Daily Devotionals in Verse and Rhyme

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

MOVING MOUNTAINS

Time with Jesus - 24 July 2013

The Royal
Coat of Arms

Hi all,

Today, as I write this message, the TV programs are celebrating the birth of the Prince of Cambridge. He is the son of William and Kate and is third in line to the British throne.

What is particularly exciting about this event from a Biblical viewpoint, Kate – Catherine Middleton – is a complete outsider to royalty. Before marrying Prince William, she had no claims on the Royal Family. She was much like you and me; ordinary everyday people, seeking to live life as best we can with the aid of Jesus Christ.

William and Kate
Someday King William and
Queen Catherine?

Nevertheless, this woman, the Duchess of Cambridge, is likely to be Queen Catherine, the wife of King William. Furthermore, their son will succeed his father as King of England!

Catherine Middleton

Why did Kate marry Prince William? We are told and believe that they love each other. Accordingly, this is indeed a case of a marriage made in heaven. Of course, there are those among us who look at this with the jaundiced eye and mutter, “She only married him so that her son would become King”.

Personally, I’m not surprised by comments of this nature. There must be literally thousands of single young women who would have done anything to marry Prince William, simply to be mother of the future King.

How do I know this? Because it is true to human nature. In this regard I recall my schooldays in the 1950’s at an all-boys school. The comment then was that if anyone wanted to be among the idle rich, go to UK and marry Princess Ann!

Of course it was said in jest, but the idea was “out there”. If boys can do that, why not girls?

Tamar Seduces Judah

What does this have to do with moving mountains and faith? To help us get this in perspective, please open your Bible to Genesis. Tucked away in Chapter 38 there is an extraordinary story which some think shouldn’t even be in the Bible. Slotted into the history of Joseph, we come across the story of Judah and Tamar. Reuben, Simeon and Levi had disgraced themselves in the eyes of Jacob. As a result, Judah had become “senior son”. He was the one through whom Messiah was to come. He had left home and went to live in Adullam.

The Prize?
"Mother of Messiah"

While there he married Bathshua a Canaanite woman. Three sons were born to them; Er, Onan and Shelah. When Er was at marriageable age Judah found him a wife – Tamar. Er and Tamar had no children. So when Er died, an early version of the Levirate marriage system was applied by Judah regarding Tamar.

Signet Ring
Elder Prince of the Tribe

In those days and later, under the Mosaic Law, if a man died without having a son, his brother was required to marry the widow. Their first son would be regarded as the deceased man’s son. The purpose was primarily to protect family inheritance rights. Er died and then Onan. Tamar still did not have a son so she asked Judah for her to marry Shelah. It didn’t happen.

The Cord
Father's Blessing and
Birthright of Leading Son

Tamar knew that the Messiah would come through Judah. She wanted to be the woman through whom it took place. When Judah wouldn’t allow her to marry Shelah, she decided to dress as a prostitute and seduce Judah. That’s what happened and she gave birth to twins, Perez and Zerah. The Levirate system meant that these twins were regarded as the “legitimate” offspring of Er and thus Judah. Thus, Tamar achieved her intentions. Her name is included in the genealogy of Jesus.

Personally, I think this is a remarkable story of faith in God.

The Staff of Leadership
Leader of the genealogy
Passed from Father to
Eldest Son

She believed she could be in the line of the Messiah. No doubt she learned this from Er or perhaps Judah himself. Then she combined her faith in being a progenitor of Jesus with action. What she did may offend out 21^st century Christian norms. But in her days and in terms of her culture, it was a chance worth taking. Incidentally, if you look at the 3 articles she took from Judah, you will find they are the items which defined his covenant with God and identifying him as the one who would lead the family after Jacob's death. The progenitor of the Messiah.

Tamar's offspring was ultimately
Jesus - The Lion of Judah

Her action: Was it any better or worse than that of a beautiful young woman wanting to marry Prince William? Well her name is there in Jesus’ genealogy. Was she right or wrong. You decide.

Shalom,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Tamar the Canaanites who was determined
to be in the Line of Messiah!
By faith and her woks, it happened.
Honoured by God and included in Jesus' Genealogy

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – 24 July 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
	INTRODUCTION		DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	MOVING MOUNTAINS
In English we have an expression, “Are you pulling my leg?” We all know that nobody has even touched your leg, let alone pull it. It means, “Are you telling me the truth?” It’s an expression usually used between family and close friends and suggests that it may be “evang-elastic” truth. In the North-East of England, if the story was said to be true, the comment was, “Pull the other one. It’s got bells on!” Sadly, many Christians use this in their approach to the Bible and to God. For many reasons, many are of the opinion that the Bible is nothing more than a collection of stories and letters from antiquity. To think that any of it is true would be to commit intellectual suicide. Yes; there are stories in the Bible that are difficult to understand or believe. “The Bible is full of contradictions!” people tell me. To which I reply, please show me one! In my 70 years on this planet I haven’t found any. When people say to me, “Do you really believe that Jonah was swallowed by a big fish?” I tell them that I not only believe about the big fish, I also believe about the worm! (See Jonah 4:7) Then they say to me, “You’re crazy!” Then I can tell them I’ve been crazy about Jesus for more than 50 of those years. Over these years, opinions have come and gone. In the 1970’s we went through the Serendipity phase. (discovery of something fortunate) Then we arrived at the “Faith” years in the 1980’s. We loved those years. We felt as though the Lord was setting us free to believe Him for great things. Ken Copeland, Jerry Savelle and the Hagins brought in a freshness and simple approach to being a Christian. Of course there were problems. Show me any move of God and I will show you the problems they had in those days. The devil tries anything and everything to wreck the moves of God. Then we had the “Toronto Blessing” as it was called. This arrived on the scene at more or less the same time as “Alpha”. The faith message was very exciting. Above anything else we were taught to believe the promises of God. Accordingly we began to get to grips with the Patriarchs and the faith displayed by them some 4000 years ago. Even now, as I read the book of Genesis I get “intoxicated” with that which happened and how God honoured their faith. The Old Testament is “awash” with tales of real men and women and great faith. Hebrews 11 expounds on this. ³⁹ All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. ⁴⁰ For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us. Hebrews 11:39-40 NLT. In a way we are being told that as much as we look back at their wonderful example, they are looking at us and cheering us on. Did you know that Abraham is waiting for you and me? So are Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. We may never be told to take our one and only son to the top of Mt Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice. SA Police would never understand! But we are expected to exercise faith in a way that is meaningful today. We could start by finding what “mountain” needs to be cast into the sea? Perhaps we could pray with a young couple who have been trying to conceive for years? Perhaps we could find someone who has been through a terrible divorce? Perhaps all that is needed is a word of encouragement for someone in a difficult place? Whatever it might be! “Hang on Abe, I’m coming!” Jim & Phyllida Strickland			²⁰ Abraham never wavered in believing God's promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger; in this he brought God glory. Romans 4:20 NLT	We’ve all heard about Abraham and know just what he did. For thirteen years he said that God had promised him a kid. A son who would inherit the land in which they stayed. But Abram didn’t own it and kind of disobeyed. He conspired with Sarah that they would have a son; And came to an agreement; through Hagar it was done. Perhaps he thought that God Most High required them to do, That which in the natural was too good to be true. For thirteen years thereafter, Ishmael was the one, They thought that He had been given them as the expected son. But that was not God’s purpose. Sure Ishmael was OK. But he was not the promised son whom Hagar bore that day. Then at the age of ninety, Sarah gently laughed. “For me to have a baby!” The thought itself was daft. But nothing is impossible for God who reigns on high. So when He said to Abraham, that Isaac had to die. “Abie” wasn’t bothered. “If Isaac’s dead and gone, The Lord will raise him from the dead so he can carry on”. Such was the faith of Abraham. He knew that God could do, Anything and everything that He wanted to. For God, a resurrection, was just a “piece of cake”. So sacrificing Isaac was not too hard to take. And we all know what happened. That in the nick of time, God gave the sacrificial ram, which He said would do fine. How can we believe it? Some people look for proof. They think that God is distant, incredibly aloof. That He would never do it. That it is all a lie. But that is not the way it is for folk like you and I. We know if God has said it, the outcome’s guaranteed; That anything He ever says is “very truth” indeed! To us it seems impossible. But it’s a bagatelle. This miracle for Sarah, He did it very well. One word and opposition, is quickly blown aside. It’s certified to happen; for God has never lied. It may not be tomorrow and may not be next year. But if the Lord has said it, it’s going to appear. “Have faith in God” said Jesus. You don’t require much. The size of just a mustard seed is all you need as such. To tell a great big mountain, to jump into the sea. If that’s enough for Jesus; It’s quite enough for me. And all down through the ages, we’ve seen that it is true. God can work a miracle for folk like me and you. “Faith” is not a quantity. It all depends on trust. And knowing that His Father is always true and just. If we will just believe Him and that which He does say, The outcome is as certain as night will follow day. Jim Strickland Written 24^th July 2012
			²² Then Jesus said to the disciples, "Have faith in God. ²³ I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, 'May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. ²⁴ I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you've received it, it will be yours. Mark 11:22-24 NLT
			⁶ No one can please God without faith. Whoever goes to God must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Hebrews 11:6 GW
			¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, ¹⁸ of whom it was said, "Through Isaac shall your offspring be named." ¹⁹ He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. Hebrews 11:17-19 ESV
			²¹ He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever He promises. Romans 4:21 NLT
			¹⁴ Is anything too hard for the LORD? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son." Genesis 18:14 NLT
			²⁶ Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible." Matthew 19:26 NLT
			⁵ The apostles came up and said to the Master, "Give us more faith." ⁶ But the Master said, "You don't need more faith. There is no 'more' or 'less' in faith. If you have a bare kernel of faith, say the size of a poppy seed, you could say to this sycamore tree, 'Go jump in the lake,' and it would do it. Luke 17:5-6 MSG

Monday, July 22, 2013

PRAYER LIFE

Jesus' Model Prayer

Time with Jesus - 23 July 2013

Hi all,

Praying Jesus' model Prayer

The topic today is Prayer. It’s a topic with which we all should be thoroughly familiar, but so often fail to carry it out; it’s one of the areas in most of our lives where we can be accused of not “doing” His Word. Eugene Peterson in the Message quotes James as follows: ²² “Don't fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear!” James 1:22 MSG

Prayer in a Small Group

Prayer is seldom spoken about in most churches. Furthermore, we are informed that statistically, only 3% of “church members” participate in prayer groups or meetings. There must be reasons for this. Here’s one or two:

1. In most churches, the Pastor, Minister, Priest or whoever, have made it very easy for congregants to be passive observers. Pew mentality has “spilled over” to the point where saying something, even in prayer, doesn’t happen.

2. Gossiping or talking things over with others! It’s easier to chat about things than to dialog with God. Friends will answer you directly and immediately. God answers prayer. Sadly many people are unfamiliar with listening for His voice. In any case, listening for His voice is perceived to be hard work. So why not talk about it with a “professional”. In this regard I’m reminded of a comment made some 20 years ago in Worcester. When we asked this individual to pray or get involved with something, the comment was, “We pay you to do that”.

3. Those who have participated in prayer groups discontinue. Typically we have heard:

a. The occasion is used to try and correct someone’s doctrine

b. The same person praying the same prayer every time we meet.

c. Long passages read from the Bible for no apparent reason.

d. Long-winded and religious prayers.

e. People shouting at anything and everything.

Small Group Prayer

f. People praying in tongues while “stomping” up and down and round and round indefinitely.

g. Lack of mutual submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

h. Unnecessary and over control of the prayer meeting by those in charge.

i. Aimless and unfocussed prayers.

j. People using the meeting to follow their own agenda.

Now I’m the first to admit that I’ve been guilty of all of these difficulties now and then; more so when I was new to Christianity. But Phyllida & I have come up with a couple of guidelines to make prayer meetings more meaningful.

1) Don’t be afraid of silence

2) Don’t come with an agenda for the meeting. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what to pray for.

3) A maximum of 5 verses only to be read at one time by one person.

4) Prayers to be limited to that which can be said with one

breath.

5) Go round the circle of prayers. Ask them to pray something. (Even if it’s God bless granny)

6) Always have a scribe to write down what is prayed and God’s reply!

7) At the end of the meeting, go round the circle and ask everyone what they heard in the meeting. (a Nugget)

8) Don’t compel anyone to pray or give a nugget. Encourage them all to come again. They probably will!

9) At the next meeting have a time of feedback from the previous meeting.

10) Meet at a convenient time for all and limit the prayer time. Perhaps 1 hour?

11) Try not to have young children or babies in the meeting. They can be a distraction.

We may never be an “expert” when it comes to prayer. But following these guidelines may help others become people of prayer