THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 80
“Make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.” (Psalm 80:19)
This verse is a quote from the priestly blessing in Numbers 6:25-26.
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”
A shining face is a beaming, smiling face, when you delight in someone.
Think when your parents disciplined you and you felt their displeasure?
Or when you sensed their pleasure, and saw (felt) the glow of their smile?
There are times when we sense God’s sadness or displeasure (rightly so).
I recently felt God’s sadness, and I prayed words like these.
God’s smile reached my heart, I sensed His love, forgiveness and blessing.
This blessing reflects God’s heart; pray for it, long for it, wait for it.
Even when He is displeased with my behaviour, His heart still glows.
Even when He seems distant, His face still beams with love.
He will correct us, He will warn us, but He will always shine for us.
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, knowing Your smile is a what we all long for, and were made for. Help us to see that You still love us, even when you need to disciplne us.

THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 25-26
“Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him.
Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.” (Proverbs 26:4-5)
So what is the right answer, should we answer a fool according to their folly?
These verses show how being wise is different from being right.
The answer can be both, and it takes wisdom to know which way to respond.
Too often we focus ourselves on being right, but are we always wise?
The bible is a book with amazing truth, but we still need wisdom to apply it.
There are times when it is wise to speak, and times when it is best to be silent.
God does not spell out every right response for every situation we face.
Saying what we feel in the moment is not wise, we need to think it through.
The wise response will often feel hard, contrary to our natural gut response.
Which is why we need to process what we say and do carefully, and prayerfully.
All our words and actions have consequences, and wisdom thinks them through.
Jesus will talk things through with us, to help us discern what is best.
The wisest thing we can do is pause and pray before we speak!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, help me to be wise in the challenges and opportunities I face. Help me to include You in discerning the wisest response.

THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 23-24
“Though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again.” (Proverbs 24:16)
I believe in the resurrection, the hope of rising again.
This hope is not meant to encourage selfish sinners to keep sinning.
It is a hope for those who KNOW their weakness, and need for mercy.
It is a hope for those who long to do what is right, and struggle to do it.
They may try and fail, they may struggle and do it imperfectly.
They may be criticized and abused for it, and be knocked to the ground.
But though they fail or fall seven times, they will rise again.
The number ‘seven’ is a number of fullness, a way of saying ‘many times’.
Jesus promises that we will be forgiven ‘seventy times seven’ times (Matthew 18:22).
I am the first to admit that I do not always live a righteous life.
I know my falls and failures, I feel my inconsistencies and weaknesses.
But Jesus assures me that if I hunger for doing what is right, I will be satisfied.
As Jesus follower, I press on to take hold of that for which Jesus took hold of me.
I’m not there yet, and I will continue to stumble, but I will rise again!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, I am not yet what I’m supposed to be. But neither am I what I used to be. Thank You for assuring me that despite my falls, flaws and failures, I will overcome in the end!

THE STORY OF JESUS: Luke 8:49-56
“‘Stop wailing,’ Jesus said. ‘She is not dead but asleep.'” (Luke 8:52)
I remember seeing the movie The Matrix for the first time.
The idea behind the plot is that the world we know isn’t real, it is an illusion.
A computer-generated illusion that keeps us slaves, powering the machine.
But the world we know seems so real, so… undeniable.
Jesus challenges the world as we see it: death is not death but sleep.
Death is not the end, it only seems that way.
And Satan uses the fear of death to energize his kingdom (Hebrews 2:14-15).
Death is real, but it is not ultimate reality.
God created us for life and is working through Jesus to fully restore life.
We grieve, but not without hope, for we know life is greater than death.
When someone dies, it is not the end but a doorway to a new stage of life.
The real death is living in this world as if this is all there is.
We are caught within this matrix of death, but Jesus is ‘the One’!
He can wake us from our ‘sleep’, and replace our ‘wailing’ with real life!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, its hard not to be discouraged by death. It seems so final. Open our eyes to see beyond the matrix of death to the kingdom of life.

THE STORY OF JESUS: Luke 8:40-48
“Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” (Luke 8:48)
Here again I am encouraged by the simple faith that Jesus honours.
It is not ‘understanding the faith’ (beliefs) that helps, heals, or saves us.
It is any move towards God – uncertain or desperate or confident – for help.
This woman would not have been ready for ‘profession of faith’ in my tradition.
But her desperate, cautious approach was enough for God.
I think of the desperate, cautious, hopeful people that I meet.
Theirs is not a faith that would meet the criteria for church membership.
But it is enough for membership in God’s family!
Who really are the members of God’s family, God’s church?
There are many desperate, cautious, struggling people not in our churches.
Some are looking elsewhere for hope because the church did not welcome them.
We need to welcome strugglers, doubters, questioners – even unbelievers.
They may not be ‘profession of faith’ material for our churches.
But they are ‘mustard seed of faith’ material for God (Luke 17:6).
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, forgive us for making it hard for people to reach out to You. May our church become a place that welcomes and blesses the same people you welcomed and blessed!

THE STORY OF JESUS: Luke 8:26-39
“Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” (Luke 8:39)
I like how Jesus encourages this man to share his story.
Too often christians focus on the bible or church teachings.
This man knew very little about these things.
But he knew what God had done for him through Jesus.
I believe that devil wants to get our focus off of Jesus.
If he can’t distract us with fears or pleasures, he will try doctrine.
We are not to witness to our church’s teachings, but to Jesus.
Sometimes I wonder if some push doctrine because they lack the experience.
Hmm, is my preaching more focused on doctrine than on experiencing Jesus?
I have my own demons that I am saved from, though not like these ones.
Satan has been working hard to take my focus off Jesus too.
But Jesus keeps holding on and reminding me who I am, and Whose I am.
I know that if it were not for Jesus in my life, I would be mess.
I sense Jesus urging me to get my focus back on sharing this story.
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, Satan is a master at getting our focus away from You. Help me to stay anchored to You, and to Your gracious impact on my life!

THE STORY OF JESUS: Luke 8:26-39
“The demons begged Jesus to let them go into the pigs.” (Luke 8:32)
So why did the demons beg to go into the pigs?
The answer gives us insight into how Satan works.
Satan and his angels are messengers of fear, doubt, deception.
Their ultimate goal is to get humans to look away from God.
The demons know they can’t stop Jesus, but they can scare the villagers!
By killing the pigs, the frightened pigherders fled in fear.
And the returning villagers were afraid… and told Jesus to leave.
All they saw were the pigs, not the power of Jesus or the freed madman.
Where are the messengers of fear at work in your life?
Making you afraid to trust God, making you look away from Jesus?
Identify your debilitating fears, and you will find your legion.
The fears do not need to be great, just debilitating – holding you back.
Jesus is challenging me to see the legion behind my fears.
But He is also urging me to focus on Him, and on how He can set me free!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, help me to talk through my debilitating fears and distractions with You, and intentionally choose to focus on You!

THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 79
“They have poured out blood like water all around Jerusalem.” (Psalm 79:3)
Blood represents the preciousness of life – all over the ground.
Every murder is an echo of Abel’s blood, crying out for justice (Genesis 4:10).
This Psalm was written by a Jew, but it also applies to all people.
Our world is filled with blood – like water – precious life wasted!
Is it because of God’s anger (v.5), or is it what causes God’s anger?
God’s response is to step into the bloodshed and overcome it with love.
The blood of Jesus mingles with our blood in Jerusalem (John 19:34).
His blood cries a better word than Abel’s – justice and mercy (Hebrews 12:24)!
We’ve become desensitized to blood – in the news, in computer games.
We ignore appeals for blood donations — too busy shopping or watching TV.
We fight over communion juice, but say little about violence and death.
As Jesus followers, we should feel the preciousness of every life.
Jesus mingled His blood with the billions of victims through history.
He’s asking us to join our blood with His in crying out for justice and mercy!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, forgive us for drinking Your blood in communion for ourselves, but ignoring Your blood in the millions who suffer and die every day.

THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 20-22
“Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor.” (Proverbs 21:21)
Jesus pursued righteousness and love – what did He find?
That depends on WHEN we’re looking in His life.
For His life on earth, He did not find life, prosperity and honor.
But after His death, God found Him and turned things around.
Jesus is alive, all creation belongs to Him, honored over all!
God created us all for life, prosperity and honor.
God’s heart breaks for all people who suffer without these.
Trapped within Satan’s lies, God sent Jesus to break Satan’s grip.
Satan could not redirect Jesus away from righteousness and love.
Jesus’ success is humanity’s success, for a human now rules over Satan.
We stand with Him, and share in that victory, if we pursue it too.
To love people and to do what is right – even if we do it poorly.
Jesus took care of the perfection, all He wants from us is the intention.
Are we truly, honestly pursuing His kingdom, His righteousness?
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, I do not need to beat Satan’s lies – You did that for me. All that You ask is that I pursue love and right living to the best of my ability, with Your help. You will take care of the rest!

THE STORY OF JESUS: Proverbs 17-19
“The tongue has the power of life and death.” (Proverbs 18:21)
Do we realize how penetrating words can be, how they can heal or hurt?
As one who uses words for a living, I sometimes forget this.
How many people have been blessed by my words without my knowing it?
But the same could be asked for how many people have been hurt.
This reminds me of Jesus’ warning about careless words (Matthew 12:36).
As one who likes to be funny, are my attempts at humour risky?
Am I hurting people unintentionally, am I making light of something painful?
This should lead me to pray hard when I speak, for the Spirit to help me.
For the Spirit to use my weak words for His good purpose.
“The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint.” (Proverbs 17:27)
This is a good reminder to me, to remember the seriousness of words.
Maybe, instead of speaking so much, I should listen more. (Proverbs 18:13)
Shorten my sermons and give more time for reflecting, for hearing Jesus!
Maybe I should heed the wisdom of Ecclesiastes 6:11…
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, You were a master at using words well. Your simple prayer and brief lessons have more power than my lenghty speeches. Help me to trust my words less, and trust Your Spirit more!