Wednesday Reading: Matthew 10 38
 
Key Verse: Matthew 10 38
38  And he who does not take up his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.

 

Devotion:
What would you think of a person who called you their friend and continued to do what friends should do right up to the point where you had something difficult to do – then disappeared or worse still, supported the other side? Would you then call them a friend, or call them an enemy? Would you think they had been a spy all along just to trap you? What sort of things would go through your mind?

 

When we are alone and get into trouble, we have to bear the consequences for what we have done. When we are in a crowd, yet different to everyone else in that crowd, we have to bear the consequences for being different to everyone else… Like a football fan sitting at the wrong end of a stadium in amongst the opposition, we may well feel totally cut off from everything ‘normal’. We may even give in to those around and follow what they are doing just to fit in. What we should be doing is standing up for our beliefs and others around should be respecting that… not much hope for that at a football match!

 

Being a Christian is going to mean that we will be that odd one out a whole lot more than we used to be – unless we continue to walk amongst other Christians for the rest of our life. But whilst that would be good for our strength, comfort and faithfulness, we really need to get out into ‘the other side’ so that we can demonstrate our beliefs. Earlier in verse 27 we have Christ saying “What I tell you in darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear, proclaim on the housetops”. There will be times where we have to be careful and talk in the dark to avoid detection, but most of the time we can and need to be open, true, plain and faithful. Christ could not do so much of the time until the time was right because He knew He would be crucified – we do not have that hanging over us.

 

If we are not willing to listen to Christ when He said that we should take the gospel and tell it to everybody, then are we any better than a so called friend who has turned and run?

 

Points to Ponder:
Are your parents still there when you find yourself in trouble?
 
Do you ever think that God would not be there for you?

Tuesday Reading: Matthew 10 37-40
 
Key Verse: Matthew 10 39
39  He who finds his life shall lose it. And he who loses his life for My sake shall find it.

 

Devotion:
When non-Christians tempt us by asking if we love them (or others) more than God our response should be immediate and firm. “Of course I love God more than you!”

 

If they are willing to listen a few more seconds you can explain why it is so important to love God with your whole heart. It does not mean to say that you do not love them at all; far from it. For the more that we can love God, the more we will be able to love others too – I know it sounds a bit of a cop-out for those who do not fully trust Him, but the more that you actually trust God, the more that you will understand just how that is possible. It makes your whole life worth living!

 

Can you imagine being able to listen to the thoughts of those around you? Can you imagine what will be going through their minds as you ask them about who they love the most? Think about what actually goes through your mind and then expand that a bit for them! I would probably want to run away and hide in the desert to get away from the constant bickering! Can you now understand why God wants to know that you do love Him? Can you now understand why God wants you to hold Him above all else?

 

When we do turn the focus of our attention to Christ, we are able to build up our relationship with Him. Just as any relationship, the first short while (short as in not eternity) will be a rocky ride as you get to know Him. The fact that He has already accepted you means that He is miles ahead of you in the relationship and that He is willing to forgive you already. We tend to have to be in a relationship for a while before we do fully trust in our partners. By showing them respect and trust we are showing them that we love them. By trusting their judgements we are confirming that love.

 

Why should we leave God out of anything in our lives when He has already proven His absolute love for us?

 

Points to Ponder:
How do you judge how much a person loves you?

 

Do you think you live up to that with God?

Monday Reading: 2 Corinthians 12 8-10
 
Key Verse: 2 Corinthians 12 10
10  Therefore I am pleased in weaknesses, in insults, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am powerful.
 
Devotion:
There are two sides to every story, the right side and the wrong side! It is amazing how many people will try to take the words of others and mix them up into something that was the opposite of that which was intended. Many people will take God’s Word and try to make it say something that is simply not written down – this way they can confuse others who are genuinely seeking the truth.

 

When the apostle talks here about being made strong in his weaknesses, he is not talking about being made strong in his sins. How could we even begin to think about being made strong in any sins when we know that any sin drives a wedge between us and God? How can that then lead to strength? If we want to be made strong, then we have to have that wedge removed so that we can draw closer to God so that we can find strength. The apostle is not talking about walking off by himself and finding his own inner strength, he is talking about the one that strengthens him, God!

 

When we find that we do have ailments and imperfections (not a weakness to give into temptations, but rather physical or mental imperfections) then we need to remind ourselves that we need to seek His glory rather than our own. Yes we can submit our prayers to God to beg for those imperfections to be removed, but whatever the outcome we need to remember that everything works to the glory of God. He would not have allowed it if it would not lead to His glory! We need to remember that each thing in our lives has a purpose – more often than not we cannot see it, but it has.

 

Don’t be tempted to say that your spiritual weakness is there for a reason – that is not what God teaches us… that is just our personal choice we have made! The truth of the matter is that God knows what He is doing and He alone knows what we need to strengthen our relationship with Him!

 

Points to Ponder:
Have you ever tried to take the wrong medicine just to see if it could work?

 

Why must we continue to think that we can do better without God?

Sunday Reading: 2 Corinthians 10 7-11
 
Key Verse: 2 Corinthians 10 7
7  Do you look at things according to appearance? If anyone has persuaded himself that he is Christ's, let him think this again as to himself, that as he is Christ's, even so we are Christ's.

 

Devotion:
Do we have to be with others in order to find out if we are doing things wrong or can we figure it out by ourselves? Most of the time we can figure things out ourselves; we know when we do wrong and we try to avoid doing those things – even when nobody else is watching! But one of our biggest problems is accepting authority from people that we cannot meet face to face. We may well think that we can get away with speeding when there are no police around… We may well think we can get away with doing things we are not allowed to when we are not with our parents…

 

But what would we do if they were with us? What would we do if the police were following us all the time? What would we do if someone was following us all the time? Would we then try to make sure that we do follow the law all the time? Is that what it is going to take for us to follow the law?

 

What if you had someone with you that was an absolute rebel? Would you then fall in line with them and become a rebel yourself? Is this peer pressure, or is it just you giving in to your surroundings?

 

We need to make sure that we do continue to be strong in God’s law. We need to make sure that we do continue to be Christians wherever we are. We need to uphold that which is right in the face of adversity. We need to quit judging people by their appearances and start to make a difference in our lives so that we can make a difference in their lives! If we see warning signs on the wall, we need to take heed of them before they become someone we have to meet face to face! We may not think that we have someone watching over us always…

 

Points to Ponder:
Do you live a different life in front of your parents?
 
Do you live a different life when you go to church?