November 21: Luke 21:1-4
Key Verse: Luke 21:3
‘Truly I tell you,’ he said, ‘this poor widow has put in more than all the others.
Devotion:
One of the things I used to get frustrated about was the lack of people who would come forward to help with youth work in church. Most of the time I would hear the excuse of “I’m too old, I can’t relate to teenagers…” My response would always be along the lines of “you’ll be amazed at what you can share with them…” which would mostly fall on deaf ears. Those same people would be more than willing to put a pound or two into the purse to help with the work, but not so eager to step up and do something.
Jesus watches each of us and sees what is in our hearts when we do anything for Him. He sees what we feel on the inside and knows why we are making the excuses we are. If we would listen to Him we would be able to do a whole lot more in the church!
Just like this poor widow who put in such a small amount of money, we don’t often think about the value of what we can do for God. If we were to step up and help out with an event, even if it was simply to hand someone a cup of tea or coffee, that could be the difference between someone opening up and them walking out the door without finding out the truth.
The skills we have may not seem like much to us, but to someone on the receiving end, it may well be all they need to reach out and find out more about Jesus. We do hit so many brick walls in our lives it seems like the little things won’t make any difference. But when we are on the receiving end, those small things may be the last straw we are able to grasp and the life-line we end up using to reach God!
Points to Ponder:
Are you shy about doing something in your church?
Will you try to do something small in church this week?
November 20: Luke 23:33-43
Key Verse: Luke 23:40
But the other criminal rebuked him. ‘Don’t you fear God,’ he said, ‘since you are under the same sentence?
Devotion:
It is amazing to see the power of a crowd. The more people hear them the more others want to join in and things get out of hand very quickly. Many a riot is started by one person who sews an idea into others heads and that idea grows like a cancer until it has consumed the crowd and people are all doing what they ought not to do; and they are doing it willingly in their own minds...
The crowd was certainly won over by the chief priests who shouted out that Jesus should be crucified! They all joined in until it was too late and the Romans were worried too many people may start a riot which could not be contained. They gave in and crucified Jesus along with two other criminals who had done very bad deeds.
Jesus refused to give in to the crowd as they jeered and mocked Him. He refused to allow them to break His heart because His heart was set on accomplishing what His Father had set out to do – to save us all from our sinful ways! The two criminals who were also being hanged had very different hearts. The one refused to admit he was in the wrong and jeered with the crowd to try and get Jesus to use His powers to set them free.
The other criminal admitted his sins before Jesus and knew in his own heart he deserved to be punished; he was sorry for what he had done. Jesus saw inside the hearts of the two men and spoke out to the one who admitted his own guilt telling him he would join Jesus in Heaven presently!
Points to Ponder:
Do you give in and follow the crowd?
Or will you admit your shortcomings and follow Jesus?
November 19: Luke 20:27-40
Key Verse: Luke 20:38
He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.
Devotion:
As humans we all get caught up in death, what happens when we die, how we react to people dying and many other aspects of death. When the Sadducees came to Jesus, they were caught up in what happens when people die because this is what they thought was the end of life. They wanted to know what other people should do when friends or family die.
A couple of days ago was the anniversary of my father passing away and we are all very thankful he knew Jesus as his Saviour and that he is now with Jesus in Heaven! My last words with my dad the day before he died were a reminder of how easy his life would be from then on – he knew he was going to be with Jesus. I did not have to worry about what would happen to him nor would I have to worry about what happens about his marriage and his second marriage after my birth mother died earlier… because I knew these words which Jesus reminds us of here.
When we get to be with Jesus in Heaven we will not have to worry about who we will have to love because God’s love will cover us all. The love we will have in Heaven will be toward all people in Heaven as well as God and we will share in that love. I wonder whether the Sadducees understood how wonderful and fulfilling the love is Heaven would be. The love Jesus was showing to all people whilst here on earth was just the side of it we see – because our human minds need to see love in action…
This is why we fall in love, marry and have families. We need a physical aspect or manifestation of love so we can understand it. The love we share with people does not go away, but we learn to love other people as we move on in our lives. In Heaven that love will always be present – eternal love!
Points to Ponder:
What do you do with your love when something goes wrong in life?
Will you allow God to share a stronger and eternal love with you?
November 18: Luke 19:45-48
Key Verse: Luke 19:46
‘It is written,’ he said to them, ‘“My house will be a house of prayer”; but you have made it “a den of robbers”.’
Devotion:
What sort of things do you get up with your community and your church? Do you focus only on the people who have committed themselves to follow Christ or do you reach out and get everyone involved? Do you get involved with things in the community? How far do you go? These are all difficult choices we continue to make in our lives; sometimes we can’t stand to be around worldly people and we withdraw to what we think is a safe place.
Sometimes we get too involved with worldly ways and we get a bit off track in our own lives. What God focuses on is what is in our hearts and the work we do because of what is in our hearts. It is no good just thinking of ourselves and knowing we are safe in God’s hands. It is no good running around in worldly ways because we think people in the church are too insular… there is a middle ground which is hard to define unless we follow what God has already written down for us.
Our bibles are a constant source of righteousness and ways in which we should be living. Following God’s ways by following what He has written down for us is always a better way forward. What we must not do, though, is bend the words of the bible to suit our own ways or worldly ways just so we can have a good time.
It may sound like it is ok and may ‘taste’ good at the time, but if we are sinning against God, the sin will find us out and we will have to face up to the consequences of our actions. We will also have to face the consequences of our lack of actions!
Points to Ponder:
What rules do you follow in life?
Does God approve of your actions?