God's Word For Every Day

Ezekiel 27:1-36 ‘Your wealth... will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your shipwreck’ (Ezekiel 27:27). Teach us, Lord, that we will sink if we don’t ‘keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.’ Help us not to allow ourselves to get weighed down. Keep us from becoming ‘entangled’ in the world’s way of living. Help us to ‘throw off everything that hinders’ our spiritual growth. We thank You, Lord, that Jesus is ‘the sure and strong Anchor for our lives.’ He will keep us from sinking. Teach us to look to Him and learn from Him: ‘Do not lay up treasures on earth... Lay up treasures in heaven’ (Hebrews 12:1-2; 6:19; 2 Timothy 2:4; Matthew 6:19-20). ‘Will your anchor hold in the storms of life...? We have an Anchor that keeps the soul, steadfast and sure while the billows roll, fastened to the Rock which cannot move, grounded firm and deep in the Saviour’s love!’ (Church Hymnary, 412). Ezekiel 28:1-26 ‘You were on the holy mount of God... You were blameless in your ways.

"The Lord is your keeper" ( Psalm 121:5 ); "My help comes from the Lord" ( Psalm 121:2 ). Such words fill us with hope - and they call us to prayer. They do not fill us with a superficial optimism. They stir us to receive more of the Lord's help, and to know more of His keeping power. When we come to God in prayer, we come with questions: Will the Lord hear our prayer? Will He not dismiss us as guilty sinners who have no right to come to Him, no right to ask for His blessing? The Scriptures speak with unmistakable realism, about our sin: "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way" ( Isaiah 53:6 ). They also speak, with tremendous encouragement, about God's salvation: "And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all" ( Isaiah 53:6 ). In the great first chapter of John's Gospel, which speaks so majestically of Jesus Christ, the eternal Word (vs. 1-3) and declares that "the

“Be glad and find joy in the Lord, you righteous people” (Psalm 32:11). “Joyfully sing to the Lord, you righteous people” (Psalm 33:1). Our joy is in the Lord. It is from Him that our “joyous songs of salvation” come (Psalm 32:7). It is “in Him” that “our hearts find joy” (Psalm 33:21). We “look to Him”, and we are “radiant” (Psalm 34:5). Even thought there are many obstacles to our spiritual growth, we are able to face all who oppose us in our walk with God. We are able to say, with confidence in the God who helps us to be strong in Him and victorious through His power, “My soul will find joy in the Lord and be joyful about His salvation” (Psalm 35:9).

Genesis 12:1-9 This was a major step for Abraham - and for God. Abraham would never be the same again. For him, this was the beginning of a journey. It was more than a journey into a new land. It was a journey into God's blessing. Notice that Abraham was "75 years old" (Genesis 12:4) when he set out on this great journey of faith and blessing. 75 years old - we don't normally expect big changes at this age. Big change - this was what God expected of Abraham. Can we ever say, "It's too late to make a new beginning with God?" No! We must never say this. Whatever age we are, we must be ready to say "Yes" to God, to move forward with Him. Pray that God will give you a new hunger for Himself, for His Word, for prayer. As we get older, are we getting colder or bolder? Do we say, "My best days are behind me? or Do we rise to new challenges?

Jeremiah’s ministry was a call from God to the people – a call to “listen to the Word of the Lord” (Jeremiah 44:24). Listening to what the Lord has to say to us will mean being ready to revise our own ideas. Our thoughts, without the guiding Word from the Lord, will be very different from thoughts which have been shaped by the Word of the Lord.

“You transplanted a vine from Egypt. You drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land” ( Psalm 80:8-9 ). When we read here about a “vine”, we should remember that Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” ( John 15:5 ). We read here that the vine “filled the land.” Let us pray for our land – “Shine, Jesus, shine. Fill this land with the Father’s glory.”

In the Lord, we have joy - the joy of His salvation: “I will find joy in the Lord. I will delight in my God. He has dressed me in the clothes of salvation. He has wrapped me in the robe of righteousness” (Isaiah 61:10). This joy of salvation comes to us through our Saviour, Jesus Christ. God has fulfilled His gracious promise: “The Lord has announced to the ends of the earth: Tell My people Zion,Your Saviour is coming” (Isaiah 62:11). In the Lord, we have victory. We rejoice in Him. He gives us the victory. He announces His victory - “It is I, the Lord, I am coming to announce my victory. I am powerful enough to save you” (Isaiah 63:1).

Genesis 2:18-25 Lord, we thank You that You have a place in Your heart for us. Why? What have we done that You should keep on loving us? Is there something good about us - something that makes us worthy of Your love? Whatever way we look at it - the answer’s always “No.” No! No! No! There’s no way back to You, Lord, that begins with ourselves. We cannot begin with ourselves - but “Is there another starting-point?” Lord, there is only one place. We begin with Your love - “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son ... “ ( John 3:16 ). We hear these words, and we ask, “Why, Lord, have You loved us like this?” From our side, there’s no answer to this question. We can only say, “We’re sinners.” There’s nothing else we can say about ourselves. What do You, Lord, say to sinners? “God shows His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” ( Romans 5:8 ).

Psalm 44:1-26 Victory comes from You, Lord. In ourselves, we are defeated. In You, there is victory. It’s so easy to forget this. We take our eyes off You, and we get despondent – “You have rejected and humbled us …You have made us retreat before the enemy … You gave us up to be devoured like sheep … My disgrace is before me all day long … ” (Psalm 44:9-16). What are we to do when such negative thoughts fill our minds? Lord, help us to pray, “Awake, O Lord! … Rise up and help us; redeem us because of Your unfailing love” (Psalm 44:23,26).

Genesis 4 This chapter tells the story of the progression of mankind, the increase of sin and - in its final sentence - the development of worship. There are interesting snippets of cultural information (vs. 20-22). There may be progress in the horizontal dimension - agriculture, music, industry, but history reveals again and again that all is not well in our relationship with God. Sin was on the increase (vs. 1-16). Things were getting out of control. Could they be turned around again? A strongly positive answer is not spelled out in detail in this chapter. There is, however, a hint of God at the end of the chapter. He is still at work, calling sinners to worship Him. People are beginning to respond. This is the note on which the chapter ends. "At that time, people began to worship the Lord" (v. 26). This is the ray of hope. This is the word of inspiration at the end of a chapter which is, at best informative - the progression of culture, and, at worst,

Psalms 130:1-131:3 Lord, we’re not to pray to You with superficial words that don’t mean very much to us. Our prayer is to be a real cry from the heart: ‘Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord’ (Psalm 130:1). We are to ‘cry for mercy’ with a deep awareness of how sinful we really are: ‘If You, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?’ (Psalm 130:3). Help us to come to You with deep humility – ‘My heart is not proud, O Lord’ (Psalm 131:1). When we truly confess our sin, we receive Your ‘unfailing love’ and ‘forgiveness’ Psalm 130:(4). ‘In You, Lord’ we have ‘full redemption’ (Psalm 130:7). It is for ‘now’ – ‘The vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a pardon receives’. It is ‘for evermore’ – ‘But purer and higher and greater will be our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see!’. ‘Praise the Lord!… Give Him the glory!’ (Psalm 131:3). 

Three times, in the first verse of Obadiah, the divine origin of Obadiah's message is emphasized - "This is what the Almighty Lord says ... We heard a message from the Lord. A messenger was sent ..." (Obadiah, verse 10).  The final verse   places the emphasis on the divine outcome of the prophetic message: "The Kingdom will belong to the Lord" (Obadiah, verse 21). What is the way in which the Lord leads us from the beginning of our faith to the completion of our faith? - It's the way of holiness (Obadiah, verse 17). God is calling us to be holy. He's calling us to walk with Him in holiness of life.

Genesis 9:8-17 We look at the rainbow. We see the love of God. We look beyond the rainbow. We look to the Cross. There, we see the supreme demonstration of the love of God. There, we see Jesus, suffering for us. His suffering is the suffering of love. It wasn't the nails that held Him to the Cross. It was His love for us that sent Him to the Cross. It was His love for us that kept Him on the Cross.

The Rock and the River are still there – even when I can’t see them! We look out towards Dumbarton Rock and the River Clyde. There is, however, a problem! Straight ahead of us, there are some large trees. When the leaves are on the trees, we can’t see anything that’s behind the trees. We can’t see the Rock and the River – but they’re still there! There is another Rock – Jesus Christ, the Rock of our salvation. There is another River – the Holy Spirit, the River of God ’s blessing. When our faith is weak, we must remember this: Jesus is still the Rock of our salvation. When we don’t feel very blessed, we must remember this: the Holy Spirit is still the River of God ’s blessing. Jesus told a story about two builders. One was wise. He built his house on a rock. The other was foolish. He built his house on sand.   How are we to build our lives on Jesus Christ, the Rock of our salvation? We must hear His Word. We must obey His Word (Matthew 7:24). Hearing and obeying – this is the wa

Psalms 46:1-47:9 ‘Be still, and know that I am God...Shout to God with loud songs of joy’(10; 47:2). In our worship, there is to be both quiet trust and loud praise. We read the great words: ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble’(46:1). God’s Word brings peace - ‘in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength’. We must not keep God’s blessing to ourselves. We must share it with joy - ‘Sing to the Lord...let them shout from the top of the mountains. Let them give glory to the Lord, and declare His praise in the coastlands’ (Isaiah 30:15; 42:10-12). The Lord is to be ‘exalted among the nations’. He is not only ‘our King’. He is ‘the King of all the earth’(10; 47:6-7). ‘Father (Jesus/Spirit), we love You. We worship and adore You. Glorify Your Name in all the earth’(Mission Praise, 142). Psalm 48:1-14 ‘Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised’(1). We worship God in the place of worship - ‘Within Your Temple, O God, we meditate on Your unf

Psalms 62:1-63:11 The Lord is ‘my Rock and my Salvation’(62:2,6). As you read the Psalmist’s words, let your thoughts turn to the Lord Jesus Christ. He is our ‘Rock’- the ‘Rock’ of our salvation. Through ‘the blood of Christ’, we receive the greatest ‘blessing’ of all - salvation (1 Corinthians 10:1-4,16). No other blessing can ever compare with the joy of knowing Christ as Saviour: ‘Your steadfast love is better than life’. Through our great Saviour - the Lord Jesus Christ - , we are learning to ‘praise’ God. We are learning to say, with the Psalmist, ‘I will praise You as long as I live’(63:3-4). What a great Saviour we have. He is greater than all our songs of praise. He is ‘too marvellous for words’- ‘Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!’(Mission Praise, 788; 2 Corinthians 9:15). Psalms 64:1-65:13 ‘Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord’(64:10). True joy in the Lord is not just a passing emotion, a feeling which doesn’t last for very long. When our ‘praise

Jeremiah 17:1-27 ‘The Lord’ is ‘the Fountain of living water’ (Jeremiah 17:13). You say to us, ‘With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation’ (Isaiah 12:3). We can be ‘like a tree planted by water’, a tree that ‘does not cease to bear fruit’ (Jeremiah 17:8; Psalm 1:3). You speak Your Word to us: ‘“Where is the Word of the Lord?” Let it come!’ (Jeremiah 17:15; Psalm 1:2) You bring Your salvation to us: ‘Save me, and I will saved’(Jeremiah 17:14; Psalm 1:6). You give Your blessing to us: ‘Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord’ (Jeremiah 17:7: Psalm 1:1). We rejoice in Your ‘eternal love.  We drink from ‘the streams of living waters’ – and we discover that ‘grace,… like the Lord the Giver, never fails from age to age.’ Help us, Lord, to press on to our heavenly and eternal glory: ‘In Your presence is fullness of joy. At Your right hand are pleasures for evermore’ (Psalm 16:11).

Jeremiah 18:1-23 ‘The pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands, so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him’ (Jeremiah 18:4). Lord, this is what You're doing in our lives. You are ‘the Potter’. We are no more than ‘jars of clay’ (Jeremiah 18:6; Isaiah 64:8; 2 Corinthians 4:7). Our lives are ‘marred’ by sin. Often, we feel like giving up on ourselves. We thank You, Lord, that You never give up on us. You look beyond what we are now. You see what we will become. You are preparing us for ‘eternal glory’. ‘We are being renewed day by day’. ‘We are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory’ (2 Corinthians 4:16-17; 2 Corinthians 3:18). ‘Jesus, You are changing me. By Your Spirit, You’re making me like You... You are the Potter and I am the clay. Help me to be willing to let You have Your way...’ (Mission Praise, 389).

Jeremiah 19:1-20:6 ‘Listen! I am going to bring on this city and the villages around it every disaster I pronounced against them, because they were stubborn and would not listen to My Word’ (Jeremiah 19:15). Lord, You're warning Your people. You're calling us back from the way of sin and disobedience. You're calling us to return to You. You're looking for people who will take You seriously. You're calling us to live in obedience to Your Word. You're calling us to worship You with the dedication of our lives and not only the words of our lips. Sometimes, we wonder, ‘Will Your blessing be lost forever? Is there a way of rediscovering Your blessing in our lives?’ ‘There’s a way back to God from the dark paths of sin. There’s a door that is open and you may go in. At Calvary’s Cross is where you begin, when you come as a sinner to Jesus’ (Mission Praise. 682).

Judges 7:15-8:35 We find it so easy, Lord, to forget You and all that You have done for us. We feel the pull of the world - drawing us back to what we were before we met You, drawing us away from all that You are calling us to become. Give us grace, Lord, to remember You, to rejoice in You, and to be renewed by You.

Judges 13:1-14:9 Lord, may our lives be an echo of the words of Jesus: "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me ... " (Luke 4:18-19). We look at what we are, and we ask, "How can we become more like Jesus?" It begins with the death of Jesus - "while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). It continues with the gift of the Holy Spirit - "the Holy Spirit has been given to us" (Romans 5:5). we look at Jesus, our Saviour. We look at the Holy Spirit. What do we see? We see Your love(Romans 5:8 and Romans 5:5). It's Your love that changes us. It's Your love that makes us more like Jesus.

Judges 18:14-19:30 Help us, Lord, to "be still, and know that You are God" (Psalm 46:10) - but help us not to remain silent when we should be speaking up for You: "If you confess with your mouth , 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).

Ezra 9:1-10:44 Lord, the return of Your blessing comes with a real confession of our sin - "Our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens" (Ezra 9:6), You don't bless us because we deserve to be blessed. You bless us because You love us. This is where Your blessing comes from. It comes from Your love. Despite all of our sin, You encourage us to believe that You may yet "grant us some reviving to set up the House of our God" (Ezra 9:8-9).

Nehemiah 5:1-6:19 What are we to do when we face those who are ‘scheming to harm’ the Lord’s servants and the Lord’s work? - We are to devote ourselves to the ‘work’ of the Lord. We are to ‘pray’ for His strength (6:2; 5:16; 6:9). Critics of the Lord’s work want to argue with us. Are we to ‘come down’ to their level, going round in circles with arguments that lead us nowhere? Nehemiah shows us a better way, God’s way - ‘I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?’(6:3). ‘Completing the work with the help of our God’(6:15-16) - This is the best ‘argument’ against the critics of Christ and His Gospel. Keep working for God and pray that’ many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord’(Psalm 40:3). Nehemiah 7:1-73 What kind of people are we? Are we ‘faithful and God-fearing’ people’(2)? It is so easy to lose our way and become ‘unclean’(64)? What are we to do when we lose our way, when w

Nehemiah 10:1-39 God is calling us to commit our lives to Him. At the heart of our commitment to the Lord, there must be worship: ‘We will not neglect the House of our God’(39). ‘Worship God’(Revelation 19:10). This is our reason for coming to the Lord’s House. We come to worship Him. Our worship is to be more than mere words. We worship God when we bring our offerings to Him. God’s people brought ‘the tithe’(tenth) to Him (37). We meet with the Lord when we worship in His House: ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the House of God, and this is the gate of heaven’. Through our giving - ‘Of all that You give me I will give You the tenth’- , let us express our commitment to the Lord - ‘the Lord will be my God’(Genesis 28:17,21-22). Nehemiah 11:1-12:30 Like the walls of Jerusalem, our lives lay in ruins until Christ puts us together again. In Christ, our lives have been rebuilt. Now, we can ‘celebrate’. We can worship the Lord ‘with gladness’(12:

Nehemiah 1:1-2:18 ‘You see the trouble we are in’- How do you react when the going gets tough? Do you collapse in despair and succeed only in making your troubles seem even bigger than they really are? There is a better way of dealing with our problems. Believing that ‘the hand of his God was upon him for good’, Nehemiah looks at the problem - ‘Jerusalem lies in ruins’- and sets about solving it - ‘Come. let us build the wall of Jerusalem’ (2:17-18). Our problems may be great. Our God is greater. When your problems threaten to overwhelm you, remember this: God has ‘redeemed us by His great power and His mighty hand’(1:3-6,10). There is no greater problem than our sin and God has dealt with that problem - Christ has ‘put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself’(Hebrews 9:26). ‘Pack up your troubles’ and take them to Jesus! Nehemiah 2:19-4:23 Serving the Lord is not easy. There are always those who ‘mock and ridicule’ the Lord’s servants (2:19; 4:1-3). What are we

Ecclesiastes 8:1-9:10 ‘Whatever your hands find to do, do it with all your might...’(9:10). ‘Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart...’(Colossians 3:23-24). These two verses seem, at first, to be saying the same thing - until we read the rest of each verse! The first is describing life ‘under the sun’(9:9): ‘in the grave where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom’. The second describes life in the Son: ‘you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward’. There is more to life than life under the sun. There is life in the Son. In everything we do, we must remember this: ‘It is the Lord Jesus Christ you are serving’. We are ‘working for the Lord, not for men’. ‘Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord... your labour in the Lord is not in vain’(1 Corinthians 15:58). Ecclesiastes 9:11-10:20 ‘Wisdom is better than weapons of war’(9:18). We are to seek the better way, the way of wis

“To You, Lord, I call; You are my Rock” (Psalm 28:1). “I’ve anchored in Jesus, the storms of life I’ll brave, I’ve anchored in Jesus, I fear no wind or wave. I’ve anchored in Jesus, for He hath power to save, I’ve anchored to the Rock of Ages” (Lewi­s E. Jones).

In Jesus’ trial, we see unity in evil (Luke 23:12). Politically, Pilate and Herod were at odds with each other. Spiritually, they were united in their opposition to Christ. Jesus was found guilty by neither Pilate nor Herod (Luke 23:13-16). They were Very Important People. Jesus was a threat to them. They held positions of great power. They could not allow Jesus to ‘upset the apple cart’. Three times, Pilate declared Jesus’ innocence (Luke 23:4, 14, 22). ‘Public opinion’said, ‘Crucify Him!’(Luke 23:21). Pilate had a problem. He would be ‘crucifying’ himself - politically - if he ignored public opinion. Pilate made his choice. Jesus had to go. Jesus went - but He came back again! There is real human drama here, but there is much more than that: There is God! Crucified by men, Raised by God (Acts 2:23-24): This is divine drama, the drama of redemption!

Luke 12:8-34 (1) The call to make a commitment of ourselves to Christ: "Whoever acknowledges Me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God" (Luke 12:8). This means more than paying lip-service to Christ. Choosing Him means choosing to live a life which shares His priorities. It is to be a whole-hearted commitment. Jesus teaches us what we are to avoid and what we are to seek. (2) What we are to avoid - "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed" (Luke 12:15). (3) What we are to seek - "Seek His Kingdom" (Luke 12:31). (4) The choice we make reveals what is really important to us: "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Luke 12:34). A real confession of faith in Christ as your Saviour and Lord leads to a life lived in the light of eternity, a life which is shaped by the values of eternity, a life which the Bible calls "eternal life." This "eternal

Luke 8:1-15 "The seed is the Word of God" ( Luke 8:11 ). This is what Jesus' parable of the sower is all about. It's about the Word of God. God's Word is sown in our hearts. God's Word bears fruit in our lives. The sowing of God's Word in our hearts requires patience. We don't reap the harvest right away. We must work patiently for the harvest which God will give to us in His time. Let us be faithful in sowing the seed of God's Word. Let's keep on praying that God will give to us the "hundredfold" harvest ( Luke 8:8 ). May God help us to be faithful in sowing and fruitful in reaping. God's Word comes to us. It is given to us by the Lord. What are we doing with His Word? When God's Word is sown in our hearts, what kind of soil does it find there? Are we allowing it to grow in our hearts? Are we allowing God to produce His abundant harvest in our lives? God's Word emphasizes to us the direct connection betwee

1 Kings 12:25-13:34 These were dark days for God’s people. They were deeply divided. There was the northern kingdom (Israel). Jeroboam was their ‘big man’. There was the southern kingdom (Judah). Rehoboam was the ‘voice’ of the south. What a shambles it all was! Each side seemed intent on outdoing the other - ungodliness. Sin reigned in the north (13:33-34). Sin reigned in the south (14:22-24). The ‘big man’ was not so big in the eyes of the Lord. The ‘voice’ did not speak the Word of the Lord. Was there any hope? Yes! There was an unnamed ‘man of God’ who spoke ‘the Word of the Lord’(13:1). In all the confusion of these difficult times, God was planning for a better future. His Word concerned Josiah: ‘a son shall be born…’(2). We look beyond Josiah to Jesus: ‘to us a Child is born… a Son…’(Isaiah 9:6-7).

Luke 24:13-53 ‘In all the Scriptures’, Jesus teaches ‘the things concerning Himself’(27). Do ‘our hearts burn within us... while He opens to us the Scriptures?’(32). He calls us to be His ‘witnesses’, to preach His message of salvation ‘to all nations’(47-48). Before we can preach, we must listen to Him. Before we can proclaim His resurrection, we must consider His suffering for us: ‘See my hands and my feet’(39) - even after His resurrection, they still bear ‘the mark of the nails’(John 20:25). Listen to Christ. Consider His suffering for you. Be ‘clothed with power from on high. Let the Lord ‘bless’ you, strengthening your worship and filling you ‘with great joy’. With all this going on in your lives, we will consider it not only our responsibility but our joyful privilege to be His ‘witnesses’(48-53)!

The birth of John the Baptist was foretold in an angelic message (Luke 1:13-17) which speaks of prayer - “your prayer is heard” (v. 13) , preparation - looking forward to a time of “joy and gladness” (v. 14), power - “filled with the Holy Spirit” ( v. 15) and purpose - “he will turn many of the people to the Lord their God … to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (vs. 16-17). John’s ministry is described in John 1:19-34. In his ministry, there is prayer - pointing to Christ, the One who is worthy to receive our prayers (v. 27), preparation - preparing people for Christ (v. 23), power - pointing people to the power of Christ which comes to us in the gift of the Holy Spirit, purpose -pointing people to the purpose of Christ’s coming (v. 29). Prepare for Christmas prayerfully, remembering that the power of the Christian message lies in the purpose of Christ’s coming.

Daniel 3:1-30 ‘We want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up’(18). We have no other king but the Lord. He alone is King. He alone is to be worshipped. We are to ‘have no other gods before Him’. We are ‘not to make for ourselves an idol’ which takes the place of the Lord (Exodus 20:3-4). The Lord must come first in our lives. He is to be our ‘first love’- ‘the love of our heart: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart...’(Revelation 2:4; Mark 12:30). Jesus asks us, ‘Do you love me?’. He waits for our reply: ‘I love You’(John 21:15-17). ‘I love the Name of Jesus. King of my heart, He is everything to me’. ‘I love You, O Lord, You alone... my God who shall have all my praise’. (Mission Praise, 285,286). Daniel 4:1-37 ‘His Kingdom is an eternal Kingdom; His dominion endures from generation to generation’(3). The generations rise and fall - ‘You sweep men away in the sleep of death; they are like the new

Leviticus 27:1-34 What great love, Lord, You have for us. There is no love like Your love for us. It's the best love! What joy You give to us - the joy that comes from knowing that we are loved with "everlasting love" (Jeremiah 31:3). Help us, Lord, to rejoice in Your love, to be changed by Your love, to share Your love. Your love: It's the best thing we could ever receive from You - and it's the best thing we can pass on to other people!

As we read of the feeding of the five thousand, our thoughts turn to the Lord's Supper - Jesus blessed the food, broke it and gave it to everyone. "All of them ate as much as they wanted" (Mark 6:42). In the Lord  Jesus Christ - the Bread of Life, there is more than enough for everyone.

Jesus is "the way, the truth and the life" (John 14:6). He's the true and living way - to love, peace and joy. He loves us - and he shows his love to us (John 14:21). He speaks to us words of peace - and he gives his peace to us (John 14:27). He speaks to us words of joy - and he gives his joy to us (John 15:11).

Philippians 4:1-9 Joy (Philippians 4:4) and peace (Philippians 4:7) are grounded in God's love for us, not our love for Him. Perfect joy and perfect peace (1 Peter 1:8; Philippians 4:7) - but this is not our experience. Here, we must note the difference between God's love for us and our love for Him. His love for us is perfect. Our love for Him is not perfect. If our love in the Lord, our joy in the Lord and our peace in the Lord are to grow strong, we must feed on God's love. His love is faithful. His love endures forever. This is where our love, joy and peace come from.

Genesis 1:1-3 Lord, help us to get our priorities right - Your priorities. May our lives be more centred on You - less centred on ourselves. Help us to listen for Your Word - not to jump straight in with our own words. Help us to open our hearts to Your Holy Spirit. May He move among us - in power, in love, in holiness, in victory. Transform our life, O Lord - May we live as a new creation in Christ ( 2 Corinthians 5:17 ). May we know the great blessing of knowing that Jesus, our Saviour, is always "God with us" ( Matthew 1:23 ).

Lord, we thank You for the mountain-tops – but we’re not always up there! Often, we’re down in the valleys. When everything’s going well for us, help us to remember to say, “Thank You, Lord.” When things aren’t going so well, help us to keep on looking to You, to keep on receiving strength from You.

Lamentations 3:19-33 Do you want to "become depressed" (Lamentations 3:20)? - Keep on remembering the bad things that have happened to you. Do you want to be lifted out of your depression and into the joy of the Lord? - Remember this: God loves you. God's love is a "faithful love" (Lamentations 3:22). It doesn't come and go. It doesn't change with the weather or our changing circumstances. "The Lord is good to those who wait for Him" (Lamentations 3:25) - God is good, but we need to learn to wait on Him, if we are to appreciate His goodness. "Be silent" (Lamentations 3:28). Less complaining - all this shows is that we're seeing things for our own point of view. "He will show compassion according to His abundant faithful love" (Lamentations 3:32 ) - This is God's point of view.

 * "Throughout the land two-thirds will be cut off and die.  Yet, one-third will be left in it. I will bring this third of the people through the fire. I will refine them as silver is refined. I will test them as gold is tested. They will call on me, and I will answer them. I will say, They are my people. They will reply, The Lord is our God" (Zechariah 13:8-9). In today's world, our faith is under constant attack. God says to us, 'You are My people, and I am your God.' In today's world, we need God's Word. Without His Word, we'll lose our way.     * "The Lord will be King over all the earth. On that day, the Lord will be the only Lord, and His Name the only Name" (Zechariah 14:9). We read these words, and we think of Jesus Christ. His Name is above name. Every knee shall bow to Him (Philippians 2:9-11).

“God raised Jesus Christ from the dead” (Acts 2:24). Did this become true only because a lot of people said that it was true? Has it become false because many people refuse to believe that it’s true? No! It’s God’s great miracle. Death has been defeated. There is hope. Death will not triumph over us. Jesus Christ is Lord.

"God alone is my Rock and my Saviour—my Stronghold.  I cannot be severely shaken" (Psalm 62:2,6). As we read these words, we should read also the words of 1 Corinthians 10:4 , where we learn that "Christ" is our "spiritual rock."   Whenever we speak of a good friend as "my rock", let's not forget to look beyond even our best friends. Let's remember to pray, "When m y heart is overwhelmed: l ead me to the rock that is higher than I" (Psalm 61:2).

Acts 21:15-22:16 Here, we focus on two brief phrases - 'the things that  God  had done' (19) and  you  will be a witness for Him' (22:15). In the work of God we must learn to hold these two things together - divine power and human witness. Without  the power of God , no one will come to faith in Christ: 'It is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness", who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ'. How does God work? - He works through  human witnesses : 'we   preach...Jesus Christ as Lord'. How are divine power and human witness related to each other? - 'We have this treasure in earthen vessels to show that the transcendent, superior, all-surpassing power belongs to God and not to us' (Corinthians 4:5-7). Let God speak - through you!

Genesis 3:1-7 The tragedy of Adam and Eve: their fall into sin. We compare this with the triumph of Jesus - His victory over Satan. What made the difference?- standing on the Word of God. Adam and Eve believed the lie of the devil. Jesus took His stand on the Word of God. What about us? Do we stand? or Do we fall? Will we listen to Satan? or Will we listen to God? We cannot be facing in two directions at the same time. We must make our choice. Will our life be self-centred? or Will it be God-centred? God is calling us out of the old life (the Adam life). He’s calling us into the new life (the Jesus life). When we choose to walk with Jesus, He walks with us.

Jeremiah 50:29-46 ‘The arrogant one will stumble and fall’ (Jeremiah 50:32). Lord, Your Word warns us - ‘Pride goes before... a fall’, ‘Arrogance will bring your downfall’ (Proverbs 16:18; 29:23). Help us not to trust in ourselves. Help us to put our trust in You, Lord - Our ‘Redeemer is strong. The Lord Almighty is His Name’ (Jeremiah 50:34). Help us not to boast of ourselves. Salvation is ‘not our own doing.’Teach us to ‘boast’ of You, Lord.’Salvation is ‘the gift of God’ (1 Corinthians 1:31; Ephesians 2:8-9). When we are tempted to take pride in ourselves - ‘Lord, I thank You that I am not like other men...’ (Luke 18:11-12), teach us to come to the Cross of Christ, praying the sinner’s prayer  - ‘Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner’ (Luke 18:13) - and boasting only of You, our Lord and Saviour - ‘God forbid that I should glory except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ’ (Galatians 6:14).

Psalms 125:1-127:5 ‘Those who trust in the Lord... cannot be moved...’. When we put our trust in the Lord, we are like the ‘wise man who built his house on the rock’. His house ‘did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock’. When we do not put our trust in the Lord, we are like the ’foolish man who built his house on sand’. His house ‘fell with a great crash’. ‘Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain’(125:1; 127:1; Matthew 7:24-27). ‘Jesus Christ’ is the ‘sure Foundation’ upon which our faith is built. He is ‘the solid Rock’, our ‘mighty Rock of spiritual refreshment’(1 Corinthians 3:11; 10:3-4; Church Hymnary, 10,411). ‘Christ died for our sins... He was raised on the third day’. Let us rejoice in Him: ‘The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy’(126:3; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Psalms 128:1-129:8 ‘Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in His ways’(128:1). If we are to enjoy the Lord’s blessing, we must fear

"Their unbelief amazed Him" (Mark 6:6). The Lord has done so much for us. Why do we persist in unbelief? There is no real answer to this question, other than this: "The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. Who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9). Our unbelief may be amazing. His grace is so much more amazing. It is also amazing that the Lord should choose sinners like us to carry forward His work (Mark 6:12-13).

Luke 3:1-38 John's message came from ‘God’(2). He did not begin with love. He preached about sin and divine judgment, warning his hearers to ‘flee from the wrath to come’(7). He called for ‘repentance’(3,8). This was not what people wanted to hear. Before we can rejoice in the Good News concerning salvation, we must recognize our sin and our need of salvation. John prepared the way for Jesus. ‘All have sinned’, ‘The wages of sin is death’- This is the ‘bad news; which prepares us to receive, with joyful thanksgiving, ‘the Good News’: ‘the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord’(Romans 3:23; 6:23). Like John, we are to point to Jesus, God’s ‘beloved Son’: Before ‘Adam’ was, He is. Pray that the ‘Holy Spirit’ will bring people to Christ (22,38; 8:58).

Psalm 18:1-50 The first three verses set the tone: Worship. What a great start to this Psalm. Our attention is directed away from ourselves to the Lord: ‘my strength...my rock, my fortress and my deliverer...my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold’(1-2). The great testimony of verse 3 - ‘I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies’- did not come easily (4-5). The enemies of the Lord will be brought to judgment (13-14). ‘The cord of death encompassed me...He delivered me from my strong enemy...’(4-5,17-19) - Rejoice in the risen Christ through whom we have the ‘victory’ over ‘the last enemy...death’(1 Corinthians 15:20,26,54). God is leading us into ‘a broad place’(19). Step into the future with Him. Don’t hold back! ‘Let go and let God have His wonderful way’. '‘This God’ is ‘our God’. He is ‘the Rock’. He is ‘my Rock’. No one can compare with the Lord our God. He is the living God, the God of our salvation (30-31

Psalm 7:1-17 Scripture speaks to us of both judgment and salvation (6,10; Hebrews 9:27-28). The Gospel brings salvation, - ‘God sent the Son... that the world might be saved...’. There is also a warning - ‘he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the Name of the only Son of God’ (John 3:17-18). The Lord does not wish ‘that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance’. Nevertheless, there will be ‘the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men’ ( 2 Peter 3:9 , 7 ). What is happening here on earth? - ‘the wicked man...makes a pit...and falls into the hole which he has made’ (14-15). What does God say about this? - ‘If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword...’ (12), ‘God... commands all men everywhere to repent’ (Acts 17:30). God calls for ‘repentance’ and ‘faith in our Lord Jesus Christ’ - ‘Repent and believe the Gospel’ (Acts 20:21; Mark 1:15).

"When Herod listened to John, he would become very disturbed, and yet he liked to listen to him" (Mark 6:20). There are people who like to listen to God's Word, but they refuse to be changed by God's Word. Listening to God's Word is of no value, if it doesn't lead to being changed by God's Word.

Proverbs 10:1-22 What a difference there is between the ‘wise’ and the ‘foolish’. It is the difference between ‘righteousness’ and ‘wickedness’(1-2). Throughout life, there are choices to be made. We may choose wisely, being led by the Lord ‘in the paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake’. We may choose foolishly, going ‘astray’, refusing to ‘call upon the Lord’(Psalms 23:3-4; 14:2-4). We must be very careful about the choices we make. There is a ‘way that leads to life’ and a ‘way that leads to destruction’(16-17; Matthew 7:13-14). ‘Flee from the wrath to come’. Choose Christ. Choose life. ‘He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him’(Matthew 3:7; John 3:36).Choose Him now. ‘Now is the day of salvation’(2 Corinthians 6:2). Proverbs 10:23-11:11 '‘With his mouth the godless man would destroy his neighbour’ (9) - This kind of thing is going on all the time! There is no respect

Deuteronomy 17:14-18:22 Help us, Lord, to be obedient to Your Word. Help us, in our obedience, to remain humble. How can we possibly bring glory yo You if we're thinking about how obedient we are when we should be rejoicing in the great love by which You have saved us and the great power by which You keep us walking in the way of faith? Even when we're pressing on to a closer walk with You, help us never to forget this: "Who is a God like You, forgiving sin ... " (Micah 7:18-20).

Jeremiah 31:21-30 “Set your hearts toward the highway; keep the highway in mind” (Jeremiah 31:21) - “the highway of holiness” (Isaiah 35:8): A call to the “backsliding daughter” (Jeremiah 31:22). “The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways, but a good man will be satisfied” (Proverbs 14:14). Here’s a breath prayer (breathe in for the first part, breathe out for the second part). It’s based on John 3:30 - “More of You, Lord, less of me.” “The Lord bless you... mountain of holiness” (Jeremiah 31:23), “the days are coming” (Jeremiah 31:27,31,38): God is looking towards what we will become. Taking apart the self-centred life; putting together the God-centred life (Jeremiah 31:28).

Ecclesiastes 9:11-10:20 “Wisdom is better than weapons of war” (Ecclesiastes 9:18). We ask, Lord, about wisdom – “Where does wisdom come from? How will wisdom change our way of thinking and living?” You tell us that real “wisdom comes from heaven.” You show us that true wisdom will make us more “peace-loving” (James 3:18).

John 20:1-31 "He saw and believed" (John 20:8), "They still did not understand the Scripture that He must rise from the dead" (John 20:9). Don't wait until you understand everything - before you  believe. Believe - and ask God to increase your understanding, as you learn to trust Him.  * John 20:16-18 - "Mary", "Rabboni (Teacher), "I have seen the Lord." This was more than seeing the empty tomb. This was seeing the Lord. As well as seeing the Lord, there is hearing what He says to us and sharing it with others.  * "The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord" (John 20:20). This joy was to be shared - in the power of the Holy Spirit (John 20:21-23).  * John 20:24-29  - Thomas " We have seen the Lord!" (John 20:25). Thomas needed a personal faith. What a faith - "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28). John 20:29 - More than 'seeing is believing.' John 20:31- This is for us. I

Genesis 18:1-15 Lord, Your love is greater than our sin. You have a great purpose for every one of us – but our sin gets in the way! You want to make us more like Jesus – but there’s so much of self in us! You want to lead us in the pathway of victory – but Satan’s always trying to trip us up! What are we to make of all this? Are we to give up in despair? No! We must not give up – because You, Lord, never give up on us. Your love is greater than our sin. You will fulfil Your great purpose in us. You will make us more like Jesus. You will lead us in the pathway of victory. Our sin shall not triumph over Your love. Satan will be defeated. Your “love has the victory for ever!” (Mission Praise, 86).

‘Reconciled’ to God through Christ, we have received ‘the ministry of reconciliation.’ Saved by Him, we are to ‘work with Him.’ We are ‘not to accept the grace of God in vain’ by living for ourselves. We are to be ‘ambassadors for Christ.’ We must proclaim the urgent message of salvation - ‘now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation.’ We must call men and women to respond to God’s message of salvation: ‘Be reconciled to God’ (2 Corinthians 5:18-6:2). If we are to be effective ‘ambassadors for Christ’, we must dedicate our lives to Him: ‘Let us cleanse ourselves… and make holiness perfect in the fear of God’(2 Corinthians 7:1). Without this heartfelt commitment to godly living, we cannot really serve the Lord at all. Our wrong lives will drown out our ‘right’ words. We need true lives as well as ‘true’ words.

Genesis 22:15-23:20 Lord, help us to remember that You are the everlasting God. We are so changeable. Your love for us is unchanged, unchanging and unchangeable. Our feelings take us here, there and everywhere. Your love brings us back to the place where our love for You grows strong. How does our love for You grow strong? Is this something that we do for ourselves? – No! It’s something that You do for us. You show us how much You love for us. You take us to the Cross of Christ. You show us that Your love for us remains strong even when our love for You has become very weak. This is the way in which our love for You grows strong. We are strengthened by a stronger love, a love that never becomes weak, a love that is always strong - everlasting love. These are things we must never forget – Lord, help us to remember that You are the everlasting God. Help us to remember that Your love is everlasting love.

We noted, in Genesis 1:1-3, the importance of getting our priorities right - God, God's Word, God's Spirit. Here, we emphasize the importance of these priorities. We are under God. We must remember that He is God (Genesis 2:15). We are to obey God's Word (Genesis 2:16). Here we learn that the act of obedience is an act of freedom. In Christ, we are set free to obey God. God says, 'You are free to eat from any tree in the garden'. He does not then say, 'You are free to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil'. He says, 'You must not. The act of disobedience is not an act of freedom. By choosing the way of sin, we show that we are in bondage. We are not free. We are the captives of sin, and we need to be set free - by Christ (John 8:32,36). We come to know God, choosing good rather than evil, as we follow the way of God's Spirit (Galatians 5:16; Hebrews 5:14). (Year One, 9th January: Genesis 2:15-17)

Psalm 107 begins and ends with God’ “steadfast love” (1,31). From the beginning of our journey through life, God loved us. All the way through our journey, he loves us. At the end of our journey, he will love us. Thank you, Lord, for your love. You are the eternal God – and your love is eternal love.

Jonah 1:1-2:10 ‘Salvation comes from the Lord’ (Jonah 2:9). We can never save ourselves. We can only be saved - by You, Lord. Left to our own devices, we ‘flee from Your presence.’ We ‘run away from You’ (Jonah 1:3). Sin - This is the story of our life. Salvation - This is the story of what You have done for us. We are sinners. We need to be saved. How can our life be turned around? How can we turn from the way of sin and seek the way of salvation? We cannot change ourselves. We need to be changed by You, Lord. We cannot forgive our own sins. We need to be forgiven by You. Where does the desire for forgiveness and change come from? Does it come from ourselves? No! It comes from You, Lord: ‘He drew me, and I followed on...’ (Mission Praise, 499). Jonah 3:1-4:11 The people of Nineveh ‘believed God’ and ‘turned from their evil ways.’ You, Lord, had shown Yourself to be ‘a gracious and compassionate God...’ How did Jonah react? Was he rejoicing in You? No! He was compla

"Do not conform  to the pattern of this world,  but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2). As we read these words, may each of us pray, "Lord, change our way of thinking - and change our way of living." Let us feed our minds with God's Word - and pray that our lives will be transformed by his presence, his power and his purpose - " you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;  and you will be my witnesses" (Acts 1:8).

“Then Jesus prayed this prayer: O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding the truth from those who think themselves so wise and clever, and for revealing it to the childlike” (Matthew 11:25). “So wise and clever” – Is that what we think we are? Do we think that we ‘know it all’? Jesus cuts us down to size! How much do we really know if we don’t know the one thing that really matters? – Jesus loves me.

"By grace you have been saved through faith ... " (Ephesians 2:8). Grace is God's initiative. Faith is our response. The Lord takes the first step. In love, he comes to us. Responding to his love and rejoicing in his love, we come to him. "He drew me, and I followed on ... " (from the hymn, "O happy day!"). Here's a link to a song which will help you to sing praise to the God of grace. Forever Grateful With Lyrics Video Design; Lyn Alejandrino Hopkins - YouTube

Where do we find real meaning, purpose and direction in life? How are we to make sense of our life? Why are we here? Where are we going? In our life's journey, as we travel from the past, through the present and on into the future, we need Jesus to guide us.  Without him, we are wandering around aimlessly. Nothing really makes sense. We can't understand what life is all about. We don't really know why we're here. We don't have hope for the future.  With Jesus, everything changes. He takes the many disconnected pieces in the jigsaw of our life. He  puts them together - and we see the big picture. Through him, we see ourselves differently - created by the love of God and redeemed by the grace of God, we're being led towards the glory of God. This is what rings meaning, purpose and direction into our lives. There are many things that challenge our sense of meaning, purpose and direction. In such testing and trying times, let us keep our eyes fixed on J

Ezekiel 11:1-12:16 Lord, You speak to us about our sin - ‘Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people’ - and Your salvation - ‘I will... put a new spirit in them...’ (Ezekiel 12:2; Ezekiel 11:19-20). Show us, Lord, that we must receive’ with humility, the bad news concerning our sin - ‘The wages of sin is death’ - before we can receive, with gladness, the Good News concerning Your salvation - ‘The free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord’ (Romans 6:23). You want each of us to be saved: ‘The Lord... does not want anyone to perish; He wants everyone to turn away from their sins’ (2 Peter 3:9). To those who refuse to be saved, dismissing the bad news concerning their sin and closing their hearts to the Good News concerning Your salvation, You speak Your Word or warning: ‘...I will punish them for what they have done’ (Ezekiel 11:21).   Ezekiel 12:17-13:23 ‘Hear the Word of the Lord!’ (Ezekiel 13:2). Lord, Your Word warns us: ‘The time is comi