The Upper Room Daily Devotionals in Nashville, Tennessee, United States "FOLLOWING" for Saturday, 10 September 2016 with Scripture: Luke 5:1-11

The Upper Room Daily Devotionals in Nashville, Tennessee, United States "FOLLOWING" for Saturday, 10 September 2016 with Scripture: Luke 5:1 One day, as Yeshua was standing on the shore of Lake Kinneret, with the people pressing in around him in order to hear the word of God, 2 he noticed two boats pulled up on the beach, left there by the fishermen, who were cleaning their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Shim‘on, and asked him to put out a little way from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Shim‘on, “Put out into deep water, and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 Shim‘on answered, “We’ve worked hard all night long, Rabbi, and haven’t caught a thing! But if you say so, I’ll let down the nets.” 6 They did this and took in so many fish that their nets began to tear. 7 So they motioned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them; and they came and filled both boats to the point of sinking. 8 When he saw this, Shim‘on Kefa fell at Yeshua’s knees and said, “Get away from me, sir, because I’m a sinner!” 9 For astonishment had seized him and everyone with him at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and likewise both Ya‘akov and Yochanan, Shim‘on’s partners. “Don’t be frightened,” Yeshua said to Shim‘on, “from now on you will be catching men — alive!” 11 And as soon as they had beached their boats, they left everything behind and followed him.
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When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”[John 8:12 (NIV)]
The youth group traveled in a caravan. All the youth thought the people in the first car knew their destination, and the first car continued to lead the way through the neighborhood. After they circled around several times, one of the youth called someone in the first car to ask if they knew where they were going. The people in the first car answered that they didn’t, but because everyone was following, they thought they must be headed in the right direction.
We tend to think that if many people are following someone, that person must be the right person to follow. We don’t always check to see whether that person will lead us in the right direction.
But we can be sure in following our Lord Jesus Christ. He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” He told Simon Peter, James, and John to follow. “So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.” Only Jesus can lead us to the destination that gives us life.
Read more from the author, here.
"Deborah's Secret Weapon"
Deborah was both a prophet and a judge. She was not the only female prophet in the Bible, but the only woman to hold the position of judge in Israel. In the book of Judges, the Israelites lived in a cycle of sin, repentance and deliverance. When they entered into Canaan, the promised land, they did not drive out the inhabitants of Canaan and lived with them and worshipped their gods. The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord. The anger of the Lord burned against Israel so that God sold them into the hands of their enemy. Then Israel cried out to the Lord. The gracious Lord raised up a judge to deliver them. But after a certain number of years of peace, the sons of Israel again worshipped idols. This kind of cycle continued for a few hundred years.
After the death of judge Ehud, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord again. So the Lord sold them into the hands of Jabin king of Canaan for twenty years. The Israelites cried to the Lord for help. The Lord raised up Deborah for them. She summoned Barak to lead ten thousand men to fight the battle for the Lord. But, Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.” So Deborah went with Barak to the battle. They won the battle. They destroyed their enemy. On that day Deborah and Barak sang a song to praise and give thanks to the Lord. Then the land had peace for forty years. (Judges 4-5)
I’m afraid of many things. I’m afraid of water, so I cannot swim well like a fish. I am afraid of heights, so I cannot climb tall mountains. I am also afraid of darkness, so I always leave a dim light in the room when I sleep. If I were in Deborah’s shoes, I am not sure whether I would be brave enough to fight the battle. In our lives, we might not have to go to the battle to protect our country, but we all need to fight the spiritual battle. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:10-11). This is Deborah’s secret weapon, isn’t this?
Deborah’s strength and courage was from her faith in God. She trusted in God’s mighty power. She lifted up God as the banner of her army. In our lives, we also cannot avoid facing some battles, for example broken relationship, illness or financial difficulty. Deborah’s story always reminds us that we should focus on God, not circumstances. When we focus on the circumstances, we will fear and surrender. But, when we focus on God, we will have courage, wisdom and faith to fight the good fight, just like Deborah, a spiritual warrior![Tracy Hsu Jensen, Tracy Hsu Jensen’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/faithgazebo.]
The Author: Tracy Jensen (California, USA)
Thought for the Day: How will I follow Christ today?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, we praise you for your amazing grace. Help us to follow you each step of our lives. Amen.
Prayer focus: YOUTH GROUPS
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