October 31: Romans 9 14-18
Key Verse: Romans 9 16
So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.
Devotion:
Have you ever received a gift which you truly did not think you deserved? Or maybe things were the other way round and you expected to get something and did not receive it. That is the thing about God's mercy, we have no control over how and when He shows His mercy. It is not up to us when God will show His mercy, and we certainly cannot force Him into anything by doing anything!
Or, to put it another way, our self-will has nothing to do with God showing His mercy! The more that you dig into this truth, the more you will become aware that God is actually in control of everything and we are simply here to receive His mercy.
Why? Because He loves us so. God is willing to show us mercy when we don't think we deserve it. God is willing to help us out when we are sure we do not deserve any help. God is willing to go that extra mile for us when we are quite sure everyone should be ignoring us. But don't count on anything happening if you ignore God or walk away from His help. God's mercy extends to us so long as we continue to acknowledge His as our Creator and give Him all the honour and glory He deserves. That is where we all tend to fall short!
Just like Pharaoh's heart was hardened when Moses went to inform him God had declared the Children of Israel must be released, our hearts can often be hardened when things do not go the way we want them to. When things do go someone else's way, we often become hostile towards them and forget about our basic commandments, never mind the harder things in life.
Points to Ponder:
What do you do when you do not get your own way?
How do you think God feels when we do not follow His will?
October 30: Matthew 26 39-43
Key Verse: Matthew 26 41
Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Devotion:
Our biggest battle in life is... everything! We are tempted by so many things in our lives that we do tend to give in before we start in many walks of life. Temptations are all around us, and in many different disguises so we do not recognise them most of the time. When Jesus was praying in the garden of Gethsemane, His one simple request to the disciples was for them to stay awake and pray with Him. The temptation of “sleeping on the job” took them and they fell asleep whilst Jesus was praying. When He returned to find them asleep, He told them to pray so that they would not fall into temptation again. But once again they proved that the flesh is weak and fell asleep.
Little did they know about how grave a situation was looming. They did not know just what Jesus was about to face over the next few days. They did not know how important that short time of prayer would be. Had they known the situation, I'm pretty sure that they would have not given in to sleep. We find that many times in our lives – if we know the situation, we tend to do what is necessary to avoid problems. But if we are blissfully unaware of the situation, we get drawn into almost anything else!
We all do have a task at hand that we tend to ignore for the most part. One of the most important jobs we have is to continually pray, continually talk to God through prayer. It is also one of the jobs that seems to be most ignored in this day and age!
Another job we have is to spread the word of God. This does not necessarily mean going out and preaching on the street corner, but may simply be telling someone about the horrors that could be around the corner in hell, or the beauty and peace that is around the corner in heaven.
Points to Ponder:
Do you run a race to win or to just take part?
Why do we give up with our Christian duties so easily?
October 29: Job 21 7-16
Key Verse: Job 21 13
They spend their days in wealth, And in a moment go down to the grave.
Devotion:
One of the many things we battle with in life is the fact bad people seem to thrive on this planet. And because of that we question Christianity and the very existence of God. The one key verse in this passage today says it all... They do not know God, they have turned their backs on God... They refuse to worship God... And in return, when they die, there is nothing good waiting for them.
Job was a man under tremendous persecution; he was a devout man and everything was going wrong for him, but he held his head up high and continued to say God was God and that He (God) would not forget about him (Job). Like Job, we may find we face times of great hardship, or times of great sorrow, but what you can be sure of is that we have a tremendous place waiting for us in heaven and nobody can take it away from us. That may not sound as comforting as having all sorts of luxuries, but think about how much is accomplished in a day. Then think about how much is done in a week, a month, a year. Then think how much can be done in your lifetime. Then expand that a little to a few hundred years. You cannot imagine all that can be achieved in a millennium, and even that falls very short of eternity!
Job had a very clear view of how God saw him. In Job 23 10 “But He knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.”
He knew in his heart God would not forsake him, so he knew everything that was happening would simply strengthen his resolve, strengthen his belief, and strengthen his faith in a God who is looking out for each one of us.
Points to Ponder:
When things get tough, do you give in or try harder?
Why then do we give up on faith so quickly?
October 28: Mark 4 24-25
Key Verse: Mark 4 25
For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.
Devotion:
Once you become aware of the mansions you are building for yourself on earth, you will be able to avoid them. Once you become aware of the things that fill your life, you will be able to avoid them. Once you become aware that there is more than one god in your life, you can turn to the one True God. Once you have returned to God, you know there is only one way to heaven. Once you know that truth, you will know it is the truth!
Once you can look at the earthly lights and make out the real Light, then you can focus on that One True Light. Without that light, there is utter darkness. Once you become aware of what you are letting into your life, then you become aware of the damage it can do to your life.
Be aware of what you are letting into your life, be aware of the damage that it can do, be aware of what God wants in your life instead! Once you are aware of what God wants in your life, you will be able to let others see what is in your life and allow them to know the truth and to look for and find the truth in the same way you did.
Be careful of what you are letting into your life, because it will sway your thinking... What you are letting in is your food! What your eyes see goes into your heart and changes you. You do not have to close yourself off from the world unless you allow what you see to tempt and influence you; but be aware that opening up the doors may well allow in a whole lot more than you desire or can handle.
Points to Ponder:
Have you ever gone to a party and tried not to party?
Has God given you all you need to serve Him or not?
October 27: Mark 4 21-23
Key Verse: Mark 4 23
If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.
Devotion:
If you were to get a set of lights for your bike, would you hide them in the cupboard so that nobody would see them, or would you put them on your bike so that other people could see you at night and you could see where you were going? Each of us have eyes through which most of us can see. It is these eyes that give us warning of looming obstacles, or allow us to see wonderful gifts and sights. If we did not have those eyes, then we would not be able to duck as we went under a low branch, or step over a small wall in time.
Each of us has been given a truly remarkable brain. Even those of us who cannot see know our brains are an extraordinary creation. A truly remarkable computing device which can discern between things we find it hard to explain! It is this brain which allows us to find the truth.
Each of our bodies has in-built attributes to know the truth, to know about God and to allow us to make the right choices in our lives. We are similar to a car in that we are built to do a good job, but it is the driver behind the wheel that can destroy our reputation at a single crash! Equally, with a good driver behind the wheel, the car can be a live-saving entity. All it takes is for the right choices to be made!
If you have the ability to accept God’s Word into your heart, then put it on display so that others can be encouraged by it – don't hide it behind a Halloween mask! How are others going to know what a great job God has already done on your mind, soul and body if you do not use them to show how great a job He has done!
Points to Ponder:
Have you ever tried to think of all the good things your body can do?
Will you be steering your body to the scrap heap or to heaven?