2020-11-20
2 Corinthians 9:6 NLT
When the Bible talks about sowing and reaping, it can make us think of farmers gathering in the crops that they’ve planted and nurtured. But the idea of sowing and reaping can be applied to so many areas of our lives.
We might have a talent for something, and by sowing into it through practice and taking time to refine it, we reap the reward of being able to use that talent for God’s glory, and maybe even of earning a living doing something we love. We sow time into our relationships, and can reap the reward of close, lasting friendship. We might be able to invest money into something, and reap a profit later on. We sow seeds of faith by seeking God and reading His Word, and reap the reward of complete confidence and trust in Him. The idea is that when we sow in faith, and in line with God’s will, we’ll get back more than we put in.
Paul says, ‘God loves people who love to give. God can bless you with everything you need, and you will always have more than enough to do all kinds of good things for others’ (2 Corinthians 9:7-8 CEV). God wants us to succeed, to have the resources needed to fulfil His will, and help others do the same. But if we’re putting our time and effort into the wrong things, sowing and reaping can work against us. Proverbs 22:8 says: ‘Those who plant injustice will harvest disaster’ (NLT).
What have you been sowing into recently? What’s your harvest going to be? Our future begins with what we have right now. Nothing is too little to multiply. Every one of us has received something from God that’s capable of multiplying; the secret is putting it into His hands.
2 Chr 8-11; John 12:12-19; Ps 102:1-11; Prov 27:7-9
2020-11-19
Lamentations 3:25 NLT
There’ll be times when we struggle spiritually. We might feel like we’re not getting anywhere, or wonder why a prayer is going unanswered, or even have doubts about God. It’s hard to go through these times unequipped, so here are three thoughts to help:
1) Realise that doing God’s will isn’t promised to be easy. The enemy doesn’t give up without a fight, and doubt and worry are two of his weapons. The Bible says: ‘Let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up’ (Galatians 6:9 NLT). People who experience breakthrough aren’t necessarily the cleverest or the most talented people, but what they do have is persistence. They reach the point where many would give up, and then push beyond it.
2) Believe that God is for your total wellbeing. We’re children of a perfect God, and His promises are with us forever. He’s got our welfare at heart, and His desire is to see us full of joy and thriving. ‘The LORD your God is with you; the mighty One will save you. He will rejoice over you. You will rest in his love; he will sing and be joyful about you’ (Zephaniah 3:17 NCV).
3) Reach for what God has promised you. The prophet Isaiah said, ‘Surely he took our pain and bore our suffering…and by his wounds we are healed’ (Isaiah 53:4-5 NIV). At the cross, Jesus paid the price for our salvation and bought us everything we need. So we can rise up in faith and claim it, because ‘the LORD is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.’
2 Chr 5-7; John 12:1-11; Ps 76; Prov 27:4-6
2020-11-18
Isaiah 48:10 NLT
We’re all necessary to God’s plan, and He’ll call and equip us to fulfil our unique role in His kingdom. The Bible says, ‘Our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it’ (1 Corinthians 12:18 NLT). God sets a plan and a purpose for each of us, and when we spend time seeking Him, we’ll discover our assignment. We might think that once we know God’s call and are following it, we’re somehow entitled to have an easy journey to fulfil it. But that’s not often the case. We’ll still face setbacks, challenges, and difficult times – what sets us apart is our response to these things.
Isaiah 48:10 says: ‘I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.’ Spending time in the refiner’s fire helps us build character, perseverance and endurance, and reminds us to rely on God’s strength during troubles, rather than thinking we can do everything ourselves. God allows us to experience the refiner’s fire because He wants to see how we react under pressure; how we respond to a ‘no’ when we want to hear ‘yes’; how we behave if we’re given a boring, basic job when we’re capable of doing much more. If we respond to God’s challenges with wisdom and patience, He can trust us with more.
The refiner’s fire also trains us for dealing with the enemy’s attacks, as we learn to turn to God and depend on Him for help. The refining process might be uncomfortable, but we’ll come out of it stronger and better equipped to fulfil God’s plan. So when we face challenges, let’s try our best to be joyful and thank God for refining us for His kingdom.
2 Chr 1-4; John 11:38-57; Ps 81; Prov 27:1-3
2020-11-17
Job 33:4 NIV
There are many things that we go to a lot of effort to protect. We make sure our houses and cars are locked whenever we leave them. We choose strong passwords for online banking. We set lock codes on our phones. But what are we doing to protect our most valuable possession – our spiritual life? Elihu told Job, ‘The breath of the Almighty gives me life.’
When God breathes His spirit into us at the point of salvation, we become spiritually alive. We have the ability to love Him, serve Him, and bring joy to Him. But the enemy is constantly trying to steal this part of our lives from us. To get to it, he’ll attack our bodies and our minds, and try to control us through habits, doubts, and fears. He’ll even work through other people, including close friends and family members.
When God breathed into Adam, he became alive. He recognised who he was and what he was called to do in life. And we also need to recognise that God created and redeemed each one of us for a purpose, otherwise other people will try to ‘breathe’ their identity and agenda into us, which can open the door for them to control us and take our thoughts off God. So we need to protect ourselves.
We can do that by living each day with an awareness of God’s presence. The psalmist said, ‘You are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me. Let me live forever in your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of your wings!’ (Psalm 61:3-4 NLT). When we’re in that place of safety, the enemy can’t touch us or anything that God has given us.
1 Chr 26:20-29:30; John 11:28-37; Ps 50; Prov 26:27-28
2020-11-16
John 16:24 NLT
The Bible doesn’t tell us how long the disabled man in Acts 3 had sat begging at the temple gate, but we do know it was a daily occurrence. When he asked Peter and John for money, he probably hoped that they would give him a few coins. But then Peter said, ‘I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, get up and walk!’ (Acts 3:6 NLT). Here’s what happened next: ‘He jumped up, stood on his feet, and began to walk! Then, walking, leaping, and praising God, he went into the Temple with them’ (v. 8 NKJV).
One thing we can learn from this story is that God works in His own time, and knows the right time to move. If we’re not spiritually attuned, we can miss the move of God in our lives and forfeit what He has for us. So we need to learn to live in expectation. We need to believe that miracles can happen, and then expect them to happen. The enemy will try to keep us so preoccupied, cynical, and hopeless that when God sends the answer to a prayer, we won’t recognise it and claim it.
Jesus said: ‘You will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name…Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy’ (John 16:23-24 NLT). The beggar probably experienced rejection, and many people must have ignored his pleas for help, in all the days he sat at the Temple gate. But he persisted and asked expectantly, and through that, God blessed him more than he could have imagined. So let’s also ask God expectantly, and be ready to receive His blessing.
1 Chr 23:21-26:19; John 11:17-27; Ps 8; Prov 26:23-26
2020-11-15
1 Corinthians 9:26 NLT
There are a several times in the Bible when living for God is compared to a race. (Take a look at Hebrews 12:1, 2 Timothy 4:7 and 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 for some examples.) In God’s kingdom, we’re not in competition with others, but we should all want to ‘win’ at fulfilling our own God-given purpose. Here are some traits that top athletes have which can also help us as we run our race for God:
1) Self-awareness. Athletes need to be honest about their strengths and weaknesses, so they know what to work on. We need to regularly bring our strengths and weaknesses to God, so He can help us refine our stronger areas and improve our weaker ones.
2) Focus. Athletes stay focused on the thing they’re aiming for, such as the finish line, the centre of a target, or the goal. We can’t fulfil God’s purpose for our lives if we’re looking in a different direction. We need to keep our hearts and minds fixed on Him, and on path He’s laid out for us.
3) Confidence. In order to build confidence and improve, athletes have to push themselves out of their comfort zones. God’s purpose will often take us beyond what feels comfortable, but as we push through our anxieties with God, He’ll help us develop confidence and trust in Him.
4) Discipline. Athletes need to be disciplined enough to stick with their strict training regimes, even when things are tough. We also need to be disciplined in what we say, how we spend our time, and how we handle temptations, to ensure we stay close to God.
5) A plan. Athletes go into a race or a game prepared with a plan of action. We may know God’s purpose, but we also need to ask Him for a plan of how to fulfil it, and the steps we need to take to get there.
Matt 6:1-4; Mark 12:41-44; Luke 14:12-14; 2 Cor 9:6-11
