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Weekly Devotionals  |
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Good News DailyVolume VIII Sunday, September 21 As a new Christian, I was involved in a Women’s Bible Study with life-long Christians. When we prayed for the other women, I remained silent because I was intimidated by the words of their prayers. When it was my turn, I’d shake my head and humbly indicate that I didn’t want to pray. I went to the Lord about my fear of praying out loud. I realized that what I thought was humility was, in reality, pride. I wouldn’t pray because I wanted my words to sound eloquent and impress the other women. I refused to pray because I was afraid my words wouldn’t sound “good enough.” I was like one of the “hypocrites”; I wanted to be heard by men. Prayer is a gift from God so we can communicate with Him. He doesn’t care if we’re eloquent. He has given us the Holy Spirit, Who gives us the words to pray. We simply need to get out of the way and let Him pray. Esther 3:1—4:3; Psalms 93, 96; James 1:19-27 Monday, September 22 Do you remember in children’s books how pictures of the sun often sported smiley faces? As a child, I imagined that the sun smiled down on me. Whenever it was overcast for a couple days, I’d wonder where the sun had gone. It was hard for me to understand that just because I couldn’t see the sun didn’t mean that it wasn’t still there smiling down on me. In life, our circumstances often play tricks on our eyes. We focus on the problems and can’t see that Jesus is right in front of us. He becomes hidden behind the clouds of life and we think that He has gone away. As a child, I finally realized that the sun was still shining even if I couldn’t see it through the overcast sky. That is true for the Son as well; His blessing smile is constantly shining on us. “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine (make day dawn) upon you and give you light” (Ephesians 5:14). Esther 4:4-17; Acts 18:1-11; Luke 1:1-4, 3:1-14 Tuesday, September 23 Haman was hung in the gallows he built. I remember many times when I’ve built the problem that ends up hanging me. I grew up sailing, and the first lesson I learned was to always keep any lines or sheets (ropes) untangled and free of knots. A knotted sheet can cause the sail to luff (flap) and slow the boat down, and you might even become dead in the water. If you let a small knot form, it inevitably leads to a bigger knot. This is also true in life. When I ignore the small knots in my life, they end up becoming big knots. Pretty soon, everywhere I look I see the knotted circumstances of my own creation. I am dead in the water. Thankfully, Jesus is patiently waiting for me to ask, “Can You untie these knots?” He always answers, “Yes.” No matter how knotted your life has become, Jesus can set you free. Turn to him and have him untie the small knots before they get too big! All you have to do is ask. Psalm 78:1-39; Acts 18:12-28; Luke 3:15-22 Wednesday, September 24 When I was older, I got a job as a waitress. This job taught me to serve others. Some days were harder than other days to serve people. Sometimes customers where rude and nothing I did pleased them. Other times customers were pleased with me no matter what mistakes I made. I realized that I needed to joyfully serve each customer no matter how they treated me. My job was to serve them to the best of my ability. As a Christian, I’m called to joyfully serve the Lord. My circumstances shouldn’t dictate how I serve Him. When I wake up I have to decide if I’m going to serve my concerns, frustrations, and fears or if I’m going to choose to serve the Lord. My prayer is that each day I will be like Joshua and say, “…as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15b). Esther 6:1-14; Psalm 119:97-120; Acts 19:1-10 Thursday, September 25 There’s a story I read about childlike faith in action. A rural town was desperate for rain, so… The ministers of many of the local churches decided to gather for an afternoon of prayer for rain. Each person was asked to bring an “object of faith” for inspiration. The town’s people came with their crosses, rosaries, and Bibles clutched in their hands. They prayed for an hour asking the Lord to bring rain to their water starved land. Suddenly the town’s people felt the sprinkling of rain on their cheeks. They jumped and shouted for joy. People began turning towards the middle of crowd. There in their midst was an “object of faith” that outshone all the others. A small 9-year-old child stood holding an umbrella. (Paraphrased from Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul) That child brought his “faith umbrella” to their time of prayer. He understood that we pray, God hears, and God answers. If God supplies rain for the earth, don’t you think He will supply what you need? Go with a childlike expectancy before the Lord, knowing that He desires to answer your prayers. Esther 7:1-10; Psalm 146, Acts 19:11-20; Luke 4:14-30 Friday, September 26 Recently, at camp in Maine, we had a huge campfire where many old friends wanted to share their memories. In order to allow each person to talk (and be heard), they were given the “talking stick.” The talking stick gave the person permission to speak. When the king extended the scepter to Esther he was showing her that he was willing and pleased to hear her requests. The king gave her permission to speak. The scepter was her “talking stick.” Did you know that God has extended a Scepter to you? Jesus is the Scepter in our lives. Through Him we have permission to make our requests known to the King of kings. Jesus was stretched out on the cross, bridging the gap between humans and God. With Jesus as the Scepter, we are able to speak to the Lord. When Jesus was extended to us, we were welcomed into the Throne Room. Thank you, Jesus, for being the Scepter. Thank you that I have permission to come boldly before the Father because you have been extended to me. Amen. Psalm 88; Acts 19:21-41; Luke 4:31-37 Saturday, September 27 For me, Maine is a place filled with memories of joy and peace. I remember experiencing childhood joy as I ate maple and brown sugar oatmeal and looked out our cabin’s screened porch at Moose Pond. If I close my eyes, I can still smell the oatmeal and hear the lapping of the pond. I just returned from Maine where I sat on that same screened porch and looked out at the sun dancing on Moose Pond. The first thing I saw as I awakened was the sparkling water and the wind-kissed pine trees. I felt like God was sending me a personalized wake up invitation; inviting me to spend a day filled with His love. I confess; I wanted to run outside in my pajamas with my arms spread wide and spin in circles like a little girl! However, I didn’t think the little town of Bridgton was ready for that, so I hummed and sang worship songs and rejoiced in the Lord. His beautiful creation surrounded me and I felt satisfied and loved by Him. Hosea 1:1—2:1; Psalm 87; Acts 20:1-16; Luke 4:38-44 by Kirsten Aufhammer Used with permission from the BIBLE READING FELLOWSHIP |
