MONDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 7:24-37
1 Corinthians 12:14-31
Psalm 89:1-18
Judges 16

1 Corinthians 12:14-31
Do you ever wish you had someone else’s gift? Maybe you wish you could share the gospel or teach or preach like others can. It seems so effortless for them. Maybe you wish hospitality came as naturally to you as it seems to for others. Maybe you long for the gift of administration. God gave each of us different gifts. Though there is nothing wrong with trying to improve areas in your life that are weak, don’t spend so much time wishing for a different gift that you fail to use the ones you already have.

TUESDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 8:1-13
1 Corinthians 13
Psalm 89:19-52
Judges 17–18

Mark 8:1-13
Jesus doesn’t care only about the big things in our lives. His concern isn’t reserved exclusively for issues like cancer, job loss, serious illnesses, difficult marriages, or other “big” problems. Jesus also cares about our daily lives. He cares about the phone call you received from the school, informing you of your child’s behavior that day. He cares about the argument you had with your mother. He cares about the loneliness you feel. He cares about the worries that keep you up at night. He cares about it all—the big things and the not-so-big things weighing on your heart.

WEDNESDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 8:14-21
1 Corinthians 14:1-25
Psalm 90
Judges 19

Judges 19
The book of Judges shows us what happens when leadership is lacking among a group of people. When there’s no king, everyone does as he sees fit (verse 1). When there’s no king, everyone follows his or her own natural desires. When there’s no king, there’s no one to lead people through the tempting and tough situations. Sin runs rampant. Immorality is the norm. People walk through life without purpose or guidance. From the book of Judges, we learn how dangerous it can be to have no king. So the question today is, do you have a King, and are you serving him well?

THURSDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 8:22-30
1 Corinthians 14:26-40
Psalm 91
Judges 20–21

Psalm 91
Psalm 91:1 says that he who dwells with God finds rest. The key to finding true rest is to understand what it means to dwell. Dwelling somewhere is not stopping in on occasion. It’s not spending five minutes a day somewhere or passing through on the way to another destination. Dwelling is living. A dwelling place is a place someone settles, a place they stay daily. If we are truly dwelling with God, he will not be something we check off our to-do list or someone we only check in with for a few minutes a day. Rather, he will be our life.

FRIDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 8:31-38
1 Corinthians 15:1-28
Psalm 92
Ruth 1

Mark 8:31-38
We put crosses on jewelry and display them in our homes, but do we really think about what the cross means? To the follower of Jesus, the cross should do two things. It should first of all remind us what Jesus did for us. And it should also remind us of what he has asked us to do for him. “Take up your cross and follow me,” Jesus told his disciples. Crosses are more than fashion statements and wall decorations. Crosses were constructed as tools of death. They symbolize submission. They represent sacrifice. Have you taken up yours today?