Posts with the category “daily-faith-challenges”

Well, hi, New Lifers! Bill McCaskill here with a devotional for your week.My talk Sunday was on the Holy Spirit with a particular focus on doing mission WITH the Holy Spirit, both personally and collectively as part of a church body.Most of you know that my my dearly departed wife Kathy and I were involved in “church planting” our entire married life in some capacity and had the privilege to plant...  Read More

Well, hi, New Lifers! Bill McCaskill here with a devotional for your week.My talk Sunday was on the Holy Spirit with a particular focus on doing mission WITH the Holy Spirit, both personally and collectively as part of a church body.Most of you know that my my dearly departed wife Kathy and I were involved in “church planting” our entire married life in some capacity and had the privilege to plant...  Read More

Well, hi, New Lifers! Bill McCaskill here with a devotional for your week.My talk Sunday was on the Holy Spirit with a particular focus on doing mission WITH the Holy Spirit, both personally and collectively as part of a church body.Most of you know that my my dearly departed wife Kathy and I were involved in “church planting” our entire married life in some capacity and had the privilege to plant...  Read More

Well, hi, New Lifers! Bill McCaskill here with a devotional for your week.My talk Sunday was on the Holy Spirit with a particular focus on doing mission WITH the Holy Spirit, both personally and collectively as part of a church body.Most of you know that my my dearly departed wife Kathy and I were involved in “church planting” our entire married life in some capacity and had the privilege to plant...  Read More

Friday, August 28thTwo people, two paths, one God. Reminded me of the last stanza in Robert Frost classic poem, The Road Not Taken, Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.One path is the path of perceived rejection. You don’t believe that God is for you, that he is generous, or if you do, it’s because you’ve been good enough or don...  Read More

Thursday, August 27thRead Matthew 20:1-15- “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius[a] for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3 “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I ...  Read More

Wednesday, August 26thRead Genesis 2:2b-5- Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. 4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was...  Read More

This week, as we look at the passage we are looking at what MUST get our attention. We want to be drawn towards what got God’s attention.The first element that got God’s attention, that should get our attention is the favored intention. Unfortunately, I’m not a huge fan of this summary, unfortunately I didn’t take enough time to wordsmith it better. But my hope is that by the end of our time you w...  Read More

Monday Today I want you to take some time and read this story, that may be familiar, but take your time with it. Underline, highlight, jot down questions or thoughts of discovery. Genesis 4:1-16-Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man.” 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept f...  Read More

  We hope you have felt encouraged throughout this week and have taken some time to spend with God around the different challenges/encouragements. As we wrap up this week, we have one last encouragement for you. One of the testimonies shared this past Sunday was from Easton, a freshman in high school. He shared how at the end of the mission trip, during one of our debriefing sessions, he felt chal...  Read More

  Have you ever been in awe of something in nature? Have you ever gazed upon something filled with tremendous beauty and thought, “Wow, God is an amazing creator! How could anyone doubt a creator after seeing that? No one or nothing can create like God!”The rolling mountains, the sun glistening upon a river, the waves of the ocean rolling beautifully to just name a few. One of the testimonies shar...  Read More

  Genesis 6:14-15 “So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.”A cubit is roughly 18” which would mean the ark was roughly 450’ long, 75’ wide & 45’ high.Saturday, we got to visit the Ark Experience. It’s a full-size replica of ...  Read More

  A “Yay God” is a special moment throughout the day where we can see and celebrate how God is working, moving, providing, or showing more of himself.Every night at the end of our work days while on the mission trip, we spent time in community sharing our individual “Yay God’s” with our work crews and as a large group. This video clip showed a small snippet of what that looked like - so fun, encou...  Read More

  The picture above was taken at the Carter Caves State Park, a beautiful space we got toexplore on our adventure day. We had no clue what the day would hold, except foradventure. We hiked to the Smokey Valley Lake & spent intentional time in prayer. First wespent five to ten minutes of intentional time praying by ourselves. Next, we huddled into acircle to find a partner for team prayer time. We ...  Read More

  Scripture: Colossians 3:12Have you been impatient, harsh, or focused primarily on yourself? The good news is that God’s grace offers a fresh start. Today, take a moment to examine your heart. Invite God to renew your mind and help you begin again, clothed in compassion and kindness.Prayer: Lord, thank You for new beginnings. Renew my heart and help me reflect Your kindness today....  Read More

  Scripture: Ephesians 4:15Many people think kindness means avoiding difficult conversations, but biblical kindness is rooted in truth. Genuine love seeks the highest good of another person. Sometimes that means offering encouragement; other times it means providing honest, gracious feedback. Truth without love can wound. Love without truth can mislead. Christ calls us to both.Prayer: Jesus, help ...  Read More

  Scripture: Luke 10:33-34The Good Samaritan saw a need and responded. He crossed social barriers, interrupted his plans, and spent his own resources to help someone who could offer nothing in return. Biblical kindness is more than sympathy; it is compassion in action. Ask God to open your eyes today. Someone around you may need encouragement, assistance, or simply a listening ear. Don’t walk past...  Read More

  Scripture: Colossians 3:12There is a difference between being nice and being kind. Niceness often seeks comfort and approval. Biblical kindness seeks the good of others, even when it requires effort, sacrifice, or difficult conversations. Real kindness helps people grow, serves practical needs, and is rooted in truth. Today, consider your recent interactions. Were you simply being nice, or were ...  Read More

  Day 1: Get Dressed for the DayScripture: Colossians 3:12Every morning we make a choice about what to wear. Paul reminds us that believers also have a spiritual wardrobe. Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience are not automatic; they are attitudes we intentionally put on each day. Before rushing into your schedule, ask God to clothe you with His character. The way you are dresse...  Read More

  I love this summary of how Jesus extends grace to us and what it means for today and eternity. Eugene Peterson shares it in Romans 5:17-21- If death got the upper hand through one man’s wrongdoing, can you imagine the breathtaking recovery life makes, absolute life, in those who grasp with both hands this wildly extravagant life-gift, this grand setting-everything-right, that the one man Jesus C...  Read More

  Ok, let’s finish the chapter. Genesis 3:22-24- 22 And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the ...  Read More

  Let’s finish the chapter and see more of how God responds to a broken and lost world. We’ll pick up in Genesis 3:21- 21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. Do you notice the care and compassion God shows them? They were naked, tried to solve it on their own by sewing fig leaves together. God, knowing that they were going to be exiled out of Eden into the wi...  Read More

  Reflect back on Genesis 3:14-15- 14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”God spoke to the...  Read More

  We are back in our Genesis series- creation, failure, redemption, repeat. We are just finishing up with chapter three, and I realized the last time we were together in this series; I left you on a cliff hanger, literally.For those of you who were with us, I shared about how I was camping, hiking, exploring the backcountry of SD with some college friends and as I was climbing the face of this str...  Read More

  17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV)What do you notice about the simplicity of this passage? How do you become a new creation?Much like Jesus’ death, old life buried, sin buried, new life rises again, rises from the depths of the grave. Jesus does the same thing in our life when we surrender and trust him. Our old...  Read More

  The next passage I want us to look at is from the Message version and it is Romans 6:3-5- That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old countryof sin behind; when we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace - a new life in a new land! That’s what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the bu...  Read More

  The next passage I want us to look at is from the Message version and it is Romans 6:3-5- That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old countryof sin behind; when we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace - a new life in a new land! That’s what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the bu...  Read More

  We are going to take another passage today and look at it not only through the lens of baptism, but the lens of faith.The words we are looking at in Matthew 28 are the last words of the gospel of Matthew. According to Matthew these are the last words of Jesus to his disciples. What do you notice?Matthew 28:19-20- 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of th...  Read More

  This past Sunday we had the opportunity to celebrate people’s choice to obediently declare their faith through baptism. My desire this week is to share some reflection pieces around baptism, but the encouragement isn’t reflecting on this faith practice, as much as it is, reflecting and challenging the steps of our faith journey.The reason I share it that way is because baptism is a declaration o...  Read More

  Yesterday we looked at the power of pain, grief, loss, anxiety, worry in conceiving to raising children and all points between. Ultimately naming the fact that those things happen, but how do we trust God in the midst of those things, because the world is broken and God didn’t do this to you. Building trust is inviting God into your grief and unfulfilled dreams.Let me fast forward briefly to how...  Read More

  Let’s keep going. Notice God’s interaction with Eve. Genesis 3:15- 16 To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children.I’ve always understood this passage to mean, guess what ladies, giving birth was going to hurt. I got it easy with our two kids, besides not having to do anything, both of our kiddos came as C-section, ...  Read More

  Genesis 3:15- 15 And I will put enmity (hostility) between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”What else do you notice about the offspring?Point of reference, some translations also have seed for offspring. For the sake of the rest of our discussion, we are going to look at this passage as seed.The seed will crush the hea...  Read More

  Genesis 3:15- 15 And I will put enmity (hostility) between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”What else do you notice about the offspring?Point of reference, some translations also have seed for offspring. For the sake of the rest of our discussion, we are going to look at this passage as seed.The seed will crush the hea...  Read More

  This week we are unpacking Genesis 3:14-24, if you listened to the message from Sunday, you will know that we only got so far. There is much within this entire passage. It was also cool to hear of people taking time to unpack portions of this passage for themselves, not just unpacking during the message. That’s the value of giving you these faith challenges, to take what is shared on a Sunday an...  Read More

  If you missed last week, I strongly recommend going back and watching it because it sets us up for this week. Let me give you a quick recap.We talked about how the serpent confronted Eve with misleading questions and statements, Eve responded with some truth, but also some fallacies, Adam was an observer, not a protector. Eve took the fruit and gave it to Adam and sin broke into the world, which...  Read More

  This week we’ve been unpacking the first 13 verses of Genesis 3. My desire has been to help you “unsee” all the ways you have perceived Genesis 3 and begin to see the chaos of disorder that came through the serpent, the satan, sin. But to also see how God pursue us despite our choosing chaos over trust.I do want to draw our attention to hope. I do want to draw our attention to the significance o...  Read More

  Yesterday I shared this quote from Tremper Longmen from his commentary . “The story of Adam, though does expose the nature of sin. What is sin at its heart? Sin is rebellion against God, a refusal to accept him as Lord. Sin places oneself in the position of God, and like Adam and Eve, humans substitute their own ideas of right and wrong in the place of God’s definition. Sin rejects God… The acco...  Read More

  Read Genesis 3:1-6- Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, ...  Read More

  Notice how the serpent creates chaos for Eve and Adam. If that sentence doesn’t make sense, go back to yesterday’s Daily Faith Challenge for a review.If it does make sense, then read Genesis 3:1-6- Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the ...  Read More

  I don’t know about you, but once you’ve seen something one way, it can be really hard to see it another way or shall I say, “unsee” it? For instance, the classic optical illusions you would see in Psychology class. What stands out to you? Do you see a duck or a rabbit? Can you go back and forth between the two or are you stuck seeing one versus the other? My desire is to help you with that toda...  Read More