How do you calm the fears of others?

 15 Feb 26

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

Readings:

Leviticus 20

Leviticus 21

Matthew 28

Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen (Matthew 28:5-6). 

How do you calm the fears of others?

A few loyal women followed Jesus while He lived, watched Him be crucified, and now go to the tomb expecting to find His body. Their natural fears are calmed by a supernatural response from an angel: “Do not be afraid” (Matthew 28:5). He then proceeds to calm them through the life of Jesus. In essence, the angel could be paraphrased: “Stop being alarmed, because Jesus is alive.” Since Jesus conquered death and promises to be with us always, there is nothing to fear. God expels our fears through His presence in our lives. Paul reminds Timothy, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). 

Employment Point: Live fearlessly through the power and presence of Jesus.

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Reflections

““ ‘The high priest, the one among his brothers who has had the anointing oil poured on his head and who has been ordained to wear the priestly garments, must not let his hair become unkempt or tear his clothes. He must not enter a place where there is a dead body. He must not make himself unclean, even for his father or mother, nor leave the sanctuary of his God or desecrate it, because he has been dedicated by the anointing oil of his God. I am the Lord.”

‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭21‬:‭10‬-‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• this is a high calling and one that perhaps people in today’s world will frown upon. Most of the pre-believers cannot accept when their family turned to Christ, especially for the Chinese because they have this mentality that being a Christian does not allow you to hold joss sticks and more importantly, does not allow you to pay respect to your ancestors or your parents when they passed on. 
• I say that is due to lack of knowledge because we just do it in a different way that’s all. We are in a position to educate and also bear witness for the Lord and His love.

“telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭28‬:‭13‬-‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• this is a story but not what is factual. Every single detail was recorded in the bible accurately and we were all told that the fake story has been widely spread till this very day.
• Believe not what you hear but seek answers for Yourself. Seek the Lord too, for He Himself will reveal to You His greatness and power.

Indeed there is nothing to be alarmed or feared in this world. Just 2 days ago, my mum told me when I woke up that don’t know why her heart like beat very fast and her hands trembling. Her BP was normal though. So I told her to pray and lead her to pray to our Lord, asking for peace to fill her. 

Praise the Lord, she’s ok in the end. No more trembling and all! ✝️🙌🏻 

Thank You Father! For hearing our prayers 🙌🏻❤️

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Am I My Brother’s Keeper?

BY OSWALD CHAMBERS

February 15

For none of us lives for ourselves alone. — Romans 14:7.

Has it ever dawned on you that you are spiritually responsible for other souls? If you ever find yourself turning away from God, even in private, watch out: you will cause harm to everyone around you. “There are many parts, but one body,” Paul wrote. “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it” (1 Corinthians 12:20, 26).

If we care about our friends, families, and communities, we must set a close guard on our hearts and minds. To give in to physical selfishness, intellectual laziness, or spiritual stubbornness is to put everyone around us at risk. “But who is strong enough to meet a standard like that?” you say. Our strength comes from God, and God alone.

When Jesus called us to be his witnesses, he meant that we should spend every bit of our mental, moral, and spiritual energy for him (Acts 1:8). When we embrace this calling, we will find that we’ve been made entirely useless from every viewpoint but his. It takes time; we must be patient with ourselves. But we must also remember why we are here: not to be saved and sanctified but to give our all for his sake. This is how we say thank you to God for the unspeakable gift of our salvation.

Leviticus 17-18; Matthew 27:27-50

WISDOM FROM OSWALD

We are all based on a conception of importance, either our own importance, or the importance of someone else; Jesus tells us to go and teach based on the revelation of His importance. “All power is given unto Me.… Go ye therefore ….” 

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Reflections

Someone asked me this question. What is my anchor verse for the year. It made me think really hard. I have a verse for the current season but for the whole year? Hmmm.. finally I remembered I put in a verse for my service greetings and used that instead. 

“What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ”Philippians‬ ‭3‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

• this is the anchor verse that I chose. 
• The reason why I chose this verse is because it totally represents my life and what He has taught me.
• A lot of surrendering, letting Him and letting be. Not relying on my own strength but on Him alone. He is building on my faith in the process and is teaching me to trust Him regardless. 
• He has proven to me that by seeking Him and putting Him first, I never had to make hard choices between Him and my mum or family. He has shown me that when I honour Him first, the rest just falls into place. 
• He is teaching me to lean on His strength and not mine. To love and care for one another for we are all fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Indeed gaining Christ is more important than anything else. What’s the point of having all the money, power and status in the world but we don’t have Christ. It is as good as nothing. Striving for success becomes meaningless because life is but a vanishing mist. We need to build treasures in heaven. For the earth is just like a camping ground. We ought to look forward to our eternal and forever home.

Let’s pray:

Father Lord, as we live our life each day, Father thank You for walking alongside us and guiding our paths. Thank You Lord that You bring healing, You bring peace and You comfort any heart that is troubled. You are near to each and every one of us who may be confused by the outside world and felt lost in the wilderness. Thank You Lord, that Your hand is never too short and nothing is ever too difficult for You. Just want to say a big thank You Father. For Your love and how You taught us how to love. In Jesus’s name we ask and pray. Amen 🙏🏻