April 28: Psalms 145 17-19
Key Verse: Psalms 145 18
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.
Devotion:
How many times do you get asked if you know someone who went to or goes to the same school as you? Nowadays the likelihood of actually knowing so many people as go to the same schools is quite slim – but still they ask. Then you may one day be asked if you know someone and the name rings a bell; you know of them by name, but you don't actually know them. Maybe you will even be asked about someone who was in the same class as you, but because you never actually mixed with them, all you can say is “yes, I did know of them, but they never mixed with me...” The only ones who you will be able to confidently talk about are the ones who knew you and mixed with you.
When we get to heaven we are going to have Christ standing up as your witness, as the person who knew us! If He is going to answer questions about us, should He not be given the chance to get to know us first? How would we feel if we heard Him say “yes, I did know of them, but they never came to me...” Knowing that we know a lot about Christ because we have read our bibles is not going to get Him to admit to knowing us. But if we are willing to mix with Him and get to know Him properly, believing and trusting in Him, then He is going to have no problem standing up as our witness.
Right from the beginning of time God has tried to give us every opportunity to get to know Him. He has given us the means by which we can learn about Him, the means by which we can be introduced to Him. He continues to make sure we do have those same chances over and over again. He even takes a step forward and tries to introduce Himself to us. But until we actually respond to Him, until we actually acknowledge Him, we are going to be left in the dark and will never know Him as our friend.
Points to Ponder:
How did you first make friends at school?
Have you allowed God to introduce Himself to you yet?
April 27: Psalms 34 8-9
Key Verse: Psalms 34 9
Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him.
Devotion:
When we do get around to actually believing there is a God, that we are His creation, that we do do many things wrong against Him each day but that He is willing and able to forgive us of our sin; we are starting on our journey with Him. Just as there is a huge difference in knowing there is a God and actually believing in God, there is a huge gap between believing in God and doing His will with reverence and fear. God has promised to give everlasting life in heaven to each of us who do believe in Him. Just the simple fact we do believe in Him is able to secure our place in heaven.
But once we have reached the stage where we do believe, the journey has only started. Our relationship with God cannot really be called a relationship if we are going to start it but do nothing about it! What good would a doctor’s appointment be if you booked it but never showed up for it? What good would a life jacket be in a boat if it was stuck in a cupboard instead of being on you when out at sea? What good is an instruction manual if you never open it?
You see, people can have all the knowledge they need about God, but they don't necessarily believe in Him. When the times comes to face God, He will have to admit that He never really got to know them either... We can believe in Him and be assured that we are saved by His grace, but unless we are going to walk in His ways and do His will, nobody around us is going to know we are His! He will have to continue to put up with everything we do and say against Him... That is what put Christ on the cross!
Why should we continue to stick Christ up on the cross when we know we can turn our backs on this sin nature and live with Him. Fearing the Lord is all about respect! Respecting God, His Word, His Will and most importantly showing Him we do respect Him by following His will in our lives!
Points to Ponder:
Who do you respect in your life?
Do you show God daily respect?
April 26: Genesis 1 24-28
Key Verse: Genesis 1 28
Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Devotion:
We often talk about saving the best 'till last – and that is what God did during His creation of everything. He waited until the last day, until He had created everything which was required for a special being, and then He created Adam and Eve. Not only that, but He gave the whole world and all of the creatures to mankind, to be in charge of them and to tend and care for them. We don't have to look too far back to realise just what a bad job we have done in so many aspects...
If you were going to buy a gift for someone at Christmas time you would probably think about what you were going to get them. You would also think about how much they mean to you and how much you care about what they get. One of the last things you would think of was probably whether they would break that gift or not! Our love for them would probably be greater than the fear of them destroying the gift... God's gift to us was everything! Just like kids with a new toy, we have broken things. And just like a loving parent, He has disciplined us and He has tried to show us the right way – and yet we still think we know best.
No matter how much God tries to tell us about the way things are and the way He wants us to be, we continue to think we know best and that we are in control! I can remember getting my first bicycle and how my parents tried to tell me about how I should treat it and take care of it and the dangers of not using it properly. I found out the hard way that if things are not treated properly things get broken or people hurt! God has given us the gifts and instructed us on how He wants things treated – all we need to do is to listen!
Points to Ponder:
What was the last gift you destroyed?
How are you treating God's gifts to you?
April 25: Ecclesiastes 4 4-8
Key Verse: Ecclesiastes 4 8
There is one alone, without companion: He has neither son nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his labours, Nor is his eye satisfied with riches. But he never asks, “For whom do I toil and deprive myself of good?” This also is vanity and a grave misfortune.
Devotion:
The more we have, the more we want, the more we get the more we need... This carries on to such an extent we become selfish and that selfishness leads to meanness the result of which is evil in one way or another. In theory, when we have others around us, they give us a sense of worth or of balance and we should be able to avoid selfishness if we take their feelings and needs into consideration.
There are many ways of getting to the selfish point in our lives. We can lose focus on God's way in our lives, losing focus on His will as well as His ways. When we do, that focus has to go somewhere and more often than not it is directed towards the things we do or the work we do. The more we focus on the work we do, the more we lose focus on other things in our lives. The more focus we lose on our lives, the less important other things seem to become until the point is reached when we no longer seem to care for them. It is an easy road to walk and our society even seems to promote it saying that it makes better business sense!
When we gain focus on ourselves and lose focus on God we tend to push ourselves even further away through the ways we act and the things that we do. The only ones who are going to lose out will be the ones who cannot keep up or the ones who are weak and heavy laden! Guess what, those are the friends and family around us who need us the most! God does not want us to bury ourselves in work or earthly issues because He knows that we will lose sight of the things in life which are important! He knows our minds will slowly put His word behind us until we get to the point where we are focusing on other things instead of on Him. How is He going to be able to help if we are walking in the other direction?
Points to Ponder:
Do you think you work hard?
Where is your focal point in life – towards God or away?
April 24: Ecclesiastes 5 18-20
Key Verse: Ecclesiastes 5 18
Here is what I have seen: It is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage.
Devotion:
Life is God's gift to us. I'm not just talking about the everlasting life we gain after we die but the life which we have here on earth. Everything that we have is a gift from God, from the food on the table to the shoes on our feet and the chairs we sit on. Without God, none of this would have been created and we would not even have anything to use as construction materials or food. He continues to support us by keeping the earth going and continuing to supply us with the many blessings that He does. He is the Creator, He is the Sustainer and He, alone, is our God.
Why do we then begrudge doing things for Him? Why do we shy away from doing His will? Why do we ignore Him? Well, for most of us we can use the excuse we did not know about Him for a while, but each one of us has been exposed to His Word or His Teachings at some stage or another in our lives. Each one of us has been exposed to the truth and each one of us has got to make the choice as to whether we are going to believe in Him or not. How can we not know He was the Creator when we look at the amazing planet we live on?
So many scientists would have you believe there was a big bang when the universe was created and we have evolved through many things until we get to being humans. It is only when you look at the complexity of our bodies and our life that we begin to realise there is no way that we could evolve. The genetic behaviour of our bodies means we are leading towards our genes breaking down rather than evolving into other things. Each species has its own gene pool and they refuse to cross-breed. God has made such a wonderful, complex, awesome place that we refuse to believe it was as simple as Him creating everything! We always try to seek out the most bizarre explanations so that we can feel in charge!
Points to Ponder:
Where do you come from?
Have you thanked God for making you you?