devotionals

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God’s Faithfulness

14th –15th May

Weekend Edition

“How great You are, O Sovereign Lord! There is no one like You. We have never heard of another God like You!”

2 Samuel 7:22

David was just a mere shepherd when he was commissioned to lead the Nation of Israel. He was the youngest of his brothers and the least in terms of stature. Yet God looked straight passed his exterior attributes and into his heart. God knew that in David’s heart was a man after His own. Yes David made mistakes and was far from being perfect, but because of David’s real and refreshing relationship with God, and because of God’s promise to him, he will be remembered forever. Furthermore, his legend won’t be that he was just a good king, or even a just great leader, it will be his genuine relationship with God, that will stand as both an encouragement and example for all people, forever.

David in his prayer, after hearing from the prophet Nathan that his legacy would continue forever because of his faithfulness to God, was completely humbled and confessed that he didn’t deserve all the goodness God was pouring out over his life. “Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?..” Again, God saw fit to bless David, not because of his external acts but because of his heart for God.

If God could take a lowly shepherd from “tending sheep in the pasture and”, choose him to “be the leader of My (God’s) people” (verse 8), then he can also use our weakness’, frailties, and insecurities and make us leaders in changing the world for Jesus. We should not be so quick to put ourselves down, but rather rejoice in humility, that in God’s hands, we are moulded and shaped to make a difference in this world. Why does God use us? Because He is great, kind and loving and the sovereign Lord of all the Earth. There truly is no-one like Him.

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God Is Always With Us

13th May

“….and be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:20b

God truly never leaves us. It is His promise. Sometimes we may not always be able to feel He is there, but if our faith is based on just feelings, we will always feel let down. Jesus promised to always be with us. That is our confirmation and our strong foundation. When tough times come, we can be sure God is with us because He said He would be. God word’s are true, reliable and never fail. A famous poem written in the 1960’s alluded to what it feels like to walk through tough times, sometimes seemingly on your own, yet the sure presence of God never left!

One night, I dreamed a dream. I was walking along the beach with my Lord. Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life. For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to me and one to my Lord. When the last scene of my life shot before me I looked back at the footprints in the sand and to my surprise, I noticed that many times along the path of my life there was only one set of footprints. I realised that this was at the lowest and saddest times of my life. This always bothered me and I questioned the Lord about my dilemma. “Lord, you told me when I decided to follow You, You would walk and talk with me all the way. But I’m aware that during the most troublesome times of my life there is only one set of footprints. I just don’t understand why, when I needed You most, You leave me.” He whispered, “My precious child I love you and will never leave you, never, ever, during your trials and testings. When you saw only one set of footprints it was then that I carried you.”

Friends, may we remember that even our darkest times, God is still there. May we know His presence clearly and intimately. God is surrounding us with His wings as He shelter us from the storms.

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The Joy Of A Forgiven Heart

12th May

“Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!”

Psalm 32:1-2

Every human has a desire and longing to be loved. Many try to satisfy that longing with drugs, drinking, womanising, and the like. Yet there is no greater joy than knowing you have been forgiven and accepted by your Creator; knowing that you have a purpose, a destiny and that God has a plan for your personally.

In 1678, John Bunyan released one of the most famous pieces of English Christian literature, the Pilgrim Progress. In his book, we follow the story of a man name Christian, who makes his perilous journey to Celestial city (Heaven). However, he carries on his back a huge bag like burden, which represent his sins. His is finally relieved of his burdens when he reaches the ‘place of deliverance’, a representation of calvary’s cross. Although this story may be mostly allegorical, the truth remains that we are all on a journey. In life’s journey we may face dangers and temptations, yet the most liberating and life giving stage of our journey is when Jesus Christ sets us free from our sins. It truly is like a burden being lifted from our backs.

In today’s psalm, David also speaks of this joy, freedom and liberty that await a forgiven soul. Sin can so easily hold us down and feel like a huge weight on our lives. Yet when we are set free by the power of Jesus’ love, those chains are broken and we can walk upright in the power of His might and in the purpose and plan He has ordained for our life.

What joy awaits a forgiven soul, and those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt!!

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The Lord’s Prayer

11th May

“Father, may Your name be kept holy. May Your Kingdom come soon. Give us each day the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield into temptation.”

Luke 11:2b-4

In Matthew’s version of the Lord’s prayer, Jesus purposefully expands on the necessity of forgiving others before you come to the Lord in prayer. Although the Lord’s prayer is a model prayer, it is still a good basis for how we should structure our own personal prayers. If Jesus saw it fit to repeat the message about forgiveness, then surely we should be paying attention too! In the Lukan version of the Lord’s prayer teaching, the emphasis is on God being our Heavenly Father, our protector, sustainer and provider.

Jesus in Luke’s account of the Lord’s prayer, alludes our relationship with God to that of a good father and son relationship or a good neighbour/friend relationship. Luke’s version is personal. It shows the personal relationship between God and man. It shows that God is not some far away supreme being that doesn’t take notice of our cares and needs. Jesus highlights that God does care. God wants to provide our needs. However, above all, God wants a relationship with us. He wants us to pour out our needs before Him. He wants us to live pure and undefiled lives because He knows that is best for us. He sent His Son Jesus Christ to forgive our sins and make us right before Him…

All praise to God our Father. All praise to Jesus His Son. And all praise to the Holy Spirit. All work in harmony for us to have a personal and intimate prayer life with the creator of this world, just as a son would talk to his father. God always has ears to listen!

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Victory Over Temptation

10th May

“..and don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one….For Yours is the Kingdom, the power and authority. Forever and ever. Amen (some manuscripts do not include the last part)”

Matthew 6:13

When we come to our Lord in prayer, we come to Him in the victory that He has won for us. We come as inheritors of that victory. Yet victory doesn’t mean you are immune to temptation. After all, we are living in a fallen world, surrounded by fallen people and things. The thing that separates us from the world, is the fact that because Christ lives in us, we can have the victory to swim against the ‘norm’ of sinful living and walk in victory over temptation. Jesus did exactly that when He lived on this earth. He was tempted but did not sin.

It is because Jesus conquered the enemy that we can pray these things. Temptation will come, but in Jesus, we have the victory to not yield to it. Jesus’ ‘model’ prayer helps us to realise that praying for strength over temptation is essential in our spiritual growth and our walk with Christ. In Christ we have the power to walk away from temptation, to not yield to its lies and to live in the opposite spirit of our sinful nature’s cravings. Let us rejoice in Him. Let us run away from anything that causes us to stumble and walk in complete victory in Jesus.

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Forgiveness: Don’t And You Won’t

9th May

“..and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us…. If you forgive those who sin against you, your Heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Matthew 6:12, 14

In the whole of Jesus’ ‘model prayer’, the theme of forgiveness is the only point He expands upon. In fact so strong are Jesus’ words, then we can’t help but analyse our lives to see if they are in check with God’s mirror (His word!). Jesus highlighted an important truth in His prayer. If we are forgiven then we too should forgive others with the same forgiveness we have received. It is a clear, strong and direct message that cannot and should not be missed.

Yes Jesus in His loving, kind and unconditional love poured Himself out to be the forgiveness of our sins. And yes we freely accept God’s grace through Jesus’ actions to be the payment for our sins so we can stand as forgiven sons and daughters of God. Yet if we do not show the same love, kindness and grace to others who do wrong to us, then we are like hypocrites, and in Jesus’ words, ‘your Father will not forgive your sins’. These are strong words, yet the reality of what Jesus was trying to say was and is so plain. Simply put, forgive others as you have been forgiven, don’t and you won’t either…

Forgiving others is a humbling experience and something that is not always as straight forward as just saying words. Forgiveness can sometimes be a process. However, if we fully understand how much we are forgiven, and view our hurts and pain through that perspective, then we can only release ourselves and our debtors through forgiveness. Un-forgiveness not only damages our intimacy with God but also spreads in our hearts like a cancerous disease, eating away at our joy and peace.

May we all search our hearts to forgive ourselves and others of any hurts that we might be carrying. May we understand the depth of how much we have been forgiven and forgive others with that same forgiveness.

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Our Provider

7th & 8th May

Weekend Edition

“Give us today the food we need…”

Matthew 6:11

Countless times in the New Testament, Jesus referred to Himself as the ‘Bread of Life’. One such example is in John 6:35. The previous day Jesus fed 5000 people using just 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. As the crowds gathered again, they began discussing this wonderful miracle with Jesus, and incredibly asked Jesus, “What sign then will You perform, so that we may see it (that Jesus was the One sent from Heaven) and believe You? What will You do? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”(bold words added). Clearly feeding 5000 people was not a big enough miracle to prove Jesus was who He said He was….?

Jesus’ response to the crowd’s questions was simply to emphasise that His miracle was so much more than just food. Jesus highlighted that He was Himself the ‘Bread of Life’ and that if people believed in Him, they would never go hungry again. Of course, Jesus’ statement was not solely talking about our physical needs, but rather a statement to help people with the spiritual hunger. His words are our food. When we read them, digest them and let them nourish our spiritual bodies we no longer walk around hungry, searching for something to fill our desires, but rather we become full from God’s words and His goodness fills our lives.

Moreover, Jesus also promised that He would provide all our day to day needs too. He is our provider and does provide our ‘daily bread’. He is the giver of all good gifts. He looks after the sparrow and clothes the fields with beautiful lilies. His clothes us, feed us and protects us. Is it good to pray for our needs and give thanks for all He provides. Jesus is our physical and spiritual provider. He is our all in all. He is everything we need. Let us eat from Him, and never go hungry again.

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On Earth As It Is Heaven

6th May

“May Your Kingdom come. May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.”

Matthew 6:10

When Jesus taught His disciples the Lord’s prayer, He included a very important statement: May Your Kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven! Jesus’ model words showed us that we shouldn’t just focus our prayers on ourselves but pray the Kingdom of God comes to this earth. What does that look like in our prayers? Praying in the Kingdom of God means that we pray for the lost. We pray for our friends who don’t yet believe in Jesus. We ask that Jesus may reveal Himself to them. We ask that God’s Kingdom may come into their hearts as it is in ours. Moreover, we pray for God’s justice and love to reach all people. We pray that there will be peace in our lands and across the world. We pray that our governments will be led by the Holy Spirit and not by their own selfish ambitions. We pray that people will be kind to each other and that all war and hatred will stop. We pray that Jesus’ love will be revealed to all who are seeking for Him.

Praying for God’s Kingdom to come here on earth, helps us to realise that we don’t just have to wait to get heaven to experience God, we too can access the fullness of God, here on this earth. We pray let Your Kingdom come and Your will be done here on EARTH as it is in HEAVEN! That means His Kingdom can come here in this earth. That means we can access a part of heaven here in our daily lives. God’s Kingdom is not a far away concept but here on this earth, in our hearts, in our homes, and in our churches. Wherever a believer is, there is also the Kingdom of God. May our prayers usher in the presence of God, His will on this earth and may we pray for heaven to invade earth. May God shower us with all His Heavenly blessings and bring peace to all mankind.

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Our Father In Heaven

5th May

“Pray like this: Our Father in Heaven, may Your Name be kept holy..”

Matthew 6:9

Jesus’ model prayer, ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ as it is more commonly known, sets us an important structure for how we should pray. Jesus didn’t intend that we all just become puppets and follow His words exactly every time we pray (although it is good to regularly pray this prayer), but rather it was a model prayer for us to help us know how and what kind of things we should be praying for.

Jesus starts off His prayer, with the following words, “Our Father in Heaven, may Your Name be kept holy..”. Why did Jesus start with these words? Because every prayer we pray should always be centered on who God is. It should start with God, include God’s will and finish with God. ‘Our Father in Heaven’ gives us a clear indication that when we pray, although we are petitioning the Father for our requests, more importantly, we are acknowledging the authority of who we are praying to.

Our Father and our God, of course is the giver of all good things. He wants to shower His blessings upon us His children. Yet we should also remember that He is a Holy God and deserves the respect a Holy God should be given. ‘May Your Name be kept holy’ is a call for us to keep His Name holy by living lifestyles in accordance with His holy standards and always leaning on Jesus’ forgiveness and grace when we stumble. It is also a call for us to intercede for the nations, so that God’s Name may be kept holy throughout the world. Finally it is a commission for us to keep God’s Name holy, not just in the comfort of our own homes but in our workplaces, school and even in our churches.

May we remember that the God we serve is our loving Heavenly Father, the Creator of the world and our Shelter. He is holy and deserves to be treated as a Holy God. Yet His holiness doesn’t mean He is inapproachable. His loving arms are always wide open, beckoning us into His Holy presence, because of Jesus’ sacrifice for us.

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In Our Father’s Arms

4th May

“Praise the Lord; praise God our Saviour! For each day He carries us in His arms.

interlude”

Psalm 68:19

Thanksgiving is such a great way to start the day. Thinking upon and remembering the goodness of all God has done for us, encourages us to exercise an attitude of gratitude in our lifestyles, as part of our daily devotion to God. It helps us to put God in the place He deserves to be in our lives. He truly does carry us in His arms each day. He lifts our burdens and loads us with His goodness. He exchanges our ashes and mourning for songs of praise and dancing. He is a good good God.

David, in Psalm 68, reminds his readers of God’s redemption for the nation of Israel from the hands of the Egyptians. He recalls when they were rescued from slavery in Egypt, fed in the barren and dry lands as they went through the wilderness, rescued from the charging chariots (when Pharaoh realised he had made a mistake by letting the Israelites go free), and finally how God saved them by parting the seas so they could walk freely, then lavishing them with the wealth of their enemies.

It is only when we recognise God’s goodness in our lives, that when faced with trails and tribulations, we can find strength and courage to persevere through and not to give up. We can be assured that just as God has helped us in the past, so He will help us in the future.

It’s so great to see the ‘selah’ or ‘interlude’ and the end of this verse. It is almost like David is saying to his readers, just pause. Just take a second to really think about Gods goodness. Think about the times He has helped you and thank Him, praise Him. Think about the times He has carried your burdens, remind yourself of the times when He has saved you, remember the moments He carried you in His loving Fatherly arms. Let us take time to remember God’s goodness and be filled with thanksgiving and praise.