Shema
CF Ambassador
An Emoji Devotions for Sat Dec 11, 2021
Topic: Are you on the right track?
Highlights:
•For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God. Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name for ever. For great is your love towards me; you have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead. (Psalm 86:10-13)
•‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.’ (John 14:6- 7)
In Psalm 86 King David lives through great affliction. He trusts the Lord for help, but obviously he has not yet seen the light. Therefore he reminds God that he experience himself as poor and needy, but he expects help from God only and he is sure that the Lord will answer him. “Hear my prayer, Lord; listen to my cry for mercy. When I am in distress, I call to you, because you answer me. (Psalm 86:8) Nothing and nobody compares to the Almighty God and to his deeds. Therefore David searches for guidance from him – he wants to know his way and to wholeheartedly live in his truth. His prayer in verse 11 reveals that he is, however, aware that the human heart can be divided. Yes, I want you God and I want to do your will, but right now, there is something I actually want a little tiny bit more. I want to serve you and I want to glorify your name, but please take me immediately out of this horrible affliction … The wish is very understandable, even Jesus himself has been tempted with it on his way to the cross. David therefore prays for the undivided heart. I am willing to remain under the affliction if it honors your will. Your way shall prevail, your will shall be done.
No matter what is going to happen, he will praise the Lord, he will glorify his name with all he has, because he knows that everything flows out of the loving heart of God towards him. (Read verses 11 – 13)
Many years later the Lord himself lives in the shape of a human being among us. He is astounding and he does marvelous deeds. By preparing his departure from the disciples he tells them that they should not let their hearts be troubled, but to trust in the Father God and in him. In the house of his father are many rooms and he goes to prepare everything so that they eventually will be where he and his father live. “You know the way to the place where I am going”, he said. (John 14:4)
The disciple Thomas did not agree. He denied knowing the destination and the way. Jesus then replied with our second highlight today. He is the way, the truth and the life and nobody will reach the heavenly destination except through him. That means through his redemption, love and mercy. Could anyone who has shown us such love that he died for us and redeemed us with his Father possibly not be good for us? He never promised us an easy life on this earth, but he promised us an eternity in his glory and splendor. For this earth he told us that we will be like sheep among wolves.
With David we are on the right track whenever we accept that the only way to heaven is to accept Jesus as our Lord and to follow his ways. The same way he has shown the Father to us, we are now to show our neighbors the character of Jesus.
Our hearts should never be divided. We are not to search for a pleasant life free of affliction. We are to put our own will and wishes under the obedience to Christ Jesus. So and only in this way, we can glorify the Father and the Son in the power of the Holy Spirit, who leads us into all truth.
Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, let me be like David and like you. Give me the strength to do your
will, even though I may be afflicted and tempted to take a cowardly way out. Let me be as faithful to you as you are to your word. Thank you for loving me so much! Amen
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