Christopher Columbus (1451–1506)

The old rhyme goes “In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue.” Why did he sail, when people called him a crackpot for his idea of reaching Asia by sailing west? Curiously, Columbus embarked on his famous voyage guided by the Bible.

He believe his voyage across the Atlantic fulfilled a prophecy from Isaiah (46:11) about God summoning one “from the east, the man who executes My counsel, from a far country.” Columbus was wrong in one respect: He never reached Asia, even though he was convinced he had.

After his third voyage to the New World, Columbus wrote A Book of Prophecies. In it he explained he explained how his voyages had fulfilled many prophecies in the Bible. He was convinced that “neither logic nor mathematics aided me. Rather, the prophecy of Isaiah was completely fulfilled.”

DAILY DEVOTIONAL

The Gift of Himself

David Jeremiah

Long ago, there ruled a wise and good king in Persia who loved his people and often dressed in the clothes of a working man or a beggar so he could visit the poor and learn about their hardships.

DAILY DEVOTIONAL

Healing Time

J. Stephen Lang

1868: On this date a political leader who grew up poor, had no formal education and was illiterate until his wife taught him to read and write, issued Proclamation 179 “granting full pardon and amnesty for the offense of treason against the United States during the late Civil War.”

DAILY DEVOTIONAL

A Personal Promise

Charles Stanley

Jesus came to earth with the view of offering you salvation. He wanted you to have a restored relationship with the Father, a relationship that was so close, so intimate, that you would have your special place in the Father’s house (John 14:1–4).

DAILY DEVOTIONAL

The Unexpected Savior

John MacArthur

Scripture records that when John the Baptist began his ministry, “The people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not” (Luke 3:15).

DAILY DEVOTIONAL

Reflections on the Incarnation and Freedom of God

Philip Yancey

Think of the condescension involved: the incarnation, which sliced history into two parts had more animal than human witnesses. Think, too, of the risk. In the incarnation, God spanned the vast chasm of fear that had distanced him from his human creation.