Kerusso Daily Devotional

Would it surprise you to know that God has always been interested in you? Did you know He knew you before you were born? He has a vested interest in how your life turns out. Romans 8:31 tells us, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” He isn’t some remote deity. God doesn’t pay attention only most of the time. He doesn’t form His plans here and there. He is there for us all the time. The quest...

Part of the joy of being a believer is that we can share the Good News with literally anyone and everyone. And how we share that faith is often critical for the other person’s future. Romans 5:3–4 says, “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” As we share this week about holding fast to f...

Have you ever gotten tired of treading water? Martha is a 20-something-old lifeguard in Los Angeles. Besides dealing with deck chairs purposely thrown into the water and parents asking her to babysit poolside, she’s noticed another aspect of the job that really tugs at your heart. “Kids pretend to drown in the pool so that I will pay attention to them.”  Wow. Think about that. At a young age, huma...

The prophet Isaiah lived during a difficult period for the ancient Israelites. Turning away from faith in God and under the control of corrupt kings, the nation entered a period of darkness. They needed hope more than anything. In our discussion this week, we’re talking about this human condition. Today, we are really no different from people in ancient times: We all need a relationship with our C...

Have you ever been in such a dark place that you wondered if God cares about you, or if He even exists? Maybe it’s all some cosmic joke, right? We’ve all been there. Humans doubt. We doubt ourselves, we doubt product labels, we doubt our kids. We question everything. But the worst one is trying to figure out where God is in the middle of life’s great difficulties. Sometimes the world is just flat-...

The Bible is full of what many would call difficult stories. Some of them don’t make a lot of sense. Others seem contrary to what we think should happen. One such story is breathtaking if we follow it through. It involves a father trusting God more than his own instincts. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, “For we live by faith, and not by sight.” In Genesis, we read about Abraham being instructed by the Lor...

Only a person who is willfully blind could deny that miracles happen today. They didn’t end at the shore of the Red Sea.  Malachi 3:6 says, “I the Lord do not change.” From this, we can logically see that the Bible’s powerful and majestic miracles didn’t stop in the first century. They’re still happening. God didn’t suspend the love He dispenses in the form of miracles.  Taylor McCaffrey was an al...

A political science major at a major university was having coffee with a campus pastor. The pastor knew that the student was wrestling with doubt about the existence of God and said to him, “John, you know all of us wonder at some point if it’s all real or not. For example, there are quite a few stories in the Bible that are just hard to believe. Jonah and the whale and all that.” John smiled and...

Life is a process. We know that if we’ve lived very long at all. And this week, we’re talking about the process of trusting God. John 16:24 says, “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.” Could Jesus meet our needs by just giving us something instantly? Of course. He made everything! And sometimes He does that; the miracles He...

Part of God’s unchanging nature is that He is sovereign and does things His way. In Isaiah 55, we read that God’s ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not our thoughts. In other words, He’s infinitely more powerful than we are, especially when it comes to perspective.  We read in the Old Testament that sometimes other nations mocked the Israelites when they were exiled from their homeland....

Do you need a miracle?  If we’re honest and open to the truth, miracles have always been a part of our world. In the beginning, God made a dazzling world full of diversity, beautiful animals, gorgeous sunsets, streams of water. He also made us to enjoy it all, and to keep it for Him.  But just like the entrance of sin into our world which marred the original beauty, we sometimes get weighed down w...

Today, we’re unpacking a powerful message in Scripture that reminds us of the unparalleled authority and majesty of Jesus Christ. Philippians 2:9–11 says, “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,...

The late writer Christopher Hitchens was a skeptic who claimed that miracles are born from nightmarish ignorance, and that they often are simply 10th-hand reports from illiterate peasants. Wow. The flaw in his argument, of course, is that it isn’t really an argument. It’s simply a rant against God, and the fact is unexplainable miracles happen every day in our world, but Hitchen’s views are shared...

Of all the human emotions, fear is perhaps the most paralyzing. Now there are what we call internal and external fears. While many people stress about relationships, depression, and self-doubt, there are also big issues affecting the world: natural disasters, political upheaval, wars, are just a few of the things that create fear.  Sometimes it can feel like everything is unraveling, but our field...

The most influential ruler of all time, the greatest king to ever walk the face of the earth, is also mankind’s greatest example of humility. Jesus may have been born in a stable, but the Son of our Creator God was anything but ordinary. He lived a humble life, but performed miracles along the way, and showed us what it means to be a humble servant leader among men. Jesus selflessly took human for...

The giant redwoods of the American Pacific Northwest are among nature’s most beautiful scenes. As tall as skyscrapers, and big enough to drive a truck through. It’s said that the redwoods are so powerful and strong in part because even these plants have a sense of community. Separated, or as a single tree, the root system is much more vulnerable. But planted with partners all around, the picture c...

We think of her as a genteel Southern lady, and she was that, for sure. But Ruth Bell Graham was so much more. While her husband was away so much, preaching to the masses, she was preaching to her own little flock. The result was children who became adults, and in turn, shared the Good News of Jesus with others. Anne Graham Lotz and Franklin Graham didn’t just fall out of the sky! Proverbs 27:17 s...

Some of the greatest stories of believers down through time have involved those who really studied God’s Word. These people have gone before us to show us the way. From Charles Spurgeon to a missionary mother in China, daily study of the Word, and prayer, prepared them to mentor entire generations. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, one man sharpens another.” We also read in Romans 10 th...

Have you had an experience in your life that has prepared you for helping others? Has life dealt you circumstances that speak to a situation in a younger person’s life? If so, you might be ready to help in such a way that will bring honor and glory to God. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, one man sharpens another.” The apostle Paul suffered much for his faith in Christ. A dramatic ship...

Do you struggle with being humble, and yielding to God’s will? Most of us do. This extends to accepting an iron-sharpening-iron relationship that God has set in our path. And yet the benefits are so good for us.   Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, one man sharpens another.”   Make no mistake, God sets people in our path for a reason. That Bible teacher in your church might have words of...

The Bible is full of wonderful analogies, and one of the best is found in Proverbs, which paints a picture of godly mentoring and accountability.   Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.”   The idea is that as pieces of iron are drawn against the other, each piece becomes sharper. A further application is made in Hebrews 4:12, which talks about Scripture as being a...

Of all the themes of the Bible, God’s grace through His Son, Jesus Christ, is the greatest example. It’s the most critical element in a person’s life, and the choice to receive it is ours.    The Bible tells us that before the world was created, God already had a plan to redeem mankind from sin. And because He knows all, He already knew what would take place in the Garden of Eden.    Acts 15:11 sa...

Corrie ten Boom made a decision at the height of World War II. She would hide Jews from the Nazis in her Dutch home, and she was found out. Surviving the war, she told people for the rest of her life about God’s grace. Though her sister, Betsy, died at the notorious camp called Ravensbrück, Corrie survived.   One night two years after the war, she found out just how meaningful grace really is. Aft...

Theresa Rosenthal had a rough start in life. She watched her father abuse her mother, and then when she was six, a family friend sexually abused her. Like so many that suffered at the hands of a predator, Theresa pushed the pain down into a secret place, and for decades, she battled with depression and substance abuse. Finally, one day she was sitting in front of her house and just blurted out to...

It’s been said that grace is simply favor from God, and we didn’t do anything to earn it. Often, grace comes when we need it the most.    The word grace is used about 170 times in the Bible. Most of those occur in the New Testament as the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ unfolds. His sacrifice for all of us—dying on the cross for our sins—was the backdrop for a lot of other moments in grace He gav...