February 8: Psalm 93:1-5
Key Verse: Psalm 93:4
Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea - the Lord on high is mighty.
Devotion:
Sometimes you have to stop and smell the roses… Our lives are pretty hectic and the more we embrace modern society the more our lives seem to overtake us and get us involved with so much more than we can normally handle! When we feel overwhelmed, we need to stop and consider just who is in charge and who hold all the power.
There are going to be governments and leaders who will claim they own all the power and they have ultimate control over everything, but if truth be told, they too are subject to the one who is all powerful – God! I don’t know if you have all experienced the power of waves on the sea-front, but you can quite easily get knocked off your feet by a bit of water! Rain, snow and floods can be quite devastating inland as well, and yet it is ‘only water’. God’s power is so much more than anything we have encountered but still we look at it in a similar light to waves etc.
God’s power is not to be taken lightly and certainly not to be ignored. The people in the Old Testament grew to experience the power of God first hand in many cases, they knew all too well that God was more powerful than they could imagine. In modern society we tend to get carried away with seeing so many extraordinary feats and events and we lose track of God’s real power because we only look up to the power of the world, be it the natural world or the man-made world.
If you ever have had the privilege of seeing a waterfall from up close, then you can feel the power of the water as it thunders down, encompassing everything in its path. Whilst this can be overwhelming to see up close, God’s power is probably hidden far more from us than the waterfalls and so we do tend to take it for granted and even ignore it. Heaven and earth cry out about the power of God – we need to stop and listen and embrace this power which will help and protect us if we ask for it to do so...
Points to Ponder:
What is the most unsettling power you have seen?
Do you know God’s power encompasses that too?
February 7: Ephesians 2:19-22
Key Verse: Ephesians 2:21
In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.
Devotion:
When you move out of home for the first time or go to live in a strange place whilst at university or college or even go on holiday and share a place with strangers – you look at everything around you and wonder who is the stranger, them or you! Sometimes you don’t fit in with the others and you try to move somewhere else, other times you fit in with most people and another person moves… we just don’t mix with everyone and anyone… or at least that is how we see it!
But when we look at it from Christ’s eyes or through God’s eyes we see the potential to mix with everyone and we try to get on with everyone; after all Christ taught us to love everyone as much as we love ourselves. It’s the attitude we take into a new place which will make more of a difference than the mix of people we meet there. If we see problems before we get there, we find problems in every point. But if we see potential everywhere, we find opportunities everywhere instead.
When we come together as Christians we should be showing the world we have a brotherhood who love and trust each other, looking for and expecting the best out of all situation just as we offer our best in those cases too. Sadly, we fall short of the mark. But, even though we do fall short of the mark, God still treats us as members of His household. In Christ the whole body of people is joined together as one and becomes the holy temple in which we meet.
God lives in us by His Spirit through whom He can encourage us and guide us into seeking potential and opportunities every step of the way. Stop looking for the problems and listen to the Spirit who can guide you to the opportunities to improve and expand your way of life in Christ’s body!
Points to Ponder:
Do you look for issues or do you look for opportunities?
Will you allow the Spirit to guide you to your next opportunity?
February 6: 2 Timothy 2:20-21
Key Verse: 2 Timothy 2:20
In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use.
Devotion:
I love these verses which follow yesterdays devotion where gossiping is put down; reminding us that we are all very different in the way God made us. If we were all the same, society would collapse and we would not get very far. We need the people who maintain the sewers, we need the people who farm crops, we need the people who raise livestock, we need the people who study science and medicine, we even need the people who are in government…
We are a society of many different branches all of which contribute to form this society – once one branch gets cut off, either the rest of the branches have to take up the slack, or they whither and maybe die due to lack of support. We are all different and we need to celebrate our difference!
God created some of us to sit down and silently study the bible so we can teach others, but He also created some to simply sit down and study the bible to build ourselves up. God created us different so we can help support each other in everything we do; this is the base of the love Jesus taught the disciples to have and forms the cornerstone of our communities. This means we need to show that love and support to everyone in all positions in society and in our communities, not leaving out those we think of as not deserving in some way because of the position, looks or cleanliness!
God has created the right people to fulfil the right jobs – but we don’t all listen to our Father in heaven! Some of us are put in charge of things everyone takes for granted and many times we feel like we are taken for granted too… yes we are… but there are also those put in power or in royal positions which many take for granted too. We all have our positions which we should be trying to fulfil to the best of our abilities. I have not been able to do much over the last year because of spending so much time in hospital; this gave me greater insight into the work I do and how much it means to other people in our community and church.
Points to Ponder:
Do you ever feel you are taken for granted?
Do you take God for granted sometimes?
February 5: 2 Timothy 2:14-19
Key Verse: 2 Timothy 2:16
Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.
Devotion:
I’m sure all of us can admit to gossip at one stage or another – I know there are some who will say they have not, but what I am talking about now is not the constant gossip like we see is some soaps on TV, but the telling of something which is not the truth just to get your own way. As a parent, I must say I was guilty of this quite a bit, telling my children to do something because of some made up reason. I believe this is also included in this portion of the letter to Timothy here.
We should not get into a huge argument over words or wording either because by doing so we are pushing our thoughts onto others and as we get more and more upset or heated up about the words, something comes out which may not be the whole truth! Yes, I am guilty of that one too!
Last week, during our staff meeting, we were talking about the way yeast spreads through dough until it engulfs the whole dough. Unless that yeast is checked, it will continue to spread into all dough it comes into contact with… just like the words of gossip we like to spread. It is amazing how quickly word can get around just by telling the right people who you know will go on to tell many others!
But imagine what will happen when the wrong word gets out and it starts spreading quicker than the truth. Just like the Coronavirus is spreading much further and faster than first expected (please do continue to pray for all people and families affected by this virus around the world) bad words can spread so much quicker and further than we want. I have seen far too many relationship break apart because something was said out of order, even though not true!
Points to Ponder:
Are you spreading gossip?
Or are you spreading the gospel?