Category Archives: Devotional

Paul in Acts: Grace

And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter … Continue reading

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Paul in Acts: Persecuting Jesus

And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Acts 9:4 At the beginning of Acts 9, things must be going well for Paul (Saul). He’s expanding his work, asking … Continue reading

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Paul in Acts: The Obedience of Faith

Before looking at the story of Paul’s conversion in Acts 9, I’m reminded of something he says in Romans: [Jesus is the one] through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the … Continue reading

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Paul in Acts: Even Scattered Seeds Grow

I’m reading the book of Acts right now with an eye toward studying Paul: his movements and his teachings according to Luke. I’ll carry this along for the first little bit here in 2025. For the purposes of clarity, I … Continue reading

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The Parable of the Ugly Christmas Ornament

In the Bybee family, we have a tradition of decorating for Christmas on the day after Thanksgiving. The boys and I get in the attic and bring down all of the Christmas boxes and while Sunny puts out all of … Continue reading

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True Faithfulness

One of the distinctive marks of the Kingdom of God is the way success is measured. This is one of the primary clashes between the Kingdom of God and the kingdoms of the world. In worldly kingdoms, success is about … Continue reading

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Not Knowing

I wrote this a few years ago about going and not knowing, which is the essence of faith.

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Essential

We’re days away from the most important election of our lives. At least that’s what we’re told. On Election Day, I’ll be 48 years old. By my count, this is about the 7th or 8th time in my adult life … Continue reading

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Humility as Seeing the True Self

I came across this yesterday in The Cloud of Unknowing, a 14th century spiritual classic. Humility is seeing yourself as you really are. Pride is a facet of the false self. It is to see yourself falsely. In our pride, … Continue reading

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A Violent Kingdom

Francois Fenelon was a French Catholic theologian and writer who lived in the late 1600s. He had quite a career, serving as a priest, a missionary, and as a tutor to the grandson of King Louis XIV. His spiritual writings … Continue reading

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