Devotions

2nd Samuel 5-7 (Read these chapters with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post, or at www.bible.com ) D.O.G. I know, I know. Yesterday I told everyone they should be independent, and act for themselves, and to follow Jesus no matter what. I'm not taking any of that advice back-- but when I said we need to be independent, I meant of others. You know, if someone drags you down because you believe in God, or completely ignores what you say about Him, don't be hung up on what they say. Be true to YOUR beliefs. Stay true to YOUR God. That's what today's devotion is all about. Staying true to someone doesn't mean you think about them every once in a while. It doesn't mean you pray once before you go to bed, asking for forgiveness of all the bad stuff you did that day, then continuing to sin all over again. To stay true to someone, you have to follow what David did in today's reading! He consulted God with every decision he made, and when people he once had gru...

2nd Samuel 1-4 BE INDEPENDENT. Welcome to 2nd Samuel! If you haven't read today's reading, please read now at http://www.bible.com/ or with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post! Alright, so let's get this started. There were lots of murders and betrayals and family conflicts and mourning in today's reading. I know, seems a but overwhelming. But what I got from it is to be independent (as seen in the picture I posted above.) :~) Basically, there isn't a way to change someone from the first day you meet them. Well, I should probably rephrase that. People can change someone in little ways, like making them grateful for a little or something. But converting wise... it's very hard to change someone in one day. It's every man for himself, which is kind of depressing sometimes. But it's always important to note that sometimes you CAN change someone, just by sticking to your God, and following what HE wants. For instance, there were so many things happenin...

Samuel 28-31 Read these chapters with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post. or at www.bible.com. So, good news, the book of Samuel is over today. Bad news-- there's 2nd Samuel that we'll start tomorrow. But oh well, it's just another book we'll have under our belt. In today's reading, there were some pretty sketchy things. A lady that could bring people back to life, well sorta, so they could speak to people, or something... it's pretty confusing. I thought there were no fortune tellers, or magicians, right? All I know to say is that times were very different then. People could talk to God, and ask him for advice. Heck, people were even able to have God appear before them! So, it makes sense that there were different forms of things that we're not used to. I'm here to talk about (or, attempt to to talk about, anyway,) different beliefs in today's world. There are obviously many beliefs as to why we are here, and how we got here, and when we got...

Samuel 25-27 The Joker. Cruella Deville. The Big Bad Wolf. Kryptonite. The Wicked Stepmother. The Devil. Needless to say, these are the bad guys (and gals) of all kinds of stories. Most stories have that character that you just DESPISE. They're mean, and evil, and the try and hurt the innocent. They're the problem. The antagonist. But, the truth is-- they keep the story going. If there were no Wicked Stepmother, Cinderella would of gone to the ball in a gorgeous dress made by someone other than little birds and chipmunks. She wouldn't of even needed to go to the ball, because she probably would of already had a husband by now. But what kind of story would THAT be, right? Who wants to read about a girl who has it all, and doesn't need any help whatsoever. It's plain. It's uninteresting. It's boring. It's worthless. Today, our reading had some pretty bad characters. There were three that spoke to me, anyhow. And I'm sure that after I start describing t...

Samuel 22-24 Hello, everyone! I'm doing this blog from an airport! Technology is amazing, right? Well, today the subject is about following people. Who to follow, who you shouldn't follow behind. If you haven't read today's readings, you can do so now with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post, or at www.bible.com. So, what'd you think? Saul seems like a pretty jealous and evil guy. It's hard to fathom that people actually followed him-- like, religiously almost. As you know, Saul wanted to kill David, for no reason in particular. He just felt it was nessesary to kill someone who was getting more attention than him. Later, we find that we really just didn't want to step down as king... and he knew that David was probably the next one in line. Anyhow, Saul had all these men that went with him on his murderous journey. It makes me wonder: who do YOU follow? Hopefully, not someone that is on a killing rampage... because that's pretty evil. Howeve...

Samuel 19-21 JEALOUSY. It can take the best of us. It can create the worst of us. Truth is, there's no way to get rid of jealousy sometimes, and even if you choose not to be jealous of others, chances are people will be jealous of you from one time to another. It's a pretty nasty subject. But then again -- the world is a nasty place sometimes. So how do we deal with it? Come to think of it... how do we eliminate everything nasty in our lives? Is that even possible? Nothing is impossible with God. Let's take today's reading for example. If you haven't already, you can read today's chapters with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ . We have this ruler named Saul, and this super awesome fighter guy named David. (Yes, he's the one who killed Goliath.) David is fighting in Saul's army, and time and time again, David is doing WONDERFUL. Apparently, David is doing SO WELL that he's taking away the "umph" from Sa...

Samuel 17-18 THE MESSENGER So everyone knows the line "don't blame me, I'm just the messenger." My question... is there any situation where you have to say "please, blame me. I am the messenger." It's a weird question, I know. But I'll try to explain. There is a method to my madness. Today was the story of David and Goliath! If you haven't already, read these short chapters (Samuel 17-18) at http://www.bible.com/ or with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post. Anyway, David was the youngest of all his brothers, and all of his brothers were fighting in the battle/war/thing with the Philistines. David was sent from his father, Jesse, to bring food to his brothers. He was told to find out how they were doing, and what was going on. Then, David would bring the news back to his father. David was, in this situation, "the messenger." And, I know there wasn't a Jesus at the time, and David might not of considered himself a very r...

Today's Chapter: 1st Samuel 16 Read it now with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ . Don't judge a book by it's cover. We hear it a lot, maybe everyday. It can apply to books, or places, or even people. And today's reading went perfectly hand in hand with this phrase. Have you even heard of the story of David and Goliath? If not, then it's perfectly fine, because we're reading it tomorrow. It's about a boy named David (obviously,) but the funny thing is, David is scrawny and tiny. Samuel (the leader of the Israelites at the time,) was told that the Israelites wanted a King. After finding one and realizing he wasn't fit for the job, he was sent by God to find a new one. God told Samuel to go to a man named Jesse, and find one of his sons to be the new King of Israel. Samuel obeyed, and went to Jesse asking him to bring out his sons. Jesse brought them out, one by one, and each one he brought, Samuel was convinced that ...

Samuel 12-15 Read these chapters with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ . They're worth reading, if you want to understand today's reading. 'Nuf said. STUBBORNNESS. So, the picture's pretty self-explanatory. We're all stubborn sometimes. Sometimes we know we're right about something, and then when we figure out that we WERE right... we throw it in people's faces. We get cocky, and "I told you so!"-ish, and we feel on top of the world. Then, we start walking around pretending we know it all... and eventually, we get wrong every once in a while. We might not even notice we're wrong, but once we figure out "hey, I WAS wrong..." we ignore it. We insist that we're right, even when the world tells you that you're wrong. It stinks to be wrong, right? Your heart hurts. But instead of shutting out the world... and being hostile towards the ones that told you right... there's a simple way to get...

Samuel 8-11 Who do you think you pray to? As we are all aware of... there are several different religions in the world today. Every religion branches out into hundreds of other religions... and so on and so fourth. Therefore, there are jillions of people out there who DON'T pray to our God, the Father of Jesus, the creator. Differences are good sometimes. It's good for everyone to have different opinions, so the world becomes well rounded. Opinions can differ... and that can be a very good thing. But what about facts ? What about things that we know in our hearts are right, and we see several people every single day that simply are unaware of the truth? For example, (you guessed it,) Christians. We see tons of people who either don't know about Jesus, or know about Him, but refuse to believe in Him. That's what happened in today's reading. Read it, if you haven't already. Only four short chapters. So, Samuel is the judge of the land, and in case you don't k...

Samuel 4-7 Okay, so we all use tools in our life from one time to another. We use hammers to drive nails, saws to cut things, and screws to twist bolts into stuff. Tools are simply materialistic things that help us achieve goals. The correct dictionary definition is "anything used as a means of accomplishing a task or purpose." So when you use a tool, it comes in handy most times. But when you FINISH the task, let's face it: you concentrate on the ending result, a birdhouse, a bench, some shelves. No one says "thanks, I used a hammer" when someone compliments on their birdhouse. And, that's just the way things are. I'm not saying it's bad, not being thankful for the tools, because even though they're helpful, they shouldn't be the center of attention when they're used correctly. Are you following me? You're probably thinking "Gosh, Carly! What's this have ANYTHING to do with today's reading? It said nothing of tools !...

Samuel 1-3 Read these few chapters with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ . It's a brand new book of the Bible we're starting today, so be sure to read if you want a fresh start. So, today's story starts with Hannah. It's another classic love story, her husband had another wife who bore him many children, and Hannah couldn't have children. Her husband wasn't angry at her, in fact, he was actually kind of frustrated that she kept persisting on having children. He was all "Aren't I enough, honey? Why do you NEED children? I love you!" Aww. Too bad that Hannah kept praying at the temple like ALL the time. Her husband's other wife kept rubbing it in Hannah's face, too. I can't really imagine what it was like, but I guess it was something like "You're such an idiot, Hannah. You can't have children. Children are the greatest thing in my life, and YOU CAN'T HAVE ANY! Muah ha ha ha ha...

Ruth 1-4 (Yes, this is an entire book of the Bible.) It's a good one, though. Read carefully so we can talk about it at www.bible.com , or with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post. Or, if you have your Bible with you of course, then by all means. Read Ruth there, if you wish. So, let's talk about Ruth. The book, I mean. It's short and simple, but there are SO many messages, there are almost too many to count. I'll do my best. There was this lady named Naomi. She was married, with two sons who also got married. On of her daughter-in-laws was named Orpah, and the other (you guessed it,) Ruth. Over time, Naomi's husband died, and soon after, both of her sons died. She was left with Orpah and Ruth... but she decided to be humble and let them go back to their real families. She was all "I'm worthless. You girls deserve to marry, and since mt sons are no longer alive, we have no connection. Please, don't let me be a burden. Go back to your families, and...

Judges 20-21 Read these short two chapters now with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ ! I hope everyone had a fantastical week, but Lord knows I am READY FOR THE WEEKEND! Let's make this short and simple, but have it carry out a message for everyone throughout the weekend. If you read yesterday, you'd know of the story of the man and his concubine-- ouch. Let's just say BAD THINGS happened to her, and her master went back to Israel (she was violated in another foreign land) and he told everyone in Israel about that land and their evilness. This is the cool part -- when this guy told everyone in Israel about it, they all stuck up for the poor woman, even thought she was a woman, and she was dead. Regardless, they decided to take revenge on the meanies (called Benjaminites) and destroy their land. I'm not sure if revenge was the right choice to make here, but I just think it's pretty cool that they stuck up for the lady and defende...

Judges 17-19 Read these chapters with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ . HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY! Did you notice people wearing green around you? I wore lots of shamrocks, which I used to think was just what we do on St. Patrick's Day... but it turns out there's a pretty sentimental meaning to these green little clovers. If you haven't read yesterday's devotion, you might want to read the first couple of paragraphs, it tells more about St. Patrick and his little-known history. That might set up a good background for today's reading. Basically, this bishop named Patrick went into Ireland to tell the people there about Jesus. He obeyed God's commands, and set out for Ireland. Patrick was apparently a really great teacher, because he converted most of the country to Christianity! One man and collective ideas changed a nation forever. So, my question is -- how did he do it? And why do we wear green shamrocks because o...

Judges 14-16 (Read these chapters with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post Happy St. Patrick's Day! You might be viewing this post a day early, or maybe a day late... but regardless of the time, I'd like to personally wish everyone a great St. Patty's Day! Did you know that this holiday is actually a serious Christian holiday in Ireland? St. Patrick wasn't some short guy with red hair that talked with an Irish accent and held up clovers. He was actually an English missionary, from a little English town. He was captured by pirates when he was pretty young, and learned that if he prayed hard enough, he could leave Ireland and go back to his Christian family. Turns out, he DID eventually escape, and became a bishop. He changed his name to Patrick at the ceremony, and lived happily ever after. Except, of course, when he had a dream. That's right -- in the middle of the night, Patrick had a strange dream from God asking him to return to Ireland, where he had...

Judges 11-13 Read these chapters with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ Part 1 of "The World Judges" Series Every single blog I write, I think it will be the time where the Israelites finally realize that there IS a real God, and there is no reason to worship other "gods" that they used to worship. The Israelites sinned, and when they needed help from God, the promised to try harder to follow Him. Turns out, God saves them, and they go back to their evilish ways. Even yesterday, God got SO angry with them, He refused to save them again. He must have been 10 times angrier than I am with the Israelites! But, the Israelites PROMISED to worship Him (and only Him,) forever, and God heard their cries and agreed to save them. He sent a person called a judge, and in case you didn't get it yet -- that's why today's series (and the book of Judges) is called what it is. It's all about the mediators God sent to help th...

Judges 9-10 Read these chapters right now before you read today's blog, it will help you understand it. I know, I know, you just got situated, and there's not a Bible handy. Read these two chapters with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post, or at www.bible.com ! I'm not sure why, but today's reading reminded me of a comic book. You have the bad guy, Abimelech, who tricked a bunch of people into making him ruler of the land. He killed everyone in his way, whom happened to be his OWN BROTHERS. Poor guy. Well, not really. He's still the evil one. Then comes this other guy, the Superman of the reading, named Gaal. He recently moved into the town, and a bunch of people that were eating and drinking (probably more of the latter one,) were cursing their leader, Abimelech. The bad guys usually have really cool names. Abimelech isn't very evil-sounding, mostly because I don't know how to pronounce it. Oh well. So, these guys were drinking a lot and were ...

March 13th -- Judges 6-8 Read these chapters with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ ! So, yesterday we talked about outcasts and sinners. Not going to lie, it's really difficult to talk to people about Jesus that are pretty sketchy. But sometimes, they're the people that need Jesus the most! Today, just that happened. Gideon, lowly worker was actually used BY God to save an entire nation from sin! There wasn't really anything special about Gideon, in fact, he actually doubted that it was really God who was speaking to him. He asked God to preform all kinds of miracles to serve as signs that God was really there... so he was a naturally doubtful person. He was also a very humble person, though! Like I said, God used him to deliver the Israelites out of the grasps of foreign lands, and lead them to peace for 40 whole years! The Israelites wanted to make Gideon King of the land, but he refused. After all, it wasn't him that saved the Is...

March 12 th -- Judges 4-5 Read these chapters at http://www.bible.com/ or with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post... there's only two chapters to read today! Woo hoo ! Guess what? Today, we read about Deborah, a women leader of the land of Israel. Yes, you heard me right... a WOMAN leader. I apologize in advance if I'm prejudice against men today... I'm not trying to put down men, just trying to praise the great things women have done! March is National Women's Month, after all. And, how fitting: today the main focus was on the achievements Deborah did for Israel. She did lead them into battle, and was victorious! Plus, another woman in today's reading, Jael , killed the bad guy who was fleeing from his enemy. With all these accomplishments, I thought it would be a good idea to talk a little about how the outcasts, and the underdogs can become great in the end. Back in Biblical times, women were pretty low on the totem pole. A man could marry whomever he wa...

March 11th -- Judges 1-3 Start off the book right! You can read these chapters with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post, or at http://www.bible.com/ . Joshua must have been a pretty stinking awesome leader for the Israelites. Because once he died in yesterday's reading, the people completely fell apart. We're only three chapters into the book of Judges, and already the Israelites are sinning all over the place! And back then, when people sinned, they didn't have a Jesus they could depend on. They either had to sacrifice, or DIE. So, there you go. Their choices were very limited, and they STILL continued to sin. Even though they did the opposite of what they were supposed to do, God took mercy on them and sent people called judges to try and steer them away from their sins. Once a judge was sent, he helped them for life, and the people were safe. But once the judge died, the people went back to their sins again. Pity. God must have been frustrated, right? I'm prett...

March 10th -- Joshua 21-24 These four chapters end the chapter of Joshua! Be sure to read them at www.bible.com or with the BIBLE READER widget to the left of this post! Alright! Let's start off this beautiful day's reading with the end of Joshua, and the end of Joshua's life, too. But he lived for a whopping 110 years, which is a pretty good life, if you ask me! Before died, though, he gave a big speech to the Israelites about what to do, what not to do, how to live when he was gone, etc. One thing I noticed that was repeated a lot was for the Israelites not to worship foreign gods. Some might interpret this is a god from another land, and although they were told to stay away from those, too, today I'm going to talk about foreign gods -- the things you shouldn't put before God. If you're a different religion, then by all means, listen closely. But if you ARE Christian, what are some things you can name that you put before God? Sadly, I can think of a whole lis...

March 9th -- Joshua 18-20 Read these easy three chapters at www.bible.com or with the BIBLE READER to the left of this post! Boundaries The word boundary was used 23 times in today's reading. No, I didn't highlight the word boundary in my Bible 23 times, I went to www.bible.com and searched for the word boundary. It appeared, like I said, 23 times in today's reading. So, what's this have to do with anything? How can land boundaries apply to my life, or any one's life? Fist off, you're thinking too literally. Don't think about property boundaries, even though that's what the Bible was talking about. It kept mentioning Dan's boundaries, or Simeon's boundaries. My question, though, is what are your boundaries? Don't think about physical boundaries, but spiritual ones. Not only can spiritual boundaries say how much or how little you prevent something, (for example: "that's past my religion's boundaries,") it can also apply to...