Tag Archives: what does the bible say about

March 31, 2026 · 5:52 AM

Untying Your Donkey

In the late 1950’s, a small town pastor felt like God was asking him to give up his evening TV time. Instead of just giving it up, he sold his TV and dedicated that time to prayer. As he was praying one night, the Lord led him to open up a magazine he had. When he opened it, he saw an article about several young gang members in New York City on trial. He heard the Lord tell him to go help them. He did what God asked him to do. He preached to the gangs of New York City and won many to Christ, including a leader named Nicky Cruz. This young preacher named David Wilkerson also started an organization called Teen Challenge to help people get off drugs. To this day, those ministries are still active and helping people because he gave up something God asked.

In Luke 19, Jesus was on the Mount of Olives headed for a small town called Bethphage. He told two disciples, “Go into that village over there. As you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it’” (NLT). As soon as they untied it, the owner asked why they were untying his young donkey. They replied just as Jesus told them too, “The Lord needs it.” There was no more discussion. They gave it up for the Lord because He needed it. That young donkey was used to fulfill a prophecy in Zechariah 9:9. As Jesus rode it into Jerusalem, the people laid out palm branches and their coats shouting, “Hosanna!”

Psalm 24:1 reminds us, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him.” When God asks us to give Him something or give up something for Him, it’s good to remember that it already belongs to Him. He’s not really taking it. He’s asking us to release what’s already His. We are just stewards of it until He needs it. The Bible is full of miracles God performed because people gave up something as small as a lunch of five loaves and two fish. If He can feed 5,000 people with that, save gang members in New York City because someone gave up a TV or fulfill a prophecy using a donkey, imagine what He could do with what He’s asking you to release. When the Lord says He needs it, are you willing to untie it and let it go?

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March 30, 2026 · 5:30 AM

Surrendering Your Tomb

We all have things in our life that we thought would be part of us forever. We’ve had dreams that ended in despair, fires that were buried under disappointment and promises from God that we’ve given up on. Each of us have a tomb full of things we’ve let go of. We’ve accepted them as endings, but what if God isn’t finished with them yet? What if He is wanting to resurrect them? I’m sure the disciples must have felt that way when the guards took Jesus, beat Him and made Him carry His cross through Jerusalem. Their plans and hopes for the future were crucified right in front of them. Like us, they lived in the tension of what was and what was supposed to be.

Enter Joseph of Arimathea. Luke 23:50 says he was a good and honorable man. He had watched Jesus from afar and even had questions for Jesus because he didn’t understand everything. When Jesus said, “It is finished,” something awakened in him. When everyone else ran in fear, he stepped forward in boldness to ask for the body of Jesus. Joseph had already planned ahead for his own death one day. He had a tomb in a beautiful garden just outside of town. The place where he expected his story to conclude was surrendered to make room for Jesus. That tomb stands empty today as a testament that God has the power to bring dead things to life. It’s a reminder that with God all things are possible and nothing is ever final until He says it is.

Abraham is another example of someone who had to surrender his ideas of what the future held and trust God’s resurrection power. Romans 4:18 says, “Against all odds, when it looked hopeless, Abraham believed the promise and expected God to fulfill it. He took God at his word, and as a result he became the father of many nations” (TPT). The heart of surrender lays down what looks hopeless and dead at the feet of Jesus. It takes God at His word and has the full expectation that God will fulfill that which He has promised. It’s time for us to give Him the things we’ve placed in our tomb. Surrendering is letting go and letting God have the final say. Resurrection is God’s work, and surrender is ours.

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March 27, 2026 · 6:01 AM

Protecting The Unity

One of the things I’ve learned in leadership is that unity is not the same as uniformity. Uniformity is where we are all doing the same thing and look the same. It’s man’s attempt at unity, which comes from God. Unity is where we are all headed the same direction, operating in our gifts, under the leadership of Christ. We don’t have to do things the same way, but we are working towards the same goal. Unity gives each other grace where uniformity does not. We are to protect the unity among the brethren, not tear each other down. I got to experience this on staff at a church where we had over 20 denominations and 50 nationalities under one pastor and banner of doctrine. Even though we disagreed on some items and ways to express our worship, we found a way to submit to God and work together to impact the world. It was a beautiful experience where I began to truly understand we are one body with many parts and functions. If you find yourself looking for uniformity, ask God to help you come into unity with His plan. Then do what you can to protect that unity.

Here are some Bible verses on unity:

1. Be tolerant with one another and forgive one another whenever any of you has a complaint against someone else. You must forgive one another just as the Lord has forgiven you. And to all these qualities add love, which binds all things together in perfect unity.

Colossians 3:13-14 GNT

2. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.

John 17:23 NLT

3. Finally, beloved friends, be cheerful! Repair whatever is broken among you, as your hearts are being knit together in perfect unity. Live continually in peace, and God, the source of love and peace, will mingle with you.

2 Corinthians 13:11 TPT

4. I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Ephesians 4:1-3 ESV

5. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brothers to dwell together in unity!

Psalms 133:1 AMP

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March 26, 2026 · 5:30 AM

Building Your Life On Truth

Recently I shared with my son the importance of building his life, decisions and convictions on the truth of God’s Word. The world has always fought against God’s truth, but in recent history the strategy has changed. Culture has let truth become relative so that each person has their own truth. When everyone has their own truth, they can do what is right in their own eyes. The Bible has lots of stories of what happens during those periods. I explained to him that we can’t allow culture to define truth because it doesn’t know what truth is so theirs is always changing. I then told him that culture will always try to quiet the truth of God’s Word and that we must not be silent about it. If we don’t share what truth is, how will they ever know? If they never know, how will they be saved?

In Acts 4 Peter and John were in the Temple teaching people about the truth of Jesus after they healed a crippled man who had begged at the Temple gates for years. They were confronted by the priests, leaders and guards and told to keep quiet.when they didn’t, they were arrested. The next day they were brought before the council and asked who gave them authority to teach. They replied it came through Jesus. The council were stunned by their boldness, but also couldn’t deny the healed man standing in the room. They met privately and then came back to demand that they not tell others about Jesus. In verse 19 Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him?” (NLT). They were threatened again and then released.

2 Timothy 3:14 says, “But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you.” The same charge that Paul gave Timothy is given to us. We must remain faithful to what is true. We can’t live our lives by the changing tides of culture. There is only one truth and we must let it be what we build our lives on. When our lives are in contradiction to its teaching, it’s not wrong, we are. We must then come into alignment with its teaching. God does not change, nor does His Word. Everything in this world and it’s culture changes based on the opinions of people. What was true for them yesterday may not be true for them tomorrow. Don’t build your life on shifting sand but rather the rock solid truth of God’s Word.

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Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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March 25, 2026 · 5:59 AM

The Doorway To Blessings

In 2018 the world watched as 12 boys and their coach were trapped inside a cave in Thailand. Floodwaters had cut off all exits and people were losing hope quickly. International rescue teams began to show up to figure out how to rescue them, but the first step was to locate them. They asked for volunteers and two British divers stepped up. Because they were willing to simply explore and find them, the larger group was able to formulate a plan, they were able to mobilize everyone needed and we got to witness one of the greatest rescues in modern history. It started with two men who simply said yes.

In 1Kings 17, the prophet Elijah arrived at a small town. Verse 10 says, “As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, ‘Would you please bring me a little water in a cup?’” As she turned to go get this stranger some water, he pushed a little more and asked for bread. She explained she was gathering sticks to build a fire to make her last bit of bread before she permanently ran out of oil and flour. He asked to to go ahead and make it, but to give him some first. After saying yes to a small step of faith, she was able to say yes to a bigger one. Because she said yes, it opened the door to a greater blessing. Her oil and flour didn’t run out until after the famine was over.

Deuteronomy 28:2 says, “And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God” (ESV). Sometimes what God asks of us doesn’t look spiritual. It could be to give a cup of water, a little bit of food, an encouraging word or changing a tire. The transformation and blessings happen after our obedience. Your yes to something small opens the door to greater things. Your obedience in the moment becomes the access point for God to do the miraculous. The initial act of obedience is often the hardest because it doesn’t look like it’s going to accomplish a lot in the moment, but God will use it as a doorway to blessings.

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March 24, 2026 · 5:44 AM

Let The King In

Psalm 24:7 says, “Lift up your heads, O gates, And be lifted up, ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in” (AMP). When you think of gates in the ancient world, they were a means of keeping things out of a city. When the psalmist tells the gates to lift up their heads, he’s telling them to look up and be prepared for the arrival of the Lord into the city. For us, it’s a call to look at what spiritual barriers we have in our lives that are keeping God out of certain areas. It’s a call to open up places in our life that are resistant to God having full control. We need to make room for God to do in our lives what He wants as the king of our life.

Next it tells the ancient doors to be lifted up as well. Ancient doors are those entrenched areas where we have old habits in place that need to change. All of us have old patterns, old ways of living and old mindsets that need to yield to the King. It also includes the wounded places we have used to keep our distance. God is wanting to come in to heal, but to also rip up the places that have been entrenched in our lives for years. He’s coming to tear down the ancient strongholds in our life because they’ve been holding us back. There is no power too embedded or habit so strong that the King cannot break it. He is wanting to bring new life into every area of our life.

Finally verse 8 says, “Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, The Lord mighty in battle.” He is more than able to conquer the areas that we have tried to and failed. He can overthrow anything in our life that is holding us back because He is strong and mighty. He can break generational curses, deep seated habits and anything that has made itself home in our life. These verses are a reminder that He is calling every closed, entrenched and resistant part of our life to open up to Him. He doesn’t just want to set part of you free. He came to bring total freedom to your life. No gates or ancient doors can stand in His way. It’s time to open them up and let the King of glory in.

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March 23, 2026 · 5:43 AM

Speak Up Anyway

Have you ever been promoted by the Holy Spirit to say something to someone? I have several times. I’ve also allowed fear to keep me from saying it. I kept questioning if it was really God. I was worried about what they would think about me as a total stranger walking up and saying something personal. I’ve also made excuses as to why I couldn’t. When those moment passed, and I knew I had let fear win, I felt bad. I don’t want to feel that way again. Now when I feel those promptings, I do everything I can to push passed that fear and obey God’s voice. It’s never easy, but I’d rather obey God than to allow fear to hold me back.

In Jeremiah 38, the city of Jerusalem was besieged. The word the Lord gave Jeremiah was for the people to surrender and live or stay and die. There were people who didn’t like that message so they got the king to allow them to put him in a cistern. So then God asked an Ethiopian to speak up for Jeremiah to the king. Even though he was afraid, he asked for Jeremiah’s freedom and won it. In the next chapter, God had a message for him. Verses 16-17 say, “Say to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: I will do to this city everything I have threatened. I will send disaster, not prosperity. You will see its destruction, but I will rescue you from those you fear so much. Because you trusted me, I will give you your life as a reward’” (NLT). God rewarded his faithfulness for obeying despite his fear.

Deuteronomy 13:4 says, “Serve only the Lord your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him.” I’m sure we can all think of times that we have allowed fear to hold us back. I don’t like living with those moments of regret. It takes faith and courage to obey God at times. As this verse tells us, we should fear God rather than men. We should listen to His voice and obey it. Who really knows what’s on the other side of your obedience? You may end up saving a life, changing the course of a family for generations or simply help someone know they are loved and seen by God. Don’t let fear hold you back. Speak up anyway and God will reward your obedience.

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March 20, 2026 · 4:38 AM

God’s Never Promises

When we think about Jesus, we tend to think of the things He promised to do, but there are some things He will never do as well. Never is such a strong word. We live in a world of temporary things that are often inconsistent. Jesus replaces all that inconsistency with a single word that doesn’t move. Ever. When He says, “Never,” He is giving us something we can count on. He’s giving us a rock to stand on in a world full of shifting sand. I love these lNever Promises” that He gives us. We don’t have to wonder if God is going to change His mind because these have been settled. This inconsistent world doesn’t get the last say. God does. These promises will never expire.

Here are some Bible verses on these “Never Promises”:

1. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.

John 14:16 NLT

2. Jesus said to her, “I am the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in (adheres to, trusts in, relies on) Me [as Savior] will live even if he dies; and everyone who lives and believes in Me [as Savior] will never die. Do you believe this?”

John 11:25-26 AMP

3. My own sheep will hear my voice and I know each one, and they will follow me. I give to them the gift of eternal life and they will never be lost and no one has the power to snatch them out of my hands.

John 10:27-28 TPT

4. Jesus spoke to the Pharisees again. “I am the light of the world,” he said. “Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”

John 8:12 GNT

5. Jesus replied to them, “I am the Bread of Life. The one who comes to Me will never be hungry, and the one who believes in Me [as Savior] will never be thirsty [for that one will be sustained spiritually].”

John 6:35 AMP

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March 19, 2026 · 5:30 AM

Filling Your Mind

Have you ever thought of your mind as a gas tank? It can be full or empty, and what you fill it with shows up in your life. Proverbs 4:21 says, “Fill your thoughts with my words until they penetrate deep into your spirit” (TPT). When we fill our thoughts with God’s Word, we put truth into our mind that cleanses it. We also give the Holy Spirit the opportunity to bring back to our remembrance what God spoke and promised. His truth then becomes what we stand on in hard times, what we think about and what we speak. If you’re struggling in your thought life, begin filling your mind up with the Word of God.

Once your mind is full of God’s Word, it’s time to begin meditating on it. Meditating is simply keeping that verse or story at the forefront of your thoughts. It’s breaking it down, looking at individual words in it and thinking about how it applies to you. As you do that, you begin to change healing for your mind and body. Proverbs 4:22 says, “Then, as you unwrap my words, they will impart true life and radiant health into the very core of your being.” God’s Word is life to all who find them and unpack them. Your thoughts are so powerful that they can manifest in sickness or healing in your body. It’s important that we put God’s Word in our mind and then unwrap their meaning for ourselves.

The next verse, Proverbs 4:23, tell us what happens next in this thought process. It says, “So above all, guard the affections of your heart, for they affect all that you are. Pay attention to the welfare of your innermost being, for from there flows the wellspring of life.” After your inside is healed, you will then begin to bring life to others. You speak life. Your thoughts have the power to shape your life despite your circumstances, and they have the power to bring life and healing to others. All this starts with you filling them with God’s Word rather than what someone else said. What you think about matters and reflects in your life. Choose carefully what you fill your mind with.

Photo by Cemrecan Yurtman on Pexels.

Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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March 18, 2026 · 5:14 AM

Changing The Atmosphere

I’ve had a couple of bosses in my day that could change the atmosphere of the job site by walking in. We could be operating at a peaceful pace with everyone getting along until they walked in. You didn’t even have to see them to know that something had changed. One of them I nicknamed The Nuke. Every time he showed up, it was like a nuclear weapon went off and I was left to clean up the mess afterwards. I can also tell you that I’ve known other people who do the opposite when they walked in. Everything could be going wrong, disagreements would be prevalent and chaos would be the norm until they walked in. Suddenly it was like the sun shining on a rainy day. The clouds would clear up and everything and peace would fill the building. I always appreciated when they showed up.

In 1 Samuel 17 Israel was at war with the Philistines. They were at an even stand off until Goliath walked out. His presence induced fear onto the battlefield and chaos ensued. For forty days he taunted Israel and disrupted their atmosphere. It wasn’t until a young shepherd boy showed up on the Israelite side that overcame the fear. This unknown boy brought an atmosphere of courage, faith and spiritual confidence with him. So much so that the king called for him and agreed to send him to fight the giant even though he was untrained in battle. After he won the victory that day, the entire country began to crave a king that could change the atmosphere beyond the battlefield. He later became one of the greatest kings in history, not because of his military conquests, but because he carried the presence of God with him and that changed the atmosphere beyond his general location. It changed it for the country.

Romans 14:19 says, “So then, let us pursue [with enthusiasm] the things which make for peace and the building up of one another [things which lead to spiritual growth]” (AMP). What kind of atmosphere do you bring to the environment? Do bring peace or chaos? Do your presence encourage spiritual growth? 2 Corinthians 2:14 says we carry the fragrance of God with us. Jesus said we are the light of the world. Both of these change the atmosphere around them. David was able to bring courage because he had spent time alone with God and grew his faith. The atmosphere you carry with you will be in proportion to your faith and time with God. We must pursue Him and with that comes an atmosphere of peace, encouragement and spiritual growth for those around you. You have the ability to change the atmosphere at your home, your job, your city, your state, your nation and our world.

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