Reflection

In Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church, he closed his letter with this prayer. What an encouragement to them, and to the church today! God is able to do much more than we can ask or think “according to the power at work within us” (v. 20). Paul is not kidding or boasting here, since he wrote this letter while imprisoned. Do you feel hopeless, powerless, stuck? You are not! In the beginning of this letter, Paul wrote:

“…. I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe,” – Ephesians 1:16-19

This is what we as believers need to know and OWN. We all have moments when we feel weak, but don’t dwell on that thought or emotion, choosing instead to focus our mind on truth. The truth is we CAN ask God to do the impossible because of Christ’s resurrection power in us. I want this rich inheritance of mine, the power that will help me grow in wisdom and knowledge, to overcome, to continue the race. The letters written by Paul while in prison and in chains fully bear witness to this truth, having encouraged and comforted generations of Christians to this day. In this way, God is glorified through each Christ follower, and through the church body. Knowing that you too possess such great power at your disposal, what will you ask of God that will bring Him glory?

Thoughts for the day

Reflection

What a tease to just stop at these two verses.  If you don’t know the story, it would be natural to wonder: “And then what?”  Even if we don’t know what happens next, we can pause here and reflect a little bit.  Do you know what tends to capture your attention?  When you have some down time to relax, or you’re simply bored with nothing to do, what do you turn to?

At a time when kings go off to war, David stayed back for reasons unknown to us.  What transpires after though, is a sad tale of moral descent which spiraled out of control.  David saw this beautiful woman, he sent someone to find out who she was, summoned her to see him, got her pregnant, all the while knowing that she is the wife of Uriah, a soldier in his army who went off to war.  From committing adultery, to plotting Uriah’s murder, David’s fall from grace began from a momentary look of the eyes.  He had not even realized the depth of his sin until Nathan the prophet confronted him: “the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul… Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes?'” (2 Samuel 12:7-9).

Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it”.  Guarding something works both ways; by what we allow to come in that can affect us, and by controlling what comes out of us, i.e. thoughts, emotions, actions.  If David, who was known as the man after God’s own heart, could let his eyes lead him away into greater moral failure, it can easily happen to us.  Today’s verse is a good reminder for us to check ourselves of what captivates us, what is our tendency in response, and most importantly, find out what “guarding our heart” would look like.

Thoughts for the day

Reflection

In Christ, we are blessed with every spiritual blessing. But what does it mean? Spiritual blessing is a term that expresses the fullness of blessing in God’s gift of eternal life in Jesus Christ. In the following verses (v. 5-14), Paul lists out a number of those spiritual blessings we receive through Jesus: our adoption as God’s sons and daughters, our acceptance, our redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our sins, the revelation of His will, a godly purpose, the promised Holy Spirit in us, and so on.

In Him, nothing is by chance. It’s by choice. He chose us to be holy and blameless in his sight. There is a beautiful assurance in knowing He chose us and blessed us abundantly. We count our blessings, remembering that the greatest blessing of all is Jesus Christ Himself.

Thoughts for the day

Reflection

Today’s passage comes after the author pleading God to restore, to revive his people and, in the expectation of answered prayers, the author talks about the immeasurable consequences and blessings of hearing and obeying what God says; yet there is a warning for people to not to return to foolish ways.

The reality of God’s blessings is still valid, whether collectively or in our personal walk with God.

He speaks peace over those who are faithful;

He brings salvation to those who fear Him;

He gives what is good and brings forth fruitfulness.

“Freed from the curse, the grateful garden gives

Its fruit in goodly revenue. Nor frost,

Nor blight, nor mildew fall, nor cankerworm,

Nor caterpillar, mar one ripening hope.

The clouds drop fatness. The very elements

Are subject to the prayerful will of those

Whose pleasure is in unison with God’s.”

Charles H. Spurgeon

Thoughts for the day

Reflection

A plumb line is an instrument used to ensure a structure is centered. It’s a weight suspended from a string used as a vertical reference line. For the builder, to build following the guidance of the plumb line is to ensure that everything is right, justified and centered; there is a standard to be followed.

In today’s passage we read about God’s decision to carry out judgment over the people of Israel (specifically the Northern Kingdom), who have been guilty of complacency, idolatry and of oppressing the poor. In the previous chapters it talked about God’s judgment on Israel’s neighboring nations, but then we see that God’s measure is the same for all.

God is just and merciful. His correction comes with a promise of restoration (Amos 9:11-15). We are called to be wise people, lining up our lives according to His plumb line.

Thoughts for the day