Psalm 68:3
“But the righteous shall be glad; they shall exult before God; they shall be jubilant with joy!”

Because I have been clothed with the righteousness of Christ, I have no fear of judgement. I am free to be jubilant with joy!!!!

Jesus, My Only Hope
Words and music by Mark Altrogge
As recorded on Songs for the Cross Centered Life

Lyrics

I come into Your presence
With nothing in my hands
I only bring thanksgiving
For Jesus, God and Man
I cast myself on mercy
I cast myself on love
I trust Your gracious promise
To wash me with Your blood

I will not fear Your judgment
For me, no wrath I dread
For it was spent on Jesus
Poured out upon His head
When Satan’s accusations
Make my poor heart afraid
I hear my King declaring
“Father, that debt is paid”

Jesus my only hope,
my only plea
My righteousness,
my Great High Priest
Who intercedes for me
before the throne
Jesus, I trust in You alone
© 2002 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI).

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DO YOU FRET?

Psalm 37:8
“Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.”

Ephesians 4:26
“Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.”

I decided to look up the word “fret” in the dictionary to get an accurate definition.

Fret= an irritated state of mind; annoyance; vexation ; to torment; irritate, annoy, or vex ; to become eaten, worn, or corroded; to feel or express worry, annoyance, discontent, or the like. (

The definitions go on and on in the same vein. As I think about last week’s meditations about my mouth and my words I see that many of my careless words do not come from anger but from “fretting!” Do you fret? I realize that I do!

If I get annoyed with someone, either something they say or something they do, I turn it over in my mind over and over again. I worry about it, or I express my annoyance or discontent with that person…. I usually do it in my mind and eventually it will come out in my words!!!!!!!!!

I love the word “vexation”. It brings me back to one of my favorite books, Pride and Prejudice when the mother of the protagonist says to her husband in a perfect British accent, “I do believe you delight in vexing me.” haha! Even as I write this I realize that I do believe I delight in vexing myself! I’m fairly certain that I must take a certain delight in vexing myself or to use the biblical term, in fretting. Why else would I do it? Would that mean that I actually delight in this sin??? May it not be so, O Lord!

Fretting does tend to evil, it manifests in eating away at a peaceful heart and mind, it causes worry and discontent and it may lead to expressing this discontent verbally.

Amazing how one sin can lead to so many others! So, I think that today, I continue to pray that God would not only guard my mouth but guard my heart and mind so that if I get annoyed at people, that I will not fret, but instead extend grace to all as God so generously gives his grace to me!

Anyone else do this? Do you fret?

Psalm 8:6-7
"Give ear O Lord, to my prayer; listen to my plea for grace. In the day of trouble I call upon you, for you answer me."

Psalm 116:1-2
"I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because He inclined His ear to me therefore I will call on Him as long as I live."

I read these Scriptures and I am so encouraged! The psalmist is pleading with the Lord for grace and in the very next sentance he tells us why he calls upon the Lord in the day of trouble! BECAUSE GOD ANSWERS HIM! What great assurance! How often do we hear that the only the New Testament is grace! But this scripture says the exact opposite! The Bible is full of grace from Genesis to Revelation! Again, in Psalm 116 the psalmist has learned that when he calls upon the Lord for mercy, he receives it and therefore will call on hi for as long as he lives!
I love how I can never exhaust mercy and grace. As often as I ask for grace and mercy, I will receive grace and mercy!

Oh Lord, I love you! You have heard my pleas for grace and mercy! I WILL cal on your for as long as I live! You are worthy Oh Lord to receive all glory, honor and praise! You are so generous. Thank you for your grace and mercy!

Hebrews 4:15-16

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who is in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

For the last couple of days I’ve been talking about needing help in guarding my mouth and how quickly I sinned when I had spoken about wanting to glorify God with my mouth!
Reading this scripture I am so encouraged by the provision of help from God! Jesus too has been tempted in EVERY respect that we are and have been and will be, yet, HE DID NOT SIN! We are told, then, that we can draw near to the throne of grace and receive mercy and grace to HELP in our time of need. God has not left us without help! How kind of God to tell us to draw near and receive help in the form of mercy and grace. God loves us so much that He will help us NOT sin, but if we do, he loves us so much He gives us mercy.
This stirs my heart to desire to obey! Understanding God’s desire to help me makes me want to obey more than I want to speak what’s on my mind. Of course, this doesn’t apply to just the sins of our mouths but all our sins!

This makes me want to SHOUT the praises of God!!!!!

Matthew 12:34b
“…For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”

Psalm 71:8
“My mouth is filled with your praise, and with your glory all the day.”

Good Morning! I’m still thinking about yesterday’s scripture and how God in His great faithfulness and mercy and love revealed to me the sins of my mouth that remain. Isn’t God so wonderful? No sooner were the words out of my mouth that I desired to honor God with my mouth when He showed me how I still have within my heart the sins of how I use my words. He is so good!!!! What a kind Father to show me my sin and according to God’s Word I have the assurance that I am no longer a slave to this sin and am able to have victory in this area! It was a great reminder of my need of a Savior.

The Matthew Scripture above reminds me of what God pointed out to me yesterday. I can never say, “I can’t believe I said what I said!” or “Where did THAT come from?” The answer is simple. It came from what is in my heart. BUT I have hope because of the gospel! What joy this is! What hope!

Today, as I recall the gospel, my mouth IS filled with praise and with HIS glory! It is so important to preach the gospel to ourselves every day, all day … for as we remember what Jesus did for us at the cross we can’t help but speak praises to God!

So, how do I guard my mouth? I must immerse myself in the Word and recall the Gospel. Doing so, will cause the light to shine in my heart to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Cor 4:6) . THEN my mouth will be filled with the glory of God! If the gospel is always on my mind, then THIS is what I will speak of!

I’m looking forward to a day where His praises pour forth out of my mouth!

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GUARD MY MOUTH O LORD!

Proverbs 21:23
“Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.”

Proverbs 13:3
“Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.”

So, these scriptures are great reminders to me to keep my big mouth shut. If I have nothing nice, kind, constructive or encouraging to say, then I must just keep my mouth shut. Keeps me out of trouble and ruin!
I am deeply aware of God’s great grace in my life. I used to feel compelled ALWAYS to speak what I was thinking. I have found that as the process of my sanctification continues I’m less and less compelled to speak my mind. Oh, believe me, there are days when I have a run of the mouth that probably makes up for the days I kept silent, but there again, I find God’s great grace.
I guess this is where that old saying came from, that my mom always used to tell me, “If you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say anything at all.”

Or… as Mark Twain said, “It is better to remain silent and appear stupid, then to open it and remove all doubt.”

But the most important reason to guard my mouth? I so desire to honor God with the words that come forth from my mouth. I want to glorify Him with my conversation. So, yea, that’s how you can pray for me today.

Are you guarding your mouth today?

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Jeremiah 5:22
“Do you not fear me? Declares the Lord. Do you not tremble before me? I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass; though the waves toss, they cannot prevail; though they roar, they cannot pass over it.”

As I read this scripture this morning I realize that I take so much for granted. I love going to the ocean. It is so huge, it seems endless, it is calm and violent all at the same time. I find it so peaceful to be near the ocean. I’ve never once thought as I sat near the ocean that maybe this next wave will not stop at it’s appointed place and that the ocean will just continue to flow onto land. I’ve never thought about that. This scripture tells me that God, himself placed a boundary for how far the water can go. God controls EVERYTHING!!! The winds obey Him, the seas obey him. Amazing!

2 things come to mind as a result of my soul being affected by this scripture:

1) The Awesome power and might and sovereign reign and control of our Almighty God and Father! HE rules over all!
I should not take this for granted but let it affect my soul and my behavior so I will walk in fear and awe of God always
2) Since God is sovereign over the seas what little things in my life do I not trust Him with? God commands the seas and they obey him! Can He not then command my circumstances? My feelings? My fears? Etc etc…? Of course He can!

Thank you Lord for increasing my understanding of You this morning. Thank you for increasing my faith!

Phil 2:3
“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.”

Last weekend I attended a wedding and this weekend I’m attending 2 more! Dennis and I have been married for over 30 years now! Amazing! I’m thankful to God for his grace in our marriage. If I could give one piece of advice to each of my newly married friends it would be the above scripture.

Do NOTHING from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count your spouse more significant than yourself. Can you imagine if we all did that in ALL of our relationships?

By God’s grace it’s a goal worth working toward!

Romans 14:13,20,21

“Therefore let us not pass judgement on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. Do not, for the sake of food destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong to make another stumble by what he eats. It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.”

I read these scriptures this afternoon and I’m reminded of my friend who was an alcoholic. One day she was drinking and partying for pure enjoyment and then God interrupted her life and she stopped drinking. It was indeed a work of God!!! He worked in her a greater thirst for Jesus than her thirst for alcohol! It was miraculous to witness and a joy to have had a ringside seat to this transformation. As I read these scriptures today I think of my friend’s new roommates. Before my friend moved in it came to her attention that the girls kept wine in the house. Now, it is not evil or even sinful to keep and drink wine UNLESS it would be a stumbling block for someone. As my friend brought this up with her potential roommates they informed her that they had already made the decision WITHOUT HER EVEN ASKING that if she moved in they would no longer keep alcohol in their house.

These young ladies put their money where their mouth is. These young ladies were not just hearers of the Word but doers of the Word! They were willing to set aside their own freedoms to ensure that their new roommate would not stumble.

I think of this song: “And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love. And they’ll know we are Christians by our love.” (written by Peter Scholte)

Daniel 2:20-21
“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons; He removes kings and sets up kings, He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding.”

Proverbs 21:1
“The King’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He will.”

As the elections heat up the temptations to worry about who will be our next president may be great! Here are two scriptures that have always calmed me down when I’ve been unhappy with our political leaders. I am reminded that that GOD is the one who decides who is going to be our next president. Our job is to pray and to vote according to our conscience and we leave the results to God. The bible isn’t going to tell us, by name, who to vote for. We must weigh the issues, pray and then vote… but we are not to worry!!! We are to be responsible to vote but we must remember that our hope is not in our president but in GOD ALONE!
The proverbs scripture reminds me that God turns the king’s heart any which way He wills. I have to constantly remind myself that God is sovereign over every leader, nation and decisions made… God does not sit idly by and watch us make a mess of this world! God is actively involved in history. After all it is HIS STORY!

Are you tempted to get wrapped up in the election coverage and worry? Remember, trust God.

From The Gospel Primer by Milton Vincent, p. 46

“What happens to my appetite for sin when I am filled with the fullness of God in Christ? Jesus provides this answer:
“He who continually comes to Me will never hunger or thirst again.” (John 6:35)
Indeed, as I perpetually feast on Christ and all of His blessings found in the Gospel, I find that my hunger for sin diminishes and the lies of lust simply lose their appeal. Hence, to the degree that I am full, I am free. Eyes do not rove, nor do fleshly lusts rule, when the heart is fat with the love of Jesus.”

So, how fat is your heart with the love of Jesus? The ONLY way we can feed our heart is by being in the WORD! It is THERE that we find the Gospel. It is in God’s Word that we read over and over again God’s love for us through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for our sins. When we read about the holiness of God and the depth of our sin, when we read about what we deserve because of our sin and when we read about what God did to save us from His just wrath, THEN we see the beauty of Jesus and His love for us.

If I find that I am falling into sin a lot, o worse, if I find that I am not hating sin as I should... I need to stop and evaluate what I’m feeding on. Am I feeding on the things of the world? Or am I feeding on Jesus Christ!?

Is your heart fat with the love of Jesus?

“Acts 5:41
“Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the Name.” (of Jesus)

The Apostles had just been beaten and charged not to speak about Jesus.. and they left the council REJOICING!
I read this and I realize what a whiny butt I can be when I speak about Jesus to my friends or my fear of speaking of Jesus to the cashiers at Giant etc…why? Because I’m going to be beaten????????? NO! I might get a “funny” look or I might get “talked about”… but I can go into the store the next day and still buy my groceries with no fear of being beaten. Or I can still go to a family reunion and have no fear of being thrown in jail or of being beaten because I speak of the name of Jesus. I’m afraid, of… what? Not being liked? Of a “rolling of the eyes?” goodness!

So what did the apostles do after they were beaten? Did they run in their house and pray for the people? They may have, but they also did this:

v. 42
“And every day in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”

WOW! And the same Holy Spirit that made them bold is the same Holy Spirit that lives in me and makes me bold. All I have to do is obey!
Please do not misunderstand me. I am not feeling condemnation. I am feeling encouraged that all I have to do is ask God for boldness and opportunities and courage and strength to obey and I’m pretty sure God will give me all of these!

Lord, please give me boldness and courage and strength to seize the opportunities you bring my way to share Christ!

Acts 4:12
“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

JESUS. What a BEAUTIFUL name!

“How do I thank You oh Lord for taking my place on the cross; And how do I thank you oh Lord for all of your mercy and kindness. For calling me to You, for letting me hear You, for opening my heart to the gospel! As long as I have breath I will praise you. As long as my heart beats I will sing. As long as life flows in my veins, I will bless Your Name.”
(1998 Sovereign Grace Music; Words and Music by Mark Altrogge)

Psalm 118: 14
The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation.

Last night I was at a wedding of a friend (Kirk) from an old church and is presently a new pastor in the family of churches (Sovereign Grace Ministries) that I am a member of now.
Being at Kirk’s wedding reminded me of how God used the Gathering (a young adult ministry at McLean Bible Church), particularly the worship there, to ignite my heart to the knowledge of the glories of God in Jesus Christ.

During those years at the Gathering I was introduced to worship songs that were God-centered, NOT man centered! I remember worshipping one night at the Gathering and I wondered in my heart that perhaps eventually I would have to move on from this group of people that I had grown to love. I had NEVER in my Christian life experienced such God honoring worship! I couldn’t imagine where I would find a church that used these type of songs to honor God and not man. Well, God in his sovereignty, used a series of circumstances to move many of us out of that church and ministry and I ended up at Sovereign Grace Church in Fairfax.

I could not believe that my new church used the type of songs that Will Pavone had introduced me to in worship! Last night at Kirk’s wedding, my two worlds blended. Having Will leading us in worship with my Sovereign Grace family caused me to get emotional in my thanks to God for His kindness to me. God drew me into greater affections for Himself, God drew me into a love of deep worship of Him. I love the church. I love the body of Christ. I love Jesus. Yesterday, I had a glimpse of heaven as I saw friends from my former church blended with my friends at my new church and seriously, I couldn’t keep from getting teary.

I say all this to honor God and declare that it is HIM that I love to worship, that is is HE who has become my salvation and I love to worship Him with my family of God. How I thank God for my salvation. How I thank God for old friends. I thank God for new friends. He is so good to me, giving me far more than I deserve for I deserve nothing but hell and God, not only saved me but keeps giving me gift after gift. I thank you Lord God!

1 John 2:1
“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”

I just listened to a sermon by John Piper (http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/MediaPlayer/2665/Video/)
Regarding this scripture. He spoke about the tenderness that John used in writing this letter. He referred to the Christians he was writing to as his little children. That is indeed very comforting terminology. It conveys concern and compassion not harshness. This letter of 1 John is written so the Christian can test themselves and see if they are in the faith. Dr. Piper said that as the Christian reads 1 John they may begin to panic because the person who is truly born again is very aware and sorrowful over their sin that they know is a part of their lives every hour. He then referred us to this scripture that I just quoted and he spoke about the assurance, those in Christ Jesus have, when they sin. They assurance is that JESUS CHRIST THE RIGHTEOUS is our advocate! Now THIS is something to ponder on today and rejoice and be thankful about!

Is 61:10
“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall exult in my God, for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation; for He has covered me with the robe for righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with jewels.”

Before God rescued me I was enslaved to sin and dressed in filthy rags, BUT THEN God called me and rescued me and dressed me in the garments of salvation and a robe righteousness! Jesus lived a righteous life, a good and perfect life and then gave HIS righteousness to me. He credited HIS righteousness to my account. He clothed me a robe of righteousness. I will indeed greatly rejoice in the Lord!!!

Psalm 106:43-46
“Many times He delivered them but they were rebellious in their purposes and were brought low through their iniquity. NEVERTHELESS, He looked upon their distress, when He heard their cry. For their sake He remembered his covenant, and relented according to the abundance of HIS steadfast love. He caused them to be pitied by those who held them captive.”

I’m amazed by grace again today. The Israelites were rebellious and sinful and NEVERTHELESS God relented according to the abundance of His steadfast love. WOW!
Thank you Lord that your steadfast love is so great and so huge that you would look upon the Israelites distress! Thank you Lord that even in my sin you look upon me with grace and steadfast love through Jesus Christ. Thank you Lord for your amazing grace.

Tribute to Edith Wickert

2 Corinthians 5:7
“For we walk by faith, not by sight.”

Yesterday in the early afternoon an elderly friend of mine (in her late 80’s) from Burke Community Church had the pleasure of leaving this world and seeing her Savior Jesus face to face. Can you imagine the joy she had upon seeing His face? It boggles my mind. She had pain and suffering as she was leaving this world but I imagine that once she passed from this world to the next, she forgot every bit of that suffering as she gazed upon Jesus.

I had the pleasure of serving the Lord with Edith in several ministries. For a while, she and I would get together at 5:30 AM at church on Friday mornings to pray for the church. Mind you, she was already in her late 70’s at this point! We taught women’s bible studies together (in the same ministry). We were in a ministry together that helped women see sin and sin patterns in their life and walk in freedom from these sins. It was such a privilege to serve the Lord with her.

Edith was such an elegant woman. She was a gracious, Southern woman, the kind you read about in novels with the beautiful white hair and the gracious and elegant speech. Top that with a deep love for Jesus.. yes, she was a wonderful woman of God. And so generous!

One day she and I were casually talking about our households and she asked me a question regarding my “silver”. I said, “What silver?” She said, “your silver bowls and serving pieces.” I said, “I don’t have any of those things.” She said, “Didn’t you get any for your wedding?” I said, “I think I have one serving piece.” She just nodded.
Next time we were together for bible study she handed me a gift box, wrapped up like a wedding present ( I had already been married for almost 20 years) and when I opened it there was a beautiful silver bowl in it. She told me it was one of her bowls, but she had so many she wanted me to have one. J Yes, Edith was a thoughtful and generous woman.

We will miss her here on earth. Her husband Tom will be so very lonely, I am sure. But, I can’t help but be excited and so happy for Edith today for even though you and I still must walk by faith and not by sight, Edith now walks by sight! She SEES her SAVIOR JESUS! Alleluia! Or as another friend of mine from BCC used to say, “GLORY”!!

James 2:13
“For judgement is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgement.”

I read this scripture this morning and I realize that I am not very merciful. I am quick to point a finger. I am quick to show disgust, anger or frustration. Should I hate the sin I see in the world? YES! What should my response be, then? A love and compassion for the lost? YES! Then I wonder is it really enough to just love the lost in feelings? NO! It’s a great start but I am beginning to think that I must do more! I can’t share the gospel with EVERYONE who is lost but I can in my little piece of the world. To my family. To the people that God places in my life. The cashiers at Giant that I have come to know so well with over 16 years of shopping at the same store. My mailman? Give him/her an unexpected Gift Certificate and throw in a tract, then be available to talk when he/she next delivers the mail. I have asked God to show me how to be merciful and the ideas are beginning to flow!

If I hate the sin I see then I must realize that same sin was in me and some still remains in me!!! BUT, I have been forgiven and set free from the slavery to this sin by the sovereignty of God in giving me a measure of faith and the grace to believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins and HIS kindness brought me to repentance. Is this not mercy?
Then the most merciful thing I can do is to take measures to love people by sharing the very same gospel that saved me.

Please pray for me. I do not want to have this conviction today and ignore it. I want to act on it. Please pray for boldness for me. Please pray for courage to follow through on the ideas that God is giving me. Please pray that I am not just a hearer of the Word but a doer! I want God to be glorified. I want to share the gospel AND be merciful and loving and compassionate while hating sin and loving those that are made in the image of God.

As you can see… I have a lot on my mind today.

Today I am pondering God’s benefits:

Psalm 103: 2-17

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits:

1. He forgives all my iniquity
2. He heals all my diseases
3. He redeems my life from the pit
4. He crowns me with steadfast love and mercy
5. He satisfies me with good so that my youth is renewed like the eagles
6. He works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed
7. He is merciful and gracious
8. He is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love
9. He will not always chide, nor keep His anger forever
10.He does not deal with me according to my sins
11. He does not repay me according to my iniquities
12. His steadfast love is as high as the heavens above the earth toward those who fear Him
13. He removes my transgressions from me as far as the east is from the west
14.The Lord shows his compassion to those who fear him
15.The steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children.

As I ponder these benefits today I want my affections for my Lord and Savior to increase!

Psalm 102:27
“But you are the same and your years have no end.”

Hebrews 13:8
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

Revelation 1:8
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

God never changes. Weather changes. People change. Jobs change. Presidents change. Economy changes. Health changes. Circumstances change. I change. My mood changes. GOD NEVER CHANGES! The God who parted the red sea for the Israelites to have an escape route, is the same God who walks with us today. The God who died on the cross for our sins is the same God who parted the sea and walks with us today. The God who parted the sea, died on the cross and walks with us today is the same God who will come back for his church.
I bow before my God, the Almighty.

Psalm 100:3
“Know that the Lord, He is God! It is HE who made us, and we are HIS, we are HIS people, and the sheep of HIS pasture.”

I read this scripture several times this morning and each time I was more convicted of the “familiarity” I can sometimes have with God. It is good to know God and be familiar with who He is and to be intimate with him, but I’m talking about the negative familiarity, the kind that minimizes who someone is, taking them for granted. I’m going to take this one step further. If there are times when we are not impressed with who God is, if there are times when I take God for granted it is because I really haven’t taken into consideration to know God and WHO HE IS!! Know that the Lord, HE IS GOD!
HE IS GOD! Alleluia! HE IS GOD!!!

On Steve Altrogge’s blog, The Blazing Center : http://www.theblazingcenter.com/2008/06/official-gratefulness-day.html , He has declared today to be Official Gratefulness Day. I read this psalm this morning and then I will list only a few of the things I am grateful for.. there are so many, too many to write, but today I will just some!

Psalm 98:1,4
“Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done marvelous things! His right hand and His holy arm have worked salvation for him… Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth, break forth into joyous song and sing praises.”

Some of the things I am grateful to God for today:

1. Salvation through my Lord, Jesus Christ
2. My loving husband of over 30 years!
3. My 4 children
4. My son in law – I love how he loves and takes care my daughter
5. My daughter in law – I love how she loves my son and how she waited for him so faithfully to return from war.
6. That God brought my son safely home from Iraq
7. Flowers… I LOVE flowers
8. My eyesight, I LOVE to read
9. Books, I LOVE to read
10. My church! We LOVE our church family!
11. My friends. God has given me so many godly friendships!

SING TO THE LORD!

Is 53:5
“But he was wounded for our transgressions; He was crushed f our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His stripes we are healed.”

THEREFORE:

Psalm 95:1-2
“Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise! “

Enough said?

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MY FOOT SLIPS!

Psalm 94:17-19
“If the Lord had not been my help, my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence. When I thought, “my foot slips.”, Your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.”

The psalmist was writing about living in a world with the wicked. It was difficult then, it is difficult now. Praise the Lord, we, in the USA, are not put to death for our faith. We are not tempted to turn from our faith because impending death for our faith looms on the horizon, however, we are tempted in many other ways. The things of the world which are around us… the TV shows we want to watch that everyone is talking about, or the movies… or in the way we respond to things and situations! We want to “fight for our rights”, we want to defend our reputations, we want to “be right”, we want to argue, we want to worry etc etc.. the list is almost endless.

In my home I live with unbelievers. Sometimes it’s a fight for joy! Sometimes I want to be fearful and worrisome like my mom … sometimes it seems easier to do that than fight for joy and faith. BUT when I think, “my foot slips”, GOD’S steadfast love holds me up!

I wasn’t even looking for a reference to God’s steadfast love today but it was in my regular reading plan.. how kind of God in his perfect timing to remind me that it is HE , by His love, that holds me up when I am about to slip, or when I feel like I’m slipping or even when I want to slip!!! God keeps those he saves. Oh, what comfort!

Psalm 92:1-2
“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning and your faithfulness by night.”

Psalm 36:5
“Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.”

I’m still meditating on the steadfast love of the Lord! I’m pretty sure that an important component of being “satisfied” in God’s steadfast love is meditating on it and searching out scriptures about it. Of course the loudest proclamation of God’s steadfast love is the salvation of our souls through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ!
My hope and intent today is that I think often of this great love that comes from God and may my life reflect this love by the love I extend to others as a result of God’s love for me.
This love of God brings such joy!!!!

Psalm 91:1-6

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust. For He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and a buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.”

I looked up the word “pestilence” in the dictionary and it is defined: something hard to be rid of; an pernicious, malign influence that is hard to get rid of; a virulent disease, harmful and destructive.

WOW! God delievers us from the deadly pestilence. He delivers us from the deadliest pestilence: sin. What a gracious, merciful and loving God. I am also pondering today that this scripture tells us that it is GOD’S FAITHULNESS (not mine) thiat is our shield and buckler(one that shields and protects). It is so important to know and understand the faithfulness of God for then we will know and understand the protection we have from and the refuge that God is! Amazing! So amazing! So, so , so comforting.

Psalm 90:14
“Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.”

“God is constantly taking knowledge of me in love and watching over me for my good.” (Knowing God, by J.I. Packer., p. 42)

I love praying scripture back to God and I love when I come across an actual prayer in Scripture. The psalmist is asking God to satisfy him with HIS steadfast love and goes on to say that being satisfied in God’s steadfast love brings rejoicing and gladness to our days! Of course it does!
I am re-reading a modern Christian classis, Knowing God. It powerfully affected my soul when I read it almost 18 years ago and it is powerfully affecting my soul now! The author of this book is directing my heart to scriptures that speak of God’s steadfast love. I am being refreshed in my soul, heart and mind in the understanding of God’s love for me and it has indeed produced in me a renewed joy and gladness in my God and Savior.
I encourage you to pray this and ask God to satisfy you with His steadfast love. See what happens!

2 Tim 2:24-26
“And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth , and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by hm to do his will.”

This reminds me to be kind to the non believers in my life. It’s way too easy for me to get argumentative over an issue of sin that gets public notoriety.. for example, abortion, gay lifestyle.. As believers we must, of course, stand firmly against those sins but it does absolutely no good to argue with someone over those. Of course they’re not going to see what we see, because their eyes are still blind to the truths of the gospel. So many times we try and clean up someone’s act AND THEN lead them to Christ through the gospel. So many times I’ve had it backwards! My job is to share the gospel and GOD will clean up their act. Being quarrelsome does no one any good!

Lord, help me to be gentle and kind to everyone even when every part of me wants to argue because I know I’m right on these issues! Instead, help me to be humble and gentle and kind, speaking as one who is rescued, not as one who wants to be right. In Jesus name, Amen.

2 Timothy 2:22
“So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”

As I read this scripture I see that if we are to pursue (to strive to gain; seek to attain or accomplish)
righteousness, faith, love and peace that means we are to FLEE from unrighteousness, unbelief, hate, and conflict(not peace).
Yikes! If I take a quick look I’d say I’m doing okay… but a deeper look would indicate that maybe I don’t flee from these sins as quickly as I ought or thought

Let me take a look at my own life:

Worrying about something = unbelief
Arguing over a theological concept in order to be right = conflict
Gossiping or entertaining gossip = hate (this includes Hollywood entertainment magazines or tv shows or laughing at political jokes about candidates. It’s still gossip even if I don’t personally know the people that are being gossiped about!!!!)

Oh Lord! Help me to flee from these things! Help me to hate these things! Give flight to my feet Lord so I will run, run, run from my youthful passions!

(www.sfgate.com/.../2006/07/18/pirate.jpg)

2 Timothy 2:21-26
“Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. SO flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who calls on the Lord from a pure heart. Have NOTHING to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.”

I am going to camp on this scripture for at least a couple of days if not more. So many things to think about and ponder on!
The phrase that first came to my attention was, “ready for every good work.” As I thought about and prayed that I want to be ready for every good work I had to read on to see how that happens. I am to FLEE youthful passions… according to dictionary.com, flee is defined as: to run away, as from danger or pursuers; run away quickly; The act of fleeing; the act of running away, to escape or expected evil; hasty departure.
This doesn’t mean flirt with youthful passions and try to resist. It doesn’t mean to slowly back away. It doesn’t mean to stop, look at it, pray about it, think about it. It means GET OUT OF THERE FAST!
So, one way to be ready for every good work is to FLEE youthful passions. Tomorrow I’m going to think through and talk about what youthful passions are. But for today, my prayer is for God to help me to flee from sin and to hate it and not even entertain the thoughts of sin. Sin is dangerous. As John Owen said, “Be killing sin or it will be killing you.” FLEE!

Psalm 27:4
“One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple.”

In John Piper’s book, God is the Gospel, he says, “The critical question for our generation – and for every generation- is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied in heaven, if Christ was not there?” (page 15)

That is and should be a very sobering question. Do we love Jesus for Jesus or for what He gives to us? Do we love the beauty of Jesus and His holiness? Oh may it be so!!!

Lord, help me to be a lover of only Jesus! Help me to always love Jesus more than what He gives to me. Help me to love the beauty of Christ and being with Him more than anything else. Amen.

Is 45:5-7
“I am the Lord and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that people may know from the rising of the sun and from the west, there there is none besides me; I am the Lord and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things.”

How reassuring to my soul it is to know that there is NO OTHER GOD except the Lord. How reassuring to my soul it is that there are no random acts that “happen” to us but our lives are in the control of our God who is good. Amen?

Please continue to pray for Jeff.

Nahum 1:7
The Lord is good,
A stronghold in the day of trouble;
He knows those who take refuge in Him.

On Saturday evening my son's childhood friend was in a car accident. Buddy's friend is miraculously fine and will be out of the hospital today. Sadly, his friend's girlfriend and another friend died in this accident. His friend is so, so sad.
Please pray for Jeff. Please pray for the families of the 2 girls who died. Jeff is only 15 and has this huge burden to bear. Pray for his healing and that God would be his comfort.

It is good to know that even in this the Lord is indeed good and HE is a stronghold, our security, in the day of trouble.

Please keep this situation in your prayers.

John 15:4,5,8
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing…By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”

When I read this scripture this morning I was reminded of a movie I had seen where a family’s vineyard burnt to the ground and were despairing at the loss of their means of living. Then, someone found a piece of the living vine and they rejoiced because they knew that with just one part of the living vine to plant… that the vine would again produce grapes. A happy ending!

This is how it is with us in Christ. We are the branches attached to the vine… it is the VINE that produces the fruit in us, the branches. If we are not abiding in Christ, in the vine, we will not produce Father-glorifying fruit. If we do, then it is proof that we are disciples of Christ. It is not the fruit that we muster up and try to push out.. it is the fruit that comes from abiding in Christ.

It is a beautiful reminder this morning that unless we abide in Christ; unless we abide in the Word of God, we will not bear fruit. For apart from Jesus we can do NOTHING!

Oh Lord, I love your word, Help me to love it more and more and more. When I get complacent about your Word, wake me up and draw me into your word. Help me see it as my very sustenance! I want my Father to be glorified by the fruit that is produced from abiding in You. I want the gospel to be advanced by the fruit that YOU produce in me.
I love you Lord and I thank you for Your Word.

Isaiah 40:26
“Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name, by the greatness of His might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing.”

Whenever I see pictures of the stars and the heavens that the Hubble Telescope has taken I am usually overcome with awe of our incredible God! God made and put in place every single star and has a name for each one!!! AND not one is missing because God is strong in power. Absolutely amazing.

There are stars and galaxies out there that we are just learning about and some we probably don’t even know about yet! What a blessing our technology is because we can see,now, more than ever, the extent of God’s creation!!! He continues to reveal Himself to us and an unbelieving world!

I’m going to take time today to stop and ponder His greatness in creation and then remember and THIS is the God who so loved the world that He sent His only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

God, who placed the stars in the heavens, keeps them , and then has a name for each of them, saved me. WOW!

John 12:42-43
“Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in Him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.”

Gulp.

Oh Lord, please put to death in me, any remaining remnants of the fear of man. I want my desire to be for YOUR glory above all else.

JESUS WEPT

John 11:35
“Jesus wept.”

One of my many prayers before God is that He would help me love Jesus more.

Today, as I read the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, in this tiny and short little scripture, my affections for Jesus were increased.

The bible tells us how Lazarus had been dead for 4 days, how Martha and Mary, Lazarus’s sisters, had been grieving and weeping at the loss of their brother. Each of the sisters expressed to Jesus, “Had you been here, he would not have died.” As Jesus observed the death of his friend and the grief of his family, even though he intended to raise him from the dead, he wept. Jesus wept with those wept. (Romans 12:15). When I read that this morning I was overcome with how Jesus is intimately involved with our tragedies and sadnesses.

I just read a blog this morning by a pastor who was trying to make sense of the tragedy of the death of Steven Curtis Chapman’s daughter. The pastor unfortunately wasn’t able to square it away with himself… he talked about how this death wasn’t fair, where was God, how could he let this happen? I felt so bad for this pastor for he apparently doesn’t have an understanding of God’s sovereignty and love. If I knew this pastor personally, I would tell him when He asked where was God? I would say, “He was weeping with the Chapman family, for God is compassionate and weeps with those who weep.
Now, THAT increases my love as I think of the almighty God understanding our griefs and sorrows.
(May God comfort the Chapman family).

BLESSED ASSURANCE

John 10:26-30
“…but you do not believe, because you are not part of my flock. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

What an encouraging scripture telling us of the assurance of salvation. There was a time that I really struggled with this… but no more. The beauty of truly understanding that GOD, Himself, initiates salvation is also the TRUTH that God keeps us saved. HE keeps us from falling away(Jude 24,25). GOD’s power guards us through faith (1 Peter 1:5). Doesn’t this just make you bow down in joy and gratitude before God? It does me. I am excited to meditate on this scripture today and be encouraged in God’s Word. Let’s abide in this scripture today! I’m pretty sure it will bring us joy!

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!

Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!

Heir of salvation, purchase of God,

Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

Refrain:

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long;

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior all the day long.

Perfect submission, perfect delight,

Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;

Angels, descending, bring from above

Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest,

I in my Savior am happy and blest,

Watching and waiting, looking above,

Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

(by Frances Crosby, 1873)

My mother’s heart today, on Memorial Day, is tender as I think about all the men and women in the history of this country who either sacrificed their lives for our freedoms or were willing to sacrifice their lives.

I think of my son who spent 15 months in Iraq. Thank you LORD for bringing him safely home. My heart is so proud of him and yet as his mom my heart also breaks at the horrors of war that he had to be a part of, that he had to witness, that he had to participate in. I think of his sadness today as he remembers his friends that were killed before his very eyes. I think of those wives, moms and dads, brothers and sisters and children and friends that have to suffer through today because the wounds of losing their family members are way too raw.

Please pray for all the sons and daughters and their families today who are “remembering” and are so sad. Pray for God’s comfort to be real to them and for God to give to them the ultimate comfort of the gift of faith so they will repent of their sins and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

(photo by democracycellproject)

John 8:28b-30
“…I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. And He who taught me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him. As He was saying these things, many believed in Him.”

Jesus, thank you for always doing the things that are pleasing to the Father and THANK YOU for crediting this righteous obedience of YOURS to me! Thank you for working in my heart so I could respond by faith to your atoning work on my behalf. Oh Lord God you are indeed worthy to be praised! Thank you Lord for opening my eyes to believe!

© 2007 Tucker Photography.(Left to right Will Franklin, Maria, Steven, Shaoey, Mary Beth, Stevey Joy, Caleb and Emily)

1 Thess 5:17
"Pray without ceasing."

1 Thess 4:13
"But we do not want you to be uninformed brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope."

From the moment I heard about the tragic accident in the Steven Curtis Chapman family, My heart was bent towards prayer for them. Isn't that funny? I don't even know them personally ... but how kind of God that when we hear of the suffering of a brother and sister in Christ we immediately feel connected somehow. At least I do.

I was reminded yesterday that I must pray for those that are suffering. It is a mystery to me how God uses the prayers of the saints, but He does. I know that I can pray for the Chapman family, as so many others in the christian community are doing' and God uses these prayers to accomplish His purposes.

One thing that is encouraging to me is that we know that any suffering that comes into the life of the christian is not without purpose. God has a purpose for all things and we can trust Him in that. I can't even imagine the pain of their grief right now. They are swimming in sadness.

Molly Piper (John Piper's daughter in law) wrote on her blog yesterday about what the Chapman family can expect in the days, weeks, months to come. Molly writes with knowledge for she and her husband had their baby die last year. She said that tidal waves of pain will wash over them again and again and then she said,
"I’m not trying to be pessimistic or say that God is not there. He’s the tidal wave and he’s the light at the top and he’s the fresh, cold air that their lungs will scream for."
She knows the pain of grief and YET she grieves with hope. She knows her God.

So, today i will continue to pray for the Chapman family. I encourage you to do so too. They need our prayers.

Father, not Judge!

John 5:24
"Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears My Word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life. He does not come into judgement, but has passed from death to life."

What a gospel- loaded Scripture! There are so many things to meditate on from this one scripture alone but the phrase that stands out to me this morning is, "He does not come into judgement."... WOW! As a believer in and follower of Jesus Christ I will not come into God's judgement!!!! Jesus came into judgement FOR ME, and therefore I will not have to. JESUS stood before God who judged Jesus for MY sins so I will not be judged for my sins. Therefore, my relationship with God is NOT with Him as my judge, but I have the honor, the privilege and the humbling joy of relating to God as my FATHER. Incredible! My mind can hardly put it's arms around this beautiful truth! Thank you Jesus!

LOOK TO GOD!

Is 31:1
" WOE to those who go down to Egypt
1)for help
and
2)rely on horses,
3)who trust in chariots because there are many
and in
4)horsemen because they are very strong,
BUT DO NOT
1)look to the Holy One of Israel
or
2)consult the Lord!

This scripture was the very first verse I read this morning and it hit me between the eyes. The word "WOE" means to experience deep distress and misery. Yikes! Doesn't it seem counter-intuitive for a nation to be miserable if they depend on their military might? Doesn't that usually give us comfort and hope for victory or protection? How about us, in America, in post 9-11 living? Don't we feel comfortable in knowing that we have an incredible Homeland Security? Is this where our peace and comfort should come from? Not according to this scripture.

The bible says that WOE, misery and distress and trouble will come upon the ones who look to power and might for their protection and help INSTEAD of looking to the ONE, instead of consulting the LORD, the very ONE who gives us the horses, the horsemen and the chariots.. the Homeland Security, the military might .... It is GOD who saves, not our power and might.

I have begun to get a little worried about the direction that the elections are taking. It looks like Obama just may be our president. Yesterday I watched a video of Obama speaking to Planned Parenthood and he was just so callous when speaking of the unborn. It literally made me get teary eyes and frightened at what his presidency may bring to our country.

THEN... I read this scripture this morning. Although i am to be responsible in my voting, I am not to look to my president for my safety and hope. EVEN if THE perfect candidate were to become president who was pro-life, took perfect care of the poor, had THE perfect health plan etc ec... STILL I would be wrong to feel safe because of HIM/HER. Woe would still be mine if I looked to the perfect candidate rather than God!

My eyes must look to the Holy One of Israel, I must remember to consult the Lord. Let's pray for one another as the elections heat up. I can get caught up in it all and I want to REMEMBER to look to God and no where else!

DEAL or NO DEAL?

Psalm 90:14
"Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days."

2 things stand out for me this morning as I meditate on this scripture:

1) We can call upon God and ask him to satisfy us! The mystery of God is that God himself gives us this love for Him. HE initiated our salvation, HE gives us the faith to turn to Christ in faith and repentance and we can and should ask God to satisfy us with Himself and His steadfast love.

I know I have had "dry" times in my walk with the Lord where I feel far from God, or I am not especially aware of His presence. I tried to "force" myself to love Him more or be satisified in Him more but that just doesn't work all the time! Yes, we are responsible to read His Word and this will draw us near to Him but how often have I read His word and... nothing.

I have found that the very best thing to do is to go to God in honesty and tell him that I feel far from Him, I ask him to satisfy me with HIS steadfast love.... God WILL answer that prayer!

2) the result of being satisfied with God's steadfast love is rejoicing and gladness!!! Now that's a good deal!!!

Catch the FOXES, the little FOXES!

Song of Solomon 2:15
"Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom."

This weekend the local news reported that 2 people in Fairfax County, in two different locations, were bitten by a rabid fox! Each person was going about their daily routine, one was taking out the trash, the other was mowing the lawn, when unprovoked the fox attacked them. (Each individual is fine and undergoing rabies shots). This scared me. Our house is up against a wooded area and I always see foxes and families of foxes. They walk right through our front yard!
Fear prompted me to be more alert as I go to the mailbox, go to my car, etc. It is a good thing to be more alert right now if there seems to be rabies in our local foxes! I believe it is a good fear if I let it motivate me to safety and watchfulness. I have begun to pray for the children who play in the neighborhood, that God would protect them from the foxes.

THEN, I remembered this scripture. Am I just as vigilant in my life against sin? Do I allow the "little sins" (the little foxes) to spoil the vineyard (my walk with God)?
Am I as careful and watchful for the sin that creeps into my life as I am right now as I walk out my door? Am I guarding my soul the way I am guarding my body right now? Am I in prayer for my neighbors and their salvation the way I am praying for God to protect them from an animal? Am I as aware of the sin that crouches at my door the way I am watchful for a fox to be near my door? Do I go about my daily routine not aware of the sins that affect my soul? How vigilant am I ???

Last night I heard an audio clip of John Piper pleading with his listeners to make war against sin!! He was so passionate in his pleadings that we must battle our sin. If we don't kill sin, it will kill us! We must battle sin and put it to death! And we can because as believers sin is no longer our master! JESUS is our master! Amen!!!

The sum of my meditations on this topic is this: Oh Lord! Help me to make war against my sin! Reveal to me the "little sins" the ones that I don't even notice so that I may, by the power of the Holy Spirit, battle them and put them to death! I am encouraged Lord, that because you love me, you will help me. The battle belongs to you O Lord, victory is promised because Jesus spent his precious blood to ransom me and I am forever secure. Oh Lord, catch the foxes the little foxes that spoil my vineyard. I need your help! In Jesus... for HIS glory. Amen.

O HAPPY DAY!

John 1:16
"And from HIS fullness we have all received, grace upon grace."

"Glorious God, I bless Thee that I know Thee. I once lived in the world, but was ignorant of its Creator, was partaker of Thy providences, but knew not the provider, was blind while enjoying hte sunlight, was deaf to all things spiritual, with voices all around me, understood many things, but had no knowledge of Thy ways, saw the world but did not see Jesus only. O HAPPY DAY, when in Thy love's sovereignty Thou didst look me, and call me by grace. THEN did the dead heart begin to beat, the darkened eye glimmer with light, the dull ear catch Thy echo, and I turned to Thee and found Thee, a God ready to hear, willing to save.
(Valley of Vision, pp edition, p 62)

Is 40:28-31

Have you not known?!
Have you not heard?!

THE LORD is the EVERLASTING GOD, the CREATOR of the ends of the earth.

He does not:
faint
or
grow weary;
His understanding is unsearchable!

He gives:
power to the faint
And to him who has no might:
He increases strength.

Even youths shall faint
and
young men shall fall exhausted;

BUT THEY WHO WAIT FOR THE LORD:
shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not be faint.

I pray the reading of this Word today finishes out my week with a joy in the mightiness, faithfulness and mercy of God as I look to HIM, as I seek HIM, as I wait for HIM to give me strength! Oh what a mighty God we have! Such compassion, such tenderness, such generosity in giving us what we need to endure! The JOY of knowing that God initiated this salvation and the knowing that HE keeps it and gives us strength to endure gives me joy inexpressable!

more STRENGTH

Psalm 73:26
"My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

This is such an encouraging scripture!!! I have nothing to add to it accept to say that I am grateful to God that it is not my heart nor my flesh that is my strength for these things will indeed fail, instead, my strength comes from God who will never, ever fail and who never changes. That is such good news!

THE TENDERNESS OF JESUS

Is 40:11
He will tend His flock like a shepherd; He will gather His lambs in His arms; He will carry them in His bosom and gently lead those that are with young.

"Who is HE of whome such gracious words are spoken? He is THE GOOD SHEPHERD. Why doth He carry the lambs in His bosom? Because He hath a tender heart, and any weakness at once melts His heart. The sighs, the ignorance, the feebleness of the little ones of His flock draw forth His compassion. It is His office, as a faithful High Preiest, to consider the weak. Besides, He purchased them with blood, they are His property. He must and will care for that which cost Him so dear. Then He is responsible for each lamb, bound by covenant engagements not to lose one. Morever, they are all a part of His glory and reward." (Charles Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, May 14 evening)

I read this quote from Spurgeon last night before I fell asleep and my soul was stirred with affection for Jesus as I considered HIS tenderness towards me. I love Spurgeon's words that say any weakness at once melts His heart. Jesus knows how weak we are, that's why He died for us!!! We are weak in sin, weak in living... we are just plain weak! Jesus sees our weakness and cares for us. This scripture is precious because it shows the tenderness of God. Spurgeon continues to say how carrying one in His bosom implies a very intimate relationship. Today I am reveling in my God who is a NOT a God far off, but a God very near. So near I think I hear His heartbeat.

I AM WEAK!

2 Cor 12:9-10

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

In keeping with the theme of strength this week I see this scripture as such an encouragement.
My weaknesses showcase the glory and beauty of Christ for in my weaknesses HIS power rests upon me and makes me strong, makes me persevere. Jesus is glorified when, I, in my weakness, rest in His amazing grace. As we saw earlier this week in 2 Timothy, we are strengthened by God’s grace and in this scripture we are told that His grace is enough!!
Then, Paul, in his humility is willing then to be content in whatever it is that exposes Paul’s weaknesses and illuminates the grace and power of Christ as HIS strength rests upon us!

I don’t know about you, but I am quick to flee from those things which show my weaknesses. Insults, hardships, calamities… we see these as our enemies… but today I am thinking that it is these things which expose my weakness and gives me the opportunity to depend on Christ for my strength. He is glorified and my faith is increased as I once again see God’s faithfulness in strengthening me by His grace. Now, I’m not saying we stand defiantly in the face of hardships and say, “BRING IT ON!”… but instead humbly bow before the Lord and admit our weakness and seek HIS strength.

Thank you Lord that your grace is sufficient for me! For when I am weak, THEN I am strong. Amen.

STRENGTH

1 Chronicles 16: 10-12

“Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord, rejoice! Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His presence continually! Remember the wondrous works of the Lord that He has done, His miracles and the judgements He uttered….”

I’m still thinking about strength in the Lord. Yesterday I pondered that God tells us to be strong in him and then we see that we are strengthened by grace and in today’s scripture I see that we are to SEEK strength. This implies an action on our part!! We are not to remain impassive and wait for God strength to fall down upon us, but we are to seek it! How?? We seek his presence.. how? We remember the wondrous works of the Lord that he has done. We remember his miracles. We remember the judgements that He has uttered. And how do we remember these things? From HIS WORD! Oh praise God for the scriptures. We have the privilege of having the works, the WONDROUS works of God written down for us. We must, must, must immerse ourselves in the reading and study of God’s Word. As we read God’s Word and remember who He is and what He has done, we will be strengthened! Our faith will increase and be strengthened. We have to make the effort to sit down, open the bible and READ!

Thank you Lord for giving us the bible. Forgive me for those times that I take it for granted or see the reading of your Word as some kind of task or box that I check off. Once again I see that you tell us to be strong in You, you tell us to see you and your strength and then you give us your Scriptures to teach us and strengthen us! Thank you O God for strengthening me through your Word.

BE STRONG in the LORD!

Ephesians 6:10
Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of HIS might.

2 Timothy 2:1
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

These scriptures encouraged me today. We are told to be strong in the Lord in HIS strength and then we are told that we, ourselves, are strengthened by the grace that is in Jesus. I am reminded that I am the weak one and JESUS is the strong one! I have had opportunity this passed week to rely on the strength of Jesus many times… as I struggled against sin, as I struggled with the flu, … each time I called out on God and he gave me strength… strength to resist sin and strength to endure in my illness. I am in awe of how much God loves us. He doesn’t make demands of us and then leave us to ourselves to do them. He GIVES us what we need to meet his commands. God’s Word tells us to be strong in the Lord and then tells us that we are strengthened by GRACE! What a kind, generous and gracious God!

Thank you Lord for giving my YOUR strength and grace to rely on! Thank you that I do not have to rely on my own strength for I have none. I have only weakness but in YOU I am strong! Thank you for giving to me ALL I need to be strong in You.

1 John 1:9

“if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Is that not the best news you could hear today? Even if we can’t see a specific sin in our lives (which I would find almost impossible to believe), then there are the sins that we don’t even know we’re doing!!!! I love Psalm 19:12 which says, “Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults.” Our hearts are deceitful at best and will lie to us about our sins, telling us there are none where there are some!!! We have some hidden faults!
How kind and gracious of God to forgive us our sins that we confess and we can go to him and know that he will reveal to us our hidden sins and bring us to a sorrowful repentance. We don’t have to go digging for sin.. all we have to do is ask God to show us our sins and he will do it because He is for us not against us.
Oh Lord, thank you that you are faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Thank you that because my heart is deceitful you will show me my hidden sins. Thank you Lord for your mercy and grace. Thank you for your faithfulness. Thank you for this good news today. I fall on my knees and cry, “HOLY.”

John 3:29-30
“The one who had the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. He must increase but I must decrease.”

“We exist to glorify Christ. If someone else can do it better, let them. Let’s rejoice when others surpass us spiritually. God will be glorified and we’ll be filled with joy.” Stephen Altrogge

There just isn’t any room in the Christian life for competition or jealousies. There is no room for exalting self… we must glorify Christ! Not ourselves!
Like John the Baptist, I must decrease. CHRIST must increase.

You must read Stephen Altrogge's blog about this scripture. It was excellent!

REMEMBER

Psalm 77: 9-15

“Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has He in anger shut up his compassion? Then I said, “I will appeal to this, to the years of the right hand of the Most High.” I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old. I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds. Your way, O God, is holy. What god is great like our God? You are the God who works wonders; your have made known your might among the peoples. You with your arm redeemed your peoples, the children of Jacob and Joseph.”

In this psalm, the psalmist feels as though God is not listening, not hearing. He felt forgotten by God and then in the very next sentence he knows what to do! He reviews the great works and wonders of God. He reminds himself and God of all the works God has done! I believe the psalmist is encouraged when he reviews what God has already done.

This is a good lesson for us! When we feel that God is far off we must immediately review what He has already done!
We must preach the gospel to ourselves! It will serve our souls well to remember the great works and wonders of our God and it will glorify him as we do this!

How Great is our God??

WHAT SHOULD I DO?

1 Peter 4:19

“Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.”

I have a godly Christian friend who teaches in a local school system. Her job requires that she tests A LOT of children to assess their progression in their studies. The county has a firm date for beginning and ending this testing. Many of my friend’s colleagues encouraged her to begin the testing before the official beginning date and told her to put lie about the date. My friend refused to do so. She said it would be lying to do so and she didn’t want to lie. She was criticized, told that she would have a hard time finishing. My friend felt pressure, but she stuck to the godly way. I think she endured suffering in that she was aware of what people were thinking about her and saying about her. Although this suffering wasn’t unbearable, and does not compare at all to the sufferings some of our brothers and sisters in this world have to endure for their faith, it was a small suffering but she endured. She did good, while trusting her faithful Creator.

So, I began to think what “little” things do I have to endure while doing good? Is it saying no to certain movies or tv shows? Is it not chuckling at the off color joke? Is it not entering into gossip or judgement about someone?

Oh God, help me to choose to do good while entrusting myself to you, my faithful Creator!

By the way… my friend began the testing when she was supposed to and finished on time. Praise the Lord!

GOD IS FOR US!

Psalm 56:9b
This I know, that God is for me.

Romans 8:31-33
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us who can be against us?

When I am reminded that God is for me it gives me such comfort! God demands righteousness from us but HE gives it to us through Jesus Christ! God tells us to be holy as He is holy but he doesn’t leave us to our own devices to be holy, HE works in us to make us holy! Sometimes we get discouraged when God reveals sin in our lives. We shouldn’t be!! We should be repentant and sorrowful, but not discouraged! Because God is for us we can be assured that He shows us our sin to help us defeat and kill that sin in our lives! He doesn’t show us our sin to condemn us for there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1) but he does so to make us more like Jesus!!! God is for us! He will complete in us what he has begun! I am praising God for this today!

THANK YOU FOR SAVING ME!

2 Timothy 1:9

…who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of His own purpose and grace, which He gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began.”

This little verse is packed full of gospel truths but what hit me square between the eyes this morning was the phrase, “not because of our works but because of His own purpose and grace” …
I am reminded this morning of God’s grace and kindness in saving me. I did NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING, to deserve or require Him to save me. He did so because of his purpose and grace. That’s it! HE DID IT and He did it before anything we see now, existed! WOW! Before I even was born, before time began, God saved me because of his purpose and grace. THAT is worthy to think and ponder on today!

It makes want to sing this song:

Thank You For Saving Me

Thank you for saving me,

what can I say?

You are my everything,

I will sing your praise.

You shed your blood for me,

what can I say?

You took my sin and shame,

a sinner called by name.

Great is the Lord,

Great is the Lord,

For we know your truth has set us free,

You've set your hope in me.

Mercy and grace are mine,

forgiven is my sin,

Jesus my only hope,

the Saviour of the world.

"Great is the Lord" we cry,

God let your kingdom come,

Your word has let me see,

thank you for saving me!

Written by Martin Smith ©1994 Curious? Music UK

By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: desiringGod.org :

Can I take the Lord's Supper if I've had a bad week spiritually?
Listen Download Podcast

Download: Audio
By John Piper May 2, 2008

The following is an edited transcript of the audio.
Can I take the Lord's Supper if I've had a bad week spiritually?
It depends on the transaction of the moment, not the quality of the week gone by.
Nobody brings a successful week to the Lord's Table, period. Nobody. We all call into question—and rightly—the effectiveness of our devotions or the quality of our communication with our kids. It's never been perfect. Therefore, we bring to the table our sin.
That's the point of the table. It is a recognition of our sin.
However, what you do in preparation—when you take stock of yourself—is that you confess all known sin. You do Psalm 19: "Cleanse me of hidden faults, and hold back your servant from presumptuous sins."
So you pray specific confession for the sins you know, you pray general confession for the sins you're unaware of, and you receive afresh the cleansing, the application of the blood of Christ (1 John 1:9: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness").
Now, after you've appropriated afresh the work of Christ and are enjoying that forgiveness, you eat. And you eat worthily, not because you had a good week, but because you have a great Savior and are united with him by faith and are renouncing all those sins.
That's what I encourage our people to do. "Set it right with God now, in these next three minutes." And then as the trays come we celebrate that, we remember the foundation of that forgiveness, by eating.

ASSURANCE and ANSWERED PRAYER

Psalm 35:3b
“Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.”

“David knew where to obtain full assurance…” Spurgeon went on to pray as perhaps David did when he asked God to say to his soul that HE is his salvation… “Lord, I have sinned; I deserve not thy smile; I scarcely dare ask it; but oh! Say to my soul, even to my soul. “I am thy salvation. Let me have a present, personal, infallible, indisputable sense that I am Thine, and that Thou art mine.” (Charles Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, evening-March5)

I fell upon this scripture this morning in my bible. I had written this quote from Spurgeon in the margin next to this scripture. For a time I struggled with assurance of salvation. I purchased so many books on the subject of assurance and would be encouraged for a while but still had a nagging fear in my mind. Then I read this devotion by Spurgeon and thought to myself, ‘I will pray this prayer. I will ask GOD for HIS assurance.” Needless to say God answered my prayer and gave me a deep seated assurance that I am HIS and HE is mine.

As one who LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to read great books of sound doctrine it is often to those that I go to seek some piece of truth. It is so kind of God to give us these resources to teach us sound biblical doctrine. But I realize, now, that in reading these books I have a responsibility to allow these great books to direct my eyes back to God’s Word. I believe most authors desire to do that, to direct our eyes to the cross, to the word of God. Spurgeon’s great little devotional directed my eyes to Psalm 35 and it was there that God prompted me to pray and ask God for assurance!

So, this little scripture reminds me of 2 things today:

1) How sweetly God answered my prayer to be assured of HIS salvation! He showed me that David, himself, needed that assurance and that it is from GOD that I should seek that assurance.
2) That God has given us great resources to teach us but we should not let those be our primary source of learning about God but we must allow them to direct our eyes to the Word of God.

I’m still a bibliophile, but I know that it is God’s Word, first and foremost that will teach me.

NO CONDEMNATION!

WE ARE

COMPLETELY FREE!

Romans 8:1
“There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

This morning on the blog, OF FIRST IMPORTANCE , todays quote is:

CJ Mahaney, THE CROSS CENTERED LIFE, 39,40 :
“Because of the gospel’s power, you can be completely free of all condemnation. Not mostly free, COMPLETELY free! Don’t buy the lie that cultivating condemnation and wallowing in your shame is somehow pleasing to God, or that a constant, low grade guilt will somehow promote holiness and spiritual maturity. It’s just the opposite! God is glorified when we believe with all our hearts that those who trust in can never be condemned. It’s only when we receive his free gift of grace and live in the good of total forgiveness that we are able to turn, from old sinful ways of living and walk in grace-motivated obedience.” (CJ Mahaney, THE CROSS CENTERED LIFE, 38-40)

I am reveling and resting in the good of the gospel and the greatness of God today! THIS is good news!!!!