Tag: REBECCA VAN NOORD

  • BE VIGILANT

    Connect The TestamentsGenesis 35:16-36:43; Matthew 26:14-56; Ecclesiastes 8:10-17 Faith doesn’t always come to bear until we are faced with our own fallibility. When we “enter into temptation,” it often means we haven’t been vigilant—that we’ve stopped pursuing the God who has pursued us. In the aftermath of temptation, we recognize our spiritual laziness. We become…

  • AVOIDING THE UNAVOIDABLE

    Connect The TestamentsGenesis 24; Matthew 16-17; Ecclesiastes 5:8-11 It’s common to put people in our lives on hold, even if we love them, until something forces us to pay attention. Forgetting those who are closest to us is a frightening thought. Peter, Jesus’ disciple, likely realized that people were making a similar mistake in their…

  • FEAR GOD

    Connect the TestamentsGenesis 21:22-23:20; Matthew 15; Ecclesiastes 5:1-7 In Ecclesiastes 5, the author stops to consider God’s place in the heavens and our place on earth. He acknowledges that there is a great gulf of understanding between who God is and who we think He is. This realization should affect our entire posture before Him.…

  • WHAT KIND OF HEARER ARE YOU?

    CONNECT THE TESTAMENTSGenesis 18-19:29; Matthew 13:1-43; Ecclesiastes 4:1-7 While parables were often told to make truth tangible, in Matt 13, we find that this wasn’t always the case. When His disciples question why He speaks in parables, Jesus quotes the prophet Isaiah: “For the heart of this people has become dull, and with their ears…

  • CONNECT THE TESTAMENTS

    A 365-Day Devotional with Bible Reading Plan Genesis 14-15; Matthew 11; Ecclesiastes 3:9-15 JUDGING THE TIMES AND SEASONS We often have difficulty judging the events in our lives and then responding appropriately. Although God has placed eternity “in our hearts,” we don’t know the reason or the outcome of our life’s events (Eccl 3:11). The…