2020-01-25
Psalm 34:18 NIVUK
When we’re broken-hearted. When somebody breaks our heart and betrays our trust, we’re in a vulnerable place. And the enemy will use the experience to get us to do four things that will hurt us, make us doubt our faith, and rob us of God’s blessing: 1) Isolate ourselves. 2) Lose our sense of trust so we suspect the motives of everyone we meet. 3) Cause bitterness to be deeply rooted in our hearts which impacts our relationships with our family and friends (take a look at Hebrews 12:15). 4) Make us want to get even by seeking revenge (have a read of 1 Thessalonians 5:15). But this doesn’t have to be what happens. Instead, we can stand on verses such as: ‘The Lord is close to the broken-hearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed’; ‘I will turn their mourning into joy. I will comfort them and exchange their sorrow for rejoicing’ (Jeremiah 31:13 NLTUK); ‘The Spirit of the Lord…has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor…heal the broken-hearted…proclaim liberty to the captives…recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed’ (Luke 4:18 NKJV)’ ‘Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behaviour. Instead, be kind to each other, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you’ (Ephesians 4:31-32 NLTUK). If someone has hurt us and broken our hearts, we need to forgive them. It’s often not just a one-time thing. We need to keep on forgiving them until we’re free in our mind. Forgiveness is a challenge, especially when we’re hurting. But if we keep our eyes on Jesus, we’ll get there.
Isa 4-7; Matt 10:1-10; Ps 100; Prov 3:7-8
2020-01-24
1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT
When we’re tempted to take the wrong path. We’ll all face temptation at some point. Even Jesus did. Out in the wilderness, the enemy tempted Jesus three times. But each time, He replied using Scripture. He chose to declare God’s truth rather than give in to the enemy’s temptations. When we’re feeling tempted, we need to do the same thing. We need to be memorising Bible verses so we know what to declare when we’re tempted to take the wrong path. The psalmist wrote: ‘I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you’ (Psalm 119:11 NIV). We need to store up God’s Word in our hearts and minds so we’re prepared when we face temptation. Here are some verses we can stand on: ‘The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure’ (1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT); ‘I can do all this through him who gives me strength’ (Philippians 4:13 NIV); ‘Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings’ (1 Peter 5:8-9 NIV); ‘Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh’ (Galatians 5:16 NIV). We need to be declaring verses like these out loud to help us make the right decisions. With God strengthening us, we can be courageous enough to overcome temptation.
Isa 1-3; Matt 9:27-38; Ps 96; Prov 3:5-6
2020-01-23
1 Corinthians 6:19 NIV
When we’re trying to be healthy. To be healthy, we need to look after our physical health, mental health, and spiritual health. We might not think that the way we eat or exercise is important to God. But the Bible says that our ‘bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit’, so we should make sure we’re honouring God by looking after ourselves. If we’re struggling with our mental health, it’s okay to get professional help. We need to make sure we’re meeting our needs, and loving ourselves so that we can love others well too. And we also need to be putting spiritual disciplines into practice in our lives to help keep our faith healthy too. That might mean we need to build in more time for prayer and Bible reading. It might mean we need to be still and listen to God. Or it might mean we need to meet with other Christians more often. When we’re trying to be healthy in all three areas of our lives, here are some verses we can stand on: ‘Search me…and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life’ (Psalm 139:23-24 NLT); ‘Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God’ (1 Corinthians 10:31 NLT); ‘Be still, and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46:10 NIV); ‘God did not give us a spirit that makes us afraid but a spirit of power and love and self-control’ (2 Timothy 1:7 NCV). God cares about every part of our lives, so whichever area of our health we think we need to work on, He’ll be right there helping us.
Exo 39-40; Matt 9:14-26; Ps 91; Prov 3:3-4
2020-01-22
Psalm 119:50 NLT
When we’re in pain. Sometimes God lifts us out of our situation. Other times, He carries us through and makes us stronger by proving His love and faithfulness to us. Sometimes He relieves us of the pain; other times He sustains us in the middle of it. When we’re in pain we need to fill our minds with verses from the Bible which remind us that God’s with us. Some verses we could stand on include: ‘Your promise revives me; it comforts me in all my troubles’; ‘Let your unfailing love comfort me, just as you promised me, your servant. Surround me with your tender mercies so I may live’ (vv.76-77 NLT); ‘Turn to me and have mercy, for I am alone and in deep distress. My problems go from bad to worse. Oh, save me from them all! Feel my pain and see my trouble’ (Psalm 25:16-18 NLT); ‘The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the broken-hearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time. For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken!’ (Psalm 34:17-20 NLTUK); ‘Heal me, LORD, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise’ (Jeremiah 17:14 NIV). God’s promises revive and comfort us in all of our troubles. Whether our pain is physical or emotional, there’s no limit to the number of times we can read and reflect on these verses. The more we spend time reading them, the easier it’ll be to remember them when we’re struggling to keep trusting God through our pain.
Exo 36-38; Matt 9:1-13; Ps 89:38-52; Prov 3:1-2
2020-01-21
Psalm 91:2 NLT
When we’re facing danger. David said: ‘This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety…my God and I trust him.’ When we’re afraid and facing an overwhelming situation, we can run to God for safety. Trusting in God doesn’t mean we’ll never face difficult or scary circumstances. Life throws all sorts of things our way. But we can still be at peace because of God’s promises, such as this one: ‘I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honour them’ (Psalm 91:14-15 NLTUK). He will never leave us to face anything on our own. We’ll always have Him with us, and we can always rely on Him. He’s bigger than our situations and more powerful than any storm that we’re facing. When we speak God’s Word over our lives, we release the power contained in it. So we need to be speaking out verses which show us how big God is compared to our situation. Here are some examples: ‘For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline’ (2 Timothy 1:7 NLT); ‘The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm’ (Exodus 14:14 NLT); ‘Trust in the LORD always, for the LORD GOD is the eternal Rock’ (Isaiah 26:4 NLT); ‘I am the LORD, the God of all the peoples of the world. Is anything too hard for me?’ (Jeremiah 32:27 NLT). So let’s stand firm today, and expect God to keep His promises to us.
Exo 33-35; Matt 8:28-34; Ps 89:15-37; Prov 2:21-22
2020-01-20
Philippians 2:4 NKJV
When we give to others, we can sometimes be tempted to do it because we want to get something back. Perhaps we’re in need of some encouragement, so we compliment others hoping they will give us a compliment back. Perhaps we want someone to do something nice for us, so we go out of our way to do something nice for them first. Any kind of relationship with another person should be two-way. We should give, and they should give. But we need to be checking our motives. As we become more like Jesus, we’ll realise that we need to be selfless in our giving. We need to be serving others because it’s what Jesus would do, not because we want something back. Jesus said: ‘Love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great’ (Luke 6:35 NIV). He sees everything we do for others, and He sees the attitude we do it with. The Bible says, ‘Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.’ Being selfless doesn’t mean we never speak up about our needs, or take time for ourselves. It means we make sure we’re thinking of the other person, and their needs. It means we do what we can to meet their needs and support them, without expecting them to do it in return. However, we need to avoid being taken for granted. It’s clear when people are using us, or when they don’t care for our wellbeing. If the other person isn’t recognising our needs, we might need to pray about whether we should remain as close to them. God can give us wisdom in all our relationships.
Exo 30-32; Matt 8:18-27; Ps 89:1-14; Prov 2:20
