Devotion of the Week: number 08—To be Human is to be Wounded?
I’m reading through some daily devotionals from Newel Hillis in his book called “Facts of the Matter”. Here’s his devotion for the 19th of February:
February 19: To Be Human Is To Be Wounded21
- By parents
- By the leaders of the team who picked you last
- By ungrateful children
- By the cutting remarks of your spouse
- By colleagues who are clawing their way up the ladder
The Lord Jesus said, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me:
… To bind up the broken-hearted
- … To grant consolation and joy to those who mourn …
- An ornament of beauty instead of ashes:
- The oil of joy instead of mourning:
- The garment of praise … instead of a heavy, burdened, and failing spirit …” (Isaiah 61:1–3—NAS)
“TO BE HUMAN IS TO BE WOUNDED” … That is true—but,
Whatever your wound …
Whatever your disappointment …
Whatever your fear …
The Great Physician, who himself was deeply wounded, now waits to bring you healing …
If you will let him.[1]
Blessings,
Tony Hodge-Williams
21 Rebecca Pippert, Hope Has Its Reasons
[1] Newell Dwight Hillis, Facts of the Matter: Daily Devotionals (WORDsearch, 2000).
How’s Your Timing?DEVOTION OF THE WEEK: NUMBER 07HOW’S YOUR TIMING?
I’m reading through some daily devotionals from Newel Hillis in his book called “Facts
of the Matter”. Here’s his devotion for the 12th of February:
February 12: Timing
TIMING: A critical factor in business.
Success often depends upon sensing the moment and moving with the market. Failure
to provide the right product or service at the right TIME can spell disaster.
God also has a perfect TIMEtable. And we can easily miss it by:
Rushing ahead of him—often out of impatience, presumption or impetuousness.
“He who makes haste with his feet errs.” (Proverbs 19:2b)
Or by:
Lagging behind him—often out of fear of failure or perfectionist tendencies.
Because God has a perfect TIMEtable, “He has made everything beautiful in its TIME.”
(Ecclesiastes 3:11)
For example: Upon learning of Lazarus’ illness, Jesus delayed travelling to visit him by
two days to await his death. Upon his arrival, Christ found Lazarus entombed and proceeded
to raise him to life. (See John 11:1–42)
God’s perfect TIMING!
QUESTION: Do you have challenging decisions on your hands? Then follow the
Psalmist’s counsel on tapping into God’s TIMING:
(1) “Rest in the Lord …
(2) Wait patiently for Him …
(3) Keep to His way …”
He then promises to “exalt you to inherit the land“! (Psalm 37:5, 7, 34, 37)
May I suggest two additional considerations in determining God’s TIMING:
Inner Peace: “And let the peace of Christ rule in your heart …” (Colossians
3:15a) If you lack inner peace, the TIME to act is not now.
Your wife’s consensus: God has endowed our spouses with a ton of common
sense, and an intuitive capability that far surpasses that of most men. A man therefore, is a fool
if he chooses to ignore his wife’s advice as it relates to TIMING.
Because TIMING is so essential for success, God invites us to walk with him in the
living out of our lives. After all, “He has made everything beautiful in its TIME.”
Blessings,
Tony Hodge-Williams
