September 5: Psalms 34 8-10
Key Verse: Psalms 34 9
Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing.
Devotion:
How do we know God is good unless we are willing to get to know Him? You may choose to believe other people, what they write and what they say, or you may choose to go forward and find things out for yourself – but until you do one or the other, you will not find out anything more than what you already know. Here, the invitation is to come and see what a life with God is actually like. The author knows God and wants others to be able to know the same blessings as He does.
Do you wait until you have a written or verbal invitation before going along to something with someone? Do you have to have it in black and white before you act on it? Or are you sometimes so encouraged by what you see that you go along to find out what it is like before having to get the written invitation? Our lives with God should be encouraging others to come and taste what we have in Christ as well; we should not have to write it down for others to accept our invitation.
God wants us to be the light and the salt, which means shining out in the darkness and tasting different in the beginning. God wants us to be the example where others will look in and say “I want to go and see what that is all about” without needing a written invitation to go forward. God embodies everything that is good and we can see that when we look into His life and all He does for us. Those who have already stepped forwarded to see what God is all about have already found out He is good; the Psalmist echoes this sentiment.
No matter how fit we are, how healthy we are and how dedicated we are, we all have limits as to how much we can do and how much we can work. But God has no such limits because He is not limited by the same physical constraints as we are. Here the Psalmist compares this to the lion. The younger ones not having the same stamina as the older, more experienced ones; but they all grow tired and weary. No matter how sorted we may feel like we are, we all lack stamina in our fight against the evil one. Depend on God and you will lack nothing!
Points to Ponder:
Do you always go it alone or do you seek help when you need it?
Will you accept God’s offer of help?
September 4: John 7 14-19
Key Verse: John 7 17
Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.
Devotion:
When Jesus went to Judea, He went there because God wanted Him to be there at that time. Half way through the festival He went down to the temple courts and began to teach them from the scriptures. Reading in between the lines, these people were pretty much controlling the education market because they knew who had been through the schools and colleges; and they knew Jesus had not been through them. Yet, He knew them well and was able to teach them. What did they do in return? They wanted to get rid of Him, assuming there must be some evil influence somewhere along the lines! Were they that stuck up themselves that they did not see Jesus for who He was?
Many times in our lives we do get caught up in our own abilities and take on a mantle of ‘know it all’ or ‘this is my domain’ and act like we own the rights to things we have no right to own. God’s scripture is His alone to own and we are just messengers who are tasked with sharing what we learn with others, so they can then do the same. It is not ours to own because we are not the authors. God inspired the right people at the right time to write down these very special words recounting the history, the law and the prophecies of what is to come.
If we could ever come up with the knowledge and wisdom contained in the bible, then, just maybe, we could stand up and start to teach others who have actually spent their time learning and studying this all already. I know the more time I spend in studying God’s Word, the more I learn and the closer I draw to God through knowing Him better.
The closer we get to God, the easier it is to listen to what He wants in our lives and the easier we will find it to pass on that knowledge and wisdom to others. Every word we pass on to others can and should be compared to what God has already told others and written down for our learning. If we start to say things which are not the same as what God is teaching us through His word, then we are coming up against God Himself; it’s not going to work! Praise God and continue to lift up His Word faithfully, just as Jesus did – we may well face people who disagree because they want their own way!
Points to Ponder:
Are you willing to share God’s Word?
Are you sharing it faithfully?
September 3: Psalms 106 1-6
Key Verse: Psalms 106 6
We have sinned, even as our ancestors did; we have done wrong and acted wickedly.
Devotion:
I like the way this Psalms starts out by saying we should praise God and continues with “Blessed are those who act justly, who always do what is right.” Maybe, like me, you begin to think this leave us out of the picture, but the Psalmist continues with admitting to sinning.
We have all sinned and come short of God’s laws, but that does not exclude us from heaven or from His presence. Jesus Christ gave up His life in our stead, so our sins could be forgiven before we get to see God; before we were even alive! If that single fact does not deserve all of our praise, then what does!
Mankind has always found a way of doing something wrong and we have shown that throughout history. Right from the beginning of records through to modern days we continue to break laws and get things wrong. One of the earliest manuscripts is the book of Job which tells us of a man who did do everything right. Even then, the evil one got his hand in and made things go wrong. Was Job to blame? No! Was God to blame? No! Satan was to blame because he caused things to go wrong.
Just like with Job, there will be some things in our lives which do go wrong, not because we have caused them, not because we deserved it, just because stuff does go wrong. During all times, be they good, bad or indifferent, we need to lift up our praise to God to show Him we love Him for all He has done for us. Giving God the glory takes it away from evil people and from the evil one himself.
Do you feel like you don’t give God the glory enough - well, you are not alone. It is hard for us to remember to continually lift up our praise when things are not going right. Job found it hard, just as others in our bibles found it hard. But when we do get back to praising God, our lives begin to make sense once again. Is it the act of praising God or does God do things in return? Lift up your praise to God continually and see what happens in your life today!
Points to Ponder:
Are you ready to praise God?
Give Him the glory!
September 2: Psalms 104 33-35
Key Verse: Psalms 104 34
May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the Lord.
Devotion:
Realising just how much God does in your life is a very big step forward to knowing Him better and being able to praise Him every day. We can look at the world around us and begin to realise how much He does in nature; or we can sit back and think it all happens by chance. Personally, I cannot see how much beauty and splendour can come by chance. I cannot see how the animals can all find a balance in the world when I see how destructive mankind is and how we have broken so much by not caring for the world God has given us.
We have a lot to think about whilst we live in this world and I would like for us all to step back and give God the praise He deserves for all He is doing for us and for the world. Not just the uniqueness of a tree outside but for all that is happening in it; the birds who come to feed from it, nest in it, take refuge in it. They all depend on God for their food, water and life; in their own way they are praising God through their song and dance in the trees and in the air.
Think about the sun, moon and stars and the effects they have on this world we live on. Scientists will try and convince you the world and moon started out together and split up, or that they are slowly falling together; I wish they would make their minds up. Either way, the moon has amazing effects on the seasons and the weather because it is so close to us. There is a reason for the seasons so we can have crops which will provide us with food at the right times – each crop needing slightly different weather patterns to grow at its best. Who gave us the mindset to select and plant those crops in the beginning?
Why not make today different from any other day by starting it out in praise for a God who has done, is doing and will continue to do so much in your life! Why not give Him the praise He is due first of all! Submit to the Lord and do His will today. Allow Him to work in your life and supply the things He wants to give you; and then when all of that has been done, give Him the praise for doing everything today He has been able to do.
Points to Ponder:
Are you ready to allow God in today?
Are you ready to listen to Him today?
September 1: Psalms 104 10-18
Key Verse: Psalms 104 16
The trees of the Lord are well watered, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
Devotion:
This Psalms is one of those which makes me think about all the things God has created and all He sustains in this world we live in. I don’t know if you have had the privilege of being able to watch the moon float by using a telescope; you are suddenly made aware of the size and splendour of this little light in the sky – one can only imagine what it would be like to see the sun in such light!
No matter which way you look at it, there are some pretty amazing things in this world, from the views we see from mountains to the closeness of a bubbling stream in a forest; such beauty and awe is hard to imagine without thinking there is someone or something which created this all! The animals do not question where they come from or what their social standing is; they expect to find food and they live with that hope each and every day. God continue to provide for them. The only thing stopping that provision is man and his ways of breaking things!
We can look at some parts of the world and marvel at how mankind has been able to make such amazing places but there is a timespan in which all of these things has been created. When we look at the giant redwoods of California, the ancient cypresses from Iran, or even the common yew trees in the UK, we know they have been around longer than the first architects in our ‘modern world’. God’s design still stands out and is copied time and time again by people trying to gain recognition for original design – yet He stands by and does not complain that someone else has stolen His design!
There are animals and insects all around the world, fish and crustaceans deep in all the seas; all have their own design and thrive in the areas God created for them. Once mankind comes in and breaks a few things, they have to move on or face extinction. Too much of our heritage has been lost because of the greed and pride of mankind. Yet, God gave us the choice as to what we are going to do with this all – that is how much He loves us.
Points to Ponder:
What do you do for the people you love?
Are you taking note of what God has done for you?