6th. March. 2021. Daily Devotion.
30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. John 20:31
When John G. Paton landed in the New Hebrides (Vanuatu) to begin his mission work, he faced an enormous task. The language had never been reduced to writing. He had to listen to the speech of the natives and write down in his notebook the sounds that he heard them speak. Little by little he developed a large vocabulary, and finally thought that he could begin his work of translating a part of the New Testament.
It was not long before he discovered that he had no word for “belief,” for “trust,” for “faith.” One cannot get far in the New Testament without a word that conveys to us the idea or thought of “trusting,” yet try as he might, he could not obtain any expression of this thought from the natives. But one day he went on a hunting trip with one of the islanders. The day was hot, the road was long. A large deer was shot, and the game carried down the long mountain toward his house.
The two men struggled with their burden, and finally reached home. They flung the deer down on the grass and dropped, exhausted on to two lounge chairs on the porch overlooking the sea. The islander said: “My, but it is good to stretch yourself out here!” It was an expression that Paton had never heard before, and he made haste to have it recorded in his notebook. When his translation was complete, this was the word that was used for “belief” and “trust.” “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever stretches himself out upon the Saviour, shall not perish, but shall have everlasting life.” “Stretch yourself out on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, and thine house.”
This, then, is faith. It is the turning away from everything that is in self, and the utter reliance upon all that Christ has done for us. If this has been your experience, then you may claim the promise that goes with the resting in Christ. It is something that belongs to you, then, as a right. You have the right to say: I am saved. I have been born again. I now possess eternal life. You have that right because God has given you the authority to speak so. ~ from “God’s Methods for Holy Living” by Donald Grey Barnhouse.
Lord, teach me to rely upon you and not upon myself. Amen.
Lent Prayer
It is Lent and we are suffering under the COVID epidemic. Lord help us to take the time to be silent and prayerful and know that you are with us. Help us to be open to hearing what you are inviting us to. We may feel that so much has been taken from us. But when we do take the time, we realize that it is your faithfulness and generosity that has given us so much. It is what gives us the confidence that you are indeed with us through it all. Amen.
A Prayer to avoid Hypocrisy
Holy God, I am only human. I know that there are sins that I commit, in my thinking and in my life, that my eye cannot bear to see. I am so afraid of losing self-esteem that I cannot even think about them. Open my eyes and ears to your word, Lord God, that I might hear what I do not want to hear and face my faults with courage. Educate me, O Holy Spirit. Let me hear your voice instead of my own. Stop me dead in my tracks when I start to rationalize my bad conduct.
And when my mind starts to focus on the sins of others — especially sins that hold little temptation for me — take the beam out of my eye. Let me learn my own fault, before I try to correct others of theirs. Lead me to see the sin that I refuse to see, so that I can repent. Restrain me from filtering your word to conform to my will; instead, help me to hear your true word, no matter how it might pain me, that I may conform my conduct to your will. For the sake of Christ, who would bring us to perfect obedience, I pray, Amen.
A prayer remembering God is with us
Lord God, you are always with me. You are with me in the day and in the night. You are with me when I’m happy and when I’m sad. You are with me when I’m healthy and when I am ill. You are with me when I am peaceful and when I am worried. Today I am feeling (name how you are feeling) because (reasons you are feeling this way). Help me to remember that you love me and are with me in everything today. Amen.
