2021-03-14
Proverbs 31:28 MSG
Centuries ago, when traveling was slow and uncomfortable, people worshipped at their local parish church, which was usually within walking distance of where they lived. But on one Sunday during Lent, known as Refreshment Sunday, they were encouraged to visit their ‘mother church’ – their nearest cathedral or the church where they were baptised. Apprentices and those who were servants at large estates and houses would be allowed to take the day off to pay a visit to their mothers and families – this was known as ‘going mothering’, which is where the name ‘Mothering Sunday’ first came from. But gradually the tradition became less popular and was forgotten.
Then in 1913, a lady called Constance Smith heard about a campaign in America to dedicate one day in the year to celebrate mothers, which became known as ‘Mother’s Day’. Inspired by this, Constance decided to revive Mothering Sunday in the UK, promoting it as a celebration of mothers as well as the mother church. As a result of her efforts, Mothering Sunday is observed today across the British Isles and the Commonwealth!
The Bible says, ‘A good woman is…worth far more than diamonds…She senses the worth of her work and is in no hurry to call it quits…When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say and…always says it kindly…Her children respect and bless her’ (vv. 1, 9, 17, 28 MSG).
It’s an amazing tribute to mothers and those who have been mother-figures in our lives. Today, let’s take the opportunity to celebrate not only our mothers, but anyone who cares for us and has helped shape and encourage us as we’ve grown physically and in our faith.
Isa 61:1-9; Luke 4:16-30
2021-03-13
Proverbs 18:8 ESV
Gossip can be a ‘delicious morsel’ that’s hard to resist. So if we have the opportunity to gossip, we need to catch ourselves before we indulge in it. There are many reasons why we choose to gossip. We might feel that it’s the only way to fit in and establish camaraderie with others. We might enjoy being the centre of attention. It might make us feel superior or powerful to know something negative about somebody else. It might be because we feel jealous of someone else’s achievements. We might even gossip just because we’re feeling bored.
1 Corinthians 6:19 says that we are ‘temples of the Holy Spirit’ (NIV), so whenever we’re tempted to listen to gossip, we need to ask ourselves if we’re willing to fill God’s temple with something that’s so unhealthy and negative. We need to make a choice to cut gossip out of our lives by refusing to share or listen to it. That might mean actively letting people know we’re not interested and declaring ourselves a ‘gossip-free zone’, or going out of our way to avoid places or situations where we know we’ll be drawn in to gossip.
Solomon wrote, ‘A gossip goes around telling secrets, so don’t hang around with chatterers’ (Proverbs 20:19 NLT). We please God when our words are used as instruments of righteousness, and we can declare, ‘May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer’ (Psalm19:14 NIV).
Job 5-7; Matt 22:34-46; Ps 26; Prov 7:26-27
2021-03-12
1 Peter 1:5 NCV
We might be tempted to think that because our salvation is assured when we put our trust in Christ, we can just carry on living with our old habits and mindset. It might work for a while, but as grace goes deeper and God’s love and kindness sink in, He changes our hearts.
Grace nurtures obedience to God. ‘The grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age’ (Titus 2:11-12 NIV).
God’s grace does more than comfort us in our troubles; it convicts us when we stray from God’s path. We need to let it convict us. If we ever start thinking, ‘I can do whatever I want because God will forgive me,’ then grace isn’t happening to us. It doesn’t give us permission to do things God wouldn’t approve of, but instead creates a resolve within us to do good and follow His will.But if we do go wrong, and confess it to God with a repentant heart, His grace means that He’ll welcome us with open arms. He’ll hold us, and He’ll hold on to our loved ones.
Do you have a friend whose faith has grown cold, or a family member who’s turned their back on God? He wants them back more than you do. Keep praying for them, and don’t give up. The truth is, we don’t always know if someone has trusted God’s grace – they may have only pretended to believe. But where someone has truly put their faith in God, grace never stops working. So today, trust God’s saving and keeping power.
Job 1-4; Matt 22:23-33; Ps 24; Prov 7:24-25
2021-03-11
Psalm 29:11 NIV
Increasing our pace often decreases our peace. There have been loads of inventions through the years that have promised to save time and effort on all kinds of tasks. We can go online and find any number of time-saving life hacks. But often the reality is that we don’t gain more free time, we just end up living life at a faster pace. And as our productivity increases, our peace and quality of life can feel like it’s decreasing.
Think about your phone – there’s probably a few different apps on there to help you keep in touch with people. It’s great to be able to connect with others in so many ways, but the downside is that we need to keep an eye on several apps at once. We can message people instantly, which makes things really convenient and helps us stay connected even when we can’t physically be together. But it encourages us to become impatient when someone doesn’t reply to us straight away, and others might expect an instant response from us. And that expectation can lead us into multitasking – we might answer emails while we’re in a meeting, message a friend while we’re eating lunch, and so on. Instead of reducing the busyness in our lives, we end up doing two or three things at once.
So where can we go to slow down and be assured of rest and peace? To Jesus, whose name is ‘Prince of Peace’. Today He’s saying to us: ‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world give. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid’ (John 14:27 NIV).
1 Thes 1-5; Matt 22:15-22; Ps 135; Prov 7:21-23
2021-03-10
Galatians 6:9 NIV
God has so many blessings and plans for us, but there’s a time for them all. We’re not going to get them immediately, when we want them. In Ecclesiastes we’re told that ‘there is a time for everything’ (3:1 NIV).
God made people wait many times throughout the Bible. Abraham and Sarah had to wait for a son, Joseph had to go through many bad situations before it was the right time to be given authority in Egypt, Jesus had to wait 30 years to begin His ministry, Simeon was waiting for God’s salvation, and those who had been exiled by the Babylonians were waiting for freedom. For many of these people, the wait wasn’t a few weeks or months, it was years and years. For the exiles, it was 70 years. In Jeremiah 29, we read: ‘This is what the Lord says: “Babylon will be powerful for seventy years. After that time I will come to you, and I will keep my promise to bring you back to Jerusalem”‘ (v.10 NCV).
Often we want God to act and change our situations, to bring good times, immediately, and when He doesn’t, we’re tempted to give up. But God’s timing is better than ours. He knows when it’s the right time to bring change and blessing. Psalm 102 also shows us that God had an appointed time for the exiles: ‘You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favour to her; the appointed time has come.’ God’s got an appointed time to come through for us too.
Waiting can be hard, especially if we’ve been waiting a really long time. We can end up getting frustrated and disappointed, we might even be tempted to think that God’s forgotten and abandoned us. But while we’re waiting for this appointed time, He’s working.
Gen 50; Haggai 1-2; Matt 22:1-14; Ps 27; Prov 7:10-20
2021-03-09
2 Timothy 3:15 NCV
Getting into God’s Word is so important, but we can sometimes feel intimidated by the Bible. We might feel overwhelmed because it’s such a big book and we just don’t know where to start. We might think that because it’s such an ancient book, spans such a long historical time period, and includes so many themes, it’s too complicated for us to understand. So today, let’s look at how to simplify it and make it feel a bit more manageable.
1) Think of the Bible as a library of smaller books. It’s a collection of 66 books of different lengths, written over a period of 1,500 years by more than 40 people from all kinds of cultural and educational backgrounds. But what binds them together is that the words of each book were ‘breathed out by God’ (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV).
2) When they’re put together, the books of the Bible tell of God’s amazing love for us, culminating at the cross. Paul wrote to Timothy: ‘You should continue following the teachings you learned. You know they are true, because you trust who taught you. Since you were a child you have known the Holy Scriptures which are able to make you wise. And that wisdom leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus’ (v.14-15 NCV).
3) The Bible is the story of God’s love for you. Every time you read it, allow it to unfold in your heart as a love letter written to you by God. Even if you can only manage to read one chapter, or even one verse, at a time, get into the habit of spending time with God’s Word every day, and let it speak into your life.
Gen 47-49; Matt 21:33-46; Ps 112; Prov 7:6-9
