January 13-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Psalm 8:1, 3-4, Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory
in the heavens. 3 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 21, Week 2, Day 1: “No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind than the thoughts of God. But while the subject humbles the mind, it also expands it. He who often thinks of God, will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow globe…The most excellent study for expanding the soul is the science of Christ, and Him crucified, and the knowledge of the Godhead in the glorious Trinity. Nothing will so enlarge the intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man, as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity.” C.H. Spurgeon, The Immutability of God.
Relate it to your life.
If I really want to grow my mind and life, then I must be willing to take a deep dive into God’s thoughts.
Do something.
“Father, open the eyes of my heart so I can see You in all of Your glory and wonder. Amen.”
January 14-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Genesis 1:1, In the beginning, God…
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted page 24, Week 2, Day 2: “The Bible opens up with the four most powerful words ever written: “in the beginning, God…” The Bible doesn’t argue for God’s existence, it simply assumes it. The Bible tells us the story of God and His work in and beyond the world. John Stott in Basic Christianity wrote, “The first four words of the Bible are more than an introduction to the creation story or to the book of Genesis. They supply the key which opens our understanding to the Bible as a whole. They tell us that the religion of the Bible is a religion of the initiative of God. You can never take God by surprise. You can never anticipate Him. He always makes the first move. He is always there “in the beginning.” Before man existed, God acted. Before man stirs himself to seek God, God sought man, in the Bible, we do not see man groping after God; we see God reaching after man.”
Relate it to your life.
From the very beginning, God has always been the first one to create and redeem my soul.
Do something.
“Father, thank You that You have acted first to establish a relationship with me, even as broken and sinful as I may be. Amen.”
January 15-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Genesis 2:15, The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 28, Week 2, Day 3: One characteristic we share with God is that we are made for cooperative participation with God in His work. God blesses people and tells them to have children and to fill the earth. He also tells them to subdue the Earth which means ruling over and taking care of it. We see an example of this in Genesis 2, when Adam (before Eve was created) is commanded to care for creation and to name the animals God had made. Could God have done all of this better Himself? Of course. But God invited the man to bring forth all the latent possibilities in creation, and to direct them in God-honoring ways, as an extension of His authority on Earth. Our work was to reflect His- six days He worked, so six days we work; He rested on the seventh day, so we are to rest on the seventh day. He is the Creator, and he creates us to be creators. Our stewardship of creation was to mirror His care in creating it.
Relate it to your life.
I have been charged with stewarding well God’s holy creation.
Do something.
“Father, show me the ways in which I need to be better steward Your beautiful handiwork. Amen.”
January 16-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Romans 3:23, for all have sinned, and fallen short of the glory of God,
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 32, Week 2, Day 4: Something is deeply wrong with our world. We not only hurt each other, but we harm ourselves in endlessly destructive ways. Sin is a powerfully destructive force in the world. However, it’s important to remember the impact is felt not only by those around us, but it deeply affects the heart of God. Sin’s greatest impact is in our relationship with God. Not only do we fail to cherish and enjoy Him, but our rebellion against Him earns us the wages of sin: death and eternal separation from Him (Romans 6:23). The fact that God is holy means that He is perfectly just and cannot tolerate the destruction of His creation. God hates the sin that damages us, our lives, and our relationship with Him.
Relate it to your life.
My sin ultimately impacts all of my relationships in one way or another, seen or unseen.
Do something.
“Father, I confess I am a sinner, only saved by Your generous grace through Jesus. Amen.”
January 17-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Romans 5:9-11, Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 36, Week 2, Day 5: As we learned yesterday, none of us are able, on our own, to avoid sin and be reunited with God. The good news is our Creator quickly moves to become our Redeemer and implements a plan to deal with our sin, bringing us back into relationship with Himself. In spite of our sin and rebellion, God does not remain distant from our world, but enters this world to restore us to Himself, and set the world back to the way he designed it to be. He comes to the center of our damaged souls and deals directly with the disease the Bible calls sin. We are redeemed and restored by Jesus, who took sin and its consequences upon Himself.
Relate it to your life.
I have nothing to brag about except what Christ Jesus has done for me.
Do something.
“Father, I am overwhelmed with Your grace that is vast enough to redeem and restore my soul. Amen.”
January 18-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Acts 16:25-26, About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, pages 39-40: Pastor Peter Kasirivu tells of his experience when Idi Amin became the dictator of Uganda. In talking with believers during that time, he says they were always very alert, and their relationship with God was so deep because they had to totally depend on God for protection and provision. The people who gave their lives to Christ were very genuine. They knew that it was not just a change of religion, but also a matter of life and death. The church I later joined had 50 congregations around the country at the time when churches had to go underground, but by the time Amin left and freedom was restored, they had 400 congregations. The church grew even under extreme oppression!
Relate it to your life.
Nothing will stop the advancement of the Church around the world.
Do something.
“Father, give me such resilient faith to hold true to You regardless of the opposition. Amen.”
Write out the Scripture.
Psalm 8:1, 3-4, Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory
in the heavens. 3 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 21, Week 2, Day 1: “No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind than the thoughts of God. But while the subject humbles the mind, it also expands it. He who often thinks of God, will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow globe…The most excellent study for expanding the soul is the science of Christ, and Him crucified, and the knowledge of the Godhead in the glorious Trinity. Nothing will so enlarge the intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man, as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity.” C.H. Spurgeon, The Immutability of God.
Relate it to your life.
If I really want to grow my mind and life, then I must be willing to take a deep dive into God’s thoughts.
Do something.
“Father, open the eyes of my heart so I can see You in all of Your glory and wonder. Amen.”
January 14-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Genesis 1:1, In the beginning, God…
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted page 24, Week 2, Day 2: “The Bible opens up with the four most powerful words ever written: “in the beginning, God…” The Bible doesn’t argue for God’s existence, it simply assumes it. The Bible tells us the story of God and His work in and beyond the world. John Stott in Basic Christianity wrote, “The first four words of the Bible are more than an introduction to the creation story or to the book of Genesis. They supply the key which opens our understanding to the Bible as a whole. They tell us that the religion of the Bible is a religion of the initiative of God. You can never take God by surprise. You can never anticipate Him. He always makes the first move. He is always there “in the beginning.” Before man existed, God acted. Before man stirs himself to seek God, God sought man, in the Bible, we do not see man groping after God; we see God reaching after man.”
Relate it to your life.
From the very beginning, God has always been the first one to create and redeem my soul.
Do something.
“Father, thank You that You have acted first to establish a relationship with me, even as broken and sinful as I may be. Amen.”
January 15-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Genesis 2:15, The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 28, Week 2, Day 3: One characteristic we share with God is that we are made for cooperative participation with God in His work. God blesses people and tells them to have children and to fill the earth. He also tells them to subdue the Earth which means ruling over and taking care of it. We see an example of this in Genesis 2, when Adam (before Eve was created) is commanded to care for creation and to name the animals God had made. Could God have done all of this better Himself? Of course. But God invited the man to bring forth all the latent possibilities in creation, and to direct them in God-honoring ways, as an extension of His authority on Earth. Our work was to reflect His- six days He worked, so six days we work; He rested on the seventh day, so we are to rest on the seventh day. He is the Creator, and he creates us to be creators. Our stewardship of creation was to mirror His care in creating it.
Relate it to your life.
I have been charged with stewarding well God’s holy creation.
Do something.
“Father, show me the ways in which I need to be better steward Your beautiful handiwork. Amen.”
January 16-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Romans 3:23, for all have sinned, and fallen short of the glory of God,
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 32, Week 2, Day 4: Something is deeply wrong with our world. We not only hurt each other, but we harm ourselves in endlessly destructive ways. Sin is a powerfully destructive force in the world. However, it’s important to remember the impact is felt not only by those around us, but it deeply affects the heart of God. Sin’s greatest impact is in our relationship with God. Not only do we fail to cherish and enjoy Him, but our rebellion against Him earns us the wages of sin: death and eternal separation from Him (Romans 6:23). The fact that God is holy means that He is perfectly just and cannot tolerate the destruction of His creation. God hates the sin that damages us, our lives, and our relationship with Him.
Relate it to your life.
My sin ultimately impacts all of my relationships in one way or another, seen or unseen.
Do something.
“Father, I confess I am a sinner, only saved by Your generous grace through Jesus. Amen.”
January 17-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Romans 5:9-11, Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, page 36, Week 2, Day 5: As we learned yesterday, none of us are able, on our own, to avoid sin and be reunited with God. The good news is our Creator quickly moves to become our Redeemer and implements a plan to deal with our sin, bringing us back into relationship with Himself. In spite of our sin and rebellion, God does not remain distant from our world, but enters this world to restore us to Himself, and set the world back to the way he designed it to be. He comes to the center of our damaged souls and deals directly with the disease the Bible calls sin. We are redeemed and restored by Jesus, who took sin and its consequences upon Himself.
Relate it to your life.
I have nothing to brag about except what Christ Jesus has done for me.
Do something.
“Father, I am overwhelmed with Your grace that is vast enough to redeem and restore my soul. Amen.”
January 18-A Taste of Rooted
Write out the Scripture.
Acts 16:25-26, About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.
Observe what it is saying.
Rooted, pages 39-40: Pastor Peter Kasirivu tells of his experience when Idi Amin became the dictator of Uganda. In talking with believers during that time, he says they were always very alert, and their relationship with God was so deep because they had to totally depend on God for protection and provision. The people who gave their lives to Christ were very genuine. They knew that it was not just a change of religion, but also a matter of life and death. The church I later joined had 50 congregations around the country at the time when churches had to go underground, but by the time Amin left and freedom was restored, they had 400 congregations. The church grew even under extreme oppression!
Relate it to your life.
Nothing will stop the advancement of the Church around the world.
Do something.
“Father, give me such resilient faith to hold true to You regardless of the opposition. Amen.”
Posted in Daily Devotionals