Daily Devotion for April 11, 2026

Devotion:

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Read Habakkuk 3:18-19.

Habakkuk lived in an era when everything around him felt unstable. His nation was collapsing, judgment was coming, and nothing in his world felt secure. Yet, instead of despair, he ends his prophecy with, God will make my feet like deer’s feet. Habakkuk teaches us that God gives His people the ability to stand, move, and keep going even when the path is steep. Sometimes God does not make the path easier but strengthens us so we don’t slip. Sometimes God changes our path and at other times changes our footing.

A wildlife photographer captured an image of a mountain goat standing on the side of a vertical cliff. It was calm, steady, and sure-footed on a surface that seemed impossible. Their hooves can grip cracks on a cliff. When life feels steep, rocky, and dangerous, God gives us the ability to move with balance, faith, and courage in places that should overwhelm us. Let us trust in God’s strength for stability and steadiness.

Personal Worship Option:

Gracious God, You are my strength. When life feels steep and uncertain, make my feet like the feet of a deer. Give me confidence where I feel afraid, stability where I feel shaky, and peace where I feel overwhelmed. Lead me to the high places where I can see Your faithfulness more clearly. In Jesus holy name. Amen.

Daily Devotion for April 10, 2026

Devotion:

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Read John 7:37-39.

If we are thirsty for God, let us go to Jesus so He can fill us to the point that out of us come rivers of living water. We long for this filling yet it just seems to be out of reach at times. Maybe it’s HOW we try to quench this thirst.   

Think about the difference between a cistern and a well. A cistern has to be filled with water or collect water from the outside. It is not self-renewing and can run dry. On the other hand, a flowing artesian well has water that bubbles up under its own pressure with its cool and refreshing blessing. This same difference exists between a person trying to be spiritual based on his or her own efforts and a Spirit-filled person. When we become Christians, Jesus blesses us with his Spirit. The Spirit's presence and power in our lives make all the difference in the world. The Spirit is living water inside of us, renewing us, refreshing us, empowering us, slaking our spiritual thirst, and giving us life. Living for Jesus is more than just a spiritual commitment on our part requiring our effort; it also depends on the gift and the blessing of Jesus enabled by his Spirit. (excerpt from heartlight.org) Each day we have the opportunity to be renewed and refreshed by the Spirit. May we choose to be embraced by His love so that flows to everyone that crosses our path today.

Personal Worship Option:

Lord, I feel drained and weary in my spiritual walk with you. I have looked and run after things that leave me unsatisfied. Help me to seek fulfillment and contentment from you alone. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Daily Devotion for April 09, 2026

Devotion:

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Read Psalm 143:6.

This verse models an honest cry for God's presence. When life feels dry, overwhelming, or broken, this verse invites us to stop trying to fix things ourselves and surrender our needs to the only One who can truly satisfy our souls. In this Psalm David describes his inner life as a "parched land". It is a picture of total dependence, a dry, cracked landscape that must have rain to survive. Similarly, our souls often feel depleted by stress and anxiety. This verse encourages us to stop pretending we have it all together and admit our desperate need for God's refreshing presence and love. 

Spreading out our hands is a gesture of surrender. It means letting go of control and acknowledging God as our source of life. It is a shift from focusing on the problem to focusing on God. We need to make sure that our soul stays full with God’s spirit.  

Personal Worship Option:

God, I confess that sometimes my soul feels dry and weary. Like a parched land, I need the rain of Your presence. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and satisfy my thirsty soul today. Amen.

Daily Devotion for April 08, 2026

Devotion:

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Read Psalm 63:1.

The Psalmist writes that his very soul thirsts for God, and that “my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” (Ps. 63:1b NRSV). One of the many things I like about the Psalms is that they reflect every facet of human existence. David and the other writers of the Psalms rejoice in God, complain to God, beg from God and feel reassured from God…..if it is an experienced human emotion then someone has written about it in the Psalms!  Today’s passage reflects David’s attitude when he was scared and in the wilderness. He was in a bleak spot, but also in his own spiritual wilderness. Sometimes the spiritual wildernesses are more difficult for us to get away from. So David seeks the goodness of God, and goes on in this Psalm to remember how God has repeatedly rescued him before during other tough times. God did it then and God can do it again! For David and for us, it is a good reminder that even in the midst of the most difficult wilderness, we are never alone. God is with us - and his steadfast love never ceases.

Personal Worship Option:

Lord, we thank you for your steadfast love in every season of our life. Amen

Daily Devotion for April 07, 2026

Devotion:

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Read Psalm 42:1-3.

These verses paint a powerful picture of deep spiritual longing. Just as a deer desperately seeks water to survive, the psalmist expresses a desperate thirst for God. This is not a casual interest or occasional thought about God—it is a deep, soul-level need. The psalmist recognizes that true life and satisfaction come only from the presence of the living God.

Yet these words are written during a time of sorrow and struggle. The psalmist speaks of tears and of people questioning God’s presence. In difficult seasons, it can feel as though God is distant, and others may even challenge our faith. But even in this pain, the psalmist’s desire for God does not fade—it grows stronger.

This passage reminds us that spiritual thirst is not a weakness but a sign of life. When our hearts long for God, it shows that we know where true hope is found. Just as water revives a weary deer, God refreshes and sustains our souls.

When life feels overwhelming or when God seems far away, let that longing draw you closer to Him. Seek Him in prayer, in His Word, and in worship. The same God our souls thirst for is the One who promises to satisfy that thirst with His presence. 

Personal Worship Option:

Lord, create in me a deep hunger and thirst for You. When I feel weary or discouraged, remind me that You alone satisfy my soul. Draw me closer to Your presence and renew my strength in You. Amen.

Daily Devotion for April 06, 2026

Devotion:

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Read Acts 1:8.

We sometimes read about God entering into the lives of Biblical characters like Moses, David, Saul who became Paul, and others; and this just seems like something that happened to others and that could never happen to us. But this announcement from Jesus to the apostles should be heard as a personal announcement to each one of us who choose to follow Christ. 

When we become Christians, the Holy Spirit comes into our lives, to give us spiritual gifts and to give us the power to use them. This is a very powerful thing that we often fail to see and understand, which means we then fail to respond. There is a grave danger that we profess our faith in Christ and join the church as if we were simply becoming members of a social group or community service organization. In this verse, Jesus is telling the apostles and us that, filled with the Holy Spirit, we will be Christ’s witnesses in our communities, in areas a bit further away, in areas and with people who may not like us, and even in far distant places. 

Personal Worship Option:

Reflect on how the Holy Spirit is acting in and through you. Do you know which gifts the Spirit has given you? Are you using those to serve others through the church? Find more and more places and ways to be witnesses for Christ, and the Spirit will bless you for it.

Daily Devotion for April 05, 2026

Devotion:

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Read Matthew 28:1-6 .

The traditional greeting on Easter Sunday for the pastor to the congregation is CHRIST IS RISEN! The congregational responds, HE IS RISEN INDEED! I am grateful today that we serve a risen savior.

Over the last 2000 years skeptics have tried to disprove the Resurrection of Jesus. They have used logic, reason, philosophy, science, and lies to prove their point. Professor Thomas Arnold of Oxford University in England was a history professor who spent his whole life looking critically at different eras of history to determine what is true, what is exaggerated, and what is false. When he researched the period of history in which Christ lived, he discovered that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the best documented event in history He goes on to say that there is more historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus than there is for the fall of the Roman Empire. He states, “if we cannot believe in the resurrection, we cannot believe any of our history books.”

Let us celebrate our resurrected Lord today and every day!

Personal Worship Option:

Resurrected Jesus, This morning we come before You with hearts overflowing with joy and gratitude. The stone is rolled away and the tomb is empty! On this glorious Easter morning, fill our hearts with the same wonder that filled the women at the tomb, and the same faith that ignited in the disciples. In Jesus name. Amen.