Month: August 2016

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Only Jesus – Our Comfort

19th – 21st August

Weekend Edition

“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.”

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Jesus is the source of our comfort. The Holy Spirit is given the title ‘comforter’ but His role is leading us into the very presence of Jesus Christ. Comfort is found in Jesus. Peace is found Jesus. Strength and security are all found in Jesus Christ, the Rock of our salvation. It is because He suffered that we can be comforted because He can understand our pain. Moreover, it is because we are comforted, that we can comfort others who are troubled too.

May we share each others burdens in Holy and righteous living. May we share our troubles together through the power and strength found in our relationship with Jesus. We are loved, we are blessed and we are God’s vessels to share His love with others. Only Jesus can provide the comfort we long for. Only Jesus can empower to strengthen and encourage others. Only Jesus…..!!

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Jesus Lived As One Of Us

18th August

“You must have the same attitude as Christ Jesus had. Though He was God, He did not think of equality with as something to cling to. Instead, He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.”

Philippians 2:5-7

It is comforting to know that Jesus Christ lived as one of us. He felt our pains, lived through our temptations (although did not sin), experienced our struggles and yet still do all this without sinning and without compromising. As Paul writes, “He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being”. Even more incredible is that the sentence “He gave up His divine privileges” in the original Greek, literally means that ‘He emptied Himself’ for our sakes and made Himself of no reputation taking the form of a slave/servant. The God who is above all, became the least of all to show us His love by giving Himself as our substitution for the debt of our sins.

He walked as one of us, and was treated as one of us. He was beaten for our sakes, and hung on the cross for our sins. The God of the universe, there at the beginning of time, put to death by the hands of those He has created. Why? He did it for us. Isn’t incredible to know that Jesus Christ lived as one of us, for our sakes? If He didn’t, we would not know God’s love and His incredible plan for our lives.

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Power From Humility

17th August

“So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time He will lift you up in honour.”

1 Peter 5:6

Your life in God’s hands is like a mighty weapon. In and of our own strength we are just people. Yet as children of God, we are equipped with tools to be mighty warriors for Him. This is not physical strength but spiritual authority to overcome the enemy’s tactics and to take spiritual ground. We are called to break down the strongholds of the enemy and to take ground for King Jesus. Wherever our feet go, we can claim ground for Jesus. Wherever we go we are called to be Jesus’ shining beacons; lighthouses to point the lost to their Saviour.

Yet all of the above is only birthed through humble hearts. It is God who lifts us up. It is God who empowers us and it is God who gives us the strength. Let us humble ourselves under His might power.

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Even In The Valley

16th August

“Then He said to me, “Speak a prophetic messages to these bones and say,’Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again!”

Ezekiel 37:4-5

Have you ever noticed that even in dry countries, fruit and vegetables containing lots of water still grow. Fruits such as peaches, figs, pomegranate, tomatoes and watermelon thrive in hot countries. They seem to grow even when it hasn’t rained a lot. The reason is because they take root deep down into the soil and draw from the earth’s natural reservoirs. The same principle can be applied to our spiritual lives too. Often our surroundings can be spiritually dry and seem far off from the running waters of God’s presence, yet if we are connected to the source of all life, if are in roots are deep in Christ, we can thrive even in the dry lands.

Just as Ezekiel prophesied over the dry bones, so God prophesies over you today. ‘Listen to the word of the Lord! This is what Almighty God says: I am going to breath life into you again.‘ Friends, today, receive God’s life giving and flesh growing word! He speaks life over us! He speaks growth over us. May God water your souls in the dry lands. May He regenerate your spirit with His fresh anointing. May He shower you with His presence and glory. May He breath life into your dry bones and ‘make you live again!’

Get connected to the source of life. Grow your roots in Him. Receive His life giving breath.

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Never Alone

15th August

“Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have; For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.””

Hebrews 13:5

How many times do you need to hear it?

“He will not leave you nor forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:8). “I will not leave you nor forsake you” (Joshua 1:5). “Blessed be the LORD, who has not forsaken His kindness

to the living” (Ruth 2:20). “The LORD will not forsake His people, for His great name’s sake” (1 Samuel 12:22). “He will not leave you nor forsake you, until you have finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD” (1 Chronicles 28:20). “God did not forsake us in our bondage” (Ezra 9:9). “You did not forsake them in the wilderness” (Nehemiah 9:19). “When my father and mother forsake me, then the LORD will take care of me” (Psalm 27:10). “I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken” (Psalm 37:25). “We are…persecuted but not forsaken” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9).

God has promised that He will never abandon us. He will always look after us. In our physical, spiritual, psychological, personal or even financial needs, He is there. Because of the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus, our Father in heaven will never forsake us; so don’t despair over anything today. You are not forsaken.

The enemies have more chariots, experience, and artillery? Yes, they are strong, but I am stronger still. And I will not leave you or forsake you.

Max Lucado in Glory Days1

1Adapted from David Jeremiah’s, Daily devotionals

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Hidden In Christ

12th –14th August

Weekend Edition

“Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honour at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Colossians 3:1-3

Since the great divide has been healed and the gap between God and man bridged by Christ, our identity has been transformed as we become new creations. We become children of Christ and heirs to the inheritance of eternal life. Yet above all, our lives are hidden in Christ. When God looks at us, because we are hidden in Christ, He doesn’t see how we used to be, a sinful, wretched man, but instead He sees Christ and see us in Christ, redeemed, renewed and restored. He sees purity and holiness. We have been raised to new life in Christ. Our past is gone, forgotten about and dealt with by God’s grace shown and displayed through Jesus.

We need to set our minds on these truths. We need to stop looking back at the past and letting the past define us. We are forgiven. We are a new creation. We will never move forward if we are always looking backwards at the past. We need to set our minds on the things of heaven; What has God got in store for me? How does God see me? How can I be used to extend His Kingdom? Friends, today, may we remember that we are hidden and enveloped by the love, grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. That is who we are, that is our identity. Start your day with remembering this precious truth.

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The Bridge

11th August

“For there is only one God and One Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity; the man Christ Jesus.”

1 Timothy 2:5

bridge

The man Christ Jesus, both fully God and fully man. A difficult truth to fully comprehend yet the most significant truth in the whole of Christianity. If Jesus was not fully God, He would not be worth worshipping. If Jesus was not fully man, then there is no way He could have understood our problems, no way He could have walked with us through hard times and no way He could have been be our substitutional sacrifice. Yet Jesus was both fully man and fully God. And it is only by His sacrifice that man-kind and God could reconnect in a true and pure relationship. Jesus is our Mediator, our Ransom and the reason why we can commune with a Holy God and the Creator of the world. Our imperfections, our sinful lifestyles and bad habits are made clean and righteous before God because Jesus made us clean by taking our punishment for us and cleansing us by His blood.

Today we can rejoice that Jesus was fully God, came to live on this earth as a 100% human being, carried our sins and burdens to the cross and there left them, rose again victorious, so that we too can die to our old selves and be resurrected new creations. The past is gone. The new has come. Jesus our Mediator has reconciled us to God. We are victorious in Him. He reigns victorious. That is why we worship Him. That is why we praise Him.

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Rest In Him

10th August

“Then the angel of the Lord came again and touched him and said, “Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you.””

1 Kings 19:7

As we continue with yesterday’s story, we remind ourself that Elijah was in hiding, running away from Jezebel who wanted to kill him. He was so in despair that he too wanted to die. Yet God in His divine provision, provided Elijah with the comfort He needed. Twice, the angel of the Lord, fed Elijah and regenerated his spirit to continue his journey. God knew that the road ahead was tough for Elijah, so He gave Elijah what he needed.

God also speaks today into our lives when we are tired and don’t have the strength to carry on. God says to us, ‘Stop, rest and refresh in me, because you don’t have the strength to carry on anymore. The road ahead is too tough.’ Maybe today you too need some supernatural refreshment from the Lord. It is ok to stop and rest in Him In fact it is a good spiritual discipline to do so. So if you are tired and thirsty Jesus says to you, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens and I will give you rest.” Rest and abide in Him.

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The Honesty of Talking With God

9th August

“Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. Then he went on alone into the wilderness, travelling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.”

1 Kings 19:3-4

What does prayer look like for you? Do you even know what to say to God? Well you are not on your own. The greats of the Bible also have struggled for what to say during their prayers. Yet what God desires from us in our prayers, is honesty and a true heart. He doesn’t need to hear eloquent rehearsed prayers or superficial words of praise. No, God wants to hear what is on our hearts. He is our Father, Friend and King. Jesus often rebuked the Pharisees for their long, false and dishonest prayers. “God loves us to talk with Him. He can cope with our temper, frustrations…everything we throw at Him. That is why He is such an amazing God!”1 God wants a relationship with us. That is why He sent Jesus.

Sometimes, as is it says in Romans, we don’t even know ‘what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words’ (Romans 8:26). God hears our hearts when we pray, not just our words. He knows what we are going through. He knows when we need His comfort. When Elijah was threatened with death by the evil king Ahab’s wife, Jezebel, he fled out of fear, even though he had just witnessed two huge miracles through his faith. He wanted to die; and he told God that. Yet God in His grace comforted Elijah, gave him divine rest and food and empowered him to carry on with his commission.

God too wants to hear your heart, to hear your words and even to hear your cries when you have no words. He is gracious and kind and always welcomes His children into His presence. Talk to God from your hearts.

1Carolyn De Souza, in reply to Monday’s Devotion

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The Power Of Communicating With God

8th August

“…the earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops.”

James 5:16b-18

Communicating with God is never one way. So often, we get caught up pouring our hearts out to God, but never allow Him to speak to us. In fact, when was the last time you sat patiently waiting for God to speak to you, be that audibly, in your thoughts or through His Word? In truth, life is busy. We are consumed with work, school, studies, family commitments and meeting friends. Yet, the most important part of our day is taking time out to hear what God is saying. One such man was the Old Testament prophet Elijah.

We often view Elijah as some super hero man with an amazing ability to hear from God, and yes it’s true he was a great man. Yet Elijah, as James says, was just a normal man like we are. Yet he made it his life’s work to listen to God and let God’s instruction lead his life. We too have that prophetic ability to hear God’s voice, and let it influence and dictate our lives. We have the ability to speak out what God is saying to us, through our lifestyles and through our words. So the challenge today is this… speak to God and listen to His response.