Tuesday Reading: 2 Corinthians 5 11

Key Verse: 2 Corinthians 5 11

11  Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men. But we are revealed to God, and I trust also that we are revealed in your consciences.

Devotion:

It is that stage when you get to know God that you begin to build up a fear and respect for Him. While people do not yet know Him they neither fear Him nor respect Him; not fearing because they do not care for what He may be able to do and not respecting because they do not have a love for what He has already done. It is purely God’s grace which does prevent us from ending up in a dreadful position and it is the knowledge that we gain when we get to know Him that will give us that fear and respect.

Once we do have that fear and respect we should have no worries about telling others about our relationship with Christ because we have nothing to fear from mortal man in comparison to our Immortal God! But when we hold back we know that we are doing wrong because God is the one who sees straight through our issues. He can reveal the innermost feelings that we try to supress from others. He can reveal the fear so that we know it is there. That fear should not be hidden from others in fear of being shown us as being weak but rather put on display so that we can show our uttermost respect for God.

It is not our false show of strength that will convict others hearts but what God can reveal in us that will convict others. Don’t be afraid to show your feelings for God because He has never stopped showing the whole world about His feelings for you! It is not what we can do but what Christ does through and in us that will prick the hearts of others and allow them to see the truth for what it is rather than the pretence that many will try to hold up instead. God wants you to be honest because He has been honest with us. If we can show others a bit of Christ through us, then we are well on the way to doing what God would have us to do!

Points to Ponder:

Do you hide your feelings?

Do others know you love your God?

Monday Reading: 1 John 1 5-10

Key Verse: 1 John 1 6

6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

Devotion:

I read a quote from Hudson Taylor today which was “God's work done in God's way will never lack God's supply” and it got me thinking about things, again… Christ taught His disciples and us that He is the Light of the world; and being that light has many meanings but few are taught on a regular basis. We (I speak as the world) have grown scared of the light because when we get exposed to the light the world begins to see us for what we are. Things are constantly in the news about how rich people and celebrities have gone astray with various bad things but if truth be told that is what it is like for the majority of people nowadays.

We should not be looking that far to see the corruptness that surrounds us in our daily lives now because we live in a world that is hiding from the truth. When the truth comes out and others get to hear about it then we become ashamed of what we do – in other words when we get into the light and others see us for what we are, we become ashamed. It should not take a grand uncovering to shake us from our dark corners and bring us into the light because we should be walking in the light from the start!

If we do say that we have done nothing wrong then it is only because we are walking in the dark and are ignoring the things that we cannot see or more to the point we are hiding the things that we do not want others to see. God has no problem with seeing in the dark and we should never forget that! Christ is Light so whenever we get close to Him everything that we are trying to hide in the dark will get exposed… that is if we truly are walking with God. He wants us to walk in the light and He wants to forgive us. We need to draw closer and do things His way so that He can supply us with our daily needs.

Points to Ponder:

What are you hiding in the dark?

Are you trusting God or hiding from Him?

Sunday Reading: John 13 34-35

Key Verse: John 13 35

35  By this all shall know that you are My disciples, if you have love toward one another.

Devotion:

Whenever I read these verses I start singing  the song which uses these words; no doubt it will be stuck in my head and my heart for most of the day. If the words of one or two verses can invoke such feeling then imagine what the proper application of these words could do in our lives! Christ did not give these words lightly so that people would think that they are Christians simply by obeying His Word but rather that through obeying His Word we would get to know Him better and be able to live a better life in Him through those words.

Even though my thoughts about singing these words take me back to when I was at school, it is that awesome feeling of His love that reaches out to me through them that I love. God’s love is not a stagnant thing but lives with us each and every second of every day. God’s love reaches out to us through so many things around us; if we only take the time to stop, look and listen, we too will be re-charged by that love.

Christ wants each one of us to take on His Word, not just to read it but to bury it deep in our hearts so that we can know Him better each day. It is through living with Him in our lives that we learn of His unfailing love and His Awesome power. He alone is God and He alone can give us the peace and knowledge that surpasses everything else in our lives. That has got to start somewhere. If we reject others in our lives then we are building up a wall that will keep God’s Word out of our minds. If we turn our backs on others then we turn our backs towards God too. Embrace others. Embrace God!

Points to Ponder:

Do you think of others?

Are you thinking of God?

Saturday Reading: 1 John 2 12-14

Key Verse: 1 John 2 12

12  I write to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His name's sake.

Devotion:

How many times do you remember your parents saying to you “grow up” or “stop acting like a baby” or some similar phrase when you thought you were just enjoying yourself or feeling in need of some TLC? I can bet that we have all also used that sort of phrase against others just as it was used again us! But this is not what is being said in these verses…

What is being identified here is the relative growth in Christ of each of the people being addressed. We must never forget that even if we have been walking with Christ for a long time, that we will come up against people who either do not yet know Him, have only just got to know Him, or even have known Him far longer than us; and those ‘ages in Christ’ may not correspond to our physical ages! Each one of us is on a journey getting to know God, whether we know it or not, we are on that journey!

God wants each of us to continue learning from Him so that we can help others to get to know Him. Each and every day I go through God’s Word and He teaches me a lot from the very same words that may well have saved countless others before me. Each day He gives me a little more insight into His love and His life so that I can bring that same truth to you. Each day I grow a day older in Christ. Each day that I don’t get to sit and read His word is another day I grow stagnant and miss out on. If I never sat and went through His Word I would never get to grow up in Him but rather would stay as an infant, helpless and in constant need for support from those Christians around me. I thank God that He gives me wisdom each day to grow another day older in Him!

Points to Ponder:

Are you getting older?

Are you growing bolder in Christ?