Devotion
Saul/Paul
Frances Taylor
Saul's eyes have been blinded physically and I believe that this is a metaphor for his spiritual blindness in persecuting the Christians. For three days he neither saw nor ate, nor drank. Again, I think of this as his time in a tomb. During this time he prayed and saw in a vision a man coming to him who would lay his hands upon him and give him back his sight. Now, Ananias was the man Saul saw, and God asked Ananias to go to Saul. Needless to say he was reluctant but he did do as the Lord asked and Saul received his sight, rose, was baptized, ate and was strengthened. Once he had come to know Jesus he began to proclaim Jesus as the Son of God. I'm sure you can understand why the Christians in the area were afraid of him and didn't believe his transformation. Saul/Paul became the "apostle to the Gentiles" and without him, we would have so much less knowledge of the early church and the teachings of Jesus. We, too, can be suspicious of a person's transformation. I wonder sometimes why we can't believe that God can still change the heart of a person and bring him or her to faith. I think it may come from a desire for punishment of someone who has behaved badly. But we are not the judges of a person's heart. That's God's job. I for one am happy to leave it to him.
Prayer
Loving God, you want all your children to be with you in heaven. You give us all opportunities to come to know and believe in you. Let us not be suspicious of those who come to you later in their journey, but be grateful that we have come to know of your love at an early age. 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.
