Consider This Monthly Devotional

In what seemed like a chaotic moment, God did the miraculous! In Acts 8 at the beginning of the Christian movement, “they were all in one accord and all in one place.”  They worshipped together, lived in proximity, and developed a neat, tight community. It seems like the perfect Utopia, but there was a problem. The gospel was not being spread throughout the world. (Matthew 19:20) Saul (Paul) came and so harassed the church that they scattered and by doing so the gospel was spread. (Acts 8:4) I am sure it felt chaotic, but God had a purpose and a plan.

If your life feels chaotic or your family feels like it is in disarray don’t forget that God is always in control. Live with the confidence that our deliverer is closely watching. He can take what feels like a chaotic situation, bring about the result that He desires and bless you in the process.

The Lord watches over you—the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore (Psalm 121:5-8 NIV)

It was a common declaration of the older people in our church that God kept them from dangers seen and unseen. They knew and believed that God watched over their lives to protect them, and even though they did not discern all the times that they had avoided danger, they were guided away from situations that may have caused them harm. God had delayed them, influenced a slight decision to go another way, or even changed the direction of someone else so that they would not encounter the hidden danger.

Psalm 91 tells us that God saves us from “hidden dangers and deadly diseases.” (V3) He is our place to shelter in, and we can trust his protection. Instead of being annoyed when we are delayed, when lines are long, when traffic slows us down, or when a flight is delayed, we should patiently rely on the one who has our lives in His hands. Today, when you encounter an unavoidable impediment, consider that this delay may even save your life. He keeps us from dangers seen and unseen.

Psalm 91:1 I say to the Lord, “You are my place of safety, my fortress. My God, I trust in you.”
 

There is a parable (Matthew 22:11) about a guest who went to a wedding not attired in a wedding garment. The king in the story notices that he is not properly dressed for the occasion and has him thrown out. He was ejected because he could not blend in with the wedding guests the way he thought he could. He did not care enough to change his attire for the event. The king could tell right away that he did not belong there. Those who have accepted Christ must be properly attired for the wedding to which we are invited. God will notice when we try to blend in as Christians, but we do not display the genuine character of godly men and women. We must dress in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control which are the fruit of the spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23) The fruit of love alone will cause all of the other fruit to multiply and flourish in our lives. Let’s allow the fruit of the spirit to be our guiding principles so that when we appear before Christ, we will be dressed for the occasion!

Today as I thought of how a baby learns to walk, I could picture our God. We stand back far enough that they cannot reach us and watch their struggle as they take shaky, small steps to reach their goal. If we interfere, they will not gain the skill of walking, overcome the fear of failing or learn the art of balancing. Therefore, we stand close enough to assist if needed, but far enough away to force them to walk on their own. As we move forward in our lives, let us develop that abiding trust in God remembering that our God is near to us watching over our progress.

Abiding trust is trust that God is watching over us and will not abandon us. It is the trust that helps us to wait when there does not seem to be an answer to our prayers. Abiding trust does not crumple under pressure; it is a faith the God who hears our prayers is watching closely. God’s silence is sometimes a signal that the best thing for me to do is to move forward with courage. Abiding trust contains a foreknowledge that He is monitoring our progress as I grow. I am not alone.

Let us trust God today even when times seem difficult!

Isaiah 42:16 And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.

Something interesting happens to us when trouble comes into our lives. Something marvelous and wonderful unfolds in the depth of our spirit as we emerge from a troublesome bout with the unfathomable issues of life like loss, sickness, illness, family disarray, abandonment, or betrayal. These are all painful, sometimes soul-crushing events which, when we emerge, somehow, we are better than before.

After a trial, our endurance and spiritual resilience have grown, and we are wiser and stronger. At the end of a trial our understanding of life is better than before, we learned trouble has an end, and waiting on God is profitable. Wisdom has been added because of the experience. Our spirits are reinforced by the mere enduring of the circumstance. Our territory is enlarged when it comes to the breadth and width of who we are and the depth and height of our moral and spiritual fortitude. Patience and the capacity to rise from the ashes of our dilemmas are a byproduct of our problems. Compassion for others in similar circumstances runs deeper than before, and empathy for others flows from our hearts.

God my Redeemer is always near, and He still restores. At the end of my trial, no matter what has happened, I find that what has really changed is me.

Romans 5: ³ And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; ⁴ And patience, experience; and experience, hope: ⁵ And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Have you ever just wanted to tell someone off, or maybe you want to respond to the unkind comment that just came your way? The thought that usually quickly enters your mind is, “They can’t do me that way,” or a need to respond in kind reaches up from your very soul to defend yourself. But our weapons are not of that sort. You cannot use the same tools that the enemy uses to defeat this type of enemy. “Spiritual wickedness in high places” comes in many forms. Our warfare requires a different type of tool. Proverbs 15:1 says, “A gentle answer makes anger disappear, but a rough answer makes it grow.”

The practice of not responding to anger with anger is a better choice. God has called us not to. respond as the world does, but to respond with the weapons He gave us. While we are not responsible for the meanness or evil deeds of others, we are responsible for our response to them.

My advice today is to think again. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. 2 Cor. 10:4

Life in its entirety is a series of choices. Perhaps God sends us here to go through this very process.  Evil is always present pushing us to choose it. The mean thing to say, the ugly thoughts to have about someone, the offensive reaction, the impulse to act in anger, all of those not-so-great responses are always pushing against us to get us to choose it.  Evil is aggressive and insistent, it lingers and is antagonistic. Over and over, it reminds you of how you look to others when you don’t respond in the way it dictates. “You should have said this, or that.”

God’s word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. (Psalm 119) We need the light because the darkness is all around us pushing itself in on us.  God’s light is always present, speaking softly and reminding us of the right way to go and the right way to do things.  When you find yourself under pressure to respond a particular way, take a moment to contemplate your response. God’s light does not pressure us, it simply directs us. 

Instead of pressing in on us as darkness does, Jesus stands at the door and knocks. (Revelation 3:20) If you are wondering which way is the right way, the word of God is our guide. It requires me to look beyond the pressured impulse to the light that is waiting for me to acknowledge its presence. 

So, today let’s choose the response that is coming from the light of God’s word. It is knocking and will wait for us to recognize it and choose it.

In the first recorded miracle of Jesus, He turns water into wine.  Mary went to Jesus with a problem that they were experiencing at the wedding at Cana.  They ran out of wine.  Mary was confident in her son’s abilities as she goes to the servants and tells them, “Do whatever he tells you.” As His mother, Mary had experienced life with Jesus living in her home. She knew who He was, and what He could do. Mary spoke to the servants with confidence. How many times had she witnessed what Jesus could and would do if she followed His directions? How many needs of hers had He met while growing up in her home? Her tone to the servants was that of someone with first-hand knowledge, understanding the capabilities of the person she was recommending.  Mary knew that Jesus was the answer to their problem. Jesus is the answer to our problems. So today, just follow his mother’s directions, “do what he tells you” and watch Him work out your problems, as well. John 2 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE
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On Friday I woke up to a tremendous loss. My grandson, at four years old, had died in surgery. It is, for me, an unimaginable tragedy.  The pain is horrendous, and my family is shattered in a way that I cannot fix. At this moment I have the question long asked by many grieving Grandparents before me. How do I walk through this pain, support my grieving son, and worship the God that I asked to cover and protect them?

I searched the scriptures for answers. My example was King David in the book of 2^nd Samuel 12 when his son died. The scripture says this, “²⁰ Then David got up from the floor, washed himself, put lotions on, and changed his clothes. Then he went into the Lord’s house to worship.

My path to follow is very clear to me today. Through my grief and sorrow, I will worship the Lord. He is still God, He is still good, and I will trust Him with my very life. He is watching over us as we find our way through this. His grace is still His sufficient for me and His strength is made perfect in weakness. I trust God that my four-year-old grandson is resting safely in His hands.

One of the great temptations in life is to live it wishing for the next thing.  We work hard to have and to build, to reach the pinnacle of success, whatever you perceive that to be and to express our highest potential.  Along the way, we experience slowdowns and letdowns, successes and failures, joy and heartbreak.  If we are not mindful, along the way through the various seasons of life, we will miss the moments that God wants us to enjoy. Since we do not control time or death, enjoy the things that are in our control a few of which are to enjoy our families, friendships, good meals, and sunshine. Enjoy the rainy days as God waters the earth, our jobs, the people we encounter, and the homes we work so hard to fill with beauty and convenience.

The lesson we are taught in the book of Ecclesiastes is to enjoy the life you have, considering God in your every action. Our guiding principle should be: Please God with pure motives engrained in our actions in service for the kingdom.” 

So, enjoy the moments you have today!