The Quill and Me—A Devotional Blog Featuring Oswald Chambers Reflections

Bible Verse Revelation 4:11 KJV "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." Reflection Revelation 4:11 reminds us that worship is not something we manufacture — it is the natural response of a heart that remembers who God is. He is worthy because He is the Creator. He is worthy because everything exists by His will. And He is worthy because our very breath is held in His hands. When life feels scattered or small, this verse gathers us back into the center of truth: We belong to the One who made all things, and our purpose is found in His pleasure, not in the world’s attention. Resting in that brings a quiet strength. Prayer Lord, You alone are worthy of glory, honor, and power. You created all things, and You hold all things together — including me. Teach my heart to rest in Your greatness and to find joy in belonging to You. Let my life reflect Your beauty and Your purpose...

Bible Verse Matthew 10:27 KJV "What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light; and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops." Reflection There are seasons when God draws me into a darkness that is not punishment, not abandonment, but a classroom. A hidden place where my eyes cannot lead, and my feelings cannot guide, and my usual ways of understanding fall silent. It is here — in the unlit spaces — that He teaches me how to hear. Darkness slows me down. It removes the props I lean on. It quiets the noise I didn’t realize I had allowed to settle around me. And in that quiet, God begins to speak in ways I would have missed in the light. He whispers, not because He is distant, but because whispering requires closeness. He hides me “in the shadow of His hand” until my ears grow sensitive again, until my heart stops reaching for explanations and starts reaching for Him. In the dark, I am not asked to analyze, interpret, or explain. I am asked to listen. To s...

Bible Verse 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 NLT Love is patient and kind.  Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude.  Love does not demand its own way.  Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged.  It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.  Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.  Love will last forever... And here is how the same passage reads in the KJV: Charity suffereth long, and is kind;  charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly,  seeketh not her own,  is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;  Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;  Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.  Charity never faileth: ... Reflection Love that suffers long and remains kind is not something we can manufacture on o...

  Bible Verse 1 Samuel 3:10 KJV "And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth." Reflection There is a kind of listening that goes deeper than sound — the listening of a heart turned toward God. Samuel’s simple reply, “Speak, for Your servant hears,” wasn’t dramatic. It was availability. It was willingness. It was a child leaning toward the voice he loved. I want to live with that same devotion of hearing. Not just catching the moments when God speaks loudly, but staying attentive when His voice comes through quiet things — a word, a person, a sunrise, a stirring in my spirit. Too often, I let my attention drift to what feels urgent, and I miss the One who is actually speaking. It isn’t that I don’t want to hear Him. It’s that my devotion gets distracted— by tasks, worries, and by the things I think I must do. And in that distraction, I become deaf to the very voice I long for. But God is patie...

Bible Verse Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." ("The unfailing love of the Lord never ends!  By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction.  Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day." -  NLT) Reflection Our God is an awesome God. His mercies rise with the morning light, steady and sure. Prayer Lord, You cause the sun to shine on us every day,  and the moon to rise for light at night. Every morning Your mercies begin anew. You are an awesome God, and we are blessed beyond measure. We praise You and thank You, Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen Glory to God in the highest. Selah ~ Quil

Bible Verse Isaiah 30:15 KJV "For thus saith the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not." (The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says, "Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it.") (NLT) Reflection Isaiah 30:15 is one of the most tender invitations in all of Scripture. God does not demand strength from us — He offers it. He does not ask us to run harder — He calls us to return. He does not shout over our noise — He waits for us in quietness. “In returning and rest shall ye be saved… in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength.” Strength is not found in striving. It is found in stillness — in turning back toward the One we’ve drifted from, in resting our weight on Him again. But like Israel, we often resist the very place where our peace is found. We...

Bible Verse Exodus 20:19 KJV "And they said unto Moses, 'Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.'"  ("And they said to Moses, 'You tell us what God says, and we will listen. But don't let God speak directly to us. If He does, we will die!'") (NLT) Reflection There is a kind of disobedience that never announces itself as rebellion. It doesn’t slam a door or shake a fist. It simply… doesn’t listen. Not because we are defiant, but because our love has waned, our reverence dimmed, our attention distracted. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” And when we finally see how often we have ignored Him, not out of hatred but out of indifference, shame overcomes us. Israel’s plea at Sinai exposes something familiar in us: “Moses, you speak. Not God.” We prefer the safe distance of a human voice. We enjoy testimonies, stories, sermons — anything that lets us nod politely without having to obey immediate...

Daily Verse Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV  "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths." Trust is not passive. It is the daily choice to release your own understanding and lean into God’s steady hand. When you acknowledge Him in the small things, the ordinary things, the confusing things, He shapes your steps with a wisdom you could never manufacture on your own. Let your heart rest in the One who sees the whole path, even when you can only see the next step. Prayer Lord, I trust in You. Shine Your light on my path. Grant me wisdom. Teach me Your ways. In Jesus' name, Amen  Rest your heart in Him, and let His wisdom steady your steps. ~ Quil

Bible Verse Isaiah 26:3 KJV "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee."  ("You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, whose thoughts are fixed on You!") (NLT) Reflection There is a kind of exhaustion that doesn’t come from work or worry — it comes from a starved mind. Not starved of information, but starved of God. Oswald Chambers reminds us that neglecting the mind is one of the chief sources of weakness in a servant’s life. We often wait for God to come find us, speak to us, stir us, or rescue us. But Scripture calls us to something far more intentional: Turn your thoughts toward Him. Fix your mind on Him. Look to Him and be saved.  A stayed mind is not a passive mind. It is a mind that chooses — again and again — to turn away from the noise, the idols, the impulses, the scattered thoughts, and to look toward the One who anchors us. God gave you a mind as a gift, not a burden. A mind that can remembe...

Bible Verse Isaiah 40:26 KJV "Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth." ("Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out one after another, calling each by its name. And he counts them to see that none are lost or have strayed away." ) (NLT) Reflection Isaiah calls God’s people to look up — to lift their eyes beyond the idols that have narrowed their vision and dulled their hearts. It is a startling reminder that spiritual blindness rarely begins with rebellion. It begins with distraction. With misplaced focus. With letting lesser things take the place of the One who made the heavens. Chambers presses this truth into us: our ability to see God is shaped by where we choose to look. When our thoughts circle around ourselves — our work, our expectations, our ideas of wha...