52 brief devotionals from the Bible

Thoughts to live by for each week of the year

Inspirational devotionals published in Standard

Does God speak to us through His Word? Is the Old Testament relevant today? What lessons does Gospel according to Luke have for us? What can we learn from Psalms? What does the book of Job teach us? These and other similar questions are looked at in 52 brief devotional articles.

These short, reflective articles were written to foster personal spiritual growth and enrich your relationship with God. They aim to deepen faith, inspire contemplation, and foster a more intimate connection with Jesus Christ.

The Scriptural basis of each article came from the Bible passages used in the Faith Connections adult Sunday school curriculum. The articles were published in The Standard, a weekly take-home piece published by what is now called The Foundry. These were written while Barbara and I were serving as missionaries in Italy.

  1. Are we preparing the way for the Lord Luke 3:15-18 -- an experience during a missionary's home assignment
  2. Satan's empty bag of tricks, Luke 4:13-20
  3. The power of the Savior's word, Luke 4:31-36, 40-43; 5:1-6
  4. A live-and-share philosophy of life, Luke 5:17, 24, 27-39; 6:11 -- Being an authentic Christ-follower in a world of diversity
  5. Discipleship doesn't come cheap, Luke 6:40 -- Dietrich Bonhoeffer's rejection of "cheap grace"
  6. God has visited His people, Luke 7:22
  7. Where is your faith?, Luke 8:25
  8. Who do you say He is Luke 9:18-20
  9. Perfect love Luke 10:25-28
  10. Lord, teach us to pray, Luke 11:1-13
  11. First things first, Luke 12:13-34
  12. Does the Colonel have something we don't have? Luke 14:12-24
  13. Wet blanket (or joyless) religion, Luke 15:21-32
  14. From mere religious teaching to real redemptive power, Luke 24:5b-6a
  15. Don't throw your life away, Luke 17:33
  16. "And a wee little man was he," Luke 19:1-10
  17. An atmosphere of commercialism, John 1:11
  18. The Antichrist, Luke 21:36
  19. Too sure of ourselves, 1 Corinthians 10:12
  20. Salvation unlimited, 1 John 4:10
  21. "Among all nations . . . with power," Luke 24:49
  22. Who cares 1 John 4:7
  23. "To everyone who is thirsty", Isaiah 55
  24. An active faith, not fatalism, Psalm 121:1-2
  25. Measuring up, Micah 6:8
  26. Get the glory down, Psalm 103:8 -- Phineas F. Bresee's exhortation to early Nazarenes
  27. Single-minded concern for the Kingdom, Philippians 4:19
  28. Trust the instruments, Joshua 1:5-9
  29. Fountain of Youth, Isaiah 40:31
  30. A love that destroys, 1 Corinthians 13
  31. He is my shepherd, Psalm 23
  32. Fountain of joy, Habakkuk 2, 3 -- Deep-seated joy in the midst of bad circumstances
  33. An appropriate humility Job
  34. We shall be changed, 1 Corinthians 15
  35. "Non più morte, non più duolo" Revelation 21:4
  36. Where they did not belong, Exodus 1:1-14
  37. What does God have in mind for your kids? Exodus 2:1-15
  38. "I am Who I am," Exodus 3:1-10, 13-15 -- Moses at the burning bush
  39. God's man under pressure, Exodus 5:1-14
  40. Unworthily Exodus 12:1-14
  41. I sing because I'm free, Exodus 14:10-16, 22-31
  42. Another CIA plot Exodus 10:1-9, 20-25
  43. Is God shooting at us Exodus 20:1-11
  44. Watch thief, Exodus 33:12-23
  45. Swimming upstream, Exodus 20:12-20
  46. These hands I give to you, Exodus 24:3-18 -- Short-term mission trip experiences like Work & Witness
  47. Dancing around a golden calf, Exodus 25:1-9; 31:1-6 -- Ministry at The Lamb's Club in Times Square
  48. Emptiness versus God's presence, Exodus 32:1-14
  49. Blessed . . . Not so . . ., Psalm 1 -- Looking back over the lives of two brothers
  50. Telling tales, Psalms 14:1-3; 15; 16:8-11
  51. Sweet little baby Jesus, Psalms 22:1-5, 23; 24:7-10
  52. Leaning on the everlasting arms, Psalm 37:1-11 -- Alfredo Del Rosso and Earl Lee

    -- Howard Culbertson,

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