Monday 18 Mar 2024

DJ

March 18: Psalm 23:1-6

Key Verse: Psalm 23:1
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

Devotion:
One of the hardest things to do is to find the good in something when you are surrounded by bad things! Most of the time we will not see the good until we look back on the times we had and see where the Lord has worked wonders in our lives; even then it can be hard to see what God has been doing because we focus on the things which we can see or those which gain our attention.

I love the words of this Psalm because it show what we should always be thinking – God has got our backs and He continues to watch over us in every walk in life. My last words with my Dad before he passed were us knowing he was in the very best hands possible and how he could finally stop chasing his tail.

No matter how dark and oppressive things get in our minds, we should be able to lift our heads and know Christ is walking with us. No matter how much we think we are failing, God is helping us up and giving us a hand to complete the task in front of us.

As long as we are willing to work for God and to serve Him in whatever way we can, He will keep His promise to us to never leave us or forsake us. He will be our strength when we need it, our guide when we are lost and our comforter through the roughest seas in our lives!

Points to Ponder:
How often do you give things to God?

How often do you try to take things back?

Sunday 17 Mar 2024

DJ

March 17: Romans 5:12-21

Key Verse: Romans 5:13
To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law.

Devotion:
Have you ever wondered why the world seems to be getting worse? Have you ever looked back and thought “it wasn’t as bad back when I was younger?” We can blame things on the world, people, television, the Internet and anything else we can think of, but the fact is this is all down to us – human beings! We were given the free choice to choose the path we walk, and we have done something wrong somewhere along the way.

The more we try to cover things up, the worse things become because of the lies we have to tell to try and cover things up. The more we dig, the deeper the hole becomes. And all of this is because we keep choosing the wrong path.

God has shown us where we have gone wrong by giving us some rules to follow. Once we see the rules have been broken, we can then choose to change… if we want… The problem seems to be we keep choosing the wrong path.

God has also told us the penalty for choosing the wrong path. He has told us what the punishment for breaking the rules and He continues to warn us… Now is the time we have to make an active choice to either turn our backs on sin or continue down this path of self destruction!

Points to Ponder:
What path have you chosen in your life?

Will you listen to God and try turn your life around?

Saturday 16 Mar 2024

DJ

March 16: Jeremiah 11:18-20

Key Verse: Jeremiah 11:18
Because the Lord revealed their plot to me, I knew it, for at that time he showed me what they were doing.

Devotion:
One of the things I am always amazed by is how much God can and does look after you. We are surrounded by a world which, at times, seems out to get you and yet we continue being safe and secure when we live our lives with God. This has been the same throughout history and for many of the people in our bibles!

Jeremiah was protected in ways which we can look back on and know God was there making him safe when the world was plotting against Him. I know that feeling of being totally safe when you are surrounded by strife and dangers because I have been there a few times in my life and I know God was looking out for me during those times!

It is when we look back on the dangerous situations we see just how much God was doing behind the scenes. When we look back and are frightened by what has happened, we are also amazed at how calm and secure we felt at the time – because we knew in our hearts there was someone watching over us!

This is the pace we have in God, the knowledge we have He is there and He is protecting us when everything else seems to be falling apart. This gives us the strength and faith we need to continue living our lives with and for God!

Points to Ponder:
How many times have you been in trouble?

How many of those times do you think God was with you?

Friday 15 Mar 2024

DJ

March 15: Jeremiah 26:8-11

Key Verse: Jeremiah 26:11
Then the priests and the prophets said to the officials and all the people, ‘This man should be sentenced to death because he has prophesied against this city. You have heard it with your own ears!’

Devotion:
Sometimes, one of the hardest things to hear is the truth! We are scared of the truth if we know or suspect the truth will either expose something we are doing wrong or it will put us in a bad light! We all would like others to see us as good and not bad and when someone comes along and upsets the status quo in any way, we feel threatened in some way.

This is the same fate Jeremiah had to face up to when he was trying to tell the people what God had said. Here was a prophet saying bad things would happen to the people of the city because they were not doing what God wanted them to. The objected and wanted to continue doing what they liked doing rather than having someone talking them down!

The same fate faced Jesus when He tried to tell people of the things they were doing wrong. They turned on Jesus just as the people of this city were turning on Jeremiah – just because they were confronted by the truth and they did not like it!

We are going to have to face similar reactions from people if we dare to tell them the truth and the show they should change their ways or face God’s wrath! But how are they going to find the truth unless someone steps forward and tells them!

Points to Ponder:
Do you face the truth or run from it?

Will you help others face the truth too?