Scripture Reading — Isaiah 9:1-7 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.— Isaiah 9:2God provides an immediate follow-up to the passage we reflected on yesterday, about choosing to live in “utter d
Scripture Reading — Isaiah 8:19-22 If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn.— Isaiah 8:20God’s people did not always walk in God’s way. At times, the leaders of God’s people even consulted with mediums (1 Samuel 28:3-25). Here Isaiah notes th
Scripture Reading — Psalm 119:105-112 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.— Psalm 119:105The psalmist describes God’s word as a lamp and a light. There is a sense of movement here with the emphasis of the psalmist’s feet on a path. We don’t know where the psalm
Scripture Reading — Psalm 80:1-19 Make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.— Psalm 80:3Today’s Bible passage addresses a deep-down concern: Is peace with God ever possible after God decides to hold us accountable for our sins? As the psalmist pointedly cries out: “How
Scripture Reading — Psalm 27:1-14 Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.— Psalm 27:14Today’s Scripture reading describes how the psalmist has faced real threats from wicked people, enemies, armies, oppressors, and false witnesses—all bent on destroy
Scripture Reading — Numbers 6:22-27 “The Lord make his face shine on you. . . .”— Numbers 6:25I always marvel at this passage. The Israelites were not a shining example of faithfulness while they wandered in the desert. They grumbled and complained, threatened to go back to Eg
Scripture Reading — Exodus 10:21-29 Yet all the Israelites had light in the places they lived.— Exodus 10:23Have you ever encountered a darkness that can be felt? I recall hiking in the woods when dark storm clouds suddenly billowed overhead. The wind whipped around in all dir
Scripture Reading — Exodus 3:1-14 Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”— Exodus 3:3After fleeing Egypt in fear for his life (see Exodus 2:11-15), Moses settled in Midian. He got married and had children. He became a shepherd
Scripture Reading — Genesis 15:1-6 “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.”— Genesis 15:5I wonder how many times Abram had looked into that sky, asking God to fulfill his promise from years earlier to give Abram children of his own. I also wonder
Scripture Reading — Genesis 1:14-19 He also made the stars.— Genesis 1:16For several summers, our family spent time near a lake where we would lie on the dock at night, watching for shooting stars. We would point and laugh with excitement when we saw one. In between those flas
Scripture Reading — Genesis 1:3-5 God saw that the light was good. . . .— Genesis 1:4Sometimes we need to slow down and ask good questions. Genesis 1 starts by showing that God’s creative work takes place in the deepest darkness that people could imagine. That reality invites
Scripture Reading — Genesis 1:1-2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.— Genesis 1:2Beginnings are important. Backgrounds about characters in novels and movies help us see the situat