The Daily Plunge!
The DAILY PLUNGE: "Be Washed Through The Word" (Eph 5:26) Jump in with Pastor Douglas for a quick swim in the day's Scripture reading. A 4-5 minute dive into scripture meant to help you read and hear God’s Word.
Episodes
Overturning Irrevocable Wickedness (Esther 8:1-17). The evil schemes devised to wipe out the Jews is still in place. Now the enemies of God’s people suffer the consequences of their hatred and evil schemes. The king grants the right of self-defense to the Jews.
Evil Quashing Evil (Esther 7:1-10). Esther finally requests the king would spare her life and the lives of her fellow believers. She reveals that Haman has duped the King to purchase the annihilation of the Jewish people. Now Haman’s evil scheme instead consumes him. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Esther
Narcissistic Parade Assumption (Esther 6:1-10). Suffering insomnia Xerxes reads again how Mordecai the Jew saved his life. When Haman hears about the royal honors being bestowed, he can think only of himself. Even his intolerant family know God’s protection will protect the Jews. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Esther
75 Ft Impaling Narcissist (Esther 5:1-14). Queen Ethers begins to build influence with the King and disarm Haman. At the height of his power and prestige, Haman can’t stand that Mordecai won’t bow to him. He and his wicked family settle on execution for those who defy Haman’s power. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Uncomfortable Interceding Lament (Esther 4:1-17). Under the threat of extermination Mordecai and Jewish believers with torn hearts and torn clothes pray to God for deliverance. Queen Esther is challenged to move out of comfort to risk herself to be used by God. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Intolerant Government Extermination (Esther 3:1-4:3). Proud and arrogant Haman carries the generational hatred of the Jews. He persuades the king to enact state-sponsored genocide of the people of God who are faithfully different. Are we Christians distinct enough that we would be easy to pick out? #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Gawdy Trinket Display (Esther 1:1-21). Xerxes the Persian potentate shows offs his vast wealth to stroke his own ego. When his politically married queen rebuffs his request to be shown off a crisis and an opportunity is created. Power plays in marriage are the broken worldly wisdom. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Faithful Purchasing Redeemer (Ruth 4:1–17). Throughout the story of Ruth, the LORD is the primary actor moving Ruth from Moab to Bethlehem and working among people in their lives. Who is our guardian redeemer who purchases us from indebtedness and shame? #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Risky Business Temptation (Ruth 3:1–18). In a situation filled with sexual tension Ruth and Boaz exhibit unambiguous God-graced lives. In a sticky situation they trust God determined to live with God-honoring virtue. Do we seek to live as noble characters guided by God’s grace? #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Enacted Faith Living (Ruth 2:14–33). How are God’s people to live trusting the LORD with their lives and how they treat one another? God is an active participant in the lives of Ruth and Naomi providing and guiding them. Blessed is the one who shows kindness to others who are needy. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Exceptional Female Friendship (Ruth 1:19–2:13). Where is the reward of faith? Ruth takes on Naomi and all her Job-like bitterness. In Boaz, Ruth encounters a person of peace who the LORD has put in their path. “The LORD be with you” is lived out in caring for others. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Clinging In-Law Adoption (Ruth 1:1–18). In the midst of calamity people of God driven by fear, not faith, go off on their own. A bitter widow who accuses God of breaking his contract is blessed by her daughter-in-law who adopts her and her God. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Ruth
Ministry Legacy Dismantling (Nehemiah 13:1–31). After making a vow to support the worship of God (Neh 9:28), God’s people unravel what Nehemiah has done for the house of God. They won’t rest in God, but break the Sabbath. They don’t raise their children in the language of faith, but let them speak as pagans. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
Capital Project Celebration (Nehemiah 12:27–31a, 42b–47). The official and spiritual day of dedicating the completed wall comes. With all the people rejoicing loudly. God gave them great joy. As they are blessed through worship, the people of God pledge to support the Priests and Levites who lead worship. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
But Inattentive Disobedience (Nehemiah 9:26–38). God gives great goodness to his people, but they are disobedient and stiff-necked. They turn against God’s Word, acting wickedly but our great, mighty, awesome covenant keeping God rescues His people. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
LORD Alone Praised (Nehemiah 9:1–25). Together God’s people stand to read God’s word, confess and praise. The LORD shows he alone is the God who redeems his people. Where they continue their rebellion, God shows continued faithfulness because God is the righteous promise keeper. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
Clear Torah Understanding (Nehemiah 7:73b–8:18). Ezra brings the Word of God to the people. They weep as they receive both the Law and the Promise. They break the community down into small groups led by spiritual men. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
Inner Spiritual Triumph (Nehemiah 6:1–19). When your opposition comes up against God’s work they won’t fight logically or fair. Be asymmetrical. Focus on winning the inner spiritual battle to defeat your external opposition. Keep encouraging and rallying your people. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
Confrontational Account Calling (Nehemiah 5:1–19). Nehemiah as the leader confronts and calls out people who are taking advantage of other believers. Selfishness is always the root cause of internal discord among God’s people. Leaders must have courage to protect the faith community. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
Inevitable Frustrated Opposition (Nehemiah 4:1–23). Those opposed to God’s people resist and ridicule them. We are to be alert and in prayer. When we are despised, we turn to God trusting he will frustrate their plots. When we are fatigued and fearful we look to God to be renewed. #dailydevotion, #Lutherandevotional, #DailyPlunge, #DailyLectionary, #DailyScripture, #Nehemiah
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.
"SmartLess" with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett is a podcast that connects and unites people from all walks of life to learn about shared experiences through thoughtful dialogue and organic hilarity. A nice surprise: in each episode of SmartLess, one of the hosts reveals his mystery guest to the other two. What ensues is a genuinely improvised and authentic conversation filled with laughter and newfound knowledge to feed the SmartLess mind. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of SmartLess ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!