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June 21: Matthew 7:13-14
Key Verse: Matthew 7:14
But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Devotion:
How easily do you get distracted when you are trying to do an important job? I don’t know about you, but my mind is always spinning with many things going through it and concentrating on a single thing can be difficult for me unless it is something I enjoy or am very interested in. Even sitting down and reading God’s Word can be difficult for me at times...
It is little wonder then we are given this warning in amongst all the warnings about not judging and treating others correctly; we do have the offer of assistance from God through the Holy Spirit to get through our days and to be able to stick with the plan. We need to take every bit of assistance we can get – especially if we do find it difficult to keep going.
This brings up another important task we have in hand. Because the world is so ‘loud’ compared to the quietness of God and the Word, we can find it difficult to focus on the right thing and to even find the right ways of doing things. If we are all searching for this small sweet spot in our lives, then should we not be helping others if we do find it? What is the use of everyone going off to find the right way by themselves; if one of us should find it, then we should be guiding others toward it so they can find it more easily.
God does not want us to be alone with Him in heaven – He wants us to all be together with Him. If we are headed for a feast with Him in Heaven, then we should be sending out the invites for others to come and join us, giving them clear instructions on how to get there too. Jesus left us very clear instructions in the form of His Word...
Points to Ponder:
Would you like your friends and family to be with you in Heaven?
Are you handing out invitations?
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June 20: Matthew 7:1-5
Key Verse: Matthew 7:4
How can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
Devotion:
It is very easy to see the errors others make and very easy to think you can cover up the errors you make; but we need to remember there is someone watching us all the time, not waiting for us to make mistakes, but waiting for us to come to Him for our help and guidance. Part of that help and guidance is so we do not jump in to judge others.
I love the symbolism of these words used here. I don’t know if you have ever tried to read something when you get sand or other foreign objects blown into your eyes – it’s a bit difficult! This is the symbolism used here, when we have something wrong in our lives it is hard to be able to see the reality of someone else’s situation – maybe they are doing what they are because they think they have no other choice!
Part of our life is making choices when the going gets difficult. Christ has given us the Holy Spirit for guidance and help during those times when we do find it difficult. The Holy Spirit does not have anything to hold them back like we do, so they see the big picture in its correct light, and not jaded as we see because of the sin in our lives.
You may not think of the things wrong in your life when you are too busy focusing on what you see wrong in other’s lives, but when you stop to think about it, you will see the faults in your life. Christ is saying we need to sort those faults out before we can even think about picking the faults in other’s lives. Those little things wrong in our lives may be like a speck of sand, but that is enough to make you not see clearly!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you pick holes in other people's business?
Will you allow the Holy Spirit to guide you first of all?
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June 19: Luke 8:27-33
Key Verse: Luke 8:33
When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.
Devotion:
This is one of those strange stories which makes me stop and think a lot. Each time I try to write about it, I stop and allow myself to hear from the Holy Spirit because of the uncertainty in the way things happened… The demons possessing the man begged Jesus to allow them to enter into the pigs instead of being simply cast out. This is when people start asking questions like “why did Jesus allow that rather than just getting rid of the demons?”
Well, let’s take a look at the character of demons… Are they trustworthy? Are they honest? What would you have done? Jesus showed His compassionate side by allowing them to go into the pigs rather than being cast away; but then the pigs rush off into the lake and drown! I like to think Jesus knew they were going to try and make a run for it and purposely pointed the pigs in the direction of the lake first. The banks were too steep and once they started running, there was only one way it would end!
This should give us a pointer to never trust demons. To never believe what they say and to avoid them at all costs. Allow the professionals to deal with them… and I don’t mean people who make a living out of saying they cast out demons, I’m talking about people who call out to Christ to do the exercising. Christ has the power to do this and He is the one who is looking out for us. If we are willing to believe and trust in Him, then He will be faithful and deliver us from the evil (just as we prayer in The Lord’s Prayer)
Points to Ponder:
Do you trust Christ enough to keep you safe?
Will you place a bit more trust in what He can do for you?
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June 18: 2 Chronicles 24:17-19
Key Verse: 2 Chronicles 24:19
Although the Lord sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.
Devotion:
We often think we are safe in our houses or in our countries because we live in a peaceful part of the world; but that is only what is on the surface. If we did deep into our own countries and communities we will see all manner of corruption and greed which leads to many having to go without the things we take for granted. One of those things many Christian take for granted is that God is always going to look after us!
We only have to look back into our history to see how God was tested to the limit by many people over time. Some of those people had to face the consequences of their inaction or of their bad behaviour, whilst others ended up paying for what their parents had done wrong.
After the death of Jehoiada, Joash became the new king. He did not follow what God had continued to ask the people of Judah to do. They rebelled against all of God’s rules and covenants. Instead they started worshipping Asherah poles and idols – not quite sure what made them do that, but it was probably one person who started talking about what could be better if they did something else instead.
The Lord sent prophets to try and bring the people back to worshipping Him but the people continued to ignore them and rebel against God. They made the choice to go against God… We have a choice to make in our own lives, we could just go ahead and ignore all the people who give us advice, or we could choose one person to listen to and follow whatever they say… the wise choice would be to follow the right person who is telling us things which agree with everything God has taught us in the past!
Points to Ponder:
Who do you take advice from?
Does that advice agree with what is in the bible?
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June 17: Matthew 6:19-23
Key Verse: Matthew 6:21
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Devotion:
How come there are rich Christians and poor Christians? Shouldn’t we all be the same so nobody will get treater better than the rest of us? No matter where you look in life, you will always see people who are better off than others and people who are worse off than others; that is how we behave as human beings, never mind Christians.
We can look through the bible and see how some Christians were kings, some were poor and many others were in between those extremes – that is part of life! But what should tell us apart from any other human is how we look at what we have and what we do with what we have. God wants us to do our best to make use of what we have and to treat those around us with respect and dignity.
Some of the richest people in the world are also some of the most generous people in the world; it may not always work like that because there are also many who are truly greedy with their wealth and will not share anything with anyone… what do they have? They have wealth which they cannot use with the very people around them because their greed sets them apart from the rest of us. But those who choose to share what they have or to look after others who do not have enough have a lot more – they have the friendships and partnerships around them with people who are thankful!
God would like us to not just share what we have but to use what we have to help others; and if making more money with the money we have is what is going to help more people, then that is what we should be doing. Wealth can be measured by many things, not just money but love and friendship too!
Points to Ponder:
What do you do with the money you earn?
What will you do to show people God is generous with you?
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June 16: John 6:51-58
Key Verse: John 6:52
Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’
Devotion:
I have heard many arguments about this subject and I’m pretty sure I will hear many more: what did Jesus mean about His blood and body? We can argue about exactly what Jesus meant but we will never know the exact definition until we see Him face to face – then we can ask Him!
But, despite never knowing, Jesus wants us to have faith to believe what He was telling the people at this time. Each person’s definition may differ but we should all be able to agree on the fact Jesus gave His body and blood for our sakes; if we take that literally or metaphorically or whatever is going to be our choice. Jesus wants us to try to understand what He was saying. To do this we need one of two things: either we should have Jesus in person to explain exactly what He meant, or we should have the one He left behind for us to explain what we need to know!
If we are not going to partake in this feast, we fall short of the mark. But the feast is not physical because that would be gross – Jesus was in Human form! The feast can be the fact Jesus gave it all for you, or us believing what He did was for us, or us celebrating the fact Jesus did this all… etc. But the central point should be we have faith to believe it was all for us!
The Israelites had to have faith to not try and hide away yesterday’s manna but to use it all and wait for God to supply a new batch in the morning. Just like that we need to have faith to trust God is going to supply us with our daily needs no matter what – even if we do not have enough faith to totally trust, we will still see the amazing miracle of His love as needs are fulfilled!
Points to Ponder:
How much of your doubt is because of physical issues?
How much faith are you willing to have that nothing is impossible for God?
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June 7: Matthew 5:13-16
Key Verse: Matthew 5:13
You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
Devotion:
Do people think of you as being different in any way? We could be said to be different in good or bad ways, so let’s stick to being different in some good ways! It is good to stand out as being different because people will notice you, hence sticking to being good – the last thing you want is to be known as being bad...
I believe we should be different as Christians, we should stand out from the crowd and people should know why we stand out. God wants us to be noticed in our communities as the people who are different for a reason – not just different because we dress up differently or talk a different language, but because we reach out to people in a different way from everyone else.
The thing is you don’t have to be that different. Salt is something many of us take for granted and we add it on food without thinking. Light is something we take for granted too – we know the sun will come up in the morning and allow us to see what we have to to get through our day. But those things are different…
God wants us to be the difference in the world. He allowed Jesus to stand out from the crowd as the man who was very different to everyone else before Him. He came to be the same as us – a human person, but He came to be very different so people would notice. You can be different in you own way.
Points to Ponder:
Do you want to make a difference?
Will you stand out and be different?
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June 6: 1 Kings 17:1-6
Key Verse: 1 Kings 17:6
The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.
Devotion:
This is another of the amazing stories I love in the bible where Elijah tells Ahab there is going to be no more rain or dew until Elijah says so! Can you imagine what went through Ahab’s mind – he probably laughed it off in the beginning as a useless threat, but when there was indeed no more rain, he would have sought Elijah’s head! God had forewarned Elijah and sent him to hide far away from everyone east of Jordan where God would send ravens to bring food for Elijah.
God sent him to camp near a ravine where a brook would supply him with water; a ravine where nobody normally would visit and hence nobody would know to bring him food. So Elijah was going to be 100% dependant on God for his food. Yes he would have lasted a while with no food, but this was going to be for a longer term than normal. God had to hide Elijah there until Ahab realised there was not going to be any rain to feed the crops and supply their water.
The first lesson we should take away from this is how we should rely on God for everything in our lives. If He is asking you to go somewhere or to do something for Him, then we should be willing to listen and obey no matter how hard we think it may be. Just maybe He is lining up the ravens to take care you you – obviously it may not be ravens per say, but He is going to ensure you can do what He asks!
This also brings up another valuable lesson though, and that is to take what support He gives you with open arms. The first time I heard this story I was a bit taken back by Elijah eating anything ravens brought him. I have seen what crows and ravens do to road-kill and that is what went through my mind! But this was the difference between life and death for Elijah – and what God supplies is good enough for everyone!
Points to Ponder:
Do you shy away from God’s requests because you find them difficult?
Will you trust God to make it possible?
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June 5: Acts 2:5-13
Key Verse: Acts 2:13
Some, however, made fun of them and said, ‘They have had too much wine.’
Devotion:
How many times have people made fun of you because you are doing something for God? It seems like the more I do for God the more I meet people who want to make fun of me or the work just because they don’t have a clue what’s going on! This is one of mankind's defence mechanisms… to make light of something when we don’t understand it so we will not look like we don’t understand!
Jesus probably met many people who tried to make fun of Him and the work He was doing; but He also met a whole lot of people who were important in society who were out to kill Him! Jerusalem was a place where many people met up; this happens in most big cities, people from all walks in life and different countries meet up or mix together. If a street performer is singing in one language, people who understand that language often gather round to hear what’s going on.
The same was happening here, people could hear their own language being spoken and they gathered round to find out more… The big difference here is that each person heard the disciples speaking in their own languages instead of the language of the disciple. There must have been people who could speak multiple languages there to hear what was going on.
This is not normal for humans! This is normal for God because nothing is impossible with God. If we listen to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to guide us, we will be able to do many things we thought not possible to start with. I used to think I was pretty terrible at talking to teenagers because I struggled with bringing up my own – but when God asked me to teach the teens, I was and am able to reach them with God’s Word!
Points to Ponder:
Are you put off by what other people say about you?
Will you trust God and listen to what the Holy Spirit wants from you?
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June 4: John 21:20-23
Key Verse: John 21:23
Because of this, the rumour spread among the believers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, ‘If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?’
Devotion:
Have you ever got the wrong side of a story? Have you ever misunderstood what someone is trying to say to you? I’m sure we all have got things wrong at some stage or another – the disciples were no different as we can see here. They were pre-occupied with finding the identity of the disciple who would betray Jesus and were almost at the point of blaming each other.
Jesus’ answer to this was to tell them it was of no concern to them whom the guilty party was. If the true identity of Judas had got out before this, he may have ended up being mugged or entrapped before he could accomplish what was prophesied in the scriptures. Jesus wanted to make sure God’s word continued to be accurate all the way to the end – no matter what would happen! The disciples started thinking Jesus’ words would mean the guilty one would live forever; not what Jesus said at all.
We need to be careful about listening to Jesus and the Holy Spirit. If we go off on a tangent and do something He is not asking us to do, we are fulfilling our own desires and not God’s wishes. We need to stop and listen carefully. Then we need to take what we think we heard and compare it with what else we have in our bibles to see if it is in line with God’s wishes. If the disciples had stopped to think they would have realised God would not want anyone to live forever knowing they have gone against God!
If you think God is trying to get your attention or He is trying to get you to do something different, compare what you are hearing or thinking against what we know to be the truth from our Bibles. If the two do not match up or at least line up, then it is unlikely God is calling us to do that!
Points to Ponder:
Do you stop and listen when someone talks to you?
Do you stop and listen to God?