MONTHLY ARCHIVES: March 2014

Shout it Out!

Posted by Karah

Pause

Silence your phone and turn off anything that could distract you from God’s Word and what He needs to say to you today. Spend some time in silence before God, kneeling as acknowledgment of His majesty.

In your Bible, read Psalm 145:1-7, underlining any words or phrases that point to God’s majesty.

“One generation will declare Your works to the next and will proclaim Your mighty acts. I will speak of Your splendor and glorious majesty and Your wonderful works.”

—Psalm 145:4-5

Your works and your mighty acts: Telling of God’s great works in history and in your own life. Who needs to hear what God has been doing in your life?

Splendor: The sum total of God’s attributes; the vast greatness of who He is; His magnificence.

Majesty: God’s grandeur, beauty, and honor.

Wonderful works: God’s mighty deeds and miracles, all of which display His power and awe those who see them. What works of God in your life or someone else’s have brought you to a place of awe?

Splendor, glorious majesty, and wonderful works describe God’s majestic character, but if you told your peers and friends about Him using these words, they’d probably think you were pretty weird. How would you describe God’s character to your friends?

Respond

Look at the list of people who need to hear about God’s work in your life that you listed earlier. Pray for each one by name, asking God for opportunities to share. Jot down one way you’ve seen God at work recently that you’ll tell them about.

Read the entire psalm, underlining any words or phrases that teach you about our majestic, yet personal, God.

Behind the Story

Psalm 145 was written by David to extol God’s greatness. In it, he used several verbs to describe ways that he, along with others, will tell others about God’s greatness: declare, proclaim, speak, give a testimony, and joyfully sing. It’s interesting to note that in Psalm 145:7, the phrase “give a testimony” literally means “pour out a memory.” That means the people were telling about important things God had done in their lives. What memories will you pour out in praise to God?

The Point

When you realize the truth about God’s majesty, you won’t want to keep it to yourself. If God is this majestic, this powerful, you must tell “the next generation” about Him.


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Unveiled

Posted by Karah

Pause

Ponder this quote:

“The purpose of worship is to change the face of the worshiper.”

—Max Lucado

“We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

—2 Corinthians 3:18

Read 2 Corinthians 3:17-18.

How would you write verse 18 in your own words? Give it a try:

What does this verse have to say about you? Who are you to become more and more like? Are you?

As followers of Christ, we should be becoming more and more like Him. It’s not a change that happens overnight, but by the Holy Spirit, God works in our daily lives to conform us to the image of His Son. In salvation, God takes the veil of sin away from us so that we can truly see Him and become like mirrors, reflecting His light to the world.

Respond

• Personalize this verse and pray God’s Word back to Him. Ask Him to reveal the areas in which you aren’t reflecting Him and confess them to Him today.

• Memorize Philippians 1:6, trusting that God will do as He promised.

• For further study and greater context, read 2 Corinthians 3:14-18.

Behind the Story

After Moses witnessed God’s glory on Mt. Sinai, he wore a veil over his face while the glory of God faded. The people had to look at the glory through the veil. In today’s passage, Paul reminded His readers of Moses’ veil, using it to symbolize the spiritual blindness we all have before Jesus opens our eyes. When you became a Christian, that veil was taken away, so that now you can truly know God and reflect His glory, love, and power to the world around you because He lives in you.

The Point

If you’re a Christian, Jesus has removed the veil from your heart. You are being transformed into His likeness and should reflect His majesty to the world around you.

 


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Heirs of God

Posted by Karah

Pause

Start your time with God today with a time of worship. Listen to “Desert Song” by Hillsong United to prepare your heart.

“The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children, and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ—seeing that we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”

—Romans 8:16-17

Read Romans 8:14-17 in your Bible. Read verses 16-17 again carefully and think through these questions:

• Think about what the children of extremely wealthy people stand to inherit someday, even though they’ve done nothing to earn it. How do you feel about those children?

• As a child of God, what do you stand to inherit?

• What have you done to deserve that immense inheritance? Is this fair?

You are a child of the Most High, Amazingly Majestic God. Your inheritance far surpasses anything a wealthy family could leave their children.

Respond

If the Most High God dwells within you, then you share in some of His majesty. Grab a dry erase marker and go look in the mirror. Do you look like you share in Jesus’ glory? Do you feel majestic? On the mirror around your reflection, list ways you are majestic because Christ dwells in you and God is your Father. Cling to Biblical truth, not your feelings, as you write.

Behind the Story

In this passage, Paul declared that children of God should not “fall back into fear.” Why? Their relationship with God is secure. They’ve been adopted and get to call Him Abba forever! They will never lose their place in His family. Not only are they children, but also heirs, even co-heirs with Christ. Why is this good news?

The Point

As Christians, we are heirs of God Himself! Fear doesn’t have to run your life because you know the majestic Father through the Son and are guided by His Spirit.

 


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Sock War: Battle of the Trilogies

Posted by Karah

The clash of the trilogies was one of the most intense sock wars! Which trilogy would you be fitting for?


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A Majestic Son

Posted by Karah

Pause

Briefly look back through the last two devotions on majesty, then consider how God’s majesty is displayed in Jesus, His Son. Thank Jesus for what He has done in your life.

Who do people say you look like? Do you agree? Jot down or sketch some characteristics you share with that person.

With that concept in mind, read Hebrews 1:2-4 in your Bible.

“The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of His nature, sustaining all things by His powerful word. After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” —Hebrews 1:3

What does it mean that Jesus is the radiance of God’s nature?

The word, character, comes from the Hebrew, charaktēr, meaning “engraving.” Used only here in the New Testament, it pictures a distinguishing mark being imprinted onto an object, like a coin. The idea is that Jesus gives us a clear picture of God’s character. How does He do that?

God’s word is a powerful force. By it, He created the world, and through it, He governs the world. How does this help you to understand His majesty better?

Respond

Consider the ways Jesus gave up His majesty when He took on flesh. Meditate on what the majestic Creator and ruler of the universe gave up to die on the cross for your sins. Thank Him for His sacrifice. Journal your prayer below.

Behind the Story

The writer of Hebrews gave importance and authority to the words and actions of Jesus by setting Him apart from the prophets. Jesus didn’t just speak for God—He was God. By asserting that God spoke through Jesus “in these last days,” (v. 2) it might seem as though the writer of Hebrews thought the end of the world was near. More than likely, however, the writer meant that God spoke with finality through Jesus, His Son. Jesus is God’s ultimate revelation and the only way to be saved.

The Point

Jesus possesses the full majesty and character of God the Father. He is God. He created the world, then took the sins of that world upon His own shoulders, making a way for our salvation and eternal life with Him.


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Retro Friday: “My Son Goes to Camp”

Posted by Karah

“My Son Goes to Camp” by Ethel Romig Fuller. Written in a 1954 Camp Ridgecrest brochure.


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None Like You

Posted by Karah

Pause

Meditate on ways God is unique and set apart from us, His creation. How does His greatness and majesty set Him apart? Ask Him to prepare your heart for what He has to teach you today.

List your three best friends, then list the celebrities you think they most closely resemble. Why did you choose that particular celebrity for that friend?

We like to make comparisons, mostly because they help us to understand things better. Comparing a friend to someone else helps you explain to others what he or she is like. But while comparisons may work for people, they don’t really work when it comes to God.

Read Jeremiah 10:6-7,10, focusing on verse 6.

“Yahweh, there is no one like You. You are great; Your name is great in power.”
—Jeremiah 10:6

• According to these verses, who can you compare God to?

• There’s no one like God. What does the fact that He is incomparable have to do with His majesty? Explain.

Respond

Write your own psalm or poem, contrasting God from all other living beings. For example: Humans remember wise sayings, but God creates those sayings.

Behind the Story

Jeremiah wrote these verses in hope of motivating the Israelites to worship God. They had turned away from Him, and Jeremiah was quite certain that they would now be invaded and carted off to foreign lands where the inhabitants worshiped false gods. In preparation for this impending invasion, he highlighted the truths about God’s majesty and greatness. If he could help the people remember that God is the One True God, perhaps they would turn to Him during their captivity, rather than running after the false gods of their future captors.

The Point

Everything in creation can be compared to something, but there is no comparison for God. He stands alone in His majesty and greatness.

Memory Verse

Write out Psalm 145:3-4 on a sturdy sheet of paper or index card. Replace key words and phrases with symbols or write them in a different color to help you remember them.


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