Foursquare Gospel Church Igbosere (Chapel of Blessing)

O UR DAILY BREAD April 10 FINDING JOY IN PRAISE Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 15–16   Luke 10:25–42 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. Habakkuk 3:18 Today's Scripture & Insight: Habakkuk 3:6, 16–19 When the famous British writer C. S. Lewis first gave his life to Jesus, he initially resisted praising God. In fact, he called it “a stumbling block.” His struggle was “in the suggestion that God Himself demanded it.” Yet Lewis finally realized “it is in the process of being worshipped that God communicates His presence” to His people. Then we, “in perfect love with God,” find joy in Him no more separable “than the brightness a mirror receives” from the “brightness it sheds.” The prophet Habakkuk arrived at this conclusion centuries earlier. After complaining to God about evils aimed at the people of Judah, Habakkuk came to see that praising Him leads to joy—not in what God does, but in who He is. Thus, even in a national or world crisis, God is still great. As the prophet declared:  ...

O UR DAILY BREAD April 9, Friday REFUGE FOR THE REJECTED Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 13–14   Luke 10:1–24 Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me, for in you I take refuge. Psalm 57:1 Today's Scripture & Insight: Psalm 57 George Whitefield (1714–1770) was one of the most gifted and effective preachers in history, leading thousands to faith in Jesus. But his life wasn’t without controversy. His practice of preaching outdoors (to accommodate large crowds) was sometimes criticized by those who questioned his motives and felt he should speak only within the four walls of a church building. Whitefield’s epitaph sheds light on his response to others’ harsh words: “I am content to wait till the Day of Judgment for the clearing up of my character; and after I am dead, I desire no other epitaph than this, ‘Here lies George Whitefield—what sort of a man he was, the great day will discover.’ ” In the Old Testament, when David faced harsh criticism from others, he too entrusted himself to...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 8, Thursday  Love Reins Us In Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 10–12   Luke 9:37–62 It is better not to . . . do anything . . . that will cause your brother or sister to fall. Romans 14:21 Today's Scripture & Insight: Romans 14:1–13 Most young Samoan boys receive a tattoo signaling their responsibility to their people and their chief. Naturally, then, the marks cover the arms of the Samoan men’s rugby team members. Traveling to Japan where tattoos can carry negative connotations, the teammates realized their symbols presented a problem for their hosts. In a generous act of friendship, the Samoans wore skin-colored sleeves covering the designs. “We’re respectful and mindful to . . . the Japanese way,” the team captain explained. “We’ll be making sure that what we’re showing will be okay.” In an age emphasizing individual expression, it’s remarkable to encounter self-limitation—a concept Paul wrote about in the book of Romans. He told us that love sometimes re...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 7, Wednesday THROUGH THICK AND THIN Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 7–9   Luke 9:18–36 The cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites during all their travels. Exodus 40:38 Today's Scripture & Insight: Exodus 40:34–38 On January 28, 1986, the US Space Shuttle  Challenger  broke apart seventy-three seconds after takeoff. In a speech of comfort to the nation, President Reagan quoted from the poem “High Flight” in which John Gillespie Magee, a World War II pilot, had written of “the high untrespassed sanctity of space” and the sense of putting out his hand to touch “the face of God.” Although we can’t literally touch God’s face, we sometimes experience a stunning sunset or a place of meditation in nature that gives us an overwhelming sense that He’s near. Some people call these moments “thin places.” The barrier separating heaven and earth seems to grow a little thinner.  G...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 6, Tuesday COMPANIONS IN CHRIST Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 4–6   Luke 9:1–17 I thank my God every time I remember you. Philippians 1:3 Today's Scripture & Insight: Philippians 1:3–8 The Harvard Study of Adult Development is a decades-long project that’s resulted in a greater understanding of the importance of healthy relationships. The research began with a group of 268 sophomores at Harvard University in the 1930s and later expanded to, among others, 456 Boston inner-city residents. Researchers have conducted interviews with the participants and pored over their medical records every few years. They discovered that close relationships are the biggest factor in predicting happiness and health. It turns out that if we surround ourselves with the right people, we’ll likely experience a deeper sense of joy. This appears to reflect what the apostle Paul is describing in  Philippians 1 . Writing from prison, Paul can’t help but tell his friends that he than...

O UR DAILY BREAD April 5, Monday ANCHORED IN TRUTH Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 1–3   Luke 8:26–56 I will drive him like a peg into a firm place. Isaiah 22:23 Today's Scripture & Insight: Isaiah 22:15–20, 22–25 My family lives in a nearly century-old house with a lot of character, including wonderfully textured plaster walls. A builder cautioned me that with these walls, to hang a picture I’d have to either drill the nail into a wood support or use a plaster anchor for support. Otherwise, I’d risk the picture crashing to the ground, leaving an ugly hole behind. The prophet Isaiah used the imagery of a nail driven firmly into a wall to describe a minor biblical character named Eliakim. Unlike the corrupt official Shebna ( Isaiah 22:15–19 ), as well as the people of Israel—who looked to themselves for strength (vv. 8–11)—Eliakim trusted in God. Prophesying Eliakim’s promotion to palace administrator for King Hezekiah, Isaiah wrote that Eliakim would be driven like a “peg into a firm...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 4, Sunday IN THE GARDEN Bible in a Year: Ruth 1–4   Luke 8:1–25 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” John 20:18 Today's Scripture & Insight: John 20:11–18 My dad loved to sing the old hymns. One of his favorites was “In the Garden.” A few years back, we sang it at his funeral. The chorus is simple: “And He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own, and the joy we share as we tarry there none other has ever known.” That song brought joy to my dad—as it does to me. Hymn writer C. Austin Miles says he wrote this song in spring 1912 after reading chapter 20 of the gospel of John. “As I read it that day, I seemed to be part of the scene. I became a silent witness to that dramatic moment in Mary’s life when she knelt before her Lord and cried, ‘Rabboni [Teacher].’ ” In  John 20 , we find Mary Magdalene weeping near Jesus’ empty tomb. There she met a man who asked why she was crying. Thinking it ...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 3, Saturday RIDING THE WAVES Bible in a Year: Judges 19–21   Luke 7:31–50 Who is like you, Lord God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty and your faithfulness surrounds you. Psalm 89:8 Today's Scripture & Insight: Psalm 89:5–17 As my husband strolled down the rocky beach taking photos of the Hawaiian horizon, I sat on a large rock fretting over another medical setback. Though my problems would be waiting for me when I returned home, I needed peace in that moment. I stared at the incoming waves crashing against the black, jagged rocks. A dark shadow in the curve of the wave caught my eye. Using the zoom option on my camera, I identified the shape as a sea turtle riding the waves peacefully. Its flippers spread wide and still. Turning my face into the salty breeze, I smiled. The “heavens praise [God’s] wonders” ( Psalm 89:5 ). Our incomparable God rules “over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, [God] stills them” (v. 9). He “founded the world and all that i...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 2, Friday THE COST Bible in a Year: Judges 16–18   Luke 7:1–30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John 19:30 Today's Scripture & Insight: John 19:25–30 Michelangelo’s works explored many facets of the life of Jesus, yet one of the most poignant was also one of the most simple. In the 1540s he sketched a pieta (a picture of Jesus’ mother holding the body of the dead Christ) for his friend Vittoria Colonna. Done in chalk, the drawing depicts Mary looking to the heavens as she cradles her Son’s still form. Rising behind Mary, the upright beam of the cross carries these words from Dante’s  Paradise , “There they don’t think of how much blood it costs.” Michelangelo’s point was profound: when we contemplate the death of Jesus, we must consider the price He paid. The price paid by Christ is captured in His dying declaration, “It is finished” ( John 19:30 ). The term for “it is f...

OUR DAILY BREAD April1 “SO HELPFUL” Bible in a Year: Judges 13–15   Luke 6:27–49 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Romans 12:13 Today's Scripture & Insight: 1 Peter 4:7–11 The caller to the Christian radio station said that his wife was coming home from the hospital following surgery. Then he shared something that spoke deeply to my heart: “Everyone in our church family has been so helpful in taking care of us during this time.” When I heard this simple statement, it reminded me of the value and necessity of Christian hospitality and care. I began to think that the love and support of fellow believers for one another is one of the greatest ways to demonstrate the life-changing power of the gospel. In First Peter, the apostle was writing a letter to be circulated among the first-century churches in what’s now the country of Turkey. In that letter, he compelled his readers to do something that his friend Paul wrote about in  Romans 12:13 : “...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 31 Wisely Weeding Bible in a Year: Judges 11–12   Luke 6:1–26 Search me, God, and know my heart. Psalm 139:23 Today's Scripture & Insight: Psalm 139:1–6, 23–24 My grandchildren are running around my backyard. Playing games? No, pulling weeds. “Pulling them up by the roots!” the youngest says, showing me a hefty prize. Her delight as we tackled weeds that day was how much we enjoyed plucking the weedy roots—clearing away each pesky menace. Before the joy, however, came the choice to go after them. Intentional weeding is also the first step in removing personal sin. Thus, David prayed: “Search me, God, and know my heart. . . . See if there is any offensive way in me” ( Psalm 139:23–24 ). What a wise approach, to go after our sin by asking God to show it to us. He above all knows everything about us. “You have searched me,  Lord , and you know me,” wrote the psalmist. “You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar” (vv. 1–2). “S...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 30, Tuesday GOT YOUR NOSE Bible in a Year: Judges 9–10   Luke 5:17–39 I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. Exodus 12:12 Today's Scripture & Insight: Exodus 12:12–19 “Why are the statues’ noses broken?” That’s the number one question visitors ask Edward Bleiberg, curator of Egyptian art at the Brooklyn Museum. Bleiberg can’t blame it on normal wear and tear; even two-dimensional painted figures are missing noses. He surmises that such destruction must have been intentional. Enemies meant to kill Egypt’s gods. It’s as if they were playing a game of “got your nose” with them. Invading armies broke off the noses of these idols so they couldn’t breathe. Really? That’s all it took?  With gods like these, Pharaoh should have known he was in trouble. Yes, he had an army and the allegiance of a whole nation. The Hebrews were weary slaves led by a timid fugitive named Moses. But Israel had the living God, and Pharaoh’s gods were pretenders. Ten plagu...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 29, Monday FACING THE BATTLES WITH GOD Bible in a Year: Judges 7–8   Luke 5:1–16 In the Lord I take refuge. Psalm 11:1 Today's Scripture & Insight: Psalm 11 The heroic deeds of US Army soldier Desmond Doss are featured in the 2016 movie  Hacksaw Ridge.  While Doss’ convictions wouldn’t allow him to take human life, as an army medic he committed himself to preserving life even at the risk of his own. The citation read at Doss’ Medal of Honor ceremony on October 12, 1945, included these words: “Private First Class Doss refused to seek cover and remained in the fire-swept area with the many stricken, carrying them one by one to the edge of the escarpment. . . . He unhesitatingly braved enemy shelling and small arms fire to assist an artillery officer.” In  Psalm 11 , David’s conviction that his refuge was in God compelled him to resist suggestions to flee rather than face his foes (vv. 2–3). Six simple words comprised his statement of faith: “I...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 28, Sunday WATCH ME! Bible in a Year: Judges 4–6   Luke 4:31–44 From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise. Matthew 21:16 Today's Scripture & Insight: Matthew 21:12–17 “Watch my fairy princess dance, Grandma!” my three-year-old granddaughter gleefully called as she raced around the yard of our cabin, a big grin on her face. Her “dancing” brought a smile; and her big brother’s glum, “She’s not dancing, just running,” didn’t squelch her joy at being on vacation with family. The first Palm Sunday was a day of highs and lows. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, the crowds enthusiastically shouted, “Hosanna! . . . Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” ( Matthew 21:9 ). Yet many in the crowd were expecting a Messiah to free them from Rome, not a Savior who would die for their sins that same week. Later that day, despite the anger of the chief priests who questioned Jesus’ authority, children in the temple e...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 27, Saturday HOSTING ROYALTY Bible in a Year: Judges 1–3   Luke 4:1–30 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. Galatians 3:26 Today's Scripture & Insight: Galatians 3:26–29 After meeting the Queen of England at a ball in Scotland, Sylvia and her husband received a message that the royal family would like to visit them for tea. Sylvia started cleaning and prepping, nervous about hosting the royal guests. Before they were due to arrive, she went outside to pick some flowers for the table, her heart racing. Then she sensed God reminding her that He’s the King of kings and that He’s with her every day. Immediately she felt peaceful and thought, “After all, it’s only the Queen!” Sylvia is right. As the apostle Paul noted, God is the “King of kings and Lord of lords” ( 1 Timothy 6:15 ) and those who follow Him are “children of God” ( Galatians 3:26 ). When we belong to Christ, we’re heirs of Abraham (v. 29). We no longer are bound by divisi...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 26, Friday SLUM SONGS Bible in a Year: Joshua 22–24   Luke 3 They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Isaiah 35:10 Today's Scripture & Insight: Isaiah 35 Cateura is a small slum in Paraguay, South America. Desperately poor, its villagers survive by recycling items from its rubbish dump. But from these unpromising conditions something beautiful has emerged—an orchestra. With a violin costing more than a house in Cateura, the orchestra had to get creative, crafting its own instruments from their garbage supply. Violins are made from oil cans with bent forks as tailpieces. Saxophones have come from drainpipes with bottle tops for keys. Cellos are made from tin drums with gnocchi rollers for tuning pegs. Hearing Mozart played on these contraptions is a beautiful thing. The orchestra has gone on tour in many countries, lifting the sights of its young members. Violins from landfills. Music from slums. That’s symbolic of wha...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 25, Thursday KNOW HIS VOICE Bible in a Year: Joshua 19–21   Luke 2:25–52 I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me. John 10:14 Today's Scripture & Insight: John 10:1–10 One year for vacation Bible school, Ken’s church decided to bring in live animals to illustrate the Scripture. When he arrived to help, Ken was asked to bring a sheep inside. He had to practically drag the wooly animal by a rope into the church gymnasium. But as the week went on, it became less reluctant to follow him. By the end of the week, Ken didn’t have to hold the rope anymore; he just called the sheep and it followed, knowing it could trust him. In the New Testament, Jesus compares Himself to a shepherd, stating that His people, the sheep, will follow Him because they know His voice ( John 10:4 ). But those same sheep will run from a stranger or thief (v. 5). Like sheep, we (God’s children) get to know the voice of our Shepherd through our relationship with Him. An...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 24, Wednesday SOMETHING MUCH BIGGER Bible in a Year: Joshua 16–18   Luke 2:1–24 We are co-workers in God’s service. 1 Corinthians 3:9 Today's Scripture & Insight: 1 Corinthians 3:5–9 More than two hundred volunteers assisted October Books, a bookstore in Southampton, England, move its inventory to an address down the street. Helpers lined the sidewalk and passed books down a “human conveyor belt.” Having witnessed the volunteers in action, a store employee said, “It was . . . a really moving experience to see people [helping]. . . . They wanted to be part of something bigger.” We can also be part of something much bigger than ourselves. God uses us to reach the world with the message of His love. Because someone shared the message with us, we can turn to another person and pass it on. Paul compared this—the building of God’s kingdom—to growing a garden. Some of us plant seeds while some of us water the seeds. We are, as Paul said, “co-workers in God’s serv...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 23 THE REASON TO REST Bible in a Year: Joshua 13–15   Luke 1:57–80 What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? Ecclesiastes 2:22 Today's Scripture & Insight: Ecclesiastes 2:17–26 If you want to live longer, take a vacation! Forty years after a study of middle-aged, male executives who each had a risk of heart disease, researchers in Helsinki, Finland, followed up with their study participants. The scientists discovered something they hadn’t been looking for in their original findings: the death rate was lower among those who had taken time off for vacations. Work is a necessary part of life—a part God appointed to us even before our relationship with Him was fractured in  Genesis 3 . Solomon wrote of the seeming meaninglessness of work experienced by those not working for God’s honor—recognizing its “anxious striving” and “grief and pain” ( Ecclesiastes 2:22–23 ). Even when they’re not actively working...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 22, Monday SWEETER THAN HONEY Bible in a Year: Joshua 10–12   Luke 1:39–56 How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Psalm 119:103 Today's Scripture & Insight: Psalm 119:97–105 On Chicago Day in October 1893, the city’s theaters shut down because the owners figured everyone would be attending the World’s Fair. Over seven hundred thousand people went, but Dwight Moody (1837–1899) wanted to fill a music hall at the other end of Chicago with preaching and teaching. His friend R. A. Torrey (1856–1928) was skeptical that Moody could draw a crowd on the same day as the fair. But by God’s grace, he did. As Torrey later concluded, the crowds came because Moody knew “the one Book that this old world most longs to know—the Bible.” Torrey longed for others to love the Bible as Moody did, reading it regularly with dedication and passion. God through His Spirit brought people back to Himself at the end of the nineteenth century in Chica...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 21, Sunday GOD AT WORK Bible in a Year: Joshua 7–9   Luke 1:21–38 Surely he was the Son of God! Matthew 27:54 Today's Scripture & Insight: Matthew 27:50–54 “God is crying.” Those were the words whispered by Bill Haley’s ten-year-old daughter as she stood in the rain with a group of multiethnic believers in Jesus. They had come to Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley to seek God and make sense of the legacy of racial discord in America. As they stood on the grounds where former slaves were buried, they joined hands in prayer. Then suddenly the wind began to blow, and it started to rain. As the leader called out for racial healing, the rain began to fall even harder. Those gathered believed that God was at work to bring reconciliation and forgiveness. And so was it at Calvary—God was at work. After the crucified Jesus breathed His last, “The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open” ( Matthew 27:51–52 ). Though some had denied who Jesus was, a centurion...

OUR DAILY BREAD March 20, Saturday LOVING CORRECTION Bible in a Year: Joshua 4–6   Luke 1:1–20 Whoever heeds life-giving correction will be at home among the wise. Proverbs 15:31 Today's Scripture & Insight: Luke 10:38–42 For more than fifty years, my dad strove for excellence in his editing. His passion wasn’t to just look for mistakes but also to make the copy better in terms of clarity, logic, flow, and grammar. Dad used a green pen for his corrections, rather than a red one. A green pen he felt was “friendlier,” while slashes of red might be jarring to a novice or less confident writer. His objective was to gently point out a better way. When Jesus corrected people, He did so in love. In some circumstances—such as when He was confronted with the hypocrisy of the Pharisees ( Matthew 23 )—He rebuked them harshly, yet still for their benefit. But in the case of his friend Martha, a gentle correction was all that was needed ( Luke 10:38–42 ). While the Pharisees responded poorl...