OUR DAILY BREAD 11TH JANUARY 2025 DEVOTIONAL SATURDAY ODB MESSAGE
Our Daily Bread 11th January 2025 Devotional TOPIC: Out of the Mouths of . . .
BIBLE IN YEAR: Genesis 27-28; Matthew 8:18-34
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KEY VERSE: Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me.” – Numbers 22:34
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
Numbers 22:21-23 ,31-35
TODAY’S ODB INSIGHT
Although God had previously given Balaam permission to go with the Moabite officials if he would speak only what God instructed him to (Numbers 22:20), Balaam is stopped and challenged on his journey by God’s angel (v. 22). Three other examples in Scripture of God challenging and testing someone through a sudden encounter while on their journey are Jacob (Genesis 31:3-9; 32:22-32), Moses (Exodus 3:10; 4:24-26), and Joshua (Joshua 5:13-15). God always has the right to test and challenge someone’s heart.
OUR DAILY BREAD 11 JANUARY 2025 – SATURDAY ODB DEVOTIONAL MESSAGE:
What if you could understand what your dog was saying? New technology uses “bark” recognition to help determine canines’ feelings when they bark. The high-tech collars interpret dogs’ barks using data from more than ten thousand barks to identify the emotion they’re expressing. Though the collars don’t enable a word translation, they do foster a greater understanding between owner and pet.
God used an animal to get Balaam’s attention too. Balaam saddled his donkey to travel to Moab in response to God’s instructions to “go . . . but do only what I tell you” (Numbers 22:20). The donkey stopped when it saw God’s angel “standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand,” though Balaam couldn’t see it (v. 23). Balaam continued to try to press forward, so God enabled the donkey to speak in human words.
When Balaam’s eyes were finally opened to the danger, “he bowed low and fell facedown” (v. 31), admitting his inward intention to either collect a reward or curse God’s people contrary to God’s instructions (vv. 15-18, 37-38). “I have sinned,” he said. “I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me” (v. 34).
May we heed the instructions God gives us in the pages of the Bible, through the Holy Spirit’s guidance, and in the wise counsel of others—not just outwardly, but inwardly, too.
REFLECT: In what area do you give the appearance of obedience without the inward intention? How might God be calling your attention to that?
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for lovingly guiding and turning me away from sin and things that aren’t good for me.
Our Daily Bread Ministries (ODB) is a Christian organization founded by Dr. Martin De Haan in 1938. It is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with over 600 employees. It produces several devotional publications, including Our Daily Bread. our daily bread devotional for today audio our daily bread booklet
