Latest Thoughts of the Day

1 Timothy 2:14

11/12/2026

And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner.

From conception all mankind has been cursed by the sin of Adam. Technically, Eve sinned first, but Adam’s responsibility was to be alarmed by her sin, to embrace her, and come with her before God to see if there was such a thing as forgiveness. Adam decided not to do that, but to join his wife in her sin, and God holds him more guilty than Eve. Adam’s was a conscious choice to follow his own will though he knew it to be contrary to what God had said. And we feel in ourselves every day the tendency, the pressure, the inclination to make exactly the same selfish choice. The sin of Adam is a part of our conscious life. But thanks be to God, for sending us Jesus!

2 Thessalonians 3:5

11/11/2026

May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.

No exclamation point at the end of this sentence! Paul is not hoping that God will do something Paul thinks the Thessalonians need. Paul is turning over to God what God will do because it is in His heart, and because it is entirely consistent with His character, and with His personal purposes for His people. It is like saying,”The Lord’s will be done”. God will deepen your love for Him and strengthen you to accomplish what He has for you. Glory to His great Name! Lord, we love You for all that You have done for us, and we commit ourselves to face whatever we must for the glory of Your Great Name. To whom else can we go. You have sent Your Spirit to open out Eyes. We have seen Your Son, Jesus.

I Thessalonians 3:4

11/10/2026

In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know.

When challenges and difficulties and trials come it does not mean that a situation is out of control or that God has abandoned us. Trials are a part of His plan. Our reaction to trials is a part of our personal message concerning what it is to follow Christ. We show the reality of what we believe. Trials serve, too, to open up face-to-face contact with opponents, that they might encounter challenges they need in order to think things through. God is working in others around us, and our response to suffering may challenge their consciences, or force them to personal honesty before God. Every onlooker has a conscience before God, and God is working in all, bringing some to Jesus.

Colossians 2:5

11/9/2026

For though I am absent from you in body I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how orderly you are and how firm your faith in Christ is.

Many of us who love Jesus struggle with the orderly life we think He deserves from us. We are troubled by the time we waste looking for things. We feel sorry for the opportunities we miss because we misplace our reminders, and forget. We would very much like to receive the commendation Paul expresses to the church in Colossae. We believe that our faith would be more firm if our life were more orderly. Consequently, we receive Paul’s commendation as a personal challenge to be what Paul appreciated. We look to You to help us, Lord. Just before Your suffering for us you promised to send Your Spirit as our Helper. We receive Him, Lord Jesus.

Philippians 2:4

11/8/2026

Each of you should look not only to our own interests but also to the interests of others.

Paul in his letter is working up to one of the most wonderful pictures of Christ Jesus in all the New Testament. Jesus courageously pursued the personal goal of doing what was needed to save His people from their sins. Jesus' own thing was self-denial for the sake of those He loved. Paul’s longing is to see such a mind-set in us. Can we develop such a mind-set? Go out of our way here and there to do good to those we encounter in everyday life. Do acts of kindness that require sacrifice on our part. Willingly humble ourselves to serve those who do not even appreciate what we are trying to do. Our Lord doing this is what resulted in our salvation. Help us be like You, Lord Jesus.

Ephesians 2:11

11/7/2026

Therefore remember that you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)

Paul is building toward a wonderful display that all he is describing has been done away with—all these things that seem so silly now are taken away by the blood shed by Jesus for Jews and for Gentiles alike. God has made us one. There may be some emotional hold-overs among Jewish Christians, and all of them will have to make a tremendous adjustment in their thinking, but the Gentiles have been accepted by God and eventually all will see what a wonderful thing this is. Lord, help us genuinely to accept as brethren any and all that You have accepted. Your Spirit helps us really feel that connection as we share together in the worship of Jesus.

Philipppians 2:4

11/6/2026

Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Christianity is not “every man for himself”, but includes also a genuine concern that others prosper spiritually, even as we personally grow in grace and in the knowledge of God. We are in this together, and it is God’s purpose that we do all we can to promote the well-being of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Can I help others who struggle to serve Jesus, that we might work toward His glory together? A personal walk with Jesus is of essential and fundamental importance if we are to please God with our lives. But it is not everything. Loving and serving others for who Christ died is the actual way in which we each one are going to grow in our likeness to God’s beloved Son, our Lord Jesus.

Ephesians 2:11

11/5/2026

Therefore remember that you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves, “the circumcised” (that done in the flesh by the hands of men)—“

Paul is in the middle of an argument that underlines and glories in the fact that the distinction between Jew and Gentile is like a wall that has been broken down. Gentiles should never forget the privilege that it is to be included in the people of God. The Jews should glory in God for the tremendous generosity He has shown in including Gentiles into His people. Paul is careful to make clear that he is speaking here of physical circumcision, because he continues to glory in the facet that those who are in Christ are circumcised in their hearts. What Jews picture physically in their bodies is what God does to Gentiles when they believe in Jesus.