Daily Devotional For Thursday, July 30, 2026
Good morning Southside! Thank you for being with us today. Our devotional for today comes from Jeremiah 2:26, “Israel is like a thief who feels shame only when he gets caught” (NLT). Do you know anyone like this? Or are you ever like this? You speed on the road and then the blue lights appear behind you. Do you feel shame at all or do you play ignorant of why you’re being pulled over or do you argue with the officer? Or, you’re speeding down the highway and a state trooper goes past you in the opposite direction, is your first response to look at your speedometer, or to think, “I should stay around the speed limit”?
We live in a world where today even thieves do not feel shame. We live in a world today when even Christians feel no shame for using profanity, living together unmarried, having premarital sex, getting drunk, not having their daily quiet time, being judgmental towards others, skipping worship and etc. As I have written in past devotionals, there is no fear of the Lord today, even among Christians. Many Christian live their lives sinning and falsely believing that grace will abound and cover their sins. The Apostle Paul condemned such attitudes and this abuse of spiritual freedom in Romans 6:1-4.
Israel and Judah had prostituted their worship to other gods for the sensuality of their worship services. They preferred to literally engage in the ecstasy of sexual intercourse with temple prostitutes to experience worship rather to experience spiritual ecstasy through their covenant relationship with the Lord. They felt no shame or guilt and sadly, many of their kings led them to worship Baal, Molech and Asherah. God has given us a conscience and the Holy Spirit to convict us. But like the Jews in Jeremiah’s day, we will excuse and rationalize our sin, even if it is speeding. So, are we any different from those mentioned in Jeremiah 2:26?
Reflection Assignment: Are there things you do or say or think that God calls sin, but you no longer feel convicted about them? This means your heart is hardened to God. The Lord’s conviction is out of love so that you do not adulterate and prostitute yourself with other gods. So, take a minute to evaluate where you no longer feel any shame or guilt over your sin.
Scripture To Meditate On: Psalms 32:2 “When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long” (NLT).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, please forgive me when my heart is hardened to Your Holy Spirit’s conviction of sin in my life. I never want to be a person whose heart is dead to You. Please keep convicting me of my sins and keeping me from false gods that lure me with their deception of freedom and fun. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly