November 14: Philippians 4 2-7

Key Verse: Philippians 4 6
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

Devotion:
When this letter was written to the Philippian people it was a very encouraging letter that was to reach out to all people in the church, the body of Christ. As with all gatherings, or groups of people, there are always disagreements and upsets as people try to get their own ways and begin to try to stamp their own authority on the gathering – that is just our human side coming out and one we should be recognising within ourselves before it blows up in our faces!

It was probably quite clear to people on the outside that things were not as right as they should be in the church in Philippi and this letter was to try and address the situation as soon as possible. The last thing we need in our churches is division and disagreements. There is normal disagreement which is healthy and makes us stop and think ensuring we are doing what is right and not just what we want, and then there is the disagreements that split churches because of upsets.

When we work toward the same goal of living with God’s Word in our lives we should be growing stronger together as we begin to see what is right. When we grow stronger together we tend to love each other more and that should allow us to work closer and better together. Christ came to try to forge links between us and not to break us apart. We should be doing the same to the people around us… which is not always as easy as it seems.

When we open our mouths, someone, somewhere is going to take things the wrong way if we are not careful. So thinking before we speak is vital for a congregation who want to grow together. We need to show that love toward each other that Christ reached out with. That love which binds us together is much stronger than anything, but those words we let loose can damage us and others so that we don’t want those bonds to grow. Unity is vital in any church. That unity comes from a real deep-seated love for each other.

Points to Ponder:
Do you encourage togetherness?

Are you following Christ’s example?

November 13: Habakkuk 3 17-19

Key Verse: Habakkuk 3 19
The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, And He will make me walk on my high hills.

Devotion:
Habakkuk was a prophet who was very concerned with getting people to hear the word of God and to know Him so that they may be able to join Him in heaven. Unfortunately he saw how so many people were turning away from God and not treating Him with reverence and fear as they should. He saw just how much trouble people could get into by disobeying God and also how much trouble his own people would get into by ignoring God.

Habakkuk also realised that people had to have faith in God and not just to wait until God did things. He expresses this faith by relating the bad times with the lean times during famines and the like when the most plentiful crops such as figs and grapes would no longer be growing everywhere but would be scarce. During those times the people would have to have faith that God would supply their needs and it was that faith that he was trying to get people to understand that they needed.

It can be easy to show faith in something when you know there is a very high likely hood that it will be OK, but when things are going wrong all around you, it can be difficult to trust in something that you may think will not happen.

God is the God of the impossible and not just a god who can do things that you expect to happen all the time. We need to make sure that we do not give in when the going gets tough, but rely fully on God during those times. We need to remember all that He has already done for us so that we can know His awesome strength in comparison to what we see in the world around us. Let us take the power of nature and realise that God has even more power than that!

Points to Ponder:
Do you give to others?

Are you giving them His Word?

November 12: Isaiah 25 1-5

Key Verse: Isaiah 25 3
Therefore the strong people will glorify You; The city of the terrible nations will fear You.

Devotion:
I should imagine that Isaiah got a bit weary of telling about the impending doom and destruction of so many places that it was a blessing to be able to praise God in this chapter. I really do not like telling people bad news and certainly do not like having to talk about it in front of people in a church. I mean, most of the people will come to church to be blessed, to feel happy about what is to come, to look for love and support; very few come to be told off or to be told about the death and destruction that is coming to get them!

Isaiah stuck to the truth that God had told him to. He told the people just as God had instructed him to do so and that would not have been such a good thing to do! But he did it. Why? Because God had instructed him to do so. We have to be willing to do that for God as well. We should be willing to tell people about all the bad things that may happen as well as the good things. We must be willing to tell people the truth as it is and not as we want to believe.

God is just and holy! The things He has done for all mankind are truly extraordinary and need to be talked about this side of heaven. It is these things that God allows us to read about and these things that allow us to grow in faith and wisdom as we listen to that truth! It is the people who are listening to God who will come out better than before. God’s Word is going to stand forever, not because it is a best-selling book, but because the content of that book are what makes it a best seller!

When we stand up and allow God to guide us on our feet we get to find out just how awesome our God really is. We get to hear the truth and that truth sets us free. Yes I know that phrase is over-used but it is simply true! Fear God, believe the truth and allow Him to change your life!

Points to Ponder:
Do you live in a God-fearing nation?

What is stopping you fearing God inside your heart?

November 11: Psalms 33 10-12

Key Verse: Psalms 33 11
The counsel of the Lord stands forever, The plans of His heart to all generations.

Devotion:
How many times have you watched or listened to the news and wondered why on earth the people they are talking about have done what they say they have done? I’m not talking about the funny parts at the end of news bulletins when they tell us about the strange things that people get up to but the very news itself where we hear what governments get up to! We sit in wonder…

God has given us the bible so that we can understand many things, not just the history of the world and of the people of God but the things of this world and its people as well. We see what many have done before us in the bible and we get to hear how people do it over and over again – those same mistakes and those same failings! So why do people continue to get it all so very wrong time and time again?

I guess they do because they are like us and they make mistakes. But if they are not going to think about the mistakes they make and they are not going to wonder how they can fix some of those or avoid making those same mistakes over and over in the future, then they will not learn about how to make the world a better place. I’m not saying everything can be fixed with a little thinking, but there is a whole lot of things that can be avoided by people taking a few seconds or minutes to think before they speak or before they do things.

God really would like for us to think about what we are going to do before we rush off and do things. If we think about things and compare them against the stuff God would like us to be doing, we may just be able to make some good choices that will bring back good things into our own lives as well as the lives of others. We have choices to make; so let us start by making a few positive choices and allowing God to guide us through those choices!

Points to Ponder:
Do you always make the right choices?

Will you allow God to come into your choices?