2023-03-17
Psalm 51:7 NIV
Do you remember when most restaurants had opening and closing hours? It was their schedule, and not your appetite, that decided whether you ate or went hungry. Not anymore: now you can pop into many of your favourite eating places anytime your appetite hits. That’s how God operates; He is available 24/7. And although praying isn’t limited to set times, there are certain times when it’s vital that you talk to God.
Here are two: (1) When you have sinned. Your emotions of guilt and shame, plus Satan “the accuser,” will tell you to avoid God. But turning to Him is the only solution to sin. Burdened by adultery, deception, and murder, David realised he needed to confess his sin to God. “Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow… Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (vv. 7, 10 NIV). John said God is “faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 NIV). Have you sinned? A fresh beginning is only a prayer away.
(2) When you’re worried and afraid. You don’t have to look too far to find things to worry about; they’re all around you. Financial, professional, health, and family concerns can make you stressed-out and anxious. Where to turn? Prayer is God’s answer to fear and anxiety. “Don’t worry over anything whatever… tell God every detail of your needs in thankful prayer, and the peace of God, which surpasses human understanding, will keep constant guard over your hearts and minds” (Philippians 4:6-7 PHPS).
Soul food: Job 1-4; Luke 18:1-17; Ps 11; Prov 8:4-5
2023-03-16
John 8:11 NKJV
“The scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery… they said to Him, ‘Teacher,… Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?’… Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, ‘He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.’… When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, ‘Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more'” (vv. 3-7, 10-11 NKJV).
That day Jesus demonstrated three things: (1) The hypocrisy of a double standard. Since this woman had been “caught in the very act,” surely they knew who the man was, too. There is still a double standard today that looks down on a woman because of her past while excusing a man by saying, “He was just sowing his wild oats.” The Pharisees used stones, we use words, but the victim ends up wounded regardless.
(2) Who alone is qualified to judge. “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” Who was the only sinless one among them that day? Jesus! So He alone is qualified to judge.
(3) You can rise above your past. “Go and sin no more.” Those words could be rephrased, “Go, and because you have had an encounter with Jesus, you can rise above your past.”
Soul food: 2 Thes 1-3; Luke 17:20-37; Ps 115; Prov 8:1-3
2023-03-15
Psalm 119:105 NASB2020
The words “Your word is a lamp to my feet” mean you’re supposed to walk according to God’s will and not your own thoughts, wishes, or impulses. The words “and a light to my path” mean you can’t go in any direction you choose; you must follow the path that God has planned for you. You will never go wrong consulting the Scriptures for direction, but make sure you keep the Scriptures in context. Don’t use the “open-window method,” allowing the wind to blow across the pages of your Bible, then shutting your eyes, pointing to a verse and saying, “This is God’s leading on this.” If you do that, you could wind up with the verse, “Judas went away and hanged himself,” as the verse for your day!
Would you want to go to a doctor with an illness and hear him say, without ever examining you, “It’s your gallbladder”? You would ask, “How do you know?” And he would say, “Well, I sat by the window a few moments ago and trusted God to blow the pages of my anatomy book to your problem – and the topic on the page was ‘gallbladder.'” You would run out of there pretty fast, wouldn’t you?
Some people practice this kind of theological voodoo, then get into trouble and say, “Well, God led me,” when God had nothing to do with their choices. Whenever you read the scriptural phrase, “This is the will of God,” you can be sure that it’s His will. If you disobey Him, you will suffer, and if you obey Him, you will be blessed.
Soul food: Est 5-10; Luke 17:1-19; Ps 18:1-29; Prov 26:24-27
2023-03-14
1 Peter 1:25 NKJV
In the fourteenth century, there was not a single copy of the Bible in English! It was available only in Latin, the language of the clergy, and those were chained to the podiums of the cathedrals. Then a prominent professor of divinity at Oxford University said, “This is not right. People should be able to read the Bible in their own language.” Church leaders branded him a heretic and an instrument of the devil.
Like Noah who pounded the nails into the ark while people ridiculed and scorned him, John Wycliffe began translating the Scriptures as a flood of persecution emerged around him. When he finally completed his translation of the Scriptures, he wrote this in the flyleaf of the first copy of the English Scriptures: “This Bible is translated and shall make possible a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.” Five hundred years later, President Abraham Lincoln borrowed that statement for his famous Gettysburg Address.
Thirty years after Wycliffe died, he was again proclaimed a heretic. Consequently, his body was exhumed, and his bones were burned to dust, and his ashes cast into a river. A contemporary historian describes the scene like this: “Thus this brook hath conveyed his ashes into (the river) Avon, Avon into Severn, Severn into the narrow seas, they into the ocean. And thus ashes… are the emblem of his doctrine… now… dispersed the world over.” Hence Peter writes, “‘The word of the Lord endures forever.’ Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached unto you.”
Soul food: Est 1-4; Luke 16:19-31; Ps 24; Prov 7:24-27
2023-03-13
Acts 26:19 KJV
When God gives you a vision of what He wants you to do, you will have to go against the flow of the world. Society wants to keep you in a box. Most people are married mentally to the status quo. They want what was, not what can be. They seek safety and simple answers. So, you need to give yourself permission to go a different way, to break new ground.
Paul said, “I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision.” It was his consuming passion and the central focus of his life. He got up every morning thinking about it and went to bed every night thinking about it. And at the end of his life, he could say, “I have finished the race… Finally, there is laid up for me the crown” (2 Timothy 4:7-8 NKJV).
No one achieves greatness by becoming a generalist. Whether your vision is to build a great family, or a great church, or a great business, or a great “anything,” you must focus. Author Harry A. Overstreet observed: “The immature mind hops from one thing to another; the mature mind seeks to follow through.”
Does every area of your life deserve focused thinking time? No. Be selective, not exhaustive in your thinking. What has God called you to do? What’s your role in it? What skill sets do you need to sharpen? What knowledge do you need to acquire? What relationships do you need to build? The first question Paul asked when God gave him his vision was, “What do You want me to do?” (Acts 9:6 NKJV). And today that’s the question you need to ask God, too.
Soul food: Exo 39-40; Luke 16:1-18; Ps 135; Prov 7:21-23
2023-03-12
Job 42:2 NIV
Job lost his wealth, his health, and his children. The book he wrote is a conversation between himself and God. At the beginning of it, Job says, “Hear now my argument” (Job 13:6 NIV). He is asking, “Why has all this happened to me?” At this point he is totally self-focused. But by the middle of his book, Job has grown spiritually and now he takes a different approach.
Instead of reasoning, he decides to stand on God’s Word: “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside. I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread” (Job 23:10-12 NIV).
By the last chapter in his book, Job has decided to trust God completely: “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted… My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you” (Job 42:2, 5 NIV). Job has finally arrived at the place where he can say, “I trust God; there is no need to worry!” After nine months of worrying, questioning, and reasoning, he decides he doesn’t need answers to all his questions, he only needs to know that God cares for him. And his story ends in these words: “The Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before” (v. 10 NIV). There you have it; the steps to overcoming your worries!
Soul food: Acts 2:1-21; Joel 2:23-32
