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October 9: Psalm 66:8-11
Key Verse: Psalm 66:11
You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs.
Devotion:
One of the things we often overlook or try not to think about is how God will always try to get us to do things His way. This does not mean He is going to act like the devil did against Job, but He will try things which may well persuade us because we don’t like them happening!
God will not directly punish us to get us to change our minds; that would mean He is going against His promises to us! Instead, God may well allow us to walk directly into trouble if we are convinced the path we are taking is the best when He knows it is only going to lead to trouble! This is like allowing your friend to taste something horrible after you have warned them many times it will not taste good! It is not like He will make sure we taste the horrible thing, but more like we have refused to listen to Him and now we are going to taste it because we think we know better than God!
When we meet together to praise and worship God, we should be reminding each other of all the good and righteous things we have learned, and also leading each other away from danger when we see another walking toward danger. God tries very hard to not let us get into trouble – but far too often we ignore His calling and step off into the deep waters of life just because we think we know best!
God tries time and time again to get us to listen and learn. The more we do not listen, the more things will probably go wrong and the more we think God is punishing us! It is not God punishing us… it is us walking into the dangers He has been trying to warn us against...
Points to Ponder:
How often do you get into trouble?
How often do you think God tried to warn you?
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October 8: Luke 11:27-28
Key Verse: Luke 11:28
He replied, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.’
Devotion:
How do you count your blessings? Do you look at the physical aspects of your life and count your blessings based on the physical rewards, or do you look at it in another way? Although this woman was saying the mother of Jesus was a blessed woman, Jesus corrected her by saying it was not because of the physical aspect of having Him but the spiritual aspect of her believing He was and is the Son of God which blessed her!
Most of us do look at the physical aspects in our lives when we count our blessings, it is not always the physical reward which are the true blessings. Yes we do find we enjoy many physical rewards when we trust in Christ, we also have to look at the spiritual aspects which are the true and long-term blessings in our lives.
God promised Abraham he would be the father of a nation which would be numbered as the grains of sand on the beach, but Abraham did not end up having a multitude of children to see this promise come to pass. Instead he would have to have faith in God to produce the numerous people in the family and not have this himself.
Our faith in Christ is what counts far more than the physical rewards we see in our lives. The spiritual blessings we receive in the long run are far more numerous than the rewards we see. Many of those spiritual blessings are also going to be in our eternal lives with God afterward – some of which we will not get to see until we are with God in Heaven.
Points to Ponder:
Are you counting your earthly rewards?
Will you compare them to your promised spiritual blessings you receive through your faith?
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October 7: Galatians 3:7-14
Key Verse: Galatians 3:12
The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, it says, ‘The person who does these things will live by them.’
Devotion:
The people during this time in which the apostles went out to teach others were still fixated on the laws of Moses, or the scriptures as they were also known. These were the laws given to Moses for the people of Israel to live by – until they they had not had a strict code of conduct by which to try and live by. The problem being the laws were so numerous and strict nobody really had a chance of being able to live by them.
This was not a trick by God to make sure everyone was guilty, but a sign to show the people they could never compare to God and His ways. If the people wanted to be justified, they had to live up to all of the laws – a task which was impossible for mankind! But the scriptures also talked about being justified by faith, as Abraham was.
Some of the great leaders in our Old Testament were serious sinners as defined by the scriptures. Abraham and David both came to the conclusion they were sinners and had to have something more than the law to live up to otherwise they would never be able to be justified. They had faith God was going to give them a way through which they could be saved from the debt of sin they owed.
The laws were all written down so people did not have to have faith they were there – they were actual laws. This meant everyone who tried to live by them was condemned because they could never live up to them! But Christ came and allowed Himself to be cursed so we would not have to be cursed. He redeemed us so we could live up to the blessing given to Abraham; but people had to believe this was so otherwise they couldn’t live up to it – this was their faith!
Points to Ponder:
Do you believe Christ has given you a way to be forgiven?
Will you accept that way and be forgiven?
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October 6: Mark 13:9-13
Key Verse: Mark 13:10
And the gospel must first be preached to all nations.
Devotion:
When Jesus was warning the disciples about what lay ahead, He warned them they would be persecuted just because they knew Him and tried to tell people the truth. He warned them they would be put before governors and kings who would be accusing them of things; but throughout all of this they should also be trying to tell the truth about Jesus wherever they went – even before the governors and kings!
We are going to face all manner of people in our lives too, some of which we may not dream about having the privilege of meeting. What we do before them is going to count! If we act like any other person, then they will see us as just another person. But if we reflect the light Jesus shined for us, then they will be looking to find out what is different. This is our chance to be witnesses before them!
Jesus also told them they should rely more on the Holy Spirit to guide them in what to say. I know I used to have trouble trying to tell people about God because I would try to think of the words to say all be myself. I have never been good at English, reading or public speaking because I get myself mixed up with what to think and say. But when I give myself over to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I seem to be able to say an do things I never thought possible for me! Indeed they are probably not possible for me, but with the Spirit, they are possible!
One of the hardest things to do was for me to stop trying to show people what I could do and to allow God to show me what they needed to hear and see. This puts a whole new slant on everything in my life and allows me to put a bit of Christ’s light into other people’s lives. This is what God wants from us all...
Points to Ponder:
Do you have trouble with telling people about God?
Will you try allowing Him to guide you as to what to say and do?
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October 5: Galatians 2:7-10
Key Verse: Galatians 2:8
For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle to the Gentiles.
Devotion:
When you think of the apostles going out to spread the gospel, whom do you think they went to? We hear of them going out to many people and so many getting to know the truth and get into a relationship with God through their teachings; but when you look at it from the apostles point of view – who were they trying to reach?
Jesus reached out to so many people but we get to hear mostly about Him coming back to the Jews and teaching in the synagogues. We don’t always think about the other people He reached out to unless we are told specifically how he talked to Samaritans or others. The apostles where guided by the Holy Spirit to reach out to specific people. Between them they decided who would go where to cover as many people as possible.
Here we are reminded how Peter was an apostle to the circumcised – the Jews. This is the side I always think about when I hear about the apostles. But Paul was encouraged to be an apostle to the Gentiles – those uncircumcised who were rejected and shunned by the Jews because of the original words from God telling them not to mix with them when they were settling in the land. This was to stop them from giving in to the ways of the Gentiles because they seemed to be easily swayed away from God (as we know from historical records!)
God doesn’t always want us to reach out to the friends and families of the church goers… Yes some of us will need to reach out to them to encourage them to come into church and learn the truth; but some of us will be asked to go to those people who our society shuns or the people who we think least deserve to know Christ!
Points to Ponder:
Do you pick the easy task when you hear God calling?
Will you step forward and accept the difficult task if He asks?
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October 4: Mark 12:41-44
Key Verse: Mark 12:42
But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few pence.
Devotion:
I wonder how many people Jesus upset this day when He was preaching at the temple courts. First He made them try to think deeply about whose son is the Messiah, then He turned on the teachers of the law warning people not to follow them because they were all puffed up! Then He shows how the poor widow who put in two very small coins was showing more respect to the law than some rich people who put in a lot more!
But Jesus was not trying to upset everyone; He was pointing them toward the truth where people should have a personal relationship with God, a relationship which allows us to understand more about who the Messiah is, a relationship which show us the people who are all noise and no substance and one which brings us to share more with God than we have ever done before.
The poor widow was willing to put more into the temple collection than any other person. She did not put in loads of coins like some people could, but as a proportion of her belongings, she gave more – she was willing to allow God to have more because of her deep love for Him.
As a youngster I was semi afraid of the vicars who dressed up in robes and were in charge at the church services. I used to think a lot of the people who taught others about God from their loft positions. Then I started to get to know Christ and got to see the difference between people who did a lot of talking and people who did a lot! Christ opened my eyes to what God’s work really was all about.
Points to Ponder:
Do you give toward your local church?
How much do you do for Christ because you want to?
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October 3: Luke 10:25-37
Key Verse: Luke 10:29
But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbour?’
Devotion:
How do you choose which people you hang out with? How do you go about choosing friends? How do you go about meeting new friends? If we stick to only choosing to be friends with people which are related to the circle of friends you already have, or the circle of family you have, then your circle of friends is not likely to expand. The same can be said about our church… if we are not willing to go out and meet new people to invite into church, then our church numbers will continue to diminish as people pass on!
When Jesus was confronted by a “teacher of the law” this was referring to a person of the Jewish faith who would teach the Jews the scriptures and the rules as they had been taught to do by other teachers. This meant the circle of people the scriptures was reaching was not expanding other than by Jewish children being born!
Jesus wanted the teacher to open their eyes and see how limiting such an attitude was – how the Jewish church would not expand any faster than the Jewish population would expand. Jesus wanted the scripture to be made available to anyone whom was willing to learn from them, anyone who wanted to know more about God, be they Jew or not!
When Jesus said we should be disciples, He did not mean we should go into church and teach the church people about God! The vast majority of people in church services are there because they already have some sort of invested interest in God. Waiting for people to walk through the doors before teaching them about Christ is probably going to make the church expand at a lesser rate than the Jews at the time of this story. More people are likely to die than walk into church unless we go out and invite people in!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you go to church?
How often do you invite new people in to church?
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October 2: Luke 17:5-10
Key Verse: Luke 17:10
So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, “We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.”
Devotion:
When was the last time you thought about what it is to be obedient to God? We like to say we will be obedient, that we will answer the call when He calls us and we will do what we should do – but how many times do you look back and see where you have failed or where you could have done more?
I have been told on many occasion I am doing good work for God, but I can also look at what I do and see where I could do more! God continues to give us the opportunities to do things for and with Him, and it is up to us to fulfil those tasks at the right time. Sometimes we blame it on not having enough faith because we feel weak; these words remind us a tiny spec of faith is all that it required to get the job done!
I’m not talking about the ‘faith’ we have when we say we are going to do something and never get round to doing it, but the faith we have when we say we are going to try and we do try – even when we fail whilst we try. God is looking for obedience, not seasoned professionals who know it all!
We should always be willing to step forward when called, even when we have just completed a task and feel like we cannot do any more. If God is asking us to do something, it is because He knows we are capable and will be able to do the task in hand! Don’t give up because you think you cannot do it… if God is asking you, He already knows you can do it!
Points to Ponder:
How many times do you shy away from God’s work?
How many times have you gone back for more?
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October 1: Luke 10:17-20
Key Verse: Luke 10:20
However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.
Devotion:
How often do you get carried away with celebrations when you lead a person to The Lord, or you manage to do something for others? We do like to be praised when we do something with a positive outcome, especially when that positive outcome is seen a good in Christ’s eyes or for the church… But we should never forget just who is behind the victory.
I used to have a T-Shirt which had a picture of a bass being hooked on it and the words “we catch them, God cleans them” written underneath. I bought that shirt because it reminded me of the fact I could show people the light, I could show them the Bible and I could do many things, but it was God who was the one behind the hope and victory these people had – not me!
I cringe when I hear people talking about how many people they led to The Lord or how many people they brought to God… Yes, that person may well be instrumental in those others getting to know Christ, but without Christ they have done nothing. Without those people submitting to Christ, their work was for nothing…
What we should be rejoicing about is simply the fact our names are written in heaven – without that fact, we have done nothing. I will not count how many people I have changed, because I don’t do the changing, I simply open people’s hearts and minds to the fact Christ has died for them and wants to save them; nothing more! I am a servant of God who is trying to do what God is asking of me, it’s that simple!
Points to Ponder:
Have you boasted about what you have done for God lately?
Is your greatest gift not just salvation?
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September 30: Psalm 139:6-11
Key Verse: Psalm 139:7
Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
Devotion:
One of the things many of us struggle with in our lives is the sense of loneliness or abandonment. We struggle with being left alone or a feeling that nobody is there to help us out when things get tough. It is not something which is limited to people who struggle in life or people who have lost someone close to them, but to most of us at one stage or another in our lives.
When the psalmist was penning this psalm, it was a psalm of remembering how awesome God is in our lives. No matter what happens in our lives, no matter how far we think we have strayed away, no matter how much we think we do not deserve God to be in our lives, He is always there. Jesus made sure the Holy Spirit came back to mankind so we would never again feel like we have been left alone…
Unfortunately this does not cure everyone of their feelings of abandonment; for those people who struggle to have a relationship with God, they will continue to struggle with feeling alone or left out because they are struggling to have God in their lives. This is not something we have to try and manufacture because nothing we do will ensure the Spirit is with us – at least not in a physical way.
The Spirit stays with us when we invite Him into our lives. As soon as Christ recognises we are asking for help, He will ensure we have the help for everything we need. If we still have doubts, then we will still struggle with our feelings; but as long as we trust in Christ and depend on Him in our lives, we will find we always have the Spirit with us no matter what is happening.
Points to Ponder:
Do you struggle with being alone?
Will you invite Christ to be your partner?