Are you content with your God-given status?

 26 Feb 26

Today's devotional: taken from YouVersion, Devotions on F.I.R.E. Year One

Readings:

Numbers 16

Numbers 17

Mark 6:33-56

Submitting to one another in the fear of God (Ephesians 5:21). 

Are you content with your God-given status?

God expresses His unique relationship with Moses after Miriam and Aaron verbally assault their brother. The Lord communicates with him “face to face” (Numbers 12:8). Then God asks them in the same verse, “Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?”. Similarly, Korah is jealous of Moses and leads an uprising to usurp his authority. Moses perceives that Korah and his followers have an authority issue. He exposes them with the following words: “You take too much upon yourselves, you sons of Levi!” (Numbers 16:7). They should have been satisfied with their divine placement. 

Furthermore, Paul advises Timothy to be aware of those who would corrupt the church with the teaching that gain equals godliness. He adds, “Now godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6). That’s an application for all generations! 

Employment Point: Support God’s authority and be content with your own.

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Reflections

Contentment feels like a state of mind and a sense of satisfaction. No more chasing after things or people even. It gives rise to peace and maintains our balance.

If someone is constantly chasing after something, never satisfied, it just meant that they have yet to learn contentment. In this world, when we are facing changes and innovations almost everyday, we too ought to recognise where we ought to stop. If it is about technology, I think we all should catch up to learn about that. But power, authority and ambition, it is better for us not to pursue any of those things.

“Isn’t it enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite community and brought you near himself to do the work at the Lord’s tabernacle and to stand before the community and minister to them? He has brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to get the priesthood too.”Numbers‬ ‭16‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• the Levites are whom the Lord has separated from the rest and given special duty to take care of the Lord’s tabernacle. But here, we saw greed and power breeding in their heart. They wanted something that is above their calling.
• We are the same at times. Perhaps the Lord has placed us in a certain place and given us some form of authority to do His work but we are not satisfied. We wanted more or something that is of higher rank. It is for us to ask the Lord where He wanted us to be? Here I felt it is not just contentment but the yearning for power and authority that is wrong. We need to be more mindful of what we are thinking or setting ourselves up against. Else we can end up to be like the Levites who only wanted more.

 

“Then Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. But they said, “We will not come! Isn’t it enough that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to kill us in the wilderness? And now you also want to Lord it over us! Moreover, you haven’t brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey or given us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Do you want to treat these men like slaves? No, we will not come!””Numbers‬ ‭16‬:‭12‬-‭14‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• sometimes when we are stuck in a certain circumstance, our eyes are blinded to what exactly is happening. Our hearts may be so consumed that we fail to see the real bigger picture. 
• Here we know that they used to work in Egypt as slaves and yet, when facing the unknown or of the rewards that they yet to see, they deemed the place of torture the land flowing with milk and honey. Isn’t that what the enemy wants us to believe? That because of our unbelief or lack of faith, we fail to have this hope in us. 

“Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put incense in it, along with burning coals from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them. Wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has started.””

Numbers‬ ‭16‬:‭46‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• Many times Moses intercede for his people against God’s wrath. Time and again they had sinned against God and His laws. I see Moses as having a heart almost the like of Jesus, which is a great heart. Let us learn from Moses and be gracious and merciful to our brothers or sisters in Christ. Let us intercede for them and pray for them to return to the Lord for we are all one body. As we freely receive, we too should freely give.

“The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid myself of this constant grumbling against you by the Israelites.””

‭‭Numbers‬ ‭17‬:‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• with all the going ons, Moses did not complain to the Lord anything but the Lord saw for Himself this grumbling against Moses which did not stop. So the Lord acted to as to stop all the complaints the people had against His chosen man Moses.
• Do not be discouraged with the things that are going on in our life. If it is not meant to be, the Lord will vindicate us. But if it is meant for our learning, Lord help humble us and help us learn.

Some 4 days ago, I received a devotional titled" when perspective hits you in the bleachers" - sharing the devotional here as I just read it yesterday. Just in time. Here goes..

As the cold gust of wind came barreling between the warmth of my jacket and layers of clothes, so did my complaints.

I was sitting in the bleachers of my son's fall baseball game one Saturday morning awhile back, pacing back and forth to stay warm for another hour. Secretly wishing I was back in the warmth of my home, drinking coffee, preparing for a day of relaxation and college football.

I was cold. Uncomfortable. And honestly? A little annoyed that I had to be there.

Then I saw him.

He was cornered up under a pavilion close to the field, wearing a pair of shorts and a thin jacket. Clothes tattered. Visibly shivering. Probably homeless.

But what caught me off guard was his smile.

He was watching the game intently, his eyes following each play with genuine interest. Puffing a cigarette. Enjoying an unexpected Saturday morning baseball game like it was the best entertainment he could ask for.

And there I was, bundled up with layers, a warm car waiting in the parking lot, a home to return to, complaining about being a little cold.

My thoughts turned to utter disappointment in myself. I sat back down, humbled.

Lately, God has been showing me this: we get so caught up in trivial discomforts in our own little world that we lose sight of how good we actually have it.

That man under the pavilion had every reason to complain. Every reason to be bitter about his circumstances. But he chose to smile and appreciate the moment, regardless of what he was going through.

Meanwhile, I was grumbling about minor inconvenience while sitting in abundance.

It is easy to focus on what is wrong. What is uncomfortable. What is not going our way. We magnify the small irritations until they feel like major problems.

But perspective changes everything.

What Scripture Says

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." — 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Paul did not say give thanks only when life is comfortable. He said in all circumstances. The hard ones. The uncomfortable ones. The ones that do not go the way we planned.

Because gratitude is not about perfect circumstances. It is about recognizing that even in difficulty, there is still good to be found.

No matter how uncomfortable, chaotic, or serious our issues may seem, they are temporary.

You woke up. You are breathing. God gave you another opportunity with a brand new day. There is a lot of good ahead.

We just need to stop and acknowledge it.

That is perspective.

“When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.”Mark‬ ‭6‬:‭34‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• do we have compassion like Jesus? Are we someone who knows the word well but sees people who are lost and did not offer our hand to help? Pray that the Lord will grant us clear direction so that we will know how we can help or encourage others as iron sharpens iron

“Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.”Mark‬ ‭6‬:‭51‬-‭52‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• at that point in time, His disciples had yet to truly understand who Jesus was but for us, we do know. But for us who know, are our hearts hardened as well or are we open to His teachings and guidance?

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Doubts about Jesus

BY OSWALD CHAMBERS

February 26

“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?” — John 4:11

When Jesus told the Samaritan woman that he could give her living water, her reply was full of doubt. We marvel at this story, because we know our Lord has told the woman the truth. But when it comes to our own lives, we aren’t always so sure. “I’m impressed with the wondrous things he says,” we think. “But in reality, they can’t be done!”

Where do our doubts about Jesus come from? They might spring from other people’s doubts about the plans we’ve made with God— their questions about where we’ll get our money or how we’ll live. Or we might plant the seeds of doubt ourselves, informing Jesus that our problems are too much, even for him.

What’s really happening is that we’ve confused Jesus’s limitations with our own. We look at our own abilities to determine what Jesus can do, then panic when we see the depths of our own inadequacy. “No, no,” we protest. “I have no doubts about Jesus, only about myself.” This is a pious kind of fraud. None of us are truly confused about ourselves: we know perfectly well what we can and can’t do. But we do have doubts about Jesus. Sometimes we even act insulted by his power, as though we’re hurt by the idea that he can do what we can’t.

If you sense doubts about Jesus in yourself, bring them to the light and confess them: “Lord, I’ve had doubts about you. I haven’t believed in your strength apart from my own. I haven’t believed in your almighty power apart from my finite understanding of it.” Then ask God to take your doubts away.

Numbers 15-16; Mark 6:1-29

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

There is nothing, naturally speaking, that makes us lose heart quicker than decay—the decay of bodily beauty, of natural life, of friendship, of associations, all these things make a man lose heart; but Paul says when we are trusting in Jesus Christ these things do not find us discouraged, light comes through them. 

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Reflections

The devotion from Oswald really runs in alignment with our devotion on F.I.R.E. It speaks the same of doubts about Jesus that we may have.

How well do we know the Lord? What are His track records? Have you tried to list down every answered prayer and every revelation that you have experienced about our Lord Jesus? I am sure you will be amazed by what He had done, the minute details that He cares about, the healing that He grants, the angels that He sent into our lives, the blessings and provisions that He has provided us, the unique gifts that He has given us, and so many more. How much more do we want the Lord to prove to us of His Almighty Power?!!

Like what Oswald says, we are in a state of confusion. Believing in lies that we made on our own, trusting in ourselves and our limitations and have the thinking that the Lord thinks or works like us, forgetting that He is above us and is the One who created us! 

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Lent devotion Day 9/53

taken from YouVersion, Lent for Everyone

Lent for Everyone is a devotional created and written by N.T. (Tom) Wright. For each day of Lent, there is a reading chosen from the Gospel of Matthew, plus a reflection by Wright. These readings have grown out of a project encouraging Lent reading in Northern England. This is the second in a three-volume series based on the Revised Common Lectionary of the Church of England.

Today’s reading:

Matthew 8

WEEK 1: THURSDAY

Let's go on that boat and think what it was like. It's a small lake, as lakes go, but sudden storms come sweeping down from the hills. All of us in the boat know of people who've been drowned there, of whole boats that have been swamped and gone to the bottom, of sad homes back in Capernaum or Magdala where there are widows and small children dependent on relatives because the father and his sons didn't come home from a night's fishing.

So we are right to be afraid, aren't we? You can't deny that! And Jesus, who was doing such great things a minute ago on land, is . . . asleep. How can he do that? Doesn't he care? Should we wake him? Well, why not? If he can't help us, who can? Then it happens. He wakes up and looks at us, a bit cross but not, it seems, because we've woken him but because of something else. We haven't got enough faith, he says. Well, we've sailed this lake often enough and we know that it isn't faith that gets you across, it's hard work with the oars and sails! But then he is saying something again — this time, loud and clear, not to us but to the wind and the sea. He's telling them to shut up! Who does he think he is? This is crazy!

Only it isn't. The wind dies down. The sea becomes very, very still, like a screaming child suddenly pacified. And our question 'Who does he think he is?' turns into a different question: Who is he? What sort of man is this?

We've heard the old stories about God telling the wind and the sea to open up a way for his people to pass over. We've heard about Jonah, about Noah. We know the ancient, mysterious story about God making the world in the first place by replacing the waters of chaos with his new creation. We've always wanted this God to come back to rescue us. But we never thought it would be like this. And we never thought we'd have to wake him up to make it happen. But — wait a minute? Isn't that in the old scriptures, too? Didn't the Psalms some- times shout to God to wake up and sort out the mess?

When we get to the other side, it's someone else doing the shouting. A madman — actually, two of them; and they're yelling at Jesus. Something's got into them. We don't under- stand it but that's the only explanation. Maybe it's because we're off Jewish territory, this side of the lake. That's why there's a herd of pigs over there; you'd never get that in proper Jewish farms, of course. But now the men are begging Jesus — or rather, it seems to be the strange voices that are coming from the men — to send them into the herd of pigs. There must be evil spirits in there, doing the talking. And Jesus tells them to go. A sudden cold wind, and then it's all stamping and snorting and off they go — over the steep hill and down into the lake. Not surprisingly, the lads in charge of the pigs take to their heels as well. For two pins I'd go too; this is getting too scary for words.

But the heart of it is this. Not only the question we felt on the lake: Who is Jesus? But the question we now can't avoid: Is this what it looks like when God's kingdom begins to arrive on earth as in heaven? Does it mean that some sort of cosmic battle is now in progress, with the storm on the one hand and the evil spirits on the other trying as it were to attack Jesus, to stop him bringing heaven's rule to bear on this dangerous and distracted world of ours? What's that going to mean for us? What's it going to mean for him?

TODAY

Lord of wind and sea, help us to follow you, whatever the questions, wherever you lead.

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Let’s pray:

Dear Abba Father, forgive us for being ignorant and thinking You are on the same level as we do. This is so wrong. Help us Father to overcome our unbelief, to open our eyes, ears and our heart to truly know You personally. Help us Lord, to not be confused and seek You. Grant us forgiveness O Lord, for the times we try to limit Your plans and cap it with ours. Thank You Father for the reminders of Your track record and that You have a much wider and larger plan for us and also an understanding that is higher than us. Help us to trust and build our faith in You. In Jesus’s name we pray. Amen 🙏🏻