For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him.
He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress;
I shall not be shaken.
On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us. Verses 5-8
It is a wonderful thing that my salvation rests solely in God's hands. Therefore, I am secure. I am safe from all things.
It's review day, so I will look over the past 6 devotions to see if I have learned anything.
DAY 204--LIVE BEFORE GOD--Matthew 5:27-29,33-37
We need to say what we mean in all cases. We need never embellish the truth or make stuff up when talking to other people. The title says it all, "Live Before God." We need to live and act and talk as if God sees/hears everything we do/say, because, guess what! He does! If we would live and talk that way, we would not make promises that we can't keep or that we have no intention of keeping. We need to let our "Yes" be "Yes" and our "No" be "No."
DAY 205--PRAY WITH SIMPLICITY--Matthew 6:5-13
Our prayer times with God need to be simple and honest. We need to be as completely honest with God as we can. The author urges us to not make our prayers a theatrical production. God is not impressed by our showy words and vocal gymnastics. We don't have to speak loudly for God to hear. We don't have to sound sad. We don't have to sound any way at all. We just need to be honest, transparent. He sees it all anyway. Here's a list of the elements of "simple" prayer:
1. Find a quiet secluded place.
2. Don't "role-play" before God.
3. Be with God as simply and honestly as you can.
4. Watch the focus shift from you to God.
DAY 206--AN INVITATION--Matthew 9:9-13
Jesus calls Matthew, the Tax Collector to join his entourage. He is criticized because of the company he keeps. This is the type of situation that is a "no-win" situation for a Christian. I've about decided that all criticism from non-believers should just be ignored. They have made up their minds that nothing we do is acceptable. If we don't help the poor and outcast enough, we get criticized. If we do help the poor and outcast, we are criticized. No one who rejects the word of God or his Savior has any ground to criticize a Christian. The Pharisees had no grounds to criticize Jesus. He was perfect in every way. How could he be criticized?? It only proves that they were just trying to make themselves feel better in their selfish state of being.
As for us, we need to be careful of criticizing each other, especially in the sight of unbelievers. If we have disagreements, they need to be handled respectfully, quietly, and Biblically. Not in the public eye with things like lawsuits, etc. In fact, the Bible actually forbids lawsuits between Christians. Yep. It does. We are to be a people of peace.
DAY 207--JESUS THE HEALER--Matthew 9:18-26
The power of Jesus to heal is exhibited in this passage, twice. His power is awesome, and his gentleness is, well, a little amazing. While passing through a great crowd of people, a woman sneaks up and, essentially, "steals" a little bit of his power. I guess she thought he wouldn't notice and that she could just slip away, delivered from what plagued her. No such luck. Jesus noticed.
He did not berate her. He comforted her. I'm sure she was terrified when he called her out. But that terror must have quickly turned to peace at his comforting words. "Your faith has healed you." Would one of our modern day "faith healers" have responded in such a way if someone tried to get healed without giving him the credit? Good question. Let us revel in the peace and gentleness of our Savior/healer.
DAY 208--WALK WITH ME--Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus gives us an invitation to "hang out" with him. He asks in several different ways in this passage, all of which just sound so peaceful and tranquil. Makes me want to jump at the opportunity to spend time with him! He promises that it won't be hard, either. What a great promise. And as I look out over the hazy ocean this morning, I get just a small, very small, sense of that peace that accompanies a walk with Christ. I remember walking through the redwood forests of northern California a few years ago, and how quiet it was. I couldn't even hear my footsteps. Yes. Let's walk with Jesus every day.
DAY 209--EYES SCREWED SHUT--Matthew 13:10-17
What I learned from this passage, I did not learn from Peterson's translation. It fits more with the Psalm I quoted earlier this morning. My salvation is in God's hands. My readiness to hear his word is also in his hands. He decides who hears and responds to his word. We don't decide. If our eyes are "screwed shut," it is because God has closed them, not us.
That's it for this review. Be back tomorrow morning (in Texas, ugh!) for a new week.
Grace and peace, friends.