Daily Devo

Listen to today’s devo!

“Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.” (John 9:36)

Expanded Passage: John 9:35-41

About twenty years ago, I had an accident that temporarily blinded me in my right eye. The impact of the injury meant that my eyeball was full of blood, and as the blood drained, either my sight would return, or it wouldn’t. There was nothing to do but wait. After a couple days, I began to discern light, then shapes; eventually, my sight was fully restored save for a lingering cataract. I was so thankful. While I would not have lost my sight completely, I would have had no depth perception and not much peripheral vision. But God healed me.

This man is similarly thankful. When he meets Jesus, Jesus asks him if he believes in the Son of Man. He doesn’t know who Jesus is talking about, so he simply says, “Whoever that is, I’ll believe in him. I’ll believe in anyone you tell me to—because I am so thankful that you healed me.”

What gifts are you thankful for? Sometimes we lose track of how we have been healed or saved. We forget how our lives hung in the balance until we were rescued. When we stay in touch with that feeling and with the gratitude that comes from knowing Jesus, then we are ready to follow wherever he leads, ready to worship him when he appears.

Practice gratitude for an important moment of healing and worship.

J. Michael Jordan is associate professor of theology at Houghton University, and the author of Worship in an Age of Anxiety (IVP, 2024).

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

To this they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out. (John 9:34)

Expanded Passage: John 9:28-34

When I walk through a city, it’s hard to know what to do when I meet a homeless person asking for money. It just seems so complicated: should I give money to someone who I know very likely will misuse it? Should that really matter, or should I give and just let God sort it out? It’s hard because it confronts me with something I’d rather not think about—the fact that I really am prosperous, and that God will hold me accountable for how I use my wealth. This homeless person, probably not a Christian, is challenging me with a theological dilemma. How do I follow Jesus with my money?

Sometimes I want to do what the Pharisees do here. They resent the way the man’s experience is exposing the weakness of their religious beliefs. They believe Jesus is sinful; and yet they also have to acknowledge that Jesus has done something miraculous. They are angry at the contradiction, and so they throw the man out so they don’t have to think about it anymore.

When we follow Jesus, we need to be willing to face the hard questions. Sometimes these come from people who aren’t Christians at all. But rather than throw them out or silence them, we need to listen, sit with our discomfort, and even grow because of the hard things they ask us.

Listen to the challenging questions posed by uncomfortable experiences.

J. Michael Jordan is associate professor of theology at Houghton University, and the author of Worship in an Age of Anxiety (IVP, 2024).

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

“So I went and washed, and then I could see.” (John 9:11)

Expanded Passage: John 9:8-12

As a boy, I was amazed by my pastors. They always seemed to have all the answers; they understood all the mysteries of God and the Word. I worried about my relationship with God, but they never seemed to. I supposed that the answers to those questions were in the books that lined the shelves in their studies. I longed to be the man with the answers instead of the boy with the questions.

As I grew, I read many of those books and more. I discovered that confidence comes not with having all the answers, but with an experience of Jesus’ healing. The crowd asks the man for a theological explanation: “How were your eyes opened?” He doesn’t know. All he can do is respond that the man called Jesus put mud on his eyes and told him to wash; he did so, and then he could see. He did not know how, but he knew who.

Today, we Christians can feel defensive about God. We want to have answers for our neighbors about what we believe and why we believe it. But the most important thing we can know is what Jesus did for us personally. We can share that with others freely, trusting that Jesus himself will fill in the rest of the story in his time.

Know—and share—your experience with Jesus’ healing.

J. Michael Jordan is associate professor of theology at Houghton University, and the author of Worship in an Age of Anxiety (IVP, 2024).

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

“Night is coming, when no one can work.” (John 9:4)

Expanded Passage: John 9:4-7

Four thousand years ago, one day’s wages would buy you enough oil to light one room in your house for ten minutes. Today, one day’s wages will buy you enough energy to light a room for 20,000 hours! In our world today, artificial light is cheap, so darkness is no barrier to being productive. But when Jesus said that no one can work after dark, he meant it—darkness brought the world to a standstill until the sun came back in the morning. Jesus knew the daylight was precious, and so one had to work hard when work could be done. For Jesus, this meant healing and teaching because this moment would not last forever.

In our modern world, it is easy to blur day and night. It creates an illusion that time will go on forever, that we will always have time to do what we need to do. But we are time-bound creatures—we get seventy, eighty, ninety years here, sometimes less, sometimes more. And this is our time to follow Jesus in our work, to do what we can to point people to Jesus, and to build communities where people can come to know him. There will come a time to rest, and the blessed Sabbaths of this life prefigure that great rest with Jesus. Until then, we put our hands to work.

Find one small way today to point someone to Jesus.

J. Michael Jordan is associate professor of theology at Houghton University, and the author of Worship in an Age of Anxiety (IVP, 2024).

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” (John 9:3)

Expanded Passage: John 9:1-3

I am extremely nearsighted without my contacts, far beyond the threshold for legal blindness. Whenever I read stories of blind people in the Bible, I realize that if I had been born there and then instead of here and now, this story could be about me. Instead of a professor, I would be fully dependent on other people. I may not have known the joy of being a husband and father. I would have had to beg.

There are also drawbacks to being born today. Someday there will be cures for diseases that are death sentences today. There are ways in which people in the past were able to see some things more clearly than we are today. Others from the future and the past would look at our modern life and see tragedies—and joys—that we can’t see.

Jesus teaches that our historical circumstances are not only limitations—they’re opportunities. Our weaknesses become opportunities for God to show his strength. Our strengths become opportunities for God to work through us for others. Two thousand years ago, I would be blind, and God could show his power through my weakness. But because I am living today, God’s power can be seen in my strength as I preach and lead—and even as I write this for you. Neither our strengths nor our weaknesses are beyond the reach of God.

Give your circumstances to Jesus, and he will use them.

J. Michael Jordan is associate professor of theology at Houghton University, and the author of Worship in an Age of Anxiety (IVP, 2024).

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.

Expanded Passage: (Ps. 107:19)

Psalm 107:17–22

Have you ever noticed how faithful, forgiving, and loving Jesus is? We, too, must keep being faithful, forgiving, and loving.

Luke 15:11–32 tells of a young man who thought he knew all about life. He wanted to get his inheritance early and live the way he wanted. His father granted his wish, and the young man left. When he had lost or spent all of his money, he took a dirty job of feeding pigs. Then he began to think about home. Eventually, realizing he was living lowlier than even his father’s hired servants, he gave up his pride and returned home. His father had been watching for him. When he saw his son, he forgave him and celebrated the son’s return home.

It seems many of us can be trapped like the people in Psalm 107. A problem arises. We try every way to solve it. If things don’t go right, we get upset at God and cry, “Why are you permitting this to happen to me?” When we finally reach the end of our resources, we turn to Jesus and ask for his help. What does Jesus do? He saves and heals us. He has been waiting for us to “come to our senses.” What a wonderful Savior!

Let’s remember that Jesus is always here to help us.

Start at the top; cry out to your Father first.

Jeannette Carroll is a retired Wesleyan pastor’s wife, a God-called teacher, writer, and musician. She resides in Florida.

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants and from Bethlehem?” (John 7:41–42)

Expanded Passage: John 7:41-44

Have you ever been deceived? The devil likes to confuse people just like he did Eve at the beginning of time. First, he questioned God’s authority. Then, he slipped in an untruth that seemed so real, it must be true. She fell for the deception, looked at the forbidden tree, desired the fruit, then took a bite. Next, she convinced Adam that he should take a bite. That deception changed the world forever. Did she fact-check what the devil was saying? No. She went with her feelings.

Do you believe all the news on the internet? Are you duped into purchasing something because it will make your life “like new”? People can take untruths or partial truths to heart and believe they are real. Some people in Jerusalem believed such an untruth. Because they thought Jesus was from Nazareth, they could not believe he was truly the Messiah. They did not stop to check that he was born in Bethlehem. Therefore, they did not believe he was their Savior.

Centuries prior to Jesus, Isaiah was so perceptive in his writings. In chapter 44:18–19, he concluded: “They know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds closed so they cannot understand. No one stops to think.”

Let’s read and listen to God’s Word. Then we will know the truth.

Fact-check what you hear against God’s truth.

Jeannette Carroll is a retired Wesleyan pastor’s wife, a God-called teacher, writer, and musician. She resides in Florida.

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.” Others said, “He is the Messiah.” (John 7:40–41)

Expanded Passage: John 7:40-41

Isn’t it wonderful to find a lost item? Recently, my husband could not find a bottle of medicine he needed to take each night. He said, “I always keep it in my cabinet.” He searched to no avail. We went to bed that night without the medicine. The next day, he was walking through the kitchen, and there it was! The medicine bottle was sitting on the counter. We had looked everywhere, or so we thought. I even prayed that we would find it. Suddenly, our lost item showed up in such an obvious place. We were so relieved!

It seemed that the light bulb turned on in the heads and hearts of some of the people at the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem. Suddenly, they recognized that Jesus must be a prophet. They were finally able to truly hear his words. Their eyes were opened, and they could see he was truly the Messiah for whom they had been waiting.

This is true today. We must truly hear and listen to Jesus, read his Word, talk with him, and obey him. Jesus has so much to tell us. We can live the abundant life he wants for us if we will do this. He did not say we would have trouble-free lives, but he will help us each day.

Encounter Jesus with eyes ready to see and ears ready to hear.

Jeannette Carroll is a retired Wesleyan pastor’s wife, a God-called teacher, writer, and musician. She resides in Florida.

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.” (John 7:37)

Expanded Passage: John 7:37-39

Our drive through Death Valley was treacherous. It was so hot! When we stopped to make lunchmeat sandwiches, I wondered if the meat in the sandwiches would spoil before we ate them. At a gas station, my husband wanted a drink of water. He went to the fountain, but even the water in the fountain was hot! There were gallon bottles of water set alongside the highway to be used in cars if they overheated. It was scary!

Years ago, we lived by a beautiful waterfall. It was so fresh with the mist spewing over us. How refreshing! In another home, we drilled into an artesian spring. Every time we took a drink of that water, it was like the most thirst-quenching, satisfying water we had ever drunk.

Do we need water? Yes! But Jesus is offering a drink that is even better than our artesian spring water. He is inviting us to partake in “living water,” the Holy Spirit. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be our guide, our comforter, and our insight into the things of God. Then we are able to be stronger, more courageous, have more confidence, and be the vessel through which he can work. We can then truly fulfill God’s plan for our lives. Let’s pray that God’s Holy Spirit will fill us to overflowing so that we can live the lives he has intended for us.

Drink deep of the “living water.”

Jeannette Carroll is a retired Wesleyan pastor’s wife, a God-called teacher, writer, and musician. She resides in Florida.

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Listen to today’s devo!

“I am going to the one who sent me. You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” (John 7:33)

Expanded Passage: John 7:33-36

One day we went to the zoo with our son’s family. We stopped to look at some animals. Suddenly, our little grandson was gone! We scrambled and raced throughout the zoo to find our precious little one. Panic was setting in. At last, we went to the zoo office. Our grandson was with a kind man who had brought him there to wait for us. We were so grateful that an honest person found him!

It is interesting that the people were concerned that Jesus said he was going to go away, and they would not be able to come find him. Perhaps, like my son’s family and I, they were afraid that they would lose Jesus forever. If we knew that our grandson would be missing for only a few minutes, would panic have set in? If the people of Jerusalem knew that Jesus would return, how differently would they have reacted?

Jeremiah 29:13 tells us: “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” We must totally surrender, talk to Jesus, get to know him personally; in this way, we can be with him, even though he has gone to a place we cannot yet go. Let’s follow this example, seeking Jesus with our whole hearts to spend time with him, and take comfort that our separation is temporary.

Seek Jesus in your heart, knowing he draws near.

Jeannette Carroll is a retired Wesleyan pastor’s wife, a God-called teacher, writer, and musician. She resides in Florida.

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.