Happy New Year! 

Thank you for joining us on this journey through the Bible this year. The reading plan I have chosen for myself, and invite you to participate in, is the BibleProject: One Story That Leads to Jesus. You can find this in the YouVersion Bible app. This reading plan provides daily readings that will take us on a journey through the full text of the Bible. There is a wealth of explainer videos supplied by the BibleProject team.

The Bible translation I am using as my primary source this year is the New International Version (NIV). From time to time, I will compare and contrast other translations along with The Message paraphrase.

Who do you know who would benefit from joining us on this journey? You can forward these emails via the tools in the box at the top of the page. You can invite them to sign up via the form at davidgbowman.com.

As you know, there is no charge for these daily devotionals, and there never will be. There will never be any financial solicitations in this space.

Pray with me now that God would give us ears to hear and willing and obedient hearts to follow his words of truth and life.

With gratitude,
David Bowman

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Genesis 6:9 
This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God. (NIV)

This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.” (NLT)

This is the story of Noah: Noah was a good man, a man of integrity in his community. Noah walked with God.  (MSG)

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If you were to describe yourself with three words, what would you say?

If God selected three words to declare the kind of person you are, what would he say?

Genesis 6:8 in The Message says, “But Noah was different. GOD liked what he saw in Noah.” The NIV says, “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” 

Noah lived in exemplary contrast to the people of his day. 

Noah was a righteous man. He did the right thing the right way in the right timing for the right reason.

Noah was a blameless man. Accuse him of wrongdoing all you want, the charges never stick.

Noah walked in close fellowship with God. Our character is formed by the people we most closely associate with. Noah was righteous and blameless because he walked in close fellowship with God.

Whatever God wanted, that’s what Noah wanted, too.

Whatever God said do, he did.

Noah’s heart was like God’s. He thought God’s thoughts after him. He saw the world through God’s eyes. He listened carefully to what God said, knowing these were words of truth and life.

There is no one in the Book of Genesis so highly praised as Noah, not even Abraham. This does not mean he was perfect, a fact that becomes obvious soon enough. Even so, God could use this imperfect man in his plan to restart the human race from a better place than was the norm in Noah’s day. 

If God were to use your best character strength to build something new and wonderful, what would it be? Which of your character qualities are most fully aligned and attuned with the heart and mind of God? How can God use these to express his perfect love to our imperfect world?

What stops you from being called righteous, blameless, and faithful? How will you remove those impediments? How will you become a man or woman God could turn to as he rebuilds our broken world? 

These are good questions to ponder as we take our first steps in this New Year. The right answers make us better and make us better influences on others.

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I will walk faithfully with God so that his character shapes my life and blesses his world. 

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Our Father, make me a truly righteous man. Empower me to do the right thing the right way for the right reason in the right timing. Make me a blameless man. May accusations roll away from me like water off a duck’s back. Draw me ever closer into relationship with you so that I know your thoughts, agree with your will, and become more and more like you in everything I think, do, and say. Amen.