Mark a straight path

December 7, 2021

Proverbs 4:25-27 NLT – Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. [26] Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. [27] Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil.

I really like a few things in this wisdom from Proverbs chapter four. If we break it down we see four main ideas.

1. Look straight ahead in a focussed way.

2. Mark out a right path or course to follow.

3. Stay on that path and don’t get sidetracked.

4. Keep your feet from following the path of evil.

The thing I like about this is there a real choice. We are told to intentionally fix our eyes on something and set a path towards it. Then we need to be determined to follow that path and stay on track.

As I read these verses today it made me think about my eyes and my feet. It encouraged me to focus on a godly goal with my eyes, then to walk steadily towards it with my feet.

Prayer

Lord God, help me to focus on a good goal for Your Kingdom. Help me to stay focused and not stray from the path. I pray my feet will not follow evil. Help me to serve You and You alone. Amen.

The right type of wisdom

December 1, 2021

James 3:17 says, “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere”.

Let’s break down the words from this verse to help us to understand the wisdom that comes from heaven. I have looked the words up in my kids school dictionary.

Pure – pure means not mixed with anything else, clean and free from harmful substances, containing nothing sinful.

Peace-loving – peace is a state of calm and quiet when there is no disturbance, no war.

Considerate – someone who pays attention to the needs and feelings of others.

Submissive – behaving in a quiet and obedient way.

Full of Mercy – showing mercy means showing kindness and forgiveness and do not punish someone as severly as you could.

Full of good fruit – good fruit is the good things for others, especially being kind to them.

Impartial – having a view of something which is fair and un-biased.

Sincere – if you are sincere you say and do things that you really mean, you are honest and genuine.

Having wisdom is about having knowledge and then putting that knowledge in to practice in the right way.

This verse shows that we should use our wisdom in a caring and considerate way that shows shows no favouritism. If we are doing these things, we will know our wisdom is the wisdom that comes from heaven.

Let us show wisdom today.

Give justice

November 23, 2021

Psalm 82:3-4 NLT – “Give justice to the poor and the orphan; uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute. [4] Rescue the poor and helpless; deliver them from the grasp of evil people.

Some Bible verses need a commentary to help understand them. Verses like the ones above don’t. We can read them and understand what we need to do.

These verses tell us to look after vulnerable people. People who are struggling to look after themselves. People who are oppressed by others. People who are poor and helpless.

I believe caring for vulnerable people is very close to God’s heart. Time and time again in the Bible He encourages us to look after the weak, the widow, the orphan, the oppressed.

As I type I am challenged afresh by these verses. What have I done? What am I doing? What can I do next? These thoughts are words rolling around in my spirit.

Can I sponsor another child? Can I volunteer at a shelter? Can I do some training that well help me be more effective in helping? Do I know someone who needs help?

How about you?

Prayer

Lord God, I want to make a real and lasting difference in this world. I want to help the poor and helpless, I want to help the widow and the orphan, I want to help the oppressed. Please show me what I can do to help. Show me what You want me to do. I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Do not let your hearts be troubled

November 22, 2021

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.” ‭John‬ ‭14:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Don’t let our hearts be troubled implies that at times they will be. The remedy to this is trusting in God. God is all powerful. He knows the beginning from the end. He promises to care for us, protect us and provide for us. Philippians 4:13 tells us that we can do all things through Christ who is our strength. So we don’t have to be troubled!

Prayer

Thank You God that you are with me. You provide help, strength, protection and all I need in this life. Help me to trust You and not be troubled in my heart. Amen.

Lessons from Bruce Almighty

November 17, 2021

Possible spoilers in this post: Depending on how you read the following it could be seen as spoilers if you want to see the film. As it was released in 2003 I figure you may have seen it already.

One of my favourite movies is Bruce Almighty. It is a fun movie that I have watched a number of times. It is a movie about Bruce’s life with some interactions with God along the way.

Without giving too much away to those who have not seen it, Bruce is a TV Reporter who does wacky stories for his local TV station. His desire though is to be a serious news anchor but he feels stunted in his career opportunities.

As I watched the movie I found some truths we can draw from that can help us in our everyday life. Here are some observations I made.

1. Bruce was ambitious for the wrong things
Bruce desperately wanted to be a serious news anchor and he felt he was held back by doing wacky news. In one interaction with God he finds out that that is how God made him. God loved Bruce’s sense of humour and said he brings joy to people. Bruce needed to recognise his calling and work within that area. A lesson for us.

2. Bruce wasn’t content with his life
We see that Bruce was so desperate to be a news anchor that he didn’t realise what he had. A great job, a lovely partner, a nice home. His ambition for bigger things blinded him from being content with his life and seeing what he already had. The Apostle Paul tells us he learned to be content in all situations (Philippians 4:11).

3. Bruce thought God hated him
A number of times during the movie we see Bruce shake his fist at God and yell at the sky. He thought God hated him and likened God to a bully with magnifying glass on an ant hill. Bruce didn’t understand his wrong ambition was the source of his frustration, not God hating him. We see that God cared enough to intervene in his life. Just like He intervenes in ours.

4. Bruce realised being God is hard
In the movie Bruce is given God’s powers for a time. He even has to answer prayers to which he finds very hard and time consuming. In the end he says yes to everyone’s prayers and it causes chaos in the world. Being God and getting the balance right is not easy. There is a lot more going on that Bruce realised. I am glad God did not answer all of my prayers with yes over the years!

5. Bruce found that surrender was the key
In one scene we see Bruce realise the error of his thinking and he surrenders his will fully to God. God then turns things around. I won’t say too much but this is a key for all of us. We might think we know what is best, but there is always more going on behind the scenes that we know. The key for Bruce and us is to surrender to a loving God who knows all and has a plan for our lives.

So there you have it. Five lessons from the movie Bruce Almighty. As I said it is one of my favourite movies. I think I have watched it about 10 times at least over the years!