La Roca Ministerio Internacional

Matt Lucas Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission Building What Lasts Bible in a Year : Zechariah 9-12 Revelation 20 They said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, . . . so that we may make a name for ourselves.” Genesis 11:4 Today's Scripture & Insight : Genesis 11:1-8 When I was a young boy in Ohio, we lived near several construction sites. Inspired by them, my friends and I gathered leftover scraps to build a fort. Borrowing tools from our parents, we hauled wood and spent days trying to make our material serve our purposes. It was fun, but our attempts were poor reflections of the well-constructed buildings around us. They didn’t last long. In  Genesis 11 , we encounter a major building construction project. “Let us build ourselves a city,” said the people, “with a tower that reaches to the heavens” (v. 4). A big problem with this effort was that the people did it to “make a name for ourselves” (v. 4). This has ...

Lisa M. Samra Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission The Spirit of Christmas Bible in a Year : Daniel 3-4 1 John 5 Whatever you did for one of the least of these . . . you did for me. Matthew 25:40 Today's Scripture & Insight : Matthew 25:34-40 At a Christmas dinner held at our church to celebrate the cultures of the international guests, I joyfully clapped along to the sound of the darbuka (a type of drum) and the oud (a guitar-like instrument) as a band played the traditional Middle Eastern carol, “Laylat Al-Milad.” The band’s singer explained the title means “Nativity Night.” The lyrics remind hearers that the spirit of Christmas is found in serving others, in ways like offering a thirsty person water or comforting someone weeping. This carol likely draws from a parable where Jesus commends His followers for deeds they’d done for Him: providing food when He was hungry, drink when He was thirsty, and companionship and ca...

Nancy Gavilanes Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission The Perfect Gift Bible in a Year : Hosea 1-4 Revelation 1 Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. Acts 3:6 Today's Scripture & Insight : Acts 3:1-10 While I was on an outreach during a short-term mission trip to Peru, a young man asked me for money. For security reasons, my team had been instructed not to give out money, so how could I help him? Then I recalled the response of the apostles Peter and John to the lame man in  Acts 3 . I explained to him that I couldn’t give him money, but I could share the good news of God’s love with him. When he said that he was an orphan, I told him that God wants to be his Father. That brought him to tears. I connected him with a member of our host church for follow-up. Sometimes our words can feel so insufficient, but the Holy Spirit can empower us as we share Jesus with others. When Peter and John came acr...

Tim Gustafson Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission When Life Appeared Bible in a Year : Ezekiel 47-48 1 John 3 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it. 1 John 1:2 Today's Scripture & Insight : 1 John 1:1-10 n 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Ukraine dominated the world’s attention. As the magnitude of the catastrophe became apparent, officials scrambled to the critically essential task of containing the radiation. Lethal gamma rays from highly radioactive debris kept destroying the robots deployed to clean up the mess. So they had to use “bio robots”—human beings! Thousands of heroic individuals became “Chernobyl liquidators,” disposing of the hazardous material in “shifts” of ninety seconds or less. People did what technology could not, at great personal risk. Long ago, our rebellion against God introduced a catastrophe that led to all other catastrophes (see  Genesis 3 ). Through Adam and Eve, ...

Kenneth Petersen Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission Restraining Order Bible in a Year : Ezekiel 35-36 2 Peter 1 I want to argue my case with God himself. Job 13:3 Today's Scripture & Insight : Job 13:1-12 A man in court filed a restraining order against God. He claimed God had been “particularly unkind” to him and had exhibited a “seriously negative attitude.” The presiding judge dismissed the suit, saying the man needed help not from the court but for his mental health. A true story: humorous, but also sad. But are we so different? Don’t we sometimes want to say, “Stop, God, please, I’ve had enough!” Job did. He put God on trial. After enduring unspeakable personal tragedies, Job says, “I want to argue my case with God himself” ( Job 13:3   nlt ) and imagines taking “God to court” (9:3  nlt ). He even puts forth a restraining order: “Withdraw your hand far from me, and stop frightening me” (13:21). Job’s pro...

Adam R. Holz Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission Agents of Shalom Bible in a Year : Ezekiel 20-21 James 5 Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Jeremiah 29:7 Today's Scripture & Insight : Jeremiah 29:1-7 In 2015, local ministries in Colorado Springs, Colorado, teamed up to serve the city, and COSILoveYou was born. Each fall, in an event called CityServe, the group sends believers in Jesus out to serve the community. Several years ago, my children and I were assigned to a downtown elementary school during CityServe. We cleaned. We pulled weeds. And we worked on an art project, lacing colored plastic tape through a chain-link fence in a way that approximated mountains. Simple, but surprisingly beautiful. Whenever I drive past the school, our humble art project reminds me of  Jeremiah 29 . There, God instructed His people to settle down and serve the city they were in. He co...

Kirsten Holmberg Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission Serving with Love Bible in a Year : Jeremiah 46-47 Hebrews 6 Use whatever gift you have received to serve others. 1 Peter 4:10 Today's Scripture & Insight : 1 Peter 4:7-11 When Krystal first started work at a Virginia coffee shop, she served a customer named Ibby. Because Ibby is hearing impaired, he placed his order using a typed note on his phone. After Krystal learned Ibby was a regular customer, she determined to serve him better by learning enough American Sign Language so he could place his order without writing it down. In a small way, Krystal showed Ibby the kind of love and service Peter encourages us all to offer one another. In his letter to believers in Jesus who’d been scattered and exiled, the apostle indicates that they ought to “love each other deeply” and use their gifts “to serve others” ( 1 Peter 4:8 ,  10 ). Whatever skills and abilities He’s ...

Tim Gustafson Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission The Payoff Bible in a Year : Isaiah 59-61 2 Thessalonians 3 Seek first [God’s] kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33 Today's Scripture & Insight : Ecclesiastes 2:1-5, 11-17 In 1921, artist Sam Rodia began construction on his Watts Towers. Thirty-three years later, seventeen sculptures rose as high as thirty meters over Los Angeles. Musician Jerry Garcia was dismissive of Rodia’s lifework. “That’s the payoff,” said Garcia. “That thing that exists after you’re dead.” Then he said, “Wow, that’s not it for me.” So what  was  the payoff for him? His bandmate Bob Weir summed up their philosophy: “In eternity, nothing will be remembered of you. So why not just have fun?” A wealthy, wise man once tried to find the “payoff” by doing everything he possibly could. He wrote, “I said to myself, ‘Come now, I will test ...

Arthur Jackson Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission In Harm’s Way Bible in a Year : Isaiah 39-40 Colossians 4 Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Acts 17:34 Today's Scripture & Insight : Acts 17:16-34 On my morning walk, I noticed that a vehicle was stopped in the road headed in the wrong direction. The driver was unaware of the danger to herself and others because she was asleep and appeared to be under the influence of alcohol. The situation was perilous, and I had to act. After getting her alert enough to move her to the passenger side of the car so I could get into the driver’s seat, I drove her to a safe place. Physical danger isn’t the only harm we face. When Paul saw worldly-wise, clever people in Athens in spiritual peril because “the city was full of idols,” he “was greatly distressed” ( Acts 17:16 ). The apostle’s innate response to those who flirted with ideas that failed to consider Chri...

Arthur Jackson Our Daily Bread Ministries https://odb.org/ All rights reserved-Published with permission The human heart is an amazing organ. This fist-sized pumping station weighs between 7 and 15 ounces. Daily it beats around 100,000 times and pumps 2,000 gallons of blood through the 60,000 miles of blood vessels in our bodies! With such a strategic assignment and heavy workload, it’s understandable why heart health is central to the well-being of the entire body. Medical science encourages us to pursue healthy habits because the condition of our heart and the quality of our health go together. While medical science speaks authoritatively about our physical hearts, God speaks with even greater authority about a “heart” of another kind. He addresses the mental, emotional, spiritual, and moral “center” of our being. Because the heart is the central processing unit of life, it must be protected: “Guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” ( Proverbs 4:23 ). Safeguarding ...