Devotions By Jan

Category Archives: God’s Word


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The Redwood Tree

Scripture for Today:Colossians 2:6-7 “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”

How could anyone not be impressed with the mighty Coast Redwoods with their amazing height and longevity!  One would think that in the earthquake country where the Redwood grows they would be at risk to fall.  But they have developed a survival strategy when forced to lean due to shifting ground.  They are able to accelerate their growth on their downhill sides and so buttress themselves and remain standing!

Today’s verse talks about how we can grow and be strengthened in our faith.  We can accelerate our growth by being rooted and built up in HIm.  When we feel ourselves leaning because of shifting ground, we can shore ourselves up by being firmly planted in Him.  In a world that is constantly changing and shifting its norms and values, we can be built up by His unchanging Word.  Being rooted in the soil of fine-sounding arguments (verse 4) and deceptive philosophies (verse 8) will stunt our growth and make us unstable.

I will not grow strong and firmly planted when I read, see or listen to prevailing thought that discounts God and His Word.  I am surrounded by godless philosophy and it is a struggle to be intentional about what I allow to influence me. When I feel myself start to lean with shifting ground I want to grow my roots deeper.  I want to stand tall and firm.  I cannot do that without being buttressed by His truth in His Word.  He is my strength and if I lean at all I want to lean into Him!

Thank you Lord, that You strengthen my faith.


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Zen

Scripture for Today: II Corinthians 4:6 “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.”

The other day while exploring the tide pools of Cabrillo National Park with my grandsons, I saw an older man sitting crosslegged.  He had built three stacks of stones just like the one pictured.  His eyes were closed and he looked peaceful.  This rock configuration brings to mind the idea of “Zen.”  This Japanese sect of Mahayana Buddhism asserts that enlightenment can come through meditation and intuition rather than faith.

Today’s verse gives us the true Source of enlightenment.  It is God’s light that gives us enlightenment.  No matter how long or how well we meditate, our own ideas of truth are subjective and without Him, fall short of His objective truth.  It is His light that gives us the knowledge of God’s glory in Jesus, His Son.  If He had not revealed the truth with His light, we would still be in the dark.  And when believers meditate, it is on His truth that we meditate.

In this busy season full of so many distractions, it takes an effort of the will to turn my mind to spiritual things and meditate on His truth.  But what a blessing when I do! There are no loftier thoughts than thoughts of Him.  And meditating on His love and all that He has done for me encourages my heart.  His light and His Word reveals to me so many worthy subjects of meditation, all of them centered on Him!

Lord, keep me meditating on You and Your truth throughout the day.


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The Army Crawl

Scripture for Today: Psalm 119:28 “My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to Your Word.”

It is so cute when babies do the “army crawl.”  My granddaughter is in this stage, pulling herself along with her arms while staying prone.  Now her older brother has to scramble to keep his lego structures standing at her approach!  In the military, staying prone while moving forward keeps one out of the line of fire.  There is a quote from Napoleon saying, “An army marches on its stomach.”  But rather than referring to an army crawl, marching on one’s stomach meant to fight victoriously being well-provisioned.

Today’s verse tells us that we are well-provisioned or strengthened through His Word.  In our spiritual battle to obey and follow His commands, we grow weary.  The psalmist recognizes that he can be strengthened by understanding God’s precepts and meditating on all of God’s wonderful deeds in the past.  It is through God’s Word that we gain strength and courage to keep walking in His ways.  Without His Word, we are ill prepared or ill-provisioned!  Our souls need this daily nourishment to persevere.

How presumptuous of me to think I can live the Christian life on my own!  But every time I neglect His Word, I am operating out of pride.  My soul can easily become weary with sorrow as I move away from His love letter to me.  Pride and doing things my way isolates me from the relationship the most important in my life.  How good He is when I return to His Word to change that sorrow and weariness into joy and motivation!  Being in His Word strengthens my faith, my resolve and my relationship with Him!

Thank you Lord, for strengthening me today through Your Word.

 

 


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Following the Recipe

Scripture for Today:  Psalm 119:137-138 “You are righteous, Lord, and Your laws are right. The statues You have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.”

I love following a good recipe that is tried and true.  And if I want a German dish to be authentic I would go to the trouble of translating those instructions (as well as converting the measurements).  I would not worry about all the verbs being in the command form.  It is a recipe after all.  I do not expect it to say, “please beat the eggs.”  Or “would you mind chopping the nuts.”  But I am not offended.  The directives are there to obtain a good, tasty result!

Today’s verse describes God’s directives.  Sometimes they can seem very blunt.  There is no softening of what God requires of us.  But His commands are always with a good goal.  They are always for our good and for our protection.  We know that because HE is good.  What He commands is fully trustworthy and an expression of His love and care.  This is why David could say that they are a joy to the heart and light to the eyes, sweeter than honey and more precious than gold! (Psalm 19)

If God’s commandments are really for my good, then why am I always trying to change the recipe?  Because that is in fact what I sometimes try to do.  I think I know better or that somehow I am an exception to the rule.  Maybe I can “sort of” follow the instructions but introduce a variation which makes it easier on me.  The result is never as good.  His way is always the best and I am the one who benefits when I carefully follow what He wants.

Lord, thank you for Your love expressed through your commands.


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Love Letters

Scripture for Today: Psalm 33:22 “May Your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in You.”

What a treasure trove it was when my sister came across love letters written by our parents during World War II!  I am now thankful that my Mother saved every scrap of paper.  These letters are windows into their souls!  In the earliest letters the words were a bit stilted, surprisingly on Mom’s part.  It was my quiet reserved Dad who expressed his love so well!  They are now with their beloved Lord, but their love story lasted seventy one years!

Today’s verse describes a love that spans centuries.  This love is an unfailing love that not only lasts forever but delivers our souls (Psalm 6:3-4).  It is a priceless love (Psalm 36:7) its value surpassing any human attempt at romance.  And when we pin our hope on His unfailing love, His eyes are on us! (Psalm 33:18)  We are the better for always being mindful of this incredible love (Psalm 26:3).  We are told to even meditate on this love (Psalm 48:9).  And we do that by immersing ourselves in the words of the greatest love letter ever written, the Bible.

In writing this I was amazed at all the references to God’s love in Scripture!  I was reassured of His unfailing love and could feel it wash over me.  So often when reading the Bible I get bogged down in the details of study.  I get distracted by all the injunctions I find there.  I am so sidelined by word studies or cultural references that I forget the main point.  Reading His Word is reading His personal love letter to me.  His love is behind every list of blessing, every faithful miracle, every promise and even every warning.

Thank you Lord, for reassuring me of Your unfailing love!