Devotion
Love your neighbour as yourself
David Jacobs
Many of the people who live near my apartment are incredibly wealthy. The parking lots are filled with fancy cars, perhaps not ever remembered by their owners, that are covered in dust. It can foster a bit of ill will to the other people around them, especially those with less money. We are taught to love our neighbors as ourselves, but it is much easier said than done.
This message of loving your neighbor and not holding a grudge is so important because it is so difficult! This is why it is mentioned so many times in the Bible. Holding a grudge is a pestilence to all true believers. There is a famous quote that is a good summation of a grudge: "grudges are like swallowing poison and hoping your enemy dies from it". This negative feeling that we carry towards another person is mostly reflected on our own disposition. The Proverbs mention that here: holding a grudge is a way to devise evil. Mercy and truth are how to devise good.
It may be difficult to reflect and understand the importance of these messages because we hear them so often, but they are said so often because of their importance!
Prayer
Lord God, please hear my prayer. Help me to not begrudge or despise my neighbors for any wrongs they may have committed. As you have forgiven me, let me forgive them. As you say in the Proverbs, good is devised from truth and mercy. Help me to forgive those that have trespassed against me, as you have forgiven me for my trespasses. I pray this in your name, Amen.
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.
