Category: Faith & life

Biblical meditation

April 18, 2022

I read this simple explanation about meditating on God’s Word today. I found it quite useful in explaining what Biblical meditation is…

Many Christ followers don’t understand what meditation actually means. When we meditate on something we are simply focusing our thoughts. To understand what it means to meditate on God’s Word, let’s read Pastor Rick Warren’s description. He says, “Surprisingly, if you know how to worry, you already know how to meditate on the Word of God. Worry is when you take a negative thought and think on it over and over and over. When you take a passage of Scripture and think on it over and over and over, that’s called meditation.”

(From Making time to Rest plan on the Bible app)

Stronger than you think

April 12, 2022

All of us are stronger than we think. In years to come we will look back on this time and see how well we came through and we will be proud. Just like coal turns in to diamonds through pressure and time. We are becoming the people who God intends us to be.

And in years to come we will help many many people because of our experiences in this season. I am the person I am today because of all I have been through, both good and bad. The same goes for you to. Stand strong, you are stronger than you think!

Good and helpful words

April 1, 2022

Ephesians 4:29 NLT – Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

One thing that should distinguish a follower of Jesus, from someone who doesn’t follow Him, is their language. Someone who is a follower of Jesus should speak words of life, wisdom and encouragement. They should aim to build everyone up that they speak to. Jesus tells us that our words are a reflection of our hearts. So, it is important to let our words be full of Jesus and His Kingdom. Words that build up and not tear down.

Prayer

Dear God, please help me with the words I speak each day. I pray they will be good and helpful. Help me not to use foul and abusive words. I pray that I will be the type of person whose words will be an encouragement to all those who hear them. I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Living as God’s children

March 23, 2022

Today I looked at 1 John 3:1-10 for my devotions. It is all about how we should live as God’s children.

Verse 1 says “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!” We are reminded that God loves us and we are His children when we come to Christ. We are adopted into His eternal family, now and forever.

In verse 2 it tells us that we will be like Christ when He appears and in verse 3 were are reminded also to live a life of purity because Christ is pure.

John emphasised this point because false teachers were telling the people they could live how they wanted because the flesh was evil and it would be destroyed. They believed you could still be spiritual and live a sinful life.

John strongly condemns this thinking in verses 4-6…

“Everyone who sins is breaking God’s law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God. And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him. Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is”.

As we have seen in previous chapters we all sin at times as Christians. When we do, we confess and we are forgiven. Our Advocate in heaven represents us before the Father.

Someone who continues in sin, as the passage talks about, is someone who is not sorry for sin and has no desire for forgiveness and change. They don’t realise that living right is an important part of living as God’s children. John tells us that these people really belong to the devil and don’t really know God (v10).

Here are some questions for personal reflection and application:

  • Have there been times when you have continued to live in sin and not sought God’s forgiveness?
  • Do you understand that it is important to live right as we wait for Christ to return?

God Bless,
Dave

The hole inside

March 16, 2022

In my late teens and early 20s I started to wonder if there was more to this life. I started to wonder if there was more to this life than just go to school, get a job, get married and have kids.

The more I thought about it, I realised there was something missing. Like there was a hole inside me or there was a missing piece that I was looking for? Something was not there but I did really know what it was or where to find it.

Thankfully I made some friends where I worked that were Christian. When I talked to them I realised they had something that I didn’t. They had a peace and a solidness about them. It didn’t matter what happened to them in life, they just seemed to remain rock solid.

One day I asked one of my friends about it and they told me it was Jesus. Jesus was the anchor to their soul. In the midst of the storms of life that seemed to buffet others around, Jesus kept them anchored firmly to Him. He enabled them to weather the storms with a sense of peace. He was their solid rock.

One friend told me that when we ask Jesus into our lives as our Lord and Saviour, then He fills the hole inside us. The hole that makes us feel like something is missing or there is more to life, is for Jesus. We are created with that space inside us that is meant for Him.

After thinking about this for a while I realised I needed Jesus too. I spoke to one of my friends and they gave me a short pamphlet that explained how to accept Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. It is similar to the one that I have on my main website. It helped me to accept Jesus as my Lord and Saviour.

Today I would encourage you to accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour too. If you are feeling there must be more to this life or you have a hole inside you, I want you to know that the answer is Jesus.

Please take a few moments to visit my “peace with God” page on my main website. My prayer is that you will find Jesus and you will allow Him to feel the hole inside of you too. You can find it here www.passionaustralia.org/salvation.html.

Be blessed,
Dave