October 3: Luke 9:51-56

Key Verse: Luke 9:53
but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem.

Devotion:
There are going to be times when you are going to find opposition to what you are doing simply because you are doing something different to what they want or expect of you. I worded that carefully because we will find opposition to worshipping God from both outside your church and maybe even to within your church!

People may well object because we are going to church instead of going shopping with them or going to the beach with them; that is what we come to expect as Christians since we have seen this throughout history. But what we may not expect is how some people will object to us worshipping God simply because we dare to do something different to what they want!

God has always encouraged us to worship Him in whatever way we feel is right because He then knows that worship is coming from the heart and not just being performed because that is what the rules say should happen. God does not want a troupe of automatons who perform the same thing day after day or week after week without feeling a sense of love and even pride for worshipping Him with a full heart!

The disciples met opposition from the Samaritans because they were going to Jerusalem! Jesus rebuked them for thinking He should pour fire down on them for such a thought… God has given us free choice to do what we please. If people choose not to worship Him, they have chosen not to accept His will in their lives and that is their choice to make, not ours. We should show them we have made a choice for ourselves too.

Points to Ponder:
Do you struggle with opposition to your worshipping God?

Will you allow them to see you have made your own choice?

October 2: Luke 9:46-50

Key Verse: Luke 9:50
‘Do not stop him,’ Jesus said, ‘for whoever is not against you is for you.’

Devotion:
One thing I continue to struggle with in church is the human assessed hierarchy imposed which people stick to rather than what Jesus was teaching! We this this in action when the disciples were discussing between them who would be the greatest: They were probably doing this by assessing who would do more and who would have the greater following.

God does not measure our worth by how many people get to follow us or how many people we say we ‘saved’ because it is not us doing the convincing and saving but the Spirit of God doing that in people’s hearts. We are only the instruments by which they can open the book and see what is available and God who changes their hearts by giving them purpose in His kingdom!

When we go about church business as a business instead of God’s kingdom, we lose focus on the important things in God’s eyes. When Jesus caught on to what the disciples were discussing He brought a child to stand next to Him and made it a personal choice. If they were willing to accept a strangers child as their own just because He asked them to, then would not Jesus accept them just because the Father had asked it of Jesus.

This is a very personal relationship we have with God and one which we should concentrate on because it is our personal relationship. If we simply do things because ‘the business’ demands it, then we are not considering God’s will in anything but man kinds will alone!

Points to Ponder:
How do you see yourself in your local church?

Will you simply be a child of God and act accordingly?

October 1: Luke 12:22-30

Key Verse: Luke 12:23
For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.

Devotion:
I don’t know about you but I love to watch videos of the various harvesting methods from around the world at this time of year to see how much food the land gives us; all because God said He would provide for us! I know the farmers do work extraordinarily hard especially over the past month as they gather in all the crops and plan for storage and delivery; so I ask God to bless them for all they do and allow them to have plentiful harvests for their sakes.

We are reminded through these words by the apostle how we are reliant on God through nature to make the seeds germinate, how they seedlings have to be taken care of and eventually the harvest gathered for all people to enjoy. But we also see how God supplies all of nature with the food they need to continue their survival too. Animals of all kinds do not normally have to store vast amounts of food in hugs bins and silos because God has taught them how to gather the right amount.

We should take notice of the fact they know how to gather the right amount because many try to store up more than they need or buy too much when others are in need. We need to remember God has placed us in charge of keeping each other alive and not just survival of the fittest!

God placed so much provision and beauty around us through nature and we need to remember who the supplier is. We need to remember how much we need to work and support each other so we can all survive. We need to love our neighbours so nobody needs to go hungry when they don’t have the means to gather or buy supplies… because God has asked us to do so!

Points to Ponder:
Do you have a hand in the food supply chain?

Why not try to be a helping hand for someone who needs assistance?