Daily Devotional
By Pastor Jerry Teboe
A Closer Walk with Christ in 2026
1 John 2:28
And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.
Christ is coming again! We have studied this before, and we know that His return is imminent, which means there are not any signs that must be fulfilled before this event takes place. It can happen at any moment.
There are signs that will happen following the Lord’s return to gather the church home to be with Him, but these all take place during the time known as the Tribulation. Those signs are for another time and another study.
The Lord’s return for His church, which is called the “rapture”, is seen in various places in the Scriptures (See 1 Corinthians 15, and 1 Thessalonians 4). When this event happens, all believers will be taken to heaven to be with the Lord. The verse today looks at the Lord’s return and how He will find us when He comes. This verse says, And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.
What is the concern here? The verse indicates that some will not be ready when the Lord returns and could be ashamed when it happens. The Bible says, For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad (2 Corinthians 5:10). What will the Lord see when He comes? Will we be ready to meet Him with open arms awaiting His blessing, or will we be ashamed before Him because of doubtful things in our lives and lose out on His blessing?
Let’s live in such a way as to always have a life pleasing to the Lord so that when He comes, we will be prepared when we stand before Him. Our lives need to be free of anything that would be questionable or wrong. 1 John 1:9 which says, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness, is the way to maintain our lives free of sin and to be living righteously at His return. Let’s be prepared!
Bible Reading for the Year
August 31st, Proverbs 1-2; 1 Corinthians 12
Prayer Needs
Linda Franks’ surgery is at 6 AM Monday morning, August 31st. Pray that all goes well!
Please continue to pray for Shirley Deans. She is in the hospital with heart problems.
Please continue to pray for Faye Smith, Jack Gargis’ sister. She is back in the hospital and being treated for internal problems. She is weak but is some better. The family greatly appreciates your prayers.
Please continue to pray for Marvin Silverthorne for his eyesight to improve. The doctors just discovered cancer in his pancreas. Pray for him please.
Thank you for praying for Dr. Joe Jordan. He had an appointment with his primary care doctor who is waiting on the results of several tests to make a diagnosis. He is doing some better. Please continue to pray for him.
Continue to pray for Jennifer Teboe Buchamer. Please keep praying for complete healing. She is still having side effects from the cancer. She is taking Keytruda treatments and is also taking an inhibiter pill. Pray there will not be any bad side effects from the pill and that the treatments will be effective against the cancer.
Please pray Beth Buchta. On September 9th, she has an appointment with her orthopedist about the ongoing pain in her leg.
Please continue to pray for Vickie Dalton. Pray for God’s healing. She had some issues last week, but seems some better now.
Please continue to pray for Peggy Warren. She is facing some difficult challenges, but seems to be getting better.
Please continue to pray for Robbie Harvey who has MAC lung disease. The doctor has prescribed a new medication, but he is not tolerating it well.
Pray for our Missionaries!
Sue Singleton and the mission in Cambodia
Dr. Joe Jordan and the CBM (Cross and Bible Ministries)
Travis and Caroline Fennessy – IBM missionaries to Southeast Asia