Devotion
The Christian Conga Line
David Jacobs
I am a fan of stand-up comedy, and the comedian James Acaster has a fantastic joke about Conga Lines. He jokes that a Conga dance is one of the most stressful enjoyable activities one can do. The leader has the stress of ensuring his followers go in a safe, sensible and fun direction. He goes on to explain that within the conga line, you are to follow the person in front of you, but lead the person behind you. If you try to leave the line in front, you don't leave the conga line, you accidentally start a rival one. It's all very funny but we can learn a lot about faith from this example.
When we are born, we model ourselves mostly on our parents or siblings, seeing as these are some of the first people we are exposed to. We follow the song and dance of them, and in turn, they lead us to safe, sensible and fun places. If there are moving to the right music (the word of the Lord) then I will enjoy following, and perhaps others will follow me. We progress together.
If one leaves the line prematurely, they run the risk of taking others with them, in the wrong direction. One that isn't sensible, safe, or fun.
So too, might we later model ourselves on Christ, or Christ's image, who in turn was modeled on his Heavenly Father, who is infinite in His compassion.
Prayer
Fear not for those at the rear of the Conga line, for The Lord will be behind you, encouraging you, accompanying you.
This is ultimately what our God wants, for it completes a virtuous circle
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.
