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
Sep 6, 2026, 8:22 AM
Passage Read: Luke 23-24
Meditation Verses: 24:46-47
Thought
The gospel is a message of repentance for forgiveness of sins in the name of Jesus. Jesus has power to forgive sins, and He paid the price in blood to purchase forgiveness for all who will repent and believe in and follow Him. It is not enough to "believe" that Jesus is the Son of God who died to pay the debt we owed for our sins,
Sep 5, 2026, 9:34 AM
Passage Read: Luke 21-22
Meditation Verses: 22:31-32
Thought
Satan demanded permission to sift Peter like wheat, and it was granted. Satan couldn't attack Peter without permission, but God was willing for him to be tested, knowing he would fail the test. Peter would be tested without Satan's interference. Peter had declared he would gladly go to prison or die with Jesus, so when Jesus was arrested, that was the first test and his first failure.
Sep 4, 2026, 11:56 AM
Passage Read: Luke 19-20
Meditation Verses: 19:15-17
Thought
This nobleman decided to test some of his servants to see which were loyal and reliable, because he was looking for those whom he could trust to help him rule over the kingdom he sought, if it was granted. He didn't test every servant, but only a select few.
Sep 3, 2026, 10:43 AM
Passage Read: Luke 17-18
Meditation Verses: 18:39-40
Thought
When Bartimaeus began calling out for Jesus' help, the people in the crowd tried to shut him up. Followers of Jesus! They weren't even thinking they could see another miracle. They were crowding around Jesus, soaking up His presence. Perhaps they thought better of themselves because they were in the crowd with Him.
Sep 2, 2026, 2:00 PM
Passage Read: Luke 15-16
Meditation Verses: 15:28-32
Thought
The father pleaded with the "good" son, but there's no record of him pleading with the "bad" son before he left. That doesn't mean he didn't, but that there's no record. He may have had many talks with the younger son, but found that son unmovable. So the only thing he could do was grant his desire and let him go.
Sep 1, 2026, 11:09 AM
Passage Read: Luke 13-14
Meditation Verses: 13:23-27
Thought
It is not enough to like Jesus and to enjoy listening to His words, that will not save a man. Jesus warns that there are many who will come to Him and be refused entry into His kingdom, though they ate and drank in His presence and heard Him teach in their streets.
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.