Oh Lord, when we’re tempted to give up, please remind us instead to look up! Lift our eyes off our problems and up to you: our source of hope, strength and safety.
You can have hope without faith, but you cannot have faith without hope! [Randy Furco]
Oh Lord, sometimes our lives turn bleak and gloomy; the dark shadows of distress and futility hinder our view of you. Shine your light on us. Open our eyes. Help us to see you in the darkness of fear, sadness and discouragement. Free us from our prisons of despair!
“Shine, Jesus, Shine” by Graham Kendrick
Lord, the light of your love is shining,
In the midst of the darkness, shining.
Jesus, Light of the world, shine upon us.
Set us free by the truth you now bring us.
Shine on me, shine on me.Lord, I come to your awesome presence,
From the shadows into your radiance.
By the blood I may enter your brightness.
Search me, try me, consume all my darkness.
Shine on me, shine on me.Shine, Jesus, shine;
Fill this land with the Father’s glory.
Blaze, Spirit, blaze;
Set out hearts on fire.
Flow, river, flow;
Flood the nations with grace and mercy.
Send forth your Word, Lord,
And let there be light.
According to persecution.org, this past week eight Christians were arrested in Shush, Iran, for the crime of “spreading Christianity;” a church being constructed by Christians in Islamabad, Pakistan, was bulldozed by angry Muslim neighbors; Islamic extremists in Somalia publicly beheaded two women for being Christians; and, in Sri Lanka, a mob of over 250 people, led by Buddhist extremist monks, broke into a Christian pastor’s home and beat him and his wife.
These Christians knew how much it could cost them to speak up for Jesus, but they also knew it would cost them a great deal more not to speak at all. In this nation, we’re not likely to be persecuted for being Christians or arrested for sharing our faith. We should boldly witness for Christ and yet few of us do. What’s our excuse? While Christians elsewhere are being arrested and tried for their faith, most of us are silent about ours. Our silence is a denial of Christ. Beware, we may find ourselves in the highest court, in front of another judge, if we don’t stand before others right now and speak of our belief.
We were over 100 feet in the air, eight of us enclosed in a small gondola cabin for nine minutes. Instead of the usual chit chat about snow conditions, the man across from me spoke in a derogatory way about a certain group of people. The silence that followed his vitriol was deafening. All sorts of thoughts went through my head: do I ignore him or defend them, how should I do it and what should I say? I finally spoke, somewhat timidly, and was surprised when others joined me, including members of his own family. This man was lovingly and gently brought to task and, hopefully, enlightened just a bit. I spoke up that day but, unfortunately, there are many more times that I don’t.
Lord, forgive us for those times we’ve remained silent when we should have spoken. Forgive us for not trusting you to supply the words that need to be said. Show us how to depend not on our knowledge or rhetoric but on your divine assistance. Give us the words, the ability to say them gently and the sense to know when we should speak and when we should not.
Have you ever seen a blind skier navigate down a mountain slope? The visually impaired skier is guided down the slope by a sighted skier who calls out to him when to turn and which direction to take. The blind skier has to have complete trust in his guide and must listen carefully to his instruction. When his guide says, “Turn right,” the skier doesn’t reply, “Do I really have to?” When told to get off the chair lift, he doesn’t try to second-guess his guide asking, “Are you sure?” When instructed to stop, the blind skier doesn’t argue saying, “But, I don’t want to!” No, he obeys. This is, indeed, a true example of “blind faith.” That is the kind of faith and trust we need to have in our life’s guide: God.
I know not the way God leads me, but well do I know my Guide. [Martin Luther]
So we do not give up. Our physical body is becoming older and weaker, but our spirit inside us is made new every day. [2 Corinthians 4:16 (NCV)]Lord, you may not change through the years but I surely have. Although I may tire more easily, please keep my spiritual life robust and lively. As my body becomes weaker, please make my faith stronger. May the fact that it is increasingly harder to get on my knees (let alone get back up again) never keep me from prayer. My heart will always kneel before you in praise and thanksgiving. Thank you, God, for all that has been and all that is yet to be.
My body and my mind may become weak, but God is my strength. He is mine forever. [Psalm 73:26 (NCV)]
Devotions of the Heart 