Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

 Galatians 5:22-23 ESV But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.  When we receive the Holy Spirit, we begin to change from seeking to gratify the flesh to wanting to bear the fruit of the Spirit. Fruit doesn't grow overnight. Nevertheless, we are to be increasingly defined by love, joy and peace etc. Jesus epitomises these virtues. If we want to know what love, joy and peace etc. look like, we need to look no further than him. His love look him to the cross; his joy enabled him to scorn the cross's shame as he anticipated his glorification; and he's at peace with Father God, in the centre of his will. Christ is patient with us: he doesn't expect to see fruit overnight necessarily. He's both strong and kind, as the song reminds us. He's good: we can trust him in the hardships of life. The Lord is faithful- he doesn't give up on us. He is gentle- ...

 Psalm 18:2 ESV  The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Jesus commands us to build on himself and his words as the Rock. Jesus is Lord. When the storms of life and death come, if we're built upon him, we will stand. We're to take every thought captive and bring it to Christ. He is our fortress. He's our safe place, whatever life throws at us. Christ is our deliverer. Sometimes, thoughts capture us rather than the other way round. Thankfully, Jesus is able and willing to set us free from negative thought patterns. The Lord is our shield. When our faith is in him, we are strong to withstand the fiery arrows of the evil one. Even in our weakness, in God we are strong. 'Lord our God, we're so grateful for the safety, strength and salvation that we find in you. Please forgive us for times we go astray, and bring us back we pray. In Jesus' name, amen'.

 Matthew 6:34 ESV  Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Anxiety is pointless. It achieves nothing. It worries about different possible eventualities that may or may not come to pass. Jesus didn't give his followers pills for anxiety. He simply commanded them not to be anxious. In a sense he's saying to live in the moment rather than for tomorrow. There's no point wishing or worrying our lives away. Jesus tells us to take each day as it comes. There's no need to get ahead of ourselves. In the context, instead of selfishly worrying, we're to be otherishly concerned for God's Kingdom and his righteousness. God provides our daily needs. Worrying about them doesn't make our needs to be met.  'Lord God, please help us not to be anxious. May we prioritise your Kingdom and your righteousness. In Jesus' name, amen'.

 2 Peter 1:3 ESV His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence We've got everything we need in God to live Christlike lives. How do we unlock the door to becoming like Jesus? By getting to know him, through his word and his Holy Spirit. Without God's word we rely on our feelings. Without the Holy Spirit we are legalists. With both we get to know God, not just intellectually, but relationally. 'Show me your friends and I'll show you you'. Jesus isn't ashamed to be nicknamed 'friend of sinners'. If we're friends with him, we'll become like him. Why does Jesus befriend us? Because he's excellent like that, turning enemies to friends. It's for his glory, which isn't arrogance, because he is worthy. 'Glorious God, we honour you for befriending us. Help us to know you and to become increasingly Christlike, in his name we ask th...

 Daniel 12:3 ESV And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.  Biblical Wisdom is bright and attractive. Worldly 'wisdom' blends in with the darkness around. True wisdom is distinctive. Wisdom should make us shine, not to be dull. We ought to be winsome, not unattractive. Wisdom encourages others to live rightly too. True wisdom isn't just to know the right thing, but to choose to do it. Not only so, wisdom calls others to righteousness as well. We're to attract others to the Light of Christ. We're to reflect the Light of the world in our lives. He is the Source of all brightness. We can display that to others through our witness. 'Light of the world, please make us wise, not just for our own sakes, but to call others to righteousness too. For the glory of your name, amen'.

 Proverbs 16:9 ESV   The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. Those who fail to plan, plan to fail. If we plan to colonise Mars, we might just end up colonising the moon. If we shoot for the stars, we might land on the moon. We like to think we can 'name it and claim it'. We need to realise that God is Sovereign, not us. Our plans may or may not come to pass. It is the Lord who establishes our steps. He might even lead us on a path we weren't expecting to go down. Yet if we trust in him, he'll lead us safe through to glory. I didn't expect my life to turn out the way it did. I took some majorly wrong turns in my life. Yet God has never stopped faithfully drawing me back. 'Lord our God, please establish our steps. Help us be mindful that we pencil in plans,whereas your purposes are set in stone. For the honour of Christ, amen'.

 Psalm 46:1 ESV God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Even the mighty warrior king David needed God to be his refuge. We all do. In the midst of this turbulent life, we need a safe place we can dwell secure, and that is God himself. God is strong. He's more than able to help us in our weaknesses. In fact, the Apostle Paul says that God's strength is made perfect in our weakness. We can become stronger through faith in him. The Lord is a very present helper. We can know his presence by his indwelling Holy Spirit. He's closer to us than we are to ourselves; he cares for us more than we care for ourselves. Jesus warned us that troubles are inevitable in this life. He immediately went on to say that we are to be encouraged because he has overcome the world. If God is for us, who or what can prevail against us? 'God our refuge, strength and help, we praise you for who you are in our lives. Please help us in our troubles. In Christ's name, amen...

 Hebrews 13:8 ESV Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.  We are changeable. The Lord is unchangeably faithful to save sinners like us. Christ Jesus is Lord. Jesus Christ has always been. He's always been faithful and loving and gave his life for us. He rose victorious over death on our behalf. The same Jesus that gave his life for us now intercedes for us to Father God. He continues to unfailingly love us, despite our many failings and trespasses against him. He will never let us down. Forever, Christ Jesus is the same. As I often say, he isn't going to give up on us half way to glory. He'll guide us safely home to be with him forevermore. 'Our Father in heaven, we praise you for your unchangeable Son, and his intercession for us. Please help us to honour you all our days, until you call us home, in his name, amen'.

 Please follow the link for my latest devotional as a YouTube Short: https://youtube.com/shorts/a2R6FYl4C7k?is=Bx0vVr-Zxlsrj7J1