Category Archives: Random Devotional Thoughts

Random Devotional Thoughts

The Potter’s Hand….

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VASE“Take me, use me, Fill me, lead me, By the Potter’s hand”, the choir was singing lustily from the front of the church. These words made me think of the deeper meaning of them. Perhaps you have sung these words, and really meant what they say without knowing the full implications of them……

“Take me”…. have you stopped to think of all that this means? How much do we really want God to take us for His service? Remember, His service is in serving others around us. What about the times when all we feel like doing is just to kick our shoes off and relax in that lazy-boy chair! The times when we feel like having a day at home rather than go out yet again to help others,  to visit an old person in the rest home, or to encourage others in a Bible Study!

“Fill me”….we can only be filled by the Holy Spirit when we empty ourselves of our old nature. There is no room for both the old nature and the new nature to have control of our soul and spirit. It is only as we empty ourselves of our old desires, bitterness, and prejudices, that God will find room to come right into our being.

“Lead me”….once again, how much do we really want to be led by the Lord? He could say, “The Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head”. As He travelled the dusty roads of the land, He was reliant on the goodwill of others to give Him a bed for the night. Many times He spent the whole night in prayer to His Heavenly Father out on a mountain top, meditating and renewing His spirit to continue in His Father’s will.

“By the Potter’s hand”, the choir concluded with a flourish. I looked at those fresh young faces of the singers and wondered if they knew what they were singing, or if any of us know what that means!

We read of the potter seeing a bowl he has made and it is not to his liking so he breaks it and starts all over again. How many of us have gone through bitter experiences and shed tears of grief over broken relationships and disappointing things that have happened! It is often the only way the Lord can get rid of some of the things in our lives that are not pleasing to Him. We have to come to the end of ourselves in these broken times, so we can be re-moulded by the Master Potter to be of better use to Him.

Random Devotional Thoughts

What Do You See?

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        images 2The other day we were driving along a beach frontage….the day was beautiful and the colours of the sea were brilliant and superb. Just as the road was about to leave the shore I noticed three teenage girls sitting on the edge of the stream that came out at the end of the beach. Their backs were facing that superb view and their eyes were glued to the smart phones they were each holding.

    My mind went to the story in Pilgrim’s Progress about the man confined in a room playing around in the rubbish at his feet while an angel was hovering above him holding a crown. Alas, he never looked up to see the glories above him, but just kept on with the worthless stuff around his feet. There were those three girls with their backs to the beautiful view that God had created, and not enjoying all that the beach offered in the way of swimming and playing in the surf, or even just walking along the beach scuffing their feet in the sand, but with their eyes glued to what world offers.

It does us well to take stock of ourselves, especially during this first month of the year when so many make New Year resolutions, and resolve to see the things that God wants us to enjoy.

Random Devotional Thoughts

What Are Your Seven Wonders?

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downloadThe following story came through in my mail box the other day…..maybe it has been around for a while, but it really made me think….what would my seven wonders be? I don’t think anyone could better what the girl in this story came up with. Read it and see what your choices would be…..

A teacher once asked his class to write down the seven wonders of the world. After some thought, they came up with these answers….

  1. Taj Mahal; 2. Egypt’s Great Pyramids; 3. Grand Canyon; 4. Panama Canal; 5. Empire State Building; 6. St. Peters in Rome; 7. China’s Great Wall.

As the teacher was picking the papers up he noticed that one girl was still writing and asked why she wasn’t finished yet. She replied that there were so many, she was having trouble choosing the top seven. He picked up her paper, and read out the top seven she had written …

” 1. To See; 2. To Hear; 3. To Touch; 4. To Taste; 5. To Smell; 6. To Laugh; 7. To Love.”

The room was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop. The things we overlook as too simple and ordinary to mention, and take for granted every day, are truly wondrous!

The most precious things in life cannot be built by hand or bought by man…..all are blessings and gifts from God, our Creator! Let’s give Him thanks for each of them!

Random Devotional Thoughts

Do You Have a Loose Connection?

     Fixing Car I heard a story the other day about a man whose car had a flat battery. This was in the days when a car could be started by cranking it, so he got out the crank and started to wind the motor but it still wouldn’t start. So he lifted the bonnet (hood) of the car and poked around having a good look at the motor. Then he found the problem….there was a loose cable connection. He joined it up, wound the crank handle again and the motor shot into life. “Ah!! ” he thought, “so THAT was the problem!”

This is just like our prayer life. There are many times when we feel as though God is far away and not hearing our prayers. The trouble is a loose connection between us and God, and it is not until we join the connection that the power of God flows back into our life. Let’s look at some of these loose connections that can cut our fellowship with God.

One of these is having a right relationship with our spouse or other members of our families. This is one of the main causes of a broken connection, and we are told that husbands in particular, are to treat their wives right or their prayers will be hindered  (1 Peter 1:  ). Another one is having a bad attitude towards others.

Unconfessed sin….King David said, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me!” (Psalm 51:  )

Wrong attitude to our money….it is not our own, but only what God has given us, so it is only reasonable to give Him His share of it.

Habitual and continuous disobedience will block our communion with God.

Cherished continual sin in our hearts…..is there something that we know displeases the Lord but we don’t want to give it up? This is a loose connection cutting the communication between us and God. The prophet Isaiah said, “Your sins have come between you and God like a thick cloud!”   (Isaiah 52:1)

So after thinking about these things, let’s fix these loose connections in our life, and have our communion with God restored again.

Random Devotional Thoughts

Why Problems?

ManKeith came in for lunch one day with a very sore back. He had been working on fixing our back deck which needed a large board to replace one with rot in it, and had twisted his back in man-handling this board. As it turned out, it was quite a while before he could get back and finish the job, taking several days of lying flat on his back and then being very careful walking around until it came right.

We all experience times of trials and problems as we go along in life and wonder why. Even worse, we wonder “Why me?” The Bible deals with this same question, and quite clearly tells us why. In  book of Hebrews chapter twelve we read….

“For the Lord disciplines the ones  He loves and chastises every son He accepts.

Now all discipline seems painful at the time, not joyful. But later it produces the fruit of peace and righteousness for those trained by it.”

So we see that it is for our own good, and that we will benefit from it if we take it the right way. Sometimes we need to take time out for meditation and reflection and if we are always too busy we miss out on these times. We can either choose to be resentful and grumpy in our pain, or we can take the attitude that it will soon pass and things will get better. It is all up to us!

Random Devotional Thoughts, Uncategorized

How Do You Stack Up?

BAPTIZ_FWe had a baptismal service at our church this morning when four young people were baptised. Each of them gave very clear testimonies as to why they wanted to be baptised, and how they had come to know the Lord for themselves. To them God was not just a force “up there”, but He was personally their Father in Heaven. How many people say the Lord’s prayer today starting with “Our Father which art in Heaven”, and they don’t know God as their Father at all! We wouldn’t dream of approaching just any man out there, and calling him “Father”  and asking Him to supply our daily food. Yet so many people do this without even thinking what they are saying. Let’s hope you aren’t one of these!

The speaker after the baptismal service, made it quite clear to the congregation that what these young people had done was not to gain favour with God to get them to heaven, but were going through this rite in obedience to what God had asked them to do. It is something that Jesus Christ told His disciples to do before He left this earth….”Go and teach all nations,  baptising them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and see, I will be with you always”.

What a wonderful promise this is, that He gives to all who do as He asks!

Random Devotional Thoughts

Helmet of Hope

Helmet

David, the Psalmist in the Bible, could say… “For You are my hope, O Lord GOD: You are my trust from my youth” (Psalm 71:5).

I was listening to a preacher the other day who was talking about hope. Not hope with the thought of it may or may not happen, but hope as a confidence and certainty. There is another verse in the Bible where it says to put on the helmet of the hope of salvation (1 Thessalonians 5:8). Once we have this helmet firmly on our head, no matter how many darts of doubt and fear Satan fires at us, we can overcome them.

The law in New Zealand says that it is compulsory for every cyclist to wear a helmet while riding their bike on the road. It is no use carrying it on the handlebars of the bike, because that won’t keep us safe if we have an accident. We have to have it on our head  to be safe. Every time we have an impact, we have to adjust it and wear it properly again.

So it is when troubles hit us on our ride through life, we have to adjust our helmet of hope and get on our bike and go on again. Every negative thought that Satan gives us, we have to counteract with our helmet of hope, and count our many blessings.

It is no use counting our blessings on our fingers and our troubles on the calculator, we are to do it the other way around. Every new morning we are to put on our helmet of hope and count our blessings; we are to firmly fasten it with thanksgiving to God, and to resist negative thoughts which come from the Evil One. We will then be able to face the new day with a positive and confident “hope” as we go to work.

Random Devotional Thoughts

What is Life?

Quinn Joy aI  was watching a young Mum with her newborn baby the other day, and got to thinking how this little life is there for ever. Everything that the child will grow into is already in place except its attitudes, and these are up to the parents to teach and show as the child develops. What an awesome responsibility, and one that so many people take so lightly!

Life has a beginning at conception and then grows as the child is born and takes its first breath. This life does not end at death, it just begins! What we have been on earth lays the foundation for what we will be in the next life…just as Jesus said, “What we bind on earth will be bound in heaven.”

This life is just the beginning of eternity. Every baby that takes a breath exists for ever, for eternity….life on earth is just a dot, and what we do with it is up to us!

Jesus said….”I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly!”  and…

“This is life eternal…that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ  Who You sent.”