The Living Word: A Daily Devotional with Jeff & Dale from The Jenkins Institute
The Living Word is a daily devotional featuring Scripture and encouragement from Jeff and Dale of The Jenkins Institute. Each episode offers a thoughtful reading to coincide with the daily devotional guides from our annual devotional books. They are designed to help listeners begin or end their day grounded in God’s Word.
The Living Word: A Daily Devotional with Jeff & Dale from The Jenkins Institute
Week 22: Monday, Blessed With What We Have
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The annual World Happiness Report (representing 2024 data) recently
ranked the United States as the 24th happiest country in the world, down
nine slots since 2014 and five slots since 2020. Indeed, 24th is the World
Happiness Organization’s lowest ranking of the U.S. since 2011, when they
began ranking countries.
Welcome to Hearing God's Stories, a daily devotional on the parables presented by the Jenkins Institute.
SPEAKER_01Week 22, Monday. Blessed with what we have. Today's scripture is Ezekiel chapter 17, verses 1 through 6 and 11 through 14. By Justin Rogers, and I'm Kyle Rye. The annual World Happiness Report, representing 2024 data, recently ranked the United States as the 24th happiest country in the world, down nine slots since 2014 and five slots since 2020. Indeed, 24th is the World Happiness Organization's lowest ranking of the US since 2011 when they began ranking countries. Happiness is a struggle in the human experience. Some argue that we should be joyful rather than happy, since the Bible does not use the term happiness as such. Perhaps there is some truth in this, but the key to contentment might lie in recognizing that God has blessed us with what we have. The eagle in the parable represents Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. He removes a branch, King Jehoiakin, from the top of a cedar tree, the royal line of David, and carries it to the land of merchants, Babylon. Having exiled the royal family, Nebuchadnezzar offers an unexpected opportunity to plant a new seed, Zedekiah, making Judah a vassal state in 597 BC. The vine, Judah as a Babylonian state, flourishes, but it will not achieve the glory of the Lebanese cedar from which it was taken, nor will the vine be able to grow without aid from the eagle toward whom it remains oriented. Zedekiah should have been happy with his unexpected rise to the throne, and Jeremiah's word to cooperate with Babylon. He wasn't. Zedekiah continued to establish himself through his own wisdom, and he led the nation into deeper apostasy and eventual destruction. Because he longed for the past and trusted in himself, he is forever remembered as the king responsible for the destruction of Jerusalem. Paul provides a counterexample. He learned from his thorn in the flesh to rely on God fully, to surrender his control, and to grow closer to God. Though unwelcome, the thorn was Paul's salvation from arrogance. Everything God gives is a blessing, whether painful or pleasant. Today, I will thank God for all that he gives me.
SPEAKER_00You've been listening to Hearing God's Stories, the Parables of the Bible. Thank you for joining us for the Living Word. For more encouragement and ministry resources, visit the Jesus Institute.com and may God's richest blessings be yours. It's our prayer for you.