Read Daniel 5:1-4
Belshazzar had a tenuous reign in Babylon. His father, Nabonidus, was the real king but because he was away often in Arabia on long military campaigns he set up Belshazzar as the vice regent in Babylon.
Unlike the great and revered King Nebuchadnezzar, who had earned and won his kingship, Belshazzar probably felt that he had to prove himself. The huge banquet may have been an attempt to impress and seal his rule over the kingdom. In this vein, Belshazzar had the gold and silver goblets (which were taken from the temple in Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar) and he used them as part of his revelry. What was Belshazzar doing? Showing contempt and disregard to the great King Nebuchadnezzar and throwing down the gauntlet before the one true living God, Yahweh Himself. This is borne out in vs 4 - they gave praise to the gods of gold and silver, bronze, iron and wood and stone. Any material that could be used to carve a statue was praised and honoured in defiance of the first and second commandment Yahweh had given His people. And so began a contest of superiority and greatness. Belshazzar was claiming to be the greatest, even against Nebuchadnezzar the great king and Yahweh, the one true living God.
Far too many believers end up in a mess (think of all the Christian youth that have ended up in a tragic situation) simply because they felt that they had to prove themselves. In God’s eyes you have nothing to prove. He loves you as you are. He has called you into His Kingdom and has lavished His love upon you through the cross and resurrection of Christ Jesus. God does not want you to do stupid or risky things to prove yourself. He wants you to strive for holiness. He wants you to work hard at doing what is pleasing, right and good in the Lord’s eyes. And to make it possible for you to do this very thing, He has sent His Holy Spirit to dwell with each and every single person who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Prayer:-
þ Pray for Jim and Faye Lyons and their Straight Talk Ministry. Ask God to bring blessing and a great harvest through their work. Ask the Lord to allow many students to come into the Kingdom through their work.
þ Continue to pray for the work of OMF and for Cecily Moar.
Monday 28 February 2011
Saturday 26 February 2011
February 26, 2011
Read Daniel 4. James 4:1-10
Our God can humble even the hardest of hearts. Think back to Pharaoh in the book of Exodus as the great king battled the God of the Hebrews. Through 10 mighty plagues Pharaoh was completely humbled. The nations that pitted themselves against the Israelite army were humbled by defeat. Nebuchadnezzar was humbled by being thrown out with the animals and spending a season with them as a ‘animal’. Saul, the proud and arrogant Pharisee, was humbled by his meeting with Jesus on the Damascus road. God, our God, can humble the hardest of hearts.
Our God loves humility, true deep humility that comes from a pure heart. True humility cannot be feigned or acted out. It flows outward from an inner condition. Any other kind of humility is 10% hum and 90% bull! True humility stands out for Jesus. True humility draws others to Christ.
What does true humility look like? True humility feeds the poor and needy without pomp and ceremony. True humility cleans up after others. It sits by the sick bed and intercedes for the sick and dying. True humility washes the dirty feet of others and allows others to go in front. True humility denies oneself for the sake of others. True humility reaches out in love, compassion and practical love. What does a humble church gathering look like? What services does a humble church provide? How does a humble church reach into the community?
Humility, inner humility begins with seeing ourselves as we really are and seeing our God as He really is. False pretences and wrong teaching lead only to pride. To grow in humility, spend time with God each and every single day and make a point of confessing your sins. Spend time in adoration and praise, worshiping God for who he is and his qualities. As you focus on God, humility will well up within you. It’s hard to proud when you see God for who he is and what he’s done! It’s easy to be humble when you are in a deep and passionate relationship with God.
Prayer:
þ Pray that God would grow your church to be a humble church that powerfully shines the light of Jesus to the world. Pray that each and every person in your church would humbly submit to the Word and live in obedience to it day by day. Pray that God would work powerfully among your gathered congregation tomorrow.
þ Pray that you personally would grow in humility as your own relationship with God increases and deepens. Pray that you would have opportunity to serve others.
Our God can humble even the hardest of hearts. Think back to Pharaoh in the book of Exodus as the great king battled the God of the Hebrews. Through 10 mighty plagues Pharaoh was completely humbled. The nations that pitted themselves against the Israelite army were humbled by defeat. Nebuchadnezzar was humbled by being thrown out with the animals and spending a season with them as a ‘animal’. Saul, the proud and arrogant Pharisee, was humbled by his meeting with Jesus on the Damascus road. God, our God, can humble the hardest of hearts.
Our God loves humility, true deep humility that comes from a pure heart. True humility cannot be feigned or acted out. It flows outward from an inner condition. Any other kind of humility is 10% hum and 90% bull! True humility stands out for Jesus. True humility draws others to Christ.
What does true humility look like? True humility feeds the poor and needy without pomp and ceremony. True humility cleans up after others. It sits by the sick bed and intercedes for the sick and dying. True humility washes the dirty feet of others and allows others to go in front. True humility denies oneself for the sake of others. True humility reaches out in love, compassion and practical love. What does a humble church gathering look like? What services does a humble church provide? How does a humble church reach into the community?
Humility, inner humility begins with seeing ourselves as we really are and seeing our God as He really is. False pretences and wrong teaching lead only to pride. To grow in humility, spend time with God each and every single day and make a point of confessing your sins. Spend time in adoration and praise, worshiping God for who he is and his qualities. As you focus on God, humility will well up within you. It’s hard to proud when you see God for who he is and what he’s done! It’s easy to be humble when you are in a deep and passionate relationship with God.
Prayer:
þ Pray that God would grow your church to be a humble church that powerfully shines the light of Jesus to the world. Pray that each and every person in your church would humbly submit to the Word and live in obedience to it day by day. Pray that God would work powerfully among your gathered congregation tomorrow.
þ Pray that you personally would grow in humility as your own relationship with God increases and deepens. Pray that you would have opportunity to serve others.
Friday 25 February 2011
February 25 2011
Read Daniel 4:34-37. Romans 11:33-36.
Many people in this world, even believers, have a distorted view of God. Some believers see God as their heavenly physician, only to be called upon when sickness draws near. Others see Him as the eternal ATM, an eternal credit card to use when in need or overwhelmed with covetous desires. In the world God is seen as a teacher of morals, a god among the many gods, and (dare I say) an aged, somewhat senile, grandfather who sits on his rocking chair idly watching the world go by.
The bible paints a very different picture of God. Isaiah saw the Lord in His throne room and fell face down with fear. He declared that he was ruined because of his sin and his people's sins. Daniel saw heavenly beings and again, fell down as though dead. Seeing the Lord is a terrifying thing because of His unimaginable holiness, his incredible majesty. Looking at God would be like looking directly at the sun through the most powerful telescope we have!! Standing before unspeakable glory, dominion and power would, I assure you, leave you speechless and very very afraid.
Nebuchadnezzar captured the sense of God’s brilliance and majesty. He declared that this God, the God of Daniel, does what he pleases. We cannot presume to counsel God or tell Him what to do. We dare not prescribe a course of action for Him to follow. This God does what he pleases. He can set up kings as he wills. He can remove powers and authorities as he sees fit. He can act in ways that contradict our demands or expectations. He can work in ways that we never dreamt of. God can do as he pleases.
All too often I hear believers praying as though they are god! By listening to their prayers, you would be forgiven for thinking that Yahweh is the servant. He is at their beck and call and does as he’s told. Think about your prayers. Are they fitting for the majesty and mighty, holy and righteous God of the universe? Do your prayers show God to be your God not your servant? Do you pray to God with a sense of awe, reverence and fear? Do you let God be God and do as He pleases?
Prayer:
þ Read Psalm 29 or Psalm 136 and spend time in adoration and praise of God for who he is and his qualities. Try hard not to ask for anything at all but simply to praise God, to speak of his might and wonders and deeds.
þ Pray for your church’s gathering this Sonday. Pray that every believer will come along ready to stand before an awesome, holy God and to worship Him as he is, not as we’d like him to be.
þ Pray that Creation Ministries would continue to work for the Lord providing powerful incentives to believe the entire gospel (Genesis to Revelation). Ask God to use them powerfully to bring many into the kingdom and to educate many believers who seem to desire to remove Genesis 1-11 from their bibles.
Many people in this world, even believers, have a distorted view of God. Some believers see God as their heavenly physician, only to be called upon when sickness draws near. Others see Him as the eternal ATM, an eternal credit card to use when in need or overwhelmed with covetous desires. In the world God is seen as a teacher of morals, a god among the many gods, and (dare I say) an aged, somewhat senile, grandfather who sits on his rocking chair idly watching the world go by.
The bible paints a very different picture of God. Isaiah saw the Lord in His throne room and fell face down with fear. He declared that he was ruined because of his sin and his people's sins. Daniel saw heavenly beings and again, fell down as though dead. Seeing the Lord is a terrifying thing because of His unimaginable holiness, his incredible majesty. Looking at God would be like looking directly at the sun through the most powerful telescope we have!! Standing before unspeakable glory, dominion and power would, I assure you, leave you speechless and very very afraid.
Nebuchadnezzar captured the sense of God’s brilliance and majesty. He declared that this God, the God of Daniel, does what he pleases. We cannot presume to counsel God or tell Him what to do. We dare not prescribe a course of action for Him to follow. This God does what he pleases. He can set up kings as he wills. He can remove powers and authorities as he sees fit. He can act in ways that contradict our demands or expectations. He can work in ways that we never dreamt of. God can do as he pleases.
All too often I hear believers praying as though they are god! By listening to their prayers, you would be forgiven for thinking that Yahweh is the servant. He is at their beck and call and does as he’s told. Think about your prayers. Are they fitting for the majesty and mighty, holy and righteous God of the universe? Do your prayers show God to be your God not your servant? Do you pray to God with a sense of awe, reverence and fear? Do you let God be God and do as He pleases?
Prayer:
þ Read Psalm 29 or Psalm 136 and spend time in adoration and praise of God for who he is and his qualities. Try hard not to ask for anything at all but simply to praise God, to speak of his might and wonders and deeds.
þ Pray for your church’s gathering this Sonday. Pray that every believer will come along ready to stand before an awesome, holy God and to worship Him as he is, not as we’d like him to be.
þ Pray that Creation Ministries would continue to work for the Lord providing powerful incentives to believe the entire gospel (Genesis to Revelation). Ask God to use them powerfully to bring many into the kingdom and to educate many believers who seem to desire to remove Genesis 1-11 from their bibles.
Thursday 24 February 2011
February 24, 2011
Read Daniel 4:28-33. Job 1.
It’s very humbling to realise that the Lord owes me nothing. He didn’t have to save me. He didn’t have to send Jesus to die for my sins. He didn’t have to adopt me into his kingdom as his beloved son. He didn't have to ... but he did.
Even now with all the physical blessings we enjoy we need to remember that the Lord can take it all away. Nebuchadnezzar was told that his authority is taken away from him. Job, the most righteous man of the East, confessed that the Lord gives and the Lord takes away. It’s a lot easier to avoid pride, to stop taking things for granted and to be genuinely grateful when we realise that the Lord can take our things away at any moment. King Nebuchadnezzar was proud and arrogant so the Lord took away his authority. God wanted to teach him a lesson and he spent ‘7 times’ with wild animals. He lost everything and was reduced to being less than human. Job learnt that the Lord can do whatever he pleases, even if we don’t understand or agree.
Even though God owes me nothing, he’s given me everything. I owe God everything but have given Him nothing for my salvation. Humbling isn’t it? As we humble ourselves before the Lord and see ourselves as we really are and put all our ‘things’ into their proper perspective we grow in real heartfelt gratitude and humility. It’s when we take this approach to ourselves and our ‘things’ that we can share with a pure heart, give joyfully to the needy and go without for the sake of others. This kind of deep seated generosity flows out of a heart that loves God more than the ‘things’ of this world. Idolatry is pushed out of the heart by a sincere and reverent love for the Lord.
Prayer:
þ Pray that your congregation would be filled with believers who humbly love others and the Lord more than themselves and their things. Pray that this deep seated love for the Lord would lead to a generosity and other centeredness that can only come from the work of the Holy Spirit in people’s lives.
þ Pray for the church in Vietnam. Though religious freedom nominally exists, believers are discriminated against, persecuted and harassed by the authorities. Pray for strong biblical leadership. Pray for a firm, growing faith among believers. Pray that God would bring repentance and faith to many more believers.
þ Pray for the India Mission team. Ask God to bind this team together and to bring unity and oneness. Pray that God would use them powerfully in India to bring blessing, hope and new birth to many. Pray that we as a congregation will be able to support them financially, prayerfully and practically as they plan their mission trip.
It’s very humbling to realise that the Lord owes me nothing. He didn’t have to save me. He didn’t have to send Jesus to die for my sins. He didn’t have to adopt me into his kingdom as his beloved son. He didn't have to ... but he did.
Even now with all the physical blessings we enjoy we need to remember that the Lord can take it all away. Nebuchadnezzar was told that his authority is taken away from him. Job, the most righteous man of the East, confessed that the Lord gives and the Lord takes away. It’s a lot easier to avoid pride, to stop taking things for granted and to be genuinely grateful when we realise that the Lord can take our things away at any moment. King Nebuchadnezzar was proud and arrogant so the Lord took away his authority. God wanted to teach him a lesson and he spent ‘7 times’ with wild animals. He lost everything and was reduced to being less than human. Job learnt that the Lord can do whatever he pleases, even if we don’t understand or agree.
Even though God owes me nothing, he’s given me everything. I owe God everything but have given Him nothing for my salvation. Humbling isn’t it? As we humble ourselves before the Lord and see ourselves as we really are and put all our ‘things’ into their proper perspective we grow in real heartfelt gratitude and humility. It’s when we take this approach to ourselves and our ‘things’ that we can share with a pure heart, give joyfully to the needy and go without for the sake of others. This kind of deep seated generosity flows out of a heart that loves God more than the ‘things’ of this world. Idolatry is pushed out of the heart by a sincere and reverent love for the Lord.
Prayer:
þ Pray that your congregation would be filled with believers who humbly love others and the Lord more than themselves and their things. Pray that this deep seated love for the Lord would lead to a generosity and other centeredness that can only come from the work of the Holy Spirit in people’s lives.
þ Pray for the church in Vietnam. Though religious freedom nominally exists, believers are discriminated against, persecuted and harassed by the authorities. Pray for strong biblical leadership. Pray for a firm, growing faith among believers. Pray that God would bring repentance and faith to many more believers.
þ Pray for the India Mission team. Ask God to bind this team together and to bring unity and oneness. Pray that God would use them powerfully in India to bring blessing, hope and new birth to many. Pray that we as a congregation will be able to support them financially, prayerfully and practically as they plan their mission trip.
Wednesday 23 February 2011
February 23, 2011
Read Daniel 4: 19-27
When the Lord reveals to us a sin in our lives it can be a difficult time. Not only can it be embarrassing but also it can be a slippery road getting back to where we should be.
While the bible talks about repentance, few of us know what that entails. The word repent means to change our heart and our attitude towards some area of our lives. Initial repentance is turning our heart towards God and loving Him rather than choosing to rebel against him. Within the Christian life, having repented and believed in Jesus for our salvation, there is a need for continual repentance as the Lord reveals the sins in our lives. To repent means to think about that issue as the Lord does. If I need to repent of stealing then I admit that stealing is sinful, wrong and an abomination in the eyes of the Lord. I start thinking about stealing the way that the Lord does.
Added to this, we need to consider Daniel 4:27.
Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.
The Lord calls us to renounce our sins, not just in words and in thought, but in actions. We are to do what is right and pleasing to God. as part of our repentance. In Ephesians 4:28 we read a more specific example of this generalisation. The person who has been stealing must work productively with his hands so that he has something to give the needy. If you need to repent, change your heart and mind towards that issue but then also do something productive. In that area or within that issue, do what is right and pleasing to the Lord. What you are doing is replacing the evil in your life with something good. If you were greedy, replace it with generosity. If you were stealing, replace it with giving. If you were cursing, replace it with blessings. If you were lazy, substitute service to the body of Christ. Get the picture??
The worst thing you can do is leave a vacuum of time or period of inactivity in your life. Assuredly that inactivity will be filled with temptation and evil if we fail to fill it with something good and pleasing to the Lord. We need to commit to something positive, pleasing and good with at least as much energy and devotion as we committed to the sin we are repenting of.
Prayer:
þ Pray that our brothers in the bible colleges in Myanmar will see many people repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Pray that they will remain faithful to the task of proclaiming the gospel of Christ Jesus.
þ Pray that God would bring great conviction upon his people at Christlife to repent of their sins. Pray that we would grow in holiness and strive to be Christ-like in all we do, say and think.
When the Lord reveals to us a sin in our lives it can be a difficult time. Not only can it be embarrassing but also it can be a slippery road getting back to where we should be.
While the bible talks about repentance, few of us know what that entails. The word repent means to change our heart and our attitude towards some area of our lives. Initial repentance is turning our heart towards God and loving Him rather than choosing to rebel against him. Within the Christian life, having repented and believed in Jesus for our salvation, there is a need for continual repentance as the Lord reveals the sins in our lives. To repent means to think about that issue as the Lord does. If I need to repent of stealing then I admit that stealing is sinful, wrong and an abomination in the eyes of the Lord. I start thinking about stealing the way that the Lord does.
Added to this, we need to consider Daniel 4:27.
Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.
The Lord calls us to renounce our sins, not just in words and in thought, but in actions. We are to do what is right and pleasing to God. as part of our repentance. In Ephesians 4:28 we read a more specific example of this generalisation. The person who has been stealing must work productively with his hands so that he has something to give the needy. If you need to repent, change your heart and mind towards that issue but then also do something productive. In that area or within that issue, do what is right and pleasing to the Lord. What you are doing is replacing the evil in your life with something good. If you were greedy, replace it with generosity. If you were stealing, replace it with giving. If you were cursing, replace it with blessings. If you were lazy, substitute service to the body of Christ. Get the picture??
The worst thing you can do is leave a vacuum of time or period of inactivity in your life. Assuredly that inactivity will be filled with temptation and evil if we fail to fill it with something good and pleasing to the Lord. We need to commit to something positive, pleasing and good with at least as much energy and devotion as we committed to the sin we are repenting of.
Prayer:
þ Pray that our brothers in the bible colleges in Myanmar will see many people repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Pray that they will remain faithful to the task of proclaiming the gospel of Christ Jesus.
þ Pray that God would bring great conviction upon his people at Christlife to repent of their sins. Pray that we would grow in holiness and strive to be Christ-like in all we do, say and think.
Tuesday 22 February 2011
February 22, 2011
Read Daniel 4:4-18
Pride! Ouch! That word hurts just to hear it doesn’t it? Do you suffer from pride? Do you have pride in your heart? Proverbs 16:18 assures that pride comes before destruction. Proverbs 8:13 assures us that the Lord hates pride.
Pride comes in many shapes and sizes. Often it can even be hidden beneath a false humility. King Nebuchadnezzar had pride in his heart. God had elevated him to King and ruler of the known world. But he was, as verse 4 avers, contented and prosperous. He began to congratulate himself on building a fine kingdom. He was impressed with his own power and achievements. He had forgotten that God gave him everything he had.
How often we can also forget God in our lives. We work hard. We earn and we buy things, often thinking that it’s our work, our money and therefore our things. We forget that the job has been given to us by the Lord. The Lord’s mercy has allowed us to be healthy and to work. The Lord has graciously given us all things, even our very breath. And still quite often, like King Nebuchadnezzar, we feel that temptation to congratulate ourselves, to wallow in our own achievements and to bless ourselves for our hard work and efforts.
How can I work against pride in my own life? There are several ‘good habits’ to get into ward off even the slightest temptation of pride.
1. Take time to thank God privately and publicly for all things you receive even your daily meals. Build habits of thanking God on payday, on your days off, at meal times and so on ... get the picture?
2. Acknowledge God and his goodness to you at every step.
3. Get rid of every thing physical in your life that tempts you towards pride. If your car is a source of pride, trade it in on a lesser vehicle. If your money or pay is causing pride, give substantially more each week in your tithe.
4. Develop your relationship to God by making it a priority to spend quality time with him each and every single day - time to be alone with God for prayer and for reading his word. It’s hard to be proud when you’re close to God.
Prayer:
þ Pray that God would use you to bring light and salvation to others. Pray for 5 other non believers you know by name. Pray that God would bring opportunity to speak the Word into these five people’s lives.
þ Pray for the leaders in your church - pastor, elders, staff, ministry leaders, cell leaders etc. Pray that these men and women would be humble before God, willing to listen to God and willing to put the Word into practice in their own lives first and foremost.
Pride! Ouch! That word hurts just to hear it doesn’t it? Do you suffer from pride? Do you have pride in your heart? Proverbs 16:18 assures that pride comes before destruction. Proverbs 8:13 assures us that the Lord hates pride.
Pride comes in many shapes and sizes. Often it can even be hidden beneath a false humility. King Nebuchadnezzar had pride in his heart. God had elevated him to King and ruler of the known world. But he was, as verse 4 avers, contented and prosperous. He began to congratulate himself on building a fine kingdom. He was impressed with his own power and achievements. He had forgotten that God gave him everything he had.
How often we can also forget God in our lives. We work hard. We earn and we buy things, often thinking that it’s our work, our money and therefore our things. We forget that the job has been given to us by the Lord. The Lord’s mercy has allowed us to be healthy and to work. The Lord has graciously given us all things, even our very breath. And still quite often, like King Nebuchadnezzar, we feel that temptation to congratulate ourselves, to wallow in our own achievements and to bless ourselves for our hard work and efforts.
How can I work against pride in my own life? There are several ‘good habits’ to get into ward off even the slightest temptation of pride.
1. Take time to thank God privately and publicly for all things you receive even your daily meals. Build habits of thanking God on payday, on your days off, at meal times and so on ... get the picture?
2. Acknowledge God and his goodness to you at every step.
3. Get rid of every thing physical in your life that tempts you towards pride. If your car is a source of pride, trade it in on a lesser vehicle. If your money or pay is causing pride, give substantially more each week in your tithe.
4. Develop your relationship to God by making it a priority to spend quality time with him each and every single day - time to be alone with God for prayer and for reading his word. It’s hard to be proud when you’re close to God.
Prayer:
þ Pray that God would use you to bring light and salvation to others. Pray for 5 other non believers you know by name. Pray that God would bring opportunity to speak the Word into these five people’s lives.
þ Pray for the leaders in your church - pastor, elders, staff, ministry leaders, cell leaders etc. Pray that these men and women would be humble before God, willing to listen to God and willing to put the Word into practice in their own lives first and foremost.
Monday 21 February 2011
February 21, 2011
Read Daniel 4:1-3
How incredible is our God! How amazing is the God we worship! How awe inspiring is our Lord and Saviour!
King Nebuchadnezzar captured this sense of our God as God worked in his life and brought great signs and wonders to bear in his life. You and I have greater signs and wonders and have even more reasons to declare His praises to the world around us.
As we live this side of the cross we have seen the greatest miracle, the miracle of all miracles, the resurrection of Christ Jesus. God, the holy and righteous God, has sent his one and only Son into a rebellious and undeserving world, not to bring condemnation but to bring salvation. Jesus has come so that you and I can avoid condemnation and receive hope, mercy and grace to help us in our time of need. You and I stand in awe of God because God has reached down to us in love. He has down what we (or no other person) could ever do - keep the righteous requirements of God’s law and offer to God the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world. God has washed us clean and secured for each believer a place in eternity by His side.
As you walk out the door each morning, do you walk out with a sense of awe and wonder? Do you walk with a spring in your step knowing that this holy and righteous God is with you? Do you sing and make music in your heart to the Lord because he has drawn you near to Himself? Do you open your mouth and declare his praises at every opportunity? Out of our love for God we can sing his praises even when life doesn’t go the way we expected. We can offer the sacrifice of praise even if the bills mount up and work isn’t bringing in as much money as we’d like. We can declare the wonders of our God even when our kids turn and walk a slippery path.
Prayer:
þ Spend time praising God.
þ Pray for the work of Straight Talk. Ask God to bless Jim and Faye with all they need to continue ministering to school students. Pray that many will not only make a pledge of abstinence but also that many would come to Christ for salvation.
þ Pray for David and Kirsty Richards in New Zealand as they work among uni students. Pray that God would open many doors for evangelism and discipleship. Pray that the Lord would bless their ministry and encourage them through conversions and growth in new Christians.
How incredible is our God! How amazing is the God we worship! How awe inspiring is our Lord and Saviour!
King Nebuchadnezzar captured this sense of our God as God worked in his life and brought great signs and wonders to bear in his life. You and I have greater signs and wonders and have even more reasons to declare His praises to the world around us.
As we live this side of the cross we have seen the greatest miracle, the miracle of all miracles, the resurrection of Christ Jesus. God, the holy and righteous God, has sent his one and only Son into a rebellious and undeserving world, not to bring condemnation but to bring salvation. Jesus has come so that you and I can avoid condemnation and receive hope, mercy and grace to help us in our time of need. You and I stand in awe of God because God has reached down to us in love. He has down what we (or no other person) could ever do - keep the righteous requirements of God’s law and offer to God the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world. God has washed us clean and secured for each believer a place in eternity by His side.
As you walk out the door each morning, do you walk out with a sense of awe and wonder? Do you walk with a spring in your step knowing that this holy and righteous God is with you? Do you sing and make music in your heart to the Lord because he has drawn you near to Himself? Do you open your mouth and declare his praises at every opportunity? Out of our love for God we can sing his praises even when life doesn’t go the way we expected. We can offer the sacrifice of praise even if the bills mount up and work isn’t bringing in as much money as we’d like. We can declare the wonders of our God even when our kids turn and walk a slippery path.
Prayer:
þ Spend time praising God.
þ Pray for the work of Straight Talk. Ask God to bless Jim and Faye with all they need to continue ministering to school students. Pray that many will not only make a pledge of abstinence but also that many would come to Christ for salvation.
þ Pray for David and Kirsty Richards in New Zealand as they work among uni students. Pray that God would open many doors for evangelism and discipleship. Pray that the Lord would bless their ministry and encourage them through conversions and growth in new Christians.
Saturday 19 February 2011
February 19, 2011
Read Daniel 31-27. Daniel 3:28-30
A poem starts with a truism that we rarely think about. It reads, ‘I’d rather see a sermon than hear one any day’. From a non Christian perspective this is absolutely and undeniably true. A non believer will often cringe even at the thought of hearing someone preach at them. But when they see the sermon lived out and put into practice they are inevitably drawn to think of Christ Jesus. It is through acting out the Word, applying it, that people come to know Christ (but please don’t hear me negate the need to speak of Jesus - the two go hand in hand).
It was through the trusting action of the three believers in Babylon that Nebuchadnezzar gave praise to God. Think about world history and you see the same pattern. Read Acts 8 and you see the church growing through persecution as believers trust the Lord and continue to live for him. China has thousands of people coming to Christ every day. This incredible situation was preceded by the faithful few trusting God and living for Him, even being willing to die for Him. The blood of the martyrs was the seed of the church. In India we are seeing more and more come to the Lord in growing numbers each year. Why? Because the faithful have lived lives of trusting God and have refused to deny Christ. In 2010 the church in Nigeria grew immensely because the faithful trusted God in the midst of immense and terrible persecution. Africa has witnessed the same pattern.
The truth is clear. The Word of God was never meant to be hidden and covered. When we hear the Word of God we are to put it into practice, no matter what the cost to ourselves. It is this kind of trust and faith that shows the world we are serious about Jesus. It is his kind of trust and faith that draws people to Christ Jesus for salvation. It is this kind of trust and faith that will change this nation of Australia from a hedonistic, unbelieving nation to a God fearing nation. You and I have a vital role to play in this transformation. We need to live for God. We need to put God at the top of our priority list and we need to live for Him and Him alone. We need to start jumping up and down and making a noise when the world ridicules Him, mocks Him and discards Him as irrelevant. We need to show the world the love of Christ by the purity and reverence and generosity of our lives.
Prayer:
þ Pray that our church gathering motivates and inspires each one of us to be out in the world making disciples for Jesus each and every day this week. Ask God to transform us so that we are a holy people, a royal priesthood, a people belonging to God that we might declare the praises of him who called us out darkness into his wonderful light.
þ Pray for 3 non Christians you know. Pray that God would give you opportunity to share your faith with them, to offer them the gospel and to walk them into the Kingdom through repentance and faith.
A poem starts with a truism that we rarely think about. It reads, ‘I’d rather see a sermon than hear one any day’. From a non Christian perspective this is absolutely and undeniably true. A non believer will often cringe even at the thought of hearing someone preach at them. But when they see the sermon lived out and put into practice they are inevitably drawn to think of Christ Jesus. It is through acting out the Word, applying it, that people come to know Christ (but please don’t hear me negate the need to speak of Jesus - the two go hand in hand).
It was through the trusting action of the three believers in Babylon that Nebuchadnezzar gave praise to God. Think about world history and you see the same pattern. Read Acts 8 and you see the church growing through persecution as believers trust the Lord and continue to live for him. China has thousands of people coming to Christ every day. This incredible situation was preceded by the faithful few trusting God and living for Him, even being willing to die for Him. The blood of the martyrs was the seed of the church. In India we are seeing more and more come to the Lord in growing numbers each year. Why? Because the faithful have lived lives of trusting God and have refused to deny Christ. In 2010 the church in Nigeria grew immensely because the faithful trusted God in the midst of immense and terrible persecution. Africa has witnessed the same pattern.
The truth is clear. The Word of God was never meant to be hidden and covered. When we hear the Word of God we are to put it into practice, no matter what the cost to ourselves. It is this kind of trust and faith that shows the world we are serious about Jesus. It is his kind of trust and faith that draws people to Christ Jesus for salvation. It is this kind of trust and faith that will change this nation of Australia from a hedonistic, unbelieving nation to a God fearing nation. You and I have a vital role to play in this transformation. We need to live for God. We need to put God at the top of our priority list and we need to live for Him and Him alone. We need to start jumping up and down and making a noise when the world ridicules Him, mocks Him and discards Him as irrelevant. We need to show the world the love of Christ by the purity and reverence and generosity of our lives.
Prayer:
þ Pray that our church gathering motivates and inspires each one of us to be out in the world making disciples for Jesus each and every day this week. Ask God to transform us so that we are a holy people, a royal priesthood, a people belonging to God that we might declare the praises of him who called us out darkness into his wonderful light.
þ Pray for 3 non Christians you know. Pray that God would give you opportunity to share your faith with them, to offer them the gospel and to walk them into the Kingdom through repentance and faith.
Friday 18 February 2011
February 18, 2011
Read Daniel 3:19-27
Re-read the introduction to February 16. In every case cited we see that the Lord delivers in the most amazing way. When the gunmen broke into the church service and threatened the pastor, he stood firm. The gunman pulled the trigger but... the gun backfired and killed the shooter. The other assailants fled. The young teenage girl in Russia was healed and continued to worship Christ. The leader of the police force continued to run into her at Christian meetings and eventually gave his life to the Lord because of this girl’s faithfulness. The pastor in Nigeria stopped running from the marauding crowd and bravely turned to tell them of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was spared attack and many churches in that region grew tremendously. Shadrach and his mates were thrown into the fire and amazingly, not one of them was burned. The Lord walked with them and protected them. They came out of the fire totally unscathed. Not even the hair on their head was burnt!
Our God is an amazing God. There is no situation, no circumstance, no threat or life situation from which He cannot deliver us. He is so powerful that he can walk us through the scariest and most dangerous situations. Your job and my job is to TRUST God and to walk the path he has called us to walk. Trust and action go hand in hand. If I trust that the traffic lights at the intersection are working properly I’ll drive through when my light is green. If I trust that the aeroplane will fly properly and not break in midflight, I’ll book a ticket and hop on the plane. If I trust that God will save everyone who believes in Jesus, I’ll tell everyone about Him. If I trust that God can save me from every and any situation then I’ll walk the mile victoriously and confidently. If I trust that all things work for the good of those who love Jesus, I’ll praise God in every and any situation. Trust and action go hand in hand. Our lives show what we really trust about God. Think about your life today. How will trust show itself? What will your actions look like today as you walk forward in complete trust of the Lord Jesus Christ? What will your Sonday gathering of believers look like as you trust Him completely?
Prayer:
þ Pray that you and your congregation would trust God completely and act accordingly. Pray that the trust we have in God will inspire us to share the gospel with more and more people, send off more missionaries and give more to the Lord’s work each week. Pray that God would be merciful and gracious to those who are lacking trust. Pray that they would be strengthened.
þ Pray that Richards in New Zealand would trust God wholehearted to grant them productivity, conversion, funding etc as they serve in the University over there. Pray that their trust in God would be seen by others and draw them into the Kingdom.
þ Pray that the Christians in Vietnam would show deep trust in God in the midst of their persecution.
Re-read the introduction to February 16. In every case cited we see that the Lord delivers in the most amazing way. When the gunmen broke into the church service and threatened the pastor, he stood firm. The gunman pulled the trigger but... the gun backfired and killed the shooter. The other assailants fled. The young teenage girl in Russia was healed and continued to worship Christ. The leader of the police force continued to run into her at Christian meetings and eventually gave his life to the Lord because of this girl’s faithfulness. The pastor in Nigeria stopped running from the marauding crowd and bravely turned to tell them of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was spared attack and many churches in that region grew tremendously. Shadrach and his mates were thrown into the fire and amazingly, not one of them was burned. The Lord walked with them and protected them. They came out of the fire totally unscathed. Not even the hair on their head was burnt!
Our God is an amazing God. There is no situation, no circumstance, no threat or life situation from which He cannot deliver us. He is so powerful that he can walk us through the scariest and most dangerous situations. Your job and my job is to TRUST God and to walk the path he has called us to walk. Trust and action go hand in hand. If I trust that the traffic lights at the intersection are working properly I’ll drive through when my light is green. If I trust that the aeroplane will fly properly and not break in midflight, I’ll book a ticket and hop on the plane. If I trust that God will save everyone who believes in Jesus, I’ll tell everyone about Him. If I trust that God can save me from every and any situation then I’ll walk the mile victoriously and confidently. If I trust that all things work for the good of those who love Jesus, I’ll praise God in every and any situation. Trust and action go hand in hand. Our lives show what we really trust about God. Think about your life today. How will trust show itself? What will your actions look like today as you walk forward in complete trust of the Lord Jesus Christ? What will your Sonday gathering of believers look like as you trust Him completely?
Prayer:
þ Pray that you and your congregation would trust God completely and act accordingly. Pray that the trust we have in God will inspire us to share the gospel with more and more people, send off more missionaries and give more to the Lord’s work each week. Pray that God would be merciful and gracious to those who are lacking trust. Pray that they would be strengthened.
þ Pray that Richards in New Zealand would trust God wholehearted to grant them productivity, conversion, funding etc as they serve in the University over there. Pray that their trust in God would be seen by others and draw them into the Kingdom.
þ Pray that the Christians in Vietnam would show deep trust in God in the midst of their persecution.
Thursday 17 February 2011
February 17, 2011
Read Daniel 4:16-19.
I was called into my boss’ office. The door was closed behind me. The tapping of her finger on the desk revealed her hidden anger. After several minutes of tense silence she let out the threat, ’If you do not stop talking about Jesus to our clients, I will have to let you go’. Have you ever been in a situation where you have to make a choice between God and someone or something else? Have you ever been put on the spot for God?
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were in such a position. To the King burning with anger at their stubbornness and disobedience they simply replied,
"O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."
Our three friends in Babylon trusted God completely. There was no demand upon Him to come through. They simply trusted that God could save them. If he didn’t save them, that was His choice and His choice alone. They trusted God so much so that they refused to seek to save their own lives. Shadrach and his bbq loving mates knew that God could save them from any and every situation.
As you and I step out in faith and stand up for Jesus we will learn by experience that God is able to save us from any and every situation. This is another one of those truths (of which the bible is filled) that we can only know by experience. The theory of the truth is useful to know but it only becomes life changing and world changing when we put it into practice and experience it. As God works in and around us, we will be encouraged and emboldened to stand up for Jesus more and more. As we grow in our trust of God we will take larger faith steps and impact the world even more greatly than we already have. Hallelujah and praise to God.
I learnt a valuable lesson that day in the boss’ office. I learnt in miniature what Shadrach and his mates also learnt - God is able to save us from any and every situation. After a quick and desperate prayer, the only thing I could think of was Acts 4:19. After blurting it out, though I dare say with far less confidence than our friends in Babylonian, the issue was never raised again by my boss.
Prayer:
þ Pray that the Christians in RBC and GRACE college will have the courage to stand up for Jesus and to step out in faith. Pray that we would see many come into the Lord’s Kingdom through their faithfulness. Pray this for yourself and for your church. Pray this for the India and Burma mission team.
I was called into my boss’ office. The door was closed behind me. The tapping of her finger on the desk revealed her hidden anger. After several minutes of tense silence she let out the threat, ’If you do not stop talking about Jesus to our clients, I will have to let you go’. Have you ever been in a situation where you have to make a choice between God and someone or something else? Have you ever been put on the spot for God?
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were in such a position. To the King burning with anger at their stubbornness and disobedience they simply replied,
"O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."
Our three friends in Babylon trusted God completely. There was no demand upon Him to come through. They simply trusted that God could save them. If he didn’t save them, that was His choice and His choice alone. They trusted God so much so that they refused to seek to save their own lives. Shadrach and his bbq loving mates knew that God could save them from any and every situation.
As you and I step out in faith and stand up for Jesus we will learn by experience that God is able to save us from any and every situation. This is another one of those truths (of which the bible is filled) that we can only know by experience. The theory of the truth is useful to know but it only becomes life changing and world changing when we put it into practice and experience it. As God works in and around us, we will be encouraged and emboldened to stand up for Jesus more and more. As we grow in our trust of God we will take larger faith steps and impact the world even more greatly than we already have. Hallelujah and praise to God.
I learnt a valuable lesson that day in the boss’ office. I learnt in miniature what Shadrach and his mates also learnt - God is able to save us from any and every situation. After a quick and desperate prayer, the only thing I could think of was Acts 4:19. After blurting it out, though I dare say with far less confidence than our friends in Babylonian, the issue was never raised again by my boss.
Prayer:
þ Pray that the Christians in RBC and GRACE college will have the courage to stand up for Jesus and to step out in faith. Pray that we would see many come into the Lord’s Kingdom through their faithfulness. Pray this for yourself and for your church. Pray this for the India and Burma mission team.
Wednesday 16 February 2011
February 16, 2011
Read Daniel 4:8-15. Luke 12:4-5.
I remember reading of an Indian church that was attacked during their Sonday gathering. The gunmen threatened to shoot the pastor if he continued to preach and did not deny the Lord Jesus. At another time I read about a young teenage Christian girl in Russia that was beaten to a pulp by the authorities that raided their midweek prayer meeting. Another pastor in Nigeria was threatened by a marauding gang wielding clubs, hammers, machetes and knives. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were threatened with certain extinction (thrown into the fiery furnace) if they did not bow down and worship the golden statue set up by the king.
No person mentioned above gave into temptation and denied the Lord Jesus Christ. They were more willing to die than to deny Christ and to worship or pay homage to someone or something other than Jesus. They knew that God is more powerful, more fearful, more deserving of worship than anything or anyone on this planet. So they stood firm.
If you and I are to continue standing out for Jesus and making a difference in this world then we need to choose to worship Christ and Christ alone. Though we may never be called to die for Jesus, we are called to live for Him each and every single day. As you wake up each morning, commit the day to Him and promise to live for Him alone. Dedicate your heart to our God each and every morning. Give Him all you have - your assets, your money, your car and house, your work, your hobbies, your garden, your thoughts, your words.... (get the picture??). Use what you have and what you are to serve God and to bring glory to His name.
When it comes to the people in this world and the threats they make against you, remember this. You have nothing to fear! You do not even have to fear death itself because death has been defeated at the cross of Calvary. So whether you live or die, you do so to the Lord. The moment you finally close your eyes in this world, you will open them in the presence of your blessed Lord and Saviour. In essence, you have nothing to fear, not even death itself. Go forth today and serve the Lord in confidence and victory!!
Prayer:
þ Pray that God would grant the leadership of your church (pastor, elders, staff, ministry leaders, cell leaders etc) a servant heart. Ask the Lord to bless them with the wisdom to apply the Scriptures to their own lives first and foremost.
þ Pray that Shiloh Church Ministries would be blessed with the resources they need to minister to orphans, widows, the displaced and those who are destitute. Pray that many would come to Christ through their ministry.
þ Pray for the team going to India in September. Pray that the team will be united, productive and able to minister to many in the area.
I remember reading of an Indian church that was attacked during their Sonday gathering. The gunmen threatened to shoot the pastor if he continued to preach and did not deny the Lord Jesus. At another time I read about a young teenage Christian girl in Russia that was beaten to a pulp by the authorities that raided their midweek prayer meeting. Another pastor in Nigeria was threatened by a marauding gang wielding clubs, hammers, machetes and knives. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were threatened with certain extinction (thrown into the fiery furnace) if they did not bow down and worship the golden statue set up by the king.
No person mentioned above gave into temptation and denied the Lord Jesus Christ. They were more willing to die than to deny Christ and to worship or pay homage to someone or something other than Jesus. They knew that God is more powerful, more fearful, more deserving of worship than anything or anyone on this planet. So they stood firm.
If you and I are to continue standing out for Jesus and making a difference in this world then we need to choose to worship Christ and Christ alone. Though we may never be called to die for Jesus, we are called to live for Him each and every single day. As you wake up each morning, commit the day to Him and promise to live for Him alone. Dedicate your heart to our God each and every morning. Give Him all you have - your assets, your money, your car and house, your work, your hobbies, your garden, your thoughts, your words.... (get the picture??). Use what you have and what you are to serve God and to bring glory to His name.
When it comes to the people in this world and the threats they make against you, remember this. You have nothing to fear! You do not even have to fear death itself because death has been defeated at the cross of Calvary. So whether you live or die, you do so to the Lord. The moment you finally close your eyes in this world, you will open them in the presence of your blessed Lord and Saviour. In essence, you have nothing to fear, not even death itself. Go forth today and serve the Lord in confidence and victory!!
Prayer:
þ Pray that God would grant the leadership of your church (pastor, elders, staff, ministry leaders, cell leaders etc) a servant heart. Ask the Lord to bless them with the wisdom to apply the Scriptures to their own lives first and foremost.
þ Pray that Shiloh Church Ministries would be blessed with the resources they need to minister to orphans, widows, the displaced and those who are destitute. Pray that many would come to Christ through their ministry.
þ Pray for the team going to India in September. Pray that the team will be united, productive and able to minister to many in the area.
Tuesday 15 February 2011
February 15, 2011
Read Daniel 3:4-7. Revelation 7
In Laos this year the authorities arrested 11 Christians at gunpoint and threw 3 house church leaders into jail for holding ‘illegal’ church meetings. Rather than compromise their faith and love for our Lord, they preferred to go to jail. All they have to do is worship according to government regulations. All they have to do is obey the government and they’d be free. What would you do? How would you react?
The situation in Babylon was no different. Nebuchadnezzar ordered all people to bow down and worship his image, regardless of one’s race, creed or religious affiliation. All the true believers had to do was to bow down and pretend to worship the statue. They could just go through the motions of bowing down. That would assure them life and prosperity. What would you do? How would you react? We may find ourselves in similar situations, even in our world. There’s the temptation to over spend and enjoy the fruits of our labours ourselves, rather than support the work of the gospel through your local church. Our friends may pressure us into drinking too much, smoking or having sex before we are married. Our bosses may pressure us to lie, to fudge figures or to cut corners for the sake of profit. While not life threatening, they still demand that our allegiance to Christ and our love of Him be negated in some way. It is every bit as idolatrous as bowing down to a gold statue.
Our brothers and sisters in Laos, together with the friends in Babylon (who would eventually be thrown into the burning furnace) knew a vital truth. If you and I are to stand out for Jesus in our world then we need to know and internalise this truth. What is this truth? Only God, the one true living God, deserves to be worshipped. No other god or person is deserving of our worship. We need to be committed to this truth. We need to let nothing or no one tempt us or pressure us to bow down to it in homage and worship. As we make this stand, as many of you already have, we will never again bow down to the mighty dollar. We will never again put our own image before Christ Jesus. We will never give in to the ungodly peer pressure of friends who want us to sin or to deny Christ. We will not falter even if a gun is held to our head and we are driven out of our village or even if the king threatens to throw us into a blazing furnace. To help you stand firm, continually bear in mind that when Jesus returns to gather the elect from the four corners of the globe, believers from every nation, tribe and tongue will bow down before the Lord and worship him for eternity. You will be among that throng of people if you love the Lord wholeheartedly.
Prayer:
þ Pray that every single believer in your church will be able to stand firm in Jesus and to put all things (health, money, assets, education, work etc etc) under the Lordship of Christ Jesus.
þ Pray that our brothers and sisters in Iraq would remain strong in the Lord, bearing the armour of Christ daily as they face persecution for their faith.
In Laos this year the authorities arrested 11 Christians at gunpoint and threw 3 house church leaders into jail for holding ‘illegal’ church meetings. Rather than compromise their faith and love for our Lord, they preferred to go to jail. All they have to do is worship according to government regulations. All they have to do is obey the government and they’d be free. What would you do? How would you react?
The situation in Babylon was no different. Nebuchadnezzar ordered all people to bow down and worship his image, regardless of one’s race, creed or religious affiliation. All the true believers had to do was to bow down and pretend to worship the statue. They could just go through the motions of bowing down. That would assure them life and prosperity. What would you do? How would you react? We may find ourselves in similar situations, even in our world. There’s the temptation to over spend and enjoy the fruits of our labours ourselves, rather than support the work of the gospel through your local church. Our friends may pressure us into drinking too much, smoking or having sex before we are married. Our bosses may pressure us to lie, to fudge figures or to cut corners for the sake of profit. While not life threatening, they still demand that our allegiance to Christ and our love of Him be negated in some way. It is every bit as idolatrous as bowing down to a gold statue.
Our brothers and sisters in Laos, together with the friends in Babylon (who would eventually be thrown into the burning furnace) knew a vital truth. If you and I are to stand out for Jesus in our world then we need to know and internalise this truth. What is this truth? Only God, the one true living God, deserves to be worshipped. No other god or person is deserving of our worship. We need to be committed to this truth. We need to let nothing or no one tempt us or pressure us to bow down to it in homage and worship. As we make this stand, as many of you already have, we will never again bow down to the mighty dollar. We will never again put our own image before Christ Jesus. We will never give in to the ungodly peer pressure of friends who want us to sin or to deny Christ. We will not falter even if a gun is held to our head and we are driven out of our village or even if the king threatens to throw us into a blazing furnace. To help you stand firm, continually bear in mind that when Jesus returns to gather the elect from the four corners of the globe, believers from every nation, tribe and tongue will bow down before the Lord and worship him for eternity. You will be among that throng of people if you love the Lord wholeheartedly.
Prayer:
þ Pray that every single believer in your church will be able to stand firm in Jesus and to put all things (health, money, assets, education, work etc etc) under the Lordship of Christ Jesus.
þ Pray that our brothers and sisters in Iraq would remain strong in the Lord, bearing the armour of Christ daily as they face persecution for their faith.
Monday 14 February 2011
February 14, 2011
Read Daniel 3:1-3, Exodus 20:1-6
Before we begin to look at the passage for today, see if you can find, or think of, a structure within your area that is about 27 meters high and 3 meters wide. When you find that structure, stand before it and imagine the awe and splendour of the golden statue that Nebuchadnezzar built.
King Nebuchadnezzar sought to pay tribute to himself by building a magnificent statue and ordering everyone to bow down to his image. But God commands us to have no graven images and NOT to bow down to them. We are forbidden to bow down and pay homage to any statue or image. We are called to worship the Lord God Almighty exclusively. He is a jealous God and will not tolerate rivals in our lives and in our hearts. Israel worshipped false gods time and time again. She was exiled from the Promised Land as punishment for her idolatry. 1 Cor 10:6 assures us that this history is for our benefit.
Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.
In today’s world, you and I will rarely be called to bow down to false gods and idolatrous statues. However, we can still be tempted to have idols in our hearts and to deny our great God and Saviour. Let me share with you several examples that happen regularly.
Þ Believers in many countries are persecuted for their faith and when arrested, they are called to deny Christ or face severe consequences.
Þ Believers in Western countries are tempted to sacrifice their love for Christ on the altar of greed, denying Christ for the sake of gain.
Þ Several believers are asked to deny Christ each Lord’s day as their bosses pressure them or threaten them into missing their church gathering for the sake of financial gain.
Þ Several Christian business men and women have been asked to deny their Christian principles for the sake of company profits.
Þ Some Christians are tempted to renege on their pledged giving to the Lord to gain a more comfortable lifestyle.
While we are not bowing down to a physical idol in these cases we are being tempted to deny Christ for the sake of something or someone else. We are committing idolatry in our heart. Pray that you will stand firm for Jesus and trust him in any and every situation.
Prayer:
þ Pray that Christians in India and Burma would stand strong in Christ as they face opposition for their faith. Pray that they would shine the light of Jesus so powerfully that many come to Him for salvation.
þ Pray that everyone in your church would put Jesus at the top of their priority list, above comfort, money, housing, cars, non Christian friends etc.
Before we begin to look at the passage for today, see if you can find, or think of, a structure within your area that is about 27 meters high and 3 meters wide. When you find that structure, stand before it and imagine the awe and splendour of the golden statue that Nebuchadnezzar built.
King Nebuchadnezzar sought to pay tribute to himself by building a magnificent statue and ordering everyone to bow down to his image. But God commands us to have no graven images and NOT to bow down to them. We are forbidden to bow down and pay homage to any statue or image. We are called to worship the Lord God Almighty exclusively. He is a jealous God and will not tolerate rivals in our lives and in our hearts. Israel worshipped false gods time and time again. She was exiled from the Promised Land as punishment for her idolatry. 1 Cor 10:6 assures us that this history is for our benefit.
Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.
In today’s world, you and I will rarely be called to bow down to false gods and idolatrous statues. However, we can still be tempted to have idols in our hearts and to deny our great God and Saviour. Let me share with you several examples that happen regularly.
Þ Believers in many countries are persecuted for their faith and when arrested, they are called to deny Christ or face severe consequences.
Þ Believers in Western countries are tempted to sacrifice their love for Christ on the altar of greed, denying Christ for the sake of gain.
Þ Several believers are asked to deny Christ each Lord’s day as their bosses pressure them or threaten them into missing their church gathering for the sake of financial gain.
Þ Several Christian business men and women have been asked to deny their Christian principles for the sake of company profits.
Þ Some Christians are tempted to renege on their pledged giving to the Lord to gain a more comfortable lifestyle.
While we are not bowing down to a physical idol in these cases we are being tempted to deny Christ for the sake of something or someone else. We are committing idolatry in our heart. Pray that you will stand firm for Jesus and trust him in any and every situation.
Prayer:
þ Pray that Christians in India and Burma would stand strong in Christ as they face opposition for their faith. Pray that they would shine the light of Jesus so powerfully that many come to Him for salvation.
þ Pray that everyone in your church would put Jesus at the top of their priority list, above comfort, money, housing, cars, non Christian friends etc.
Saturday 12 February 2011
February 12, 2011
Read Daniel 2
You, like Daniel, are in the midst of a battle of the gods!!! In Daniel’s day, various kings and their gods pitted themselves against Israel and her God, Yahweh. Today the god of this age has pitted himself against the Lord Jesus Christ and all his followers. See Rev 12:17, 13:7. Though the evil one cannot remove your salvation (see Ephesians 1:1-14) he can distract you and make you ineffective in your work for the Lord. How might he do this? Let me list briefly several schemes of the evil one that are commonly used to distract Christians.
Ü Busyness - often the demands of life are so heavy that we just don’t have time for God. Pray times, meeting with others midweek and even Sonday gatherings fall off our agenda because we are too busy. This is no accident. The evil one wants you to be too busy to encourage other believers, to worship God and to be productive in reaching out to non believers.
Ü Money and Assets. These things can be real weeds in our ’spiritual garden’. The more money and assets we have, the more we are tempted to spoil ourselves, live it up and enjoy the good life. There is a high correlation between money and forgetting about God. Jesus said, ’How hard it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God’.
Ü TV. Yes TV. How many hours are wasted as we sit in front of a television numbing our brains and drowning out the voice of the Holy Spirit. How much of our thinking and reasoning is shaped by the worldly rubbish and ungodliness of things we see on TV? How many men are tempted to lust and covet as they see semi naked women on TV often in immoral sexual situations? Satan would rather you spend 2 hours watching TV than praying, reading your bible or encouraging another believer.
Ü Non Christian Music. While there’s nothing wrong with non Christian music per se, if it fills our head constantly then it’s drowning out the voice of the Holy Spirit and stopping us from meditating and thinking about things of God. See Phil 4:8-10. Constant thinking of worldly songs will determine the way we think and view things.
Ü Anger, Unforgiveness, etc. The evil one will continue to remind us of those who have hurt us or betrayed us. He wants us to be hating them so that division and disunity rules our churches. He hates the thought of reconciliation happening and will do anything to stop it. See Matthew 18:15ff for what to do if you need to be reconciled.
Ü Self Indulgence. We live in an age of self indulgence and entertainment. We think that the world is there to entertain us 24/7. While we are seeking to be entertained we are putting Christ aside and seeking to please ourselves not Him. Christ’s work is never done in a heart of self indulgence.
Prayer:
þ Pray that we all will be wise to the devil’s schemes and act appropriately. Pray that everyone in your congregation will serve God whole heartedly.
You, like Daniel, are in the midst of a battle of the gods!!! In Daniel’s day, various kings and their gods pitted themselves against Israel and her God, Yahweh. Today the god of this age has pitted himself against the Lord Jesus Christ and all his followers. See Rev 12:17, 13:7. Though the evil one cannot remove your salvation (see Ephesians 1:1-14) he can distract you and make you ineffective in your work for the Lord. How might he do this? Let me list briefly several schemes of the evil one that are commonly used to distract Christians.
Ü Busyness - often the demands of life are so heavy that we just don’t have time for God. Pray times, meeting with others midweek and even Sonday gatherings fall off our agenda because we are too busy. This is no accident. The evil one wants you to be too busy to encourage other believers, to worship God and to be productive in reaching out to non believers.
Ü Money and Assets. These things can be real weeds in our ’spiritual garden’. The more money and assets we have, the more we are tempted to spoil ourselves, live it up and enjoy the good life. There is a high correlation between money and forgetting about God. Jesus said, ’How hard it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God’.
Ü TV. Yes TV. How many hours are wasted as we sit in front of a television numbing our brains and drowning out the voice of the Holy Spirit. How much of our thinking and reasoning is shaped by the worldly rubbish and ungodliness of things we see on TV? How many men are tempted to lust and covet as they see semi naked women on TV often in immoral sexual situations? Satan would rather you spend 2 hours watching TV than praying, reading your bible or encouraging another believer.
Ü Non Christian Music. While there’s nothing wrong with non Christian music per se, if it fills our head constantly then it’s drowning out the voice of the Holy Spirit and stopping us from meditating and thinking about things of God. See Phil 4:8-10. Constant thinking of worldly songs will determine the way we think and view things.
Ü Anger, Unforgiveness, etc. The evil one will continue to remind us of those who have hurt us or betrayed us. He wants us to be hating them so that division and disunity rules our churches. He hates the thought of reconciliation happening and will do anything to stop it. See Matthew 18:15ff for what to do if you need to be reconciled.
Ü Self Indulgence. We live in an age of self indulgence and entertainment. We think that the world is there to entertain us 24/7. While we are seeking to be entertained we are putting Christ aside and seeking to please ourselves not Him. Christ’s work is never done in a heart of self indulgence.
Prayer:
þ Pray that we all will be wise to the devil’s schemes and act appropriately. Pray that everyone in your congregation will serve God whole heartedly.
Friday 11 February 2011
February 11, 2011
Read Daniel 2:44-49
Ultimately Daniel chapter 2 (and indeed the entire book) is not a struggle between the Israelites and the Babylonians. It’s not a struggle between the Babylonian way of life and world view against the Hebrew way of life and world view. Ultimately the book of Daniel is a clash of the Titans. It is a battle between Yahweh and the gods of the nations. Even though Nebuchadnezzar thought that his gods had delivered the world into his hands, the book of Daniel shows what really happened. In Daniel 1:2 we read that it was the Lord that delivered Israel into enemy hands. It was all His doing. We see that God is fully in control of all events and is working all things towards his desired ends. The dream simply serves to support this truth. God set up the great king Nebuchadnezzar. He is the one who sets up kings and disposes them as he wills. He is the one who raised up and brought low three other kingdoms.
God, our God, is the one who will set up an eternal kingdom that will never end. Through Christ Jesus he will raise up a rock that will crush all other kingdoms. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection an eternal kingdom will be established.
As a young Christian I often wondered how Christians in other countries like Iran, Iraq, India, China etc could face such immense persecution, torture and even death for their faith. If we know deeply that the Lord’s kingdom will endure forever then this life will be put into perspective. My 80-90 years on this planet are but a microscopic dot on the timeline of eternity. I will joyously and willingly suffer all things for the sake of my God who has given me an eternal kingdom. Since we have eternity we need not fear any man, nor their threats, nor any situation or circumstance. Even if we perish in this life, we live for eternity with our God and Saviour. Because of Jesus we soldier on victoriously and confidently through hail, snow and blistering storm.
Prayer:
þ Pray that Student Life would have all the resources they need to preach the message of eternal hope to the students on various campuses. Pray for growth and conversions this year. Pray that God would raise up more labourers for this great harvest field.
þ Pray that each one of us would have opportunity to share our faith, the message of eternal hope with those around us that don’t know Christ yet. Pray for each non believer you know of by name.
Ultimately Daniel chapter 2 (and indeed the entire book) is not a struggle between the Israelites and the Babylonians. It’s not a struggle between the Babylonian way of life and world view against the Hebrew way of life and world view. Ultimately the book of Daniel is a clash of the Titans. It is a battle between Yahweh and the gods of the nations. Even though Nebuchadnezzar thought that his gods had delivered the world into his hands, the book of Daniel shows what really happened. In Daniel 1:2 we read that it was the Lord that delivered Israel into enemy hands. It was all His doing. We see that God is fully in control of all events and is working all things towards his desired ends. The dream simply serves to support this truth. God set up the great king Nebuchadnezzar. He is the one who sets up kings and disposes them as he wills. He is the one who raised up and brought low three other kingdoms.
God, our God, is the one who will set up an eternal kingdom that will never end. Through Christ Jesus he will raise up a rock that will crush all other kingdoms. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection an eternal kingdom will be established.
As a young Christian I often wondered how Christians in other countries like Iran, Iraq, India, China etc could face such immense persecution, torture and even death for their faith. If we know deeply that the Lord’s kingdom will endure forever then this life will be put into perspective. My 80-90 years on this planet are but a microscopic dot on the timeline of eternity. I will joyously and willingly suffer all things for the sake of my God who has given me an eternal kingdom. Since we have eternity we need not fear any man, nor their threats, nor any situation or circumstance. Even if we perish in this life, we live for eternity with our God and Saviour. Because of Jesus we soldier on victoriously and confidently through hail, snow and blistering storm.
Prayer:
þ Pray that Student Life would have all the resources they need to preach the message of eternal hope to the students on various campuses. Pray for growth and conversions this year. Pray that God would raise up more labourers for this great harvest field.
þ Pray that each one of us would have opportunity to share our faith, the message of eternal hope with those around us that don’t know Christ yet. Pray for each non believer you know of by name.
Thursday 10 February 2011
February 10, 2011
Read Daniel 2:24-43
Daniel stands before the king and tells him the dream that he had. God had revealed the dream to Daniel together with its interpretation. Daniel shares that interpretation with the king. In all the Daniel commentaries you can read of the history of the region as each successive kingdom came in fulfilment of the dream. You can read of the Medo-Persian empire (that began with Cyrus the Great), the Greco-Macedonian empire and the Roman empire. What matters is not that the empires came and went. What really matters is that God revealed the truth to his servant.
If we are to make a stand for our God, if we are to impact the world we must be ready and willing to see the revelation of God (ie His Word, the Bible) as infallible truth. Far too many people are explaining away the bits of the bible that they don’t like or find hard to believe. If we were to group together the various schools of thought negating the bible we’d find that there is no longer any eternal punishment in ’hell’. The virgin birth never really happened. Miracles all had common sense explanations. The bible is not inspired by God but simply the reflections of different people in different stages of life and history. Creation never really occurred. It’s just a myth or story that need not be believed. And finally, there is no literal second coming of Jesus to gather the elect from the four corners of the world. The moment we start picking and choosing which bits of God’s revelation we believe or don’t believe we have negated the gospel and made a mockery of our God. We put ourselves above God and ultimately we are sitting in judgement of Him calling him a liar at those points where we choose not to believe Him. Are you audacious enough to call God a liar? Me neither!
Jesus summed up what our attitude should be to the Word of God. In John 17:17 during his High Priestly Prayer he stated ‘Your Word is Truth’. The Bible is God’s word given to us. His Word is truth. We do well when we sit under its authority and humbly apply it to our own lives rather than sit in judgement of it, picking the bits we do and don’t want to believe.
Prayer:
þ Sadly there are many churches in our world that don’t believe the bible or accept it as the Truth from God. Pray that these churches will be granted repentance quickly. Pray that the Word will be faithfully preached in your congregation week by week, with the power and unction of the Holy Spirit.
þ Pray for the work in the bible colleges in Myanmar. The Reformed College and Grace College need continuing funds to run properly. They need materials for the students, text books and the like. Pray that God will provide. Pray that we see the students being fruitful in their weekend work in local and new churches. Ask God to grant repentance and faith to many in this land.
þ Pray for the work of Mustard Seed Orphanage. Pray that we’ll see God providing all they need to care for their orphans, widows and disabled members. Pray that many will come to Christ for salvation.
Daniel stands before the king and tells him the dream that he had. God had revealed the dream to Daniel together with its interpretation. Daniel shares that interpretation with the king. In all the Daniel commentaries you can read of the history of the region as each successive kingdom came in fulfilment of the dream. You can read of the Medo-Persian empire (that began with Cyrus the Great), the Greco-Macedonian empire and the Roman empire. What matters is not that the empires came and went. What really matters is that God revealed the truth to his servant.
If we are to make a stand for our God, if we are to impact the world we must be ready and willing to see the revelation of God (ie His Word, the Bible) as infallible truth. Far too many people are explaining away the bits of the bible that they don’t like or find hard to believe. If we were to group together the various schools of thought negating the bible we’d find that there is no longer any eternal punishment in ’hell’. The virgin birth never really happened. Miracles all had common sense explanations. The bible is not inspired by God but simply the reflections of different people in different stages of life and history. Creation never really occurred. It’s just a myth or story that need not be believed. And finally, there is no literal second coming of Jesus to gather the elect from the four corners of the world. The moment we start picking and choosing which bits of God’s revelation we believe or don’t believe we have negated the gospel and made a mockery of our God. We put ourselves above God and ultimately we are sitting in judgement of Him calling him a liar at those points where we choose not to believe Him. Are you audacious enough to call God a liar? Me neither!
Jesus summed up what our attitude should be to the Word of God. In John 17:17 during his High Priestly Prayer he stated ‘Your Word is Truth’. The Bible is God’s word given to us. His Word is truth. We do well when we sit under its authority and humbly apply it to our own lives rather than sit in judgement of it, picking the bits we do and don’t want to believe.
Prayer:
þ Sadly there are many churches in our world that don’t believe the bible or accept it as the Truth from God. Pray that these churches will be granted repentance quickly. Pray that the Word will be faithfully preached in your congregation week by week, with the power and unction of the Holy Spirit.
þ Pray for the work in the bible colleges in Myanmar. The Reformed College and Grace College need continuing funds to run properly. They need materials for the students, text books and the like. Pray that God will provide. Pray that we see the students being fruitful in their weekend work in local and new churches. Ask God to grant repentance and faith to many in this land.
þ Pray for the work of Mustard Seed Orphanage. Pray that we’ll see God providing all they need to care for their orphans, widows and disabled members. Pray that many will come to Christ for salvation.
Wednesday 9 February 2011
February 9, 2010
Read Daniel 2:12-23
Yesterday we asked the question ‘What is God like?’. Today we see that God himself provides the answer. Daniel learns of the decree to put to death all the wise men, enchanters and magicians of the kingdom. That includes Daniel and his friends. But who do they turn to? They turn to the living God that reveals mysteries and knows the depths of the darkness. They turn to the sovereign God who knows all things.
And God hears their prayer and reveals the dream to Daniel. Daniel turns to God and spends time praising Him. He offers up exaltation and adoration to the one true living God. To this God belongs power and wisdom. This is the God who can change times and seasons. He is the one who sets up kings and their kingdoms and disposes of them as he sees fit. He imparts wisdom and knowledge to those who know him and seek him. He reveals deep hidden things, things that natural man can not know in and of himself. He is the God who delights to answer prayers.
Our God is so great he is deserving of our adoration and praise. But all too often our prayers turn into a shopping list. We tell God our concerns and ask him to intervene, sometimes even being arrogant or audacious enough to tell him what to do. Then we say the big ‘Amen’ and leave God to it. To help you incorporate praise and adoration into your prayers, start with the Psalms and read a Psalm in adoration and praise to God. Psalm 144 - 150 are all praise Psalms that can be read out to God in adoration. As you feel more confident add your own content to your praises. Praise God for what he’s done in you recently. Adore God for the way in which you’ve seen his power at work. Exalt the Lord for his salvation and work at Calvary. Praise him, adore him, exalt him for his answered prayers. Another way to incorporate praise and adoration into your prayer life is to have some praise songs, adoration songs (what we often call ‘worship songs’) to sing to the Lord. Put them on in the background and sing praise to the Lord Almighty. Open up your heart and meditate (think deeply) about how great God is. Think about how awesome he is and what it would be like to stand in his presence. Think/meditate about his works, his miracles, his wonders and deeds. Open your heart and pour out the praises. Let the praises ring forth from deep within. We should never presume to come before the Lord empty handed (Deut 16:16). We can come before him with a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess his name. Hebrews 13:15. Your lips can bring forth a sacrifice of praise and so can your life as you live a life of praise and adoration to Him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Prayer:
þ Pray that our church gathering on Sonday will be a time of heartfelt and genuine praise and adoration of our God. Pray that everyone will be ready to meet with God and to recommit their lives to him. Pray that God would do great things among us.
Yesterday we asked the question ‘What is God like?’. Today we see that God himself provides the answer. Daniel learns of the decree to put to death all the wise men, enchanters and magicians of the kingdom. That includes Daniel and his friends. But who do they turn to? They turn to the living God that reveals mysteries and knows the depths of the darkness. They turn to the sovereign God who knows all things.
And God hears their prayer and reveals the dream to Daniel. Daniel turns to God and spends time praising Him. He offers up exaltation and adoration to the one true living God. To this God belongs power and wisdom. This is the God who can change times and seasons. He is the one who sets up kings and their kingdoms and disposes of them as he sees fit. He imparts wisdom and knowledge to those who know him and seek him. He reveals deep hidden things, things that natural man can not know in and of himself. He is the God who delights to answer prayers.
Our God is so great he is deserving of our adoration and praise. But all too often our prayers turn into a shopping list. We tell God our concerns and ask him to intervene, sometimes even being arrogant or audacious enough to tell him what to do. Then we say the big ‘Amen’ and leave God to it. To help you incorporate praise and adoration into your prayers, start with the Psalms and read a Psalm in adoration and praise to God. Psalm 144 - 150 are all praise Psalms that can be read out to God in adoration. As you feel more confident add your own content to your praises. Praise God for what he’s done in you recently. Adore God for the way in which you’ve seen his power at work. Exalt the Lord for his salvation and work at Calvary. Praise him, adore him, exalt him for his answered prayers. Another way to incorporate praise and adoration into your prayer life is to have some praise songs, adoration songs (what we often call ‘worship songs’) to sing to the Lord. Put them on in the background and sing praise to the Lord Almighty. Open up your heart and meditate (think deeply) about how great God is. Think about how awesome he is and what it would be like to stand in his presence. Think/meditate about his works, his miracles, his wonders and deeds. Open your heart and pour out the praises. Let the praises ring forth from deep within. We should never presume to come before the Lord empty handed (Deut 16:16). We can come before him with a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess his name. Hebrews 13:15. Your lips can bring forth a sacrifice of praise and so can your life as you live a life of praise and adoration to Him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Prayer:
þ Pray that our church gathering on Sonday will be a time of heartfelt and genuine praise and adoration of our God. Pray that everyone will be ready to meet with God and to recommit their lives to him. Pray that God would do great things among us.
Tuesday 8 February 2011
February 8, 2011
Read Daniel 2:10-11
Take the challenge. If a non believer were to ask you to describe your God, what would you say? Take a moment to write down a sentence in the space below about your God.
Inadvertently, the Babylonian wise men described their gods as distant, unapproachable and unconcerned about the affairs of humans. These so called gods could do nothing to save them from the king’s edict. They did not even try to seek their gods for the content of the king’s dream and its interpretation. They knew that their gods were powerless to help.
Compare this with the one true living God. Since the fall of Genesis chapter 3 God and mankind have been separated by a barrier of sin. But rather than remain aloof and distant, God has been reaching out to humanity in love and compassion. He chose Abraham and made a nation for himself. This nation was meant to reach the world with His love and compassion. He continued to forgive them and bless them even though they remained a stiff necked and obstinate nation. In the fullness of time God sent his own Son, Christ Jesus, into the world to reach out to us in love. Jesus came as a man, the second Adam, and did what we couldn’t do. He obeyed God perfectly. He offered himself as the perfect sacrifice for our rebellion and sinfulness. Having died on the cross under a curse from God, he was raised to eternal life on the 3rd day and ascended into heaven. From there he sends his Holy Spirit to each and every single believer. God is actively involved in our present world through his church, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and through his sovereignty over all things.
How would you describe God? He is near. He is loving. He is with us in the most amazing and powerful way. He is tender. He is compassionate. He has done everything needed for us to enter into his presence for all eternity.
Prayer:
þ Pray that you will have opportunity this week to describe your God to non believers. Pray this prayer for each non believer you are in relationship with. Pray for wisdom to give a compelling answer that drives them to find Christ.
þ Pray for the chaplaincy at Glenvale Primary school and Harristown High School. Pray that the chaplains will have a powerful impact on the children and staff as God opens doors for them to share the love of Christ. Pray that a great harvest will come from these schools.
Take the challenge. If a non believer were to ask you to describe your God, what would you say? Take a moment to write down a sentence in the space below about your God.
Inadvertently, the Babylonian wise men described their gods as distant, unapproachable and unconcerned about the affairs of humans. These so called gods could do nothing to save them from the king’s edict. They did not even try to seek their gods for the content of the king’s dream and its interpretation. They knew that their gods were powerless to help.
Compare this with the one true living God. Since the fall of Genesis chapter 3 God and mankind have been separated by a barrier of sin. But rather than remain aloof and distant, God has been reaching out to humanity in love and compassion. He chose Abraham and made a nation for himself. This nation was meant to reach the world with His love and compassion. He continued to forgive them and bless them even though they remained a stiff necked and obstinate nation. In the fullness of time God sent his own Son, Christ Jesus, into the world to reach out to us in love. Jesus came as a man, the second Adam, and did what we couldn’t do. He obeyed God perfectly. He offered himself as the perfect sacrifice for our rebellion and sinfulness. Having died on the cross under a curse from God, he was raised to eternal life on the 3rd day and ascended into heaven. From there he sends his Holy Spirit to each and every single believer. God is actively involved in our present world through his church, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and through his sovereignty over all things.
How would you describe God? He is near. He is loving. He is with us in the most amazing and powerful way. He is tender. He is compassionate. He has done everything needed for us to enter into his presence for all eternity.
Prayer:
þ Pray that you will have opportunity this week to describe your God to non believers. Pray this prayer for each non believer you are in relationship with. Pray for wisdom to give a compelling answer that drives them to find Christ.
þ Pray for the chaplaincy at Glenvale Primary school and Harristown High School. Pray that the chaplains will have a powerful impact on the children and staff as God opens doors for them to share the love of Christ. Pray that a great harvest will come from these schools.
Monday 7 February 2011
February 7, 2011
Read Daniel 2:1-9
Where do you turn when life gets tough? What do you do in sticky situations? What’s your first port of call when life doesn’t go the way you wanted it to or expected? The enchanters and magicians and scientists of Babylon found themselves in such a sticky situation. The great king Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of the known world, was appointed by the gods Marduk and Nabu to rule the world. This great king was troubled. He had dreams, disturbing dreams. Who did he turn to? He turned to his enchanters, magicians and scientists. They had books of dreams and their interpretations. All they had to do was tell the king his dream and what it meant. If they did, riches, glory and honour would be theirs. But if they could not tell the king his dream he would cut them into pieces and turn their houses into a pile of rubble.
Who could the enchanters and magicians and scientists turn to? Where could they find help? The books were useless without the content of the dream. The traditions were hopeless because they knew not the dream. The gods couldn’t help because they were distant and lived not with men. The trembling party declared to the king their own hopeless situation, “‘What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among men.”
You and I are so blessed. We have one who is closer than a brother. We have the Lord Jesus Christ interceding for us before the throne of God Almighty. We have access, 24/7, to God our Father. In Hebrews 4:16 we read
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
When we are pressed in, when life is squeezing us, when the pressure is building and boiling we can approach the throne of grace confidently assured that God will hear us and help us. Our God, unlike all other so called gods, is not distant and unapproachable. He has come to us through the incarnation. God walked on earth in Christ Jesus. Even more so, when Christ ascended to heaven, God came to us through his Holy Spirit. God dwells within each and every believer making him instantly and constantly accessible. Where will you turn when the going gets tough? Turn to God because he is closer than a brother and is there to bless you and aid you.
Prayer:
þ Pray for the work of Straight Talk as they seek to bring abstinence and godly sexuality to teenagers in state schools and Christian schools. Pray for the needed funding and resources. Pray for open doors to get into schools. Pray for receptive hearts. Pray that our God will bless Jim and Faye greatly in this ministry.
þ Pray for the work of OMF as they continue to serve the Lord locally and internationally.
þ Pray that Creation Research will continue to faithfully preach the full gospel
Where do you turn when life gets tough? What do you do in sticky situations? What’s your first port of call when life doesn’t go the way you wanted it to or expected? The enchanters and magicians and scientists of Babylon found themselves in such a sticky situation. The great king Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of the known world, was appointed by the gods Marduk and Nabu to rule the world. This great king was troubled. He had dreams, disturbing dreams. Who did he turn to? He turned to his enchanters, magicians and scientists. They had books of dreams and their interpretations. All they had to do was tell the king his dream and what it meant. If they did, riches, glory and honour would be theirs. But if they could not tell the king his dream he would cut them into pieces and turn their houses into a pile of rubble.
Who could the enchanters and magicians and scientists turn to? Where could they find help? The books were useless without the content of the dream. The traditions were hopeless because they knew not the dream. The gods couldn’t help because they were distant and lived not with men. The trembling party declared to the king their own hopeless situation, “‘What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among men.”
You and I are so blessed. We have one who is closer than a brother. We have the Lord Jesus Christ interceding for us before the throne of God Almighty. We have access, 24/7, to God our Father. In Hebrews 4:16 we read
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
When we are pressed in, when life is squeezing us, when the pressure is building and boiling we can approach the throne of grace confidently assured that God will hear us and help us. Our God, unlike all other so called gods, is not distant and unapproachable. He has come to us through the incarnation. God walked on earth in Christ Jesus. Even more so, when Christ ascended to heaven, God came to us through his Holy Spirit. God dwells within each and every believer making him instantly and constantly accessible. Where will you turn when the going gets tough? Turn to God because he is closer than a brother and is there to bless you and aid you.
Prayer:
þ Pray for the work of Straight Talk as they seek to bring abstinence and godly sexuality to teenagers in state schools and Christian schools. Pray for the needed funding and resources. Pray for open doors to get into schools. Pray for receptive hearts. Pray that our God will bless Jim and Faye greatly in this ministry.
þ Pray for the work of OMF as they continue to serve the Lord locally and internationally.
þ Pray that Creation Research will continue to faithfully preach the full gospel
Saturday 5 February 2011
February 5, 2011
Read Daniel 1:17-21
When we are determined to stand up for God and to stand out for Him, we can expect God to work in powerful ways.
Daniel and his friends were determined not to be defiled by their sojourn in Babylon. They wanted, more than anything else, to serve God and to be His witnesses in a foreign land. As they turned to God and relied on Him completely, God worked powerfully among them. God gave them knowledge and wisdom and learning ten times as much as the other prisoners and the local magicians and enchanters. God blessed them as they stood up for Him.
As you and I make up our minds to stand for up Jesus and to serve only Him in this world we too will see God powerfully at work. As we humble ourselves and rely completely on the Lord we will see God work mightily in our midst.
What would it look like for you to stand up for Jesus at work? How would it play out as you represent Christ among your non believing friends? What would it be like for your to step out in faith and tell your family or friends about Jesus? What will happen as you offer to pray for that sick neighbour or relative? What will be the outcome as your offer your service to the needy, the poor and the afflicted with no strings attached?
As you and I step out in faith and resolve to be deliberately distinctive, we will see God powerfully at work. I remember such an occasion in one church I was pastoring. We decided to run a free Jazz dinner evening for the local community to encourage them to attend church and to hear about Jesus. On the day of the event it rained. Being an outdoor event, this spelt disaster. But we pressed on, praying that God would work powerfully. As evening approached, the rain clouds still hung about. However, in this one little suburb it did not rain. Every other suburb around us experienced much rain. The even went ahead. People heard the gospel and God was greatly glorified.
Prayer:
þ Pray that you will see God powerfully at work tomorrow in your church gathering. Pray that every believer will come along ready to meet with God, willing to serve and edify each other and ready to use their spiritual gifts to build up the body of Christ.
þ Pray that the Mustard Seed Orphanage in Myanmar would see the Lord powerfully providing for their needs as they care for orphans and widows and the disabled. Pray that the love of Christ would emanate from this orphanage so much so that others around them come to Christ in repentance and faith.
þ Pray that the Word of God would be powerfully proclaimed tomorrow at your church gathering and that God would use his word to mould us, make us and form us to be more like Christ.
When we are determined to stand up for God and to stand out for Him, we can expect God to work in powerful ways.
Daniel and his friends were determined not to be defiled by their sojourn in Babylon. They wanted, more than anything else, to serve God and to be His witnesses in a foreign land. As they turned to God and relied on Him completely, God worked powerfully among them. God gave them knowledge and wisdom and learning ten times as much as the other prisoners and the local magicians and enchanters. God blessed them as they stood up for Him.
As you and I make up our minds to stand for up Jesus and to serve only Him in this world we too will see God powerfully at work. As we humble ourselves and rely completely on the Lord we will see God work mightily in our midst.
What would it look like for you to stand up for Jesus at work? How would it play out as you represent Christ among your non believing friends? What would it be like for your to step out in faith and tell your family or friends about Jesus? What will happen as you offer to pray for that sick neighbour or relative? What will be the outcome as your offer your service to the needy, the poor and the afflicted with no strings attached?
As you and I step out in faith and resolve to be deliberately distinctive, we will see God powerfully at work. I remember such an occasion in one church I was pastoring. We decided to run a free Jazz dinner evening for the local community to encourage them to attend church and to hear about Jesus. On the day of the event it rained. Being an outdoor event, this spelt disaster. But we pressed on, praying that God would work powerfully. As evening approached, the rain clouds still hung about. However, in this one little suburb it did not rain. Every other suburb around us experienced much rain. The even went ahead. People heard the gospel and God was greatly glorified.
Prayer:
þ Pray that you will see God powerfully at work tomorrow in your church gathering. Pray that every believer will come along ready to meet with God, willing to serve and edify each other and ready to use their spiritual gifts to build up the body of Christ.
þ Pray that the Mustard Seed Orphanage in Myanmar would see the Lord powerfully providing for their needs as they care for orphans and widows and the disabled. Pray that the love of Christ would emanate from this orphanage so much so that others around them come to Christ in repentance and faith.
þ Pray that the Word of God would be powerfully proclaimed tomorrow at your church gathering and that God would use his word to mould us, make us and form us to be more like Christ.
Friday 4 February 2011
February 4, 2011
Read Daniel 1:15-16.
Where is God? Why! Why ! Why? What is going on Lord? Lord where are you? Lord I need you?
Have you ever cried out to the Lord from the depths of your heart? Have you ever extended desperate hands to heaven in sobbing prayers? Have you ever desperately needed God to intervene?
Daniel and his friends needed God to intervene. They had refused the King’s food and wine. Effectively, they defied allegiance to the foreign potentate and stood up for their own God, Yahweh. Would God come through? Would God help them? Would God do as he promised? Can He be trusted? Who knows what kinds of questions ran through their minds as they dedicated themselves to the one true living Lord for ten whole days.
And God did come through. They were found to be healthier and fatter than the other prisoners even though they ate only vegetables and drank only water. God answered their plea as they desperately relied only upon Him to come through for them.
You and I can cry out to God in confidence knowing that he always hears our prayers. See Hebrews 7:25, 1 John 5:14, 1 John 3:21-22. We can commit ourselves and our situation to the Lord confidently. We can know for certain that he will hear our prayers and come through for us. We can trust God in any and every situation as we seek to live for Him, to shine His light and to bring others into His kingdom.
Prayer:
þ Pray for Dave and Kirsty Richards as they seek to live for Him in NZ.. Pray that God would grant them all they need to bear much fruit in their university ministry. Pray that the children will settle into routines well.
þ Pray for the work of Student Life as they seek to bring many students into the kingdom. Pray that God would grant the leadership wisdom and direction, unity and oneness and the ability to communicate goals and strategies clearly and effectively. Pray for a great harvest in our universities.
þ Pray that our state schools will have adequate SRI volunteers so that each child in Years 1-12 has the maximum hours of SRI allocated to them. Pray that churches will be zealous for this ministry. Ask God to bring a great harvest from the schools.
Where is God? Why! Why ! Why? What is going on Lord? Lord where are you? Lord I need you?
Have you ever cried out to the Lord from the depths of your heart? Have you ever extended desperate hands to heaven in sobbing prayers? Have you ever desperately needed God to intervene?
Daniel and his friends needed God to intervene. They had refused the King’s food and wine. Effectively, they defied allegiance to the foreign potentate and stood up for their own God, Yahweh. Would God come through? Would God help them? Would God do as he promised? Can He be trusted? Who knows what kinds of questions ran through their minds as they dedicated themselves to the one true living Lord for ten whole days.
And God did come through. They were found to be healthier and fatter than the other prisoners even though they ate only vegetables and drank only water. God answered their plea as they desperately relied only upon Him to come through for them.
You and I can cry out to God in confidence knowing that he always hears our prayers. See Hebrews 7:25, 1 John 5:14, 1 John 3:21-22. We can commit ourselves and our situation to the Lord confidently. We can know for certain that he will hear our prayers and come through for us. We can trust God in any and every situation as we seek to live for Him, to shine His light and to bring others into His kingdom.
Prayer:
þ Pray for Dave and Kirsty Richards as they seek to live for Him in NZ.. Pray that God would grant them all they need to bear much fruit in their university ministry. Pray that the children will settle into routines well.
þ Pray for the work of Student Life as they seek to bring many students into the kingdom. Pray that God would grant the leadership wisdom and direction, unity and oneness and the ability to communicate goals and strategies clearly and effectively. Pray for a great harvest in our universities.
þ Pray that our state schools will have adequate SRI volunteers so that each child in Years 1-12 has the maximum hours of SRI allocated to them. Pray that churches will be zealous for this ministry. Ask God to bring a great harvest from the schools.
Thursday 3 February 2011
February 3, 2011
Read Daniel 1:8-14
Even though Daniel chose to stand up for God to avoid being covenantally linked to the foreign King, he did not bulldoze those around him. Daniel continued to act in love and humility, as God had loved and served him. The chief official was worried that Daniel and his friends would be discovered by the King and because of his own apparent neglect of the prisoners, his head would roll. He was worried for his life. What was Daniel’s reaction? It was not ‘Stuff you, buddy’. On the contrary, Daniel acted in love and compassion.
Daniel decided to eat only vegetables and water for 10 days. After that time the chief official, whose life was on the line, could check and assess them. The official was free to treat them according to what he found in their appearance after ten days.
Loving compassion is a powerful witness to the Lord Jesus Christ, isn’t it?
Imagine what the people in your world would see of Jesus if you acted in the same kind of loving compassion. Imagine how brightly the light of Christ would shine at work, with your friends and among your family as you determine to NOT love the world but to love God wholeheartedly and to treat everyone with this kind of loving compassion. People will start asking you ‘What’s going on?’. They’ll want to know what you have that they are missing. They’ll start asking about this God you so diligently serve. Glory be to God as he uses you to grow His kingdom.
Prayer:
þ Pray that you will be a model of Christ-like love and compassion to those in your world that don’t know Christ yet. Pray that you would have wisdom to know how to act in each particular group or setting. Pray this too for everyone in your congregation. Ask God to grow the kingdom through our love and compassion to those who don’t know Christ.
þ Pray for Shiloh Church Ministries as they seek to show the love and compassion to the needy - orphans, widows, the displaced and so on. Pray that God would grant them all they need to shine Jesus to their world - finances, a right attitude and heart, believers willing to work and so on.
þ Pray that we will see God powerfully at work as we love those around us, as we share the Word of Life with them and as we pray for them.
Even though Daniel chose to stand up for God to avoid being covenantally linked to the foreign King, he did not bulldoze those around him. Daniel continued to act in love and humility, as God had loved and served him. The chief official was worried that Daniel and his friends would be discovered by the King and because of his own apparent neglect of the prisoners, his head would roll. He was worried for his life. What was Daniel’s reaction? It was not ‘Stuff you, buddy’. On the contrary, Daniel acted in love and compassion.
Daniel decided to eat only vegetables and water for 10 days. After that time the chief official, whose life was on the line, could check and assess them. The official was free to treat them according to what he found in their appearance after ten days.
Loving compassion is a powerful witness to the Lord Jesus Christ, isn’t it?
Imagine what the people in your world would see of Jesus if you acted in the same kind of loving compassion. Imagine how brightly the light of Christ would shine at work, with your friends and among your family as you determine to NOT love the world but to love God wholeheartedly and to treat everyone with this kind of loving compassion. People will start asking you ‘What’s going on?’. They’ll want to know what you have that they are missing. They’ll start asking about this God you so diligently serve. Glory be to God as he uses you to grow His kingdom.
Prayer:
þ Pray that you will be a model of Christ-like love and compassion to those in your world that don’t know Christ yet. Pray that you would have wisdom to know how to act in each particular group or setting. Pray this too for everyone in your congregation. Ask God to grow the kingdom through our love and compassion to those who don’t know Christ.
þ Pray for Shiloh Church Ministries as they seek to show the love and compassion to the needy - orphans, widows, the displaced and so on. Pray that God would grant them all they need to shine Jesus to their world - finances, a right attitude and heart, believers willing to work and so on.
þ Pray that we will see God powerfully at work as we love those around us, as we share the Word of Life with them and as we pray for them.
Wednesday 2 February 2011
February 2, 2011
Read Daniel 1:3-8.
The Israelites were no strangers to living in foreign lands and being subject to foreign kings. They dwelt in Egypt under the rule of Pharaoh for about 400 years. When they left Egypt they dwelt in the desert wilderness for 40 years.
After entering the Promised Land they were dominated by several different foreign countries for much of their stay in the land. Now, as they are evicted from the land they again face dominion and rule by a foreign King. Unfortunately it was their sinfulness that led to them being ruled by a foreigner time and time again.
But in this foreign land of Babylon we see that Daniel would not defile himself with the royal food and wine. Though many so called scholars have declared that this is a biblical mandate to diet or to avoid meat eating, their exegesis leaves much to be desired. Daniel is not dieting. He is not taking a stand against meat eating. To understand what Daniel is doing, read 1 John 2:15-17 and James 4:4. The Children of God are called to be separate from the world. Though we are in the world, we are not of the world. We live in the world but we are citizens of heaven. We find our meaning and value in the Lord and not in the things of the world.
For Daniel, to eat from the royal food of the table would mean to be in a covenant bond with a foreign king. For a God fearing believer this is unthinkable and completely unacceptable. We cannot and should not be bound to the world in any way, shape or form.
Daniel was defying the king and stating that he was God’s man first and foremost. Nothing or no one would get in the way of him being God’s man.
Are you and I willing to stand up to be God’s man or woman no matter what the cost? Are we willing to be allied to God and separate from the world, no matter what persecution comes our way. Daniel was! Jesus was! I pray that you and I are!
What we watch on TV, what we read, the things we spend our money on, the things we do with our time, the thoughts of our heart, the people we hang out with and the way we conduct ourselves all show where our allegiances really lie. Do they lie with the world? Do we wish to keep one foot in the world and enjoy the blessings of the world while giving only lip service to Jesus? Do we want to be Sonday Christians that live for ourselves Monday to Saturday? Are we willing to live a half hearted mediocre Christian life as we drown in the trappings of the world? Or will we make a decision to live for God? Will we dedicate our lives to him and put all the trappings of the world in their proper perspective? Will we commit our hearts, our wallets, our minds, our assets and our time to the Lord? YES WE WILL!
Prayer:
þ Pray that you and your brothers and sisters in the Lord will commit wholly and solely to the Lord Jesus Christ.
þ Pray that your congregation will see God powerfully at work.
The Israelites were no strangers to living in foreign lands and being subject to foreign kings. They dwelt in Egypt under the rule of Pharaoh for about 400 years. When they left Egypt they dwelt in the desert wilderness for 40 years.
After entering the Promised Land they were dominated by several different foreign countries for much of their stay in the land. Now, as they are evicted from the land they again face dominion and rule by a foreign King. Unfortunately it was their sinfulness that led to them being ruled by a foreigner time and time again.
But in this foreign land of Babylon we see that Daniel would not defile himself with the royal food and wine. Though many so called scholars have declared that this is a biblical mandate to diet or to avoid meat eating, their exegesis leaves much to be desired. Daniel is not dieting. He is not taking a stand against meat eating. To understand what Daniel is doing, read 1 John 2:15-17 and James 4:4. The Children of God are called to be separate from the world. Though we are in the world, we are not of the world. We live in the world but we are citizens of heaven. We find our meaning and value in the Lord and not in the things of the world.
For Daniel, to eat from the royal food of the table would mean to be in a covenant bond with a foreign king. For a God fearing believer this is unthinkable and completely unacceptable. We cannot and should not be bound to the world in any way, shape or form.
Daniel was defying the king and stating that he was God’s man first and foremost. Nothing or no one would get in the way of him being God’s man.
Are you and I willing to stand up to be God’s man or woman no matter what the cost? Are we willing to be allied to God and separate from the world, no matter what persecution comes our way. Daniel was! Jesus was! I pray that you and I are!
What we watch on TV, what we read, the things we spend our money on, the things we do with our time, the thoughts of our heart, the people we hang out with and the way we conduct ourselves all show where our allegiances really lie. Do they lie with the world? Do we wish to keep one foot in the world and enjoy the blessings of the world while giving only lip service to Jesus? Do we want to be Sonday Christians that live for ourselves Monday to Saturday? Are we willing to live a half hearted mediocre Christian life as we drown in the trappings of the world? Or will we make a decision to live for God? Will we dedicate our lives to him and put all the trappings of the world in their proper perspective? Will we commit our hearts, our wallets, our minds, our assets and our time to the Lord? YES WE WILL!
Prayer:
þ Pray that you and your brothers and sisters in the Lord will commit wholly and solely to the Lord Jesus Christ.
þ Pray that your congregation will see God powerfully at work.
February 1, 2011
Read Daniel 1:1-2
To take up one’s cross and to follow Jesus is effectively a death sentence. Criminals did not survive crucifixion. It was as sure to lead to death as standing before a firing squad today or drinking a cup full of cyanide. It was a death sentence. Understandably, the call to take up your cross and to follow Jesus may make us somewhat nervous and worried and apprehensive.
But we can move forward in confidence. A clue lies in today’s reading. Did you find it? Did you pick up on it?
In verse 2 we see the correct perspective. The Lord God Almighty gave success to Nebuchadnezzar and delivered the land of Judah into enemy hands. The defeat of Jerusalem was ultimately God’s doing not Nebuchadnezzar’s. Until we truly understand the sovereignty of the Lord God Almighty, taking up our cross to follow Jesus will always be scary and apprehensive. Only when we are freed by the knowledge of the sovereignty of God will we freely and joyfully follow Jesus, bearing whatever cross he sees fit to lay upon my shoulders.
As I understand the sovereignty of God I begin to realise that He has put me in this situation to further his Kingdom. This event or rocky road is for my ultimate welfare and benefit (Romans 8:28). God, my Sovereign and Lord, has put me here for a reason. Nothing can happen to me outside of his will. I can march confidently and valiantly forward. I can stand in purity and holiness. I can declare His name to those around me. I can love and serve, even those who hate me and take from me. I can shine the loving light of Jesus in any and every situation because God, my God, is the one true sovereign Lord.
Prayer:
þ Pray that those who are employed by your church (Pastor Esa, Brad, Jane, Lois, Glennys) will know the sovereignty of God and will walk forward victoriously and valiantly.
þ Ask God to change your heart and attitude to godliness and joy in any area where you have been worried, anxious, fretting or nervous etc. Pray that you will shine the light of Jesus clearly and distinctly in that situation.
þ Pray for our brothers and sisters in the Myanmar Bible Colleges as they seek to evangelise and make disciples for Jesus. Pray that they would be victorious over the poverty, the persecution and the need to stay under the radar. Pray that many will come to Christ through their witness.
To take up one’s cross and to follow Jesus is effectively a death sentence. Criminals did not survive crucifixion. It was as sure to lead to death as standing before a firing squad today or drinking a cup full of cyanide. It was a death sentence. Understandably, the call to take up your cross and to follow Jesus may make us somewhat nervous and worried and apprehensive.
But we can move forward in confidence. A clue lies in today’s reading. Did you find it? Did you pick up on it?
In verse 2 we see the correct perspective. The Lord God Almighty gave success to Nebuchadnezzar and delivered the land of Judah into enemy hands. The defeat of Jerusalem was ultimately God’s doing not Nebuchadnezzar’s. Until we truly understand the sovereignty of the Lord God Almighty, taking up our cross to follow Jesus will always be scary and apprehensive. Only when we are freed by the knowledge of the sovereignty of God will we freely and joyfully follow Jesus, bearing whatever cross he sees fit to lay upon my shoulders.
As I understand the sovereignty of God I begin to realise that He has put me in this situation to further his Kingdom. This event or rocky road is for my ultimate welfare and benefit (Romans 8:28). God, my Sovereign and Lord, has put me here for a reason. Nothing can happen to me outside of his will. I can march confidently and valiantly forward. I can stand in purity and holiness. I can declare His name to those around me. I can love and serve, even those who hate me and take from me. I can shine the loving light of Jesus in any and every situation because God, my God, is the one true sovereign Lord.
Prayer:
þ Pray that those who are employed by your church (Pastor Esa, Brad, Jane, Lois, Glennys) will know the sovereignty of God and will walk forward victoriously and valiantly.
þ Ask God to change your heart and attitude to godliness and joy in any area where you have been worried, anxious, fretting or nervous etc. Pray that you will shine the light of Jesus clearly and distinctly in that situation.
þ Pray for our brothers and sisters in the Myanmar Bible Colleges as they seek to evangelise and make disciples for Jesus. Pray that they would be victorious over the poverty, the persecution and the need to stay under the radar. Pray that many will come to Christ through their witness.
January 31, 2011
Read Mark 8:34-38
There is no secret formula for standing out for Jesus. There is no ‘To Do’ List to work through to make you a contagious Christian or a super witness. It boils down to a simple truth - your relationship with Christ Jesus and your willingness to step out in faith. Each and every day there are opportunities to promote Christ Jesus or to evangelise or to serve or to work strategically for the Kingdom of God.
Ultimately you have 2 choices in each and every situation that you find yourself in. - you can choose to glorify Christ or you can choose to deny him. Believers who choose the former have a dynamic impact in their world and make a difference. They are the contagious Christians that stand out from the crowd. They are the ones who make the most of every opportunity (Colossians 4:5) without being ashamed and afraid to stand up for our Lord and Saviour. Believers who choose the latter are often concerned about self - self status, self protection, self image, self promotion, self worth, self rights and so on. While we are concerned with our own rights and self interests we will never be a dynamic, life changing Christian.
As most of you already know and have experienced, a dynamic life of service and witness begins with denying one self, taking up one’s cross and following Jesus. Are you ready? Are you willing? Are you committed to being a dynamic and effective soldier of the Lord Jesus Christ? It’s time to die to ‘self.’ It’s time to commit our entire life and personhood to the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s time to pray a prayer that submits our entirety to the Lord and gives him the freedom to do with us whatever he pleases and to send us wherever he wants to. That kind of submission opens the door to a life of servant hood and powerful witness to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Prayer:
þ In prayer commit your life afresh to the Lord. Tell God that you are willing and happy for him to do with you whatever he wants and to send you where ever he desires. Tell God that you will joyfully do the work that he has called you to do from now on. If you have been holding back in some areas of your life, commit that area to the Lord as well.
þ Pray that the leaders of your church (Pastor, elders, ministry leaders, cell leaders etc) will have the same attitude as described above. Ask God to dramatically grow your church as individuals take up the challenge to deny themselves, take up their cross and to follow Jesus completely, without reservation.
þ Pray that the Myanmar and Burma mission teams will be well supported by the congregation financially, practically and prayerfully.
There is no secret formula for standing out for Jesus. There is no ‘To Do’ List to work through to make you a contagious Christian or a super witness. It boils down to a simple truth - your relationship with Christ Jesus and your willingness to step out in faith. Each and every day there are opportunities to promote Christ Jesus or to evangelise or to serve or to work strategically for the Kingdom of God.
Ultimately you have 2 choices in each and every situation that you find yourself in. - you can choose to glorify Christ or you can choose to deny him. Believers who choose the former have a dynamic impact in their world and make a difference. They are the contagious Christians that stand out from the crowd. They are the ones who make the most of every opportunity (Colossians 4:5) without being ashamed and afraid to stand up for our Lord and Saviour. Believers who choose the latter are often concerned about self - self status, self protection, self image, self promotion, self worth, self rights and so on. While we are concerned with our own rights and self interests we will never be a dynamic, life changing Christian.
As most of you already know and have experienced, a dynamic life of service and witness begins with denying one self, taking up one’s cross and following Jesus. Are you ready? Are you willing? Are you committed to being a dynamic and effective soldier of the Lord Jesus Christ? It’s time to die to ‘self.’ It’s time to commit our entire life and personhood to the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s time to pray a prayer that submits our entirety to the Lord and gives him the freedom to do with us whatever he pleases and to send us wherever he wants to. That kind of submission opens the door to a life of servant hood and powerful witness to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Prayer:
þ In prayer commit your life afresh to the Lord. Tell God that you are willing and happy for him to do with you whatever he wants and to send you where ever he desires. Tell God that you will joyfully do the work that he has called you to do from now on. If you have been holding back in some areas of your life, commit that area to the Lord as well.
þ Pray that the leaders of your church (Pastor, elders, ministry leaders, cell leaders etc) will have the same attitude as described above. Ask God to dramatically grow your church as individuals take up the challenge to deny themselves, take up their cross and to follow Jesus completely, without reservation.
þ Pray that the Myanmar and Burma mission teams will be well supported by the congregation financially, practically and prayerfully.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)