Daily Devo

Listen to today’s devo!

Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron. (Num. 20:2)

Expanded Passage: Numbers 20:1-2

Hunger and thirst produce not only physical desperation but also emotional—and even spiritual—despair. Millennials have a catchy term for this kind of reaction: hangry. This term lightheartedly describes the American misunderstanding of genuine need. To be hangry is to lose one’s emotional self-control in the wake of a delayed meal. We want what we want, and we want it now. Hangry is the panicked cry of a toddler, impatient and concerned for the next meal, even though food has been served like clockwork for their entire life. The problem is a complete lack of trust.

Similarly, the Israelites’ next meal was guaranteed. By this time, the Israelites had been wandering for nearly thirty-nine years, and God had provided food the entire time. However, instead of trusting in God’s faithfulness, they lashed out at their leaders. Their problem was physical, to be sure. But the greater problem was spiritual. Though they had been led faithfully, they did not believe their thirst would be quenched. In anger, they accosted Moses and Aaron.

This is commonplace. Leaders are lauded and revered when things go exactly right, and exactly on time. But life rarely works that way. While our leaders should be held accountable, we should not become “hangry” about our own spiritual need. Our dependence should be upon a faithful God.

Trust God to meet your needs today.

Dalene Fisher is a full-time wife, mother, and grandma. She is a former associate professor of English, dean, and assistant provost at Oklahoma Wesleyan University (OK).

© 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 will make your faithfulness known through all generations. (Ps. 89:1–2)

Expanded Passage: Psalm 89:1-4

My mother was known for her prayers and for God’s answers to her prayers. One day my parents’ car wouldn’t start. My dad told Mom he would go find some help. In her sweet voice she stopped him from getting out of the car by asking, “Have you prayed about it?” Together they bowed their heads and asked God for his help. Dad turned the key, and the car came to life. As a child I loved hearing these stories of God’s faithfulness to my mother’s prayers. Knowing that Mom believed God cared about the large and small things in life, and was big enough to answer any prayer she prayed, was foundational in my understanding of who God is and increased my ability to trust him.

While God is not a genie in a bottle and our prayers are not always answered in the way we wish or on our timetable, we can trust that God is faithful to hear when we pray and will provide strength during hardship, peace in turmoil, and perseverance to follow his will. And a by-product of modeling a life of prayer and faith in God is that future generations will notice and be strengthened in their relationship with the Lord. Then in turn they will share the stories of the saints who lived before them. We can be those saints to the next generation.

Remember that others watch you to see what you believe.

Beth Gormong is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University (IN) and serves at Wesleyan Publishing House. She spends her free time at the library reading and writing.

© 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!

Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods. (Deut. 28:14)

Expanded Passage: Numbers 6:22-27, Deuteronomy 28:1-14

One of the best pieces of advice my driving instructor gave me was to look at the road out ahead of me instead of concentrating on what was right in front of the car, or worse yet, at the lines on the road beside me. He explained that to drive smoothly I needed to focus farther ahead and then my hands on the steering wheel would follow. If I look directly in front of me, I’m always reacting too late to the curves, signs, and speed or breaking pattern of the cars in front of me.

Following God’s lead requires the same focus. He tells us that we are to live lives in alignment with the commands in the Bible. We must not look to the right or the left or we will find ourselves following other gods. How easy it is to use money as a means of security, physical food to stave off spiritual hunger, unhealthy relationships in place of time with God, when we allow the world to be our guide. We must keep our eyes on our Lord, if we want to be in line with his will. This involves reading his word until we know his commands in our hearts, and learning to hear his voice gently calling us when we begin to veer off course.

Keep your focus on God, not on the world around you.

Beth Gormong is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University (IN) and serves at Wesleyan Publishing House. She spends her free time at the library reading and writing.

© 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!

The Lord will establish you as his holy people . . . if you keep the commands of the Lord your God and walk in obedience. (Deut. 28:9)

Expanded Passage: Deuteronomy 28:9-14

Our new home not only met our predetermined needs, but included many items from our wish list too. It was all we hoped for and more, yet somehow the house didn’t quite feel like home. Everything was different from our last house. The heater made a strange noise when kicking on. The pantry area was disorganized. The artwork didn’t seem to fit with the high living room walls. There were new neighbors’ names to learn.

I struggled for weeks with this strange, unsettled feeling until after weeks of living there I finally got used to the noises, found spots for our furniture and art, and organized the closets, I even walked the perimeter checking out all the flowerbeds. Getting to know the house from all sides, inside and out, turned my house into a home.

I think of the old concept of our hearts having many rooms. God asks us to open wide our hearts allowing him to take complete ownership of every space, inside and out. He wants us to walk in obedience to his commands in our hearts, minds, relationships, and jobs. When we give God every part of our lives through confession, repentance, and obedience, we allow him to establish us as his holy people. We become sacred, set apart, and dedicated to God. And the world sees the difference.

Ask God to reveal rooms in you where he doesn’t have possession.

Beth Gormong is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University (IN) and serves at Wesleyan Publishing House. She spends her free time at the library reading and writing.

© 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!

If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today . . . all these blessings will come on you. (Deut. 28:1–2)

Expanded Passage: Deuteronomy 28:1-8

When I was first married I didn’t have much experience cooking from scratch, but decided to surprise my husband and try a recipe for spaghetti sauce. I got out my cookbook and began to follow the directions. Soon the sauce was simmering away on the stove. The aroma wafting from the kitchen was encouraging and my mouth began to water as suppertime approached. I served up two heaping plates, one for me and one for my husband, but one bite in and I knew something had gone terribly wrong. After spitting out the spicy bites and rinsing our mouths out with cold water, I dumped our dishes in the dog’s food bowl. He sniffed and walked away, wiser than we were. While I had used a recipe, I hadn’t followed it carefully. I mistakenly substituted the black pepper with white pepper and set our tongues on fire.

I learned an important lesson that day: follow the directions carefully. The same goes with our spiritual life. To receive God’s blessing, we must fully obey all his commands. We can’t choose to substitute selfishness for generosity, indifference for kindness, or unforgiveness for mercy and expect God to bless us. He knows our hearts and sees our actions. We can’t expect to be God’s witness and feel God’s pleasure when we allow ungodly “ingredients” to marinate in our souls.

Search your actions for ungodly ingredients.

Beth Gormong is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University (IN) and serves at Wesleyan Publishing House. She spends her free time at the library reading and writing.

© 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 they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.” (Num. 6:27)

Expanded Passage: Numbers 6:27

I received a card from a faraway friend recently with the salutation, Most Dear Friend. That card was just the encouragement I needed. I’d recently moved away and missed her hugs and the prayer times we’d shared together. I felt alone in my new town and wondered if my friend missed me as much as I missed her. That card was the reminder I needed, letting me know she still cares about me and our friendship. She named me a most dear friend.

The Israelites were given the name of God’s chosen people, and with that title came the blessing of being God’s beloved. Deuteronomy 7:6 says this about the Israelites, “you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.” Moses taught Aaron and the Levitical priests a prayer of blessing as a reminder to be spoken over the Israelites lest they forget whose they were.

Through the death and resurrection of Jesus’ we too are called a “chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession.” (1 Peter 2:9) Often the cruel names the world gives us drown out our true name, our true identity as children of God. Let’s live the name, God’s children, and remind those around us of their identity too.

Remind those who have forgotten their value to God.

Beth Gormong is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University (IN) and serves at Wesleyan Publishing House. She spends her free time at the library reading and writing.

© 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!

“The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” (Num. 6:25–26)

Expanded Passage: Numbers 6:24-26

I begin each morning by walking the dog around our neighborhood. In the winter when the sun doesn’t rise until later, we walk in the cold and dark, rushing to get back to the warmth of a heated home. But in the summer, when the sun rises as we walk, there’s no rushing. I turn my face up toward the sky, breathe in the crisp morning air, and let the sun shine down on my face. The sunshine feels like a kiss from God, and the walks turn easily into times of prayer.

Do you wonder if Moses knew from experience that when the Lord turned his face toward him, he could expect peace? In Exodus 33:11 we are told that Moses spoke with God “face to face, as one speaks to a friend.” When he came back from being with God, Moses’ face shone. Did God encourage Moses during those talks? Did they discuss the hardship of leading God’s people? Did God fill Moses with peace to continue doing the job required? I believe God did and that Moses wanted God’s presence and peace for the Israelites.

God will do that for us too. He will shine his face on us and give us peace. How encouraging to know that he is always with us, waiting for us to acknowledge his presence. What a good, good God!

Spend time with God today so that others will see his radiance.

Beth Gormong is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University (IN) and serves at Wesleyan Publishing House. She spends her free time at the library reading and writing.

© 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!

“The Lord bless you and keep you.” (Num. 6:22)

Expanded Passage: Numbers 6:22-23

St. Patrick’s Day is a celebration of the patron saint of Ireland. Yet St. Patrick wasn’t even Irish. He was a sixteen-year-old boy from Roman Britain who was kidnapped and taken to Ireland to be a slave. He managed to escape and make his way home. Later he willingly returned to Ireland to share the good news of Christianity with the countrymen who had previously enslaved him. St. Patrick blessed his former persecutors by establishing schools, churches, and monasteries around the country.

The Israelites, on the other hand, had escaped Egyptian slavery only to wander around the desert for forty years because of their disobedience. In Moses’ last days, he taught the priests a prayer of blessing beginning with the words, “The Lord bless you and keep you.” Despite leading a difficult group of people, Moses’ last words before his death were words of blessing. He asked God to bless, keep, be gracious, and give them peace as they began a new journey into the Promised Land without him at their helm.

We may never be sent to bless our persecutors or lead a rebellious people for forty long years, but like St. Patrick and Moses, it is our duty as Christians to bless those around us—those who lead us whether kind or harsh, those we lead whether deserving or not, and all who need to hear the good news.

Pray a blessing over someone today.

Beth Gormong is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University (IN) and serves at Wesleyan Publishing House. She spends her free time at the library reading and writing.

© 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!

But I cry to you for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer comes before you. (Ps. 88:13)

Expanded Passage: Psalm 88

What do you do when you are upset? Perhaps you are part of the nearly 50 percent of people who use music to face deep distress. Fortunately, scientists have discovered that this is one of the most effective ways to face and move through difficult emotions. In fact, research concludes that listening to the particularly angsty music of one’s younger years soothes sadness, grief, and anger. Because the memory of this music is stored in a deeper, lower part of the brain compared to contemporary musical preferences, music from our teens and early adulthood reminds us of past pain, allows us to feel present pain, and then moves us through difficult feelings into places of release and trust.

In light of current psychological research, it is no surprise that about half of the ancient psalms are songs of lament. In God’s infinite wisdom, these songs of sorrow, complaint, anger, and doubt are consecrated as not only good but essential prayers for God’s people. Likewise, Psalm 88 is a prayer from the shadows. Fear, overwhelm, and distress infuse every stanza. And yet this psalm was an anthem for God’s people over thousands of years. It was the song stored deep in the communal mind: that we have suffered, we are suffering, and God will redeem us again. May songs of lament also give us hope.

Write your song of lament.

Michaela Moore enjoys country road runs, coffee with friends, beautiful books, and long, laugh-filled walks with her husband and co-pastor, Jackson. She has an MA in ministry and spiritual formation from Wesley Seminary (IN).

© 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 will look on you with favor and make you fruitful.” (Lev. 26:9)

Expanded Passage: Leviticus 26:3-20

We are surrounded by countless images of what makes a happy, fulfilled life. Commercials depict smiling families in minivans with a leather interior and bonus seat. On social media, friends post pictures of exotic vacations with food akin to fine art. Billboards around town proclaim that it is time for that next degree or house project or body-sculpting procedure. Then you will be at peace, at rest. Then you will have “the good life.”

Experiences in our world are certainly a gift, but Leviticus 26 offers us a very different picture of what ultimately makes a “good life.” In contrast to our modern messages of looking outward to find fulfillment, the scriptures describe God looking at us! True contentment begins by looking at God looking at us. Under his watchful eye we see ourselves as he sees us: beloved, called, precious, seen, and known. And as we receive these blessings from our watchful God we can stop striving for the promises surrounding us and rest contentedly in sight of the Eternal God.

We have all we need. His ways and words are indeed good and true. God himself is the abundant life! And God has come near us, calling us his own. As we gaze upon our God who gazes upon us, there is incredible freedom for joyful obedience.

Look at yourself through God’s gaze.

Michaela Moore enjoys country road runs, coffee with friends, beautiful books, and long, laugh-filled walks with her husband and co-pastor, Jackson. She has an MA in ministry and spiritual formation from Wesley Seminary (IN).

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