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If they were not, the flame would dim and produce excessive smoke. What parts of your life might need to be trimmed so that it can give off the most radiant light and so that you are most ready for the coming of Jesus Christ?

Where do you see persons in need of love and service, those who are hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick, or imprisoned? How might you respond to their needs? Pray that God would help you grow in your love for your neighbors so that you can respond to their needs appropriately and in a way consistent with God’s will.

Take note of the temptations you struggle with and pray that God’s Spirit will empower you with the strength to resist them. Read 2 Corinthians 7–10, which tells of Paul’s struggles against fleshly weakness. Remember that the power to overcome the flesh does not come from you but from Christ, whose “power is made perfect in weakness.”

God reveals Himself in amazing events, but He also uses more mundane ways to reveal Himself and His character, such as through acts of love and care, the blessings of fellowship, and the beauties of nature. Pray that God would give you eyes to see His work around you so that you can testify rightly about who He is.

Paul writes: “Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38–39). What powers or forces do you fear? Remember they cannot stand against...

Tomorrow is New Year’s Day, a day on which many commit to resolutions that will guide them in the year ahead. What resolutions might help you to remain in the presence of Jesus and carry forth His truth to the world? Pray that God would guide you in the year ahead and help you to be a guide to others.

Dangerous Appetites Losing weight is at the top of the list for many people who make New Year’s resolutions. The vast majority give up on their goal after a few weeks. Lack of willpower to resist temptation is often named as the culprit. That may be true, but the real problem is our appetite. It is no accident that Satan used human appetite...

Our Hunger and God’s Supply Author Wendell Berry writes about agriculture, culture, and the decline of American farming. When people ask what to do in these areas, he replies, “Eat responsibly.” Humans are created to be more than consumers. After the judgment of the Flood, humanity was granted a new beginning, and with it came new instructions.

Guided by Hunger According to the relief organization Oxfam, one definition of famine is when one out of five households experience an extreme lack of food resulting in starvation, death, and destitution. The most destructive feature of famine may not be starvation but the disease and poverty that accompany it. Given its destructive power,...

The Lamb of God Holiday meals are usually a festive occasion. This is certainly true of holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas, and other holidays are also often celebrated by feasting and gathering with loved ones. But the atmosphere of the first Passover was somber rather than festive. It was probably terrifying to those who originally...