Blessed Are The Persecuted

By Cheri Cowell

You have experienced the final beatitude, haven’t you? My professor asked rhetorically after hearing my tale of persecution. He then went on to explain to the class that although the last beatitude says we are blessed if we are persecuted for His sake, when it is happening, we won’t feel too blessed. While I was experiencing the worst of the persecution, I found the psalms to utter what I could not express to God in my prayers—the pain and alienation was too great. Within the psalms, those who are persecuted will find an echo of their deep emotions.

Seventy-two psalms, almost half of the book, are about persecution at the hand of enemies. If you are a Christian and doing God’s bidding, you will experience persecution. The persecution is never enjoyable, but Jesus did promise us we would be blessed. How? One of the ways is through the closeness of Christ during these dark days. I do not want to experience the pain of persecution again, but I am almost willing to do so, if I could be that close to Him again.

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Justified

By Cheri Cowell

Recently several high profile court cases played themselves out in the media. Emotions were high on both sides, and depending on which media outlet you listened to, when the verdict was pronounced justice had prevailed or had been done a disservice. I wondered what it must feel like for the victims in each case, and what it must feel like to the accused when the jury finds them not guilty when they are, or guilty when they aren’t. It is difficult to imagine a verdict that is truly just.

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From a Hole

By Cheri Cowell

Have you ever fallen in a hole? Recently my local news shared the story of a woman who, while out walking her dog, fell into a ten-foot deep, two-foot wide cylinder-shaped hole. It took several hours for the rescuers to safely extract her from her earthen prison.

There have been many times I’ve fallen into a hole. Oh, not a real hole, but a hole nonetheless. These are the dark times in my life; times when I’ve felt alone, persecuted, misunderstood, even abandoned by God. There is no way God can reach me here, I say, knowing that it’s not true.

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Sitting On A Hill

I just heard a news report that parents and their young children are not getting enough sleep.  I hope they didn’t pay a lot for that research, because we could have told them that.  My husband and I require different amounts of sleep, but both of us need our down time.  As Christians we also need God time.  Not only time to study and pray, but also time to just sit and be still.  Our spirits plea for us to take time to simply listen and be renewed.  Jesus needed the same thing.

It would have been easy for Jesus to keep preaching, knowing He only had a few days left.  This easily overlooked passage tells us, in the midst of it all He went out and sat on a hill.  How many times have I said, “I have so much to do before I can rest tonight”?  Even Jesus, the Son of God, the Holy One Himself, knew He needed renewal each night.  Yes, parents, children, and everyone else are most likely not getting enough rest.  And every Christian can probably use more time to sit on a hill and be still with God.

PRAYER: Dear God, help us set aside the big to-do list each night and spend a few minutes with You in stillness, sitting on a hill.

“So every day Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, but at night he went and stayed on the Mount of Olives,” Luke 21:37 NET.

Today’s devotion is by Cheri Cowell, a student at Asbury Theological Seminary (Orlando).  Cheri writes and speaks on the deep questions of faith.  Her first book Direction: Discernment for the Decisions of Your Life (Beacon Hill) is described as a biblically sound, no nonsense approach to making God-centered life choices.  For comments or to inquire about her speaking schedule, visit www.DirectionAndDiscernment.com.

The First Mystery Writer

Do you like a good mystery?  I love to watch mystery movies; you know the ones that give clues along the way but don’t give the whole picture until the very end. The really good ones toss some turns in there to throw you off so when the mystery is finally revealed you say, “Ohhh, I missed that!”

Did you know that God was the first mystery writer?  Yes, and just like in a good movie, He gave the real clues all along, but many people missed it. And just like at the end of movies, we turn to our friends and say, “Did you get it?” Paul is saying that now. In fact he explains the whole mystery to us because so many missed the clues. People began to think that God might have tricked them with some of His turns, but Paul explains that God’s timing is perfect. He was not withholding the mystery from past generations, but was revealing it in His perfect timing. Praise God, the mystery is revealed: God’s plan includes all the people of the world.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You that from the beginning of time You have scripted the greatest mystery ever written to include all the people of the earth.  We praise You today for revealing the mystery to us and for giving us a role to play in revealing the mystery to others.

“Now this secret was not disclosed to people in former generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit, namely, that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus.”  (Ephesians 3:5-6 NET)

Today’s devotion is written by Cheri Cowell, a student at Asbury Theological Seminary (Orlando).  Cheri writes and speaks on the deep questions of faith.  Her first book Direction: Discernment for the Decisions of Your Life (Beacon Hill) is called a biblically sound, no nonsense approach to making God-centered life choices.  For comments, or to inquire about her speaking schedule; visit www.DirectionAndDiscernment.com.

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