Wednesday, April 10, 2019

DAY 29 - New Willingness: Lord, I want to be clean (Please click here for English podcast)



Silence

1.   Put on your “brakes” and stop for a moment of silence
2.   Wait for God. Breathe deep for God's peace. Exhale your worries.

Praise and Thanksgiving

1.   Think through your day, all the times that made you smile
2.   Thank God for all those moments, and for all those people
3.   Open your heart to praise the Lord

       The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  Psalm 23:1
                                                                       
Confession and repentance

1.  Pray for the Holy Spirit to work in you:

     “Dear Holy Spirit, shine your light into the places of darkness in my life. Show me my sins, everything that blocks me from encountering God. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

2.  Through the Holy Spirit, examine yourself for a short silence and then pray:

     "Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for our sins and being victorious over death and sin. I confess my sin to you(pause, to tell Jesus what the Holy Spirit has shown you). Forgive my sins by your blood and help me follow you. Holy Spirit, fill me that I may be able to receive your gift to love God and His people. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen."


The Word


 When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!”Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
                                                        Matthew 8:1-4
                                            

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage of scripture we have just read. Offer this time up to Jesus as you listen to him, while listening to "Gabriel's Oboe"

My Listening
    After Jesus finished the Sermon on the Mount and came down from the mountainside, He exercised the authority of what He just taught -  A New Being, New Doing and New Standard. But before we become a new being, something needs to happen.

     This is what needs to happen as in today's passage. A leper being healed by asking whether Jesus is willing. Jesus says, "I am willing. Be clean!"

     We are all lepers in someway, do you agree? No one is perfect. We all have something inside us unclean. Are you able to ask Jesus today the same question the leper asked if you have the courage to admit that you are also a leper. "Lord if you are willing, please come and make me clean."

     That's the act of confession, the heart of repentance. Through repentance, we will be clean and start our new life as a New Being, New Doing and New Standard. 

     That's your new willingness. Whether you are willing to ask Jesus to make you clean each day marks the difference whether you stay to be a leper or to be a powerful servant of God.

     Are you willing to admit that you are one of the lepers and you need the blood of Jesus to cleanse you each day so that you can experience and exercise what Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount: 

New Being, New Doing, New Standard 

Dear Lord Jesus,
      Lead us to be willing to ask you to make us clean each day.  In Jesus name we pray. Amen.   

Reflect on these questions:
1. Today passage's healing is the first thing Jesus did after he finished the sermon on the mount. If this is not a co-incidence, what is the significance of this healing? How is that to do with you?

2. Do you admit that you are also one of the lepers? Why? How frequent do you need cleansing and healing? How willing are you to ask Jesus for cleansing and healing?

3. What is the one step that you are going to do, so that you are clean and healthy spiritually each day?

Family Corner:
1. When you talk about clean and healthy, what does that mean to your family members? Can you catch this special opportunity to talk about the spiritual side of clean and healthy?

2. How could you bring up the issue that we are lepers and sinners as a casual talk during dinner or during a family devotional time?

Praise and Thanksgiving
Let's give thanks for God with us. Let us praise Him:
10,000 Reasons

Please click this link to the app. Andy Ng wrote. You really need to use that if you have an Android cel. Andy said he is going to do the App. for iPhone later:

You may choose to follow my other daily blog:
Daily Devotion on Fire: http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/
Daily Devotion on Fire 2: http://bishopsilas2.blogspot.ca/

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