"During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered” – Hebrews 5:7-8

Adam S. McHugh wrote the following: “It would seem that hearing is but a narrow channel pouring into the deep sea of doing. Yet the etymological dictionary taught me that the sharp distinction between hearing and doing is the result of human beings tearing asunder what belongs together.

For this is its lesson: the words listen and obey have the same root. In Latin, the word “obey” would not exist without the word “listen.” The word we translate into English as “obedience” literally means a “listening from below.” Obedience is a deep listening, a listening of the whole person, a hearing with your ears and with your heart and with your arms and legs.”

Even when we are afraid, we need to be obedient to the Lord. Today in prayer, confess any sin of disobedience and seek to follow Christ in all that you do.

“Our gratitude to God can be expressed only in loving, humble obedience to his will.” – Batsell Barrett Baxter

God’s Word: “And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!” – Philippians 2:8

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS †

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin.” – Hebrews 4:15

In her book, “Invitation to Retreat”, Ruth Haley Barton writes: “While I am not one to see a demon behind every bush or spiritual warfare in every difficulty, the fact is that we are regularly engaged in the struggle against good and evil—whether we know it or not. 

And as we mature in our faith, the battles become more subtle and hard to detect: the good is often the enemy of the best and it is hard to know the difference. Of necessity, the weapons of our warfare must become more precise as well. 

A point may come on the spiritual journey when persons who deeply love God must be aware of, understand, and reject certain attractions to good and holy things that, if undertaken, would distract them from the different good and holy things to which God is genuinely calling them. . . . 

They will need to discern between spiritual consolation that is authentically of the good spirit and deceptive spiritual consolation that is not of the good spirit, and that will lead, if followed, to spiritual harm.”

In Christ we can have victory over every temptation. Today in prayer, praise the Lord that in this life, we can always face temptation with Jesus and in His power we can overcome it.

“Temptation is not meant to make us fail; it is meant to confront us with a situation out of which we emerge stronger than we are.” – William Barclay

God’s Word: “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” – 1 Corinthians 10:13

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS  †

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” – Hebrews 4:12

In “The Hopeful Neighborhood”, Don Everts writes: “In 2017 Rebekah Morris was teaching English and journalism at Cross Keys High School, a public high school in Atlanta. Noticing that her students had really important, insightful things to say about their community, Rebekah created a group assignment for her ninth-grade students to research and write about how to pursue the common good in their community. Even though most of these students had only fifth- and sixth-grade reading levels, they wound up compiling a list of powerful insights, knowledge, and observations. They were, it turned out, experts on their own neighborhood.

Because their neighborhood is mostly composed of a series of apartments along Buford Highway on the north side of Atlanta, many of their insights centered on how to promote the well-being of those living in the apartments. The final class assignment was to present their ideas to the city council, mayor, community members, and stakeholders. And they did just that, presenting practical, wise ideas for improving affordable housing, pedestrian walkways, and more.

Their ideas were so spot-on that their presentation drew the attention of the local press: these ninth graders made people rethink what gifts were already planted all along Buford Highway. Rebekah and the students were so encouraged and empowered that they formed a club to keep the project going even after the class ended. Soon they were holding dinners in apartments to tap into the gifts and insights of those living in the various apartment complexes.

Neighbors shared their wisdom, leadership gifts began to blossom, residents got more connected to local agencies and government offices. As tangible improvements to the neighborhood mounted, an association, Los Vecinos (The Neighbors), was born and is now active in more than twenty apartment complexes. Rebekah and her students (and now hundreds of people living in their community) were simply doing what Genesis and Peter tell us we’re created and called to do: use every gift that God has given us and our neighbors. By tapping into the gifts God had already placed in the neighborhood the common good along Buford Highway has improved.”

The words of the Bible can change our lives. Today in prayer, thank the Lord for His Word and pray that His Word will change you to be more like Him.

“Nobody ever outgrows Scripture; the book widens and deepens through the years.” – Charles H. Spurgeon

God’s Word: “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” – 1 Peter 1:23

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS  †

“But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.” – Hebrews 3:13

In their book “Encouragement”, authors Larry Crabb & Dan Allender write: “Young men in his church were expected to pray aloud in Communion Services. So the young Larry Crabb felt pressured to pray, even though he had a problem with stuttering. He remembers offering a terribly confused prayer in which he thanked the Father for hanging on the cross and praised Christ for triumphantly bringing the Spirit from the grave. When he was finished, he vowed he would never again pray out loud in front of a group.

At the end of the Service, Crabb made for the door. Before he could get out, an older man caught him. “Larry, there’s one thing I want you to know,” the man said. “Whatever you do for the Lord, I’m behind you 1,000 percent.”

“Even as I write these words, my eyes fill with tears,” says Crabb, who has since become a bestselling book author, psychologist, and speaker. “Those words were life words. They had power. They reached deep into my being.””

As Christians, we need to always encourage others to grow in the love of Jesus Christ. Today in prayer, thank the Lord for the encouragement you have received in your life and seek to be an encouragement to others.

“Encouragement is food for the heart, and every heart is a hungry heart.” – Pat Morley

God’s Word: “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:11

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS †

“Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess.” – Hebrews 3:1

Galileo Galilei was a man who dared to look beyond what others believed. In his late teens, he observed a swinging lamp in the Cathedral of Pisa and noticed something remarkable: though the swings became smaller, each one took the same amount of time. That simple observation helped lead to the invention of the pendulum clock.

Galileo’s curiosity didn’t stop there. He built a telescope stronger than any before, and through it, he saw wonders: stars never seen by human eyes, craters on the moon, and moons orbiting Jupiter. These discoveries convinced him that the Earth was not the center of the universe—an idea that clashed with the popular beliefs of his day.

But truth is not always welcome. Church leaders and scholars opposed him. Eventually, he was forced to publicly deny what he knew to be true, just to save his life. He spent his last years under house arrest, going blind, unable to see the heavens he had once explored so deeply.

Galileo reminds us: just because truth is resisted doesn’t make it any less true. And sometimes, seeing clearly requires more than just eyes—it takes courage, conviction, and a willingness to stand for what God reveals, even when others refuse to see.

As Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:18, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

In this life we need to constantly fix our eyes upon Jesus to show us His way. Today in prayer, fix your thoughts upon Jesus and seek to follow Him every step of your life.

“God’s purpose for my life is to increasingly grow in my personal knowledge of God as I follow Him in a life of faith. And then to make Him known to others.” – Anne Graham Lotz

God’s Word: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” – 2 Corinthians 4:18

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS  †

“For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” – Hebrews 2:17-18

Max Lucado writes: “The story of young Matthew Huffman came across my desk the week I was writing this chapter. He was the six-year-old son of missionaries in Salvador, Brazil. One morning he began to complain of fever. As his temperature went up, he began losing his eyesight. His mother and father put him in the car and raced him to the hospital.

As they were driving and he was lying on his mother’s lap, he did something his parents will never forget. He extended his hand in the air. His mother took it, and he pulled it away. He extended it again. She again took it, and he, again, pulled it back and reached into the air. Confused, the mother asked her son, “What are you reaching for, Matthew?”

"I'm reaching for Jesus' hand," he answered. And with those words he closed his eyes and slid into a coma from which he never would awaken. He died two days later, a victim of bacterial meningitis. 

Of all the things he didn’t learn in his short life, he’d learned the most important: who to reach for in the hour of death.”

Before His birth, the Lord had a rescue plan. He would come to earth and die for our sins. Today in prayer, praise Jesus for His love and thank Him for His death on the Cross for you.

“If the death of Christ on the cross is the true meaning of the Incarnation, then there is no gospel without the cross. Christmas by itself is no gospel. The life of Christ is no gospel. Even the resurrection, important as it is in the total scheme of things, is no gospel by itself. For the good news is not just that God became man, nor that God has spoken to reveal a proper way of life for us, or even that death, the great enemy, is conquered. Rather, the good news is that sin has been dealt with (of which the resurrection is a proof); that Jesus has suffered its penalty for us as our representative, so that we might never have to suffer it; and that therefore all who believe in him can look forward to heaven.” - James Montgomery Boice

God’s Word: “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS  †

“You made him a little lower than the angels; you crowned him with glory and honor and put everything under his feet." In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to him. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him.” – Hebrews 2:7-8

Bradley Long wrote the following: “An instructor for the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement course shared with a class the major hang-up he had to get over before asking his wife to marry him. She had always felt a call to be a missionary. She had been clear with him since they’d begun dating that her passion for mission had not changed. So, he had reached a real sticking point – did he love her enough to uproot his life and move halfway across the world?

He was a believer and was an active member of his church. As he considered and prayed about this dilemma he had a realization. He put it this way, “I had made Jesus my Savior, but I had not yet made him my Lord.”

They did get married and went on to serve as missionaries in a Middle Eastern country for many years.

Following Jesus is more than just intellectual agreement with certain propositions about God. It is a commitment to let your life be defined by the Lord, King Jesus.”

Far greater than every man who has ever lived, stands Jesus Christ who is the true “King of Kings.” He eternally reigns over all. Today in prayer, praise Jesus that He is good and He is eternal and He is Lord of all.

“You should point to the whole man Jesus and say, ‘That is God.’” – Martin Luther

God’s Word: “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!” – Philippians 2:6-8

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS †

“We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.” – Hebrews 2:1

The author and pastor Louie Giglio isn't the type of runner who enjoys the scenery—he's just trying to survive his workouts. And when he's running in freezing rain? He's barely thinking at all.

So, there he was, slogging through the downpour, when a chain-link fence suddenly blocked his path. Without thinking, he hopped over a concrete divider and headed for shelter under an overpass. The overpass kept going, so he kept running under cover—fantastic!

He continued north, not really noticing that one lane had become two, then three. After a mile, all the traffic was moving slower than he was, and some driver was yelling at him. But he couldn't make out what she was saying and tried to ignore her anyway.

Then the overpass curved away and he was back in the rain. He could see the UN buildings in the distance when he spotted two police cars parked ahead. One cop blasted his siren and waved him over.

That's when it hit him. He was running down the middle of the FDR—a six-lane highway along Manhattan's east side! In his effort to keep moving while half-blind from rain, he'd accidentally ended up in the middle of a major freeway. No wonder the cop's first words were both shocked and totally unprintable.

He goes on: 

I mean, seriously! How can you run down the middle of a New York City freeway and not know it? I think the same way you can live your entire life oblivious to the grand Story of the Creator of the universe, an epic tale that is unfolding all around you. The same way you can spend your days making so much of someone as small and transient as you or me and so little of someone as glorious and eternal as God.

We need to pay attention to our spiritual condition. Today in prayer, confess to Jesus any distractions to your walk with the Lord. Seek to pay attention and follow Him in all that you do.

“The greatest gift you can give another is the purity of your attention.” – Richard Moss

God’s Word: “Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the LORD.” – Psalm 107:43

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS           †

“Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” – Hebrews 1:14

In an article in “The Christian Century”, Halford E. Lucock wrote: “We so often hear the expression “the voice of an angel” that I got to wondering what an angel would sound like. So I did some research, and discovered that an angel’s voice sounds remarkably like a person saying, “Hurry up!”

Until the time I took over, research had been blocked because it was based on the delusion that the voice of an angel would always be beautiful. The words “Get up” are rarely beautiful, never less so than at 7am. Yet that is always what the angels say when they are talking to men, as reported in the Bible. I can’t think of anything an angel ever said but, “Get up and hurry!” An angel comes to Peter in jail and says, “Rise quickly.” An angel says to Gideon, “Arise and go in this thy might.”’ An angel says to Elijah, “Arise and eat.” An angel appears to Joseph in a dream, when Herod is slaughtering the infants, and says, “Go quickly.” An angel appears to Philip and says, “Arise and go.” 

Really, the angels are monotonous talkers! They always say the same thing—”Arise, hurry!” But so is a firebell monotonous. If we are to be saved, it will be by monotony, the reiterated command, “Get up and get going!” 

Listen carefully and you can hear the voice of angels above the contemporary din of the world, a voice that ought to get us out of our lounge chairs and comfortable beds. “Arise, go quickly!” 

It might be a good idea to allow an angel to occupy the pulpit on Sunday. An irate hearer said to Samuel Barnett when he was canon of Bristol Cathedral in England, “I come to church to be comforted, and you sound like a fire alarm.” Perhaps there was a fire.”

Angels are ministering spirits sent to serve us and protect us. Today in prayer, praise the Lord that He has sent His angels to protect us.

“Could the veil be lifted, we would see that angels of God are around us to preserve us from unseen dangers. Thousands of times has their care been especially manifested for us in our warfare with the agencies of Satan.” - Ellen G. White

God’s Word: “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways” – Psalm 91:11

By Peter Kennedy, Copyright 2025, Devotional E-Mail   

DEVOTIONS IN HEBREWS  †