September 12

Isaiah 10:1-11:16, Corinthians 12:11-21, Psalm 56:1-13, Proverbs 23:6-8 



Pray: “This I know: God is on my side!” (Psalm 56:9). What a great and comforting thought. The psalmist penned these words even as he considered that his enemies were coming after him. Are you dealing with some tough decisions, difficult people, or even outright persecution from enemies who are trying to tear you down? Know this: God is on your side!!! In your prayer time, share with the Lord your concerns, but also (and perhaps more importantly) give praise to the God who never leaves you nor forsakes you and is always on your side.

Read: We recently had some trees removed from our yard and we were certain we didn’t want stumps left, so we had them ground up. After all, nobody wants a yard full of stumps, right? It’s a reminder of what used to be, it looks incomplete, it’s out of place. Yet, we find that something incredible can come from even a stump. “Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot - yes, a new brand bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him…” (Isaiah 11:1-2a). What is God trying to cut out of your life so that He can grow something new, something far better?

Edify: How do you get ahead or even manage day-to-day life? Isaiah 10 asks important questions: “But can the ax boast greater power than the person who uses it? Is the saw greater than the person who saws? Can a rod strike unless a hand moves it? Can a wooden cane walk by itself?” (v 15). It’s important to remember the real source of strength. These questions, though rhetorical, remind us that the ax, saw, rod, or cane are powerless unless they’re in the hands of one who can use them. We are gifted and skilled in a variety of ways. Yet, it makes all the difference in the world (and for the world) when we remember the source of our strength is the Lord God. We are the ax, the saw, the rod, the wooden cane. It is only when we place ourselves in the hands of God that we can do anything useful.

Practice: The lesson from Proverbs today, and many days, is one to which we should pay careful attention. It’s all about the types of people we allow into our lives. Study upon study, and our own common sense, tells us that we become like the people we surround ourselves with. We lecture young persons about choosing friends wisely, but somehow we forget that applies to us as well. With whom do you spend your time? Is he/she a positive influence and adding value to your life? If not, maybe it’s time for a change.

September 11

Isaiah 8:1-9:21, 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, Psalm 55:1-23, Proverbs 23:4-5 



Pray: “But shouldn’t people ask God for guidance?” (Isaiah 8:19). It’s a novel idea, isn’t it? We search all over for answers. We go to Google, Wikipedia, and YouTube to figure out things. Have we consulted God? Seek Him today. Ask for His guidance and direction. Other sources give information, but only God gives transformation.

Read: Is it Christmas? Isaiah 9 is a familiar passage read in most churches around Christmastime. Did you know that the word “Christmas” literally means Christ’s mission? During the celebratory season of Christmas, we sing, preach, and worship…all centered around the fact that “a child is born to us, a son is given to us…” (Isaiah 9:6). Yet, His mission was so much bigger than His birth. It’s extremely important, to be sure, but there is more. Is it Christmas? Is it time for the mission of Christ? For the follower of Christ, every day should be Christmas…every day should be the day we participate in the redemptive mission of our Lord!

Edify: What are your weaknesses? Can you state your character flaws/defects? In Celebrate Recovery, that’s a huge part of the process of growth. We can’t improve upon what we refuse to admit exists. The Apostle Paul writes that he has a “thorn” in his “flesh” in 2 Corinthians 12. There is much speculation about what that might be, but specificity aside, it’s refreshing to hear a man admit he’s not perfect. How does Paul deal with his thorn? He goes to God, he takes comfort in the grace of God, and he boasts about being weak! He allows his weakness to be used to glorify God’s strength. How is God's strength showing up in your weaknesses?

Practice: At 19 years old, my friend Jim decided to try day-trading in the stock market. He quickly took a few hundred bucks and amassed a little over a quarter of a million dollars. That sounds like a success story, but it’s not. His obsession with wealth turned into something he could no longer control. His $250,000+ began to drop. Before long, he lost all his earnings and even lost the few hundred with which he started. Solomon warns us about the pursuit of wealth: “In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle” (Proverbs 23:5). Wealth is not evil, it’s not a bad thing. Solomon is warning us, though, not to be consumed by it, nor to allow it to become our aim/goal in life. 

September 10

Isaiah 6:1-7:25, 2 Corinthians 11:16-33, Psalm 54:1-7, Proverbs 23:1-3



Pray: Lord, thank You for Your greatness. Thank You that when I am weak, You are strong. Lord, the Devil is scheming and I know he desires to keep me from spending time with You. Don’t let him win! Give me a measure of Your strength so that I might not give into discouragement, deception and doubt! Help me honor You in all my ways. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Read: In yet another attempt to keep the people of Corinth focused on their mission, he lists his credentials to more fully express his authority and that it came from God and not himself. Paul wanted to keep the people committed to the work of the church and the sharing of the Good News and not fall victim to the false teachings that were floating around Corinth at the time. Our culture is spouting many false teachings as well. It is critical to the vitality of the church for us to stay ever vigilant and focused on the work that must be done, in Jesus' name, so that we don’t fall victim to the false teachings today. 

Edify: Satan is working overtime to keep you and I so busy that we can’t possibly find time to love one another. Satan gives us the illusion that people don’t want to be complimented, or have someone say thank you, or have someone hold the door for them. We have created a world where we think we can live in our own little bubbles and have minimal contact with others and live a fulfilled life. This, my friends, is a lie straight from the pits of Hell. We NEED one another. We can’t do this life without them. Take a minute to let someone else know how important they are to you!

Practice: How are you going to do something today to further the work of the Kingdom of God here on Earth?  Take a few minutes today and go and love your neighbor. Do something that will make a difference in the life of someone else. It doesn’t have to cost anything or take a long time to do, but choose to make a difference in the life of another of God’s children today!

September 9

Isaiah 3:1-5:30, 2 Corinthians 11:1-15, Psalm 53:1-6, Proverbs 22:28-29 



Pray: Lord, help me not to lean on my own understanding but in everything acknowledge You so that You can direct my words, thoughts and actions. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Read: Paul confronts the false teaching that was going on in and around Corinth because it put the work and the ministry of the church in jeopardy. Paul didn’t want the Corinthians to lose their single-minded love for Christ. The same is true for us today… keeping Christ first in our lives can be difficult when we have so many distractions threatening to sidetrack our faith. It can be easy to lose focus. when we lose focus, we lose momentum. When we lose momentum, we stop taking ground for Christ. Paul was worried about the potential loss of momentum and decided to address it head on.  

Edify: Have you ever heard someone say something that made you ask yourself, “Is that really true?” It is this very kind of thing that Paul is talking about. There is a saying that is heard throughout pastoral gatherings and along the halls of seminaries that goes, “Within every heresy is a seed of the truth.” That is the difficult thing about discerning truth from untruth… sometimes there is a little bit of truth within the lie. Our culture is teaching some of these things every day. The media is plastering it across our television and computer screens. It is our job to make sure that we are vigilant with all that we hear and when necessary filter information through the lens of Scripture to determine its validity. Be cautious out there with what you take at face value!

Practice: Pray for discernment when it comes to the things of this world. We are inundated with more information than we can manage and it is within this information dump that we may get ourselves in trouble by making choices without the proper information. Don’t rush to a decision, rather, take time in prayer and discernment before committing to anything.

September 8

Isaiah 1:1-2:22, 2 Corinthians 10:1-18, Psalm 52:1-9, Proverbs 22:26-27

Pray: Father, I have to thank You for looking beyond my faults and for loving me unconditionally. Forgive me when I fail to love others in the same way. Give me eyes to see the needs of the difficult people in my life, and show me how to meet those needs in a way that pleases You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Read: I’m sure you’ve never been in a church that questioned the authority of the pastor but it happened in the church at Corinth. Paul planted this church and left on a missionary journey, leaving it in the capable hands of others. In his absence, there arose a group, which began to question his authority saying that he was bold in his letters, but had no authority in person. Paul fights back against those claims in our reading today in second Corinthians. He reminded the people that he had been given authority by God and that it was God’s work and ministry that he was doing, not his own. Have you ever had your authority challenged? Has anyone ever accused you of hijacking the mission for your own glory?

Edify: When you are the leader, you will face challenges and adversity. It is vital for all leaders to always stay focused on the mission at hand and not listen to the nay-sayers in the crowd. When Joel Osteen was interviewed following the social media chaos over Lakewood’s alleged refusal to open the doors of the church to those displaced by the flooding of Hurricane Harvey, he was asked about all of the people who were talking so negatively about him (Osteen) and the church. He was asked if he had read the reports. Osteen’s response impressed me. He said, and I paraphrase, that there will always be people who talk negatively about you and that he didn’t read or listen to those reports. He said that there were more important things that needed to be done than for him (and the church) to listen to the voices of those trying to keep them from their task. 

Practice: Don’t listen to the negative voices around you that may be trying to tear you down or keep you from being focused on your task at hand. Remain focused on the mission that God has called you to in this season and on this day.  

September 7

Song of Solomon 5:1-8:14, 2 Corinthians 9:1-15, Psalm 51:1-1, Proverbs 22:24-25

Pray: Father, today I ask for forgiveness of all the negative and harmful words I have spoken about myself. I do not want to abuse myself in such a way again. Transform my thoughts and let me understand how marvelously you made me. Change my habits so I use my tongue to speak hope and favor upon my life. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Read: In Paul’s second letter to the church at Corinth, he reminds the people to fulfill their commitment that they had made to send money to the church in Jerusalem. Paul uses some powerful imagery to help the worshipers realize the importance of their gift and how God will provide for their needs. Have you ever been reluctant to give generously to the church for fear of not having enough to meet your own needs? Sure, we all have! Paul reminds us that if we plant only a few seeds then there will be only a small crop but if we plant generously then there will be a generous crop with a much greater return than our initial investment. Paul also reminds us that our heart toward our giving is just as important as the giving itself. We are to give with a grateful heart and with great cheer and not out of pressure to do so. 

Edify: It’s easy to look at a church and see them as doing nothing more than beggin' for money. However, the reality is that if it weren’t for the generous support of givers in the church, the mission and ministry of the church could not and would not happen. Scripture tells us that our giving to the mission of the church is yet another demonstration of our trust and faith in God. Paul reminds us today that it is not out of obligation or duty that we should give but out of a love and devotion to God and the mission of the church. There is a double edged sword that comes with giving… one is that it is absolutely necessary so that the Kingdom efforts can continue here on earth and the other is that we need to give to demonstrate our trust and faith in God.

Practice: Will you pray for our Vision 2:28 campaign? Will you pray for life change to occur during this campaign? Also, we ask that you will pray for how you can be a part of the campaign if you have not already been a part? What will your sacrificial gift be to the kingdom of God and to the future of God’s church through Christ Church? No matter where you find yourself financially, there is a place for you at the table of God and in Vision 2:28. We have said it often, and will continue to say, “It’s not about equal gifts, but equal sacrifice.”

September 6

Song of Solomon 1:1-4:16, 2 Corinthians 8:16-24, Psalm 50:1-23, Proverbs 22:22-23

Pray: Lord, grant me tenacious, winsome courage as I go through this day. When I am tempted to give up, help me to keep going. Grant me a cheerful spirit when things don't go my way. And give me courage to do whatever needs to be done. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Read: Saturated with stories of sexual escapades, secret rendezvous, and extramarital affairs, today’s media teaches that immorality means freedom, perversion is natural, and commitment is old fashioned. Sex, created by God and pronounced good in Eden, has been twisted, exploited, and turned into an urgent, illicit, casual, and self-gratifying activity. Love has turned to lust, giving into getting, and lasting commitment into “no strings attached”. There is much debate over the meaning of this song. Some say it is allegorical for God’s love of Israel and the church, others see it as a literal story of married love. Most say it is both. As we begin to read from Song of Solomon, remember that you are loved by God, and commit yourself to seeing life, sex and marriage from His point of view.

Edify: I love the practicality, the honesty that is practiced in the Bible. In second Corinthians we hear of “another brother” traveling with Paul and Titus. The churches that Paul and Titus were traveling to elected this man as an accountability partner for Paul and Titus as they deliver the large financial gift to Jerusalem. While there was never any accusation of wrongdoing, it was just a practice. Paul explained that by traveling together there could be no suspicion and people would know that the gift was being handled honestly. The church did not need to worry that the bearers of the gift would misuse the money.  

Practice: Take a few minutes today to think about your own accountability practices. What safeguards do you have in your life that keep you from “running aground” in even the calmest of weather? Do you have boundaries in your interactions with others? Do you have safeguards in place on your technology? What could you do better in an effort to ensure that no one could ever accuse you of not living above reproach?