Every daybreak is a chance to start a new…every sunrise, an opportunity to begin a fresh. Therefore, don’t start the day with the broken pieces of yesterday. In Isaiah 65:17 The Lord tells us that He will not remember the former things, nor will they come to mind…(these “things” being the adversities and disgraces of our sin.)…so we shouldn’t start the day in shame either. Instead, every morning we are to recall God’s many acts of steadfast & divine love for us…and remember that His mercy & compassion cannot ever end towards His people. Thus, every morning can dawn new and full of joy for us. (Psalm 30:5)
Month: February 2025
Psalm 80:3 ” Restore us, O God; make Your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.”
Psalm 80 is a prayer for restoration of God’s favor… asking for guidance and provision. It stems from the Priestly Blessing in Numbers 6:24-26, where God gave Moses a threefold blessing for Aaron and his sons to recite to the people. “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” Thus, the Writer of this Psalm is reminding God of what He has promised in the past to His people in this current time of desperate need.
” A person’s most beautiful asset is not a head full of knowledge, but a heart full of love, an ear ready to listen, and a hand willing to help others.” Mother Teresa
In I Peter 3:3-4 we see a warning against the preoccupation with outward appearances…of having “head knowledge” but no compassion. Or as II Timothy 3:1-5 speaks to having a “form of godliness but denying its power.” For when we’re lovers of ourselves, proud, and boastful…we become more godless than godly. In I Timothy 2:9-10, Paul wasn’t concerned at all with the clothing or jewelry someone wore, but rather with the attitude of the one wearing them. That’s because true beauty comes from within, and it’s how we should live in light of what Jesus has done for us.
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“You will never glory in God till first of all God has killed your glorying in yourself.” Charles Spurgeon
As we look through the Scriptures, we can see that it never ended well for those who tried to usurp God’s glory and place themselves on the throne of their lives. Examples would be Lucifer (Isaiah 14:14), Adam and Eve (Genesis 3: 1-7), and King Herald (Acts 12:21-23) God declared in Isaiah that, “I give My glory to no other.” (Isaiah 42:8) and He means it. There is only one God (I Corinthians 8:4) and we are not Him…and will never be Him. And the sooner we acknowledge our pitiful wretchedness and allow God to work in our lives the better it will be for us.
Mark 1:35 ” Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed.”
In the Gospels we see many times Jesus seeking out desolate & deserted places to pray. For this is where He fought His spiritual battles. In Mark 1:12 we read where the Spirit drove Jesus out into the wilderness…the meaning of “drove” here that of Divine and Scriptural necessity. Even in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was by Himself, away from others as He struggled in prayer. So why is secluded prayer important? To start, it’s a way of shutting out the noise of the world and all its distractions…and that includes our phones. It’s a chance to really focus on God and allow Him to speak to you through Scripture and prayer. And finally, like Jesus, it’s an opportunity to take important issues to God…asking for wisdom, direction, and Divine insight.
I John 3:18 ” Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”
The crux of this Scripture from John can be found in Romans 12:9, “Love must be sincere.” With the Greek word for “sincere” referencing back to Classical Greek drama, where the actor wore a mask and wasn’t genuine. So here, John is urging his readers to not just think about it, or make promises that they will never keep, or make grandiose speeches with no integrity…but to put their love in action with authenticity…modeling the love of Jesus for all to see.
“When a door closes, knock on it a few times. But if it doesn’t open, let it stay closed. In career, in love, in life, when you see the period at the end of the sentence, don’t try and turn it into a comma. Know when something is over and move on.” Mother Teresa
As Believers, we will all go through Seasons of our life. Doors open and doors close, as the Lord leads us on our journey. But many times, that closing door catches us by surprise and brings out the worst in us. We’re comfortable & very content where we are, thank you, and don’t want to change. Or we’re finally in a place of honor & accolades in our Ministry Outreach…so how dare the Lord shut us down! Closing doors can also be very scary, because what are we going to do now? So, we cling to the door handle & block the door closing with our bodies, all the while crying and complaining…or we curl up in an angry ball in front of the closed door and refuse to move…both of which are totally futile. Proverbs 16:25 tells us that there is a way that seems right to man, but it’s not God’s way…and we all know that God’s way is the best way. So, the next time a door closes in your life, accept it as God’s divine Will.
II Samuel 7:22 ” How great You are, O Sovereign Lord! There is no one like You, and there is no God but You…”
This is part of David’s prayer of gratitude to God. Having offered Him a house (the Temple), David is overwhelmed by the Lord’s declaration that He will build David a house. (a dynasty) In humility, David recognizes that it’s the Sovereign Lord Who has been present with him all along and will continue to be with him. He is also humbled by God’s unmerited favor…for God has chosen David and the Nation of Israel itself to be His chosen people through whom God’s great Name will become known to the world. (Exodus 15:11-13 & Deuteronomy 7:6-8)
Malachi 3:10 ” Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house. ‘Test Me in this’, says the Lord Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.’ “
God usually tests man, not the other way around…but here, God is inviting His people to prove His claims, justify His commands, and determine for themselves His essential character and integrity. The Apostle Paul in his second letter to the Church in Corinth called them to excel in the grace of giving…suggesting that love should move them to greater generosity, and that the Old Covenant of tithing was just the minimum they should be giving. In II Corinthians 9:7 Paul wrote, “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” In other words, God examines our motives for giving, not the amount we give.
James 5:10-11 ” Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.”
James is urging his oppressed Christian readers to remain patient in their suffering…reminding them that God is still in control even when their lives appear to be spiraling downward with trials and tribulations. He uses the well-known Old Testament figure, Job, as an example of patience in the face of adversity. For even after losing everything…his wealth, children, and health, Job ‘s trust in God couldn’t be shaken, and his faith remained steadfast. And at the end of Job bearing up under his load of miseries, God’s compassion & mercy delivered him…”Blessing the latter part of his life more than the first.”
Safetypinlove 