The Rest Inside the Giving

 The Rest Inside the Giving

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”

Deuteronomy 6:5 (NIV)

Today’s Devotional

You know the feeling of gripping something so tightly your hand starts to ache. A steering wheel during a storm. A pen during an exam you studied too hard for. Your fingers lock, your knuckles go white, and the thing you are holding becomes secondary to the effort of holding it.

Something like that can happen with worship. You read Deuteronomy 6:5 and hear a command with three demands: all your heart, all your soul, all your strength. Three “alls.” And if you are the kind of person who takes God seriously, you begin measuring. Am I giving enough heart? Is my soul fully in this? Where do I find more strength? The verse starts to sound like a performance review, and love starts to feel like labor.

But Moses spoke these words to a people who had just been freed. They had spent four hundred years in Egypt under quotas and taskmasters who measured their output every day. The last thing God wanted was to hand them a new quota. The Shema was an invitation to orient everything they already were toward the one who had already claimed them. Heart, soul, strength: these are not three separate achievements. They are one posture. The way a sunflower turns its whole face toward light, every part moving together because the source is singular. Love like this is what happens when you stop splitting yourself between competing altars and let one affection gather the rest.

Time to reflect

The distinction between devotion and performance can be difficult to see from the inside. These questions may help you find the line.

When you pray, do you spend more energy evaluating whether you are praying well than actually talking to God?

What would your worship look like tomorrow morning if no one, including you, were grading it?

Is there a spiritual practice you continue out of guilt rather than desire, and can you name which one?

Where in your life are you giving God effort when he is asking for attention?

Prayer Of The Day

Lord, we confess that we have sometimes turned our love for you into a project. We have measured our devotion by how tired it made us, as though exhaustion were proof of faithfulness. Teach us the difference between striving and surrender. Remind us that you freed your people from labor and did not immediately assign them new labor. Help us to love you the way a child loves a parent: completely, without calculating whether it is enough. Gather the scattered pieces of our attention and aim them gently back toward you. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

Strengthening Faith

Giving God your whole self begins with noticing where you have been splitting yourself apart.

Pick one spiritual habit you have been forcing and skip it today. Replace it with five minutes of quiet where you ask God nothing and request nothing. Just sit.

Read Psalm 131, a psalm of three verses about a soul that has stopped striving. Read it slowly enough to feel the smallness of it.

Write the word “enough” on a piece of paper and put it where you will see it during your morning routine. Let it remind you that your love for God does not require a performance metric.

At lunch, tell someone one true thing about what you enjoy about your faith, not what you feel obligated by, but what you genuinely like.

Identify one area where you have been splitting your loyalty between God and something else. Do not fix it today. Just name it clearly and hold it in front of him.

Before you leave the house tomorrow, choose one moment during the day when you will deliberately turn your attention toward God, not to accomplish anything, but simply to notice he is there.

Today Wisdom

The word “all” in Deuteronomy 6:5 appears three times, but it asks for one thing. You do not assemble wholeness from pieces. Wholeness is what remains when you stop dividing yourself. The Shema asks you to stop dividing.

 

Hebrews 11:19

Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead.

Hebrews 11:19

Life Again

When we first read the account of Abraham and Isaac in Genesis, we see Abraham’s faith but we do not get a picture of what was going through his head as God asked him to sacrifice the son of the promise. It is not until this verse that we see how deep his faith was. He knew that if God asked him to sacrifice his beloved son, He could bring him back to life again. He knew God was the living God who gives and takes away.

This is a picture of the sacrifice God made when He gave His only Son to be led like a lamb to the slaughter. He sacrificed Jesus knowing that He would bring Him back to life again, and that is exactly what He did. He brought Him back to life. He is the living God of salvation!

A Prayer to Remember

Dear Lord,
Thank you for sacrificing your only Son Jesus for my sins. You loved me so much that you demonstrated that love on the cross. Amen.

The Prayer You Don’t Want to Pray

 The Prayer You Don’t Want to Pray

“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

Matthew 5:44 (NIV)

Today’s Devotional

Have you ever tried to pray for someone you genuinely cannot stand? Not the mildly annoying coworker or the neighbor whose dog barks at midnight, but the person who actually hurt you. The one whose name still tightens something in your chest when it comes up in conversation.

Jesus says to pray for that person. And the instinct, if we are honest, is to hear this as a command to feel something warm toward them, something generous and soft. But look at the sentence again. Jesus does not say “feel good about your enemies.” He says pray for them. Prayer is a decision to place someone in front of God and leave them there. You do not have to feel warm about it. You just have to do it. The resentment can still be sitting in the room while you pray. Jesus does not ask you to escort it out first.

What happens when you pray for the person you resent is quieter than forgiveness and stranger than letting go. You are releasing yourself from the job of holding it. Every grudge requires maintenance. It needs rehearsal, mental replay, the ongoing construction of a case you will never actually present. Praying for that person is you putting down the file.

Time to reflect

Let these questions sit with you honestly:

Whose name comes to mind when you read this verse, the one you wish did not come to mind?

What does your grudge cost you each day in energy, sleep, or inner quiet?

Have you confused forgiving someone with saying what they did was acceptable?

If prayer is placing a person in God’s hands, what are you holding onto by keeping them in yours?

Prayer Of The Day

God, I do not want to pray this prayer. You know the name I am thinking of right now, the one I have been carrying like a stone in my pocket, turning it over when no one is watching. I do not feel generous toward this person. I do not feel soft. But you did not ask me to feel those things first. You asked me to bring them to you. So here they are. I am placing them in front of you because I am tired of carrying the weight of what they did, and I trust your hands more than my grudge. Teach me that letting go is not the same as saying it was fine. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

Strengthening Faith

To move from resentment toward release, try one of these today:

Say the person’s name out loud in prayer, even if the only honest words after it are “I don’t know what to say about them, God.”

Write down what you have been carrying against this person, then close the notebook. You are not solving it today. You are naming it.

Read Romans 12:17-21 and notice what Paul says about leaving room for God to act where you cannot.

Tell one trusted friend that you are working on releasing a grudge. Say it plainly, without telling the whole story again.

When the mental replay starts today, interrupt it once with a single sentence: “This is not mine to carry anymore.”

Before dinner, think of one ordinary, human thing about the person you resent. They eat breakfast. They get tired. They have bad days. Let them be small and human for ten seconds.

Today Wisdom

“Pray for” is the strangest verb Jesus ever paired with “enemies.” It means set them down. Every grudge is a suitcase you packed yourself, and prayer is the only place where you are finally allowed to leave it.

 

John 14:6

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

John 14:6

Devotional: Jesus Christ

Jesus is the only way. He is the only way to peace. The only way to rest. The ONLY way to heaven. He is the right way. His way is better. Every other way leads to death and destruction. His way leads to life and righteousness. There is no other way. Jesus knew that the cross would be the only way to bridge the gap between God and man. He told His disciples and the people around Him many times what His fate would be. They didn’t believe that could happen and pledged to defend Him to death. However, some of them would later deny Him. Take Peter, for instance. He could not believe Christ when He told him that he would deny Him before man, yet when Jesus was handed over to Romans, that’s exactly what He did. He was one of Jesus’ closest friends. After the death of Jesus, Peter would go on to lead many to the Lord and would be one of His greatest missionaries. He found His way in Christ.

Have you found your way in Him? Are you following the way of the world, or have you decided to follow Jesus? His way will bring you peace beyond anything man can give, and rest in Him.

A Prayer to Remember

Dear Lord,
Have your way in me. Lead me and guide me. You are the only one who can truly satisfy me. Your path is the only one I want. Amen

The Invitation Before the Exposure

 The Invitation Before the Exposure

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

John 8:12 (NIV)

Today’s Devotional

Someone is already turning away from the window. Pulling the blinds closed on a morning that arrived too bright, too honest, too soon. The instinct is old: if the light gets in, it will find the thing you have been keeping in the corner of the room. The mess you have not cleaned. The word you have not said. The version of yourself you show no one.

Jesus says, “I am the light of the world.” And most of us hear that and think of exposure. We think of floodlights and interrogation rooms, of everything ugly dragged into plain view. So we flinch. We stay in the hallway where the bulb burned out months ago, because at least in the dim we can pretend the dust is not there. But look at what he actually says next: “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” he leads with an invitation, not a searchlight. The word is “follows,” and following is motion, chosen and repeated, one step and then another. he says, “Walk with me.”

That order matters more than we give it credit for. The invitation comes first. The seeing comes second, and it comes while you are already walking beside him, already held in the company of the one whose light you feared. Whatever the brightness finds, it finds while you are accompanied.

Time to reflect

These questions ask you to look at what you have been keeping in the dim. Stay with each one longer than feels comfortable.

What is the one thing about yourself you most hope no one discovers, and what would it mean if you believed you were already known?

When have you mistaken God’s attention for God’s accusation?

Where in your daily life are you choosing dim lighting on purpose, not because you need rest, but because you need to hide?

Is your reluctance to come closer to God rooted in what he might ask of you, or in what he might see in you?

Prayer Of The Day

Lord, we have spent so long arranging ourselves for the dark. We know where every piece of furniture sits when the lights are off, and we have learned to move through rooms without bumping into the things we refuse to look at. We are tired of it. We are tired, and we are afraid, and those two feelings have lived together in us so long they feel like the same thing. Teach us that your light arrives as company before it arrives as clarity. Help us believe that the invitation to follow is not a trick to get us into the open. Walk with us until we forget we were hiding. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

Strengthening Faith

Following starts with one honest motion toward the light. Here is where today’s steps begin.

Read Psalm 139:1-12 slowly. Notice how David moves from “you have searched me” to “even the darkness will not be dark to you.” Sit with the difference between being searched and being seen by someone who stays.

Name one thing you have been keeping out of sight, not to another person, but to God in prayer. Say it plainly, without softening the language.

Walk outside for ten minutes with no headphones, no phone in hand. Let yourself be visible in open space without performing anything for anyone.

Find someone you trust and ask them one real question about their week. Listen without offering advice. Practice being present in someone else’s honesty before asking them to be present in yours.

Identify one small area of your home you have been avoiding: an unopened drawer, a pile of unsorted papers, a shelf you look past every day. Spend five minutes with it. Let the physical act of bringing order stand for the interior one you are beginning.

Before your next meal, pause and say one true sentence about your day so far, out loud, to yourself or to whoever is at the table. Accuracy, not performance.

Today Wisdom

Following is the only form of honesty that moves. Confession stands still; courage sits down; resolve makes a list. But following puts one foot in front of the other while the person beside you already knows what the next mile will uncover. That is enough to keep walking.

 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭28:7‬

The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭28:7‬

Trust Devotional

David knew what it meant to trust in the Lord. He trusted in his God the moment he stood across from the giant Goliath as a little boy, fighting to save the people. He continued to trust in God as he hid for his life from King Saul. He trusted in the Lord as he took the throne and reigned as king. Even when he committed acts of sin, he trusted that God would forgive him and continue to walk with him. Maybe this is why God calls him a “man after his own heart” in 1 Samuel 13:14. In Psalm 28:7, David declares his trust and love for the Lord. He says that the Lord is his strength and shield and helps him. This is why he trusted God and was incredibly thankful for all of the things He had done throughout his life.

Do you live your life trusting God? Just like David’s life, our trust isn’t about what we have or haven’t done, but about what God can do and is doing to bring us closer to Him. It focuses on Him and how He works, not on us, and how we fail. Although David did not always stay faithful to the Lord, He continued to trust and knew that His life was better with God than without Him. Do you understand these truths as well? Praise Him and thank Him for working in your life, and continue to trust in Him every single day.

A Prayer to Remember

Dear Lord,
You are trustworthy. You have never given me one reason to doubt in your faithfulness and love for me. May I trust in you every day and know the power of walking with you. Amen

Verse of the Day Genesis 3:17

 

Verse of the Day

Genesis 3:17

And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life.”

This verse arrives at the moment everything changed. Adam stands in the wreckage of disobedience, and God speaks not only judgment but also reality. The ground is cursed. Work will be hard. Life will require effort, struggle, and perseverance. This is not cruelty. This is consequence meeting grace, because even in this moment, God does not abandon Adam. He tells him what life will look like now and invites him to walk forward anyway.

Genesis 3:17 is often read as punishment, but it also carries an unexpected invitation. The ground may be cursed, but Adam is still called to work it. The labor may be painful, but it is not pointless. God could have removed Adam entirely. Instead, He gives him a task. He gives him something to do with his hands, his time, and his obedience. Even after the fall, there is still purpose. Even in brokenness, there is still a way to move forward.

Quiet Prayer

God, I bring You the places where obedience feels hard and the ground beneath me feels cursed. I confess that I have listened to voices other than Yours, and I have tasted what was never meant for me. Forgive me. Teach me to work faithfully even when the work is difficult. Help me trust that You have not abandoned me, even when the path forward requires more of me than I thought I had to give. Let my obedience become visible, not in perfection, but in steady faithfulness.

Devotional Reflection

Obedience after failure does not look like victory. It looks like getting up and working the cursed ground anyway. It looks like choosing to trust God’s instruction even when the consequences of your choices are still unfolding around you. Adam’s story does not end in Genesis 3:17. He goes on to live, to work, to raise children, to walk with God in a world that is now broken. His obedience becomes visible not in one grand moment of redemption, but in the quiet, steady choice to keep going.

We live in a world that still bears the marks of the fall. Work is hard. Relationships require effort. Growth comes through struggle. You may look at your life and see the consequences of choices you wish you had not made. You may feel the weight of a season that seems cursed, where every step forward requires more strength than you thought you had. Genesis 3:17 does not erase that reality. It acknowledges it. Then it calls you to keep working anyway.

Letting faith become visible through steady obedience means showing up even when the ground is hard. It means planting seeds in soil that resists you. It means trusting that God has not removed His purpose from your life just because the path has become more difficult. Adam’s obedience after the fall was not about earning his way back into the garden. It was about trusting that God still had a plan, even outside of it.

You may be in a growth season that does not feel like growth at all. It may feel like discipline, correction, or consequence. But growth and struggle are not opposites. Growth often happens in the places where obedience costs you something. The ground may be cursed, but it is still the ground God has given you to work. Your faithfulness in this season matters. Your choice to keep moving forward, even when it is painful, is an act of worship.

God does not ask you to pretend the struggle is not real. He asks you to work through it. He asks you to let your obedience be seen not in perfect outcomes, but in the daily choice to trust Him with the process. You do not have to have it all together. You do not have to undo the past. You simply have to show up today and do the next thing He has put in front of you.

Think of a farmer working difficult soil. The ground may be rocky, dry, or resistant. But the farmer does not wait for perfect conditions. He works the ground he has been given. He plants in faith, waters with patience, and trusts that something will grow even if he cannot see it yet. That is what steady obedience looks like. It is not flashy. It is not immediate. But it is faithful, and faithfulness is what God honors.

Genesis 3:17 reminds us that we live in a fallen world, but it also reminds us that God has not removed His presence or His purpose. He still speaks. He still guides. He still invites us to walk with Him, even when the path is harder than we expected. Your obedience in this season is not about proving yourself. It is about trusting that God is still at work, even in the struggle.

Today’s Practice

Identify one area of your life where obedience feels difficult right now. Instead of waiting for the struggle to ease, take one small step of faithfulness today. Work the ground God has given you, even if it feels cursed, and trust that He sees your effort.

Doctrine & Covenants: Section 7

 Section 7

Revelation given to Joseph Smith the Prophet and Oliver Cowdery, at Harmony, Pennsylvania, April 189, when they inquired through the Urim and Thummim as to whether John, the beloved disciple, tarried in the flesh or had died. The revelation is a translated version of the record made on parchment by John and hidden up by himself.

1-3, John the Beloved will live until the Lord comes; 4-8, Peter, James, and John hold gospel keys.

1 And the Lord said unto me: John, my beloved, what desirest thou? For if you shall ask what you will, it shall be granted unto you.

2 And I said unto him: Lord, give unto me power over death, that I may live and bring souls unto thee.

3 And the Lord said unto me: Verily, verily, I say unto thee, because thou desirest this thou shalt tarry until I come in my glory, and shalt prophesy before nations, kindreds, tongues, and people.

4 And for this cause the Lord said unto Peter: If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? For he desired of me that he might bring souls unto me, but thou desiredst that thou mightest speedily come unto me in my kingdom.

5 I say unto thee, Peter, this was a good desire; but my beloved has desired that he might do more, or a greater work yet among men than what he has before done.

6 Yea, he has undertaken a greater work; therefore I will make him as flaming fire and a ministering angel; he shall minister forth those who shall be heirs of salvation who dwell on the earth.

7 And I will make thee to minister for him and for thy brother James; and unto you three I will give this power and the keys of this ministry until I come.

8 Verily I say unto you, ye shall both have according to your desires, for ye both joy in that which ye have desired.

Pearl of Great Price: Moses-Chapter 8

 Chapter 8

(February 1831)

Methuselah prophesies—Noah and his sons preach the gospel—Great wickedness prevails—The call to repentance is unheeded—God decrees the destruction of ALL flesh by the Flood.

1 And all the days of Enoch were four hundred and thirty years.

2 And it came to pass that Methuselah, the son of Enoch, was not taken, that the covenants of the Lord might be fulfilled, which he made to Enoch; for he truly covenanted with Enoch that Noah should be of the fruit of his loins.

3 And it came to pass that Methuselah prophesied that from his loins should spring all the kingdoms of the earth (through Noah), and he took glory unto himself.

4 And there came forth a great famine into the land, and the Lord cursed the earth with a sore curse, and many of the inhabitants thereof died.

5 And it came to pass that Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and begat Lamech;

6 And Methuselah lived, after he begat Lamech, seven hundred and eighty-two years, and begat sons and daughters.

7 And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and he died.

8 And Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and begat a son.

9 And he called his name Noah, saying: This son shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed.

10 And Lamech lived, after he begat Noah, five hundred and ninety-five years, and he begat sons and daughters.

11 And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years, and he died.

12 And Noah was four hundred and fifty years old, and begat Japheth; and forty years afterward he begat Shem of her who was the mother of Japheth, and when he was five hundred years old he begat Ham.

13 And Noah and his son hearkened unto the Lord, and gave heed, and they were called the sons of God.

14 And when these men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, the sons of men saw that those daughters were fair, and they took them, wives, even as they chose.

15 And the Lord said unto Noah: The daughters of thy sons have sold themselves; for behold mine anger is kindled against the sons of men, for they will not hearken to my voice.

16 And it came to pass that Noah prophesied, and taught the things of God, even as it was in the beginning.

17 And the Lord said unto Noah: My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for he shall know that all flesh shall die; yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years; and if men do not repent, I will send in the floods upon them.

18 And in those days there were giants on the earth, and they sought Noah to take away his life; but the Lord was with Noah, and the power of the Lord was upon him.

19 And the Lord ordained Noah after his own order, and commanded him that he should go forth and declare his Gospel unto the children of men, even as it was given unto Enoch.

20 And it came to pass that Noah called upon the children of men that they should repent; but they hearkened not unto his words;

21 And also, after that they had heard him, they came up before him, saying: Behold, we are the sons of God; have we not taken unto ourselves the daughters of men? And are we not eating and drinking, and marrying and giving in marriage? And our wives bear unto us children, and the same are mighty men, which are like unto men of old, men of great renown. And they hearkened not unto the words of Noah.

22 And God saw that the wickedness of men had become great in the earth; and every man was lifted up in the imagination of the thoughts of his heart, being only evil continually.

23 And it came to pass that Noah continued his preaching unto the people, saying: Hearken, and give heed unto my words;

24 Believe and repent of your sins and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, even as our fathers, and ye shall receive the Holy Ghost, that ye may have all things made manifest; and if ye do not this, nevertheless they hearkened not.

25 And it repented Noah, and his heart was pained that the Lord had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at the heart.

26 And the Lord said: I will destroy man whom I have created, from the face of the earth, both man and beast, and the creeping things, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth Noah that I have created them, and that I have made them; and he hath called upon me; for they have sought his life.

27 And thus Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord; for Noah was a just man, and perfect in his generation; and he walked with God, as did also his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

28 The earth was corrupt before God, and it was filled with violence.

29 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt, for ALL flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth.

30 And God said unto Noah: The end of ALL flesh is come before me, for the one earth is filled with violence, and behold I will destroy ALL flesh from off the earth.

1 Nephi: Chapter 8

 Chapter 8

Lehi sees a vision of the tree of life—He partakes of its fruit and desires his family to do likewise—He sees a rod of iron, a strait and narrow path, and the mists of darkness that enshroud men—Sariah, Nephi, and Sam partake of the fruit, but Laman and Lemuel refuse. About 600-592 B.C.

1 And it came to pass that we had gathered together all manner of seeds of every kind, both of grain of every kind, and also of the seeds of fruit of every kind.

2 And it came to pass that while my father tarried in the wilderness he spake unto us, saying: Behold, I have dreamed a dream; or, in other words, I have seen a vision.

3 And behold, because of the thing which I have seen, I have reason to rejoice in the Lord because of Nephi and also of Sam; for I have reason to suppose that they, and also many of their seed, will be saved.

4 But behold, Laman and Lemuel I fear exceedingly because of you; for behold, methought I saw in my dream, a dark and dreary wilderness.

5 And it came to pass that I saw a man, and he was dressed in a white robe; and he came and stood before me.

6 And it came to pass that he spake unto me, and bade me follow him.

7 And it came to pass that as I followed him I beheld myself that I was in a dark and dreary waste.

8 And after I had traveled for the space of many hours in darkness, I began to pray unto the Lord that he would have pray unto the Lord that he would mercy on me, according to the multitude of his tender mercies.

9 And it came to pass after I had prayed unto the Lord, I beheld a large and spacious field.

10 And it came to pass that I beheld a tree, whose fruit was desirable to make one happy.

11 And it came to pass that I did go forth and partake of the fruit thereof; and I beheld that it was most sweet, above all that I ever before tasted. Yea, and I beheld that the fruit thereof was white, to exceed all the whiteness that I had ever seen.

12 And as I partook of the fruit thereof it filled my soul with exceedingly great joy; wherefore, I began to be desirous that my family should partake of it also; for I knew that it was desireable above all other fruit.

13 And as I cast my eyes round about, that perhaps I might discover my family also, I beheld a river of water; and it ran along, and it was near the tree of which I was partaking the fruit.

14 And I looked to behold from whence it came; and I saw the head thereof a little way off; and at the head thereof I beheld your mother Sariah, and Sam, and Nephi; and they stood as if they knew not whither they should go.

15 And it came to pass that I beckoned unto them; and I also did say unto them with a loud voice that they should come unto me, and partake of the fruit, which was desirable above all other fruit.

16 And it came to pass that they did come unto me and partake of the fruit also.

17 And it came to pass that I was desirous that Laman and Lemuel should come and partake of the fruit also; wherefore I cast mine eyes toward the head of the river, that perhaps I might see them.

18 And it came to pass that I saw them, but they would not come unto me and partake of the fruit.

19 And I beheld a rod of iron, and it extended along the bank of the river, and led to the tree by which I stood.

20 And I also behold a strait and narrow path, which came along by the rod of iron, even to the tree by which I stood; and it also led by the head of the fountain, unto a large and spacious field, as if it had been a world.

21 And I saw numberless concourses of people, many of whom were pressing forward, that they might obtain the path which led unto the tree by which I stood.

22 And it came to pass that they did come forth, and commence in the path which led to the tree.

23 And it came to pass that there arose a mist of darkness, insomuch that they who had commenced in the path did lose their way, that they wandered off and were lost.

24 And it came to pass that I beheld others pressing forward, and they came forth and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press forward through the mist of darkness, clinging to the rod of iron, even until they did come forth and partake of the fruit of the tree.

25 And after they had partaken of the fruit of the tree they did cast their eyes about as if they were ashamed.

26 And I also cast my eyes round about, and beheld, on the other side of the river of water, a great and spacious building; and it stood as it were in the air, high above the earth.

27 And it was filled with people, both old and young, both male and female; and their manner of dress was exceedingly fine; and they were in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers towards those who had come and were partaking of the fruit.

28 And after they had tasted of the fruit they were ashamed, because of those that were scoffing at them; and they fell away into forbidden paths and were lost.

29 And now, I, Nephi, do not speak all the words of my father.

30 But, to be short in writing, behold, he saw other multitudes pressing forward; and they came and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press their way forward, continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree.

31 And he also saw other multitudes feeling their way towards that great and spacious building.

32 And it came to pass that many were drowned in the depths of the fountain; and many were lost from his view, wandering in strange roads.

33 And great was the multitude that did enter into that strange building. And after they did enter into that building they did point the finger of scorn at me and those that were partaking of the fruit also; but we heeded them not.

34 These are the words of my father: For as many as heeded them, had fallen away.

35 And Laman and Lemuel partook not of the fruit, said my father.

36 And it came to pass after my father had spoken all the words of his dream or vision, which were many, he said unto us, because of these things which he saw in a vision, he exceedingly feared for Laman and Lemuel; yea, he feared lest they should be cast off from the presence of the Lord.

37 And he did exhort them then with all the feeling of a tender parent, that they would hearken to his words, that perhaps the Lord would be merciful to them, and not cast them off; yea, my father did preach unto them.

38 And after he had preached unto them, and also prophesied unto them of many things, he bade them to keep the commandments of the Lord; and he did cease speaking unto them.

Matthew: Chapter 8

 Chapter 8

Jesus heals a leper, cures the centurion's servant and others, stills the tempest, and casts out devils—The devils enter a herd of swine.

1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.

3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

4 And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.

5 And when Jesus entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him,

6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.

7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.

8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.

9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me; and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.

12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

14 And when Jesus was come into Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever.

15 And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them.

16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed ALL that were sick:

17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sickenesses.

18 Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.

19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.

20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not whereto lay his head.

21 And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.

22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.

23 And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.

24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.

25 And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.

26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.

27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!

28 And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.

29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? Art thou come hither to torment us before the time?

30 And there was a good way off from them a herd of many swine feeding.

31 So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine.

32 And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.

33 And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils.

34 And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts.

Genesis: Chapter 8

 Chapter 8

The Flood ceases—Noah sends forth a dove, which returns with an olive leaf—He releases all living things from the ark—He offers sacrifices—Seedtime, harvest, and seasons are ensured.

1 And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and ALL the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged;

2 The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained;

3 And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated.

4 And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat.

5 And the waters decreased continually until on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountain seen.

6 And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made:

7 And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth.

8 Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground;

9 But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark.

10 And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove of the ark;

11 And the dove came to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf plucked off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.

12 And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more.

13 And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry.

14 And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried.

15 And God spake unto Noah, saying,

16 Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee.

17 Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth.

18 And Noah went forth, and his son, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him:

19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.

20 And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

22 While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

Acts 3:19

 Acts 3: 19—Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

Mark 16: 16—He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Acts 2: 38—Then Peter said unto them, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Galatians 3: 26-27—For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Romans 10: 9-10—That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 5: 1-2—Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Ephesians 5: 25-27—Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Romans 6: 3-10—Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall also be in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath now more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

Colossians 2: 9-13—For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead, And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses.

Ephesians 2: 6-9—And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Acts 22: 16—And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

John 3: 5—Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.

John 3: 16—For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 8: 24—I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

Titus 3: 5—Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.

Romans 10: 16-17—But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.

Luke 24: 47—And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among ALL nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

1 Peter 3: 20-21—Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing wherein few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water. The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

Mark 16:16

 Mark 16: 16--He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Acts 2: 22-42--Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know; Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain. Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it. For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be removed: Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. For David is not ascended into the heavens; but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking up of bread, and in prayers.

2 Peter 3: 15-16--And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

John 14: 25-26--These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Colossians 4: 16—And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.

Matthew 28: 16-19—Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. And when they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

Genesis 1: 27—So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

2 Timothy 3: 15-17—And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which can make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

Acts 2: 36-38—Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Devotion: Better Than Ever

 The Bible In One Year: Isaiah 23-25/Philippians 1

Today's Reading: Psalm 51:9-13

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. ~Psalm 51:12

Better Than Ever

The story is told of a group of salmon fishermen who gathered in a Scottish inn after a long day of fishing. As one was describing a catch to his friends, his arm swept across the table and knocked a glass of water against the wall, shattering it and leaving a stain on the white plaster surface. The man apologized to the innkeeper and offered to pay for the damage, but there was nothing he could do; the wall was ruined. A man seated nearby said, "Don't worry." Rising, he took a painting implement from his pocket and began to sketch around the ugly stain. Slowly there emerged the head of a magnificent stag. The man was Sir E. H. Lawrence, Scotland's foremost animal artist.

David, Israel's illustrious king who penned Psalm 51, disgraced himself and his nation by his sins. He committed adultery with the wife of one of his friends and engineered the death of that friend—both deeds worthy of death. It would seem his life was ruined. But he pled with God: "Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me" (v. 12).

Like David, we have shameful acts in our past and the memories that accompany them, recollections that taunt us in the middle of the night. There's so much we wish we could undo or redo.

There is a grace that not only forgives sin but also uses it to make us better. God wastes nothing. ~David H. Roper

Lord, I've failed You again. Please forgive me again. Change me. Turn me around. Teach me to follow Your ways.

God has an ALL-seeing eye and ALL-forgiving heart.

When You Feel No One Is On Your Side

This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. ~John 15: 12

Devotion: Courageous Stand

 The Bible In One Year: Isaiah 20-22/Ephesians 6

Today's Reading: Ephesians 6:10-18

Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world. ~Ephesians 6:12

Courageous Stand

Teresa Prekorowa was just a teenager when the Nazis invaded her native Poland at the dawn of World War II. This was in the beginning of the Holocaust, when her Jewish neighbors began to disappear—arrested by the Nazis. So Teresa and other Polish countrymen risked their lives to rescue those neighbors from the Warsaw ghetto and the Nazi purge. Teresa would become one of the premier historians of the war and the Holocaust, but it was her courage to stand against the tide of evil that would list her with the Righteous Among the Nations at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem.

Courage is needed to stand against evil. Paul told the church at Ephesus, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and agaisnt opposition is more than any of us can face alone, so God has given us the necessary spiritual resources (the "full armor of God") to enable us to "stand against the devil's schemes" (v. 11).

What might that courageous stand involve? It may be working against injustice or intervening on behalf of someone you know who is vulnerable or victimized. Whatever form the conflict may take, we can have courage—our God has already provided what we need to stand for Him and against evil. ~Bill Crowder

Listen to the Discover the Word program "Brave Enough" at discovertheword.ord/series/brave-enough.

God enables us to stand for Him.

Have Faith And Stay In Prayer!!!!!!

When You Have Sinned

Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. ~Psalm 51:9