Day 58 - February 27, 2025

Scripture: Psalm 138

Psalm 138

1 I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart;
    before the “gods” I will sing your praise.
2 I will bow down toward your holy temple
    and will praise your name
    for your unfailing love and your faithfulness,
for you have so exalted your solemn decree
    that it surpasses your fame.
3 When I called, you answered me;
    you greatly emboldened me.

4 May all the kings of the earth praise you, Lord,
    when they hear what you have decreed.
5 May they sing of the ways of the Lord,
    for the glory of the Lord is great.

6 Though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly;
    though lofty, he sees them from afar.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
    you preserve my life.
You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes;
    with your right hand you save me.
8 The Lord will vindicate me;
    your love, Lord, endures forever—
    do not abandon the works of your hands.

Observation:

David, the Psalmist is thankful to the God who created him and gave him life and a purpose. “I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart; before the “gods” I will sing your praise. I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your unfailing love and your faithfulness…” (Psalm 138:1-2a)

Application:

When we praise our God, it should be completely - with all of our hearts. Because God is all good and is worthy of all of our praise, love, and obedience. Gord is our ever-present help in times of trouble.

Prayer:

Let us praise and thank you with all of our hearts for you are always there for your people. Help us to walk in newness of life with your Spirit guiding our steps and our activity. Let us look to you for the direction in which we should go. Amen.

Day 57 - February 26, 2025

Scripture: Psalm 136

Psalm 136

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His love endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods.
His love endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
His love endures forever.

4 to him who alone does great wonders,
His love endures forever.
5 who by his understanding made the heavens,
His love endures forever.
6 who spread out the earth upon the waters,
His love endures forever.
7 who made the great lights—
His love endures forever.
8 the sun to govern the day,
His love endures forever.
9 the moon and stars to govern the night;
His love endures forever.

10 to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt
His love endures forever.
11 and brought Israel out from among them
His love endures forever.
12 with a mighty hand and outstretched arm;
His love endures forever.

13 to him who divided the Red Sea asunder
His love endures forever.
14 and brought Israel through the midst of it,
His love endures forever.
15 but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;
His love endures forever.

16 to him who led his people through the wilderness;
His love endures forever.

17 to him who struck down great kings,
His love endures forever.
18 and killed mighty kings—
His love endures forever.
19 Sihon king of the Amorites
His love endures forever.
20 and Og king of Bashan—
His love endures forever.
21 and gave their land as an inheritance,
His love endures forever.
22 an inheritance to his servant Israel.
His love endures forever.

23 He remembered us in our low estate
His love endures forever.
24 and freed us from our enemies.
His love endures forever.
25 He gives food to every creature.
His love endures forever.

26 Give thanks to the God of heaven.
His love endures forever.

Observation:

The Psalmist continues indefinitely about why we should give thanks to the Lord, for everything in our lives. He writes: “Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.” (Psalm 136:1) When we reflect upon the creation and all the events in our lives, what is most important to recognize is God’s amazing love that endures forever.

Application:

It is important to start our day every day with the understanding of God’s eternal love, a love that endures forever. When we reflect upon God’s love, we begin to see things from a more eternal perspective and we can begin to see God’s activity in our own lives. When we realize that God is love and that we were created out of God’s love, we will begin to trust more the circumstances of our lives and we can be appreciative of God’s love even in times of trial.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, help us to remember and reflect upon your amazing love. Help us to see everything in our lives through the lens of your eternal love. As we do this we will rest in your love and be confident in all things, because your love is a conquering love and your love endures forever. Amen.

Day 56 - February 25, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 14:1-9

Repentance to Bring Blessing

14 Return, Israel, to the Lord your God.
    Your sins have been your downfall!
2 Take words with you
    and return to the Lord.
Say to him:
    “Forgive all our sins
and receive us graciously,
    that we may offer the fruit of our lips.
3 Assyria cannot save us;
    we will not mount warhorses.
We will never again say ‘Our gods’
    to what our own hands have made,
    for in you the fatherless find compassion.”

4 “I will heal their waywardness
    and love them freely,
    for my anger has turned away from them.
5 I will be like the dew to Israel;
    he will blossom like a lily.
Like a cedar of Lebanon
    he will send down his roots;
6     his young shoots will grow.
His splendor will be like an olive tree,
    his fragrance like a cedar of Lebanon.
7 People will dwell again in his shade;
    they will flourish like the grain,
they will blossom like the vine—
    Israel’s fame will be like the wine of Lebanon.
8 Ephraim, what more have I to do with idols?
    I will answer him and care for him.
I am like a flourishing juniper;
    your fruitfulness comes from me.”

9 Who is wise? Let them realize these things.
    Who is discerning? Let them understand.
The ways of the Lord are right;
    the righteous walk in them,
    but the rebellious stumble in them.

Observation:

God, speaking through the prophet Hosea tells Israel to return to the Lord and ask for forgiveness. Reject the idols that they have made with their own hands.

Then God says: “I will heal their waywardness  and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them. I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like a lily. Like a cedar of Lebanon he will send down his roots; his young shoots will grow.” (Hosea 14:4-6)

Application:

When we turn away from our sinfulness and turn back to God, God is faithful and just to forgive our waywardness, restoring us to a full reconciled relationship with our God.

Prayer:

Lord God, help us to see our unrighteousness and turn back to you, repenting of our sins. Your word tells us that if we are faithful to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, we will be healed by your grace. Keep us from sinning and give us a new life in your Spirit that we may honor you in everything we do and say. Amen.

Day 55 - February 24, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 13:1-16

13 When Ephraim spoke, people trembled;
    he was exalted in Israel.
    But he became guilty of Baal worship and died.
2 Now they sin more and more;
    they make idols for themselves from their silver,
cleverly fashioned images,
    all of them the work of craftsmen.
It is said of these people,
    “They offer human sacrifices!
    They kiss calf-idols!”
3 Therefore they will be like the morning mist,
    like the early dew that disappears,
    like chaff swirling from a threshing floor,
    like smoke escaping through a window.

4 “But I have been the Lord your God
    ever since you came out of Egypt.
You shall acknowledge no God but me,
    no Savior except me.
5 I cared for you in the wilderness,
    in the land of burning heat.
6 When I fed them, they were satisfied;
    when they were satisfied, they became proud;
    then they forgot me.
7 So I will be like a lion to them,
    like a leopard I will lurk by the path.
8 Like a bear robbed of her cubs,
    I will attack them and rip them open;
like a lion I will devour them—
    a wild animal will tear them apart.

9 “You are destroyed, Israel,
    because you are against me, against your helper.
10 Where is your king, that he may save you?
    Where are your rulers in all your towns,
of whom you said,
    ‘Give me a king and princes’?
11 So in my anger I gave you a king,
    and in my wrath I took him away.
12 The guilt of Ephraim is stored up,
    his sins are kept on record.
13 Pains as of a woman in childbirth come to him,
    but he is a child without wisdom;
when the time arrives,
    he doesn’t have the sense to come out of the womb.

14 “I will deliver this people from the power of the grave;
    I will redeem them from death.
Where, O death, are your plagues?
    Where, O grave, is your destruction?

“I will have no compassion,
15     even though he thrives among his brothers.
An east wind from the Lord will come,
    blowing in from the desert;
his spring will fail
    and his well dry up.
His storehouse will be plundered
    of all its treasures.
16 The people of Samaria must bear their guilt,
    because they have rebelled against their God.
They will fall by the sword;
    their little ones will be dashed to the ground,
    their pregnant women ripped open.”

Observation:

Hosea continues to speak of Israel’s unfaithfulness and continual turning away from God. “But I have been the Lord your God ever since you came out of Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savior except me.” (Hosea 13:4)

Application:

There is only one God, The Lord Almighty, there is only one Savior, The Lord Jesus Christ. This has been revealed through the prophets and by The Holy Spirit. What keeps us from being a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. Remember the Lord, our God daily and have no other God but the one True God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Prayer:

O Lord, keep us from placing anyone or anything above you. For you alone are God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Help us as your children to keep short accounts with you, that we may always acknowledge your Lordship and willfully follow you daily. Amen.

Day 54 - Februay 23, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 11:12 -12:14

Israel’s Sin

12 Ephraim has surrounded me with lies,
    Israel with deceit.
And Judah is unruly against God,
    even against the faithful Holy One.

12 1 Ephraim feeds on the wind;
    he pursues the east wind all day
    and multiplies lies and violence.
He makes a treaty with Assyria
    and sends olive oil to Egypt.
2 The Lord has a charge to bring against Judah;
    he will punish Jacob according to his ways
    and repay him according to his deeds.
3 In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel;
    as a man he struggled with God.
4 He struggled with the angel and overcame him;
    he wept and begged for his favor.
He found him at Bethel
    and talked with him there—
5 the Lord God Almighty,
    the Lord is his name!
6 But you must return to your God;
    maintain love and justice,
    and wait for your God always.

7 The merchant uses dishonest scales
    and loves to defraud.
8 Ephraim boasts,
    “I am very rich; I have become wealthy.
With all my wealth they will not find in me
    any iniquity or sin.”

9 “I have been the Lord your God
    ever since you came out of Egypt;
I will make you live in tents again,
    as in the days of your appointed festivals.
10 I spoke to the prophets,
    gave them many visions
    and told parables through them.”

11 Is Gilead wicked?
    Its people are worthless!
Do they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal?
    Their altars will be like piles of stones
    on a plowed field.
12 Jacob fled to the country of Aram;
    Israel served to get a wife,
    and to pay for her he tended sheep.
13 The Lord used a prophet to bring Israel up from Egypt,
    by a prophet he cared for him.
14 But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger;
    his Lord will leave on him the guilt of his bloodshed
    and will repay him for his contempt.

Observation:

Hosea continues to warn God’s people who continue to sin against God, the Holy One.

“I spoke to the prophets, gave them many visions   and told parables through them.” (Hosea 12:10)

Application:

Do not sin against God. Do not turn on the one who has redeemed you.

Prayer:

Lord, help us as your children to remain in steadfast love of you. Help us to show our gratitude by listening to you every day. Do not let us turn away from you, but to seek you first everyday. Amen.

Day 53 - February 22, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 11:1-11

God’s Love for Israel

11 “When Israel was a child, I loved him,
    and out of Egypt I called my son.
2 But the more they were called,
    the more they went away from me.
They sacrificed to the Baals
    and they burned incense to images.
3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
    taking them by the arms;
but they did not realize
    it was I who healed them.
4 I led them with cords of human kindness,
    with ties of love.
To them I was like one who lifts
    a little child to the cheek,
    and I bent down to feed them.

5 “Will they not return to Egypt
    and will not Assyria rule over them
    because they refuse to repent?
6 A sword will flash in their cities;
    it will devour their false prophets
    and put an end to their plans.
7 My people are determined to turn from me.
    Even though they call me God Most High,
    I will by no means exalt them.

8 “How can I give you up, Ephraim?
    How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah?
    How can I make you like Zeboyim?
My heart is changed within me;
    all my compassion is aroused.
9 I will not carry out my fierce anger,
    nor will I devastate Ephraim again.
For I am God, and not a man—
    the Holy One among you.
    I will not come against their cities.
10 They will follow the Lord;
    he will roar like a lion.
When he roars,
    his children will come trembling from the west.
11 They will come from Egypt,
    trembling like sparrows,
    from Assyria, fluttering like doves.
I will settle them in their homes,”
    declares the Lord.

Observation:

Although God treated Israel with love and compassion, they still turned away from God and looked to lesser gods, not gods at all but objects of their own creation. Yet God so loves Israel that he will still show them compassion. “How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I treat you like Admah? How can I make you like Zeboyim? My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused. I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I devastate Ephraim again. For I am God, and not a man- he Holy One among you. I will not come against their cities. They will follow the Lord; he will roar like a lion. When he roars, his children will come trembling from the west.” (Hosea 11:8-10)

Application:

The prophet Hosea continues to state that God’s chosen people have continually turned their backs on God and have followed other gods, which are not gods but objects of their own making. We can be that way as well. We can prioritize things, places, and people in our lives and hold them higher than our God who gives us life. Our God wants us to seek him first, his kingdom and his righteousness and everything else will be added unto us as well. (Matthew 6:33)

Prayer:

Dear Lord, help us as your reconciled children to always seek you first. Help us not to turn away from you, even a little. Help us to be guided by Your Word that brings us life everlasting. Help us to concede our will to your will for our lives, for you are the way, the truth and the life! Amen.

Day 52 - February 21, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 9:15-10:15

“Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal,
    I hated them there.
Because of their sinful deeds,
    I will drive them out of my house.
I will no longer love them;
    all their leaders are rebellious.
16 Ephraim is blighted,
    their root is withered,
    they yield no fruit.
Even if they bear children,
    I will slay their cherished offspring.”

17 My God will reject them
    because they have not obeyed him;
    they will be wanderers among the nations.

10 Israel was a spreading vine;
    he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
    he built more altars;
as his land prospered,
    he adorned his sacred stones.
2 Their heart is deceitful,
    and now they must bear their guilt.
The Lord will demolish their altars
    and destroy their sacred stones.

3 Then they will say, “We have no king
    because we did not revere the Lord.
But even if we had a king,
    what could he do for us?”
4 They make many promises,
    take false oaths
    and make agreements;
therefore lawsuits spring up
    like poisonous weeds in a plowed field.
5 The people who live in Samaria fear
    for the calf-idol of Beth Aven.
Its people will mourn over it,
    and so will its idolatrous priests,
those who had rejoiced over its splendor,
    because it is taken from them into exile.
6 It will be carried to Assyria
    as tribute for the great king.
Ephraim will be disgraced;
    Israel will be ashamed of its foreign alliances.
7 Samaria’s king will be destroyed,
    swept away like a twig on the surface of the waters.
8 The high places of wickedness will be destroyed—
    it is the sin of Israel.
Thorns and thistles will grow up
    and cover their altars.
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”
    and to the hills, “Fall on us!”

9 “Since the days of Gibeah, you have sinned, Israel,
    and there you have remained.
Will not war again overtake
    the evildoers in Gibeah?
10 When I please, I will punish them;
    nations will be gathered against them
    to put them in bonds for their double sin.
11 Ephraim is a trained heifer
    that loves to thresh;
so I will put a yoke
    on her fair neck.
I will drive Ephraim,
    Judah must plow,
    and Jacob must break up the ground.
12 Sow righteousness for yourselves,
    reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
    for it is time to seek the Lord,
until he comes
    and showers his righteousness on you.
13 But you have planted wickedness,
    you have reaped evil,
    you have eaten the fruit of deception.
Because you have depended on your own strength
    and on your many warriors,
14 the roar of battle will rise against your people,
    so that all your fortresses will be devastated—
as Shalman devastated Beth Arbel on the day of battle,
    when mothers were dashed to the ground with their children.
15 So will it happen to you, Bethel,
    because your wickedness is great.
When that day dawns,
    the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.

Observation:

Hosea continues to describe the unfaithfulness of God’s people, he continues to warn of the impending judgement because of their constantly sinful ways, yet there is hope in God’s word spoken through Hosea.

“Sow righteousness for yourselves, reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes
and showers his righteousness on you.” (Hosea 10:12)

Application:

The time to seek the Lord is now for we can never make it on our own righteousness, but God showers his own righteousness upon us as we seek God and choose to do his will for our lives.

Prayer:

O Lord, our sin is ever before us for we have all gone astray and have turned our backs on your righteousness and your unfailing love. Help us to seek your will for our lives, receive the righteousness that you pour out through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Help us to walk in your ways as your faithful children. Amen.

Day 51 - February 20, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 9:1-14

Punishment for Israel

9 Do not rejoice, Israel;
    do not be jubilant like the other nations.
For you have been unfaithful to your God;
    you love the wages of a prostitute
    at every threshing floor.
2 Threshing floors and winepresses will not feed the people;
    the new wine will fail them.
3 They will not remain in the Lord’s land;
    Ephraim will return to Egypt
    and eat unclean food in Assyria.
4 They will not pour out wine offerings to the Lord,
    nor will their sacrifices please him.
Such sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners;
    all who eat them will be unclean.
This food will be for themselves;
    it will not come into the temple of the Lord.

5 What will you do on the day of your appointed festivals,
    on the feast days of the Lord?
6 Even if they escape from destruction,
    Egypt will gather them,
    and Memphis will bury them.
Their treasures of silver will be taken over by briers,
    and thorns will overrun their tents.
7 The days of punishment are coming,
    the days of reckoning are at hand.
    Let Israel know this.
Because your sins are so many
    and your hostility so great,
the prophet is considered a fool,
    the inspired person a maniac.
8 The prophet, along with my God,
    is the watchman over Ephraim,
yet snares await him on all his paths,
    and hostility in the house of his God.
9 They have sunk deep into corruption,
    as in the days of Gibeah.
God will remember their wickedness
    and punish them for their sins.

10 “When I found Israel,
    it was like finding grapes in the desert;
when I saw your ancestors,
    it was like seeing the early fruit on the fig tree.
But when they came to Baal Peor,
    they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol
    and became as vile as the thing they loved.
11 Ephraim’s glory will fly away like a bird—
    no birth, no pregnancy, no conception.
12 Even if they rear children,
    I will bereave them of every one.
Woe to them
    when I turn away from them!
13 I have seen Ephraim, like Tyre,
    planted in a pleasant place.
But Ephraim will bring out
    their children to the slayer.”

14 Give them, Lord—
    what will you give them?
Give them wombs that miscarry
    and breasts that are dry.

Observation:

The prophet is sent by God to warn God’s people of their impending judgement. Yet the prophet is rejected by the people of whom the prophet is sent to warn.

“The days of punishment are coming, the days of reckoning are at hand. Let Israel know this. Because your sins are so many and your hostility so great, the prophet is considered a fool, the inspired person a maniac. The prophet, along with my God, is the watchman over Ephraim, yet snares await him on all his paths, and hostility in the house of his God.” (Hosea 9:7-8)

Application:

Do not reject the Word of the Lord, and do not reject his prophets, those who speak truth in love. For the prophet is sent to warn God’s people so that they might turn away from their evil ways and ideas. Do not despise the messenger of God who brings warnings along with the good news of God. Jesus would often say, “Those who have ears, let them hear.”

Prayer:

O Lord, help us as your people to have ears to hear and a heart that is willing to turn away from our evil desires and turn back towards you. help us to head the words of the prophets and your spoken word which leads to life everlasting. Restore us as your people that we may follow you, the author and perfector of our lives. Amen.

Day 50 - February 19, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 8:1–14

Israel to Reap the Whirlwind

8 “Put the trumpet to your lips!
    An eagle is over the house of the Lord
because the people have broken my covenant
    and rebelled against my law.
2 Israel cries out to me,
    ‘Our God, we acknowledge you!’
3 But Israel has rejected what is good;
    an enemy will pursue him.
4 They set up kings without my consent;
    they choose princes without my approval.
With their silver and gold
    they make idols for themselves
    to their own destruction.
5 Samaria, throw out your calf-idol!
    My anger burns against them.
How long will they be incapable of purity?
6     They are from Israel!
This calf—a metalworker has made it;
    it is not God.
It will be broken in pieces,
    that calf of Samaria.

7 “They sow the wind
    and reap the whirlwind.
The stalk has no head;
    it will produce no flour.
Were it to yield grain,
    foreigners would swallow it up.
8 Israel is swallowed up;
    now she is among the nations
    like something no one wants.
9 For they have gone up to Assyria
    like a wild donkey wandering alone.
    Ephraim has sold herself to lovers.
10 Although they have sold themselves among the nations,
    I will now gather them together.
They will begin to waste away
    under the oppression of the mighty king.

11 “Though Ephraim built many altars for sin offerings,
    these have become altars for sinning.
12 I wrote for them the many things of my law,
    but they regarded them as something foreign.
13 Though they offer sacrifices as gifts to me,
    and though they eat the meat,
    the Lord is not pleased with them.
Now he will remember their wickedness
    and punish their sins:
    They will return to Egypt.
14 Israel has forgotten their Maker
    and built palaces;
    Judah has fortified many towns.
But I will send fire on their cities
    that will consume their fortresses.”

Observation:

“ I wrote for them the many things of my law,
    but they regarded them as something foreign.” (Hosea 8:12)

Application:

Hosea warns the people of Israel and Judah that they need to repent and return to the teachings of God. We like Israel and Judah often ignore God’s word as though it were foreign and strange. We need to repent and return to our Lord’s teachings. We need to incorporate the Lord’s teachings into our hearts and lives. We need not to build altars to the gods we make for ourselves, for they are not gods and they can not help us. Repent and return to the Lord’s ways and ordinances for God alone is God and there is no other..

Prayer:

Lord God, forgive us of our waywardness. Help us to embrace your instructions for our lives. Help us to repent of any sin in our hearts and minds and help us to return to your ways, for you alone are God and ther is no other. Bless us to be your people who love you, listen to you, and bring you joy. Amen.

Day 49 - February 18, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 6:1-7:2

Israel Unrepentant

6 “Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces
    but he will heal us;
he has injured us
    but he will bind up our wounds.
2 After two days he will revive us;
    on the third day he will restore us,
    that we may live in his presence.
3 Let us acknowledge the Lord;
    let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
    he will appear;
he will come to us like the winter rains,
    like the spring rains that water the earth.”

4 “What can I do with you, Ephraim?
    What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
    like the early dew that disappears.
5 Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
    I killed you with the words of my mouth—
    then my judgments go forth like the sun.
6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
    and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
7 As at Adam, they have broken the covenant;
    they were unfaithful to me there.
8 Gilead is a city of evildoers,
    stained with footprints of blood.
9 As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,
    so do bands of priests;
they murder on the road to Shechem,
    carrying out their wicked schemes.
10 I have seen a horrible thing in Israel:
    There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
    Israel is defiled.

11 “Also for you, Judah,
    a harvest is appointed.

“Whenever I would restore the fortunes of my people,

7 1 whenever I would heal Israel,
the sins of Ephraim are exposed
    and the crimes of Samaria revealed.
They practice deceit,
    thieves break into houses,
    bandits rob in the streets;
2 but they do not realize
    that I remember all their evil deeds.
Their sins engulf them;
    they are always before me.

Observation:

“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6) As unrepentant as Israel was, God tells his people that he is not looking for sacrifices but for acknowledgement that He is God. He wants a forever relationship with his people, but they continue to turn away in sinfulness and deceit. But they only fool themselves for their evil deeds are ever before God.

Application:

The thought that God knows my every deed and every motive frightened me, because I knew that I was unworthy of God’s love. However, as I read and understand God’s Word, I realize that God is looking for me to repent of any evil within me so that i might be restored and reconciled. God desires my love and devotion and wants me to be in a righteous forever relationship with God. So repent and receive God’s soothing restoration and love.

Prayer:

Lord God, your word reveals to us that we have all fallen short of your love and your glory. Your word also reveals that you desire to forgive and restore us to a righteous relationship that acknowledges you as our Loving Lord. Help us as your children, redeemed by the blood of the lamb, to walk with you in righteousness, acknowledging your love and forgiveness. Amen.

Day 48 - February 17, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 4:4–19

4 “But let no one bring a charge,
    let no one accuse another,
for your people are like those
    who bring charges against a priest.
5 You stumble day and night,
    and the prophets stumble with you.
So I will destroy your mother—
6     my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.

“Because you have rejected knowledge,
    I also reject you as my priests;
because you have ignored the law of your God,
    I also will ignore your children.
7 The more priests there were,
    the more they sinned against me;
    they exchanged their glorious God for something disgraceful.
8 They feed on the sins of my people
    and relish their wickedness.
9 And it will be: Like people, like priests.
    I will punish both of them for their ways
    and repay them for their deeds.

10 “They will eat but not have enough;
    they will engage in prostitution but not flourish,
because they have deserted the Lord
    to give themselves 11 to prostitution;
old wine and new wine
    take away their understanding.
12 My people consult a wooden idol,
    and a diviner’s rod speaks to them.
A spirit of prostitution leads them astray;
    they are unfaithful to their God.
13 They sacrifice on the mountaintops
    and burn offerings on the hills,
under oak, poplar and terebinth,
    where the shade is pleasant.
Therefore your daughters turn to prostitution
    and your daughters-in-law to adultery.

14 “I will not punish your daughters
    when they turn to prostitution,
nor your daughters-in-law
    when they commit adultery,
because the men themselves consort with harlots
    and sacrifice with shrine prostitutes—
    a people without understanding will come to ruin!

15 “Though you, Israel, commit adultery,
    do not let Judah become guilty.

“Do not go to Gilgal;
    do not go up to Beth Aven.
    And do not swear, ‘As surely as the Lord lives!’
16 The Israelites are stubborn,
    like a stubborn heifer.
How then can the Lord pasture them
    like lambs in a meadow?
17 Ephraim is joined to idols;
    leave him alone!
18 Even when their drinks are gone,
    they continue their prostitution;
    their rulers dearly love shameful ways.
19 A whirlwind will sweep them away,
    and their sacrifices will bring them shame.

Observation:

Hosea continues to speak for God concerning the people of Israel’s waywardness. God says,: They will eat but not have enough; they will engage in prostitution but not flourish, because they have deserted the Lord to give themselves to prostitution; old wine and new wine take away their understanding.
My people consult a wooden idol, and a diviner’s rod speaks to them. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God.” (Hosea 4:10-12)

Application:

Our Lord is not willing for us to have any other gods but the One True God. Hosea speaks of diving rods and wooden idols that the people of Israel have turned to. He speaks of unfaithful sexual relations as another god for God gave us sexuality to be used in faithful marital relationships - to be fruitful and multiply and to fill the earth. But we use sexuality as entertainment which in God’s eyes is worshipping other gods.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, thank you for these sobering words from the prophet Hosea which exposes the gods that we find ourselves worshipping. We have been unfaithful to you our Holy God who is all good and worthy of all of our love and worship. Allow these words from Hosea to sink down deep into our thoughts, minds, and souls to help us worship and follow only you. For you are God alone, and there is no other. Amen.

Day 47 - February 16, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 3:1-4:3

Hosea’s Reconciliation With His Wife

3 The Lord said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.”

2 So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley. 3 Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way toward you.”

4 For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or household gods. 5 Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.

The Charge Against Israel

4 Hear the word of the Lord, you Israelites,
    because the Lord has a charge to bring
    against you who live in the land:
“There is no faithfulness, no love,
    no acknowledgment of God in the land.
2 There is only cursing, lying and murder,
    stealing and adultery;
they break all bounds,
    and bloodshed follows bloodshed.
3 Because of this the land dries up,
    and all who live in it waste away;
the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky
    and the fish in the sea are swept away.

Observation:

Hosea is instructed to love his unfaithful wife to demonstrate how God loves the adulterous and unfaithful Israel. “The Lord said to me, ‘Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.’” (Hosea 3:1)

Application:

The nation of Israel was unfaithful to God, worshipping other gods who were not God. So too, we can be unfaithful to our God, allowing other things to crowd out our devotion to God. Yet, as the prophet Hosea demonstrated God’s unconditional love, we are reminded that God loves us even when we have not loveable. Therefore, we should be ever thankful to our God who wants us to be in a forever loving relationship with our God.

Prayer:

Lord, the truth is that we have all fallen short of your glory, yet you desire us to receive your forgiveness and grace. You desire us to grow into the grace that you have provided for us that we may also be extenders of your grace to a world that is not worthy of our grace. But, because you showed us your love and your grace, we also as forgiven and reconciled children of the Living Lord, should show love and grace to those who do not deserve it. Help us to live into your grace and love by using that grace to reach other souls to your care. Amen.

Day 46 - February 15, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 2:2-23

Israel Punished and Restored

2 “Rebuke your mother, rebuke her,
    for she is not my wife,
    and I am not her husband.
Let her remove the adulterous look from her face
    and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.
3 Otherwise I will strip her naked
    and make her as bare as on the day she was born;
I will make her like a desert,
    turn her into a parched land,
    and slay her with thirst.
4 I will not show my love to her children,
    because they are the children of adultery.
5 Their mother has been unfaithful
    and has conceived them in disgrace.
She said, ‘I will go after my lovers,
    who give me my food and my water,
    my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink.’
6 Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
    I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.
7 She will chase after her lovers but not catch them;
    she will look for them but not find them.
Then she will say,
    ‘I will go back to my husband as at first,
    for then I was better off than now.’
8 She has not acknowledged that I was the one
    who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil,
who lavished on her the silver and gold—
    which they used for Baal.

9 “Therefore I will take away my grain when it ripens,
    and my new wine when it is ready.
I will take back my wool and my linen,
    intended to cover her naked body.
10 So now I will expose her lewdness
    before the eyes of her lovers;
    no one will take her out of my hands.
11 I will stop all her celebrations:
    her yearly festivals, her New Moons,
    her Sabbath days—all her appointed festivals.
12 I will ruin her vines and her fig trees,
    which she said were her pay from her lovers;
I will make them a thicket,
    and wild animals will devour them.
13 I will punish her for the days
    she burned incense to the Baals;
she decked herself with rings and jewelry,
    and went after her lovers,
    but me she forgot,”
declares the Lord.

14 “Therefore I am now going to allure her;
    I will lead her into the wilderness
    and speak tenderly to her.
15 There I will give her back her vineyards,
    and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.
There she will respond as in the days of her youth,
    as in the day she came up out of Egypt.

16 “In that day,” declares the Lord,
    “you will call me ‘my husband’;
    you will no longer call me ‘my master.’
17 I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips;
    no longer will their names be invoked.
18 In that day I will make a covenant for them
    with the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky
    and the creatures that move along the ground.
Bow and sword and battle
    I will abolish from the land,
    so that all may lie down in safety.
19 I will betroth you to me forever;
    I will betroth you in righteousness and justice,
    in love and compassion.
20 I will betroth you in faithfulness,
    and you will acknowledge the Lord.

21 “In that day I will respond,”
    declares the Lord—
“I will respond to the skies,
    and they will respond to the earth;
22 and the earth will respond to the grain,
    the new wine and the olive oil,
    and they will respond to Jezreel.
23 I will plant her for myself in the land;
    I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’
I will say to those called ‘Not my people,[i]’ ‘You are my people’;
    and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”

Observation:

Hosea continues the prophecy where Israel is compared to an unfaithful wife who follows other lovers. In the day of Hosea, many of the Israelites were worshipping Baal whom they thought blessed them with fruit from the land. Our God is a jealous God and wants no other God’s before Him. So, he promises to remove his love and let her (Israel) lay barren. Yet God does not want this condition for Israel forever and then God speaking through the prophet Hosea says that he will pursue her. God says: “I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the Lord.” (Hosea 2:19-20) And finally God says: “I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people,’ ‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.’” (Hosea 2:23)

Application:

God alone is God and there is no other. Yet, even today we worship other gods. We place other things in front of our Lord and look at things, passions, desires, etc. over our God. The Lord desires a forever relationship with us and God provides the way for that to happen. While we were yet in our sins, God sent his Son Jesus to provide the perfect sacrifice to atone for our sins, and even though we just need to receive that precious gift of eternal life, many reject Jesus because they want to be in charge of their own lives.

Prayer:

Lord God, thank you for loving us with your unconditional love. Although we were apart from you, desiring other gods, you provided a way for our salvation in Jesus Christ. The price Jesus paid for us proves your love for us. Help us who were not your people to become your people changed and justified through your healing love of us. Help us also to love as you love and provide for others our testimony of your saving and healing love. Once we were no people, but now through your love we have become your people and you are our God. Amen.

Day 45 - February 14, 2025

Scripture: Hosea 1:1-2:1

1 The word of the Lord that came to Hosea son of Beeri during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the reign of Jeroboam son of Jehoash king of Israel:

Hosea’s Wife and Children

2 When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the Lord.” 3 So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

4 Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call him Jezreel, because I will soon punish the house of Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel. 5 In that day I will break Israel’s bow in the Valley of Jezreel.”

6 Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call her Lo-Ruhamah (which means “not loved”), for I will no longer show love to Israel, that I should at all forgive them. 7 Yet I will show love to Judah; and I will save them—not by bow, sword or battle, or by horses and horsemen, but I, the Lord their God, will save them.”

8 After she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, Gomer had another son. 9 Then the Lord said, “Call him Lo-Ammi (which means “not my people”), for you are not my people, and I am not your God.

10 “Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted. In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’ 11 The people of Judah and the people of Israel will come together; they will appoint one leader and will come up out of the land, for great will be the day of Jezreel.

2 “Say of your brothers, ‘My people,’ and of your sisters, ‘My loved one.’

Observation:

God used the prophet Hosea to demonstrate Israel’s unfaithful relationship with God. He instructed Hosea to marry a woman whom he knew would not be faithful to him to show how Israel had not been faithful to God. Yet even after saying through the prophet Hosea that the people of Israel would not be forgiven and that they were not the people of God, God instructed Hosea to say: “Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted. In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’” (Hosea 1:10) He tells Hosea “Yet I will show love to Judah; and I will save them—not by bow, sword or battle, or by horses and horsemen, but I, the Lord their God, will save them.” (Hosea 1:7)

Application:

God shows his infinite love through the prophet Hosea, that he would save even the unfaithful Israel by bringing them back together with Judah and the Lord, God’s self will save them and they will be called, “My loved one.” (Hosea 2:1)

Prayer:

Dear Lord, your Word shows us that we are unfaithful and not worthy of your love. Even the chosen people of God have turned away from you. Yet You, yourself will save your people by your own hand and we will be loved by you. For Your love is an Amazing forgiving love that overcomes even our darkest and unfaithful days. Please help us to be appreciative of your love and live into the forgiveness that you have given us. Help us to love as you love that the darkness of this world would be overcome by your amazing love, a love that you place in us. Amen.

Day 44, February 13, 2025

Scripture: 3 John 1:1-14

1 The elder,

To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth.

2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. 3 It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

5 Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. 7 It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. 8 We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth.

9 I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us. 10 So when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.

11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. 12 Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone—and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true.

13 I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face

Observation:

“Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God.” (3 John 1:11)

Application:

It seems that even in the early church there was division and jealousy. After all, we are still human and we are capable of wrong decisions. John, however, recommends that we stay close to God and not imitate that which is evil, instead we should be imitators of Jesus.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, the bible reminds us that we have all fallen short of your glory and not one of us is good in our own righteousness. Help us then to continue to imitate your son, our Lord Jesus. Help us through your Holy Spiri, that is with us and in us, to remain in your love and therefore be lovers of the others in our lives. Help us not to imitate evil and jealousy for they are not of you, but help us to follow Jesus. Amen.

Day 43 - February 12,, 2025

Scripture: 2 John 1:1-13

1 The elder,

To the lady chosen by God and to her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I only, but also all who know the truth— 2 because of the truth, which lives in us and will be with us forever:

3 Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.

4 It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5 And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.

7 I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. 9 Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them. 11 Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work.

12 I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.

13 The children of your sister, who is chosen by God, send their greetings.

Observation:

“And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.” (2 John 1:5-6)

Application:

The overarching theme in all of Scripture can be summed up in one Word - Love. God is Love and in him there is no darkness at all. If we love one-another God is in us and his Joy is made complete in us. If we do not love, God is not in us. So, love!

Prayer:

God Almighty, Father of us all who are called to follow Jesus, bless us with a faith that moves mountains and help us through your Spirit to love, even if we are not loved! For that is the way you love us. You sent your Son, Jesus, to sacrifice himself for the atonement of our sins while we were yet sinners and while we were planning to sin. That proves your amazing love for us. Bless us as your children to love you first and then all those who come into our lives, for you are the author and perfector of our love. Amen.

Day 42 - February 11, 2025

Scripture: 1 John 5:13-21

Concluding Affirmations

13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray, and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death.

18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. 19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 20 We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

Observation:

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.” (1 John 5:13-15)

We can be confident that God hears our prayers when we pray in accordance with God’s will.

Application:

If we believe in Jesus as God’s Son and our Savior, the Holy Spirit is in us and with us. When we pray in the name of Jesus, that is in the character and the will of Jesus, we can be confident that God hears our prayers and answers them in accordance with his will. We have been given this assurance because our faith in God and our prayer in his will can move mountains. God desires us to have faith and trust in Jesus and to use that faith in fervent pray as we conform to and our shaped by God’s will for our lives.

Prayer:

Father God Almighty, grant us the faith that can move mountains. Let your Word and your Spirit fill our hearts and our minds that we might live a life more reflective of your Son, Jesus. As we grow in your love, may we love others like you love us. Help us to pray in accordance with your will for our lives and help us to join you in the kingdom building that you desire of us. Amen.

Day 40 - February 9, 2025

Scripture: 1 John 4:7-21

God’s Love and Ours

7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister

Observation:

“We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” (1 John 4:19-21)

Application:

Love others, not because they deserve your love, but because God first loved us who were sinners and enemies of God. Yet, God loved us and saved us. Therefore, love others as an extension of the love that God given us. If we claim to be of God and hate a brother or sister, then we are liars, and the truth of God is not in us. But if we truly believe in Jesus, his Spirit is within us enabling us to fully love the others in our lives. So love others as God has loved us.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, thank you for loving me and showing me your son through the testimony of your word and the Holy Spirit who has revealed Jesus as your Son, our Lord and Savior. Help me to love others as you have loved us. Amen.

Day 41 - February 10, 2025

Scripture: 1 John 5:1-12

Faith in the Incarnate Son of God

5 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

6 This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. 9 We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Observation:

“And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1 John 5:11-12)

Simple, whoever believes that God sent his son, Jesus into the world to save us has eternal life in Christ.

Application:

`If we believe in Jesus Christ as God’s son and place our faith in him as sent by God to save us, we have eternal life in Jesus Christ. Therefore, we should be living as new creations with the Spirit of God within us. So believe and you will have eternal life in his name.

Prayer:

Oh Lord, bless us as your children, by the testimony of God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and by the blood testimony that Jesus shed for us, to be true believers in your Son, Jesus Christ. Then as your children, help us to live lives that are reflective of Christ in us, the hope of glory. Amen.

Day 39 - February 8, 2025

Scripture: 1 John 4:1-6

On Denying the Incarnation

4 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

Observation:

“This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.” (1 John 4:2-3)

Application:

Today’s reading from 1 John 4:1-6 is all about having a spirit of discernment. We should test everything that we hear to see if it actually comes from God. John writes that “Every Spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God. If the incarnate Jesus is not acknowledged, then that spirit is a false spirit, and God is not in them. He then goes on to write: “… the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4) We need not listen to or be swayed by any falsehood because the Spirit of the Living God who is in us, is greater than those who are in the world. Listen to God’s Spirit in you and not in the testimony of the world being led by other spirits.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, give us a Spirit of discernment that we may recognize the teachings and direction that come from you. Help us to dismiss any false teaching, recognizing that it does not come from you, but the world. For greater are you Lord, who is in us, than he who is in the world. Amen.