GC Students Daily Devos

There’s a difference between calling yourself mature and actually being mature. I want to be a doctor, but I can’t just put on scrubs and say, “I’m a doctor!” Same thing with maturity–it’s a journey you have to do, not a simple title. In Romans 5, Paul explains that maturity and character come directly out […] The post Daily Devo 106 – The Point of Suffering appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

Back to the Future is one of my all-time favorite movies. In the movie, it’s obvious that one character named George McFly is completely defined by his past. In high school he’s pushed around, and as an adult he’s still pushed around by the same people. It’s so tempting to let ourselves be defined by […] The post Daily Devo 105 – Let Go of the Past appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

Is faith blind? Do Christians just blindly accept the Bible? Let me frame this for you: faith is looking back to look forward. As Christians, we look back to the Bible–what is says about who God is and what He’s done. But we have to ask, “Is the Bible even true?” There’s a lot of […] The post Daily Devo 104 – Blind Faith appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

What does it mean to trust God? How can I be loyal to God? I’ve prayed for God to help me in bad situations, but the situations kept going and getting worse. I knew God could fix it, but he didn’t. What gives? In the book of Daniel, there’s a king Nebuchadnezzar and he threatened […] The post Daily Devo 103 – Are You Loyal? appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

What does it look to actually be satisfied by Christ? The definition for satisfy is to put an end to (a desire, want, need, etc.) by sufficient or ample provision. Jesus is the one who satisfies our wants and desires–our deepest soul desires. Jesus is the one who brings our souls deepest groanings and desires […] The post Daily Devo 102 – Satisfied appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

Ever been so hungry or thirsty, only to get food/water, only be to left unsatisfied?? I (Ethan) went on a snowboarding trip and didn’t eat much, so I was extremely hungry for lunch… only to be left unsatisfied by cold chicken tenders. In Psalm 42 it says, “As the deer pants for flowing streams, so […] The post Daily Devo 101 – Thirsting for God appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

Where are you on your faith walk with Jesus? When I was asked, I had no answer. It honestly made me think about the universe in a completely different way, but I especially saw Jesus in a whole new light. My perspective completely changed—I felt like my eyes were opened to all the amazing things […] The post Daily Devo 100 – Your Faith Walk appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

Have you ever felt overwhelmed and cornered by circumstances? In 2 Kings 6, Elisha and his servant were surrounded by enemies. God opened the servant’s eyes and he saw the God and his armies were all around, ready to fight for him and Elisha! It was a stunning sight. We are short-sighted sometimes and only […] The post Daily Devo 99 – God Fights For Us appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

What does it mean that your body is a temple? I’m Cara, I’m a junior at Valley Christian High School, and I don’t feel like people truly understand what it means that our bodies are God’s temples. I often find myself searching on the internet or looking at fitness accounts on instagram for ways to […] The post Daily Devo 98 – Your Body Is a Temple appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

I always see people making New Year’s resolutions–but then they never follow through. I’m not into those resolutions, but I’m always up for something that will challenge me in my walk with Jesus. One of the pastors I follow on Instagram came up with a Bible challenge called the Shred. The intention of the challenge […] The post Daily Devo 97 – Challenge Yourself appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

However you pronounce it, what does “Amen” mean? It’s not an English word and it doesn’t have anything to do with gender. The word amen has its root word in the Hebrew word aman, which means trustworthy or faithful. So when you or I say “Amen,” we’re saying everything that was just said is trustworthy, […] The post Daily Devo 96 – What Does Amen Mean? appeared first on Gethsemane Church, Tempe.

What is an “Ebenezer”? And what does it have to do with the year 2020 that we’re saying goodbye to? Ebenezer in Hebrew means “stone of help.” In the Bible, Samuel named a stone “Ebenezer” to remind everyone of the good that God did for them in the midst of chaos and panic. When they […]

Think of the past year. God was there, wasn’t he? I think it is fair to say we were all blindsided by Covid-19. As hard as it may be for many to believe it, God was there every step of the way for us in 2020. This past year was stained by the evil that […]

Today I’m sharing some tips and tricks to read your Bible more. Lately I’ve felt unmotivated to read my Bible and spend time with God. I used to have this huge passion for my faith and I want nothing more than to feel that passion again. Being so passionate in my faith influenced my attitude […]

I wanted to do something different for today’s devotion and just walk through some scripture and take time to pray with you guys about what tomorrow means and why it means so much. When we focus on the birth of Christ, we focus on the love of God for sending His son. It says in […]

Sometimes the best things come from the most unexpected times. The way this year went, I never expected Christmas to finally come, but here it is. When Jesus was born, people hadn’t heard from God or a prophet of His for 400 years. Mary was a virgin. Joseph thought about divorce. But God worked in […]

Do all religions lead to the same destination? What makes a lot of us uncomfortable with answering this is thinking about, “if I answer this with, ‘no, not all religions go to the same place,’ then I’m saying that other people are wrong.” I definitely don’t want to make other people uncomfortable by calling them […]

When it comes to Christmas, for some people the holiday doesn’t bring joy or excitement because of the pain that it reminds them of. I come from a broken home where my parents got divorced when I was young. Christmas was always so stressful because I would have to switch off houses during the day […]

The Bible’s idea of love is WAY different than our idea of love today. What comes to mind when you hear the word “love”? In the Bible, there’s a word in Hebrew: Checed. Most times in our English Bibles, it’s translated into the word “kindness.” But it’s SO MUCH deeper of a word. It centers […]

It’s that time of year again. Thanksgiving has ended and Christmas ads are starting to pop up everywhere. It’s so easy and tempting to continually think of more items that we want that might make our lives more complete. Psalm 23 says, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want,” which calls us to […]

Is there really a God? Is there logical evidence that can prove God’s existence? These are absolutely critical questions to be asking yourself as a thinking human being. We look around us and wonder, “Where did all this come from?” Logically and scientifically thinking through the answer to this question is a good thing! Looking […]

You use only 10% of your brain’s total capacity. Did you know that?? Sooooo spoiler alert: that’s not actually true. It was a rumor from the 1920s that very few people actually fact check. This is how our minds work, though: we fill them up with what we hear and see and experience, but rarely […]

Lately I’ve been… let’s saying sweating from my eyes more than usual, and especially at videos that are emotional—you know, ones that pull at your heart. There’s one such video called Thank You, God by the Skit Guys. Basically it shows different people going through different hard life situations, and then it shows their response. […]

For a lot of people in our world, the song Amazing Grace is just not true. A recent Barna study found that young adults outside the church see Christians as judgmental, hypocritical, and insensitive to others. That’s not the sweet sound of amazing grace! In 2 Corinthians 5:19-20 God explains how he gives us forgiveness, […]

Imagine being in a tunnel so long and so dark that you can’t even see your hand if you hold it in front of your face! There is a biking trails in Idaho with 10 long tunnels, one being 1.66 miles long! Inside it’s extremely dark and cold and it’s hard to see the light […]

When is too early to set up for Christmas? Right after Halloween? Wait till Thanksgiving? Somewhere in between? Let me know what you think! This year I set up my Christmas tree November 9th… and I’ll tell you why! First, it’s important to note that one of the reasons we celebrate Christmas on December 25th […]

On election day, my friends and I all gathered around a TV to watch as the votes came in. In one of my classes, my professor talked to us about how many people woke up extremely happy or extremely mad based on the election outcome. Sometimes, people care so much about politics that it affects […]

I think we’ve missed the point. Here it is, Election Day, and this whole country is just exhausted. So many things have been dragging our attention away from what we should really be focused on. It’s so easy to lose sight of our purpose. Our purpose as followers of Jesus is to do just that: […]

Being in college has been so much fun. The freedom and ability to begin to taste what life is like on your own is something so unique. But one thing I now struggle with is doing chores. I always make excuses for why I can’t do them. In John 5, Jesus meets a paralyzed man […]

How would you react if someone told you that they found Jesus? Excitement? Doubt? Confusion? Curiosity? In John 4, Jesus meets a woman at a well. After some conversation, he tells her that he is the Messiah sent to save the world. He also told her he knew about her 5 marriages/divorces. She gets so […]

There are so many reasons why I love the Bible, but sometimes I find myself reading a passage in the Bible and forgetting to look at the bigger picture of what is being presented. In John 4, Jesus does something incredible: he heals a man’s son from 50 miles away! The boy was very close […]

In the movie Sahara (2005), an evil corporation starts dumping nuclear waste in the middle of the African desert… but it turns out that they were poisoning the source of an important river and people started dying. In John 4, Jesus has an incredible conversation with a Samaritan woman where he reveals to her that […]

Have you ever been so thirsty, only to drink something but still be left unsatisfied? In John 4, Jesus meets a thirsty woman at a water well who is secretly desperate to fill her empty heart. His conversation with her transforms her entire life. As followers of Jesus, we are called to be honest with […]

Have you ever given someone a compliment and they just wouldn’t accept it? Jesus is actually given a huge compliment in John 3, but he’s not impressed for multiple reasons. We’re not here to compliment or show respect to Jesus as if we’ll get something in return. We have to ask ourselves this question: do […]

One of my favorite sayings is “close but no cigar.” I never knew where it came from, though. Turns out cigars used to be prizes at carnivals, so when you’d get close but then lose, the vendor would say “close but no cigar.” Jesus’ words in John 3:16 are heard so often that it’s easy […]

Have you ever had someone make a promise to you that they didn’t keep? This happens more often than it should, and it hurts us and makes it harder to trust others. Jesus made some insane claims and promises, like when he promised to raise himself from the dead. And then, he did! It’s sometimes […]

What is the coolest thing you have ever seen in person? This summer I went to visit Wyoming and at the Grand Tetons, I hiked to a waterfall that took my breath away. It was an amazing display of God’s glory in creation. Jesus started his ministry with a different display of glory: he turn […]

I usually want to know what’s coming next. When I don’t know “the plan,” I am tempted to feel anxious or even unmotivated. In John 1:38-39, Jesus invites a couple guys to “come and see” where he was going… and they did just that! They trusted that Jesus had the plan and that was all […]

I remember during my first year of college, my friends randomly asked me if I wanted to go to the Grand Canyon with them. But I had so much homework to do. So what did I do? I dropped everything and got in my friend’s car and went to see one of the seven wonders […]

Have you ever felt like one of your friends was using you? It’s a horrible feeling because you feel like they don’t care about who you are, just what they can take from you. John 1:14 tells us that Jesus is God’s Son and comes full of grace and truth. We’re tempted to look to […]

How do you view Jesus? As we start into the book of John in the Bible, it’s obvious that Jesus is not just a nice guy who said a bunch of insightful things. John 1:14 shows us how Jesus came to physically show us who he is and what he’s all about. Challenge: take a […]

Spending time with God every day is inconvenient and difficult, but here’s why it’s SO important! In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus calls us to build our lives on our relationship with God. Building a relationship with Jesus is an everyday commitment, which can be really challenging and inconvenient, especially when we get busy with other things… […]

The Willis (formerly Sears) Tower in Chicago is over 1,450 ft tall! But its foundation is an insane 100 ft into the ground. In Matthew 7:24-27 Jesus calls us to build our life’s foundation on His teachings. When we do, God works in our tough circumstances to help us navigate hurts and troubles. When we […]

2020. This year has been full of unexpected twists and turns. My life right now is nowhere near where I thought it would be at the beginning of 2020. God has taught me two deep lessons through this, though: 1, at the heart of my faith is my heart, and 2, my heart shapes my […]

How do you make new friends? I think the most important part is so simple: just spend time getting to know them. Mostly, pay attention to their actions and how they treat other people. Actions reveal where their heart is at. Jesus talks about this in Matt 7:15-20, saying that our actions are our fruit. […]

What is the first thing you think about when you hear the word fruit? One of the best fruits out there is cotton candy grapes. Have you ever tried them? If you haven’t, you’re missing out! In the Bible, people talk about fruits and they also use fruit as a metaphor for something much deeper. […]

We’ve talked about being unmotivated, but when you’re unmotivated, what do you do?? There’s always the struggle to deal with unmotivation and other short-term problems with short-term solutions, but what really we need are long-term solutions. In Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus challenges us to think long-term and follow Him down a path that is harder, but […]

There are some things that Jesus says that are really hard to deal with. Matthew 7:13-14 is one of those, where he calls out how we daily battle against pursuing self or pursuing Jesus. The self-pleasing path is wide and many people take it, but it leads to destruction and pain. Pursuing Jesus is a […]

Right now, a lot of schools are doing online learning over video chats. And that can be really tough, not having the physical interaction and the motivation that comes with actually being at school. In Matt 7, Jesus calls us to pray to God and actually ask for what we need and want, which can […]

It doesn’t happen often, but I experienced something incredible: God answered a prayer literally as we were praying. It changed how I see prayer. Prayer is about you persistently going to God because you believe He’ll do what’s best for you. God is genuinely and intimately relational, and we see that from what Jesus tells […]

It happens more often than most of us realize–we judge people without even getting to know them. Sometimes our judgement even keeps us from making amazing friends. In Matthew 7, Jesus calls us out on our judging, which is really us unfairly determining someone’s worth. Only God can do that. When He judges us, it […]