February 18: Psalms 27 11-14
Key Verse: Psalms 27 13
I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Devotion:
It is a great comfort to know that you have backup. When people go to war it is always good to know they have backup just in case they get into trouble of some kind. When we do something like start to learn to swim it is always good to know we have backup in the form of something or someone who floats! Just the same, the psalmist asks for that protection, but not just floatation devices, but more…
It is better to have backup that is going to help you to learn something new so you can move forward instead of just being rescued from a failure. It is more profitable to come out with more wisdom than to come out with a sore head. When we ask God to be our backup, what else should we be asking?
I have learned to ask God to give me wisdom to handle new situations as well as the protection against my enemies and my own stupidity! We don’t always get things right so we have to have someone close by who is willing to pick up the pieces; but it is better to have someone who is willing to try and put those pieces back together in the right order when we drop them all. God is always willing to teach us as well as protect us from the evil in our world.
Knowing God is close by gives us faith to continue forward; but it also encourages us to try harder with the things we have to do. Being confident that failure can just be a minor set-back instead of absolute failure means we are willing to try harder and longer than we otherwise would. Seeing how much God can do even while we are still here on earth even amongst the evil will give us that courage to try harder. Trust God and depend on Him more in your life!
Points to Ponder:
Do you know where God is?
Do you know He is close by right now?
February 17: Psalms 2 7-12
Key Verse: Psalms 2 8
Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession.
Devotion:
It worries me when I see nations trying their best to fight instead of getting on together. It worries me when I see nations thinking they are the most powerful and thinking they can do anything. We have no power, we have nothing and we are nothing without God; it is God who is allowing us to have the power we possess. When will governments wake up to the simple truth that God is in charge?
This Psalms talks quite plainly about God possessing all the power to build and destroy nations and yet so many will skip over it because they think they are the power behind their countries might. It will take something drastic for them to find out they have no power on their own. But let us not dwell on the negative side of this because God does give power, might, strength, wisdom and grace to us when we ask.
God wants us to ask so we can understand it is Him giving us answers to our prayers. God does not want us to be brought up like spoiled brats who just take everything and want more. God wants to have a good relationship with us where we come to Him with genuine requests and He answers them with love and compassion. It is our awesome God who is the power and might behind us all and we need to give Him the glory for that power.
Whether we are kings or slaves we need to look up to God with fear and understanding. When we understand His power we will be fearful of it and we can then ask things of Him in the right manner. God has already promised us He will be faithful to answer our prayers. God has already shown us He answers prayers throughout history. The closer we get to Christ returning the more we can expect prayers to be answered as He begins to gather nations together where so many are falling away from Him. Be strong and courageous and trust in answered prayers.
Points to Ponder:
How often do you pray?
Are you still asking with confidence?
February 16: Deuteronomy 34 1-8
Key Verse: Deuteronomy 34 5
So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord.
Devotion:
Just a little something I wanted to share after yesterday when we were shown that Moses and Elijah appeared before the disciples with Jesus. Why? To remind you that there is life after death and it is a wonderful life! If it were not then Moses and Elijah would probably have been complaining about the lack of comfort, or facilities or something or other! But instead it is a beautiful reminder that even though we may die on this earth, we have so much to look forward to afterward! All because of this amazing love God has for us…
God is compassionate. He wants to be able to show us just how much He cares for us; but that will only be shown to us when we are watching, waiting and listening. If we don’t watch, wait and listen then we will miss out on the compassion as it passes us by. Just because some people do not see the compassion does not mean that God has no compassion, it just means their eyes were closed to it!
God is faithful. When He tells us that we can have eternal life with Him it is not a suggestion, not a whim, not just whatever… it is a promise and God is faithful to deliver on those promises time after time! Even though we may lack faith at times, His faithfulness does not diminish. Even though we have serious doubts at times, He knows and continues on faithfully. His love never fails.
When God showed the three disciples this event it was with an encompassing bright light to remind us that His Light never fails and is all encompassing. The pure and beautiful light that God alone shares is a light that will uncover all things and allow us to see the absolute truth even when our love, compassion and faith fail. His Love never fails. His compassion is without end. His faithfulness is without question. Can you not see it now?
Points to Ponder:
Do you fear death?
Will you remember eternity?
February 15: Mark 9 2-8
Key Verse: Mark 9 4
And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.
Devotion:
If ever there was a moment for the disciples to put together all of the Old Testament and what Jesus was trying to teach them, this was it! The disciples would have known the stories about Moses and Elijah and probably were told them many times as children and many times as adults when they went to the synagogues; and now they were seeing things face to face – eye witnesses! It is one thing to have faith and believe the stories of old and trust that people have been telling you the truth, but to see the people in your stories face to face would have been magnificent!
This was an act of God and not just a couple of ghosts appearing before them. When God appeared before Moses it was with a great light and Moses himself was glowing from the meeting. Now Jesus was glowing as Moses and Elijah came down to earth to meet with Him. Bright lights are used to show things up so the truth can be told or shown. If you want to examine something closely then shining a bright light on it will help you to see the detail up close. When God meets with us he does not want us to go away without knowing the truth and without seeing things as they are!
The disciples would now see that Jesus is a part of the scriptures and not a different story to tell or some other prophet that came to us. Jesus Christ is the Son of God and is as much a part of the Old Testament as Moses and Elijah. Even under the microscope we will see this truth and it will be upheld.
Peter’s reaction was to want to build tabernacles for each of them just as they built the tabernacle for God when Moses led the people through the desert. His reaction was according to the scriptures. God made the answer quite clear – Jesus Christ is the Son of God and we need to listen to what He says. If we lose meaning through repetition of old stories, or lose meaning over time, then God will bring something into our lives to refresh the meaning to we can know Him better. God was bringing together the past, present and the future on the top of this mountain. The disciples now had the task of taking this truth and sharing it with others. What a glorious light!
Points to Ponder:
Do you switch on the lights to see things?
Will you use the Gospel as your light?
February 14: Psalms 100 1-5
Key Verse: Psalms 100 2
Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.
Devotion:
When we are thankful for something God has done or even just a little happier because He has given us something; tell people! How are we ever going to show people just how wonderful God actually is unless we tell people about the wonderful God that we have? When we are doing things for God we should not be doing them with a long face or complaining about what is happening, we should be doing so with gladness and joy to show people God is good!
Today is Valentine’s Day! How many people in a good relationship are sad? How many people who are in love with someone special are keeping it quiet? Today is a day when we celebrate our relationships or hope to make new ones in this world we live in; why not make this a day when we celebrate our relationship with God in a very special way?
I would not like to go to a concert where I was expected to be the lead singer because I know the noise that would come out! But that does not stop me from making a joyful noise to the Lord when I celebrate my relationship with Him. I am not afraid of letting people know I love God because I know He loves me and He is telling others about me. I do not lift up my name but rather the name of Jesus Christ as I bring glory to Him.
We would be nothing if it were not for God. We are dirt and He has made us into what we are. We must continue to remind people we have a God who loves us more than we can understand. We must continue to lift His name up and show people we are in love with a God who first loved us. I do thank Him that He has given me a heart that can love people without question because I know the love I share comes from Him to begin with and is true.
Points to Ponder:
Have you shared your love today?
Did you include God?