Open the Bible UK Daily

Jaksot

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  Here Is a Picture of What Sin Does in Our Lives 16.09.2026 2min

  Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favour; because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valour, but he was a leper.2 Kings 5:1The story of Naaman is another story from the life of Elisha. Naaman was known for his strength and courage in battle. With that reputation, he would have risen through the ranks until he became the “commander of the army.” Not many people reach these heights.Naaman was “in high favour” with the king. Notice why: “because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria” (5:1). God gave victories to the enemies of His people!This truth is clear in Scripture: When God’s people sinned against Him, He gave them into the hands of their enemies. Success comes from the hand of God whether a person knows Him or not.Naaman was blessed with success, but he also had a great affliction: “He was a leper” (5:1). This terrible reality outweighed everything else. He was facing a grim future.Leprosy in the Bible is a picture of what sin does in our lives. Sin makes us guilty, so we need to be forgiven. But sin also defiles us, so we need to be cleansed.Like leprosy, sin starts small, but it spreads. It is hidden at the beginning, but eventually it shows. It alienates us from God and from His people. And in Bible times, there was no known cure.As we follow Naaman’s story, we are going to see not only how he was healed, but also how a sinner can be cleansed and reconciled to God.How have you seen the effects of sin grow and spread in your life? Have you experienced God’s cleansing and forgiveness?
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  God Can Work Through You 15.09.2026 2min

  God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak… to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised… even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.1 Corinthians 1:27-29In the miracles of Elisha, we see two truths: God’s work continues despite our foolish mistakes, and God’s work advances despite our obvious inadequacies. These truths should have three effects in our lives.1. They should humble usGod’s work does not continue or advance because of some greatness in us. It continues despite our obvious inadequacies and our foolish mistakes. These truths should keep us humble.2. They should comfort usGod’s story is always a story of redemption. So don’t ever let your foolish mistakes and your obvious inadequacies crush you. Use your foolish mistakes to learn wisdom. And use your obvious inadequacies to grow in faith. The Christian life is not about what you can do for God. It is about what God can do through you when you place yourself into His hands.3. They should encourage usIf God can work through a student who can’t tell a safe plant from a poisonous one, then God can work through you. If God can work through a poor farmer whose firstfruits amount to only 20 loaves, then God can work through you.God works through people who make foolish mistakes. He works through people who have obvious inadequacies. And that means that God can work through you.Are the truths from the stories of Elisha having any effect in your life? How are they humbling you? Comforting you? Encouraging you?
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  God’s Work Advances Despite Our Inadequacies 14.09.2026 2min

  A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God bread of the firstfruits.2 Kings 4:42A farmer arrived with food for the sons of the prophets. These students are living through a famine, and this farmer says that he has brought “the firstfruits” of his harvest.The students hope he has a really big farm! But the cart is almost empty. There’s just one sack with only 20 loaves of bread and some grain. It must have been a massive disappointment.Elisha said to his servant Gehazi, “Give to the men, that they may eat.” And Gehazi said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” Elisha gave the same command again, adding, “for thus says the LORD, ‘They shall eat and have some left’” (4:42-43). God multiplied the food, and “They ate and had some left, according to the word of the LORD” (4:44).Perhaps you want to be useful to God, but you don’t feel you have much to offer. Remember this farmer. Never underestimate what God can do through your faith and obedience!You can’t read this story without thinking about the greater miracle to which it points. A large crowd had gathered to listen to Jesus in a desert place. The disciples found a small boy with five loaves and two fish, “but what are they for so many?” (John 6:9).The loaves and fish were multiplied in the hands of Jesus, and a vast crowd was fed. There were 12 baskets of food left over. God’s work advances despite our obvious inadequacies.Are you facing an overwhelming task today? You can say with the apostle Paul, “Who is sufficient for these things?” (2 Cor 2:16). And you need to hear the answer: “Our sufficiency is from God” (3:5).Do you feel inadequate for some task that you know God is calling you to? Ask God to multiply your efforts!
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  Two Ways God Protects Us from Our Own Folly 13.09.2026 2min

  They cried out, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” ... He said, “Then bring flour.” And he threw it into the pot… And there was no harm in the pot.2 Kings 4:40–41How can God’s work continue when His people make so many mistakes? God protects us from the worst effects of our own folly. How does He do this? Here are two ways.1. Sometimes God protects us by His direct interventionFlour does not neutralise poison. What happened here is like when Moses put a log into the bitter waters of Marah and made them sweet (Ex. 15). It is like when Elisha put salt in the bad water at Jericho with a similar effect (2 Kings 2). The log, the salt, and the flour were visible signs of God’s invisible work.You see this when the soldiers came with an armed mob to arrest Jesus. Peter drew his sword and cut off the ear of the High Priest’s servant. “Jesus said, ‘No more of this!’ And he touched his ear and healed him” (Luke 22:51). God protects us by His direct intervention. His hidden hand saves us from untold disasters.2. Sometimes God protects us through wisdom given to othersIf the young student had taken someone with him who knew the plants, he would not have picked poisonous ones. Can you tell the difference between what will nourish your spiritual life and what will diminish it? This is one reason God gives pastors to churches. They can help you to know what is healthy and guard you from what might make you sick. God protects us through wisdom given to others.Have you found wise Christian friends? Make a habit of asking them for their counsel.
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  God’s Work Continues Despite Our Foolish Mistakes 12.09.2026 2min

  One of them… found a wild vine and gathered from it his lap full of wild gourds, and came and cut them up into the pot of stew, not knowing what they were.2 Kings 4:39The Bible is full of foolish mistakes: James and John wanting to call down fire on a Samaritan village. Peter drawing his sword in the Garden of Gethsemane. The disciples rebuking little children for coming to Jesus.The amazing thing is that God’s work continued despite these mistakes. And our lives have been filled with foolish mistakes as well.Who does not regret some foolish thing we said? “Once those words were spoken, I couldn’t take them back.” Or perhaps you regret something you didn’t say: “If I had spoken up sooner, we would not be in this position.”Maybe your mistake relates to money. You bought something and hardly use it. Now you need that money and wish you could have it back.Parents often regret decisions we made in bringing up our children. We didn’t realise it at the time, but we were too harsh. We should have cut our children more slack.For others, it’s the other way round. We gave our children more freedom than they could handle. Now there are behaviour patterns that will be hard to break.Then there are mistakes we have made in ministry. Ronald Wallace says, “For many of us the enthusiasm of our early days… was often marred by misdirected zeal and by a way of approaching other people more likely to do harm than good… We did not know any better at the time.”As with the student who put the poisonous plant in the stew, God’s work continues despite our foolish mistakes.Can you think of a foolish mistake you made, and how God’s work continued in spite of it? Thank God that His work does not depend on us getting everything right.
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  God’s Work Includes Saving Us from Foolish Mistakes 11.09.2026 2min

  As the sons of the prophets were sitting before [Elisha], he said to his servant, “Set on the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.”2 Kings 4:38We are introduced here to a group of men known as “the sons of the prophets.” They lived in community and gave themselves to study and prayer. They brought the Word of God to the people.It’s likely that Elisha was there often, teaching, mentoring, exhorting them to walk with God. In this time of famine, Elisha wanted them to enjoy a good meal. So he said to his servant Gehazi, “Set on the large pot, and boil stew” (4:38).Then one of the students thinks, “We should add some flavour to the meat.” He found some wild gourds and put them into the pot “not knowing what they were” (4:39).When the sons of the prophets tasted the stew, they knew immediately that something was wrong. They shouted to Elisha, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” (4:40). Elisha told them to put flour in the stew, and then “there was no harm in the pot” (4:41). God made the poisonous stew safe.This strange story points us to a wonderful truth: God’s work continues despite our foolish mistakes. The student who put the poison in the pot certainly didn’t intend to harm the others. He must have thought “How could I have been such a fool?”When, by a miracle of God’s grace, the stew was made safe, the student must have breathed a huge sigh of relief. “Thank You, Lord! My foolish mistake might have led to disaster, but You stepped in and saved us from the worst effects of my folly.”Do you need God to step in and save you from a foolish mistake?
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  God’s Servants Have a Glorious Future 10.09.2026 3min

  [Elisha] prayed to the LORD. Then he went up and lay on the child, putting his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands. And as he stretched himself upon him, the flesh of the child became warm. Then he got up again and walked once back and forth… and went up and stretched himself upon him. The child… opened his eyes.2 Kings 4:33–35There is a marvellous picture here of how Christ gives new life to us. Elisha “lay on the child” and “stretched himself upon him” (4:34).In the Old Testament law, touching a dead body would make you unclean. By stretching himself out over the boy, Elisha was making himself unclean.When Jesus stretched Himself out for us on the cross, He was made unclean for us. “For our sake [God] made [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21).Then notice that Elisha lay on the child, “putting his mouth on his mouth” (2 Kings 4:34). Elisha breathed new life into the boy. And that is a wonderful picture of what Christ does for us. He breathes new life into us by His Holy Spirit, and by God’s grace, the eternal life that is in Him becomes ours.There is no greater miracle than the miracle of the resurrection. There are three stories of resurrection in the Old Testament, all of them from the time of Elijah and Elisha.These stories all point to the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the glorious triumph over death that is ours in Him. It is as if God couldn’t wait to give the good news that death will not be the end. God’s servants have a glorious future. They will enjoy a glorious resurrection.How does the hope of a glorious future comfort your heart?
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  God’s Servants Depend on Him 09.09.2026 2min

  Gehazi came to push her away. But the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for she is in bitter distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me.”2 Kings 4:27Elisha was a great man of God. God worked through him in extraordinary ways. But the emphasis here is not on Elisha’s strength and power but on his limitations and weakness.Notice what Elisha doesn’t know: “She is in bitter distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me” (4:27). He is saying, “God often reveals things to me, but I don’t know what’s going on here.”However discerning you are, there will be things that the Lord hides from you. You will find yourself saying, “I’m walking with God, but I can’t see the way ahead. I am completely dependent on Him.”Elisha didn’t know what God was doing. And notice that Elisha’s initiative was unsuccessful. He sent Gehazi to the house at Shunem with the prophet’s staff. “Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the face of the child, but there was no sound or sign of life” (4:31).How easy it is to live on our gifts, to feel that we have what it takes to do the work of God. God sometimes allows His servants to fail so that we will remember that we are utterly dependent on Him.If that was the experience of a man who walked so closely with God, we should not be surprised if it is our experience as well.Have you failed in something that you were confident about? How could you use this to help you grow in your dependence on God?
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  God’s Servants Endure Great Sorrow 08.09.2026 2min

  When the child had grown… he said to his father, “Oh, my head, my head!” The father said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.” …The child sat on her lap till noon, and then he died.2 Kings 4:18-20Here we have every mother’s nightmare. The unimaginable sorrow of the death of a child. She laid the boy in Elisha’s room and told her husband that she was going to see the man of God. She said, “All is well” (4:23).She rode her donkey as fast as she could to Mount Carmel where Elisha was—about 18 miles. Elisha told his servant to run and meet her and ask, “Is all well with you?” The woman brushed him off with the same answer: “All is well” (4:26).But when she saw Elisha, she let him have it! “Did I ask my lord for a son? Did I not say, ‘Do not deceive me?’” (4:28). She was saying, “This is exactly what I was afraid of: that my heart would be filled with joy and then be broken.” God’s servants are greatly blessed, and God’s servants endure great sorrows. This is the pattern of the Christian life.You can’t read this story without thinking about another godly woman whose Son was promised and then died. Remember the words of the angel to Mary: “Behold, you will… bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus” (Luke 1:31).Then in the temple, Simeon said to Mary, “a sword will pierce through your own soul also” (2:35). A sword did pierce Mary’s soul. Who can imagine the pain she felt at the cross while her Son suffered and died?Why do the godly suffer? We are only told that they do, that this too is in the purpose of God, and that one day, God will wipe all tears from our eyes.Read Revelation 21:3-4 and reflect on the day God will wipe away your tears.
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  God’s Servants Are Greatly Blessed 07.09.2026 2min

  One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food.2 Kings 4:8The first thing we are told about this woman is that she had been blessed financially. God had blessed her, and she wanted to bring blessing to others.One way she could do this was to give hospitality to the prophet Elijah. Now she took it a step further. She told her husband, “I know that this is a holy man of God... Let us make a small room… and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp” (4:9-10).This woman was blessed, and she wanted to be a blessing to others. Elisha wanted to return her kindness, so he asked what he could do for her. She replied, “I dwell among my own people” (4:13). This is a wonderful expression of contentment. “What more could I want?”But she did not have a child. This had likely been a great disappointment, but she had come to a point of accepting it. “God has blessed me, and I am content.”Elisha told her, “About this time next year, you shall embrace a son” (4:16). The woman’s reaction was one of caution. “No, my lord… do not lie to your servant” (4:16). But God was true to His Word, and “the woman conceived, and she bore a son” (4:17).If you are in Christ today, you are greatly blessed. Whatever hardship you face, whatever gift you have not been given, whatever disappointment you know, in Jesus Christ you are supremely blessed.God has set His love on you. God has sent His Son for you. The Holy Spirit lives in you, and He is always working for your ultimate good.What disappointments have you wrestled with? Where do you see God’s blessing?
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  What God Has Done for Us in Jesus Christ 06.09.2026 3min

  My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.Philippians 4:19The story of the widow’s oil points us very wonderfully to our Lord Jesus. Think about what God did for her sons. He paid their debt. He saved them from slavery. He gave them a future. This is what God has done for us in Jesus Christ.Jesus paid our debtWe owe it to God to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. We owe it to our neighbours to love them as we love ourselves. None of us has paid the debt that we owe. Jesus took our debt on Himself and paid it in full on the cross.Jesus sets us freeGod saved the widow’s sons from an awful future as slaves. But Jesus has saved us from an even more horrendous future trapped in hell forever!Jesus said, “Everyone who practises sin is a slave to sin” (John 8:34). Then He said, “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (8:36). God saves us from being sin’s slaves. He brings us into glorious freedom through our Lord Jesus Christ.Jesus will give us a glorious futureHe said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (10:10). Jesus gives eternal life. And it is by believing that we have this life in His name (20:31).“My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19). God will sustain you by the power and presence of His Holy Spirit. You will have all that you need for all that you face in your journey from here to heaven.Thank God for His promise that He will supply your every need.
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  God Works for Our Freedom and Joy 05.09.2026 2min

  Your servant my husband is dead, and... the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.2 Kings 4:1Let’s look at this story from the perspective of the two boys. It’s striking how often they are mentioned, and it is through their eyes that we see these two truths.1. God works for our freedomThese two boys had quite a story to tell. If one of them could tell us his story, he might say,I’ll never forget the day that creditor came. His words felt like a death sentence. I was about to become a slave. But then God stepped in! As the oil kept coming from the jar, we witnessed the grace and kindness of God, poured out in our home. When we sold the oil, our debt was paid. Instead of being slaves we were free!2. God works for our joy“The man of God… said, ‘Go, sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest’” (4:7). God did more than pay off the debt. He provided a rich future. If one of her sons was here today, he might say,I didn’t know this at the time, but when Elisha said, “You and your sons can live on the rest,” he was telling us that we would have enough to start a small business. And we did very well with it. God did more than pay our debt. He provided for our future life.God works with what He has already given. God works through our faith and obedience. God works for our freedom and joy.In what area do you need God’s freedom? Where do you need His joy?
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  God Works Through Our Faith and Obedience 04.09.2026 2min

  Then [Elisha] said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbours, empty vessels and not too few.”2 Kings 4:3Notice, there was something for this woman to do. God provided for her as she walked in faith and obedience. God is not limited by our faith or by our obedience, but He calls us to be actively engaged in the means by which He provides.Elisha was a prophet, and the word of the prophet was the Word of God to her. “Go… borrow vessels from all your neighbours” (4:3). That was a command for her to obey.Then Elisha said, “and not too few” (4:3). He called her to exercise faith. “Don’t underestimate what God can do! Walk in obedience and anticipate God’s blessing.”Elisha told her, “Go in and shut the door behind yourself and your sons and pour into all these vessels. And when one is full, set it aside” (4:4).Then we read, “She went from him and shut the door behind herself and her sons. And as she poured they brought the vessels to her” (4:5). She did exactly what Elisha had said.One son placed an empty jar on the table, the other son took the full one, and the woman kept pouring. She would say, “Another jar!” Until at last, her son said, “There is not another,” and the oil stopped flowing (4:6).Oil flowed from the little jar as long as there were jars to fill. If the woman had not obeyed the command to borrow the jars, the oil would not have flowed.The widow’s faith and obedience were woven into what God did for her. It was as she obeyed that God acted. And it will be the same for us. God will provide as we walk in faith and obedience.Ask God to help you walk in obedience so that nothing will hinder you from receiving what God wants to give.
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  God Works with What He Has Already Provided 03.09.2026 2min

  Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.”2 Kings 4:2There is something important here about how to help a person in need. The first question is, “What do you have?” What do you have that you could sell to pay this debt? God works with what He has already provided.God is not limited to working with what He has already provided. But this is a pattern that we see often in the Bible.The most obvious example is when a vast crowd gathered to hear Jesus in a remote place. After many hours they were hungry. Jesus said to His disciples, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see” (Mark 6:38).So they went to see what God had already provided. “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” (John 6:9).But God worked with these five loaves and two fish. In the hands of Jesus, they fed a multitude. Jesus could have created food out of nothing. But He worked with the loaves and fish that were placed in His hands.You can see the same pattern in this story: “What do you have in the house?” “Nothing… except a jar of oil.” God could have created oil out of nothing. But He worked with the oil He had already given.In any situation of need, look at what God has given you already. What gifts do you have? What friends, opportunities, and resources? These may be the things God works with to provide for you.What resources has God given you that He can work with in your circumstances today?
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  God’s Faithful Servants Are Sometimes Desperate 02.09.2026 2min

  Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD, but the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.”2 Kings 4:1This woman’s great loss opened a whole chapter of troubles. God’s law made provision for widows among God’s people, primarily through the extended family. But for whatever reason, this woman seems to have fallen through the net, and she was left with mounting debt.Then the man who had lent her money came knocking at the door.“You owe me money.”“I’m sorry, but I don’t have any money to give you.”“Well, what do you have?”“See for yourself. All I have is this little jar of oil.”“What good is that to me? But you do have something that might be useful to me—these two fine young boys. If your debt is not paid by the end of the month, both of your sons will work for me until it is fully paid.”This woman was desperate, so she went to Elisha for help. She knew that he walked closely with God. Perhaps God could help her.This is a wonderful story about God’s provision. We will see how God provides, how we are involved in what God provides, and how this story points us to what God does for us in Jesus Christ.When have you faced desperate times? How did you see God provide?
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  God’s Faithful Servants Sometimes Suffer Greatly 01.09.2026 2min

  Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha…2 Kings 4:1Many Christians are familiar with the story of Elijah the prophet, but fewer know the story of Elisha the prophet. Elijah is the better known of the two, but God’s people enjoyed more blessing in the days of Elisha than they ever did in the days of Elijah.Taken as a whole, the stories about Elisha say to us, “Look at who God is! Look at what He has done! Look at what He will do! Believe in Him, trust Him, have confidence in Him.” The God who was with Elijah was also with Elisha. God’s work continues even when His servants change.We begin today in our journey through the life of Elisha with the story of a woman who had been married to a godly man. Her husband was “one of the sons of the prophets” (4:1). Prophets were called to speak the Word of God, so she was married to someone who had a ministry of the Word.It’s clear from what she said to Elisha that her husband was a faithful servant of God: “You know that your servant feared the LORD” (4:1).And it seems that this woman’s husband had been especially close to Elisha. She describes her husband as Elisha’s servant twice: “Your servant my husband… You know that your servant feared the LORD” (4:1). This woman’s husband may have been Elisha’s right-hand man.So, this woman had been greatly blessed by God, who had given her a faithful, godly husband and two wonderful sons. But then tragedy struck. The woman’s husband died. And, because she refers to her sons as “children,” it seems that her husband may have died early in life. God’s faithful servants suffer, and sometimes they suffer greatly.Can you relate to this woman?
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  God Is Patient with You 31.08.2026 2min

  The Lord is not slow to fulfil his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you.2 Peter 3:9What promise is Peter talking about here? God has promised to judge the earth with fire, just as He once judged the earth with water.You would expect the verse to say, “God is not slow in fulfilling his promise… He is patient with the unbelieving world.” But that’s not what he says. Instead, he says “God is not slow to fulfil his promise… but is patient toward you” (3:9).He’s writing to Christian believers. God is not slow in keeping His promise (of judgement). He is patient with you. Why has Christ not yet come? God held back His judgement long enough to bring you into His kingdom. That’s the love of God for you in Jesus Christ.It’s not just that God has been patient with you. Peter says, God “is patient toward you…” (3:9). If one day with the Lord is like a thousand years, then God has indeed been very patient with all of us. Our sins have gone on a long time according to heaven’s clock.Day by day we cast ourselves on His mercy, trusting the cleansing power of the blood of Christ, and Peter says, He “is patient toward you…” Don’t you find it amazing that God does not look down at you and say, “I’m done with him!” or “I’m done with her!”?Since God has shown you this kind of patience on heaven’s timescale, you can be patient in real time with that unbelieving loved one, or that hard-hearted cynic at the office.Who does God want you to show His patience to today?
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  Life in Heaven Is Very Long 30.08.2026 2min

  With the Lord… a thousand years [are] as one day.2 Peter 3:8If one day is like a thousand years with the Lord, then the average human life (70 years), would run 25 million years. That’s a long time!Maybe you’re feeling the pressure of all the stuff you have to get done next week. But, if you had 7,000 years to do that work, you could get it all done easily! Think how relaxed you could be if one day was like a thousand years to you. That’s how it is with God.Think about your loved ones who do not believe. You have been praying, “How long, O Lord?” It feels like you’ve been waiting forever to see God move. Be encouraged! God can do more in your loved one’s life in a moment than Satan can do in 20 years!God is eternal: He is never rushed, never overwhelmed, never taken by surprise. He has all the time in the world to accomplish everything He has planned to do. If you can take in these great truths, you will have less fear and more peace. You will also find a new freedom.If you know Christ, you have eternal life. That’s a lot of life! You don’t need to go through life counting how much you have left and worrying about whether you will accomplish all your plans. You can afford to give your life away in service to others.You don’t need to fret over opportunities that didn’t open up as you’d hoped. Life on earth is short. Life on earth is short, but life in heaven is long, and in Christ you have more life than you know what to do with.Where do these truths intersect your anxieties and worries today?
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  Life on Earth Is Very Short 29.08.2026 2min

  With the Lord... a thousand years [are] as one day.2 Peter 3:8Do the math—Abraham was born on Monday. King David was born on Tuesday. Jesus was born on Wednesday. The middle ages flashed by yesterday, and our generation will have passed before this morning is over. Another 30 generations will have passed by tomorrow morning.By God’s scale, 70 years pass by every 100 minutes. So, imagine a person who does not believe in or obey God. He is making his mark in the world, but God looks down and says, “He’ll be gone in 90 minutes.” God says, “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (Jas. 4:14).When we get anxious about the state of the world, let’s remember that to the Almighty, the whole of human history is very short. So, when “The kings of the earth set themselves… against the LORD and against his Anointed… the Lord holds them in derision” (Psa. 2:2, 4). He is not worried about His enemies, so you don’t need to worry about them either.This cuts the root of our self-importance. Your life on earth is very short, so what really matters? You might think that what matters is your education, your career, your opportunities, your investments, your health, your travel, and your quality of life. But, as far as God is concerned, all of us will be in His presence in less than 90 minutes.Once you see that, you will have a very different idea of what matters: “Teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Psa. 90:12).Ask God to give you the wisdom to see what really matters.
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  When Cynicism Hits Close to Home 28.08.2026 3min

  Scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.2 Peter 3:3Over the last century, we have seen evolutionism, which said “There is no Creator!” We are seeing the decline of postmodernism, which said “There is no Truth!” And now we’re seeing the rise of a new atheism, which says “There is no God!”Perhaps you work with people who are cynical about your faith. Their language distresses you. Sometimes they despise the things of God that are precious to you. How are you going to handle that? It’s easy to get frustrated when people are cynical or sceptical toward God, but we need to deal with it because a Christianity that’s angry with the world never gets us anywhere (Jas. 1:20).The pressures of living with unbelief come much closer to home for many of us. What do you do when your son or daughter turns away from following Christ? They don’t believe. They show no interest in spiritual things. Eyes roll when you talk about going to church.What happens inside of you is very predictable. You feel helpless, What can I do? What can the church do? And when you feel helpless, frustration grows and with it comes anger. And anger won’t do much to bring him or her closer to the Lord!One of the hardest things in the world is to see people you love wasting their lives, following their own desires. The most natural thing in the world is for you to feel defeated, perplexed, frustrated, embattled, helpless, angry, tense, afraid, and ashamed.How can you develop more patience with sceptical people, so that what comes out of you reflects the Spirit of Jesus rather than the spirit of the Pharisees?