A song of ascents.
I lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
TO PONDER
There are all kinds of help available to those who ask for it. Your GP, Centrelink, the local MP, the police and emergency services, a mechanic and all trades people and the list goes on.
For those who know the Lord, because his Word and Spirit have taken root in them, then our first help is the one who has created us in his image. All the other helpers are his gifted people gifted to us, but he is our first and last, our north, south, east and west. He is not just at every point of the compass, he, Jesus, is the one who draws all people and all of creation to himself for revival, resurrection, transformation, restoration, renewal, elevation, and glory. Jesus who is Yahweh, is our all in all.
Where does my help come from? Jesus.
PRAYER: Fill me with your perfect peace Father, let us rest in your eternal goodness and grace. May our eyes be forever on Jesus, our help in every need. Amen.
Today's devotion written by David Schuppan, LifeWay Illawarra
But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.
TO PONDER
Does it seem like your pastor is a broken record and he goes on and on about reading your Bible and praying as you read? Does he go over and over the basics of life rooted in faith, week after week? If you are not paying attention, then you will have no roots when the hurricanes of life blow or the heat of the frying pan flips you into the fire of tragedy. If you have ever considered the repeated cycle of Israel’s faithfulness, disinterest and betrayal recorded in the Hebrew Bible, then you may have recognized the cycle of human history, you may have recognized the cycle of your own life.
There are no short cuts to resilient faith, enduring hope, and consistent love, without God’s Word and the Spirit’s interpretation through prayer and meditation, either alone in your own quiet space or in the company and shared wisdom of others. 1. Oratio: Read it out aloud so as not to skip over the words your brain doesn’t want to see. 2. Meditatio: Sit and consider deep and long what you have just heard from God’s Word. 3. Tentatio: Struggle and wrestle with the Spirit to find the lasting blessings that will transform you by the renewal of your deepest, truest self in Christ.
PRAYER: Lord, I don’t want to lose the gift of life you have won for me. I don’t want to repeat the cycle that leads to faithlessness, hopelessness, and lovelessness. Grant me the deep desire to pursue you as you have pursued me. Amen.
Today's devotion written by David Schuppan, LifeWay Illawarra
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
TO PONDER
As LifeWay works its way through the story of the Exodus this season, you will notice that despite the faithlessness of Israel, it’s constant moaning, persistent dissidence and recidivistic rebellion against God, God remains ever present for them. God’s faithfulness and love never diminish, he never loves them less. God is patient and kind while his children struggle with trust.
Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus and despite all the apparent evidence in any moment, we remain more than conquerors through him who loves us. He is risen!
PRAYER: By your great strength and in your mighty power, you Lord have conquered sin, death, and the power of the devil. You have set us free to love and be loved. Help us to live freely. Amen.
Today's devotion written by David Schuppan, LifeWay Illawarra
But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
TO PONDER
Many of you feel unqualified to be emissaries and witnesses to the greatness of God. You have a voice in your head saying you are not up to the task of being a proactive child of God in your home or your street. The voice is on a loop, telling you exactly how weak and unworthy you are to carry the name, Christian. That the voice is the Devil, and he speaks the truth – in part. You are too weak and incompetent to be identified as a servant of the Most High God, unable to be his person of peace and power among the devilish things in this world – in your own right.
It is then, also a lie because the implication is that you are alone and must work out of your own wisdom and strength. St. Paul encourages us to take pleasure in our weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that we suffer for Christ. For when we are weak, then we are strong. God’s strength is made perfect in our weakness, through faith that he acts as and when we need him.
PRAYER: Jesus Yahweh, you are our ever-present help in times of trouble and testing. Jesus Messiah, King of kings, let your power rest on me today so that, as it did with St. Paul, my influence in the world will be one of powerful and creative change in my community. Amen.
Today's devotion written by David Schuppan, LifeWay Illawarra
Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.
TO PONDER
Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them continue to moan and complain or stay stoically withdrawn. Is anyone happy? Anyone? Anyone?
We get stuck in the moan stage too often and for too long without learning to pray for rescue in a timely way. When there is no prayer, we often miss the rescue when it comes, because we are stuck in moan mode. When we are stuck there, how can there be happiness? Those who pray expect help to come, anticipate rescue and so, recognize it when it comes. This leads to happiness and songs of praise, which in turn build us up in faith and the expectation of help in times of trouble. If we pray, He will hear.
PRAYER: God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge! Yahweh of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress. [from Psalm 46]
Today's devotion written by David Schuppan, LifeWay Illawarra
‘I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.’
TO PONDER
Did you go straight there? Did you go straight to ‘trouble’ and dwell on it? If so, you are in the company of many for whom life is too often a struggle but, honestly, you have missed the point. Jesus has overcome the world! That is, the world of broken, sinful, humanity.
In Jesus we have shalom, his perfect, restorative peace. Moses eventually learned to trust in God’s promises. So must we if we wish to live rather than mere survive. Live to thrive in God’s perfect nurturing, sustaining peace. Jesus is asking us to trust him. To remember his story as our story. His resurrection as our promised resurrection and not just after we die, but to seek and hold onto the life he gives us every day.
PRAYER: ‘We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life.’ Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me. Amen.
Today's devotion written by David Schuppan, Lifeway Illawarra
Then Moses turned to the LORD and said, “O Lord, why have you done evil to this people? Why did you ever send me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has done evil to this people, and you have not delivered your people at all.”
TO PONDER
It's a fantastic children's book...Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. From the moment Alexander woke up, he noticed the bubble gum that was in his mouth when he fell asleep was now stuck in his hair. Then, when he got out of bed, he tripped on his skateboard. In the bathroom, he accidentally dropped his favorite jumper into the sink while the water was on. At breakfast, his brothers find prizes in their breakfast cereal boxes, whereas Alexander does not. And that's just the start of the day. It goes from bad to worse at school and then after school, he has to go to the dentist where a cavity is found that needs to be filled...then the shoe store doesn't have the shoes he really wants.. When he eventually gets to bed, he bites his tongue but to add insult to injury, the cat decides to sleep with his brother instead of him. It's a terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very bad Day. For Moses and the people of God...this is their story too. It's a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. What starts as a bad day, gets even worse when Moses does what God calls him to do!
Maybe you can relate...you do what God calls you to do and things go from bad to worse. The obstacles seem harder, the problems increase, life becomes more difficult and you end up, not at peace, but more disillusioned, despondent or defeated. It's at times like this that we are confronted with the question, "Who is the Lord?" He is the God who is moving in our lives, who is faithful to his promises to his people and gives hope to his people We don't have hope because maybe my suffering will end. It might not. We don't have hope because we know things will get better. They may not. But he is a God who is involved in our lives, who hears our groans, sees our suffering and acts to deliver us...not always in the way we expect, not always in the timeframe we desire. But he will deliver. That's his promise.
PRAYER:
Lord, take my hand and lead me, along life's way. Protect and guide and feed me from day to day. Without your grace and favour, I go astray, so take my hand and lead me, and choose the way. Amen.
He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God
TO PONDER
‘but his own did not receive him’. It happens, doesn’t it? The longer I’m around on this earth, the more and more I see families that don’t work. Families that are dysfunctional, families that reject their own, families that give the silent treatment, families that dish out various forms of abuse.
Jesus didn’t escape it either. The Gospels tell us that Jesus was rejected in his own hometown.
Still, it didn’t stop him, and therefore need not stop us. Jesus did warn us that being a follower of him would not be easy. In fact, there are times when it will be very difficult, and we’ll often feel like throwing in the towel. Sometimes it will be harder, than easier, being a child of God.
Playing AFL football for a Christian team in my younger days, one of the teams we came up against would ceaselessly tease us on the field with comments like ‘watch out – they can’t catch the ball because the sun will be shining off their crucifixes they are wearing’ (interspersed with many words which had no more than four letters). It was a tough time – because they frequently won against us too!
Following Jesus does not promise a smooth ride, but it does promise a soft landing.
PRAYER: Walk with us Jesus, in all we do. In our work, in our school, in our study, in our sports, in our shopping, in our lives – give us the willingness to continue to live as your children, even when it gets tough. Amen
Today's devotion written by Mark Simpfendorfer, LifeWay Epping
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”
TO PONDER
There is some speculation if the Bethlehem 150km from Nazareth, near Jerusalem, is in fact the birthplace of Jesus.
Israeli archaeologists now say there is strong evidence that Christ was born in a different Bethlehem, a small village in the Galilee. Our verse for the day suggests that ‘small’ might be the key.
About 150 km from Jerusalem, shepherds still guide their flocks through green unspoiled hills, and few give notice to the tucked-away village with the odd sounding name: Bethlehem of the Galilee. But archaeologists who have excavated there say there is ample evidence that this Bethlehem is the Bethlehem of Christ's birth. It was the construction of a road that led to the discovery of the first evidence that Bethlehem of the Galilee may have had a special place in history. There is significant evidence that in early Christianity this Bethlehem was celebrated as the birthplace of Christ.
Scholars agree that is makes much more sense that Mary rode on a donkey, while she was at the end of the pregnancy, from Nazareth to Bethlehem of Galilee which is only 7 kilometres, rather than the other Bethlehem.
The Bethlehem in Jerusalem has been celebrated as the birth of Jesus from the 4th Century when Emperor Constantine declared Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire.
Wherever Bethlehem was, doesn’t matter. It’s a nice talking point, but not relevant to people of faith – that’s you and me. It really doesn’t matter where you come from – but it does matter where you are going! Out of one of these Bethlehem’s, the reason to live will appear. The Saviour of the world, the one who reserves a spot for us in heaven, the one who comes to us, will be born.
How will you continue to live your life as someone whose future is assured?
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thanks for keeping that spot for me in heaven with you. When I don’t deserve that spot, please let me know, so I can turn things around. In your precious name we pray. Amen
Today's devotion written by Mark Simpfendorfer, LifeWay Epping