Week 33: Day 5

Intro: Hi, my name’s Gemma Milligan and it’s great to welcome you to Orbit - a short daily reflection from the team behind Satellites, which aims to help you put God at the centre of your life. Each weekday we reflect on a bit of the Bible, pray, and give you a practical challenge to help you live out your faith.

Bible: Today’s reading comes from Psalm 2:1-6:

Why do the nations conspire, and the people plot in vain? The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, “Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.”

The one enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.”

Thoughts: I want you to think for a moment about a time when you have gone against something your parent or carer has asked you to do. Maybe they asked you to clean your room, or to be home at a certain time, or to do the washing up, or to get off your video game, and you didn’t do it. How did they respond? I imagine they were angry, maybe even so angry that they grounded you, or took away your phone, or raised their voice. And although I doubt it was very pleasant to be on the receiving end, I imagine that deep down you knew that you deserved some sort of punishment, even if you didn’t agree with what you actually received.

And it’s the same with God. If we, the people he created, choose to go against him then he gets angry. Not because he’s a dictator and wants everyone to just blindly follow him and do what he says, but for the same reason your parents or carers tend to get angry when they ask you to do things and you don’t, because he loves you and wants you to become the best person you can be. You see, when we think we can make better decisions without God and therefore want to try to live our lives separately to him, we are challenging the fact that he is the creator and king of the world. He’s not a king that forces us to live under his rule, but when we choose not to it hurts him, and he gets angry that we think we’re better off without him, which I think is understandable as he knows everything, and I don’t! He loves us so much that he will never force his way on us, but he also loves us so much that he will discipline us where we need it in the hope that we will come back to him and will choose to live the way that is best for us.

When we know we’ve done wrong and we either experience the consequences of our actions, feel as if God is distant, or have something happen to us that feels like a punishment, this isn’t God being mean and unkind, as much as it may feel like it. It’s actually a demonstration of his love, and an invitation to recognise him as the king and Lord who, as this Bible passage says, is ‘enthroned in heaven’, and to come under his rule.

Prayer: Jesus, I acknowledge that you are king and Lord, and you always know what is best for me. I am sorry for the times when I have thought I know better and have done things that I know are wrong in your eyes. Please forgive me. Amen.

Challenge: Here’s today’s practical challenge to help you put what we’ve reflected on into action:

Make a list of the things you have been thinking, doing, and saying recently that you know God would not want you to (this can be as long or short as you want). Once you have done this, light a match and set the piece of paper on fire (make sure you have adult supervision for this, and that you drop the paper onto a non-flammable surface as it is burning and blow the flame out immediately at the slightest risk of danger). As you watch the piece of paper burn, say sorry to God for all the things on the piece of paper and ask him to help you live as he would want you to.

Outro: Thanks so much for joining us for Orbit today! We hope you found that helpful, and we’ll be back with another reflection tomorrow.