Thursday Reading: Hebrews 6 10-12
 
Key Verse: Hebrews 6 12
12  that you be not slothful, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Devotion:
Do we really have to work for the rest of our lives? The more we find out about the economy the more we find out that our pensions and other savings are just earthly riches which grow and fade just as the world around us does too. So if we are trying to build up earthly riches, then we had better not be sorry when we find that they fade just when we need them! Don’t you just love it when you know that there is always a solution! God is just and righteous. He will always recognise the good works that we do – I am not talking about working hard to earn a good bonus so you can have a good holiday. The works I am talking of is the work that God wants us to do for Him.

No, we don’t all have to be preachers otherwise who would there be to sit in the pews and listen to the sermons. But God definitely wants us to be more involved with His work and less involved with the world around us. Sometimes when working late at night I wonder why I let myself in for work as a programmer but then I come back to programs written by others that allow me to spread God’s word and to encourage others; then I know why I am involved with doing this work as well as His work. As long as I can be a faithful worker and allow the people to know that I do it because I love God and not because I want their money, then I know I am glorifying my Saviour first of all!

No matter what line of work you are in or whether you have finally managed to retire, you must know that God is a just and righteous God who will continue to support the people that lift His name on high! We have a sure foundation. We have a rock upon which we can rest our faith. Our rewards should not just be monetary rewards but spiritual rewards that we can only get from a God that we know, trust and obey.

Points to Ponder:
What work do you do?

Do you take God with you into work?

Wednesday Reading: Proverbs 23 13
 
Key Verse: Proverbs 23 13
13  The lazy one says, There is a lion outside; I shall be killed in the streets.

Devotion:
What sort of excuses have you come up with lately to not do things? When I hear some of the excuses that I used to make when I was much younger I cringe at the thought that I had the nerve to actually think that anyone would believe them at all; yet at the time I probably used them with all the sincerity that I could manage. When it was time for me to come forward and take over the youth group at our church I wanted to come up with any number of excuses to try and put it off for a while – but God had other plans!

There are going to be times in our lives when we do not want to be the one who has to face what we may think of as a roaring lion in the streets but what actually is something God had planned for us all along. It is those times when we have to put aside our excuses and stand forward to be counted with God. He is the one standing waiting for us to take that step forward. He is the one patiently waiting whilst we work out our excuses! At that stage we are just like Jonah, wanting to run the other way from the pending doom that we have dreamt up. Just like the Children of Israel coming up with excuses not to go forward into the land that God had promised them, we make it sound oh so terrible out there.

Enough with the excuses! Now is the time to take a step forward and to be counted as one with Christ. We are not going to be eaten by any lions unless we step out the back door instead of the front door. Don’t let the evil one put doubts into your head when Christ has asked you to step forward with Him. There is nothing he can do against Christ.

God has a job for each one of us to do and each one of those jobs is just as important as others because it is part of His plan. We do not know His plan, but we sure can be a part of it if we are willing to take on anything in His name. You never know, you could be the next lion tamer!

Points to Ponder:
What is your favourite excuse?
 
Do you really think God cannot see through you too?

Tuesday Reading: Ecclesiastes 11 1-6
 
Key Verse: Ecclesiastes 11 6
6  In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening do not withhold your hand; for you do not know what shall be blessed, either this or that, or whether they both shall be fruitful in the same way.

Devotion:
When you have many things in life you do not look at the small things in life that matter. When you have nothing in life you look at the small things as though they were big. Our perception of things in life changes with our surroundings and our wealth both physical and spiritual because we measure and compare our wealth all the time. What Solomon was trying to teach others was that if we do have wealth in anything then we should be sharing it with others. What we may count as wealth may well be someone else’s normal living; what we count as dross may well be someone else’s hope.

We do not know God’s ways because we cannot understand the intricacies of His ways but we certainly know when God is blessing us. We do, though, tend to overlook so many of the blessings in life by imposing our own ways and thoughts on our surroundings so that they look like the norm rather than the blessings they are. What we need to be doing is looking at life the way it is, one large and continuous blessing from God to us. His ways are ways of wisdom and prosperity. Our ways lack wisdom and tend to chaos. If we are willing to follow His ways in our lives then we will be able to see more of the blessings for what they are.

We plan our days and our lives around what we have, the weather and other physical things instead of asking God to guide us continually through this day as He sees fit. We limit ourselves by what we see rather than expand our horizons towards God’s goals. We cannot hope to reach the things in life that He has planned for us until we are willing to let go of our world and grasp His hand firmly for Him to lead us onwards. His ways are glorious. His ways are perfect. His way and not our way...

Points to Ponder:
Do you look at yourself as rich?

Do you know God’s blessings?

Monday Reading: Revelations 22 10-12
 
Key Verse: Revelations 22 11
11  He acting unjustly, let him still act unjustly. And the filthy, let him be filthy still. And the righteous, let him be righteous still. And the holy, let him be holy still.
 
Devotion:
When Christ reminded us that we were to love our enemies it was not a case of “put up with them until they are gone” but to make sure that we give to them as we would give to those whom we would call our friends. There is nothing to gain from withholding God’s promises from people that we do not desire as friends because Christ also reminded us that we are to take the Word of God with us everywhere. We are certainly not to seal off the gospel as though it belonged to us and not to those around us – and yet that is what we seem to do sometimes when we cut ourselves off to worship God. Our churches and homes need to have open invitations and people need to know that.

John was told in his vision that he had to write down all that he saw so that we would have something to tell others about and for us to be encouraged about too. God is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end, and His word is to be treated as if it was too. We do not know the time that God has picked for Christ to return so each minute that we have should be spent wisely with His Word and with open arms to those around us. We do need to put up with a lot because we are going to see all manner of strange religions that lift up other gods or people instead of lifting up Christ as head of the church. To those who are intent on following their own ways we must not disown them but rather allow them to continue in their own beliefs but always showing that we uphold God’s Word above all and that we know it as the truth.

It is not our job to convince others that they are at fault because The Word of God is our sword that will be able to do that. As long as we continue to show God’s Word as the truth then they too can know that same truth. God continues to watch over us and continues to notice all that is within our hearts – He is the one who will reward us, not men or ourselves.

Points to Ponder:
What do you think of other religions?

Are you making sure God’s Word alone continues to guide you?