Kerusso Daily Devotional

In the Bible we read of family records that were the original genealogy sources. People knew where they came from, they knew their kin. The 12 tribes of Israel were first outlined in Genesis, and from these 12 came an entire nation.

Even Jesus came from somewhere!

One of the Bible’s patriarchs, Jacob, had a son named Judah. The father calls the son a lion’s cub, and blesses him. Judah is told he will have favor in his family.

1 Timothy 1:17 says, “All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen.”

It is from this family of Judah that Jesus would come. There is even an interesting prophecy about this in Genesis 49; you should read it sometime.

In fact, Jesus was born into the tribe of Judah, and so symbolically, He becomes the ‘Lion of the Tribe of Judah,’ and will return one day to Earth as a conquering King, the greatest one of all time.

The very name, the Lion of Judah, carries with it power and majesty. How thankful we are that it is Jesus’ name.

Let’s pray.

Lord, we love you for many reasons. We love you and we thank you that the things you tell us will happen do in fact take place. In Jesus’ name, amen.

When Isaiah the prophet wrote, the birth of Jesus was still almost 800 years away. Yet there is good reason to believe key parts of the book of Isaiah are pointing to the coming Savior.

Near the end of the book, we see this clearly.

Isaiah 60:1 says, “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.”

It’s reasonable to believe that this has dual meanings. One, the prophecy speaks of the wise men from the East seeing the star in the sky. And then, traveled to see the baby Jesus in Bethlehem.

A second, longer view looks ahead far into the future, when Jesus will return to Earth and set up His Kingdom of righteousness.

As believers, we know what it feels like when the spirit of God dwells in us. It’s that glow God intends for us to share with others.

Jesus has come! Your challenge is to share that Good News with all those you meet.

Let’s pray. 

Lord, your Gospel is our mission. God, give us endurance for our race! In Jesus’ name, amen.

Diamonds.

The very word calls to mind something so beautiful and rare, people everywhere immediately form a sharp mental image. Many people dream of handfuls of these sparkling, valuable gemstones running through their hands.

Nothing speaks of high value more than a diamond solitaire. Such a piece of jewelry signals to the world that a couple considers their relationship to be both priceless and eternal.

Proverbs 31:10 says, “She is far more precious than jewels.”

This is it. A Proverbs 31 woman has literally been made by the Lord to be a clear and radiant light so that people can see Christ living in her. Honestly? What humans label as beauty often misses the mark. 

Light comes from within, not from the surface.

A woman who knows her worth is in Christ Jesus, is that stunning girl turning heads, and engaging and inspiring hearts.

Not only is a woman who is an ambassador for Christ lovely, she is also durable. She is not smashed by the cares of life. When life presses in on her, she turns to her Lord and emerges as a thing that cuts the enemy to pieces.

She shines.

Let’s pray.

Lord, the beauty you create is not matched by human creativity. Thank you for the sparkling ‘diamonds’ that come into and enrich our lives. In Jesus’ name, amen.

As followers of Jesus, we are meant to be witnesses. And Christ’s majesty and power are meant to blanket our world. He is intimately aware of you and where you are in life.

Isaiah 60:1 says, “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.”

When we trust Christ—when we believe the Gospel—we’re called to get in the game. If you’ve been changed, and if you believe that, sitting on such Good News doesn’t make much sense, does it? 

Are you guilty of failing to shine a light in a dark world? If you’re a friend of God, just as the Bible says Abraham was long ago, you are to invite others to live in his healing light.

The glory of the Lord rises on you each morning. Put your feet on the floor and share His glory with the people that you encounter.

God is so good! Walk in His light and see what He’ll do in countless lives!

Let’s pray. 

Lord God, there are so many opportunities to share your love and your light with the world. Give us opportunities to do that, and give us the energy to seize them. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Don’t you love the nuances and uniqueness God put into the world? He created harmony and balance everywhere, including our individual best time of the day to be creative and productive.

Some of us are ‘up with the chickens,’ as they used to say. Others burn a candle late into the night. Whatever time is your time to connect in positive ways, God made you to shine for His purposes.

Isaiah 60:1 says, “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.”

Embrace your uniqueness! Just because your eyes don’t focus until later in the morning—after cups, plural, of coffee—doesn’t mean you won’t hit the mark today.

You were built for this, to be a light to others and to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. So, rise up, whenever that is for you, and make a promise to God that you will get everything out of today that you’re supposed to. 

Let’s pray.

Lord, you made us to be a light in a world that is all too often dark. Thank you for the opportunities to make a difference for you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

One of the best benefits about flying at night is to look out the window and see all those lights against the black backdrop. The lights signal that a city or town is down there—a place where families live.   

Our spiritual lives are the same way. This world has its share of darkness, but God looks down and sees His lights. He sees the good that says, “Love lives here.”   

Matthew 5:14 says, “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.” 

We are told in Scripture that as believers, we have indescribable joy. Jesus Christ lives within us, lighting us from the inside out. 

With that gift comes responsibility: We don’t have the option of staying hidden. When Jesus told His followers they were “the light of the world,” they understood what He meant, sitting there on the mountainside above the Sea of Galilee.   

Many of them took this to heart, shining a light in the spiritual darkness and sharing the Good News every chance they got. 

Let’s pray. 

Lord, help us to continually shine the light of your love and your Gospel in this world. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

It’s been said that grace is simply favor from God, and we didn’t do anything to earn it. Often, grace comes when we need it the most. 

The word grace is used about 170 times in the Bible. Most of those occur in the New Testament as the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ unfolds. His sacrifice for all of us, dying on the cross for our sins, was the backdrop for a lot of other moments in grace He gave to those He came in contact with.

Jesus perfectly understood that there’s a lot of suffering in the world. Those poignant moments when He stooped to heal a person in distress, or when He unlocked the emotional chains of people like Zacchaeus and Mary Magdalene—that is supernatural grace. 

Grace is a moment in time when the living God intervenes in someone’s life. We often hear stories of people being surprised by grace. It arrives when they least expect it, but is really needed. James 4:6 says, “But he gives us more grace.” That is why scripture says, “God opposes the proud, but shows favor to the humble.”

What we learn about grace from the Bible is that although God is the originator, we are also capable of giving grace. 

Is there someone in your life that you need to forgive? Maybe that person is badly in need of that forgiveness. Swallow your pride and give that grace. There are many more ways to give grace. That family in your church that is struggling financially. Can you find a way to discreetly help them out? That kind of grace can be just the boost people need to rise above their circumstances. 

Some people are prideful, but the truth is all of us need God’s grace. We need it for the duration. So think about that the next time a grudge or stubborn pride is blocking you from being a blessing to others. One day you might just find yourself on the other end of that situation. 

Let’s pray. 

Father God, you are so good to us, all the time. If we stop and think about the unmerited favor you give us each day, amazing. Help us to keep this in mind as we find ways to pay it forward in our daily walk. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Jane was the last child to receive a handmade blanket from her great grandmother. Pink and blue, festooned with angels and sprinkled with stars that sparkled in the light, the much-loved blanket was the little girl’s constant companion.

This childhood treasure became even more important when Gramma Ann passed away — a reminder of her love for her family, and her faith in God.

Jane’s blanket kept her warm in sickness and in health, but the washing machine proved its eventual undoing. One day, the last remaining fragment of Gramma Ann’s very last blanket was lost.

Ephesians 2:8–9 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”

A few years after the remaining bit of Jane’s ‘Gramma Ann Blankie’ was lost to time (but not to memory), her mom stumbled across the best yard sale find of all time: the very same blanket, likely created from a quilting kit, in brand new condition. Jane and her mother cried together right there in a stranger’s driveway, certain that Gramma was smiling down on them from Heaven in that moment of discovery. It was the best two dollars the pair ever spent.

Grace can show up when we least expect it—even in the form of a long-lost family heirloom returned to us in the unlikeliest of ways.

Let’s pray.

Lord, your grace is a constant delight. You are faithful to us when we seek Your face, and Your gift of grace shows up in incredible ways. Thank you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Theresa Rosenthal had a rough start in life. She watched her father abuse her mother, and then when she was six, a family friend sexually abused her. Like so many that suffered at the hands of a predator, Theresa pushed the pain down into a secret place, and for decades, she battled with depression and substance abuse. Finally, one day she was sitting in front of her house and just blurted out to God, “What am I supposed to do?”

Within 24 hours, she had a Bible from a new friend who reached out to her, and even though some of Theresa’s bad choices would land her in jail, her friend and that Bible, were constant sources of healing. Today, she’s a member of a loving church, and she tells anyone who will listen about God's grace in her life. 

Daniel 4:2 says, “I thought it good to declare the signs and wonders that the most high God has done for me.” 

Too often we are too tribal. We think God only works in our circles, but the fact is, God has always been the definition of inclusive. The Bible makes it very clear that God’s grace is available to anyone in all times and places. 

Matthew 5:45 is a very interesting verse that illustrates this. It says, “He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” 

That’s fascinating. What might seem unusual or even unjust to us is routine for God. Because God takes the long view. He knows that our lives on Earth are brief. So if he gives grace to a bad person, he’s thinking of that person’s eternal place. And let’s face it, there are plenty of times in our lives that we didn’t deserve grace. But he gave it anyway. 

In God’s economy, a Babylonian brickmaker from 3,000 years ago is as valuable as you are. Theresa Rosenthal was warmed by that grace at a time when she was doing drugs and spiraling into depression, and she had no ability to improve her life. And that's the point of grace. God gives it to a variety of people and circumstances. And life would be unbearable without it. 

Let’s pray. 

Father God, your grace sustains us, in bad times and in good times, and we might take our focus off you. Sometimes that grace is almost unseen. We might not be aware of it until years later when looking back gives us insight. Thank you for giving us what we don’t deserve. In Jesus’ name, amen.

“Mom—I broke something! I’m so sorry!”

Benjamin had slipped on the wet bathroom floor and managed to take down the shower curtain and curtain rod in one fell swoop.

His mom’s concern wasn’t the state of the shower curtain, but whether the broken something was an arm or leg. Thankfully, her son wasn’t hurt, and fixing the curtain was a lot easier than mending a broken bone. A reassuring hug from Mom was all the boy needed to mend his hurt pride.

None of us are perfect, whether we’re 8 years old or 80. Slips and trips happen in life, and beyond accidental mishaps, we also slip up and sin, making choices that disappoint the Lord and send us on a detour from the path He has planned for us. 

1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

God loves us dearly, and while our sin makes Him sad, He is ready and willing to forgive us; we only need to ask Him to. God’s love for us is so deep He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins because He knew we’d need forgiveness. That’s amazing grace!

Let’s pray.

Lord, you love us even through our imperfections. God thank you for the incredible gift of your forgiveness. In Jesus’ name, amen.