A THIRST FOR GOD

 

Ps. 42:1-2  As the deer pants for streams of water, so I long for you, O God.  I thirst for God, the living God.

     When do deer pant for water?  It could be when they are running away from trouble and know they can't safely stop for a drink.  It could be when all of the water resources around them are dried up.  It could be when they wander away from familiar territory and don't know where to find water.  Deer pant for water out of need.  They instinctly know that they must have it or they will be in serious trouble.

     We need to capture the same urgency for God as the deer deprived of water have.  We need to recognize the seriousness of life without the Lord.  We need to know that we will never have the stamina to continue to flee from Satan or resist him without the Lord's help.  We must understand that it is only the Living Water that can quench our thirst.  There may be other types of water supply available to us, but none are safe or satisfying but the Living Water.  We must understand that we dare not wander away from where the Living Water is found.  Otherwise, we may not be able to find our way back to the only water that can help and sustain us.

     It is good for the soul to have a constant thirst for God.  We must never let ourselves be satisfied by anything but God in our lives.  We must stay away from everything that would entice us to drink from resources other than God.  We must always stay close to God.  We must desire Him more than anything else in life. 

     The only way we can maintain a thirst for God is to let the disciplines of faith govern our lives.  We must be disciplined to read and meditate on the Word consistently.  We must be disciplined to spend time alone with God in prayer.  We must discipline ourselves to participate in the fellowship of other believers.  We must be disciplined in being witnesses for the Lord whenever we can.  We must be disciplined to think Biblically about life.  The more disciplined we are in the faith, the more we will thirst for the Lord.

JOY IN THE LORD

 

Ps. 40:8  I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your law is written on my heart.

     Do you take joy in doing God's will for your life?  Do you see what God has given you to do as a blessing or a curse?  Does living in Christ thrill your soul like it used to?  Are you enjoying your journey of faith?  Do you really enjoy serving others?

     The Lord wants us to enjoy our life in Him.  He wants us to look forward to each new day of life and what it holds for us.  He wants us to know the delight of living in close fellowship with Him.  He wants us to live in Him out of love and not out of duty.

     The only way we will ever be joyful in our walk with the Lord is to stay in His Word.  We need to know the Word well.  We need to let the Spirit brand deeply on our hearts God's Word.  The better we know the Word, the more we know of God's love and faithfulness.  We discover just how great our God is and how He is able to help us in our journey of life.  God's Word hidden in our hearts remind us that whatever we may be experiencing in life, there is a home in heaven that awaits us.  It reminds us of God's plan of redemption, not only for us, but for the whole world.  It reminds us that we are never alone, that God is always with us to enable us to live with confidence life in Christ.

     Having the Word in our hearts enables us to not sin against God.  It gives us the authority of heaven to resist Satan when we are tempted.  It gives us purpose and direction for life.  It gives us understanding of why we need Jesus as we live in this world.  

     If the joy has gone out of your faith walk, get back into the Word.  Let it saturate your soul.  Hide it in your heart and soon you will once again delight yourself in the Lord.

TURN FROM EVIL AND DO GOOD

 

Ps. 37:27-28a  Turn from evil and do good, and you will live in the land forever.  For the LORD loves justice, and he will never abandon the godly.

     Want to know the secret to a long life?  Here it is.  Turn away from sin and do what is good in God's eyes.  The promise is that if we do this, we will live forever.  But here is the catch; in order for us to do this, we must confess our sins to Christ and turn them over to Him.  We sin against Christ so we must ask Him to forgive us.  Turning from sin also means we change our attitude towards sin.  We purposely try not to sin and purposely try to do what is good in God's eyes.  If we don't turn from evil and do good, evil will consume us and God will not be with us.

    Doing what is good in God's eyes is what He desires and demands of His children.  God declares those who do are just in His eyes.  It is the counterpart of evil.  It is bringing into the darkness of the world the light of righteousness.  The Lord loves it when righteousness prevails.  It is His desire that all would be made right with Him. 

     The promise of God is that He will never abandon the godly.  Never means never.  God is always with the godly.  He is with them in the good and in the bad times of life.  He is with them when they are on the go and when they stay put.  He is with them all day and all night.  God never lets His children fend for themselves.  He is always with them to help them in whatever they may need. 

     God is with His children always, which also means that He knows what we are doing and what we say at all times.  There are no hidden secrets with God.  He cannot be fooled by who we appear to be.  He even knows the thoughts behind our words.  Let us live like we know that He is with us at all times and knows what we say, do and think.

GOD'S DELIGHT

 

Ps. 37:23  The steps of the godly are directed by the LORD.  He delights in every detail of their lives.

     The steps of the godly are directed by the Lord.  The Lord does not watch over those who are not His own.  They do not escape His notice, but they are not taken care of by the Lord.  God lets His children know the way they should go.  He helps them to stay on course.  He is there with them to protect them.  He is there to lead them to where they need to go.  The Lord goes with His children and teaches them how to travel through life. The godly can relax and enjoy the journey because God is in control.  He is always with His children and never abandons them, no matter how confusing or difficult life may be.

     The Lord delights in every detail of the life of the godly.  It gives God great pleasure when His children live godly lives.  He delights in them because He knows that godliness is the only thing that will give His children joy and peace.  He knows that it is the godly who love Him as they should.  He knows that the godly are less likely to fall into sin.  It is the godly who are moved to be light and salt in the world.  It is the godly who have a real compassion for others.  It is the godly who best serve as ambassadors to the world.  It is the godly who are the movers and shakers in the church.  It is the godly who are students of the Word and prayer warriors.  It is the godly who are humbled before Him and confess their sins when they mess up.  It is the godly who have a song to sing and are not afraid to sing it.

     Who are the godly?  It is those who not only know Jesus as their Savior, they know Him as their Lord as well.  It is those who are committed to living life God's way.  It is those who give the Lord the best of their love and do not waver in their devotion to Him.  It is those who will not compromise or neglect their salvation.  It is those who welcome God's influence on their lives and embrace it.  It is those who seek to be a holy people, a people after God's own heart. It is those who will be in heaven with the Lord when they die.

STOP YOUR ANGER!

 

Ps. 37:8  Stop your anger!  Turn from your rage!  Do not envy others--it only leads to harm.  For the wicked will be destroyed, but those who trust in the LORD will possess the land.

     Let it go.  Whoever or whatever you are angry at, stop it!  Letting anger control you does nothing but hurt you.  The more you lash out, the more damage it does to your soul.  Anger that is not self-controlled can only damage or destroy.  Righteous anger moves us to act to right the wrong.  Any other anger moves us to do wrong. 

     Watch out so that you don't envy others.  The world is full of people different than you.  Many people are better at what you do, have different gifts than you do, are more successful than you are, look different than you do, have better jobs, have it easier than you do; the list goes on and on.  It makes no difference at all as to how we differ.  Everyone is on equal footing at the Cross.  Everyone stands before God equally to account for their living.  God treats all people the same.  Everyone will be judged on the righteousness of their heart and how they have lived.  The only one you will ever hurt by envying others is yourself.

      If you are carrying around a spirit of anger or envy today, do something about it before they destroy your spirit.  Confess them to the Lord.  If you need to, let your emotions drive you in your confession.  It's okay, He can handle it.  Get it out on the table so that God can help you.  Ask Him to help you gain control over your emotions (after all, self-control is one of the fruits of the Spirit) so that you don't let anger or envy control you.  It is sin to not do it.  Don't put it off; do it now.

BE STILL BEFORE GOD

 

Ps. 37:7  Be still in the presence of the LORD and wait patiently for him to act.  Don't worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.

Be still in the presence of the Lord.  For some of us, this may seem nearly impossible to do.  We cram our lives so full of stuff that we don't have time to be still.  We are on the go all the time and the Lord gets shoved off to the side.  Some of us are simply wired in such a way that stillness just doesn't fit well with our make-up.  For some, there is a sense of guilt associated with being still.  Yet, we are told to be still.

     Stillness before God is absolutely necessary if we are going to benefit at all from being in His presence.  Stillness quiets the soul so we can hear the heartbeat of God.  It changes our focus from ourselves and busyness to the Lord.  It enables us to appreciate who our Father is and our relationship to Him.  It enables us to worship the Lord instead of using Him.  It enables us to appreciate what really matters in life.  It makes the concerns of our lives pale in light of His glory and grace.

     Wait patiently for Him to act.  If you struggle with this, ask the Lord to help you.  We have to learn that God doesn't live within our time constraints.  He is in no hurry.  He acts when it is the right time to act and He will not be pressured to act any sooner. 

     When we spend quality unhurried time with the Lord, we are not as likely to worry about those who don't share our faith who are antagonistic to believers.  We understand that whatever they may do or say doesn't really matter.  The Lord gives us the strength to overcome.  He helps us to keep things in perspective and to realize that when all is well with Him, that is all that we need in life.  Whatever happens on earth pales in light of what is going to happen for those who are still in the presence of God and wait patiently for Him to act.

TRUST GOD

 

Luke 1:38,45 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant, and I am willing to accept whatever he wants. May everything you have said come true.” And then the angel left her.    “You are blessed, because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

       Mary was a young teenage girl engaged to be married.  She was a very devout young woman and the Lord was very pleased with her.  He sent Gabriel to her to inform her that she was going to be carrying Christ in her womb.  She was taken aback with this news at first, but then yielded to what the angel had said.  She was willing to be the vessel in which God would become man.

       I am sure that Mary did not fully understand all that this would mean for her.  She wasn't yet married and there surely would be gossipers to deal with.  She didn't know how Joseph or her parents would act.  She didn't know what she would have to do differently to raise the Christ-child.  She didn't know if she would have to make drastic changes in her life as the child grew; after all, He would be God in the flesh.

      Yet, Mary knew that whatever was going to happen, everything would work out because this was of God and He was in control.  She believed the message and trusted God in what He was about to do.  As a result, she was blessed by God.  I am sure that in spite of all the uncertainties that lied ahead, she had an overwhelming peace in her soul.  She put it all in the Lord's hands.

       Just like Mary, we need to just put the uncertainties ahead of us in the Lord's hands.  We have to believe and trust in what the Lord leads us to do.  We will never face the future alone when we rest in Him.  God will bless you with peace and joy as you learn to lean on Jesus every moment of every day.

GOD IS WITH US

 

Matt. 1:23  “Look!  The virgin will conceive a child!  She will give birth to a son, and he will be called Immanuel (meaning, God is with us).”

      God is with us.  GOD is with us.  God is WITH us.  God is with US.  No matter how you say it, this is the grandest news man has ever heard! 

       GOD is with us.  The designer, creator, and sustainer of all that is, is with us.  The beginning and end of all things is with us.  The giver of all life and the hope of all ages is with us.  He who knows all things knows us for He became one of us.  He who cannot be contained for all of heaven and creation are His footstool, became flesh and dwelt for a while amongst us.

      God IS with us.  No matter how distant God may at times seem to be, He IS with us.  How can we know for sure it is true?  He said it is so.  He has declared that He is with us, that He will never leave or forsake us, even unto the end of the earth.  He is seen and found by anyone who sincerely looks for Him, even in the worst of life’s circumstances.

       God is WITH us.  God did not create us and leave us to fend for ourselves.  He does not reside in heaven and leave us alone.  God is with us.  He is with us in whatever we go through in life.  He is with us to help us when we lose our way.  He is with us when we are confused and frustrated.  He is with us all the days of our lives, both now and forever.

       God is with US.  God is with us, His children.  God is with all who come to Him for the forgiveness of their sins and choose to live under His authority over their lives.  He has chosen US to be His children and live holy lives.  Do not fear what comes your way, God is with US.

       Immanuel, God with us, is heaven’s story.  Embrace it.  Live it and heaven will come down and glory will fill your soul.

COMMIT EVERYTHING TO THE LORD

 

 

Ps. 37:5-6  Commit everything you do to the LORD.  Trust him, and he will help you.  He will make your innocence as clear as the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.

 

     It's hard, isn't it, to commit everything to the Lord?  When was the last time you committed everything in your day to the Lord?  And if you actually do it, how much of what you commit to Him actually honors Him?  Is He pleased with your work ethic, the way you treat your family, the way you treat others, what you do for entertainment, what you eat and drink, the amount of time you waste on trivial things, what you spend your money on?

 

     Why bother to commit what we do to the Lord if we don't actually try to honor and please Him in it?  Yet, at the very heart of a workable relationship with the Lord is this very thing.  Until we start doing a better job of representing well our Lord in all we do, we will continue to struggle and have a negative impact for Him in our lives.

 

     We cannot compartmentalize our faith.  Every part of our lives is affected by Christ's presence.  We will either honor Him or dishonor Him.  We can't please God by honoring Christ in our lives without His help.  We need to put our trust in Him.  When we do, God will affirm our innocence before Him.  The more we are engaged in Christ, the more it will be evident to all who see and know us.

 

     If others cannot see that you are honoring Christ, you need to get alone with Him, wait before Him, and let Him fix whatever needs to be fixed so that they can. 

GETTING OUR HEARTS DESIRES

 

Ps. 37:4  Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart’s desires.

     The key to the Lord giving you what your heart desires is our delighting ourselves in Him.  It sounds easy, but is it?  Why then do so many desires go unfulfilled?  Could it be that we aren’t actually delighting in Him? 

     When you delight in the Lord, it affects what you desire.  Have you thought about what you want God to do for you lately?  What do you ask Him for?  Why do you want what you want?  Do you ask for things knowing that it falls under the scope of His will for you? 

     The Lord always wants what is best for you.  He wants you to become holy in heart.  He wants you to live under His authority.  He wants you to let Him guide you, teach you, correct you, discipline you, help you.  God wants always what is best for you.  He wants you to stay away from evil and focus on what is good for your soul.

     The Lord wants you to align yourself up with the heart of God and desire what He desires for you.  If you do, the promise of God is that He will give you the desires of your heart.  When we stay close to the heart of God, seek to honor and glorify Him in all things, and seek His will in all things, we move the heart of God to act in response to our prayers. 

     When we delight in the Lord we will want what He gives to us and take pleasure in it.  We will not waste our desires on that which the Lord withholds from us.  We will accept with gratitude what God gives us and be content with it.

NO FEAR OF GOD

 

Ps. 36:1-4 Sin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts. They have no fear of God to restrain them. In their blind conceit, they cannot see how wicked they really are. Everything they say is crooked and deceitful. They refuse to act wisely or do what is good. They lie awake at night, hatching sinful plots. Their course of action is never good. They make no attempt to turn from evil.

     These verses tells it like it is. When sin controls the heart, there is no fear of God to constrain the soul from sinning. The more into sin we are, the less fear of God we have. Think about it for a moment. Isn't this true? When you sin, are you thinking about God? Are you concerned about the fact that you are being watched and judged by a holy God? If you are a child of God, guilt and shame come afterwards, not while you are indulging in sin. If you are not a child of God, then everything you do is sinful. You are not capable of pleasing God. You are not concerned about what God thinks.

     When God enters into the picture and begins to reveal himself as holy to us, we begin to take seriously our sin. We begin to acknowledge and accept the fact that God is holy and will not accept us in our sin. The Lord will not let His children live in peace when they fall into sin. Listen to God when you do not have peace in your soul. Understand that sin is the culprit. Seek God's face and let Him reveal your sin to you so you can deal with Christ about it.

     It is never a good thing when we let sin lie within our hearts. It only breeds more sin and the more sin we have, the more we lose contact with the Lord. Be warned: Sin leads to the death of the soul. It robs us of the fear of God. It robs us of peace with God. It robs us of the blessings of God that are ours in Christ Jesus.

     Do you have any unconfessed sin in your heart that you need to deal with today?

SIN IS BLIND

 

Ps. 36:1-2  Sin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts.  They have no fear of God to restrain them.  In their blind conceit, they cannot see how wicked they really are.

     Have you ever noticed how subtle Satan really is?  He entices us to sin in a very quiet way.  He plants seeds of temptation in our minds ever so gently; sometimes he is so quiet that we scarcely even notice that we are being suckered in.  We listen the best in the quiet and he knows it.  Satan probes deep into the soul and plants the seeds of desire.  Before we even realize it, we are caught up into sin.

     The wicked have no fear of God.  They don't know Him and certainly have no respect for Him.  They are blinded by their sin and cannot see just how bad off they really are.  They indulge in sin and think nothing of it.  They easily dismiss the thought that there is God to answer to for their sin.  If they do acknowledge that God is, they think nothing of Him.  They do not fear His holiness and make light of the reality of hell.  If they even acknowledge hell exists, they deem it as being one big happy sin party.

     The wicked cannot even see themselves as God sees them.  They compare themselves to others and deem themselves good.  They measure themselves by human standards and do not acknowledge that they are even wicked.  Holiness is a strange concept for them and they don't even consider it.  They see themselves as self-sufficient; they don't need God to be good.  They take pride in their goodness and won't listen to those who say their goodness won't get them into heaven.

     Satan is the source of all such thinking.  He is the master deceiver and without Christ we are all prone to believe his lies.  It is only as we examine ourselves in light of the Word of God that we see ourselves as we really are, a people desperately in need of a Savior.  Only in Christ do we understand that we can never be good enough for God to accept us.  Only in Christ do we find the help we need to make it to heaven.

LET THE GODLY SING

 

Ps. 33:1  Let the godly sing with joy to the LORD, for it is fitting to praise him.

     Do you have a song in your heart today?  Does your soul sing forth His praises?  If not, you need to take a few moments and examine your heart and see why not.  It is the natural thing to do for the godly.  Christ in us gives us much cause to sing with joy to the Lord. 

     If you have no song to sing, perhaps it's because you have wandered away from His love.  Perhaps you have neglected to do those things which keep your salvation fresh and alive.  Perhaps you have taken your eyes off of the Lord and have let others fill your mind with thoughts that are not true.  Perhaps you have become too engrossed with the things of the world and have failed to keep the Lord the priority of your life.  Perhaps you have listened to Satan's lies that God is not faithful and true because of your circumstances of life.  Perhaps you have gotten too comfortable in your salvation and no longer pursue growth and greater understanding of God's Word.  Perhaps your prayer life has become stale and more of going through the motions rather than actually communing with God.  Perhaps you have not diligently protected your soul and you have let sin in.  There are many reasons why the godly no longer feel like singing with joy unto the Lord.

     It is fitting to sing praises unto the Lord.  It is the right thing to do and the natural thing to do when we are living godly lives.  Christ in us is worth singing about!  Oh the joy of knowing that Christ lives in us!  Oh the joy of knowing our sins are forgiven and all is well between God and us!  Oh the joy of knowing that Christ is at work within us to make us new creations in Him!  Oh the joy of knowing the work of the Spirit within us as we grow into becoming a holy people before God!  Oh the joy of knowing that if you were to die within the next few moments you would be welcomed into the Kingdom of God with open arms!

    Oh the wondrous joys of our salvation!  Let us sing for joy unto the Lord today and every step we take on our way home.  Oh praise the wondrous name of Jesus!   

ON LIFE'S BEST PATHWAY

 

Ps. 32:8  The LORD says, "I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.  I will advise you and watch over you."

     There are many pathways one can travel on in life, some are good, some are better, some are bad, but there is only one pathway that leads to God and that is the way of the Cross.  It is the pathway that is walked humbly.  It requires much diligence, faithfulness, perseverance, and trust. 

     The way of the Cross has many difficulties along the way.  We are constantly being bombarded along the way with the fiery darts of Satan.  We face much opposition from those not walking with us, and even sometimes from those walking with us. We are often not understood and criticized.  We do not always see where we are going or why we must go that way.  We are prone to wander off the path and must resist the urge to do so.  We often stumble and fall along the way and must resolve to get up and keep on going.  We will encounter many people endeavoring to walk with us who do not belong on the road.  We will be enticed to doubt what the Lord says and believe others things.  We will not always get things right and must be willing to continue to learn and grow.  We must be willing to change as the Lord prompts us to change along the way.  We must strive to always walk in step with the Lord and not lag behind Him or try to run ahead of Him.  We must be willing to admit it when we sin and confess them before Christ so we can be kept pure before God.  We must love others who are walking with us in the same way that Christ loves us.  In other words, all who walk the way of the Cross must immolate Christ in all they do and say to the best of their abilities.  We must strive to be holy, even as He is holy.

     The promise of God is that He will advise us and watch over us on Calvary's road.  He will teach us the things we need to know.  He will tell us how to best follow in His footsteps.  He will give us specific things we need to know on our journey.  Not everyone walks the same way or at the same speed so His advice will vary amongst us.  But, if we are listening, we will receive what we need from the Lord for our particular journey of faith.  He will as well watch over us to protect us so that we will reach our destination safe and sound.  The Lord is at the other end of our journey waiting for us.  Blessed are those who walk on Calvary's road.  Great is their reward in heaven.

THE GODLY WHO SIN

 

Ps. 32:6  Therefore, let all the godly confess their rebellion to you while there is time, that they may not drown in the floodwaters of judgment.

     Here the godly are being singled out.  Yes, the godly do sin.  What happens when the godly do not confess their sins and die?  They will face God with sin on their hearts.  How will God handle that?  Only God knows that for sure.  He knows the heart motives of man and will judge fairly and rightly each of us.  He knows whether or not we are truly righteous in heart.  All I can tell you for sure is that no sin will be in heaven. 

     Today's verse tells us that the godly will drown in the floodwaters of judgment if they don't confess their sins.  God's judgments are like a floodwater.  It sweeps away everything in its path.  It is consuming power and no one can stop it.  It cannot be contained and will keep flowing until it accomplishes its purpose.  Anyone caught in floodwaters will more than likely drown.

     The good news is that it doesn't have to be that way for the godly.  If we will quit hiding behind our perceived righteousness and confess our sins, we will be saved.  If we quit resisting God's ways and live life by God's Word, we will be saved.  If we quit pretending that we are better than we are, we will be saved.  If we are living in Christ's righteousness and not our own, we will be saved. 

     In reality, the godly are not as godly as we might think we are.  We are all guilty of sin, no matter how long we have been in the faith.  We all have need of confession.  We all need to carefully monitor our souls and submit to God's rightful authority over us.  We all need to acknowledge our need for Jesus to be our Savior and Lord. 

UNCONFESSED SIN

 

Ps. 32:3-5  When I refused to confess my sin, I was weak and miserable, and I groaned all day long.  Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me.  My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat.  Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide them.  I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the LORD”.  And you forgave me!  All my guilt is gone.

     Have you ever refused to confess sin?  I know I have.  I have rationalized it away and denied that what was sin was actually sin.  It is so easy to do.  Instead of admitting sin, I tried to bury it and pretend that it wasn’t there.  But, the Lord would not put up with that nonsense.  He refused to let me get away with it and kept bringing it up until I finally came to my senses.

     It isn’t the most pleasant times of life.  Unconfessed sin comes between God and us and we can have no peace or joy in our life with Him as long as it is there.  It haunts us and makes life miserable for us because deep down we know we are guilty.  When we come to our senses and admit our sin and seek the Lord’s forgiveness, we find it.  He takes the heavy load off our souls and restores us to a healthy relationship with Him.

     If you are carrying around with you sin that you have refused to confess, don’t let it weigh you down any longer.  Let the Lord forgive you and give you peace of heart.  You will be glad you did.

REFUSING TO CONFESS

 

Ps. 32:3-4 When I refused to confess my sin, I was weak and miserable, and I groaned all day long.

     Carrying around sin in your soul is a miserable way to live. If you care at all about the condition of your soul and your relationship with God, you will be troubled by sin. You will not be at peace with God or yourself. You will have a sense of guilt over your sin. You will wonder if anyone else knows what you have done, said, or thought, and what they may think about it. You will be bothered by the repercussions of your sin. It will concern you the harm that has been done. You will be miserable and helpless to fix it on your own.

    Refusing to confess sin is rebellion against God. It is telling God that He no longer matters to you. It is denying the importance of the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross for our sins. It is in essence telling God you would rather live on your own. It is a refusal to live in the holiness of God.  It is in essence saying that you no longer need forgiveness or want it. 

    If you have any desire at all for God in your life, you will never have peace with Him when you harbor sin in your soul. We need to regularly come before our Father and deal with our sin. We need to be honest with ourselves, admit our sin, confess it, accept His forgiveness, thank the Lord for it, and then live in His forgiveness. We need to strive to always live in holiness of life. God will not let you get away with sin. He will not have fellowship with you when you live in or harbor sin in your soul. There can be no victory in Jesus when sin is not confessed and gotten rid of.

    Are you spiritually weak and miserable?  Have you agonized over the guilt and shame that comes with the sin you have done?  Does peace elude you?  It doesn't have to be this way.  Humble yourself before Jesus and confess your sin to Him and He will forgive you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.  He will wash away your sin and they will forever be cast into the sea of His forgetfulness.  He will make your soul whiter than a fresh fallen snow.  Right now Jesus can set your soul free.  Won't you let Him?

OH, WHAT JOY!

 

Ps. 32:1-2  Oh, what joy for those whose rebellion is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight.   Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of sin, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!

     Feast on the riches of God's grace and rejoice!  God forgives those who rebel against Him when they turn from their rebellion and turn to Him.  He does not turn away anyone who is willing to quit resisting Him and start walking with Him.  He forgives us for our rebelliousness because He loves us and desires to have a relationship with us.

     God puts our sin out of His sight.  I don't know how He is able to do that.  We can put our sin behind us and live in His forgiveness, but we still remember what we have done.  Sometimes our past sins haunt us.  We struggle with letting them go and forgiving ourselves for them.  But it's not that way with God.  He washes our sins away with the shed blood of Jesus at Calvary, and they are no more.  God does not see our past; He sees the righteousness of Christ in us.  We have no history with God; it's always the present.  All that matters to Him is Christ in us.  As long as we stay in the shelter of His righteousness, we have no condemnation from God.  God clears the record of the redeemed.  He washes our souls and they become whiter than snow.

    There is joy in the soul of those who live in complete honesty.  What a blessing it is to be guided and influenced by the integrity of one's heart.  There is a desire within the redeemed to do what is right before God always.  The intent of the heart is to always be true to the revealed character of God within us.  The soul's delight is living to please God, to do what honors Him.  There is joy in those whose character matters to them, for Christ is actively at work in them to make them holy. 

GOD'S UNFAILING LOVE

 

Ps. 31:21a Praise the LORD, for he has shown me his unfailing love.

     Have you seen it?  Have you felt it?  Do you know God’s unfailing love in your life?  God’s love is always the same; it never fails.  God is incapable of doing anything but love, for He is love.  We may not always recognize it or believe it is so, but it is.  No matter what life may be like for us, we must know that it is true.  God loves us.  Period.  He does not promise to spare us from life’s difficulties, but He does promise to help us through them.  He doesn’t leave us alone.  He doesn’t let us wander around in darkness.  He doesn’t make us earn our way into heaven.  He doesn’t hold us accountable for sins forgiven.  He doesn’t even remember them.  He doesn’t leave us defenseless against Satan.  He doesn’t let that which He has created fall apart in disarray.  He doesn’t let us live without a sure hope.  He doesn’t keep the door to God’s throne shut to us.  He doesn’t do any of these things, because He loves us.

     Praise the Lord for His unfailing love!  The Lord will always treat us in a loving way.  Trust Him. He will never stop loving you.  He will never stop working in your life for your good and His glory.  God loves you!  Give Him praise today for His love for you never fails and will never fail you.  No matter how you may feel, God loves you!  He will always love you because He is love, perfect and holy love. 

SING TO THE LORD!

 

Ps. 30:4-5  Sing to the LORD, all you godly ones!  Praise his holy name.  His anger lasts for a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime!  Weeping may go on all night, but joy comes with the morning.

     Do you have a song in your heart that you find hard to contain?  As a pastor of over 40 years who has absolutely zero musical ability within me, I have found it difficult to be quiet when singing God's praises.  I try to be sensitive to those around me, but it's hard.  My wife, who has lots of music within her, has to now and then let me know when I get too loud.  One of the great things I look forward to in heaven is that there it won't matter.  There will be no restraints and I will be able to sing our Lord's praises to all of my heart's content.

     Dear child of God, praise the holy name of Jesus.  Praise Him for your salvation, for His faithfulness, goodness, kindness, love, grace and mercy.  Praise the Lord for your eternal life with Him.  Praise Him for the fellowship of believers.  Praise Him for His revelations to us through His Word and through His created world.  Praise Him for we shall be with Him forever and ever.  It will indeed be joy unspeakable and full of glory!

    Sing to the Lord, dear friend, for His anger lasts only for a moment.  Our God is a merciful and gracious loving Father.  Yes, He can and does get angry when we sin, but His anger does not last when He sees the righteousness of Christ in us.  Praise Him, for there is now no condemnation for us who are in Christ Jesus.

     In this life we may go through seasons of weeping.  It may seem like the days of weeping will never end, but end they will.  No matter what your life may be like now, it shall pass and then comes our eternal day with the Lord where there will be no weeping or sorrow.  On that day there will be eternal joy and praise will be a continuous song ascending unto the throne of our God.

     Sing to the Lord all you who are godly!  Praise His holy name!  

GIVE HONOR TO THE LORD

 

Ps. 29:1,2  Give honor to the LORD, you angels, give honor to the LORD for his glory and strength.  Give honor to the LORD for the glory of his name.  Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.

     What does it mean to give honor to the Lord?  I believe it means we show respect for Him by acknowledging Him for who He is.  It means that we give way to Him because of who He is.  It means we submit to His rightful place as Lord over all our lives. 

     It's interesting to note that the Psalmist is addressing the angels of heaven here.  We have limited knowledge about the angels, but one thing we do know is that they are kept very busy worshiping and serving the Lord.  They are constantly in the presence of God and they have no problem honoring God.

     We, on the other hand, struggle with honoring the Lord.  We tend to take God for granted.  We tend to be lax on how we worship Him.  We are lax on how we use His name.  We are lax on how we represent Him in the world.  We are lax on how we think about Him.

     The heavenly hosts are keenly aware of God's holiness.  I wonder how many of us are aware of God's holiness.  Does the fact that God is holy do anything at all for you?  Does it bother you to think about His intolerance towards sin?  Does it bother you that you struggle with sin as much as you do?  Do you even think about it?  Does the fact that God is holy affect the way you approach Him?  It should.  God declares that without holiness no one shall see Him.  He commands us to be holy, even as He is holy.

     We give honor most to those whom we know and respect the most.  And, you can't really know God without knowing Him in His holiness. 

THIS ONE THING I DO

 

Ps. 27:4  The one thing I ask of the LORD--the thing I seek most--is to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, delighting in the LORD's perfections and meditating in his Temple.  For he will conceal me there when troubles come; he will hide me in the sanctuary.  He will place me out of reach on a high rock.

     When was the last time you asked the Lord to keep you in His presence so that you wouldn't sin against Him?  It is good for us to long to linger in God's presence.

     Our heart passion ought to be to delight in the Lord's perfections.  Have you ever paused to appreciate our perfect God?  God is perfect in all that is good: perfect love, patience, kindness, goodness, self-control, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and peace.  Because He is perfect, He is perfectly trustworthy and perfectly able to help us with whatever we lack in our life in Him.

     We ought to consider it pure joy to linger in the presence of God's holiness.  Instead of seeing holiness as a negative thing, we should see it as a positive thing.  When we delight in God's holiness we are able to resist the temptations of sin.  We will have the desire to not sin against God. 

     Our heart passion ought to be to meditate on God and His Word.  Whenever you draw near to God, you should be in no hurry to leave His presence.  We should think often on who God is.  We should meditate on the Word and let its truths sink deep into our souls.

     When we dwell in the presence of God, we are kept safe.  The Lord protects those who are in His presence.  We need to always keep the Lord before us.  We need to always stay close to the Lord, never moving out of the reach of His protection.  We need to always be mindful of God so that we will have the will to not sin against Him. 

     Keeping God on our minds doesn't just happen.  We must work hard at keeping our focus on Him.  Life is full of distractions.  The soul has a natural tendency to be distracted.  We must make our connection to God the priority of our lives.  We must take responsibility for our souls by doing the things we must do to keep our eyes fixed on Him.  We must never let our passion for God dim or grow cold.