Day 25: Jesus, The Light of the World

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to Isaiah 60, John 8:12-30, and 1 John 1 25 days ago we started with a reading from Genesis 1. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the …

Day 24: Joseph, the Carpenter

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to Isaiah 9:1-7 and Matthew 1, 13:53-57 Have you ever wondered why Jesus spoke in parables? Maybe like me, you’ve been told that parables are a type of illustration to help people understand a difficult concept by using examples from every day life. But Matthew 13:34,35 offers a …

Day 23: In Mary’s Heart

Print coloring page here. Read Isaiah 7:10-16 and Luke 1:26-38, 46-55, and 2:1-20 Well, we’ve finally made it out of the Old Testament and into the New :). Or so we think. Just as the Old Testament is written to point us to the Christ, Luke’s gospel announces the Christ by pointing us back to …

Day 22: Josiah Brings Out The Book

Print coloring page here. Read 2 Chronicles 34:1-21 and John 1:1-18 When young King Josiah opened The Book to be read in the hearing of all the people, he was in essence turning on the light. His heart had been softened to the Lord and he was willing that the darkness there be exposed to …

Day 21: Hezekiah’s Righteous Act

Print coloring page here. Read 2 Kings 18:1-12 and John 3:1-21 Numbers 21 describes how those stubborn Israelites, impatient in their desert wanderings, were complaining again. “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” So …

Day 20: Jehoshaphat’s Courage

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to 2 Chronicles 17 and Hebrews 11:32-12:29 There’s this one little verse in the account of Jehoshaphat that brings color to his whole history.  “His heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord.”  Under his reign, Judah became a strongly fortified land, so fortified that the surrounding …

Day 19: Asa’s Gifts

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to 1 Kings 15:9-24 and Matthew 2 It’s strange, isn’t it? How little we know about the wise men from the east who came to Jerusalem asking, “Where is he who is born the king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and we have …

Day 18: Rehoboam’s Yoke

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to 1 Kings 12:1-15 and Matthew 11:25-30 The wisdom of this world says look to youth rather than old age and that wielding power produces service, which is what King Rehaboam set out to prove. But the folly of Rehaboam not only proves wrong the wisdom of the …

Day 17: King Solomon’s Crown

Read 1 Kings 8:22-30 and Isaiah 6:1-7 The thrice holy King of Isaiah's vision, the high and lifted One, the One surrounded by the seraphim, the One whose voice shook the thresholds and filled the temple with smoke, the One whose glory filled the whole earth. This is the king whom the Israelites rejected. In …

Day 16: Nathan’s Fountain

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to 1 Chronicles 14:1-12, and Zechariah 12:10-13:1  In Matthew's genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Davidic line is traced through Solomon but in Luke's genealogy it is one of David's lesser known sons, Nathan, through which the line is traced. Historians argue that the two accounts are representative of both …

Day 15: David, the Shepherd-King

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to 1 Samuel 16:1-13 and Revelation 21:9-27 and 22. Our first introduction to David is in 1 Samuel 16 when the prophet has come to the house of Jesse to anoint a new king from among his sons. His first choice was the obvious one, Eliab the eldest. …

Day 14: Jesse’s Tree

Print coloring page here. Read Isaiah 11,12 and Romans 15:1-13. When Paul says, in Romans 15:4, "whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope," he had passages like Isaiah 11 in mind.  It is from that very chapter …

Day 13: Ruth’s Redeemer

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to Ruth 1-4 (or just read the summary below) and Micah 5:2-5 "There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. There were born to him seven sons and …

Day 12: Rahab’s Rescue

Print coloring page here. Read or listen to Joshua 2 and Hebrews 11:31 You have to wonder what Rahab’s family must have been thinking as they hunkered down in her apartment watching those mysterious Israelites circle around their city of Jericho. “Here they come again, Rahab. I don’t know what they’re doing but I’m getting …

Day 10: Jacob Have I Loved

Read  Genesis 28:10-22 and Hebrews 11:20,21 Print coloring page here. “Is God unjust?” asks the Apostle Paul in Roman 9:14. It was a rhetorical question to be sure, but when we read the story of Jacob, Paul understood the conclusion we might be tempted to draw. Jacob, the beloved. How could God say, “Jacob have …

Day 9 – Isaac Sees God Provide

Print coloring page here Read or listen to Genesis 22 and Hebrews 11:13-19. It's one of the most disturbing accounts in scripture. A man is told by God to take his only son and sacrifice him on an alter. And the man does it. Well almost.  Just as the knife is raised the man is stopped …

Day 8: The God of Abraham Praise

Print coloring page here Read or listen to Genesis 15:1-6 and Hebrews 11:8-12 Does anyone else find it remarkable that all Abraham does is believe and the Lord declares him righteous? God appears to this virtual pagan and basically says 3 things: “Fear not,” “I am your shield,” and “Your reward shall be great.” Abraham then …

Day 7: Shem Finds God Faithful

Print coloring page here Read or listen to Genesis 9:1-19 and Isaiah 54:9,10 “Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest, Sun, moon and stars in their courses above Join with all nature in manifold witness To thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.” After getting caught  in a lightening storm while backpacking in the High Sierra, my …

Day 6: Noah Trusted God

Print coloring page here Read or listen to Genesis 6:5-7:24 and Hebrews 11:7 Just as Methuselah proved the patience of God who waited over 1000 years before bringing much deserved judgement on the earth (1 Peter 3:20) Noah is proof of God's great mercy and trustworthiness. God used the flood not just to destroy the …

Day 4: Enoch Walked With God

Print coloring page here Read or listen to Genesis 5:12-24 and Hebrews 11:5,6 In the second to the last book of the Bible, we read this obscure quote by the ancient prophet, Enoch, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, to execute judgement on all and to convince all the ungodly of …

Day 3: The Calling Out of Seth’s Time

Print coloring page here Read or listen to Genesis 4:25-5:11 and Romans 10 By the time Adam and Eve’s son, Seth had his own son, people were quite aware of their perilous condition and thus began to call on the name of the Lord. All hail the power of that name! Acts 4:12 reminds us that …

Day 2: In Adam’s Fall, We Sinned All

Print out coloring page here.                                                                   Read or listen to Genesis 3 and Romans 5:12-21 The bad news is that the creatures God made …

Day 1: Of the Father’s Love Begotten

Print coloring page here Read or listen to Genesis 1 and Hebrews 1:1-12 There existed from eternity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, all distinct persons in one God. In order to put on full display His manifold wisdom to all rulers and authorities in the heavenly places the Father devised a plan for …

Advent How-To’s and Hot Tips

Thanksgiving is going to be over (Thanksgiving--the holiday, not thanksgiving--the act) in a blink and Advent will be in our sights. Here are some tips for making this a tradition that sticks. Zeroth tip. The most important tip that comes before all the others is to subscribe to this blog. That way the daily Advent …

You’re Invited!

Starting December 1 a new blog post is going to appear right here for 25 days straight. In it you will find an Advent devotional written with the whole family in mind. Each devotional will focus on one of the people we read about in Scripture whose family line leads to the God incarnate, Jesus …