2022-02-06
Psalm 55:22 NIV
When we’re stressed, the surge of negative emotions we feel can be overwhelming. It’s easy to make wrong decisions, submit to wrong impulses, move in the wrong direction, and explode at the wrong people when we feel like that. If stress and anxiety are overwhelming us, it’s important that we take care of ourselves by asking a doctor or counsellor for help.
But alongside that, the psalmist teaches us one of the best ways to help us get those stressful feelings under control: ‘Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.’ We need to unburden our souls to God. It’s no coincidence that many of the psalms start with David crying out to God for help and end with him rejoicing because he vented his frustrations to the right person – God!
Life isn’t only about what happens to us; it’s also about how we respond. We’ll never be totally free from angst, but we can find comfort by following this advice from Paul: ‘All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus…Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so…we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times…but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort – we get a full measure of that, too’ (2 Corinthians 1:3-5 MSG).
To quote a well-known pastor: ‘The more you pray, the less you’ll panic. The more you worship, the less you worry.’
Isa 53:1-12; Acts 8:26-40
2022-02-05
2 Corinthians 4:16 NCV
Every day we’re bombarded by the ‘ideal’ way to look. Whether it’s on social media, adverts, celebrity news, and so on, there are so many things and places that can reinforce the idea that our value comes from the way we look. There’s nothing wrong with us trying to look our best and taking care of ourselves if we’re doing it from the perspective of appreciating God’s creation. The problem comes when our appearance turns into a source of pride and makes us take our focus away from God. There’s so much more to us than our clothes, hairstyle, and body shape. It’s a mistake to focus on the outside and not appreciate and cultivate the unseen qualities God’s given us.
When God made you, He didn’t just decorate the outside; He gave you ‘inner beauty, the gentle, gracious kind…God delights in’ (1 Peter 3:4 MSG). Paul reminds us, ‘What we see will last only a short time, but what we cannot see will last forever’ (2 Corinthians 4:18 NCV). It’s a gentle reminder that our looks aren’t lasting, but our inner qualities are.
Paul was described like this: ‘in person he is unimpressive and his speaking amounts to nothing’ (2 Corinthians 10:10 NKJV). But while his physical appearance wasn’t notable, what he will be remembered for are these words: ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now, a crown is being held for me – a crown for being right with God. The Lord, the judge who judges rightly, will give the crown on that day – not only to me but to all those who have waited with love for him to come again’ (2 Timothy 4:7-8 NKJV).
So today, let’s focus on our inner, not our outer qualities.
Isa 4-7; Luke 8:16-25; Ps 120; Pro 3:33-35
2022-02-04
Mark 4:19 CEV
In the parable of the sower, Jesus said the seed fell into four different places. Today we’re looking at one of those place: ‘The seeds that fell among the thornbushes are…people who hear the message. But they start worrying about the needs of this life. They are fooled by the desire to get rich and to have all kinds of other things. So the message gets choked out, and they never produce anything’ (v.18-19 CEV).
What are some of the things that can keep God’s Word ‘choked out’ of our lives? 1) Thinking that we can’t trust God and worrying that He won’t take care of us. 2) Thinking we’d be happier if we were richer, had a better phone, the latest trainers, a better car, and so on. But it doesn’t work that way. The more ‘things’ we have, the more we have to protect, look after, and worry about. And often we find that once we have the thing we thought would make us happy, we move the goalposts and say, ‘If only I had a bit more money/the phone that’s just been released/a newer car…etc.’ Worrying about material things can ‘choke’ the life out of us.
Real peace and true happiness come from trusting God for what we need, and knowing that if something is right for us, He’ll provide it; and if it’s not, He has a better plan. The closer we get to God, the more we realise we can trust Him. Jesus said, ‘Seek the Kingdom of God above all else…live righteously, and he will give you everything you need’ (Matthew 6:33 NLT). Let’s make prayer and Bible reading a priority so we can draw closer to God and see our worries shrink before Him.
Isa 1-3; Luke 8:1-15; Ps 108; Pro 3:31-32
2022-02-03
Psalm 37:7 CEV
The more we learn to trust God, the more we’ll learn to be patient. David said, ‘Trust the LORD and live right! The land will be yours, and you will be safe. Do what the LORD wants, and he will give you your heart’s desire’ (v.3-4 CEV). We might be striving and struggling to achieve something now, but if we just trusted in God’s timing, it would come easily to us when the moment was right.
Sometimes we’re not ready for the things we want, so God withholds them until we’re properly equipped for them (as long as they’re part of His plan for us). For example, we might want a better job, but God makes us wait until we’ve developed the skills and knowledge we need, and are ready for the extra responsibility before giving us the opportunity. In the Amplified Bible, we read, ‘Patience [which is tireless and long-suffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper]’ (Colossians 3:12 AMPC).
God teach us how to wait, and He also teaches us how to have a good attitude while we’re waiting. The Message paraphrases James’ words: ‘Don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature’ (James 1:4 MSG). The more we realise that God keeps His promises, the more we’ll be willing to trust Him and His timing, however long it takes.
God sometimes allows certain things to happen to teach us how to 1) maintain our faith when times get tough, 2) show grace under pressure by controlling our responses, and 3) develop new skills and better ways of thinking. We may think we know what we want and where we should be, but God really does know. So let’s ‘be patient and trust the LORD.’
Rom 15-16; Luke 7:36-50; Ps 111; Pro 3:29-30
2022-02-02
Matthew 4:19 NLT
Even when other people don’t see your potential, Jesus does. He told Simon Peter and Andrew, ‘Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!’ Where everyone else just saw ordinary fishermen, Jesus saw the capacity to change the world. There are two sides to following Him: you believe in Jesus, and He believes in you.
But we can have doubts. When Nathaniel was invited to meet Jesus, he was doubtful: ‘Philip found Nathaniel and told him, “We have found the man that Moses wrote about in the law, and the prophets also wrote about him. He is Jesus, the son of Joseph, from Nazareth.” But Nathaniel said to Philip, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Philip answered, “Come and see”‘ (John 1:45-46 NCV).
Even after witnessing Jesus’ miracles for three years, His disciples still had doubts and moments of uncertainty. Several times He said to them, ‘You of little faith.’ He knew they were anxious about what would happen when He left them and went back to heaven, so He said, ‘I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper to be with you forever (John 14:16 NCV). The Greek word for helper (or comforter) is parakletos, which means ‘one who comes alongside to help you’. And the helper God sent was the Holy Spirit.
There’ll never be a day when we don’t need God’s help, and there’ll never be a day when it isn’t available to us. The truth is, even when we doubt, don’t believe, or find it difficult to trust, Jesus never gives up on us. He loves us at all times and wants to help us. Today, know that Jesus believes in you!
Rom 12-14; Luke 7:24-35; Ps 107:33-43; Pro 3:27-28
2022-02-01
1 John 3:1 CEV
Rejection can come from all kinds of sources, and most of us will experience it at some point. We might have a university or job application rejected. An idea we’ve had or a piece of work we’ve done might be rejected. We might experience rejection in a relationship. When we’re struggling and hurting with the pain of rejection, it can often show itself in things like these:
1) Perfectionism. But this doesn’t fulfil us, because we’re not perfect – only God is – so we’ll never reach the impossibly high standards we’ve set for ourselves.
2) People pleasing. But other people’s needs and expectations vary so much, which makes it impossible for us to keep everyone happy.
3) Becoming defensive. Rejection can feel very much like a personal attack (even if it’s not meant to be), so we try to protect ourselves by attacking back. But harsh words spoken with an angry temper just escalate the problem.
4) Isolation. We want to protect ourselves, so we might try to distance ourselves from others to avoid being criticised and rejected again. But that can lead to loneliness and bitterness, as well as missing out on some of the great connections God’s planned for us.
Rejection is never an easy thing to take. But there’s one thing we can be sure of: God will never reject us. He values every one of us. We’re unique, wonderfully made by Him. ‘Think how much the Father loves us. He loves us so much that he lets us be called his children, as we truly are.’ When we accept how much He loves and values us, other people’s opinions won’t matter nearly as much to us.
Rom 9:17-11:36; Luke 7:11-23; Ps 107:23-32; Pro 3:25-26
