Are you respecting your elders??

(today's devotion is brought to you by Cheryl, Pearl and Dawn)

Scripture Reference: 1 Peter 5:5-11

Reading this passage brings a smile to my face because I have encountered this type of situations often in my life.

I used to be a rebellious girl who never felt really close to my parents and as a result I didn’t have much respect for them. However because of our weak relationship, they became quite protective of me and I felt very restricted in many areas of my life. And when I was restricted, all the more I will try to get freedom.

To cut a long story short I finally decided I should EARN my freedom and started building stronger relationships with them. Right now we are closer and happier as they trust me more and hence they allowed me to go out and all. So, YAY! ☺

In this passage God asks for us to respect our elders and to humble ourselves for it says in verse 5 :” Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

So today ask yourself if there are times you have been disrespectful to your parents or teachers? Ask God for His forgiveness or better still, you can humble yourself and approach them and ask for their forgiveness too. This year is a year of victory and we can kick start this year by proclaiming victory over our personal lives!

The rest of the passage also encourages us to know that whatever hardships we may be enduring now is similar to many of our brothers & sisters, v9. BE STRONG! And do not let the devil rob u away from the blessings of God.

For in verse 10 it says: ”and the God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”

So today two key things to remember… Be humble and Keep your Faith Shining!

(today's devotion is brought to you by Cheryl, Pearl and Dawn)

Love One Another, Forgive!

(today's devotion is brought to you by Cheryl, Pearl and Dawn)

Scripture Reference: John 15:9-12

The command to love one another as Jesus loved us is mentioned so often that it can be like a passing remark. A remark we use to remind ourselves and not know the real truth of doing it. It is always natural for us to respond in friendship to those who talk to us or treat us nicely. To love our enemies or people who have hurt us before is not easy.

Jesus did not say that it was easy too. All He asked of us was to remain in His love and obey His command and that joy will be made complete in us. Hating someone is not easy with all the anger that you have built up within yourself. Think about it, doesn’t it take a lot of effort and strength to remember the details about how someone hurt you or the sarcastic comment and so on? What’s more, all these efforts aren’t going to translate to better grades in school, so let it go!

One important step to take today is to forgive. Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” That’s why Jesus could ask us to love one another. He has demonstrated His love towards us by forgiving us and desires that you do so too. By doing so, all the pent up hatred will be gone and joy will be made in us.

Is there someone that you would like to forgive today?

Make the effort to love those you avoid today. It will please Him & you will show yourself to be His disciple, follower!

(today's devotion is brought to you by Cheryl, Pearl and Dawn)

Open Up your Spiritual Ears to Hear More!

(today's devotion is brought to you by Anthea, Ling Ling and Shinuan)

Scripture Reference: Mark 4:21-29

Listen up children of God, to what Jesus has to teach us today! As the first verse of today’s passage says ‘If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear,’ (v23) so let us open our hearts to receive God’s word and be attentive to what He has to teach us.

Why is it so important to listen to God’s word and be doers of it? Mark 4:24, ‘Consider carefully what you hear," he continued. "With the measure you use, it will be measured to you--and even more’, tells us that if we listen to God’s word and keep it close to our hearts and faithfully share His word to others, God will bless us with more revelation of His word and more knowledge of the Gospel.

Also, from v25, we are told that if we have the light of Jesus in us and the knowledge of God, and we make proper use of it we shall have more. So children of God, be encouraged that even as you strive to obey God and know His word deeply, you will be given more and will shine brighter and brighter for Christ. If we know this revelation, reading God’s word and obeying Him will not be such a chore!

Once we understand the importance of hearing God’s word and making use of it for His glory, we will be faithful ambassadors of God. We all want to be vessels for God to use in the furtherance of His kingdom. Today’s passage speaks about the kingdom of God and it is important to know what it is like so we can be productive in helping it grow.

We are like the man in the parable who plants the seed. In order to be ambassadors of Christ, we first need to plant the seed of God’s word in the hearts of prebelievers. In order to do this, you need to be equipped with God’s word and that is where the first part of today’s devotional comes in!

The second thing we need to do is to rest in God and entrust our ministry and efforts to Him. We too go to sleep like the man in the parable (v27) but even then, the kingdom of God is still growing when we are not up and running about. This is to say that we should put it in our best and be diligent but ultimately, God is the one who is in charge and causes the growth. ‘I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.’ (1 Co3:6)

The third thing is we need to have faith to believe the kingdom of God will come eventually and when it does, it will be glorious. Although the kingdom of God started out with only 12 apostles, God has used them mightily and multiplied His kingdom. Although some people may turn away when God’s word is preached, we must not give up and continue to believe in the power of God’s word and the mighty wonders it will do and the numerous people who will hear His word and be saved.

So embrace the power of the Word of God and you will see the light of Christ in you shining brighter and brighter and touching more lives as you share the Gospel!

‘For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.’ (Romans 1:16)

(today's devotion is brought to you by Anthea, Ling Ling and Shinuan)