Devotional from Pastor Dave May 22, 2024

Some of you may be old enough to remember David Letterman’s “top ten” lists from his time serving as the host of late-night television shows. His lists covered such silly topics as “the Easter Bunny’s top 10 pet peeves” (including “ticks in your fur the size of jelly beans”) and “top ten dog thoughts” (including “I could have sworn I heard the can opener!”). Most of these lists are outdated as they refer to politicians and personalities from former times. And religious references are very few (although there was the one about “top ten words used least in the Bible” which included “Rootin-tootin” and “Yankee fan”).

This summer, however, we are going to be tracing a different kind of “top ten” list. Starting this Sunday, May 26, at our combined outdoor service at 10AM on the parsonage lawn, we’ll explore the ten most popular Bible verses from 2023, according YouVersion. Their Bible app had a record-breaking 100 million installs worldwide in 2023. Approximately 12 million people interact with the Bible app every day, which is a 20% increase over 2022. The app tracks which scripture verses were shared, bookmarked, or highlighted the most. Over the next couple of months, we will preach from these top ten most popular verses.

Do you have a favorite Bible verse? A “go-to” passage that you know you can turn to for words of hope, comfort, encouragement? I’ve got a few. And I’m glad to see several of them on this list. Maybe you will find one of yours on this list, too. And maybe you’ll discover a new favorite as well!

And be sure to invite a friend or a neighbor to come along with you to worship as we explore together these Bible verses that resonate with so many with the good news of God’s grace, power, and presence with us in Christ Jesus.

This Sunday, we’ll kick things off with one of the most familiar scripture verses of all, John 3:16. Not a bad place to start!