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Listen while you read: "The Head That Once Was Crowned"1
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As children, my brother and I had been excitedly anticipating a circus in town. It was a hot summer's day, and finally, we arrived at the fairgrounds in Port Alberni, British Columbia, Canada, where we grew up. The two of us lined up by ourselves to get inside the circus tent. All around us, exciting smells tickled our nostrils. One of these was the tantalizing scent of cotton candy (candy floss). We had never tasted it before. We used our hard-earned money, and each of us bought a fluffy pink cloud on a stick. Mmm! As we bit into the gossamer strands, we thought that we were really living it up.
The line into the circus tent was not moving at all. The sun beat down on us, and we were getting tired and impatient. After a few bites, the cotton candy did not seem as delicious as when we first tasted it. It melted in our mouths to nothing but a sugary aftertaste. Eventually, it lay on the dusty ground, forgotten and trampled.
1 John 2:15-16a – Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. (NLT)
Our cotton candy treat started as a craving for something that we saw. We thought that it would be pleasurable, but in the end, there was no substance to it — a short-lived pleasure. Its enjoyment was brief, and as a snack, it was worthless, lacking real value.
Psalm 119:37 – Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word. (NLT)
1 John 5:21 – Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God's place in your hearts. (NLT)
Psalm 119:103 – How sweet your words taste to me; they are sweeter than honey. (NLT)
During the month of January, we usually hope to establish good habits, like turning our eyes to God's Word. Attempting to read the Bible regularly is at first daunting. First of all, we have to commit to a practice that may be still shaky, and then, to maintain it with the help of the Holy Spirit. We have to turn our eyes from things that have no lasting value and embrace the new life that Jesus promises us. As we read, we take in God's eternal values, and gradually, we become more like Him. As the Israelites of old were instructed to gather manna daily before it melted away in the heat of the day, we need to read the Word daily. Feeding on the Word gives us abundant life.
Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for Your life-giving Word. Help us to turn away from things that have lesser value and take real nourishment from Your Word. Help us to establish and maintain the good habit of reading Your Word. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
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About the author:
Alice Burnett <terrencera.burnett@gmail.com>
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
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Love the people in the world – all of them.
Wise advice, Alice. Have a Happy New Year.
Thank you for sharing this timely reminder. To God be the glory!
Blessings.
Just when it’s needed, and likely to be heeded! Thank you for sharing this.
Happy New Year to you, Alice!
Thank you for today’s devotional. Keeping our eyes on Jesus Christ should be the most exciting part of our journey throughout 2024.
Blessings!
Hi Alice,
Another well written devotional. I could not agree with you more about cotton candy. Every fall there is a big Fall Fest here. The Church of Christ booth gives away cotton candy…not a problem for me to pass up.
Thank you for your devotional and good scripture passages. I believe that everyone should read Psalm 119 every month and also make it their prayer. I have a schedule that I have followed for several years. Keep on writing those good thoughts.
Blessings in 2024.
Many thanks Alice for another of your very special and encouraging devotionals. The prayer you have written really says what is the important action for us to take in our daily life and that is to absorb the words of our Lord. Being nourished by His word is very beneficial in so many ways. Blessings for these writings you prepare.
Hello Alice, cotton candy – what a wonderful example to use of how deceiving and fleeting the world’s so-called enticements can be. Worldly pleasures may seem fun, pleasurable, and exciting but are short lived and lead to nothing but regrets, but one Never goes wrong first of all by becoming a child of God, than serving Him, following hard after Jesus, and being immersed daily in His holy word. I appreciate your devotional today. Thank you.
Good morning, Alice,
I started my day with many good memories of the CNE here in Toronto when I was a young child. The school gave us free admission on the last day of school, so we had all summer to dream about visiting the CNE with our families. I was never a fan of cotton candy, but the Honeydew drink was delicious and so many different things to learn and free things in the food building to enjoy.
I do appreciate your message and thoroughly enjoyed the memories. Good passages from the Bible to remind us where our focus should be and how to keep our faith strong and thriving. Thank you for sharing your thoughts as we begin a new year on our faith journey. May we all stay focused on God and what He wants us to do and be. Blessings.
Thank you, Alice. I didn’t maintain this practice for many years, and now that I do, it certainly makes a difference.