Personal Devotions
Notes from Mark's personal Bible reading and meditation
With a goal to apply one truth from each day's reading to my life that day
Aug 31, 2026, 7:26 AM
Passage Read: Luke 11-12
Meditation Verses: 12:1-3
Thought
Beware hypocrisy. It is easy to say one thing or claim to be and do certain things, but secretly do nothing of the sort. It is easy to hide hypocrisy from men, but impossible to hide it from God. He sees everything we do in secret. He hears everything we say in private. When we think no one sees or hears, God is watching and hearing.
Aug 30, 2026, 8:25 AM
Passage Read: Luke 9-10
Meditation Verses: 10:13-16
Thought
These foreign cities of old, if Jesus had appeared to them and done the miracles He was doing now, these cities would have repented thoroughly. The power of God and the message of God are more decisive than we realize. People who hear of God and see His power, if they do not repent on the spot, they are in grave danger.
Aug 29, 2026, 10:15 AM
Passage Read: Luke 7-8
Meditation Verse: 8:37
Thought
Jesus comes all this way and heals the man with a legion of demons. But in the process, He allows the demons to go into the herd of pigs, which then drown themselves. The freed man begs to go with Jesus, and He instead sends him home to testify about Him, which he faithfully and diligently does.
Aug 28, 2026, 10:13 AM
Passage Read: Luke 5-6
Meditation Verses: 6:20-23
Thought
These beatitudes are directed to Jesus' disciples, men who have walked away from jobs and houses and families to follow Jesus. They are poor because they chose to follow Jesus, leaving everything behind. They hunger because they do not have regular jobs, but depend on the gifts of others to feed themselves.
Aug 27, 2026, 7:00 AM
Passage Read: Luke 3-4
Meditation Verse: 3:10
Thought
John's message seems not very welcoming! He asks the crowds, "Who warned you to flee the wrath to come?" He was! Did he want people to come to him? Did he want people to be saved? He was supposed to be preparing a people for the Lord. And he was. Except he wasn't preparing a people who thought his message was good, he was preparing a people ready to change and be changed.
Aug 26, 2026, 7:07 AM
Passage Read: Luke 1-2
Meditation Verses: 2:49-52
Thought
Jesus knew who He was and who His true Father was. He was drawn to the temple to listen to and learn what the teachers at the temple taught. And everyone who heard Him speak were amazed at His understanding and answers. Jesus understood more than all these teachers, and was probably eager to begin teaching and correcting the errors of these experts.
Aug 24, 2026, 7:05 AM
Passage Read: Mark 15-16
Meditation Verse: 16:14
Thought
It's interesting that Jesus appeared to others before He appeared to any of the Eleven. He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, then apparently to the two on the road to Emmaus. Each of these reported their experience to the Eleven, but the Eleven didn't believe.
Aug 23, 2026, 1:31 AM
Passage Read: Mark 13-14
Meditation Verses: 14:37-38
Thought
Jesus never denied Peter's earnestness, his desire to remain faithful and loyal to Jesus even if it cost his life. But Jesus knew the power of the flesh, its demanding weakness, and our unpreparedness. Peter didn't recognize the seriousness of what was coming. Perhaps he thought Jesus would walk free as at other times.
Aug 22, 2026, 1:17 AM
Passage Read: Mark 11-12
Meditation Verses: 12:43-44
Thought
This is the difference between the rich and the poor, between those who truly trust in God and those who don't. The rich give out their excess, money they don't need to live on, money that doesn't impact how they live. But the widow, all she has is two small coins. She's used to going without;
Aug 21, 2026, 3:47 AM
Passage Read: Mark 9-10
Meditation Verses: 10:21-23
Thought
The rich man desired eternal life. He had kept all the commandments as best he understood and yet had no assurance of salvation. And Jesus agreed that he was still lacking. The man was safe and comfortable in his riches. He wanted to know which box he had yet to check in order to finally be assured of salvation. Perhaps he just wanted Jesus to confirm that he was doing everything right. Instead, Jesus spoke a hard truth: