(*for Bible-Reading Men and Their Families)

Back to current Daily Help

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Monday, September 30, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Timothy 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 25 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan a week ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sampling of the OT’s books of wisdom and prophecy. This is why, for example, we jumped from Psalm 23 yesterday to Psalm 25 today.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:8 By oppression and judgment He was taken away; and as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due? – Isaiah prophesied that the ones who sinned and therefore deserved to die would kill the only one among them who had not sinned and therefore did not deserve to die. This, of course, happened most dramatically and most importantly with Jesus dying on the cross. But it’s a dynamic that still occurs…and is seen most dramatically and frequently these days in the abortion holocaust.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Why don’t you read the Bible for yourself and try to prove me wrong? (0:34)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): It used to be that Google was a way to find things on the internet. Nowadays, however, it plays God. I put in its search box this morning, “Does rape deserve the death penalty?” I expected to receive a list of links to various sources that have addressed this question – assuming the full spectrum of opinions pro and con would be represented. Instead, sitting at the very top of the list was Google AI’s (artificial intelligence) categorical declaration on the subject – “No, rape does not deserve the death penalty” – accompanied by a justification of that declaration. There was no equivocation in the AI response. On the contrary, there was not even a hint of an indication that there might be a reasonable basis for disagreement with Google’s answer. I feel like I’m living in a creepy science fiction movie where the computer guiding our spaceship has begun to go too far. Only this experience is all too real.

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Sunday, September 29, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Thessalonians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 23 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan a week ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sampling of the OT’s books of wisdom and prophecy.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Hebrews 1:1-2 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. – This is a mouthful. I’ve been chewing on it for years. Even with all I have digested from it, I know I have not come to the end of the nutrition it offers.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as the Apostle – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The New Testament might as well be engraved into a granite wall (0:56)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): The clouds of judgment are gathering over our nation. This is a time to be sober. It’s a time to focus on the family and turn our hearts toward home – to borrow a couple of well-worn but worthy phrases. (There was more to what James Dobson said than he realized.) When I say “family,” I mean primarily the nuclear family, but extended family is also important. Let Jesus Christ and the Bible be the centerpiece of every family. This is the ark of salvation by which you and yours will ride out the storm. It will be no small storm.

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Saturday, September 28, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Thessalonians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 22 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan close to a week ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sampling of the OT’s books of Wisdom and Prophecy. This is why, for example, we jumped from Psalm 19 yesterday to Psalm 22 today.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 8:23-24 And [Jesus] was saying to them, “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” – Those words apply to you and me in the 21st century just as surely as they applied to the 1st-century Jews with whom Jesus was speaking.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Romans 16:25-27 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Dried Ink Doesn’t Move (0:59)
• Weekly Video: A Question for Homeschoolers (11:52)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): The prophet Jeremiah, who lived in the 6th-7th centuries BC, asked, “Has a nation changed gods when they were not gods?” (Jer 2:11) He was referring to his own nation: ancient Israel. That question, however, can be asked in the 21st century about America. And the answer is, “Yes, America has changed, forsaking the God of the Bible for secularism – that is, things that are not God.” One of the truest things Barack Obama has ever said, sad to say, is, “Whatever we once were, we are no longer a Christian nation – at least, not just.” And that’s why America’s present and future look so bleak and forbidding. But for those American men and their families who continue to look to the Son of God, He will always make a place for them in the eye of the storm.

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Friday, September 27, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Thessalonians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan close to a week ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sampling of the OT’s books of Wisdom and Prophecy. This is why, for example, we jumped from Psalm 16 yesterday to Psalm 19 today.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; like a lamb that is led to slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, so He did not open His mouth. – Isaiah prophesied of how Messiah would go to His death. Ecclesiastes 3:7 says there is “a time to be silent and a time to speak.” According to this wisdom, Jesus had spoken throughout His ministry, but kept silent when the world decided it had had enough of Him.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Israel” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Confess Your Own Sins – Not Someone Else’s (0:57)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): 1 Chronicles 12:32 Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do… – It’s hard to know what to do if we can’t recognize the signs of the times. That’s why I write about them.

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Thursday, September 26, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan close to a week ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sampling of the OT’s books of Wisdom and Prophecy.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Titus 3:14 Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful. – The word “pressing” in this instruction provides a helpful filter. You can’t do everything.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Romans 1:1-7 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Worship and Serve the Lord IN YOUR HOUSE! (1:01)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): “In more than 30 years of studying worldview, I’ve come to the conclusion that because you do what you believe, your worldview determines your lifestyle—and certainly worldview is at least partly responsible for a person’s mental health. My latest research shows a clear relationship between worldview and mental health. In fact, individuals who lack a biblical worldview are more likely to struggle with…increasingly common mental health issues.” – Demographer George Barna, commenting on his latest research (released September 24, 2024).

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Wednesday, September 25, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan a few days ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sampling of the OT’s books of Wisdom and Prophecy. This is why, for example, we jumped from Psalm 8 yesterday to Psalm 15 today.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 8:12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” – This statement explains so much! (If that’s not obvious to you, you must be walking in darkness.)
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is Our Beer-lahai-roi – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Christianity Is about Christ – Not Christians (0:54)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): Regarding the article and quotation from it that was in this space yesterday (see below), God is stirring men – particularly young men. Today’s churches, because of their inherent narcissism, will not be able to satisfy the awakened needs of men’s souls. Jesus Christ and the Bible can and will satisfy such men. Meanwhile, feminism is misleading women more than ever. But as men find their footing in God, women – one by one – will follow them to God.

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Tuesday, September 24, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 21 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan a few days ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sampling of the OT’s books of Wisdom and Prophecy. This is why, for example, we jumped from Psalm 3 yesterday to Psalm 8 today.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him. – This prophecy of Isaiah’s from the Old Testament (8th century BC) was, of course, fulfilled by Jesus in the New Testament (1st century AD): John 10:11 “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in the Acts of the Apostles 2:22-24 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Centrality of Jesus Christ – Not God – in the Bible (0:51)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): “For the first time in modern American history, young men are now more religious than their female peers…‘We’ve never seen it before,’ Ryan Burge, an associate professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University, said of the flip. Among Generation Z Christians, this dynamic is playing out in a stark way: The men are staying in church, while the women are leaving at a remarkable clip…The men and women of Gen Z are also on divergent trajectories in almost every facet of their lives, including education, sexuality and spirituality.” [emphasis added] – New York Times, September 23, 2024 ***** I will say something about this tomorrow, but for today I just wanted you to be aware of it and ponder it.

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Monday, September 23, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 20 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan a few days ago, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sample of the OT’s books of Wisdom and Prophecy.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: 2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. – The “who” of the Bible is the Lord Jesus Christ; the “what” is righteousness. We study the “who” daily in order to do the “what” daily. Those who claim to know Jesus while living unrighteously are liars.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Mediator – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Biggest Problems in the World Are Sin and Death (0:51)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Signs of the Times (Matt 16:1-4; Eccl 1:9-10): In the 5th century BC, Sanballat and Tobiah did everything they could to discourage Nehemiah from building the wall around Jerusalem. Alas, we are now experiencing in America what would have happened in Jerusalem if Nehemiah had capitulated to Sanballat’s and Tobiah’s objections to his work.

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Sunday, September 22, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. Having completed the historical narrative portion of this Bible reading plan, we’re spending the remainder of the year reading through a representative sample of the OT’s books of Wisdom and Prophecy.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 7:38 “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'” – What a promise!
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in John 16:33 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible Is a Corpus – But Not a Corpse! (0:60)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: The purpose of noticing graphs like these is not to discourage or trouble us, but to sober us and make sure we realize what we – and especially our children – are up against so that we call on the Lord for His help.

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Saturday, September 21, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 18 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Colossians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Psalm 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. With Nehemiah, we reached the end of our historical time line for the OT; for the remainder of the year we’ll be reading a representative sampling the books of Wisdom and Prophecy in this reading plan. )

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. – Throughout his 53 chapter, Isaiah paints a vivid picture – eight centuries in advance – of Jesus suffering for our sins.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Solomon” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: We’ve Got to Get Back to the Bible (0:58)
• Weekly Video: Prepping for Heaven (15:19)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: We live in an age of deceit. One of the ways we can know this is the invention and use of words that communicate very little. After all, the purpose of words is communicate meaning, but people use terms today that actually withhold meaning. For example, the term “NGO” shows up in many news reports. Apparently, the first-ever use of this word was in the 1945 United Nations Charter. It stands for “non-governmental organization.” A word should tell you what something is – not what it is not. Does describing an organization as being something other than a government tell you very much? A bowling league would qualify for this definition, but I doubt this is what the UN had in mind. Nevertheless, news sources covering global news throw this word around as if it answers questions rather than raising them.

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Friday, September 20, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 17 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Colossians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. We’re skipping Neh 11-12 because they consist primarily of reference material rather than historical narrative.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: 2 Timothy 3:14-15 You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. – So much worth pondering in just this one sentence! For one thing, the Bible you have in your house = “the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” + the books of the New Testament that Timothy did not have.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in John 14:27 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Should the Bible Be Taken Literally? (0:56)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: “The good news is that our data shows the Bible makes a major difference. For instance, Gen Z reports far more clinical anxiety symptoms than any older group. But young adults who engage with the Bible—reading it regularly and applying it to their lives—experience half the anxiety of their peers.” – John Farquhar Plake, PhD, American Bible Society’s Chief Innovation Officer and editor-in-chief of the State of the Bible series. Unfortunately, the organization’s research also shows that “Gen Z Is the least Scripture-engaged generation.” Make sure your children become examples and not statistics. (According to Google AI, “Gen Z is is defined as the demographic group of people born between the mid-to-late 1990s and early 2010s, with the most common definition being 1997 to 2012. They are the generation after millennials and before Generation Alpha.”)

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Thursday, September 19, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Colossians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 6:51 “I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.” – Blessed are those who awaken every morning hungry for more of Jesus.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Master – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: What Is a Bible Thumper? (0:44)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: What a nation considers noteworthy or historical says a lot about that nation.

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Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Colossians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. – The prophet Isaiah describes the crucifixion of Messiah eight centuries before it happened.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in John 11:28-29 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible Is a Body (0:55)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Once a news source demonstrates that it is willing to lie to you, stop listening to it! “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” It is no small thing to be lied to. We need to stop taking it in stride!

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Tuesday, September 17, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Philippians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year. We’re skipping Neh 7 because it consists primarily of census material.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: 2 Timothy 3:12 Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. – Paul knew this better than most people because he had been a notorious persecutor before he became notoriously persecuted.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as the Intercessor – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus Is the Author of Faith (0:55)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: If a person is biblically illiterate, secular in his thinking, and, like most such people, has World War II looming large in his view of world history, then it will be a lot easier to convince him that he’d be doing the world a favor to kill any political leader he thinks will rule like Hitler. Pray that more people will read the Bible and follow the Lord of whom it speaks.

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Monday, September 16, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Philippians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 6:37 “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.” – I lean hard on the second half of that sentence.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Luke 19:10 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus Is the Editor of the Bible (0:57)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: In 1946, Winston Churchill described the Soviet Union’s subjugation of Eastern Europe as an “iron curtain” descending on the region. In our time, Western governments, including our own, have draped a “digital curtain” over their own peoples to control speech and thought. This curtain is being thickened and reinforced with each passing month. Something very similar happened in New Testament times when the first Christians – who were all Jews – were ostracized and stigmatized for speaking the truth about Jesus of Nazareth. Darkness is always trying to cover up the light…and never ultimately succeeding.

***

Sunday, September 15, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Philippians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:3 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. – Isaiah prophesies that God’s Messiah would not have an easy life.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Seth” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Aunt Millie’s Recipe for German Chocolate Cake (1:01)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Abortion is the signature sin of our age. By “signature,” I’m speaking in terms that Jesus used, as when He chastised the Pharisees and Sadducees for not recognizing “the signs of the times” (Matt 16:1-4). Connect the dots: “signature” and “sign.” But our sins go so much deeper and wider and than our most “significant” national sin. Even abortion itself is but the tip of an iceberg. For even if we could eliminate all abortions tomorrow, we’d still have the underlying problem that increasing numbers of women declare boldly that they simply do not want children. They’re taking joy – and even pride – in childlessness.

She's happy being child-free. Do you believe her? pic.twitter.com/lboeabvGNg

— Catch Up (@CatchUpFeed) August 24, 2024

How would you describe this video in one word? pic.twitter.com/tRBE8K6UpN

— (news) DOGE (@DOGE__news) September 2, 2024

***

Saturday, September 14, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Philippians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: 1 Timothy 2:5-6 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. – We read the Bible every day if for no other reason but to remind ourselves of what it cost Him to bring us back to Himself.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Matthew 18:1-4 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Why Do I Love the 1995 Version of the NASB? (1:01)
• Weekly Saturday Video: Prepping for the Calamities to Come (14:43)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Deuteronomy 31:8 “The LORD is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Our circumstances, however troubling they may be, are no worse than what the Lord Himself faced when He walked this earth. We are not on our own – we are following Him!

***

Friday, September 13, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Ephesians 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 6:35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.” – Notice how this statement dovetails with this one from the Sermon on the Mount: Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” We who go to the Bible to learn about the life of Jesus Christ find a feast of righteousness. Don’t be starved for righteousness – instead, feed on the King of Righteousness (Heb 7:1-2).
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Image of God – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Beware of the Leaven of the Jews and Christians (1:01)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: America’s two-party political system began as its Constitution was formulated, ratified, and implemented. From the beginning, there were God-fearing Bible believers in both political parties. Even during the Civil War, there were God-fearing people on both sides of the battle – clinging to the same Bible but interpreting it differently. But something has happened in the last 50 years that never happened in the previous 200 years. In the beginning of that 50-year period, both parties had pro- and anti-abortion members. But today that is clearly no longer the case. In one party, it is practically impossible to find a politician who does not support abortion as a right, while in the other party it is practically impossible to find one who does support it as a right. Thus, for the first time in our history, there has come to a be subject which has divided Americans both religiously and politically. And thus, for the first time in America’s history, it has become impossible to separate religion and politics. Note, by the way, that it was not God-fearing Bible believers who brought religion into politics – rather, it was political people who did so by urging people to vote for an abomination to God. For what are the inhabitants of a woman’s womb if not “the least of these”?

“The King will answer and say to them,
‘Truly I say to you,
to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine,
even the least of them,
you did it to Me’.”

Matthew 25:40

***

Thursday, September 12, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Ephesians 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:2 For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. – Isaiah is prophesying of the Messiah. How remarkable that no one would be able to detect the Savior of the world by His looks!
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Micah 6:8 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Be a Doer before Becoming a Teacher (0:44)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: The word “righteousness” is very prominent in the Bible, especially in the New Testament. It’s what God has always wanted from human beings, but do people today even understand what the word means? Google’s (Oxford’s) dictionary not only defines a word, it also graphs the frequency of a word’s usage over time. Click on this link, and you should see the graph for “righteousness” beneath the definition. (If you don’t see the graph, look for a bar that says, “See more ->” and click on that.) Notice how usage of this word has dramatically declined since the first half of the 19th century. This certainly matches America’s decline in biblical literacy over that period of time. As for the slight increase in the last 20-25 years, I don’t know what to think about that. The beginnings of a revival? I can only hope.

***

Wednesday, September 11, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Ephesians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Nehemiah 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: 1 Timothy 1:15 It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. – From the way this sentence is constructed, we can conclude that Paul was not trying to convince Timothy that Paul was the worst sinner of all. Rather, the beginning of the sentence about “a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance” indicates that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all” was a saying that believers in that day individually adopted to keep their hearts right. We can do the same. And it’s not false humility. I can honestly write to you that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I, Mike Gantt, am foremost of all” because I know my sins to a degree I could never know yours or anyone else’s. The same is true for every human being. If we are sufficiently aware of our own sins, we will never have a problem forgiving someone else of theirs.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Head – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Battlefield of the Mind (0:55)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: While I don’t agree with atheists who want to keep religion out of politics, I can understand why they think the way they do; but when religious people want to keep religion out of politics, I know there’s something fishy going on. Either they’re not being honest about their motives, or else their conception of God is unreasonably small.

***

Tuesday, September 10, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Ephesians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 5:39 “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;“ – The Scriptures of which Jesus spoke in this sentence were what we call the Old Testament. The more we obey Jesus, the better we come to know Him. And the better we know Him, the more frequently we find Him in the Old Testament.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Proverbs 30:4 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Metastasized Secularism (0:53)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: With lawlessness clearly on the rise, don’t let your love for the Lord grow cold!

“Because lawlessness is increased,
most people’s love will grow cold.”

MattHEW 24:12

***

Monday, September 9, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Ephesians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 52:15 Thus He will sprinkle many nations, kings will shut their mouths on account of Him; for what had not been told them they will see, and what they had not heard they will understand. – Jesus has sprinkled many nations with His blood, washing away their sins and calling them to obedience. This has been accomplished by the preaching of the gospel. But some nations won’t listen, and some only listen for a while before falling away. Remember the parable of the sower (Matt 13; Mark 4; Luke 8).
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Saul” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Antichrist in America (0:57)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Free speech is gasping for breath in Western Civilization. In terms of social media, the head of Telegram appears to have capitulated to the recent pressure applied to him in France, leaving Twitter as the sole remaining top-tier social media platform even attempting to stand for free speech. And unless Brazil’s recent ban of Twitter is reversed, it seems unlikely that this platform by itself has the power to stand up to Western governments united in their hostility toward free speech. Historically speaking, no nation on earth has shown as much commitment to free speech as America. Yet even American proponents of free speech seem weak against those who say that it’s more important to protect against hate speech, mis-information, dis-information, mal-information, etc than to allow free speech. This is because American proponents of free speech have forgotten or ignored that the freedom of speech is rooted in a greater right: the freedom of religion. I often hear the First Amendment misquoted – that is, as if freedom of speech was the foundation of the Bill of Rights and therefore of all rights. Rather, it is the freedom of religion that is due that honor. The wording could not be more clear: the freedom of speech is rooted in and flows from the freedom of religion. What good is freedom of speech if it is not free with regard to our Maker? No wonder we are weak in the face of evil: we want freedom of speech to pursue our own interests and not those of Jesus Christ! (Phil 2:21)

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The First amendment of the US constitution

***

Sunday, September 8, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Ephesians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: 1 Timothy 1:5 But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. – What Paul writes to Timothy in this sentence speaks also for all the prophets and apostles who wrote the Bible to all of us who read it.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Chronicles 11:15-19 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: America RIP (0:59)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: I wrote in this space yesterday that we are currently living in a totalitarian police state. That is, America goes by the same name, but it’s not the same country. The reason more people don’t recognize this sobering reality is that 1) it happened gradually, 2) a lot of it took place behind the scenes, and 3) the tyrants in charge have only begun to flex their muscles. Am I hopeless? God forbid! Jesus is Lord! The Bible is eternally true! In other words, we have a better ark than Noah did!

***

Saturday, September 7, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Galatians 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 4:25-26 The [Samaritan] woman said to Him [Jesus], “I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.” Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.” – This exchange is taking place in a private conversation at a public well near a city in Samaria. Jews and Samaritans had been waiting on the Messiah for centuries. The woman surely must have been at least momentarily stupefied by this response.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the King of Righteousness – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: God Made a Name for Himself (0:60)
• Weekly Saturday Video: The Bible’s Chain of Custody from the Beginning (14:57)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Whether or not we will be living in a totalitarian police state in the future, I do not know. I only know that we’re living in one now.

***

Friday, September 6, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Galatians 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 52:14 Just as many were astonished at you, My people, so His appearance was marred more than any man and His form more than the sons of men. – No wonder Jesus’ disciples didn’t immediately recognize Him during the 40 days He spent on earth after His brutal crucifixion.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 2 Kings 20:1-7 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible’s Chain of Custody (0:58)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: When I was a corporate executive, I read business periodicals like Fortune. Recently, this formerly-respected news source published an article which in essence equates “Be fruitful and multiply” (Gen 1:28) – and common sense, for that matter – with a Ponzi scheme! When the history of the fall of America is written, historians will say, “In American’s last days, there were signs of insanity everywhere, but people were so afraid of each other, they refused to acknowledge the signs – choosing instead to promote and listen to ‘experts’ who explained and justified the inexplicable and unjustifiable.”

***

Thursday, September 5, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Galatians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament – focused primarily on its history – once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Col 3:23-24 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. – This is direction and promise is a fulfillment of Psalm 23’s promise: “He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the King of Peace – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Care and Feeding of the Human Soul (0:54)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: One of the fiercest and most frequent criticisms voiced in the 1980’s by Ronald Reagan’s political opponents – which included the mainstream media – was that his policies and rhetoric increased the risk of nuclear war by constantly provoking Soviet Russia. Throughout both of Reagan’s presidential terms, mainstream journalists hounded him about the danger of nuclear catastrophe. Well, here we are 40 years later, clearly facing the possibility of a nuclear exchange in the conflict between NATO-backed Ukraine and Russia – especially since recent public statements by Russia have been warning against this very possibility. Yet our mainstream media is saying hardly anything about this. I do not know exactly what calamities may come upon us as a result of God’s judgment against our nation’s sins, but I don’t see how we can say that a nuclear war is off the table. Remember that Jesus taught us in Luke 17 that an aspect of judgment is that most people are caught completely off guard by it – as was the case with both Noah’s flood and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Ignoring a risk does not make it go away. I am not predicting a nuclear war; as I’ve said before, I have no insight into what specific forms God’s wrath will take in the days ahead. But I can say with sad confidence that judgment is coming. The righteous God who America called upon at its founding in the 18th century is being vigorously rejected in the 21st. God’s righteousness is not partial; if He didn’t give ancient Israel a pass, He’s not going to give us or any other modern nation a pass.

***

Wednesday, September 4, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: John 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Galatians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused primarily on its history, once a year.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 4:24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” – Worship in Moses’ tabernacle, Solomon’s temple, synagogues, and churches were all just foreshadowings of the day when we would worship God in the house that is His creation. That day is now, and it is the day of Jesus Christ. (Phil 1:6, 10; 2:16)
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Kings 19:9-12 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Body of Christ Is the Human Race (0:58)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: We used to associate government suppression of free speech with nations of the East – usually communist nations, like the former Soviet Union, China, and North Korea, or other dictatorships. By contrast, nations of the West, led by the United States, historically practiced and proclaimed free speech. These days, however, it is nations of the West, again led by the US, who have joined the ranks of nations censoring free speech. Just in the last week or so, 1) France has detained and indicted the head of a major social media company, 2) the UK is incarcerating individuals who express opinions that criticize government policy, and 3) Brazil has banned all use of Twitter. Traditionally, America’s mainstream press would be the leading voice in the world objecting to such clampdowns…but those days are well behind us. Our current generation of corporate journalists are now wholly-dedicated to promoting government narratives rather than reporting the results of investigative work. What is going on? This is the Tower of Babel all over again (Genesis 11:1-9). Nations are colluding as described in the days of the apostles (Acts 4:23-31). Governments that censor their citizens desire to have global society speak with one voice – saying whatever the leaders want to be said in order to maintain their tyranny. As human attempts to act as God have not prevailed in the past, so they will not prevail in the present either. “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Judgment is coming. Brace your family for impact. Keep them in Jesus Christ and the Bible – an ever-reliable ark of salvation.

***

Tuesday, September 3, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 24 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Galatians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused primarily on its history, once a year. We’re skipping Ezra 2 because it consists of census data and doesn’t advance the historical narrative.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 52:13 Behold, My servant will prosper He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted. – Isaiah is here prophesying of Messiah’s resurrection from the dead and ascension back to the heights of heaven. This sure didn’t appear to the be the likely outcome when He was hanging on that cross – but God had a promise to keep! Never doubt a promise of God just because it appears unlikely to be fulfilled.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Samson” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Blessing of Christ Is Spread by Teaching (0:59)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: As America continues careening downward toward self-destruction because of its increasing hostility toward the gospel of Jesus Christ and His righteousness, hidden truths are coming to light. God is revealing signs of the times that make the God-fearing aware of what is taking place around them so that they will not be caught off guard. For example, it became abundantly clear on January 7, 2021 when the sitting president of the United States was kicked off Facebook and Instagram, and the day after when he was kicked off Twitter, that the old adage about the US president being “the most powerful man in the world” was no longer even close to being true. Similarly, we’ve seen in recent weeks, especially with the sitting president languishing on the beach while the sitting vice president is busy campaigning, that neither one of them has been running the country – making us wonder who is. The point is that many of our stereotypical ideas about America and how its government operates are antiquated…and have been for some time now. American government treats the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution like American society treats the Bible – lip service only…and even that is decreasing. Take note, therefore, of the signs of the times and that we are no longer living in Reagan’s America – much less Washington’s or Lincoln’s. Keep yourself and your family in the grace of Jesus Christ and the Bible like you never have before.

***

Monday, September 2, 2024
Labor Day

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 23 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Galatians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Ezra 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having completed the book of Esther, our historical trail continues with the return of exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem described in the book of Ezra.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Colossians 2:6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, – As we accepted Him by faith, so we should live before Him by faith.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Samuel 10:24-27 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Beware of Universalism (0:58)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: During evening prime time of Holy Week 1985, NBC broadcast the mini-series A.D. This epic depicted the events recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. The historical account was interlaced with fictional romance in the same way that James Cameron interlaced the historical account of Titanic with fictional romance. A.D. was promoted by NBC as “The Television Event of 1985.” Would a major television network do such a thing today? The answer to that question is but one of the many ways you can know that we no longer live in Ronald Reagan’s America. Another is that in Reagan’s time, Russian dissidents came to America to escape oppression; nowadays, it’s American dissidents escaping oppression by going to Russia – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn being a notable example of the former and Edward Snowden being a notable example of the latter. Recognize the signs of the times, staying alert and keeping your eyes on Jesus – the unchanging fixed point of reference.

***

Sunday, September 1, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 22 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 9 and 10 – written / audio 1 and audio 2 (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having followed the history in Genesis through 2 Kings, and then covering selected chapters from Jeremiah and Daniel, we have been continuing our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Today we finish that book by combining the very short tenth chapter with the ninth.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 4:22 “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.” – So says the foremost Jew who ever walked the earth.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the King of the Nations – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Know Who, Why, and What I Believe (0:58)
• Weekly Saturday Video: How to Read the Bible (11:52)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: The Bible documents historical patterns just as meteorology documents weather patterns. For example, two notable Bible chapters – Romans 1 and Psalm 2 – are highly relevant for describing the pattern of current events we are experiencing in this century. Romans 1 describes how a society descends into decadence, bringing on itself the wrath of God. Psalm 2 describes how a decadent society’s rebellion against God is futile to the point of being ridiculous. Know always that “there is nothing new under the sun” (Eccl 1:9), and that we can use the Bible to understand times and epochs the way a meteorologist uses maps and models to understand what’s going on with the weather.

***

Saturday, August 31, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 21 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having followed the history in Genesis through 2 Kings, and then covering selected chapters from Jeremiah and Daniel, we now continue our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate, because this country is not the one it used to be.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 50:6 I gave My back to those who strike Me, and My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting. – This is the kind of treatment Isaiah experienced in his own generation, and the Spirit of the Lord led him to use that experience to prophesy of what Messiah would experience about eight centuries later. This is why Isaiah could elsewhere write, speaking of himself and his fellow prophets, “In all their affliction He was afflicted…” (Isaiah 63:9).
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Exodus 20:1-17 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Why Do I Love the NASB? (0:58)
• Weekly Saturday Video: How to Read the Bible (11:52)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Abortion is the signature issue of our age. Let’s examine where we stand with respect to it. The Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision – celebrated as a great victory for the pro-life movement – reversed the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision…but only in a narrow, technical sense. That is, the Supreme Court said in 1973 that abortion was a national issue and that it must be legal in all fifty states; whereas, it said in 2022 that abortion was a state issue and therefore whether it was legal or illegal depended on the state. In other words, the Supreme Court grabbed the hot potato of abortion away from the states in 1973 and held on to it for 49 years before tossing it back to the states. Not only did this fail to advance the anti-abortion movement – it set the movement back, replacing one battlefield with fifty battlefields. And things have only gotten worse in the last two years. Since Dobbs, seven states (three of them red) have held elections that included ballot issues about some aspect of abortion. In all seven cases, the anti-abortion side lost. Therefore, support for abortion has become a winning issue for politicians at both the national and state levels. The will of the voting public regarding the signature issue of our time is no longer in doubt. To sum up, the reversal of Roe v. Wade was a Pyrrhic victory because it resulted in America doubling down on its support of abortion. It’s time now to pray for deliverance for you and your family from the judgment that’s sure to come to the nation.

***

Friday, August 30, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 20 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having followed the history in Genesis through 2 Kings, and then covering selected chapters from Jeremiah and Daniel, we now continue our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate, because this country is not the one it used to be.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Colossians 1:15 [Jesus Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. – Notice how well Paul’s words fit with John’s: John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the King of the Jews – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: When God Wants to Do Something Really Big He Starts Really Small (1 minute)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Neither John the Baptist nor Jesus bit their tongues regarding King Herod’s evils even though I’m sure there were some people back then – even as there are people now – telling preachers that they should steer clear of politics. “There is nothing new under the sun” (Eccl 1:9)

***

Thursday, August 29, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having followed the history in Genesis through 2 Kings, and then covering selected chapters from Jeremiah and Daniel, we now continue our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate, because this country is not the one it used to be.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” – We thought the Son was someone different from God, but in the light of the Son’s second coming, we know better. In giving us “His Son,” God was giving us Himself – the life He lived as a man.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family read a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Genesis 18:20-21 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Whatever Became of Jesus Christ? (1 minute)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Secularism has become the spirit of antichrist. It poses as an impartial referee, but in reality it is virulently hostile to Jesus Christ, the Bible, and therefore ultimately to everything that is good and right. Recognize secularism for the toxic force that it is. What is secularism in our time? The simplest and most practical answer is that it is leaving God out of the discussion.

***

Wednesday, August 28, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 18 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having followed the history in Genesis through 2 Kings, and then covering selected chapters from Jeremiah and Daniel, we now continue our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 42:1 “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations.” – Isaiah is prophesying that Jesus of Nazareth would “bring forth justice to the nations.” Alas, though our nation once received Him, it now rejects Him. Woe to us as a nation, but blessed are the men and their families who cling to Him.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family partake of a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Noah” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Granddaddy of All Temptations (0:59)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Of the two major political parties in America, one is strongly pro-abortion and the other is weakly pro-life. To refuse to vote for the party that is weakly pro-life because it is not strongly pro-life, as some strongly pro-life people are now suggesting, is virtue signaling combined with political suicide – an insane combination. There’s nothing godly about being self-righteous and stupid. Hold your nose and vote.

***

Tuesday, August 27, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 17 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having followed the history in Genesis through 2 Kings, and then covering selected chapters from Jeremiah and Daniel, we now continue our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. – Sad to say, many people read this verse as if it said, “I can do whatever I want to do through Him who strengthens me.” But this would make us the lord and Jesus the slave. It’s supposed to be the other way around.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family partake of a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Revelation 1:17-18 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: They Want the Fruit without the Root (0:56)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: If little girls don’t grow up wanting to become mommies, the human race is destined for extinction. Even a man not noted for zealous devotion to Jesus and the Bible is smart enough to see that!

***

Monday, August 26, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having followed the history of Genesis through 2 Kings, and then covering selected chapters from Jeremiah and Daniel, we now continue our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Luke 24:45-47 Then [Jesus] opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.” – Not a single page of the New Testament had been written when Jesus spoke this sentence. It refers entirely to the Old Testament. Of course, the New Testament makes these same points even more explicitly – even as it is doing in these very words. But the point is that a biography of Jesus was written before He was born.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family partake of a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ, the King of Israel – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Feast of Unleavened Bread (0:58)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: In the upcoming presidential election, one party’s candidate is questionable; but the other’s is unquestionably unacceptable. Does this mean you shouldn’t vote? God forbid. Voting for the better candidate won’t save the country, but not voting for the better candidate will make a bad situation a lot worse.

***

Sunday, August 25, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The remainder of Daniel being primarily prophecy instead of history, we now continue our OT time line by reading the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 40:11 Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, in His arm He will gather the lambs and carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes. – Isaiah wrote this in the 8th century BC. In the 1st century AD, Jesus of Nazareth said, “I am the good shepherd…” (John 10:11).
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family partake of a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Peter 4:1-5 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Fatherhood of Christ and the Brotherhood of Man (0:59)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Another Sign of the Times: In the upcoming presidential election, the success of one political party depends on its ability to ensure that the public knows and understands the policies it intends to pursue; the success of the other party depends on its ability to keep voters from finding out the policies it intends to pursue.

***

Saturday, August 24, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Esther 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The remainder of Daniel being primarily prophecy instead of history, we now continue our OT time line by turning to the book of Esther. Esther and Mordecai – like Daniel and his three friends – were exiles of Judah, serving their God in a foreign land. We can relate.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Philippians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – We should either turn away from anxiety or from the book of Philippians. The two are not compatible.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you or your family partake of a whole psalm when time is short.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as the Great King – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Why I Will Keep Using the Name Twitter (0:58)
• Weekly Saturday Video: Home Church Is the Logical Conclusion of the Protestant Reformation (14:58)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Another Sign of the Times: Yet another way we know that we are not living in Ronald Reagan’s America is that “Vladimir Putin on Monday signed a decree aimed at simplifying the relocation process for foreign citizens who want to move to Russia because they support ‘traditional Russian spiritual and moral values’ and oppose the ‘neoliberal ideology’ of their home countries.” (Source) You can say that this is only PR gimmick, and maybe it is, but even if so, it’s based on the undeniable fact that US embassies will fly the LGBT Pride flag and Russian embassies will not. The 2020’s are not the 1980’s.

***

Friday, August 23, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Daniel 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The first six chapters of the book of Daniel continue the Old Testament history timeline from Jeremiah 39-44, which continued the timeline from the end of 2 Kings.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Luke 24:44 Now [Jesus] said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” – The apostles had no need of the New Testament. The Old Testament was all the documentation they needed. We today most certainly need both testaments, but the apostles and those to whom they preached did not.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you partake of a psalm at random times of the day when time is short – whether in solitude or with others.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 2 Timothy 1:8-11 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Christ Is the Eschatological God (1:00)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: I find it hard to get straight news on what’s happening in the Middle East these days. Practically every source of news to which I turn falls in one of two camps: either they unfailingly criticize everything the nation of Israel does or else they unfailingly justify everything Israel does. We should be able to analyze the actions of Israel the same way we analyze the actions of any other nation: that is, we should be able to question or criticize Israel for a specific action without being labeled antisemitic, and we should be able to compliment or support Israel on some specific action without incurring the wrath of antisemites. “For God so loved the world…”

***

Thursday, August 22, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Daniel 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The first six chapters of the book of Daniel continue the Old Testament history timeline from Jeremiah 39-44, which continued the timeline from the end of 2 Kings.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 40:8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever. – Isaiah here prophesied that Messiah would not remain prone in the ground…but would stand forever.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you partake of a psalm at random times of the day when time is short – whether in solitude or with others.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Nehemiah” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Prepping for Calamity (0:56)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: “An astonishing 22% of women aged 40 or higher in America have never been married, which is the highest percentage since data was collected in 1900. The rise in these numbers is both recent and startling. Throughout the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties, the percentage of American women who remained unmarried by age 40…had remained constant at around 6%.” (Source) The Bible says women were meant to help men, but secularism says women were meant to compete with men. No wonder society is collapsing. When we lost the fear of God, we lost a lot more than that. (No matter what society does, I will never cease being grateful that my wife chose to love me instead of compete with me.)

***

Wednesday, August 21, 2024

Basics

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Daniel 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The first six chapters of the book of Daniel continue the Old Testament history timeline from Jeremiah 39-44, which continued the timeline from the end of 2 Kings.)

Extras

• Verse of the Day: Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! – Can a slave be happy? Yes, indeed…if his authority figure is Jesus.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you partake of a psalm at random times of the day – whether in solitude or with others. This tool helps you sit down and refresh your anxious soul when you think you don’t have enough time to do that.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Timothy 1:5 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Bare Minimum Christianity (0:60)
• Overflow – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: If more Americans were reading the Bible every day, we wouldn’t be # 1 on this list.

***

Tuesday, August 20, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Daniel 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The first six chapters of the book of Daniel continue the Old Testament history timeline from Jeremiah 39-44, which continued the timeline from the end of 2 Kings.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 24:26 “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” – The Messiah was willing to experience suffering on earth so that He could experience glory in heaven. Women are willing to experience the suffering of childbirth so that they can experience the glory of bringing another human being into the world. There is no wisdom in being masochistic, but there is wisdom in not being short-sighted. Earth is temporary – heaven is forever.
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you partake of a psalm at random times of the day – whether in solitude or with others. I just completed it, so today is the first day I’ve published it.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as the Well – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: We Have Something Eve Did Not Have (0:56)
• Extras (previously titled “Overflow”) – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my other categories.
• Current Events: Free speech is no more in Great Britain. It’s hard to imagine the UK coming back from the level of tyranny being exercised there in the last few weeks. They are actually releasing real criminals from their prisons to make room for the political criminals they are arresting. If you have not been following this news, you cannot imagine what has happened to the nation from whose womb ours was birthed. If the ungodly prevail in our upcoming November election, we can expect the same degree tyrannical censorship here in America. The trend lines have been pointing this way for a long time, but the speed at which they are now developing is breathtaking. “Deliver us from evil, O Lord!”

***

Monday, August 19, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Daniel 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The first six chapters of the book of Daniel continue the Old Testament history timeline from Jeremiah 39-44, which continued the timeline from the end of 2 Kings.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 33:22 For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; He will save us. – Notice how this Old Testament verse is echoed in this New Testament verse: James 4:12 There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor?
• A Timed Psalter – A tool to help you partake of a psalm at random times of the day – whether in solitude or with others. I just completed it, so today is the first day I’ve published it.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Lamentations 3:39-40 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: A Better Communion (0:56)
• Extras (previously titled “Overflow”) – These are short notes that come from my own Bible reading, contemplation, and prayer that don’t easily fit into one of my existing categories.
• Current Events: There should never have been any doubt that women could compete with men in many activities, and even competitively dominate them in some of those activities. But that should never have been the point. The point should always be that men and women need each other, and that when women abandon cooperation with men in order to compete with them, the human race loses. This is because the most important and fundamental way that women and men cooperate is in the formation, sustenance, and maturation of families. Practically all the advantages women now have over men depicted in this chart have resulted in a decline in the birth rate. This decline has prompted western governments and corporations to pursue mass migration in order to maintain their respective revenue streams. And they have pursued this social disaster over the vehement objections of their respective citizens, defying the central principle of democracy. All this to prove what everyone already knew – that men and women are equally valuable. They’re just not interchangeable.

***

Sunday, August 18, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Daniel 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. The Old Testament historical account of Israel now moves from describing what life was like for Jeremiah and others in what was left of the promised land to describe what life was like for some of the Jews exiled to Babylon – specifically, Daniel and three fellow Jews.)
• Verse of the Day: Philippians 3:14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. – Aren’t you glad it’s not a downward or sideways call? Earthly troubles become more bearable when you keep your mind on where you’re headed.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ the Nazarene – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: A Better Baptism (0:51)
• Overflow
• Current Events: America RIP. I don’t write that glibly, but we have to recognize reality. As I’ve been saying, pirates control the good ship America and they are plundering it as it heads toward shipwreck. You don’t have to be a very spiritual person to recognize this. In fact, there are even atheists who recognize that our leaders in recent generations have been betraying us. In our name – that is, in the name of our democratic republic, founded with a cry for divine help – these corrupt leaders have undermined foreign governments and flown a rainbow flag that is antithetical to Noah. And these are but tips of the corruption iceberg. So much truth is coming to light in these days, putting the metastasizing political misconduct on display for everyone, except those who willfully close their eyes, to see. America as a nation has rejected the Creator who blessed its birth; therefore, God has to leave it to its own devices. But He will not abandon individual Americans and their families who continue to look to Him. As He kept His eye on Israelites who lived in the time of Israel’s approaching destruction, may He keep His eye on us and let none of us fall like a sparrow to the ground until its our time to go be with Him in heaven. Let us strive to be worthy of deliverance through the difficult times to come. Let us be “Americans indeed!”

Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!”

john 1:47

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Saturday, August 17, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jeremiah 44 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having completed Genesis through 2 Kings, we are today reading the last of six chapters from Jeremiah that continue the historical narrative of ancient Israel beyond the conquest of Israel by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Jeremiah is relating in these six chapters what took place in Israel after Jews like Daniel and Ezekiel had been hauled off to Babylon.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 24:25 And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!“ – If Jesus feels this way about the prophets (authors of the Old Testament), would He feel any differently about the apostles (authors of the New Testament)?
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Jeremiah 29:11 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Identity Religion Is as Bad as Identity Politics (0:59)
• Weekly Saturday Video: God Became an Angel before and after He Became a Man (14:12)
• Overflow
• Current Events: The news cycle for the next few months and beyond is going to have its ups and downs – but mainly downs. Don’t be dismayed by the downs. Instead, keep your eyes on our Lord Jesus Christ who sustains all those who keep looking to Him. He is our fixed point of reference. And that’s why our souls won’t succumb to vertigo. Instead, we’ll have a daily sense of blessing on our souls.

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Friday, August 16, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jeremiah 43 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having completed Genesis through 2 Kings, we are today reading the fifth of six chapters from Jeremiah that continue the historical narrative of ancient Israel beyond the conquest of Israel by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Jeremiah is relating in these six chapters what took place in Israel after Jews like Daniel and Ezekiel had been hauled off to Babylon.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 33:6 And He will be the stability of your times, a wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is his treasure. – Isaiah is prophesying of the stabilizing force Jesus Christ would be in the world. At present, we see the western world very much de-stabilized…and this is a result of its current rejection of Jesus Christ.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Moses” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Have You Made Your Decision about the New Testament? (0:59)
• Overflow
• Current Events: If ever there was an election in which a God-fearing American needed no voter guide, it is this one. But don’t set your hope on who will win the election; rather, set your hope on the only One who can get us through the difficult things that will come no matter who wins the election. Judgment is surely coming because our nation’s sins have been great. We can pray to the Lord for pockets of protection, but we cannot at this stage turn back the tides of judgment our country has invited upon itself. Just to give one notable example: abortions in America have increased since the reversal of Roe v Wade, and politicians favoring abortion have fared better in the elections since than have politicians who oppose it.

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Thursday, August 15, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jeremiah 42 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having completed Genesis through 2 Kings, we are today reading the fourth of six chapters from Jeremiah that continue the historical narrative of ancient Israel beyond the conquest of Israel by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Jeremiah is relating in these six chapters what took place in Israel while Jews like Daniel and Ezekiel had been hauled off to Babylon.)
• Verse of the Day: Philippians 3:12 Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. – Jesus laid hold of Paul not just because he loved Paul, but because He loved us, too. Likewise, Jesus did not lay hold of you because He loved only you, but because He also wants to love others through you – those others first and foremost being your wife and children.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Esther 4:13-14 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus Was the Messiah…and the Messiah Is God (0:57)
• Current Events: During the Cold War, Russians and Eastern Europeans behind the Iron Curtain turned to broadcasters from the West like Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty, and Voice of America. These people under communist domination turned to these alternative sources because Soviet news and entertainment sources were propagandistic. Likewise, Americans today live behind an iron curtain of their own. That is, our mainstream, traditional media sources are pumping out government propaganda designed to keep us in the dark. If we want truth, we have to expend the effort to seek alternative information outlets. And our efforts have to keep increasing because the arm of government is constantly reaching farther and farther to censor any and all voices that do not conform to approved narratives. “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). ***** Am I saying that America today is as atheistic and totalitarian as the Soviet Union was in the Cold War? No. But if you don’t recognize the trend line we’re on, and the increasing speed at which that trend line is advancing, then you have your eyes closed. ***** Do not despair. God will show us the way through Christ.

***

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jeremiah 41 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having completed Genesis through 2 Kings, we are today reading the third of six chapters from Jeremiah that continue the historical narrative of ancient Israel in the centuries before Christ.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 23:46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.” Having said this, He breathed His last. – Jesus wasn’t planning to stay dead.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as a Lion – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Something Greater than Church Is Here (0:55)
• Overflow
• Current Events: Our Declaration of Independence makes clear that America was founded as a response to tyranny…and so, because of our increasing apostasy as a nation over the last 70 years, it is to tyranny we are being returned. The tyranny at our founding was the tyranny of one (King George III of Great Britain – a monarchy); the tyranny to which we are currently subject is the tyranny of many (the ruling class of America – an oligarchy). (Neither monarchy nor oligarchy is democracy.) How ironic and tragic that the government that was given to deliver us from late 18th-century tyranny has become the primary instrument of early 21st-century tyranny. This is because pirates have taken control of the ship and we the passengers have become prisoners on board. Our bondage is increasing at an increasing pace. Does this leave God stymied? Absolutely not! But we cannot dictate the form and timing of our deliverance. Although the pirates could repent, all indications are that they are only hardening their hearts and tightening their grip on the rigging. Meanwhile, many of our fellow prisoners have become more fearful of the pirates than they are of our Creator-Redeemer. Therefore, we must seek to be more obedient and prayerful than ever so that we might, if possible, prove ourselves worthy of deliverance…full of hope in God that He would open our eyes to a way or ways of escape that He provides (Heb 2:3).

“O our God, will You not judge them?
For we are powerless before this great multitude
who are coming against us;
nor do we know what to do,
but our eyes are on You.”

2 Chronicles 20:12

***

Tuesday, August 13, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jeremiah 40 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having completed Genesis through 2 Kings, we are today reading the second of six chapters from Jeremiah that continue the historical narrative of ancient Israel in the centuries before Christ.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 30:20 Although the Lord has given you bread of privation and water of oppression, He, your Teacher will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will behold your Teacher. – Think of the patience of the faithful Jews who waited – generation after generation – to see this prophecy of Isaiah be fulfilled. The least we – who do not have to wait at all – can do is believe that it happened just as the apostles and their helpers reported in their writings, which came to be called the New Testament.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Nehemiah 13:2 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Worship Jesus Privately Before You Proclaim Him Publicly (0:58)
• Overflow
• Current Events: This is not Ronald Reagan’s America. Acting as if it is will only lead us down dead-end streets. The Lord knows the way; let us follow Him wholeheartedly! In Him we will find deliverance from the troubles present…and from the greater troubles to come.

Through God we shall do valiantly…

psalm 60:12 and 108:13

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Monday, August 12, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jeremiah 39 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year. Having completed 2 Kings, we turn now to the first of (39-44) six chapters from Jeremiah that continue the historical narrative of ancient Israel in the centuries before Christ.)
• Verse of the Day: Philippians 3:8 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, – This verse reminds me of the old adage about foolish people who know the price of everything but the value of nothing. Paul knew the value of Christ. May we know it, too!
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ the Jew – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Read the New Testament First (0:53)
• A Sign of the Times: One of the ways you know that this is not your grandfather’s America is that Russian public policy on sexual issues these days more closely aligns with the Bible than does America’s (as documented in this 2023 article).

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Sunday, August 11, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Luke 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 25 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 23:34 But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves. – The juxtaposition of these two sentences indicates just how hard human hearts can become.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Ezra 7:10 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Read the Bible for Yourself (0:54)
• Overflow
• A Sign of the Times: When the president of the International Olympic Committee says that Olympic officials do not know of “a scientifically solid system how to identify men and women,” we know that we who live in the world today are closer than ever to God’s judgment. This is because in the run-up to judgment, God allows the hearts of those who reject Him to fully harden so that they reveal themselves to be maximally foolish. Even a child knows the difference between male and female, but neither Olympic officials nor our most recently-added Supreme Court justice feel qualified to make such a call. (Romans 1:22 Professing to be wise, they became fools.)

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Saturday, August 10, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 24 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 28:16 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed. – Isaiah prophesied this in the 8th century BC. The apostles proclaimed that Jesus had fulfilled this prophecy, and, more specifically, that the “Zion” in view was the heavenly one – not the earthly one. That is, Jesus brought to the Jews – and then to the rest of us – the kingdom of heaven. It is only in looking at our earthly lives through this heavenly lens that life can begin to make sense.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Mordecai” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: If It Bleeds, It Leads (0:58)
• Overflow
• Weekly Video: Homechurching Is Like Homeschooling (14:28)
• Current Events: Things are not going very well in America these days. One of our two major political parties is hobbled by weakness and corruption; the other is a criminal enterprise. But the Lord is infinitely more powerful than both of them put together. Judgment is coming, so let the righteous seek to be hidden in the day of the Lord’s anger. The Lord knows those whose hearts are His.

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Friday, August 9, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 23 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Philippians 2:10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, – Of all the movies and tv shows you have ever watched, what percentage of them would you estimate that the name of Jesus was spoken in honor versus the percentage in which the name of Jesus was spoken without honor? As you do this, notice how few movies and tv shows do not include the name of Jesus at all. The majority of the time they’re either cursing His name or blessing it.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Ruth 1:15-18 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus Is Lord, and the Bible Is His Word (0:58)
• Overflow

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Thursday, August 8, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 22 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 22:20 And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.” – The old covenant was secured by the blood of animals – creatures less valuable than human beings. The new covenant was secured by the blood of someone more valuable than human beings.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as the Galilean – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: A Non-Churchgoer’s Guide to Jesus (0:58)
• Overflow

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Wednesday, August 7, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 21 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 25:8 He will swallow up death for all time, and the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces, and He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; for the LORD has spoken. – If a man doesn’t believe that everyone is going to heaven, he’s just not taking Bible verses like this one seriously. What good would it do for God to “swallow up death” if a fate worse than death was a possibility in the afterlife?
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Leviticus 19:17-18 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible Is a Jewish Production (0:57)
• Overflow

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Tuesday, August 6, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 20 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Philippians 2:8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. – Why do we struggle with becoming obedient to the point of inconvenience if we have a Savior who became obedient to the point of death?
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Door – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible Is the Handiwork of God (0:57)
• Overflow

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Monday, August 5, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” – It’s self-defeating to deny that we are lost.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in James 1:21 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible Is a Gift from Jews and Christians to the Rest of the World (0:57)
• Overflow
• Current Events: More on the chaos in Great Britain. The Brits are just a little farther down the road we are traveling. I’m not suggesting you attempt to be an expert on current events; I just want to make sure you are not blindsided. Jesus did not sugarcoat the future that His disciples faced. Instead, He explained how difficult things could get for them, giving them a faith that could endure any and all circumstances.
• Re: Current Events:
  • Isaiah 54:10 “For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, but My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, and My covenant of peace will not be shaken,” says the LORD who has compassion on you.
  • Luke 21:28 “But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

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Sunday, August 4, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 18 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 22:24 “So they will hang on him all the glory of his father’s house, offspring and issue, all the least of vessels, from bowls to all the jars.” – This part of Isaiah’s prophecy of Messiah speaks of His second coming, at which point “all” the glory of his father’s house will be his. This is when Jesus returned to His place as God and Father of all. (Don’t get hung up on the capitalization of nouns and pronouns; remember that when the Bible texts were written, no upper/lower case distinctions were made. Also, remember that Jesus was both God and man, so both lower and upper case usage can be justified in modern times.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Melchizedek” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible Is Not Just for Christians (0:58)
• Overflow
• Current Events: Mother England is experiencing great strife these days, though our news media is loathe to tell us about it. We have to rely on news sources from abroad – like this one. England is the land from which America was birthed; their fate matters to us.

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Saturday, August 3, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 17 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Philippians 2:4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Philemon 1:25 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Be a Secret Disciple of Jesus Christ Before Going Public with That Information (0:55)
• Weekly Video: The Importance of the Apostles’ Teaching (14:27)
• Overflow
• Current Events: This is how modern secularists think they can disregard God’s commandment to “Be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28) and yet suffer no negative consequences for that disobedience. No nation can maintain its prosperity with a declining birth rate. Our elites think mass migration will solve the problem of declining fertility but they’re like a man who, having cut off his feet, thinks that putting enough bandages on his ankles will enable him to walk just as well.

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Friday, August 2, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 18:27 But [Jesus] said, “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.” – Modern secularists aren’t very impressed by such a statement because they think so few things are impossible to them. After all, if you think men can become women, what can’t you do?
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Resurrection – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus was a man, and the Bible was the word of men…but there’s more to it than just that.
• Overflow
• Current Events: If you don’t think spiritual blindness is a thing, take note below of how a feminist condemns transgenderism by doubling down on her feminism – that is, making her point by employing feminist vocabulary. Both feminism and transgenderism are built on the same faulty foundation: rejection of the Creator’s right to define boundaries for His creatures. As J. K. Rowling has the right to govern the behavior of Harry, Dumbledore, and the rest of her characters, so Jesus Christ has the right to govern the behavior of human beings. (Take note, by the way, that God allows His creatures free will while Rowling does not; I say this to show how God’s government of us is gracious and not oppressive.) Rowling is, of course, absolutely right to condemn the Olympics for allowing a man to beat up a woman, but she is blind to the fact that feminism is one of the social movements that paved the way for the social movement of transgenderism.

Could any picture sum up our new men’s rights movement better? The smirk of a male who’s knows he’s protected by a misogynist sporting establishment enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head, and whose life’s ambition he’s just shattered. #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/Q5SbKiksXQ

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) August 1, 2024

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Thursday, August 1, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 22:23 “I will drive him like a peg in a firm place, and he will become a throne of glory to his father’s house.” – The “firm place” was not earth, not Calvary (Golgotha) – that is, not the Jerusalem that was on earth. Rather, Messiah’s throne was the Jerusalem in heaven! The place we cannot see is much firmer than the place we can see. This is for the same reason that the God we cannot see is more reliable than the people we can see.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Titus 2:11-12 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: An Ancient Man for Modern People, An Ancient Book for Modern Life
• Overflow
• Current Events: This is an age of mendacity…so be extra careful who you listen to.

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Wednesday, July 31, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Philippians 2:3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; – (Tell me what love means without using the word love.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Redeemer – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Who can give you a future unburdened by the past?
• Overflow
• Current Events: Someone described the opening ceremonies of the 2024 Olympics in Paris as “a civilizational suicide note.” How tragically apt!

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Tuesday, July 30, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year – today we’re resuming our reading of 2 Kings where we left off two days ago in order to read Jonah.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 18:8 “…when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” – It’s clear from this rhetorical question that Jesus was not going be surprised when the majority of people called by His name would not have sufficient faith to recognize His Second Coming once it occurred. Even today, how often do we have sufficient faith to recognize God’s answers to our prayers when those answers come? (Jeremiah 17:5-6) Faith does not make God do things; it is the means by which we come to see things God has done.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 2 Thessalonians 3:16 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: What Constantine Called Deathlessness
• Overflow
• Current Events: “Paris Olympic organizers apologized Sunday to people offended during a tableau of the opening ceremony.” But it’s not to people that they owe the apology! We should intercede on their behalf as the One to whom they owe the apology interceded on our behalf. “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). And also like Jesus, we should never stop calling upon our fellow sinners to repent as we are repenting.

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Monday, July 29, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jonah 3 and 4 – written / audio 3 and audio 4 (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year – we’re inserting the book of Jonah between 2 Kings 12 and 2 Kings 13 because this is about the time that the events described in the book of Jonah took place.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 22:22 “Then I will set the key of the house of David on his shoulder, when he opens no one will shut, when he shuts no one will open.” – In the book of Revelation, the resurrected and heavenly Jesus declares this 8th-century BC prophecy of Isaiah’s as fulfilled in the 1st century AD when He says through His angel to the apostle John, son of Zebedee, “He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this:” (Rev 3:7)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Judah” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Abolition of Death
• Overflow
• Current Events: Further to yesterday’s “Current Events” item about America’s declining birth rate (below), here’s an article about a recent study showing “an abrupt increase in permanent sterilizations among young adults” (italics mine) since regulation of abortion was returned to the states in 2022 by the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v Jackson decision (which reversed Roe v Wade).

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Sunday, July 28, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: Jonah 1 and 2 – written / audio 1 and audio 2 (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year – we’re inserting the book of Jonah between 2 Kings 12 and 2 Kings 13 because this is about the time that the events described in the book of Jonah took place.)
• Verse of the Day: Phil 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. – Could there be a pithier, truer, more helpful motto for life on this earth?
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Mark 1:1 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Everyone Needs to Re-Read the Bible
• Overflow
• Current Events: American society used to have compassion on childless couples because it was just understood that such couples had been thwarted by infertility or some other medical condition. Do the math on how long there will even be an American society if these trends continue.

We are now saying the quiet part out loud: For adults under 50, the primary argument against having children isn’t an economic one. It’s cultural.

“I just don’t want to.”

If you believe that children are essential to building a good, dynamic society, you’re about to learn… pic.twitter.com/np0t7zYfOd

— Katherine Boyle (@KTmBoyle) July 25, 2024

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Saturday, July 27, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 17:20-21 Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.” – This statement by Jesus explains why His second coming – which was the coming of the kingdom of God – was never going to be viewed physically. Walking with God is not a spectator sport.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Living One – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Three Times Jesus Said His Second Coming Would Be in the First Century
• Weekly Video: Rights and Responsibilities (10 min)
• Overflow
• Current Events: What might it mean that walking down Bourbon Street in 1970’s New Orleans was safer for a child’s eyes than watching the opening ceremonies of the 2024 Olympic Games on television?

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Friday, July 26, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Mark 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 22:21 And I will clothe him with your tunic and tie your sash securely about him. I will entrust him with your authority, and he will become a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. – In this verse, Isaiah the prophet foreshadows how the Messiah will become Lord (“I will entrust him with your authority”) and Father (“he will become a father…”). Jesus was made Lord at His first coming and Father at His second.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Jonah 2:1-10 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Don’t reject the purpose God has for you.
• Overflow

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Thursday, July 25, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 28 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Ephesians 6:24 Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible love. – Grace dries up if our love for Jesus grows cold. Let us always be returning to our first love! He died on a cross for us – what have we done for Him?
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Judge – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus Christ Has Already Come Again
• Overflow
• Current Events: A recent survey shows that “significant numbers of college students graduate without even a rudimentary grasp of America’s history and political system.” This is further evidence that America is like an old man with dementia – that is, our cultural memory is being progressively lost. Only Jesus Christ is powerful enough to heal such a disease!

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Wednesday, July 24, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 27 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 17:10 “So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.'” – Our narcissistic age is so far from this attitude that the gap is immeasurable. We want a pat on the back for not spitting on the sidewalk.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Amos 9:10-12 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Everyone Is Going to Heaven
• Overflow

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Tuesday, July 23, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 26 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 11:10 Then in that day, the nations will resort to the root of Jesse, who will stand as a signal for the peoples; and His resting place will be glorious. – We live in that day! It’s an eternal day that will never turn to night. It’s the day of the Lord…and Jesus Christ is that Lord.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Joshua” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: All Bible Prophecy Has Been Fulfilled in Jesus Christ
• Overflow

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Monday, July 22, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 25 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. – The apostles were weak in the flesh – no army behind them, no security detail around them, not even any weapons when they stood before angry mobs. But Paul and his fellow apostles changed the world…and we are still studying their words two thousand years later.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Song of Solomon 1:3 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus AND the Bible!
• Overflow
• Current Events: At least since the end of World War II, people have often said that the President of the United States was “the most powerful man in the world.” But when the person holding that office does something abruptly, quietly, and meekly that he has been declaring loudly, emphatically, and repeatedly that he would not do, it demonstrates how little power that office actually holds. We saw similar powerless in that office when a sitting President of the United States was kicked off his favorite social media platform a few years ago and couldn’t do anything about it. Do not put your trust in men – put your trust in the living God whose power is greater than any other and can never be diminished.

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Sunday, July 21, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 24 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 16:15 And [Jesus] said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” – This would include the Super Bowl, the Academy Awards, all the Halls of Fame that exist, and so much more. Jesus calls us to fully adopt His value system.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Foundation – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus Is the Hook to God
• Overflow

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Saturday, July 20, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 23 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 11:1 Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. – In the 8th century before Christ (that is, B.C.), Isaiah prophesies His coming. God is faithful to His promises. Let us be faithful to ours.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Judges 16:1-3 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Downward Spiral in Romans 1
• Additional Video: Family Is Greater than Church (14:40)
• Overflow

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Friday, July 19, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 22 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Romans 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Ephesians 5:1-2 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. – In other words, Paul is telling us, “Don’t be stinkers!”
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ as “The Begotten” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: What is being neglected while church is being attended?
• Overflow

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Thursday, July 18, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 21 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 28 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 3 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 16:10 “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.” – We can know how we will perform in the clutch by noticing how we’re performing when we’re we’re not in the clutch.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 3 John 1:1-4 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: From One Tyrant to Countless Tyrants!
• Overflow

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Wednesday, July 17, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 20 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 27 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 2 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 9:6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. – It is in Christ (Messiah) and Him alone that we find our God and Father. Do not consider Him a victim of arrested development, for He who was born as a child eventually became a father…once again. That’s why Isaiah preceded the word “Father” with the word “Eternal.” The Father lost us to the devil for a time (John 8:44), but paid the ransom of Himself to win us back (Mark 10:45).
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Joseph” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Are We in the Last Days?

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Tuesday, July 16, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 26 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 2 Kings 1 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. – The family that forgives together, lives together.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Peter 1:10-12 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Ancient Israel versus Modern Israel

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Monday, July 15, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 18 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 25 – written / audio a, audio b (sorry, but this chapter comes in two audios because of my technical limitations; we’ll be back to normal tomorrow) – (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 22 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 12:47-48 “And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.” – No one knows better than Jesus what you are capable of believing and doing for Him today. There is no way He is going to expect more from you than you are able to give Him. Likewise, there’s no way He’s going to accept any less. The peace and joy of your soul today rides not on what circumstances you encounter but solely on living up to that of which you are currently capable.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is Our Peace – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: What is the foundation of western civilization?

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Sunday, July 14, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 17 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 24 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 21 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 9:2 The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them. – Isaiah prophesied in the 8th century BC. In the 1st century AD, the fulfillment of his prophecy was that the light was the man Jesus and the land was Galilee. In the 21 century, the light is still Jesus who now shines from heaven as God, and the land is the whole earth. This fulfillment is eternal and it is what the Bible teaches. Don’t walk in darkness!
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Hebrews 12:1-3 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: God or Jesus?

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Saturday, July 13, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 23 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 20 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Ephesians 4:29 Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. – Rather than commenting on this verse, may I just ask that you re-read it?
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Lawgiver – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: The Word “Crucified” Is Icky (1 min)
• Weekly Video: The Kingdom of God Is Greater than Church (15 min)

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Friday, July 12, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 22 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 12:15 Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” – We typically associate the word “greed” with money, but Jesus is alerting us to the fact that greed comes in different “forms.” For example, gluttony is a form of greed. Another form of greed is lust. Greed is an unwillingness to be satisfied. All God-given needs can be satisfied with God’s provision. Greed, therefore, is a form of rebellion against God and His ways.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Hebrews 2:14-18 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: “Up from Slavery”
• Additional Video: Introduction to my YouTube channel (7:58)
• Something to Notice (about the point made in the meme below): Like the video I showed you yesterday (farther below), the video immediately below uses common sense to make a point. However, people who are spiritually blind do not have access to common sense because they have given themselves over to common nonsense – that is, they’re caught up in a mob or hive mentality. They’ve chosen a group of people to trust – a group of spiritually-blind people. For this reason Jesus spoke of “blind guides of the blind” (Matthew 15:14). No matter how common nonsense becomes, it’ll always be nonsense.

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Thursday, July 11, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 21 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 18 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 8:14 “Then He shall become a sanctuary; But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over, And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” – Isaiah is prophesying that God would come to earth…disguised as one of us. Because people didn’t know it was Him, some “struck” Him and “stumbled over” Him while others found Him to be a “sanctuary.” In the 2,000 years that have passed since then, people can still be divided into those who reject Him and those who accept Him. That God is so polarizing should tell us something about ourselves.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Jonah” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Reverence for Jesus is the beginning of knowledge
• Something to Notice (about the point made in the Twitter post linked below): There’s no sign in this video that the woman realizes the importance of what she’s saying. Whether she came to her senses afterward or not is something we’re not shown. What we can know, however, is that most people do not come to their senses solely through logic. They need help from above. God surely grants this help, but only to those who humble themselves enough to realize they need it. Spiritual blindness is rampant in the land and not being healed because so many who are blind just keep thinking, “I can see just fine!”

Interviewer gets woman at pride parade to admit that "trans women" are, in fact, men. UNO reverse.

Beautifully done😂pic.twitter.com/jDtulW2iLN

— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) July 2, 2024

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Wednesday, July 10, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 20 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 17 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another. – (The all caps portion is the translator’s way of telling us that Paul is quoting from the prophet Zechariah 8:16.) – Because we live in an age that is typified by liars and lying, following this command takes more effort than we might first imagine.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Colossians 2:1-3 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: Jesus Loves Us Too Much to Tell Us We’re Good
• Something to Notice (in the YouTube post linked below): Moses, holding the two tablets of the Ten Commandments, is sculpted into the exterior of the Supreme Court building in Washington D. C. I suppose, if it was a statue on the grounds, mobs would have torn it down by now. In any case, there’s no denying that man-made justice has displaced biblical justice in 21st-century American jurisprudence. The man of God in the video below makes this abundantly clear. Make your choice: America’s either going to have biblical justice or what is erroneously called “social justice.”

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Tuesday, July 9, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 19 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Luke 11:13 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” – To be given the Holy Spirit is to be given the ability to hear the voice of God in your heart.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Deliverer – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: “The Nearness of God Is My Good” – Psalm 73:28
• Something to Notice (regarding the Twitter post linked below): Just as people were denounced for doing their own research instead of trusting the experts when it came to covid, so people are denounced for reading the Bible for themselves instead of trusting church officials to interpret it for them. You have both the right and the responsibility to read the Bible for yourself. Just as you are responsible before God for what goes into your body, so you are responsible before God for what goes into your heart.

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Monday, July 8, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 18 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• Verse of the Day: Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.” – The prophet Isaiah wrote this more than 700 years before that child was born. God is patient.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Daily Video Minute: “The Lord Is God!” from 2 Chronicles 33:12-13

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Sunday, July 7, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 17 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Champion – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Verse of the Day: Eph 4:15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, – Children learn how to speak the truth in love from noticing how their parents speak. If we don’t learn to speak the truth in love at home, how are we going to speak that way anywhere else?
• Daily Video Minute: The Bible Has Great Explanatory Power 

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Saturday, July 6, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 16 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Weekly Help: Latest episode in The Duty of a Man Companion Video Podcast, titled “’Theocracy’ and Other Weaponized Words.”

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Friday, July 5, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 15 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: A Type of Jesus Christ: “Job” – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Something to Live: “…as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” – Joshua 24:15

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Thursday, July 4, 2024
Independence Day

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 7 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 14 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Luke 2:25-32 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• A Thought Appropriate to July 4th: 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 says, “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” Our nation is experiencing spiritual equivalents of the drought, plague, and pestilence mentioned in verse 13. The question is: Will we take the appropriate action described in verse 14? We’re past the time that the nation can be saved, but there’s still time for individual families to be spared the brunt of what’s to come. Men, be like Noah! Be like Abraham! Be like Joseph – both of them!

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Wednesday, July 3, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 6 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 13 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 10 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Associate – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Something to Consider: America the Beautiful has become something worse than Sodom during our lifetimes. The majority of Americans are trying to sleepwalk through our nation’s depravity, but judgment is coming; it is going to be awful and unavoidable. Pray that your family may find refuge in the Lord when the disasters start reaching every corner of America. In any case, suffering the judgments of the Lord will be better than trying to raise children in a culture of bold and predatory perversion.

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Tuesday, July 2, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 5 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 12 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 9 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.)
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ in Haggai 2:9 – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Something to Remember: When you read the Bible every day with the intention of drawing closer to Jesus Christ in your thoughts, words, and deeds even when you don’t feel like it, you are doing yourself and those around you more good than you can possibly imagine.

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Monday, July 1, 2024

• Here are today’s Bible chapter readings, with links to the reading companions (the written and audio reading companions are complementary, not identical):
  • 1st Reading: Matthew 4 – written / audio (We’re reading through all four Gospels four times a year.)
  • 2nd Reading: Acts 11 – written / audio (We’re reading through the rest of the New Testament – The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles – twice a year.)
  • 3rd Reading: 1 Kings 8 – written / audio (We’re reading through a condensed Old Testament, focused on its history, once a year.) Special note: We’re skipping chapters 4-7 as part of the condensation. You’ll see why if you glance at those chapters.
• A Daily Audio Capsule of Christ: Jesus Christ Is the Amen – a 3-5 minute pep pill. It will help you remember to always focus on X as the point of the Bible…and as the purpose of living.
• Further to Yesterday’s Point: If you find yourself fallen from grace, go back and do the things you did at first in your relationship with Jesus. He who saved you once will save you as many times as it takes. He saves forever. It’s His name! (The Hebrew for “Jesus” means “The Lord saves.”)

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Previous Editions:
—Daily Help 2024 – Q2
—Daily Help 2024 – Q1
—Daily Help 2023 – Aug 23 through Dec 31
—Author’s Journal 2023 – Jan 1 through Aug 22
—Author’s Journal 2022
—Author’s Journal 2021