2021-09-25
Ephesians 3:17 NLT
Plants need strong, healthy root systems to thrive. Those with weak or damaged roots can still grow, but they won’t be able to reach their full potential or withstand stresses as effectively. The good news is that the plants can be treated and the roots encouraged to grow stronger. Some plants suffer from root rot. Once the problem has been identified, the roots need to be washed clean, the bad parts cut away, and the plant is repotted in fresh soil.
And sometimes we need to do the same. Flawed roots produce flawed fruit, like feelings of inferiority, worthlessness, anger, inability to trust, and fear of intimacy. If our root system contains things like rejection, past mistakes, and painful experiences, we need to bring them out into the open and treat them. And we can do that with God’s help. ‘He will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong’ (vv. 16-17 NLT).
The assurance of God’s love can bring healing to our emotions. We no longer have to draw our security and self-worth from how others treat us or from our background. But it’s a process.
Strong roots require three things: 1) Time to grow. Becoming confident in our identity as God’s child is like breaking in new shoes. We have to walk in them until they become comfortable. 2) Protection from things that can be harmful. We need to surround ourselves with people who build us up instead of tearing us down; people ‘who share the same precious faith’ (see 2 Peter 1:1). 3) Spiritual nourishment. We need to pray and feed yourselves regularly from God’s Word (see Job 23:12).
1 Sam 4-7; Luke 23:13-25; Ps 52; Prov 21:17
2021-08-28
Psalm 34:6 NLT
J.C. Penney was a rich businessman who founded a famous chain of department stores across America. But despite his wealth and success, he suffered setbacks, bereavement, financial ruin, and deep depression. At his lowest point he cried out to God. He said: ‘When I was brought to humility and the knowledge of my dependence on God…it was like a light illuminating my being. I cannot otherwise describe it, than to say it changed me as a man.’
When things fall apart in our lives, and we don’t know what to do or whether we’ll be able to recover, God is only a prayer away. It’s amazing to think that the creator of the universe is so close to us. Even if we’ve neglected our relationship with Him and tried to rely on our own strength and wisdom, He joyfully welcomes us back to Him when we realise that we need Him in our lives. ‘The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth’ (Psalm 145:18 NIV).
When we’re in the depths of trouble, we can sometimes think that God’s abandoned us. But the opposite is true. ‘The Lord is close to the broken-hearted, and he saves those whose spirits have been crushed’ (Psalm 34:18 NCV). In times of brokenness and despair, we can draw strength and comfort from His presence. ‘He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust”‘ (Psalm 91 ESV). The psalmist wrote: ‘In my desperation I prayed, and the LORD listened; he saved me from all my troubles.’ God will do the same for us.
Eze 5-9; Luke 18:18-30; Ps 119:169-176; Prov 19:9-10
Psalm 34:6 NKJV
J.C. Penney has died and gone to heaven, but hundreds of department stores across America still carry his name. When he started out in life he was interested in one thing only: making money. Working as a clerk for six dollars a week, his consuming ambition was to be worth a hundred thousand dollars. When he reached that goal he felt temporary satisfaction, but soon set his sights on being worth a million dollars. Then tragedy struck his life. His wife caught cold that developed into pneumonia, of which she subsequently died.
He recalled, “When she died my world crashed about me. To build businesses, to make a success in the eyes of men, to accumulate money – what was the purpose of it all? I felt mocked by life, even by God himself.” Before long he was ruined financially and in deep depression. It was at that point he turned to God and experienced a miraculous conversion. He said: “When I was brought to humility and the knowledge of my dependence on God…it was like a light illuminating my being. I cannot otherwise describe it, than to say it changed me as a man.”
Have things fallen apart in your life today? Are you down, wondering if you’ll ever be able to get back up? Turn to God; He’s only a prayer away. And David the psalmist prayed that prayer: “This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.” And what God did for David, He will do for you today.
Soul food: Eze 5-9; Luke 18:18-30; Ps 119:169-176; Prov 19:9-10
2021-08-27
1 Thessalonians 5:17 KJV
Two things about prayer are truly amazing: 1) God listens when we pray. ‘You can pray for anything, and if you believe that you have received it, it will be yours’ (Mark 11:24 NLT). He hears every prayer, and when we pray in alignment with His will, He’ll move to meet our requests.
2) We don’t pray enough. We have the greatest privilege imaginable – access to the control centre of the Universe – but we rarely use it. And our lack of prayer surprises God. Through the prophet Ezekiel He lamented: ‘I sought for a man among them who would…stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one’ (Ezekiel 22:30 NKJV).
When Abraham learned that Sodom and Gomorrah were going to be destroyed, he didn’t rush to warn the cities. Instead he chose to’ … [remain] standing before the Lord’ (Genesis 18:22 NIV). When God said Israel deserved a nationwide death penalty for the golden calf, Moses interceded and saved them. One paraphrase of Exodus 32:11 says, ‘Moses tried to calm his GOD down’ (MSG). An obscure priest called Phinehas begged God not to send the plague, and it was checked (see Psalm 106:30).
Prayer is so important and valuable because when we work, we work, but when we pray, God works. Scripture attaches breathtaking power to prayer. The Message paraphrases Matthew 18:19 like this: ‘When two of you get together on anything…and make a prayer of it, My Father in heaven goes into action’ (MSG). Does any other activity promise such results? Did God call us to preach without ceasing? Or have meetings without ceasing? No, but He did call us to ‘pray without ceasing’.
Eze 1-4; Luke 18:1-17; Ps 119:161-168; Prov 19:3-8
2021-08-25
Acts 13:2 NKJV
The Bible says: “As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then, having fasted…prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away” (vv. 2-3 NKJV).
Notice three things: (1) Barnabas and Saul were in church when God called them. And the Holy Spirit still speaks to us when we gather to pray, worship, and hear God’s Word. One reason we don’t have clear direction for our lives, is because we aren’t in the place where God can speak to us objectively through His Word, and subjectively through His Spirit.
(2) Their calling was confirmed by proven leadership. Those who laid hands on Paul and Barnabas confirming their calling, were leaders who took time to pray, fast, and seek God’s will. Such people are a gift. They won’t necessarily tell you what you want to hear, but they’ll tell you what you need to hear. They’ll counsel, correct, and comfort you when you need it, and confirm God’s will for you. So, do you have such relationships in your life? If not, get busy and find some.
(3) God doesn’t play hide-and-seek with His will for your life. God called Paul and Barnabas by name. Yes, He knows your name, where you live, and the circumstances you’re in. Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress (to hide it from the Midianites) and Peter was out fishing when God called them. Your lack of “ministry” experience doesn’t limit God. That’s because He doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called. So wait on God, and when the time is right He will call you.
Soul food: Amos 1:1-5:17; Luke 17:11-19; Ps 119:137-144; Prov 18:22-24
