Written by Juliet Constantine, these devotionals share thoughts and blessings from on high to give you encouragement, wisdom, and strength to face life's many challenges. Juliet has authored two sets of devotionals: "At His Feet" and "Finding Jesus In The Scriptures". Select from all the devotionals below or choose a topic from the menus.
At first, he could not sanction His death. Jesus did nothing wrong. He found no fault in Him. So, why did these people want their proclaimed King dead? The church leaders would have secretly assassinated Him if they could, if it was in God’s plan for them to do so. They hated the fact that they couldn’t kill Him privily without getting in trouble with their Roman government. They need the approval of the Romans and they knew exactly how to secure it. Even though their Roman Governor, Pilate, wasn’t in agreement with their evil accusation and plot to kill Jesus, his hands were politically ‘tied’.
The School of Life brings continuous testing, one after another – well that’s how it seems to me. We are bombarded with one challenge after another with very little time, if any, to ‘party’ in between. Amazingly, the experiences are quite similar for those on the ‘narrow path’. God permits trials. You are not alone. Praise God in your trials.
The fact that we are called upon to endure trial shows that the Lord Jesus sees in us something precious which He desires to develop. If He saw in us nothing whereby He might glorify His name, He would not spend time in refining us. He does not cast worthless stones into His furnace. It is valuable ore that He refines.
I love a clean space! Be it my house, car, Church, or wherever I may be - I just love when I am in a clean and well kept space. When I cleaned my house from ceiling to floor, it is so much lighter, I think clearer and I sleep better! I love a clean house, not just for Sabbath but for the entire week. Everything must be clean and in order. It makes chores on Preparation Day so much easier. It takes time, energy (a really sacrifice) to keep your space clean. But it pays. And to think Jesus’ expectation of us is similar: for us to keep our bodies ‘clean’ everyday!
The trials and testing of God’s children can be termed as gold tried in the fire. Persecution and trials are prerequisites on our journey to the Kingdom. We cannot get around it; we cannot pass over or under it. We must face it. Trials are not negative. They are means of drawing us closer to the King and His Kingdom. They serve to deepen our dependence, faith and trust in God as we rely on Him for everything. They serve to strip away the unpleasant and unnecessary baggage that would only hinder us on our journey. Trials are positive markers that He’s still working on us, to make us what we ought to be!
Was Peter wrong in not wanting Jesus to do the servant’s job? It was a natural reaction. John the Baptist had similar reaction when Jesus came to him to be baptized. John forbade Him as he felt he needed to be baptized by Jesus, not the other way around. But Jesus’ gentle words reminded him that history was in the making, as all righteousness would be fulfilled. Jesus knew, though He had no sin, that His baptism was an essential act in the plan of salvation. At His words, John gladly baptized his Master.
The Holy Spirit quickens us to live for Christ. Abiding in Christ is allowing His words to be our sword, and faith our shield. As our consciences are activated, and we now see sin as it really is; in faith, we can reach out to Jesus to rescue us from the evil of sin, its power and its woe. There comes a time in one’s life when enough is enough, whatever it may be, the limit has been reached. You’ve had enough. It’s the same with sinning.
He had been so steeped in sin; well, that’s what he thought of himself and his friends concur. He could never change. The worldly lifestyle was his thrill and giving it up was unimaginable. The girls, the drinks, parties and more; that was his life. After all, he was young and it was his life to live. But God had other plans! God choose a new direction for his life-a direction that led to a total change of both the inner and outer man.
