Battle Drill Devotional

Jesus Isn’t Absent When You Don’t Experience God - He’s Praying for You!

Read Matthew 14:22-36. Where is Jesus in all this? He seems to have abandoned me when I needed him the most. Have you ever thought that? The account of the disciples caught in a storm on the Sea of Galilee promises that’s not the case.
There must have been moments when the disciples were battling the wind and the waves, far from the shores of Lake Galilee when they thought, Why isn’t Jesus here? Why did he insist we get in the boat and make our way to the other side? Didn’t he know there was going to be a storm? Why has he abandoned us when we need him the most?
But Matthew tells us Jesus hadn’t abandoned them at all. Jesus knew there would be a storm and he was praying for his disciples. Jesus is God in human form, and so he knows the past, the present and the future. He was praying about the storm even before the winds started picking up.
Jesus had prayed for us and all that we’ve faced in the past. He’s praying through this cost of living crisis and anything else you’re facing right now. He’s prayed for what we’ll go through this year too. He’s praying we’ll make it through whatever storms we face.
The Bible says that no matter what life storms you are going through at the moment, Jesus is praying for you. He loves you. He is for you. If you trust him as your Saviour, he is interceding for you right now.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
What would you ask Jesus to pray for you today?
 
You can listen to an audio of these devotionals every week. Head to https://battledrilldevotional.podbean.com for more details and to subscribe to the podcast wherever you get your podcasts or you can catch up with us on the Battlefield Resources Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/battlefieldresources. Like the page and get a notification when a new episode drops or sign up to be sent an email - http://eepurl.com/h2FPND. You can also watch a video version of each devotional at www.youtube.com/@RobWestwoodPayne.
Unless otherwise shown, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Keep Your Eyes Fixed on Jesus, and You Won’t Sink

Read Matthew 14:22-36. When you look around you, what do you see? A creaking health service? Workers striking? A cost of living crisis? War in Ukraine? Failing health? A difficult economic outlook? A shrinking job market? A generation falling behind in education? Jesus says, look at me instead.
Only Peter had the faith the step out of the boat. Physics tells us that a grown man could not walk on water. But Peter did. Often, we move so quickly to focusing on his sinking that we forget to pause and note: PETER WALKED ON WATER!
So, what went wrong? Peter took his eyes off Jesus. The moment he looked away from Jesus and looked at the circumstances around him – the wind and the waves – he began sinking:
When we focus on our circumstances – whatever they are – we start to sink. If you want to walk about the storms of life, you have to keep your eyes fixed on Jesus:
If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed; if you look within, you’ll be depressed; if you look at Christ, you’ll be at rest.
Pastor Rick Warren
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          What helps you focus on Jesus in the storms of life?

To Experience God, You Have to Get Out of the Boat!

Read Matthew 14:22-36. Have you ever been water skiing? Or surfing? Or ice skating? It takes courage to step on the water, or to catch a wave and let it take you, or to step onto the ice rink. I’ve only ever attempted the latter and fallen flat on my face!
But if you’re going to achieve any of those things, you have to take the step of faith at some point. There’s no point in standing on the shore with water skis on. You have to get out on the water. A surfboard might make a fashion statement, but it’s of little use unless you’re going to plunge into the ocean and surf the waves. Ice skates make terrible shoes! You have to get out on the ice.
Sometimes, God uses the storms of life to encourage us to take a step of faith. If my line of legal work hadn’t changed beyond all recognition, I might still not be a Salvation Army officer. And being made redundant probably pushed me to make the right decision to obey God’s calling rather than prevaricating over whether I should or not.
Peter would never have attempted to walk on water had it not been for the storm. The storm caused him to react in faith and to experience a special outpouring of God’s power. If you feel you’re in a storm at the moment, pause and ask God what he wants you to do. And be willing to do it. It’s time to get out of the boat!
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          Where is Jesus inviting you to step out of your comfort zone and “walk on water?”

Experiencing God in the Storm Helps You Stand Firm

Read Matthew 14:22-36. Have you ever thought you’d seen a ghost? I’m not sure I have, although I do remember when we were teenagers at Norwich Citadel Salvation Army frightening ourselves silly with stories of the “ghosts” that wandered around that old building! Only peer pressure kept us standing firm and not running out of the door!
At the moment, there’s probably enough going on in your life that you don’t need to be frightened by ghosts! But what stops us from running away from the storms of life we find ourselves in? Only Jesus.
The disciples were fighting exhaustion. They’re trying to keep a low profile following Herod’s murder of John the Baptist. They’re recovering from the responsibility of trying to feed five thousand men and their women and children in the remote area on the shore of Galilee to where Jesus had led them. And they’d been fighting the wind and waves for several hours.
Jesus comes to them. But he comes walking on the water. It is unexpected. Impossible. No wonder they thought they’d seen a ghost! They were terrified. But Jesus says, Don’t be afraid. I am here.
Do you need to hear those words today? Don’t be afraid. Jesus is here. He brings unexpected help and encouragement just at the time you are most desperate. In his presence, fear is gone. Take courage in him today.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          How would you have reacted to seeing someone walk on water in the middle of a storm?

You Can Experience God in Your Storm

This week in Battle Drill devotionals, we are focusing on encountering Jesus in the storms of life.
Read Matthew 14:22-36. Some of us have been blown off course over recent years, particularly by the Coronavirus storm of 2020-2021 and its aftermath. We feel out of control. Our health, our finances, our jobs, even our spiritual lives are nowhere near where we intended. We just want to feel safe again! That’s why so many of us were so keen for things to “go back to normal.”
Where is Jesus in all of this? He shows up! He doesn’t ask us to come to him. In fact, John records the boat had gone three or four miles from the shore. So, Jesus walks a long way on the water to come to us in our storms. He doesn’t stand on the side lines shouting instructions at us.
What we need most in the storms of life is his presence. So that’s what Jesus does. He shows up.
You may feel abandoned and lonely just now. As if no one cares what you’re really going through. All is well, despite your storms. Jesus comes to you with his peace-making presence. You can trust the one who controls the storms of life and ensure they do not overwhelm you.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          How does Jesus try to calm your fears?

The Door to Freedom

Read John 10:1-10. “If one door closes, another will open”. Have you ever heard or used that phrase? It suggests that with every end, there’s a new beginning.
Sometimes that is true. Sometimes it isn’t. People have been made redundant or voluntarily chosen to leave a job and struggled to open the door on a new job. Some people have closed the door on a relationship and opened the door of a new one, only for that door to close soon after.
But God does want you to be free and he is ready to open doors for you. In fact, he is willing to be the door for you. Jesus said, “I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture” (John 10:9 MSG). In Jesus, you can move about with freedom. When his door opens, it is always to something good.
The same power that rolled away the stone and opened up Jesus’ tomb, the same power that sprung Paul and Silas from prison, is the same power that will open the door of freedom for you. Choose Jesus and he will help you break free!
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
What door do you wish you could close? Do you believe God wants you to be free from it?
You can listen to an audio of these devotionals every week. Head to https://battledrilldevotional.podbean.com for more details and to subscribe to the podcast wherever you get your podcasts or you can catch up with us on the Battlefield Resources Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/battlefieldresources. Like the page and get a notification when a new episode drops or sign up to be sent an email - http://eepurl.com/h2FPND. You can also watch a video version of each devotional at www.youtube.com/@RobWestwoodPayne.
Unless otherwise shown, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

God Wants You to be Free

Read John 10:1-10. Many people mistakenly believe that being a Christian is full of restrictions. That it’s all about following the rules and a long list of “don’ts”.
But that cannot be further from the truth. Jesus said, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of” (John 10:10 MSG). God wants us to live in freedom.
He wants you to be free from your past. Many of us are locked down by regret about something we did or didn’t do in the past. We are wracked by guilt. Others resent something that was done to them. They allow bitterness to continue to eat away at them. It keeps us from the freedom God longs for us.
God wants us to be free from the stress and exhaustion we face from trying to control our every day lives. If only we hand over the complexities of modern life over to God and allow him to take control, we would find the freedom we crave.
And God wants us to be free of the worries we have for tomorrow.
The best thing we can do is to let go of all of those and grab hold of God instead, the One who offers us true freedom and a more and better life than we’ve ever dreamed of.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
How can you plug into the freedom God longs for you to experience?

What Abundance Really Means

Read John 10:1-10. It’s pantomime season. Some pantos include a genie, a mythical person who grants their master or mistress’s every wish.
Some people mistakenly believe that when Jesus promises “real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of” (John 10:10 MSG) that the Christian life will be an easy one. All we have to do is click our fingers, or rub the lamp, and Jesus will come running, ready to serve our every whim. But the life that is better than we have ever dreamed of doesn’t mean a comfortable lifestyle, perfect health, the perfect job, instant relief from problems and constant happiness.
Earth is not heaven. God is planning heaven for you in eternity. In the meantime, we will inevitably face difficulties in our lives. That’s how God grows and strengthens our character so we are ready for eternal heaven. If you need to grow more love in your heart, God will send someone unlovable to help you. If you need more patience, then God has an endless supply of circumstances that make you feel impatient! God wants to help grow your character, so you become more like his Son, Jesus Christ.
If you ever wonder, “why is this happening to me?” then the answer might be that God is using your circumstances to help you grow towards that more and better life you’ve never even dreamed of.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          How does God’s character development help you gain perspective on the difficulties you face?

God is Good!

Read John 10:1-10. Are you a worrier? Do you worry so much that if you’re not worrying, you start to worry that you’re not worrying?
Worrying is a scourge. It robs us of any joy there is in the world. How can we rid ourselves of worry? One of the best ways is to remind ourselves that God is God. We are not! That means he is in control. We can relinquish control! When we understand that, we can start to let go of worry.
The God who is God has promised to take care of us. He is a good God and he wants to provide all of our needs and more. Jesus said, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of” (John 10:10 MSG). If we relinquish control then he will feed us, lead us and meet our needs today.
Perhaps one we can combat worry is to remind ourselves of this each day. If we begin each day reminding ourselves that God is good and that as the Good Shepherd Jesus will feed us, lead us and meet our needs for today, we can let go of worry and trust him.
Why not give it a go?
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          How might Jesus’ promise of “more and better life than they ever dreamed of” help you not to worry?

Is Your Mindset Scarcity or Abundance?

Jesus said, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of” (John 10:10 MSG). This week on Battle Drill devotionals, we explore what that might mean for us today.
Read John 10:1-10. Do you feel your life is overflowing? Or are you focused on what you don’t have?
Many people today suffer from what’s called the “scarcity mindset”, the sense that there is not enough to go round. Not enough money, food, time, energy, attention, followers, friends, praise, and so on. This kind of thinking leads to feelings of not being in control. And so we overwork, over eat, overwork our bodies, overvalue what others think of us, and so on.
Jesus wants us to move on from this mindset. He promises us "real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of” (John 10:10 MSG). This is the “abundance mindset”. This is thinking that recognises God’s resources are limitless. God wants to meet all of our needs. He will never run out. He has more than enough resources to meet your needs, whilst meeting other people’s needs too.
If God is the source of your life then you no longer need worry about not having enough. He wants to overflow in your life with goodness, joy, peace, love and many other blessings.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          How might an abundance mindset produce peace in your life?

You Bring God Great Joy

Read Matthew 3:13-17. Do you know how much God loves you? God created you to love you. Love is the essence of his nature. So he cannot help but love you. He wants to love you. He enjoys you. He takes pleasure in you all the time.
And it’s not because of what you do for him. When Jesus came up out of the waters of the River Jordan following his baptism, a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy”. Jesus hadn’t done anything yet! He was just about to start his ministry. And before he had the opportunity to do great things for God, God exclaimed that he already loved him and that he already gave him great joy!
Some Christians only think God is pleased with them when they are doing something “religious” for him. That’s just plain wrong! God loves watching you, whatever you’re doing, because he made you who you are.
If you ever struggle with knowing who you are, or with a lack of self-worth, then take this truth on board today: you are OK. You are wonderful, in fact! You are great. You are a beloved child of God. It’s in his love that we find our soul, our identity, and our life purpose.
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
Do you struggle to accept the truth that God takes pleasure in you and loves you? Why?
 
You can listen to an audio of these devotionals every week. Head to https://battledrilldevotional.podbean.com for more details and to subscribe to the podcast wherever you get your podcasts or you can catch up with us on the Battlefield Resources Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/battlefieldresources. Like the page and get a notification when a new episode drops or sign up to be sent an email - http://eepurl.com/h2FPND. You can also watch a video version of each devotional at www.youtube.com/@RobWestwoodPayne.
Unless otherwise shown, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Live Simply and Generously

Read Matthew 3:13-17. It sometimes seems that the height of ambition in our society is to acquire as much as we can. To live a comfortable and enjoyable life, surrounded by our possessions and basking in our status.
That is not the life Jesus calls us to. He asks us instead to focus on a life of service and sacrifice to God. He asks us to deny what this world seems to offer us. He asks us to forego pleasure and the consumer goods the rest of the world values. Jesus teaches us to live simply and generously instead.
Jesus came to serve and to give to others. If we are not doing the same, then we are not following Jesus. Our faith compels us to offer our lives to God as living sacrifices and to serve him by serving others. It calls us to live simply and to give generously.
Perhaps your response might be to say you don’t have enough to be generous. But that’s when God calls us to sacrifice the most. Jesus came to the River Jordan with nothing. He began his ministry of living simply and generously with nothing. It’s easy to be generous when we have a lot to be generous with. But God calls us to be generous when we don’t have enough money, when we don’t have much time, and when our energy seems spent.
That’s radical obedience! Will you make that your ambition today?
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
•          In what ways are you generous with your money, time, and energy?