September 25: Matthew 6 9-13
Key Verse: Matthew 6 9
In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
Devotion:
My grandmother used to teach me this, the Lord's prayer, when I was young. But I never got to fully understand the prayer until I got to know Christ as a true Christian. It was then that I realise just what a wonderful prayer it is and how it should make us happy! We, as Christians, should always have something (or more exactly, someone) to celebrate!
Our first step in our prayer is to remember just who we are speaking to. God is the one true God that is in heaven. We have to make sure we remember this too as these words say and keep his name holy. Using “Oh my God” as an exclamation or some of His other names as swear words is just like slapping Him in the face! This prayer is our reminder and our promise that we are going to try hard to keep His name holy and not lower it to “gutter” level!
Remembering that He is indeed in heaven just as He has told us and waiting there just as He has promised us is a great comfort to us – but we do need to make sure we remember that too! Remembering it is through Him we get our daily provisions, both physical and spiritual reminds us He is our Saviour and provider. When we say this prayer to Him, it shows Him we do know He is all-powerful and that we need Him every day. (There is nothing more encouraging to us than others telling us we are needed!)
Christ alone has the power to forgive us of our sins. He willingly paid for our sins on that cross almost 2000 years ago. He, by that action, promised us He is willing to forgive us – all we need to do is ask for forgiveness! His promise to never corrupt us has always been kept, but we need His help every day to stay clear of evil temptations in our lives – because, once again, He is the only one who can save! And the best part... He has promised this all to us and He continues to deliver every day!
Points to Ponder:
Do you like it when people forgive you for doing something wrong?
When was the last time you asked God to forgive you?
September 24: Acts 26 19-29
Key Verse: Acts 26 20
but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.
Devotion:
How many people have you watched in shows or on TV where you have thought or said “they are mad”? Not just because the said strange things, nor of their actions, but because they did something which was extraordinary and potentially dangerous... Quite often we do turn round and describe people as mad when they do what look like dangerous stunts.
Paul was so described by Festus because of his actions against King Agrippa – nobody was bold enough to stand up to King Agrippa and say that some other God should be worshipped rather than him or his gods. Paul was seen to be standing up against the king and against the Jews. He could quite easily have been put to death for either one of these actions – but he did them because he knew that he had to stand up for God's Truth so others would be encouraged!
Have you ever been told you are nuts to believe in the Bible? What a pleasure it is to know you have inside knowledge when those about you are struggling for that knowledge. All you have to do is to continue showing them you stick to your truth, even when they call you mad or stupid – not because you rebel against them, but because you are happy to stand up for the truth! It is this sort of encouragement that will make others turn to God to find out the truth which we have.
King Agrippa's words to Paul “Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian” must have been a great encouragement to Paul. Knowing he had sown the seeds into the king’s heart and knowing how the Holy Spirit could now quite easily persuade the king of his guilt of sin and his need for repentance and forgiveness, must have been really encouraging. It should be our hearts desire that all around us should be saved, both friend and enemy – for if we were all saved, we would have no enemies!
Points to Ponder:
What do your friends think of you being a Christian?
Do your friends know, or are you hiding God?
September 23: Galatians 5 19-26
Key Verse: Galatians 5 26
Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
Devotion:
You could probably look around you and name people who are doing things wrong as listed in these verses today. You will also probably be able to say they are guilty of more than one of the sins listed, but that is because they all go together. When we start getting involved with one of the problems listed in verses 19 through 21, we get caught up in a few of the others too. We are easily lead when we have already started on the downhill slope.
Every one of these problems listed are all to do with oneself. Be it letting oneself go or going with the flow or showing off... each are not lead by God, but lead by oneself. Each one is also clashing with the law, something many seem to think is a good thing! Each one is turning your back against God and doing it “in His face”. Despite some people trying to persuade us this is all part of human nature, it is not. You know this within yourself because when you get to do any of the problems listed, you just know it is wrong. Despite trying to convince yourself it is ok, you just know the first time it is wrong. How? Because God did not make us to do all those things wrong; He made us to follow Him.
God gave us the spirit to love, find joy, live in peace, be patient, show kindness, goodness, have self-control and to be faithful to Him. There is no law written which says that any of these are wrong. If someone has created their own law against any of these, then we know it to be false. God has given every one of us these same principles built in, ready to go and ready to separate us from evil.
This is where we get the choice. Do we follow our own lusts and get involved with too many problems, or do we go back to basics and follow our instincts and find God? People start out by provoking others, seeking to glorify themselves or envying others. Following those feelings (lusts) are never going to get you close to God, but they will make sure that you stay far from Him!
Points to Ponder:
Do you like showing your friends how much better you are than them?
Why try show God that you think you are better than Him?
September 22: Matthew 7 7-11
Key Verse: Matthew 7 7
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
Devotion:
Ok, now it's time to think about the way you are towards other people – especially friends... What do you do when a friend asks you to do something? What sort of things do you get asked to do? And how many of those people would you be willing to do almost anything in your power for? If you are like me, then when someone asks you to do something, you try your best to accommodate them; not because you are a push-over, but because you want to help wherever you can.
But what happens when you are in a bad mood? Do you still keep to the same standards or do you start to say no to people even when you can do what they want? What happens when someone continually asks different things of you and seems to be taking advantage of you? Are your responses based on the way you feel at the time? The one thing about God is that He is constant! You know He will never change! He is not going to have mood swings!
That is why we should treasure verses like these where Jesus is addressing each one of us: “knock and it shall be opened to you.” He is promising us that He is faithful to answer our prayers. He promises us that if we ask, we will receive. He promises that if we ask Him into our lives He will not turn away. He promises us that He will never leave us!
But the best thing that He reminds us of is that we will get what we ask for because of His love for us! He compares His love for us like that of a father for his children. He wants us to see He is willing to go even further for us than we expect – just like our parents have done and continue to do for us... Just when we need them, they seem to be there... Just when we need God, He is always nearby. We just need to ask and we will receive.
Points to Ponder:
Do you help your friends and family?
Are you willing to allow God to do things for you?
September 21: Luke 1 5-25
Key Verse: Luke 1 16
And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.
Devotion:
It is often said we should be careful for what we wish for... But with Christ, that should be “be careful for what you pray for”; not because God may give it to you, but because we need to know that Christ will listen to our prayers and will answer them!
Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth were a couple who were living for God. They listened to what God wanted them to do and they obeyed. They had obviously had many prayers about asking God for a son and they would have probably given up by now because of their age. But the one thing they had forgotten is that God always answers prayers – but He does so in His own time so He will be glorified, and not us!
Far too often we ask for things because we think we need them whereas God knows exactly what we do need and will provide for us. That does not mean we have to give up asking because if we give up, then we are showing God we don't really think He is listening – We need to show Him we believe! Zacharias certainly believed, and when he was in the temple and saw the angel standing next to him, he probably thought he was in a whole heap of trouble. But that angel had not come to dish out bad news, but good news – that they would have a son. Zacharias' problem was thinking this was an impossible situation for God to handle! But when God answers prayers, we need to know anything is possible through God! Zacharias had a price to pay for his unbelief... he was mute from that point on until the day he named his son John – just as the angel had said would happen!
When God gives a promise, He keeps it. That is why we need to think about what we pray for – we need to take care of our prayers because God has promised to answer them! We need to know He is God and He alone answers our prayers in full! We need to show others we believe and trust in a God that delivers!
Points to Ponder:
Do your friends always come through with every request you make?
Have you given up asking God for something in your life?