Agape Devotions

Read Psalm 30-31 Verse chosen for meditation: Psalm 30:3 ESV O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol; you restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit. Reflect This chapter of the Psalter is crafted in the style of a thanksgiving. More specifically, as is believed by some scholars, a song for the dedication of David's palace. Or perhaps, the temple though it was not until the reign of Solomon that the temple was finally built. As befitting a thanksgiving, it includes the de rigueur testimony or testimonies. By which, the character of God is given another fresh look, and appreciated once more for its worth through the shared or narrated accounts. At such times, God seems familiarly understood. He's no longer the aloof, or the unconcerned one, but the God who cares. What's due next is the offering of praise. By then, it'll not be by one sole individual but many. Providing inspiring material for the Psalm is life itself and its myriad polar opposites....

  READ : Genesis 49, 50. Psalm 29 Passage referred to:    But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God?    As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.  Genesis 50:19,20 REFLECTION Life was a frightening nightmare for Joseph. He was the youngest and most doted upon by his parents. He was his father’s favourite child, and the son of his father’s favoured wife. While his brothers were out in the fields, he was home running errands. How much better could life be for anyone? And then the unimaginable happened. He became a victim of human trafficking. Except that the perpetuators were not a gang of kidnappers, but his own brothers. Suddenly separated from his parents, this child was sold as a slave in a faraway land. Besides fear and uncertainty, what thoughts might have passed through Joseph’s mind? “Do my brothers not car...

Read: Genesis 47-48 / Psalm 28 No devotion for today as it is Sunday. Sunday sermons are based on readings for the day.

READ: Genesis 45-46 / Psalm 27 Verses chosen for meditation: Genesis 47:7-11   7 Then Joseph brought in Jacob his father and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.  8 And Pharaoh said to Jacob, "How many are the days of the years of your life?"  9 And Jacob said to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning."  10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from the presence of Pharaoh.   REFLECT It was a strange conversation between a mighty King and a broken man who just managed to reconcile with a lost son. It was apparent that Pharaoh treated Jacob with great respect; expectedly so since the Egyptian King had loved and trusted Joseph. Hence, Pharaoh asked the Patriarch a respectful question: “How many days of the years of your life?” If it was a younger ...

READ: Genesis 43-44 / Psalm 26 Verse chosen for meditation - Gen.43:14 " May   God Almighty  grant you mercy before the man, and may he send back your other brother and Benjamin. And as for me,   if I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.” REFLECT The food finally ran out and Jacob’s family needed to go back to Egypt for more.  Judah persuaded Jacob to let Benjamin go back to Egypt with him and that he would be responsible for his safety.  Jacob feared he wouldn’t see his Benjamin again, but agreed.  He recognised that only God would protect them.  He said,  “If I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.”  –  Gen. 43:14 .  Sometimes we need to let go of control and trust God. It is not resignation to fate, but faith in God who knows best. That’s what Jacob did. He surrendered to God’s will.  He sent his 11 sons back to Egypt.  Jacob sent gifts and doubled the money.  When the ...

  READ : Genesis 41-42 / Psalm 25 Verse chosen for meditation: Genesis 42:21-24 21 Then they said to one another, “In truth we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.” 22 And Reuben answered them, “Did I not tell you not to sin against the boy? But you did not listen. So now there comes a reckoning for his blood.” 23 They did not know that Joseph understood them, for there was an interpreter between them. 24 Then he turned away from them and wept. And he returned to them and spoke to them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. REFLECT In a dramatic fashion that trumps many of our TV dramas, Joseph sees his brothers again, some 20 years after they sold him to slavery. In these chapters, we also unravel God’s providence and good purpose, allowing the brothers’ hatred and vile actions which led to Joseph saving many lives not ...

READ : Genesis 39-40, Psalm 24 Verses chosen for meditation: Genesis 39:2 and  9 2  The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master.   9  No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?”   REFLECT The narrative in Genesis 39 recorded Joseph’s dire situations after he was sold to the household of the Egyptian official named Potiphar in Egypt. When his brothers sold him to Potiphar, Joseph found himself in a culture surrounded by people who believed in thousands of gods.   To make things worse, Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph. When Joseph refused repeatedly, she falsely accused him, leading him being sent to prison (verses 16 - 20). As a Hebrew slave, Joseph could easily be accused and his defence left unheard since Egyptians were generally...

READ  Genesis 37:2-38:30; Psalm 23 Verse chosen for meditation: Psalm 23:1 "The LORD is my shepherd. I shall not want." REFLECT In this beautiful Psalm, recited usually at the end of one's life journey, there contains six verses, each a nugget of inspiration on its own. It's said that there are as many as eleven hidden names of God in the passage, from Jehovah - Raah to Jehovah - Cheleq. The impression is given of the psalmist having an insider's intimate view as well as a pilgrim's overall view of life with God, as the various names of Jehovah imply. Though it could be verse six, which made it the choice passage that it is, verse one is unmistakably still the 'poster boy' of Psalm 23. Just mention 'The Lord is my shepherd' and the reference to the Psalm could not be more immediate.  What is it about verse one that really makes it tick? Besides making a strong statement, the verse sets the tone for the rest of the Psalm. Or is it the other way ...

READ:  Genesis 36:1-37:1 / Psalm 22 Verses chosen for meditation: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?  Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? Psalm 22:1 “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;     let him rescue him, for he delights in him!” Psalm 22:8 they have pierced my hands and feet— 17  I can count all my bones— they stare and gloat over me; 18  they divide my garments among them,     and for my clothing they cast lots. Psalm 22:16-18 REFLECT This Psalm was written by King David, though it is unclear when or how some of the wounds and insults mentioned in his lament were inflicted. For example, were his hands and feet ever pierced v16? There is no biblical or historical evidence that such an event ever happened, though such an eventuality is not inconceivable. Notably, many incidents in this psalm have found parallels in the crucifixion of our Lord Jes...

Bible Readings: Genesis 34-35 / Psalm 21 No devotions for today (Sunday) Agape MC Service (Sermon on Genesis 35:1-4 )

READ Genesis 32-33 / Psalm 20 Verses chosen for meditation Genesis 32:9-12 “And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred, that I may do you good,’ 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. 11 Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I fear him, that he may come and attack me, the mothers with the children. 12 But you said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’” REFLECT This was a first for Jacob. To appeal to God in such a manner to deliver him from his brother’s wrath and assumed vengeance. It was a legitimate fear. For Jacob knew that he had done great wrongs to his brother. He had humiliated him on two counts. Cheated...

READ : Genesis 29-31/ Psalm 19 Verse chosen for meditation  "Go back to the land of your fathers, and to your relatives, and I will be with you." (Genesis 31:3) REFLECT Jacob had met God in a dream with the ladder and he arrived at his grandfather Abraham’s hometown to find a wife.  Like his father who went before him, Jacob found the woman he wanted to marry at a well (Genesis 29:9). Her name was Rachel. Jacob agreed to work for Rachel’s father, Laban, 7 years in exchange for her hand in marriage (Genesis 29:18).  Thus, began a series of tricks and deceit between Jacob and Laban. Laban deceived Jacob into accidentally marrying Rachel’s older sister, Leah. Jacob must work 7 more years to be allowed to marry Rachel as well.  This created a rivalry between Leah and Rachel that resulted in them each trying to have children with Jacob (Genesis 30:1).  Through this outrageous rivalry, Jacob had 12 sons, which God would turn into the 12 tribes of Israel.  But the...

READ : Genesis 27-28 / Psalm 18 Verse chosen for meditation: Genesis 27:34-35 34 As soon as Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” 35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.”   REFLECT It’s a heart-wrenching passage to read. Not once, but twice, Jacob cheated Esau of what’s his. Isaac, in anger with how Jacob took advantage of his blindness, still chose not to retract his blessing to Jacob. This shows the importance placed in words said and blessings given. They hold weight, not something to alter easily, even under such circumstances.   One may feel for the way Esau begged Isaac for even an ounce of blessing, to no avail. Eventually, the blessing bestowed upon Esau sounded more like a curse, to lead a nomadic life away from prosperous lands, living by his sword and serving Jacob (Gen. 27:39-40). Where is th...

Read ‭‭Genesis 25.19-26.35 / Psalm 17 Verses chosen for devotion: Genesis‬ ‭25‬:‭29‬-‭33‬ ‭ “   29  One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry.  30  Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”)  31  “All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.”  32  “Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?”  33  But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.” So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob . ” ‭‭ Reflect  Verses 25:29-33 told us how Esau traded his first born right for the lentil stew. Readers may find this ridiculous and hard to believe. We read that Isaac inherited everything that the Lord has blessed Abraham with and subsequently Genesis 26:3 told us th...

Read Genesis 25:12-18; Psalm 16 Verse for meditation: Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of life;  in your presence there is fullness of joy;  at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Reflect There are many inspiring verses in this 16th chapter of the book of Psalms. The above is chosen as it brings home succinctly the message of the Psalm. What pure wonder it was to reflect on the richness and relevance of this Davidic Psalm. What's more, to do it on the very last day of the year, 2022. Called the 'golden' or 'secret' Psalm, for that's what Miktam suggests in Hebrew, it logically divides its readers into 2 groups, those who are and those who are not committed to God. The Psalm certainly holds its weight in 'gold' because of the richness of the narrative. It's a 'secret' as well because of the circumstances under which it was written. For David had just been delivered from Saul who was going in for the kill. In this Psalm, the way...