AFTERNOON DEVOTION | GOD IS WITH YOU

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” — Psalm 23:1

As the afternoon unfolds, remember that God is still with you.

Maybe some plans have not worked out. Maybe you are tired, discouraged, or wondering how things will come together. Do not give up.

The God who carried you through the morning will sustain you through the afternoon. What you cannot see, He is still working on.

AFTERNOON PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank You for bringing me this far today. Give me strength where I am weak, wisdom where I am uncertain, and peace where I am troubled.

Bless the work of my hands and guide my decisions. Help me not to give up because of today's challenges. Let Your grace carry me through the rest of this day.

May my life, my work, and everything I do bring glory to Your name.

In Jesus Christ's name, Amen.

TODAY'S REMINDER:
You may be tired, but God is not tired. Keep moving forward—He is with you.

Have a blessed, peaceful and fruitful afternoon.

If this devotion encouraged you, share it with someone who needs hope today.

THROWBACK THURSDAY - Ten years ago I was staying at a friend’s house in western Iowa. We made frequent trips into Omaha, Nebraska. During one of them, I witnessed to six skateboarders hanging out in a parking lot. Three of the guys held hands with me and experienced holy laughter as they got born again. Afterward, two of them wanted a photo with me. Psalm 16:11 says, “In Your presence is fullness of joy.”

As you navigate life's challenges, our counseling services draw inspiration from Psalm 143:7-8

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God's Promises
Psalm 5:12

New King James Version

For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield.

Brenda Walsh Ministries
Everlasting Arms of Jesus.

No one “likes” to go through hard times, nor do they wish for a “bad day,” but it is through life’s toughest battles that you’ll receive some of your biggest blessings. Without the hard times, you would never know your need for a Savior. When everything’s going smoothly, you’re focused on the great time you’re having, celebrating with friends, and living “the good life.” But when trouble knocks on your door, it sends you crying for help to the only One who has the power to help you! It is while on your knees that you are humbled and you realize just how much you need God in your life. Through all the heartache and pain, you’ll draw closer to God - listening for His voice, sharing your sorrow, and learning to trust Him fully, knowing He will help you and will do what’s best for you. The Bible says in Psalm 91:14-15, “ ‘Because he loves me,’ says the Lord, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him.’ And in Psalm 34:19, it says, “A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.” Learning “real-life character-changing” lessons doesn’t come from having a boatload of money, lots of friends, or fame. It is when the rent is due, the baby is sick, you lost your job, or your friend betrayed you that you’ll lean on God the most! Leaning on the everlasting arms of Jesus is a great place to be! Text: Psalm 18:2, Psalm 40:1-3, Psalm 9:9, 2 Peter 2:9

Gods Creation, 100 / evolution, 0
A new study of daddy longlegs has revealed something you probably wouldn't expect: in some species, Dad spends days guarding his eggs, cleaning them and driving away threats.

Researchers studied parental care across 165 species of daddy longlegs, also called harvestmen. These creatures are arachnids, but they aren't actually spiders. The researchers added 85 new records of parental behavior. Of those, 78 showed either male or female parental care, while only seven showed no care.

But researchers interpreted these behaviors as having arisen multiple times through evolution.

There's an important difference between what was observed and what was assumed about the past.

Scientists observed daddy longlegs already caring for their offspring. They didn't observe parental care evolving. Instead, they placed those behaviors onto a proposed evolutionary family tree and used computer models to estimate how that care supposedly arose in ancestors no one observed.

And think about what that care requires. A daddy longlegs must recognize and remain near its eggs, detect danger, process what's happening, and respond appropriately. Its senses, nervous system, instincts, and movements must work together.

The biblical account gives us a very different starting point. Genesis tells us that God created living creatures “after their kind” and commanded them to “be fruitful, and multiply” (Genesis 1:21–22). These creatures were created with the abilities necessary to reproduce and survive from the beginning.

Even a daddy longlegs guarding a tiny cluster of eggs points us back to the wisdom of its Creator.

Psalm 104:24 says, “O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all.”

Daily Bible Lesson.
IF THE DEAD ARE ALREADY IN HEAVEN OR HELL… WHY IS THE RESURRECTION SO IMPORTANT?

1 Corinthians 15 is one of the clearest chapters in the Bible about the resurrection of the dead.
Paul repeatedly points to a future resurrection when Jesus Christ returns. This raises an important question:
If the dead are already consciously enjoying heaven—or suffering in hell—immediately after death, why does the Bible place such enormous emphasis on a future resurrection?
Let’s examine the biblical picture.

1. THE RESURRECTION IS CONNECTED TO CHRIST'S SECOND COMING
“Afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.” — 1 Corinthians 15:23
Paul gives a clear sequence:
Christ was raised first.
Christ's people are raised at His coming.
The resurrection is therefore connected with the Second Coming.
“The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” — 1 Corinthians 15:52
This points to a great future resurrection event—not something that happens individually every time a believer dies.

2. THE RESURRECTION IS CENTRAL TO THE CHRISTIAN FAITH
Paul does not treat the resurrection as a minor detail.
“If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.” — 1 Corinthians 15:14
“If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.” — 1 Corinthians 15:17
Paul's message follows this powerful sequence:
Christ died

Christ was raised

Believers will be raised

Death will ultimately be destroyed
“The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” — 1 Corinthians 15:26

3. WHEN DO WE RECEIVE IMMORTALITY?
Paul says:
“This mortal must put on immortality.” — 1 Corinthians 15:53
Notice the context: immortality is associated with the resurrection.
The Bible's emphasis is not simply that a person dies and immediately receives the final reward. Paul directs our attention toward the resurrection, when God's people are changed and receive immortality.
The resurrection is not an afterthought—it is central to the Christian hope.

4. THE BIBLE DESCRIBES DEATH AS SLEEP
The Bible repeatedly uses sleep as a description of death.
Jesus and Lazarus
“Our friend Lazarus sleepeth.” — John 11:11
Jesus then made it unmistakably clear:
“Lazarus is dead.” — John 11:14
Daniel 12:2
“Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake.”
1 Thessalonians 4:13–16
Paul speaks of those who are asleep and then describes their resurrection when Christ returns.
Ecclesiastes 9:5
“The dead know not any thing.”
Psalm 146:4
When a person dies, “his thoughts perish.”
Together, these passages provide a biblical basis for understanding death as an unconscious state awaiting the resurrection.

5. THE BIBLICAL SEQUENCE BECOMES VERY CLEAR
DEATH
The person rests in the grave.

CHRIST RETURNS
The trumpet sounds.

THE DEAD IN CHRIST RISE
1 Thessalonians 4:16

THEY ARE CHANGED
1 Corinthians 15:51–53

THEY RECEIVE IMMORTALITY
1 Corinthians 15:53–54

DEATH IS DEFEATED
1 Corinthians 15:54–55
This makes Paul's argument especially powerful:
The Christian hope is not merely, “When I die, I go to heaven.”
The great biblical hope is:
JESUS IS COMING AGAIN!
THE DEAD IN CHRIST WILL RISE!

6. WHAT ABOUT PASSAGES THAT SEEM TO TEACH IMMEDIATE LIFE AFTER DEATH?
There are passages that Christians interpret differently, including:
Luke 23:43 — “Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
Philippians 1:23 — Paul speaks of departing and being with Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:8 — “Absent from the body… present with the Lord.”
These passages should not be ignored.
However, Christians who believe in the sleep of death understand these verses alongside the many passages that explicitly describe death as sleep and emphasize the future resurrection.
Questions involving punctuation, translation, context, and the meaning of being “with Christ” have contributed to different interpretations.
The safest approach is to study the whole Bible rather than build a doctrine on one verse.

7. WHY DOES THE TEACHING OF DEATH AS SLEEP MATTER?
It keeps the resurrection central.
Paul makes the resurrection absolutely essential to Christian faith.
It teaches that immortality is God's gift.
“This mortal must put on immortality.” — 1 Corinthians 15:53
It gives greater meaning to the Second Coming.
“The dead in Christ shall rise first.” — 1 Thessalonians 4:16
It warns against attempts to communicate with the dead.
Deuteronomy 18:10–12; Isaiah 8:19
If the dead are unconscious, claims that deceased relatives are communicating with the living cannot automatically be accepted as genuine communication with the dead.
It gives comfort through the resurrection hope.
“Sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.” — 1 Thessalonians 4:13
Why?
Because those who have died in Christ will rise again when Jesus returns!

THE GREAT BIBLICAL HOPE
The ultimate hope of Scripture is not death.
It is not the grave.
It is not merely an immortal soul escaping the body.
The great hope is:
JESUS CHRIST'S RETURN

THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD

THE GIFT OF IMMORTALITY

THE DESTRUCTION OF DEATH

ETERNAL LIFE WITH CHRIST
“This mortal shall have put on immortality… then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.” — 1 Corinthians 15:54

IN SHORT
If the dead are already enjoying the complete reward of heaven immediately after death, the resurrection remains important—but it raises a significant question:

Why does Paul place such extraordinary emphasis on the future resurrection as the moment when the dead are raised, changed, receive immortality, and experience final victory over death?

Understanding the biblical teaching of death as sleep makes Paul's argument in 1 Corinthians 15 especially straightforward:
The dead are resting.
They are awaiting the voice of Christ.
Jesus will return.
The dead in Christ will awake.
They will be changed.
Death will be swallowed up in victory.
“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout… and the dead in Christ shall rise first.” — 1 Thessalonians 4:16

THAT IS THE CHRISTIAN HOPE!
Not merely that we die and go somewhere…
But that JESUS IS COMING—AND THE DEAD WILL RISE!

Psalm 33:18-22
Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy, [19] To deliver their soul from death, And to keep them alive in famine. [20] Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield. [21] For our heart shall rejoice in Him, Because we have trusted in His holy name. [22] Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us, Just as we hope in You.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. — Psalm 150:6

Our very breath is a gift from God, and our greatest response is to use it to give Him glory.

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