Devotion
How can we lead anguished spirits to God?
David Jacobs
War, terror attacks, sexual abuse...the world is filled with people committing acts that are not in line with the word of God. People turn to things to give them comfort: religion, alcohol, drugs, sex, greed, exercise, food. It may seem hopeless, like the world is filled with too many challenges for us to overcome. What is the point in trying if the problems will keep resurfacing?
Moses faced a staggering challenge at the request of God: free the Israelites from Egypt. Moses balked at first, thinking that he was not capable of performing the tasks that God commanded. Moses probably felt the same way that I described in the first paragraph: hopeless. What would be the point in even trying when he would surely fail? Even when Moses finally musters the courage to speak to the Israelites, they are unable to listen "for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage." (Exodus 6:9) Life had beaten them down so hard they had lost all hope.
Consider many of the problems that I mentioned in the first sentence. Why are people committing such heinous acts? They have lost hope. Why do people turn to alcohol, drugs, greed, food, corruption, and sex? They have lost hope. Brothers and sisters! We must lead as an example, as a shining beacon on a hill, to show the hopeless that there is hope! (Matthew 5:14) Moses became hopeful; survivors of the Egyptian captivity eventually became hopeful; the early Christians that were persecuted and killed remained hopeful; survivors of the Holocaust and world wars remained hopeful. Let our light shine in the darkness for all to see. If not us, then who?
Prayer
There are so many things that divide us: countries, race, religions, politics, economic factors. Think about what things make us all distinctly human. How can we focus on the things that unite us to bring us closer together?
Devotion
Abraham is Father of All
Frances Taylor
There are questions in every age about the importance of the Old Testament for Christians. Abraham is considered to be the Father of Faith for Jews, Christians and Muslims. We forget that it was Abraham who believed in the doctrine of only one God. It is through him and his descendants that this tradition comes down to us. Another fact that we can overlook is that Jesus was Jewish. He was born a Jew, lived as a Jew, died, rose and ascended into heaven as a Jew. Because we believe that he was the Messiah, the Christ, and we follow him, we are called Christian. Without the Old Testament, we wouldn't understand the promise of salvation; we wouldn't understand why it was important for Jesus to be of the family of King David. We would not understand his teaching either, because Jesus quoted from Scripture – the Old Testament – frequently. He told us that he came to fulfill the Scriptures, not to abolish them. In the same way, we can ...
Morning Prayer
Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Inspiration
We have a responsibility, as Christians, to abstain from the sinful practices we partook in before we became saved. While it may be a gradual process of change, we should ensure that we are putting in our best to play our part in resisting temptation. God enables us to resist temptation, but it is up to us to actually resist.
Prayer
Dear God, I pray that I will always be a person of action. Father, I take delight in my new life in you and I do not desire otherwise. I pray that in times of temptation, may I act on the strength you have given me to flee and/or resist. May I never rely on excuses or procrastination, Lord. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Night Prayer
Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.
Inspiration
We have chosen to surrender our lives and serve the Lord. We serve Him by witnessing, completing missionary projects, and ministering to those in need. There is always work to do and a world full of people to help. We will look for opportunities to provide for our brothers and sisters in Christ by any means necessary. We are servants to one another as a service to the Lord; He will never forsake us.
Prayer
Dear God, Help us see the world through Your eyes. We desire to serve those around us by reflecting Your love through our actions. You will never forsake us, and we will continually lift praises of thanksgiving to You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
