4-minute Devotions - the Podcast

Continuing our studies in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honoured by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matt 6:1-4)I wonder if you have heard the phrase, “an audience of one”. It speaks of doing something quietly, knowing only one person can see – the Lord himself. No-one else knows about it. It is a secret between you and God. When we are in a relationship with the Father through Jesus Christ, when we are secure in His love and our hearts are open before Him, we don't need to seek approval from those around us. We can be content in the knowledge that God sees and that's enough. In two separate psalms, David talks about the Secret Place. In both cases, he is referring to being in his mother's womb. For example, in Psalm 139 he prays,15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; (Psalms 139:15-16)The Lord's eyes saw him. Can there be anything more wonderful? We started out our life in the Secret Place, where only God saw us. The psalm also describes how Lord carefully formed us and made detailed plans for our lives. Many years after David wrote the psalm, Jesus called us to continue in intimate relationship with the Father, spiritually dwelling in the Secret Place, seeking only His approval for the decisions that we make. The word, “reward” is used three times in this passage. Some of us might have been taught that we shouldn't do things to seek rewards, but the fact is, the Father loves to reward us. We don't earn His rewards (He doesn't owe us), but He does love to bless us when we do the right thing. Those who give to the needy with an attitude of showing off, or trying to win the approval of human beings, “have received their reward in full”. The honour given by people may feel good at the time, but it won't last forever. Describing a sports hero or an actor we sometimes hear the phrase, “you are only as good as your last performance”. Human praise is fleeting. But the Lord's rewards are for eternity. The Secret Place is a place in fellowship with God through faith in Jesus Christ where we are loved and where life has meaning and purpose. And the rewards found there last forever. 

Continuing our studies in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matt 5:43-48)I wonder if you have ever had an enemy. Somebody who opposes you, tries to hurt you, someone who takes delight in discouraging you; maybe they have even bullied you in some way. Here, Jesus instructs us to love them and one way, he says, to do that is to pray for them. We may not feel we have love for an enemy, but we can choose to do love - by praying for them. That might seem difficult to do but sometimes praying for a person can have surprising results. Here's how it works. Praying for a person we struggle with can potentially achieve two things: First, it can soften our heart towards forgiveness and away from retribution. It can help us to see the person as broken and needing Jesus. The person who has not shown love or respect to us is still loved by the Lord. He died for them too. If we can make a decision to pray for the person instead of nursing our wounds, or entertaining ways of getting even, the Lord uses such prayers to change our hearts to be more like Him. Praying for an enemy invites the Lord to have His way in us. Second, it may be your prayer or my prayer that God chooses to bless and bring that person to repentance and faith in Him. If your enemy is going to change, it is more likely to occur on the back of compassionate prayer than from angerThink of people in your life now or people you have known in the past. Those who have hurt you. People who have made your life difficult. Pray that they come to a saving knowledge of Jesus. Or, if they are believers, pray that they come to a deeper understanding of the Lord and His ways. If you can, pray these words over them from Numbers 6 v 24 – 26. “The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine on youand be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.

Continuing our studies in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” (Matt 5:38-42)Have you ever wanted Payback?There are literally hundreds of movies about revenge. In fact, IMDB (the go-to website for information on any movie) has even created a list of the “50 best Revenge movies of all time” – including several that many would call classics.People love to hear stories about someone getting what they deserve. But is this what things look like in Jesus' new world – the Kingdom of God? Imagine a Roman soldier in Jesus' day forcing an elderly gentleman or a young mother to carry his heavy bag for a mile. Or imagine today an unfair boss expecting an employee to work extra hours for no extra pay, doing an unpleasant job that the manager was too lazy to finish himself. I am sure we can all think of many other unfair scenarios. Perhaps you have experienced some yourself. Even worse, now think about the Roman soldier striking an innocent person on the cheek in Jesus' day. Or a business owner suing a person living in poverty for the only garments they have for the cold winter nights.At first glance these words seem like Jesus is saying, “just be weak; just be a victim; don't stand up for yourself; let people walk all over you!”Is Jesus encouraging a victim mentality? Is he promoting injustice?The answer is no; he isn't! There are times when we do need to defend ourselves, speak up when something is wrong or stand up for others, but there is a difference between defending yourself, and exacting revenge. If we have the power to protect somebody in danger, we must do so. If we can diffuse a bad situation peacefully (even if it means refusing to hit back, or blessing somebody with more than they deserve), it is surely better than letting anger and retribution rule the day. Jesus' words here are about overcoming evil with good, responding to hatred and anger with mercy and grace. I don't know about you, but I would rather be in a world like that - a world of mercy, grace, kindness - than one where revenge is unrestrained. 

Continuing our studies in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:“Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.' 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply ‘Yes' or ‘No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one. (Matt 5:33-37)Would you say that you are a truthful person? Would you say you are an honest person? Most of us would agree that lies often have the potential to be destructive or hurtful and can easily break trust. In today's passage, Jesus is encouraging honesty. To lie for our own gain or to hurt another is clearly wrong. A person of integrity will be truthful. “I swear on my mother's grave!”, we have all heard people say. Or “On the life of my children, what I am telling you is true”.In Jesus' day, people would swear oaths in a similar way to emphasize that what they are saying is true. So, they might use the name of God. But, some leaders, lacking integrity, might swear an oath in the name of something less than God, like Heaven or the city of Jerusalem, or something created by God, if they planned on not quite speaking the truth.It might have sounded good and even convincing (for example, “I swear it's true on the name of our beautiful city Jerusalem”, or “this is as true as the hairs on my head”), but they may not be telling the whole truth.  So, what is Jesus teaching here? Jesus is teaching that “swearing” is not necessary if people know that you are a truthful person. A simple statement or answer to a question, like yes or no is enough. What about so called “white” lies – withholding truth because you don't want to hurt somebody? Do we say yes or no, tell it as it is, regardless of the effect the truth might have on a person. A good rule of thumb is to say that truth must always be balanced with genuine love. Paul encouraged us to speak the truth in love in Ephesians 4 v 15. If a truth will hurt another, perhaps we need to ask first if God's wisdom counsels us to stay quiet; or maybe we can find a way of sharing the truth in a way that is kind.  

As we said last time, Jesus was not afraid to tackle the tough subjects of the day in His Sermon on the Mount. After a confronting few minutes, during which he challenged his hearers to flee the perils of sexual temptation, the awkwardness for some is not yet over. Next Jesus goes full throttle against divorce. Let's start here, though, with the reminder that we live in an imperfect world and that God is a God of forgiveness, love, and grace. He mends broken hearts and helps us in our pain, giving wisdom in difficult decisions. Having said that, for the purposes of this devotion, the Scriptures are clear that the Lord created marriage, in Genesis chapter 2 v 22 – 24, and that He hates divorce (Mal 2: 16 NASB). In the next part of His sermon, Jesus said, 31 “It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.' 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” Matthew 5:31-32 In Jesus' day there were two schools of thought about divorce. Rabbi Shammai taught that divorce can only be permitted for very serious offenses. Rabbi Hillel taught that a man can divorce his wife for any reason, however ridiculous. If she burnt a meal – she's out! If the husband prefers the looks of another woman, he can divorce his wife and marry the other!Jesus was probably referring to the second school of thought here in the Sermon on the Mount. Notice that He is talking to men, and He emphasises how the wife becomes the victim. This is important. Jesus is challenging every man to think about what is best for his wife. To not just think about himself.Whenever there is a relationship breakdown, whether it is just a petty argument or something as serious as seeking a divorce, the hardest thing to do is to start thinking about what is best for the other person. Perhaps there would be fewer divorces in the world if people gave the highest priority to what is best for the person they have married.Staying with the focus on men, Paul taught that husbands must love their wives as Christ has loved the church in Ephesian 5: 25. There is no condition here. It is not ‘love their wives', if the wives do their part. It is ‘love their wives as Christ loved the church'. Full Stop!I once heard somebody say that marriage is not 50-50; it is 100-100. In other words, we give to our partner without conditions attached. In Jesus's comments about divorce in the Sermon on the Mount it is easy to focus on the parts that talk about adultery and whether there are circumstances that permit divorce. I have a feeling Jesus also wants us to try looking away from self for a moment and consider what is best for the one I married. 

Jesus was not afraid to tackle the tough subjects in His Sermon on the Mount. After challenging his listeners to consider the use of their words, particularly when words might hurt or offend others, he moves to their thoughts, specifically in the area of sexual attraction. 27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. Matthew 5:27-30Sexual attraction towards another is one of the most powerful forces that God has created for good (inside marriage), but it is also the most manipulated by our enemy, the devil, for evil. Everybody knows that committing adultery is morally wrong and destructive, but Jesus takes the Old Testament command a step further. He tells us that even if we look at another person (which includes pornography) and allow our imagination to desire adultery, that is no different. It is still morally wrong and destructive. Jesus died on the cross to take the penalty for our sins, providing a way that we might receive forgiveness and freedom. Then He gives us His Spirit to empower us towards living a new and clean life. But the emphasis here in the sermon is on how serious adultery is, even if it is imagined adultery. It is not something to gloss over or take lightly. Jesus' comments about cutting off parts of the body are obviously not to be taken literally (otherwise there would be a lot of people walking around with missing hands and eyes). Rather, He wants to underline how important it is that we take steps towards guarding our minds, not submitting to temptation. Paul wrote to Timothy, “Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22). Sometimes it is as simple as that – flee the temptation! Delete the webpage; switch to another channel; walk away from person who might lead you astray.I wonder, in which way does the devil tempt you in this area? Is God challenging you about what you watch on TV, or what you browse on your computer? Do you need to take control of any stray thoughts you might have about a person other than your husband or wife? What do you need to do to keep temptation away?

Continuing our journey through Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, last week we read:“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister, will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,' is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.” Matthew 5:21-22We asked the question that as followers of Jesus, how might we encourage an alternative narrative where our words heal and restore rather than hurt and divide? One answer is to ensure that we speak with grace towards each other, being careful what we say. Jesus offers some more answers in the next part of his sermon. He continued, saying:23 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. 25 “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.” Matthew 5:23-26The reality of life is that sometimes we do hurt and offend others. We may not always mean to, but when we are angry or stressed, we might say things we later regret. We might make a decision we didn't realise would cause trouble for others. We can try to avoid hurting others by being careful with our words, but if an offense has been caused, what can we do to put it right? Verses 23 – 24 of Matthew 5 reminds us that our relationships with each other are important to God. So much so, Jesus says that we should seek to put them right even before worshipping God or participating in church activities (“offering your gift at the alter” in verse 23). It seems the Lord wants us to make it a top priority to be reconciled with those we might have hurt or offended. Above anything else. We need to go to the person and try to mend the relationship. In verses 25 – 26, the situation described is even worse. Imagine wronging a person so badly that they decide to take you to court. Jesus obviously doesn't want things to get that far. Again, he encourages us to go to the person and talk to them. Try to find a peaceful solution. Hurts are easily caused by words, but restored relationships can be found through words too. Words have power and God has given us the authority and freedom to wield that power. Let's resist the urge to divide but lean towards the precious art of reconciliation.

Continuing our journey through the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister, will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,' is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.” Matthew 5:21-22I'm sure we would all agree that, in most cases, to kill a human life is wrong. Jesus reminded us of that in these verses, referring to the 10 commandments in Exodus 20. After quoting the sixth commandment (“You shall not murder”), He then listed 3 examples where emotions and speech will also be held accountable: anger with a brother or sister, an insult to a brother or sister, and an offensive remark to someone. God is not just interested in our outward actions but how we treat each other with our words and what lies within our hearts.Sometimes anger is justified (for example, when we see somebody being bullied, or when we hear of regions of the world that suffer without food or clean water), but “anyone who is angry” refers to unrighteous anger in this case, the sort that comes out of hatred or self-importance.[1] This is the sort of anger that festers in the pool of hurt pride, the kind that is expressed unchecked when we forget to have mercy or compassion. To say “Raca” to a brother or sister is the same as insulting somebody's intelligence. It is the same as calling a person a moron or stupid, with deliberate intention to belittle them. Even if we do this in jest a humble person will check his motives and be sure that the person on the receiving end truly receives it in good humour. In Jesus' third example, to say “you fool” goes deeper than “Raca”. It assaults a person's character, like accusing someone of being corrupt. In a world where verbal barbs are traded without restraint on social media or in the public arena, how might we as children of a new Kingdom demonstrate a different reality? How might we as followers of Jesus encourage an alternative narrative where our words heal and restore rather than hurt and divide? The verses that follow will begin to address that, we will examine these in next week's devotion. In the meantime, The Bible has much to say in other places about how God wants us to treat people, especially when emotions are running high. Here's just one example from the Apostle Paul: “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” Colossians 4:6 [1] See 1 John 3: 15

In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matt 5: 17 - 20When was the last time you read any of the ‘law' books in the Bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers or Deuteronomy? Some of it can be hard going, but all of it is God's Word. Not all the commands are practised by Christians today (for example, child circumcision, animal sacrifice), but every instruction tells us something about God and the world we live in. Jesus said he came to fulfill the law. What does that mean?Some have suggested that the whole of the Old Testament (including the law books), can be summarised by Deuteronomy 6: 4 – 5: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”[1] Jesus agreed with this and then added, “Love your neighbour as yourself” in Mark 12:29 - 31. In fact, it can be argued that much of Jesus' teaching was rooted in quotes or principles found in the Old Testament. We see this in the next section of the Sermon on the Mount. For example, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:27-28)Jesus fulfilled the law by teaching a deeper understanding of it. Another way Jesus fulfilled the law was by pointing us to the Father, so that we may obey Him and love Him. We know the law was given to reveal God's holiness, to set Israel apart from the other nations, define and expose sin, introduce justice and point us to Christ. But it was also given to reveal the heart of God. Every commandment and every principle said something about God's love, generosity and kindness. And they revealed a holy God who will judge. So for those who never saw past a list of do's and don'ts, Jesus embodied The Lord's love and holiness. He fulfilled the law by living it for all to see. No wonder he said that those who practice the commands (those who follow His example) will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. Not in a self-righteous way like the Pharisees but like Jesus – motivated by a desire to please His Father in Heaven. [1] E.g. Experiencing God by Henry and Richard Blackaby p 82

In Matthew 5: 14 – 16, Jesus said, “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”Jesus was delivering a message that we call the Sermon on the Mount. He had just told his listeners that they are the “salt of the earth”. Those whose lives will preserve the faith and add the flavour of God to a lost world. Now he is calling them light. On a different occasion Jesus said “I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness but have the light of life” (John 8: 12). He said this after refusing to condemn a woman caught in adultery. Instead, Jesus chose to highlight the hypocrisy of her accusers. It is a dark world where condemnation and self-righteousness rule, but Jesus is a different kind of leader. His ministry is one of light. In His kingdom, there is life, hope, love and forgiveness. It was some time before this incident that Jesus sat on a mountain and preached the Sermon on the Mount, teaching new followers that they will be the light of the world. Their lives will reveal a kingdom different to the world around them. A kingdom of life, hope, love and forgiveness. And He speaks that message to us today. We are the light of the world. Our destiny is to shine a light of life, hope, love and forgiveness in the darkness around us. We can do this by the things that we do. Being salty is who we are (Who we are in Jesus); being light is what we doWhat do we do? We let the light shine. We do not cover it up. We don't hide it. We hold it up. We let it illuminate the house. A light bulb doesn't create its own light, it is hooked up to a source of power and it shines. Unapologetically. The good it does is seen by others, not to bring glory to itself but to fulfill the purpose for which it was made. So, we too are called to shine. Unapologetically. To be “in Christ”, full of the Holy Spirit, and so hooked up to the source of power. To do good deeds that glorify our Father in HeavenWhat sort of good deeds? What did Jesus mean? Many things have been suggested by followers of Jesus over the years, but let's start with declaring truth. Light is a word often used in the Bible to describe the revelation of God's Word. We declare truth. Truth is then accompanied by love – love, with its multifaceted faces of God's attributes: patience, kindness, generosity, mercy, forgiveness and so much more. As these attributes inspire good deeds, they reveal our Father in Heaven. “let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

This year the focus in our 4-min devotions is on the teaching given by Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew chapters 5 – 7. After the short “Blessed are…” phrases at the beginning of the sermon, often called the Beatitudes, Jesus said:“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. (Matthew 5:13)In the Old Testament, Job asked the question. “Can flavourless food be eaten without salt?”[1]. The answer, of course, is yes, but it would taste a lot better with salt and other seasonings. In New Testament days, salt was a preservative (keeping meat fresh before the days of coolers or fridges) and a condiment, adding to the flavour of a meal. As many commentators note, Christians have the call and authority to bring God's life to those around them and we have the power to bring positive change to our communities. To be a preservative of the faith and to add the flavour of God to a lost world. Writer, Ken Mongomery says that we, as the salt of the earth, “participate in the flavour of the redemptive kingdom of heaven”[2].In other words, by being salt in this world we give people a taste of Heaven. By sharing God's love and truth to those in our schools and streets, workplaces, and neighbourhoods, we crack open the door for the lost to glimpse a view of the eternal Father who is offering His love to them. Our saltiness has the ability to reveal a new world accessible to all: God's powerful story of love, sacrifice and redemption. Perhaps a good question to ask today is: “what do I need to do to be salt (that is, the life and flavour of God) to people in my street, my study group, my family, my workplace, my community?”Jesus warned of salt losing its saltiness. Salt mixed with other substances might become diluted. Thrown on an icy road, it will be less effective or less noticeable in a bowl of soup. Our lives, once purified by the saving power of faith in Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross, may become less effective on the world around us if mixed with the values we were once rescued from. A lack of purity makes us bland and tasteless. No wonder it would be “thrown out and trampled underfoot”. The last thing the world needs is Christians who claim to be followers of Jesus (that is, salt – preservers of the faith, spreading the life, truth and love of God), but who mix their lives with compromise. They would rightly be rejected – thrown out – by those searching for truth. Those looking for faith are looking for something that is real and pure. Faith that is salty.   [1] Job 6: 6 NJKV[2] From Themelios Theological Journal, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/about/

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23God loves a pure heart. When King David was chosen (way back in the Old Testament) to be King of Israel it was because God saw his heart. We read, “the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart” (1 Sam 13:14). Even after some terrible mistakes, years later, his prayer to the Lord was still “Create in me a pure heart, O God,” (Ps 51:10). God saw a pure heart at the beginning of his call and David was still depending on God for purity of heart years later. In Jesus' day, what's important to God has not changed: The next beatitude in our Sermon on the Mount series is, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matt 5:8).Let's think what it might mean to guard your heart, as we read in Proverbs 4: 23. Our hearts, in terms of who we are, (that is, our emotions, thoughts, feelings, innermost secrets, desires, who we are deep down) are precious. They are made by God, but they are tainted by sin. Having said that, they are also being transformed by faith in Christ and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit. But that makes them vulnerable. Look at these verses in the book of Proverbs:·      “Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up” (Prov 12: 25). ·      “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life” (Prov 13: 12).·      “Even in laughter the heart may ache, and rejoicing may end in grief” (Prov 14: 13) Anxiety. Hopes deferred. Heartache. Grief. When anxiety gets in, it's like a heaviness, weighing down, poisoning our joy, stealing our peace. When hopes are dashed or delayed, it can feel like the energy drain of a fever.  And what can be worse than being in a room with others who are enjoying life, but have no idea of the pain you are in? When the stuff of life happens, if we are not careful, we give permission to harmful emotions to enter and take up residence in our hearts – anxiety, disappointment, discouragement, anger, pain… and so on. The author of Proverbs pleads with us to guard our hearts. The old NIV says, “Above all else, guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life”. I am to guard my heart because it is the wellspring of life. That is, a source of new living water. A source of God's life. A pure heart, one guarded against negative emotions and sin, can be a source of God's love and life to those around us. Jesus promised that those with pure hearts are blessed because they will see God. Perhaps a clean and protected heart will see God moving in ways far beyond our natural abilities to do good. The pure in heart will see God in ways we cannot even imagine. 

Psalm 42: 1 – 5, says this:1 As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? 3 My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” 4 These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng. 5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God (Psalms 42:1-5)When you look at the world, what do you see? When you watch TV or catch a video on your phone; when you scroll through Facebook or Instagram, what kind of things stand out for you?For some, it might be a hope that others have ‘liked' something you posted yesterday. For others, the latest trivia might grab your attention. Or a cute photograph. Perhaps a feel-good story.For those who are compelled to stay in touch with national and international events, it is rarely good news that makes the headlines. Another conflict in another country. Another scandal.  I wonder, do you ever try to look with spiritual eyes? Do you ask yourself “I wonder how God sees all this”? And therefore, “How may I view the world with His heart – with a heart of righteousness”? Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matt 5: 6). In other words, blessed are those who want to see things from God's perspective, Blessed are those who want righteousness to reign. The writer of Psalm 42 has been living in troubled times, and he remembers better days (v 4). He knows God is the only one who can change things. Like a deer desperate for water on a hot, dry day, the psalmist is thirsty for God's presence. For God and His righteousness to come. How might we reflect that desperation today? Perhaps it starts in our prayer life. Pray for salvations to occur; pray for God's love, help and peace to reach those who need Him. Pray for God intervene in events we see on the news. Pray for God to reign in your workplace, in your street, in your town, in your city, in all the dark places. Those who hunger and thirst will be filled. What will they be filled with? Some suggest a deeper relationship with God and a transformed heart. But perhaps they will also experience the satisfaction of seeing God turning things around in ways we can't even imagine. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

This year the focus in our 4-min devotions is the teaching given by Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew chapters 5 – 7. We are looking at the short “Blessed are…” phrases at the beginning of the sermon, often called the Beatitudes or “beautiful attitudes” as somebody once said. The word “blessed” can also mean happy, but specifically the person is happy because they have received God's favour. The third beatitude is:Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5).I wonder if Jesus was thinking of Psalm 37 when he said this. David, who wrote the psalm, encouraged his hearers to resist any impulse they might have to envy those who gain by doing wrong. On the contrary they are to trust in the Lord for all things, to do good, to be patient, to refrain from anger or frustration. He says:A little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found. But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy peace and prosperity (Psalms 37:10-11).A person who is meek will have a calm temper, not easily provoked. He or she will be patient and humble. They will want to do good. Matthew Henry said: “Meekness is calm confidence, settled assurance, and rest of the soul. It is the tranquil stillness of a soul that is at rest in Christ. It is the place of peace. Meekness springs from a heart of humility, radiating the fragrance of Christ.” The Lord wants every one of His children to experience a heart at rest. He wants us to know the peace of trusting in Him.What might it mean that the meek inherit the earth, or the land, as David stated in his psalm? What is the earth or land in these metaphors? Some have suggested that inheriting the earth means to find peace with God or peace in human relationships. Or both. The inheritance may refer to other forms of spiritual blessing, either in our present life or in the future. For example, it might manifest as the favour of God upon yours or my life today in terms of answered prayer, or rewards in the new earth after Jesus returns. Perhaps the important point though is that the new world – the new Kingdom – inaugurated by Jesus, is not one where the strongest or loudest win. The bully and the one driven by pride has no place in the Kingdom of Heaven. The Lord lifts the humble. Jesus modelled meekness for us. He washed his disciples' feet instead of expecting the service from a household slave. Despite being falsely accused, Jesus responded without any anger or threat. And he submitted himself to His Father's will to suffer and die for our sins. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. The one who resists the temptation to place ego on the throne, finds his feet on holy ground, blessed by God and placed there by Him. 

This year the focus in our 4-min devotions will be the teachings of Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew chapters 5 – 7. Last time, we examined the opening lines of the sermon: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.We said that those who are poor in spirit know their need of God. They are desperate enough to seek his face. In every part of their lives, they are dependent on God's love, His mercy, His strength and His guidance. The poor in spirit are not ashamed to recognise their weaknesses and look to God for help. And Jesus describes such a person as blessed because they will know and experience God's Kingdom.Next Jesus said this:Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted (Matthew 5:4).Like the first phrase describing those that are poor in spirit, the next phrase referring to the act of mourning is not one usually associated with a season of blessing. How can death be a good thing? What is Jesus saying?In Psalm 51, the author David is very aware of his own sinful actions. He has done wrong, and he is sorry.7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. 8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. 9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me (Psalms 51:7-12)David knows his sins are before God (v 9), and only God can wash them away (v 7). As he examines his heart, he faces the uncomfortable truth that he is not the person he wants to be. He realises only God can change his heart (v 10). He not only admits the things he has done wrong, but he also feels sorrow for those things. John Stott says, “It is one thing to be spiritually poor and acknowledge it, it is another to grieve and mourn over it. Or, in more theological language, confession is one thing, contrition is another”.[1]In Matthew 5: 4, Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” In other words, God's favour is on those who are sorry for their sins, who mourn for them, who want to do better when they mess up. Christ died on the cross so that our sins may be forgiven and that we may receive His comfort – his help to change. The Apostle John wrote, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).Blessed are those who are truly sorry for their failings before God. The Lord delights in forgiving, comforting and helping us to do better. [1]From The Sermon on the Mount by John Stott p 41

Today we begin a new season of devotions based on Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:1−3 tells us that “when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them. The first thing He said was:Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.What a strange way to start a message. Blessed are the poor in spirit. How can poverty be a good condition for anybody? It doesn't feel like something to aspire to. But Jesus is at the beginning of something important. This sermon, found in Matthew chapters 5, 6 and 7 is about to shock some, pack many surprise punches, and introduce his hearers to a very new kind of world. He is going to shatter the ideas people have about faith and religion and show them what God is really like. And he kicks off with this: to have any hope of entering into God's Kingdom − the Kingdom of Heaven, you have to be poor in spirit. You have to know you need God. This is not a new idea. Back to the Old Testament we heard the call to: Give praise to the LORD, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice. Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always. (1 Chronicles 16:8-11, italics mine)This is Asaph, the chief of musicians leading the singing of praise to God, after King David had defeated the Philistines, and the ark of the Covenant was returned to Jerusalem amid great celebration. Asaph exhorted everyone present to seek God's face. Always. What might it mean to seek God's face? At another moment in David's life, he prayed, “My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!' Your face, LORD, I will seek” (Psalms 27:8). David recognised the yearning in his own heart for the presence and wisdom of God. Perhaps the first step in seeking God's face is to recognise how spiritually poor we are without Him. To listen our own heart's cry for the living God.In Psalm 63, David describes his search for God like a man desperate for water in a hot, dry desert:You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. (Psalms 63:1)Then, following this description, he moves to worship. He sings from the depths of his heart, and he prays every time he wakes in the night. What better picture can there be of a person who is poor in spirit? As we have said, those who are poor in spirit are those who know their need of God. They are desperate enough to seek his face. In every part of their lives, they know they are dependent on God's love, His mercy, His strength and His guidance. The poor in spirit are not ashamed to recognise their weaknesses and look to God for help. And Jesus describes such a person as blessed because they will know and experience God's Kingdom.

Here's Psalm 75 from start to finish: 1 We praise you, God, we praise you, for your Name is near; people tell of your wonderful deeds. 2 You say, “I choose the appointed time; it is I who judge with equity. 3 When the earth and all its people quake, it is I who hold its pillars firm. 4 To the arrogant I say, ‘Boast no more,' and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horns. 5 Do not lift your horns against heaven; do not speak so defiantly. '” 6 No one from the east or the west or from the desert can exalt themselves. 7 It is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another. 8 In the hand of the LORD is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices; he pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs. 9 As for me, I will declare this forever; I will sing praise to the God of Jacob, 10 who says, “I will cut off the horns of all the wicked, but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.”  If we were to ask, say, 100 followers of Jesus, “why do we worship God?”, I wonder what replies we might receive. I am sure some will talk about the wonder of His creation – the stars and mountains, the flowers and creatures. Some will no doubt reflect on their own journey so far and express gratitude for what the Lord has done; and some might try to picture him on his heavenly throne ruling as sovereign and king. But perhaps not many will say that they worship the Lord because He is a judge. And yet, this is the focus of the psalmist, Asaph, in today's reading. Asaph praises God for His imminence (his name is near in v 1) and for His “wonderful deeds”. But he is not reticent to exalt the Lord as the one who judges. In fact, he knows that worship is the only appropriate response towards one who sees and knows all things. The one who will cut off the horns, that is, strip away the strength of those who defy him. The one who has the power to lift up or cast into eternal death. A God who judges is an uncomfortable thought for some in our modern world, but it is an essential truth. God will judge the people of the earth, past and present. Arrogance and boasting will melt away before the throne in Heaven. No-one will be able to exalt themselves in His presence. So, let's praise Him today, not just for those attributes that are comfortable – his beauty, his love. His greatness. Let's praise him for his justice, for the good news that he is a God who deals with wrongdoing and evil. For the truth that He is a Judge. And will judge in righteousness and holiness. 

Paul wrote these words to Timothy in his first letter to him: “Command and teach these things. Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Timothy 4:11-16)Paul was like a father to Timothy. I bet he was a great mentor, cheering him on, encouraging him and speaking positively into his life. There is a hint in this passage that Timothy might have struggled with a lack of courage or confidence, but Paul knew him well enough to say, “don't let anyone look down on you”.One line that jumps out to me though is, “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers”. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Any good pastor or Christian coach will want to say something like that: In other words, “Don't let temptation overcome you. Walk away from the wrong people. Keep pressing into God. Keep believing. Keep loving those around you.” That's the “watch your life” bit. Then, “Don't neglect the reading of Scripture, listen to sound teaching. Let God's Word challenge and change you.” That is, “Watch your doctrine!”But Paul gives an unexpected reason: “if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers”. And your hearers. Don't just do these things because they are good for you, Timothy. Your life and doctrine affect those around you too. It strikes me that this is probably true for you and me as well. Our lives and what we believe are not just personal choices. They profoundly touch the lives of those we live in close proximity to – our choices and beliefs affect our loved ones, they influence our work mates, and they rub off on our friends. Perhaps this adds a new incentive to watching our lives and watching our doctrine. We are not islands. Like it or not, the cords that bind us to those around us also transport our values and attitudes. What connects us can inspire for good or drag down for evil. Let's be careful how we live our lives and preserve sound doctrine, not just because it is the right thing to do, and not primarily because of the health and blessing we are likely to receive as a result. No! let's do it because we care how our lives affect others. Let's watch our lives and doctrine closely for the sake of those around us. 

“… everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim 3:12-17)This is Paul writing to his younger friend and fellow minister of the Gospel, Timothy. A few verses later he adds, “Preach the word!” In other words … You have learned the truth, Timothy. You are convinced of it. You have known the Holy Scriptures since you were young. They led you to salvation, they birthed faith in your heart, they drew you to Jesus. The Scriptures come from the very mouth of God, they are literally God-breathed and are powerful for teaching, refuting error, training, forming righteousness in you and in every hungry soul. They are more than enough to prepare you for service. The Scriptures will equip you. No! More than that, you will be thoroughly equipped for every good work. The Scriptures are God's Word. Preach the Word, Timothy! Memorise it, soak it up, then speak it out. Give it away! Be generous with God's Word. The are many ways to preach God's Word and you don't need to be a trained professional to do it. The Greek word translated as “preach” simply means to “to proclaim, to tell”, but with an urgency wanting others to accept the message. Proclaiming the Gospel is not the same as suggesting a good idea, rather it challenges the mind, convicts the heart and demands a response.And it doesn't need a platform or a gifted orator to do its work. God's Word can unleash its power one friend to another. It can enter the heart of a stranger on the train, and it can slowly grow and create brand new baby-like faith in that relative you have been praying for since you don't know when. Because the Scriptures are God-breathed, they don't depend on our skills or lack of them to accomplish their purpose. They simply journey and bear their fruit on the back of faith and obedience. Preach the Word, child of God. First read it, soak it up. Make it part of you; allow it into you, invite it to be part of you. To form you, shape you, equip you. Then give it away. Share His Word like it's the cure for every disease known to man. Proclaim it with conviction. Urgency. Preach it. In Paul's letter to Timothy, he goes on to warn that, “the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. (2 Tim 4:3-4).The opportunities to share God's Word with this or that person may not always be there. So let's take them as God provides them before they disappear. Preach the Word!

In the book of Genesis, a pregnant slave called Hagar was running away from her slave-owner Sarai who had been cruel towards her. The Lord sent an angel. Then the angel of the LORD told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.” The angel of the LORD also said to her: “You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard of your misery. He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16: 9−13A well was dug at that place called “Beer Lahai Roi” meaning “well of the Living One who sees me”. There is a beautiful moment in the Hollywood movie Avatar. Neytiri, the Na'vi warrior and princess of Pandora recognises the call and destiny of the movie's hero, Jake Sully, the one she has been falling in love with. She says to him, “I see you!” meaning “I understand you; I see into your heart”. “I know who you are.”Hagar must have felt very alone when she was running away from Sarai. Perhaps she even thought God had abandoned her. After all, Sarai and her husband Abram were recipients of the promises of God. God had spoken to them, and they were prosperous by His hand. Hagar had effectively run away from the people of God's favour. Why would God care about her?But God hadn't forgotten her. He had seen her in the desert. He had seen her in her sadness, and after the angel spoke to her with instructions and promises, she could encourage herself with a new truth in her experience: ‘God sees me, too'; “I have now seen the One who sees me.”Perhaps we can draw comfort from these words too. Maybe nobody was watching when that guy treated you unkindly, or when you were passed over again for that promotion. Perhaps no other soul was aware of how alone you felt the other day, and no-one can possibly understand the ordeal you have just been through. But He sees you. And understands you and knows you. And He loves you. The One who, at times, may appear to only bless others, sees you too. Maybe like Hagar, we too can pray, “You are the God who sees me.”

“For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. 7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. (1 Thess 1: 4 – 7)The Thessalonians imitated Paul. They likely saw and heard every (or most) parts of his life as he “lived among them”. In fact, even though the message of Jesus was costly to them causing severe suffering by those who would persecute them, something about the lives of Paul and his team touched and inspired them deeply. Paul is quick to point out the Holy Spirit's role in their conversation and subsequent living. The presence of the Spirit was proof of God's choosing and the joy in their hearts, despite daily hardships, was powerful evidence of God's grace upon them. But Paul also recognises that his life and example has influenced them. The Thessalonians imitated Paul. Yes, they sought to imitate the Lord, as Paul taught them about the life of Jesus, but they imitated him, (and his companions Silas and Timothy) too. They welcomed Paul's message, his teaching and tried to live how they lived. The Thessalonian believers then modelled Godly lives and Paul's teaching to “all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.”This is quite profound and hugely challenging, especially if we ask, “is anybody imitating me as a representative of Jesus?” Is anybody watching the way we live and wanting to copy it to the glory of God? Are you, am I inspiring others, who in turn will inspire still more to follow Jesus?Well, before we dive into a hole of discouragement, perhaps we can take a step back and ask who is influencing you? Who is influencing me? Is it popular culture? My sporting hero, or that person on social media? Is the TV or the internet influencing me? Perhaps the primary question to ask is “am I following Jesus”? Paul said, “I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Phil 3: 8). To him, knowing Jesus was the most important thing. Jesus wasn't just an influencer to Paul, he was everything. No wonder Paul could confidently write to the Thessalonians about the fact that they imitated him. Because he wanted them to imitate Jesus. He sought to live as an example of his saviour, so that they might be inspired by a visible example of a life submitted to Christ.  So, if we want to inspire others, if we want to model a godly life, then let's ask ourselves this: are you living a life submitted to Jesus? If we are seeking to do that, then that is, surely, the best way to become a model to others. 

The LORD our God said to us at Horeb, “You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Break camp and advance into the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighbouring peoples in the Arabah, in the mountains, in the western foothills, in the Negev and along the coast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the Euphrates. See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land the LORD swore he would give to your fathers—to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—and to their descendants after them.” (Deut 1: 6 – 8)I wonder if God is saying that to you: “you have stayed in this place long enough and it's time to move on. Go in and take possession of the land”. Now, of course, there are times to “hang in there”, persevere with people or situations, and there are seasons when we must wait on the Lord. God is not in a hurry, and to walk away from a challenge or a difficult set of circumstances might not be the right thing to do. God may want us to go through it and grow through it. But there are also times to leave and take possession somewhere else. How might we discern the difference? Obviously, there isn't a “cookie-cutter” answer to that question, but perhaps there are some clues in today's verses.  First, God's people knew there was a big picture. A bigger picture than living next to a mountain. They were called to the Promised Land, not Mt Horeb. The mountain was always going to be temporary. Perhaps there are moments when it is appropriate to pray, “Lord, what is the big picture of your will for me? Have I become too comfortable where I am? Have I completed all the work you called me to do here? Is there a further horizon I must walk towards?”Second, and related to the first, what has God already given you that you are not living in the good of? A calling or a sense of something more. What have you not yet taken possession of? The Lord said, “see I have given you this land. Go in and take possession…” Perhaps you have a talent that you can't use where you are. Perhaps you have a sense of call that is not realised where you are currently serving. It might be that doors are closed at your own Mt Horeb that prevent you from improving and growing. Within his sovereign purposes, God has a destiny for each one of us. Staying where we are when we need to embrace the challenges of leaving and moving forward may prevent us from experiencing the blessings that he has planned for us. It takes courage to listen to the voice that says, “it is time to break camp and advance”. But there is no other way to get to the Promised Land. 

For this reason, I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. (2 Tim 1: 6 – 8)I wonder if Timothy was ever afraid to “stand up and be counted”. These words from Paul to his protégé can feel quite confronting. Don't be timid. Don't be ashamed or afraid of being associated with me. Don't hold back from proclaiming the truth of Jesus. Join me in the suffering that will come as a result. This second personal letter to the young leader feels like a serious moment in Timothy's life where Paul calls him to take a moment and count the cost for present and future ministry. Count the cost of a life dedicated to following Christ. Paul repeats the challenge in the next chapter: “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Tim 2: 15). “Be strong” (2: 1), “Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus”. (2: 3). As uncomfortable as it is, perhaps we all need moments like that. Moments to reflect on our journey in God. Moments to remember that we too have the Spirit of God - a Spirit of power, love and self-discipline. That we are not alone. That timidity is not a gift of the Holy Spirit. That we are here to testify about him. To tell others about him, whatever the cost. It is recorded, not in the bible but in other ancient texts, that later in life, when Timothy was about 80 years old, he tried to stop a public procession of the false god, Diana, by preaching the Gospel. The angry worshippers of Diana, beat him and dragged him through the streets, until finally stoning him to death. Timothy had found his courage and was not afraid to face death for his Lord. Some say that young people today have less resilience to social pressures compared to previous generations. That may or may not be true, but at the end of the day, we all face the same choice as to what we say about our beliefs and where our loyalties lie. Are we ashamed of our Lord, afraid to speak of our faith in him, or do we welcome him into our lives in full view of others? Do we hide him away or do we proudly hold him close in public?We don't know if there will be suffering as a result. But we don't do it alone. God has given us the Spirit of power and love. If a timid Timothy can speak of Jesus in front of an angry mob, maybe you and I can take a few steps today to leak out words of truth and actions of love to a world around us that is desperately in need. 

Everyone thought they would fail. Within weeks of Paul and his team arriving in Thessalonica with the good news of Jesus, those who had come to faith were left without leaders, facing persecution and under intense pressure to recant their faith. Paul, Silas and Timothy had been forced to leave. Those opposed to this new Christian faith had persuaded some local troublemakers to stir up the assembled crowd with lies about the team. They had no choice but to go.Paul was desperate to return. “When we were torn away from you for a short time… out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you” (1 Thess 2: 17). However, for reasons unclear, they weren't able to get back until Timothy finally made the journey on his own.  In an age with no mobile phones or internet connection, the wait for news must have been excruciating. Had the church survived the persecution? Were they still meeting? With the longest standing church members barely a few weeks old in the faith on the day Paul and the team left, did they have any leaders? Who was taking care of these baby Christians?  Eventually Timothy returned with the welcome news that the church had indeed survived and their faith was still strong. The young Christians were standing firm despite the challenges around them, but that wasn't all. To Paul's joy and amazement, not only were the Thessalonian believers still meeting as a church, but they were reaching out to their local community, to the wider area and even beyond. In fact, their passion for evangelism was the talk of the town for miles around. What was their secret?In the same first letter to the Thessalonians we get some insights: The baby Christians knew they were chosen by God; the gospel had made a deep impact in their lives; and they had experienced God's supernatural power. None of them had been mentored with leadership skills, none of them could boast any kind of spiritual heritage, but despite their lack of knowledge and training, God used them. If we were to look for examples of spiritual maturity in the pages of the New Testament, we might point to well-known characters like Paul, or Peter, or those trained under them; those who have been faithful in serving God over many years, in which case you can forget the Thessalonians. They don't qualify. And yet Paul tells us they had become a model church to all others within hundreds of miles.Now, I don't want to minimise the importance of education, training and the maturity that comes with  years of serving God, but maybe we can learn from young Christians too; especially those who have experienced God's love and power and the deep impact of the Gospel. 

Who is he talking to? It sounds like he is talking to himself!Psalm 103, starts off with a short phrase that is often repeated in other Psalms: ‘Praise the Lord, my soul.' The author says it again in verse 2, ‘Praise the Lord, my soul.' And again, at the end of the psalm. King David, who wrote these words, also wrote Psalm 57 and there is similar language here: ‘Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn' (57: 8). David is telling himself to wake up and give glory to God.He's talking to himself.My wife and I were chatting one time about how different people are and how those differences can often boil down to personality type – just one way that God has made each of us unique. However, we are also part of a fallen human race and in the process of being renewed. Not everything that makes me, me is necessarily as God intended. We all have a mixture of positive attributes in our personalities and negative ones that are yet to be made transformed. For example, some of us will naturally have a more positive outlook than others. Others, not so. My personality type is melancholic which, according to some studies describes someone who is analytical (yep, that's true), task orientated (tick), self-motivated (yes), a perfectionist (oh dear), but can be quite shy and ‘deep'; and with a tendency to want to hide away occasionally. Actually, for some, discouragement, even depression is part of the story and can hit hard. But, hey, us melancholics can be really creative! Without Christ, I would quite easily see the negative in most situations, but when I read the Bible, I don't think I am alone. Look at the way David expresses himself in Psalm 13: “How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart” (Psalm 13: 1 – 2)When we read David's soul-bearing poetry, some of it makes me wonder if he might have been a melancholic too. We don't know of course but, if that is true, then he has got something important to say in this space: talk to yourself! When discouragement sets in, when there's sorrow in your heart, speak to your soul! Our souls are fragile. We were once spiritually dead in our sins, but through Christ's death on the cross and resurrection we have been ‘made alive' (Eph 2: 1, 5). Now we are on the path of transformation, but we are still subject to temptation, discouragement, and spiritual attack. For every Christian, there are times when we are tempted to dwell on the negative – and every personality type has a bad day. Perhaps those are the moments God would have us look in the mirror and talk to our inner selves: “Awake! Come on! Today is a new day and we are going to praise God and trust him!” This devotion is one of many you can find in my book Bite-size Devotions for the Busy Christian, published by Kharis Publishing and available through any Amazon website. 

So, are you ready for Christmas?There's food to buy, things to cook and bake, decorations to put up.  And I wonder if you have bought all your presents. Done all the wrapping?Let me ask you: Are you the type who does their Christmas shopping at 4pm on Christmas Eve; or the type who has everything bought and wrapped by August?For those who prepare for Christmas well in advance, you may be interested to know that preparations for the first Christmas took a great deal longer. It all started way back in the book of Genesis.In Genesis chapter 3, we are told that a descendant of Eve will come and destroy the work of the devil. Many years later, in the book of Deuteronomy, we read of a prophet like Moses who will be raised up from among God's people, Israel. Thousands of years later, Jesus said, “If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.” (John 5: 46)In the book of 2 Samuel, a prophet declares to King David that his royal throne will be established forever. Jesus would come from the line of David, who in turn came from the line of Judah. The Prophet Micah (prophesying hundreds of years before Jesus) said, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” (Micah 5: 2) Somebody from Judah's line will come - a ruler, whose origins are from old. (I wonder if that means from eternity past – Heaven perhaps?). That person is going to be born in Bethlehem.And Isaiah prophesied “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel.” The baby will be born to a virgin. We know Mary was a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus.  And the prophecy said he will be called Emmanuel, which means God with us.By the time Jesus was born there was great expectation of a coming king, a Messiah, from the line of Judah, through David, yet coming from eternity past; a prophet like Moses; he will be born of a virgin, and he will be God walking among us.So, the time came for a secular government to announce a census, which meant that the newly married Joseph and Mary (pregnant with child) had to travel to Bethlehem. Upon arrival, she gave birth to a child. God with us in human form had arrived. The first Christmas was literally thousands of years in the making. 

Many of us will be familiar with the Christmas Nativity – the picture or model of characters from the Christmas story. We often see these printed on Christmas cards or displayed in churches. Mary is crouched down beside the newborn Jesus who is lying in a straw-filled manger. Joseph, her husband, leans over close to her shoulder and then, further out, a handful of shepherds with their sheep and lambs look on in wonder. On the opposite side to the shepherds, Magi (or “wise men” as they are sometimes called), dressed in expensive robes and embroidered turbans present their mysterious gifts. Everything is arranged and posed for the perfect photo opportunity. The original Christmas events, of course, were nothing like this! The Magi likely arrived some considerable time after the birth (up to two years), so they never met the shepherds. Having just given birth, Mary probably did not feel like smiling for any camera, had they existed; and then there would have been the smell! A variety of animals in close proximity with everything that comes with them. But what the scene does show us is a snapshot of the kind of people God loves to bless and include in His plans. Nine months before, Mary, a young and innocent teenager, had said ‘yes' to God's announcement that the Holy Spirit will grow a new life within her, even though she faced the risk of being shamed and losing her husband-to-be, Joseph. In an extraordinary moment, when we might imagine the angels in Heaven holding their breath in anticipation, she simply said, “May it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1: 38).  We meet Joseph in Matthews gospel after he has found out the news. The feeling of betrayal in his heart would have been overwhelming, but even before the angel fills him in on the details, he puts his mind at rest, and Joseph's plans to call off the wedding are replaced with genuine kindness and compassion. This descendant of David has a heart like God's.  Joseph and Mary do get married, of course, and head to Bethlehem to fulfill the requirements of the Roman census. On the night of the birth, local shepherds also have an encounter with an angel, and then more angels. You have to ask: why would God choose shepherds? Shepherds were not found in the upper echelons of society. Shepherds were nobody. But God loves the humble and so he chose them to hear his big announcement.Finally, stargazers from another land were drawn to the Christ-child. For reasons known only to them, they were compelled to honour the boy and his parents with gifts that speak of royalty (gold), relationship with God (frankincense that was burned in the temple) and a message that, somehow, his death will be important (Myrrh). The Magi were seekers and worshippers. They were people who recognised God's leading and simply obeyed. There it is – a simple nativity. Each character representing real people who have an incredible story to tell. 

For two days shy of six weeks, Moses had been alone on a mountain in the very presence of God. During that time, he received detailed instructions for the building of a tabernacle, where sacrifice and offerings would become the norm and where the people would meet with God.  The walls, furniture and utensils would be made from materials given freely by the Israelite community, from young and old, from everyone ‘whose heart moved him' (Ex 25: 1). The donations were so generous that Moses was eventually forced to call for a stop to the giving (Ex 36: 6).  It is one particular aspect of God's instructions to Moses that fascinates me – in Exodus chapter 28: the design of the priests clothing, their uniform for carrying out their duties. The first couple of verses outline God's purpose for Aaron and his sons to wear special garments – ‘for glory and for beauty', it says. The reason they had particular clothes to wear was for glory and beauty.  Nearly every other item to be manufactured for the tabernacle had a clear function. The alter was made to burn the sacrifices, the lampstand to light the room and the ark to contain the 10 commandments. What were the priests' clothes for? Glory and beauty.  Today, God requires no tabernacle to meet with his people. Jesus' death on the cross has provided a way for us come into his presence through a simple prayer of repentance and faith. Collectively we become building blocks of a new holy place – the church. The New Testament is clear: every time we gather together in his name, God is there too.  So, what are churches for?  Why do they exist? I'm sure, between us, we could come up with a sizable list of functions, from preaching and teaching to ministering to the poor, to sharing the Gospel and so on, but I wonder how many would say, ‘churches exist for glory and beauty'? You see, the church is also described as a bride, so, question: what is usually said of a bride as she walks down the aisle towards her husband-to-be? Easy - She is beautiful! Right? I recently, and quite suddenly, saw all of this with new eyes as I was thinking about the purpose of the church today. We congregate in churches, and we do the work of serving and building. We carry out the functions of church, but it struck me that we are also called to be beautiful – to radiate the beauty that God gives us; to shine in the world, boldly declaring what he has done, reigning in life as sons and daughters of God, doing his work, and revealing his glory. We were created to be beautiful.  No wonder Jesus said, ‘let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven' (Matt 5: 16). When we serve God with all of our hearts, according to his mighty plans and purposes, we not only fulfil the functions of church, we display glory and beauty too.  One day we will see a church of every tribe and nation surrounding the throne of the lamb and I bet many will spontaneously fall to their knees and declare, ‘this is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen'.  I believe God wants us to be able to say that about the church today. Imagine us serving well, building well, with pure hearts and true to his plans. Then, maybe a new generation will discover Jesus and, with tears of joy, say of his church, ‘this is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen'.  This devotion is one of many you can find in Bite-size Devotions for the Busy Christian by me – Terry Nightingale, published by Kharis Publishing and available through any Amazon website. Maybe this would make a good Christmas present for someone. 

People have swallowed the weirdest things. We all expect young children to put small objects in their mouths (and we try to stop them, of course), but then there are the adults.  One man in Croatia was found to have a lighter in his stomach. He had intentionally swallowed it whilst at a police station because it contained a small quantity of drugs and, therefore, incriminating evidence against him. Another, a 29-year-old in Ireland, swallowed a small cell phone and then there was the story of the 18-year-old who was trying to induce vomiting with a toothbrush and, well, you can guess the rest! Some things are not meant to be inside us. Have you ever wondered why are there so many accounts in the gospels about the Pharisees and about their rules and Jesus' confrontations with them? So serious were those conversations that Jesus felt the need to say to his disciples, ‘Be on your guard against the yeast (the teaching) of the Pharisees and Sadducees' (Matt 16: 6). We know that ‘All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness' (2 Tim 3:16), so why do we read so many stories about these guys? Surely, Pharisees don't exist today! I was talking with a friend a while back. I had gently challenged him about a particular attitude he was displaying when he asked, ‘Do you think I am a Pharisee?' Taken aback, I said ‘no, but I think there may be a hidden Pharisee in all of us.' That may seem a bit of a stretch, but for me if I am honest, I know there is one in me. I try to hide him, but he is definitely in there.  What is he up to? Well, like a virus, he is silently trying to spread his influence. So, in what ways does he try to influence?  Let's try something different. Let me invite you to participate in the ‘Do I have the Pharisee virus?' test. Are you ready? 1.    How hard do you work to look good on the outside? I am not talking about a new haircut to make you even more beautiful; I am talking about your secret desire that everyone you meet will believe that you are a good person? In other words, do you seek the praise of others more than the praise of God? 2.    How easy is it for you to apologise? Or are you just never in the wrong? Do you recognise moments when you fall short of God's best or you or do find it hard to admit a fault?3.    When you meet someone who lives, let's say, a ‘colourful life' – do you compare yourself to them? Do you think you are better? When was the last time you prayed, ‘have mercy on me, Lord, a sinner'?So, how did you get on? Did you think you tested positive or negative for the Pharisee virus? It is so easy to read the Gospels and pass judgement on the Pharisees of Jesus' day, but perhaps it takes some humility and courage to recognise that, sometimes, there may be a little Pharisee inside us too. Let's make an agreement together: our hearts belong to God; the Pharisee has no place there!  This devotion is one of many you can find in Bite-size Devotions for the Busy Christian by me – Terry Nightingale, published by Kharis Publishing and available through any Amazon website. Maybe this would make a good Christmas present for someone. 

I was talking with a friend the other day. He had been offered a role in an organisation where his unique abilities and connections would be vital for the next phase of their vision. He was flattered with the offer but extremely reluctant to accept it. The trouble was, he had worked for the company several years previously and, although under different management back then, he had not found them willing to embrace his ideas. In fact, the feelings of rejection were still quite raw.The organisation had moved on since that time with the new leadership team taking it in an exciting new direction, but my friend could only see the pain he felt eight years ago. While we were talking, I found myself thinking of Moses. Moses had left Egypt out of favour and under a cloud. After a misguided attempt to win justice for a fellow Israelite, he not only felt the rejection of his own people but the sentence of death from his adoptive father – the Pharaoh. Moses had no choice but to close that chapter of his life and move on.  Years later, and now with a wife and family, God called him back, ‘I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt… the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.' (Ex 3: 7 - 10). I wonder what went though Moses' mind.  The first question he asks God is, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?' In other words, ‘Lord, I burned that bridge decades ago, they didn't want my help then; I'm sure as heck they don't need it now.' But God had to reassure Moses that things were different now: the elders of Israel will listen to him and there's a different Pharaoh on the throne. A lengthy conversation ensued between the Lord and Moses and the reluctant prophet finally agreed to do the job.  The end of the story is worth noting. Moses led his people out of slavery, away from the threat of the Egyptian army to the mountain of God where the community was effectively re-born as people of the living God. History as we know it flowed from that moment.Moses submitted to the pain of revisiting the past and a nation was established amidst miracles and wonders. For God's purposes to move forward, one man had to step back into a place he thought he had walked away from. For Moses, returning to Egypt would have felt like going backwards, opening old wounds, but in God's master plan it was the key to a significant advance of His purposes.  I wonder if God is calling you to return to something or someone. Life may have moved on, but God is a God of history as well as the future and the two are more than linked. In order for God to bear his fruit in and through you in the future, maybe he is calling you to walk through an old familiar door – even if just for a season. God may have unfinished business for you to attend to in order for you to step into the future. This devotion is one of many you can find in my book Bite-size Devotions for the Busy Christian, published by Kharis Publishing and available through any Amazon website. Maybe this would make a good Christmas present for someone. 

Have you ever read the book of 1 Samuel? This is the book in the Bible that introduces us to the boy who would kill Goliath and eventually become Israel's greatest king – David. It is a story of faith, failure, triumph and tragedy. King Saul is on a collision course with disaster and David must cling to God's promises if he is to experience them coming to pass. For me, there is one message that rings out throughout the book loud and clear: God will do what he has said he will do. God gave the people of Israel a king. God told him through the prophet Samuel that he will appoint him leader over Israel and, of course, he did, but after King Saul failed to obey God, he was informed that the royal line will no longer continue through his family. In fact, another king will be chosen. David was secretly appointed and anointed half-way through the book. In contrast to Saul, David understood the certainty of God's promises and he sought to trust God and obey him. Even at his lowest point in the Cave of Adullam when the armies of Israel were hunting him down, led by a jealous and angry Saul, David declared that God is the one who ‘fulfils his purposes for me' (Psalm 57:2)In other words, God will do what he has said he will do.And that's a promise for us today. If you are a follower of Jesus like me, then you stand at the other side of the cross to David – forgiven through repentance and faith, and now with a whole new set of promises.Jesus told us that he will never leave us, he will never drive us away because we belong to him (John 6: 37). If we take prayer seriously, developing our relationship with the Father in the secret place, we will be rewarded (Matt 6: 6). If we seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, then all our needs will be met (Matt 6: 33), and so much more. I have a pinboard on the wall of my study and over the years I have attached verses that have spoken to me, helpful thoughts that have come through prayer and prophetic words spoken over me by others. I consider them promises from God and every now and then I will read them afresh and cling to them. Why? Because, like David, I believe God is the one who fulfills his promises for me. When the tough times come, when there are Goliaths still to kill and when there is nothing we can do but just sit in the secret place and wait, one thing is sure: God will do what he has said he will do.

And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.” (Luke 1: 46 – 55)Mary, the mother of Jesus, composed these words while staying with her relative, Elizabeth. She had only just received the mind-numbing news that she was pregnant without any physical contact with a man. A baby will be born to you, someone great, a king, the son of the Most High, said the angel who had visited her, one who has been supernaturally placed in your womb.Upon Mary's arrival, Elizabeth prophesied, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! (Luke 1: 42). The mother-to-be must have felt so overwhelmed that all she could think to do was break out into spontaneous worship. The song Mary sang, tells us a lot about God - she clearly wants all praise to go to him. But her words tell us important things about her too. Mary is humble, in the sense that she knows she is blessed among women, but she is also aware that she doesn't deserve it. When she refers to “humble state of his servant” she is describing what some might call her “lowly state” – in other words, she is not from a wealthy or influential family. Second, even though Mary had no choice but to face the enormity of what lay ahead, there is no sense of complaining in her song. “the Mighty One has done great things for me” she sings, giving praise and declaring the holiness of his name. And finally, Mary's worship reminds her soul that she is a just a part of God's much bigger plans. It's not all about her. God's mercy extends to all generations, no ruler can stay in power if they are against him. He is the Lord of Israel, faithful to their father Abraham and all descendants after him. The Lord lifts the humble and scatters the proud. This is humility at its best. Mary doesn't deny the importance of her calling. She knows all generations will call her blessed. But she knows she hasn't earned it, has done nothing to deserve it and so she places herself as a simple servant within God's great power and purposes. 

“So, Moses chiselled out two stone tablets like the first ones and went up Mount Sinai early in the morning, as the LORD had commanded him; and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands. Then the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the LORD. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.” (Ex 34: 4 – 7)This is God, speaking of himself. Verses 6 – 8 are not the words of a human, but the recorded words of Almighty God. This is what God wants us to know about him. Whatever questions we may or may not wish to ask him, these are the truths The Lord wanted Moses to hear, and therefore the truths he wants us to take on board. First, he is the LORD. He repeats it: “The LORD, the LORD…”. No-one or no thing is more powerful than he. He is the sovereign creator of the entire universe. In wisdom and authority, he is above all other things. Yet, perhaps paradoxically, he is also compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love and faithfulness. His greatness and strength never drive him to selfishness or cruelty. He sees our weaknesses and responds with compassion and grace. He hates the wilful sin that occupies the human heart but chooses to slow his anger and act in love instead. This portrait of the living God is vibrant with love and forgiveness. Despite the darkness that stains the human condition, The Lord is quick to offer new life, sins forgiven, and rebellion paid for by the mercies of God. He will even forgive wickedness. The Lord wanted his people to know that his love abounds. Anything that abounds exists in large amounts. It is rich and overflowing. The Lord's love for us is beyond measure, impossible to count or quantify, too big to fully grasp. But the Lord also punishes. He is a God of justice. The guilty cannot escape him and their punishment even affects their children and grandchildren, a strong encouragement towards genuine repentance. In just a few short words, God revealed his sovereignty but also his love. He let Moses know of his unwavering commitment to justice, as well as his deep desire to forgive and bless. He spoke of his faithfulness, in order that we might be faithful to him. What an amazing picture we have here of God. 

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.  Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It's a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.” “Lord, if it's you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. (Matt 14: 22 – 30)The phrase, to “step out in faith”, probably comes from this occasion.  We usually say it when we are thinking of taking risk. For example, “I'm not sure if I'll get this job I am applying for, but I am going to take a step of faith”. But what is our faith in when we say that?We know from other stories in the gospels that Jesus loved faith. And still does. He loves faith in him. He praised the centurion for his clear, no-nonsense understanding of Jesus' authority to heal the sick. And he comforted the woman with the terrible bleeding condition with the words, “Take heart, daughter, your faith has healed you.” (Matt 9: 22)But Jesus doesn't force us to have faith. He waits for it, patiently, to be expressed. He didn't say to Peter, “come on, join me on the water, You can do it, just try!” He waited for Peter to form his own response to the situation. I think he does the same with us. Peter didn't take a risk based on the probabilities of being successful. He didn't close his eyes, lean his foot down on the surface of the water and hope for the best. He saw what Jesus was doing, spoke to him, formed a plan in his mind, checked it out with him (“Lord, if it's you, tell me to come to you on the water”), waited for Jesus to reply, and then, (and only then) he put a foot over edge of the hull, planting it on the choppy waters, and the rest in history. Peter's faith was on the Saviour in front of him and The Lord's word of encouragement to step out. I think there are some important keys here. First, try to discern what the Lord is doing. Don't just assume he will bless a risk, if you haven't worked out what his plans are. Second, when you have a sense of God's will after prayer and seeking his face, ask him: “Lord, if this is you, please confirm the decision I need to make”.  Third, when you have the green light to go, that is, the peace of God to proceed (as long as it involves no disobedience to Scripture), you are ready step out. Is God calling you to take a step of faith?

We have done a few devotions recently from the book of Deuteronomy. Here's Moses speaking again to the next generation nation of Israel, about to enter the Promised Land. “Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it. See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” (Deut 30 :11 – 20).God's Word is never far away. If you are a follower of Jesus, like me, the Scriptures are within easy reach. We have Bibles on our shelves, worship songs on our phones that remind us of the God's truths, and endless opportunities to hear sermons or podcasts online. However, we can't just assume his word is in our hearts or in our mouths. We must invite God's law, his stories, his instructions and principles, his encouragements into our souls, beyond the intellectual, beyond information level to affect our choices and our will. We must allow it to make us uncomfortable so that we change. We must speak it to our innermost beings. Moses set before the people a decision. Life or death. Life meant loving him, walking in obedience to him and keeping his commands. Death meant choosing other gods and losing out on everything the Lord wanted to give them. Choose life. The same speech could be given to us today. We have received new life and the forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ's death on the cross. But life is still full of decisions, with consequences. Will we invite the Lord's word to challenge us and mould us? Will we love him first or will we drift to the gods of this age and miss out? Choose life. 

“Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God” (Ps 90: 1 – 2),My brain can't get a grasp of what “everlasting to everlasting” means. People talk about eternity past and eternity future, but I find it impossible to imagine. All I know is that his infinity is one of the many ways God is vastly superior to me. To us. “From everlasting”. Was there a beginning to God? The Scriptures don't allow us to believe that. Somehow God has always been and always will be. And over that seemingly impossible span of time, he has always been in charge. He has always been God. He will always be God. Before the mountains were born, before our planet spun on its axis, he has been the sovereign God. When people were created, he invited them to dwell with him. Even though many rejected the call, he held out his hand. Today, The Lord still holds out his hand.  Later, in Psalm 90 we read:“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Ps 90: 12)This is a stark reminder of the brevity of life on earth. God may be everlasting, but we are not here forever. Our souls will live on, but what will we do with the limited time we have before we die? Will we live intentionally, making the most of our time, loving God, and doing his will, or will we waste the opportunities set before us? Will we “number our days” -that is, put them to good use?All human beings, like you and I have a paradoxical existence. We are temporal and we are eternal. We are not from everlasting, but eternity is laid out in before us. Faith in Christ will lead us to the dwelling place of God, but will we still number our days? Will we take seriously every minute, every day? Will we do everything we can to further his kingdom? Will we love the lost and feed the hungry? Will we carry out his will?The psalmist (this is a prayer of Moses) believes that we will gain hearts of wisdom if we number our days. A finite life on earth lived with purpose, under the sovereignty of God, will feed the fertile soil where wisdom wants to grow. Peter encouraged us to live with purpose, “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ… make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1: 5 – 11). 

“After the death of Moses, the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them —to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates —all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them” (Joshua 1: 1 – 6).At the risk of taking verse five out of context, this has to be one of the most encouraging statements in the Bible: “I will never leave you nor forsake you”. “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.”Joshua had seen firsthand the extraordinary relationship God had with Moses. “The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend” (Ex 33: 11). Through Moses, The Lord had performed incredible miracles and executed deadly but righteous judgements. Moses had friendship with the almighty, sovereign God. God gave him the power to bring water out of a rock and part the Red Sea. And now Joshua is being told that The Lord will be with him in the same way. I don't know about you, but if I were Joshua, I would really struggle to get my head around the enormity of all that. And yet, if we read our Bibles, as followers of Jesus, we have stepped into a not dissimilar relationship with God. We are told in Ephesians 2 that we are “raised us up with Christ and seated… with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus” (Eph 2: 6). We are forgiven and cleansed from sin, we are adopted into his family, and we are now spiritually “in Christ”, where he is at the right hand of the Father. Our prayers are not only heard, but we have been given authority to speak in his name, make disciples of all nations, heal the sick and cast out evil spirits. And to top it all, Jesus told his disciples (and therefore also us) “surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt 28: 20). In other words, I will never leave you nor forsake you. The One was a friend to Moses and Father to the eternal Son, is with us and will never leave us or forsake us. I don't deserve it and nor do any of us! But we can live in the good of it and start using the authority he has given us to change our little corner of the world. 

During a long speech that Moses gave to the people of Israel, after their 40-year trek in the wilderness and just prior to entering the Promised Land, he said this:“Only be careful and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. Remember the day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, when he said to me, “Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children.” You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain while it blazed with fire to the very heavens, with black clouds and deep darkness. Then the LORD spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice. He declared to you his covenant, the Ten Commandments, which he commanded you to follow and then wrote them on two stone tablets. And the LORD directed me at that time to teach you the decrees and laws you are to follow in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess” (Deut 4: 9 – 14).Be careful. Watch yourselves closely. Don't forget what you have seen and known. Keep them in your heart. Teach them to your kids and grandkids. “Watch yourself” is an odd instruction and is probably more commonly used today as a warning against having an accident. “Watch yourself on that muddy slope”. “Watch yourself with that hot pan”. Today we hear it as a call to be careful.Although Moses is speaking to the whole nation, he personalises it for every individual. He is calling every person to be careful. The fate of the nation depends on the choices of each person in it. So, watch yourself, he says, each and every one of you. Decide now what is important. Make intentional decisions today about what you will choose. Let those choices and behaviours directly relate to what you have seen the Lord do and what you have heard him say. Don't forget any of his words and deeds. In fact, people, you will likely have children one day, so make habits now to daily remember the Lord and fix them in your life. This will help you to pass them on effectively to the next generation. Your personal response to serve the Lord is vital. Remember: this is all bigger than any of us. For his sake and his purposes, and for your influence upon those around you, watch yourselves closely. Perhaps this is still a call to the church today. Watch yourself, each and every one of you. Decide now what is important. Make intentional decisions today about what you will choose. Let those choices and behaviours directly relate to what you have seen the Lord do and what you have heard him say. And don't forget any of his words and deeds. For his sake and his purposes, and for your influence upon those around you, watch yourselves closely. As Paul wrote to Timothy, “Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Tim 4: 15 – 16). 

“Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the LORD appeared to them. The LORD said to Moses, “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.”So Moses took the staff from the LORD's presence, just as he commanded him. He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank” (Num 20: 6 – 11).The Lord was not happy with the way this played out. His instructions to Moses were to take the staff, which he did, gather the assembly together, with Aaron's help (tick!) and then speak to the rock, with everybody watching on.No tick for the last instruction. Instead of speaking to the rock, Moses spoke to the people. Actually, he vented his anger at the people and said, “must we bring water out of this rock?” Moses then struck the rock twice with his staff, which the Lord had not told him to do. You may know the end of the story. In verse 12, we read, “But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honour me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.” In one stupid moment, Moses lost his ticket into the Promised Land. What did he do wrong?Perhaps the first thing is that Moses didn't follow the Lord's specific instructions. He improvised out of frustration. It is amazing to me that the Lord still went along with it, providing the much-needed water. I guess his compassion for the people outweighed any thought He may have had to hold back the miracle. Second, the emphasis on “we” in Moses' question, “must we bring you water out of this rock?” does suggest that he thought of himself a little too highly in that moment. If Moses had followed his orders to the letter, the Lord would likely have honoured him before the people, as he often did. Instead, Moses stole the glory that belongs only to the Lord and paid the price. Doing the will and work of God is not to be taken lightly. When the Lord entrusts us to serve him in any kind of leadership role, we stand on holy ground. The question is, will we honour him as holy by obeying his instructions and will we honour him as holy by giving the glory to Him? The most humble man on earth failed to be humble by the waters of Meribah and it cost him dearly. Let's not make the same mistake today. 

“You may say to yourselves, “These nations are stronger than we are. How can we drive them out?” But do not be afraid of them; remember well what the LORD your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt. You saw with your own eyes the great trials, the signs and wonders, the mighty hand and outstretched arm, with which the LORD your God brought you out. The LORD your God will do the same to all the peoples you now fear. Moreover, the LORD your God will send the hornet among them until even the survivors who hide from you have perished. Do not be terrified by them, for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a great and awesome God. The LORD your God will drive out those nations before you, little by little. You will not be allowed to eliminate them all at once, or the wild animals will multiply around you. But the LORD your God will deliver them over to you, throwing them into great confusion until they are destroyed” (Deut 7: 17 – 23).Poised with anticipation, the second-generation children of Israel are preparing to take the land – the land the Lord promised to them. The book of Deuteronomy is full of speeches given by Moses reminding them of the law, recalling their disastrous short history so far, and then calling them to renew their covenant with God. In this speech in chapter 7, the Lord, through Moses, is carefully informing the Israelites that they will not conquer the current inhabitants in one single military campaign. They will take possession of the land “little by little”. “You will not be allowed to eliminate them all at once”, says Moses. This is an interesting detail, because some battle-ready tribes may be keen to get on with the job. The sooner we get in there, the quicker we can make it our home, plant crops, build permanent shelters etc. But the Lord is calling them to be patient. It is not going to be a done deal in one day, or a week, or a year. This new season of conquest needs to take place gradually, and the reason is given: “or the wild animals will multiply around you”. If the nations were eliminated all at once, the overall balance of the ecosystem would be affected. With a sudden depopulation everywhere, and time passing until all families could be transported to their new homes, there would be fewer people present to control the environment, particularly predators dangerous to human beings. A slower campaign of possession would provide a better chance of creating new communities that are livable and safe. This is a great example of God's timing revealing his superior knowledge and wisdom. There are times when I want the Lord to answer a prayer straight away, or in a particular way. Why do I have to wait, when God can do a miracle in a moment? The thing is, although we know he sees the bigger picture, we don't always trust that what he sees is as important as the issues at front and centre of our minds. When I want God to act quickly, I have no view of the rest of the ecosystem. The other people affected, his will in multiple scenarios around me. It is not just my needs he has promised to take care of, but countless others. The pieces of the jigsaw need to come together in just the right way. His timing is perfect. 

In Genesis 18: 1 we read, “The LORD appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby…”Later a conversation between them goes like this: “Where is your wife, Sarah?” they asked him. “There, in the tent,” he said. Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.” Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?” Then the LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?' Is anything too hard for the LORD? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.” But he said, “Yes, you did laugh” (Gen 18: 9 – 15).They say laughter is the best medicine, but Sarah's response to the Lord in this story is not one of joy or amusement. This is a laugh of disbelief, almost sarcasm, “Oh sure, that at age one hundred, I would enjoy intimacy with my husband, and that things in my very old body might start working again, like they did many moons ago, so that I may bear a child! I'm old enough to be a great, great grandmother!”What hasn't hit her yet is that we are talking about Almighty God here. Is anything too hard for the Lord?I wonder how easily you and I turn to disbelief, even sarcasm. “Oh right! (some might say) So you expect me to just ‘let go' and sail along in some bliss-filled imaginary, Christian bubble, forgetting the fact that the money is due tomorrow, and I have zero dollars in my account.” Is anything too hard for the Lord?“I have tried all those things you are talking about. They don't work. Nothing works!”Is anything too hard for the Lord?“It's funny, I used to have faith like you. I prayed all the time. I still believe of course, but in my own way. God helps those who help themselves” Is anything too hard for the Lord? No, nothing is too hard for the Lord. He can bring new life to a hundred-year-old woman, he can cause that baby to grow and eventually become a father himself. The Lord can form the generations that follow into a bigger and bigger family until they become a nation. He can mould that nation into a people he calls his own and he can birth his own substance as God incarnate, Jesus Christ, His Son right in the heart of that nation and into the middle of history.  And he can cause that Son to do something so unexpected, so profound, so universe changing as to provide salvation and new life through his willing death on the cross and then powerful resurrection from the dead. God can take a hundred-year-old lady and create children for himself so numerous as to be beyond counting. Is anything too hard for the Lord?

People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them (Mark 10: 13 – 16). We do tend to complicate things, don't we? I saw a photo recently of some “do-it-yourself” plumbing where a guy had tried to connect a water pipe to his toilet cistern. What should have been a fairly straightforward job turned out like a long, plastic snake with twists and curves in every direction. The caption underneath read, “I only had bends in my truck”. Like many, I tend to subscribe to the notion that the simplest solution to a situation is probably the best one. In a way, I think Jesus is saying the same thing here. Knowing the Father, receiving the Kingdom of God – well, even a child can do it!After Jesus had uttered these words, an affluent young man approached him with a question: “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mark 10: 17). The ensuing conversation saw Jesus quickly put his discerning finger on the pulse of the man's real need: to let go of his dependence on possessions and self-righteousness. You don't need religious pride or riches to enter the Kingdom of God, it's much simpler than that. After the man left, “disheartened”, Jesus' disciples probably had a ton of questions, but Jesus took the initiative: “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” in v 23, and then “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God!It is interesting to note that this is the first time Jesus has called his disciples, “children”. Is he deliberately calling them children to make a point? I think he is, with a touch of irony. In other words, Don't be like that rich guy, don't think you can earn your way into God's kingdom by works, religious deeds, wealth or human importance. It really is much simpler than that. Enter the Kingdom the same way a child enters any relationship: trust, a personal connection. Humility. Unspoken faith in one who offers a loving and safe relationship. We enter the kingdom by coming to Jesus, knowing that He loves and forgives. We have empty pockets; in that we have no payment or merits to offer but we are drawn to His love. And in the warmth of acceptance and belonging, we are happy to live for Him and do His will. 

Now Moses said to Hobab son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place about which the LORD said, ‘I will give it to you.' Come with us and we will treat you well, for the LORD has promised good things to Israel.” He answered, “No, I will not go; I am going back to my own land and my own people. ” But Moses said, “Please do not leave us. You know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you can be our eyes. If you come with us, we will share with you whatever good things the LORD gives us” (Numbers 10: 29 – 32)Years ago, a friend of mine wrote a song for our church, based on this passage, called “Come with us and we will do you good”. I don't recall the tune or the rest of the lyrics, but I do remember that we sung it most weeks. The basic idea of the song was that as followers of Jesus, we are wonderfully caught up in God's plans for the world and motivated to share the good news of Christ's death, resurrection and new life through faith in Him. We, along with other believers around the world, were excited about our mission, we felt our lives had purpose and we wanted to invite all and anybody around us to join us in that journey. Come with us. God is with us. There are good things to come, and we want to share them with you. When Moses' brother-in-law (that is, Hobab) started to feel the draw to return to his home country, Moses effectively said three things to try to persuade him to stay with him and the travelling Israelites enroute to the Promised Land. First, you will be treated well, “for the Lord has promised good things to Israel”. Moses is not offering an easy life, he knows that the immediate future promises nothing but tough, wilderness living. But he can guarantee the faithfulness of God both now and in the Promised Land ahead. Second, he effectively says ‘we need you'. We need your eyes and experience to choose the best places to camp on the way. We are not asking you to join us to bolster numbers, we want you to play your unique part with the gifts and abilities the Lord has given you. And thirdly, Moses promises, that Hobab will share in all the good things that God gives the Israelite community. ‘Come with us, it may not be easy, but God is with us. There is a glorious future ahead and your gifts and abilities will help us to get there. You will share in the joys and blessings the Lord gives to us. Come with us and we will do you good.When we share our faith with those who don't yet know Jesus, we are giving the same invitation. Come with us, repent of your sin and ask Jesus to be Lord of your life. The days in front of you may not always be easy, but Jesus promises to never leave you. And we will love and support each other along the way. There is a glorious future ahead, and your gifts and abilities are vital to God's great purposes. Come and share the joys of a new life in Jesus Christ. 

I am sure you have been taught, as I have, that whenever the Bible repeats something, it must be particularly important. Like Paul exhorting the Philippian church to “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice” (Philippians 4: 4).Or… in Isaiah's vision in chapter 6, he is somehow permitted to see with his own eyes the magnificent splendour of the Lord on His throne. One seraph calls out to another:“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” (Isaiah 6:3)Not just one “holy” but three. The Lord is Holy. Holy. Holy. In other words, let that truth be underlined and highlighted, meditated on, etched into our consciousness. Our God is a Holy God. However, when we reach Psalm 136 and what looks like a history lesson for young Israelite students, we find a phrase being spoken, not twice, not even three times. Twenty-six times, in fact. His steadfast love endures forever. Our psalmist takes us on a sweeping tour of the Pentateuch from Creation to the edge of the Promised Land and at every turn, he is compelled to remind us, “His steadfast love endures forever”. From the outset we are called to give thanks. Why? For (or because) His steadfast love endures forever. Give thanks “to him who by understanding made the heavens… for his steadfast love endures forever” (Ps 136:5). Gives thanks “to him who divided the Red Sea in two, for his steadfast love endures forever” in verse 13.“and gave their land as a heritage, for his steadfast love endures forever in verse 21.Twenty-six times.If there was one truth the Lord wanted to impart, branded into the conscience of every Israelite soul, it was that His love is steadfast, unwavering and unchanging. And that this love is not fleeting but continues for all time. It turns out this is a truth permeating every book of Scripture. Every poem and prophecy, every song and story, every letter and law, over and over and over: His steadfast love endures forever. It will not fade away. It will not give up. It will not grow weary. The Lord's steadfast love endures forever. It radiates with the morning sun and stays close through the darkest night. It keeps the line open for our prayers and forgives us when we fall short of His best. It disciplines us for our good and welcomes us into the Lord's presence - 24/7. The Lord's steadfast love endures forever.We can rely on it, plant our faith in it, stand on it in the battle and rest in it on our beds. The Lord's steadfast love endures forever.It is precious beyond price. “Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever” (Ps 136: 26). 

A human face can tell us many things. A smile may be warm, encouraging, inviting or conniving. A person's eyes may look at you, past you, though you or deep into your soul. A face may be menacing or soaked in love. Faces have the ability reveal what lies behind them. However, God made it clear to Moses that he would not be permitted to see His face. Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live” (Ex 33:18-20).Whether God has an actual physical face is, perhaps, a topic for another conversation, but The Lord has made clear that we will not get to know Him in the same way we might a friend or a spouse: by seeing with eyes and subconsciously noting the others' expressions. However, we will know Him through other ways He chooses to reveal himself.  So, what is the face of God that we can see? Moses was invited into the presence of God (a few verses earlier), entering a tent marked by a pillar of cloud where, we are told that “The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend” (Ex 33: 11). Assuming the Bible does not contradict itself, what might that mean? Especially as we are exhorted to “seek God's face”, for example, in Psalm 24. One explanation may be found in Numbers 12: 8, where The Lord, speaking about Moses, said to Aaron and Miriam: “With him (that is, Moses) I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD.”And earlier in the book of Numbers we read, “When Moses entered the tent of meeting to speak with the LORD, he heard the voice speaking to him from between the two cherubim above the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant law. In this way the LORD spoke to him” (Numbers 7: 89)Moses saw the form of The Lord, but got to know Him through what he heard, Just as there are an infinite number of ways that a message can be sent through facial expressions, so The Lord has no limits as to how He might convey His words and His heart to us through His voice. And, of course, the idea of God's voice can mean many things. For some it might be an impression laid on their heart or a nudge on their conscience. It might be a verse of Scripture, silently bringing a new perspective to a personal situation. It might be a peace that came out of nowhere, or a sense that I must keep praying until he says it's enough. However the Lord chooses to speak or show himself, the song of Asaph is an ongoing call throughout the ages and down to today: “Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always” (1 Chronicles 16:11). 

9How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. 10With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! 11I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. (Psalm 119: 9 – 11)When I was growing up in the UK in the 1970s, I would often hear people talking about keeping something “for a rainy day”. That is, saving money in case it is needed in the future. The rainy day could be any crisis when funds are short. The idiom is still used today The psalmist in our reading has been asking how he might keep his way pure. How he might live his life with moral integrity. He wouldn't just be thinking about sexual purity, as important as that is, but other areas of his life too. He would be mindful of his speech and his choice of words, as well as his thoughts and actions, hoping they are good and righteous in the sight of God. In this short section of an 8-verse stanza, the psalmist let's us know what he is putting into practice to try and live a life he can be proud of.  At first sight it might seem like a human attempt to be Godly. We all know that we cannot overcome sinful tendencies in our lives without the grace of God. It is because of what Christ has done on the cross, that we have hope of “being transformed into His likeness”. But the psalmist, even though he knows nothing of Jesus (because this was written before Jesus came to Earth), does know that He needs God's Word. The Lord and His spoken and written word are his hope. So, he will guard his way (that is, think carefully about his decisions) by measuring it against what God has said. He has committed himself to seeking God. He will not stray from the ideal that The Lord's commandments must be his number one source of inspiration.And he has stored up the Word of God in his heart. What might this mean?Obviously, memorisation can help. If we read something often enough, we can start to remember it “off by heart”. Learning portions of scripture was a normal part of my diet in the Sunday school of the little village church I grew up in. Perhaps this is a lost practice in today's world, but well worth recovering if we are to raise a generation strong in the Word of God. But perhaps the need is more basic than that. Do we even read the Bible regularly? There is something about absorbing Scripture through the eyes, perhaps even speaking it out, and then letting it marinate in my mind and heart, imagining the story, applying it to my world, letting it move me, challenge me, that can only happen as the Holy Spirit engages with our spirits, breathing life, inspiring hope.I remember Bible verses that speak to my soul, and I can't forget stories that shock me or hold me accountable. And all this quietly stores up in the recesses of my mind and heart, for the day when God will bring it to the surface and use it. 

13 “If my people would only listen to me, if Israel would only follow my ways, 14 how quickly I would subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes! 15 Those who hate the LORD would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever. 16 But you would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.” (Ps 81:13-16)If only I had listened to God. The decision I made that I knew in my heart-of-hearts was not the Lord's will. If I had only read God's Word and sought Godly counsel, things may have turned out differently.  Psalm 81 sounds like it is set in the midst of a national festival, possibly the Feast of Trumpets or the Feast of Tabernacles. The first few verses explode with energy, music and joyful shouts of celebration, commemorating the ancient stories of God's powerful rescue of a people from slavery in Egypt. But then a mystery voice cuts the moment. The scene was only a dream, a memory, as if a sleeper has awoken to a harsh reality. Those days are long gone. God did do those things, and the sleeper remembers what the Lord said at the time: “8 Hear me, my people, and I will warn you— if you would only listen to me, Israel! 9 You shall have no foreign god among you; you shall not worship any god other than me” (Ps 81: 8 – 9)The one rubbing his eyes from sleep hears more from the Lord, spoken years later:11 “But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. 12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices” (Ps 81: 11 – 12). It is a frightening thing for the Lord to give people over to their stubborn hearts, to follow their own devices. The reality of life for the one remembering and writing this psalm is that he and his family, and his nation, are exiles, held captive in a foreign land, a punishment inflicted by the Lord for continuous disobedience and the worship of false gods. The Lord is a forgiving God, but he never lets us escape from the consequences of our decisions. Human beings can be stubborn and, if we are honest, that includes you and me. Even as believers, we might sometimes pay more attention to our emotions and the spirit of the age than the Word of God. The mystery voice reveals the heart of our God, “if my people would only listen to me”. The Lord wanted His people to be fed with the finest of wheat and be satisfied with honey from the rock. Today, He still wants the best for us. Life. Beautiful, purposeful life with an eternal celebration of relationship with the Father through faith in Jesus, within the bounds of His Word and His Ways and under the protective umbrella of the Lordship of Christ. “If my people would only listen to me”. 

“Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” “The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him” (Psalms 37: 4, 23)Like much of the sayings in The Book of Proverbs, David has written a psalm contrasting the fate of the wicked with the righteous. In his black and white view of the world (compared to today), the righteous will shine like the dawn, enjoying peace and prosperity, while the wicked, though temporarily successful in their schemes, will eventually lose their power and perish (or “go up in smoke” v 20).One of his reasons for composing the psalm is simply to say, “do not fret” (he says it 3 times). Do not be overly anxious when bad people continue to be bad people – God will hold them accountable. Life, is of course, more complicated than that and God's people are called to respond actively, not passively, to injustice in the world, the needs of the poor and destructive ripples that can flow from compromised leaders and flawed human beings. But for those who seek to honour God with their lives, David's psalm is timeless. Trust in the Lord; commit your way to Him; be patient. David then ends his psalm with a promise:“The salvation of the righteous comes from the LORD; he is their stronghold in time of trouble. The LORD helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him” Ps 37: 39 – 40.How might we take refuge in the Lord? One way is by delighting in Him. The Westminster catechism tells us that “Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever”. We exist to worship Him – yes! To give glory and honour to Him – absolutely! But to enjoy Him too. To delight in Him. God wants us to find joy in Him. When we stop and find space in the day to shut out our worries and stresses, we might reflect on how much the Lord has done for us. How He has changed us, transformed us from the person we once were. We can marvel at the fact that He includes us in His plans, even though we don't deserve it. We can remember specific times of encouragement, a word that spoke to us or a remarkable answer to prayer. We can be grateful for what we have. Material things. Money, the ability to earn money but more importantly, people. Those the Lord has brought into our lives and made precious to us. And the relationship with have with Him – our Father in heaven. Always present, always sovereign, always patient. Always kind. So much to enjoy. And we haven't even started to talk about the wonder of His creation, which we can delight in as we walk through that park or along that beach, side-by-side with the One who made it. The promises of David's psalm are “firm steps” and the desires of our heart for those who delight in the Lord. To be honest, I think to have a heart that daily delights in our maker is reward enough, but it is comforting to know that while we are simply enjoying Him, He is quietly planning good steps ahead for us. 

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I'm going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We'll go with you.” So, they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, “Friends, haven't you any fish?” “No,” they answered.  He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” (John 21: 1 – 7).One of the things I love about Jesus, is that no word or action is ever wasted. We know from other post-resurrection accounts that Jesus was not always recognised straight away. His appearance had changed in some way. Mary Magdalene didn't know it was Jesus she saw outside the empty tomb and the two travelers walking to Emmaus spoke to him for the better part of a day before they figured out who He was. Is it possible that that same thing is happening here? I think it is. Jesus does something that will make His disciples realise who He is. Particularly for Simon Peter and John. He repeated the very first miracle they ever saw Him do. Recorded in Luke's Gospel, we remember the account of Jesus calling His first disciples. Simon Peter seemed happy for Jesus to teach from His boat with the crowds gathered at the water's edge and while he and his mates cleaned the nets. At the end of His teaching, Jesus told Simon to put the boat out again and throw the nets over. Even though the fishermen had worked hard all night with no catch (and had only just washed the nets), Simon did what he was asked. Just like today's story there was a huge catch of fish, way beyond normal expectations. No wonder the same disciples three years later exclaimed with a gasp, “it is the Lord!”. It's Him! We have seen this before. Only He can do that. God granted us a powerful gift when He gave us the ability to look back and re-live a moment. Although some life events can be painful to recall, the Bible is full of encouragements to remember the good. And good memories of the Lord at work may help us understand the present. For example, a “blast from the past” recollection of a person may be a prompt to pray for them. An intentional look back to God's grace on your life can only increase thankfulness and trust for the future. And perhaps when we are mindful of the Lord's dealings in our lives, not forgetting what He has spoken and what He has done, we might more easily recognise His presence and His voice today. To be able to say again of His leading, “it is the Lord! This is what He wants me to do today”. 

Moses said to the LORD, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” The LORD said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say” (Ex 4: 10 – 12).I sometimes wish that my mind could be quicker than it is. To be able to give a witty response to every situation and make the world laugh around me. To say just the right thing in the moment. But Moses isn't complaining about a shortage of comedic skills, or even a lack of wise rhetoric. His problem may have been more basic. Some have suggested he had a speech impediment, making it difficult for him to express himself with confidence. Perhaps he didn't feel he knew the language of the Egyptian royal court well enough to be understood. Or he might have been prone to panic attacks with the thought of standing up in front of others and making a speech. Whatever the reason, Moses considered himself “slow of speech and tongue” therefore believed God had made a huge mistake in choosing him to be His spokesperson.Towards the end of Jesus' life, there is a hint that He guessed some of His disciples might struggle with public speaking, or even just articulating their faith to others when they needed to. “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say” (Luke 12: 11 – 12). In both of our passages today, the Lord promises to teach the person what they need to say. I have found in my own life that speaking well does not come naturally to me. In my early years as a high school teacher, I did not have the natural confidence to address uninterested teenagers. And years later, serving in pastoral ministry, I will still agonise over the right words to share with a brother or a sister in a sensitive conversation.But one thing I can say is that the Lord does help. He does give wisdom when you ask for it, even if you have to pray about it for a while, chew it over or seek advice. Over time, he has graciously allowed me to learn boldness, particularly when I know He has given me something to say. And he can do the same for you. One of the best preachers I have ever known, would often struggle with a stutter when he spoke. I think God helped him more than anyone knew, but He kept my friend reliant on Him at the same time. The Lord will help us and teach us what to say, but never to the point where we become proud of our wisdom or oratory skills. If we can get that balance right, what an amazing thought it is that we might be a spokesperson for God himself. 

“Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph” (Ps 77: 13 – 15).This is a really good question to ask: What god is as great as our God? Gods (with a small ‘g') in the Bible were, of course, not gods at all. They were man-conceived and man-made. The writings of the Old Testament often refer to them as idols, statues of earthly creatures or representations of how ancient peoples imagined their deities would appear if they could see them. Made of wood, stone, or metal, some were small and portable, kept in tents or family dwellings; others were large, towering over worshippers in their temples. Isaiah 40 describes the stupidity of creating idols, when they are compared to the living God. “With whom, then, will you compare God? To what image will you liken him? As for an idol, a metalworker casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and fashions silver chains for it. A person too poor to present such an offering selects wood that will not rot; they look for a skilled worker to set up an idol that will not topple. Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth (Is 40: 18 – 22)Idols can topple over. Our God sits enthroned above the circle of the earth. Why pray to something that humans have created, something that needs help standing up, when the One ruling the heavens and seated on the throne invites us to pray to Him? The One who performs miracles; the One who displays infinite power; the One who redeems us with His mighty arm. He invites us to worship and pray to Him. Our modern-day idols are just as worthless. We might not bow the knee to a wooden statuette, but how important to us is our social media status? Or the praise of those around me. Do you care about those things more than you care about who you are in God? If you are not sure, compare your average daily screen time with the time you spent reading the Bible this morning, Who do you draw your value from? You contemporaries or your heavenly Father? Do you worship the desire to be liked by others, or do you worship the One who created you, formed you and loves you?Just like the ancient statues of stone or gold, our present-day idols only hold power if we give it to them. If we lean on them for favour, love, or fortune, we will surely only discover empty and lifeless promises. But worship the Living God and bow the knee to Him and a whole universe of possibilities open up. Because… what god can possibly be as great as our God?