December 14: Matthew 4:1-11

Key Verse: Matthew 4:11
Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Devotion:
What do you think about when you read this story about Jesus being tested in the wilderness? Do you think about how evil the devil was to try to tempt Jesus by offering Him things he could not deliver on? Do you think about Jesus being strong enough to resist those temptations? Do you maybe think about how weak we are in comparison to Jesus and how we need help to be able to reject those types of temptation?

Whatever you think of, I would like you to think of something which struck me as I was writing this down… Jesus went through all of these things in the wilderness before the angels came to attend to Him! In other words, despite God having all the power to be able to turn things around, Jesus still had to go through these difficult times before God stepped in to send angels to comfort Him!

Sometimes we face things in our lives and wonder how we can ever get through these things, begging God to take these bad things away from us… but sometimes God knows we have to face something like what is happening before we will understand what it is like for others! I can remember thinking this while I was in hospital and  coming to the conclusion God wanted me to know what it was like to be on the receiving end of bad health and unlucky times!

But, no matter what we go through, God will provide respite after the even when we continue to fully trust in Him!

Points to Ponder:
Do you think you are having a bad time?

Is God showing you things before He can reward you?

December 13: Isaiah 40:25-31

Key Verse: Isaiah 40:30
Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;

Devotion:
As I grow older I start to feel the limits of my body more and begin to realise I am now part of the ‘old people’ clan! But my mind continues to thrive on all things and keeps me thinking I am younger than I am. As a youngster I used to think I was able to do so much, and compared to now, it was a whole lot more, but I don’t complain because I know the Lord has much more for me to do yet.

As a young man I did not see much of the beauty of the world around me, instead I looked for more things to do and explore. Now I tend to see much more of the awesome world around us and see just how much love God has put into creating this amazing world we live in. As humans continue to expand their knowledge of the universe I realise there is a lot more to things than just my little corner of the world.

We see scientists and explorers expanding the ‘known universe’ and humans doing things faster, better and smarter in all walks of life; except for those who just don’t seem to grasp what it is all about! Even then we seem to reach limits and records which stand for a long time, waiting for someone to come along and change things up once again. But if we continue to hope in the Lord we will continue to see things expand and improve because we know we can gain strength and wisdom from God: that is when we get to soar!

Points to Ponder:
Is there something you are trying to get better at?

Will you take God with you and praise Him when you achieve the next step?

December 12: Isaiah 40:6-8

Key Verse: Isaiah 40:7
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows on them. Surely the people are grass.

Devotion:
Not all the news Isaiah had to dish out was bad news. Here we see comfort coming back to the people of Israel; someone will come and prepare the way of the Lord and with that the people will eventually listen and things will turn round for the good of everyone who praises God. But it’s not just the people of God who will benefit: everyone around them will enjoy the good times as well.

We come, not to just praise God and hope for blessings, but to show other people we are praising Him and receiving blessing. God’s glory is revealed through our blessings. Unless we tell people we have these blessings because our God is good, how will they know where any of this comes from.

The evil one will be jumping up and down trying to take credit for all manner of things which look like they are good. He wants to take the credit away from God so he can get the praise instead of God getting the praise.

We have to show others we may not be like a great pillar of stone which remains strong even in the strongest winds. We have to show people we will get battered and bruised in the bad times just as they will. But when we continue to praise God, even in those bad times, He will bring blessing to us which far outweigh the praise we give Him. We will fail during the hard times just as others will unless we continue to receive our strength from God to remain firm.

Points to Ponder:
Do you find it hard during hard times?

Have you tried praising God even when you don’t want to?