MONDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 2:18-28
1 Corinthians 6:1-11
Psalm 78:1-39
Joshua 15–17

Psalm 78:1-39
Older generation, are you telling the next generation what God has done for you? Younger generation, are you listening? All too often the church is separated by age. We join life groups with people our age. We sit by friends our age. We might even have one service primarily for the older generation and one service primarily for the younger generation. Sadly, even though these efforts do well to help people find a place where they belong, they also remove any opportunity for the older generation to teach the younger. What can you do this week to reach across the age barrier?

TUESDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 3:1-19
1 Corinthians 6:12-20
Psalm 78:40-72
Joshua 18–19

1 Corinthians 6:12-20
How many of us really act like our bodies are not our own? Most of us, even though we claim Jesus as our Lord, probably struggle to live like he is fully in charge. We eat what we want to eat. (Seconds and dessert, anyone?) We exercise when we want to exercise and don’t when we don’t want to. We behave as we want to behave. The truth is, we were all bought at a price—a very expensive price. We were bought by Jesus’ blood. This week, remember whose you are. You are not your own. Live like it.

WEDNESDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 3:20-35
1 Corinthians 7:1-16
Psalm 79
Joshua 20–21

Joshua 20–21
Has there ever been a promise you failed to keep? Or, has there ever been someone who didn’t keep his or her promise to you? Most of us have probably been let down at least a time or two. We know what it’s like to have someone tell us something and then do something else. Thankfully, the Lord is not one of these people. His promises always come to pass. Joshua 21:45 says, “Not one of all the lord’s good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.” When God makes a promise, he keeps his Word.

THURSDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 4:1-20
1 Corinthians 7:17-40
Psalm 80
Joshua 22–23

Mark 4:1-20
In this parable, the farmer didn’t study the soil and make sure it was fertile before he planted. He threw the seed widely and trusted that some of it would produce a harvest. Many of us, when we consider sharing the gospel, overthink it. We look at someone and think, “This person will never come around.” We don’t see how God could bring a harvest, so we don’t share. In reality, this person might have been on the verge of believing, and we would have missed our chance. Our job isn’t to judge the soil. Our job is to spread the seed.

FRIDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 4:21-41
1 Corinthians 8
Psalm 81
Joshua 24

Psalm 81
What satisfies your soul? Is it your family or your career? Is it your hobbies or your volunteer roles? Though these things are definitely not bad (and in many cases very good), how often do we look to these things to bring us satisfaction instead of looking to the Lord? In Psalm 81:16, the Lord told the Israelites that if they would look to him instead of looking to other things, he would satisfy them. It’s as true today as it was back then. Other things in our life can bring us great joy, but only the Lord can truly satisfy.

SATURDAY

Reading for Today:
Mark 5:1-20
1 Corinthians 9:1-12
Psalm 82
Judges 1–3

Judges 1–3
After all God did for the Israelites, how could they so quickly forget his goodness and turn to false gods? It’s easy for us to think poorly of them, but many of us do the same thing. We cry out to God when we are going through a hard time but then forget about him when things are going well. We treat him like catastrophic health insurance. We depend on him for catastrophes but forget he’s there for day-to-day events. It shouldn’t take a tragedy to get us to lean on the Father.