Devotionals

Devotionals gathers Christian Standard articles designed to encourage daily faithfulness through Scripture, prayer, and reflection. Here you’ll find short, accessible readings that connect God’s Word to everyday life—offering wisdom for discipleship, comfort in hardship, and reminders of the hope found in Christ. These devotionals aim to help readers stay rooted in the gospel, grow in spiritual maturity, and practice consistent habits of worship and obedience.

December 18, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Peace: December 18

By Becky Ahlberg Friday, December 18 Read John 14:27.  Jesus would be in a tomb less than 24 hours after he spoke these words. It”s a stark reminder that a steadfast mind is able to focus with an unwavering, unfaltering, resolute, committed, dedicated, unswerving resolve to be used of God for his purposes, and therein to find peace that the world does not, cannot give. Do you equate peace only with tranquility, calm, serenity, and the absence of conflict? That may be why it eludes you today. Just “getting away from it all” may certainly be necessary in our lives.

December 17, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Peace: December 17

By Becky Ahlberg Thursday, December 17 Read and memorize Isaiah 26:3.  A steadfast mind is a key ingredient of peace. Here are a few synonyms for steadfast: unwavering, unfaltering, resolute, committed, dedicated, unswerving. So, if I read this right, finding peace is up to you and me! At Christmas, maybe more than at any other time, distractions abound. It”s easy to think running away or just canceling Christmas would eliminate the chaos of the season. But is all the busyness the problem, or is it a state of mind? What are you thinking about? What is capturing your attention these

December 16, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Peace: December 16

By Becky Ahlberg Wednesday, December 16 Read Ephesians 2:14-22.  Jesus is our peace. It was one of his purposes in coming. He was the only one who could destroy “the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility” (v. 14). He knew our nature and how easily we fall into conflict. He knew we would need help. He knew he couldn”t build the church he wanted without bringing people together and making them see each other as family, not enemies. He knew the walls would have to come down. Are there walls in your life that need to come down? Making peace

December 15, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Peace: December 15

By Becky Ahlberg Tuesday, December 15 Read Matthew 1:18-25.  Joseph is almost a mystery player in the Christmas story. We barely get to know him, and yet he may be the best example we have of someone who put his trust fully in the Lord. He would have had to. In the midst of the shame culture of that day, the events that unfolded with his betrothed Mary would have been excruciating. Another angel said, “Do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife” (v. 20). In the movie The Nativity Story, there is a poignant scene in

December 14, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Peace: December 14

By Becky Ahlberg Monday, December 14 My first child was born on January 6. He wasn”t due until January 20, so I had insisted I could keep my music ministry running through the Christmas season. A full choral program, children”s program, soloist work in a local performance of Bach”s “Magnificat,” a Christmas Eve service, and all the family stuff of Christmas a week later, and well, let”s just say I overdid it a bit. A daunting 26 hours of labor later, I held my baby boy in my arms and the agony quickly became ecstasy. He was perfect. I just

December 13, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Peace: December 13

By Becky Ahlberg For many, especially church leaders, Christmas is more chaos than celebration. Besides the extra programs and parties, family responsibilities and expectations also expand. These short meditations (which started December 6 and will continue with a new, early morning post each day through January 1) are designed with leaders in mind. Take a few minutes each day to ponder these thoughts designed to help you find the wonder of the incarnation in the midst of your responsibilities. Advent is simply a time to prepare for the celebration of Christ”s birth. In liturgical settings, Advent begins four Sundays before

December 12, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Hope: December 12

By Becky Ahlberg Saturday, December 12 An interesting juxtaposition today: Read Philippians 2:3-11 through the lens of Christmas. The phrase he “emptied Himself” (v. 7, New American Standard Bible) describes Jesus” perfect Christmas gift to us. Then read (or better yet, sing!) the words to “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” and imagine yourself in the midst of that unheralded event. His ways are not our ways. O little town of Bethlehem, How still we see thee lie! Above thy deep and dreamless sleep, The silent stars go by. Yet in the dark street Shinto The everlasting Light; The hopes and

December 11, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Hope: December 11

By Becky Ahlberg Friday, December 11 Read 1 Timothy 4.  In this well-known passage, the apostle Paul shares his wisdom with young Timothy and reminds him his behavior is critical to his credibility as a leader. It”s always good for leaders to remind themselves of these important truths. And right in the middle of it is this nugget, “That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God” (v. 10). Ours is not hope built on quaint stories or wishful thinking. The incarnation wasn”t magic. It was the purposeful, powerful behavior of the

December 10, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Hope: December 10

By Becky Ahlberg Thursday, December 10 Today brings another atypical Christmas passage, 2 Corinthians 4:7-9, 16-18. This “jars of clay” passage is one of my favorites for lots of reasons, but maybe never more so than today as I ponder a new thought: Jesus chose to become a jar of clay himself! Fully man, fully God. Now that is a treasure in a jar of clay! What could illustrate the fragility of the life Jesus embarked upon more poignantly than a newborn baby? What life on earth ever embodied the images in this passage more than Jesus? “Pressed . .

December 9, 2015

Christian Standard

Gloria in Excelsis Deo

By Jim Tune Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote: “Earth”s crammed with heaven, and every common bush afire with God, but only he who sees takes off his shoes; the rest sit around and pluck blackberries.” I need to reflect more often on the awesomeness of God. I want to live with my shoes off, recognizing holy ground moments as God saturates everything with his awesome light. My posture ought to more often be that of a man standing in amazement trying to fathom the glory of Christ. Isaiah 55:9 reminds us, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are

December 9, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Hope: December 9

By Becky Ahlberg Wednesday, December 9 Start your thoughts this morning reading Romans 5:1-5. Perseverance and character“”these are two strong words, but we usually don”t think of them as the stuff of Christmas. And yet, they are at the heart of it. When you come right down to it, Christmas is a pretty rough story. Think of the cast in this play, and how those two words made Christmas possible: Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, Anna, Simeon, and Christ. For all of them, there could easily be a focus on shame and suffering, and yet each of them experienced and understood

December 8, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Hope: December 8

By Becky Ahlberg Tuesday, December 8 Have you finished your Christmas shopping yet? Have you even started? How many parties and gatherings do you have on your calendar? How many Christmas programs or Christmas Eve services have you scheduled this year? Sometimes just thinking about these things can make a person weary! Now add to this list the hurting members of your congregation who find the holidays depressing or wounding, and who need your wise counsel and pastoral touch. Maybe you find Christmas depressing and wounding, and it becomes a weary ordeal as you try to find the Christmas spirit

December 7, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Hope: December 7

By Becky Ahlberg Monday, December 7 It”s Pearl Harbor Day”””A date which will live in infamy,” as Franklin Roosevelt so memorably said. On December 7, 1941, America”s naval fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was attacked by the Imperial Japanese Navy. When the smoke cleared, 2,403 Americans had been killed and 1,178 were injured. Christmas 1941 came barely two weeks after that attack. Families tried to go about their celebrations in the usual ways, but the worry over war and the unsettled affairs all over the world clouded the usual lighthearted and warm celebrations. American families were already mourning the loss

December 6, 2015

Christian Standard

Meditating on Hope: December 6

By Becky Ahlberg For many, especially church leaders, Christmas is more chaos than celebration. Besides the extra programs and parties, family responsibilities and expectations also expand. These short meditations (starting today and continuing with a new, early morning post each day through January 1) are designed with leaders in mind. Take a few minutes each day to ponder these thoughts designed to help you find the wonder of the incarnation in the midst of your responsibilities. Advent is simply a time to prepare for the celebration of Christ”s birth. In liturgical settings, Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas and centers

November 27, 2015

Christian Standard

The Cardboard Lamb

By Victor Knowles When I was a little boy my parents bought a Christmas manger set. On the box were these words: “The Christmas story in beautiful cutout scenes and lifelike figures . . . It tells the Christmas story . . . Fascinates young and old.” I remember how special it was to assemble the cardboard set on Christmas Eve. I would lie on the living room floor, face in hands, and gaze at those familiar figures for hours. In the background was the little town of Bethlehem. To the left were the shepherds, with one little “adoring child”

November 25, 2015

Christian Standard

All You Can Do

By Jim Tune (This column was first posted November 26, 2014.) In Star Wars: Episode V””The Empire Strikes Back, Luke talks to the ever-wise Yoda about the enormity of his mission. Luke finally says, “All right, I”ll give it a try.” Yoda sagely offers his famous advice: “No! Try not. Do . . . or do not. There is no try.” Yoda was wrong. Sometimes there is no do. There is only try. I am frequently discovering that try is enough. What”s more, there are many things not worth trying or doing! Not everything is up to us. We are

November 20, 2015

Christian Standard

Condescension that Brought Redemption

By Victor Knowles Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death””even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:6-8). Communion is an incredible story of condescension. The Christ, the Son of the living God and the creator of the cosmos, condescended first to a lowly manger and then to a rugged Roman cross. It never happened

November 1, 2015

Christian Standard

New Baby, New Life, New Year (27 Daily Devotions)

For many, especially church leaders, Christmas is more chaos than celebration. We need to refocus on what is important, and these 27 short meditations are written to help us do that. Take a few minutes each day to ponder these thoughts designed to help you find the wonder of the incarnation in the midst of your responsibilities. These daily meditations, written by Becky Ahlberg of Anaheim, California, begin on Sunday, December 6, and conclude on January 1, 2016. The four weekly themes center around the concepts of hope, peace, joy, and love. May your holidays be blessed as you celebrate

October 30, 2015

Christian Standard

Majestic Quietness

By Greg Swinney Several international students were traveling together to the Rocky Mountains for a weekend excursion during their university”s fall break. In preparation for the trip, they read travel magazines and browsed websites that described the grandeur of the mountains. Inside the church van, the international students asked their American friends about the elevation, climate, and vegetation of the Rockies. The excitement was contagious as the van motored west. As the van crested a small hill, the students got their first glimpse of the mountains in the distance. They grabbed their cameras and noisy conversations stopped. Most students were

October 9, 2015

Christian Standard

Joyful Discovery

By Greg Swinney Columbus Day was recognized as a federal holiday in 1937 to celebrate Christopher Columbus”s heroic voyage of adventure and discovery. Many people working in banks, public offices, and businesses will enjoy a day off in recognition of the discovery of America. Maybe you are someone who is blessed with an employer who will close the doors and give you the day off. Now might be a good time to gain a better appreciation for the spiritual significance of the holiday. In one of his journals, Columbus wrote, “I am a most noteworthy sinner, but I have cried

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