Monday 17 Aug 2009


Monday Reading: Habakkuk 3 16-19
 
Key Verse: Habakkuk 3 18
18  yet I will rejoice in Jehovah, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
 
Devotion:
When we see troubled times approaching or cannot see a way out, we feel weak and even tremble at the thought of what lies ahead. Our bones begin to feel like they are not strong enough to cope with what they normally can; our bodies feel like they have been drained of strength and quite often our heads feel like they have been drained of blood. This is just what the thought of bad things can do to us... Stress and worry in our lives can cause us to lose our way and to head into darkness because we think we can hide in the darkness rather than having to face up to our enemies in the light.

When we look back on all that God has done for people throughout history we can see that depending on Him is a joyous and fulfilling thing. When people have been at their lowest, He has continued to support them. When people have been at their wits end, He has brought them through of their troubles. He has not always made their troubles disappear overnight or immediately but He has given them the strength to continue on in the face of adversity. Would you rather never have to face anything or face things knowing that you have the means of getting through everything?

I’m sure that we would all say that we would rather not have to face anything untoward, but living without having to face anything would make us weak and feeble. If we want to strengthen ourselves we have to do some form of exercise to make our bodies stronger; in a similar manner, if we want to strengthen our spirits or souls we have to go through spiritual exercises to ensure that we can face more in our lives. If we remain weak we may well give in to the first trouble or temptation that came our way. God wants us to be strong, knowing that we do have Him backing us up all the way!

Points to Ponder:
What exercise do you do?

Are you working for God?

Sunday 16 Aug 2009

Sunday Reading: Psalm 103:1-5
 
Key Verse: Psalms 103 2
2  Bless Jehovah, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits;

Devotion:
How many miracle cures have you heard of; ones that are going to make you stop aging, young again or even get you rich just by following some instructions? If these were actually true, would not the whole world want to be there doing them? The truth is that we are all getting older and we are certainly not all getting richer; but that is not going to stop people from trying to make you believe that what they have is the answer for everything.

Why do people do that? Well they have either stumbled upon something that they actually believe is true or they just want to con people out of their well earned money. If they really believe what they have is the truth then that will be pretty convincing until they find out the actual truth. There are many products out there that say they will make you young. They may well change your outward appearance but they cannot hide the fact that you are actually getting older... the truth is always there, no matter how hard people try to hide it!

The only truth that we can depend on is that truth that God continues to try and get us to listen to – His Word. Christ is the one who came to die for our sins and because of that He is willing to forgive us of our sins each and every day – so long as we believe in Him and trust Him to do exactly that. Our lives are limited because that is what God declared. He is the one who can and still does heal the sick, keep people from ruin, give people peace, feeds people and makes people what they are. Yes we do have choices and pretty much all the time we make terrible choices but God continues to stand by our choices even when they work against Him. How can we not praise such a loving, merciful God?

Points to Ponder:
What would you like “cured”?
 
Are you giving your troubles to God?

Saturday 15 Aug 2009

Saturday Reading: Psalm 146:1-10
 
Key Verse: Psalms 146 5
5  Blessed is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose help is in Jehovah his God,

Devotion:
How many times have you wondered what would make you happy? Or what would allow you to find the one thing that would stop you from worrying... or what would allow you to escape from the oppression that surrounds your everyday life?

So many times you will hear people jump up and tell you about their god and how you will be overjoyed when you learn about their god. Or maybe they tell you that you will not find peace until you give up everything in your life to their cause. Or maybe you will never find true peace until you take your life!

The real truth is that you will find temporary respite in many things in your life. You may find a very short respite by getting drunk, or by giving everything away, or by jumping up and down shouting the name of a god carved out of stone... But there is only one way that you will find a respite that is everlasting, and that is when you find the real truth.

What would lead a man to shout the praises of a God that fills his needs, a God that brings him peace, a God that remains strong throughout everything? What would encourage anyone to do that other than a God that has delivered time after time. A God that always protects, always delivers, always loves.

But why is there still things going wrong in our lives? We are the ones that are inviting those things into our lives... If we have a God that is always with us, always protecting us, then the only way things can get into our lives is if we exercise our free will to invite them in!

Points to Ponder:
What do you let into your life?
 
Are you listening to God’s guidance?

Friday 14 Aug 2009

Friday Reading: Isaiah 51 9-13

Key Verse: Isaiah 51 12
12  I, I, am He who comforts you. Who are you, that you should fear a man? He shall die. Or from the son of man? He shall be made as grass.

Devotion:
Right from the beginning God has been trying to teach us that if we trust in Him, He will protect us from our oppressors or our enemies. This does not mean that we can trust God to do our bidding or our work but rather that we are safe in His arms. If we struggle and shake ourselves free from His arms then we no longer have that same protection as when we are resting in His arms.

Isaiah’s words here are words from God reminding us that we do need God’s protection and that there is nothing better! We like to think that we are safe when we put our seatbelts on in our cars, or when we are at home; but truth be told we are still open to all manner of dangers that surround us. It may be someone else who crashes into you or it may be an accident in your own home that catches you off guard... but our God will never be caught off guard! That is why we need to put on His protection!

He has shown us His awesome power from the beginning as He worked with us and for us. Why should we even doubt that He will not continue to work with us when we trust in Him? He is the one that also has the power to destroy us. Man has the power to make us miserable and uncomfortable and even to kill our earthly bodies, but he can never remove God from us or us from God! We get upset with people who do not give us what we desire; but how often do we thank our God for all the things that He gives us that we actually need? Resting in God does not just mean sitting back and enjoying the comforter, it means being safe and secure from everything that would stop us from doing His work.

Points to Ponder:
Where do you feel safest?
 
Do you realise how safe God’s hands are?

Thursday 13 Aug 2009

Thursday Reading: John 14 16-18
 
Key Verse: John 14 16
16  And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, so that He may be with you forever,

Devotion:
Here we have Christ the Son praying to God the Father for the Holy Ghost. What a perfect picture of the Holy Trinity. Christ knew that the Holy Ghost would come but He also knew that He should pray for that fact; if Christ has given us such an example then surely we do need to do the same – go to God in prayer through Christ, even when we know the answer already!

Jesus had been a true comforter to His disciples whilst He was here on earth and now that He was about to leave, He wanted them to know that they were still going to be comforted and looked after. The distinction hereafter was that people would have to know God before they would be able to receive this comforter that was about to arrive. Jesus was willing to comfort anyone who wanted to know more because He knew He would be able to persuade many through His Word. We now have that task to move forward with His Word and give it to others that they may get to know Him too.

So long as God is our Father, He will ensure that we do have a comforter, the Holy Ghost. It is no inconsiderable fact that Christ promised the disciples a comforter for life. It is truly amazing that He would give such a promise to anyone who will believe. It is even more amazing that He would promise that He would live within us and not just next to us. Our parents remain our parents for as long as the live no matter what happens. God, our heavenly Father will remain our Father for as long as He lives – for eternity!

Jesus knew He was about to leave but promised He would return in a little while. He did. He then promised us all that He would return to the world to take us out of it. And that He will!

Points to Ponder:
Do you make a habit of asking politely for things?

Do you continue to ask God?