[Friday's Devotional] - A Book unlike any other book

Jesus said that knowing and applying the Word of God creates the foundation for our lives:

"Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock." Matthew 7:24 [NIV]

In order for us to become Christ-like we must become living translations of God's Word. The Bible is unlike any other book – it is alive. When God speaks our lives are transformed – but that can only happen by making the Bible the authoritative standard for our lives, the compass we rely on for direction, the wisdom we listen to for making decisions and the measure for evaluating everything.

The Bible must always have the first and the last word in our lives.

As we begin to prepare for our adventure in 40 Days in the Word next year, my prayer is that this will become a life-transforming experience as we love the Word of God more, as we learn more of God's Word and as we Live out God's Word.

In today's reading form Malachi, chapter 3 verse 8 we are warned against robbing God, Malachi goes on to explain how his hearers were robbing God by not paying the full amount of the tithe into the Temple. They were claiming one thing and doing another.

The reality is that we will often say that we believe things which in fact we don't! We cannot just say that we believe the Bible, like some kind of book of theories – we demonstrate that we believe it when we do it – so with tithing we might say we believe in tithing, but unless we actually tithe we don't really believe in it and we are robbing God if we don't!

To be a healthy disciple of Jesus, feeding on God's Word must be our first priority, Jesus called it "abiding". He said "If you abide in my word, then you are truly disciples of mine" John 8:31 [NIV]

May you abide in God's Word today and every day and be transformed to become the disciples Jesus made you to be.

Please pray for every member of m2o and others who may be drawn in, as together we embark on the adventure of 40 Days in the Word next year.

Martin Saxby

Read the Bible in a Year: Psalm 144:1-8; Malachi 2:17-4:6; Revelation 7:1-17

[Thursday's Devotional] - Living the Word of God

Loving the Word of God is one thing, learning the Word of God is another but they are both a waste of time and ultimately pointless if we do not live the Word of God. James writes:

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22 [NIV]

One of the aspects of the 40 Days in the Word campaign will be encouraging us to put the Word of God into practice. One way is that we will be encouraged in our Small Groups and across m2o to take on a Micah 6:8 assignment, an act of service in our local community. In Micah 6:8 it says:

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 [NIV]

This echoes the words of our Psalm 143 today:

Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. Psalm 143:10 [NIV]

Teach me to do your will!

We can know our bible upside down, inside out and back to front, but if it doesn't impact our lives it is all for nothing.

Rick Warren (the author of The Purpose Driven Life) says he has been asked what is the best translation of the bible many times and he always replies: "the best translation is when you translate it into your life".

As you read the bible today ask God how you are to translate it into obedient action today.

Martin Saxby

Read the Bible in a Year: Psalm 143:1-12; Malachi 1:1-2:16; Revelation 6:1-17

[Wednesday's Devotional] - Learning the Word of God

It saddens me that so many Christians have a slight anxiety about Jehovah Witnesses appearing on their doorstep. Very often the reason I am given for this fear is the belief that the JW understands and knows the bible better than the Christian does. It is rarely the case that a Jehovah Witness really does know their bible well – they only learn certain key passages and use a dubious translation – but sadly it is probably true they know it better than many Christians!

That surely should be enough motivation for us to learn, know and understand the word of God!

During our 40 Days in the Word campaign next year we will be discovering a number of new ways to read and study the bible and learn how to meditate on the Word of God. My prayer is that we will learn, know, and understand the bible like we have never done before – that our knowledge would be transformed – no longer feeling inferior but confident in God's Word.

If you have kept up with the Bible in a Year, this month you are reading through the book of Revelation, we are also studying it in my Small Group where we are using the Omega course. Too often this is a book that Christians have avoided as too difficult to understand, yet that hardly seems a responsible approach to the word of God!

God has given us his whole Word and we need to persevere not only in the habits of reading it, but in studying it and seeking to understand it and learn from it. And one day we will join together in worship as John saw it in the Revelation:

Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honour and glory and power, for ever and ever!" Revelation 5:13 [NIV]

As we learn God's word today, may he prepare us for that day when Jesus will come again and the whole earth will worship Him.

Martin Saxby

Read the Bible in a Year: Proverbs 30:11-23; Esther 9:1-10:3; Revelation 5:6-14

[Tuesday's Devotional] - Loving the Word of God

In my experience I do the things that I really want to do and the more I love something the more I want of it. That can be really bad for you – chocolate for example! But it is not true in every case. Falling in love with someone produces a physical yearning for that person within you, like an ache.

It seems to me that the greater our desire for God and his word the greater will be our intensity in seeking to spend time with him and reading his word. Part of what I hope we will all experience through the 40 Days in the Word campaign next year is for us to fall more in love with God's Word. That we might yearn for it and long to spend time with it in God's presence, that we might love the Word of God like we have never done before.

David writes of his yearning for God in today's psalm 142 when he says in verse 1 "I cry out to the LORD with all my voice" – right now David is in trouble, hiding from his enemies in a cave, so he has a vested interest in God coming to rescue him! But don't we always have a vested interest in crying out to God, in seeking his help, to protect and defend us, and most importantly to rescue and redeem us!

Father grant to me a longing within me for you and your Word, that with the psalmist I might cry out "Oh how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long" Psalm 119:97

Martin Saxby

Read the Bible in a Year: Psalm 142:1-7; Esther 6:1-8:17; Revelation 4:1-5:5

[Monday's Devotional] - Keep your eyes on God

At the start of 2011 we encouraged everyone to spend more time in bible reading as part of the celebrations of the 400^th anniversary of the King James Bible. We particularly encouraged people to try to read the bible in a year. Many of our devotionals through the year have followed the readings that we have included at the bottom of each day.

I wonder how well you have done. I have to admit that I have struggled at times and have not always completed the readings set for the day. I comfort myself by thinking I am probably not alone, but I would be delighted to hear from those of you who have been able to keep to it throughout the year!

The truth is that it is not easy to stick to a routine of bible reading but God's Word is worth persevering with – especially as we recognise that within scripture are words of life and eternal significance!

In 2012 during Lent we shall be following a programme right across m2o in all our services, Small Groups, youth and children's work and other activities, called 40 Days in the Word. My prayer is that this will be life changing for each of us as individuals, as a church, and as we serve our local communities in direct response to the Word of God, being not only hearers but doers of the Word.

Today's Psalm 141 reminds us in verse 8 that we need to keep our eyes on God – faithfully coming to Him each day, and reading God's word is one of the ways we keep our eyes on Him – and as our eyes are focussed on Him, so everything else comes into perspective and we are equipped to live for Him in all we are doing.

Esther was faithful against enormous odds and with her life under threat – let us keep our eyes on the Lord as we encounter Him in His Word day by day.

Martin Saxby

Read the Bible in a Year: Psalm 141:1-10; Esther 2:19-5:14; Revelation 3:7-22

[Friday's Devotional] - God will honour your faith

Blessed (happy, to be envied) is the man who reads aloud [in the assemblies] the word of this prophecy; and blessed (happy, to be envied) are those who hear [it read] and who keep themselves true to the things which are written in it [heeding them and laying them to heart], for the time [for them to be fulfilled] is near. Revelation 1:3 [Amplified Bible]

One of the reasons why God often uses the word "blessed" without specifying the blessing is because when we take this word as a rhema word, personally for ourselves, God wants us to know He is the Great "I AM" (WHATSOEVER YOU WANT ME TO BE – my interpretation) Exodus 3 vs 14.

As Moses the man of God would learn God became whatever Moses and the children of Israel needed at the time. When He introduced Himself by that Name He literally signed a "blank cheque" and gave it to Moses. So, when they called upon His Name in the desert, water gushed out of a rock when they needed it. When I visited Sudan for the first time and they took me to the desert, all I could see were waves and waves of sand dunes and one needed to have a compass or to be an experienced desert tracker to know their bearings. So when Moses and the Israelites needed guidance in the desert and there were no compasses that time, God led them by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. When bitten by snakes because of their disobedience Moses was instructed to make a bronze snake which they simply looked at and got healed. You get the idea.

Today approach the Lord your God in full confidence and assurance that when you call upon His Name and ask for anything you need according to His will, He will answer you.

These verses sum it all up:

I write this to you who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) the name of the Son of God [in the peculiar services and blessings conferred by Him on men], so that you may know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that you [already] have life, yes, eternal life.

And this is the confidence (the assurance, the privilege of boldness) which we have in Him: [we are sure] that if we ask anything (make any request) according to His will (in agreement with His own plan), He listens to and hears us.

And if (since) we [positively] know that He listens to us in whatever we ask, we also know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that we have [granted us as our present possessions] the requests made of Him. 1 John 5:13-15 [Amplified Bible]

If you need salvation, healing, provision, wisdom, or anything then dare to ask and believe. You may have your own doubts. Thomas who doubted what others had seen declared he would not believe until he saw the risen Christ with his own eyes. A week later his request was granted. Jesus later reassured every believer that blessed is he who believes what God says without seeing any evidence that what has been said will actually happen.

We have all come a long way. We have journeyed for very long with our problems and unmet desires and prayers. We are reading the last book of the bible as we finish our bible reading plan in one year. And God still says we are "blessed" even though we are not seeing what we want. So what do we do?

I would rather be like the four lepers (in 2 Kings 7 vs 4 – 7) who saw their miracle when they said to each other if we stay in this same place (outside the city where they had been condemned to live) we die and if we go back to the city we die of famine and if we go to the camp of the Aramean enemy (who besieged the city) - if they spare us, we live and if they kill us, we die for whichever way we look at the situation it seems we are going to die. So they went to the Arameans and God seeing their persevering faith, amplified their footsteps and the enemy thought chariots were coming and they fled. The lepers got their eleventh hour breakthrough.

Farai Mutsambiwa

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 140:1-5; Zechariah 9:1-11:17; Revelation 1:1-20

[Thursday's Devotional] - Like Job, don't give up!

I have been trying to avoid writing about Psalm 139. My flesh has been telling me "don't bother, everybody knows Psalm 139". But the King of the Universe has made me wise enough to recognise when He brings up a word for reading repeatedly, as in our bible reading plan this week, it must be important.

So yes, this is for you if you are hurting or in need of His Splendor and Majestic Presence. God is omnipresent and omnipotent. As the Psalmist learned in verse 12 "darkness is as light" to Him.

These are dark and gloomy days literally and spiritually here in England. Watching the news on television does not give hope for the economy, social life and many other aspects of life. However, all these things are not a surprise or a strange thing to God.

If you are worried about the dark and frigid weather conditions, put your trust and hope in God. If you have been following the devotionals this week you will know that He knows your specific location and has a right plan for you. He is the One who created the world and also the seasons:

"For as long as Earth lasts, planting and harvest, cold and heat,
Summer and winter, day and night will never stop." Genesis 8:22 [The Message]

Pray and make your situation known to God and to people He leads you to for help. Both darkness and daylight were created by Him.

Whenever I am in need or unsure of circumstances, I always look around for something that reassures me of the Presence of God. For example seeing the Moon always tells me He is very faithful. Psalm 89 vs 37 refers to the moon as "the faithful witness in the heavens". And whenever I see the sun or when its daylight, I am reminded:

the Lord God is a Sun and Shield; the Lord bestows [present] grace and favor and [future] glory (honor, splendor, and heavenly bliss)! No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11 [Amplified Bible]

And if you are worried He may be withholding His goodness from you because you don't feel righteous, here is some uplifting good news recorded for you:

Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it.
Colossians 1:22–23: [NLT]

Take this word by faith and keep on believing for your breakthrough!

Farai Mutsambiwa

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 139:17-24; Zechariah 5:1-8:23; Jude 1-25

[Wednesday's Devotional] - Humble yourself and He will lift you up

The Lord uses the foolish things in the eyes of this world in order to confound those who claim to be wise by our earthly standards (1 Corinthians vs 27 – my paraphrase). When I tell people one of the many ways God speaks with people is through dreams, they laugh as it sounds old fashioned.

I remember in my youth when I didn't know the Lord. Bible reading and church going all sounded very foolish and a waste of my time (as if I really owned the time!). But in the fullness of time, here I am doing the very thing that I opposed and even more.

And as if this was not enough, the Lord is now showing me His kindness and goodness which He laid up for me before I was born and for all to see (Psalm 31 vs 19 – my paraphrase). He has enabled me to write a book based on my own dreams. He wants me to share the lessons He has taught me with the body of Christ and those who do not know Him so that together we will be built up to the same level of revelation (Eph 2 v 21 -22: my paraphrase).

God is magnificent; he can never be praised enough. There are no boundaries to his greatness.
Generation after generation stands in awe of your work; each one tells stories of your mighty acts.
Your beauty and splendor have everyone talking; I compose songs on your wonders.
Your marvelous doings are headline news; I could write a book full of the details of your greatness.
The fame of your goodness spreads across the country; your righteousness is on everyone's lips. Psalm 145:3-7 [The Message]

Oh precious Lord, I could go on and on praising your Name and telling the world about Your goodness and mercy to me and those of my generation!

In today's bible reading based on Zechariah 1, we learn that Zechariah had a night "vision" (vs 8) in which the Lord showed him things He could not understand. I like what he says in in verse 9, "I asked, what are these, my Lord?"

In my book entitled, "God at Work in Our Dreams", one of the things you will learn is revelation of the meaning of our dreams comes when we take that humble posture of asking, "Lord you have shown me all these dreams, they don't make any sense, what do they mean?" Joseph the dreamer, Daniel and many others in the bible learnt many years before Jesus Christ came on earth that the Kingdom is revealed only to those who approach God like little children.

My book is available on Amazon

Farai Mutsambiwa

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 139:11-16; Zechariah 1:1-4:14; 3 John 1-14

[Tuesday's Devotional] - Hard Talk

I did not go to seminary for training to discern the voice of God. But at some stage in my youth, I made a quality decision to seek wisdom. I had many questions I could not find answers to in this world: why am I born the person that I am; why are my parents struggling to bring food on the table; what is my purpose in life; is there any hope at all for a good future here on earth and beyond, etc?

One day, the practical nature of my questions forced me on an unwanted but finally very rewarding journey. I simply read the bible from Genesis to Revelation – of course, not in one sitting.

I learnt so many lessons for everyday life as well as heavenly things and now He has chosen me to share His wisdom with others.

Today as you read this devotional and the Book of Haggai know this thing, God is very practical as well as spiritual.

Since I am a human being and still alive I understand that God wants me to be here on earth. He has given me a specific geographic location for me to live (Acts 17 vs 25) and He has called me to bear lasting (heavenly) fruit (John 15 vs 16). However in the book of Haggai He also reveals that He has given us our own personal dreams. We want this and that, we want to go to such and such a place, we have dreams for the very best for our children, we have dreams to go to college and to find a good job, house, husband or wife. These things sound very practical, earthly and humanly to me and I cannot pretend they are not needed.

Well if you have such dreams, Jesus has already said elsewhere we need to seek the Kingdom of God first and all these things will be added unto us. And what does He say through the Book of Haggai? – if you want your dreams to come true, make My dreams come true first.

And then a little later, God-of-the-Angel-Armies spoke out again:

"Take a good, hard look at your life. Think it over. You have spent a lot of money, but you haven't much to show for it. You keep filling your plates, but you never get filled up.
You keep drinking and drinking and drinking, but you're always thirsty. You put on layer after layer of clothes, but you can't get warm. And the people who work for you, what are they getting out of it? Not much— a leaky, rusted-out bucket, that's what.

That's why God-of-the-Angel-Armies said:

"Take a good, hard look at your life. Think it over." Then God said: "Here's what I want you to do: Climb into the hills and cut some timber. Bring it down and rebuild the Temple.
Do it just for me. Honor me. You've had great ambitions for yourselves, but nothing has come of it. The little you have brought to my Temple I've blown away—there was nothing to it.

"And why?" (This is a Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, remember.) "Because while you've run around, caught up with taking care of your own houses, my Home is in ruins. That's why. Because of your stinginess….." Haggai 1:5 –11 [The Message]

No wonder governments and money markets are being shaken in our generation. We seem to have forgotten that all the "silver and gold" we work hard for belongs to God. (Haggai 2 vs 8, 21 – 23: The Message)

As you put your priorities right today don't be discouraged. In the last verses of the Book of Haggai God says when you see this "shaking" taking place and you are obedient then be on the look out for His honour and blessings.

Farai Mutsambiwa

Read the Bible in a year: Proverbs 29:19-27; Haggai 1:1-2:23; 2 John 1-13

[Monday's Devotional] - Some will shine like stars

One of my greatest passions is to win souls for Christ. This is an act of thanksgiving for what Christ has done for me. When I count both my earthly and eternal blessings because of Jesus my Lord and Saviour, I just cannot help but run my race for souls. I want others to experience what I am experiencing, living in the Presence of the Most High God, daily. I want them to be flooded with His kindness, compassion, mercies, favour, goodness, encouragement, peace etc.

I don't care much about some of the inconveniencies and discomforts of winning the lost: I was once reproved as "unprofessional" for giving glory back to God in my e-mail after God had given us success at work. I was further commanded to STOP mentioning this great Name at work; and for speaking things that are not as though they already existed in times of trouble (Romans 4 v 17), I have been misunderstood and called names by others; on one occasion I was condemned by fellow believers for buying a struggling man of God a suit; during a church-organised event I crushed my thumb carrying a bag of hard cement and on many occasions I have prayed for the lost to come to Christ and for wisdom to win them.

Why am I telling you all this – to show off? Definitely NO! In Acts 20 vs 33 – 35 Paul told the church of Ephesus what he had done in his ministry life, and among them and he in turn wanted them to follow his example. In fact as I write this devotional, it's Sunday and the preacher this morning pointed out that in Acts 4 vs 36 Joseph also known as Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement) was singled out by God and recorded in the bible as a good example to people of all generations for what he did in the next verse – selling his field and bringing the money to support God's work.

Dear friend, my assignment in today's devotional is simply to "spur" and encourage you to be "wise" and win lost souls. One day I want you and me not only to be told "Well done good and faithful servant", but I want you and me also to be clothed with distinctive shining garments for soul winners only in fulfilment of the Scripture in Daniel 12 v 3:

"Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness like the stars for ever and ever"

By the way it's sad to observe that for "lack of knowledge" and stopping me from mentioning the awesome Name those responsible lost their job within months. He has already made it known He will not share His glory with anyone.

Farai Mutsambiwa

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 139:1-10; Daniel 11:36-12:13; 1 John 5:1-21

[Friday's Devotional] - We have turned away from your commands and laws

So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes. I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed:
"Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.
Daniel 8: 3-6 [NIV]

Daniel has been shown a vision of the end of time and the last battle in Chapter 8. This has had a very traumatic effect on him. In the start of this chapter, Daniel has understood that Jerusalem's desolation and the exile will continue for a long time, namely seventy years. Daniel is not the sort of God-fearing man who just shrugs his shoulders and says 'OK, whatever God decides'. He is more passionate than that. His response to this news is not apathy, but a prayer for mercy on Jerusalem and on his people. Daniel clearly believes that God is able to save.

Notice how Daniel begins his petition for Jerusalem. He doesn't just pile in with a plea for God to change his mind. He doesn't say the equivalent of 'Go on God, let us off'. No. He begins his prayer with an acknowledgement of who God is. He knows that God is perfect and cannot ignore the sins of his people. He also counts himself among the sinners of Israel. Israel had been on the slide for a long time before the exile finally happened. Daniel was a God-fearing man who was not to blame for the disaster that overtook Israel. Still, he is quite able to identify himself with the people of Israel and therefore part of a sinful nation. It is a belief in collective responsibility that we have lost, but is quite biblical (see Isaiah 6:5 for one example). This belief in confessing our national sin and asking for God's mercy on our nation is being rediscovered by the church. Judging by the state of our nation and Europe, I would say it was about time.

John Martin-Jones

Read the Bible in a year: Proverbs 29:10-18, Daniel 8:15-9:19, 1 John2:28-3:10

[Thursday's Devotional] - The Lion's Den

Daniel answered, "May the king live forever! My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty."
Daniel 6: 21-22 [NIV]

Until quite recently I never paid this story much attention. It was suggested to me when I was very young that Daniel had probably never existed and that the whole book was written some four centuries after it is set as a resistance document designed to encourage the Jews suffering under Greek oppression in the second century BC. With me so far? The net result was that I decided that I knew about the book of Daniel. There is of course, a huge difference between knowing God's word and knowing academic facts and arguments about it. Well, I now believe that the book of Daniel does date from the sixth century BC, but that isn't the point that I am trying to make. The point is that the book of Daniel will not help, encourage and instruct me when I come to face a lion's den if I have nothing but a head full of dead theories about the book. However, what if I have my armour on? If I have been swimming in the word of God? Well then, things will be different!

The account of Daniel in the lion's den was given a new relevance to me some years ago when a good friend introduced me to a rock song by a wonderful American Christian rock band called Guardian. Some words that the song puts into the mouth of Daniel have become very important to me… 'Who said I am not a feline-phobe? 'Who said I wasn't ready to wet my robe? Faith is tough boy, but God give grace so take a deep breath, head up, set your face like flint and stop being a wimp.

Go on. Here's the link. Make sure that you play it very loud. Thanks for reading.

Lion's Den

John Martin-Jones

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm136:13-26, Daniel 7:1-8:14, 1 John 2:12-27

[Wednesday's Devotional] - The writings on the wall

Then Daniel answered the king, "You may keep your gifts for yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I will read the writing for the king and tell him what it means. Daniel 5:17 [NIV]

Nebuchadnezzar's story ends with him proclaiming that God will humble those who walk with pride. Nebuchadnezzar's son Belshazzar did not know the wisdom his father learned. It wasn't until it was too late that Belshazzar realised that you can be rich, you can be proud, you can be arrogant, you can refuse to learn the lessons that your father passed on to you. You can feast and eat and drink with your mates, but as Bob Dylan put it… 'You gotta serve somebody'. More to the point, who you serve has eternal implications. For Belshazzar this was a shock. He had insulated himself from reality with success, riches, wine and feasting. He had blasphemed against God by using the vessels of gold from the temple in Jerusalem. The vessels dedicated to the worship of Yahweh, which his father had taken from Jerusalem, he now used for the worship of false gods. But the party came to a sudden end when the hand of Yahweh appeared and passed judgement.

Judgement like one passed on Belshazzar also applies to us. God would be untrue to himself to ignore our sins. What was true for Belshazzar would be true for us too if the sentence over our lives had not been erased with the precious blood of Jesus poured form his ripped flesh on the cross.

So today, go and pray for someone that still stands under God's judgement. If you can, go and talk to them about how much God loves them.

John Martin-Jones

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 136:1-12, Daniel 5:17-6:28, 1John 1:1-2:11

[Tuesday's Devotional] - Refiner's Fire

At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever.
His dominion is an eternal dominion;his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing.
He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth.
No one can hold back his hand or say to him: "What have you done?"
Daniel 3:34-35 [NIV]

It would appear then that George the 3^rd wasn't the first King to have mental health issues. We read today that Nebuchadnezzar was totally unable to rule his people for a while. His temporary downfall was prophesied by Daniel when interpreting the king's dream. The pivotal point of the passage is that God commands that the stump of the tree (representing the King himself) be left in the ground, secured with a band of bronze. It will not grow again while bound, but it will not die either. God is sovereign and declares that Nebuchadnezzar will live, but will suffer humiliation. As in Job 2:6 when Satan is not allowed to take Job's life, God is sovereign.

However, after being driven from human society for a while and spending time beyond the fringes, Nebuchadnezzar is restored to health. His response to the episode? Praise. Praise and a humble spirit. Sometimes God brings us into and through things that we would rather he didn't. However, we may grow closer to him through them if we trust in God and prayerfully walk with him.

Take a listen to this and talk to God about what he is teaching you through where you are? Refiner's Fire

John Martin-Jones

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 135:13-21, Daniel 4:19-5:16, 2 Peter 3:1-18

[Monday's Devotional] - The Fiery Furnace

Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, "Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?"
They replied, "Certainly, Your Majesty." He said, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods." Daniel 3:24-25 [NIV]

This week we shall be following the readings from the book of Daniel. Daniel was a young man of noble blood who lived some six hundred years before Christ. He was exiled to Babylon when the kingdom of Judah fell in 605 BC. However, we shall start our week by looking at an incident that does not concern Daniel himself. Instead it concerns three of his friends Shadrach, Meschah and Abednego. Try saying that after a few pints!

Shadrach, Meschah and Abednego were given a simple choice by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon: worship my gods or die. Their refusal to turn aside from the living God led to their death sentence. They were bound and thrown into a super heated furnace (kiln). Before sentence was passed on them they spoke boldly of their faith that God would rescue them - and sure enough a shining figure not only rescues them from the heat, but also allows them to walk in the midst of the flame unhurt. I want to make three brief point from this:

1) It was by faith that Shadrach, Meschah and Abednago proclaimed that God would rescue them. They had faith and not certainty. It's easy to forget the place of their faith and trust in God when reading the story having seen the end already.

2) God doesn't always rescue people in the way described here, that's why Nebuchadnezzar was surprised. More Christians have died for their faith in the last one hundred years than in the first four centuries of the Christian era put together. But sometimes God does intervene directly. Either way, God will be with you in the fiery furnace.

3) The emergence of Shadrach, Meschah and Abednego from the furnace had a profound effect on Nebuchadnezzar. He was a different kind of king after it. Who are the Nebuchadnezzars that you will face today?

Go and talk to God about them.

John Martin-Jones

Read the Bible in a year: Proverbs 29:1-9, Daniel 3:13-4:18, 2 Peter 2:1-22

[Friday's Devotional] - On Reflection

So the three wishes were all in vain. Nothing is ever quite as straight forward as you think it's going to be. Perhaps it might be a good idea to reflect, not only on the three wishes, but on how I got to the present position without asking for any of them.

The wishes actually had three defects :

1. They were very self-centred. That is, with no consideration for anyone else.

2. I was only thinking about the benefits when I made them.

3. I didn't want the responsibilities and problems that came with them.

Had I been like Solomon, I would have asked for wisdom. But he was wise enough to ask for that and therefore wiser than me! Of course, we can ask for God's guidance in our daily lives, and for help with any need or problem – and we may get what we ask for and perhaps more besides. Of course we are aware that God is caring for each of us every day. He knows our needs (and our wants) better than we do and he will decide how to deal with them in his own time. And he cares for all the people in the world, not just those who have accepted Jesus as their saviour.

If that seems a little unfair, then think back to before you asked Jesus into your life. Can you see a time when you had a specific need – a personal crisis you could see no clear answer to? Did it somehow sort itself out and you came through it, perhaps chastened, but ultimately with no permanent scars? I know I can. OK, I knew God was there but I wasn't getting involved, not asking for his help – yet, sometimes against the odds, I got through with no real damage. Lucky, or did I get some free help?

Then again, He chose me, not the other way round. I argued against it on the grounds that I was nearing retirement and out of work. Who would want an aging, unemployed, nobody on their team? Get someone young and full of get-up-and-go.

I lost the argument and found myself asking Jesus to come into my life and take over.

So I'm heartened by a phrase I found recently.

God doesn't choose those who qualify, he qualifies those he chooses.

Lord, we thank you for your guidance and for the help we get in times of trouble. May we show our appreciation of your love and mercy by qualifying for whatever task you set us without reservation. Amen.

Jim Finch

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 133:1-3, Ezekiel 47:1-48:35, 1 Peter 4:1-19

[Thursday's Devotional] - Third Wish

OK. Third time lucky! Here's my final wish.

Make me as fit as I was when I was twenty-five and keep me fit and healthy for the rest of my days.

Nothing can go wrong this time. When I was twenty-five I played football regularly. I could run for miles without tiring. I'd done cross-country running at school, coming 16^th out of 250 in the senior event. I'd boxed for the school and although not the strongest, I was fast. Our trainer called me his "Little blob of mercury!" I won more fights than I lost.

When I left school I weighed just eight and a half stone. I felt as fit as a flea!

So! If I stay as fit as that all my life there is no knowing what a wonderful time I would have. My wife would be thrilled with my fitness and staying power whatever I was doing. My children would marvel at their wonderful father. Employers would be impressed by my fitness and physical ability. Perhaps I might run the London Marathon when I was seventy and finish in the top ten. Probably never have to see a doctor, unless I injured myself in some way, because I'd always be healthy. I'm warming to this wish even as I think about it. Surely nothing can go wrong this time – I'm on a winner!

So that's it then. The third wish is the one to go with. Or is it? Have I missed something? Is there a hidden snag I've not spotted? No, I don't think so, but……….oh dear! I didn't think of that. If I was now as fit as when I was twenty-five, I would have to live till I was, at least, a hundred and fifteen before I became as unfit as I am now. And, frankly, I'm not doing too badly up to now. I go to the gym three times a week, I'm busy at the theatre, and get about quite well – as long as I don't try to race about!

I would outlive most of my current peers and friends, and probably many of my family. I'd possibly be wishing it might end by then – but the three wishes have gone – and I'm not sure I want to be around in another forty-odd years. What state might the world be in by then?

Lord, please may I cancel all of those three wishes. They were made without giving them proper consideration, and I forgot to consider all the good things you have given me over the years. Please forgive the wild daydreams of a silly old man.

Jim Finch

Read the Bible in a year: Proverbs 28:18-28, Ezekiel 45:1-46:24, 1 Peter 3:1-22

[Wednesday's Devotional] - Second Wish

Right, another think and here's my second wish.

Give me a great talent that will make me a famous star.

I could be a brilliant musician. Maybe play the guitar as good as Jose Feliciano, Eric Clapton and Mark Knopfler combined. Perhaps sing like Mario Lanza or Julio Inglesias.

Maybe I could dance like Fred Astaire or be a great actor like Sir Laurence Olivier.

Hey, what if I could play football like Pele or Lionel Messi – wow, brilliant. Or I'd be a better golfer than Tiger Woods in his prime! Fantastic.

Any of these possibilities would earn me stacks of money too! I would be welcomed in clubs and restaurants. Stay in the best hotels. Chauffer driven wherever I went. Want something? All I'd have to do is ask! Does that sound good or what? Wow!

People would see me and say "Look, there goes Jim Finch. Isn't he fantastic? Don't you just love him to bits?" and I'd give them a royal wave as I passed by.

That seems to be the one – or does it? Perhaps it's not quite as good as I first thought.

As a musician I'd probably be touring, playing concerts, for a lot of the time. Always on the go. Same if I was a singer. A dancer then or an actor. Constant shows or plays – maybe months in the West End or Stratford (and I'm not a big Shakespeare fan) without a break. Then footballers are playing at least ten months of the year and golfers fare no better. And all of these have to practice regularly when they are not performing for the public just to stay as good as they are, or improve. Not going to get much time to myself doing any of these things. But think of the fans! Yes, think of them. Wherever I go someone will recognise me and expect to have a conversation with me, ask for an autograph, or want a picture. Good job I'll have some minders with me.

Hang on just a minute! I recall some famous people being attacked and even killed by members of the public. This isn't sounding so good all of a sudden. Perhaps this isn't the best wish to go with. I think I'd better work it out again.

Lord, thankyou for the talents you have given me. They may not be quite like the ones above, but they are mine and you gave them without me having to ask. Help me to make the best use of them to do your bidding.

Jim Finch

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 132:1-18, Ezekiel 43:1-44:31, 1 Peter 2:4-25

[Tuesday's Devotional] - First Wish

So I've decided to go with the idea of asking for three wishes and having given it some careful thought here is my first wish.

Make me rich, very rich.

A nice win on the lottery would do nicely. How about something like that big win a short time ago? One hundred million pounds. I could do something with that. I wouldn't need to ask for anything else, would I? I could buy a big house in the country with a few acres of land and a big new car. I once had a Jaguar so that would be good, or perhaps a Rolls Royce. The house would have lots of rooms and I could fill it with all new furniture and fittings, and give weekend parties for my friends with smoked salmon and champagne. I'd buy my own golf course where I could play anytime I wanted and I'd go off on cruises (perhaps in my own private ocean-going yacht) and travel to see lots of other countries – travelling executive class of course. There would be enough to give a few million away to family, close friends and charities. Then a few shopping sprees – see it, like it, buy it. I could afford virtually anything I wanted.

No more worries for me if I had all that. The life of Riley all the way!

Err, just a minute, I'm not sure now I come to think about it. I'd be worried that when I was away someone might break in to the house and steal things or damage them. I'd be away quite a lot on cruises and travels, so not too many weekend parties and I don't have a partner so could be a bit on my own. Then I couldn't take the big car into town really, it might get scratched or damaged while it's parked – when I could find a space big enough. Then there's the responsibility of looking after the land and the golf course. That could be costly too, although I'd have plenty to spend. The yacht and its crew need to be moored and kept in good order too. So many things to think about and look after. Beginning to worry already and I haven't won yet.

Umm, wouldn't have time for the theatre and I'd miss my friends there and those at church, and no time for Bible Story Club or Kids Club or Messy Church with so much travelling. And most of all I'd miss my family because they wouldn't be able to get away to come with me. Of course I'd make friends on my travels but probably only temporary ones and return home to an empty house, or perhaps with hangers-on that I can do without! Perhaps I'd better think again.

Lord, if you decide to cancel that first wish that's fine with me, and Lord, thank you for all the blessings you give me every day that I don't even have to ask for.

Jim Finch

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 131:1-3, Ezekiel 41:1-42:20, 1 Peter 1:1-2:3

[Monday's Devotional] - Daydreaming

I suspect we all do a bit of daydreaming from time to time, I know I do, and in the present economic climate we could all use a little extra finance or more free offers on needed supplies. We check the reduced price shelf and look for special offers, although most of those items are not on my shopping list. More and more are finding it all a bit of a struggle these days and perhaps like to sit down with a nice cup of tea and indulge in a little daydream.

I admit to sometimes wishing I had a bit more than I have and I dream of what it might be like to not have to worry about next week's rent or spending a bit extra on the shopping. Maybe a nice holiday in the sun, or a newer car than my old one. If only one of those Premium Bonds we bought years ago would come up or maybe a win on the lottery.

I'm sure I would be really happy if I just had half as much again coming in regularly.

No! Wait! I remember someone once told me that if I had double the salary it would soon not be enough because of all the new things I would want. Hey! What if I found an old bottle and when I opened it a genie came out and gave me three wishes? Umm, not too sure about that last one. I've heard stories about wishes that did not go according to plan, like the man who wished his plain, short, chubby wife was slender and beautiful. The wish was granted and she then ran off with a man more handsome and richer than her husband.

We could simply ask God for a little help. The Bible says:

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will

be opened to you." Matthew 7:7 [NIV]

but remember that all we have is already given by Him and make sure you ask for the exact thing that you want. He may give you what you need rather than what you want. Or you may come to realise that what you wanted is not actually what you need.

Perhaps I need to explore the possibilities of getting three wishes and what they should be.

In the meantime let us count our blessings and see how well off we actually are.

Let us thank our Lord for all the good things we have and for the love and grace he gives us every day.

Jim Finch

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 130:1-8, Ezekiel 39:21-40:49, James 5:1-20