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September 6: Luke 6:12-16
Key Verse: Luke 6:16
Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
Devotion:
One thing we can be sure of about God is He will choose the right people for the right job at the right time. We may not agree with the decision God has made. But then again we don't know the big picture. We are limited to what we can see and hear and we don't quite get things we cannot yet see or hear yet... It does not mean those things are not there and are not real – it's just we have not yet understood how they can be true!
God chose these twelve disciples to be apostles – He even chose Judas! But why did He choose Judas if He knew he would betray Him in the end? Jesus knew this is what the Father wanted – not what He wanted as a human, but what the Father wanted. God knows what is best all the time!
Just because we don't get it does not mean it is not right. Just because we don't want something, does not mean we should not accept what is actually right for us at the right time! Sometimes it is hard to accept the things we don't understand, especially when all we see is hurt and pain... God sees the result, the long term result, the result which counts in the end.
When God calls you out to stop doing something, or He calls you to come forward to do something – accept it and move forward with Him because He is calling out the right play at the right time. We don't have to understand everything. We don't have to like everything all the time. But what we should be doing is accepting what God calls out and obeying Him in our lives.
Points to Ponder:
Do you listen to God?
Will you finally accept what he is calling you out to do?
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September 5: Mark 9:30-32
Key Verse: Mark 9:32
But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it.
Devotion:
Has this sort of thing ever happened to you? A friend says something which has happened or is about to happen and you just don't want to believe it can be true! I know this has happened a few times to me – something I don't wish on anyone. How you handle the situation and what you do can shape your life...
If we try to put this thing out of our minds and move on without it affecting us, we may well have to continue dealing with this for a long time to come. We go back to this time in our lives and we think about how we could have handled it differently – how we could have done things better. If we are not careful we allow those thoughts to affect our lives – sometimes for the worse.
God wants us to live our lives. Sometimes that is going to be by accepting the things we cannot change and sometimes it is going to be by changing the things we do not like. Whichever way, we should be doing this with God and listening to Him for our daily guidance; this way we can at least know we are being pushed in the best direction and not into a trap which will stick with us forever.
Sometimes when we don't understand something, or we don't want to accept something, the best way forward is going to be to talk about it with someone else – someone whom we trust. If you have a friend who fits that bill, then go to them and start talking. If you don't think much of the people around us, then go to God and start talking... and listening... He will guide you towards the right person at the right time.
Points to Ponder:
Who do you go to when things go wrong?
Will you trust Christ a bit more today?
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September 4: Luke 6:1-5
Key Verse: Luke 6:3
Jesus answered them, ‘Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?
Devotion:
Have you ever read passages like this in the bible and wondered why Jesus was not doing what the Old Testament law said? Why was He doing something which teachers of the law would question? It's not a case of reading between the lines and saying we can break certain laws nowadays because Jesus showed us we can, or trying to re-structure the law to fit in with what Jesus did instead of what the Old Testament scriptures said...
The answer is far simpler than this. Jesus showed compassion over and above what people would recognise. The Pharisees and other teachers of the law were teaching how people should always follow the law no matter how hard it was to do so. This would often mean people were being let down, rejected, refused and even punished because they had followed the law.
Jesus was teaching the disciples about love and mercy, two things which must be taken into account always. How else can we expect to love our neighbour if we are not going to follow the line of compassion? Jesus wanted the disciples to learn this so they would teach it to others as well.
David had shown compassion to his companions when they had nothing to eat, save what had already been offered as a sacrifice. He knew God would not refuse his companions a bite to eat even though the law deemed it not right to do so. This is the love he had learned from God and was trying to show his people – unfortunately he did not always get it right. And nor will we always get things right...
Points to Ponder:
Do you always follow the rules no matter what?
Are you willing to show love and mercy above and beyond?
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September 3: Luke 5:33-35
Key Verse: Luke 5:34
Jesus answered, ‘Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?'
Devotion:
How many times have you felt guilty about missing church when you have gone to be with your family for a special occasion? I used to get up tight when I would miss out on a Sunday service because I felt guilty I was not doing what God wanted me to do – until someone pointed verses like these out to me!
God knows we live lives! That includes all the things which happen in normal lives (or even not so normal lives!) He wants us to live our lives to the full and that often means doing something earthly! Parties were part of life during the time Jesus was on earth and continue to be part of our lives. Jesus even went to parties for special occasions, and the last night was spent having a feast!
God wants us to be happy with what we have. It does not mean we should go out of our way to avoid church or avoid living... But we should take note of what we do at those parties, celebrations and whatnot! Just because He wants us to enjoy ourselves, should not mean going totally overboard with things, nor does it mean being totally minimalistic about everything. We have to find a balance with our earthly lives where we can still show people we love God!
When we are not celebrating birthdays, weddings and other special occasions, we should be reminding people we are Christians who chose to live for God and for His values. This will often mean we do things differently to the rest of our friends. It may even mean we do things differently to the rest of our family. Whatever you are going to do, take God with you and enjoy this life He is giving you!
Points to Ponder:
Do you avoid parties?
Will you celebrate your next party with a difference by taking God with you?
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September 2: Luke 5:1-11
Key Verse: Luke 5:5
Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’
Devotion:
I wonder, have you ever been in a position like this where you have tried almost every way to do something and failed, when along comes some stranger and tells you to do something you have either tried, or something which sounds silly... only to find their way actually worked! I know I have turned down help from people before thinking that I know better, and on many occasions I have failed altogether because I refused to just try their way...
Jesus was teaching people, by telling them the truth and showing them how God's word (the scriptures) is as important then as it was in Moses' day. The same is true for us now, the bible being so important and true even though it depicts events many thousands of years ago. These are the stories Jesus was trying to explain to the people.
We look at the bible and we think it cannot be relevant because it is so old, but the truth is it is still as important now as it was back then. The ways we live and how we do things is definitely very different, so we have to think on the words we read. We drive cars, fly in aeroplanes and cross oceans in boats bigger than palaces were in those days... but God's Word is still relevant and true now...
If we are willing to listen to God and obey His wishes, we will find things come together in our lives. Not in the same way as they did thousands of years ago, but as they are now. Computers help us. Doctors have amazing skills now. Medicine should blow your mind! But God still wants us to hear the truth and to trust Him and obey.
Points to Ponder:
What great things happen today?
Do you thank God for those great things?
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September 1: Proverbs 26:18-19
Key Verse: Proverbs 26:19
is one who deceives their neighbour and says, ‘I was only joking!’
Devotion:
How many times have you told a white lie to a friend, something which you thought would help or defend them in the long run? I know I have done this, and I also know I have been on the receiving end of the backlash when the other person found out the lie I told. If we really do want to help the people around us, we should stick to the truth because we don't have to continually cover up truths; they are the truth!
It is often a very hard decision to make when we are faced with having to tell a friend something they do not want to hear, or something which may hurt them; but when we are faced with the backlash and having to deal with the extra hurt and having to face our friend with all these new things, the small hurt in the beginning is a very small thing compared to the raft of deceit we would otherwise have to overcome.
God wants us to know the truth about Him, about the earth and about how we live. He made sure the right people got to know the truth so they would spread that truth to as many people as possible. God knew the path to take which would cause the least amount of hurt – the path of truth.
Let us follow the example given to us by God, by His prophets, by the disciples and, most importantly, by Jesus Himself. We need to stick with the truth and ensure we spread nothing but the truth. God will guide us when we are faced with the hurt of other people. Don't forget we are all His children and He will do what He can to make sure we have to face the least amount of hurt so we can experience the greatest amount of His love and peace!
Points to Ponder:
Do you try to comfort people with lies?
How many more lies have to follow those lies to keep those people comforted?
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August 31: Luke 4:31-35
Key Verse: Luke 4:32
They were amazed at his teaching, because his words had authority.
Devotion:
How many times have you sat and listened to someone talk, not because you were just having a chat, but because they were saying things which made sense and intrigued you? I think most of us do like to talk to others, but, if you are like me, holding a long and meaningful conversation does not come easy! My mind seems to rush ahead and floods of thoughts rush through my mind, leaving little room for words to come out – or so it seems.
Yet I can sit and talk about Jesus without much thought for what I want or need to say. This is how Jesus must have felt talking about His Father in Heaven. No matter what was happening around Him, there was always time to talk about His Father in Heaven and more time to talk about all He stood for. His words had authority because He knew God and needed to tell people about God!
I wonder what the man was like who was possessed by a demon... Did he stand up in the synagogue and shout about all sorts of things while the people were meeting for prayer and worship? Would he shout about all the bad things the people around him were doing behind the backs of others? What made people realise he was filled with a demon?
It may seem a fine line between having the Spirit of God in you and having a demon in you – but when we talk honestly and openly about God, people do tend to stop and think. They do this because we are talking with some authority because of the relationship between us and God. If we did not have that relationship, we would not be able to talk to honestly and openly!
Points to Ponder:
Do you like to talk?
Do you like to talk about God?
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August 30: Proverbs 25:6-8
Key Verse: Proverbs 25:6
Do not exalt yourself in the king’s presence, and do not claim a place among his great men;
Devotion:
I love reading the proverbs, not as an end-to-end book, but one or two snippets and then thinking about what I have read. Some proverbs you read a single verse and think about it, others you read in tandem with other verses to think about the meaning. I have chosen these verses because they have meaning to me, a way of living I learned from my birth mother, and one I continue to see in my new mother.
Humbleness and humility are things we should learn at a very young age and take with us for the rest of our lives. When we turn our backs on those ways, we turn our backs on everything God tries to teach us. Jesus humbled Himself when He came to live amongst us. He took off the mantle of King of Kings and came to us as a servant for us all. It is not our calling to promote ourselves to be by God's side, but our calling to wait and see if God calls us to be by His side. All we need do is to present ourselves to be ready for Him to call.
We can read through our bibles and see words such as 'children of God' and promote ourselves to positions we are not yet worthy of. Yes, Christ died for us all so we can be called children of God, but if we adopt ourselves instead of God adopting us, we fool nobody but ourselves!
We need to depend more on how others see us and not how we promote ourselves. I despair when I see politicians running for office, telling all manner of stories to try and gain votes. If they would stop trying to impress us with words and start to do things to show us their intentions, we could elect the right leaders instead of electing false prophets. Trust your God and wait patiently for Him to call you out.
Points to Ponder:
Do you have an opinion of yourself?
Will you listen to what opinion God has of you instead of making your own story?
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August 29: Song of Solomon 2:8-13
Key Verse: Song of Solomon 2:11
See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone.
Devotion:
This is one of those romantic and beautiful books in the bible, one which uses some very poetic language to describe the love between two people. When we fall in love, everything changes and we start to see life and most things around us in a very different light; like someone switched on the mood lights instead of the sunshine!
What struck me about these verses is this different way of seeing things around you – much the same as the different way I started to see the world when I got to know Christ. No longer do you look for all the bad things, all the pain and strife; instead you look for the good things and what pleases you. We have a different outlook on life – a positive spin on things. If you think you are in love and you don't get to see the world in a different light, then question whether it is simply infatuation!
The natural world around us can be very daunting but also very beautiful. We can look for all the traps or we can marvel at the amazing things God has done. Just the same, we can look for all the good things in the people around us, or we can focus on the bad and shifty things; our outlook will be tainted by the way we start looking at things... Much like only reading bad reviews of a book before you read it – your outlook will be tainted.
So when you look at the people around you today, consider all the good things as well as the bad things. When we have a real view of the world around us we will be able to move forward with much more confidence than before. If we only focus on the bad we will hide from many aspects of life. If we only focus on the good we will be horrified when we find out the truth. God wants us to go through our lives knowing the truth – which included the fantastic promised He has made to us!
Points to Ponder:
What outlook do you have for today?
Will you try to find 5 good things and 5 bad things to weight things up today?
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August 28: 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12
Key Verse: 1 Thessalonians 4:10
And in fact, you do love all of God’s family throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more,
Devotion:
I think the most important thing Jesus tried to instil on everyone He met was to love one another. He did this through His actions and through His words; everything He did promoted the love He had for others. The disciples continued to reflect on this as they went about their mission of reaching out to the rest of Israel and Paul did this with his helpers by reaching out to everyone around the Mediterranean Sea!
Paul's letters to the people in Thessalonica were as much an encouragement as they were teachings and warnings. He changed his own life and went out to demonstrate the love Christ had for him toward others. He took each area as different people – we are not all the same and we live differently from others. But this does not mean we should leave behind the love for each other – this must be the central thing which binds us all together, just as it binds us to God through Christ.
Jesus taught the people to be diligent in all they did, to be honest and to uphold these things in the face of all things which happened around them. God wants us to live by these same rules, not just the Ten Commandments, but every word which He taught us, every word which is written down for us in our bibles!
The root message was always to love God first and foremost, then to love each other as much as God loves us. The more we get to learn about how much God has done, is doing and has promised to do for us, the more we should realise these are the same values we need to hold dear to our hearts. Allow people to see you are different, not because you are some sort of weirdo, but because you know God on a very personal level.
Points to Ponder:
How often do you think about God's rules?
Will you try to allow others to see you are different, in a good way?