Description

Bring some Spirit-filled peace into your hectic schedule every weekday morning with this new Daily Devotional.
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  • February 17th - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

    February 17th - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
    Feb 17 2026
    2 Corinthians 12:9-10 [The Lord] said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. The apostle Paul revealed that he had suffered a thorn in the flesh. He didn’t give any hint of what kind of thorn this was, so there have been endless suggestions over the centuries. It may well have been a physical difficulty, and it has often been suggested that he had a speech impediment. This would account for him being described as a poor preacher. It might well have been a mental or spiritual difficulty instead. We just don’t know, and it really doesn’t matter. What matters is the spiritual lesson that it taught him, namely that God finds it easiest to work in us through our weakness rather than our strength. A strong person is tempted to think that they can do everything by themselves – that they have no need for God. The person who is weak, on the other hand, knows their limitations. They are eager to find support from others and gladly welcome God’s strength. Paul was fiercely criticised for the weakness of his public ministry. As a minister, I wince at the sharpness of their criticisms, and it is clear that they wounded Paul deeply. He had established the church in Corinth, so it was incredibly precious to him, and the barrage of criticisms must have been especially hard to bear. His answer to his critics, however, was that all the problems that he had faced had actually been a blessing because they had taught him to rely completely on God. All of us will face challenging times in the future, even if life is easy and straightforward at the moment. Praise God that in those days of greatest weakness we will discover more and more of his strength. Question When have you experienced God’s strength in times of weakness? Prayer Lord God, I thank you that I can look to the future with confidence because you will always fill me with the strength that I need to face any challenge. Amen
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    4 min
  • February 16th - 2 Corinthians 10:3-4

    February 16th - 2 Corinthians 10:3-4
    Feb 16 2026
    2 Corinthians 10:3-4 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. Paul was under attack from people within the church in Corinth. Some of them thought he was quite timid when he was with them in person but extremely bold in his letters while away from them. It’s never pleasant to be the target of criticism, and Paul responds by helping his critics understand that he wasn’t trying to impress them with powerful oratory and clever arguments. He was content to be thought of as a dull preacher because what mattered was not his clever performance but the declaration of the cross of Christ. That’s where true wisdom is found. When people challenge Christian teaching, it is absolutely right that we should give a thoughtful and sensitive response, but we should never imagine that people will be won over by the power of our clever reasoning. We need to rely upon the power of the Spirit and pray that he will break into their lives and convince them of their need for God. We must play our part, but without the intervention of God himself, nothing will change. The New Testament gives us much encouragement as we face the challenge of living for Christ in a fundamentally hostile society. Paul is clear that we are at war, but that shouldn’t scare us because God has perfectly equipped us to stand up to whatever the devil might throw at us. Ephesians chapter 6 provides a clear summary of the equipment that God has given to us. Paul’s concern was that he and his friends in Corinth should wear the full armour of God and not imagine that, with their clever reasoning and wonderful oratory, they could somehow manage by themselves. Question What are the mighty weapons that God has given to you today? Prayer Loving God, thank you for perfectly equipping me for all the challenges that I might have to face. Amen
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    3 min
  • February 15th - 2 Corinthians 9:10-11

    February 15th - 2 Corinthians 9:10-11
    Feb 15 2026
    2 Corinthians 9:10-11 For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you. Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. We can likely all think of occasions when we have been really generous and times when other people have been generous to us. They are precious moments, but that’s just it – they are moments, and they come and go. What the apostle Paul is talking about here is very different. He is talking about generosity as a way of life, not as an occasional and unusual outburst, and he says that God makes it possible for us to always be generous. Generosity has everything to do with our hearts and little to do with the quantity of what we give. The widow, who Jesus observed giving a tiny gift into the temple collection box, was supremely generous. Her two little copper coins were just a tiny fraction of what the rich people gave, but she was incredibly generous because she gave everything she had. The rich people, on the other hand, just gave to God part of their surplus. Paul’s point is clear: whether we have a lot of money or a little, we can always be generous – and God will always make it possible. Generosity extends well beyond our money. God looks to us to be generous with everything he has given us – our home, our car, our bicycle, our talents, our time, our love, our compassion – everything. He wants us to be ready to be generous continually, because that’s how we will reflect his unfailing generosity to us. Question In what ways can you be generous today? Prayer Lord God, I thank you for your amazing generosity to me throughout my life. Forgive me for those times when I have been stingy and unwilling to be generous to others. In the power of your Spirit, help me to live a life of generosity. Amen
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    3 min
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