DAILY BYTE
[Today and tomorrow’s devotions were adapted from Dallas Willard’s ‘The Divine Conspiracy.’]
Jesus warned us of the danger of seeking for security outside of the Kingdom by teaching us about our treasures. Treasures are things we try to keep because of the value we place upon them. They may be of no value whatsoever in themselves; nevertheless, we take great pains to protect such things. Thus we are said to treasure them.
Of course we may also treasure things other than material goods: for example, our reputation, or our relationship to another person, or the security or reputation of our school or our business or our country. The most important commandment of the Judeo-Christian tradition is to treasure God and his realm more than anything else. That is what it means to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. It means to treasure him, to hold him and his dear, and to protect and aid him in his purposes. Our only wisdom, safety and fulfilment lies in so treasuring God. Then we will also treasure our neighbours rightly, as he treasures them.
Everyone has treasures. This is an essential part of what it is to be human. To have nothing that one treasures is to be in a non-human condition, and nothing degrades people more than to scorn or destroy or deprive them of their treasures. Indeed, merely to pry into what one’s treasures are is a severe intrusion.
People in concentration camps and those homeless folk who come to live on the streets go to great lengths and even risk their lives to hold onto to things that may be simply ridiculous to others. None of them is without some treasure. It will be perhaps a photo or old letter or some ornament or trinket.
We reveal what our treasures are by what we try to protect, secure, keep. Often our treasures are totally worthless to other people. Sometimes, of course, they are not. And that is the case with money, wealth, material goods.
So, to discuss our treasures is really to discuss our treasurings. We are not to pass it off as dealing merely with ‘external goods’, which are ‘non-spiritual’ or just physical stuff. It has to deal with the fundamental structure of our soul. It has to do precisely with whether the life we live now in the physical realm is to be an eternal one or not, and the extent to which it will be so.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Holy God, help us to understand exactly what we do treasure and give our hearts over to. Help us to recognise how powerfully our inner impulses to treasure things are, but keep us treasuring the right kind of things. The kind of things that you O God also treasure and value.. In Jesus name. Amen.
FOCUS READING
Matthew 6 :19-21 (MSG)
Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.
Tuesday, 31 March 2009
Monday, 30 March 2009
Tuesday 31st March - An Unpopular Topic
DAILY BYTE
Yesterday we spoke generically around the topic of possessions – or ‘stuff’. Today we will focus more specifically on money and how it impacts our spirituality.
Money is not a popular topic of discussion among many church goers. It is a sensitive area that many feel should not be spoken of in church. Some believe that money is a material thing and that church should be restricted to only ‘spiritual discussions’.
In stark contrast to this Jesus spoke constantly about money. In fact, after the Kingdom of God, money is the most mentioned topic in Jesus’ teaching!
Jesus seemed to understand that money could become direct competition for God. Listen to his words in Matthew 6.24, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.”
Jesus is warning us that money can have power over us if we allow it to. Money perhaps more than any other possession, has the ability to become our ‘master’. This means it has some very powerful spiritual dimensions.
So what can we do about this – how do we balance spirituality and money? Well, the Bible has a very simple answer to that – learn to generously share with others. Sharing what we have is a way of making a bold spiritual statement that we will not allow money to have any hold over us. Expressing generosity liberates us from the choking effects of greed and fear.
Remember this – we don’t give so that we might get something in return, but we give because WE NEED to do so in order to remain free.
The question that many Christians then ask is: ‘if I am to faithfully steward money, how much should I be giving?’ 2 Cor. 9.7 says: “Each person should give what they have decided in their own heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Believers are free to give the amount they choose to give. It could be 10% like Abraham (a tithe) or even 50% like Zacchaeus.
Remember though that to be a steward is to wisely care for something. We need to use our own heads when it comes to money and how much we would like to share.
As John Wesley once said: “Earn all you can, save all you can, give all you can.” We do need to ensure that we have enough money to live on, and take care of our families with, but we also need to ensure we do give something - even if it is a small as the widow’s offering (see focus reading).
Stewarding our money is about cultivating a lifestyle of wise generosity. It is vitally important to do so because giving is a means of releasing us from money’s hold over us and will set us gloriously free to live in the fullness of God’s Kingdom.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Holy God, help us to come to terms with the effect money may have over us. We repent of any greed that may live in our hearts. We want to be free and so we ask that you would show us how to be generous in nature. We pray that you would give to us the wisdom, courage and compassion we need to share with others, and to do so with cheerful hearts. In Jesus name. Amen.
FOCUS READING
Luke 21:1-4 (The Message)
Just then Jesus looked up and saw the rich people dropping offerings in the collection plate. Then he saw a poor widow put in two pennies. He said, "The plain truth is that this widow has given by far the largest offering today. All these others made offerings that they'll never miss; she gave extravagantly what she couldn't afford ... she gave her all!"
Yesterday we spoke generically around the topic of possessions – or ‘stuff’. Today we will focus more specifically on money and how it impacts our spirituality.
Money is not a popular topic of discussion among many church goers. It is a sensitive area that many feel should not be spoken of in church. Some believe that money is a material thing and that church should be restricted to only ‘spiritual discussions’.
In stark contrast to this Jesus spoke constantly about money. In fact, after the Kingdom of God, money is the most mentioned topic in Jesus’ teaching!
Jesus seemed to understand that money could become direct competition for God. Listen to his words in Matthew 6.24, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.”
Jesus is warning us that money can have power over us if we allow it to. Money perhaps more than any other possession, has the ability to become our ‘master’. This means it has some very powerful spiritual dimensions.
So what can we do about this – how do we balance spirituality and money? Well, the Bible has a very simple answer to that – learn to generously share with others. Sharing what we have is a way of making a bold spiritual statement that we will not allow money to have any hold over us. Expressing generosity liberates us from the choking effects of greed and fear.
Remember this – we don’t give so that we might get something in return, but we give because WE NEED to do so in order to remain free.
The question that many Christians then ask is: ‘if I am to faithfully steward money, how much should I be giving?’ 2 Cor. 9.7 says: “Each person should give what they have decided in their own heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Believers are free to give the amount they choose to give. It could be 10% like Abraham (a tithe) or even 50% like Zacchaeus.
Remember though that to be a steward is to wisely care for something. We need to use our own heads when it comes to money and how much we would like to share.
As John Wesley once said: “Earn all you can, save all you can, give all you can.” We do need to ensure that we have enough money to live on, and take care of our families with, but we also need to ensure we do give something - even if it is a small as the widow’s offering (see focus reading).
Stewarding our money is about cultivating a lifestyle of wise generosity. It is vitally important to do so because giving is a means of releasing us from money’s hold over us and will set us gloriously free to live in the fullness of God’s Kingdom.
PRAY AS YOU GO
Holy God, help us to come to terms with the effect money may have over us. We repent of any greed that may live in our hearts. We want to be free and so we ask that you would show us how to be generous in nature. We pray that you would give to us the wisdom, courage and compassion we need to share with others, and to do so with cheerful hearts. In Jesus name. Amen.
FOCUS READING
Luke 21:1-4 (The Message)
Just then Jesus looked up and saw the rich people dropping offerings in the collection plate. Then he saw a poor widow put in two pennies. He said, "The plain truth is that this widow has given by far the largest offering today. All these others made offerings that they'll never miss; she gave extravagantly what she couldn't afford ... she gave her all!"
Sunday, 29 March 2009
Monday 30th March - Stuff
DAILY BYTE
[Today’s devotions have been adapted from John Ortberg’s book – ‘When the game is over it all goes back in the box.’]
It’s only stuff.
We all have stuff. We see it, want it, buy it, display it, insure it, and compare it with other people’s stuff. We talk about whether or not they have too much stuff; we envy or pass judgement on other people’s collections of stuff. We collect our own little pile. We imagine that if that pile got big enough, we would feel successful or secure.
That’s how you keep score in Monopoly, and that’s how our culture generally keeps score as well.
You get a house, then you have to get stuff to put in it. You keep getting more stuff, and you need a bigger house. A house, said comedian George Carlin, is just a pile of stuff with a cover on it. Some people have actually survived without owning one. Jesus, for instance.
Some people have a gift for acquiring stuff. Not long ago I took my daughter to a place called Hearst Castle. William Randolph Hearst was a “stuffaholic.” He had 3, 500-year-old Egyptian statues, medieval Flemish tapestries, and centuries-old hand-carved ceilings, and some of the greatest works of art of all time, most of which came from Sweden.
He built a house of 72,000 square feet to put his stuff in. He acquired property for his house: 265,000 acres: he originally owned fifty miles of California coastline. He collected stuff for eighty-eight years. Then you know what he did?
He died. That was shortsighted.
Now people go through Hearst’s house by the thousands. They all say the same thing: “Wow, he sure had a lot of stuff.”
People go through life, get stuff, and then they die, leaving all their stuff behind. What happens to it? The kids argue over it. The kids – who haven’t died yet, who are really just pre-dead people – to over to their parent’s house. They pick through their parents’ old stuff like vultures, deciding which stuff they want to take to their houses. They say to themselves, “Now this is my stuff.” Then they die – and some new vultures come for it. People come and go. Nations go to war over stuff, families are split apart because of stuff. Husbands and wives argue more about stuff than any other single issue. Prisons are full of street thugs and CEOs who committed crimes to acquire it.
Why? It’s only stuff. Houses and hotels may be the crowning jewels in Monopoly. But the moment the game ends they go back in the box. So it is with all our stuff.
This week’s devotions are focussed on the relationship we have with our stuff because it so profoundly impacts our spirituality. This was one of Jesus most consistent and emphatic messages – that our relationship with our stuff deeply affects our relationship with God!
PRAY AS YOU GO
Gracious and Giving God, help us to understand how drastically the way we view our ‘stuff’ – the way we relate to possessions and money and more profoundly impacts our spirituality. Pray bring us into a balanced relationship with material possessions – a balance that is brought about by our primary relationship with you. Amen.
FOCUS READING
Luke 12:15
Then Jesus said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a person’s life does not consist in the abundance of their possessions."
[Today’s devotions have been adapted from John Ortberg’s book – ‘When the game is over it all goes back in the box.’]
It’s only stuff.
We all have stuff. We see it, want it, buy it, display it, insure it, and compare it with other people’s stuff. We talk about whether or not they have too much stuff; we envy or pass judgement on other people’s collections of stuff. We collect our own little pile. We imagine that if that pile got big enough, we would feel successful or secure.
That’s how you keep score in Monopoly, and that’s how our culture generally keeps score as well.
You get a house, then you have to get stuff to put in it. You keep getting more stuff, and you need a bigger house. A house, said comedian George Carlin, is just a pile of stuff with a cover on it. Some people have actually survived without owning one. Jesus, for instance.
Some people have a gift for acquiring stuff. Not long ago I took my daughter to a place called Hearst Castle. William Randolph Hearst was a “stuffaholic.” He had 3, 500-year-old Egyptian statues, medieval Flemish tapestries, and centuries-old hand-carved ceilings, and some of the greatest works of art of all time, most of which came from Sweden.
He built a house of 72,000 square feet to put his stuff in. He acquired property for his house: 265,000 acres: he originally owned fifty miles of California coastline. He collected stuff for eighty-eight years. Then you know what he did?
He died. That was shortsighted.
Now people go through Hearst’s house by the thousands. They all say the same thing: “Wow, he sure had a lot of stuff.”
People go through life, get stuff, and then they die, leaving all their stuff behind. What happens to it? The kids argue over it. The kids – who haven’t died yet, who are really just pre-dead people – to over to their parent’s house. They pick through their parents’ old stuff like vultures, deciding which stuff they want to take to their houses. They say to themselves, “Now this is my stuff.” Then they die – and some new vultures come for it. People come and go. Nations go to war over stuff, families are split apart because of stuff. Husbands and wives argue more about stuff than any other single issue. Prisons are full of street thugs and CEOs who committed crimes to acquire it.
Why? It’s only stuff. Houses and hotels may be the crowning jewels in Monopoly. But the moment the game ends they go back in the box. So it is with all our stuff.
This week’s devotions are focussed on the relationship we have with our stuff because it so profoundly impacts our spirituality. This was one of Jesus most consistent and emphatic messages – that our relationship with our stuff deeply affects our relationship with God!
PRAY AS YOU GO
Gracious and Giving God, help us to understand how drastically the way we view our ‘stuff’ – the way we relate to possessions and money and more profoundly impacts our spirituality. Pray bring us into a balanced relationship with material possessions – a balance that is brought about by our primary relationship with you. Amen.
FOCUS READING
Luke 12:15
Then Jesus said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a person’s life does not consist in the abundance of their possessions."
Saturday, 28 March 2009
Sunday March 29th - Makabongwe
Weekend Blurb
The BDC is a weekday devotional aimed at anyone and everyone who struggles to keep up with the stressful demands of daily life.
This is why there are no weekend devotions prepared; however look out for your next update which will be this Monday.
Every weekend we will use this space to focus on a different mission project. This is an excellent opportunity to see how many people are striving to make a real difference in this country, and also how you might become involved.
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School had small beginnings with children sitting on cardboard in Grey Street, Durban. It was the initiative of a group of Christian women who felt that no child should be illiterate.
Today that initiative has grown into a bright, sunny pre-school with premises in Alice Street. Seventy children drawn primarily from the street vendors in the area now have a safe environment to learn play and grow as God intended. These disadvantaged children are given a good grade R education following the National Education Syllabus.
Makabongwe means “Let Him be praised” and we do praise Him for He has indeed blessed this little school.
You can help make a difference by sponsoring a child monthly or a once off donation, thus ensuring a brighter future for the children.
Contact:
Colleen 084209409.
Manning Road Methodist Church 031 202 8262.
Bank details:
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School
FNB
Account - 50710017936
Branch - 223526
The BDC is a weekday devotional aimed at anyone and everyone who struggles to keep up with the stressful demands of daily life.
This is why there are no weekend devotions prepared; however look out for your next update which will be this Monday.
Every weekend we will use this space to focus on a different mission project. This is an excellent opportunity to see how many people are striving to make a real difference in this country, and also how you might become involved.
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School had small beginnings with children sitting on cardboard in Grey Street, Durban. It was the initiative of a group of Christian women who felt that no child should be illiterate.
Today that initiative has grown into a bright, sunny pre-school with premises in Alice Street. Seventy children drawn primarily from the street vendors in the area now have a safe environment to learn play and grow as God intended. These disadvantaged children are given a good grade R education following the National Education Syllabus.
Makabongwe means “Let Him be praised” and we do praise Him for He has indeed blessed this little school.
You can help make a difference by sponsoring a child monthly or a once off donation, thus ensuring a brighter future for the children.
Contact:
Colleen 084209409.
Manning Road Methodist Church 031 202 8262.
Bank details:
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School
FNB
Account - 50710017936
Branch - 223526
Friday, 27 March 2009
Saturday March 28th - Makabongwe
Weekend Blurb
The BDC is a weekday devotional aimed at anyone and everyone who struggles to keep up with the stressful demands of daily life.
This is why there are no weekend devotions prepared; however look out for your next update which will be this Monday.
Every weekend we will use this space to focus on a different mission project. This is an excellent opportunity to see how many people are striving to make a real difference in this country, and also how you might become involved.
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School had small beginnings with children sitting on cardboard in Grey Street, Durban. It was the initiative of a group of Christian women who felt that no child should be illiterate.
Today that initiative has grown into a bright, sunny pre-school with premises in Alice Street. Seventy children drawn primarily from the street vendors in the area now have a safe environment to learn play and grow as God intended. These disadvantaged children are given a good grade R education following the National Education Syllabus.
Makabongwe means “Let Him be praised” and we do praise Him for He has indeed blessed this little school.
You can help make a difference by sponsoring a child monthly or a once off donation, thus ensuring a brighter future for the children.
Contact:
Colleen 084209409.
Manning Road Methodist Church 031 202 8262.
Bank details:
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School
FNB
Account - 50710017936
Branch - 223526
The BDC is a weekday devotional aimed at anyone and everyone who struggles to keep up with the stressful demands of daily life.
This is why there are no weekend devotions prepared; however look out for your next update which will be this Monday.
Every weekend we will use this space to focus on a different mission project. This is an excellent opportunity to see how many people are striving to make a real difference in this country, and also how you might become involved.
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School had small beginnings with children sitting on cardboard in Grey Street, Durban. It was the initiative of a group of Christian women who felt that no child should be illiterate.
Today that initiative has grown into a bright, sunny pre-school with premises in Alice Street. Seventy children drawn primarily from the street vendors in the area now have a safe environment to learn play and grow as God intended. These disadvantaged children are given a good grade R education following the National Education Syllabus.
Makabongwe means “Let Him be praised” and we do praise Him for He has indeed blessed this little school.
You can help make a difference by sponsoring a child monthly or a once off donation, thus ensuring a brighter future for the children.
Contact:
Colleen 084209409.
Manning Road Methodist Church 031 202 8262.
Bank details:
Makabongwe Methodist Pre-School
FNB
Account - 50710017936
Branch - 223526
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