All that I Am - excerpts from Psalm 103

Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.

Psalm 103:1-2 NLT

He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!

The Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly.

He revealed his character to Moses and his deeds to the people of Israel. The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.

He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust. Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone— as though we had never been here. But the love of the Lord remains forever with those who fear him. His salvation extends to the children’s children of those who are faithful to his covenant, of those who obey his commandments!

The Lord has made the heavens his throne; from there he rules over everything.

Praise the Lord, you angels, you mighty ones who carry out his plans, listening for each of his commands. Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels who serve him and do his will! Praise the Lord, everything he has created, everything in all his kingdom.

Let all that I am praise the Lord. (Let all that we are praise the Lord.)

Drought

O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. 

Psalm 63:1 NLT

How dry and thirsty are we? Are we being replenished and held together by the water of the Word? Are we actively seeking God so that He will rain down His righteousness on us and quench the thirsting of our souls or are we poster children for the drought? Are the blossoms of love and forgiveness in our lives being choked out by the weeds of bitterness we've allowed to take root? Do we think we can hide the gaping tears in our hearts by covering them with stones, giving the facade of being well-kept and attractive, but there's no life in them? We can't even walk safely on rocks, let alone run the race to which we've been called.

Are the fires in our lives from God or from the LACK of Him? You might ask, "What difference does it make? Either way, fire burns!" Let me tell you - there is a BIG difference. Godly fire burns away the chaff - the dross in our lives - WITHOUT destroying what is good. Left unchecked, fires destroy completely, unless of course, you are surrounded by water...Living Water (John 4).

How dry and thirsty are you? I know where there is water... It's found in the Word of God.

Prayer:

Father,
            As we immerse ourselves in Your Word, Lord, cause our hearts and minds to be flooded with Your Truths. Make us to be the trees planted by the waters that are not moved by the spiritual and physical drought conditions around us. Let us produce Your fruit in our lives to help feed those around us, drawing from Your well of living waters. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Prepared Hearts

Now it came to pass, when Rehoboam had established the kingdom and had strengthened himself, that he forsook the law of the Lord, and all Israel along with him.
And he did evil, because he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord.
2 Chronicles 12:1, 14

We hear much today in Christiandom about reaching the next generation and how important it is now, especially in these last days. Let me say something here - it's ALWAYS been important!

Deuteronomy 11: 18-21, instructs us in the Message Bible, Place these words on your hearts. Get them deep inside you. Tie them on your hands and foreheads as a reminder. Teach them to your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning until you fall into bed at night. Inscribe them on the doorposts and gates of your cities so that you’ll live a long time, and your children with you, on the soil that God promised to give your ancestors for as long as there is a sky over the Earth. In other words, PREPARE our hearts!

Rehoboam was David's grandson and the son of Solomon. David, the man after God's own heart and Solomon the wisest man who ever lived... The successor to the throne from the line of David. A man of great influence, so much so that when he forsook the law of the Lord, all of Israel did so with him... and why? Because he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord.

What are we doing to prepare our own hearts and the hearts of our children and our children's children and those who are within the sound of our voice to seek the Lord?

Prayer:

Father,
             Help us to be ever mindful of the task before us - to teach Your Words to our children and others within our realm of influence. To talk about You and Your Word wherever we are, sitting at home or walking in the street; to talk about Your Word from the time we get up in the morning until we fall into bed at night. Open the ears of those following after us to hear and embrace Your Words, Father. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Friends' Favorite - Entrusted to Our Care

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him. Psalm 24:1 NLT

If everything belongs to God, that makes us His stewards. Merriam-Webster defines stewardship as 'the conducting, supervising, or managing of something; especially: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care'.

Have you ever truly thought about it? What are the greatest matters entrusted to your care? The people within your sphere of influence? Family, friends, co-workers? People who regularly serve you in some capacity? What else? What about the talent He's given us?

The most obvious to me personally are my children and my grandchildren. Have I always managed carefully and responsibly? I shudder to think of the mistakes I've made. Deuteronomy 6:6-7 instructs us to ...commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. It doesn't say when it's convenient, or when your favorite show is over, or only on Sunday.

Everything looks different when filtered with the perspective of "It's all God's" coupled with the question of what we have done with it.

Prayer:

Father,
           Give us an eternal, Kingdom perspective, along with the knowledge and wisdom to manage carefully and responsibly everything You have entrusted to our care. Teach us so we may better understand that You require a return on everything You have given us. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

What We Can Do

Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can fully share its joy.
Proverbs 14:10 NLT

In Romans 12:15, Paul instructs us to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. We cannot know another's heart. We think we can. We think we know, but the best that we can do is have empathy for whatever the circumstance.

What we can do is pray for discernment. We can pray for compassion. We can pray to be the hands and feet of Jesus to a hurting world. Above all, we must pray for Christ's love to flow through us to those around us.

Physically, when someone has a wound that won't heal, it becomes more easily infected. In the matter of a wounded heart, left untended, it becomes bitterness. God clearly commands us in Romans 12:15 to Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many [emphasis mine]. Let's do what we can do.

Prayer:

Father,
          We pray for Your wisdom and discernment to see those who need to be seen. We pray for and believe that You will supply Your strength as You have promised in Your Word. Let our words of encouragement be according to Proverbs 25:11, The right word at the right time is like precious gold set in silver. Help us to be ever mindful of You and to pray always. In Jesus' Name. Amen

Because Jesus Said So

One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, “So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!”

But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”

And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Luke 23:39-43 NLT

Alistair Begg is a theologian and minister who currently resides in Ohio but is originally from Scotland. He has a unique ability to explain complex theological concepts in an easily understandable manner. In my opinion, he presents this passage of Scripture in such a way that so clearly defines the Gospel in its purest, simplest way. Following is a transcript of his two-minute excerpt.

Without the preaching of the cross, without preaching the cross to ourselves all day and every day, we will very, very quickly revert to faith plus works as the ground of our salvation; so that, to go to the old Fort Lauderdale question—“If you were to die tonight and you were getting entry into heaven, what would you say?”—If you answer that, and if I answer it, in the first person, we’ve immediately gone wrong. “Because I…” “Because I believed. Because I have faith. Because I am this. Because I am continuing...” Loved ones, the only proper answer’s in the third person: “Because He…” “Because He…”

Think about the thief on the cross… I can’t wait to find that fellow one day to ask him, “How did that shake out for you? Because you were cussing the guy out with your friend. You’d never been in a Bible study. You’d never got baptized. You didn’t know a thing about church membership. And yet—and yet, you made it! You made it! How did you make it?”

That’s what the angel must have said—you know, like, “What are you doing here?”
“Well, I don’t know.”
“What do you mean, you don’t know?”
“Well, ’cause I don’t know.”
“Well, you know… Excuse me. Let me get my supervisor.”
They go get the supervisor angel: “So, we’ve just a few questions for you. First of all, are you clear on the doctrine of justification by faith?”
The guy says, “I’ve never heard of it in my life.”
“And what about… Let’s just go to the doctrine of Scripture immediately.”
This guy’s just staring.
And eventually, in frustration, he [the angel] says, “On what basis are you here?”
And he said, “The Man on the middle cross said I can come.”

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Jesus... He is the only reason. HE is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

Prayer:

Father,
          Thank You for Your plan of salvation. Thank You for making it so plain. Forgive us for the times we complicate it by adding our man-made stipulations. Strip the lies from our eyes and help us see clearly so we can point the way for others. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Friends' Favorite - TODAY

This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24 NLT

Do you have a favorite day of the week? Do you have a least favorite day of the week? Did you know that statistically, Monday is the least favorite day of the week? That's probably no great surprise, but it was followed closely by Sunday...which did surprise me. The most popular reason for Monday being the least favorite was work-related, obviously. Sunday's votes were almost tied between two: 1 - that Monday was the next day, and 2 - the others felt guilty for not going to church... and the reasons were ludicrous - too early Sunday morning after late-night TV on Saturday... too busy having fun on Saturday, so they had to stay home and clean (and feel guilty) on Sunday...

Typically, Mondays and Fridays are the craziest days of the week for me, and if I absolutely HAD to pick a least favorite, I would probably lean toward Monday because it is so hectic...However, it's also the day I get to see friends I haven't seen for two or three days, so it all works out. And any day that I wake up breathing can be counted as a good day here on Earth. I like being on the upside of the dirt. Everything else is icing on the cake.

I can get out of the bed without assistance. I can walk, I can talk, I can think (most days). I have running water to wash with and clean water to drink in the world I live in. And I am washed by the water of the Word. I also drink from the Wellspring of Living Water and so I will never thirst again. The Creator of the Universe - the Lord of Heaven and Earth - is my Father and we talk every day. I am assured of His love and strength and protection and provision for me. He made the day and caused me to awaken. I will rejoice and be glad in it.

Prayer:

Father,
          According to Your Word, Your faithful love never ends! Your mercies never cease. Great is Your faithfulness; Your mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself and to all who will hear, You are my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in You! One more day - one day closer to eternity. Help us hasten to obey Your Word so all can hear the Good News of Jesus Christ and usher in His return. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen