Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

 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

 Colossians 3:1 ESV If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  To be raised with Christ is a wonderful reality for the believer in him. Having been raised with him however, we're not to rest on our laurels. We're to seek the things that are above. So many of the things that people seek are things below. They aren't necessarily bad, but they're temporary. These things include money, sex and power. Mammon/stuff, worldly authority, and even marriage will cease. So what are the things above? I think the fruit of the Spirit sums it up well. Love, joy and peace for example are everlasting. For those who belong to Jesus, we have a glorious eternity to look forward to. We will enter into our heavenly rest, through faith in God's Son crucified for us. 'Almighty God, help us to look forward to our eternal rest. In the meantime, help us to fix our eyes on Jesus, in his name, amen'.

 Please follow the link for my latest devotional as a YouTube Short:  https://m.youtube.com/shorts/gryjuG80LBQ

 Matthew 22:37 ESV And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  God wants us to be wholehearted. He doesn't want the dregs of our devotion. He doesn't just want lip service. Our salvation isn't dependant upon the quality of our love, thankfully. Sometimes, with old testament Israelite kings, we're told that they did what was right in God's eyes, even though they weren't wholehearted. Being justified by God is dependant upon him and his love, not upon us and our devotion. Having been justified by God through faith in his Son crucified by us, we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We're not to let our minds wander, but to focus on glorifying our Lord and Saviour. He is worthy of our everything. Our souls are to be devoted to God. We're not to allow idols to usurp God's rightful place in our hearts. By the power of God's Holy Spirit we can love him as we oug...

 Psalm 100:5 ESV  For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. A preacher was asked what he thought the scariest thing about God is. He replied that God's goodness is the scariest thing about him. Some people laughingly responded, but then he explained himself. The problem is, God is good, and we are bad. If God is good, how can he tolerate our badness? Thankfully the verse doesn't end there. Not only is God good, but he also has eternal loving-kindness. He doesn't give up on those he loves. He sent his Son for our salvation, out of love for us. God's faithfulness doesn't have an expiry date. God was our help in previous generations. He's our hope for years to come, should Jesus delay his return. 'Lord, we worship you for your goodness, love and faithfulness. Help us to become like you, for your honour and praise we pray, amen'.