Growing in Grace: A Daily Devotional for the Year

Grace

1st January

A New Beginning

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)

A new year is a new beginning, a chance to dream and hope of wonderful things happening, and a time to plan and pray that they can come true. I pray that this year will be a new beginning for you and a new and closer walk for you and the Lord. Getting to know God is real and exciting. It is a totally life-changing experience. Knowing God begins with knowing Him as the Creator. His creation is the first place through which He reveals Himself to us. How do we know, you may ask, that God is the Creator? How do we know that evolution is not true? The answer is through nature and through the Bible. Our universe and everything in it points to there being a designer. It is filled with life and order and pattern and purpose. It defies evolution at every turn. It shows us the greatness of God, the bigness of God and the awesome wonder of His wisdom and care. The Bible says that the invisible things of him (God) from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they (mankind) are without excuse. (Rom. 1:20) Creation tells us, God created this! The Bible tells us how. The God of creation is the God of the Bible. You cannot separate the two. If you want to know and draw near to the Creator of heaven and earth, then you will need to draw near to the Author of the Bible. It is His revelation of Himself to us. It tells us things that creation cannot. It tells us that God is holy, but we are sinners. It tells us of the Lord Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, who gave His holy life for the sins of all the world. It tells us of salvation through faith in Christ and His atoning death on the cross. It tells us that God is love and full of mercy and grace. It tells us that His love is the reason that He made us and sent His Son to redeem us. We cannot know these things apart from the Bible. In creation, God calls us to worship Him. Through the Bible, God tells us how. Don’t be afraid of people and their evolutionary theories, for that is all they are; theories. Let the facts speak for themselves. Put your faith in the God who created this amazing world and put your trust in the truths and promises of His wonderful Word. Let the message of God’s two witnesses reassure your heart and establish your faith, not a blind nor a foolish faith, but rather a right response to God, to His signature in nature and His self-disclosure in His Word. Begin your new year with the worship of God as Creator. If He isn’t already, receive Him as your Saviour and Lord. And as we read through the Bible together, may the words of the God of Creation fill your life with great blessing and joy and peace.

Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. (Revelation 4:11)

2nd January

The God of Light

And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. (Genesis 1:3-5)

The first thing that God made was light and God called it good. He also called it day. God created time. Time is ordered. It proceeds unerringly down a preordained path. We can’t stop it or change it, only work with it. In time, God also gave us patterns, or cycles. Nature abounds with cycles, but the first and simplest one was day and night. Light and dark. Work and rest. We need work and purpose to our days, but we also need rest and recovery from our efforts. On this first day of Creation, there was no sun and no moon, yet there was light and there was day. Some people have worried that the Lord made plants on the third day and the sun only the next day. How could the plants have survived? they ask. Well, they forget, there was light from day one. There was day and night from the very first day. The Bible says that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. (1 Jn. 1:5) Light is a powerful, dynamic, moving force. Through light, we see things that otherwise we couldn’t see. And when we see them, we understand them and live accordingly. So it is with God’s Word. Through it, we learn of spiritual realities we could never otherwise see. We begin to understand why things happen and so adjust our lives accordingly. The Bible calls this ability to see spiritual reality, wisdom. It says that those who receive instruction from God’s Word get wisdom and their lives are improved through the use of it. I can vouch for this in my own life. Living with no heed to instruction only brings pain and hurt. Listening to advice and learning from the Bible without a doubt helps a person navigate through the blind and bumpy spots of life. Light and dark, good and bad. We live in a twilight world where definitions of good and bad are constantly changing. What was wrong a generation ago, is now right. Moral standards change from age to age and from culture to culture. How are we ever meant to know what is really good, or on what authority do we dare to call something sin? The Bible is our final authority. Being what it is, the very words of God to man, the Bible is our greatest treasure. Any time spent reading it will be time well spent. It is a book which declares itself to be God’s message to mankind, which calls you to trust in it and promises that when you do, you won’t be disappointed. Don’t let other people’s doubts dissuade you from giving God and His Word the attention they deserve. God is light. His Word gives light and it is safe and wise and rewarding to walk in the light it gives.

The entrance of thy words giveth light, it giveth understanding unto the simple. (Psalm 119:130)

3rd January

Made in His Image

So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (Genesis 1:27)

Man alone is made in the image God. We were made to bring pleasure, glory and honour to our God and Heavenly Father. Evolutionary theory supposes, but actually teaches as fact, that we evolved from apes, which evolved from fish, which evolved from a frothy, bubbling soup, which evolved from…. nothing! In the beginning God, or in the beginning nothing. Neither can be proved and neither can be disproved, but wisdom and common sense and sound reasoning lend themselves to see the hand of an Almighty and Masterful Creator behind the careful and detailed designs of this world. Evolution rejects the existence of a personal and righteous God as its starting point. In an endeavour to find another alternative, man has come up with an improbable and illogical option. The big bang! In the beginning there was nothing, and out of nothing came a massive explosion which brought forth life. It requires more faith than any other religion on earth to believe this, but it has become accepted as scientific fact that it is true. According to the theory of evolution, there is no God, no heaven, and no hell. Man is just an animal, a bit more evolved than others, but basically the same. Life is for survival and pleasure. There is no meaning or point to our existence. Once we die, that’s it. This is not just depressing and hopeless, it is not true. And yet this is what children are taught at school. This is the framework on which they must understand their world and build their lives. The Bible teaches that God created everything by His spoken Word. He made man different from all other creatures. And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. (Gen. 2:7) We bear the image and the likeness of our Heavenly Father. God is Holy and we have in us a conscience which warns us instinctively of right and wrong. God is Love and we have in our hearts a need to be loved and a desire to show love to others. God is personal and He made us for fellowship with Himself. We have in our hearts a deep and searching longing for friendship, which finds its fulfillment in a personal relationship with our Maker. For every life that is conceived upon this earth, the Lord God has a plan and a purpose. For every soul that dies without the knowledge of God, our Heavenly Father grieves. Life is cheap if your philosophy is based on evolution. But if you know the truth of God’s Word, the truth of creation; life is a treasured gift from God. All our meaning, our value, and our worth, is found in the knowledge of God’s purpose in creating us and in his love in redeeming us and restoring us to fellowship with Him.

I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded. (Isaiah 45:12)

4th January

The Sanctity of Marriage

Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. (Genesis 2:24)

Marriage is a holy gift, given from God to mankind. It is between a man and a woman. It can never be between two men, or two women, or one man and many women. God made Eve for Adam. Without her, he was incomplete. He was not useless, incapable, or weak; but he was lonely and unable to fulfill his God-given task on earth to be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it. (Gen. 1:28) God made Adam from the dust of the ground. (Gen. 2:7) Eve was created from one of Adam’s ribs. (Gen. 2:21-22) Adam and Eve were created for one another; for fellowship, for love, and for human intimacy. Together, they could love and serve God, being the first parents of the first human family. Their relationship was sufficient for their needs. It was just them and the Lord and their work in His creation of beauty and wonder. Adam and Eve and the Lord were a team. They were a picture of what marriage is meant to be like. It is based upon love, respect, service and giving. Not many marriages today are like this. Some are more like a warzone, or a contest. Couples are either fighting about rights or competing for control. No marriage can succeed with constant bickering, nagging, unfaithfulness, lies, and neglect. Not only do marriages face the normal difficulties of two people trying to overcome their natural differences, but marriages also face the added burden of extreme temptations to immorality and unfaithfulness which fill and pervade our society like never before. And on top of this, Satan hates marriage. It is the cornerstone of society. It is God’s creation, a holy institution and a picture of the pure and perfect love that Christ has for His bride, the church. Don’t let the devil destroy something God has called good. Don’t let the ways of the world creep in and steal that which is holy and pure. Don’t let your own flesh rob you of blessings and peace. Marriage is worth fighting for. It is worth getting up early in the morning and praying for. It is worth fasting for and crying out to God for. A good and godly marriage doesn’t happen by chance. It happens by grace. It is given by God as we seek His face and live by faith, obeying the instructions He has given in His Word. If you are married, may God bless your marriage with love and peace. If you are waiting to get married, may He lead you to the right person at the right time, and keep you from rushing into something that is not His will for you. If you are looking back at a marriage that once was, and sorrowing for that special love now lost; or perhaps grieving for a life that never had the experience of marriage; take heart. For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of Hosts is his name. (Isa. 54:5)

Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. (Hebrews 13:4)

5th January

Trust God’s Word

Yea, hath God said? (Genesis 3:1)

Satan cast doubt on God’s Word in the Garden of Eden, and he’s still doing it today. Did God really say you can’t do that? Does God really mean that? If he can get you to doubt the infallibility of God’s Word, he’s got you! Your faith in an imperfect, faulty and untrustworthy Bible will crumble because it has nothing sure to stand on. If he can only just get you to believe that your Bible has errors, he can then do anything with you. To deny the infallibility of Scripture is to call the Lord a liar. Jesus said, Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. (Jn. 17:17) To the Pharisees, Jesus said, But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God. (Jn. 8:40) Jesus said that the Word of God cannot be broken. (Jn. 10:35) Paul taught that all scripture is given by inspiration of God. (2 Tim. 3:16) The apostle John testified to the truth of Jesus Christ. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (Jn. 1:14) James, the brother of the Lord, describes the Bible as the word of truth. (Jas. 1:18) Peter, the apostle, describes the Word of God as incorruptible seed, which liveth and abideth for ever. (1 Pet. 1:23) He also said that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. (2 Pet. 1:20-21) I was taught to doubt the Word of God at Bible College. I was told that the Bible was written for a Middle-Eastern, patriarchal culture thousands of years ago, and is therefore, in places, outdated. I was told that, because of this, certain passages no longer mean what they say. I was told that the originals were inspired, but the copies all contain errors. Stop for one moment and consider this: Would God go to all the effort of giving us His infallible and perfect Word, only to let it be corrupted by man in just a few years? Is God able to give us His Word, but not to keep it? More importantly, did God promise to preserve His Word or did He not? The Bible tells us that not only did God give us His perfect Word, but that He also promises to keep it perfect and preserved for ever and ever. The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. (Ps. 12:6-7) Don’t let Satan get you to doubt that God’s Word is true and without error; perfectly given and faithfully preserved. Don’t let him steal from you the joy and confidence of knowing that in your hand you can hold and read the very words of the living Lord.

Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth forever. (Psalm 119:160)

6th January

A Guilty Conscience

Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God. (Genesis 3: 8)

With man’s first act of disobedience, sin came into the world. And with sin came shame and guilt and fear. Adam and Eve used to walk with God and talk with Him in the cool of the day. But sin destroyed that fellowship. It wrecked their friendship with the Lord. That’s what it does to us too, today. Sin separates man from God. God is holy and cannot look upon sin. Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity. (Hab. 1:13) When the Lord gave His commandment in the Garden of Eden, He told Adam the penalty that would come with disobedience. He said, In the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die. (Gen. 2:17) The soul that sinneth, it shall die. (Ezek. 18:4) For the wages of sin is death. (Romans 6:23) God’s Word is true, and sin brought with it death. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for all have sinned. (Rom. 5:12) With Adam as our father, we have all inherited a sin nature. We sin because we cannot but sin. No matter who we are, how good we appear, how hard we try; we all sin. As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God…there is none that doeth good, no, not one. (Rom. 3:10-12) The good news of the Gospel is that, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. (1 Tim. 1:15) Apart from the grace of God, given to us through the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no cure or remedy for our sin problem. But through the sacrificial death and blood atonement of Christ, we can be forgiven and given a clean slate and a new nature that can choose not to sin. In Christ, we can have peace with God, and peace with others. We can have a heart that’s free from guilt and a life that’s free from sin and shame. Not a sinless life, but one in which we can grow in holiness and find grace to help us when we still sin. A clear conscience before God and man is of more value than all the treasures of the world. No money or medicine can provide that peace of heart and mind which only the grace and the forgiveness of God can give. Don’t be like Adam and Eve and try and hide your sin from the Lord. He is calling your name, seeking you out, offering you forgiveness and another chance. Instead of hiding behind the trees of self-justification, or trying to cover your guilt with the fig leaves of excuses and blame; just run to the Lord, cast yourself on Him. Confess your sin and receive pardon and peace as His love and grace take the place of guilt and regret.

Have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and to ward man. (Acts 24:16)

7th January

My Way or His Way

Why is thy countenance fallen? (Genesis 4:6)

Even the very first family on earth had its problems. Cain and Abel, two of Adam and Eve’s many children, were fighting. The Lord was pleased with Abel on account of his sacrifice, but not with Cain and Cain was sulking about it. The Lord wanted a lamb, a firstborn lamb – a type or symbol of the Lord Jesus Christ, that final sacrifice to take away the sins of the world, once and for all. For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. (Lev. 17:11) The Lord had shown Adam and Eve what was required when He had killed an animal to make coats of skin to cover over their nakedness after their sin in Eden. Cain knew that without the shedding of blood is no remission, (Heb. 9:22) but it was distasteful to him. All that blood! Surely an offering of the fruit of the ground would be more palatable. Definitely less messy. But this was Cain’s reasoning, not God’s. This was Cain’s religion, not God’s. Cain shows us our natural inclination to come to God on our own terms, with our own type of worship. Every other religion in the world comes to God through works. Man offers God his good deeds, his fruit of the field, thinking that because he worked for it, it will have worth. But it doesn’t. The Bible teaches that the only way to God is through faith, and not by works. Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us. (Ti. 3:5) For by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. (Gal. 2:16) Our flesh cannot produce the good works that God requires. No matter how good or how religious our works may seem, they will always fall short the Lord’s high standard. That is why God sent His Son into the world. Jesus was without sin. His works were perfect before God. He didn’t need to die, but for our sins and in our stead He did. His death was for us. When we accept by faith His sacrifice for us, we receive the forgiveness and grace of God. We first have to acknowledge our failure to please the Lord on our own strength and merit. Cain couldn’t do this. He refused to admit that he needed a Saviour, a Substitute, a Sacrifice. Though God pleaded with him, he refused. God is still pleading with men today. He offers a way to heaven, but it is only by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and the death He died and the blood He shed. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (Jn. 14:6) Have you accepted God’s gracious call in Christ Jesus? Have you trusted in God’s sacrifice for your sins? Be like Abel, and trust in God’s way for salvation and not your own.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. (Isaiah 55:8)

8th January

God Blesses Obedience

And Noah did according unto all that the Lord commanded him. (Genesis 7:5)

Out of all the inhabitants of the world, God chose Noah to build the ark and to find refuge in it during the flood. The Lord chose Noah because he was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. (Gen. 6:9) Noah chose God. The world around him was given over to sin and unrighteous and godless living, but Noah loved the Lord. Noah sought the Lord. Noah was different. His personal faith in God was expressed through public actions. He did what God said, he built an ark. He followed God’s instructions completely. He built a gigantic, wooden structure, not understanding how, when or where God would use it, but still he built it. He must have had many, many questions, such as What is rain? What is a flood? How will we get the animals into the ark? But faith doesn’t rely on explanations. It doesn’t depend on circumstances. It works on promises and commands. The Bible calls this the obedience of faith. (Rom.16:26) When his pagan neighbours and unbelieving friends laughed him to scorn, he built. When the years went by with no sign from the Lord of anything, still he built. He didn’t give up. He didn’t lose heart. He believed and obeyed. The Lord wasn’t in a hurry. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. (2 Pet. 3:9) The Lord gave Noah’s generation 120 years of grace in which to repent. They had time in which to hear God’s message, to understand what was coming, and to prepare themselves, but they chose not to. The Bible calls Noah a preacher of righteousness. (2 Pet. 2:5) The obedience of his faith testified to his generation. He endured mocking and rejection, but the consequences for him far outweighed the cost. He and his family had a place of refuge during the flood. When all around him died, he was saved. Jesus likened the time of Noah, to the last days. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered the ark. And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. (Mt. 24:36-39) Our faith must witness to the world around us that time is short, judgment is coming, and people can be saved. When judgment comes, will you be in the ark? Will you be faithful, like Noah, and be a witness to your lost and unbelieving friends? May God help you today to have the faith of Noah; a faith that obeys.

By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. (Hebrews 11:7)

9th January

A Worshipper of God

And there he builded an altar unto the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord. (Genesis 12:8)

An altar is a place of worship. It is a place of sacrifice. It is a place of giving. The story of Abraham is full of altars and worship. Abraham was a man who was best identified by his altars and his sacrifices. Abraham offered lambs on his altar. He called on the name of the Lord at the altar. He met and communed with God at the altar. He was even willing to offer his one and only son, Isaac upon the altar. He tied him to the wood and raised the knife; and heard the Lord call his name. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing that thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. (Gen. 22:12) In demonstrating his willingness to give up his son, Abraham fulfilled a picture of our Heavenly Father, who gave us His one and only Son. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (Jn. 3:16) Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. (Jn. 1:29) Jesus is that final sacrifice, the perfect sacrifice, the only sacrifice needed and able to save mankind. Our altar today is His cross of Calvary. We no longer need wood and blood. Jesus’s blood was shed on the wood of the cross and it paid that dreadful price of our sins before a holy God. This is the only altar by which all men can come to God. There is no other way. As born-again children of God, the personal altars of our Christian lives are spiritual. On them we sacrifice and surrender ourselves; our hearts, our minds, and our lives to the will of God. We give God our love, our trust, our obedience. Jesus said, The hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.(Jn. 4:23-24) This is worship of which the Lord alone is worthy. Pagans worship their false gods with many offerings and sacrifices. They bring food, flowers, money. They even cut themselves and give blood. But all in vain. Let your worship of God be acceptable in His sight. Take time today to build your own altar before the Lord. Bring him the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving. Offer him the treasure of your heart. Lay down the idols that steal from Him your love and give him your undivided and fully surrendered all. Be like Abraham and be known as a woman of faith, who worships and walks with the living God.

By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. (Hebrews 13:15)

10th January

Times of Testing

And there was a famine in the land. (Genesis 12:10)

God led Abraham to the Promised Land only for Abraham to find that there was a famine there. Was this a mistake of God’s or was it part of His perfect plan for Abraham? There are no mistakes with the Lord and His leading in our lives is always perfect. It may seem confusing at times but we need to learn from Abraham. In this time of testing, his faith in the Lord wavered. He went down to Egypt to find food. Seems fair, doesn’t it? After all he did have a family to support. In the Bible, famines represent times of testing and Egypt pictures the world. Abraham turned to the world to see him through his time of difficulty. This spiritual compromise only brought him troubles that would reach far down into his future life. Sarah came out of Egypt with an Egyptian handmaid, Hagar, and Lot came out of Egypt with a new and deeper love for the world. Egypt was far away from the place God wanted him to be. God had called Abraham to the land of Canaan. God had promised Abraham that He would give him this land forever. To turn his back on his God-given inheritance was to turn his back on the One who gave it to him. It was a dangerous and costly experience in Abraham’s life. Abraham resorted to lying about his relationship with Sarah for fear of the king. Because of this, Sarah was taken into Pharaoh’s house to become his wife. Yet the Lord protected Sarah and plagued the house of Pharaoh, who, discerning the Lord’s hand in it, released Sarah and reproved Abraham. When we go back to the world for comfort or for help, we pay the price. We lose our testimony and our discernment and our fellowship with the Lord. Abraham left Egypt and went back to Beth-el, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Beth-el and Hai; unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the Lord. (Gen. 13:3-4) Though Abraham fell, he got right back up and continued from where he’d left off. And that, dear friend, is what we must do. Get back up on our feet and go back to the house of God. Abraham repeated this same sin later in his life. (Gen 20:1-18) But he got himself back on track and went on to prove himself faithful in the biggest, most important test of his life. (Gen. 22) Truly the steps of a good man are ordered by the lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand. (Ps. 37:23-24)

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10 13)

11th January

Faith in God’s Promises

And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness. (Genesis 15:6)

Abraham was an old man, but childless. Abraham knew God had promised him that the land of Israel would belong to his seed forever, but, one small problem, he had no seed. God had said, Unto thy seed will I give this land. (Gen. 12:7) He had promised Abraham, And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth. (Gen. 13:16) Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. (Gen. 15:5) The Bible says that Abraham believed God. His faith was counted as righteousness to him. He simply believed. So too, must we, if we are to obtain the promises of God for our lives. We are his children who also walk in the steps of that faith. (Rom. 4:11) Faith is not plotting and planning. It is not working out a way for God to keep His promise to you. It is not working out a way for you to make God’s promise come true. Faith is simply trusting the Lord to do all that He’s said He would, because He is who He says He is. Too many of us try to figure things out for the Lord, and so fail to get what He wants to give us. It is through faith and patience that we inherit the promises. (Heb. 6:12) The Lord could have done things differently for us. He could just give us things straight away, and not make us wait. Instead of promises, we could just get presents! But, as parents, we know that though we’d love to give our children everything their little hearts desire, it would destroy them. They would become spoiled, selfish brats. We would create monsters! The Lord, as our Heavenly Father, uses faith and promises by which to train us in godliness and spiritual maturity. He tests our faith by making us wait. And waiting can be very, very hard. David found it so, I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God. (Ps. 69:3) As difficult as it may be, waiting on the Lord is always richly rewarded. Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land. (Ps. 37:34) But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isa. 40:31) Look at Abraham and Sarah. See how God’s delay was not a denial. We may not understand why we have to wait, but we can be sure that just as He heard and helped them, so too will the Lord answer us. Trust in His promises for you today. Let Him test you and find you faithful and trusting. Though He delays, He never deserts or disappoints.

He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. (Romans 4:20-21)

12th January

God has not Forgotten You

Thou God seest me. (Genesis 16:13)

Hagar was Sarah’s Egyptian handmaid. She was nobody special, just a slave girl. When Sarah grew impatient with the Lord’s lack of work in their lives, with His failure to give them a child, she started scheming, and took matters into her own hands. Instead of waiting on God and trusting Him to fulfill His promises to them, she gave Hagar to Abraham to have a child for her. Hagar conceived, but Sarah hated her for it. Instead of feeling happy at the prospect of a new baby, she was consumed with jealousy and bitterness. She treated Hagar harshly, taking all her anger out on her. Well, Hagar soon reached her limit. She packed her bags and left. She had nowhere to go and no one to turn to. But this was better than living in an atmosphere of hatred and rejection. She was despised by her mistress and used by her master. She was far, far from home and felt all alone in the world. As she sat in the wilderness, she cried for what had become of her life. But God was watching. The angel of the Lord appeared to her at the well in the wilderness. He called her by name. He comforted her with the promises of the Lord. He reminded her of God’s ever-present care. And He strengthened her in the knowledge of what was the right thing to do. He gave her a plan of action and that gave her hope. He even told her that she was with child and that of this child, He would make a great nation. The God who saw Hagar is the God who sees us. We may, at times, find ourselves all alone and totally lost. We may feel deserted and rejected and without hope for the future. But God is a God of new beginnings. He is the God of all comfort, who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. (2 Cor. 1:3-4) There are no mistakes with the Lord. He takes what we break, and puts it back together. He heals what is hurt, and restores it to a place of wholeness and strength. If we are willing to give Him our lives; confessing our sins of the past, yielding our wills in the present, and trusting His provision for the future; He will give fresh hope and new purpose to all who ask. Take heart from Hagar. God saw her in her affliction and grief and intervened in her life just to comfort her. He will do the same for you! The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. (Ps. 34:18)

If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32)

13th January

Prayer changes Things

For I know him. (Genesis 18:19)

Have you ever felt that God doesn’t hear your prayers? Maybe some else’s, but not yours? How you think about prayer will greatly influence how you pray, or if you pray at all. God wants us to pray. Call unto me, and I will answer thee. (Jer. 33:3) Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near. (Isa. 55:6) He invites prayer and commands prayer. I will therefore that men pray everywhere. (1 Tim. 2:8) Pray without ceasing. (1 Th. 5:17) Prayer is based on a relationship with the Lord. When the disciples asked the Lord, teach us to pray, (Lk. 11:1) the Bible says He taught them to call God Father. He taught them to begin their prayers with praise and worship before request and petition. He taught them to ask for their daily bread. (Lk. 11:3) Prayer shouldn’t be just for the big things, every once in a while or when we’re in trouble. Prayer is a daily talk with your Father who loves you. It is asking for the things you need and the things you want. It is allowing God to decide the difference between the two, because He knows better than us, what will be for our good. The Lord taught that we need to confess our sins. We need to ask for God’s forgiveness and be ready to forgive those who sin against us. (Lk. 11:4) The Bible invites us to come boldly before the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Heb. 4:16) Our Father’s heart is turned towards us in loving care. He heareth the prayer of the righteous. (Prov. 15:29) He has promised many good things to those who come to Him in faith and pray. He has promised not only to hear them, (Ps. 145:19) but also to answer them. (Mt. 6:5-8) He has promised grace to the humble (Jas. 4:6) and forgiveness to the contrite. (Ps. 34:18) He has promised strength to the weak, (Isa. 40:31) and joy to the sorrowful. (Jn. 16:24) He has promised to take our burdens and carry our loads. (1 Pet. 5:7) He has promised a peace that passeth all understanding. (Phil. 4:7) Prayer is truly a wonderful gift. Abraham was a man of prayer. He asked and received things from the Lord through prayer. He made a difference in people’s lives because of prayer. He pleaded with the Lord for Lot’s life and he was heard. Lot was spared because of Abraham, because Abraham cared and believed and prayed. God could say of Abraham, For I know him. The Bible says he was called the friend of God. (Jas. 2:23) Does the Lord know you? Are you the friend of God? Do you go to God in prayer, believing that He hears and answers? Decide today, to lay hold of your calling to become a woman of prayer. Be an intercessor. Become a person who makes a difference in the lives of those around you because of God and His gift of prayer.

The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. (James 5:16)

14th January

The Slippery Slope of Compromise

Lot sat in the gate of Sodom. (Genesis 19:1)

It didn’t’ take Lot long to move from pitching his tent toward Sodom, (Gen. 13:11) to sitting in the gate of Sodom. To sit in the gate means that he was involved in the business and leadership of the city. Lot had gone from being a pilgrim with Abraham to being a citizen of Sodom. I doubt that this was Lot’s ultimate aim in life, but his focus had gone from being on the Lord and living a holy, righteous, separated life, to pursuing comfort and pleasures above all else. I can imagine Lot and Mrs. Lot discussing the benefits of making the move into the city: the safety behind the walls, the friends for their children, the business opportunities for Lot, the comfort of a house as opposed to a tent for Mrs. Lot. It all seemed so practical and sensible. Compromise always does. Normally, it is packaged by the devil as something more convenient and more pleasurable than what you are experiencing right now. Maybe a nice sleep-in instead of church, maybe a new church with not such good doctrine but lots of good friends, or maybe just daily chores instead of daily devotion. A wise pastor once said, A priority is established by what it takes to replace it. We often give up the things of the Lord for not very much. Lot had spent time with Abraham. He had learnt the ways of the Lord and had lived the life of a sojourner. But his heart was still in Egypt and Sodom reminded Lot of all that he had loved and left behind. Lot knew about the risks involved. He knew that the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly. (Gen. 13:13) He also knew the nature of God, His holiness and hatred of sin, but instead of fearing God, Lot favoured man. Lot is a picture of compromising Christians. They make choices based on material gain or physical pleasure, and not on Biblical convictions or scriptural principles. They gain friends but lose their friendship with the most important Friend of all. They gain money but lose treasures for themselves in heaven. They gain recognition but lose spiritual power and influence. They gain the world, but lose their own families. Lot’s family disrespected him. His wife disobeyed him and his daughters ended up deceiving him. Lot had set out to gain a better life his own way, rather than trust God to bless him as he lived God’s way. He ended up losing everything he sought to save and all that he feared actually came upon him. Are you an Abraham or a Lot? In which direction have you pitched your tent? Are you gazing more at the things of the world than at the things of the Lord? Choose to walk the pilgrim path with Abraham and learn from the compromises of worldly Lot that living as close to sin as possible will cost you everything. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (Mk. 8:36)

Set your affection on things above, not on things on earth. (Colossians 3:2)

15th January

Living by Faith

For he feared (Genesis 19:30)

Lot was a man who lived according to the flesh. He was ruled by fear. He chose to live near Sodom because he feared that the Lord would not provide for him what Sodom could. Again, after his deliverance from Sodom, he feared to live alone in the mountains, so he lived in Zoar, a small city nearby. But after awhile there, he moved to the mountains, for he feared to live in Zoar. He was truly a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. (Js. 1:8) He was worldly and carnal and made decisions based on sight and circumstance, and not on faith or the fear of the Lord. When Lot chose the well-watered plains of Sodom, little did he know the disastrous end to which his chosen path would lead. Little did he know either the weakness of his own faith and character or the power of compromise to destroy. Neither did he know the greatness of God’s grace and mercy nor the power of His promises to help us. Lot walked in fear, but Abraham lived by faith. Lot lived in Sodom, but Abraham fellowshipped with the righteous. Lot lost his family to sin and to the world, but Abraham gained a family more numerous than the stars in the heavens. Lot was weak and needed rescuing; Abraham was strong in faith and interceded for him and the Lord delivered him. Lot’s life was characterized by sin, fear, failure and shame. Abraham, on the other hand, stands as an example to us down through the centuries of how those who put their trust in the Lord will not be put to shame. (Rom. 10:11) Just as the Lord spoke to Abraham, saying, Fear not, Abraham! so too, He says to us, I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward! (Gen. 15:1) There is a lot in this world to cause fear. But a lot of us choose our own fears and take up fears that are imaginary and unnecessary. We may fear the future failing us, the past catching up with us, or the approval of man rejecting us. Our fears may lead to ill health and mental stress. They will certainly lead us away from the truth. The truth is that God is greater than anything we fear. Jesus said, And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell: yea, I say unto you, Fear him. (Lk. 12:4-5) We need to bring our fears before the Lord in prayer, and then leave them there. We need to put our faith in the One who rules all things by His mighty Word and trust Him. Fear and faith cannot live together in the same heart. Choose today to follow in the footsteps of Abraham and walk by faith. Experience a life of inner peace, stability and confidence, not the frustrations and fluctuations of a life ruled by fear and disrupted by constant fleeing.

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid. (Isaiah 12:2)

16th January

Alcohol’s Shame

Come, let us make our father drink wine. (Genesis 19:32)

Lot’s two daughters, his only children that came with him out of Sodom, made their father drunk with wine, then lay with him and conceived. The fruit of this sinful, unbelieving action resulted in Moab and Ammon, men who became the founding fathers of two of Israel’s most bitter enemies. The Bible is clear. Alcohol does no good. It robs us of reason, self-control and natural moral restraint. It fuels the flesh, which is at war with the spirit. They cannot live together in mutual peace and gentle co-operation. One must have dominance. The nature which is fed the most will win. Drinking alcohol in no way promotes the work of God in your life. In every way, it hinders and destroys what the Lord would do in you and through you. Drinking alcohol is sowing to the flesh, and if you sow to your flesh, the Bible absolutely guarantees that you will reap corruption. (Gal. 6:8) John Paton once said, What was temperance in one man was drunkenness in another; and all the drunkards came, not from those who practiced total abstinence, but from those who practiced or tried to practice temperance. The only rational temperance is total abstinence. Many people like to mention that Jesus turned water into wine and see that as an endorsement to drink. But it is important to know that the Bible uses the word wine in a generic sense. It can mean either grape juice or strong alcoholic drink. In studying Middle Eastern culture from that time, we find that what was referred to as wine and enjoyed as a common and refreshing drink on a hot and thirsty day, was most often a drink of concentrated grape juice mixed with water. (Bible Wines or The Laws of Fermentation by William Patton) Habakkuk 2:5 and 15 are strong warnings against the use of alcoholic wine. We know from comparing Scripture with Scripture that alcohol does nothing good spiritually. The Bible commands us to be sober, be vigilant. (1 Pet. 5:8) It tells us to be controlled by the Holy Spirit, not alcohol. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit. (Eph. 5:18) We must have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. (Eph. 5:11) We must not put a stumbling block in someone else’s path and so cause them to sin. It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak. (Rom. 14:21) Wine deceives. It robs a person of their self-control, which is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. Why would you give away a fruit of the Holy Spirit in favour of a work of the flesh? The Spirit produces life; the flesh only death. We have the Lord, the fountain of living waters, from which to drink. Let’s not turn to the foul and filthy waters of this world. Let us learn through Lot and the disastrous consequences of his indulgence in a little wine – stay away from that which causes sin and spiritual harm!

Wine is a mocker, and strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. (Proverbs 20:1)

17th January

The Child of the Promise

And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. (Genesis 21:1-2)

This was a birth most eagerly anticipated and most anxiously waited for. Sarah and Abraham finally, after 25 years of waiting, received the fulfillment of God’s promise to them. They were overjoyed. Their patience had been rewarded. God’s power had been displayed and God’s purposes were being fulfilled. Isaac was a child of promise. He was a continual reminder to his parents of the incredible and wonderful power of God to do the impossible. Every time they saw him, they rejoiced, remembering the many years of waiting that their faith had endured; the fears, the doubts, but finally, the fruit of God’s promise and the fulfillment of His Word. But his coming, though a desire fulfilled, also brought conflict. Ishmael resented Isaac and mocked him and family life became unbearable. The Lord told Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away. For Abraham this was a difficult and heartbreaking thing to do, but he obeyed. Paul writes about this in Galatians, and says that Ishmael and Isaac are pictures for us today, of two different types of people. Ishmael pictures the natural or unsaved person (1 Cor. 2:14) who does not know God and who is hostile to the things of God. Isaac pictures those who are born again. Ishmael was Abraham’s first born son, born after the flesh, born out of Abraham’s strength. Isaac, the second born, is the child of the promise, born to Abraham by the power of God. We all have a physical birth, a first birth, pictured in Ishmael; but we do not all have a spiritual birth, pictured in Isaac. It is the second birth that is so very important. Many times in Scripture, we see God rejecting the first birth in favour of the second. God rejected Cain but accepted Abel. God rejected Ishmael, but accepted Isaac. God rejected Esau, but accepted Jacob. God rejected Reuben, but accepted Joseph. God rejected Ephraim, but accepted Manasseh. In Egypt, God condemned all the first born, but spared only those whose faith in applying the blood of the lamb, demonstrated their second birth. Your first birth can only produce works of the law, and the Bible says that by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. (Rom. 3:20) The second birth happens when a person puts their complete faith in the Lord Jesus Christ to save them. God’s promise to you today is, whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Rom. 10:13) Have you trusted in God’s promise for yourself? Have you had a second birth? Don’t be like Ishmael, who though he knew all about the Lord, had no care for Him or spiritual matters. Decide today to be like Isaac, a child of God’s promise. Choose to be a woman who inherits all the riches of God’s promises, because she is a born again, second born child of the king.

Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of the promise. (Galatians 4:28)

18th January

Expect Tests

God did tempt Abraham. (Genesis 22:1)

The word tempt here means tested or tried. God does not tempt us to do evil. According to James 1:12-16, we are tempted by our own lusts. God does test us and try our faith to examine and to reveal to us where we really are with Him spiritually. Abraham experienced four great tests, each of which involved the surrendering of something naturally dear to his heart. The first was being called to leave country and kindred and travel to Canaan. The second involved separating from his nephew Lot. The third was the surrender of his own plans for Ishmael and even his relationship with him. But the biggest and hardest test of all, was when God called Abraham, saying, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee in to the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt-offering. (Gen. 22: 2) The Bible says Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass. (Gen. 22: 3) He was prompt to obey. He took his only son Isaac, the son God had promised him, the son for whom he had waited so long, the miracle son of his old age, and set out to do all that God had asked of him to do. Can you imagine the struggles of his heart on that long road to Moriah? But his actions reveal his thoughts. When Isaac asked his father where the animal to be sacrificed was, Abraham answered with these words of faith, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt-offering. (Gen. 22: 8) Abraham was not demanding explanations of God, such as, Why me? Why Isaac? Why are you so cruel? How will you keep your promise to me if Isaac dies? Instead, his faith focused on God’s promise and so must ours. His faith was an overcoming faith. He submitted his will to the Lord’s; he surrendered his most treasured earthly possession to the Lord’s keeping; and he sacrificed his own flesh on the altar of obedience. The Lord never intended him to kill Isaac. It was a test. And Abraham passed with flying colours. But the question now is, would you and I? Could God ask you to give Him your most treasured possessions? Would you trust the Lord to do what He’s promised and not worry how? We all need to learn that faith is simple. It trusts God and does not need to be told the reasons or given the explanations. Simply trust the Lord, knowing that He is good and faithful, and will not do anything to hurt or harm you. Trust His loving care, His perfect plans, and His infinite wisdom to test you as He pleases and to help you pass your tests, grow in faith, and walk ever closer to the God who never fails.

But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. (Job 23:10)

19th January

Deceptive Dealings

I shall seem to him as a deceiver, and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing. (Genesis 27:12)

Deception will never, ever justify the means. We lie in order to solve or avoid problems, but the irony is that lying will always cause even more problems. The Bible says that lying lips are an abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight. (Prov. 12:22) Rebekah, the mother of Jacob, wanted her favourite son to inherit the blessing. She knew the Lord had promised her when the twins were yet in her womb, that the elder shall serve the younger, (Gen. 25:23) but did she really believe this? We see from her lying and scheming ways that she didn’t. Jacob was a quiet man like his father. He was a plain man, dwelling in tents, but his brother Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field. (Gen. 25:27) The name Jacob means deceiver, and lying and trickery came naturally to Jacob. When Esau came home hungry one day, and asked for some stew that Jacob had cooked, Jacob was quick to use the opportunity to get something in return. Sell me this day thy birthright, (Gen. 25:31) he said. Esau, who like Ishmael, had no care for things spiritual, happily made the trade. When it came time for Isaac to give the blessing, Rebekah instructed