Daily devotion

At His Word

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment 
And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” -  And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him. Luke 5:5; 11 ESV

Like the farmer who has just finished his spring planting only to have his field washed out by a rainstorm, Peter was discouraged after spending the entire night casting his nets and laboriously pulling them in again and then returning home exhausted and empty handed. All of us are sometimes forced to face our inabilities and failures that have happened in spite of our best efforts. Maybe we were fired from our job because we failed to make a quota, our marriage is struggling, and it seems we don’t have even one friend. Whatever we are facing, is how Peter felt that morning when he met Jesus. But Jesus hadn’t come to call Peter because he was the best fisherman, and He doesn’t only call the best fathers, mothers, or pastors for His kingdom work. Jesus often picks people for His team who have worked all night with nothing to show for their efforts. And Jesus hasn’t showed up just to demand that we try harder, He only asks that we believe and obey His word. Peter didn’t understand why Jesus said to launch out, and he even pointed out that it seemed foolish to throw out his nets again, but he chose to obey anyway. Then, when he cast that heavy net out just one more time, it became so full that it took all the efforts of Peter, and his friends to pull it in. But this story is about more than just blessings. The real blessing and call of Jesus, both then, and now, is to leave everything by faith and come follow Jesus wherever He asks us to go!

Porcupines or Eagles?

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments 
The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise. Proverbs 15:31 ESV

Have you ever watched little birds being shoved out of the nest when they are ready to go out on their own? The chicks like being comfy, just hanging around waiting for mom to bring them food. But comfort is not their mother’s goal. She knows that for them to survive, they will need to learn to fly. Just as that mother eagle pushes her little chicks from the nest, God sometimes uses criticism that others are leveling at us to nudge us out of our comfort zone.

In the 2021 Tokyo Olympics there were many who criticized Simone Biles for withdrawing from some of her events. What they did not realize was that the fear of not living up to other people’s expectations had put so much pressure on Simone’s mind, that she couldn’t focus. Her fear while performing endangered not only her winning any medal, but even her physical safety. Later Simone went on to win more medals and ended her career as the most decorated female American gymnast on the planet! Now, most of us will never be Olympians, but we like Simone, we need to learn that the secret of success is to accept the fact that we are not perfect. In fact, it is perfectly normal to be imperfect! For me, usually, my first reaction to correction or criticism is to bristle like a porcupine, but I have learned that sometimes our greatest detractors can also be the ones who motivate us to fly. We need to remind ourselves that God created us to be eagles and not porcupines. So instead of bristling our quills like a porcupine under attack, we need to just start flapping our wings. Remember that flying even a few feet off the ground is something no porcupine will ever do! When we learn to just relax and listen to correction, then God can begin teaching us how to fly. Then one day when we least expect it, He will help us to spread our wings and fly fearlessly farther and higher than we ever imagined!

Photo by Frans van Heerden on Pexels.com

Filled With Messages From Thee

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 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV

Someone once asked, “Why do we write?” But instead of “why,” perhaps that their real question was rather, “Why should we write?” Now that is a great question, and it has a variety of good answers, because it all depends on who we intend for our audience to be. For example, if I were I to make a diary entry, my hope would be that no one but myself would ever see it. On the other hand, should I be putting together a report for a property manager on what steps would be needed to get a home ready for rental, my proper audience would grow by at least one. As Christian writers, sometimes we are tempted to think that our sole obligation is to write for God. But if we would be honest, most of us also want someone besides Jesus to read what we have put on a page. Perhaps the best answer lies within the words of the hymn Frances Havergal wrote titled, “Take My Life and Let it Be.” In her challenging lyrics, she tells us that her moments, her days, and even her hands, and feet, as well as her will and wealth are all meant to be her offering to God. As writers we would do well to notice her third verse’s ending couplet:

“Take my lips and let them be 
Filled with messages from Thee”

As Frances Havergal notes, our messages are not just for God, they should also be from Him and for others. As writers, connecting our audiences to God is our unique and urgent calling. So, let’s shed false modesty about only writing for an audience of one. Jesus hasn’t called us to write only for Him, rather to connect with as many precious people as possible to tell them of the riches of the glories of our God and King!