Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion

Luke 1:67-70 Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy: “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has visited and redeemed his people. He has sent us a mighty Saviour from the royal line of his servant David, just as he promised through his holy prophets long ago.” The birth of John the Baptist was a momentous moment in many ways. John’s mother, Elizabeth, had been astonished to fall pregnant at her advanced age, but also had to cope with the shock of a mute husband. When the baby arrived, neighbours and relatives came together to celebrate. The big question was how the child would be named, and the crowd of well-wishers expected that he would be called Zechariah after his father. But no, Elizabeth had become convinced that his name should be John. They then needed to find out Zechariah’s opinion and, still unable to speak, he wrote down on a writing tablet to everyone’s surprise: “His name is John.” The great joy for this elderly and godly couple was that in their son, John, God’s will was being fulfilled. The promise had been made, long ago, that a saviour would be sent who came from the royal line of David, and John was a crucial part of that long-established plan. Our lives are very different from those of Zechariah and Elizabeth, but the greatest joy of life for us, like them, is to know that we are being obedient to God’s will. Whether our role is high profile or hidden, nothing is greater than to know that we are living our lives in line with God’s plan. In our family, employment, sport, hobbies and church life, we have the privilege of being able to serve God and to see his blessing flowing to other people. Like Zechariah and Elizabeth, the Lord will sometimes call us to do unexpected and surprising things for him, but we can do so in the knowledge that his will is always best. Question What are the blessings that you have received by being obedient to God’s will? Prayer Loving Father, thank you for the privilege of serving you. Help me to be faithful today in doing your will. Amen

Psalm 90:10,12 Seventy years are given to us! Some even live to eighty. But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble; soon they disappear, and we fly away. Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom. It’s wonderful that so many people are living to the age of 100. In the UK, there are more than 15,000 centenarians, and that figure is about double the number of 20 years ago. However, such long lives are as nothing when placed on the timeline of history, or when we think of our God, for whom 1,000 years are like a day. It is important for us all to listen hard to the psalmist. He observes that 70 years is a typical lifespan, and that some reach 80. In the light of this, he asks God to teach us to realise that life is brief. That could sound sad and morbid, but that would be to forget that every single day of life is a gift that we couldn’t possibly deserve. Facing up to our mortality is actually a very positive thing to do. When we accept that our number of days is limited, we see the preciousness and value of every single day. There is no time to waste, so the question is: “How can we make sure that we get the best out of every single day?” The psalmist responds that this is through growing in wisdom. The Bible has a very practical view of wisdom. It is very different from knowledge, which doesn’t necessarily bring wisdom at all. Wisdom is all about knowing how to live life to the full, and that occurs when God is placed at the centre of our lives. When he is in the place that is rightfully his, we will enjoy good, loving, peaceful relationships and will use our time in ways that bless others, bring joy to ourselves and give glory to God. Such wisdom is completely down-to-earth and enables us to make good decisions amid all the challenges and awkwardness of life. No wonder the psalmist encourages us to grow in wisdom day by day. Question What could you do to grow in wisdom? Prayer Lord God, help me to become increasingly open to your gift of wisdom. Amen

Psalm 89:8 O LORD God of Heaven’s Armies! Where is there anyone as mighty as you, O Lord? You are entirely faithful. Faithfulness is a wonderful word. To find someone who is absolutely trustworthy and dependable is an incredible blessing, and the psalmist is convinced that God is exactly that. He looks into the heavens and reflects on the awesomeness of creation and concludes that God is entirely faithful, unlike anyone else. I am happy to be the owner of lots of insurance policies! I like the security that insurance gives and am more than happy to pay up, but we only need insurance because we live in a world where there is so much uncertainty. Things break and people let us down, and we need to have the cushion of insurance to keep life going. However, when we look to God, we need to take out no insurance against the possibility that he might let us down. We can lean with all our weight on him, knowing that he will never fail us. I love Deuteronomy 33:26-27, where Moses, like the psalmist, speaks of God against the great canvas of creation: “There is no one like the God of Israel. He rides across the heavens to help you, across the skies in majestic splendour. The eternal God is your refuge, and his everlasting arms are under you.” David Winter, the broadcaster, once commented on that last verse that God has never dropped a catch yet! If you place your life in the hands of God, you can be sure that you are safe for time and eternity. Life challenges us all in innumerable ways and the future is a mystery, but if we know that God will always be by our side, we can go forward with confidence and peace. Question In what way is God’s faithfulness important to you? Prayer Loving God, I thank you that you can be depended upon completely. Help me to trust you with every part of my life. Amen

Revelation 21:3-4 [John wrote:] “I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” Here, John gives us a wonderful vision of heaven. If our present world is characterised by the gap between God and humankind, heaven is the place where no such gap exists. God will live with his people with an intimacy that we cannot fully experience here on earth. In consequence, it will be a place where death, sorrow, crying and pain have come to an end. All four have to do with separation, and when we are in the nearer presence of God, there will be no separation. What a joy and relief that will be! Christians have varied enormously in their thinking about heaven. Some have devoted so much time and energy to focusing on heaven that they have been distracted from their responsibilities here on earth. To use the famous expression, they have been ‘so heavenly-minded that they have been no earthly good’! However, I have met far more Christians at the other end of the spectrum. They have been so earthly-minded that they have barely thought about their eternal home. I believe that God wants us to keep our eyes fixed on our eternal home because that will give us confidence and peace as we live our lives here on earth. When Jesus was preparing to leave his disciples, he sought to give them reassurance by pointing out that there was more than enough room in his Father’s home. He told them that he was going ahead of them to prepare the way and, in answer to Thomas’ questioning, replied that he himself was the way, the truth and the life (John 14:1-6). We don’t need to know the details of heaven, and the Bible offers no more than clues about what it will be like, but we do need to know that we are in safe hands and that everything has been prepared for us. That’s precisely the assurance that we have been given. Question What do you think heaven will be like? Prayer Lord God, thank you that my future is totally secure in your hands. Amen

Revelation 5:12 “Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered – to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and blessing.” Life is full of mysteries. The evil of our world is agonising, and the innocent suffer in ways that continually horrify and distress us. In this chapter, John shares his vision of a scroll which held the answers to the mysteries of the world, but there was a problem. There were seven seals to this scroll, and nobody could be found to open it. John wept bitterly at this, but the 24 elders pointed out that somebody had been found who was worthy to break open the seal. He was the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David’s throne, none other than Jesus Christ himself. Jesus was the victorious lion but also the lamb. He had only won his great victory because he had been willing to become a sacrificial offering. In response, millions of angels burst out in song, praising him. This takes us to the heart of this amazing book. It recognises the terrible evil of the world but directs us to the one who both understands what is going on and has won the greatest victory over darkness. I love that this momentous event was celebrated by singing, and the singing only grew in intensity. The following verse talks about every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea singing in celebration of the greatness of the Lamb. When we sing in our churches, we need to remind ourselves that we are taking part in an eternal chorus of praise to God. As we sing, we enjoy a unique form of unity not only with those around us but with the whole of God’s people in every place and in every age. There are many aspects to the book of Revelation that are strange and unfamiliar to us, but amid the strangeness, we need to cling tightly to those things which are incredibly clear. The greatest of them is that Jesus is Lord. To a society which believed that Caesar was Lord, and in which the Church faced continual persecution and rejection, this brought great encouragement. To us today, as we gaze at the brokenness and sadness of an ungodly and destructive world, we need to draw new encouragement and strength from the fact that Jesus is Lord. Question What encouragement do you draw from this passage? Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, I worship you, for blessing, honour, glory and power belong to you. Amen