But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way… Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food.” . . . At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. Daniel 1:8,12,13,15
God Honors the Odd One Out
When I was three, my family moved overseas. I realized I was in the minority. That’s an uncomfortable feeling.
Have you ever been the odd one out?
Daniel was too. As a young man, he was taken from his home to a distant land with a different culture. The king of that land wanted Daniel and other young Israelite nobles to serve in his palace. So, they were trained in Babylon’s language and literature and commanded to eat from the royal menu.
To Daniel, eating the royal food meant dishonoring God. So Daniel, already an outsider, chose to stand out even more. He respectfully asked to live on vegetables and water, and God honored his choice. After ten days, Daniel and his friends looked healthier than everyone else.
God’s people still face pressure to fit in—to speak, act, and think in ways that don’t honor God. But the Bible says: don’t let the world change you; let God change you.
He changes you through the power and promises of Jesus Christ. Jesus never gave in to the sinful ways of the world around him. Even when faithfulness cost him his life, he gave it freely. He died to forgive your sins and to send you his Spirit, who gives you power, love, and self-control to honor God.
Whatever the world offers you today, don’t just remember Daniel. Remember Jesus, your Savior, who now rules from heaven’s throne, and give God what is his: your praise, honor, trust, and life. That may be hard, but it is worth it. God honors those who honor him, even when no one else is watching.
Prayer:
Lord, give me courage to honor you with faithful choices. When I’m tempted, remind me of the feast you are preparing for me in heaven. Amen.
Then [Jesus] said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.’ Matthew 22:21
What is God’s?
A question I sometimes ask people is “What belongs to God?” After asking that question—and enjoying the befuddled looks on their faces as they try to think it through—I rephrase the question, “Is there anything that doesn’t belong to God?” And with great relief, they answer, “No.”
Everything belongs to God: The shirt on our back, the car that we drive, the place where we live, the people in our life, the world in which we dwell, the rain, the snow—God made them all, and they all belong to him.
This means that God has also made us. The Psalmist writes, “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb” (Ps. 139:13). Or, to put it another way, you are not a product of chance or an accident. You are truly a one-of-a-kind, specially designed, creation of God who chose to give you life at a particular moment in history and who preserves that life in this world, at least until today.
You belong to God. He is your life-giver and life-preserver. He knows what you need in this life. He also knows that you need a Savior from your wrongdoings that would separate you from him for time and eternity. So, he gave his Son and punished him on the cross in order to save you from wrongdoings, guilt over them, and their eternal consequences.
What belongs to God? You do!
Prayer:
God, help me to respond to your wonderful love by seeing all that you have given me so that I might use everything to serve you. God, help me to always joyfully give to you what is yours. Amen.
On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine—the best of meats and the finest of wines. On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The LORD has spoken. In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.” Isaiah 25:6-9
A Feast for All His People
There is something special about those moments around the dinner table. Our bodies are nourished by the food we eat. Our relationships are strengthened by the laughs and tears we share. Conversations around that table make our houses into our homes. When families become so busy that they struggle to find the time to sit down and eat together, they long for the simple joy of just sharing a meal.
The prophet Isaiah speaks of a wonderful feast awaiting all God’s children. Our heavenly Father longs to have his whole family gathered on his mountain for a great feast. The Lord personally prepares a feast of rich food for all his people. He does everything he can so that his children might join him. However, this feast comes at great expense.
God sent his Son, Jesus, to reconcile our broken relationship with the Lord. He lived the perfect life none of us are capable of. He shared in our humanity, so that—by his death—he could destroy death that enfolds us. Jesus alone suffered for all the sins of the world. This is how the Lord earned our salvation and how committed he is to the feast.
The Lord God has saved us. One day we will enjoy eternity with him. Let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.
Prayer:
Lord Almighty, strengthen my trust in your salvation, until you bring me home to the feast you have prepared for me in heaven. Amen.
Fall 2026 meeting update from WELS Conference of Presidents The Conference of Presidents (COP) met at the WELS Center for Mission and Ministry in Waukesha, Wis., October 6-9, for its annual fall meeting. Although the COP met virtually during […]
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17 Now if you call yourself a Jew, and you find your comfort in the law, and you boast in God; 18 and if you know his will, and you approve the things that really matter, since you are instructed by the law; 19 and if you are convinced that you yourself are a guide for the blind, a light for those in darkness, 20 an instructor of the ignorant, and a teacher of infants (since you have the essence of knowledge and truth in the law)— 21 now then, you, the one who is teaching someone else, do you fail to teach yourself? You who preach, “Do not steal,” do you steal? 22 You who say, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law bring shame on God by breaking the law. 24 Yes, as it is written, “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” [1]
Does Circumcision Make a Difference?
25 Indeed, circumcision has value if you observe the law. On the other hand, if you are a lawbreaker, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. 26 So, if an uncircumcised person keeps the righteous requirements of the law, won’t his uncircumcision be credited to him as circumcision? 27 The one who is not circumcised physically, but who fulfills the law, will judge you who are a lawbreaker, even though you have the written law and circumcision.
28 In fact, a Jew who is merely one outwardly is not really a Jew, and circumcision that is only outward in the flesh is not really circumcision. 29 Rather, a real Jew is one on the inside, and his circumcision is of the heart—a spiritual circumcision, not one based on carrying out the letter of the law. That person’s praise does not come from people but from God.
1 Therefore, you are without excuse, every one of you who judges someone else, because by judging the other person you also condemn yourself, since you, who are judging, are doing the very same things. 2 And we know that God’s judgment on those who do such things is based on the truth.
3 Are you thinking that you will escape God’s judgment, you who judge those who do such things and then do the same things yourself? 4 Or do you have so little regard for his rich kindness, his restraint, and his patience, that you ignore the fact that the purpose of God’s kindness is to lead you to repentance? 5 As a result of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath, when God will reveal his righteous judgment.
6 God “will repay each person according to what he has done” [1]— 7 eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality by persisting in doing what is good, 8 but furious anger to those who out of selfish ambition are disobeying what is true and obeying what is wrong. 9 There will be trouble and distress for the soul of every person who does what is evil—for the Jew first and for the Greek— 10 but glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does what is good—for the Jew first and for the Greek. 11 For God does not show favoritism.
12 Indeed, all people who have sinned without law will also perish without law, and all the people who have sinned in connection with law will be judged by law. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who will be righteous in God’s sight, but those who do the law who will be declared righteous.
14 In fact, whenever Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature what the law requires—even though they do not have the law—they are a law for themselves. 15 They demonstrate the work of the law that is written in their hearts, since their conscience also bears witness as their thoughts go back and forth, at times accusing or at times even defending them.
16 This will happen on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge people’s secrets through Jesus Christ.
18 Indeed, God’s wrath is being revealed from heaven against all the ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who try to suppress the truth by unrighteousness. 19 This happens because what can be known about God is evident among them, because God made it evident among them. 20 In fact, his invisible characteristics—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, because they are understood from the things he made. As a result, people are without excuse, 21 because, even though they knew God, they did not honor him or give him thanks as God. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless heart was darkened.
22 Although they claim to be wise, they have become fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human, or like birds, four-footed animals, and crawling things. 24 So, as they followed the sinful desires of their hearts, God handed them over to the impurity of degrading their own bodies among themselves. 25 Such people have traded the truth about God for the lie, worshipping and serving the creation rather than the Creator, who is worthy of praise forever. Amen.
26 For this reason God handed them over to disgraceful passions. Even their females exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 And, in the same way, their males, after abandoning natural sexual relations with females, were consumed by their lust for one another. Males perform indecent acts with males and receive in themselves the penalty that is fitting for their perversion.
28 And since they did not consider it worthwhile to hold on to the true knowledge of God, God handed them over to a corrupted mind to do things that should never be done. 29 They are filled with every kind of unrighteousness, evil, greed, and wickedness. They are full of envy, murder, quarreling, deceit, and malice. They are gossipers, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent mockers, arrogant boasters, and loudmouths. They dream up evil things. They disobey their parents. 31 They are senseless, faithless, heartless, and merciless. 32 Even though they know God’s righteous decree that those who do these things are worthy of death, such people not only continue to do them, but also approve of others who continue to commit such sins.
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised in advance through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures. 3 This gospel is about his Son—who in the flesh [1] was born a descendant of David, 4 who in the spirit [2] of holiness was declared to be God’s powerful Son by his resurrection from the dead—Jesus Christ, our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and the call to be an apostle on behalf of his name, to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, 6 including you, who were called by Jesus Christ.
7 To all those loved by God who are in Rome, called to be saints:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul’s Desire to Come to Rome
8 First of all, I thank my God through Jesus Christ concerning all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. 9 To be sure, God, whom I serve with my spirit by proclaiming the gospel of his Son, is my witness to how constantly I make mention of you. In all my prayers, 10 I always ask if perhaps at last a way might be opened, if God wills, for me to come to you. 11 I certainly long to see you, in order that I may deliver some spiritual gift to you, so that you are strengthened— 12 that is, when I am with you, that we will be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, yours and also mine.
13 I do not want you to be unaware of the fact, brothers, [3] that I have often planned to come to you but have been prevented from doing so until now. I wanted to have some fruit among you in the same way as I did among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I have an obligation both to Greeks and non-Greeks, [4] to the wise and to the foolish. 15 That is why I am eager to proclaim the gospel also to you who are in Rome.
The Power of the Gospel
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes—to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed by faith, for faith, [5] just as it is written, “The righteous will live by faith.” [6]
Footnotes
Romans 1:3 Here flesh is a reference to Christ’s state of humiliation. See 1 Timothy 3:16; 1 Peter 3:18.
Romans 1:4 Here spirit is a reference to Christ’s state of exaltation. See 1 Timothy 3:16; 1 Peter 3:18.
Romans 1:13 When context indicates it, the Greek word for brothers may refer to all fellow believers, male and female.
Romans 1:14 Or barbarians
Romans 1:17 Or from faith to faith, or by faith resulting in faith
1 The words of Lemuel, a king. An oracle [1] that his mother used, to teach him discipline:
2 What are you doing, [2] my son! What are you doing, son from my womb! What are you doing, son of my vows! 3 Do not give your strength to women. Do not give your ways to those who destroy kings. 4 It is not for kings, Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, nor for rulers to crave beer. 5 If he does, he will drink and forget what is decreed. He will change the legal rights of all the oppressed. 6 Give beer to someone who is perishing and wine to one whose soul is bitter. 7 He will drink and forget his poverty, and he will no longer remember his trouble.
8 Speak up for those who cannot speak. Speak for the rights of all those who are defenseless. 9 Speak up, judge fairly, and defend the oppressed and needy.
The Strong Wife [3]
10 Who can find a wife with strong character? [4] Her value is greater than that of gems. 11 Her husband’s heart trusts her, and he never lacks wealth. [5] 12 She does good for him and not evil all the days of her life. 13 She obtains wool and flax. She eagerly works it with her hands. 14 She is like merchant ships. She brings her food from far away. 15 She rises while it is still night. She gives food [6] to her household. She gives their share to her female servants. 16 She considers a field and acquires it. From her own income, [7] she plants a vineyard. 17 She wraps strength around her waist like a belt, and she makes her arms strong. 18 She realizes that she makes a good profit. Her lamp does not go out at night. 19 She stretches out her hands for the distaff, and the palms of her hands grasp the spindle. [8] 20 She opens the palm of her hand to the oppressed, and she stretches out her hands to the needy. 21 She does not fear for her household on account of snow, because her entire household is clothed in scarlet clothing. [9] 22 She makes bedspreads for herself. Fine linen and purple cloth are her clothing. 23 Her husband is known at the city gates, where he sits with the elders of the land. 24 She makes linen garments and sells them, and she delivers belts to the merchants. 25 Strength and honor are her clothing, and she laughs at the days to come. 26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and kind instruction is on her tongue. 27 She keeps a close eye on the conduct of her household, and she does not eat bread that she did not work for. 28 Her children rise up and bless her. Her husband rises up and praises her: 29 “Many daughters show strong character, but you have surpassed all of them.”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is vapor that vanishes, but a woman who fears the Lord should be praised. 31 Give her credit for the fruit of her hands, and let her accomplishments praise her in the city gates.
Footnotes
Proverbs 31:1 The word translated an oracle may also be translated of Massa and placed with the preceding line.
Proverbs 31:2 The Hebrew has only the single word What.
Proverbs 31:10 This closing poem of the book is an alphabetic acrostic, which means successive verses begin with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. This gives an impression of covering every aspect of the topic from A to Z.
Proverbs 31:10 Literally a woman of strength. The Hebrew term for strength may refer to economic power, political power, military power, or strong character. Here the emphasis is on her economic contribution to the family, which is a reflection of her dedication to her family and her community.
Proverbs 31:11 The Hebrew word translated wealth usually refers to loot or spoils of war, not to regular income. Perhaps it highlights her strenuous effort.
Proverbs 31:15 The word translated food usually refers to prey torn by animals, not to food for humans.
Proverbs 31:16 Literally the fruit of her hands
Proverbs 31:19 Distaff and spindle are implements used in spinning thread or yarn.
Proverbs 31:21 Or, with the ancient versions, double clothing
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