Category: Devotionals

An eternal perspective

Photo by Edu Carvalho, from Pexels

These reflections on having an eternal perspective are based on 2 Corinthians 4:7–18.

‘Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.’ (v16)

This extract from 2 Corinthians reminds us of the frailty of our bodies (they are referred to as ‘jars of clay’). I think we can place too much emphasis on our physical bodies. The fact is, each day we are getting older and our bodies are decaying as they age. That is part of the fallen nature of our world and yet, sadly, our society doesn’t value older women. The marketing we see all around us tends to set up young, beautiful women as the ideal.

A DIFFERENT SET OF VALUES

The underlying message is that we should try to make ourselves look as young and beautiful as possible – outer beauty is what it is all about. But that simply isn’t the truth and this passage reminds us that we have a different set of values to live by. In a society that bombards us with the opposite, I think we really need to be reminded of this eternal perspective. We also have a promise to hold on to: ‘our citizenship is in heaven… the Lord Jesus Christ… will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body’ (Philippians 3:20–21).

ULTIMATE HOPE

Paul describes the trials and sufferings that he endured – but defiantly states: ‘We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed’ (vv8–9). He isn’t shying away from the reality, but he is stating where his ultimate hope is: ‘For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all’ (v17). Is that how we view our difficulties? Do we think in terms of eternity? Is our sense of self reflecting our eternal inheritance, or simply our immediate circumstances?

Prayer: Lord I thank You for this reminder that, while my physical body may be fragile, I have an eternal hope in You. Amen.

Everything we need

These reflections on God giving us everything we need are based on 2 Peter 1:3–11.

‘His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him’ (v3)

This is one of my favourite portions of scripture. We have already been looking at how God provides everything we need to truly be ourselves. Here we get an incredible summary of that fact! As we are getting near to the end of this devotional series, I wanted to include these verses as an exhortation to us all. They feel all the more poignant today, as it would have been my mum’s birthday. The passage speaks to me afresh of how God has everything I need for this season in my life. That is, for my grieving as well as every other area. But they also remind me of how well my mum made ‘every effort’ to grow in the qualities described – and spurred me on to do so too.

GROWING IN CHARACTER

It is precisely because God has given us everything we need, by allowing us to ‘participate in the divine nature’ (v4), that we are able to grow the qualities described here. These are character traits that enable us to be better people, more loving and more godly. But what is their purpose? ‘For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is short-sighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. (vv8–9). 

KNOWING GOD’S IDENTITY – AND OUR OWN

I find it fascinating that we are told twice that knowledge about God is essential (verses 3 and 8). For me, that reaffirms the importance of knowing who my God is – and who I truly am in Him. Without that knowledge, too easily we can fall for the lie that we can never be free from a particular sin or habit. Or the lie that we don’t deserve the salvation we have received.

When we are secure in God and our identity, we can put off what hinders us and, working with the Holy Spirit, develop ourselves further so that we reflect the nature of Jesus more and more. We can actively pursue spiritual maturity, living out God’s values in our daily lives.

Reflection: Reflect on what your life says about your faith. Does it reveal God’s kingdom…and are you growing? Finish by thanking God that He has given us everything we need to live out our lives well.

Accept one another

These reflections on learning to accept one another are based on Romans 15:1–7.

‘Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.’ (v7)

We are continuing to look at how living our lives well includes reaching out to others. Here our focus is on humbly considering how well we accept one another.

FRACTURE OR UNITY?

I find it a sad indictment against the Church that there is so much infighting. Just a quick look on social media reveals many heated arguments, in which participants often angrily accuse others of not being real Christians. Tragically, the world at large can look upon so many parts of the Church and see fracture rather than unity.

In Romans Paul urges us to look to the needs of others. If we are stronger in a particular area than someone else, rather than looking down on them we should bear with them and encourage them. In all honesty, there are particular situations when this is more difficult. However, our motivation is always to be the same. We never deserved Jesus’ love and acceptance but He has poured it on us in bucket loads. So how can we withhold our love and acceptance from others?

LEARNING FROM BIBLICAL EXAMPLES

If you know you find it difficult to accept others, or if there is one person who is springing into your mind as you are reading this, be encouraged by verse 4: ‘For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.’

The Bible shows us how to love and accept others; it reveals God’s love for us and how Jesus was willing to be insulted for us – and ultimately die for us. It shows us the disasters that occurred when different people refused to accept one another (such as Cain and Abel, Saul with David). The Bible also shows us how God honours those who put their lives on the line for others (such as Esther and Ruth).

Prayer: Lord thank You for the reminder to accept those around me. Help me to share Your love today. Amen.

Gently instructing one another

These reflections on instructing one another are based on: 
Titus 2:1–6.

‘teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live… Then they can urge the younger women…’ (vv3–5)

The heart behind this passage seems to me to be all about the church family functioning as a supportive network, one helping another to live righteously. The emphasis is on self-control, but there is also an urgent call for sound teaching, purity, kindness, integrity etc.

LIVING AND TEACHING AUTHENTICALLY

I feel I need to be honest now and say that there have been moments in which I have found comments from older women difficult to take. These were often in the context of parenting when I had very small children. I found myself thinking that collective wisdom had moved on and the women were too old-fashioned in their opinions. I think I probably missed out because of my attitude, and know of others who longed to have such input when they were younger.

However, what still causes me to sit up and listen is when women have modelled something beautifully, and have also taken time to simply be my friend before speaking into my life. Often the subsequent teaching is done naturally – and it is that that I think Paul is referring to here.

In each example, he is urging the leader or older person to first live out the way they will then instruct others to. As long as that happens in an organic way, rather than one person lording authority over another, I think it is a wonderful picture of unity and support within the body.

LEARNING AND INSTRUCTING WITH HUMILITY

Our society often feeds us the lie that only we know what is best for our own lives, and it can harden us to input from others. If only we could be humble enough to both receive and give gentle instruction in order to build one another up and help each other live lives worthy of our callings…

Prayer: I am sorry Lord when I dismiss what others may try to teach me. Help me to be humble and gracious, and also to recognise when You want me to help someone else. Amen.

Jesus understands temptation and suffering

These reflections on temptation and suffering are based on Hebrews 4:12–16.

‘we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet he did not sin’ (v15).

In these devotions, we have been looking at how living our lives in step with the Spirit involves self-control and self-discipline. The first few verses of this Hebrews passage say nothing is hidden from God so we will have to give an account to Him of our lives. That is sobering; we certainly do need to take stock regularly and watch our thoughts and actions.

JESUS TRULY KNOWS HOW WE FEEL

The good news is that Jesus experienced life as a human so He knows what temptations and difficulties really feel like. Hebrews 2 also reveals He was fully human, which enabled Him to break us free from the grip of sin. Verses 17–18 summarise this:

For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

In the way that He lived His life, Jesus provided us with a template of how to stand up to temptation when it tries to lure us.

In the Garden of Gethsemane, just before His trial and execution, Jesus cried out to the Father for a way not to drink the cup of suffering. And yet… His final response was: ‘may your will be done’. He became the source of our salvation, but also faced the weight of temptation and suffering.

How incredible that we have one we can turn to who understands what we are going through. He is our strength: we are not expected to beat ourselves into submission. Rather, we look to the One who equips us to live lives that honour Him. We can be confident and draw close to Him. How freeing!

Optional further reading: Matthew 26:36–45, Hebrews 2:10–11;14–18

Prayer: Lord I thank You that You know what it feels like to face temptations and difficulties. Help me to remember that I can turn to You, speak honestly and also receive Your grace, mercy and strengthening. Amen.

Stand firm

These reflections on how to stand firm are based on 2 Timothy 1:6–13.

‘For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.’

Paul wrote this letter to Timothy from prison, knowing that he was going to die soon. In it, he was encouraging Timothy to stand firm in the midst of difficulties, to ‘fan into flame’ (v6) the gift already inside him. It is obvious that Paul was enduring persecution for his faith. However, he knew Timothy’s leadership was also under fire. So he reminded him that he had all he needed.

All Christians, whether leaders or not, have the power, love and self-discipline that comes from the Holy Spirit. Those qualities help us to ‘guard the good deposit’ that we each have.

ENCOURAGED BY EXAMPLES

These devotional blogs are based on Bible study notes I wrote previously, and it was quite poignant for me to read who I mentioned in the entry about this scripture. I had been organising a women’s event called ‘praising through the pain’ and asked three women very dear to me to speak, who retained resolute faith through incredible suffering.

One of those was my dear mother, who, as I have shared many times before, endured so much physical suffering in her life. The others, too, have both encouraged me to stand firm through their own example. Paul was a great example to Timothy – who do you have in your life being the same for you?

GUARDING OUR HEARTS AND MINDS

Whatever we are facing we can stand firm in Jesus, and do not need to suffer shame – although we may endure difficulties. This passage reminds us of the truth and grace of the gospel. We may need to be bold, and fight against the schemes of the enemy at times. But we may also endure suffering for the sake of the gospel. Let’s remember we can call on the Holy Spirit to help us draw on the power, love and self-discipline He has already placed inside of us.

Prayer: Lord You have given me all I need to stand firm today. Holy Spirit, help me to avail myself of Your power, love and self-discipline. Amen.

Discipline as well as freedom

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These reflections on living a life of discipline are based on: 1 Corinthians 9:19–27.

‘Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.’ (v24)

Although we acknowledge that we can do nothing without God’s help, we do have a choice as to how we live out our Christian lives. As our salvation does not depend on works, we could simply sit back and do nothing – after all, it wouldn’t change how much God loves us.

However, Paul is a great example to emulate. He encourages us that being free in Christ provides us with a great opportunity to train ourselves. He uses the analogy of runners and other competitors. They put their all into their training, running hard after the prize. Being with Jesus for all eternity is our prize – isn’t that worth disciplining ourselves for?

PUTTING HELPFUL DISCIPLINES IN PLACE

If we know we struggle in certain areas, perhaps self-image or relying on junk food, we can put certain disciplines in place and ask for others to support us. In this passage, Paul talks about making his body a slave. He did not want to be mastered by anything other than his God and so went all out to ensure that didn’t happen. While we are free, we are not free to indulge our earthly passions (see Galatians 5:13, 1 Peter 2:16). The Christian life calls for hard work and discipline at times.

REACHING OTHERS

I find it fascinating that Paul also says, ‘Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.’ (v19). While we don’t have to do anything to earn our salvation, God’s means of reaching the world with His good news is us. So Paul made himself amiable to all types of people so that he wasn’t a stumbling block to them hearing the gospel. Is that something that you consciously do?

This can take discipline too, especially in those moments when we’d rather not make the effort. But in this time of great uncertainty, people are crying out for community. There is also much division and pain in the world today. Let’s be those that reach out, and bring people together in whatever ways we can.

Prayer: Lord I know that You call me to both freedom and discipline. Help me to glorify You through the way that I live my life every day. Amen.

The denying of self

These reflections on being willing to deny ourselves are based on Mark 8:34–38.

‘“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”’ (v34)

Our society is selfish – people’s lives are centred on getting the best for themselves. Sadly, we can see that trait in many of our leaders today too. But that is not Jesus’ way. We are looking at the subject of ‘self’ but in our reading today He says that we must deny ourselves and be willing to lose our lives!

That can seem really harsh to us, but let’s unpack it. We have already seen how Jesus actually gives us a new identity when we choose to follow Him – and it is one with a rich inheritance. Nothing can compare to that. He also teaches us to love ourselves – as we need to in order to love others well.

HAVING THE RIGHT PERSPECTIVE

I think what Jesus was saying here is that we need to shift our perspective. Life isn’t about trying to hang onto everything we can. As He says in verse 36: ‘What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?’ It is about making the choice not to be self-serving, but to view our lives appropriately and ensure we are willing to sacrifice everything.

Sometimes we will be called to suffer – Jesus talks about taking up our crosses – but we know that ultimately we have everything in the One who gave the once-and-for-all sacrifice. We have a call to a better life – but it means losing the old one. As Phil Moore says in his book Straight to the Heart of Revelation: ‘The Gospel is free, but it is not cheap.’

We find our true selves when we are willing to give up our rights to live just for ourselves. Some may pressurise or taunt us because we are Christians, but, ultimately, Jesus reminds us that those who reject Him now will not enjoy eternity with Him. And it is important to realise that our willingness to deny ourselves involves showing sacrificial love to others. By doing this, we reveal Jesus to those around us.

Prayer: Lord today I want to reiterate that I am willing to give myself to You completely – whatever the cost. Thank You that You give me true life in return. Amen.

Living by the Spirit

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These reflections on living by the Spirit are based on Galatians 5:13–26.

‘the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control’ (vv22–23)

We have spent some time looking at the things that we need to actively ‘take off’, and previously saw how a lack of self-control affects our whole being. Today’s passage puts in stark contrast living for our fleshy selves with living by the Spirit. We are reminded at the start that we are ‘called to be free’ (v13). But the only way to do this is to ‘live by the Spirit’ (v16). What does this mean? Well verses 22–26 give us a very clear indication.

CULTIVATED BY THE SPIRIT

If you are anything like me, you may read the list of the fruits of the Spirit and feel slightly condemned. I know that gentleness is not my strong point. In fact, way back in church youth group a visiting speaker challenged us to take turns thanking God for the qualities that we saw in each other. I was asked to go first and, as we were all quite shy, the guy encouraged the others to speak up by making suggestions. When he said: ‘Is she gentle?’ everyone fell about laughing. No, gentleness is not a natural quality in me. But, rather than the fruit being things we need to work up in our own strength, the Holy Spirit works in our hearts to cultivate them.

As we give Him access to the whole of our hearts, His fruit will naturally grow. That is why Paul urges us to ‘keep in step with the Spirit’. Our old, sinful selves have been crucified with Christ, but he recognises that they have desires that do assert themselves.

BRINGING OUR BATTLES BEFORE THE SPIRIT

Many of us will have encountered battles during the past year with this. As restrictions have tightened, it has been tempting to indulge in activities that we find give us fleeting comfort and pleasure, such as binge-watching or eating.

It has been beautiful to see a sense of community grow, as many people have pulled together to support each other in these tough times. And yet, in our own homes, sometimes the tiredness and stress of the situation has had us lashing out at those closest to us, as patience has worn thin, and tempers have flared.

It is in such moments that we have a choice: either give in to what we know are unhealthy desires, or say no to them and ask for the Holy Spirit’s help to walk into the life we have been called to. Of course, we must be kind and compassionate to ourselves, and those around us. Being aware of what pushes our buttons is part of that process. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to reveal more of those things to us today, and bring them before Him.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, I thank You that You grow Your fruit within my heart. Help me to walk in step with You, allowing You access to the whole of me. Amen.

A lack of self-control

These reflections on self-control are based on 2 Timothy 3.

‘People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God’ (vv2–3)

We are now returning to the weekly series we were doing before Christmas. Paul doesn’t pull any punches here in 2 Timothy. Describing what people will be like in the ‘end times’ (between Jesus’ resurrection and second coming), a lot of it rings true for today’s culture. The view of so many is that it is fine to seek after pleasure, status and money. However, here Paul slates such self-gratifying behaviour. 

Interestingly, a lack of self-control is up there in his description. The Old Testament also talks about those who lack self-control: ‘Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control’ (Proverbs 25:28).

Sadly this seems to describe what has happened this week in America. It has been heartbreaking to watch. But, while we may have looked on aghast, in our hearts we knew it was the inevitable result of what has been happening over the course of many years.

And the verse displayed above seems to describe many politicians and other leaders. It is certainly sobering to think of the state of our world today – but also of our own hearts.

In verses 8–9 Paul talks about the magicians who counterfeited Moses’ miracles (see Exodus. 7). He was saying that, just like them, the false teachers of the day would be exposed for who they truly were. The same is true for anyone – while individuals may be able to hide their shortcomings from others for a while, God sees and knows who they really are. Actually I take comfort from that today, as we read the promise that ‘their folly will be clear to everyone’ (v9). Lord may it be so!

OUR TRUE SELVES REVEALED

Of course, that same truth applies to us too. When we are put into stressful situations that ‘squeeze’ us, what is revealed? Have we learned to cultivate the kind of qualities Paul did throughout the pressures of his life (see vv10–11)? Or do we lose control in the face of difficulties? 

I think we have probably all had times during the past year when we have done and said things that have surprised even ourselves. When we are under extended periods of stress, and the unexpected happens over and over, we are bound to be affected. But it is also helpful to recognise and bring those less than godly responses before God, in repentance and humility, asking him to mould and shape us.

GOD’S WORD IS ALL-SUFFICIENT

I love Paul’s reminder that ‘All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness’ (v16). In an age when the credibility of the Bible is constantly being questioned, it is refreshing to be reminded that it contains everything we need. That remains true even in the midst of what is happening in the world today. Yes it is a challenge, but we can remain steadfast, and exercise self-control, even in the midst of pressure and pain.

Prayer: Lord I am humbled by Paul’s words. I want to be known as someone who is self-controlled rather than one who lacks it. Help me to develop this quality. Amen.