are either due to the gifts and talents the Lord has given to us or His sovereign will. How often we blame God when things go poorly for us while insisting that we accomplish anything positive all on our own. Isaiah here is challenging that mindset. God Himself gives us success and peace, and is the source of all blessings. We should give God praise for all He does for us, and ask for strength and courage when things go against us. This short verse should reorient our view of reality, instead of a “me” based outlook. We must develop a God-based outlook. If we can do this, we will naturally be at peace with the world and with ourselves. This is because we would have to give up controlling and planning our lives and allow God to be in charge. We should rely more on God than on ourselves. R...

Scripture: John 13:34-35 (NIV) “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” Devotion: Jesus here issues a clarion call for a new way of love among believers. In a world where love is often reduced to sentiment or convenience, Jesus calls us to a higher standard. We are to love as He has loved us. Jesus showed His love for us by healing the sick, raising the dead, and loving us enough to go to the cross to pay the debt we could not pay. This command challenges us to examine our lives. How do we treat others? The way we live our lives reveals how closely we follow Jesus. Jesus here states the undeniable fact that the world will take notice when Christians truly love one another in a way that points to the One we follow. The context here is Jesus in the upper room with His twelve disciples before the Passover meal. Just prior to this teaching, Jesus ...

Scripture: Psalm 34:8 (NIV) 8 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Devotion: This psalm begins with the imperative verb, taste. It is both a command and an invitation to come, see, and experience all that God has to offer. The psalm’s author, David, calls on God’s people to go beyond just a head knowledge of God and really experience the good fruit that comes from a heart knowledge of God. The verse also speaks to those who are not yet in the kingdom by revealing that God is not distant and uninvolved with life. God can be known, and He is waiting for us to reach out and taste and see that the Lord is indeed very good. David uses the verbs "taste" and "see" to engage our senses. The Spirit inspired David to write those words because they make us move beyond dry learning of facts about God into the realm of experience that takes us deeper into a personal relationship with God. Many learned people know a lot abou...

  Matthew 5:21–26 stands within the section of the Sermon on the Mount often called the "antitheses," where Jesus repeatedly says, "You have heard that it was said... but I say to you." He is not correcting Moses or setting aside the Law of God. As He has just declared in verses 17–20, He came to fulfill the Law, not abolish it, and He insists that the righteousness of His disciples must exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees. What Jesus does in this passage is press the sixth commandment, "You shall not murder," down to its true depth. The Pharisees had reduced the commandment to a bare prohibition of the physical act of killing. Jesus reveals that God's Law was never merely about outward conduct; it governs the heart. He begins by citing the familiar teaching: murder is forbidden, and the murderer is answerable to judgment. Then He escalates matters in a way His hearers would have found startling. Anger nursed against a brother, Jesus says, alr...