Tag Archive for: daily-devotions

A Life of Security – October 2, 2025

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But Abraham replied, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.”
Luke 16:25

A Life of Security

We all need it, no matter how old or young we are. We need it no matter how much money we have, where we live, where we work, where we worship, or who is related to us. We all need to feel secure, from little ones hugging their stuffed animals to adults paying for cybersecurity. We all want peace of mind. We don’t want anything to cause us worry, stress, or fear. We want everything set so we can live a worry-free, stress-free, secure life made easier because we have everything we need and so much more. So, we spend all kinds of time, money, and effort to make it happen, yet we can miss the only source of true security.

Jesus told the story of a wealthy man and a poor beggar named Lazarus. The wealthy man didn’t just seem to have money. He served money. He flaunted it. Lazarus, on the other hand, had nothing except the source of true security. He trusted in the true God, his Savior, his Lord, his help and hope.

When both men died, everything reversed. The Lord sent his angels to bring Lazarus to the eternal rest of heaven, while the rich man spent eternity in hell, yearning for even a single drop of water on his tongue.

What is Jesus saying to us here about the security we all seek? First, it’s not about the money or lack thereof. Money is a gift from God, but money can never be the source of our security. Instead, Jesus calls us to look to him. We look to Jesus, who became poor that we might have the eternal wealth of heaven. We look to Jesus, who left behind the feasts of heaven to fill the hungry with good things. We look to Jesus, who saw our foolish pursuits for security in this life and instead sacrificed his own security, even himself, to give his true security for all eternity. In Jesus, we have a life of security.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, like Lazarus, help me to see you as my security for this life and always. Amen.

 

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

A Life of Trust – October 1, 2025

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Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God.
Psalm 146:3-5

A Life of Trust

Trust seems to be in short supply today. It’s easy to be skeptical or cynical rather than assume that you can trust others. Can you trust leaders when they fail to keep their promises? Can you trust institutions when they fail to provide the moral foundation or the expertise we expect? Can you trust businesses when they fail to provide the products or services that they promise to produce? Can you trust other people when they break a relationship or let you down?

What happens when trust is in short supply? Someone or something needs to fill that vacuum, so it’s not unusual for people to rally to a charismatic leader or a popular expert. It shouldn’t surprise us when institutions or groups that have lost our trust demand it back. Even on a personal level, if someone lets us down or breaks a once-strong relationship, we often look for someone to fill that void.

Yet the Psalmist tells us that we shouldn’t go looking for another human being or human institution to restore our missing trust. Even if those people prove to be trustworthy, they will eventually depart this life in death. He writes that, “On that very day their plans come to nothing.”

So, whom can we trust? The Psalmist responds, “Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD their God.” There is only one person in all of history who deserves our complete trust and never causes us to lose trust—the God of Jacob, the Lord of free and faithful grace who is our Savior-God, our Savior, Jesus Christ. That Savior-God has kept every one of his promises, even to the point of giving up his life to pay for our lack of trust. That Savior-God is our help and hope not just now, but for all eternity. By faith, we trust in him.

Prayer:

Lord God, in a skeptical world, I am tempted to trust in others rather than you. Lift my eyes to the cross to see your unfailing love and trust in you alone. Amen.

 

Daily Devotions is brought to you by WELS.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.