Nesting Time

Reader: Calum Macdonald

Date: 1st April 2022

Passage: Psalm 84:3

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This is the time of year when the birds are busy building nests so that they can raise their families. The birds mentioned in Psalm 84, the sparrow and the swallow, found safe nesting places within the temple among God's worshippers.

While the birds were safe in the temple, even more blessed were God's people who came to worship and enjoy fellowship with God there. The person who wrote the psalm says that he would rather be a door-keeper for one day in God's house than spend thousands of days enjoying sinful pleasures in rich, luxurious surroundings.

The writer tells of the journey people made to get to God's temple; it was a journey that often was rough and hard and tiring. But it was all worthwhile just to get to God's special place and be able to praise him and enjoy his blessing.

Our Christian life can also be much like a journey. It is not always easy; there may be hard days, there may even be persecution of one kind or another. But it is all worthwhile. The writer speaks of God's altar, the place of sacrifice. We remember the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ — not just at Easter, but every day. We remember all the blessings we receive from his death. It makes our Christian journey possible and so worthwhile.

May God bless you and help you to praise and worship our Saviour.

Who On Earth Is That At The Prince's Wedding?

Reader: Jon Watson

Date: 31st March 2022

Passage: Matthew 22:2-3

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Imagine if you were looking at a family wedding photo, and you ask "Who on earth is that at the wedding? How did he get in there?". And the reply you get is "I don't know. I've never seen him in my life before." The guests at the wedding banquet in Jesus's story were not the kind of people you would expect at a royal occasion such as a wedding. These were people 'just off the street', all sorts of people, whoever happened to be out and about on the roads. The invited guests had turned up their noses at the invitation and didn't show up.

Now there are many different themes in this story told by Jesus but there is just one that I want to stress here. God invites us to come and enjoy the Good News of his son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Many hear the invitation - perhaps you have heard it very often — but they refuse to come. How about you? Will you be in the "photo" of the crowd at the wedding feast? It is not just rude to reject God's invitation to come to Christ, it is absolutely disastrous. In very strong words Jesus tells about the sad end of those who had been invited but had refused the invitation. How terrible it will be for us if at the end of our lives Jesus were to say to us "Depart from me for I never knew you".

Lord Jesus Christ, I thank you for the Gospel invitation to come to you. Just as I am, I come. Amen.

Compelled To Carry The Cross

Reader: Sue Simison

Date: 30th March 2022

Passage: Matthew 27:32

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Just imagine how you might feel if you had to carry the crossbeam of the cross on which Jesus was going to be crucified and put to death. Poor Simon had just come into Jerusalem from the countryside outside the city and he was forced by the soldiers to take up Jesus' cross because he had been made so weak from the terrible beating he received before being taken to the place of death. Roman soldiers were allowed to compel Jewish people to do anything they demanded. They could compel Jewish people to carry loads of goods for them or to hand over their warm coats or whatever they wanted. It was all meant to show that the Romans were the superior power in the country and the Jews were the defeated people. It must have been very humiliating for the Jews.

Jesus taught his followers how to deal with that situation. He said "If someone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles" Matthew 5:41. Jesus wants us to show not just a humble spirit but a willing spirit to suffer insults and injuries for him. Very often Christians can be looked down on because they stand up for Jesus against evil. Jesus himself asks us to take up our cross daily to follow him. We do this, not by force, but out of love to him who died on the cross for us.

Lord Jesus, help me day by day to follow you willingly. Amen.

Tears In The Darkness

Reader: Jon Watson

Date: 29th March 2022

Passage: Psalm 6:6

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One of the great things about the Psalms is that the writers allow us to know how they felt so that we can express our feelings in their words.

Psalm 6 is a very emotional Psalm; it is a real cry from the heart. The writer says "My soul is greatly troubled." That can be true for us as well at times.

It may be that you have had the experience of things falling apart in your own life. Perhaps you have done something that you know was un-Christlike and you have ended up feeling rotten and ashamed and reduced to 'tears in your darkness' as you think about what you have done. As he felt like that the writer did what we must do — pray to God that he will be gracious to us, that he will forgive us and take us out of the mess we have got ourselves into. As he prayed to God in this way he tells us how we will feel when we pray - "The Lord has heard my cry for mercy".

The New Testament puts it this way - "If we confess our sins, (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (wickedness)" (1 John 1:9). That truly is a wonderful promise and will make us shed tears of relief and thanksgiving to our gracious God.

Dear Lord, I confess my sins and pray that you would have mercy on me and make me clean. For your name's sake. Amen.

Healthy And Growing And Full Of Love

Reader: Louise Macmillan

Date: 28th March 2022

Passage: Ephesians 4:16

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The language in which the New Testament was originally written had many words which are translated 'love' in our English Bibles. But there is one word for love that became a real Christian word and is one of the busiest words in the New Testament. It is used in the text at the top of this page.

This word (agape) is a word describing how God looks at the world. For example John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life." Galatians 2:20 tells us how Christ lived and died, and John 15:12 tells us how Christians should live as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is also a word that has to do with how the church of Jesus Christ goes about its business. If the church we belong to is healthy and growing it will be a church that is full of this love.

The word is special because it involves our heart but also our mind and our will. As Christians we are commanded to love our enemies and to seek the highest good of everyone, even those who may not be good to us! Such love is a God-like love and a God-given love. It must be seen in a Christian family and it is the very life-blood of the church, the family of God. It is how Jesus has loved us and the Holy Spirit helps us to be like him so that we will be a healthy church growing and full of love.

Lord Jesus, help me to be full of your love. Amen.

The Jealousy Of God

Reader: Sue Simison

Date: 27th March 2022

Passage: Exodus 20:5

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Jealousy is one of those words that can be easily misunderstood or used in wrong ways. It may sound strange to our ears to speak of the jealousy of God. What or who makes God jealous? God's jealousy is the jealousy of love for his own people.

Let me tell you a little about the situation God's people were in when he spoke to them the words at the top of this page. God's people, the Israelites, were living among people who worshipped a whole crowd of so-called gods. There were gods of the hills and gods of the valleys, gods of the rivers, gods of thunder, lightning, the sun and the stars. The people who worshipped these false gods made idols representing them and they bowed down to these idols.

God did not want his people to be tempted to join in the worship of these gods - they could not do anything to help them as they were not real, and some of their worship was cruel and horrible. God hated the thought that his people would be caught up in such evil things. He was jealous for them, just as a loving husband would be if he saw his wife going off with another man. God loved them, he cared for them and he didn't want them to be hurt by going the wrong way.

He was also jealous for his own reputation — he is holy and he hated the thought of his name being used in a disrespectful way. God has a holy jealousy for the people he loves and for his name — he and he alone is the living and true God.

The Ugliness Of Bitter Jealousy

Reader: Jon Watson

Date: 26th March 2022

Passage: James 3:14-15

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The kind of jealousy that James is writing about in the words at the top of this page is truly a very ugly thing. Indeed James goes on to describe it as earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. What then is this kind of jealousy and how does it show itself?

Imagine you see your friend with a brand new watch. It not only looks good but it is the very kind of watch you've always wanted but couldn't afford. And now, instead of being pleased for your friend having such a lovely watch you grudge your friend's happiness, you envy your friend for having that watch you always wanted — you become jealous of your friend. Jealousy destroys friendships.

Indeed, the Bible blames jealousy for causing all sorts of ugly problems in congregations. It was jealousy that caused the Jewish leaders to put Peter and John in prison; and jealousy caused others to reject the message of the Gospel altogether. But sadly we read in the Bible that jealousy always keeps bad company and along with other nasty behaviour it always destroys the peace and love of Christian people and congregations and destroys real fellowship between those who are brothers and sisters in Christ. We have to pray seriously that God will help us to put away a jealous spirit from our hearts.

Dear Lord, help me to be a person of Christian wisdom with a heart that is pure, peaceable and sincere. Amen.

Have A Good Sleep!

Reader: Louise Macmillan

Date: 25th March 2022

Passage: Psalm 4:8

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Are you one of those people who find it difficult to get off to sleep at night? Very often when sleep doesn't come you start thinking of all sorts of things — worries, problems and difficult people — and it all drives sleep even further away!

David, who wrote many of the Psalms, had many problems during the time he wrote Psalms 3 and 4. He had to flee for his life from his own son Absalom who was trying to depose his father and become king in his place. It was a sad time for David. But David had a real sense of the protection that God gives to those who trust him. God was like a shield around him. God had already brought David great relief when he was in big trouble. Now David thought about these things as he lay in bed. In his mind he went over all that God had done for him — how he had kept him safe when he had gone to bed before, and he felt sure God would look after him again. God had been so good to him, even in spite of what Absalom was trying to do to him, that David felt happier than people who were living a life of peace and plenty.

And when David thought of all God's blessings and all God's answers to his prayers, sleep came easily to him. He lay down in peace to have a good night's rest.

Dear Lord, if I lie awake, help me to go over all the wonders of your grace and goodness to me and give me your peace and the gift of sleep. Amen.

But God, That's Not What I Had In Mind!

Reader: Sue Simison

Date: 24th March 2022

Passage: Ezekiel 2:1

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Do you know what you want to do with your life? Have you ever prayed about what you should do? Sometimes things turn out differently from what we had planned!

I love the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel lived back in Old Testament times, and he knew what he wanted to do with his life. He grew up with one thing in his mind — he was going to be a priest in the service of God and his people. But one day God came to him and said, 'You can't be a priest; I want you to be a prophet'. That was not what Ezekiel had in mind. It may well be that God is calling you to some kind of service for him and it may be that it is not what you had in mind. But if God is calling you, stand on your feet and obey him. He will give you all the help you need to do what he wants you to do.

Some years ago a well-known missionary was singing a hymn as he was on his way to his first mission station. He sang, 'King of my life, I crown you now. Yours shall the glory be...' But he was captured and put in solitary confinement in a communist prison. Not what he had in mind — but God made him a blessing to many people. God knew Ezekiel really wanted to be a priest and he often gave him messages to speak to the people in ways that a priest might have done. God cares for all who serve him and understands their hearts.

Dear God, help me to know what you want me to do, so may I serve you in the way you want me to do. Amen.

Shield Your Eyes When You Look At The Sun

Reader: Jon Watson

Date: 23rd March 2022

Passage: Ezekiel 1:28

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The light of the sun is so bright that it can be very dangerous to look at without some protection over your eyes — they could be permanently damaged.

Have you ever wondered what God is like? Quite often the Bible speaks of God as being gloriously bright — so bright that you couldn't really look at him without it having a deep, deep effect upon you. That was what happened to the prophet Ezekiel when he saw this amazing brightness — it was the brightness of the glory of God, and Ezekiel fell flat on his face.

In the New Testament we read that the Lord Jesus Christ was, for a short time, changed into a person so bright that the men who were with him had never seen anything brighter before and had never seen clothes as shining white as those Jesus was wearing. The brightness of the glory of God shone in Christ. Some years later, the apostle Paul was struck down on the road to Damascus by the brightness of God's glory and he was temporarily blinded.

God is glorious. The glorious brightness is telling us that God is absolutely pure in every way. He is so pure that we cannot look at him directly. But we do see him in the person of Jesus Christ — the divine shield by which we can see God and trust God.