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May 1: John 14:6-14
Key Verse: John 14:13
And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
Devotion:
When the disciples started getting worried about what was going to happen to Jesus and that one of them was going to be the guilty one who would betray Him, Jesus did not reprimand them or cut them short; instead He comforted them with words which could only come from the Son of God!
Jesus made sure they understood there was no other way to get to be with God other than by accepting Him as the Son of God and asking everything through His name. He gave them a way to get their prayers answered; the only stipulation was the Father, God, should be given the glory for the answered prayer. You see, Jesus was not seeking glory for Himself, but glory for His Father in Heaven. Jesus was making sure they understood this as well.
But He also wanted them to know that they had seen God in person, because He is part of the God-Head (as we know it.) We cannot really explain how God can be three persons, but also be one. What Jesus was trying to give them was the answer before they tried to understand it – physically we cannot explain it nor come to the right conclusion. But, by faith, we can believe it and know it in our hearts.
This then gives us the power to lift up our prayers to God, by knowing He is listening through Jesus and through the Holy Spirit; because they are one and the same. The more we get to understand about why Jesus did things the way He did, the more we get to understand how we should be trying to live – so we too can draw closer to God every day and give Him all the glory when He answers our prayers!
Points to Ponder:
Do you struggle with God in three persons?
Why not settle to asking God through Jesus?
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April 30: Isaiah 30:18-21
Key Verse: Isaiah 30:18
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
Devotion:
One thing I have learned the hard way is to be a Christian, you have to live like one! This means loving God with all your heart and soul and loving the people around you. God is always going to listen to us, and He will always do what He can to allow us to live the lives He wants us to live. No matter how tough things get, we can always count on God to see us through the troubles and to share everything He can with us – with God, nothing is impossible!
When we grow tired and weary, we need to depend on God more in our lives. When we think we are at the end of our tether, God is waiting to answer more prayers and lift the burdens from us. Don’t worry about God not hearing, because He is with us every step of our lives and listens to and watches everything we do. If we do go through tough times, then we need to listen a bit harder to find out what we should be doing – these instructions may come directly from God, or they may come through others who God has brought into our lives.
The more we are willing to listen and learn from what God says, the more we will be able to live with what comes our way and the more we will know He is watching over us. Whether we are feeling down and out or whether we are feeling on top of the world – if we turn from worldly ways and listen out for God, we will hear His instruction and we will know what to do.
God is constantly trying to show us the way forward, a way which is best for us and those around us. If we are willing to listen and learn, we will have a life which is more blessed!
Points to Ponder:
How often do you talk to God?
How often do you listen to God?
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April 29: 1 Samuel 16:4-7
Key Verse: 1 Samuel 16:7
But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’
Devotion:
I can imagine what Samuel was going through when God told him to go and anoint one of the sons of Jesse as the next king! When God asks you to do something you immediately try and come up with excuses about why you should not have to do what God is asking – not because you don’t want to listen to God, but because you think of yourself and how it is going to affect you instead of what God is asking!
When Samuel was asked to go and anoint the son of Jesse which He had chosen, Samuel feared for his life; he though Saul was going to do something to him because he was going to anoint someone who was not Saul! Like us, Samuel feared what could happen because he was thinking about what he was going to do and not what God can accomplish!
When God asks you to do something, it is not going to be something He has not thought through! It is not going to be something which will harm you! God knows what will happen before He asks you; because of this we should trust and obey God whatever He asks of us!
When Samuel laid eyes on the first son of Jesse, he thought this was going to be the one because the first son looked the part – at least to Samuel he looked the part. This was because the people had initially asked for Saul because of his stature and not what he was like on the inside! God does not limit His vision to what we see or what the world sees – God looks deep inside our hearts and knows what we can do and what is best for us too. Listen and obey!
Points to Ponder:
What is your first reaction when God asks you to do something?
Will you try to stop, listen and obey?
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April 28: Psalm 2:1-3
Key Verse: Psalm 2:1
Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?
Devotion:
Have you noticed how many people are willing to revolt against churches when they are doing the right thing? Most normal people would probably support the church if they were given the chance, but the politicians and people in charge have other ideas because they see someone who is gaining power and it is not them – so they object and pass rules against churches!
God sees every step of the governments decisions and knows what they are thinking in their hearts – just as He knows what is in our hearts. The more we are willing to give God all the glory and continue to depend on Him, the more power we will get. This is not going to be earthly power as measured by the politicians, but a power which dwells deep inside us all. This is the sort of power corrupt governments do not like!
We need to continue to stand up for good, to stand up for the poor and needy, to plead with governments and organisations to do the right thing and supply help and support for those who need it. We cannot hope to carry the debt of the poor on our shoulders, but we can help them with what we have and share just as God wants us to.
We will get the thanks from God in Heaven – eternal thanks, not just a passing thanks from someone who wants to look good for saying thanks to us! Beware the vain glory seeking people and focus on those who cry out for real help. God knows who needs the help and will be willing to show us where to go and whom to help if we stop and ask the way...
Points to Ponder:
Do you feel like organisations work against your Christian life?
Will you stand firm with God and support those who need it most?
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April 27: Mark 16:15-20
Key Verse: Mark 16:15
He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.
Devotion:
God’s warning to us all is very real and one which many people choose to ignore because they don’t like the idea of a God who will reject anyone... but the warning is simple and stands as firm now as it was thousands of years ago: you need to believe!
Just like the people in the desert thousands of years ago were asked to look up at the bronze statue of the serpent so they could be healed, God asks us now to believe in something which we know in our hearts will not physically heal us. The statue did not do the healing in the desert, God did the healing for anyone who was willing to stop and believe He could heal them just by looking up at the statue and acknowledging God is able!
Getting dunked in water is not going to clean us and allow us to get into heaven. Saying we are Christians will not give us passage into Heaven. It is the belief in our hearts God is God and Jesus is the Son of God who came in physical form to give His life on the cross for our sakes. It is not the act of looking up at a cross or trying to sacrifice anything, but the belief if we do this, Christ will save us from our sins and guarantee us passage into Heaven to join Him and God!
When we do believe, God will allow us to do so much more than we can physically do by ourselves. Through our belief we will be able to do many signs and miracles, not because we are special, but because Jesus Christ will do things through us because of our belief... it is this belief God sees in our hearts, the state of our hearts and not the works we tell everyone about!
Points to Ponder:
What do you think of your life?
What does God think of your heart?
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April 26: 1 John 3:11-18
Key Verse: 1 John 3:17
If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?
Devotion:
How well do you know the stories from the bible? I know my parents and grandmother used to tell me the stories when I was very young and because of that, I knew some of the stories from an early age. I used to love hearing the stories but did not always understand what they really meant...
When we are young, be it in physical age or in spiritual age, we enjoy hearing stories but don’t always understand the depth of meaning in those stories. I definitely did not understand the depth of the bible stories, but as I grew in age, both physically and spiritually, I began to understand more of what God wanted me to know.
Have you ever stopped to think about the true meaning of the bible stories you do know? Each time I go through my bible, I understand a bit more and get to learn more of the depth of God’s love for us. Each time I am reminded of what Jesus did for us, I learn a bit more about what love really is. Even at my age I still have a lot to learn and get things wrong still – but God is patiently teaching me one step at a time!
Today I hope you can focus on this one special verse which reminds us we have a duty to our brothers and sisters in Christ. If we know there is a brother or sister who is in need of something we have, then we should share what we have and allow them to be fulfilled. God wants us to be able to depend on each other without having to ask all the time, just as we can depend on God without having to ask all the time. His love makes that possible and our love should make it possible for others to go without need...
Points to Ponder:
Do you know someone in need?
What will you do about it today?
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April 25: Acts 4:5-12
Key Verse: Acts 4:10
then know this, you and all the people of Israel: it is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
Devotion:
The apostles made sure people knew exactly why they went around spreading the gospel and healing people. They wanted everyone to know it was because of Jesus Christ and nothing they could do on their own. They had faith in telling people about Jesus would help them and others...
If we try to be more like the Apostles and have faith in the power of the name of Jesus, we will get a whole lot more done than just working at it alone. We could act like evangelists and shout all about Jesus and hope people listened to us because of our charismatic ways – but a better solution is to show them the power of Jesus name!
To show people the power of Jesus name means we have to have faith things will happen when we ask for them in Jesus' name. They went forward and took Jesus’ name before them wherever they went. They knew Jesus would answer their prayers because Jesus had promised to do so. He also promises the same to us, that is we go forward and ask for things in His name, God will listen and answer our prayers.
It is not about shouting the right words, chanting the right prayers or singing the right songs... it is about lifting up our prayers and asking Jesus to make sure they are answered. We have to petition God in the name of Jesus – that is why Jesus gave His life on the cross, so we would have the chance to ask things in His name afterward.
Points to Ponder:
How often do you ask for things in Jesus’ name?
Will you faithfully ask your next prayers in Jesus’ name?
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April 24: Philippians 4:4-7
Key Verse: Philippians 4:5
Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Devotion:
One of the most important things as a Christian is to allow other people to see how happy you are to be a Christian. There is no greater witness than a person who is happy with what they have and how they are – so accepting the way you are, what God has given you and being content with everything God has given you is the first step forward!
God wants us to be able to love Him and to love others too – but in order to do that we have to be able to love; the first step being loving yourself or accepting yourself and being content. When we are able to do that, we then can expand that toward God and toward others. The more other people see we are happy with things, the more they will want to hear about what makes you happy and content!
God wants us to be happy and so will give us things when we ask through prayers and worship. When we begin to see how God listens to us and answers our prayers, we begin to shine in a new way where others will want to know why we are happy all the time. What better witness than being happy all the time with everything God gives you!
No, it does not come naturally to most people – we have to work at being content with things because we are surrounded by a greedy world which wants more things all the time. But when we are able to separate ourselves from the greed of the world and those around us, we begin to see how much God does give us through Christ and we begin to shine as a happy people!
Points to Ponder:
Are you happy with yourself?
Have you thanked God for you happiness lately?
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April 23: 1 Peter 2:13-17
Key Verse: 1 Peter 2:13
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority,
Devotion:
Yes we do live in a world which seems to be based on corruption, pride and greed in so many ways and at so many levels throughout society. This does not mean we should ignore governmental authority! God wants us to follow the law of the land. If we go about breaking laws all the time, people will not be likely to listen to us when we tell them about Christ – they will assume we are going to break the rules or lie like any other person...
God wants us to be different so people take notice of us. He wants us to live lives others will strive to copy, with the ultimate task being to give glory to God like we strive to do. We should not assume we are not going to get punished if we break the law – whether that is God’s laws or man’s laws. We should all be treated the same and should all expect to receive the same treatment.
We are seeing many different things happening in the Western world where people are becoming more aware of the racism in society and are trying to change to make sure people all get treated the same no matter what race or standing they have in society. We should not expect to have preferential treatment just because we are Christians – that may not be seen as being fair!
Each of us are free because Christ has paid for our sin debt – we should live as if we know that and want to show it to others. Why should we hide our freedom? Instead, we should live according to God’s will in our lives and show all people the same dues respect as we are all God’s children!
Points to Ponder:
Do you treat everyone the same or do you have favourites?
Will you try to give everyone the same chance in your life?
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April 22: Philippians 3:4-9
Key Verse: Philippians 3:7
But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
Devotion:
When Paul wrote letters to the church in Philippi, he knew he was writing to people who thought they were good people. His writing, however, hints at people thinking more of themselves than they should be. He saw this problem with many who had been brought up as he was – to be Hebrew people whose lives were based on the law handed down from Moses!
What they may have been doing is probably what he was doing before he got to know Christ. They were holding the law above everything and judging everyone according to these very strict laws. This would exclude Christians because Christ had shown people they no longer had to live under the weight of those very strict rules. Christ was telling people they could be forgiven for the worst sins because He had taken their sin debt to the cross and had paid for it with His own life!
Paul was raised in a very strict environment and he persecuted some of the earliest Christians because they would not agree to the sacrifices and way of old. But once he got to know Christ, his life changed and he began to realise just how much Jesus did for him and how that love continues to flow through all of us now.
Paul was now focusing on getting to know Christ more because it was that knowledge and growing faith which was allowing him to better understand what God was asking for and not blindly following rules which mankind had changed over the years to suit themselves. God wants us to follow His example of true love and not to be caught up in earthly rules and regulations which prevent us from getting to live with this love...
Points to Ponder:
Do you use excuses not to share love with others?
Will you allow Christ’s love to grow in you so you can truly share His love with others?