Who Do You Listen To? a devotion by Ann Broughton

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, no one can snatch them out of my hand” (John 10: 27-28 NIV).

Who do you listen to? I know there might be some people who are reading this who listen to an inner voice that says: “You are stupid”, “You are fat” “You will never amount to anything”, “Nobody loves you”, You will never succeed”. If you are a Christian you need to know that these words are not what Christ would want you to dwell on. You are an heir to the kingdom of God. “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:16-17 NIV).

You can listen to the voice of darkness, Satan, or choose to listen to the Holy Spirit. Satan is spoken of in the Bible as being the darkness. Jesus spoke to Paul about this. “I am sending you to them (Gentiles) to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me” (Acts 26:17-18 NIV). Satan would love for you to wallow in misery and self-condemnation. But the Holy Spirit within you will fill your soul with hope and peace. “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13 NIV).

When you start saying negative things about yourself, you are in darkness. When Jesus was being tempted by Satan, he rebuked him. Jesus said, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only” (Matthew 4:10 NIV). I would suggest that you say the same thing to the devil.

“Away from me, Satan. The Bible says I am an heir of God. You have no authority over me because I am sealed with the Holy Spirit”. You must be the one to change your thinking. Nobody can do that for you.

Dear Lord,

Please help me when my thoughts are full of negativity about myself. I know it is only the devil trying to convince me I am worthless. I know that he is wrong. Help me to immediately rebuke him, and believe the truth that only you can give me; that I am a child of God. Let your light in me shine before others so that they will see your love through my actions.

In Jesus’ name, Amen

His Glorious Light by Ann Elaine Broughton

"God is light, in him there is no darkness at all." I John 1:5

"You are the light of the world........In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:14,16

    Our church has a beautiful stained glass window of the nativity with Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus in the manger.  If you look at it in the evening from inside the sanctuary the whole window looks black. There is no indication of the beauty at all that’s hidden in the darkness. On Sunday morning the sun shines through the window, displaying beautiful colors and the manger scene. The gold in the windows literally glitters and sparkles as the sun dances through it.

    I imagine that seeing the stain glass window in the evening is like our lives without Christ, full of darkness.  I Peter 2:9 NIV says: "But, you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." Without Christ in our lives we live in darkness, but when we surrender our lives to Him, His light shines through us. This light purifies us. I John 1:7 NIV tells us: "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin." Isn't that reassuring?

    Why would people want to stay in darkness when Jesus can bring light into their lives and bring them peace? Just as the light shines through that window and reveals its beauty, so does the Son of God shine through us to reveal His glory to others.     May you shine His love into other people's lives so that they will be blessed and glorify God for your kindness. Do an act of kindness for someone this week in the name of Christ and smile.....You are the light of the world.

Dear Lord,

Thank you so much for bringing us out of our darkness and purifying us from our sins. Let us shine our lights before men so that others will know your love and be drawn to your glorious light.

In Jesus' name,

Amen