The Up Devotional

  • Drunk on novelty?

    One of the invisible values of our society is novelty. That means we often prioritize and cherish ideas that are NEW. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m a big fan of new ideas. The problem is when new ideas aren’t necessarily good ideas. When we’re star-struck with the “latest and… Listen ⇢

  • Advice from a veteran

    Today is Remembrance Day. In some countries it’s called Veterans Day or Memorial Day or Armistice Day. It’s a day to honour those who fought and died in the horrors of war. It’s a day to be thankful for those who served their country. And it’s a day to pray.… Listen ⇢

    Advice from a veteran

  • Satan

    A lot of people don’t think about Satan very much. Sure, they read about him in the Bible sometimes, and hear an allusion to him in a movie now and then. But he probably doesn’t really figure into their daily thoughts. But that’s the thing. He often DOES figure into… Listen ⇢

  • Temptation in the age of the quick fix

    Because you’re human, you get tempted. Like many other people you get tempted to do or pursue something that seems good at the time, but will immediately or eventually lead to harm in your own life or in the lives of the people around you. Some temptations are obvious. Like… Listen ⇢

  • When trauma and danger come

    In 2008 it rained for days and days in northern England. A family in Chester-le-Street went out for a walk. The 3-year-old daughter, Laura, wanted to jump in the puddles. So that’s just what she did. She ran toward a puddle at the side of the street and jumped! Then… Listen ⇢

  • No matter the chaos around you

    We live in turbulent times. In North America, over 40 million people are diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. There seems to be sabre-rattling between North Korea and America. There are natural disasters. Terror attacks continue in Las Vegas, Manhattan, and elsewhere. Plus, the past 100 years have been plagued with… Listen ⇢

  • Actively looking for opportunities

    All week we’ve been exploring how we can be wealthy (regardless of how much money we have). Our main verse has been 1 Timothy 6:18. Paul says: “Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.” So far I’ve asked… Listen ⇢

  • Leaving a legacy of wealth

    This week we’re probing the idea of how to be wealthy (without any money). In 1 Timothy 6:18 Paul writes, “Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.” Connected to this, on Wednesday we talked about having a real… Listen ⇢

  • When “More! More! More!” isn’t the answer

    In yesterday’s devotional I talked about how to be wealthy (without any money). If you missed it click here. For the next few days, I’m going to push us further on that same theme. Why? Because thinking this stuff through helps us live more abundant lives. In 1 Timothy 6:6… Listen ⇢

Meet the producer, Matthew Ruttan.

Matthew is a disciple, pastor, husband, and dad of three who lives in the psalms.

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The Up Devotional

Your 1-minute shot of soul espresso

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