Category: Daily Walk with Christ

Daily Devotion for Saturday, 6 August 2016: Walk in Love

August 6, 2016 by ChristianHolinessDaily Leave a Comment

One of my favorite memories growing up was the annual broadcast (yes, I grew up in the era of broadcast TV) of The Wizard of Oz. I had eagerly read the Oz novels, and to see the broadcast of that movie was like a book coming to life. I felt the same way as an adult, watching The Lord of the Rings and The Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe. Yet, watching Oz, at such a young age, will always be special.

Sometimes, following Christ can be much more difficult than simply following a Yellow Brick Road

The movie predates me, having been made about thirty years before I remember watching it on television. Before I watched it on my console color TV, an entire generation had been thrilled at the movie theaters, their imaginations whisked away by a twister from the bleak, black and white plains of Kansas to the Land of Oz, so rich and full of color. As a child, I thought that Oz must represent heaven and Kansas must represent our life before salvation. The journey was, to me, our Christian walk. I know now that neither the author nor the producers held such beliefs.

As a Christian, though, I often feel a lot like Dorothy must have felt. At once I am intrigued and dismayed on my daily journey to meet Christ. Daily, I encounter obstacles, my own version of flying monkeys and witches on broomsticks.

My fellow travelers are often frightened, display no courage, and little sense, and far too often rely on me for their strength. Yet, I am no stronger than they.

And, many times there is a fork in the road, in my proverbial Yellow Brick Road, and I have no idea which way to turn. Will one way lead me to danger? Will I fall asleep, or become distracted?

Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. ²And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.

Following Christ in a daily journey requires much time spent in prayer, much time spent studying His word, and much time simply trusting Him, walking in faith, so that we may be strong enough to fight against daily challenges. We must love Him enough not to become distracted by the things we see in our journey.

It is, though, a much more rewarding journey – and one full of more fun – if we take travel companions along with us. So, rely on Christ, and find both a mentor and a protege. Find a Christian who is much more mature than you, and make a true friend of him or her. Find a younger, less mature Christian, and make a true friend of him or her. It will make your journey much more exciting.

Waiting… All Alone

February 11, 2016 by ChristianHolinessDaily Leave a Comment

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” – Matthew 27:46

Some of my earliest memories are of waiting. Three years old, waiting in the front yard for friends of the family to arrive. About the same age, sitting on the counter top at the club where my dad tended bar, waiting on him to get done. My whole life has been spent waiting on something or someone.

Tonight, while waiting on someone, I became frustrated, even agitated. We’ve all been there. We have to be at a function at a designated time, and we have plenty of time to get there, but one in our party decides that they will piddle around (there’s an antiquated term). By the time everyone loads into the car, the function has already begun. Shamefully, I was steamed.

Upon reflection, I realize that one of the reasons I hate waiting is that I equate it with abandonment. Perhaps that is simply a personal observation. Still, for those who have waited, and waited, and waited on someone, the feeling is akin to abandonment. Similarly, those who have waited on the Lord, may have interpreted God’s silence as abandonment.

If one reads the Psalms, it is easy to see such feelings of abandonment in times of hiding during David’s youth and again during times of isolation in his old age. One cannot begin to fathom the loneliness and abandonment that Christ must have felt at the end of His ministry, especially on the cross. The truth is, while you and I may have deserted God many times, He has never left our side.

On this Ash Wednesday, I am reminded of the final days of Christ. I wonder if Jesus looked into the eyes of the crowd at the foot of the cross, cheering His tortuous death, and recognized some of the same men and women who had just days before cheered His arrival in the city. Did he see my face at the foot of the cross? Was I mocking Him, or standing with John? Did I hide with Simon Peter, or did I gamble for his cloak? Did I fall at His feet?

Christ was abandoned and alone, waiting for you and I to accept His sacrifice and His forgiveness. For our sins He died. I weep thinking about His death, and I take comfort in the fact that He will never abandon me like I have Him.

Morning

February 10, 2016 by ChristianHolinessDaily Leave a Comment

My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord;

In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up. – Psalm 5:3

For years my wife would wake up before me, and sit down with a cup of coffee and her Bible. If she failed to begin her day that way, she found herself lacking.

There is something special about the morning, especially dawn. Before I rise, I pray, and thank God for a new day, a new beginning, for life, for breath. If I don’t, I may not find time in my day to devote to Christ in prayer.

When is that special prayer tune in your life? Morning? Evening? Bedtime?