Day 324

Sep 20: Acts 1-5

In chapter 5, some of the apostles had been arrested and put in jail for preaching the gospel. During the night, an angel of the Lord appeared and opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. Instead of running away to safety, what did they do? The angel directed them to "Go, stand in the temple courts and tell the people the full message of this new life."

Two things stood out to me in the rest of the story.

1. Did the guards and priests not wonder how ridiculous it is that these men were arrested for preaching Christ's resurrection, but went about preaching it again in plain sight upon their escape? This should trigger major questions like what exactly are these apostles preaching about? What if there's more to this Christ than what we think?

This shows how difficult it is to evangelize to people who aren't seeking. We can't provide them with answers to questions they're not looking for. We can only pray and live out our lives hoping to provoke questions by being radical like the apostles. Francis Chan says "Something is wrong if our lives make sense to nonbelievers."

2. I'm jealous of the power these apostles had. Having been with Christ firsthand, the aggressiveness and boldness of the apostles is unmatched.

chap 4 vs 13 says "When they (sanhedrin) saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus."

We take the easy way out, saying the apostles were so powerful b/c they were with Christ firsthand, and accepting that we can't be as influential as them. But Christ says, "blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." If we at least try to tap into this eternal power at our fingertips, maybe we'd be as influential and impactful for His Kingdom. If we don't even try though, we waste that amazing resource.

Finally at the end of chapter 5, it says, "The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name." I can't imagine this scene: a bunch of apostles rejoicing upon being flogged. How is that possible? How are they doing this, while I sin against God over and over? I pray that God brings more knowledge and understanding of His nature into my heart, that my love for Him would result in reverence and obedience.

Day 317

Sep 14: John 1-4

Food is what keeps us nourished, sustained and energized right?

In chapter 4, Jesus talks about HIS food. I love these few verses b/c its profound and kinda funny at the same time seeing the cluelessness of the disciples as they are just getting to know Christ.

31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, "Rabbi, eat something." 32 But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you know nothing about." 33 Then his disciples said to each other, "Could someone have brought him food?" 34 "My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work."

It's amazing how Jesus portrays things. Doing the Father's will and to finish that work is like food to Jesus. This love He has for the Father is what keeps Him going and is what ultimately gives him purpose and drive in His life. Just as God gives us this vast universe to see his sovereignty and gives us senses to feel his beauty, God also gives us food - something we rely on daily to keep us alive. Christ uses this analogy to show how much we should rely on that love which produces that will to do all things for His kingdom.

Are we as reliant on doing God's will as Christ was? We know that no one's life will ever be as purpose driven and as flawlessly executed as Christ's was, and maybe thats b/c He was eating a different kind of food than we are. In our struggles to become more Christ like, we ought to just look at what He was eating to keep him going. It's easy to go to church every Sunday and pray for every meal, but our daily lives need to be immersed with this urge and yearning to live out God's will. Only then will we see our lives becoming fruitful and impactful for His kingdom.

Day 311

It's been a hectic few months going to Korea, moving out etc etc...and I noticed that my intimate, personal time with God has been lacking as a result. I may have gotten too busy for myself and lost a little focus but I thank God for providing me with some devotionals and good company that sharpens me and helps me reflect on my shortcomings as His servant. If anyone still reads this, please keep me accountable as I'm closing in on my goal of reading the bible in a year. Weird that it's flown by like this but I know that I've grown so much this year and the Word is in me more than ever.

Luke 16-18

The Parable of the Persistent Widow found in chapter 18 really hit me.

¹Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. ²He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. ³And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.'

⁴"For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, ⁵yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "

⁶And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"

This text encourages me to pray and not give up just as Jesus had intended it to do. I have tasted how powerful prayer has been in my life and how quickly God answers, but just a few distractions here and there have hindered my prayer life. One verse that portrays the detriment that distractions has to me is Galatians 5:9 "a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." Am I going to let a few distractions derail the power of prayer in my life?

If anything, in the last month, I've learned what it means to guard my heart more. Without intentional intimate time and prayer to God, I've seen how sinful and needy I am of God's grace. I see glimpses of my old life knocking at my door and it is a harsh wake up call to how powerful sin is. In the end though, I'm reminded of the cross and the hope and restoration it gives me. I pray that I would keep praying, that I would persevere, and that His love would continue to be the thing that gives me purpose in my life.