September 12, 2022
Every Time
As with track runners, we Christians also have a finish line upon which we focus.
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.
September 5, 2022
No Tourniquet Required
That the outpouring of Jesus’ blood was not halted on Calvary meant death for him . . . but life for us.
August 29, 2022
His Hands and Ours
When we take Communion, we hold in our hands the reminders of the price Jesus paid to save us from sin.
August 22, 2022
Always in His Arms
Immediately after describing the coming Messiah as someone who would rule with power and a mighty arm (Isaiah 40:10), the prophet’s imagery changed dramatically: “He tends his flock like a shepherd . . ."
August 15, 2022
A School Like No Other
Scripture says Jesus “learned obedience from what he suffered” (Hebrews 5:8).
August 9, 2022
COMPETITIVE COUPLE: John and Jennifer Perkins Tyler Lead Point U’s Baseball, Softball Programs
Jennifer Perkins Taylor has more than 250 career wins as Point University's softball coach, a program she has been with since it began. John Perkins led Point's baseball team to the NAIA World Series in 2016 as a first-year head coach. The pair fiercely support each other, their programs, and the mission of Point University “to educate students for Christ-centered service and leadership throughout the world.” . . .
July 1, 2022
The World Is Sick and Jesus Is the Cure
By Jerry Harris We’ve been ready for COVID-19 to end for two-plus years, but throughout this season I have seen the faithfulness of God in many ways. I’m reminded of Jesus’ words: Do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. . . . For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well (Luke 12:22-23, 30-31).
June 20, 2022
Boasting in Our Weaknesses
By Michael C. Mack As the apostle Paul told his story, he wrote, But [the Lord] said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me (2 Corinthians 12:9). Most of us are good at boasting about our strengths: our natural abilities, our giftedness, and the talents we have worked hard to develop. We have physical strengths, intellectual capacities, emotional competence, relational aptitudes, and spiritual giftedness. There are even assessments that measure our strengths.
June 13, 2022
Honor the Father
By Michael C. Mack Today is Father’s Day, a day we set aside to love and honor our dads. And it’s good that we do so! The fifth commandment instructs God’s people to “Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you” (Deuteronomy 5:16). The commandment is repeated several times through Scripture. Jesus discussed it in his teachings, and the apostle Paul referred to it as he taught Christ followers how to live together in Christian households. So, it is right and proper to give honor to our dads. But we must remember that we
June 6, 2022
Motive
By Randy Ballinger “When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law” (Matthew 7:28-29, emphasis mine). Imagine being on that Galilean mountainside as Jesus amazed the people with his words. Jesus didn’t simply recite Old Testament Law—as the scribes and Pharisees did—Jesus provided God-ordained insight. For example, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said . . . ‘You shall not murder. . . .’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother or
May 30, 2022
The Heavenly Harvest
By Doug Redford Today (Sunday, June 5) is Pentecost Sunday, celebrating the beginning of the church on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2. In the Old Testament, Pentecost was one of the three most significant feasts observed annually by the Israelites (Passover and Tabernacles were the others). Pentecost as instituted in the Law of Moses was primarily a harvest festival, coming seven weeks, or 50 days, after the Passover celebration (thus the name Pentecost, derived from the Greek for fiftieth). It was also known as the day of firstfruits (Numbers 28:26) because the first loaves made from
May 16, 2022
Trust in God
By Stuart Powell In John 13-16, Jesus prepared his disciples for their next big step in following him. They had left their family’s trade and their parents’ house. They spent years listening to their rabbi speak and were astonished by his authority over weather, diseases, and demons. But what came next shook their faith in God and in him. They witnessed the heart-breaking evil of this sinful world that Jesus came to face and conquer. To help prepare his disciples, Jesus spoke these words to them: “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me”
May 9, 2022
The Life of the Cross
By Randy Ballinger Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me” (Mark 8:34, New Living Translation). This statement no doubt caused many fireside debates among Jesus’ disciples. They had seen men carrying crosses before, and they knew it had only one outcome: a painful and humiliating death for the one bearing that burden. One disciple, Simon Peter, was adamant that Jesus would not suffer in such a manner. But Jesus would have none of Peter’s argument—Jesus would take up his
May 2, 2022
Near the Cross
By Victor Knowles “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother . . .” (John 19:25). Today is Mother’s Day. It is also the Lord’s Day. In this verse are three images: the cross, Jesus, and the mother of Jesus. Mary is positioned where we should be—“near the cross.” The Lord’s Supper does something both wonderful and horrible for us. It brings us “near the cross.” The Lord’s table becomes Mount Calvary. The bread and cup become the beams of the cross. There is wonder and horror at the cross. The wonder comes from the wonder of God’s love for
April 25, 2022
Indispensability
By Doug Redford As the 20th century was ending, numerous attempts were made to select the “person of the century.” Time magazine suggested Albert Einstein. A good case certainly could be made for Einstein; he was likely the most brilliant mind of the century. The late columnist Charles Krauthammer’s nomination was Winston Churchill. Krauthammer made a very strong argument on Churchill’s behalf. At the tail end of 1999, Krauthammer wrote, Take away Churchill in 1940, and Britain would have settled with Hitler—or worse, Nazism would have prevailed. . . . Civilization would have descended into a darkness the likes of
April 18, 2022
The Fruit of Hope
If God can raise his unjustly crucified Son from the dead in an unredeemed world, what else can he do?
April 11, 2022
Mary’s Pain
We need to dig into our own memories of despair to approach the tomb with the same weight Mary carried on Easter morning. . . .
April 4, 2022
Passover
Today, we are about to do something that completes the third panel of the story. Our Communion time is our Passover. . . .
March 28, 2022
Not My Will
How do you respond when life presses down on you and your situation overwhelms you? How do you cope with hard news that takes your breath away? Where do you find the strength to take the next step?
March 21, 2022
Focus
By Michael C. Mack Focus is vital for success in many areas of our lives. One place we see this illustrated is in sports. A wide receiver in football runs the right route and then focuses on the ball into his hands, regardless of all the other things going on around him, even to the point of getting hit once he catches the ball. A basketball player focuses intently on the front of the rim as she prepares to shoot a free throw. She has trained herself to ignore the screaming of the opposing fans and those waving wacky signs
