3/17/2020 0 Comments The Free Will ParadoxYou may have been asked, or asked yourself before, “Why would God allow suffering? Why wouldn’t he make it good?” The problem is He loves us, and he wishes for us to love him. Can love be true if it is forced? Why would God, who is kindness, mercy, and grace, force you to conform to goodness? Wouldn’t that negate that it is goodness at all? Because you are free, you have the compacity for evil. It is only because you are free that you have the compacity for good.
Questions for further thought: 1. Why would love that is forced not be real love? 2. Christ asks you to surrender yourself to him. How does this relate to your free will? Challenge: Reflect on what you’ve been doing with your freedom lately. What have you been choosing? Decide now who or what you will serve.
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3/16/2020 0 Comments The Human ConditionWe are living during a time between paradises. In the beginning, God placed humanity in the Garden of Eden, a place of no pain or suffering. It was perfect, yet Adam and Eve chose their own way instead of God’s. The perfect relationship between God and humanity was broken, as it is now. Don’t despair though! God loved his creation enough to send Jesus, who offers us reconciliation. Though we live at this time, we await when Jesus will come to us again. Then we will be living in paradise, in the light of God’s face. The relationship between us will be broken no more. Take heart from this future as we deal with our present condition.
Questions for further thought: 1. Was it right for all of humanity to fall through the actions of one man and women? (When thinking on this question, imagine the fall as a betrayal of trust between two friends.) 2. Why are you living now, in the in-between time? What’s your purpose here? Challenge: Make a table with consequences of our broken relationship with God on one side, and the way those will be healed someday on the other. Try to be personal, not just general. 3/13/2020 0 Comments PlansWe all have these ideas of what should happen in our lives, but as we know, things do not always go as we planned. Why does this happen? Well, life is life and no matter how much we prepare, things will go wrong. Do we need to worry, be anxious, or lose sleep? No, we must take peace in the words of Jeremiah, “that God has plans for us, for our welfare and not for our calamity.” God wants us to believe in Him and have eternal life with Him in heaven. The ultimate peace, the ultimate gift, the ultimate plan is God’s plan.
Questions for further thought: 1. What do you do when things don’t go as you planned? 2. How does it make feel to know that God really wants what is best for you? Challenge: Instead of looking at the bad in things you face, see what God is teaching you through them. 3/12/2020 0 Comments WorryWe are in this great big world and sometimes we feel like a small fish in a big pond. When things happen, we wonder if God is with us. Well, He is. In Luke, Jesus is telling his disciples that even the sparrows are important to God. If the sparrows are important, how much more important are we? God knows every hair on our head. How awesome is it to know God loves and cares about us this much! We are never alone; God is always with us, more than we can even understand.
Questions for further thought: 1. Why do you feel alone? 2. What will you do, knowing God cares for you so much? Challenge: This week make it a point to let others know they are not alone and how much God cares for them. 3/11/2020 0 Comments AnxiousWe have a lot of things in our world today to make us anxious. As Christians, how are we to respond? Paul tells us that we are not to be anxious about anything. We are to pray and take everything to God. Do we bury our heads in the sand? No, we use the tools that God has given us to make wise decisions and we can plan ahead. Ultimately, we need to know that God is in control and has plans for us. God will give us peace that passes all comprehension.
Questions for further thought: 1. What do you do with your worries? 2. Do you go to God for peace, or do you try to handle things on your own? Challenge: What are you going to give to God, instead of worrying about it on your own? 3/10/2020 0 Comments LoveJesus gave a commandment to his disciples that they are to love one another so that all will know that they are his disciples. Do we deal with each other in love? Do others look at the church and see the love of Christ? We must be careful in how we deal with others. We must deal with each other with the same kind of love Christ has for us. As Christians we are to pick up our cross, follow Jesus, and love one another.
Questions for further thought: 1. How have you shown Christ’s love to others? 2. Have you received Christ’s love from someone? How did it make you feel? Challenge: Show God’s love to others in all you do. 3/9/2020 0 Comments JudgementAre we not quick to judge? I know I am. Would I be so quick to judge realizing that I will be judged as I judge? No. We live in a world that is quick to judge. Judgments are made every day without all the facts. They can be damaging and even ruin people’s lives. As Christians we are called to a higher standard. We must be very careful and do it out of love and concern for each other. I know that if I have to make a judgment, I will be more careful and take time to do so. God loves us and we are to love others as He loves us. We must remember this when we make decisions regarding others.
Questions for further thought: 1. How have you felt when you have been judged? 2. What kind of logs to you have in your own eyes? Challenge: Instead of judging, show Christ’s love to others this week. 3/6/2020 0 Comments In His NameWe can be confident that our prayers will be heard if we ask for things that please God. If God hears, we will get what we ask. To get what we ask for, it must be pleasing to God.
There have been times when I prayed a specific request many times over months and sometimes years. During the repeated asking, my perspective was changed. The request looked very different at the end than it did at the beginning. Maybe my initial request was not pleasing to God, so he did not hear it. To ask in His name is not a vending machine approach. Asking in His name, is truly knowing the will of God. Questions for further thought: 1. Are your prayers pleasing to God? 2. What changes do you need to make in your prayer life? Challenge: Examine your recent prayers. Were they in line with what you know of God? 3/5/2020 0 Comments Where is My Loyalty?When you are asked to do something for another person how do you decide to do it? I have been asked to help a family member move from the 3rd floor (with no elevator) on a rainy day. I did it because it was for one of my children. It often comes down to how much your care for this person, or how much you desire to be of service to another. These verses tell us if we ask God for something – faith has a lot to do with getting an answer. Our loyalty must be to God alone. Jesus often recognized that a person’s faith was the reason they were healed.
Questions for further thought: 1. Is your faith in God alone? 2. Review the last time you said yes or no to helping someone. What was the reason for your decision? Challenge: Search the New Testament for scriptures that relate healing to faith. (Such as the woman who touched the hem of Jesus’ robe.) 3/4/2020 0 Comments What Are My Motives?What are we praying for? Does that affect prayers being answered? If we ask for things just to give us pleasure, it may be the wrong motive. It may even be considered selfish, and possibly not God’s will. Proverbs tells us we may think we are pure in our own eyes, but the LORD examines our motives. Prayers need to be consistent with God’s character, which we learn from reading His word in scripture. Praying for a luxury or harm to another may fit the description of wrong motive or impure purpose.
Questions for further thought: 1. Do you have unanswered prayers? 2. How do they measure up against these verses? Challenge: There may be times you are not sure how to pray. That may provide you an opportunity to leave the issue in God’s hands. |
AuthorThis devotional is written every week by Hillcrest members. Archives
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