Through The Bible in a Year - March 16, 2026

“Then the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.” – 1 Samuel 1:18

Something remarkable happens in Hannah’s story. After she prays, the High Priest Eli says, “Go in peace, and may God grant your petition.” She responds, “Let your servant find favor in your eyes.”

Then comes verse 18: “The woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.”

Wait—we need to catch what did NOT happen yet? Considerverse 19 that comes next: “They rose early...and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her.”

Hannah’s countenance changed BEFORE her condition changed. She hadn’t even conceived yet, but she already had peace that pushed away her sadness.

Why? She wasn’t trusting Eli—he was one of the unfaithful priests who raised bad children.

She was trusting the Lord of Hosts.

She put her pain into God’s hands and believed that was enough for peace—even before she saw or could experience the answer to her prayer.

This is the path to drowning pain in purpose: trusting God’s care beyond what we can see.

Believing that putting things in His hands is itself part of the path to peace.

Sometimes our circumstances don’t change immediately. Sometimes they never change the way we want. But our countenance can change when we truly place our burden in the hands of the Lord who loves us, trusting that he will work all things together for our good.

Respond: What burden are you carrying, waiting for your condition to change before you’ll have peace? Today, try changing your countenance before your condition changes. Put your burden in God’s hands and rest in the knowledge that your Sovereign Lord will do what is best for your good and his glory—that’s enough for peace.

Prayer: Lord of Hosts, I’m tired of waiting for my circumstances to change before I can have peace.

Today, I put this burden in Your hands: [name it]. Help me to have faith in your nature and power so that your peace changes my countenance even before You change my condition. Your love and promises are enough to calm my heart. I trust you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 13, 2026

“O LORD of hosts, if you will...give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life.” – 1 Samuel 1:11

Hannah prayed a life-rendering prayer: “Lord, open my womb. Give me life—a child.”

We have the right to approach heaven with such prayer: “God, bring life to my womb. God, give life to my child. God, bring LIFE.”

But we don’t stop there. We pray for the eternal life as well as the earthly life of our children. It is right to pray:

• God, give them life with You

• Put a hedge about them so nothing separates them from You

• Give them a Christian spouse

• Give them what they need to know true life with You

We pray such prayers, seeing how God used Hannah’s prayer. Hannah was praying for the near effect—a son. But God had a far effect in mind. That son was Samuel, the last judge and first prophet who would anoint King David, beginning the Davidic line from which Jesus would come.

Hannah prayed, “Lord, open my womb to a son.” God was opening the world to the birth of a Savior, his Son.

Think about this: Hannah was alone, mocked, troubled, abused, and felt worthless. She was on her knees without even words to express what she wanted. Yet, God took her prayer and worked a salvation plan for the whole world far beyond what she could have requested or even imagined.

We pray for earthly things and many times – but not always – experience God’s answer in the way that we request. Yet, God is always working through and beyond our prayers for eternal purposes that exceed the specifics of our desires and the good we can even imagine. We pray for earthly things; God works eternal things.

Respond: What life-rendering prayer do you need to offer to God? Perhaps you are praying for your child’s physical life? Spiritual life?Eternal life? Pray it today, believing God works eternal purposes through earthly prayers.

Prayer: Lord of Hosts, I bring You my life-rendering prayer: [name it]. I’m praying for earthly things, but I trust You’re working eternal things beyond my imagining. Hear my prayer. Work Your purposes. I trust you to do what is right and good and eternally best. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 12, 2026

“I have been pouring out my soul before the LORD.” – 1 Samuel 1:15

Hannah had no children. In her culture, that meant she had no worth, no legacy, no future.

Her rival mocked her year after year. In our culture, the sounds on a playground would taunt her. Every diaper commercial hurt.

But she had one great privilege: she could pour out her soul before the Lord.

The Hebrew word for “soul” is ne-fesh—echoing the essence of one’s being, one’s very life breath. Hannah was pouring out the deepest part of her heart to God. Her pain was so great shecouldn’t even find words. Her mouth moved, but her heart was speaking before God with groanings too deep for utterance.

Here’s what’s remarkable: Despite her years of disappointment, she believed the Lord of Hosts—the mighty God who commands heaven and earth’s armies—would listen to her pain.

Think about that. The God who is so powerful He brings heaven and earth together by His Sovereign plans will listen to YOU. Your hurt, your pain is not beneath your God. He is not deaf to your cries. His power is not so great that you are insignificant to Him.

You can pour out your soul—your very life’s essence, the pain of it—and He will listen.

This is the beginning of spiritual peace: believing you have the privilege of putting your heart before God’s heart, even if there is pain in your soul.

Respond: What pain are you carrying that you haven’t poured out before God? Maybe you’re afraid He won’t listen, or the pain is too deep for words. Today, pour it out anyway. Tell it to the Lord—He will listen.

Prayer: Lord of Hosts, I’m pouring out my soul before You [name your concern]. In this moment, I don’t even have words for all I feel. But You hear the groanings too deep for utterance. Thank You for listening to me, for caring about what hurts me most. I am more at peace because I know you are willing to listen – and you hear me. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 11, 2026

“When our strength has failed...out of his infinite riches in Jesus, he giveth and giveth and giveth again.”

In the Old Testament book of Judges, Samson represents the whole nation—following God, falling away, rebelling, being rescued, falling again. Yet, God says, “I’ll save My people through this unlikely hero.”

Sound familiar? As an angel appeared to Samson’s mother to announce his birth despite her childless past, think how anotherangel appeared to another mother, saying, “You’ll conceive though it’s impossible.”

Then, the child grows in God’s blessing. Despite being blessed, he’s betrayed for pieces of silver. Then, tortured by enemies, he sacrifices his life to save his people.

Remind you of anyone? Out of the mess, a mirror of Jesus. Out of the darkness of sin, there is the light of the gospel glimmering, as God uses Samson to teach us, “There is grace for you. You may have been terribly wrong. There may not be much right in your life. But there is grace that is greater than your sin.”

A powerful London pastor and friend, has been fighting cancerand his end is near. His wife writes of her husband: “His strength has evaporated. He can only testify of God’s strength. Broken but blessed, and blessed to bless.” Then, the dear wife writes of the source of that blessing in the words of song: “When our strength has failed, when we reach the end of our resources, our Father’s full giving is only begun. His love knows no limits. His grace has no measure. His power no boundary. Out of His infinite riches in Jesus, He giveth and giveth and giveth again.”

He gives grace even to Samson. Even to me. Even to you.

A mentor who had a terrible sexual fall—church, marriage, friends all gone—told me that he went to his childhood ministerfor solace. That minister, who knew of the fall, ran to one who had fallen and embraced him without a word. That is the nature of the gospel. When our strength is gone, our reputation gone, our secrets exposed—He giveth and giveth and giveth again.

Respond: Where have you given up hope of recovery? Where do you think God’s grace has run out? Today, receive this truth: When everything is exposed, Jesus’ love is greater. When grace is needed, our God giveth and giveth and giveth again.

Prayer: Father, when my strength is gone, when my reputation is destroyed, when my secrets are exposed—You give and give and give again. Thank You for the grace that pardons and for the strength to help. I can get up again because Your love is greaterthan my sin or the sin that’s been done to me. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 10, 2026

“We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” – 2 Corinthians 4:7

Samson doesn’t just have feet of clay—he’s a jar of clay. He’s a broken, cracked, earthen vessel. But God pours glory out of him anyway.

Why did God give Samson strength? The angel said: “He shall begin to save Israel.” About this awful man God said from the beginning, “I’m going to use him to save My people.”

If only God had known what kind of oaf he’d be! But God DID know. He knows all our days before one of them comes to be. So why Samson? So God could point to him and say, “If I can take this filthy man and save people through him, who gets the credit? Who’s the hero? Not the man, but the Lord who would use a man like this for eternal purposes.”

The lustful loser is still God’s man. God still has a saving purpose for his life. This is the hope check: Yes, there are awful human powers on display in Samson—lust, pride, vengeful anger. But also on display: the amazing grace and power of God.

When God takes earthen vessels and uses them to show His glory, it makes the gospel shine even more. When Samson’s hair grows back and God’s strength returns, a faithful God is saying, “I didn’t walk away. I’m still here. I can still restore, reclaim, use you.”

“Don’t count yourself out of the purposes of God,” the Bible says to young people struggling with sexual sin, and to mature believers who are amazed that they still struggle. God says in the life of Samson, “The gospel is greater than your sin. You’re may think of yourself as a loser, but you haven’t lost Me, nor have I lost having a purpose for you.”

Respond: What sin makes you think you’re disqualified from God’s calling? Today, hear Him say:

“You’re not the only one with a problem. Sex is not the only power on the pages of your life. There is something greater—My grace.”

Prayer: Father, I’m a jar of clay—broken, cracked, flawed. But You pour Your glory through me anyway. I haven’t lost You or Your purpose for me. Your grace is stronger than my sin. Use me despite my brokenness. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 9, 2026

“I saw a woman...Get her for me...She’s right for me.” – Judges 14:1-3

Samson’s first words in the Bible: “I saw a woman.” Second words: “Get her for me.” Third: “She’s right for me.” Samson thinks only of himself and of satisfying himself.

Samson is the real-life Gaston from Beauty and the Beast. He sings of himself, “Every guy here wants to be you! You’re everyone’s favorite guy! No one’s slick as Gaston, quick as Gaston!” Samson echoes, “Tell me I’m strong. Tell me I’m clever. Tell me I’m important. I need your attention. I need youraffirmation.”

But the more he pushes for attention, the more everyone backs away. His attention addiction drives away the very ones he wants to impress. His in-laws protest, “You used our daughter.” His countrymen complain, “You put us at risk—we’ll turn you over.” Even Delilah reacts: “You used me? I’ll use you.”

If your song is, “Look at me! Look at me!” What does that do? It makes me want to back away from you. It ultimately destroys the ones seeking it so desperately.

Recently, a man fell 1,000 feet in the Grand Canyon taking a selfie. He was the third in eight weeks. Across the country there are about 250 deaths by selfieeach year. The selfie culture—portraying perfection anddemanding envy to justify our significance—is killing us, not by falls into the Grand Canyon but by creating higher teen anxiety and depression than we have ever experienced.

Self-attention is the drug: “I need you to tell me I’m okay.” But it destroys us. It can also destroy what we hope to build like our families or our church. What happens when self-attention in the church causes some to say: “I built it, don’t change it.” “I’m paying for it, make it comfortable for me.” “Want me to attend?Change everything for me.” Me-attention drives us from each other, and also derails ministry from God’s purposes. Ultimately God’s purposes are only fulfilled when his is the attention we most desire, and his approval the only one that is truly needed.

Respond: Where are you seeking attention or approval outside of what God provides? Social media? Accomplishments? Appearance? Sexual conquest? Today, acknowledge your attention deficit disorder—and turn to the only One who can truly fill it as you live for his approval above all others.

Prayer: Lord, I’m an attention addict. I need people to notice me, affirm me, tell me I’m important. But only You can fill this need. Forgive me for seeking from others what only You can give. You see me. You know me. You love me. Help me to know that your approval is more than enough. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 6, 2026

“He did not know that the LORD had left him.” – Judges 16:20

Samson is strong and broken. Blessed and struggling. Publiclyrighteous and privately compromised. His Sunday School face hides his real face.

Which is the real you?

If you’re wondering because you know what it means to be dedicated in your Sunday appearances but sexually compromised in private—you may need Reality check #1 from this account of Samson: You are not the only one with a problem. Samson, David, Judah,

Herod, the church at Corinth—sexual temptation is not new, not strange, not unique to you.

Reality check #2: Sexual compromise is often the gateway drug to spiritual distance. When we border off part of our lives saying, “God cannot enter here,” then we create a pattern that distances us from God when pressure comes in other areas.

Reality check #3: Men are not the only problem. Delilah uses her beauty for money and power. Women who sexualize themselves for music or movie careers, or simply for attention, approval, and success are nothing new.

“I weep for fear at the examples and temptations put before my daughter,” writes a father. “But then I weep with joy for the power of grace. There’s Jesus lifting the head of the woman of the night. There’s Jesus healing the woman who’s trying to cover her shame. There’s Jesus at the well transforming a woman tossed aside by multiple men.”

Why mention such dirty secrets in the life of a biblical hero like Samson? Because they are no secret. We are all people of claywho struggle. What God made for good like the loving intimacies of marriage, we warp and damage. But if Samson can be redeemed, so can you.

Respond: Are you living with two faces—one public, one private? Today, confess it. Find someone safe to tell. Then seek the help the Lord provides through his Word, people, and prayer. Remember: you’re not alone, and God’s grace is greater than your struggle.

Prayer: Father, I’m tired of pretending. Tired of the two faces. Tired of the secret life. I confess my struggle with this sin [name it]. Thank you for letting me know that I’m not the only one, and that I can come to you for Your help because your grace is greater than my sin. Restore me. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 5, 2026

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind.” - 1 Corinthians 10:13

A news story tells of Frank Warren who collects secrets—over half a million postcards sent anonymously to his house:

“I had an abortion and wonder if my baby forgives me.” “I give decaf to rude customers.”

“Everyone who knew me before 9/11 thinks I’m dead.”

“I was not faithful to my wife, but I still love her.”

Why do people write their secrets? Warren says: “They’re sharing the secrets with themselves. The greater burden isn’t the secrets we’re keeping—it’s all the energy we put into concealing them. The walls and barriers we develop between who we are and what we fear we cannot accept about ourselves.”

Which brings us to Samson—the dirty little secret of the Bible.

Why is this ugly character presented as a hero? A man who’s a liar, thief, adulterer, killer, bully? We tell the Sunday School sanitized version of this strong man’s life, but rarely read the details.

Here’s why we should tell all the details: No temptation has taken you but such as is common to man. In Samson’s strength and flaws, we are meant to see our own secrets. And we are meant to understand that God is affirming: “Such secrets are notbarriers to My love. Face them so you’ll understand how great is my grace.”

Despite his great strength, Samson shows us three things about human weakness: our core (who we really are), our capacity(what we’re really capable of), and our context (God’s plans for us despite it all).

Respond: What secret are you keeping that you think would disqualify you from God’s love? Today, hear God say: “It’s no secret to Me. I sent Jesus for that. Face it so you can be freed by My grace.”

Prayer: Lord, I have secrets I’m afraid to face—things I’ve done, things I struggle with, parts of me I wish You didn’t know about. But You know it all. Thank You that Your grace is greater than my secrets and my strength to overcome them. Help me face what I’ve been hiding so I can experience the freedom of Your love. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 4, 2026

“Caleb...wholly followed the LORD.” – Deuteronomy 1:36

Who’s the hero of this text? Surely Caleb—he wholly followed the Lord.

But who would Caleb say is the hero? The God who said, “I’ll fight for you. I will carry you. I have been with you. I will be with you.” Caleb believed that.

The Hebrew says Caleb “fully got behind the Lord.” The Greek translators used a word found nowhere else: “Caleb attached himself to God.”

Isn’t that the gospel? “God is our refuge and strength.” “He will lift us up on eagles’ wings.”

“As I am in the Father, you are in Me,” Jesus said. And the apostles echo, “Be strong in the power of His might.”

Picture Caleb like a running back on the goal line, trying to get into the Promised Land. He knows he can’t get through the giants on his own. So, he’s got this huge lineman in front of him—God. Caleb puts his hand on God’s back, his shoulder on God’s back, his head on God’s back. He’s going to get through the line. But it’s not his strength. He just has to keep his feet moving.

Whose strength is he depending on? The One in front of him.

To fulfill God’s purposes, we don’t depend on our strength, our courage, our resolve. We find out where God is going and get behind Him. We attach ourselves to Him. And when we do that, God leads us through.

Respond: What’s God calling you to do that you’ve been trying to do in your own strength? Today, stop pushing on your own. Get behind Him. Attach yourself to Him. Keep your feet moving and let Him do the heavy lifting by doing what he requires but trusting him for the results. Take the next right step and trust God to do the rest.

Prayer: Lord, show me where You’re going, and I will follow. Not in my strength, but Yours. Not through my work, but Yours. I’m not leaning on my accomplishment—I’m attaching myself to You. Get me through this. I’m right behind You, leaning on you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 3, 2026

“The LORD your God...will himself fight for you...In the wilderness you have seen how the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son.” – Deuteronomy 1:30-31

God doesn’t just offer us His power—He offers us His care.

Remember Derek Redmon, the Olympic sprinter? Ten minutes before the race for which he has spent years preparing, his tendon tore. He had waited four years until after another set of Olympic games. Then, he trained and entered again, but in the heat before the finals, he heard the pop of a hamstring.

There he was in agony on the track, barely able to hobble toward the finish line. Suddenly, his father pushed through the crowd, through the officials, grabbed his son, and carried him across the finish line.

This is a picture of our God. He has said, “I’m not just giving you My strength—I’m carrying you. I’m giving you My heart so you know I’ll be with you and help you. I am your refuge, your strength, yourhope.”

God says, “I fought for you in Egypt—horses and riders thrown into the sea. I fought for you in the wilderness – against hunger, thirst, and exposure. And I will fight for you now.”

But he offers more than power; our God offers love. As a man carries his son—this is how God carries us.

When you can’t make it on your own, when the hamstring pops and you can’t finish, your Father pushes through the crowd and carries you across the line.

Respond: Where do you need God to fight for you today? Where do you need Him to carry you? Stop Trying to finish on your own strength. Seek the Lord and let your Father carry you.

Prayer: Father, I’m hobbling. I can barely make it. The giants are too big, the obstacles too great.Fight for me. Carry me. I can’t do this on my own—but You can. Help me to believe that You offer not just Your power, but Your heart. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - March 2, 2026

“The LORD your God who goes before you will himself fight for you.” - Deuteronomy 1:30

What are common denominators in the experience of any faithful church of God in any era? Here they are:

1. Giants opposing the purposes of God. That’s normal for any age that’s doing God’s will.

2. Persecution that is normal. It’s not strange or new. Often, times of persecution are when the church thrives most—when people are forced to their knees saying, “God, You must do something beyond us.”

3. Obstacles are also par for the course. If being faithful were going to be easy, we wouldn’t require God’s help at all.

4. The last common denominator – a God who is greater than everything or everyone else. The presence of our God is the game-changer.

Churches exist for supernatural change. There has never been a time when it was natural for people to repent of sin. Christian work has always depended on God doing what we cannot do.

Which means our present cultural challenges make our work zero more difficult. Why?

Because God’s work never depended on us in the first place. Always we could do nothing apart from him, but we can also do all things he requires through Him who strengthens us.

Is it hard to raise Christian kids in this culture? Yes—that’s a giant challenge!  But our God is bigger.

Is it hard to be a faithful, united church despite generational, cultural, ethnic, political, and economic differences? Yes, that’s a giant concern! Our God is bigger.

Is it hard to do ministry when friends and family and bosses pressure us to yield to the present values of a secular culture? Yes—that’s a giant problem! Our God is bigger.

Remember it is not the size of the dog in the fight that matters nearly so much as the size of the fight in the dog. And greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

Respond: What obstacle feels impossibly big right now? Remember: churches exist for supernatural change. What God calls you to accomplish or oppose has never been about your ability—it’s always been about God’s. Trust Him to do what you cannot against the obstacles that seem giant.

Prayer: Supernatural God, I’ve been looking at obstacles like they’re giants bigger than You. Forgive me. You’ve always worked through impossible situations. You specialize in what I cannot do. Fight for me. Work through me. Do the impossible. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 27, 2026

“Yet you would not go up, but rebelled...and you murmured in your tents.”
-Deuteronomy 1:26-27

When the giants of fear and doubt loom large and God looks small, we have three bad options to try:

Option 1: Turtle Mode – Just pull in. Stay put. Don’t go forward. Retreat into what’s comfortable. Conclude, “It’s too hard to proceed on the mission God is calling me to.”

But here’s the problem: Giants don’t run from turtles. When we go into turtle mode, we never see the power of God working in our lives.

Option 2: Crawfish Mode – Don’t just pull inward, look backward. “It wasn’t so bad back in Egypt. Those were the good old days.” Never mind that we were slaves, making bricks without straw, watching our children murdered. Whenever the church says “the good old days are behind us,” we have reason not to move forward. We don’t just go into turtle mode—we back up.

Option 3: Rebellion – In this passage, God calls not moving forward in His purposes exactly what it is: rebellion. “It’s a good land I’m giving you,” God says. “Because I said so.” Not to do what God says is not simply regrettable; ultimately it’s rebellion.

When our hurt and bitterness is a giant our forgiveness can’t get past—that’s rebellion.

When our need for profit or position is a giant our integrity can’t get past—that’s rebellion.

When our loneliness or lust is a giant our purity can’t get past—God says, “I love you too much to call this anything other than rebellion that will hurt you.”

Respond: Which mode could you be in right now? Turtle (staying put)? Crawfish (backing up)? Rebellion (refusing to move forward)? Today, confess it and ask God to help you move forward in His calling.

Prayer: Father, I confess if I’ve been in turtle/crawfish/rebellion mode. I sometimes resist Your calling because the giants opposing me can seem too big for you in my too-easily-doubting heart. Forgive me. You’ve called me forward—not because it’s easy, but because it’s good. Help me trust You and move forward in faith. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 26, 2026

“They took in their hands some of the fruit of the land...and said, ‘It is a good land.’ Yet you would not go up, but rebelled.” – Deuteronomy 1:25-26

Remember the internet sensation? A computer-generated word that some people heard as “Yanny” while others heard “Laurel”—the exact same sound, heard as completely different words. What you heard had little to do with what came out of your computer. It had everything to do with what was inside you—your background, your state of mind, your language patterns.

The same thing happened when Israel sent spies into the Promised Land. Some heard, “Great grapes!” Others heard, “Giant people!” And which report you heard depended not on what the spies said, but on what was going on inside you.

This still happens in our hearts every time God calls us to challenging responsibilities:

Should we forego a promotion for our family’s spiritual good? Do we hear warnings about Giants to fear or hear God’s promises of grapes to harvest?

Should we give sacrificially to God’s purposes? Giants or grapes?

Should we have/adopt/foster a child? Giants or grapes?

Should we speak to a friend about our faith? Giants or grapes?

Grape reports are opportunities to see God work. Giant reports are obstacles standing in the way of God’s work. Which we hear largely determines what we believe.

Here’s the truth: When your God is big, your problems are small. But when your God is small, your problems are giant.

The people looked at the giants in the promised land and said, “God hates us. He brought us here to destroy us.” But the giants were GIANT only because God was small. The immature people of God perceived his as mean, petty, and unable to care for His people.

Respond: What “giant” is looming in your life right now? Be honest—is it really the obstacle that’s giant, or has your view of God become small? Today, ask God to show you how big He really is so that you can fulfill his calling through confidence in his greatness and goodness.

Prayer: Lord, forgive me for shrinking You down to the size of my faith. You are bigger than my obstacles, stronger than my giants, greater than my problems. Help me hear “grapes” when I’m tempted to hear reports of “giants.” Make Yourself big in my heart again so that I will be faithful to yours. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 25, 2026

“God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16

When Tiger Woods put on the green jacket after his 2019 Masters victory, he said two words: “It fits.”

As though the coat had been specially tailored for him. But what if all he had experienced prior to that victory – the news of the family betrayals, the DUI, the embarrassment, the broken promises, the body breaking down, all the pain – also fit? Could it possibly be that it all fit in a way he never wanted or perceived, but God was designing for him?

That green jacket was the convergence of the many colors of his past. And maybe, just maybe, we were seeing a better man as a consequence of it all – God taking what was evil and using it forspiritual good that was far more important and lasting than anygreen jacket.

This is what God does. He takes twisted vines and with an artist’s hand turns them into baskets of beauty.

Yes, the baskets of our lives have sometimes been formed from disappointments, failures, and shame. The shattered marriage, the addictions, the unfulfilled dreams, the lost job, the test failed,or friendships broken. Everything we’ve done wrong and everything done wrong to us.

God bundles it all up and says, “What you meant for evil and what was done to you in evil, I mean for it to be the means by which you will hold and treasure the good I intend for you—to save your soul eternity, to give you life with the hope that no evil is the final chapter for you, and to bring you before me in eternity with nothing but joy in what I have done for you.”

Respond: What’s in your basket today? What pain, what regret, what twisted vine needs to be given to God’s hand? Believe that He can take it all and use it for good—for your redemption and for showing his salvation to those whose lives yours touches.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, take my basket—all the twisted, ugly vines of my life. The evil I’ve done and the evil done to me. The pain, the regret, the shame. Bundle it all up and use it for good – for my good and for the good of those whose lives my life touches. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 24, 2026

“God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.”* – Genesis 22:8

Abraham is about to sacrifice his son—the son he waitedthrough the decades of old age, the son he loved. But now God says, “Take your son, your only son whom you love” and sacrifice him as a burnt offering. What tragedy! Abraham must think this is the consequence of all his failings.

This is the ordinary expectation of humanity: You mess up, you pay up. Fix your wrongs, or pay your dues. You are the one who must make things right with God through your sacrifice.

Yet, when Abraham’s son, Isaac, asks, “Where is the lamb” we are supposed to sacrifice? Abraham speaks more than he understands: “God will provide for himself the lamb.”

God will provide what He requires. That’s the core definition of grace.

God requires holiness—entire, complete, perfect holiness. “Be holy for I am holy.” How can we do that? We can’t. But God provides what we cannot.

God’s provision is not through your measuring up. Not your extraordinary works. Not a sacrifice of the fruit of your body for the sin of your soul. God provides the lamb. For all of us, he ultimately provides the Lamb of God, Jesus, who takes away the sin of the world.

This is the first explicit mention of substitutionary sacrifice in the Bible: Instead of Abraham’s sacrifice of his son, God says he will provide the sacrifice, and we know it will ultimately be his Son. God provides Jesus for us.

Two thousand years later, Jesus carries wood on His back to the same mountain and offers Himself for your sin and mine. Through it all God is saying, “I told you I would provide.”

Respond: What are you trying to sacrifice to make yourself right with God? What measuring up, what good works, what religious activity? Today, stop, trusting what sacrifice you can make to make things right with God. Trust what God provides instead.

Prayer: Father, forgive me for trying to earn what You freely give. I cannot provide enough sacrifice to make things right with you. I cannot measure up. I cannot be holy enough. But You provide what You require. Thank You for the Lamb. Thank You for Jesus who paid it all. I trust in the sufficiency of His provision. In His name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 23, 2026

“You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive.” – Genesis 50:20

We all want 20-20 vision. But what we see in Genesis 50:20 is “50-20 vision”—the ability to see that God means for good, what others intend for evil.

This isn’t rose-colored glasses. Joseph doesn’t say that his brothers’ betrayal didn’t really hurt. He calls the wrong what it is: “You did me evil.” And yet at the same time his heart of faith affirmed: “But I believe God has been working in all this.”

This is profound faith. Faith to see beyond the immediate circumstances. Beyond the betrayal. Beyond the pain. To see, with the eyes of faith, the blessings God is still providing.

The good God was doing was enabling Joseph to help the covenant people through famine. By maintaining the covenant people, God also maintained the nation from which Jesus would come. Ultimately, through Joseph, many people were saved—including everyone who believes in Jesus Christ today. We are a direct consequence of the evil Joseph’s brothers did that God meant for good.

Any one of us, standing at the cross, would have also said, “This is wrong. This is evil. This cannot possibly be right.” It wasn’t right. But God meant it for good—to save many.

Can God take what is evil and use it for good? Yes. He bundles up the twisted, ugly vines of our lives—the disappointments, the betrayals, the failures—and turns them into his baskets that hold future blessings.

Respond: What evil has been done to you that you cannot see God using for good? What twisted vine of pain in your life needs to be given to the Artist’s hand? Today, ask God for 50-20 vision—to see by faith that He’s filling the future with good, despite the evil others intend.

Prayer: Lord, give me 50-20 vision. Help me see beyond my circumstances to Your purposes. Take the evil that’s been done to me, the pain I’ve endured, the twistedness of my story—and use it for good. Save through what I’ve suffered. Fill up my basket of ugly vines with the beauty of your purposes. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 20, 2026

“Do not fear. I will provide for you and your little ones.” – Genesis 50:21

Joseph’s brothers knew payback time had come. Their father, Jacob, was dead—the only shield protecting them from Joseph’s revenge. They trembled: “It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil we did to him.”

If vengeance is a meal best served cold, this would be a refrigerator feast. Joseph, whom the brothers had betrayed, controlled their fate. They were in deep trouble.

But Joseph wept when they spoke to him. Not rage. Not vengeance. Not a death sentence. Instead, mercy: “Do not fear. I will provide for you and your little ones.”

These are the same words God used with their ancestor, Abraham: “I will provide.” Now Joseph, to his abusers, speaks God’s mercy: “You betrayed me. I will provide for you.”

We should feel the pain behind Joseph’s tears. “You threw me in a pit. I was your brother, and you betrayed me. You sent word to my father with blood on my coat that I was dead. I’ve lived the hurt and consequences for decades. The betrayal was a moment for you. I’ve lived a life of hurt because of it.” And still: “I will provide for you.”

How can someone show such mercy after such hurt? Because redemption isn’t about controlling circumstances or fallen people around us. It’s about what’s happening inside us. Joseph’s heart had been made right with God, and that was overflowing with mercy—filled up with God’s grace, now fountaining over to others.

Respond: Who has hurt you deeply? Betrayed you? Abused you? What would it look like to say to them, “I will provide mercy for you”? I know that sounds unreasonable, but it’s what Jesus has done for us, and the reality of his mercy becomes all the more precious and powerful to us when we are merciful. So, ask God to fill your heart with His grace so it fountains over to those who’ve wounded you, and at the same time it will fill you.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I cannot manufacture mercy for those who’ve hurt me on my own. So, please fill me with Your grace until it overflows. Heal my heart. Make me right with You. Then fountain Your mercy through me to those I never thought I could forgive to know the fuller joy of your forgiveness in me. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 19, 2026

“You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.” – Genesis 50:20

Joseph went from pit to palace—thrown into a pit by his brothers, sold as a slave, falsely accused and imprisoned, then elevated to second-in-command of Egypt. Dead again and again, then alive again. A kind of resurrection.

But resurrection without redemption isn’t enough.

Even in the palace, Joseph was separated from his family. He remembered the betrayal. He knew it was evil. The man who had new life still had baggage—hurt, pain, memories of abuse from those he loved. Even with resurrection, there was pain within.

I am reminded that even when we have new life externally, it’s not made right if things aren’t right internally. If our hearts are still struggling, new life is not enough.

We don’t just need a do-over. We need a makeover. We don’t just need to know we can get back on top—we need to know things can be made right with the people and problems of our past. We need resurrection and redemption.

Regret and guilt and shame—are not all made right by resurrection alone. Think of when Tiger Woods surprisingly won the Masters late in his career – it was hailed as a resurrection, but it happened after an epic fall from grace with his family that still haunted him. He said, “My regret will last a lifetime.” New life, but a heart still in pain.

The message of Joseph’s life isn’t just that we can rise after a fall, but that God can heal our hearts, too. The new life that God provides links redemption to resurrection, providing new hope and purpose with new life.

Respond: What “pit to palace” story are you living? Where have you experienced new life, but your heart still isn’t right? What baggage from the past still weighs you down? Today, cry out for more than resurrection—ask God for redemption, redeeming what is past with assurance that his pardon makes you whole and his plan will provide new purpose for your future.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I don’t just need new life—I need things made right. I need my heart healed, assurance that you will not only erase the shame of my past but will use all things to redeem the future. Give me more than a do-over; by your grace, grant me a makeover that makes me an instrument of your loving purposes. Link resurrection to redemption in my life by making me right for you. In Your name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 18, 2026

Moses asked, “Who am I that I should go?”  The Lord said, “I will be with you.” “I AM WHO I AM.” – Exodus 3:11-14

Moses asks the realistic question, the wrong question, and the right question all at once.

“Who am I that I should deliver God’s people?” It’s realistic—Pharaoh wants Moses dead, he’s guilty of murder, he’s just a runaway shepherd. Surely it’s wrong for Moses to think he could deliver anyone. So he says, “Send someone else, Lord. Anybody but me.” He’s right, of course, in his human logic—“I’m not capable. I’m not able. I’m not the one You should pick.”

Which sets up the very best question: “So Lord, who are You?” to ask such things of someone like me?

The Lord answers, “I AM WHO I AM,” meaning, “I have no origin, no end. I cannot be contained in words or definitions. My power is beyond expression. I AM. I was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I am the God who will be remembered forever. And I am the God for now. I came down to deliver you. You confessed you are not able, but I have no limits. I have all power. I AM, and I will deliver you.”

We are the ones who say, “I’m not able. I’ve got these other things to do, these things that disqualify me.” And God says, “Am I not with you? Is this not holy ground? I AM with you, and I’m sending you.”

“I’m not capable, Lord.”

“But I AM.”

Jesus said it over and over: “I AM the light of the world. I AM the bread of life. I AM the good shepherd. I AM the way, the truth, and the life.” Here is Christ saying, “I know you’re not capable. I AM.”

Respond: What is God calling you to do that you feel unqualified for? Stop focusing on your “I am not” and start trusting His “I AM.” He doesn’t need your ability—He needs your availability.

Prayer: Great I AM, I confess I am not able. I am not qualified, not capable, not strong enough, not wise enough. But You are. You have no limits. You have all power. You are with me, and that makes this holy ground. Send me. I am in the care of the Great I Am. Help me to remember and trust you because you are I Am. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Through The Bible in a Year - February 17, 2026

“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” – John 1:14

A hospice nurse on Christmas Eve, still grieving her mother’s death, grumbling about being called to the ER. “Christmas Eve, bah. No one really cares.”

Then she met her patient—confused, afraid, alone. No family. Nobody. Lost in dementia. All of this desperation amid the ER cacophony: loud voices, monitors blaring, expletives, vomiting, doctors’ pages blasting on the intercom.

Just to calm and distract the patient, the nurse made a blanket into a puppy named Barney. She mentioned it was Christmas Eve and the patient’s banged-up nose made her look like Rudolph.

The woman’s face lit up with joy. She began singing Christmas carols at the top of her lungs. “Joy to the world, the Lord is come!” For an hour, in her wobbly 96-year-old voice.

The nurse was embarrassed at first. But then she heard it—orderlies, janitors, and nursing staff starting to sing along. Voices from other rooms. Patients and families joining. An odd, holy Christmas choir.

The nurse wrote: “I should have taken off my shoes because the icky, germy hospital floor had become holy ground. When she was finally leaving, she raised her arms and said, ‘I am so full of joy.’ Christ was here tonight, swaddled in dementia and desperation. Even there the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. This was holy ground.”

You begin to see your world differently when you see that wherever God is, that is holy ground. And God is everywhere His people love Him, recognize His hand at work, and do His service.

Respond: Where is your “icky, germy hospital floor”—the place that feels anything but holy? Look for Christ there. He’s swaddled in the most unlikely places, making holy ground everywhere.

Prayer: Lord, help me see You in the icky, germy places of life. In the chaos, the confusion, the places I’d rather not be—You are there, making it holy ground. Give me eyes to see and ears to hear Your presence everywhere. In Jesus’ name, amen.*