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July 14: Matthew 10:16-23
Key Verse: Matthew 10:16
I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
Devotion:
When I read this passage this morning, I sat and reflected on it for a while. Yes my head was going all over the place thinking of many things but I kept coming back to the first verse here talking about going out into a dangerous world and being different! That is what it comes down to!
It is very easy to go into the world and to behave like those around you because that seems OK and get into stuff everyone seems to be doing, after all they are all doing it… But that may not be what God is asking you to do. Jesus warned the disciples it is like you are a sheep and you are going into a den of wolves! But if you are as shrewd as a snake and innocent as a dove, you may just make it without being eaten! So how does that work?
Snakes are very adept at hiding in the most amazing places where people will not see them and where they can wait until the time is right. Doves are innocent – or at least that is how we see them. So for us to live in this world we should try to be as adept as snakes at finding the right place to be at the right time. It does not mean we should act like the stereotypical snake and bite people for the fun of it!
God wants us to be different from the world. He wants us to stand out, not because we are mean or calculating but because others will see us as adept and innocent. We will have to face all the same things everyone else has to face, and then some, but we should try to maintain our righteous stance in amongst the sins of the world. God wants us to share why we are different and encourage others to be different too – always listening to and obeying God!
Points to Ponder:
Do you join in with the crowd?
Will you stand up for righteousness?
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July 13: Matthew 10:7-14
Key Verse: Matthew 10:8
Heal those who are ill, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.
Devotion:
When Jesus sent out the disciples to spread the Gospel, it was not as a modern-day sales team or organisation which would be self sustaining group to conquer the world… He sent them out saying they should not have to take anything with them or have to provide for themselves because the people who were willing to hear the gospel would be the people who would sustain them because they would recognise the benefit of what they were learning!
Sadly many people take this as being a ‘free lunch’ ticket where they will be able to earn money just by doing things for the church! Jesus would warn the disciples they would not be well off in earthly terms and many people would hate and persecute them because they were different. Being an active Christian is not the easiest task but I do find it the most rewarding thing in the world!
Initially Jesus sent the disciples to go to the people of Israel because they were in immediate need, they had wandered away from God and needed to come back to the real meaning of being in a relationship with God instead of the rules and regulation which were being imposed upon them by the Pharisees and the Scribes. Jesus wanted His people to know the truth so they would be able to share it with the world.
Our task really is to reach those people around us with the gospel, not making money out of teaching them things, but simply giving them the good news so they can know the true benefit of knowing Christ. The news is so good in fact anyone would be willing to share what they have so they can hear and experience that good news. This is the Gospel of Christ!
Points to Ponder:
Are you waiting for a business model before you start work?
Will you simply share the gospel and allow God to work out the details?
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July 12: Genesis 41:55-57
Key Verse: Genesis 41:56
When the famine had spread over the whole country, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe throughout Egypt.
Devotion:
The story about Joseph interpreting Pharaoh’s dream about the seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine is another one which I found hard to accept as a young person – why would God allow a great famine to come to the whole area? But when we look at what the people were getting up to and how far they had drifted away from God you begin to see a picture of disobedience which was all over the place.
God had raised people to continue reminding people of Him and to warn them things would happen if they wandered away from God; but when things seem to be going smoothly, people forget about the hardships. When the time comes for the warning to come to pass, people get upset with God as if He has done something wrong!
This sort of world we see in this story is what I see happening in the world around us. God has been trying to get through to people for a long time but people have been more interested in personal gain than loving their neighbours. I think it is little wonder then we see many countries with leaders who are all but destroying the economy and societies.
If more people were like Joseph and cared about their relationship with God, then more people around them would see the difference it makes and how we can all grow into better communities through working with God. None of this is an overnight fix; after all we see seven years of abundance before the seven years of famine – that is a long time in anyone’s life!
Points to Ponder:
What do you do to make your life better?
What are you doing to make your relationship with God better?
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July 11: Matthew 9:32-38
Key Verse: Matthew 9:33
And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, ‘Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.’
Devotion:
Most people will remember the last couple of verses where Jesus talks about the harvest being plentiful but the workers few, but I would like to focus on something different today, something I am reading between the lines… Often we read our bibles and we take the words for what they say but Christ told us to meditate on them which means we have to think about what is written and read between the lines being guided by the Holy Spirit.
The thing which struck me this morning was not the words written down but the words which are missing. Very little is said about Jesus driving out the demons from the possessed person other than they were driven out, the person spoke freely after being mute and the crowd were amazed! What about the people who brought the man to Jesus? What made them bring him in?
I would like to think Jesus knew what was in the man’s heart despite him not being able to speak from the demons possessing him. Jesus had no problem driving out the demons which were controlling this person despite them not being able to talk about it and not being able to verbally ask Jesus for help. This is the thought which flooded my mind – Jesus knew the plight of this person even though they could not call out for help.
God is not limited by the physical world even though we are limited and we cannot look outside of the limits we see. God knew what was in the heart of this person and knew they wanted to be free from everything they were experiencing… So if you are being limited by some things in your life, don’t stop calling out to Christ for help because He does know what is in your heart!
Points to Ponder:
Do you feel trapped in a situation?
Will you call out to God, even in secret?
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July 10: Genesis 28:10-15
Key Verse: Genesis 28:13
There above it stood the Lord, and he said: ‘I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
Devotion:
How closely do you listen to God? I know I have problems listening to God at times with all the distractions of the world around me, but I try to set time aside where I can focus on things and allow God to guide me. So what happens if you don’t get it right and you don’t do what God is trying to tell you? Well, I guess that is part of being human and living where we live.
I think it would only be by living in a monastery or other place where you can separate yourself from the world where you would get to focus properly on what God is saying. Even then if you mind is full on things it will be hard to focus; and my mind is always full of stuff because my mind is always active.
Here Jacob, being a direct descendant of Abraham who was to be the father of a great nation too numerous to number, is being re-told the same prophecy. Does this mean God reneged on His word? Far from it. Abraham was not promised to have thousands of children, but to be the start of something great. Jacob is given the same promise for him and his descendants. The key being descendants.
We do need to listen to what God is trying to tell us and not make up our own minds about what we think we should do. There are times where you do have to take the initiative and there are times you need to stop and listen. It’s taken me a long time to tell the difference between the two, and I still get it wrong at times. The key being I am trying to listen to God and obey Him!
Points to Ponder:
Do you feel like it is difficult to listen to God?
Have you tried doing something to see if He will support you?
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July 9: Matthew 11:16-19
Key Verse: Matthew 11:17
“We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.”
Devotion:
I’m pretty sure I got up to some strange things as a child, but none quite so strange as these children! I had to sit and think about these words for a while because my mind was racing off thinking of the strange things I got up to in my school days and how horrified my parents might have been if they had found out all I did… but God was watching me all that time which has brought me to talk about judging others.
No matter where we are in our lives or how much we try not to judge people, we all make judgments based on what we see and hear, most of those judgments are probably kept to ourselves being held in our hearts and minds; but they tend to come out when we are judged ourselves or anything happens which we don’t agree with!
God has the privilege of being able to know us from the inside out – something we think we can do with others but always fail when we do try. Judgment should be left up to Christ alone. We often take sides in arguments simply because we like one side of the argument instead of digging deeper to find out the truth. This is our downfall and something which can easily alienate us from others.
God wants us to be able to get along with other which often means putting aside our personal differences and waiting on God for guidance and encouragement; something most of us don’t like doing: waiting! Jesus did many things which the strict teachers of the law did not like and which some people may have taken offence with. But He did everything with a clear and open heart. If we want to get further in life we need to put aside personal judgment and move toward allowing Christ to guide us through relationships and friendships.
Points to Ponder:
How often do you get upset with others?
Do you ever look at things from their point of view?
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July 8: Genesis 27:15-21
Key Verse: Genesis 27:15
Then Rebekah took the best clothes of her elder son Esau, which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob.
Devotion:
When you grow up in a community or a family you may find you all share responsibility for things and tasks. Sometimes you may feel like you are responsible for what someone else has done wrong in your group because you knew better but did not stop them at the time. You may even feel this about your partner at times when you find yourself covering up their mistakes or misgivings. One of the things parents struggle with is what their children get up to...
People often focus on certain passages in the bible which say we will be held accountable for things done by those close to us but this section of passage throws a different light on things. Rebekah was working against Isaac even though she was his wife of long standing – chosen by God… But if you go through the bible you will see each story being handled differently by God because the people are different and the circumstances are different; so how do we learn from the bible?
God looks at each of us through very different ‘eyes’ than we look at people. We tend to see what they do and judge them. We then hear from others what they ‘do’ and judge them… God judges people by what is in their hearts and souls. He is the only one who can judge people because He is the only one who actually knows what people’s intents are!
So we should not get hung up about whether we are feeling responsible for what others are doing. We do not have absolute control over others – despite what some may think! We can try to guide people and you can try to help people, but the final decision is what they choose and not what you think they should choose.
Points to Ponder:
Do you worry about what others get up to?
Have you tried to focus on what you are doing lately?
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July 7: Genesis 24:1-8
Key Verse: Genesis 24:8
If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.
Devotion:
When Abraham’s wife died, he called for one of his senior servants to come and go on a mission for him. It sounds like a very strange mission for us nowadays, but was not unheard of in those days when marriages were arranged rather than people meeting each other and falling in love. You may think of this as a archaic way of doing things but what was happening here was not because of greed, pride or wanting prosperity; what was happening was the people involved were doing their best to listen to God.
Abraham knew he was not to give a local woman to Isaac for a wife but to go back to where they came from for a wife. But he also knew they should not return to their home town because God had promised Abraham he would have the land where they were staying at the time.
I don’t know if you have ever had to leave the place of your birth to go and live and work in a place far away. It is life-changing. But the reason for moving to another place and taking up roots is also life-changing. God does not want us to lust after land, money or other earthly treasures, but to try to seek Him out at all times and to obey what He asks of us. If we can do that, then wherever we end up, God is going to look after us!
Abraham and his servant did all they could to follow God’s wishes and trusted fully God would deliver the right person at the right time for Isaac. When the servant arrived at the town where Abraham’s relatives lived he asked God for guidance as to whom was suitable for Isaac. God chose Rebekah as the woman to marry Isaac and made sure the servant knew this was the right woman. They all listened to God’s guidance!
Points to Ponder:
Do you have difficult decisions to make?
Will you allow God to guide you in those choices?
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July 6: Genesis 22:9-14
Key Verse: Genesis 22:12
‘Do not lay a hand on the boy,’ he said. ‘Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.’
Devotion:
How far are you willing to go for God? So many of us fall short of the mark when it comes to doing what God wants us to do… and I have been in that boat too so we are all in good company! These verses remind us God is always looking after us and we need to be able to trust Him no matter what happens in our lives. I learned while in hospital God is in control even when it seems like the world around you is crashing and burning!
It is hard to convince someone to allow God full control in their lives when all they can see is bad things happening if they let go and give God control; but God really does have our backs! I know in the past when I have given control to God He has never let me down even when those around me have given up hope and think the end has come…
Does this make me immune from worrying about things and always giving God control? No, unfortunately I still have doubts and I still try to control things my way at times. That is just the way we are and the way the evil one tries to get into our heads in the hopes we will reject God. No matter how many doubts you have and how much you want to have full control in your life, God really does know what is best!
I cannot even imagine what was going through Abraham's mind at the time of this even, and even what may have gone through Isaac’s mind too… But, despite the doubts and fears, Abraham trusted God because God had already delivered on His promises. Sometimes it is the first step which is the hardest and everything else seems to be ok – but taking that first step takes a lot of faith and courage!
Points to Ponder:
Do you have the courage to give God control?
Will you be able to trust Him ever time?
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July 5: Genesis 21:8-20
Key Verse: Genesis 21:17
God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, ‘What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.
Devotion:
One of the greatest things about God is His mercy! Here we have a family argument brewing over inheritance and who gets to do what. God diffused the argument by encouraging Abraham to send the servant Hagar off with their son; not an easy task for Abraham because it was his son after all. But he listened to God and sent off the servant with the boy into the desert.
Cruel, harsh? Yes by today's standards it is. But this was a very different time and God wanted Abraham to be absolutely sure the boy Isaac would grow to be their son upon whom a great nation would arise. But God never gave up on Hagar the servant. God watched over her as she went off into the desert. When their water was running out Hagar left the boy alone because she could not bare the watch the boy die of thirst. God heard the cries and sent an angel down to care for them!
This boy was the product of human decisions, Abraham and Sarah wanting to speed up what God had said would happen. We don’t need to help God do things He has promised for us. What we do need to do is to have patience to listen to God and wait on Him. He has got this planned out if we are willing to listen and obey.
When things go wrong and we think there is no more hope left, God is waiting patiently in the background for us to call out for help! By listening and obeying we give God the right environment to do what He has planned all along. By doing our own thing we are essentially making it harder for God to accomplish what He has said will happen – no matter what!
Points to Ponder:
Do you try to tell God what to do?
Will you stop and listen to what God says should be done?