Category: Faith & life

Let us not forget

February 14, 2022

I have been reading through the Old Testament book of Exodus the last few weeks. One thing that struck me was how often the people seemed to forget about what God had done for them. They were not little things either. Things like taking them out of Egypt, parting the Red Sea, guiding by pillar of fire and cloud and speaking to them through Moses. But still they seemed to forget His great works.

As I reflected I found myself being reminded of the amazing things God has done for me. Times when He provided when I really needed it, times when he healed me of sickness, times when He clearly spoke to me. I soon realised I was not that different from the people of Israel wandering through the desert!

It really prompted me to not forget the great things God has done for me. I need to write them on my heart, speak of them to others and keep them in the front of my mind. I just can’t forget them.

How about you? What great things has God done for you that you sometimes forget? Let us purpose in our hearts to have a long memory when it comes to the things God does for us.

Prayer

Dear God, thank You for all the wonderful things You have done for me. Help me to always remember how faithful and generous You are to me. I prayer I will never forget. Amen.

Jesus is the light of the world

January 29, 2022

In the Bible light is used in a number of places to describe the things of God and the good things of this world.

In the beginning God said, “Let there be light” and there was light in Genesis 1:3. Psalm 18:28 tells us “You light a lamp for me. The LORD, my God, lights up my darkness.” And in Psalm 119:105 it says, “Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path”.

One key verse for me is John 8:12. In this verse Jesus described Himself in this way, “I am the light of the world. If you follow Me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

Jesus is the light of the world. He lights our way and He fills our life with His light. And His light leads to life.

As I reflected on this today for my morning devotions I remembered Jesus’ death. When Jesus was on the cross being crucified it says darkness came over the earth.

Matthew 27:45-46 says, “At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. 46 At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, My God, why have You abandoned Me?”

Not long after these words, Jesus gave up His Spirit and died.

I find it interesting that Jesus came into the world to be light, and when the world rejected Him and crucified Him, the lights went out. Darkness fell over all the earth in the middle of the day.

For us as Christians we need to remember that Jesus is the light of the world. He is our light and our hope. And He calls us to let our lights shine to those around us (Matthew 5:16).

Prayer

Dear Jesus, I thank You that you came into this world to be light for us. I pray that You will help us to reflect Your light to those we come in contact with each day. Amen

Crying out to God in your desert place

January 12, 2022

All of us as Christians go through desert places. Where our journey feels dry and barren and it is like we are walking through a hot, dry and windy desert alone.

David went through a number of times like this. We read a number of times in Psalms where he cried out to God and told God how he was really truly feeling!

I really like David’s honesty in his prayers. He laid out all his hurts, his pain, his fears and his frustrations. He did not try to hide anything from God.

The reality is that God knew how David was feeling and He knows how we are feeling today too. He sees into our hearts and sees our pain, our frustration and our deep longings.

When I go through a desert place my first reaction to push on and tough it out. Slowly (read as extremely slowly) I realise what it happening and I go easy on myself and go to God honestly in prayer.

David’s prayer from Psalm 63 has been a great help in these times. It is worth a slow and reflective read…

Psalm 63:1-8 NLT
[1] O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. [2] I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory. [3] Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! [4] I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. [5] You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy. [6] I lie awake thinking of you, meditating on you through the night. [7] Because you are my helper, I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings. [8] I cling to you; your strong right hand holds me securely.

If you are going through a dry place at the moment, I would encourage you to reflectively read Psalm 63 and see how David cried out to God in the midst of his sufferings.

David said he thirsted for God. He told God he longed for Him. And how he would praise Him and pray to Him as long as he lived. David even said he laid awake at night thinking of God. David also declared in the midst of it, that God held him securely.

David knew what it was to be honest with God. This is something we can learn from him. The desert place can be hard. But it becomes easier if we follow David’s example and cry out to God in the midst of it.

Blessings,
Dave

The mind of Christ

January 9, 2022

I have been thinking a lot lately about how the Bible says we have the mind of Christ. It is something I have been praying about and starting to research. Here are some early reflections.

The Dictionary of Biblical Themes describes the mind of Christ as, “The centre of Jesus Christ’s thought, understanding and motivation, characterised by a total dedication to God. Christians are called upon to have the same mind as Christ.”

What a great simple definition. Having Christ’s thoughts, understanding, motivation and dedication to God. This is something we should all aim for as disciples of Christ.

In 1 Corinthians 2:15-16 NLT the Apostle Paul tells us why this is so important. He says, “Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. [16] For, “Who can know the LORD’s thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?” But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.”

Paul tells us that having the mind of Christ is important for us as Christians so we can understand the things of God and evaluate all things.

In verse 14 Paul gives us context, “But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.”

So for us as Christians it is vitally important to have the mind of Christ. It enables us to both understand the things of God and helps us to be totally dedicated to God with our lives.

Prayer

Dear God, help us to understand what it is to have the mind of Christ. Help us to have the same attitude of Christ. Please renew our minds so we can understand the things of God and evaluate all things. I pray we can be totally dedicated to You and Your Kingdom. I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.