September 28
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PUTTING ON YOUR NEW NATURE
A poem by ILMA
Now that you have a new life in Christ, focus on heavenly things
It is in heaven where Christ sits in a place of honor at God’s right hand
Think about the things that are the realities in heaven, not of this earth
For you died to this life and your real life is hidden with Jesus in God.
And when Christ, who is Life is revealed to all, you will share in his glory
So, turn your back to your sinful nature and worldly things lurking within you
Don’t get involved in sexual immorality, impurity, lust and evil desires
Don’t be greedy for a covetous person worships the world and is an idolater.
You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world
But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, slander and malicious behavior
Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature
Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator.
Since God chose you to be his holy people, clothe yourselves with mercy
Be kind, gentle, humble, and patient to all especially to the family of Christ
Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you
Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others to be forgiven.
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MEMORY VERSE
Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. – Colossians 3:10
Read: Colossians 3:1-13
It is interesting to know that some Christians do not know how to put on the new creation that they received when they committed their lives to Christ. Just like putting on a new clothing, we usually removed the old to try on the new clothes. We don’t put on top of the old clothes our new ones. Sadly, this is what we do when we don’t let go of our worldly things and beliefs. It hinders us from knowing Christ deeper and become like him.
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REFLECTION
• What part of your old nature keeps creeping in your Christian life?
Tag Archives: Christian devotional
BRAND NEW LIFE IN CHRIST Poem Devotional
September 27
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BRAND NEW LIFE IN CHRIST
A poem by ILMA
When you accepted Christ as your Savior and Lord
You must continue to obey and follow his commands
Let your roots grow down into him and build your lives on him
Then your faith will grow strong, and you’ll overflow with gratitude.
Don’t be deceived by human reasoning and spiritual powers of this world
Instead, prioritize Jesus in all you do and study and meditate on his word
In Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body
So you’re complete by your union with Christ who has full authority.
When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not physically
Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinfulness
For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized
And by believing in Jesus, you were raised to a brand new life.
You were dead because of your sins and since it wasn’t yet cut away
Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins
He canceled the record of the charges against us and nailed it to the cross
This way, He shamed them publicly by his victory over through his blood.
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MEMORY VERSE
For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. – Colossians 2:12
Read: Colossians 2:6-13
When one becomes a believer of Jesus, they receive the new life that he promised. They get to start new and the old life is dead and gone. Many believers struggle living a new life because some people couldn’t let go of the old life. When we do this, we are actually not focusing on the power that Jesus had over sin.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it important to be intentional in living the new life you were given when you became a Christian?
CREATION THROUGH AND FOR CHRIST Poem Devotional
September 26
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CREATION THROUGH AND FOR CHRIST
A poem by ILMA
Jesus is the visual manifestation of the God that we don’t see
He was here in the beginning before all things were created
It was through Christ that God made all things in heaven and on earth
He created all things that we both see and also those that are not visible.
Thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities are those that are unseen
All things were made for the sake of our Lord Christ Jesus
He was there before anything was made and he holds all things together
Jesus Christ is the head of the church, which is his body.
He is the Alpha and is supreme over all things and won over death
He is first in everything and God in all his fullness, lived in Christ
It is through him God reconciled everything to himself
He made peace in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood.
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MEMORY VERSE
He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. – Colossians 1:17
Read: Colossians 1:15-20
It is an amazing revelation to the Colossians about the supremacy of Jesus Christ. Most people do not realize that everything in this world was created for Jesus and through him. Interestingly, he was also part of the creation because he is also God like the Heavenly Father. But we must also remember that there is a three-person God so, the Holy Spirit is also present during the creation, especially when humans were created. In Genesis 1:26, the plural form “Let us make humans” gives us a clue that the three-person God were all present in the making of the world, especially when mankind was made.
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REFLECTION
• As a Christian, do you always see that all things always point to our Lord Jesus Christ? Why do you think God created all things for Him and through him?
HOLD ON TO YOUR PROGRESS Poem Devotional
September 24
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HOLD ON TO YOUR PROGRESS
A poem by ILMA
I haven’t reached that point of achieving perfection in my faith
But I press on to have that which began when Christ possessed me
I focus on forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead
I reach towards the end of the race to receive the heavenly prize.
We are all to look forward to this goal for which God called us
Let all who are spiritually mature agree on this focus
If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain
But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.
Pattern your lives to the spiritually mature and are true disciples
We must be watchful of fake believers but are really Christ’s enemies
They are headed for destruction and their appetites are their gods
They brag about selfish things and think only about life here on earth.
As believers, we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives
And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior
He will take our mortal bodies and change them into glorious ones like his
He’ll use the same power with which he’ll bring everything under his control.
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MEMORY VERSE
But we must hold on to the progress we have already made. – Philippians 3:16
Read: Philippians 3:12-21
Have you ever been in a marathon or a race? I once used to be a cycling enthusiast. I train daily to bike 60 kilometers a day. On weekends, I go with a cycling club of fifty for which I am the only woman. When we aim to finish a 160 kms in an hour, it can get really hard towards the finish line. But we press on and don’t think of the hardship but the finish line.
That’s how Jesus wants us to focus on as well, we hold on to the progress we’ve made.
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REFLECTION
• What are the things that make people give up when they are following Jesus?
JOY OF CHRIST’S MESSAGE PREACHED Poem Devotional
September 21
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JOY OF CHRIST’S MESSAGE PREACHED
A poem by ILMA
Everything that has happened to me here helped me to spread the gospel
Everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains
I was imprisoned because of Christ and most of the believers were happy
They have gained confidence and boldly spoke God’s message without fear.
It’s true that some are preaching out of jealousy and rivalry
But others preach about Christ with pure motives because they love me
For they know I have been appointed to defend the Good News
Others preach with selfish ambition, intending to make my chains more painful.
But that doesn’t matter whether their motives are false or genuine
The message about Christ is being preached either way, so I rejoice
The Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me and will lead to my deliverance
I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past.
I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die
For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better
I am convinced that I will remain alive so I can continue to help all of you grow
And when I come back, you’ll see what Jesus is doing through me.
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MEMORY VERSE
For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die. – Philippians 1:20
Read: Philippians 1:22-26
What an amazing joy we find in this letter of Paul to the Philippians! He can’t stop sharing the happiness he felt that that the message of Christ was being preached. He didn’t care whether the motives of those who are sharing it is for good or not, as long as it is being preached.
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REFLECTION
• Are you bold enough to spread the Good News to as much people as you can?
PAUL’S JOY AT THE CHURCH’S REPENTANCE Poem Devotional
September 20
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PAUL’S JOY AT THE CHURCH’S REPENTANCE
A poem by ILMA
When we arrived in Macedonia, there was no rest for us
We faced conflict from all direction, both from outside and inside
God encouraged us by the arrival of Titus, one of Paul’s followers
His presence was a joy, but so was the news he brought with him
When he told us how much you long to see me
And how sorry you are for what happened
Including how loyal you are to me, I was filled with joy!
I am not sorry that I sent that severe letter to you,
I was sorry at first, for I know it was painful to you for a little while
I am glad I sent it, not to hurt you, but because the pain caused repentance
Such repentance led to change your way and it was that a kind of sorrow
It was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have
For the kind of sorrow God wants us to have leads us away from sin and saves us.
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MEMORY VERSE
Now I am glad I sent it, not because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to repent and change your ways. It was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have, so you were not harmed by us in any way. – 2 Corinthians 7:9
Read: 2 Corinthians 7:6-16
In this letter of Paul to the Corinthians, he expressed his joy over the repentance of the church in Corinth. He assures them that when he confronted them of what needs to be addressed so that they can actually face the sins and be convicted and repent so that they can be saved.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it important that we confront and rebuke in gentleness another sister or brother in Christ?
• What made Paul joyful when God encouraged him when Titus came?
• Why is repentance important for salvation?
IRONIES OF LIFE Poem Devotional
September 19
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IRONIES OF LIFE
A poem by ILMA
When you dig a well, you probably might fall in
When you demolish an old wall, you could be bitten by a snake
When you work in a quarry, stones might fall and crush you
When you chop wood, there is danger with each stroke of your ax
Using a dull ax requires great strength, so sharpen the blade
That’s the value of wisdom; it helps you succeed
Wise words bring approval, but fools are destroyed by their own words
Fools use their assumptions, so their conclusions are wicked madness
No one knows what’s going to happen; no one can predict the future
Fools are so tired by a little work; they can’t even find their way home
Laziness leads to a sagging roof; idleness leads to a leaky house.
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MEMORY VERSE
Using a dull ax requires great strength, so sharpen the blade. That’s the value of wisdom; it helps you succeed. – Ecclesiastes 10:10
Read: Ecclesiastes 10:5-20
Irony is a figure of speech in which words are used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words. It may also be a situation that ends up in quite a different way than what is generally anticipated. In simple words, it is a difference between appearance and reality. King Solomon presents some of these ironies in life that we face. Let us learn from these ironies and take it as a guide so we can do the wise thing instead of doing what fools might do.
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REFLECTION
• What ironies in life have you been faced with lately?
• Why do you think people go crazy when they can’t predict what’s going to happen?
• Why is important for us to search for the truth and live by it?
REMEMBER GOD WHILE YOU’RE YOUNG Poem Devotional
September 18
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REMEMBER GOD WHILE YOU’RE YOUNG
A poem by ILMA
Don’t let youth’s excitement cause you to forget your Creator
Honor him in your youth before getting old and thinking that life is bad
Remember him before all sources of light seems dim to your old eyes
Reminisce it before rain clouds continually darken your sky.
Remember him before your legs starts to tremble
Recall him before your shoulders starts to stoop
Remember him before your teeth fall or stop grinding
Do it before your eyes have trouble seeing already.
Remember him before the door to life’s opportunities is closed
Don’t wait for wasted time when the sound of work fades
In youth, you are excited and you rise at the first chirping of the birds
As you grow older, all different kinds of sounds will grow faint.
Remember him before you’re near the grave, your everlasting home
Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young
For then the dust will return to the earth
And the spirit will return to God who gave it.
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MEMORY VERSE
Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. – Ecclesiastes 12:1
Read: Ecclesiastes 12:1-6
Solomon wrote the book of Ecclesiastes in his old age. He was considered the wisest person in his time. Because he asked the Lord for wisdom instead of riches, he was granted all the wisest words of advice. In these verses, we are cautioned not to wait to be very old when we acknowledge God. He tells us to remember the creator while we are young since, we won’t have the chance to enjoy Him when we are already nearing our end.
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REFLECTION
• Why must people not forget to remember their creator while they are still young?
DEATH COMES TO ALL Poem Devotional
September 17
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DEATH COMES TO ALL
A poem by ILMA
Even though the actions of godly and wise people are in God’s hands,
No one knows whether God will or will not show them favor
The same destiny ultimately awaits everyone, whether righteous or wicked
Good people receive the same treatment as sinners.
It seems so wrong that everyone under the sun suffers the same fate
Twisted by evil, people choose their own mad choices and have no hope
There is nothing ahead but death and there’s hope only for the living
As they say, “It’s better to be a live dog than a dead lion!”
The living at least know they will die, but the dead know nothing
They have no further reward, nor are they remembered
Whatever they did in their lifetime—is all long gone
They no longer play a part in anything here on earth.
Whatever you do, do well, you only live once.
When you go to the grave, there’ll be no work or wisdom.
The fastest runner doesn’t always win the race
The strongest warrior doesn’t always win the battle
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MEMORY VERSE
The living at least know they will die, but the dead know nothing. They have no further reward, nor are they remembered. – Ecclesiastes 9:5
Read: Ecclesiastes 9:1-12
Death is something that will inevitably come in our lives. Some people avoid this topic because they don’t know the Lord Jesus Christ who has overcome the grave and has resurrected. They think their existence ends in physical death. Jesus promises eternal life for those who believes him.
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REFLECTION
• What is the reason behind the “fear of physical death?”
• Why do people who don’t know Jesus lose hope when someone dies?
LIMITS OF HUMAN WISDOM Poem Devotional
September 15
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LIMITS OF HUMAN WISDOM
A poem by ILMA
Most things are meaningless including the death of good young persons
Another thing that’s pointless is the long life of wicked people
Don’t be too good or too wise! On the other hand, don’t be too wicked either
Why die before your time? Anyone who fears God will avoid both extremes.
One wise person is stronger than ten leading citizens of a town!
Not a single person on earth is always good and never sins
Don’t eavesdrop on others—you may hear others curse you
For you know how often you yourself have cursed others.
I have always tried my best to let wisdom guide my thoughts and actions
I said to myself, “I want to be wise.” But it’s always distant and difficult to find
I searched everywhere, determined to find wisdom and understand things
I was resolute to prove that wickedness is stupid and foolishness is madness.
Though I have searched repeatedly, I have not found what I was looking for
Only one out of a thousand men is virtuous, but not one woman!
But I did find this: God created people to be virtuous
But people have each turned to follow their own downward path.
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MEMORY VERSE
God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path. – Ecclesiastes 7:29
Read: Ecclesiastes 7:15-29
One of the things humans pursue in their lives is to understand things and be wise but the author of the book of Ecclesiastes discusses in this chapter how human wisdom is very limited. We try to find things to do that we think is meaningful, but we often miss out on what we were created for. God created us all to be righteous but we almost always follow our sinful human nature.
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REFLECTION
• Why do people want to understand and take control of meaningless things?