Pastor Steve’s Daily Devotionals

Converge, Week 2 Day 5: A Legacy Worth Following Devotional Will my children follow Jesus because of the example I’ve set, or will they have to overcome my poor example to find faith? This question cuts to the heart of what it means to build spiritual infrastructure that lasts. We don’t want our children to succeed in spite of us – we want them to succeed because of the foundation we’ve laid. Buil...

Converge, Week 2 Day 4: Raising Up the Next Generation Devotional There’s a quiet crisis in the church today. Fewer young men are entering ministry each year, and the average age of senior pastors continues to rise. While this might seem like a problem for denominational leaders to solve, Scripture places the responsibility for raising up pastors squarely on the local church. This isn’t someone el...

Converge, Week 2 Day 3: The Mission Starts Here Devotional There’s a temptation in Christian circles to only look outward – to focus on missions ‘out there’ while neglecting the mission ‘right here.’ We get excited about supporting ministries in distant places while our own families, churches, and communities lack the spiritual foundation they desperately need. But here’s a crucial truth: if we do...

Converge, Week 2 Day 2: Stones of Remembrance Devotional Imagine standing by the Jordan River with Joshua and the Israelites, watching as twelve men carefully select stones from the riverbed. These weren’t just any rocks – they were memorial stones, physical reminders of God’s miraculous provision. God specifically commanded this act because He knew something profound: future generations need tang...

Converge, Week 2 Day 1: Building for Tomorrow Devotional Have you ever wondered what legacy you’re leaving behind? In our fast-paced world, it’s easy to get caught up in immediate needs and urgent demands. We focus on what’s right in front of us, forgetting that the future is coming. But God calls us to think differently – to think generationally. When we look at our lives, our families, and our c...

Converge, Week 1 Day 5: Walking Like Jesus Walked Devotional What does it mean to truly follow Jesus? Is it enough to attend church, read your Bible, and avoid major sins? While these are important, Jesus calls us to something more comprehensive - to walk as He walked. Jesus perfectly embodied both depth and breadth in His ministry. He knew Scripture intimately, often quoting and explaining it wit...

Converge Day 4: Knowledge That Transforms Devotional Have you ever known someone who could recite Bible verses perfectly but whose life didn’t reflect the love and character of Jesus? Or perhaps you’ve caught yourself accumulating biblical knowledge without it changing how you treat your family, coworkers, or neighbors? There’s a crucial difference between knowing doctrine and living doctrine. Tru...

Converge Day 3: The Foundation That Holds Devotional In our information-saturated world, we’re constantly bombarded with competing truth claims. Social media influencers, popular authors, and cultural voices all promise to have the answers to life’s biggest questions. How do we discern truth from error? How do we build our lives on something solid? The answer lies in developing a deep familiarity...

Converge Day 2: Your Advocate in the Courtroom Devotional Imagine standing in a courtroom, knowing you’re guilty of the charges against you. The evidence is overwhelming, and you have no defense. Just when despair sets in, the most skilled attorney in the world steps forward and declares, “I will represent this person.” That’s exactly what Jesus has done for us. When we sin - and we all do - we do...

Converge Day 1: When Knowledge Meets Life Devotional Have you ever met someone who could quote Scripture backwards and forwards but seemed to lack the passion that should characterize a follower of Jesus? Or perhaps you’ve encountered believers who are passionate about serving others but struggle to explain the basic truths of their faith? Both scenarios reveal an incomplete picture of what it mea...

Christmas Calls You to Glory Day 5: Unshakable Joy Devotional As we conclude our Christmas journey together, let’s return to where we started - the question of joy. You’ve probably experienced both kinds: the temporary happiness that depends on circumstances going well, and perhaps glimpses of something deeper that remains steady even when life gets difficult. True Christmas joy isn’t something yo...

Christmas Calls You to Glory Day 4: The Mission of Glory Devotional Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to come as a baby? Why didn’t God just fix everything from heaven? Why go through the vulnerability of human birth, the limitations of growing up, the pain of living in a broken world? Jesus came with a specific mission that required Him to be both fully God and fully human. He wasn’t born to l...

Christmas Calls You to Glory Day 3: God With Us Devotional Loneliness can feel especially sharp during the Christmas season. Whether you’re physically alone or surrounded by people but feeling disconnected, the ache of isolation can make the holidays difficult. Social media doesn’t help, showing us everyone else’s seemingly perfect gatherings while we struggle. But Christmas brings the most profou...

Christmas Calls You to Glory Day 2: The Promise Keeper Devotional Promises are everywhere during the holiday season. Retailers promise the perfect gift, families promise to stay in touch, and we promise ourselves that next year will be different. But how often do these promises actually deliver? How many times have you been disappointed by broken commitments or unmet expectations? Seven hundred ye...

Christmas Calls You to Glory Day 1: Beyond the Feeling Devotional Have you ever noticed how Christmas feelings can be so unpredictable? One moment you're filled with warmth watching children open presents, and the next you're overwhelmed by stress, loneliness, or disappointment. Maybe this year feels different than last year, or perhaps you're struggling to capture that magical feeling...

Christmas Calls You to Inconvenience Day 5: Living for Generations Beyond Yourself Devotional Mary’s obedience wasn’t just about her. Her willingness to say yes to God’s inconvenient calling became the doorway through which salvation entered the world. Every person who has ever found hope in Jesus can trace that hope back to a young woman who chose trust over comfort. This perspective transforms h...

Christmas Calls You to Inconvenience Day 4: Blessed Through Trust, Not Comfort Devotional Mary was blessed, but not untroubled. She was favored by God, but not exempt from pain. This distinction matters because we often misunderstand what it means to be blessed by God. We think blessing equals ease, favor equals comfort, and God's love equals a problem-free life. Mary's blessing came throu...

Christmas Calls You to Inconvenience Day 3: The Cost of Saying Yes Devotional Mary’s yes to God wasn’t just a simple agreement - it was a costly surrender. She was saying yes to potential shame, broken relationships, and a future filled with uncertainty. She was choosing God’s purpose over her personal comfort, His plan over her own dreams. We often want God’s blessings without the inconvenience,...

Christmas Calls You to Inconvenience Day 2: Trusting Without Understanding Devotional Mary’s question to Gabriel wasn’t born from doubt but from genuine confusion: “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” She didn’t understand the mechanics of God’s plan, but she was willing to trust anyway. This is the heart of faith - believing God’s promises even when we can’t see how He’ll fulfill them. We liv...

Christmas Calls You to Inconvenience Day 1: When God Interrupts Your Plans Devotional Have you ever had your life completely turned upside down by unexpected news? Mary certainly did. One ordinary day in Nazareth, a young woman with simple dreams of marriage and family received a visit that would change everything. The angel Gabriel didn’t come with a convenient request or an easy assignment. He c...

Christmas Calls You to Mission Day 5: Legacy Beyond Ourselves Devotional The wise men’s journey wasn’t just about their personal encounter with Jesus—it was about something much bigger. Their story has inspired countless generations to seek Christ. They left a legacy that continues to impact lives thousands of years later. This is the kind of thinking God calls us to embrace: living not just for t...

Christmas Calls You to Mission Day 4: Faith-Centered Living Devotional There’s a fundamental choice every believer must make: will you organize your faith around your life, or will you organize your life around your faith? Most of us start by trying to fit faith into the margins of an already busy schedule. We squeeze in church when convenient, pray when we remember, and serve when it doesn’t conf...

Christmas Calls You to Mission Day 3: Living Boldly for the Gospel Devotional The wise men didn’t keep their discovery to themselves. After encountering Jesus, they returned to their homeland forever changed. Though we don’t have the details, it’s reasonable to believe they shared their incredible experience with others. Their bold journey to find the King demonstrates the kind of faith the world...

Christmas Calls You to Mission Day 2: Two Responses to Jesus Devotional The wise men’s arrival in Jerusalem created quite a stir. While these foreign visitors were filled with joy at the prospect of meeting the newborn King, Herod and all of Jerusalem were troubled. This stark contrast reveals a timeless truth: Jesus brings joy to those who seek Him and distress to those who resist Him. Herod’s re...

Christmas Calls You to Mission Day 1: God’s Heart for the World Devotional When we think of Christmas, we often picture a cozy nativity scene with shepherds and angels. But Matthew’s account introduces us to unexpected visitors—wise men from a distant land who practiced astrology. These weren’t religious people by Jewish standards, yet God used their pagan practices to guide them to Jesus. This re...