Have you dedicated your eyes to the Lord?
5 Jul 26
Today's devotional: taken from YouVersion, Devotions on F.I.R.E. Year One
Readings:
Job 31
Job 32
Acts 13:1-23
I have made a covenant with my eyes; why then should I look upon a young woman? (Job 31:1).
Have you dedicated your eyes to the Lord?
Jesus makes a connection between the eyes and the heart in Matthew 5:28. He states, “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Jesus then uses hyperbole to show how much we should protect our hearts. He adds, “If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for the whole body to be cast into hell” (Matthew 5:28). We must protect our hearts at all costs. Wisdom cries out, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23).
Employment Point: Dedicate your eyes to glorify the Lord.
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Reflections
Others say the eyes are the windows to our soul. Thus we should be more selective on what we allow our eyes to see, lest we fall into temptation or be led astray. If we reflect back a little bit on just yesterday, what were the things we spent the most time looking at. Perhaps that will give us a glimpse of what we are allowing into our souls. A reminder that we need to keep our spirits nourished and not quench it.
““I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman. “If I have walked with falsehood or my foot has hurried after deceit— “If my heart has been enticed by a woman, or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door, “If I have denied justice to any of my servants, whether male or female, when they had a grievance against me, “If I have denied the desires of the poor or let the eyes of the widow grow weary, if I have kept my bread to myself, not sharing it with the fatherless— if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing, or the needy without garments, if I have raised my hand against the fatherless, knowing that I had influence in court, “If I have put my trust in gold or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’ if I have regarded the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendor, “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune or gloated over the trouble that came to him— if I have concealed my sin as people do, by hiding my guilt in my heart (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me! I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me; let my accuser put his indictment in writing. “if my land cries out against me and all its furrows are wet with tears, if I have devoured its yield without payment or broken the spirit of its tenants,”
Job 31:1, 5, 9, 13, 16-17, 19, 21, 24, 26, 29, 33, 35, 38-39 NIV
- in the whole chapter of Job 31, he writes down all the things he did not do, and some in response to that the curses if he does. Job was living a righteous life, that many of us may not even be able to proclaim.
- He ends this chapter with an invite to the Lord as he presents his petition to Him.
- I pray that we may all be able to read this chapter as righteous as he, or be convicted of any wrongdoing that we need to correct.
“But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself rather than God.”
Job 32:2 NIV
- for Elihu, he does not think that it is right for Job to talk in such a manner. I guess who dares lay claim that they themselves are righteous before God. Doesn’t sound humble for sure.
- What about us? Should we be judging our fellow brothers or sisters?
“Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he. So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said: “I am young in years, and you are old; that is why I was fearful, not daring to tell you what I know.”Job 32:4, 6 NIV
- we have yet to read what Elihu has to say but I think he did right here by giving the older guys the opportunity to speak first. They were given the respect, and full autonomy to say what they wanted to say, till they have no more words to continue. Elihu also mentioned that he gave them full attention while they speak. In essence, those were essential communication skills too.
- The art of listening, allowing the person to finish before you speak and not jumping in at every sentence. That’s not listening. That’s just wanting to talk. While we wanted to share our views, it is always good to hear others out as well.
“But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith.”“Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.”
Acts 13:8, 11 NIV
- No one can oppose God. Don’t even try. Even though God is all grace and mercy, He can become angry if we keep turning our back against Him. He will discipline if need be. Let God’s will be done
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Don’t Calculate without God
BY OSWALD CHAMBERS
July 05
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn. —Psalm 37:5-6
Don’t calculate without God. God seems to have a delightful way of upsetting the plans we’ve made without taking him into account. When we get ourselves into circumstances that God didn’t choose for us, sooner or later we realize our mistake and are filled with worry. The only thing that keeps us from the possibility of worrying is bringing God in as the greatest factor in all our calculations.
We think it’s normal to put God first in matters of religion, but we hesitate when it comes to the practical issues of life. We worry that running to God with every little detail is burdensome or disrespectful. If we imagine that we have to put on our best Sunday mood before we draw near to God, we will never come near him. We must come as we are.
Don’t calculate with evil in view. “Love . . . keeps no record of wrongs” (1 Corinthians 13:4–5). Does God really mean for us to take no account of evil and wrong? Love isn’t ignorant of the existence of evil, but it doesn’t treat evil as a relevant factor in making plans. When we calculate without God, all our reasoning starts from the premise that evil must be considered first. God wants us to start from a place of confidence and love.
Don’t calculate with the rainy day in view. If you are trusting Jesus Christ, you can’t set a little aside for a rainy day; you can’t be anxious about tomorrow. Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled” (John 14:27). God won’t prevent your heart from being troubled. It’s a command he has given to you: “Do not . . .” Pick yourself up a hundred and one times a day in order to obey. Do this until you get into the habit of putting God first and calculating with him in view.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD
It is impossible to read too much, but always keep before you why you read. Remember that “the need to receive, recognize, and rely on the Holy Spirit” is before all else.
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Reflections
Truth be told, I used to think, how can I trouble the LORD for every single mini thing I have? He is so busy already! So why must I keep bothering Him with the nitty gritty?!
However, over time, I realised it was not about what it is but how we seek Him and put Him first in every event, every decision, or in fact, every question we have in mind. It releases us from struggling to think what works best for us and surrender that to the Lord.
About not calculating with evil in view, I think this is perhaps more than optimistic thinking. It is about having the faith and the trust that our Lord and Our God can, if He wants, to deliver us out of any situation. We start from a position of victory, and our place is already secured. Therefore, there is no need for us to keep striving. We just need to believe.
What Oswald is saying is this. In God we are sure and there will be no accidents. So there is no need to prepare contingency plans. In Him we trust and only Him that we shall believe.
Let’s pray:
Father we cannot praise You enough for being here for us and taking care of all our troubles and worries, regardless how small it may be. Thank You for Your care, love and sacrifices for us, that we can just live our life relying on You, and that is enough. Praise You Lord! 🙏🏻🙌🏻
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