Author: Chet Bandy

I live in Bloomington, Illinois with my wife Shannon and 4 children. I grew up in Central Illinois with Lutheran roots. We moved to the area in 2011 and began attending Eastview Christian Church where I now lead a Small Group. It's been awesome to see God's plan for our lives and our growing thirst for knowledge of His Word and a closer relationship with Jesus through our move to Bloomington. Professionally, I'm a wealth management advisor with Northwestern Mutual.

The Only Bible..

Today’s reading is Titus 1.

The apostle Paul wrote this letter to Titus after leaving him in charge of the church in Crete. Chapter one is a prescription for church leaders or overseers called elders which in the original Greek was presbuteros. Here are some of his qualifications for an elder in Titus 1:7-9.

7 Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8 Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.

While many may read this chapter and never aspire to be an elder, we can all learn something from it. Although we will fall short and make mistakes because we are human, we all should aspire to be more Christ-like and live in a manner that reflects Him and His glory. As we read Titus 1 and these verses, we can see these attributes in Him and thus they are all attributes we should aspire to have. We should have a healthy reverence or fear of God and do our best to live like Him which is the way He wants us to. The life he lived and modeled is the standard we should aim to achieve.

When our actions reflect Him, some may not only be appointed to church leaders and at a minimum will please Him, but we will also draw others to Him. Famous podcaster Joe Rogan has recently been outspoken about exploring church and the truth that Jesus was the Son of God who died for our sins and was raised on the 3rd. Joe has been quoted as saying, ”Christians that go (to my church) are the nicest people you will ever meet. They are really kind.” While being nice does not save you or cause you to achieve eternal life (Romans 3:23) and only faith in Jesus does (Romans 6:23, John 3:16), our actions as a Christ-follower can trigger a curiosity and  “what’s different about them” questions in non-believers resulting in them exploring who Jesus is. They may want to get to know Him which may ultimately lead them to being saved.

Some of us may have heard the quote, “Preach the Gospel, and if necessary use words.” Earlier this week I attended an event for the North Central Illinois Fellowship of Christian Athletes (https://www.ncilfca.org/). This event featured many coaches and also high school and college student-athletes discussing their faith and how they can glorify God through sports and how it’s impacting others they play with and against. One of the high school athletes referenced a similar quote that impacted him which also hit me hard. He said was following…”You may be the only Bible someone reads.”

My encouragement for each one of us reading Titus 1 today would be to read it and the above Titus 1:7-9 and reflect on the attributes we believe we need to grow in. While we may never be called to be an elder, aiming towards and living in a way that reflect these attributes will be pleasing to God and may lead others to want to learn more about who He is which could also result in them finding eternal life in Heaven through belief in Him.

Worth It

Today’s reading on Thanksgiving is 2 Timothy 3.

For me our reading today has perfect timing, like God’s Word commonly does out of no coincidence, as a bookend to a parenting conference and Sunday sermon by Brook and Elizabeth Moser and team with Intentional Parents this weekend at our church. This chapter reminds us that especially during end times and throughout our kids and our lives we will experience evil people with a love for self and pleasure above all things who can tempt us to head down that wrong path (2 Timothy 3:1-5). We often talk as Christians about the fact that we want others to see us and think, “What makes him/her different?” We discuss how we can impact them and their faith walk with Jesus by them to deciding they want the joy and peace we have through the Gospel as well. That’s what’s fun to talk about. What we don’t often talk about is that others will see us as “different” and not only judge us and laugh at us, but we are told here in 2 Timothy 3:12 that “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ will be persecuted.” There is no sugar coating from Paul here, there is pain in parenting differently than others by doing it the way God wants. There will be difficulty and stones thrown at us and our kids for putting sin away and putting Jesus first.

Many of us are likely familiar with 2 Timothy 3:16..

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”

If you’re like me you may point to this verse for your conviction for all of Bible being the true Word of God and not only is it true, but we can’t pick and choose the parts we like and don’t like. I think then sometimes we can overlook the rest of the verse which tells us how that helps us…”for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” Again, if you’re like me you might easily stop there and not focus on finishing the sentence which is in 2 Timothy 3:17,”(so) that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” There will be fruit in following God’s Word despite the difficulty and persecution we will face. Who doesn’t want to be “complete” and “equipped for every good work” God has and wants for us?

Many of us can easily fall into the trap of saying we just want to raise good kids. But, good kids will not have an eternal life in Heaven if they don’t accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior when they die. The number 1 goal for us as parents should be to raise kids who have a heart and love for Jesus so strong that they will not stray from Him, their belief in Him, and His ways when they leave our house.

So parents, let us unite and win this battle together. We can have confidence we can do this as we are told here that God’s Word will help us be “complete” and “equipped for every good work.”

Let us pray..

Dear God, we love you. And today on Thanksgiving we are grateful for you and your Word which not only teaches us how to live and raise our kids, but also for the fact that you gave us your Son in the person of Jesus who was persecuted far worse than most all of us ever will experience for following you and your will, all the way to the point of death because He knew it was worth it. He followed your will for each one of us so that we could have eternal life. Although our children will make their own personal decision to follow Jesus, please help us know that following your will and leading them well to point them to You will also be worth it for our children despite the difficulty and persecution. Please help us do our part so that we can lead by example to help each one of our children accept and follow you in order to experience eternal life through your saving grace. Again, we love you and we are eternally grateful today on Thanksgiving and every day for doing for us what we could not do for ourselves. Amen.

Heart Check

Today’s reading is 1 Timothy 6.

In reading 1 Timothy 6, the 2 words that came to mind to me were “heart check.” Paul warns us of conceited teachers who want to bring attention to themselves and bend and twist the true Word of God (1 Timothy 6:3-5) and the problems that occur when our heart is focused on being rich financially (1 Timothy 6:6-10).

When it comes to monetary wealth, Paul encourages us to practice contentment in 1 Timothy 6:6 where he says, “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” He reminds us in the next verse 1 Timothy 6:7 that “we brought nothing into the world so we can take nothing out” and in 1 Timothy 6:9-10 that the love of money can be a “snare” leading to “destruction and ruin” and that “that the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” He reminds us that if we have “food and clothing, with these we ill be content” in 1 Timothy 6:8.

So, is being rich or wealthy a sin? I really don’t know..I’ll say maybe. What is “rich?” Some might say having a net worth of $1 million or $2 million or more might be rich, while some in other countries outside the US might say making $20,000-30,000 per year is rich. I know people that most would agree by US standards are very wealthy, and they are incredibly generous in giving to the church and those that are less fortunate. However, some might say they should have never obtained that wealth if they were as generous as they “should have been” along the way. To me, it’s all between that person and God. He knows the condition of our heart 100% of the time. He knows if we are “content’ as He calls us to be in this chapter or if we want more not just to buy more stuff and show off our wealth, but if we want more to find our security and peace in that instead of Him. He knows if we are being generous with our money that we may also be saving and growing at the same time so that we can provide for ourselves when we can’t work or maybe want to devote our time to volunteering and working for His Kingdom 100% of the time, rather than to make money to provide for ourselves at that moment.

God gave us money. Money is not evil in and of itself. It can be used for good for His Kingdom, but without a doubt He makes it clear in 1 Timothy 6:10 that “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.”

So, give yourself a “heart check” today like I am.

Am I hyper focused on worldly wealth, money, and financial gain?

Am I looking to find security in money and wealth alone?

Or, am I content?

Am I grateful and satisfied with what I have?

Is God enough?

A Place Like None Other

In today’s reading, Psalm 93, we read about how the Lord reigns, He is robed in majesty, and His throne is everlasting (Psalm 93:1-2).  I’m not sure whether it was the recent passing of my Uncle Tim, our recent readings in Bible Journal of 2 Thessaloniansn on end times when  conflict in Israel is in the news, a recent sermon/podcast on angels, or likely a combination of all of them…but I have definitely been thinking more as of late about what Heaven will be like.
Once one develops a healthy fear of God and yet an understanding of how great God’s unconditional love and grace is and reads their Bible…it’s exciting to imagine what it will be like to meet Him in Heaven and what Heaven will be like. Although there is still more God has not yet revealed to us, there is lot throughout the Bible, including in the book of Revelation, that tells us what it will be like there. One of those places in Revelation is Revelation 7.
Revelation 7:9 tells us…
“After that I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes with palm branches in their hands.”
Revelation 7:10-12 goes on to say how the angels will join in and singing praises and worshiping God. And later in Revelation 7:14-17, John tells us our robes will be white washed with the forgiveness from His blood and none of the things that cause us pain and sorrow will be there in Heaven. We will be as God intended us to be, one with Him in peace.
With all the division we see in the news and on socal media both in the US and abroad, it so encouraging to think about the peace and unification that will come for all believers from all nations, tribes, and languages in Jesus in Heaven worshipping Him together…a “great multitude”…with angels! Here on Earth, I feel a connection to God and a oneness with Him and others when we sing worship songs in church and I’m in awe when I see a large stadium doing so. How much greater will this be in Heaven when we don’t have the distraction of pains here on this Earth weighing on our minds, when we are one with our Savior, and we are singing with billions of other saved souls and the same angels who sang at Jesus’ birth in Luke 2:14…”Glory be to God in the highest!”
As the famous song says, I can only imagine…
If you are feeling sad, hurt, or anxious today, I pray you can find peace in the temporal reality of this life here on Earth and the eternal reality of joy and oneness without pain in Heaven with Him.
My encouragement is to listen to the song Home by Chris Tomlin and I Can Only Imagine by Mercy Me.

A.C.T.S.

Today’s reading is Psalm 86.

Prayer is always good. We should not worry about whether we have the “right” words to say to God. It is just a conversation with God.

And while I believe the above to be true, I do believe we can improve our prayer life to better connect with God and His will for and in our lives.

With the now 13U boys baseball team I help coach and lead devotionals, we’ve gone from being very thankful that they will volunteer to pray at aall to now trying to help them grow a little bit more in the prayer life, instead of just saying, “Lord…please help us get this Dub..(W for win)”

One way to help us connect with God better and His will in our lives is to have a framework or a method/process. One that I use that we have taught the baseball boys is A.C.T.S.

A – doration

C – onfession

T – hanksgiving

S – upplication

My first thought when reading Psalm 86 was, “Wow..what a prayer!” My second thought was how much we can learn from this awesome prayer and while it doesn’t go the same A.C.T.S. order, it definitely nails all 4 areas and then some.

My encouragement would be to read and praythis prayer in Psalm 86. We can learn a lot from a prayer written by a man, David, who God called a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). As you read and pray it, pay attention to these verses that hit on the different parts of A.C.T.S. and enjoy!

Adoration…

Psalm 86:2, Psalm 86:5, Psalm 86:7-10, Psalm 86:12-15

Confession…

Psalm 86:6

Thanksgiving…

Psalm 86:4, Psalm 86:12-13

Supplication…

Psalm 86:1-4, Psalm 86:6, Psalm 86:11, Psalm 86:16-17

The Battle is Real

Today’s reading is Psalm 81.

Psalm 81:1-3 begins with an instruction to worship the Lord with songs, instruments, and praises. There is then a reminder to Israel of what God has done for them in Psalm 81:6-8 and then a warning to listen to God and put him first in Psalm 81:8-12. This is followed by a promise to provide for Israel when they put God first in Psalm 81:13-16.

Over the last few months it seems as though we’ve seen a substantial number of mass shootings, including multiple in churches with one this past weekend. This is in addition to many other heinous crimes in the news. Despite these terrible events, I’m more encouraged than ever in my 42 years on this Earth that the people of the United States are turning back to God. I’m not going to site all the sources, but you can quickly do your own research to find that there are increased Bible sales, increased streams of Christian music even out pacing top secular artists, and church attendance and baptisms are growing rapidly. What’s maybe most encouraging is that Generation Z (those born between 1997-2012) is leading the way in these areas. Our youth, the future of our country and the ones who will are and will be getting married and having kids, is turning to God. Praise the Lord!

Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

1 Timothy 4:12

Boy are they ever, and I could not be prouder. It seems as though a revival is happening through them and also carrying over to older generations as well.

So why are all the other terrible events happening we read about in the news and maybe even see firsthand? God is real, so that means Satan and evil is real. In fact, I’ve seen some saying on social media that recent terrible events prove evil is real so that God also must be real, spurring them to go to church.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:12

The Bible tells us the battle between good and evil, spiritual warfare, is real. Satan is fighting back. But, God also tells us in Bible from the very beginning when sin entered the world that He would defeat it through Jesus.

He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.

Genesis 3:15b

As a recent popular saying on shirts says, Jesus won. He defeated sin and the grave through His Resurrection so we can too when we give our life to Him. Let us remember that as we see evil and let us pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to win hearts in our country and throughout the world one by one.

He Is

Today’s reading is Colossians 1.

The last few weeks has been tough for most in our country. We’ve seen multiple school shootings yet again, an innocent Ukrainian immigrant Iryna Zarutska who was trying to escape war in the US stabbed and killed, more shootings in the inner cities that happen so frequently the individual names (only numbers usually and unfortunately) make the national news, and of course the murder of Charlie Kirk.

These events have caused heavy hearts and some unity, but yet still more division too with some judging others about how they should be just as, or more upset, about X event as Y event.

If you are reading this as a Christ follower…please pray that we stop this. ALL these heinous events are terrible and evil coming from Satan. We must stop judging other Christians and calling them hypocrites because they do more or post more or call to action for change on one topic, but don’t on another you are passionate about. This is EXACTLY what Satan wants. He wants to break the church and God’s people from within through division.

Maybe this is a poor analogy, but it’s one that just came to mind to me. Many of us have organizations/charities that we give to or volunteer with. There are certain things that tug on your heart that you feel called to give or help with. Do we judge other Christians because they give or volunteer with one cause which is still good, but not the one that you feel passionate about that is also good? I hope not.

I realize there are also more complex topics that one Christian would call an atrocity and the other might think it is actually good. My one prayer is that we discuss these topics with other Christ followers… and not just lash out on social media calling the other hypocrites. That will not solve anything. I’m not saying be silent… I’m saying let’s seek to understand in a one on one or a different setting. There’s probably some good and some wrong in your thinking and probably some good and some wrong in the other’s thinking. But having a real talk and conversations about these topics and finding commonality in Jesus and His love is where we come together and create unity in Him instead of more division like Satan wants.

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”

Colossians 1:15-20

If we look at those who cheered the death of Charlie Kirk who are very far from Jesus all the way to those who mourned deeply over his death to those who believe his killing was wrong, but yet vehemently disagreed with his position on many topics… the only way we find hope and healing and unity is through Jesus.

We are ALL sinners separated from God because of our sin in need of a Savior. Verse 20 tells us through Him we can find reconciliation and unity. It tells us His blood is the only thing that can bring us peace and save us from our sin.

He is the only way we all find hope and healing in our individual hearts and together despite our differences.

This song by Crowder and the title of this post He Is has been what I have felt God laying on my heart this week.

My prayer is that it will impact others and again that we can find hope and healing in Him together.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9s7GogPKCg&list=RDy9s7GogPKCg&start_radio=1

God’s Word Over Everything

Today’s reading is Philippians 3.

In these verses Paul tells us he has a reason to boast based on his upbringing and status, but that he has counted it as a loss for the sake of Christ in Philippians 3:4-7. He later says that righteous does not come from him or the law but through faith in Christ (Philippians 3:9).

Later he expands to say…

“Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many, whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.

Philippians 3:17-19

Today we see many churches and pastors bowing down to what culture says is ok and acceptable, rather than what the Word of God says. We see Satan twisting things so that churches and people think what’s good is bad and what’s bad is good. He tricks people into thinking truth and following God’s Word is not love, but hate. When Paul says “their god is their belly” in Philippians 3:19, he means they are only worried about satisfying the hunger of their worldly desires. They either don’t take time to worry about if it’s ok by God or they disguise what is wrong as love and call what is love hate.

So, let us be on the lookout. Whether we part of a non-denomination church or a denomination that has been around hundreds or years or whether the local church you are a part of has 40 people or 4,000 or whether it’s pastor has been there 4 weeks or 40 years….we must ask ourselves..

  1. Is this church and its leaders teaching us to follow what the Word of God truly says?
  2. Is this church and its leaders actually living out what they are teaching or is their walk different than their talk?

Let us pray that under mounting pressure to change and adapt to keep up with the times, we do not change and deviate from God’s Word and that we have the wisdom to recognize whenever we or our church and its leaders are tempted to do so.

For our citizenship is in Heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Philippians 3:20

Psalm 58 Reflections

Today’s reading is Psalm 58.

For most of my readings and writings I can read the chapter(s) and usually form my thoughts and what I will write about fairly quickly. Sometimes it does change as I reflect on it and wait a few days to put it on paper, but I gain clarity and am confident in my theme(s). However, I have to admit that I had writer’s block for Psalm 58 so I read a few commentaries. I will share a few of my learnings and takeaways.

Psalm 58 is titled “To The Choirmaster: According To Do Not Destroy. A Mitkam of David.” The Hebrew word “mitkam” can sometimes be translated as “golden” with some referring to this as one of David’s 6  “golden” Psalms, or it can also be translated as “engraving.” Many believe this Psalm 58 where David writes about unjust and bad earthly leaders (Psalm 58:1-2) to be about Saul and his supporters with the possibility of this being called a “mitkam” because David engraved this on a cave wall while hiding from Saul and his supporters. While this is speculation, it can be imagined as a possibility considering the alternate translation for “mitkam” and the fact that David hid in caves from Saul.

David goes on to say in Psalm 58:3-5 that evil people are inherently evil from birth. No one teaches them to lie some commentaries say. He goes on in Psalm 58:6-9 to ask God to intervene and stop their evil ways. He doesn’t just ask God to change their heart, he asks for them to be destroyed. Yet, we see that David had two chances to kill Saul in a cave in 1 Samuel 24 and entering his camp while he was sleeping in 1 Samuel 26, but he did not take destroying him or the vengeance he speaks of in Psalm 58:10 into his own hands..he leaves it to God. We can learn from this because it some point in our life we will have an adversary and probably have the opportunity to take justice into our own hands and make them pay for their sins. What will we do?

The last 2 verses, Psalm 58:10-11, discuss “the righteous” rejoicing when they finally see God’s vengeance against evil people and also as proof there is truly a God who exists and judges. When I read this, it didn’t seem right for me to take joy in God’s vengeance on the unrighteous. However, I read something credited to author Maclaren which in summary said that if it is right for God to destroy, it cannot be wrong for his servants to rejoice that He does so. They just must take notice and watch that their joy is not for selfish reasons though. This is interesting perspective.

My final thoughts and reflections as I close is reading Psalm 58:10 about how the righteous will rejoice when vengeance of the evil occurs made me ask the questions..Who is righteous?…Am I righteous? David committed adultery and had Uriah killed. Is he righteous? We are only righteous through the saving grace and blood of Jesus on the cross when we come to God with a broken heart from our unrighteousness and sin as David modeled in Psalm 51. Let us reflect, confess, repent, and give thanks for that today and every day.

So Will I

Today’s reading is Psalm 53

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”

They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity;

there is none who does good.

Good looks down from Heaven,

on the children of man

to see if there are any who understand,

who seek after God.

Psalm 53:1-2

I’ve heard it said before that atheism is religion, and it takes more faith to believe that all creation spontaneously came from nothing than to believe it was all made by our Creator. It’s hard to argue with those statements. All you have to do is look at the beauty around you in nature. Creation speaks to us…yes..even for those of us who live in flat, boring Central Illinois. The beauty of the sunrise and sunset, a bird flying by, the trees, and even a cornfield.

This is probably why Psalm 53:1 says only a fool says, “there is no God.” I don’t want God to look down and see me and make the statements He does here about all being corrupt, and no one doing good. We don’t need to impress God…but I don’t want Him to look down and include me as part of those statements. I want Him to be proud of me like a father is of his son.

How can I make Him proud? An easy way is to acknowledge His power and see His power and Him through His Creation.

I could go on and say more, but a friend recently brought the song, “So Will I,” to my attention again through a Facebook post. The lyrics of this song to go along with the pictures in this You Tube video are truly breathtaking and say more than I could. So…I’ll keep this short and ask you to use any remaining time you set aside to read this to watch the video instead. It has 13 million views if you need any further motivation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2U7ffUM5Ec&list=RDC2U7ffUM5Ec&start_radio=1

(Photo Above Taken on Malawi, Africa visit – April 2025)